There’s something about the 1990s superstars that not only makes them relevant but also sees them at the top of their game today. Director Abhiraj Minawala may have an idea or two about it. After all, he worked closely with Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan on Jawan (2023) and Tiger 3 (2023) respectively, while his latest directorial venture Mardaani 3 enabled him to collaborate with Rani Mukerji.

Abhiraj Minawala

He found one striking similarity between the two Khans’ approach to work. He shared, “Their passion and dedication [are unmatched]. Their conversations are ‘Yeh karte hain, audience ko maza aayega!’ The thought is not that we should do this, but that the audience will love it. One thing common between them is that they think from a larger perspective of the audience. [It probably stems from] the fact that they started their journey as an audience, and then ended up here.” 

The director is equally in awe of Mukerji, who has completed 30 years in the industry. Having worked with her on Mardaani 3, Minawala walked away with keen observations about her. “She has achieved a lot, but I’ve seen that she still comes on set with the openness that she is here to perform. She is willing to learn things and collaborate with the team.”