Bhai talks about the changes in actors, movies and audiences over the years; he also discusses the serious topic of death threats and the ongoing South vs North debate
Mumbai: In a candid interview, while promoting his latest film, Sikander, Salman Khan expressed his views on various topics. He also shared insights into his family and his work in the film industry.
The actor has finally broken his silence over the death threats he has been receiving from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang. “Bhagwan, Allah, sab un par hai. Jitni umar likhi hai, utni likhi hai. Bas yahi hai. Kabhi kabhi itne logon ko saath mein leke chalna padta hai, bas wohi problem ho jaati hai. (Bhagwan, Allah everything is up to Him. I will live as long as I am destined to live, and only that long. Sometimes I have to take a lot of people with me, that becomes a problem.)”
‘South films work here but their audience don’t watch our films’
Salman confirmed that his much-anticipated action film with south filmmaker Atlee has been delayed due to budget issues. “That’s delayed. The budget is an issue for that film. He (Atlee) has written a massive, large-budgeted film. I don’t know if Rajinikanth or Kamal Haasan will be in the film.”
The actor also said compared to regional stars. “When my film is released there, it will not get the numbers because their fan following is strong. I’ll walk on the street, and they will shout, ‘Bhai, Bhai, Bhai’, but they will not go to the theatres. How we’ve accepted them here and their films— that hasn’t happened there.
We go and see films by Rajinikanth and Chiranjeevi garu, Suriya, or Ram Charan. However, their fans do not watch our films,” Salman lamented.
‘I don’t believe in paid reviews’
“You will never find me declaring a film a hit even when it’s a flop. I don’t declare any of my films a hit. I don’t believe in paid reviews either. Once I have done my job, I leave it to the audiences to watch the film and comment. On our part, we give our best right from the first day of being associated with the film and also do the promotions to the best of our abilities…iss se jyada kya kar sakte hai? [What more can we do?]
Film’s success
“When any film, including mine, is shoddy, it will be a flop. Stars are the ones seen on the screen so the blame will be on them, obviously.” Referring to pressure faced by filmmakers, he said, “When they are successful, they feel happy, but when the film doesn't do well, they come to us, saying, ‘Yaar nuksaan ho gaya.’ This is a business in which we get to face both loss and faida [profit].”
Theatre occupancy
“Chaava ne Rs 200 crore kaise banaye fir?” [If that’s so, how did Chaava make Rs 200 crore?] “Pushpa, Jawan and Animal also did well. If the film is good and those who watch the first show on the first day come out saying ‘Wah! This is good!’ the word-of-mouth publicity helps the film garner good results at the box office.”
‘self-made actor’
“There is no one who can claim to be self-made. It’s a team effort. If my father hadn't come to Mumbai from Indore, then I would have been farming there. My grandfather (Abdul Rashid Khan was a Deputy Inspector General of the Indore) Hindustan ke sabse bade kalakar the, and because of my grandfather my father got work here.”
Young actors are ‘insecure’
Younger heroes don’t want to work with each other, he says. “During our times, we worked in two-hero or multiple hero films, confident that our fans would come together to watch us, and that it would have a good impact on the box office,” he said, adding, “We also made guest appearances in many films and in the bargain, we developed friendships.”
Age-gap controversy
“Well, even if people may have a problem about me working with Janhvi [Kapoor] or Ananya [Pandey] owing to my age, I will still work with them.”
THE PLOT
Coming to Sikander, he said, “The emotional graph and the story of this film are intriguing and I liked it a lot. The action and romance are very good; it’s a different kind of a film which has a good message which is subtly put across. When you come out after watching the film, you will feel that you liked various aspects of it.”
Asked to name a takeaway from the movie, the actor said the plot presents a person who may belong to any State, and go to any other, and become a king. “King kaheen ka bhi ho, King hota hai. Similarly, an individual who is a good person will always be seen as such.”
Films fared better in the 90s than now
“We need a film with a whole package. It needs to have the right emotions, love and comedy punches.” He also felt that attention spans had reduced over the years, and films should strike the right chords with audiences to win their attention and their approval.
“We have to make films for the audiences. They have gone way ahead,” he added. “He has written a very big budget action film. The film with Atlee is delayed; the budget is an issue for the film. I don’t know who from the two (Rajinikanth sir or Kamal Haasan sir) will be in it.”
“I have worked with many South technicians, directors, actors, and actresses. But when my films are released there, they don’t get the same numbers because their fan following is very strong. I can walk on the streets, and people will recognize me, but getting them to theaters, like how we accept South films here—that hasn’t happened yet. Their films do well here because we go and watch their films.”
