As Junaid Khan’s Ek Din flops, Aamir Khan says film failing is like ‘losing a child’: ‘I am depressed’

Aamir Khan on dealing with film failures

In a recent conversation, Aamir Khan said that a film’s failure is like losing a child. He said, “It breaks my heart when a film flops. At the end of the day, we make a film for our audience. When they buy a ticket and come to theaters to have a good time, and when they don’t like a film, then there is a flaw in your work; the audience never decides intentionally to go and watch a bad film. If they are disappointed, there is a mistake you have made.”

Also Read: Aamir Khan doesn’t go to test screenings because he can’t lie: ‘It’ll show on my face’

 

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He further added, “I go into depression for 2-3 months when a film doesn’t work, a film is like your child, when it doesn’t work or gets rejected, it is very painful. I feel it’s important to mourn your losses. When your film doesn’t work, it is like losing a child, so you should cry over it, give it time, so that it is out of your system and helps you move on.”

Aamir also recalled challenges he faced in the past with his several films, “Sometimes on a set you figure out a film is not going to work, it has happened very few times with me. When I see a film’s first cut, I never fool myself; I look at it objectively. If I don’t like it, there is something wrong with it. It has happened with a lot of my films where we didn’t like the first cut. Delhi Belly’s first cut was not nice at all; people didn’t enjoy it. Then we reworked it. You can always correct a film if you want to; it requires lots of endurance, stamina, patience, and passion. Taare Zameen Par, Delhi Belly, Laapataa Ladies, we struggled with the edits for a long time until we got it right. Filmmaking is communication; if you receive a different message, then I need to change my communication. This process starts after the first cut. I believe a lot in testing the film, so we call the audience and ask them how they liked the film. Based on their feedback and reaction, we gauge if the film is working. For me, real success is to manage to make what you set out to make.”

Aamir Khan’s reaction to son Junaid Khan’s film Ek Din’s failure

Recently, Aamir Khan bankrolled his son Junaid Khan’s latest film Ek Din. Unfortunately, the film failed at the box office. Talking about its failure, Junaid told Vickey Lalwani in an interview, “We were hopeful. But I guess… It didn’t do well. It happens sometimes. It’s a film that I really liked, I really enjoyed. I think we all really liked and enjoyed it, and I guess… a lot of people did really like it, but I guess most people didn’t like it. That happens sometimes.” Sharing how Aamir Khan dealt with this failure, Junaid shared, “He is still hopeful. Yeah, even after all these years, after seeing everything, it still really bothers him. But he keeps himself busy and gets back to it, and goes back out there and does it all over again.”

 

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Junaid was also asked if he would discuss his future projects with his father. The young actor said, “No, because I made that mistake with Ek Din. I thought, ‘Okay, shall I have a second opinion from dad? I really like it, but maybe I should get a second opinion from him.’ So I set up a narration. And so when the narration happened, Dad really loved it. And he was like, ‘Siddharth, let me produce it.’ Suddenly, he was like, ‘I want to make it. I really love it, sell it to me. I’m finally getting a chance to make a film for my son; everyone is making a film for him.’ It was a rather emotional decision.”

“I think he’s a fantastic producer, especially for a film like Ek Din. But what ends up happening is that it takes five years to make. AKP (Aamir Khan Productions) is a big production banner; it takes time. So then I realised, if I take it to dad and he loves it, then he’ll be like, ‘I’ll produce it,’ and then I’ll have a film coming out once in five years. Which is great for him. He’s at a stage in his career where he can do one film in five years. I’m exaggerating a bit, I guess, but yeah, he can do one film in three years, four years, five years, and it’s fine. But I’m just starting out. I need to have a steady stream of work. And dad’s now dying to make another film with me, but I’m like, ‘in a bit’,” Junaid added.

Ek Dine film collected Rs 1 crore on its opening day, as reported by Sacnilk.  In 11 days, the film only managed to earn Rs 4.25 crores in India, and Rs 5.44 crores worldwide. It was lauded critically.

DISCLAIMER: This article discusses an individual’s personal experiences with professional setbacks and includes casual references to emotional distress. It is shared for entertainment and informational purposes and should not be interpreted as professional psychological advice or clinical diagnosis.