French honour for King Khan

Shah Rukh Khan is all set to join the ranks of Hollywood superstars like George Clooney, Clint Eastwood, Robert Redford, Meryl Streep and Bruce Willis as he has been chosen by the French government to be be honoured with the distinction of Officer dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters).

The distinction is conferred on persons who have distinguished themselves by their creativity in the field of art, culture and literature or for their contribution to the influence of the arts in France and throughout the world.

SRK is expected to be presented with the honour in a special ceremony on January 27 in Mumbai. The day also marks the opening of the high profile French film festival.

The award will be presented either by the visiting French President Nicolas Sarkozy or the French Ambassador to India, Jerome Bonnafont. “SRK is very popular in France. Few years back when he was in Paris for the premiere of Veer Zaara , he was staying in the same hotel as Tom Cruise. There was a sea of young girls outside the hotel. The guards thought that they had come to see Cruise, but were surprised to see them rooting when SRK came out,” says Mohamed Bendjebbour, Audiovisual Attache-Head of the French Film & TV office, French Embassy in India.

Arundhati Roy is the other well-known Indian recipient of the award.

The Times Of India