Shah Rukh Khan, known as the King of Romance, has had many iconic on-screen romantic scenes throughout his career. One such memorable moment was in the film Raees, where he shared screen space with Pakistani actress Mahira Khan. However, Mahira recently revealed in a podcast with Anupama Chopra titled “All About Movies With Anupama Chopra” that they had a “war of noses” while shooting the song Zaalima.
According to Mahira, during the filming of Zaalima, Shah Rukh used to tease her as she would stop him from doing certain things during their romantic scenes. She would be cautious to ensure that nothing objectionable happened on set. “When we were shooting for Zaalima, they all used to make fun of me because I used to be scared, ‘ki kuch zyada na ho jaaye’ (that nothing objectionable happens). So, I used to be like, ‘You can’t kiss me here, you can’t do this’,” Mahira shared. Shah Rukh would jokingly tease her about it, saying, “Kya ho gaya hai” (What has happened?), and he would get a kick out of it. He would playfully taunt her, saying, “Oh pata hai next scene kaunsa hai” (Do you know what the next scene is?).
These restrictions Mahira had on set caused some confusion for the makers when it came to shooting the hook step of the song Zaalima. As a result, they decided to go for a “nose-to-nose-kissing” scene, which became a unique and memorable moment in the song.
Shah Rukh Khan and Mahira Khan’s on-screen chemistry in Raees was widely appreciated by fans and critics alike. The film, released in 2017, featured their sizzling romance, and the song Zaalima became a hit, with their “war of noses” behind the scenes adding a fun anecdote to the film’s production.