Salman Khan says film with Atlee delayed, announces next big action movie with Sanjay Dutt

MUMBAI:  Bollywood superstar Salman Khan has said that his much-anticipated action film with south filmmaker Atlee has been delayed due to budget issues.

"He has written a very big budget action film. The film with Atlee is delayed; the budget is an issue for the film. I don't know who from the two (Rajinikanth sir or Kamal Haasan sir) will be in it," the 59-year-old actor told PTI in a group interview.

Khan also said it's difficult to make a pan-India movie with actors from Bollywood and the south.

The right script is needed for such a collaboration to happen, he said.

"The thing is money... They also charge and we also charge, it is a big responsibility. For instance, in a film like ‘Ramayana’, they can cast everyone from here and there (south). I've worked with directors, actors and technicians from the south in many films.

"But when my film is released there, it will not get the numbers because their fan following is very strong. I'll be on the street, and they will say, 'Bhai, Bhai', but they will not go to the theatres. We've accepted them here, and their films do well because we go and see them, like those of Rajinikanth garu or Chiranjeevi garu or Suriya or Ram Charan. But their fans do not go and see our films," Khan said.

Khan also said that budget becomes too high when making a pan-Indian film and it becomes very difficult to recover the money given the number of theatres here.

"If we had 20,000 to 30,000 theatres, we would have killed Hollywood," Khan said.

The actor also revealed that he is doing an action film with his actor friend Sanjay Dutt, with whom he has worked on films like "Saajan" and "Chal Mere Bhai", among others.

"I'm doing another big action film after 'Sikandar'. That's rustic action. I'm doing it with my elder brother in the industry, Sanj... Sanjay Dutt. The director is not confirmed yet," Khan said.

Asked about about Pakistani heroines wanting to work with him, Khan quipped, "Oh, is it? They can take permission from here, let them get a visa from the government."

Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, "Sikandar" is set to release on March 30, coinciding with Eid. The film also stars Rashmika Mandanna, Sathyaraj, Kajal Aggarwal and Sharman Joshi, among others.