EXCLUSIVE: Fardeen Khan on staying in touch with Salman Khan throughout his hiatus; shares how he got No Entry
In an exclusive conversation with Pinkvilla, actor Fardeen Khan talked about Salman Khan and also revealed how he got his role in the comedy film No Entry.
Fardeen Khan made one of the most-talked-about acting comebacks in recent times with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s series Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar. He returned to showbiz after a long hiatus. Fardeen recently engaged in an exclusive conversation with Pinkvilla, where he revealed that he was in touch with Salman Khan during his absence.
He also shared that he got his role in the popular 2005 film No Entry because of his movie Khushi.
Fardeen Khan was in touch with Salman Khan during his hiatus
In an exclusive chat with Pinkvilla, Fardeen Khan was asked if he had contacted any of his industry friends, like Salman Khan, upon his return to the industry. In response, the actor revealed, “Salman, I have been in touch with pretty much throughout.” Fardeen also mentioned that he contacted all the people that he had worked with in the past.
Fardeen Khan on how Khushi got him No Entry
During the same conversation, Fardeen Khan disclosed that Boney Kapoor saw his work in the 2003 rom-com Khushi, which was produced by the filmmaker himself, and wished for him to act in No Entry. He shared, “Khushi is what got the comedy thing going, I mean, acting comedically. There were a couple of scenes in Khushi where I had to be funny, whether it was the drunken scene or a couple of other scenes. And that's how No Entry came to me, actually.”
Watch the full interview here!
He continued, “No Entry was a remake of a south film, and of course Anil (Kapoor) was cast in one of the roles, and Salman or he came in at a later stage, I’m not sure. But Boney was very keen to have me in a role that was played by Prabhu Deva.”
Talking about his initial doubts, Fardeen expressed, “When I saw the film, I said, ‘Boney, I am not sure I’d be able to do this.’ I had a lot of apprehension. It was an out-and-out comedic kind of role and the character was a bit of a dimwit. I mean, that's what made him endearing. Well, not a dimwit, but he was very gullible and sincere. Dimwit is the wrong word. Maybe naive, he took people at face value.”
Fardeen further added, “It was Boney who finally convinced me to do it, saying, ‘I’ve seen what you’ve done in Khushi’ and ‘You just have to be in it.’ There was no other discussion." Praising director Anees Bazmee, he said, “There was Anees Bazmee directing it, and that's his forte, and his writing is just so brilliant; he understands the genre so well. He really gives you these wonderful scenes, punchlines, and characters.”
Revealing how the film impacted him, the actor stated, “It was a great experience. No Entry kind of freed me up completely. When you get into that genre, you have to just shed all notions or whatever perceptions you have of yourself.”
Looking ahead, Fardeen Khan is gearing up for the movie Khel Khel Mein, which releases on August 15.