Money cannot buy me: Aamir Khan (Interview)

One of Bollywood's favourite Khans, Aamir, claims to earn the "least compared to others", and says he "cannot compromise" with his emotions as "money cannot buy me".

"Till today, I have not worked for money and that is one of my biggest strengths," Aamir, who is currently on a roller-coaster thanks to the success of his latest release "Dhoom 3", told IANS in an interview here.

He has experimented with films, roles and genres galore in his over 25-year movie career. From loverboy to teacher to villager and now a villain, he has done it all, but it's vital for Aamir to connect emotionally with a project before he gives it a thumbs up.

"It's not that I don't need money. All of us need money and, according to me, I earn the least amount of money. I earn the least compared to others and yet I am very happy because I do what my heart says.

"I never work for money. Give me Rs.100 crore for a film and if I don't like it, I will not do it. I cannot compromise with my emotions, and money cannot buy me," added the 48-year-old actor, who started his full-fledged tryst with filmdom with the 1988 romance drama "Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak".

He cemented his spot in the movie business with projects like "Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin", "Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar", "Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke", "Raja Hindustani" and "Sarfarosh". The year 2001 turned out to be a turning point for Aamir, who featured in "Lagaan" and "Dil Chahta Hai" - films as different as chalk and cheese - and proved his versatility.

Thereafter, he went on to feature in films like "Rang De Basanti", "Fanaa", "Ghajini", "3 Idiots" and the critically acclaimed "Dhobi Ghat". He even acted in and directed the commercially and critically lauded 2007 film "Taare Zameen Par", which dealt with dyslexia.

No wonder Aamir is known to make films with a no-nonsense quality.

"It is difficult for me to go out of my sensibilities and work. I can do different kinds of genres, but if my sensibility doesn't match, I will not do it. If it disturbs my values, I can't do that film," he said."If I had a value judgment on 'Delhi Belly', I would not have produced it. It's an adult comedy, it has use of abusive language, but I feel that even that is a colour of life which I would like to enjoy.

"So, we applied for an 'A' certificate and I went out of my way to tell people that it's an adult film and that if you have any objection, don't come," he added.

That also makes Aamir, a father of three, a socially aware and conscious citizen. He has, of course, put that realm of himself to judicious use with his TV show "Satyamev Jayate", which gives out startling facts about society's issues. But going beyond that capacity and joining politics to bring about change is not his cup of tea.

"I am not interested in politics. I feel whatever my strengths are, I want to make use of them. Why does a person join politics? Because they want to serve society. I feel wherever I am today, I can serve society in a better way.

"I don't have to join politics for that. I am doing 'Satyamev Jayate', which is only about that. I am contributing a lot from here," said the actor, who is now awaiting the celebrations for the success of "Dhoom 3".

(Uma Ramasubramanian can be contacted at uma.sagit@gmail.com)