Javed Akhtar defended Rashmika Mandanna against accent-based trolling. However, the lyricist is now facing backlash for referring to her as a Tamil actor, with social media users pointing out that she is a Kodava from Karnataka

At Godrej Literature Live! Mumbai LitFest 2026, Javed Akhtar launched Three Masters, a collection of dohas by Kabir, Rahim and Vrind, translated by Sumantra Ghosal. He explored Kabir’s timeless wisdom on social contribution and explained why AI still falls short in poetry and creative expression due to its lack of human emotions