Farah Khan doesn’t hold back what she thinks, and her newest thoughts on working with Akshaye Khanna show this. With Akshaye well-known again because of Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar, Farah went back to their first times working together, saying she was once so upset by how he acted on set that she stayed away from films he was in. Though, her view has changed over the years, and how they get on now is really different.
A Straightforward Story From the 1990s
In a recent talk on Ranveer Allahbadia’s podcast, Farah Khan said her first period of working with Akshaye Khanna in the 1990s was hard, and, as she put it, shocking. She said he was quiet and often angry, which made working with him hard. If she heard he was in a film, she’d say she didn’t have time.
Farah thought Akshaye was going through a hard time in his personal life at that time, especially because he was losing his hair. She thinks that worry showed up on set as being upset. She remembered him asking about lines, throwing things when he was annoyed, and not wanting to do some scenes. There was enough trouble to make her keep her distance for a while.
The Change Called Dil Chahta Hai
Things changed for Farah on Farhan Akhtar’s first time directing, Dil Chahta Hai. Since Farhan is her cousin, she didn’t want to say no to the job. On set, she met a very different Akshaye Khanna. He seemed calmer and more sure of himself, a change she thinks came from him accepting how he looked and putting all his effort into the work.
Farah even showed how good he was at dancing. Pointing to the song “Koi Kahe Kehta Rahe”, she said Akshaye moved so easily that he could be as good as – and sometimes better than – his co-stars Aamir Khan and Saif Ali Khan. She said this was proof of a performer who wanted to get better, not the one who would have fits of temper she’d been ready for.
Their connection has got much warmer since then. After seeing Dhurandhar, Farah called Akshaye to say how good he was, and later went to see him at his home in Alibag. What she likes most now is how clearly he knows what he wants: he isn’t about show, he is about the work. He likes acting.
Going Back to Tees Maar Khan and a Part Hardly Anyone Wanted
With Dhurandhar making people like Akshaye Khanna again, people have been sharing parts of Tees Maar Khan, showing his odd turn as Aatish Kapoor. Farah Khan says she often gets shown those videos and is quick to say how much she likes his effort to fit the film’s strange feeling. It’s a performance that has got better with age as the film has slowly become a favourite of a lot of people.
It’s interesting that that part wasn’t easy to get someone to play. Farah said that several actors turned it down, including Sharman Joshi, who was busy working on Ferrari Ki Sawaari. Picking Akshaye was an odd choice, she said, as the part needed a lot of, clear, over-the-top acting. The fact that he went into the silliness showed a brave funny side that people now enjoy.
Akshaye Khanna’s Return and the Dhurandhar Effect
Akshaye’s recent playing of Rehman Dakait in Dhurandhar has been very well liked, making people interested in his long, strange career again. The film doing well has made people talk about him on screen again and guessed about him being in the announced next part, Dhurandhar 2: The Revenge, which is set for March 19.
This new interest goes with Farah’s changing view of the actor. Where she once met someone who changed quickly, she now sees a performer who has made his work better and improved how he does it. This is like how people now see him: an artist whose skill was always clear, but whose best parts keep coming later, going deeper, and being more interesting.
The Director’s Next Step: Farah Wapas Aao
Farah Khan, at the same time, is thinking about her own creative return. In answer to people asking for “Farah Wapas Aao”, she has said she thinks she will start a new directing job by the end of the year. There is a condition: “If I do it, I will do it with Shah Rukh. Otherwise, I will keep doing YouTube.”
Her long-lasting connections across the film world make that her view. She has a strong connection with Shah Rukh Khan built over years of working together, and she talks about Salman Khan with an easy friendliness based on memories from when they were children. That knowledge of the industry makes her view of stars like Akshaye Khanna especially interesting.
Why Farah’s Truthfulness Works
Farah’s story isn’t gossip; it is a look from the front of how artists change. In the 1990s, Akshaye Khanna was a good actor in a bad time, having trouble with being confident and hitting out. By Dil Chahta Hai, he had started again. By Tees Maar Khan, he had taken chances. By Dhurandhar, he had got the spotlight back with power.
That path gives her phrase “I was shocked” both force and meaning. It also makes her current liking seem real. As people go back to Akshaye’s best parts and wait for what he does next, Farah Khan’s story shows the messy, human change behind the idea of the film star – and hints at a good future if their paths meet again on set.
