Exclusive: Zareen Khan says, ‘I cannot be a monkey on Salman Khan’s back’; says she is ‘replaceable right now’

It is almost 12 years for actor Zareen Khan in the Hindi film industry, however, the actor has no qualms in accepting that she is still replaceable. “Actors are insecure,” she admits, “They are indispensable and replaceable. And nobody really cares. I’ve always been very content in my own space. So, I have never been in any race. But I do think I’m quite replaceable, right now. Unless you are an A-lister, people won’t wait for you.”

Looking back at her journey, Khan realises that people may have mistaken her coy nature as arrogance. “My dad had left us, (so) it was me who had to take the responsibility, to take care of my family financially. I did not have anybody helping me or guiding me. It was intimidating. I was intimidated and many took it as arrogance. There have been times when I felt lost in the industry. I wanted to do good work but I wasn’t allowed to show my acting talent and what I could bring to the table. There were preconceived notions about me, as I was just a pretty face,” Khan opens her heart out.

The actor started her career in 2010 alongside Salman Khan in Veer. Since then, conjectures have been rife that Salman helped her in her career. “A lot of people still have that assumption,” Khan shares and adds, “I’m thankful to Salman because I would’ve never entered the industry if it was not for me. He gave me an entrance to the industry. But my struggle started after I became a part of the industry because then I knew nothing. Salman is an amazing person but he is also a busy man. I cannot be a monkey on his back and bother him for little things. A lot of people to date think that all the work I do is through him and that’s not true. Salman is a friend and just a phone call away but I’m not pestering him. And that undermines the struggle, the hard work that I’ve done.”