Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan's comments on being concerned over rising intolerance in India have sharply polarised the film fraternity, politicians, and social media. The actor is facing a severe backlash for his opinion, with protesters demonstrating outside his Mumbai residence, smearing black ink on his posters, and a sedition case being filed against him.
While several Bollywood actors have criticised Khan, Oscar-winning music composer AR Rahman agreed with Khan's statement and said that he had also faced a similar situation when the Mumbai-based organisation Raza Academy issued a fatwa against him for composing the music of Iranian film director Jafar Panahi's Muhammad: Messenger of God.
Let's cut the BS-why can't these people openly say that they weren't happy since d day Modi became PM..instead of shaming the whole country— Raveena Tandon (@TandonRaveena) November 24, 2015
India is the most tolerant country in the world. Such statements send a wrong signal-Ram Gopal Varma on #AamirKhan pic.twitter.com/s6GgFXmWE4— ANI (@ANI_news) November 24, 2015
A true patriot will not run away n leave his motherland behind in turmoil or in troubled times (if any )...don't escape - build it ..— Paresh Rawal (@SirPareshRawal) November 23, 2015
Meanwhile, various right-wing political groups also attacked Khan. The Hindu Mahasabha said that the actor should "move to Pakistan" and be charged with treason along with fellow actor Shah Rukh Khan, while the Shiv Sena alleged that Khan speaking the "language of treachery."
Khan's comments also had an unforeseen consequence on the e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal. The ratings of the app, for which he is a brand ambassador, were downgraded the Google Play store. As of Nov. 25, the app had received nearly 90,000 one-star ratings, along with numerous angry comments. On Twitter, #AppWapsi and #BootOutSnapdeal were the top trending hashtags for two consecutive days.
Snapdeal today released a statement with the hashtag #SnapdealForIndia, distancing itself from Khan's comments. “Snapdeal is neither connected nor plays a role in comments made by Aamir Khan in his personal capacity. Snapdeal is a proud Indian company built by passionate young Indians focused on building an inclusive digital India. Everyday we are positively impacting thousands of small businesses and millions of consumers in India. We will continue towards our mission of creating one million successful online entrepreneurs in India,” the company said.
We are a proud Indian company of passionate young Indians building an inclusive digital India - https://t.co/1yLsmVGMDC #SnapdealForIndia— Snapdeal (@snapdeal) November 25, 2015
Even rival e-commerce website Flipkart's CEO Sachin Bansal tweeted his critique of the backlash.
This is a flawed logic. Brands don't buy into brand ambassadors personal opinions. @snapdeal shouldn't face this https://t.co/Y1sPvnXQgs— Sachin Bansal (@_sachinbansal) November 25, 2015
Several users decided to vent their disapproval by urging others to uninstall the Snapdeal app, asking the company to remove him as its brand ambassador, and boycotting brands such as Coca Cola and Tata Sky, also endorsed by Khan.