Actor Anupam Kher on Friday recalled meeting late pop legend Michael Jackson, saying he was a “phenomenon that the world may never witness again”.

Jackson performed in Mumbai in 1996, where Kher met the pop icon for a brief moment. Sharing a throwback picture on Instagram, which showed the duo shaking hands, Kher wrote, “Dearest Michael Jackson, this photograph is not just a memory… it is a feeling frozen in time. I still remember the moment I shook your hand in Mumbai. For that brief second, the fanboy in me took over completely. It was surreal… almost unbelievable… like touching a piece of magic.”

“You were not just an artist. You were an experience. A phenomenon that the world may never witness again. There will truly be nobody like you for the next thousand years. Nobody. We are blessed… deeply blessed… that you walked this earth and touched millions of lives with your art, your innocence, and your genius,” he continued.

Kher went on to call Jackson “the eighth wonder of the world”.

Addressing the controversies faced by Jackson in his later years, Kher wrote, “And yes… somewhere it pains me that even today, there are people who choose to carry poison instead of celebrating purity. But greatness like yours rises far above noise and negativity.”

“You were God’s gift to mankind. Wherever you are…may you be dancing, creating, and smiling. Jai Ho,” Kher signed off.

Antoine Fuqua’s latest biopic on Michael, starring the pop legend’s nephew Jaafar Jackson, hit theatres on April 24.

The Michael movie offers a glimpse into Michael Jackson’s early years in the industry. The trailer of the film showcases moments from Jackson’s life when he started out in the music industry, particularly highlighting his time with Jackson 5, the group he was part of with his brothers. His experience with the band was rooted in extreme discipline and pressure that arose from familial expectations, particularly from his father (played by Colman Dolmango).