Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta recalled how Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan refused to “back down” when faced with threats from the underworld. In a recent interview, Sanjay revealed that instead of giving in to their demands, the actor stood his ground and even told them, “Just shoot me.” He also claimed that Shah Rukh was perhaps the only person in the film industry who openly said he was not afraid of the underworld.
Speaking on the Hussain Zaidi Files podcast, Sanjay said, “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.’” He added that Shah Rukh made it clear that he was not scared of the underworld and would not work with them or do shows for them.
Sanjay further claimed that Shah Rukh’s stance ultimately earned him the underworld’s respect. He said, “I am not scared of you, but I will not work with you or do shows for you. He actually earned their respect.”
Shah Rukh Khan’s connection to the Mumbai underworld dates back to the 1990s, when Bollywood was frequently targeted by organised crime. According to accounts documented by journalist Anupama Chopra, SRK received repeated threatening calls from gangster Abu Salem, particularly around 1997 while he was working on Duplicate. Mumbai Police had reportedly alerted filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt about a threat to the actor’s life, following which SRK was provided security. In a resurfaced interview, Shah Rukh himself recalled receiving threats over the films he chose, saying he had “a lot of security for three years” and admitting he was “s**t scared” at the time. He nevertheless told the gangster, “I don’t tell you who to shoot so don’t tell me which film to do.”
