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It was a dream come true for the fans, who had been waiting eagerly to catch a glimpse of their favourite star since morning. Not only did Shah Rukh “meet and greet” people by shaking hands, signing autographs, but he also danced and performed on their requests.
Besides King Khan, the other big names, who attended the carnival were Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Diya Mirza and Bollywood’s “Bad man” Gulshan Grover.
Despite the excitement of meeting the stars, Khan’s detention at Newark Liberty International Airport on Friday was the topic of discussion among the fans at the carnival. Many could not believe that Shah Rukh was detained for so long as he is a frequent visitor to America.
Khan had surprised his fans by saying that he did not feel like stepping on American soil anymore. He, however, played down the incident later, calling it a “routine procedure.”
The episode has also attracted plenty of attention in the US with media outlets and blogs holding forth on the incident.
“Wrath of Profiled Khan,” The New York Post said in a story. The New York Times blogged on the incident under the headline “Questioning a Bollywood VIP. The incident was also reported extensively in the Islamic world. “Muslim name holds India Star at US airport,” Islam Online reported.
While thousands of fans reacted with outrage over the perceived slight to their icon, others believe that the incident was blown out of proportion.
Publicity stunt?
Some also saw it as a publicity stunt for actor’s upcoming movie “My Name is Khan,” which is about an autistic Muslim in the post-9/11 America. “This is not a first trip for him and how can it happen when he is promoting his forthcoming movie, ‘My Name is Khan” with a similar theme, that sounds so unreal,” said Aahan Verma.
“We all love Shah Rukh Khan, but he certainly is not above the law and just because he has a global fan club one should not expect immigration officers of all countries to know who he is,” said Anuva Kay, an Indian American school student in Houston. “India should have the same laws for all Americans visiting the country because it is more vulnerable,” she added.