The Bombay
Times
May 1 1997
Foreign mag rates Salman as India’s
best looker
Mumbai : Critics dismissed his
tear-jerking performances in Love, Hum Aapke Hain Kaun and Khamoshi and the
media wrote him off as the brash star. Now suddenly, Salman Khan is hogging the
limelight and acclaim has come from unusual quarters. Only recently he was
nominated by America’s
People magazine as India’s
"best looking actor". According to a poll conducted by the magazine
among its readers, Salman has made it to the top of the good lookers list in India, beating
contemporaries like Sanjay Dutt, Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Anil Kapoor and
Jackie Shroff.
"Drop dead good looks...
straight Kodak material," the magazine says of Salman, describing to him
as one of India’s
better actors" who has charmed his way into people’s hearts with a
sensitive performance in Khamoshi."
In addition, Salman has also
made it to the seventh position on the magazine’s list of Top Ten Good-Lookers
of the World, only a few places behind the likes of Tom Cruse, Brad Pitt and
Matthew McCaughney. "He is a perfect blend of a soft face and a hard
body," the magazine says, justifying how the actor skyrocketed to Number
Seven, beating Hollywood stars like Christian
Slater, Antonio Banderas and Tom Hanks. People also compares his "arrogant
physique" to the chiseled bodies of Hollywood
heavyweights Sylvester Stallone, Van Damme and Arnold Schwarzenegger and
attributes his large fan following to his ability to perform mostly action scenes
with such finesse as is seldom seen among Indian actors. To top all this,
Salman Khan was recently informed by the producers of the Oprah Winfrey Show
that he had been voted the best-looking male in India, on the basis of a
countrywide poll conducted by the organisers of the show. In addition, the
producers have also invited him to be a special guest on the Oprah Show. If
Salman does attend the show, he will, in all probability, be the first Indian
to do so.
Salman was unavailable for
comment as he is away in Singapore,
for a series of stage shows. His sister, Alvira Agnihotri confirmed that
"Salman did receive a letter from the Oprah Winfrey Show telling him that
he was asked to appear on the show as a guest." She added, however, that
"I have no idea whether Salman will appear on the show or not."
Meanwhile, Salman’s directors
are all praise for their good-looking here. Sanjay Bhansali who directed Salman
in Khamoshi and will work with the actor again in his next film also starring
Aishwarya Rai and Ajay Devgan, feels, "Salman is definitely among the best
looking actors today." Bhansali who rates Dharmendra as the all-time
best-looking Indian actor says that "Like Dharamji, Salman too, has that
earthy look to his. Salman is a simple person, and I think he exudes that
simplicity very beautifully." The reason Salman looks so good, Bhansali
explains, "is because he’s a happy man at heart, and that happiness and
contentment reflects on his face." Bhansali does add, however that
"it’s unfair to call Salman just a good looker, because he’s a terrific
actor too, who carries off even the toughest of scenes with grace."
And finally, for those wondering
how Salman managed it to the top of the charts, here are the hunk’s vital
statistics: arms (biceps) 17 inches; chest 42 inches; waist 29 inches; hips 40
inches; thighs 23 inches. What more could you ask for?