Veteran actor Mukesh Khanna is known for his outspoken nature. The actor often shares anecdotes from his career, which has spanned over 40 years. In these years, he has worked with the who’s who of Bollywood. Recently, he recalled being in the Film and Television Institute of India, along with actor Naseeruddin Shah, who would often look down upon the song and dance entertainers of mainstream Bollywood. Speaking about the actor, Mukesh Khanna claimed that Naseeruddin kept beard because he thought he had a small chin. He also accused Shatrughan Sinha of using fake voice all his career, in order to create an intimidating impression for himself in the industry.
Appearing on the Shaardulogy YouTube channel, Mukesh Khanna said he could fearlessly portray the role of Shaktimaan and Bheeshma Pitama on television because he truly embodies what those characters represent.
He shared, “Naseeruddin Shah was my classmate in the film institute. We were together for two years. He had come from the National School of Drama. He once told me, ‘Mukesh, what are the people in Bollywood doing? Running behind trees, showing birds.’ That day, I predicted, ‘When he joins mainstream cinema, he will have a hard time.’ Later, he did Hero Hiralal, where he did all the dancing. He is a great actor, he used to keep his beard because he believed he had a small chin. Yet, he shaved it all for the film. If it was anybody else, their performance wouldn’t have been as great as Naseeruddin’s, because they would have always been unsatisfied with the role and going against their idea of dancing and singing behind the trees.”
He then cited the example of veteran star Shatrughan Sinha. He said, “Shatrughan Sinha is a great friend of mine and we have worked together in several projects. I am sorry to reveal this, but he has always spoken in a false tone of voice. You must have noticed, he talks from his throat and not stomach. The ‘Khamosh’ comes from his throat.” Mukesh Khanna shared that Dost (1974) is the only film where the veteran actor used his ‘real’ voice. “Later, he created an impression for himself with a false voice and it worked for him,” he said.
