Vivek Oberoi's immature act, driven by his emotions, led to a public statement against Salman Khan. Despite his repeated admissions of it being a childish act, influenced by the moment, Salman Khan has not forgiven him. The tension between them remains palpable, even after Vivek's public apology to the superstar during an award show in 2009. The public fallout with Salman Khan came with a very expensive price tag, as after the incident, Vivek Oberoi was banned from Bollywood. No one wanted to associate with him, forget about offering him films.
However, Vivek Oberoi did not give up hope. He switched his career from films to business. After a massive heartbreak (breakup with Aishwarya Rai) and a career setback, Vivek started a new journey in business and soon built a massive empire with a net worth of Rs. 1200 crore.
Vivek Oberoi recently gave an interview to Indian Express in which he shared that during his career, he delivered some hits like Shootout At Lokhandwala, for which he even went viral and won many awards, but that did not flood him with further film offers. So, after a point, he decided that he couldn't let the Bollywood lobbies control his life. In Vivek's words:
It was only around the 2009 mark when I decided I didn’t want to be completely dependent on this but build my economic independence. I didn’t want to be in a situation where a lobby could decide your future. Somebody could bully you into doing something because they controlled things.”
Vivek revealed he was always interested in business, so it was his plan B. So, he diverted his energy and focused on business, which helped him earn independence from the Bollywood lobbies. He gradually excelled in business, which led him to even provide a livelihood for others working under him. Vivek further added:
“Business was always a Plan B, and I decided cinema will be my passion. My livelihood should be my business, which helped me earn my independence and get out of that whole trap of lobbies, or having to sell your soul or suck up to somebody that is no great way to live at least for me. Some people make a living out of it but for me, that’s not the case.”
Vivek Oberoi has been through a lot over the years, thanks to his infamous public fight with Salman Khan over Aishwarya Rai. While the actor himself accepted that it was a rushed act on his part, Vivek faced a lot of hate from the industry people, especially Salman Khan, who made it a point not to forgive him. For the unversed, in the early 2000s, Aishwarya Rai broke up with Salman Khan and started dating Vivek Oberoi. However, Salman wasn't happy about it, and things took an ugly turn when Vivek jumped in and held a press conference against bhai and called him out for abusing and threatening him and his then-ladylove, Aishwarya. Years later, Vivek Oberoi publicly apologised to Salman Khan during his performance at an award show, but the superstar never paid any heed to it.
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