Bollywood's very mass hero Salman Khan has been running great. Good.
ever since he struck the big league. His over-the-top star appeal has always assured the kind of entertainment his huge fan following laps up with tremendous zest. But. However. with Sikandar, there are indications. That. Aura of command has seemingly not worked, and. Consequently. Fans and critics alike have wondered whether the superstar, in fact, lost his charm.
Khan has been a force to be contended with within Indian cinema for decades. His action movies and tearjerkers, as well as his on-screen presence, have been all but equalled. His films have been a staple on the Bollywood scene, especially in the festival Eid season of the year, when filmgoers flock to theatres in droves, hungry to catch up with the latest offering from the star. But Sikandar is a setback—a glaring blunder in a career otherwise punctuated by blockbuster after blockbuster.
What Went Wrong with Sikandar?
The biggest question on everyone's mouth is: What has become of Sikandar? For the first time in a very long time, Khan's fanatics were let down by the film. It's not so much a question of the film's averageness; it's a question of fundamental disconnection between expectations of the viewer and what actually turned up.
Salman Khan, with all his flaws, has built a kingdom on his undisputed charm and unique form of entertainment. Whether charming as Prem, risky as Tiger, or vulnerable as Sultan, Khan's hold on the audience has never faltered—until now. Sikandar is a misstep on so many fronts: not just in what the film has to say narratively, but in how the actor approached it and how those around him failed to push him to give his best.
It's hard to shake off the sense of smugness that surrounds Sikandar. Khan has never asserted more than that his films appeal to a certain kind of audience—people who are willing to forgive excesses of action sequences, melodrama, and formulaic plots, as long as entertainment value is high. But with Sikandar, even his die-hard supporters who've forgiven him for everything else appear to finally have had enough. The film offers nothing worthwhile—a mix of action, romance, and drama that Salman Khan might have done while sleeping—yet he does not seem to put effort this time.
Khan and His Team: A Misfired Partnership
Though Khan cannot be exempt from blame, the failure of the film is a collective effort. This is not just a personal failure of one actor who has become laid back; it is a team failure where the team did not drive home the scenes when they ought to have. Director A.R. Murugadoss, who previously got the best out of Aamir Khan with the blockbuster Ghajini, seems to have let down Khan while directing him. Murugadoss, who is also credited with the screenplay, appeared to be interested in Khan alone, excluding the rest of the characters and short of providing any depth to the story.
The production team, too, is culpable. Those days are gone when grand sets and beautiful locations could hide the shortcomings of a film. In Sikandar, the over-the-top opulence of the Falaknuma Palace cannot save a film that lacks a good story and engaging characters. It's as if everyone believed that Khan's star power alone would be enough to carry the film, but it's clear now that this was a grave mistake.
Salman Khan: Superstar on Autopilot?
Behind Sikandar's collapse lies the biggest question: Has Salman Khan started taking himself for granted? He has been the superstar of blockbuster films for a long time, falling effortlessly into a role that stokes his mass appeal. But in Sikandar, something is off—he is no longer the invincible screen icon that he once was. The chemistry that was so alive with his co-stars earlier, whether with Kajol, Katrina Kaif, or Sonakshi Sinha, is absent here. His romance with Rashmika Mandanna feels artificial and cold, a far cry from the spontaneous, contagious chemistry he's had with his previous leading ladies.
The people deserve better. Khan has always been able to deliver moments of magic—whether it's his signature dance moves or his chemistry with his love interests. Sikandar fails on all of those fronts. Khan appears to have lost touch with what made him a star today: his rapport with the audience. The aura of Prem, Tiger, and Sultan is in the past now as we see him struggle with a movie that is more a case of boasting about his celebrity rather than doing an engaging act.
A Star in Search of Self-Education
Sikandar's failure is not just the failure of one film; it is an eye-opener for Salman Khan and Bollywood's elite. Khan is 60 years old this year, and his status as being one of the largest stars in town is cemented. But if he continues making films like Sikandar, then that reputation can be brought into jeopardy by a series of poor-performing films.
It's not about the age gap between Khan and his co-stars, even younger than him, or the retro sexism and toxic masculinity of some of his films. It's about not trying, not challenging himself, not adapting to the changing needs of the audience. Khan has been a contradiction since the beginning—a performer who could command the screen without needing to act in the first place. But in Sikandar, even his inherent mass popularity appears forced and lacking in imagination.
Salman Khan needs to take a step back and realize what he is to the people. He owes it to the fans who have stood by him all these years to give a product that seems real, exciting, and worth their time and money. Sikandar is not just a failed film; it's a wasted opportunity for a superstar to reinvent himself in the industry and connect with the audience who have loved him forever.
If Khan does not course-correct in a hurry, his once unstoppable career may be in danger of being lost in the mix. And that would be a shame for the man who, for so long, was the face of Bollywood's largest box offices.
