Saif: I thought about changing Taimur’s name, but dropped the idea
| Feb 22, 2017, 12:47 IST
Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan were blessed with a baby boy last year, and the two decided to name him Taimur Ali Khan. However, the name Taimur received a lot of flak as the internet believed that Taimur was closely derived from the name of the ruler Timur Lang. Both, Kareen and Saif have time and again cleared the air about the same, but they continue to get questioned about it.
In a recent interview with Delhi Times, Saif spoke at large about the incident and yet again clarified his stand on naming his son Taimur. When asked if he was still being questioned about Taimur's name, Saif said, "Yes, even today. My daughter told me, why don't you say that you have not named him after Timur Lang, say that's Timur and this is Taimur. I said it still sounds similar. She says just say they have same roots. The name is nice and it sounds good and it means something nice but it is not named after that guy. Well, yes, the name is the same, but the name also predates the person called Timur Lang. Incidentally, Timur Lang's son was Shah Rukh, who is the guy who supposedly said we should actually plunder India. A lot of fighting was done by his sons, but nobody has a problem with the name Shah Rukh (laughs)."
When asked if things seemed sorted now, Saif revealed, "You know, actually - I haven't told anyone this - I thought for a second about changing his name. For a couple of weeks. And Kareena was a little against it and she said, 'People respect you for your opinion and you can't'... So I said, yeah, but it's not about people. I don't want him to get unpopular. And I still might, maybe when he's one or two, I might change his name in a while, it's still sinking in, what to do. Someone in my PR agreed with me, and we drafted a small letter. And when I read it, it was so pathetic, that I cancelled the idea. Because it was really like, uhh, 'I'm sorry', and 'I didn't want to offend' and 'I'm an idiot' (laughs), and you know, I've given in to pressure. It just sounded awful. However you write it, it just wasn't sounding right. It was like I didn't realise where I live or what I'm doing. So I did think about it. I thought about it, but it was for the wrong reason."
In a recent interview with Delhi Times, Saif spoke at large about the incident and yet again clarified his stand on naming his son Taimur. When asked if he was still being questioned about Taimur's name, Saif said, "Yes, even today. My daughter told me, why don't you say that you have not named him after Timur Lang, say that's Timur and this is Taimur. I said it still sounds similar. She says just say they have same roots. The name is nice and it sounds good and it means something nice but it is not named after that guy. Well, yes, the name is the same, but the name also predates the person called Timur Lang. Incidentally, Timur Lang's son was Shah Rukh, who is the guy who supposedly said we should actually plunder India. A lot of fighting was done by his sons, but nobody has a problem with the name Shah Rukh (laughs)."
When asked if things seemed sorted now, Saif revealed, "You know, actually - I haven't told anyone this - I thought for a second about changing his name. For a couple of weeks. And Kareena was a little against it and she said, 'People respect you for your opinion and you can't'... So I said, yeah, but it's not about people. I don't want him to get unpopular. And I still might, maybe when he's one or two, I might change his name in a while, it's still sinking in, what to do. Someone in my PR agreed with me, and we drafted a small letter. And when I read it, it was so pathetic, that I cancelled the idea. Because it was really like, uhh, 'I'm sorry', and 'I didn't want to offend' and 'I'm an idiot' (laughs), and you know, I've given in to pressure. It just sounded awful. However you write it, it just wasn't sounding right. It was like I didn't realise where I live or what I'm doing. So I did think about it. I thought about it, but it was for the wrong reason."