Aamir Khan denies endorsing any political party amidst doctored video controversy
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A doctored video purportedly showing Bollywood actor Aamir Khan endorsing a political party has caused a stir on social media. The video, which has been circulating widely, was quickly debunked by Aamir Khan's team, who clarified that the actor has not endorsed any political party.
The 31-second video clip shows Aamir Khan apparently urging people to be wary of false promises and concludes with a call to vote for the Congress party.
In the video, Aamir is heard saying, "If you think that India is a poor country, you are wrong. Every citizen of this country is a lakhpati. Every person should have at least Rs 15 lakh with them." The statement seems to be a reference to the BJP's 2014 election promise of depositing Rs 15 lakh into every citizen's account, a claim later termed as "illustrative" by the party.
Upon closer examination, inconsistencies in the video are evident, suggesting that it has been manipulated. The actor's significantly younger appearance compared to his current age, along with mismatched lip movements and dubbed-over audio, are telltale signs of tampering.
Interestingly, the content of the original video holds some parallels to the doctored version.
Originally shot as a promotional video for an episode of Aamir Khan's talk show Satyamev Jayate, the unaltered footage features the actor stating, "Every citizen in the country is a crorepati and should ideally possess at least Rs 1 crore." He then encourages viewers to watch the talk show to gain insight into the topic.
Reacting to the video's circulation, Aamir Khan's spokesperson issued a statement emphasizing the actor's non-partisan stance.
"We want to clarify that Mr Aamir Khan has never endorsed any political party throughout his 35-year career. He has dedicated his efforts to raising public awareness through Election Commission public awareness campaigns for many past elections. We are alarmed by the recent viral video alleging that Aamir Khan is promoting a particular political party. He would like to clarify that this is a fake video and totally untrue. He has reported the matter to various authorities related to this issue, including filing an FIR with the Cyber Crime Cell of the Mumbai Police," the spokesperson said. "Mr Khan would like to urge all Indians to come out and vote and be an active part of our electoral process," the spokesperson added.