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Singer Hassan Jahangir has emerged as a bit of a rarity in the South Asian music scene nowadays as one of the few Pakistanis whose work is being used and appreciated in India. But the truth is, he’s always been popular across the border, with long swirling rumours suggesting his fan base included Bollywood star Rekha.

Appearing on the podcast Excuse Me with Ahmad Ali Butt, he refused to confirm whether or not the star of the 1981 hit Umrao Jaan had written him a love letter at some point.

“Sir, some things need to stay between you and me, we can’t tell everyone everything,” the singer told Butt. He said he had “great friends” in Bollywood whom he respected a lot, including Madhuri Dixit, Mandakini, Sonu Walia, Amitabh Bachchan, Mithun Chakraborty, Govinda, Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan.

When the host asked which of them wrote love letters, Jahangir replied, “They all did, everyone does, I did too. I am sure you must have as well at some point.”

What he did confirm was an incident where he was getting mugged and the mugger wouldn’t believe he was who he said he was. “He wouldn’t believe me initially, took my phone, the keys to my car, then I said ‘I am Hassan Jahangir.’ That’s when he looked up, started laughing, returned my mobile and keys, got on his bike and his partner started revving.”

Jahangir said the pair apologised to him and drove off.

When asked about India-Pakistan relations and the hostility in India towards Pakistani artists, the singer said all people should love their countries, but it shouldn’t manifest as violence.

“Every man has a right to love their country and they should love their neighbours too. Relations should remain good, there shouldn’t be fighting and war. The war that’s going on right now, I am against it… We get a short time [on Earth], why should we spend it fighting?”

Love wasn’t the only thing he got from Bollywood. Jahangir said he learned things from his Indian friends too. In response to a question on how fame at a young age can be dangerous, he said he had the privilege of meeting big names like Bachchan and seeing their humility made him want to be as humble as them.

He said Indian actor Dharmendra in particular taught him a lesson he still holds dear to his heart — “Think high, look down.” He explained that this meant he should be ambitious as he could possibly be, but that he should stay down to earth.

Cover photo: Ahmad Ali Butt/YouTube, Red Sea Film Festival/Instagram