Being Human is important to Salman. He makes it a point to sport the brand's products everywhere: on the sets, at events and even for court appearances.'
'It is a good public relations exercise. His lawyers will try to play the Being Human card to say he has changed.'
Is Being Human, Salman's apparel brand, an extension of his persona or is it a move to correct his bad-boy image, asks Ranjita Ganesan.
Salman Khan, Bollywood's most reliable star, is not an easy man to interview.
As a Business Standard journalist who met him in January just before the release of his film, Jai Ho, recalls, the actor behaved unpredictably, evaded questions and looked uninterested, even bored.
For about five minutes after walking in, he did not acknowledge her. Instead, he fetched food on a plate, played a few video clips of the film and halfheartedly answered her queries.
But when the reporter asked Salman about Being Human, his apparel brand that helps fund his philanthropic trust, he became focused, sat up straight in his chair and rattled off expansion plans.
"Whatever we do has to stick with the people. There is no scope for failure," the actor said.
Being Human is important to Salman.
"He lives and breathes the brand," says Kunal Mehta, vice-president of business development and marketing at Being Human Clothing, a division of garments company Mandhana Industries.
Every design in the brand's collections has to be approved by the actor, he adds. Salman makes it a point to sport Being Human products everywhere: on the sets, at events and even for court appearances.
Those who have worked with him claim that "Being Human and Salman are synonymous".
In fact, charity is now so much a part of his persona that when Jai Ho was slammed for its casting, jokes circulated on the social media that the film was "a philanthropic exercise to generate employment for a dozen retired actors".
The 48-year-old started Being Human: The Salman Khan Foundation in 2007. It works in the areas of education and healthcare. His inspiration is said to have come from watching his parents help the needy.
"Whenever they were approached for help, they would try and pitch in. More often than not, this meant financial assistance," says Alvira Agnihotri, Salman's sister and a trustee of the not-for-profit group.
"However, money in individual hands is prone to misuse; so Salman set up a foundation to contribute in a more structured manner." Typically, Salman charges Rs 30-40 crore for a film and a share in profits.
For brand endorsements, he gets about Rs 7 crore. The foundation was initially funded by Salman putting in his money, says Alvira.
To increase its reach and corpus, he started selling art and merchandise, the royalties from which go to the foundation. He next plans to set up cafes, gyms and a production house that will help raise money for the foundation. Salman was unavailable for comments for this report.
Mandhana Industries made and exported apparel for brands such as FCUK and Calvin Klein before it became the global licensee for Being Human.
Based on his appearance and somewhat nonchalant manner, the company's managing director, Manish Mandhana, could comfortably pass off as the fourth son of Salman's father, Salim Khan (one half of the legendary Bollywood writer duo Salim-Javed).
He met Salman's family some years ago through a friend and has been a regular at their home ever since.
In 2011, he approached them with the idea of starting a full-fledged apparel brand with the "beautiful name" of "Salman's charity", which is a spin on the term, human being. The royalties would go to the foundation, and Mandhana would get the opportunity to leverage Salman's popularity to expand business.
Salman's brand equity is not insignificant.
Never a thinking man's actor, he is loved by the masses. Unlike Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan, Salman is seen as un-scheming, unpretentious, uncomplicated and straightforward -- someone who has no time for diplomacy.
The Khan household is truly secular.
No comments: