Aamir Khan Receives Singapore Festival Honour and Gets Emotional on Stage
Aamir Khan received the Screen Icon Award at the Singapore International Film Festival from Hong Kong director Peter Chan Ho-sun, and then broke down on stage while talking about his family, Variety reported on 22 October 2026. The Screen Icon Award is the festival's honour for a figure in film. It was previously known as the Cinema Icon Award.
The Indian actor and producer spoke in an in-conversation session moderated by Singapore comedian Rishi Budhrani. He recalled that during the COVID-19 lockdown he realised that three decades of nonstop work had cost him years with his family. He said that for the last four years he has deliberately set time aside for his family and close friends.
Khan also said he shut his phone a few weeks earlier. He is now off all apps, after finding that scrolling could swallow three hours at a stretch.
The session also brought news about two of his best-known films. Khan said Rajkumar Hirani is working on the script for a sequel to 3 Idiots, and that Hirani is expected to narrate the final version to him within the next couple of weeks. He said he phoned Hirani the day before the session to ask permission to share the news. Khan also said Raj Santoshi is working on something related to a sequel to Andaz Apna Apna. Neither project has been announced by its director or a studio.
Khan's career stretches back to his 1988 debut, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. He told the audience that after that film became a hit, he signed nine films within six months. That early rush is one reason the festival chose to look back at his work.
The festival's showcase of his films includes Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, Lagaan, Taare Zameen Par and 3 Idiots, the festival said in a Facebook post. Khan was also set to attend a 25th-anniversary screening of Lagaan, according to NDTV.
The 37th Singapore International Film Festival runs from 21 October to 1 November 2026. The festival will also honour Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Koreeda, and it opens with The Assassin(s), Screen Daily reported. Festival passes and tickets are handled through SGIFF.com, and buying one requires signing up for an account on the site.
Khan's remarks were personal rather than promotional. He spoke about slowing down, about the cost of a career that never paused, and about the people he now makes room for. Whether the sequel talk turns into a film will depend on decisions that have not yet been made.
