MUMBAI: Stepping into the city in the midst of the raging controversy over his IPL statement and the apprehension over the release of his film My Name Is Khan, actor Shah Rukh Khan said on Saturday that while he was a proud Mumbaikar, he felt the proudest about being an Indian.
Mr. Khan, who landed here amid heavy security, scored a point by placing the national identity above the regional and religious identities, even as he stood firm on his view on the exclusion of Pakistani cricketers from the IPL tournament.
“I never felt I have said anything which is anti-national. We have identities that we are proud of, like our religious identities, identities of families we come from. Then there are identities connected to where we live in, work, eat. They are our regional identities. But above all, there is a national identity, which comes with its rights and freedoms. I am proud of being a Mumbaikar, but I am the proudest of being an Indian, and you can’t take that away from me. I said what any Indian should say. I stand by what I have said. I have not said anything to feel sorry about,” he told journalists at the launch of a brand of Lux cozi vest, the official licensee for his team, Kolkata Knight Riders.
– Read full story in The Hindu 7 Feb., www.hindu.com
