In a surprising twist of events, producer Ratan Jain candidly discussed a tense moment that nearly led to a fallout with superstar Shah Rukh Khan. The rift was sparked by a controversial casting suggestion involving Saif Ali Khan for ‘Yes Boss’, which left Khan fuming and on the brink of severing ties post-‘Baadshah’.
In the 1990s, Shah Rukh Khan was steadily carving his path to superstardom in Bollywood. One of his early turning points came with ‘Baazigar’, produced by Ratan Jain, which firmly established him as a leading man. The film also marked the beginning of a fruitful collaboration between the actor and the producer, who went on to work together on ‘Yes Boss,’ ‘Baadshah,’ ‘Josh,’ and later, ‘Main Hoon Na,’ where Jain served as a co-producer. But before ‘Yes Boss’ even went on floors, a heated moment between the two almost ended their professional relationship for good.
The comment that sparked Shah Rukh’s anger
In a recent interview with TV9 Bharatvarsh, Ratan Jain recalled a tense incident that unfolded during the early discussions for ‘Yes Boss.’ He shared that director Aziz Mirza and he were keen to have Shah Rukh in the lead role, but the conversation took an unexpected turn. “Aziz said that if Shah Rukh doesn’t want to do the film, we will make it with somebody else. And while talking to Shah Rukh, I ended up saying, ‘If you don’t want to do it, I’ll make it with Saif.’ That was a huge mistake. I don’t know how those words slipped out of my mouth,” Jain admitted.The seemingly offhand remark didn’t sit well with Shah Rukh. According to Jain, the superstar was furious and couldn’t shake off his anger for hours. The situation escalated later that night when Shah Rukh phoned both Jain and his associate, Hari Singh, to vent his frustration.
A midnight call and a strained relationship
“First, Shah Rukh called Hari Singh, who handled my work, and he really lashed out at him. I think he even used some strong language,” Jain said. “Then he called me and asked, ‘You’re replacing me with Saif?’ He was angry and said, ‘Saif, who?’ I tried to explain that it just came out accidentally, but he told me, ‘It doesn’t work that way. You said what was in your heart.’ I told him, ‘I can’t take back what I said, but what’s done is done.’ That’s when he said, ‘Let’s do one thing. I’ll finish Baadshah for you, and after that, we won’t work together.’”The producer recalled that Shah Rukh remained upset for several days. Eventually, when they met in person, Jain apologised, acknowledging that his words had been careless. “I was wrong. I shouldn’t have said that,” he admitted. Fortunately, the two were able to mend their relationship and continue their successful partnership in the years that followed.Jain also revealed another behind-the-scenes story involving Shah Rukh during the making of Josh. He explained that he had always envisioned Shah Rukh in the role of Max, but director Mansoor Khan wanted to cast Aamir Khan instead. “We had planned for Aamir to play the role that went to Chandrachur Singh, while Shah Rukh would play Max,” Jain said. “Mansoor told me Aamir wanted to play Max, and I said, ‘Absolutely not. Only Shah Rukh will do that, or I won’t make the film.’”Shah Rukh Khan, who has since become one of India’s most enduring stars, will next be seen in ‘King,’ directed by Siddharth Anand, which is scheduled for release in 2026. Go to Source
