Pathaan row: Shah Rukh Khan dials Assam CM after ‘who is SRK’ remark

The Assam CM informed on Twitter that Khan had called him up at 2 AM on January 22 and expressed concern about the Guwahati incident.

Hyderabad: A day after Himanta Biswa Sarma said that he did not know anything about Shah Rukh Khan or his movie ‘Pathaan’, the Assam Chief Minister said on Sunday that he had received a call from the Bollywood actor late at night expressing concern over reported protests in Guwahati during the screening of his film.

The Assam CM informed on Twitter that Khan had called him up at 2 AM on January 22 and expressed concern about the Guwahati incident. Sarma claimed to have assured Khan that it was the state government’s duty to maintain law and order.

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“Bollywood actor Shri @iamsrk called me and we talked today morning at 2 am. He expressed concern about an incident in Guwahati during the screening of his film. I assured him that it’s duty of state govt to maintain law & order. We’ll enquire and ensure no such untoward incidents,” Sarma tweeted.

Bollywood actor Shri @iamsrk called me and we talked today morning at 2 am. He expressed concern about an incident in Guwahati during screening of his film. I assured him that it’s duty of state govt to maintain law & order. We’ll enquire and ensure no such untoward incidents.

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) January 22, 2023

Several members of a right-wing outfit allegedly stormed into a cinema hall in Assam’s Narengi on Friday, vandalising property and burning down posters of ‘Pathaan’. When asked about the protests against the screening of ‘Pathaan’, Sarma on Saturday reportedly said “Who is Shah Rukh Khan? Why should we care? We already have many Shah Rukh Khans?”

However, he ensured that he will act if any incident of law-and-order violation is reported. “Action will be taken, if law and order is violated. But, so far, I have not received any complaints from the cinema hall owners or the makers of the film. If there has been any incident, Shah Rukh Khan, himself, should have called me up. If he does so, I will look into the matter,” the Assam CM further said.

‘Pathaan’ is going to hit theatres on January 25 and stars Deepika Padukone and John Abraham alongside SRK. The film has been mired in controversy ever since several right-wing groups objected to one of its songs— ‘Besharam Rang’.