SALMAN KHAN Cuts short SOORAJ PANCHOLI'S Hero by 30 minutes

Salman Khan, the producer of the remake of superhit film Hero starring newcomers Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty, has trimmed the movie by 30 minutes, director Nikhil Advani said.In an interview, Nikhil, when asked about Salman's influence, said: "Before the making, I called him and said to him 'tell me what you want'." "I told him (Salman) if you don't sit on the edit, I cannot finish this film. You need to sit on the edit, to tell me what is right and what is wrong, what is working, what is not working'," Advani said.

"He (Salman) sat, he cut out 30 minutes of the film,. The film is now 2.04 hours. Someone recently asked me what is Hero in one word and I said 'Salman Khan'," he added.

It was recently reported that Salman had not interfered in the creative process. So did this editing satisfy or dent Nikhil's confidence as a director? "It totally satisfies me as a director. What it allowed me to do is while Hero was being made, I also made Katti Batti. Hero is a producer's film, Katti Batti is a director's film," said Nikhil. The bond between Nikhil and Salman was formed when they had worked in Salaam-E-Ishq. And Nikhil considers their friendship to be good enough to seek genuine feedback from him.

Salman Khan also prepared Athiya for the movie by giving her three important rules to succeed in the film industry. "Salman sir has always told me three things: Be humble. Hard work is extremely important. That's what takes you forward in life. People want to work with you because you're hardworking. And never forget the people who brought you to the top, because that's the most important," Athiya said in an interview. Considering that Athiya is just 22-year-old, one would also expect father Sunil Shetty to give her lectures on how to do well in life. "Papa is not the preachy type who would tell me how to act or how not to act. Salman sir is also not that type of person. They've always told me about life and about the industry, how to conduct myself and how to interact with people," she said. Sunil, who himself has seen his share of ups and downs, has told Athiya about the inconsistencies in the industry."Papa is always the reminder in my life. He has told me, with success there is failure. No matter what, there are both ups and downs in life. And you have to handle yourself with respect, humility and an equal amount of grace." Hero is releasing on 11 September.