SRK, Salman Khan & Aamir Khan reunite in Riyadh | Full interview at Riyadh Joy Forum 2025
At the Joy Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Bollywood legends Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan came together, reminiscing and exchanging light-hearted moments.
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At the Joy Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Bollywood legends Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan came together, reminiscing and exchanging light-hearted moments.
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TVTranscript
00:00Welcome with me, Shahruh Khan, Salman Khan and Amir Khan.
00:04Come on, louder for everyone.
00:07I don't know what side they're coming on from.
00:15There we go.
00:26Welcome.
00:30Thank you for joining us today.
00:37Hi.
00:41Is everybody else joining you?
00:44Come on, Shahrukh.
00:46Thank you for joining us. Thank you.
01:01And last but not least, Amir.
01:05We're here.
01:06Amir Khan in the house.
01:07Thank you so much for being here today.
01:11Thank you so much for being here today.
01:26Please have a seat.
01:29Wow, guys, did you see how the energy shifted in the room the second you're all here together?
01:35That's all because of you.
01:36I mean, no, I don't think so.
01:38Nobody was clapping when I was here. I'm kind of jealous. What?
01:41It's amazing to have you here today.
01:44Thank you so much for joining us.
01:46And my understanding is you haven't been together on a panel in the past ten years?
01:52Or not?
01:53Yes, the last time we shared the stage was at Rajesh Sharma's place.
01:58That's right, yeah.
01:59Very unfortunate.
02:00That's so nice.
02:01So I wanted to ask you, how does it feel to be together today?
02:07And I wanted to ask you another question, and I know each one of you is going to have a different answer, which is so interesting.
02:14Whenever we're talking to fellow actors, we're always, what's that it factor that makes someone?
02:20The second you look at them, know like, oh, these guys are going to make it.
02:24They're going to be stars.
02:25They're going to be universes.
02:26They're going to be bigger than life.
02:27So I'm so interested to know on a personal level, what is it that makes, what's the it factor?
02:33Sharma will answer this.
02:34You can all answer this.
02:36Sharma will answer this.
02:37Do you want me to answer this?
02:39Anybody who ever says, and this would be my experience, this would be Salman's and Aamir's,
02:45and most of the actors who've worked for many, many years, that there is nothing like an it factor.
02:51If somebody ever tells you that, that is absolutely redundant and not true.
02:56You don't know what the it factor is.
02:58The it factor has got to do with the audience, how they take on to your persona, how you look, how you talk, how you walk.
03:05None of that resonates.
03:06It's just something else about a person that an audience starts liking in large numbers.
03:11If you were to honestly ask Aamir right now, he'll tell you, I don't know why I'm a star.
03:15If you ask me, I'll tell you, I don't know why I'm a star.
03:18Yeah.
03:19I know.
03:20I know.
03:21Salman is the only one who'll know.
03:22Nobody else will know.
03:23I know because…
03:24Yeah.
03:25So, Allah wants to make you a star.
03:27That's nice.
03:28God has been kind, yes.
03:29So, this is the thing because I see a lot of actors and you know, you've been here for a very long time and you've seen changes and everything has adapted and new mediums have like happened.
03:43And how do you not lose that sparkle or joy of going everyday to work?
03:49What is it that makes you…
03:50See, because none of us call ourselves stars.
03:56We don't believe in that.
03:58There's some journalists, they add these things, Salman Khan star, Shah Rukh Khan, superstar, Aamir Khan, super duper star.
04:07We don't believe this at all.
04:09We still at home are just like everyone else.
04:15I still get yelled by my father, my mother, still get told by my sisters, my brothers.
04:21See, we're just normal human beings and it's just that there's so many people who we work with.
04:28They are the people who portray average, mediocre people like us in, not them, me, to look like a god on screen.
04:42So, the credit is not us, it is your DOP, your director, your writer.
04:48And then the people, the fans go and see Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Dev Khan, Sanjay Taat, you know, on screen and they like what they see on screen.
05:05So, to what do you attribute the success that you have? Is it like a group work like you're saying right now?
05:13It's success is what, Friday? The success of even Bollywood cinema as your story is going on such a global platform in general.
05:20See, our films release on a Friday. And film is a big hit, does well, we're happy. We come to a stage that the film is not so good, doesn't do well.
05:35Some competitors are very happy. So, with everything that's modern, like all the things that are changing,
05:42how do you adapt a little bit your craft with the changing times to appeal to the new generation, but at the same time still appeal to the generation that has followed you from the start?
05:53I think at the end of it all, it's all about, you know, the content, the emotional content that we have in our storytelling.
06:02Aamir is an extremely organized perfectionist as they call him. No, no, no. I'm not organized at all.
06:09He's not organized but he works very hard trying to tell a story. Salman has his freewheeling way to come and work because it comes from the heart.
06:18I try to amalgamate both of these. But at the end, I think the core value that the three of us and all the other stars, Salman mentioned,
06:25and lots of other stars will come along the way. I think there's an emotional connect that our films have.
06:31Maybe it's our culture, maybe it's the fact that we all belong to, in India at least, and I think that's why more so in Saudi also,
06:38there's a familial connect. Somewhere, whatever the story, if I'm playing a bad guy, a good guy, a happy guy, a poor guy, a rich guy,
06:46whatever character we are playing, I think somewhere the culture part of it and the emotional connect
06:51transcends boundaries of languages, platforms as you mentioned, whether it's on a telephone or an iPad or on OTT.
07:00I think it's the storytelling, emotional connect that binds every actor, not just the three of us.
07:05We've been very fortunate, like Salman mentioned. God has been too kind to us. We just get up in the morning and do our work as simply as he said,
07:12being lambasted by our families at home for doing right and wrong, but we just get up in the morning and go back to work.
07:20But I think it's the emotional connect that somehow, because of hundreds of people who work with us, have been able to portray us
07:27and we have been able to tell these familial, emotionally, culturally common stories for the rest of the world, in spite of the language that we speak.
07:36So what do you think makes it appealing for such a global scale? Is it just the emotional part or could it be the addition of music, the image, the photo?
07:46I mean, I remember when I was starting to acting and everybody was like, okay, you need to go to Bollywood, not Hollywood.
07:53And I remember I had a period where I started watching…
07:55You should have come, you would have made it.
07:56You should have. Actually, I used to live… Oh, really? Thank you. It's never too late.
08:00I mean, Jackie can do it and Katrina can do it and yeah. But it requires a lot of hard work and first it requires you to speak the language.
08:09That's it. If I want to do an Arabic film, I will have to learn the language.
08:16That's interesting. Wow. But I was thinking… And do you believe you have to take a lot of risks in this industry?
08:24Because I feel like all of you have… You're also wearing producer hats on, not just actors.
08:30So for me, I always wondered, is there any limitations to just being actors?
08:35Is there a reason why you wanted to produce, Amir? Do you want to answer or…?
08:40Sorry, what is your question?
08:43Becoming a producer because… You know, let me go back earlier to your earlier question of how…
08:50You know, what is a star? Like Shah Rukh said, I think it's impossible to pinpoint.
08:56Perhaps, I think all three of us were very fortunate that we were born in India.
09:02Born in a country where we could be part of Hindi cinema.
09:06Had we been born somewhere else, we wouldn't have been here. So I think…
09:09No, if you're born in Hollywood, those guys wouldn't have been there.
09:13Well, so I'm saying it's a lot of… It's the opportunities, it's where you are, at what time, you know…
09:21Fate, whether you call it fate or whatever, destiny… Where you are at that time…
09:26Of course, everyone is hard working, all of us work hard and lot of people who want to come into any field work very hard.
09:32But it's also a lot of… Are you at the right place at the right time? Many things work in your favor, which are not in our control.
09:39Many things are not in our control. So, it's a mix of all of that, I guess. Yeah.
09:45See, Aamir comes from a film background, so do I. This man here, didn't? He didn't? He came from Delhi.
09:57May I interject, Salman, sorry. I also come from a film family. Salman's family is my family.
10:05So, I'm also like Aamir's family is my family. Oh, that's so sweet.
10:08So, now we know why Shah Rukh is a star. That's why I'm a star.
10:11That's so nice to see this relationship between you guys. How do you feel in general?
10:17That's only on stage. You should see us backstage what we do. See us backstage. Right after this.
10:23Well, how is your relationship with stardom in general and everything that happens?
10:29I know sometimes stardom can consume people and sometimes it can feed you.
10:34I mean, we're all humans here, right? Sometimes we want to have bad days and now you feel like,
10:39with you appealing to so many audiences and having this much presence on social media,
10:44how do you feel it impacts you on a mental level? Does it feed your soul or can it get overwhelming sometimes?
10:51Well, it is challenging. I think it is challenging. Being in the public eye all the time is challenging.
10:56I think amongst the three of us, I am probably the most reluctant star. No, Shah?
11:05No, you always wanted to be a star, more than both of us. No. Because he was the first born star.
11:10I like to be in corners. I don't like the limelight on me. I am not comfortable with that.
11:14Are you an introvert? I am more of an introvert, yeah. So, I am uncomfortable in many ways. But all of us deal with it in our own way, I guess.
11:24No, I think, you know, I don't want to take away the import of social media.
11:29But I do believe that when it comes to social media and especially being in the limelight or in the glare of public all the time,
11:36which any public figure has, not only in films, otherwise also, today, you just have to have blinkers on.
11:43You have to believe cinema, story writing, storytelling, creative work, the beginning germ is belief.
11:52So, if you have belief, and this is what I am doing, and inshallah, this will turn out to be well, hopefully, this will turn out to be well,
12:00what others say does not matter. So, you have to have blinkers on. You just have to say, there is going to be a lot of noise.
12:06Too much noise all around you. Oh, he should dress up like this. He should sit like this. His film should have been like this.
12:11I think every morning, if we were to look at social media, people tell us what next film to do also, who we should star with in the film, who the director should be.
12:20But you have to believe in a simple basic idea of storytelling, and just start your day with that, end your day with that, end your year with that,
12:28and I think you should end your whole career like that. Everything else is noise. You just tell your story, the story that you believe in. It's as simple as that.
12:38We've been doing it for 35 years. Maybe I put it too simply, for people who are starting off, and who are now surrounded by this fantastic social media influx in every part of our lives,
12:50may have problems dealing with it. The youngsters will have problems. But if you were to take anything from our experience, like he said, he's an introvert.
12:57He's an introvert. Whatever I know of Salman, I don't think he wants to be in the public eye. Personally, I'm very shy.
13:03So we actually are people who would not love to be in the public eye all the time. We deal with it, because it's part of a job now.
13:10Beyond that, I don't think either of us takes it seriously. We just make sure our work is taken more seriously than that.
13:17He doesn't come out of his house. He doesn't come out of his house. I don't come out of my house.
13:23Only when we have to work, that is when we have to go to shoots. See, I believe, I remember, I must have been about 13, 14,
13:34I went to see this film called Enter the Dragon. And when I came out of the theater, I thought I was Bruce Lee. And I got beaten up.
13:43But that impact is that I realized one thing is that when you come out of the theater, somebody should want a son like you.
13:54A mother should want a son like you. A father should want a son like you. A sister should want a brother like you.
14:02A girl should want a husband or a boyfriend like you. And when you come out of the theater, you should go back home,
14:09at least 20, 25 percent a better person. And that character is liked. So he's liked by older women that,
14:21I want a son like this. I want a brother. Now we've come to a stage like, I want a father like him.
14:30Very soon we are going to be. We want grandfathers like him, granddad.
14:35But do you feel like you have to be, you cannot necessarily be your authentic self when you have such,
14:41when you are put on such a pedestal of people wanting to be like you, wanting to do that,
14:46that you don't get to express your weaknesses because as human beings we all do have weaknesses as well.
14:51Success has made more failures than failure itself. You fail, you get complacent, you stand up, you start working a lot harder.
15:01Success, if this goes to your head, then your old age is going to be really painful.
15:09So you should never let success go to your head. It's… I mean you cannot take the credit.
15:15You can take the credit for failure because you signed the film, you've done the project,
15:21but you cannot ever take the credit for success. It belongs to everyone.
15:26And the energy, that's very correct. And I always thought that acting, we're trading energies with people
15:32and that people require your energy all the time. So my question would be, when you have such a huge fan base
15:39and audiences and people around you all the time, where do you resource yourself and what's your relationship with the fans
15:46and how do you maintain healthy boundaries with people so that you're able to have your bad day
15:51or able to focus on the scene you want to do without necessarily having to give your attention to everyone around?
15:57I think, Razan, what happens is when you're asking these questions to the three of us, the answer would be similar.
16:03You just have to be true to yourself. And when you become a star, people expect a certain kind of behaviour from you.
16:08Certain kind of, you know, out in the public. That we start to learn. As a matter of fact, stardom of the level that Salman has seen,
16:16Aamir has seen, I've been fortunate enough to see, actually humbles you. It makes you grateful to all the forces around you.
16:23And one of the biggest forces are the audience who's loving you so much. So the humility always becomes,
16:29I'm sure for all of us and all the other actors as the years go by, that I'm in the service of the audience.
16:35I really need to make sure that they are entertained. Like Salman said, when they walk out, they should feel a better person because they've seen our film.
16:43When they walk out, they should aspire to be somebody or they should identify with the character we are playing.
16:49So at the end of it all, all actors, at least in our context, would be that there is nothing else that we want to think about.
16:57As a matter of fact, I think we don't even like to call them fans. These are people who love us.
17:01You talk about energies. We just want to share this positivity back with them that they have given to us, not only shared, for the last 35 years.
17:09So I think it's a very gratifying feeling. It's a feeling of gratitude. It's a feeling of wanting to serve everybody who comes to watch our films in the best way possible.
17:18There's never been a finger lifted, an expression done, a dialogue done, without keeping in mind, are we making sure everybody who comes to watch this film is happy to see or goes back, like Salman said, a better person.
17:31So you just have to be honest to yourself and say, I'm in the service of storytelling to this huge gamut, this huge sea of people who love us so much.
17:41Yeah. And how do you recharge yourself with all these things? Like where do you find your source of inspiration on a daily basis to be able to give everybody else that feeling?
17:51I find it in my children. I find kids very refreshing, very resourceful.
17:59And Salman has a lot of children in his family.
18:02Aamir has kids.
18:03I find them a great source of energy.
18:06I just find their ideas now.
18:08You know, I've been fortunate to be first.
18:09Let me just say thank you, Joy Forum, for giving us this opportunity.
18:13Thank you, Adnan, for having us here.
18:15Thank you, Turki Alshek, for creating this.
18:18I'll tell you the reason.
18:20Last night we were together.
18:23Last night we were together and we got to meet so many people.
18:26We met the team from Squid Games.
18:28We met Speed.
18:29We met Mr. Beast.
18:30And this energy that we see of so many other people that we've only experienced on screen, never met personally,
18:36really helps us also to think, okay, you know, here is a congregation of people that all of us have come to this platform in Saudi,
18:43sharing, wanting to tell people good stories to entertain them.
18:48I think that's refreshing for me.
18:49You know, when I come to a forum like this, get to meet us in this kind of setting.
18:54We meet otherwise at home and have a great time.
18:56But this is really nice to come and say, okay, there are so many people wanting to share ideas.
19:00You take refreshment from there, you take energy from there.
19:03And yes, the more innocence you spend time with, the more energy you get to express in acting.
19:09I find… I find reading really helps me.
19:15I love reading since I was a small kid.
19:18So that is something that… that input of characters, ideas, that… that really inspires me when I read a good book.
19:25And now singing as well.
19:26Now Amit is singing also.
19:28He's learning classical singing for the last two… two years now.
19:31Okay, now these two have decided to start pulling my leg.
19:34Are they… would you like to?
19:36He'd like to, he'd like to.
19:37He'd like to, he'd like to.
19:38Why are you doing it?
19:39Please.
19:40They're basically going to put you on the spot now.
19:42So I think basically, you know, basically our families keep us grounded.
19:47And we know that till the time we don't give it our blood and sweat, the hardest that we can work, you know, tearing ligaments, breaking bones.
19:55I don't think that the audience will… they want to see hard work.
19:58They want to see that we're taking our time off, we're taking a whole day off to go and watch a movie.
20:04We want to see you at your best.
20:06So that is what keeps us going.
20:08Because they are taking their families, they're going to see somebody who they don't know.
20:13But yet, we're in their living rooms and their bedrooms, we're on their phones.
20:18So we all the time have to give it our best so that their money is well spent when they come and watch our movies.
20:28Yeah.
20:29And basically, our families keep us grounded.
20:35And we've seen, we've seen, you know, from nobodies, we were nobodies to such heights of success.
20:42And then suddenly, disaster after disaster.
20:47So that failure has kept us all balanced, that this is always never going to be there.
20:54This is going to go.
20:56Now, how are we going to handle this is, that's the only one thing in our mind that we should be normal human beings content.
21:05And Allah ka shukar adha karna chaiye, na shukra nahi hona chaiye, that whatever he's given us,
21:14till whatever time, till whenever, we are grateful for that.
21:18And ninety-nine point nine percent of the people don't have even zero point one percent of what we have.
21:27And it is because of them that we have what we have today.
21:32And we all are very grateful to them.
21:34That's such a lovely word.
21:37And hearing you all speak about families, it just shows how we have similar values in the Middle East as well,
21:44like we're very family-oriented, so it's very refreshing to see the strong bonds.
21:49And what do you think would be the similarities between the Arabic culture and the Indian culture?
21:56Well, this is the second time that I'm coming to Saudi Arabia and it's a beautiful country.
22:05I came a few months ago for the Red Sea Festival and now for this one.
22:09I think that the people here are extremely loving, extremely respectful.
22:14There's a lot of positivity in everyone here, so that's wonderful to see.
22:20And generosity, I find.
22:22Certainly, you're absolutely right.
22:24Yeah.
22:25So there are a lot of similarities, I think.
22:27The emotional key that Indians have is very similar to all of Middle East.
22:33And I would say even, like I've been to China and over there, I find that the emotional key of Chinese people is very similar to Indians as well.
22:43Yeah.
22:44Yeah.
22:45So it's not just, I think it's the Middle East, India and even the East has a very similar key in terms of their emotions.
22:53That's what I've experienced.
22:54And also the respect that we have, not only for our parents, for our grandparents.
23:00That's true.
23:01For our mothers.
23:02That's true.
23:03For our mothers.
23:04And that respect is, I mean, you have it here, the whole Arab world has it and so do we.
23:14That mother, there's nothing above mother.
23:19And no man can ever be happy for a person's success than his own father.
23:32So we know these things, we know that they are on our side and the fact that we will stand up in front of them,
23:42we will bow down in front of them is because we have that tremendous amount of respect for our people.
23:48You have it here, we have it there and that thing of, that we should not hurt our loved ones.
23:56So these are things that is common in your culture and our culture.
24:01That's true.
24:02And this is what I wanted to ask you next is that Saudi Arabia is really becoming like a hub,
24:08attracting people from all over the world to come do projects here.
24:12So in what way do you think you can bridge the gap between Bollywood and actually doing projects in Saudi Arabia?
24:20Do you see what is your vision for that?
24:23I think after having spoken the fact that, you know, we have so many cultural binding things,
24:28familial things, we are all God fearing.
24:30I think these are commonalities between us and Saudi.
24:33And actually, if you really expand your vision, most of the world believes in these three tenets.
24:39And I think what Saudi Arabia, through forums like this and other things that are happening in Saudi Arabia lately,
24:45I think is opening up a midpoint for the world from the west to come in, from the east to come in,
24:51share ideas, plan things and, to be honest, the openness and the hospitality and the love with which everybody is welcoming here,
25:00I think that itself is so… it makes you feel so wanted.
25:04You know, you come here once. I have been here a couple of times now.
25:07And I have been shooting here for about fifteen, twenty days.
25:11For me it is, look, I would love to come back here.
25:13You just need an excuse to come again.
25:15And inshallah, work also brings us back.
25:17That's nice.
25:18Forums like this bring us back.
25:19But at an individual level also, I think the fact that Saudi has cultivated this landscape for all kinds of people to come down here,
25:30share ideas, nurture goodwill and basically just be able to create content.
25:36When I say content, it's not just for a platform.
25:39Just be able to tell stories to each other which make the world happy.
25:43The world sometimes is an unhappy place.
25:46I think we all come together, congregate in places like this.
25:49We share a bit of happiness and hopefully it will transcend and go out to the rest of the world.
25:53So, there is not going to be any problem.
25:56I don't know if you are aware or not, but Salman and Sanju have already done a bit part in a film which is being made here,
26:04which is fantastic looking.
26:05I'm looking forward to seeing it.
26:06Yeah, we played in small bits.
26:09We did a guest appearance in, it's called Seven Dogs.
26:12And it's a sweet…
26:13Seven Dogs.
26:14Can I just say in Saudi they call it guest of honor.
26:16They don't call it guest appearance.
26:18They're taking care of us.
26:21So, it's just opening of this gateway and I'm sure we'll all be working here,
26:25people from Saudi, the talent, the singers, the writers, the poets, filmmakers, cameramen,
26:31they'll come down to India and do stuff and all of us go around and conquest the whole world
26:36with our storytelling at the end of it all and see…
26:39I think that's what it means.
26:42It's not a difficult thing.
26:43If your heart is in the right place like ours is from India and Saudis is from Saudi,
26:48I think we'll connect and continue telling lovely stories together.
26:51And I think it's going to be a really good thing for the Arab film industry, you know,
26:56since Saudi has just opened up and they're making theatres after theatres after theatres.
27:04So, for the Arab film industry, because it's a very large Arab community, you know,
27:14a lot of people speak the language.
27:17Now, just imagine you have some twenty, thirty thousand theatres here.
27:23The amount of work that your film industry will get and most of the times that other industry needs, you know,
27:32Arabic actors.
27:34So, there will be a lot of work and a lot of revenue that is generated.
27:39And I think this… that the Arab film industry could be one of the largest film industries.
27:46I also feel that Saudi Arabia over the last few years is demonstrating with its actions that it wants to be more inclusive.
27:53It wants to be part of, you know, larger things.
27:57And I think that… that demonstration with actions is going to pay a lot of, you know…
28:05I mean, like Salman was saying, it will bring a lot of work here.
28:11The fact that, you know, Saudi is inviting creative people.
28:15Not just creative people, I think sports people as well, from all over the world.
28:18By their actions, they're indicating that they would like to be much more inclusive.
28:22And I think that itself is a very strong statement and a strong step, sure, in the right direction.
28:28So, what project would have to land right now in front of you that's a co-production between Bollywood and Saudi Arabia?
28:35So, Razan Salman is learning Arabic.
28:38Oh, that's wonderful.
28:39I'm learning the dance and Aamir is going to audition for the song right now.
28:43Come on.
28:45Come on, Aamir.
28:47Please.
28:48See, they'll keep an… you know, my problem is they'll keep asking intellectual questions and we'll run out of answers after that.
28:53We are entertainers, we need to entertain people.
28:55I'm almost done with my questions, by the way.
28:57You're sounding too intelligent, Razan.
28:58We are getting a call over whatever else, nice word, big words to use.
29:01So, we are going to ask Aamir to save us with…
29:06They're just… he's just been learning, so we all have to be happy that he started learning
29:12and he'll do a little rendition and the loudest claps have to come.
29:15Salman and me are going to clap the loudest when he sings.
29:21So, I love singing.
29:23I don't know how much other people like my singing, but I enjoy it.
29:28So, why don't all of us three of us sing here?
29:30We'll do the backup dancing.
29:32Why don't you join me?
29:33Like we do in Hindi films, Salman and me will just stand behind and we'll do a little dance.
29:37Wow.
29:38Salman, please.
29:39Salman, our step is this.
29:40Who is singing?
29:41Which song can you sing?
29:42Which song can you sing?
29:43Step.
29:44Which song can you sing?
29:45Which song can you sing?
29:46Step.
29:47Whichever song you want to sing, Aamir.
29:48Whichever song you want to sing, Aamir.
29:50We are your background dancers.
29:52We have a special record.
30:09Big round of applause, ladies and gentlemen.
30:12His first public performance of his learning the classical singing.
30:17And in Saudi Arabia.
30:18That was great.
30:23Actually, Salman sings really well.
30:25I've heard him sing.
30:26Yeah, but only in the studio and after that, the technicians spent about two months correcting my voice.
30:34So, I don't think it's a good idea singing right here now.
30:38Also, you know, Saudi Arabia has given so much of employment to our people.
30:46You know, people from the south, people from all over India.
30:51So, it's like amazing.
30:54Everyone, because they pay their well, they take great care of them here.
30:59So, most of the people, the working class as well as everybody, they get a much better salary here.
31:08Their life is much better.
31:11Their families there are taken care of.
31:14So, we are really thankful and grateful for all the employment that you have given our people here.
31:21So, definitely there are stories to be told since there are such a large presence here of people from India.
31:28I guess I'm already writing a script in my mind.
31:31So, I wonder what would you… like what's your dream project that you could think right now or in a special location or a special genre that you see would fit Saudi Arabia?
31:43See, right now if you make a Hindi film and just release it here, it will be a super hit.
31:47If you make a Tamil film or a Telugu film or a Malayali film, they will do hundreds of cores of business just in this belt, just in the GCC belt.
31:59Because so many people from our countries have come here.
32:03There are people from Balochistan, there are people from Afghanistan, there are people from Pakistan.
32:09Everyone is working here.
32:12That's so nice.
32:14Do you have anything to say?
32:16No, I mean, you're asking about a dream project.
32:19I think, let me show off a little.
32:22It's been too long, I've been humble on this platform.
32:25Yeah, I've been too nice, too kind.
32:27I have to say, if three of us are in a project, it is a dream itself.
32:34So, whenever we do.
32:37Absolutely.
32:38Hopefully, not a nightmare.
32:40It will be a dream if the three of us are together.
32:42And inshallah, whenever we get an opportunity, a story, we're always sitting, whenever Aamir, Salman, myself, we get together.
32:50And I look up to these two guys, generally I do, because they've been working in the industry.
32:55He still does, he still does.
32:57Look at me, I'm still looking up to someone.
32:59So, I look up to them, honestly, because the kind of ups and downs and the work they've done,
33:05starting from scratch and having worked their way up to this, these people are aspirational and inspirational.
33:12And somewhere I feel really, really thankful that I have the opportunity to sit on the same forum,
33:17same stage and the same house and chat with them.
33:20So, if we are able to get together for a film, which we discuss a lot of times,
33:24we just need to make sure it does not let anyone down.
33:27So, Shah Rukh has this one thing, keeps on saying it over and over again, that I want him to say that here,
33:34try and say that here, that nobody can afford us three in a film together. Say it.
33:42I don't want to say it in Saudi because everybody will get up and say,
33:47Habibi, Habibi, done, done, done.
33:50No, we joke, we joke because affordability is not just the money,
33:54the affordability is the kind of timings we follow for work.
33:57We're very hard working, we do come on time, but we have our own eccentricities.
34:02We've been working for too long, so can anyone afford those eccentricities?
34:05You know, I also tell you when we are working together, we start laughing and joking so much.
34:10I'm sure any director, producer and writer will,
34:12can you start working now, guys, please, can we stop joking about and all.
34:16So, I think there's a lot of goodness we three share, there's a lot of goodness we need to tell a story with.
34:22And one fine day, the three of us will be in a place where somebody takes on all the eccentricities and says,
34:30come on, three of you work together and have a good time, inshallah.
34:33And when we three work together, the hero, the star of the project is not going to be Shah Rukh Amirami,
34:39it's going to be the script, the script and the script itself, that's it.
34:43That's nice. But I can see you guys doing comedy together, action together, drama together, like the world is your oyster.
34:50So, I feel like today is maybe like a day that's special where something's going to be born, hopefully.
34:58Amen. What? Commit, commit. Are you with us?
35:02Sorry, sir. He's already zoned out, he's spaced out.
35:06Okay, so what can we do to bring back your attention? What do you want to talk about?
35:10No, no, no. Sorry, he's stuck on the third question.
35:14Okay. He'll answer you from the third question now.
35:17He's understood the third question and he'll come back. He's been thinking very hard.
35:20The third question was, why are you also producing as well? I think that was the third question.
35:24When can we all come together? No, I missed that. What were you asking?
35:28When can we all come together to do a film together?
35:30I think emotionally all three of us are ready to do a film together.
35:34It's just a matter of coming across the right script.
35:37So hopefully, as Salman said, it'll be the script that's most important for all three of us, I guess.
35:43And once it's a good story, which all three of us like, then I think, you know, hopefully…
35:48Yeah, and then the rest of the things don't matter now.
35:51It's always a story for me. Right from the beginning of my career, it's always been…
35:55You know, I as a kid, I've always loved listening to stories, as I'm sure you all do as well.
36:00So I remember when I was a kid, I used to… we used to, you know, Harris our cook.
36:05So that when she would finish cooking, then she would sit in the kitchen and then we would all gather around her.
36:10Her name was Naseem B. And she would tell us stories, you know.
36:14And I loved listening to stories from childhood.
36:19I began reading at a very young age. At the age of six, I began reading.
36:23So I got into stories. And then my father was a producer.
36:26So a lot of directors and writers would come to pitch stories.
36:30My father used to come. Yeah, yeah.
36:32My father used to come to your father. Yeah, yeah.
36:34So I sat in from the age of six or seven years till the age of sixteen, seventeen.
36:42Almost all the stories that my father heard, I heard.
36:45And to begin with Shah, I used to hide behind the curtain.
36:49Because my father was very hot-tempered, you know.
36:51So I was scared that he might get upset with me.
36:53So I used to hide behind the curtain.
36:55And then he got to know that I'm listening to his stories.
36:59So he brought me in front.
37:01And I think today when I look back, I realized that that was my training ground.
37:06I never imagined I would be in the films at that time.
37:09But just hearing stories and hearing the analysis of a story from people who are in the field,
37:17writers, directors, that taught me a lot as I was growing up.
37:20It was like a Gurugul, you know, like we have in India.
37:23The Gurugul style of learning is probably what I went through, you know.
37:27Also, because the films were being made, my father and uncle were both filmmakers.
37:32We've seen films evolve from the story to the prep to the way…
37:37You know, six reels have been shot, eight reels have been shot.
37:40And we've seen screenings of our films which our parents have made.
37:44So that entire process was a big learning I think for me during my childhood.
37:49And since my father is a script writer, so we used to do this every day at home.
37:54Yeah, yeah. And in fact, Salim Sahib and Javed Sahib, Salman's father, Salim Sahib,
37:59the two of them were the most successful writers that India has ever seen.
38:03I think they wrote 22 scripts together.
38:05Yes, yes.
38:06Out of which 18 are super hits. I mean, what a track record here. Yeah.
38:10So what advice would you have for the next generation of actors that's coming up now in a very different world when you first started?
38:17You know, I think three of us will need advice from the young actors because they are so good.
38:22Have you seen the young actors that are doing their first film? Amazing.
38:25I think the young guys don't need any advice from us, we need advice from them.
38:29In their first film, they are doing such good work. In fact, if we do give you advice, don't follow.
38:36No, I feel that the younger generation… Do just the opposite.
38:38I feel the younger generation is ten steps ahead of us. I am certain about that because the quality of work that young actors are doing,
38:46actors, actresses, writers, amazing stuff. So I get really inspired to watch young people work.
38:52I mean, if you see Lapata ladies, they are all new actors here. And when I saw the first cut…
38:57You see, they have this huge advantage over us. They have this whole advantage over us.
39:03Because when we are growing up, we didn't have CCTV cameras, we didn't have phones with cameras.
39:09These kids are making… They're not camera conscious at all. You know, they're just very free.
39:17They've grown up with cameras around them. Because they're facing the camera all the time.
39:21From their phones to… I mean, you walk into a supermarket and you know that the cameras are following you all the time.
39:28We didn't have all that stuff. So… Sure.
39:30The first time when we faced the camera and the camera went… You know that Ari?
39:36Ari too. We used to like get nervous. And because of that, we used to go on to a take, another take, another take.
39:43That sound used to distract us. But now, today, the equipment is so amazing. And this… everywhere, it's cameras, cameras, cameras, cameras, cameras, cameras.
39:51So, the younger generation, they don't have the fear at all. Like how now, Aryan made a web show,
39:58Basil of Bollywood. And it's done really, really well. So, now his upbringing is the same. Sure.
40:07But he didn't want to… I had to rather have him in front of the camera and supersede his father. And like I said earlier,
40:19Aryan will be the only person he'll be happy with if Aryan supersedes him .
40:26Or if Salman has a son, then I'd like him to be a biggest star ever in the history of mankind. So, we are working on that.
40:33But I have a little advice for youngsters. Like Salman said, he's very right.
40:38All the youngsters are now very video-literate. Cameras are on their faces, in their hands, everywhere around.
40:44And I think, yes, it has helped Aryan and all the youngsters now who are coming as actors or directors or storytellers,
40:49because they're so used to cameras being around. Like Salman said, when we started with that ID2C camera,
40:55we used to get scared of the sound, you had to talk over it. There was no sync sound. It was very, very difficult.
41:02But I think there are two parts to being a creative person. One is the art, one is the craft.
41:07And the craft is now very easily available because of technology. It's in your hands.
41:12But within all that, do not let your art go. And what is art? Art has to be the innocence,
41:17which Salman Khan has retained over the years. What Aamir Khan has retained over the years.
41:23Hopefully, I can retain over the years. The innocence of just wanting to tell a story in the simplest form,
41:29like he heard from his father, like he's heard from my father. I'm sure growing up, I heard from my father and mother.
41:34So I think if you are able to keep it simple, don't get carried away by the craft, by the social media,
41:41by the peripherals of telling a story, which are very many, marketing, publicity, wanting to be a star,
41:48being in a cover of a magazine. There are lots of noise around. If you are able to take the craft, learn it.
41:53But don't let the craft take over the art that you have. And the art is the heart. That's all you have.
41:59You have to feel from within. Wow, the art is the heart. Let me tell you, we are on a forum where we will be very honest about it.
42:07There are days when we get it wrong. We also know it. It's gone wrong. We couldn't do better than what we wanted to do.
42:12We go back home even now and sit back and say, hey, I could have done this. Can I ask for one more take?
42:18We think that way. And we also feel very sad when all of it goes wrong. But wake up in the morning and feel that we have to get back to what we know best,
42:27which is just basic storytelling. And it is very touching to hear that these two wonderful superstars,
42:33not only of a country but of the world, have just grown up and decided to tell stories because their father used to tell them stories.
42:41So it's as simple as that. The stories that you hear at home from your family are the ones you want to tell outside,
42:47and that simplicity is the art. So please retain that. Work hard. Bad days, good days, just keep working hard.
42:54Shah Rukh, have you seen that, kya kia tha bhi wo Netflix pe, you and Junaid?
43:01Junaid and me? Oh, we did an ad, that ad you're talking about. Yeah, yeah.
43:05Ah. Yeah, so he did… Who and, andas apna pna ka seen him, Junaid and me?
43:10So I called him up. And there was a scene that they recreated of andas apna pna. And Junaid has done it so well, so well.
43:22Yeah. I called him up, I said, Junaid is fantastic in this. So now, being Aamir's son, okay, he's grown up.
43:31I mean, I used to carry him in mind, both their children. Now I'm working on my own, but that's besides the point.
43:38But, fantastic. I called him up and I said, you know what job you guys have done on that.
43:43So it was a promotion for your YouTube channel. That's right. That. It was an amazing, amazing job.
43:49Thank you so much, guys. I think we are nearly out of time. I think I could have spent a lot more time here with you guys.
43:55But in a nutshell, is there anything you can summarize and maybe one phrase, what's going to be the future of Bollywood
44:02and what do you envision it with this myriad of cultures coming together?
44:07I think more than talking about Hindi film industry, Bollywood, South Indian film industry, the three of us would like to stand together
44:13and thank Saudi for giving us this opportunity. Let's go. And thank you, Razan, for looking after us.
44:18Thank you so much, guys. And let's call it… and let's not call it Bollywood anymore, let's call it the Hindi film industry.
44:24Hindi film industry. And we'd like to thank the whole of Saudi for having the three of us here.
44:28Give it up. Thank you so much. Thank you for all the love and respect. Thank you.
44:32We've had… the three of us have had more fun being together than you had listening to us, I'm sure.
44:37So, God bless you and inshallah we behave more often and make films together with Saudi, with India, for the rest of the world.