Posted:
Hi friends,
'I think I am a great guy'
Harneet Singh
Posted: Nov 25, 2008 at 1051 hrs IST
Salman Khan on bad guys, air guitars, caps, lookalikes, stalled shoots and global meltdown
In your introduction in Yuvvraaj, you say that you're a bad guy. Are you one in real life too?
(Smiles) One man's floor is another man's ceiling. To some I may come across as a bad guy and to some I may be the best guy. I'm a great guy with a few faults here and there. The most perfect thing that God makes is a child. But once the child grows up, he becomes corrupt. That's when insecurities, jealousies, incompetence, greed, lust and competition creep in. The battle is to fight all that and connect to the child within. I try and keep in touch with the child inside me. Are you competitive?
My competition is with myself. I want to increase my level irrespective of what others are doing. All of us make a choice to follow a particular path in life. I choose to follow my own path. I feel frustrations creep in when you don't know yourself. It's a sign of incompetence when you want to win so badly that you are willing to put others down. Once that happens, then what a person thinks, says or does are all different. I don't want to be like that. Why did it take 20 years for you and Subhash Ghai to come together for a film?
Yeah can you believe that? He's a chilled out guy. His last three films haven't done well but the industry has not given him his due. Just imagine three out of 30 is not even one per cent of his track record but industry has been eager to write him off. It's sad. I don't go by this kind of arithmetic. I liked the script of Yuvvraaj and decided to do it. Considering you're wearing lots of caps in the film, safe to say you've become a pucca Subhash Ghai hero?
Laughs) Yes ma'am, Mr.Ghai made me wear caps. But let me clarify that the final decision on the caps was with me. I wore only those caps that I liked. Subhash Ghai says you don't know your potential as an actor. Do you agree with him?
I know my potential but I've not utilised it. I've been working on only two percent of my capability. Remaining 98 per cent is untapped. Why don't you use all your potential?
I feel with the kind of films we make only two per cent is required. But hey, I use that two per cent to the hilt. The rest is for life, my painting, my family, helping people, my foundation, Being Human. So it's all good. Since you play a musician in most of your films including Yuvvraaj, is there any musical instrument that you actually know how to play?
I've always wanted to learn to play the guitar. I haven't found the time for that but I can really act it well. (Does a guitar strumming gesture) In all my stage shows, I do this air guitar thing which is really appreciated. Why do you take Himesh Reshammiya's case so much (in a recent episode of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge, Salman made constant digs at Himesh's nasal twang)?
(Laughs) Himesh is a nice guy. He's a funny guy. I like him. The reason I take his case is because that's the kind of relationship we share. He doesn't mind it. Neither do I. Trade buzz is rife that after the global meltdown, T-Series has asked you to bring down your price from Rs 60 crore to Rs 20 crore for the Anees Bazmee project?
Nobody has told me anything. What has my price got to do with the recession anyway? If T-Series brings this matter to me then I'll increase my price by Rs 5 crore. You and Ajay Devgan are touted as the latest best friends in Bollywood. Comment.
I've always liked him. He's a good guy. We had a great time shooting for London Dreams. We joked around a lot, gossiped some, and bonded well. He's a very straight guy without any agendas and so we get along. Recent reports claim that your ambitious period drama, Veer has been stalled because of the ongoing recession?
False. We've had to postpone the schedule because of Yuvvraaj promotions. I was supposed to start shooting for Veer from November 13 but Subhash Ghai wanted me to promote Yuvvraaj. So he requested Vijay Galani, the producer of Veer, to give him the dates. We begin the next schedule of Veer on December first. Veer is special because I've written its script. So there is no truth in the reports that you hastily released pictures of Veer to allay distributor's fears?
That we did because a newspaper had carried some unflattering pictures of the film. They had come on the sets when we were shooting a drunken song sequence and they released those candid pictures. Those pictures were a misrepresentation of the film so we decided to release the right pictures. Is it true that your Veer heroine, Zarine Khan, is a Katrina Kaif lookalike?
That's not true. She doesn't look like Katrina. But is it true that you spotted her on a film shoot and got her photo shoot organised?
Yeah' something like this. I saw her on the sets and asked my Veer director Anil Sharma to come and meet her. He organized a look test and then a screen test. Once she cleared them, she was signed. When will Wanted release?
Wanted is complete. Only two songs remain to be shot. It's a hardcore action film, I've shot for some 160 odd days for it. The climax itself took some 35 days to shoot.
In your introduction in Yuvvraaj, you say that you're a bad guy. Are you one in real life too?
(Smiles) One man's floor is another man's ceiling. To some I may come across as a bad guy and to some I may be the best guy. I'm a great guy with a few faults here and there. The most perfect thing that God makes is a child. But once the child grows up, he becomes corrupt. That's when insecurities, jealousies, incompetence, greed, lust and competition creep in. The battle is to fight all that and connect to the child within. I try and keep in touch with the child inside me. Are you competitive?
My competition is with myself. I want to increase my level irrespective of what others are doing. All of us make a choice to follow a particular path in life. I choose to follow my own path. I feel frustrations creep in when you don't know yourself. It's a sign of incompetence when you want to win so badly that you are willing to put others down. Once that happens, then what a person thinks, says or does are all different. I don't want to be like that. Why did it take 20 years for you and Subhash Ghai to come together for a film?
Yeah can you believe that? He's a chilled out guy. His last three films haven't done well but the industry has not given him his due. Just imagine three out of 30 is not even one per cent of his track record but industry has been eager to write him off. It's sad. I don't go by this kind of arithmetic. I liked the script of Yuvvraaj and decided to do it. Considering you're wearing lots of caps in the film, safe to say you've become a pucca Subhash Ghai hero?
Laughs) Yes ma'am, Mr.Ghai made me wear caps. But let me clarify that the final decision on the caps was with me. I wore only those caps that I liked. Subhash Ghai says you don't know your potential as an actor. Do you agree with him?
I know my potential but I've not utilised it. I've been working on only two percent of my capability. Remaining 98 per cent is untapped. Why don't you use all your potential?
I feel with the kind of films we make only two per cent is required. But hey, I use that two per cent to the hilt. The rest is for life, my painting, my family, helping people, my foundation, Being Human. So it's all good. Since you play a musician in most of your films including Yuvvraaj, is there any musical instrument that you actually know how to play?
I've always wanted to learn to play the guitar. I haven't found the time for that but I can really act it well. (Does a guitar strumming gesture) In all my stage shows, I do this air guitar thing which is really appreciated. Why do you take Himesh Reshammiya's case so much (in a recent episode of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge, Salman made constant digs at Himesh's nasal twang)?
(Laughs) Himesh is a nice guy. He's a funny guy. I like him. The reason I take his case is because that's the kind of relationship we share. He doesn't mind it. Neither do I. Trade buzz is rife that after the global meltdown, T-Series has asked you to bring down your price from Rs 60 crore to Rs 20 crore for the Anees Bazmee project?
Nobody has told me anything. What has my price got to do with the recession anyway? If T-Series brings this matter to me then I'll increase my price by Rs 5 crore. You and Ajay Devgan are touted as the latest best friends in Bollywood. Comment.
I've always liked him. He's a good guy. We had a great time shooting for London Dreams. We joked around a lot, gossiped some, and bonded well. He's a very straight guy without any agendas and so we get along. Recent reports claim that your ambitious period drama, Veer has been stalled because of the ongoing recession?
False. We've had to postpone the schedule because of Yuvvraaj promotions. I was supposed to start shooting for Veer from November 13 but Subhash Ghai wanted me to promote Yuvvraaj. So he requested Vijay Galani, the producer of Veer, to give him the dates. We begin the next schedule of Veer on December first. Veer is special because I've written its script. So there is no truth in the reports that you hastily released pictures of Veer to allay distributor's fears?
That we did because a newspaper had carried some unflattering pictures of the film. They had come on the sets when we were shooting a drunken song sequence and they released those candid pictures. Those pictures were a misrepresentation of the film so we decided to release the right pictures. Is it true that your Veer heroine, Zarine Khan, is a Katrina Kaif lookalike?
That's not true. She doesn't look like Katrina. But is it true that you spotted her on a film shoot and got her photo shoot organised?
Yeah' something like this. I saw her on the sets and asked my Veer director Anil Sharma to come and meet her. He organized a look test and then a screen test. Once she cleared them, she was signed. When will Wanted release?
Wanted is complete. Only two songs remain to be shot. It's a hardcore action film, I've shot for some 160 odd days for it. The climax itself took some 35 days to shoot.
Why are all your films plagued by rumours of delays?
I don't know. All my films release on time. Every year I have four to five releases, which is more than any other actor. That's surprising considering I don't work too much. So I don't know why people say that my films get delayed. I don't know who spreads these stories.
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