Sanjay Khan On Bollywood Actors: The Moment They Turn Around, They Backbite
Veteran actor Sanjay Khan says he has enjoyed several long-lasting friendships in Bollywood but believes the equation among the current crop of actors is so superficial that they are ready to backbite
Veteran
actor
Sanjay
Khan
says
he
has
enjoyed
several
long-lasting
friendships
in
Bollywood
but
believes
the
equation
among
the
current
crop
of
actors
is
so
superficial
that
they
are
ready
to
"backbite" anytime.
Khan
says
these
things
existed
in
the
industry
in
his
heyday
but
there
was
elegance
and
class.
"The
value
of
friendships
among
the
current
reigning
lot
pains
me.
It
is
superficial.
It's
just
to
show
courtesy.
The
extra
hugs
and
the
taps
on
the
back,
you
can
smell
hypocrisy
from
one
mile
away,
that
they
don't
have
anything
in
common," Khan
told
PTI.
"The
moment
they
turn
around,
they
backbite.
This
is
a
downside
of
the
film
industry.
In
those
days
we
could
say
it
was
like
this
too
but
it
had
elegance,
some
class,
respect.
Now
there
is
naked
aggression,"
he
adds.
Khan
says
the
reason
for
the
downfall
of
quality
relationships
between
people
in
the
industry
could
be
"material
gain".
"In
those
days,
the
parity
of
money
was
more
or
less
the
same.
Today
with
changing
times
and
too
much
of
money
and
politics
in
films,
(there
is
a)
dog-eat-dog
mentality."
Some
of
Khan's
closest
friendships
and
other
important
events
of
his
life
find
a
mention
in
his
autobiography,
The
Best
Mistakes
of
my
Life.
The
Dosti
actor's
life
changed
after
a
major
fire
accident
which
took
place
in
1989
on
the
sets
of
his
TV
show,
The
Sword
of
Tipu
Sultan,
in
which
he
played
the
title
role,
alongside
directing
and
producing.
Fifty
two
people
died
in
the
fire.
Khan,
78,
recalls
how
Dharmendra
came
to
visit
him
in
the
hospital
and
was
"crying
like
a
boy".
"Two
months
after
I
came
back
from
coma,
I
saw
a
stream
of
VIPs
from
Delhi
and
Dharmendra.
Those
people
were
watching
me
with
pathetic
looks,
I
was
telling
them
I'll
meet
them
soon
but
they
must've
thought
I
am
a
goner
and
were
expressing
sympathy.
"But
Dharmendra
was
crying
like
a
boy.
He
kept
on
saying,
'My
friend,
I'm
with
you'.
That
was
the
friendship
I
shared
with
him.
I
shared
an
extremely
long
and
close
friendship
with
Raj
Kapoor
and
Sanjeev
Kumar
among
others."
Khan
still
remembers
the
day
of
the
mishap.
"The
whole
set
was
consumed
by
fire.
Smoke
and
flames
had
engulfed
me.
I
was
hit
on
a
head
-
with
something
like
a
canon
ball,
which
later
I
was
told
was
a
tin
of
paint
-
I
fell
and
was
taken
to
hospital.
I
had
65%
third
degree
burns,
52
of
my
crew
lost
their
lives.
I've
carried
this
pain
for
a
long
time.
Only
seven
months
after
the
accident,
I
was
informed
about
it."
The
actor
says
he
was
told
by
the
doctors
that
he
could
never
work
again
but
his
will
kept
him
going.
"My
survival
itself
was
rare
-
trauma
with
third
degree
burns,
73
surgeries,
I
was
called
'The
Miracle
Man'.
But
I
knew
I
must
work,
otherwise
I
would
die."
(With
PTI
inputs)