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Farah Khan has often shared that her father, Kamran Khan, turned to alcohol after his film career failed, leading to significant financial troubles for their family. His addiction and the failure of a major film exacerbated their difficulties, resulting in their reliance on relatives and other means for support. Farah Khan recently spoke to Sania Mirza about how her father had to sell off most of their properties, rent out a part of their home and live a hand-to-mouth life. Farah Khan recalled her childhood and said, “It was uncertain. We had a whole floor, and then we started selling flats. Finally, we came to a one hall and one bedroom, after coming from five bedrooms and a huge hall, which he couldn’t sell because they were under my mom’s name. So that hall, in the afternoon, was given to the people to come and play cards.” The filmmaker said that the renters would pay Rs 5 each, which would aid the family’s basic needs the next day. “Those Rs 30-35 were used to buy milk for the next day, little bhaaji and my dad’s quarter or half bottle. If they didn’t come to play for whatever reason, there was no milk for the next day. If two extra people came, we used to get excited that now we would get mutton today,” she mentioned. She further added, “It was literally that hand-to-mouth. It’s a very depressive place to come back from. To see my dad like that, I can smell alcohol so well whenever I travel; it triggers a childhood memory for me. I used to stay in college till 6:30-7 so that I didn’t have to go home. Till now, I am insecure about money. I understood why my dad took to alcohol.” Farah Khan had previously shared how she, her brother Sajid, and their mother Menaka Irani navigated the financial hardships following the death of Kamran Khan, due to alcoholism. Reflecting on those challenging times, Farah had revealed, “Yes, I belonged to a filmy family, but by the time I turned five, we were the poor cousins. We’d lost all our money, dad’s film had flopped.” She said, “We had a riches-to-rags story. So, while the rest of the family was thriving, we became the charity cases. Sajid, our mother, and I were supported by our relatives, who graciously let us stay in their house.” She shared this heartfelt story on Radio Nasha, emphasising the resilience and solidarity that carried them through those tough years.
