Aamir Khan revisits controversy over dog named 'Shah Rukh', now calls SRK a 'best friend'
The Bollywood actor admits naming his pet after Shah Rukh Khan strained their friendship, and says he apologised to the star's children.
Bollywood actor Aamir Khan has revisited one of the most talked-about episodes of his career — naming his pet dog after Shah Rukh Khan — while promoting his latest film, Sitaare Zameen Par.
Speaking about various phases of his life, Aamir acknowledged there had been a rift in his friendship with Shah Rukh Khan, and that the remarks about the dog complicated matters further.
"There was actually a period when Shah Rukh Khan and I spoke about each other a lot. Maybe he was not happy with me," he said, according to the report.
Asked by the host why Shah Rukh Khan may have been unhappy with him, Aamir said it was possibly because he did not talk about other people in his interviews.
He said the relationship has since been repaired.
"Anyway, let us leave all that behind. Shah Rukh Khan is my best friend. When our careers began, there was a natural rivalry between us. But that disappeared 10 to 15 years ago; it was childish behaviour," he said.
The blog post that started it
The controversy stemmed from a blog Aamir wrote in the 2010s, in which he said that "Shah Rukh" — the name of his pet dog — had licked his feet even after being fed.
"Shah Rukh licked my feet. I fed him biscuits. What more do I need?" he wrote.
He later mentioned on an Indian television interview that he had a dog named after Shah Rukh Khan, adding that the animal had been bought from a Parsi owner.
Although he told the story in jest, fans felt it was inappropriate, while Shah Rukh Khan felt insulted by the remarks.
Aamir also revealed that after realising his mistake, he visited Shah Rukh Khan and apologised to the actor's children, Aryan Khan and Suhana Khan.
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