Salman Khan and Katrina, who were rumoured to be dating in the past, have remained good friends, with Salman ever ready to help Kaif. Kaif is currently promoting her next, Jagga Jasoos. Speaking to Filmfare magazine, Kaif heaped praise on Salman describing him as her pillar of strength and mentor.
“We all know that Salman has the kind of heart that loves to help people. But for me, the greatest strength that he was to me was that he didn’t try to make things different for me, he encouraged me every moment to stand up, find my own feet and work hard,” Kaif told Filmfare.
When asked to share an anecdote, Kaif recalled a moment early in her career. This must have been in early 2000 when Kaif was trying to get a foothold in the industry.
“He always had a lot of belief in me. I was to be a part of the movie Saaya (2003). Anurag Basu was the director, John Abraham was the hero and I was cast in the film. I was called one night for a shot. It was a silent shot, that too I was playing a ghost. It was a passing shot. After shooting for two days, I was told I am chucked out. When I left the room, I started crying, I was bawling my eyes out,” said Kaif.
Later, Kaif bared her heart out to Salman, whose initial reaction (laughter) stunned her. "I met Salman and I’m weeping, and he’s just laughing. I started to think he’s so mean. I’m thinking my career is over and I’ve been chucked out from my first film and it’s the end of my life and he’s laughing? He finally gave in and calmed me down saying, 'you don’t understand, this doesn’t mean anything. I know where you’re going to go from here, these things happen. I don’t have an answer, but these things happen, you’ll see. Just keep your focus and work hard',” added Kaif.
Salman and Kaif are currently filming for Tiger Zinda Hai, the sequel to Ek Tha Tiger (2012). A few days ago, Kaif bumped into Salman at Mehboob Studio in Bandra, Mumbai where they shared some valuable time with each other. The actor then escorted Kaif to her car before going home in an autorickshaw.