Veteran actor Mukesh Khanna came down heavily on late filmmaker Yash Chopra. He narrated a distasteful incident to actor Sudhanshu Rai during the primary episode of his storytelling series, "Dreamers". Khanna recalled that when his elder brother, Jaggi, showed Chopra two reels of the film "Khooni", the director made a biting comment about the actor.
The 'Chandni' maker had allegedly said, “When one has the option of foreign liquor, why would he choose country liquor?” In this metaphor, the "foreign liquor" referred to the much-established stars of the time, such as Amitabh Bachchan, Jeetendra, and Vinod Khanna, whereas "country liquor" was a reference to Khanna.
The metaphor did not sit well with Khanna, and he made it a point to never cross paths with Chopra again. Overcoming such discouragements, Khanna managed to make a name for himself with some iconic roles such as Bhishma Pitamah in "Mahabharat" and "Shaktimaan", becoming India’s first superhero.
During the candid conversation, Khanna also shed light on the turbulent phase of his career, when a series of flops had cast a major question mark on his prospects in the film industry. However, he added that throughout his journey, his elder brother Jaggi remained his constant source of inspiration and his guiding light.
Work-wise, Khanna is gearing up to take on the role of the iconic 1990s Indian superhero ‘Shaktimaan' once again for an audio series. Reimagined by Pocket FM, the audio series will feature Khanna as the country's first Indian superhero, but this time, through his powerful voice.
Elated about this, he stated that he is “thrilled to return as the voice of the beloved hero and connect with a whole new generation of listeners.” “The platform offers a great way to reintroduce Shaktimaan’s values, strength, and superpowers, but with new tales to today’s youth in a format they love," he added.