Actor Shakib Khan sued by Bangladesh rickshaw driver over phone error
- Published
Shakib Khan is one of the best known actors of his generation in Bangladesh
A Bangladeshi auto-rickshaw driver is suing one of the country's best-known film stars, who used his phone number in a movie.
The blunder led to Ijajul Mia being deluged with calls from admiring female fans of film star Shakib Khan.
"The use of my number... made my life completely miserable," Mr Mia said.
He is seeking more than $60,000 (拢45,000) for the distress caused by the calls, which he argues has nearly ruined his marriage.
Mr Mia is estimated to have received nearly 500 calls over a five-day period in July from women hoping to meet Mr Khan.
There has been no comment from the actor to the claims.
Cycle rickshaws and auto-rickshaws jostle for space and custom in the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka - and Mr Mia says his mobile phone is vital for his business
Mr Khan is one of the famous and successful actors in Bangladesh, winning numerous awards.
The incident involving Mr Mia's mobile phone number took place in the film Rajniti - released in June and produced and directed by Mr Khan.
In the film, the movie star is seen and heard reciting Mr Mia's number to his onscreen girlfriend.
"Every day I got hundreds of calls, mostly from female fans of Shakib Khan," a frustrated Mr Mia told the AFP news agency.
"They would say 'Hello Shakib, I am your fan. Do you have two minutes to talk to me?'"
Mr Mia said the anxiety caused by the calls had left him questioning whether to sell his family home, and led to his new wife threatening to leave him.
He explained that he could not afford to get a different number because he would lose business from long-established clients if he did so.
"I am a newly-married man with one daughter," he said. "When these calls started coming, my wife thought that I was having an affair."
One fan was reported by AFP to have been so enamoured with the idea of meeting Mr Khan that she travelled 500km (300 miles) to see him.
Mr Mia's case was filed this week before a district judge, who initially was reported to have been reluctant to hear it.
But the judge is reported to have changed his mind after lawyers acting on his behalf submitted evidence showing the personal angst experienced by him because of the phone calls.
Another hearing in the case has been fixed for 18 December, local media reported.
- Published5 June 2012
