When Rajesh Khanna refused to sell his house, Aashirwad to Salman Khan’s family

When Rajesh Khanna refused to selllhis house to Rajesh khanna's family

• Rajesh Khanna's bungalow Aashirwad symbolized his dominance in Bollywood.
• Khanna faced financial crisis and considered selling Aashirwad in the 1970s.
• Salman Khan's family offered to buy Aashirwad; Khanna was deeply hurt.

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In the early 1970s, Rajesh Khanna was not just a superstar, he was known as Bollywood’s undisputed prince.

His rise was meteoric, his popularity was unmatched, and his lifestyle reflected the kind of power few actors have ever known.

At the centre of that world stood Aashirwad, the iconic Mumbai bungalow he bought from Rajendra Kumar for Rs 3.5 lakh, a home that soon became a symbol of his dominance in the film industry.

In Dark Star: The Loneliness of Being Rajesh Khanna, author Gautam Chintamani describes Aashirwad as nothing less than a palace. Within its walls, Rajesh Khanna lived like royalty.

Producers and filmmakers would gather daily at his famous “durbar”, waiting endlessly for a glimpse of the star.

As Chintamani wrote, “Khanna made tens of producers wait endlessly outside the fabled durbar, granting the audience only once they had done time.” Fame had placed him on a pedestal, and Aashirwad became the physical expression of that status.

Rajesh Khanna’s presence only added to the sense of theatre. He would often appear dressed in a “silk lungi-kurta”, seating himself on a chair “placed a little higher than the others to differentiate between the king and his subjects.”

Nights at Aashirwad were legendary, filled with laughter, music and “copious amounts of whisky”, as guests sang praises of “King Kaka.” For a time, it felt like this world would never end.

But cinema is unforgiving. The release of Amitabh Bachchan’s Zanjeer in 1973 marked the beginning of a shift in audience taste.

Gradually, Rajesh Khanna’s reign weakened. Films stopped working, offers slowed down, and the applause moved elsewhere. Behind the glamour, Rajesh Khanna found himself facing a severe financial crisis — a reality few could imagine for someone once at the very top.

In a moment of deep vulnerability, Rajesh Khanna even considered selling Aashirwad. It was during this phase that Salman Khan’s family expressed interest in buying the bungalow.

Through screenwriter Rumi Jaffery, Salman Khan conveyed that Sohail Khan wanted to purchase the property.

Also Read: When Amitabh Bachchan recalled Rajesh Khanna's last words before death, ‘Time ho gaya hai, pack up...’

According to Chintamani, the offers were generous, including clearing Khanna’s income tax dues, and Salman Khan even offered to act in a Rajesh Khanna production for free.

The suggestion cut deep. To Khanna, it felt like a betrayal. Furious and hurt, he told Jaffery, “I consider you a son-in-law aur tu mera ghar bikwana chahta hai… Sadak par lana chahta hai!”

Jaffery later recalled how difficult it was to explain that he was “merely a postman delivering Sohail Khan’s message.”