When Farhad Samji started out as a lyricist in the industry 20 years ago, he didn’t have a godfather. If over the years, anyone has come close to playing the role for him, it would be Salman Khan. “After I became a script writer, I wrote Ready [2011] for him. So, our collaboration was bound to happen. If I didn’t make a film with Salman sir, my career would have remained incomplete,” begins Samji, who realised his wish with the upcoming offering, Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan.

The director, who previously helmed Housefull 4 (2019) and Bachchhan Paandey (2022), feels Khan and he are a natural fit. Tracing the film’s genesis, he says, “Both of us are into mainstream films. He is the king of commercial movies. We bounced this idea of north-meeting-south, and began developing the script at his Panvel farmhouse a few years ago.”

With the Eid release — also starring south star Venkatesh, Pooja Hegde, Shehnaaz Gill, Raghav Juyal and Bhumika Chawla, among others — the director has the pressure of appealing to Khan’s legion of fans. That aside, working with a superstar can be daunting in itself, especially when the actor is known for his larger-than-life persona. Mention this to Samji, and he laughs it off.

“When you tell Salman, ‘Sir, you have to do this,’ you get scared because he has an [intimidating] personality. But being a creative person, I tell him this is the need of his character, and he understands that. He knows that he has to bring in certain [traits] to his role.”

Collaborating with Khan has been everything the director hoped for. In fact, he says he was pleasantly surprised on seeing the superstar’s dedication and knowledge first-hand. “Being a superstar, he knows his job well. But Salman sir holds expertise over almost every branch of filmmaking — right from costumes to music, from locations to framing and VFX. Such rich experience comes after doing 1,000 films. In my sittings with him, I’d notice how he seemed to know everything. That was a revelation.”