Salman Khan offered to work for free in Rajesh Khanna’s film, but Kaka saw it as an insult: Inside Aashirwad’s untold saga

Rajesh Khanna, India’s first true superstar, lived a life shaped by thunderous adulation and silent heartbreaks. His sea-facing Carter Road bungalow, Aashirwad, was never just a residence- it symbolised his unmatched reign. As chronicled in Dark Star: The Loneliness of Being Rajesh Khanna by Gautam Chintamani, the house functioned as the famed "durbar" of a "monarch" who delivered 15 back-to-back hits, a feat no one has replicated.

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Inside the Royal Court of Aashirwad

After buying Aashirwad from Rajendra Kumar for Rs. 3.5 lakh in the early 1970s, Khanna transformed it into a cinematic court. Producers waited endlessly outside for a glimpse of "Kaka." When he appeared, he sat elevated above visitors, reinforcing hierarchy. Whisky flowed freely, disagreements were unwelcome, and dissenters were dramatically expelled from the “court.”

When Stardom Slipped Away

The arrival of Amitabh Bachchan as Hindi cinema’s "Angry Young Man" in 1973 quietly shifted the industry’s pulse. By the early 2000s, Khanna’s finances were under strain. Reports suggested Income Tax dues exceeding Rs. 1.5 crore, triggering whispers that Aashirwad- the emblem of his supremacy- might have to be sold.

Salman Khan’s Gesture, Khanna’s Fury

Concerned by the situation, Salman Khan reportedly reached out via writer Rumi Jaffery. Sohail Khan showed interest in buying Aashirwad, while Salman proposed paying off Khanna’s tax liabilities. He even offered to act in a Rajesh Khanna production for free.

But Khanna reacted with "the fury of a wounded lion."

Feeling deeply insulted, he reportedly thundered, "I consider you a son-in-law and you want to sell my house? You want to bring me to the streets!"

The wound lingered- years later, Khanna is said to have reprimanded Sohail Khan personally.

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A Monument That Didn’t Last

Rajesh Khanna believed Aashirwad would outlive him as a testament to his stardom. Fate had other plans. He passed away there in 2012, and years later, the iconic bungalow was demolished, giving way to a modern high-rise- closing a poignant chapter in Bollywood history.