Actor Sanjay Dutt has drawn criticism for saying he “can’t feel peace in India” during a recent talk show appearance. On Sunday evening, he issued a clarification on X.

Dutt made the remark on the Gandhi Jayanti special episode of Shekhar Suman’s Shekhar Tonite. “The people of this country are so lovely. There should be peace here. I can’t feel that peace in our country anymore. We Indians are large-hearted people, and we are hospitable... I pray to Shiv ji that those days come back soon,” he said.

In his statement, Dutt wrote: “My remarks were made in the context of a scripted conversation intended to be light-hearted and humorous. The spirit behind them was similar to the humour and satire seen in films like Munna Bhai, particularly the concept of ‘Gandhigiri’, which was intended to convey a message of love, warmth, togetherness, and goodwill. Unfortunately, my words were interpreted outside of that intended context.”

In another segment, Dutt was asked to imagine himself as Prime Minister for five minutes. He addressed the country in the style of his character Munna Bhai from 2006 film Lage Raho Munna Bhai, which coined the term ‘Gandhigiri’.