Veteran Actor Naseeruddin Shah Stands with His Sons at Jantar Mantar’s ‘Chalo Sansad’ Protest

On the evening of July 20, 2026, a familiar figure was spotted weaving through the crowds at Jantar Mantar – veteran thespian Naseeruddin Shah, flanked by his sons, Imaad and Vivaan. The trio arrived just as the Cockroach Janta Party’s “Chalo Sansad” march was entering a particularly charged phase, with students and supporters trying to press their way toward the Parliament precinct.

It wasn’t a spur‑of‑the‑moment decision. A few days earlier, Naseeruddin and his wife Ratna Pathak Shah had signed a joint appeal with writer Arundhati Roy, economist Jayati Ghosh and several other public personalities, urging the hunger‑striking students to look after their health while still pressing for the movement’s core demands – namely, a revamp of the NEET‑UG examination process and accountability from Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged paper‑leak irregularities.

When the camera caught the Shah family stepping onto the grounds, they said very little – just a quiet presence, a few nods, and an unmistakable solidarity. Social‑media feeds buzzed with a simple tweet: “Sometimes, silence speaks louder. ✊🙌”, echoing the sentiment that many protesters felt at that moment.

The protest itself had turned tense. Delhi police had deployed baton‑wielding officers and tear‑gas canisters after demonstrators attempted to breach barricades near the Parliament exit. The CJP accused the force of heavy‑handedness, while the police pushed back, saying several online claims of excessive force were exaggerated. Amid the back‑and‑forth, CJP representatives Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka managed a brief, “cordial” meeting with Union Minister JP Nadda, who urged the sit‑in to end but gave no concrete concessions.

Besides Naseeruddin, the protest has attracted a slew of Bollywood and theatre stalwarts – Shabana Azmi, Swara Bhasker, Prakash Raj, among others – all lending their voices to a cause that many feel threatens the very future of India’s merit‑based education system. The movement, sparked by Sonam Wangchuk’s hunger strike on June 28, continues despite his temporary hospitalization, with fellow striker Abhijeet Dipke ending his fast at Wangchuk’s request.

For the Shah family, the visit was less about making headlines and more about standing shoulder‑to‑shoulder with an increasingly vocal youth. Whether the protest’s demands will translate into policy shifts remains to be seen, but the presence of a respected actor and his sons certainly added another layer of public attention to an already intense debate.