Bollywood actor Aamir Khan has denied using steroids to bulk up for his role as a wrestling champion in Dangal.
“I didn’t use steroids. I have also heard about actors using them. There’s no judgement. As long as they are aware of what they are doing and its side-effects … But you don’t need it,” Khan said at a press junket in Dubai on December 13 to promote the upcoming film.
The actor put on 27kg for his role as an ageing father and former wrestler. He then quickly dropped the weight and developed a ripped body to play the younger version of his character for director Nitesh Tiwari’s biopic.
After the trailer’s release, Khan even posted a video online about his fat-to-fit transformation that shows him putting in crazy hours at the gym and eating healthy. But his transformation within five months — a short time for anyone to inflate and then shrink — triggered a dialogue on whether he used steroids as a catalyst. A video featuring a fitness expert questioning his transformation also did the rounds online. Khan said he hasn’t seen that video but was told about it by his co-stars.
“I was not looking at entering a body-building competition where you need three per cent body fat. And I didn’t need stuff to reduce water in my body and you can boost metabolism by your food intake, too,” said Khan, who worked out for eight hours every day and filled his day with physical activities like hiking. The 51-year-old actor was a whopping 97 kilos at his largest.
“Do the math, you can lose one pound [453g] a week at a very comfortable pace, and you can lose two pounds if you do slightly fast … I lost six kilos in the first three weeks. I also went to Canyon Ranch in Arizona [a health resort] where they have a team of doctors who help you with weight loss. I was there for three weeks.”
Dangal is out in the UAE on December 22.
Read the full interview in Gulf News tabloid! soon.
