Aamir Khan recently revealed that he wanted to step away from cinema during the pandemic, but Kiran Rao helped him regain his passion.
Aamir Khan, renowned as one of Bollywood's biggest megastars, also holds the distinction of being among the industry’s highest-grossing actors. With a career spanning more than 35 years, Aamir has delivered some iconic performances in blockbusters like Lagaan, PK, Dangal, Ghajini and 3 Idiots. The actor recently revealed that he was on the verge of retiring from cinema during the pandemic, only to be brought back to the silver screen by his former wife and filmmaker, Kiran Rao.
Aamir Khan is currently visiting the United States for the promotion of his film, Laapataa Ladies, which was renamed Lost Ladies upon its official entry to the 2025 Oscars. During a promotion, Aamir and Kiran Rao sat for an interview with Reuters, where the former opened up about almost retiring from acting during the COVID-19 pandemic.
At 59 years old, Aamir recalled the pandemic days a few years ago, when he felt overwhelmed by guilt for not dedicating enough time to his personal life and relationships. This led the actor to consider stepping away from the limelight. Aamir Khan said:
"I felt that I had not given enough time or bandwidth to my relationships. And that, you know, got me really guilty. And I kind of had a bit of a breakdown.”
However, it was his ex-wife and co-producer, Kiran Rao who intervened and urged him to reconsider his decision. She was the one who helped the actor rediscover his passion for storytelling and keep on working. In Aamir’s words:
“She said, if you're leaving films, you're leaving. You're leaving us, you're leaving everything. I was a bit taken aback by that. But then, I'm glad I changed my mind, and I'm back.”
After Kiran’s pep-talk, Aamir Khan reclaimed his passion for storytelling, and let’s just say, it was a brilliant comeback. After the brief hiatus, Aamir and Kiran co-produced Laapataa Ladies (now Lost Ladies), a film that got the nation gushing and even broke the box office records of Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s mega-hit, Animal. The film follows the story of two young, newlywed brides, ‘Phool’ and ‘Jaya’, who are accidentally swapped during a train journey. While the premise might seem simple and lighthearted, the film deals with the themes of patriarchy, corruption, and societal norms. In the same interview, Kiran Rao was heard saying:
“Humor and satire are the best ways to openly address uncomfortable, deeply entrenched issues like patriarchy.”
Before its release in India on March 1, 2024, Laapataa Ladies premiered for the first time at the 48th Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in 2023, and was well-received globally. Now, Aamir’s film is all set for its nomination at the 2025 Oscars as India’s entry for the ‘Best International Feature Film’ category. The film’s lead actress, Nitanshi Goel, also took to her IG handle to share the brand new poster of Lost Ladies.
We can’t wait to see more of Aamir and Kiran’s masterpieces on the silver screen, and wish them luck for Lost Ladies at the Oscars!
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