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Mumbai: Aamir Khan has often spoken about the struggles in his career and the films that shaped him into the actor he is today. While he is now regarded as Bollywood‘s ‘Mr Perfectionist’, the superstar, in the latest conversation, revealed that there was a time when none of the filmmakers he admired wanted to work with him.

Speaking at the BFI London Film Festival, Aamir looked back at the years following the blockbuster success of Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988). Despite becoming an overnight sensation, he said the directors he dreamt of collaborating with never approached him.

“Though I had had a big success behind me, none of the directors who I wanted to work with approached me. So I was a successful person, but I didn’t have the kind of work that I wanted,” Aamir said.

With no offers from the filmmakers he admired, Aamir ended up signing around eight to ten films, most of them with new directors. Looking back, he admitted it was one of the biggest mistakes of his career.

“I had absolutely no idea what I was getting into. For the kind of person I am, 10 films is just too much.”

Several of those films failed at the box office, earning him the label of a “one-film wonder.” The actor recalled how the difficult phase took an emotional toll on him.

“The films began releasing and they started bombing, one after the other… I felt like I’m in quicksand. With each film coming out, I’m sinking further in. I used to come back from work and cry because I was really unhappy with the work I was doing.”

The setbacks also taught him one lesson that changed the course of his career forever.

“I realised that filmmaking is a director’s medium. The script has to be great, the director has to be someone I trust completely, and the producer has to support the creative team.”

Aamir eventually bounced back with Dil in 1990 and went on to deliver some of Hindi cinema’s most celebrated films. Looking back, he believes those early disappointments ultimately helped him become more selective and shaped the career that followed.