Several Indian celebrities and social media influencers joined an online campaign that called for a boycott of the Maldives and its tourist spots after ministers of the island nation made derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the nation.

What happened?

This development came as Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently visited Lakshadweep, which spurred interest in the Indian island among travel enthusiasts. During his visit, Modi inaugurated several development projects and also explored Lakshadweep's beautiful beaches. Pictures of Modi while snorkelling in the sea went viral on social media and were top trending on X. Lakshadweep became the top-most searched word after his visit.

However, PM Modi's attempt to boost tourism in Lakshadweep angered few people in the Maldives, including government officials. Maldives minister Mariyam Shiuna had derided Modi for his Lakshadweep visit, in a now-deleted post on X. Shiuna had encouraged tourists to visit the island country, through the #VisitMaldives trend. Several Maldivian netizens also posted racist and insulting comments against Indians.

Apart from her, in a now-deleted post, Abdulla Mahzoom Majid had commented on PM Modi's Lakshadweep visit, saying, "While I wish success for India's tourism, targeting the Maldives so explicitly isn't diplomatic. India faces significant challenges competing in beach tourism, considering our resort infrastructure exceeds their total islands.

What did Indian celebrities say? 

After some Maldivian leaders mocked Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Lakshadweep, many celebrities including Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, Sachin Tendulkar, John Abraham, Shraddha Kapoor and others took to their social media handles urging fellow Indians to plan Lakshadweep trip with a common message '#ExploreIndianislands'.

On Saturday, Aakash Chopra took to X and posted: "‘India Out’ was a part of the manifesto. Maldives voted for it. Now, it’s up to us, Indians, to choose wisely. I know that my family will. Jai Hind".


Akshay Kumar wrote, “Came across comments from prominent public figures from Maldives passing hateful and racist comments on Indians. Surprised that they are doing this to a country that sends them the maximum number of tourists. We are good to our neighbors but why should we tolerate such unprovoked hate? I've visited the Maldives many times and always praised it, but dignity first. Let us decide to #ExploreIndianIslands and support our own tourism.”


"It is so cool to see our Hon PM Narendrabhai Modi at the beautiful clean n stunning beaches of Lakshadweep, and the best part is that yeh hamare India mein hain," Salman Khan wrote in response.


Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar didn't name Maldives but joined the online campaign to popularise Indian beaches and tourist spots.


Gorgeous Bollywood actress Shraddha Kapoor also advocated Lakshadweep tourism and shared a note that read, 'All these images and memes making me super FOMO now Lakshadweep has such pristine beaches and coastlines, thriving local culture, I’m on the verge of booking an impulse chhutti This year, why not #ExploreIndianIslands.'
“Lakshadweep is the place to go,” wrote John Abraham on X.

After receiving a huge backlash, the Maldives government on Sunday suspended three of its ministers after they shared offensive remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his Lakshadweep visit on social media. The decision to suspend ministers Malsha Shareef, Mariyam Shiuna and Abdulla Mahzoom Majid from their posts comes after India raised the matter with the island nation today.