Aamir Khan, in a recent interview, clarified as to why his statement condemning the Pahalgam terror attack came over a week after India and Pakistan had agreed on a ceasefire.

In an interview with India TV, Aamir said that since he is not on social media his response might not have been immediate but he did talk about the attack during an event he attended around the same time. “I’m not on social media. People react instantly to these events there,” he said, adding. “The terror attack was cruel. It only demonstrates the terrorists’ cowardice that they entered our country and fired bullets on common men. You or I could’ve also been there.  They asked their religion and then fired bullets. What does that mean.”

“That was an attack not only on our nation, but also on our unity. They’ve already got a befitting response from our country,” he said.

Aamir also responded to claims stating that he spoke up only because his film Sitaare Zameen Par was nearing release. He said that the film’s trailer releasing just 12 hours after his statement was a mere coincidence. “The trailer was supposed to release much earlier. I cancelled it because of the attack on our nation. I cancelled the premiere of Andaz Apna Apna that day,” he said.

His 1994 cult comedy, Rajkumar Santoshi’s Andaz Apna Apna, was re-released in cinemas on April 25.

He also explained himself and said, “If I speak about our forces delivering a befitting response, then am I doing something wrong? Should I think about the film or about our forces at that time? If I keep quiet just because my film is about to release, I feel that’s wrong. So, I spoke about it openly.”

The actor also defended Islam by saying that it doesn’t endorse violence. “No religion asks you to kill people. I don’t consider these terrorists Muslims because it’s written in Islam that you can’t kill any innocent human, can’t strike a woman or a child. They’re going against the religion by doing what they are doing,” said Aamir.