Aamir Khan came under public scrutiny when he reacted to the Pahalgam terror attack (April 22) almost a week after the incident. Aamir Khan's official statement came just 12 hours before the trailer of his film Sitaare Zameen Par released. Ahead of the film's release, Aamir Khan defended his patriotism during an interaction with Rajat Sharma on his show Aap Ki Adalat. During the chat, Aamir Khan revealed that his 1999 release Sarfarosh was the first film in the Indian film history where Pakistan and ISI's (Inter-Services Intelligence) names were uttered without using any substitutes in the context of spreading terrorism.
What's Happening
Aamir Khan emphasized that Sarfarosh scripted history as the first Indian film where Pakistan and ISI's names were uttered clearly, without using any other names while talking about spreading terrorism.
"If you pick India's film history, we have never been allowed to take their name, we had to use the term 'padosi mulk (neighbouring country)'. My film Sarfarosh was the first one ever in history, in which we have taken Pakistan and ISI's names without hesitation. John [Mathew Matthan, Director] said that the Censor Board won't pass this. I said, 'Why won't they? We will explain it to them'. When Advaniji [LK Advani, Home Minister] can call their name in the Parliament publicly that they are doing wrong to us and spreading terrorism, then why can't we?," Aamir Khan recalled on Rajat Sharma's show.
"We got permission to use the names on that basis. So many films released after that were using Pakistan's name. People say that I don't say anything against them, but sabse bada naam toh unka maine hi liya hai, aur kisi ne nahi. After Sarfarosh, I got many negative comments from Pakistan for attacking them in the film," he added.
Aamir On His Late Response To Pahalgam Terror Attack
During the same interview, Aamir Khan defended that the Sitaare Zameen Par trailer releasing just 12 hours after his official statement was a mere coincidence.
"The trailer was supposed to release much earlier. I cancelled it because of the attack on our nation. I cancelled the premiere of Andaz Apna Apna that day," explained Aamir. His 1994 cult film Rajkumar Santoshi's Andaz Apna Apna was re-released in cinemas on April 25 this year.
Aamir also defended Islam by saying that it doesn't endorse violence. "No religion asks you to kill people. I don't consider these terrorists Muslims because it's written in Islam that you can't kill any innocent human, can't strike a woman or a child. They're going against the religion by doing what they are doing," said Aamir.
In A Nutshell
Aamir Khan defended his patriotism on Rajat Sharma's show and claimed Sarfarosh was the first Indian film where Pakistan and ISI's names were uttered directly in the context of terrorism.