When Manoj Kumar got angry on Farah Khan, Shah Rukh Khan for Om Shanti Om joke

Veteran Hindi film actor Manoj Kumar passed away in Mumbai at the age of 87 today. One of the brightest stars of the industry, he was known for his patriotic films and carefully curated takes on nationalism and what’s right for the country at philosophical level. One of the most respected filmmakers of his generation, Manoj Kumar delivered both critical and commercial success.

He was revered by the younger generation of Bollywood filmmakers but one point came in his life when he got really angry with Farah Khan and Shah Rukh Khan. It was an incident related to 2007 film Om Shanti Om. 

Manoj Kumar was parodied in the film for his signature style of keeping his face covered with his palm. It has been a widely copied style for stand-up comedians and mimicry artists throughout India and outside as well. In the film, an actor playing Manoj Kumar comes to attend an event where the guard fails to recognise him as he was covering his face. The character gets shooed away.

This didn’t go down well with Manoj Kumar who filed a defamation suit against Farah Khan and Shah Rukh Khan, the makers of Om Shanti Om, in 2008. However, the grudge was put aside later when Manoj Kumar was convinced by the makers.

The problem resurfaced when Manoj Kumar found out that the scenes from the film were not deleted as he was promised. In an interview with Zoom, Manoj Kumar said, “I feel cheated, and therefore saddened. I was anxious to know if they had removed those scenes ridiculing me or not. I am a trusting human being. When they (Farah Khan and Shah Rukh Khan) told me they had removed them I accepted it. But then I got the feedback that those scenes had not been removed. I think you’ll agree with me when I feel that I must take the strongest legal action against these people who have ridiculed me. I will punish any person who hits me below the belt. There came a time when even Gandhiji had to say, ‘It’s do or die’. They’re behaving with me like pimps and defaming me like a prostitute.”

The controversy lingered on for some time, but eventually faded out of public memory. Later, as per a report in the Hindustan Times, Manoj Kumar withdrew the complaint as he believed ‘it failed to instil any sense of responsibility in Farah Khan and Shah Rukh Khan’.

However, Farah managed to get her relationship with Manoj Kumar amended after a few years.