Aamir Khan no longer part of Modi govt's Incredible India campaign

Actor says he 'respects the decision of the government'

Aamir Khan is no longer part of the Indian governments' major tourism campaign called Incredible India after serving as its brand ambassador for 10 years.

Rumours were abuzz that the Bollywood megastar has been removed as the face of the campaign because of his recent comments on the growing cases of intolerance in India.

However, according to a report by NDTV, India's Tourism and Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma denied the rumours saying the 50-year-old actor is not part of the campaign any more only because his contract has expired.


The minister also said that Aamir had a contract with advertising firm McCann Erickson not the Indian government. "Since the contract with the agency is no more, automatically the arrangement with the actor no longer exists," Mahesh was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.



Responding to the government's decision, Aamir issued an official statement today. He confirmed that he was no longer brand ambassador of the campaign and said he respected the government's decision not to extend his contract in this regard.



“It has been an honour and a pleasure for me to be the brand ambassador for the Incredible India campaign for the past 10 years,” the statement read.

"I was happy to be of service to my country, and will always be available for it. I would like to clarify that all public service films I have done till date have all been free of any cost to me.  It is always an honour for me to be of service of my country, and this is how it will always be.

"It is the prerogative of the government to decide whether they need a brand ambassador for any campaign and, if so, who that ambassador should be.



“I respect the decision of the government to discontinue with my services. I am sure they will take all appropriate steps to do what is best for the country. Whether I am brand ambassador or not, India will remain Incredible, and that's the way it should be,” asserted the actor-producer.