Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta has recalled how Shah Rukh Khan allegedly refused to work on a film or television project backed by people linked to Mumbai’s underworld, despite facing threats to his safety, reports NDTV.
Speaking on the Hussain Zaidi Files podcast, Sanjay said Shah Rukh made it clear that intimidation would not influence his professional decisions.
According to the filmmaker, the actor was prepared to face the consequences rather than accept work under pressure.
“The only guy in the film industry, Shah Rukh Khan, when he was threatened, he said, ‘I will never do the film or show, I am a Pathaan, just shoot me if you want’,” Sanjay said.
“I am not scared of you, but I will not work with you and not do shows for you. He actually earned their respect. They also must have felt that there’s at least one person,” he added.
Sanjay’s comments refer to a period when Bollywood was reportedly dealing with growing concerns over alleged underworld interference in the film industry. Producers, actors and other industry professionals were said to have faced pressure over film projects, finances and business dealings.
Shah Rukh had also spoken about such threats in an earlier interview with comedian and actor Ruby Wax. During the conversation, he described how people could allegedly be forced into accepting certain projects.
“They would set up a system, and they would say you do it. I may not have succumbed to it, but then they shoot you. So, sometimes it’s nice to do a film,” he had said.
When Wax asked whether someone could call an actor and threaten to kill him for refusing to appear in a film, Shah Rukh replied, “Not as nicely as you’re saying it.”
Asked whether he had personally received death threats, the actor said it had happened several times.
“Oh yes, on many occasions… I had a lot of security for three years,” he said.
Shah Rukh will next appear in King, directed by Siddharth Anand. The film is being produced by Red Chillies Entertainment and Marflix Pictures.
The cast includes Deepika Padukone, Suhana Khan and Abhishek Bachchan. King is scheduled to release on 24 December.
