SHAH RUKH KHAN TO RECEIVE DATUKSHIP NEXT WEDNESDAY

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 24 (Bernama) -- Next Wednesday, Shah Rukh Khan will be
conferred a datukship.

On that day, the Bollywood film icon will be in Melaka to accept the award,
Melaka Chief Minister Mohd Ali Rustam said Thursday.

He said the conferment ceremony at the Seri Negeri Hall in Melaka would be
telecast live at 10pm.

Melaka is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the
Straits of Malacca.

Mohd Ali said Shah Rukh would be persuaded to stay for two or three
days in the state, with the hope he would visit the Taming Sari Tower, Eyes on
Malaysia and many more beautiful and historical places.

In a related matter, the chief minister defended the state government's
move
to confer the actor the datukship, based on his contributions to Melaka.

"Despite the many criticism against the state government over the award, I
still believe Shah Rukh Khan deserves the title," he told reporters at the
Melaka Hari Raya Aidilfitri open house here.

The actor, through two movies, 'One Two Ka Four'(shot at the A Famosa
Resort) and 'Don' (shot at Botanical Gardens), has put Melaka on the
international map.

Mohd Ali said: "The actor's contributions are cost-free and the best part
is that it has brought Melaka, and Malaysia, glory and fame...and there was no
need for the state goverment to spend a single sen".

On tourist arrivals to Melaka, he said that in 2000, 1.7 million tourists
visited Melaka while in the first 10 months of this year, the number reached to
6.3 million.

-- BERNAMA