Being Salman by Jasim Khan is the biography of Salman Khan, the man who rules the heart of millions, people swear by his name, his mere presence guarantees the success of the movie, his generosity is world famous this superstar needs no introduction.
Salman Khan is the most loved actor of the cinema both in India and oversea. But he is also known to have a very complex personality. Salman’s character is both difficult to understand and predict. Many has tried to decode the riddle Salman. Being Salman by Jasim Khan is one such endeavor.
Jasim Khan tried to explain Salman the way he is through his lineage and social environment. For this, Jasim Khan has digged out the entire lineage of Salman’s family. According to Jasim Khan’s research Salman is a Pathan and his roots could be traced back to Swat Valley which is situated between Afghanistan and Pakistan. His great great grandfather Abdul Latif Khan came to India and settled down here.
Pathans are known for their bravery and hotheadedness, they are can go to any extreme for friends and are fierce enemies to earn. We could see these traits in Salman as well. This could explain Salman’s bad boy image. As it is the Pathan hot blood which boils on being provoked.
His upbringing could be the reason for his generosity and large-heartedness. Being Human, NGO run by Salman is an honest attempt by him to break his bad boy image. An attempt to amend the wrongdoings by him.
Jasim Khan has also discussed the women in his life and legal trials he is facing for various crimes in details. Though all the details are publicly available and Jasim research didn’t reveal any new details but he tried to present Salman’s side story as told by his father and few close relatives.
One entire chapter has been dedicated to the landmark movies of his career, the movies which were trendsetter. The movies which establish a macho and rowdy image of Salman Khan forever in the heart of his fans. This also contributed to his bad boy image. Fans believed in the rumors of him beating his girlfriends as he has so convincingly portrait the role of rowdy lover in his movies.
First half of the book is about Salman’s lineage and other half tries to decipher Salman’s complex personality. Reading about Salman’s ancestry was in no way boring largely due to the way it was written. Though sometimes it felt like a history text book but an interesting one.
When we read a biography or an autobiography of a celebrity, readers always look for revealing facts and details, deep insights and analysis for the better understanding and not just mere record of his or her life events. Being Salman satisfy the fans desire to know their hero more closely.
The Verdict:
Being Human is a beautifully written book which tried to understand the real Salman who commits some grave mistakes or rather crime but still manages to rule on the hearts of the people because somewhere down the line he is a man of golden heart.
The author was trying to understand why Salman is like that and he remains focused throughout the book in doing so. Whether he is misunderstood or not is left on the readers to decide.
