Amitabh Bachchan will be the new face of 'Incredible India', say sources

New Delhi: Veteran Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan has been selected as the next brand ambassador of Incredible India, sources said on Thursday, a day after the government dropped Aamir Khan from the campaign.

Tourism Ministry sources told CNN-IBN that Bachchan's name was finalised for the role of brand ambassador.

The decision comes shortly after Bachchan publicly expressed his willingness saying he was ready to do any work for the country and for social causes.

Bachchan is currently also the brand ambassador of Gujarat Tourism.

Earlier, Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma confirmed that Khan's contract which ended recently, will not be renewed.

Khan reacted to the decision saying, "It is the prerogative of the government to decide whether they need a brand ambassador for any campaign".

In his statement, he said, "It has been an honour and a pleasure for me to be the brand ambassador for the Incredible India campaign for the past 10 years. I was happy to be of service to my country, and will always be available for it.

"I would like to clarify that all public service films I have done till date have all been free of any cost to me. It is always an honour for me to be of service of my country, and this is how it will always be."

"It is the prerogative of the government to decide whether they need a brand ambassador for any campaign, and if so, who that ambassador should be. I respect the decision of the government to discontinue with my services. I am sure they will take all appropriate steps to do what is best for the country. Whether I am brand ambassador or not, India will remain Incredible, and that's the way it should be".

The actor ceased to be in the government's good books after he had commented on perceived intolerance at an awards function in Delhi last November.

Khan had said his wife Kiran Rao suggested that they should leave India due to a "sense of growing disquiet" and "growing despondency" in the country.

Following an uproar over his comments, the Bollywood actor said he stood by his comments but that his family had no intention of leaving India.