‘Ye haraam hai mere liye’: How Shah Rukh Khan refused to charge interest for money he loaned for a movie

In a recent interview with Pinkvilla, Renu Chopra, the wife of late filmmaker Ravi Chopra and a producer, commended Shah Rukh Khan’s kindness. She remembered how SRK supported her son Abhay Chopra’s directorial debut, Ittefaq, when she lacked funds for its production and even declined to demand interest on the sum.

Filmmaker Chopra recalled how Shah Rukh Khan joined the cast for the 2017 movie Ittefaq. She remembered inquiring whether she could go see him, but he refused and mentioned that he would come to her out of courtesy. Nonetheless, after he failed to see her for three weeks, Chopra opted to take matters into her own hands.

Further recalling her meeting with Shah Rukh, Chopra said, “Maine kaha, ‘Dekh, paise mere paas nahi hai,’ toh he said, ‘Woh main laga dunga.’ Maine kaha, ‘Baki mere bacche puri tarah se dil laga ke picture banaenge’ (I said, ‘I don’t have money,’ to which he replied, ‘I’ll put in the money.’ I told him that my son would make the movie with his heart). It was my youngest son Abhay’s debut film. Unhone kahani bhi shayad padi nahi (SRK didn’t even read the story). His principle was, ‘I never back the horse; I back the jockey.’ He said, ‘If your son is backing it, I’ll back it.’”

She recalled SRK’s sweet gesture and shared that the superstar refused to charge interest. She stated, “And to this day… the money was always 50-50 down the line. And when the movie was completed, like all other finances, there was normally an interest rate. He said, ‘Nahi, ye haraam hai mere liye. Main nahi lunga’ (No, this is forbidden for me. I won’t take it).”

The neo-noir mystery thriller was Abhay Chopra’s first film as a director. Penned by Nikhil Mehrotra, Shreyas Jain, and Chopra, the movie is based on the 1969 film of the same title, helmed by Yash Chopra. The movie featured Sidharth Malhotra, Akshaye Khanna, and Sonakshi Sinha in primary roles and had an average performance in theaters, garnering ₹51.47 crore globally.