In a conversation that lasts about two and half hours, held over a single sitting with a live audience, actor Salman Khan takes you into the little known world of possibly the most reclusive Indian super-star
By Mayank Shekhar
A lot of people may not know or remember this but Maine Pyar Kiya was in fact not your first film, it was Biwi Ho To Aisi (1988).
A lot of people know that, in fact. And that I prayed for that film to not do well. But it did 100 days’ business, so just imagine how God doesn’t listen to me.
But wasn’t that an odd choice: to debut with fourth or fifth billing in a film headlined by Rekha, Farooq Sheikh, Bindu and Kader Khan?
Arrey, but you have to get work also na! I had no choice. It was the first film I got after such a long time. And I thought (at the time), it was the best film ever. There was Rekhaji, Farooq Sheikh. There was the combination of Kader Khan and Shakti Kapoor that was working well in movies at that time. And I was playing the young romantic lead, with Renu Arya.
I met her (Renu Arya) in a flight recently and I went… (makes surprised expression). And the same thing happened with Bhagyashree (co-star in Maine Pyar Kiya) when I met her at Filmistan Studio recently. Don’t blame me for this. I hadn’t met Bhagyashree or Renu Arya in like 22 years.
Ajay Devgn and I were sitting down and this girl walks up to me in heels – tick tock, tick tock. She says, Hi Salman. I say, Hey. She says, what’s up. I say, all good. She says, how’ve you been? I say, good. Then she blasts, “Ass hole, you didn’t recognise me?” I said, “Bhagyashree, I’m so sorry!” Don’t blame me. Apna chehra bhool jaoonga mein kabhi! (I’ll forget my face some day).
Did you always want to be a movie star?
No. I wanted to be a director. I had started meeting people with scripts. One of those scripts of mine was very recently destroyed by a dear friend of mine. It was called Veer. Anyway, every place I went to with a script, they’d always tell me I should be an actor. They probably didn’t have faith in me as director. They thought what will this 17-18 year old boy direct? What sensibility will he have?
I had written Baaghi and Veer at that time. Back then, big budget movies used to have budgets of around Rs 70 to 80 lakh. I remember this because Sooraj Barjatiya went over-budget with Maine Pyar Kiya. It was made at Rs 1 crore, 11 lakh. He was very stressed, he would tell me his father would make films in Rs 40 lakh. So well, they didn’t trust me then with directing I guess, so they kept telling me that I should become an actor.
Eventually I got ‘chadaoed’ (deluded) by the whole thing that maybe I should become an actor, since that was the unanimous opinion. I went to my dad and told him I want to be an actor since that’s what everyone had been telling me. My dad said, “Everybody comes here – Ramesh Sippy, Manmohan Desai, Mahesh Bhatt… Nobody has told me that. Nobody’s said Salman beta, next film you’re on to you either. You see Sanjay (Dutt), Chunky (Pandey), Sunny (Deol) coming over. Do you see anything similar between you and them? You can’t become a ‘mohale ka dada’ (street lord), lawyer or police inspector. At most you’ll do a romantic picture or two. What will you do after?”
So I started working out. And then he said, “Yeh lo Dara Singh banna chahta hai (he wants to be Dara Singh now).” But these are the things that got me going then and still get me going now. When sometimes you guys (the news media) lagao (pick on) me big time, you think I’ll react. Yes I do react. But I react on myself. I say now I’ll show them.
So while growing up your icons would’ve been not movie stars, but directors instead?
I didn’t have any. Until recently when I saw The Expendables, I wasn’t always like, “Woho Sylvester Stallone!” But at 67, how he has looked in that film? He’s just, “Woof!” He’s in ten times better shape than I am. Amazing. Brilliant. To fight, run and fall – the action – I was thinking Chulbul Pandey ka kya hoga boss!
Were you not a huge movie buff growing up?
Obviously I was. I’ve grown up in the film fraternity. My dad is a film writer, so yes. But I never ever wanted to be an actor because I didn’t believe that I could be one. I was very thin. I was 48 kilos. I could play sports, learn martial arts and all, but screen presence wasn’t there. It took me years to double my weight. Now I’m 78 kilos and sometimes I go up to 84 kilos when I train very hard. You need that. But if I go back to the weight I was at the time of Maine Pyar Kiya, people will say, poor guy has fallen sick.
Maine Pyar Kiya opened in 1989. A lot of people can’t quite fathom what exactly happened in that year with your debut, Aamir’s, and then Shah Rukh Khan also came along. It’s been over twenty years since and the Khan trinity, so to say, still exists. Few stars have managed to break that mould; many have come and gone since. What explains this phenomenon?
There’s no explanation for that. That breach will never happen and I’ve never thought about it as well. You’ve seen the promos for Dabanng (referring to the first part). Have you seen anything like that before? We’re used to seeing so many promos and there has never been a reaction of that magnitude to any film promo before.
Like Sholay didn’t do well until four weeks after the film released. After that it picked up and ran for five years. What is the explanation to that? They said, wait, wait, the movie will pick up by Monday. Picture doesn’t pick up, the prints get picked up. The dialogues of Sholay are not even dialogues. They are lines like “Arre O Sambha”, “Kitne aadmi the.” He’s asking “kitne aadmi the?” That’s not a dialogue. But everything about Sholay caught on. Like “Holi kab hai?” He’s asking holi kab hai yaar!
There’s no explanation to the trinity either. It’s not just three. Akshay Kumar came at the same time. Ajay Devgn is still there. It’s just that three guys have the surname Khan. If Aki’s name was Khan and I was Kumar, it wouldn’t have made a difference, right? I don’t believe in all that stuff.
I once read an interview of yours where you said no one can fault your acting because you in fact don’t act at all. What does that mean?
Yes that is true. I can get caught for anything, but I can’t get caught for acting. I am on screen just the way I am in real life. I’ve never played any characters. When you act, you basically take a character from somewhere and perform it. With me it’s like jo line aya hai, jaisa bolne ka hai, waise bolo, khatam karo, aage bhado (get the line, say it and move on). I’m not one of those who comes on to the set and says give me half an hour, I want to get into my character.
Is it unnerving for your director knowing that you’ll land up anytime and do anything?
They are scared if I will land up at all. Once I’ve landed up, they know I’ll finish the work and finish it a lot faster than anybody else.
Is there no film in your entire career that you’ve really pushed yourself hard to perform?
There is hard work in every film. Some people show physical hard work. My hard work is in today, here, sitting here. Looking at you guys (refers to others watching the interview), the way you guys are sitting, and looking at me. If I were to be in front of the camera, I would be exactly like this.
If this were a scene in a movie, and you’d be sitting here and shooting and looking at me, you would be no different either. You would be like this (makes a serious expression). Acting is what? It is sitting here and chilling. That’s what it is all about. But that is not appreciated yet. Out here you need that little more acting for the critics to appreciate it. The critics know a lot about that kind of stuff apparently.
Well you do end up doing what your audience likes.
Basically you’ve got to be yourself, and just three or four percent larger than life, that is it. That is my belief. That is if you have it, if you are successful. If you go a little over the top, then you are arrogant and pompous.
What about scripts? What is the one thing that you definitely look at before signing up for a film?
The script. And that is, if I like the narration in the first go. If I say I’ll see it tomorrow, I’m a bit confused about it right now – then it’s not happening. That movie will only happen if it’s a friend of mine who is doing it, and if I have the dates. And then if he keeps saying, “Trust me, trust me, trust me . . . Let’s do it na! You don’t want to work with me? Is there a problem?” Then the film will happen. But now all that has stopped. It stopped sometime ago actually.
A lot of films you’ve done like that, right? Do you regret doing them?
I don’t regret them. There are different reasons for doing different films. But the most important reason is the script. You feel the script is outstanding and positive and there is heroism in it – Heroism not in action, but heroism in romance, drama, for a cause.
It can be anything that you come out of (the theatre from), and you’re either laughing or wiping your tears off. Any of these reactions is heroism.
For example, if you’ve ever watched Bruce Lee movies, when you come out you see the skinniest of guys wanting to break into fights. They get thrashed outside Gaiety-Galaxy (popular cinema in Bandra). I’ve seen that. They would come out as if they had wings and they felt like studs and they would get jhapped (swatted).
But that is the spirit of the hero – either you want to be that hero or not. Or if a girl comes out, she says I wish I had a brother like that, a boyfriend, son or grandson like that, or I wish my daughter gets married to somebody like that. That is heroism. That is the character that people follow and that is something that you should do.
Your dad is responsible for major blockbusters through the 1970s. Is there anything that he taught you that you keep in mind?
These are the things that he taught me. And I still believe in all of it. When you sign a film you think these are things you want: you see the filmmaker’s visual sense when he is narrating the film to you, you say fine. In your mind you think it’s awesome, that it’s going to be a blockbuster, ‘phaad degi yeh picture’ (the film will blow your mind).
And then when you come on to the set, he (the director) says, no, it’s not going to be like this sir, it will be something totally different. Then you think, “Yeh aadmi koi aur tha yaar pehle (This man was someone else before).” The moment he gets on the set, he starts ordering – sound, camera, action cut cut cut….I’m like, “What are you doing?” That is the time you know, and you go, “Oh no! What have I done? Mistake!” It happens. But at that point in time, you follow. You say, yes sir, okay sir, ready to take, sir.
Then when it comes to publicising the film: Nice film. “Arre get some enthusiasm,” the director says. You say: good good, very nice movie, you must watch it, if you have extra money, then you must see the movie; if you have nothing to do, see it for sure.
What do you make of the Bollywood audiences’ split between multiplex and single screen theatres that took place roughly in the early 2000s?
I think multiplex audiences have a lot of money to spend and are slightly more conscious about what people will think when they see them clapping or whistling (to a film). That is it. We tried to change that with Dabanng. We were going to get them off their high horses and make them scream and shout.
If a film has a good opening, then the single screen theatres are in fact a lot more expensive than multiplexes, because in black, the prices average around Rs.500 a ticket. In that much, you can buy three tickets at a multiplex.
But there is also the comfort level of going to that particular theatre: Mall mein jayenge, achhe kapde daal ke jayenge…. (We’ll go to a fancy mall, wear good clothes…). Like when we were little, we used to go to a good restaurant and the darban (the usher) would open the door. We used to worry about what the bill would be like. You’d think, damn, Rs 100 gone! If we were on a date then we were screwed. You open the menu and eyes immediately go to the right side (the prices). You wonder, “Dal aur chawal ka itna hai toh chicken aur mutton ka kitna hoga? (If dal, chawal is that expensive, how much would chicken or mutton cost?).” Even now that happens.
That has been your effort, isn’t it? To bring the old cinema and the hardcore audiences back into the theatres?
Heroism, basically. To entertain people, to ensure they go into the theatre, and come out happy. Now what I want is for the single screen guys to go to those multiplex guys and teach them how to have a blast. What has started happening is that multiplex guys have started going to single screens to watch these kinds of movies. People in multiplexes get bored of these films. They wonder where the entertainment is. They screen some boring films that critics give four or five stars to.
Did you love Mithun-da movies for instance?
Yeah. Gunmaster G9 (from Suraksha, Wardat). Now I’ve been wanting to do that for the longest time. Disco Dancer, Taraana, Veer, Heroes… I loved all these movies. I think he is rock-star. He’s also a lovely guy.
There is a line in Disco Dancer, where Amrish Puri says that creative mind ko destroy karne ke liye, usay dimaagi pareshani deni chahiye. You’ve had a lot of demaagi pareshani in your life – with the car accident, the poaching case. How have you kept yourself away from all that?
The fact is if you’ve done it, you can’t do anything about it. If you haven’t done it, even then you can’t do anything about it. Woh apna time hai. Kharab chal raha hai. You can’t do anything. Jhelo usay. Jitni jaldi jhel sakto ho, jhelo (Time’s not on your side. Deal with it, the faster the better). At that situation it is your destiny. I was advised to run away. I was getting anticipatory bail. So even the cops knew what was happening. Everybody was talking about how it was all politically motivated and all that jazz.
So there were cops in Umedh Bhawan waiting for me (for the poaching case). I entered Umedh Bhawan and the cops told me, “Bhaag jaao (run away).” They said, “Hum sab idhar udhar dekh rahein hain. Aap bhaag jao (We’re all looking away, you run away).” I said, “Pagal hai. Salman Khan hoon. Bhagoonga toh kahan bhagoonga yaar (Are you mad? Where will Salman Khan run away to?).” Every villager in every village recognises me. If I go out of here, I will walk with my head held high. I’ve not done anything, but it’s okay. Yeh time jhelna hai, jhelo. Khatam karo (deal with this time, and move on).
Every time I knew that they would call me (for court hearing) on Thursday. So I would be in from Thursday to Sunday, and I would be on a long holiday from Monday to Wednesday. I knew every Thursday that I had to leave (jail). Abhi yeh program hai, so chill baba (that’s the plan, so chill). What else can you do but wake up in the morning, do crunches, sit-ups, paint, sketch. That time (in the prison) went flying by. But that doesn’t mean that they can put me back in. No way now!
Do these things bother you when you go back to work on the set?
You mean like flashes come to me? (laughs) No! None of these things bother me. I was in for a month and a half, for 15 days, sometimes for 20 days. What does bother me is that 50 to 60 per cent of the people that are in jail are just there. Their term is over. They don’t have three to four thousand bucks to come out. Their cases have been going on for the longest time for small, small, small things.
People, who they say, are criminals, who’ve been in for 30 years, are just there. They can’t see or walk, some of those people are also in jail. In the monsoon time, people get into small fights, commit small crimes, just to go to jail – so that they can wade over the monsoons in a prison. It’s a sad thing. And our jails are in such tip-top condition!
If your flush in the bathroom doesn’t work, you should go to one of the jail toilets. You must try it. You’ll love it! Agar mahine ke andar kabz na ho jaye, toh mera naam change kar dena (If you don’t get constipated in a month, change my name).
Another thing that’s changed about Bollywood is that a lot of white money has finally entered the system. There was a time when movies were almost paid for by the underworld. Were you ever paid such at any of those times?
There was no money in the system earlier – forget black or white. There was a time when most of us used to sign a movie for Rs 5 lakh and this one man used to come and say, “Sethji, that man (the producer) is in trouble. He doesn’t have money. Give him a discount. Leave him Rs 2 lakh.” And this happened for the longest time with me yar!
Right until Saajan and even for two-three films after, this guy used to come. I said, “Yaar yeh aadmi baar baar? What is this?” My price would go up to Rs 25 lakh, then he would discount me to Rs 10 lakh. If it went up to Rs 30 lakh, he’d discount me to Rs 15 lakh. And every time it was always this particular man who would come over. So one day when he came, I asked my dad, who is he? He said, “Pata nahin beta! (I don’t know son).” Since Baaghi he had been coming and each time he would take more away.
Finally I asked him, “Aap price badhane aye ho kabhi? (Have you ever come in to raise my price?).” I just said that I thought you’d do me a favour sometime as well. Have you ever pleaded my case? Have you ever told the filmmaker or me that beta, in this movie, I’ll increase your rate from Rs 25 lakh to Rs 35 lakh? He said no. So I asked him, “Apne agar aisa nahin kaha hai, toh waisa kyun kehte ho? (If you’ve never said one thing then why the other?)” Don’t I work hard? And every producer makes money. Next time when you come to this house, I’ll take it for granted that you’ve come to increase my price by Rs 25 lakh for every film.
After that day, he didn’t come back again. You know who that guy was? It was Hari Sugandh. I made Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam with him later and it was all good. I earned all my money back from that film.
But did you at all fear the mafia at that point? Was it a very common thing?
No. They kept me out of this. They never bothered me as such. I did say no, a lot of times. That was the problem. They thought I was kind of erratic.
That’s a general perception that people have about you as well, right?
No, not erratic. It’s just that if you ask me nicely, I’ll listen to you. But if I feel there is any kind of threat or pressure, phir toh chance hi nahin hai (then there is no chance). But if you say no I have to do it, then no way. As and when the pressure keeps building, I keep taking it in and then eventually it comes out in the correct manner.
I’ve never been called over (by the underworld). It was a big threat (then) and people had been shot and a lot of people had died in the film industry. It was a huge threat. Lots of people were targeted, especially producers, like Mr Rakesh Roshan. But I was kind of away from all this stuff. That was a good thing.
Not that one didn’t get calls or anything. But there is a way of handling these things. I would talk to them the way they would talk to me. You talk to me with respect, I would talk with a lot of respect too. You threaten me, I’ll threaten you back. The equation is simple. That disrespect, apart from one or two instances, didn’t really happen. There’s no point naming those people either, because some idiot will gain publicity and he will start calling again.
Talking about your erratic nature…
There is nothing erratic about my nature. It’s just that the way you would react, I would react the same way. It’s just that people in limelight, under the media spotlight, would not react that way. They would go back home and plan their reaction. That would be a more dangerous reaction. With me, it’s just there, and I forgive and forget very easily.
That’s what people define you as: rockstar – someone who doesn’t give a rat’s ass about what anybody thinks or when they write you off?
I don’t care. Earlier it used to bother me and I used to say if anyone touches my family, I’ll do this and that. Now family is also capable of handling themselves, so that is also no cause for worry anymore.
How do you explain fan craze in general? Like, I don’t know, why would MF Hussain want to make a whole film about Madhuri Dixit, after Hum Apke Hain Kaun?
For Madhuri (Dixit)? I mean I was also part of that film. I was also appreciated hugely in it. But I never got any paintings or anything from him. They said he made a painting of me begging with a bowl and all that. But we met up after and it was all okay. He saw some of my work (paintings) and he quite liked it as well.
What defines you almost wholly are your fans. What are the craziest moments that you’ve ever encountered?
Lots of these things yaar. Like I have this scar on my hand (points to shoulder). I see a lot of these guys who come with scars on their hands. It’s ridiculous. With me it was an accident. These kids do it on purpose. You can’t prove by doing such things that you are the biggest fan there is. I am myself thinking about getting a plastic surgery done to remove this. I also get a lot of people writing to me with their blood. I have stopped replying to those mails altogether. I don’t know how many people go mad doing such things. It’s sad. No one even reads those letters, you know. They don’t get to my hands, only the best ones do.
My intention is to stop all this. Then there are some who come to the first floor and stay put all night outside my door. My mum opens the door, and says, what is this? So now there are people standing down there as well. Crazy fans are those who pass by the house and if there is no one there, they shout out, “Teri maa ki.”
There is then the whole Sallu bhai fan club. My name is not Sallu bhai. It is Salman. But then it’s okay. It has suddenly come up from somewhere. It’s come from the fans only, not the press. I think Jackie (Shroff) was the only one who used to call me Sallu.
Do you think about this kind of stardom at all, of losing yourself in it?
No. I don’t know what a star is. I never think about these things, because the more you think about them, the more your ears get used to them. Your eyes get used to it (closes ears, imagining a screaming crowd). And suddenly when you don’t see that happening anymore, you start imagining all of that happening again. At that time it could be for somebody who’s behind you. You think then that ‘mein budhha ho gaya toh mujhe bhool gaye’ (I’ve aged so everybody’s forgotten me). Then the frustration builds up and you live your life in frustration and boredom. It makes you vindictive and complex and you become a disgusting human being. So yes, the solution is, don’t take this to the head.
You’ve grown up in the film industry. Have you personally observed people go through that?
I’ve seen my father who would keep putting the phone down. And then later, when there were no calls coming, he started asking to check if the phone was working at all. I’ve seen this. These things don’t make a difference. It’s just that some of my friends have to be careful about this.
Everybody has to learn. I’ve learnt it from my seniors. Most of us are pretty chilled out about all this stuff. No matter how much money you’ve made, it will not compensate for that mental peace.