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The death of veteran actor Satish Shah has left the film industry in shock. The beloved actor, known for his impeccable comic timing and memorable character rolesenjoyed a remarkable 50-year-long career. In an old interaction, Satish had shared fond memories of shooting his iconic role as the professor who spits while talking in Main Hoon Na. Although the role went on to become one of his most memorable performances, Satish initially refused to play the part as he found it “disgusting.” However, it was Shah Rukh Khan and the film’s director Farah Khan who eventually convinced him to take it up.
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Calling Shah Rukh “a very smart guy,” Satish revealed how the superstar persuaded him to take the role. He also mentioned that he originally wanted to play the part of the college principal, which later went to Boman Irani. He told Bollywood Bubble, “I said what a stupid role this is (I said what a disgusting role)? I will play the role of principal (I will play the principal), which eventually Boman Irani did. Shah Rukh is a very smart guy… He said, 'Satish bhai, why have you done such a role and anyone can do it? (Shah Rukh is a smart fellow, he told me you have played many such characters, and anyone can do these roles). I think you should do this role (of Professor Rasai) because we can’t think of anybody else doing it.’”
Admitting how both SRK and Farah pushed him to take on the role, Satish added, “He and Farah both met and kissed me. (Both Shah Rukh and Farah flattered me a lot). That’s how I ended up doing that role, but it was not easy.”
Later in the chat, Satish humorously referred to himself as the “spitting cobra” because of the quirky role, in which he had to spit on Shah Rukh Khan during a classroom scene. “It was not easy. I used to take in a gulp of water and keep it around my mouth and I used to accentuate certain words and syllables in a way that it comes out like a spray,” he explained.
Despite the difficulty of actually spitting on a superstar’s face, Shah Rukh made the task even harder by laughing every time Satish did it. “I used to work so hard on it but Shah Rukh would laugh so we would have a retake,” he recalled.
Shah Rukh’s repeated laughter eventually tested Satish’s patience. “So once we had 8 retakes, and then I got upset. I said I’ll not do it after this. Everybody was laughing and falling off their chairs on the set. Then I gave the eighth shot and Shah Rukh laughed again. They had to use Zayed’s insert shot here,” he said.
