How Rakesh Roshan became a mafia target after making Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai

On January 21, 2000, while the 1997 assassination of music mogul Gulshan Kumar was still fresh in the public's mind, actor and filmmaker Rakesh Roshan was approached by two sharpshooters in broad daylight and shot twice.

He had recently completed the film Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000), which became a smash blockbuster and established the career of his son, Hrithik Roshan. In an interview with American-British comedian and TV personality Ruby Wax, Hrithik, who was in London shooting for Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), recalled the incident shortly after it occurred. He said, "My father was in debt because we had borrowed a lot of money to make the film. The film struck big time -- it was the biggest hit in the past five-six years."

The underworld could smell money as soon as they caught a whiff of this Bollywood success tale, and Rakesh Roshan became their main target. Two unidentified assailants shot at the director near his workplace on Tilak Road in Santacruz West, Mumbai, on the evening of January 21, 2000.

One of the two bullets fired at him grazed his left arm, while the other grazed his chest. The two attackers fled the scene as Rakesh Roshan collapsed next to them.

The filmmaker bounced back quickly. He climbed into his car, and his driver, Aatish, drove him to the Santacruz police station in record time. The cops then escorted him to Nanavati Hospital, where he was successfully operated on for an hour by Dr Sharad Pandey, father of Bollywood actor Chunky Pandey.

Only on October 9, 2020, Sunil Vithal Gaikwad, one of the two individuals who shot Rakesh Roshan, was arrested.