Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, who is currently in Turkey to shoot his film “Laal Singh Chaddha”, faced massive flak after he met the First Lady of Turkey Emine Erdogan.
Turkey’s first lady meet Aamir at the Presidential residence at the Huber Mansion in Istanbul on August 15th.
I had the great pleasure of meeting @aamir_khan, the world-renowned Indian actor, filmmaker, and director, in Istanbul. I was happy to learn that Aamir decided to wrap up the shooting of his latest movie ‘Laal Singh Chaddha’ in different parts of Turkey. I look forward to it! pic.twitter.com/3rSCMmAOMW
— Emine Erdoğan (@EmineErdogan) August 15, 2020
Mr Khan stated that he would complete the shooting of his latest film ‘Laal Singh Chaddha’, which couldn’t be completed in India due to COVID-19, in Turkey, and invited First Lady Erdogan to the film set
Statement by Turkish Government
Aamir is in Turkey to complete the shoot of “Laal Singh Chaddha”, which is a remake of American Classic ‘Forrest Gump’ starring Tom Hanks.
Kareena Kapoor Khan, Mona Singh and Tamil actor Vijay Sethupathi also star in the film and this was supposed to release on December 25th this year, however as the shoot was cancelled due to Covid pandemic, the release has postponed to Christmas 2021.
Political fight over meet
The move sparked a massive political tug of war between BJP and Congress. Several BJP leaders and supporters slammed the actor for meeting Turkey’s first lady. They not only reminded the actor of his previous comments made in 2015, wherein he claimed he was unsafe in India, but also highlighted the numerous instances wherein Turkey had backed Pakistan in United Nations and other global bodies over Kashmir.
इन्हें इंडिया में डर लगता हैं pic.twitter.com/JsdOWFruju
— Kapil Mishra (@KapilMishra_IND) August 16, 2020
Meanwhile, several Congress leaders and their supporters backed the actor, claiming the actor merely met the First Lady in his capacity as an actor and this is nothing but a courtesy call.
Hey! Bhakts open dictionary & look for difference between protocol & partnership. @aamir_khan is shooting in Turkey & accepting a social invite is protocol. Btw, Aamir hasn't renounced hz Indian passport unlike the Canadian bhakt. And he didn't visit Pakistan uninvited like Modi!
— Salman Nizami (@SalmanNizami_) August 17, 2020
Regardless of the political fight, the actor has certainly sparked a row and it remains to be seen if he or the Centre will react to the controversy surrounding the visit.