‘Rs 8 lakh was spent to hide Salman Khan’s eyebags with VFX in Dabangg’, reveals director Abhinav Kashyap: ‘He was afraid crowd would laugh at him’

Dabangg director Abhinav Kashyap recalled that Salman Khan was afraid of performing a stunt on the set because there were onlookers. He didn't want them to laugh if he slipped and fell.

By: Entertainment Desk

New Delhi | September 20, 2025 01:04 PM IST

3 min read

Salman Khan promoting the film Antim: The Final Truth. (Express Archive)

Dabangg director Abhinav Kashyap, who has been speaking about his animosity for Salman Khan, said that the actor once refused to film a stunt sequence that required him to run across a muddy stretch of land. He was afraid of slipping and falling in front of the crowd that had gathered to watch the shoot. Abhinav also revealed that lakhs were spent on visual effects specifically to hide the bags under Salman’s eyes. In an interview with Bollywood Thikana, the filmmaker said that he racked up debts during the making of the film because Salman delayed his payment, and accused the actor and his family of being ‘criminals’.

Asked if Salman has a private gym on his film sets, Abhinav scoffed, “Not at all. He just does pushups to pump himself up before shots, and to hide his fat. He’s not a very fit man. He has eyebags, or at least he used to during Dabangg. I had a Rs 8 lakh bill to digitally clean up his face. I heard later that his abs were fake in some films. During Dabangg, his face was worked on digitally. His eyebags were removed. But he was not this fat.”

Also read – ‘Salman Khan would show up at 5 pm, made entire crew wait for him in hot sun all day; arrived in helicopter and cancelled shoot’: Dabangg director Abhinav Kashyap

Recalling another anecdote, he said, “There was a chase sequence during Dabangg. It was the rainy season, and there was some mud. He refused to shoot because a large crowd had gathered and he was afraid of slipping and making a fool of himself. He can barely run. It’s all body doubles. They superimpose his face later.” Abhinav said that Salman was in comparatively better shape during Dabangg, as he was in his early 40s. “He could still do some stunts, but barely. He would play it safe. Body doubles would be called in for even slightly risky shots,” he said.

In 2014 Ek Tha Tiger’s VFX team accidentally revealed that Salman’s abs in the movie were fake. Later the video was taken down (source in comments)
byu/Sonam-Ki-Kutiya inBollyBlindsNGossip

Years ago, a VFX breakdown reel posted by YRF’s digital effects arm mistakenly revealed that Salman’s abs in the film Ek Tha Tiger were painted on. The video was later taken down, but clips of it occasionally resurface online. During the promotions of his film Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, Salman unbuttoned his shirt before a crowd, and said, “Tumhare ko lagta hai VFX se hota hai (You think this is done through VFX)?”

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