On Tuesday, Vivek Oberoi and Swara Bhaskar were present in a campaign to spread awareness about the health hazards that traffic police personnel face because of different types of pollution. They also released a video on the subject, titled Hawa Badlo, and distributed special masks for the police.
Speaking about the hazards faced by the police, Oberoi said, “We never think about traffic police like how they are performing their duties in difficult circumstances. When I first heard this concept I readily agreed to be a part of this cause. I spoke with our honorable chief minister Devendra Fadnavis. He is highly concerned about the health of policemen. Government is working in this area. But there should be more compassion towards our men in uniform from us. They don’t fire guns like our filmi cops. But they are running the city’s roads daily and without them we can’t move. When we are stuck in a traffic jam, we realize how much we need them. They are the unsung heroes. They quietly do their work.”
Vivek also urged people to respect the traffic police. "Every traffic cop of Mumbai will receive a high-quality international standard mask, which will benefit their health. If you can’t donate towards it, you can trend it on social media. If you can’t do this, just give them a smile. Don’t look at any traffic police personnel like any equipment. They are humans and have their own problems. I have taught this to my four-year-old son Vivaan. Whenever he sees a cop, he salutes and says, ‘Jai Hind!’ No matter how stressed they are, 100 out of 100 times they will smile back.”
While showering praise on the police, Swara Bhaskar admitted that she had been guilty of breaking traffic rules. “It is so easy to blame and abuse the police but I think police personnel are real heroes of India. I am guilty in two ways. When I used to drive my car, whenever I have broken a signal, almost every time I have been caught. In Mumbai, I am guilty of entering a one-way road. Being from Delhi, I couldn’t understand that we shouldn’t enter certain lanes. Later, I used to force my driver to jump red lights, saying, ‘I have a shoot. Someone is waiting for me.’ But now I follow all traffic rules.”
She also talked about recent controversy of DU stendunt Gurmehar Kaur who is getting death and rape threats for speaking against stundent union ABVP. She said, “As a DU and JNU student, I would like to say that in any context violence is not justified. You can call it nationalism or give it some another term but fact is that you shouldn’t instigate any kind of violence and we should always solve issues with sensible conversation.”
The event also saw two traffic police officers speaking about their passion for the service despite their daily struggles.
For Hawa Badlo, Vivek Oberoi, Swara Bhaskar, Kalki Koechlin, Govind Namdeo and Vir Das has lent their voices and it is directed by Karmik Varma.