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One of the biggest Bollywood stars—aka the "Tom Cruise of India"—was detained and questioned at Newark Airport while on his way to Chicago for an Indian festival. Shah Rukh Khan, 43, texted reporters in India, "I was really hassled -- perhaps because of my name being Khan. These guys just wouldn't let me through," adding, he "felt angry and humiliated." And as it happens, in his new film, My Name is Khan, he "plays a Muslim mistaken for a terrorist"! However, the Port Authority says that Khan wasn't detained—just questioned—and customs officials say Khan's 66 minute questioning was routine—little did they know it would inspire Wrath of Khan puns! Shah later told reporters in Chicago, "I think it's a procedure that needs to be followed, but an unfortunate procedure." The U.S. Ambassador to India Timothy J. Roemer said the government was "trying to ascertain the facts of the case -- to understand what took place," noting, "Shah Rukh Khan, the actor and global icon, is a very welcome guest in the United States. Many Americans love his films." Still, the Washington Post reports, "India's information and broadcasting minister, Ambika Soni, suggested that Americans should be treated the way Khan was when they arrive in India," while an Indian-born economist and member of Britain's House of Lords suggested it was a publicity stunt for the movie.
Bollywood Star Questioned For Hour-Plus At Newark Airport
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Another case of sudden jihad:
http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/student_kills_prof_nGgR2x0Omat9UDx4
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Start spelling it Kahn and you'll get right through.
Win!
What about last week when Bob Dylan aka the "Bob Dylan of America", was detained on an American street nowhere near an airplane.
Mistakes happen.
Get over yourself Kahn.
Hey, do you think any American actor would avoid letting out a "real life" story that just happened to coincide with their upcoming film? We have so much pre-release spin, talk show, Entertainment Tonight, TMZ, etc. If this wasn't manufactured (as so much US stuff is), he just got loads of free publicity for his movie, all for spending 2 hours in Newark with the TSA (OK, that is a high price). Hell, he'd spend longer waiting in line at the Shake Shack. He even made it to Gothamist (dubious honor, of course).
SRK is quite well known around the world, and quite an actor and dancer, as well as spokesperson for many causes. He's no Amitabh Bachchan, but he still has some years ahead of him.
Dadoc, you the man! Seriously, look at how much free publicity he's gotten, and I smell something fishy myself, what with his new film being just about mistaken identity!
About this "Shah later told reporters in Chicago", never heard of the King of Bollywood being referred to as Shah, his first name is Shah Rukh. Rukh ain't his middle name!
When Americans start the world-wide terrorist-style bombings feel free to spot check me every chance you get. Until then accept the fact that in order to keep the peace spot checking of people who fit certain (any) profiles will get checked more often than those that don't. That's the fucking world. If you want to cry and sue about it go choke on a tampon cos you're a pussy.
Is that pc enough for you softie/victims here?
And as far as being a global icon, I'm sure Mr. Khan is a fine actor, but being extremely popular in one third world country does not a global icon make.
And what about Dylan? Where's his outrage and lawsuit? And PR blitz? Exactly, because he's a rational and classy guy. And for the record, a minority.
This is a BS story.
That's one mean-looking mutha. Even that idiot birther Chuck Norris doesn't try to look tough when he's doing publicity shoots.
Yeah, SRK plays a good mean & has a good media presence, even though he's a little guy in good shape. Quite adept at playing & posing whatever he's promoting at the time. His real trademark is the cutesy smile, hand thru the hair, goofy love-struck klutz.
Dylan... Rational? Classy?
SRK is also quite well known to be a "nice guy",
quite polite and well-spoken. And not the type to sue, that's an American thing. He'll deal with it. We've all dealt with it, at the airport or elsewhere. So he grabbed a few minutes of free publicity, why not? At least he didn't jump on Oprah's couch or overdose on Propofol.
And if you think Indian Cinema is only popular in India, try checking out a Bollywood DVD and look at the list of subtitle languages: quite extensive, reflecting the audience. Then again, you probably have never been to Jersey City, Lexington Avenue, Jackson Heights or Fort Lee, or never ridden in a cab or bought a newspaper.
Heck, I watch them, & I'm from Brooklyn! Helluva lot more entertaining than the usual Hollywood drivel.
Wow from Brooklyn and you watch him??? That's quite an endorsement!
He's not a global star, he fits a profile that has proven worthy of searches, and good on him if he drops it and lets it go. I'll have respect for him if he does. I get stopped of fitting descriptions and its usually a valid point (the profile not my activities). I'm okay with being stopped if its for the common good. I think most people are.
I just don't know why this is such a big story.
Not to worry, he will drop it. Quite not the whiner, but also quite the astute businessman. Also knows how to play the PR thing, and would never do anything to soil his "nice guy" image. I'm traveling Wednesday out of LGA, and expect the usual screw-ups. It is a big story to some, as the pop of India itself is over one billion, and Bolly films are also watched in Indonesia, Burma, SE Asia, Phillipines, Middle East, etc. That is an audience that equals many times the total population of the US. So grab a cold Kingfisher, warm up some papadum, and might I suggest "Main Hoon Na", "Dils Se", or my favorite SRK, "Swades". Beats the crap out of the latest SNL character spinoff dreck. And, BTW, don't mess with Brooklyn.
Bollywood is fine and good, and if this had happened in India I would expect it to be a big deal. But, for better or for worse, the average American doesn't know a Bollywood star from the Halal food guy on the corner- no offense meant. It's just a part of life in 2009. And even if this whole story doesn't come directly from the man himself it certainly comes from his people because no one else involved has an angle to leak this.
"he fits a profile that has proven worthy of searches,"
Yeah, brown-skinned and/or foreign.
Thanks for spreading the racism.
Right, I'm the bad guy for pointing out the obvious.
I only wish they had done this prior to 9/11.
First let me say this particular incident smells like a publicity stunt.
Second, let me say inoyouride, you are a complete idiot.
How about we start performing background checks on every Jewish banker, you know, to make sure they're not running ponzi schemes? Or stop every single white guy in a moving truck to prevent another disaster like Oklahoma City.
You're logic refracted through people of a different skin color sounds less like concern over safety, and more of vindictiveness and hatred towards Muslims.
Finally, racial profiling (that is, pulling someone aside based on looks alone, rather than background checks, travel history, etc) fails on its own merits. The largest Muslim nation in the world is Indonesia. So we start stopping every Asian person now too? Central Asia/Eastern Europe has millions of Muslims, who are all basically Caucasian/white. Much of sub-saharan Africa is Muslim, so every black person should be pulled aside too? Also, many Arabs from Syria, Lebanon and Jordan are very light skinned and could pass for white or Jewish. So singling out people who fit your myopic stereotype of what a "Muslim" looks like wouldn't even be statistically effective.
So were authorities able to find any explosives on Mr. Khan? In any case, I'd say they should enter him into their database just for looking like a terrorist...
Maybe TSA might have Googled "SRK". 3.6 Million hits in 0.2 secs, pics, vids, everything. But that would assume some minimal intelligence of TSA. Oh, Never mind.
Ah yes, Google searching!
Just what we need TSA agents to be doing at work!
Tom Cruise of India? Must have felt like the nobody of here.
"I only wish they had done this prior to 9/11."
Yeah, spend security money on rounding up thousands of innocent brown people instead of using it for real, focused investigation and information sharing among our security forces.
Yeah, those sort of knee-jerk expresses of racism and "power" are real effective.
Yeah, would have saved the WTC. Wouldn't want that. God forbid some people have to put up with a bit of an inconvenience for the common good. Much easier to call your publicist and/or lawyer and see how much money it's worth.
so the point of stopping and interrogating a brown person is just for kicks?
the common good would would be coupled with some common sense and intelligence to know this is a world known actor and obviously not a known terrorist. but that appears not to be the reason for this security theatre.
the point is (obviously!) to prevent a disaster. I would gladly volunteer my time for a background check if it were remotely possible that it could help...and I would hope any other respectable person to do the same. But obviously you would hold your BS PC rights out ahead of a couple hundred other people you're sharing a cabin with. Bravo,for your civil rights and for what being such an ass costs the rest of us....
And I'm a pretty big movie fan and so are my friends and no one has heard of this guy. Which is NOT to diminish him but to point out the fact that 'global movie star' is indeed subjective.
Out of 300 mill people here in the US what percentage would you bet could id Khan? I'm guessing less than 10. And since this is the country in question...ITS NOT A STORY!!!
Don't look beyond your minuscule backyard much, do you?
Newsweek in '08 named him "one of the 50 most powerful people in the world" and labeled him "the world's most famous movie star."
Sorry you and your friends don't know the name, but you all are in the ignorant minority since he probably has more fans that this country's entire population. Broaden your perspective.
S Khan is bent
Hey, if I didn't know who he was, I prob would have pulled him off the line too. Single traveler in the 1st Class compartment, prob flying on a last minute ticket bought by his company, prob no checked baggage, can buy what he wants when he gets there. But does anyone have any instance (pre 9/11, oh drop it now, it's been ten years) of TSA or its predecessor doing anything but costing billions, employing the unemployable and breaking & stealing things? I mean, race aside, what does TSA do other than deprive us of our shoes and shampoo? And yes, they could have googled him. would have solved the prob in less than a second. But that would have interrupted them texting their baby mamas or letting their common-laws know that the septic guy was coming to pump out the tank.
Not too elitist are you? Who wiped your ass as a kid?
SRK is the nicest guy around. Great to work with and a true ambassador for India.
Here's some pure stupidity:
"I would gladly volunteer my time for a background check if it were remotely possible that it could help"
We don't have infinite resources. There are tens of millions of people who fly. Saying you/we should do something because of a "remote" possibility if could help is just stupid. We have to use resources for security where they can *best* help, not just where they *might* help due to the knee-jerk theories of who is a terrorist.
That's what's so dopey about both the super-long watch list and the racist "well, he looks brown" nuts -- they divert resources that could be better used in other ways.
Anything that exposes the fraud called the Fucking Transportation Security Administration (FTSA) and its associated security theater is all right in my book. We as Americans seem helpless in stopping this monster masquerading as security. If other countries call foul, and pay the same silly games on our traveling public, hopefully it can expose this organization for what it is.
He looks like Maude to me.
i dont even watch bollywood movies, but i know who shah rukh khan is. and he is more like brad pitt of india (not that i like brad pitt either), definitely one of the biggest stars there, and in many other countries in asia besides india. publicity or not, it is very ironic, and i can imagine how and why this case turns into such a big issue, especially in india.
but then, americans are living in their own cocoon of US of A, watching and listening to own movies and music only, so it's quite understandable why most people dont know who shah rukh khan is.
I guess movie stars from India aren't much different than American ones; they think the sun shines out their butt holes. Heaven forbid they should ever be inconvenienced like the peasants who watch their movies.