Aamir Khan says PK was not anti-religion, did not promote love jihad: My sisters, daughter are married to Hindu men

Aamir Khan has addressed the controversy surrounding his 2014 film PK, rejecting claims that the film was anti-religious or promoted ‘Love Jihad’.

"They're wrong," Aamir said when asked about the film being labelled anti-religious. "We're not against any religion. We respect all religions and all religious people. That film just tells us to be cautious of those who exploit religion to fool the common man in order to extract money from them. You'll find people like that in every religion. That was the film's only purpose,” clarified Aamir Khan in an interview with India TV.

About PK

Directed by Rajkumar Hirani, the film had sparked debate over its messaging on organized religion. It also drew criticism for its subplot, a love story between a Hindu woman, played by Anushka Sharma, and a Pakistani man played by Sushant Singh Rajput.

Some critics accused the film of allegedly promoting "love jihad."

"Love Jihad" is a controversial and politically charged term used in certain parts of the country to describe an alleged conspiracy where Muslim men are said to lure non-Muslim women into romantic relationships or marriage to convert them to Islam.

‘My daughter is married to a Hindu’

Responding to that, Aamir said, "When people from two religions, particularly Hindu and Muslim, fall in love and get married, that's not always love jihad. This is just humanity. It's above religion."

The actor pointed out that his daughter and sisters were married to Hindus, and would that be considered love jihad?

“My sister Nikhat is married to Santosh Hegde, both my wives were Hindu, my daughter Ira Khan also married a Hindu, so what does this mean that there is also love jihad?”

Aamir's sister Farhat is married to Rajeev Dutta, while his other sister Nikhat is married to Santosh Hegde. His daughter, Ira Khan, also recently got married to Nupur Shikhare. Aamir himself has been married to two Hindu women, Reena Dutta and Kiran Rao.

When asked why the names of his kids are Ira Khan, Junaid Khan and Azad Rao Khan when he had Hindu wives, Aamir said, "My kids have been named by my wives. There wasn't any interference from my end. Husbands ki zyada chalti nahi hai (Husbands don't have too much of a say)".

Aamir further revealed that his daughter Ira’s name was picked from former BJP minister Maneka Gandhi's book 'The Penguin Book of Hindu Names' while his son Azad was named after his legendary ancestor, Maulana Azad, who was a freedom fighter and the first Education Minister of Independent India.

On the work front, Aamir Khan will next be seen in Sitaare Zameen Par opposite Genelia D'Souza. Directed by RS Prasanna, the film will release on June 20.