Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan as he attends a promotional event in
Mumbai.
Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan was detained by US airport immigration
authorities, in the third such incident against the actor whose previous
detention prompted a Washington apology. Khan, 50, one of India’s best
known actors, was pulled aside upon landing at Los Angeles airport on
August 11.
/ AFP PHOTO / STR
Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan took to Twitter Friday to express
his annoyance at being detained by US airport immigration authorities
for the third time, saying the experience “really, really sucks”.
The last time Khan, 50, was detained by immigration officials in New
York in 2012, it sparked uproar among his Indian fans who accused the US
of racial profiling, and led Washington to apologise.
“I fully understand & respect security with the way the world is,
but to be detained at US immigration every damn time really really
sucks,” Khan tweeted after he was pulled aside at Los Angeles airport.
“The brighter side is while waiting caught some really nice Pokemons”.
As news of Khan’s detention broke on Indian television channels, US
Assistant Secretary of State Nisha Biswal quickly expressed regret.
“Sorry for the hassle at the airport, @iamsrk – even American diplomats get pulled for extra screening!” Biswal tweeted.
Washington had previously denied allegations that Khan was singled out because his name denotes him as a Muslim.
Someone with the same name is reportedly on a US no-fly list of 80,000.
After the 2012 incident, Khan joked in a speech to Yale University that he was accustomed to such hassles.
“Yes, it always happens… Whenever I start feeling arrogant about
myself, I always take a trip to America,” he told students. “The
immigration guys kick the star out of stardom.”
Khan was also detained for more than two hours in 2009 at Newark
airport outside New York, prompting a similar Indian outcry and a US
apology.
In February, a Sikh Indian-American actor and designer, Waris
Ahluwalia, was barred from boarding an Aeromexico flight from Mexico
City to New York because he refused to remove his turban.