Salman Khan finally explains his bald look: "A friend of mine passed away"

Dubai: Salman Khan has hit back at speculation about his appearance, telling viewers that his shaved head is a film look, that he has not had a hair transplant, and that part of the reason he has seemed subdued lately is the death of a close friend in June.

The actor made the comments on Saturday night's Weekend Ka Vaar episode of Bigg Boss 20, where he has spent much of the season pushing back at online commentary about his health, his weight and his age. The trolling has been persistent enough that fans have begun speculating about whether something is medically wrong, something he has previously denied.

This time he was blunt about it.

The look is for a picture

Salman appeared visibly irritated as he took on the comments about his hair.

"Takla hogaya ha kyai... picture ka look hai," he said, before adding, "Transplant karaya bhai." Translated from the Hindi, that reads: "He's gone bald... it's the look for a film. Bhai has got a transplant."

He dismissed the rumours as irrelevant to him personally, but said the same treatment lands very differently on other people. Plenty of them end up depressed over it, he noted.

The friend he lost in June

The more personal disclosure came in the same breath.

"A friend of mine passed away some two months ago," he said, offering it as part of the explanation for how he has looked and carried himself recently.

That was Kumod Raney, an entrepreneur and a longtime friend of the Khan family, who died on 9 June this year. She was married to Juggey Raney, a close friend of Salman's.

Her funeral drew the family out in force. Sohail Khan, Arbaaz Khan, Arpita Khan and Helen all attended alongside Salman, who was visibly emotional on the day.

"It shows their upbringing"

From there the actor widened his argument, moving off his own situation and onto what sustained online abuse does to people who are less insulated than he is.

"But there are so many people about whom bad things which are not true are written, they go into depression. So many have died by suicide," he said. "Troll troll troll... kuch bhi yaar," he added, which translates as: "Whatever, man."

His language sharpened from there.

"And the language that they use. It shows their upbringing and who they are. No one should even bother with them. Sometimes I wonder if these are even our people. Are they even humans? It would be an understatement to call them parasites. And we need to wipe this out. If you don't want to watch my films, then don't."

He also drew a distinction that has been somewhat lost in the clips circulating since. Concern about someone's health, he argued, is not the same thing as mocking them. Asking a person if they are unwell is fine. Making fun of how they look is not.

Not only about himself

Salman used the same episode to defend others who have been targeted, including Katrina Kaif over postpartum weight commentary, and his brother Sohail Khan and actor Varun Sharma over their appearance.

He also turned it on his own age, now 60, referencing the standard jibe that he has got old and cannot keep playing the same roles he did decades ago.

On his own temperament, he said he tends to convert something bad into an advantage, and that he is the sort of person who will set out to prove naysayers wrong while giving the people who back him more reason to do so.

The exchange started with contestant ScoutOP, the gaming creator who had previously encouraged his community to criticise Salman if they felt he was in the wrong. Scout looked apologetic as the host worked through it. At one point Salman removed his hat, jacket and shirt on stage and invited the trolls to have another go.

What Salman has lined up

The bald look ties into his work slate. Salman has Maatrubhumi in the pipeline, along with an as yet untitled project with director Vamshi Paidipally and Nayanthara.

Bigg Boss 20 premiered on 6 September and streams on JioHotstar, with Weekend Ka Vaar episodes on Saturdays and Sundays. This season's house includes Mahhi Vij, Aasif Khan, Aman Gandhi, Amrapali Dubey, Qazi Touqeer, Rhiti Tiwari, Yung DSA, ScoutOP, Arishfa Khan and Mary Kom.