Aamir Khan Thugs Compares Thugs Of Hindostan To Sholay: 'In Terms Of Its Formula, They Were Similar'

Aamir Khan has admitted that choosing Thugs of Hindostan based on his character instead of the overall script turned out to be a “fundamental error”. The actor made the candid confession during a SCREEN Academy Masterclass in Mumbai, where he also revealed that the film’s original script was changed heavily because of casting decisions. Thugs of Hindostan remains one of the biggest box office disappointments of his career despite its massive scale and star cast. Aamir says he usually chooses films for the story Speaking at the masterclass held at Whistling Woods International, Aamir explained that he normally puts the film and script above the role he is offered. “For me, what character I’m playing comes secondary,” Aamir said. The actor used

Dangal as an example while explaining his approach towards choosing projects. “So, when I say yes to Dangal, it’s because I love the script. It’s a great story with all parts having wonderful stuff to do. Then I focus on my character, Mahavir. But I haven’t said yes to the film because kya character hai Mahavir ka (what a character Mahavir is!),” he added. Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, Dangal went on to become one of Indian cinema’s biggest global successes. The film crossed the Rs 2000 crore mark worldwide and still remains the highest-grossing Indian film globally. Why Aamir Khan says Thugs failed Aamir then spoke about the one time he broke his own rule while signing a film. According to the actor, Thugs of Hindostan appealed to him because of the unpredictability of his character Firangi. He said, “Thugs of Hindostan has a very normal story. It’s Sholay,” pointed out Aamir. The actor then compared the structure of the film to Sholay. “In Sholay, you have Sanjeev Kumar’s Thakur, who needs to take revenge for his family being wiped out. And two people come in and help him — Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) and Veeru (Dharmendra). Over here, it’s Zafira (Fatima Sana Shaikh) whose family gets wiped out. She needs help, and Firangi (Aamir) comes in,” explained Aamir. “It’s a very similar format. So, Jai and Veeru are the heroes of the film, but it’s not their story. It’s Thakur’s story. Similarly, it’s not Firangi’s story. It’s Zafira’s story. So, in terms of its formula, it was more similar to a film like Sholay,” added the actor. Aamir reveals script changes hurt the film The actor also revealed that the film changed significantly during development because of casting issues. “But Aamir Khan laments that they never ended up making Thugs of Hindostan as it was originally scripted.” “For casting reasons, we kept changing the script. I wouldn’t know I’d do a fundamental error, but sab se hota hai (it happens with everyone). We should not have changed the script even if we didn’t get the casting we wanted. So, when you’ve seen Thugs, you haven’t seen the original script that Victor (Acharya) had written because it went through a lot of changes,” revealed Aamir. Aamir Khan was last seen as a lead actor in Sitaare Zameen Par, which released in June 2025 and marked his comeback after the failure of Laal Singh Chaddha. Directed by R. S. Prasanna, the sports comedy-drama featured Aamir as a suspended basketball coach training a team of neurodivergent adults.