Meena Iyer (BOMBAY TIMES; September 8, 2015)
Salman Khan barely gets two minutes to soak in the amazing view of the Bandra Worli Sea Link from his 23rd floor suite of a suburban Mumbai hotel. Even before he can turn, he is besieged by managers and others who want his attention. His next production Hero, in which he introduces two star kids, Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty, releases later this week. And in his role as star-maker, Salman has to oversee almost everything associated with the film. Excerpts from a breezy chat with the Bollywood superstar.With Hero, you have gone from superstar to star-maker, right?
The star-making stuff is not in our hands. Some films have worked but the actors haven't taken off, yet there have been instances of other films, where the films have tanked and the stars have become superstars. It's all destiny.
Give us examples...
I do not know if you recall that there was a film called Love 86 that was made to launch Rohan Kapoor, son of the legendary singer Mahendra Kapoor. Govinda was the parallel lead. After this film, it was Chi Chi who got off to a flying start. There have been other such instances too, where films have been made for someone and someone else has walked away with the laurels. Naam was made for Kumar Gaurav, but Sanjay Dutt got the praise.
In your role as mentor, do you have any advice for these youngsters?
I do not give advice. I have a message for them though. I can tell them that once they have been launched, it is upto them to work hard and take themselves ahead in their careers. Everything depends on your heart, brain and sensibilities.Working at stuff that you are good at is fine, but excelling in stuff that you are not adept at, is even more important.
Like in school, you excelled in four subjects because you had a natural aptitude for them and hated four other subjects because you were weak in those. The important thing for one to succeed in films is to work hard on the things that you are weak in.Some actors are born to dance, but they have to work hard on their action scenes, so on and so forth. Coming back to the kids, Sooraj and Athiya, my message to them is simple. Work hard, conquer your weaknesses and your destiny will take you places.
Didn't you want to make Hero with yourself in it?
Yes, I have always been a fan of Subhash Ghai's Hero. I even asked him about making it with me earlier. But we ended up making Yuvvraaj. Then I broached the subject with him again and told him that I wanted to make it with Sooraj. He immediately gave me the rights and here we are today. I must tell you that I feel the name Sooraj baba has the right lilt to it. There are certain names that have natural fit. Like Sanju baba, Jackie dada and now Sooraj baba. That is why we have called him by the same name in the film. Incidentally, Sooraj is shy, an introvert, confident and hardworking. He is also a charming young man.
What about Athiya?
Suniel (Shetty) and I have been friends for the longest time. It is an awkward task to ask your friend, 'Can I take your daughter in my film?' However, in the case of Athiya, she had expressed a desire to become an actress. So, it was easier for me to approach my friend and tell him that we would be happy to launch her in our film. I saw Athiya when she was around two years old and then I saw her straight when we were launching her.
When you were launched, your father Salim Khan was the voice of reason. Were you the same for these kids?
When I was launched back in the 80s, we didn't know anything. So, I was glad to have my father give me the right advice. Today's kids do not need mentoring in that sense. They are smart and come with a certain mindset.
What are your observations on Sooraj and Athiya?
They are dedicated kids. Both are talented and hardworking. Not once did either Athiya or Sooraj give that 'I'm a star kid' feel on set. They were willing to go through the dance, action, diction, dialogue and diet routine without a fuss. The harder we made them work, the more prepared they were for it. I haven't done any paperwork with them. They just came on board and got into the grind.
What is your vision for Salman Khan Films?
Good scripts. The backbone of the film is the script. We are okay with having relatively lesser known directors but we want the script to be rock solid. Music is another important aspect.
Why did you say that it is unfair for you to have sung the title track of Hero?
The title track is Armaan Malik's. I knew that if I managed to sing the song, it will be a great peg for the movie. It is unfair of me to have sung the song but I had to do it for Sooraj and Athiya. Also, there are a lot of singers who go crazy after a couple of hits and think that they are irreplaceable. But they are mistaken. No one is irreplaceable here. If Salman Khan who is a non-singer can sing, then anyone can sing. These singers with grand illusions should come down. It is only going to harm them.
Incidentally, Arbaaz and dad are the singers in the family. I call myself a copy-paste singer. I can only sing line by line. And then these days with the kind of recording equipment that is available to us, most of us end up sounding good.
