Overview
- Speaking to India TV, Akhtar said public takedowns from someone who has known him since childhood felt inappropriate.
- He recalled that Shah told IANS in 2013 the film was “completely fake,” adding that building muscles was not the same as acting and that he did not watch Akhtar’s films.
- Akhtar stressed he respects Shah’s craft but prefers direct, constructive conversations and said he would have called to offer notes in private.
- Despite Shah’s remarks at the time, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag went on to be a box-office success and earned broad acclaim.
- Akhtar is currently promoting 120 Bahadur, directed by Razneesh Ghai, in which he plays Major Shaitan Singh ahead of a November 21, 2025 release, and no new response from Shah is reported.