Aamir Khan hits back at ‘intolerant’ bashers
Actor says he loves India and won’t leave but furore over comment only proving him right
Aamir said he is proud to be Indian to all those calling him anti-national. PHOTO: FILE
Aamir Khan on Wednesday clarified his stance on the ongoing wave of ‘intolerance’, saying he and his wife Kiran Rao love India and would not leave. He said that while he stood by the interview that triggered a huge row, the barrage of criticism directed at him and his wife only prove what he said about the situation in the country, reported IANS.
“First, let me categorically state that neither I nor my wife Kiran have any intention of leaving the country. Neither did we ever, nor would we like to in the future,” he said in a statement. “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 and feel fortunate for being born here, and this is where I am staying.”
“Second, I stand by everything that I have said in my interview,” he went on to say. “To all those people who are calling me anti-national, I would like to say that I am proud to be Indian, and do not need anyone’s permission or 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.”
Leaving India or staying? Aamir Khan breaks silence following criticism
Aamir also extended his thanks to those who have stood by him. “We have to protect what this beautiful and unique country of ours really stands for. We have to protect its integrity, diversity, inclusiveness, its many languages, its culture, its history, its tolerance, its concept of ‘ekantavada’, its love, sensitivity and its emotional strength.”
At an awards event in New Delhi on Sunday, Aamir had spoken of “growing despondency” in India for the last six to eight months. “When I sit at home and talk to Kiran, for the first time, she said, ‘Should we move out of India?’ Now that’s a very disastrous and big comment to make to me,” he had said.
His statement attracted widespread criticism even as many defended him. Local filmmaker Jami Mahmood of Moor fame also stressed that Aamir must have had good reason to voice such a concern. “What Aamir Khan is saying is about intolerance and if there is backlash, then one has to think — maybe he is right,” he said at the International Film Festival of India.
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“It is Aamir Khan who is saying this. He is one of your best. He is one of your best actors and activists. He is a hardcore Indian and it is in his blood,” added Jami. “We have gone through this a lot of times in Pakistan as well and seeing this happen to Aamir Khan is not fair. He has given so much to the industry. I look up to him so much. It is sad.”
The actor has been facing severe both backlash and backing from members of the Bollywood fraternity. Oscar-winning music composer A R Rahman admitted he too faced a situation similar to the actor’s a few months after a fatwa was issued against him. “Nothing should be violent. We’re all ultra-civilised people and should show the world we are the best civilisation,” the composer was quoted as saying by Times of India. Anupam Kher was among those who lashed out at the actor. “Dear Aamir Khan, did you ask Kiran what country she would like to move out to? Did you tell her that this country has made you Aamir Khan?” he tweeted.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 26th, 2015.