Bollywood’s bad boy, the box-office’s Mr Bankable, Salman Khan is now setting the small screen on fire. Audiences love him and he proved he can do no wrong as Sallu Bhai’s incredible run as host on the show 10 Ka Dum blimped up his fan base. When he announced his entry as host to Bigg Boss 4, the anticipation and excitement was palpable. Blowing KBC’s Amitabh Bachchan out of the water, classy, suave, sassy, his attitude had ratings go through the roof and as the curtains went down, Bigg Boss 4 sat smug with some of the highest TRPs recorded recently.
Now waiting to launch season 5, Salman says it was a calculated risk he took, “Initially I was a bit scared because I wasn't too sure about the kind of people entering the show. But at the end of the day, it was good. Whether a celebrity or a common man, real personalities emerge in a show of this nature.”
Working in the churn of daily television hasn’t had much impact on his already impeccable work ethic, but he’s learned to be on time. “I’ve become punctual for shoots and it is very important. I have always been very professional about my work. But then professionalism is not measured only on the basis whether someone is punctual or not,” he adds.
Post the mega success of Dabangg the pocket Hercules is everybody’s blue-eyed boy. Even the Bigg Boss inmates couldn’t get enough of him: Veena Malik, Shweta Tiwari and the rest of the ladies tried so hard to impress the Dabangg Khan it almost looked like another reality show on some days, The Bachelor. But Salman only had eyes for the Bandit Queen. “My favourite contestant was Seema Parihar,” he says.
Just as he’s generous with his words of praise, Salman doesn’t suffer fools gladly and his fair, no-nonsense, straight-talking was trained directly at Bhojpuri actor, Manoj Tiwari. Displaying poor loser grace, the actor accused Sallu of a bias towards family friend, Ashmit Patel. Salman says, “I think Manoj saab’s ego was bruised badly. He felt everyone else in the show would be eliminated but he would be there till the end. He was upset with the fact that he lost to Ashmit Patel believing himself far superior and more popular too. It is not at all mature to blame me or someone else for his failure. His real personality is now in front of everyone.”
Bigg Boss 4 set a precedent for its controversies, fights, bitching, uncouth language, and a lot of unpredictable drama leading to sky rocketing TRPs. While there was the expected righteous indignation about the ‘questionable content’ and the government did register some protest, Salman reminds you that BB is not as bad as some other reality dramas, “There are a lot of TV shows which are very vulgar, expletives which are mouthed on the show are beeped out. There was nothing wrong with BB4.”
The star who has wooed audiences with his romantic roles, made people laugh till their stomachs hurt and left jaws dropping with his action roles has spent two decades in the industry, but never won an award. But times are changing. Sallu was recently awarded Best Actor for Dabangg in the 17th Star Screen Awards. He’s sanguine and humble though, “I have nothing in me for which I should be awarded Best Actor. In fact I ask people not to nominate me for such awards. The love of my fans is more than enough.” This is his first award after Maine Pyar Kiya. Has he missed the feeling of validation? He shrugs, “If I really wanted awards, I would not have missed out on a single one. We all know what kind of things people do to get awards. So if people are receiving awards, they deserve it.”
2010 was a Dabangg year for Salman Khan but now with both TV and film vying for his attention as a hungry audience begs for more, more, more — we have to wait and watch. Will it be acting, hosting or that other Salman perennial — finding a bride and settling down?