7 Dogs Directors praise Salman Khan’s screen presence, compare him to Will Smith: “That’s what a superstar looks like”

Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt have left a strong impression on 7 Dogs directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah. The filmmakers, known for directing the Bad Boys franchise, spoke about their experience of working with the Bollywood actors and praised their screen presence, instincts and understanding of action cinema.

Salman and Sanjay play important roles in 7 Dogs, an international action film featuring actors from Indian, Egyptian, Italian and American cinema. The film stars Ahmed Ezz and Karim Abdel Aziz in the lead roles, alongside Monica Bellucci and Giancarlo Esposito.

Adil El Arbi compares Salman Khan with Will Smith

Adil El Arbi said Salman’s impact became apparent as soon as the camera started rolling. Comparing his presence to that of Will Smith, with whom the directors worked on the Bad Boys franchise, Adil described Salman’s ability to elevate even simple scenes.

“There’s a lot of charisma. You get the same feeling when Will Smith is on set. It’s like, ‘Oh, that’s what a superstar looks like.’ From the moment you put the camera on him, something magical happens,” El Arbi told PTI in an interview.

He added that Salman quickly understands what a scene requires and then brings his own interpretation to it.

“He knows right away what the scene is. And he will do it perfectly. And then he will create, he will give you so much more. And that is like going to film school. You’re really witnessing cinema happening before your eyes,” he said.

Bilall Fallah also recalled noticing Salman’s spontaneous contributions while reviewing footage during editing. According to him, the actor would sometimes add elements, including one-liners, that the directors only noticed later.

“During editing, when I was looking at the takes, there was always something new that he put in that I didn’t even realise when I was on set. He just makes a scene memorable. Even if it’s just a short moment, he creates something that is pure cinema,” he added.

Sanjay Dutt also impresses the filmmakers

The directors also praised Sanjay Dutt, who plays Ranjeet, the Indian member of the Seven Dogs alliance responsible for distributing the fictional synthetic drug Pink Lady in India.

Adil said the team recently began watching Dutt’s two-part spy thriller Dhurandhar after noticing the attention surrounding its success.

“We started to watch the ‘Dhurandhar’ series, because everybody’s talking about what a huge success it is,” he said.

He further highlighted Dutt’s experience with action films and pointed to the scale and complexity of Bollywood action filmmaking.

“He’s (Sanjay) so experienced. And the action movies are so complex in Bollywood, and so elaborate, even more than Hollywood,” he said.

Bilall also spoke warmly about his time with Sanjay in Mumbai and said the actor introduced him to several authentic places in the city.

“He’s just like a brother. When I was in Mumbai with him, I just fell in love. He showed and took me to the authentic places, and I just fell in love. And I just want to keep on going back to India and just keep on making movies. And hopefully we can create a movie or series together. Sanjay is just unbelievably creative and is a real artist,” Bilall added.

Directors want to work with Shah Rukh Khan and Will Smith

Adil and Bilall also revealed their admiration for Shah Rukh Khan. Their first exposure to Indian cinema came through My Name Is Khan, which resonated with them because of its themes of identity and Islamophobia after the September 11 attacks.

“It was such an important movie, it was after 9-11. For us, being Moroccans, being Muslim in Europe, that story really resonated with us a lot,” Adil said.

Bilall expressed interest in collaborating with Shah Rukh Khan in the future.

“It would be great to work with him. It would be awesome to make a movie with Will Smith and SRK,” Bilall said.

7 Dogs follows Interpol officer Khalid Al-Azzazi, played by Ahmed Ezz, as he joins forces with Ghali Abu Dawood, portrayed by Karim Abdel Aziz, to take down an international criminal network. Salman plays Johar, a former Interpol officer who becomes an ally to the central characters.

7 Dogs is set to release in Indian theatres in Hindi and English on August 21.

Also Read : Salman Khan talks about 7 Dogs; says, “It’s the kind of film you want to experience in a theatre

from Featured Movie News | Featured Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama