Irony File... Shah Rukh Khan detained at airport...

[mkrishnan]

I honestly hope the Indian media has a field day with this one... this is embarrassing.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8203696.stm

The Indian government has asked the United States to explain why a leading Bollywood film star was held for two hours at New York's Newark airport.

Shah Rukh Khan, who was released after India's embassy in the US intervened, said he felt angry and humiliated.

The actor, who is promoting a film on racial profiling, said he was stopped because he had a Muslim name.

^^^ Emphasis mine.

 

[parapup]

Over zealousness from both sides - it seems like other TSA people were telling the guy who held Shah Rukh that he was a known figure but he did not give a damn and proceeded to do the unnecessary stuff.

On the other hand - it happens to everyone whose name is on the government list - I recall some incidents with US senators. So Shah Rukh should not have made such a big deal about it. After all he may be a loved star for Indian public - he is just another traveler for the TSA.

I am all against racial profiling but this sounds like Shah Rukh is upset about it because it happened to him - never heard him getting upset over other people facing the same situation.

[ Edit : Thinking more about it, was this really racial profiling or "Name" based profiling? I doubt _all_ muslims are treated this way - some muslims with very uncommon names that aren't on the Government list may not have to deal with it. ]

 

[mkrishnan]

[ Edit : Thinking more about it, was this really racial profiling or "Name" based profiling? I doubt _all_ muslims are treated this way - some muslims with very uncommon names that aren't on the Government list may not have to deal with it. ]

I think that's easy to say when it isn't you -- some cultures have lots of really common names -- and it's hardly your fault if you do happen to have a common name. It's awfully convenient to say, "Who cares," because the name is Shah Khan and not Joe Smith. But when US politicians got profiled because of their names, they were indignant in the media too. Why should Khan be understanding? As an American if I went back to India and was subjected to increased profiling on an overly insensitive datum then I would be upset, too....

 

[parapup]

I think that's easy to say when it isn't you -- some cultures have lots of really common names -- and it's hardly your fault if you do happen to have a common name. It's awfully convenient to say, "Who cares," because the name is Shah Khan and not Joe Smith.

Well for one thing I never said it was acceptable or that the TSA cannot do better - I was irked with the Indian government demanding US government an explanation - typically pathetic given that I guarantee they will not interfere when an average Indian Muslim is harassed this way.

Let alone that the Indian government or any external factors for that matter have no right to question other government's policies. That is just dumb. An apt response would be - no response from the Government, and Shah Rukh Khan refusing to land on US territory unless the profiling was stopped.

Again - please understand that I am not advocating the profiling itself - I am against it - but I am highlighting that this wasn't the right response to what happened.

 

[mkrishnan]

Let alone that the Indian government or any external factors for that matter have no right to question other government's policies. That is just dumb.

And the US Government seriously wouldn't interfere if an American actor was detained overseas? Seriously? In the last month, US politicians, and behind the scenes, the US government, has intervened twice when Americans violated foreign governmental control zones in Korea and Myanmar....

Unlike those cases, Khan didn't even do anything wrong.

 

[parapup]

And the US Government seriously wouldn't interfere if an American actor was detained overseas? Seriously? In the last month, US politicians, and behind the scenes, the US government, has intervened twice when Americans violated foreign governmental control zones in Korea and Myanmar....

Unlike those cases, Khan didn't even do anything wrong.

Indian government interfering because "Shah Rukh Khan" was detained and staying otherwise mum when I am sure daily hundreds of Indian muslims are similarly detained - *that* is just dumb and hypocritical and sign of old discriminating time.

An apt response would be - no response from the Government, and Shah Rukh Khan refusing to land on US territory unless the profiling was stopped.

Again - please understand that I am not advocating the profiling itself - I am against it - but I am highlighting that this wasn't the right response to what happened.

You have to understand that if you enter a country you have to obey the laws of that country - however strange or discriminative they are. If the Indian government's response was because it was an unlawful detention of "Indian Citizen" I would have agreed with you.

But just because the person in question is Shah Rukh Khan and even though the detention was well within the US's laws - if the Government is asking for special consideration while ignoring the average citizens then it sounds broken to me.

 

[Eraserhead]

Indian government interfering because "Shah Rukh Khan" was detained and staying otherwise mum when I am sure daily hundreds of Indian muslims are similarly detained - *that* is just dumb and hypocritical and sign of old discriminating time.

Pot meet kettle.

 

[parapup]

Pot meet kettle.

What do u mean by that?

[ Edit: Just to be clear - when I referred to hundreds of Indian muslims being detained - I wasn't referring to the Indian government detaining them. I have no knowledge that they do - I was in fact referring to Indian muslims in situations same as Shah Rukh - detained by the US authorities because their name appears in the no-fly list or something. ]

 

[SydneyDev]

It must be a stunt to promote the movie. They probably looked up what kind of goods you carry causes an automatic interview, and then took some.

 

[Eraserhead]

What do u mean by that?

The US government would also pay far more attention if a hollywood film star got stopped at airport security than an ordinary citizen EDIT: As would the British government.

 

[parapup]

Blogger Anand Soondas of TimesofIndia makes the exact same point as I did on this subject.

Also I kind of doubt that American govt will stay quiet for months if hundreds of white men were stopped regularly at the airport and then suddenly wake up and ask for explanation when a white Hollywood star was stopped. They are smarter than that (The government was actively involved in the release of ordinary citizens like journalists recently).

It's the Indian government that needs to play catch up and pay attention to what it's ordinary citizens go through - not just bollywood stars.