Amitabh Bachchan drops cryptic note on 'ethics', fans wonder what it’s about

A day after his colleague of yesteryears, Dharmendra, was released from hospital after a major health scare, Amitabh Bachchan — the actor whose cryptic posts are sometimes too cryptic to decrypt — has now authored a 21-word post.

His post arrived close on the heels of Sunny Deol, Dharmendra's elder son, was recently seen sternly reprimanding media personnel for intruding on the privacy of the Deol family.

While Bachchan didn’t name names, social media users instantly and perhaps correctly deduced that the remarks alluded to mainstream media, which instantly began checking its faint pulse.

“No ethics .. no sense of responsibility .. just an avenue of personal gain,” the 83-year-old actor wrote on his blog, in a tone that suggested he has finally lost patience with… something. Or someone. Or perhaps the entire cosmos.

He wasn’t done. Bachchan then hopped to X and served a Hindi remix of the same sentiment: “No ethics… koi bhi achar-niti nahi.”

For a man who usually keeps his disapproval about unethical behaviour under triple lock and key, this was essentially a megaphone.

The timing of the post, of course, did not escape anyone — especially since the media has spent the past week breathlessly circling hospitals, gates, houses, ambulances, balconies and possibly even the Deol family’s WiFi router as veteran actor Dharmendra underwent medical tests.

With cameras parked outside Breach Candy Hospital and the Juhu residence like over-enthusiastic potted plants, the Deol family had already expressed distress over leaked videos and fake rumours — including one that prematurely killed Dharmendra on Tuesday. (He is alive, recovering, and presumably also reconsidering his relationship with the news cycle.)

Sunny Deol snapped at photographers outside his home. Esha Deol and Hema Malini condemned “irresponsible” speculation. Karan Johar and Ranvir Shorey chimed in with criticism of the circus.

As usual, the megastar has left his post open to interpretation. But if anyone in the media is feeling personally attacked… well, that’s between them and their conscience. Assuming they still have one lying around somewhere.