Naseeruddin Shah embraces 'Dimagi Naxal' label in sharp attack on government
Synopsis
Naseeruddin Shah didn't just comment on the 'Dimagi Naxal' label — he wore it. In a direct-to-camera Facebook video, the veteran actor reclaimed the Prime Minister's own coinage as a mark of pride and called the current government 'illegitimate,' linking today's student unrest to a decade-long pattern of branding dissenters as anti-nationals.
Key Takeaways
Naseeruddin Shah shared a video on Facebook on 28 October 2026 proudly embracing the label 'Dimagi Naxal' .
The term was coined by Prime Minister Modi in his August 2026 Independence Day address, following Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation under public pressure.
Shah accused the government of labelling dissenters as 'anti-national' and 'tukde-tukde gang' , drawing parallels to earlier JNU controversies.
The remarks follow the political standoff at SRFTI, Kolkata , which began with clashes on 27 September 2026 ; the institute suspended 6 students .
Nationally, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) is leading protests against the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls.
The Supreme Court ruled on Sunday that protesters would not be detained and directed public transport to resume normalcy.
Veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, escalated his criticism of the current government, proudly claiming the term 'Dimagi Naxal' in a video shared on his Facebook page. The video shows Shah addressing the camera directly, embracing the label as a badge of honour while levelling pointed accusations at the administration.
What Shah Said
In the video, Shah declared: 'I say with pride, I am a Dimagi Naxal. Apart from Dimagi Naxal, I don't know what other titles the chowkidar has given to people like me, anti-national, tukde-tukde gang and what not. If there is any tukde-tukde gang in this country, then it is this illegitimate government.'
The term 'Dimagi Naxal' was coined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day address in August 2026, in the wake of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation under public pressure. Shah drew parallels to earlier controversies at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), evoking labels such as 'anti-national' and 'tukde-tukde gang' that have previously been used against dissenting voices.
The SRFTI Controversy in the Background
Shah's remarks build on his earlier statements during the ongoing political row at Kolkata's Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI). The dispute erupted on 27 September 2026, when clashes broke out between students and members of the RSS-linked Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat during a campus event. Tensions escalated as students demanded the resignation of Vice-Chancellor Santosh Ajmera, accusing the administration of failing to protect them from subsequent alleged attacks.
The institute subsequently suspended 6 students over alleged misconduct, a move the students' union formally challenged. Alongside Shah, filmmakers Payal Kapadia and Anand Patwardhan have publicly backed the protesters. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) criticised Shah's stance, while the administration alleged that external elements had politicised the agitation.
Wider Student Protests and Electoral Roll Row
Shah's video emerges amid a broader, nationally building student protest movement. The online political outfit Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has intensified its agitation, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The youth-led movement is opposing the Election Commission of India's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, alleging the exercise has disenfranchised millions of voters. Both the Election Commission and the BJP have denied allegations of manipulation.
The CJP has also called for sweeping electoral reforms and an independent inquiry into the alleged irregularities. Notably, the Supreme Court, during a special hearing on Sunday, ruled that protesters would not be detained and directed that public transport return to normalcy.
The Broader Significance
Shah has been a recurring critical voice against the government, and his invoking of the 'Dimagi Naxal' label — reclaiming it defiantly from the Prime Minister's own coinage — signals a sharpening of cultural dissent. This is the latest in a series of confrontations between prominent figures from India's film and arts community and the ruling administration, a pattern that critics argue reflects a wider chilling effect on free expression. The BJP's response to Shah's latest remarks is awaited.
Point of View
Turning the government's own vocabulary against it. The reclamation of 'Dimagi Naxal' follows a well-worn playbook: when authority coins a pejorative, the dissenter wears it as a medal. What the mainstream coverage underplays is the convergence happening here — the SRFTI row, the CJP electoral-rolls protest, and the Supreme Court's intervention are not isolated; together they represent a moment where institutional legitimacy is being contested on multiple fronts simultaneously. Whether the BJP can contain the narrative by branding all these actors as coordinated agitators — or whether the sheer breadth of the pushback forces a policy response — is the story that will define the coming weeks.
NationPress
28 Oct 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Naseeruddin Shah say in his 'Dimagi Naxal' video?
In the video posted on Facebook on 28 October 2026, Shah said he was proud to identify as a 'Dimagi Naxal' and accused the government of branding dissenters as 'anti-national' and part of the 'tukde-tukde gang.' He also called the current administration an 'illegitimate government.'
Where does the term 'Dimagi Naxal' come from?
'Dimagi Naxal' was a term coined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day address in August 2026, reportedly amid the public pressure that led to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation. Shah adopted the label as a badge of honour in his video.
What is the SRFTI controversy that Naseeruddin Shah has spoken about?
The controversy at the Satyajit Ray Film and Television Institute (SRFTI) in Kolkata began on 27 September 2026, with clashes between students and members of the RSS-linked Akhil Bharatiya Grahak Panchayat. Students demanded the Vice-Chancellor's resignation; the institute suspended 6 students. Shah, along with filmmakers Payal Kapadia and Anand Patwardhan, publicly backed the protesters.
What are the national student protests about?
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) is leading a youth-driven protest demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which protesters allege has disenfranchised millions of voters. The Election Commission and the BJP deny any manipulation.
What has the Supreme Court said about the protests?
The Supreme Court, in a special hearing on Sunday, ruled that protesters would not be detained and directed that public transport return to normalcy, signalling a limit on how the state could respond to the demonstrations.
