STAR PROTECTOR: Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan will speak out against illegal poaching in a new ad campaign. -- PHOTO: AFP

In a new ad campaign, that will be screened at airports and on television screens across the country, India's biggest movie star will speak out against illegal animal trade and talk about the crucial role forest guards play, The Hindu newspaper said yesterday.

The wildlife preservation campaign will show the 41-year-old Khan, who has starred in more than 50 movies, praising the job of forest guards who work to save the jungles and the animals that live there.

'Day in and day out they are matching their wits and battling powerful enemies including wildlife poachers and timber smugglers, and they are willing to lay down their lives for this,' he says.

Khan's wildlife protection message, in both English and Hindi, is expected to create awareness about poaching that has savaged India's tiger population, resulting in a thriving black market for animals such as leopards and rhinoceroses.

The ad film is scheduled to debut at India's international and domestic airports this week.

Khan's blockbusters Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (Sometimes Happiness, Sometimes Sorrow), Kabhi Haan, Kabhi Na (Sometimes Yes, Sometimes No) and Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna (Never Say Goodbye) have made him a popular name worldwide.

This is the first time that he is believed to be associating with a wildlife protection campaign.

In 2005, he found himself facing the ire of animal rights activists when they accused him and co-producer Karan Johar of cruelly handling tigers, lions, pythons, owls and monkeys on the sets of the movie Kaal.

A court notice to the producers said the shooting had taken place deep within the Jim Corbett National Park in 'gross violation' of the Wildlife Act and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, The Times of India had reported.

Khan's latest move is likely to gain him more favour with the activists.

ASSOCIATED PRESS