I respect Aamir, but India is most tolerant country, says Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi

By PTI

Updated: Wednesday, November 25, 2015, 18:54 [IST]

Mumbai, Nov 25: Actor Vivek Oberoi says he respects superstar Aamir Khan's body of work as an artist, but believes India is the most tolerant country.

Aamir had said he was "alarmed" by a number of incidences and his wife Kiran Rao even suggested that they should probably leave the country, drawing sharp reactions from the BJP and sections in the film industry.

[Intolerance row: Aamir Khan's hatred for Narendra Modi goes back a long way]

Vivek said India is a confluence of all religions and ideologies and he feels proud to be a citizen of the country.

"For his body of work and the actor Aamir Khan has been, I have a lot of respect for him, his work as an actor. My personal belief is that India is the most tolerant country in the world and has been for thousands of years...," he said.

[After criticism, Aamir Khan clarifies; says he is proud to be an Indian: Full Text]

"When the world was fighting in holy crusades, one religion versus the other, we were learning to live with each other. How to create monuments, how to create cultural artefacts, paint, write poetries, celebrate each other," Vivek told reporters at the launch of 'Interior' magazine's latest cover.

The "Saathiya" actor said the contribution of the country has been immense in the world and he is "going to live here and die here."

"That's what India's unique contribution to the world has been. India is a confluence of all religions, ideas, ideologies, politics. I have deep respect for that and I have immense pride. I am going to live here, I am going to die here," he said.

On the Censor Board's recent decision to cut down certain scenes from the latest James Bond film "Spectre", Vivek said he does not believe in censorship.

"I do not believe in censorship. We have to proceed and progress with the times. When I was asked by people in the government, this is the opinion I gave them," he said.

"You have to be progressive, I am not saying do away with anything... But there has to be liberalism with times. We are following the (censorship) Act of 1952, so somewhere it is important to update and upgrade that. That's a sign of a country that is mature," he said.

PTI