In their upcoming action movie, Pathaan, Shah Rukh Khan and John Abraham will be seen at odds with one another. Shah Rukh recently talked about working with John while there were rumours of their actual fight. He discussed how John stood his ground during the shoot and referred to him as a “national treasure.” Shah Rukh plays Pathaan, a soldier who returns from his ‘hiatus’ when called upon to take out a terrorist organisation headed by John Abraham in the Siddharth Anand-directed film Pathaan. Shah Rukh is joined by Deepika Padukone on his mission. Speaking of the movie, Shah Rukh discussed his thoughts on John playing a negative role in a chat session that was posted on the Yash Raj Film YouTube channel. He recalled how they had become friends and had known John ever since he moved to Mumbai. Shah Rukh called John “Shy, very quiet, and reclusive” but he was eager to see him in Pathaan.
Shah Rukh calls John a ‘top star’ and also shared that, unlike most actors, John is willing to play the villain in movies. “Takes a lot of confidence in your own self, especially when I see in the Hindi film scenario. Heroes don’t play bad guys. I’d love to play a bad guy. I gained a deep respect for him.”
Elaborating further, Shah Rukh refers to John as a ‘Gentle Giant’ and reveals why he refused to hit him. “He called me a national treasure and said, ‘I will not hurt you.’ I said you can, it’s ok,” he said.
He also heaped praises on his co-star, saying that he hopes John’s character is one of the most liked.
Prior reports suggested that John and Shah Rukh’s relationship was not going well. According to rumours, John was unhappy with the way Pathaan turned out, which might have strained his relationship with Shah Rukh. John’s attendance at an event where he sidestepped a query about Shah Rukh Khan’s physique in Pathaan fueled the rumours. John later wrote a note about Pathaan.
Pathaan will be released on January 25.