Salman Khan

Hyderabad, Jan. 6: Actor Salman Khan is playing painter — in real life. He claims he has 20 paintings — oils, watercolours and acrylics — to his credit.

Salman, who turned 42 on Thursday, recently told Hyderabadis that two of his paintings featured the Charminar and the Tank Bund on the Husseinsagar lake in the city.

Next, he wants to paint people from various communities and also men and women in intimate postures. However, he clarified that he was not keen on painting nudes.

Salman said most of his paintings are signed “SK” and adorn his Mumbai home and those of his friends and associates such as filmmaker David Dhawan and politician Praful Patel.

The actor said he plans to exhibit his paintings soon. It has been a year since he brushed up his painting skills with help from a Mumbai-based artist.

Salman, who has been accused in a hit-and-run case and for killing black bucks, said he has begun to hate violence and bloodshed. “I want to do family and soft roles, which hold more appeal for the man on the street and the youth who are my admirers.”

The actor, who also participated in a fashion show and inaugurated a showroom on Thursday, had a word of caution for his fans, who gatecrashed into the shop and broke some panes.

The fans also jumped on to the ramp at the fashion show, making Salman vanish into the backroom. “That’s the kind of fans I don’t like — who put their lives in danger and also that of others. These things are ridiculous,” he later told television channels.

Normality returned at the fashion show after Salman’s bodyguards intervened and former cricketer Mohammed Azharuddin appealed to the audience to watch their “tehzeeb” (courteous behaviour to guests).

Salman has been shooting for almost two weeks in Hyderabad and is accompanied by a string of cousins and relatives led by brother Arbaaz Khan.