Salim Khan rejects Padma Shri, says he deserves a Padma Bhushan at least

Renowned screenwriter and Salman Khan’s father Salim Khan  has refused to accept the Padma Shri award saying that it’s too late for the government to acknowledge his contribution in the field of cinema. Khan also stated that he believes that he is worthy of a higher civilian honour than Padma Shri. Reportedly, Khan said that he deserves to win Padma Bhushan or Padma Vibhushan and seemed miffed with the previous government for ignoring his work over the years. DNA quoted the screenwriter saying, “For years, the central government has ignored me, honouring a number of my peers as well as juniors in the industry.” [caption id=“attachment_2064905” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Courtesy: ibn live[/caption] “..But when I came to know that the ministry has chosen me for Padma Shri, I felt it does not match my status and work,” he added. Salim Khan worked with Javed Akhtar for a considerable part of his career and besides creating characters like the Angry Young Man, Basanti, Gabbar Singh and Mogambo, Salim-Javed bought credibility to a profession that had previously been relegated to the background. Salim Khan’s filmography might have had no additions for the last 17 years but when your writing credits include the likes of Zanjeer (1972), Sholay (1975), Deewar (1975), Trishul (1978) and Don (1978) amongst others, you really don’t have anything left to prove. (read more about Salim Khan here) Indian Today added that while Khan thanked the current government for acknowledging his contribution to cinema he also questioned them if someone of his stature should accept Padma Shri that has come so late. Khan however isn’t the only one who has declined Padma Shri this year. Baba Ramdev refused to take the award saying he is a saint and therefore doesn’t need any acknowledgement for his work. He just wants to serve the society selflessly. Sri Sri Ravishankar also declined the award.