Aamir, wife slapped with sedition case

Protests against intolerance ‘poetic’, says AR Rahman

Patna/Mumbai/New Delhi: A sedition case was filed against Bollywood actor-producer Aamir Khan and his wife Kiran Rao on Wednesday in a Bihar court based on his statement on increasing intolerance in the country. Lawyer Sudhir Kumar Ojha filed the sedition case in the chief judicial magistrate court in Muzaffarpur district. "I have filed a sedition case against Aamir Khan and his wife Kiran Rao over their statement that intolerance has increased in the country, as it created bad environment and has defamed the country," Ojha said.

Music composer AR Rahman termed the protests against the perceived intolerance in the country as "poetic" since it is non-violent in nature. Rahman feels any kind of revolt is welcome but it should be classy and people should not go out and hit one another. The 48-year-old music director says India should set an example to the whole world as this is the land of Mahatma Gandhi, who championed the non-violent movement in India. When asked if Muslims are unsafe in the country, he said, "I am not in the state of mind to answer this question." Hitting out at Aamir, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said the "extreme reaction" given by the prominent actor has not only "dented" the image of the country but also his own.

Joining his party colleagues who have been critical of Aamir's comments, he said the reason why his party did not agree with the actor's statement is because the country has a "legacy of tolerance". "The statement of Aamir may have been his personal opinion but the country has been hurt by it to a large extent. If such an extreme reaction is given by a prominent artiste, then naturally some people get hurt and sad.”

Shiv Sena slammed Aamir for his remarks on intolerance, saying he was speaking the "language of treachery" and asked the 'Khan clan' in the film industry to explain what calamity has befallen them.

Dubbing Aamir 'Ranchhoddas', a character he played in the film '3 Idiots', Shiv Sena said, "Ranchhoddas should explain in which country is he going to live."

"Those who don't feel that India is their own, should not speak of patriotism and of 'Satyamev Jayate' (referring to Aamir's popular TV show)," it said.

BJP MP Satish Gautam said Aamir Khan remember despite his film 'PK' that ridiculed Hindu gods and godesses, people not only watched it but it went on to be a smashing hit at the box office.

"This shows that India is a tolerant nation, allowing freedom of speech and expression to everyone," Gautam, a member of parliament from Aligarh, said, adding people with a public standing should be conscious of their public utterances.

Amul ad on Aamir Khan is cracking Twitter

An old Amul-ad, which was put out at the time of release of Khan’s movie PK, has resurfaced on the Web and is going viral across Twitter, which shows Khan in his PK avatar, and the words “Khaa, PK jaana”.

But the company has its take on the issue. It has shared an ‘Amul Topical’ poster showing Khan reassuring his wife Amrita Rao with words, “Aal eez hell or All ees well”.