India
I have had fatwas issued against me, some three in Bangladesh and another five in India. I will not be cowed by these threats and shall fight for my rights.
Cinema in India is like brushing your teeth in the morning. You can't escape it.
To other countries, I may go as a tourist, but to India, I come as a pilgrim.
I just feel that sooner or later, the sheer potential of the demographics of India, which is 1.25 billion people, will eventually be very attractive to the entertainment industry.
When Marcus Garvey died in 1940, the role of the British Empire was already being challenged by India and the rising expectations of her African colonies. Marcus Garvey's avocation of African redemption and the restoration of the African state's sovereign political entity in world affairs was still a dream without fulfillment.
India is my motherland.
Let those men who still have these misguided ideas, let those men who still have these hallucinations, realize that by anarchism, by dastardly crimes, they cannot bring about good government; let them realize that these methods have not succeeded in any country of the world and are not likely to succeed in India.
The best gift for an actor is the love of the fans. Many make sweet cards, write letters and even come and meet me wherever I am in India. The love and blessings of your elders is also always cherished, but the extra mile that the fans go to is memorable.
We earned our dollars in a hard way, nobody gave us a feast or gave it on a plate. We worked hard and we have innovated; we have made things in a better way at a cheaper rate and gave it to the people of India.
My journey began with a single pencil. While traveling through India in 2006, I asked a boy begging on the streets, "If you could have anything in the world, what would you want?" and he answered me with two words: "A pencil". Luckily, I had one in my pocket, and in the second it took me to give it to him, a defining dream was born.
There are large numbers of people in India below the poverty line; there are large numbers of people who lead a meager existence. They want to find a little escape from the hardships of life and come and watch something colorful and exciting and musical. Indian cinema provides that.
When I was growing up, my parents told me, 'Finish your dinner. People in China and India are starving'. I tell my daughters, 'Finish your homework. People in India and China are starving for your job'.
One of the biggest curses from which India is suffering — I do not say that other countries are free from it, but I think our condition is much worse — is bribery and corruption. That really is a poison.
'Make in India' is great, but 'Make It Happen in India' is even greater. Make It Happen in India is more than manufacturing. It's about training, about education, about societal development and automation and engineering.
It is my sincere hope that every person in India will experience true freedom of faith, regardless of religion.
For a real New India to arise, all petty and small things must be given up. To be redeemed, all Indians must offer to sacrifice not only their good things, but all those evil things they cling to blindly — their hates and their divisions, their pride in what they should be thoroughly ashamed of, their quarrels and misunderstandings.
Since being in India, I am more convinced than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance is the most potent weapon available to oppressed people in their struggle for justice and human dignity.
I have lived a long life, and I am proud that I spend the whole of my life in the service of my people. I am only proud of this and nothing else. I shall continue to serve until my last breath, and when I die, I can say, that every drop of my blood will invigorate India and strengthen it.
Back in England, a girl with thick black hair, dusky skin and big brown eyes will turn heads. It is vice versa in India.
India should walk on her own shadow — we must have our own development model.
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