Air India has responded to allegations by actor Lisa Ray that the Tata Group airline did not show empathy for her unwell father as “unfounded”.

Lisa Ray alleged Air India did not accept a medical waiver after which she had to cancel her 92-year-old father’s scheduled travel due to his deteriorating health.

She alleged the airline denied the waiver despite submitting documents from the attending doctor.

“Here we go again Air India. My father is 92, unwell and I have to cancel travel due to his ailing condition. Submitted doctor’s letter and the waiver was denied? How is that possible? Where is the empathy from an airline that is claiming to care about passengers?” the actor said in a post on X.

While Air India responded to her post, the airline gave a longer statement later explaining the matter.

“While fully empathising with the passenger, we would like to put forth the following clarifications: the claim that Air India did not display empathy for her unwell father is unfounded, as the passenger herself mentioned that she is booked to fly Air India along with two other co-passengers that does not include her father, whose medical documents she has submitted,” Air India said.

“The passenger had purchased the ticket from a travel agent and had first reached out to the travel agent, and not to Air India. After the passenger raised the matter to Air India, the Air India team reached out to her and, as an exception, offered solutions that included a free date change or a one-year period to utilise the tickets for future travel. She declined the offer and requested for a full refund of her ticket, instead,” the airline said.

Air India requested the media “to restrain itself from maligning the reputation of the airline without corroborating facts.”

The airline said it flies millions of passengers and “such misleading news reports belie the airline’s resolve to customer centricity and empathy.”

Lisa Ray, who has been open about her own health struggles, including her diagnosis of multiple myeloma in 2009, has become a vocal advocate for patient rights and healthcare awareness. Her memoir ‘Close To The Bone’, released in 2019, documents her journey with the rare bone marrow cancer, including a relapse after three years of remission.

She began her career as a model in the early 90s before making her acting debut in the 2001 film ‘Kasoor’. Most recently, Lisa Ray appeared in the second season of the Prime Video series ‘Four More Shots Please!’