From daughter to lover: Aamir Khan defends Fatima Sana Shaikh’s role as his lover in ‘Thugs of Hindostan’

It is crystal clear that Thugs of Hindostan is a film Aamir Khan would like to forget. For a person very selective of his scripts, the Vijay Krishna Acharya directorial is a dent in his career. That being said, the actor does not regret the director’s choice to cast Fatima Sana Shaikh, his on-screen daughter in Dangal, as his lover in the film.

Speaking to The Lallantop, Aamir revealed that Fatima was only approached when other big names rejected the role. “When we were casting for it, no other female actor said yes to this part. Deepika, Alia, and Shraddha, they all refused. That film was offered to the entire industry but no one wanted to do it."

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Once they cast Fatima, Vijay attempted to do some pre-damage control, aware of his lead actor’s previous venture with her—a box-office hit. In an effort to put controversy at bay, the director opted to remove the romantic storyline completely. “We won’t have a romantic track between you and her because she was your daughter in Dangal, how can she play your girlfriend here? Audience will reject this."

But Aamir thought otherwise. “I don’t believe in all of this,” he said. “Main asal mein thode uska baap hun, aur na asal mein main uska boyfriend hun. Hum log film bana rahe hain bhai (I am not actually her father, nor am I actually her boyfriend. We are making a film)”.

The actor also stated that the production would be “underestimating” the audience if they believed that the viewers were “stupid” enough to believe that he was Fatima’s father.

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Aamir also acknowledged his disappointment in the Thugs of Hindostan. He recalled that the script for the film would change often and that in the end, the narrative was haywire. “I was shocked," he said. “I told them I didn’t understand it and at first, they thought I was joking. I told them this won’t work for a day."

“I would fight with them every day that we have made it all wrong. This is structurally incorrect," he said. Thugs of Hindostan earned poor reviews from critics and failed at the box office. 

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