Aamir Khan, brand ambassador for India’s major tourism campaign ‘Incredible India’, has now been replaced by megastar Amitabh Bachchan. The PK actor discontinued his service for the campaign after representing it for 10 years.
The country’s Tourism and Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma announced on Wednesday that Aamir had a contract with an advertising firm not the Indian government. Since, the contract has expired, the PKactor is no longer part of the campaign.
Unlike Aamir, Big B has been recruited directly by the Indian government for a period of three years, reports NDTV. Sources reveal that the veteran actor will be receiving an official letter regarding news of his selection.
It has also been reported that Big B’s name was suggested by the Prime Minister’s Office. However, the actor said he hasn’t been approached to feature in the campaign yet.
“Nobody has asked me but if they do, yes, I would be more than willing to. I do a lot of this for the state and country and I will be happy if ever there is an offer,” Big B was quoted as saying on TV channels last night, reports PTI.
Rumours were abuzz that Aamir has been removed from the campaign because of his recent comments on the growing cases of intolerance in India.
Big B also expressed his views on the matter. ”I think you need to clarify first whether he (Aamir) is being removed because of something that he may have said or it’s the end of his contract. I don’t think that people are removed just because they did not agree or said something that is controversial,” the Piku actor was quoted as saying.
Aamir himself issued an official statement showing respect towards the decision of the government on Thursday. ”It has been an honour and a pleasure for me to be the brand ambassador for the Incredible India campaign for the past 10 years. I respect the decision of the government to discontinue with my services,” said Aamir.
Big B has previously been a part of the tourism campaign for the Prime Minister’s home state of Gujarat.
