In a surprisingly candid revelation, actor Aamir Khan, known for iconic Bollywood films such as Rang De Basanti (2006), 3 Idiots (2009) and PK (2014), has opened up about his initial fears of turning producer. While talking at the ongoing 2024 Red Sea Film Festival in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), where he was honoured, the actor said, “I have had the freedom to act in and produce movies and tell stories I wanted to tell, but when you are producing, the slightest slip and you risk the whole film coming crashing down.”

The 59-year-old said that his reluctance stemmed from witnessing the struggles his father, late Tahir Hussain, faced as a producer. “I’d seen my father go through hell. It’s a thankless job,” The Hollywood Reporter quoted him as saying.

However, Khan had a change of heart when director Ashutosh Gowariker approached him with Lagaan (2001). “I was afraid that any [other] producer would start arm-twisting the director,” he said, adding that after 18 months of reflection, he agreed to produce the film, which was India’s official entry for the Academy Awards in 2001.

He added, “At the time, I was still hesitating to commit, but then I thought, ‘If you want to do great work, you have to take risks’.”