MUMBAI: Superstar Shahrukh Khan was detained for about two hours early Saturday morning (around 1am IST) at Newark airport in the US because his surname featured on the most common list. The actor, who is visiting the US to attend a South Asian event where he was the guest of honour was released after Congress MP Rajiv Shukla spoke to the authorities in the US and the Indian counsulate.
The actor was detained after his name flashed on the computer. He was asked several questions about the purpose of his visit. His hand baggage was checked. He was not allowed to even make a phone call for nearly an hour.
Speaking to TOI, the actor said: "I told them I was a movie star and had recently visited the country for the shooting of my film. Nothing seemed to convince the immigration officer. There were other immigration officers who even vouched for me but this particular officer did not listen to anyone. I even told them I had an invitation from the South Asian community and was there to attend an event. Shahrukh is to return to India on August 18.
Shukla, who came to the actor's rescue condemned this act saying, "It is really not fair. Just because he has a common surname does not mean that every Muslim can be taken as a suspect or considered to be a terrorist. The Amercian authorities should adopt a methodology so that well-known names like Shahrukh Khan and APJ Abdul Kalam are not harassed like this. They should focus on getting the actual suspects.
New Delhi: Superstar Shah Rukh Khan has confirmed with CNN-IBN that he was detained at the Newark-New Jersey airport on Friday night when he was in transit to Chicago.
Shah Rukh Khan spoke exclusively with CNN-IBN and admitted he was shocked at the behaviour of the immigration officials. “It was in Newark where I was detained for questioning. It was because they said my name was common to some name that popped up on the computer. They were asking me silly questions like if I knew someone in the US who could vouch for me, if I could give them numbers of people they could get in touch with,” he said.
“I had all the documents; they were asking me where I was going to be staying. I gave the name of FOX people with whom I had finalised a deal a few days ago as contacts. I kept on giving numbers. They wanted to know why I came here,” he said.
Shah Rukh said the officers wanted to check his baggage but since it had not arrived, he was taken to a room where other people were also waiting for a second check on their visa.
He said after he was stopped he sent messages to his home and his secretary and Congress MP Rajiv Shukla, who informed the Indian Mission which came to his rescue.
“I was taken to a room where many people were awaiting a secondary check on visa, most were Asians. In fact many officers were reluctantly vouching for me, asking for autographs and a Pakistani fan even said he knew who I was. But the officers said it was procedure and kept taking numbers from me. They told me you can’t use the phone in this area. I sent a message home and to my secretary and Rajiv Shukla. It took almost two hours. They did not take my fingerprints,” he said.
Asked if he felt angry, the actor said he felt bad “for the people in the room”.
“I did feel bad for a lot of people in that room, I know because I had an escort and someone would recognise me, I will get out. Others may face more trouble,” he said.
He also refered to ex President APJ Abdul Kalam's frisking episode.
“I have extra security because of my name. I can handle this but when you have someone as respectable as an ex-president getting frisked, I am nobody,” he said.
Shah Rukh also admitted that while he didn’t mind going to shoot in the US, it was always an inconvenient journey for him. "I am glad my family was not there, this has happened to me earlier. I am a shy, scared traveler and I really have to hold back my sense of humour. It certainly does well for people whose names are known, for others its trouble. My guard was also denied a visa apparently because he too had a common name”.
Through the chat with CNN-IBN, Shah Rukh never lost his sense of humour and kept coming up with his characteristic quirky ones. "I think my face scares people, I will try and change the way I look," he said. He also said his son Aryan asked if he had "been caught". " I told him, not yet son".
