Imran Khan used steroids to achieve 'masculine' body
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Bollywood actor Imran Khan recently revealed that he used steroids to achieve a more "masculine" physique, akin to actors like Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt.
The 41-year-old made the admission during a candid conversation on the YouTube channel We Are Yuvaa.
Khan, who rose to fame with Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, has been on a hiatus since his 2015 film Katti Batti flopped.
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'Started to become a pressure point for men'
Khan said that the pressure to look more "masculine" has increased over the past two decades.
He said this trend is due to the rise of superhero films in both Western and Indian cinema.
"(Since the 2010s and 2020s), it started to become a pressure point for men as well," he said, adding that actors like Hrithik Roshan, Khan, and Dutt have been proponents of this hyper-masculine image.
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'I don't have a Captain America physique'
Khan said, "For a long time, I tried to conform to that, but I'm not built like Captain America; I don't have a Thor physique. I tried my best. I took all of the stuff. I resorted to steroid use as well."
He also said that the pressure has been intensified by social media. "When you see it more and more, you start to feel the pressure and say to yourself, 'I need to look like that.'"
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When Khan spoke about 'always being skinny'
Last year, Khan deep-dived into his body image insecurities.
"I've always been skinny. I'm one of those hyper-metabolic people, my body just burns through whatever I consume. Oh no, what a terrible affliction!," he wrote posting a bare-torsoed picture on Instagram.
Admitting "I wanted a powerful, heroic physique. So I tried harder," Khan spoke about taking supplements to enhance his muscles and then stopping exercise during pandemic.
"These days I'm doing better," he added, noting he "puts my health first."