New Delhi: Did you know that Salman Khan made a guest appearance in more Aishwarya Rai films than known publicly? A lot has been written about Salman and Aishwarya's affair in the late 90s and early '00s. During the course of their very controversial relationship, Salman and Aishwarya had appeared together in the cult favoruite film 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam'. Besides this, Salman had also done a cameo in Aishwarya starrer 'Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke'.
Likewise, Aishwarya had made a guest appearance in Salman Khan's 2002 film 'Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam' starring Madhuri Dixit and Shah Rukh Khan in the lead.
For most people, 'Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam' was the last time Salman and Aishwarya appeared together on the big screen. However, it is a lesser known fact that the two also appeared together in a scene in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Devdas'.
The magnum opus 'Devdas' starred Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai and Madhuri Dixit in the lead. There is a very specific scene in the film where Aishwarya's accidentally steps on a nail and as Paro ( Aishwarya's character) bends to take it out, a hand helps her do it. The same hand is that of Salman although his face his not revealed.
The revelation was made according to film critic Anupama Chopra's book 'King of Bollywood: Shah Rukh Khan and the Seductive World of Indian Cinema'.
During the shooting of the scene, Salman was on the set and volunteered to do the scene instead of Shah Rukh. So, the scene was shot with Salman's hand in the final cut instead of SRK's.
Writing about the events which led to Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai's relationship, Anupama wrote in her book, "“During the making (of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam), she (Aishwarya) had fallen in love with her co-star, Salman Khan. For two years, Aishwarya and Salman had conducted a tempestuous affair in a fishbowl (there were rumours of parental disapproval, physical abuse, intimidation), and by the time Devdas was shot the relationship had disintegrated into an unpleasant, incoherent mess. Salman had become a real-life Devdas, simultaneously self-destructing and attempting to salvage his romance. He was as much a part of the Devdas shoot as the crew.”
She further added, “Salman would spend nights lying intoxicated on the floor of Aishwarya’s trailer. One night, Shah Rukh and Aishwarya were doing a romantic scene that required Shah Rukh to extricate a thorn from her foot. Salman was on the set, and he volunteered to demonstrate how this should be done. Shah Rukh agreed and as Salman did the shot, Sanjay rolled the cameras. It was a poignant moment: a spent, tragic lover enacting his own life for film. Aishwarya cried. It was the last time the two were captured on film together.”
Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, 'Devdas' was among the many adaptations of the popular 1917 novel of the same name by the Bengali writer Sarat Chandra Chattopadhay.