Aamir Khan has openly reflected on the box office failure of his 2018 film, Thugs of Hindostan. Speaking at a recent event, he compared the structure of the film to the iconic Bollywood classic Sholay and explained how repeated script changes eventually caused the story to lose its original essence.
Aamir shared these insights during the SCREEN Academy Masterclass at Whistling Woods International in Mumbai. He mentioned that when he selects films, he typically prioritises the story above everything else, including the specific role he is offered. However, he admitted that Thugs of Hindostan was the only instance where he placed his character above the story, a decision that ultimately bounced back badly.
Explaining the core plot of the film and how it mirrored a classic formula, Aamir said, “Thugs of Hindostan has a very normal story. It’s Sholay. In Sholay, you have Sanjeev Kumar’s Thakur, who needs to take revenge for his family being wiped out. And two people come in and help him – Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) and Veeru (Dharmendra). Over here, it’s Zafira (Fatima Sana Shaikh) whose family gets wiped out. She needs help, and Firangi (Aamir) comes in.”
Despite having a format and formula very similar to Sholay, Aamir revealed that the creative process suffered due to alterations made along the way. He admitted that changes were introduced to accommodate specific casting choices, which compromised the story. Elaborating on this, he stated, “For casting reasons, we kept changing the script. I wouldn’t know I’d do a fundamental error, but sab se hota hai (it happens with everyone). We should not have changed the script even if we didn’t get the casting we wanted. So, when you’ve seen Thugs, you haven’t seen the original script that Victor had written because it went through a lot of changes.”
Directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya, the 2018 period action-adventure film was produced by Aditya Chopra under the banner of Yash Raj Films. The star-studded project featured Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Katrina Kaif, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Ronit Roy, and Lloyd Owen.
Set during the era of the East India Company’s expansion in India, the story followed Firangi Mallah, a small-time thug from Awadh. Firangi is recruited by a British official to infiltrate and counter a band of local rebels.
Upon its theatrical release, the film was met with negative reviews from both film critics and audiences. Made on a reported budget of ₹300 crore, Thugs of Hindostan managed to earn only ₹151 crore net in India, concluding its run as a massive box office failure.
Moving ahead, Aamir Khan is currently awaiting the release of his upcoming production venture, Lahore 1947. The film is being directed by Rajkumar Santoshi and features an ensemble cast including Sunny Deol, Preity Zinta, Shabana Azmi, Karan Deol, Ali Fazal, and Abhimanyu Singh in leading roles. Lahore 1947 is officially scheduled to release in theatres on August 13, 2026.
Also Read: Aamir Khan on Son Junaid Khan: “He Is Strong-willed and Unfazed By Failure”
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: filmfare.com
