Things have taken a serious turn ever since actor Aamir Khan opened up about growing intolerance in India, saying that his wife Kiran Rao even considered moving out of the country. Aamir’s public statement has the industry divided with celebrities like Mahesh Bhatt, Farah Khan and Shabana Azmi defending the actor while others including Om Puri, Rishi Kapoor and Anupem Kher taking him to the cleaners for disrespecting the country that made him who he is. BJP MP and veteran actor Shatrugan Sinha has also disapproved of Aamir’s statements, saying that his film PK would have not been a success had India been an intolerant country.
“I am fond of Aamir Khan & family but wholeheartedly disapprove of the idea of India being labelled intolerant by him and others too,” he told the press. “PK, where Hindu gods and goddesses were made fun of in no uncertain terms, would not have seen such success if India was intolerant.”
Naturally, Aamir’s comments didn’t sit well with Shiv Sena members and in another one of their bizarre acts, the party’s Punjab leader Rajeev Tandon offered to give INR 1 Lakh to anybody who slaps Aamir. “Any person who slaps Aamir Khan will be rewarded INR 1 lakh by the Shiv Sena. This is important because no one living in our country should dare to say anything against India… Anyone from the hotel staff or the film crew can slap him and take the reward,” Tandon said. Meanwhile a petition has also been filed against the actor in an Indore court for vitiating the atmosphere in the country, which was a criminal offence.
In a surprising turn of events, the actor who has faced a barrage of abuse from people on social media and fellow actors and politicians, has responded to the growing criticism by retracting from his statement. As reported by Wall Street Journal, the actor took to Facebook to state that he was misquoted and his comments were deliberately distorted, and that his critics are only proving his points.
“First let me state categorically that neither I, nor my wife Kiran, have any intention of leaving the country. We never did, and nor would we like to in the future. Anyone implying the opposite has either not seen my interview or is deliberately trying to distort what I have said. India is my country, I love it, I feel fortunate for being born here, and this is where I am staying,” he wrote. “Secondly, I stand by everything that I have said in my interview. To all those people who are calling me anti-national, I would like to say that I am proud to be Indian, and I do not need anyone’s permission nor endorsement for that. To all the people shouting obscenities at me for speaking my heart out, it saddens me to say you are only proving my point.”
Courtesy: InStep Today (The News)
