Anupam Kher shares epic memory of how he ‘broke the barricade, jumped on the stage’ to meet Michael Jackson
Anupam Kher, a huge fan of pop icon Michael Jackson, broke the barricade to meet him and was almost thrown out by latter’s bodyguards.
An unprecedented fan frenzy swept the country when pop icon Michael Jackson came to Mumbai in 1996 for his maiden performance. Actor Anupam Kher was also a die-hard fan and ‘broke the barricade’ to meet him.
Sharing pictures of himself shaking hands with Michael, Anupam shared the epic anecdote on Instagram. “Story of this picture!! When Michael Jackson visited India in 1996 a group of selected people were invited to meet him exclusively at Oberoi hotel gardens. I was also the lucky one. Thanks to Bharat Bhai Shah. There was a small stage set up in the garden with a barricade for the special guests. MJ walked down from his suite and stood on the improvised stage with his bodyguards. There was silence and a sense of awe among the selected guests,” he wrote.
Anupam said that in his fanboy moment, he broke the barricade, jumped on the stage and was almost thrown out by Michael’s bodyguards. “I was looking at this magician who had enthralled and hypnotised the entire universe with his electrifying performances. He was just a few feet away from me. I wanted to capture this moment. So I broke the barricade, jumped on the stage and almost hugged MJ. The bodyguards rushed towards me and before they could pick me up bodily Bharat Bhai Shah in panic introduced me to Michael Jackson as the biggest actor in India. He immediately and politely bent down and shook a jubilant me’s hands,” he wrote.
“My history was captured in this picture,” Anupam said, adding that sometimes, ‘you have to make an effort to create Kucch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai moments’. The pictures were taken by Andre Timmins, co-Founder and director of Wizcraft, organisers of Michael’s maiden and only concert in India.
Michael’s concert in Mumbai was a massive success, with around 5000 in attendance. Before leaving, he pinned a beautiful handwritten note to India on a pillow in his hotel room, which said that he ‘fell in love’ with the country and its people. He also called India his ‘special love’ and said that he was ‘overwhelmed’ by the kindness.
Anupam recently released his autobiographical play Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai digitally, on his newly-launched website. The play chronicles his journey, failures and successes.
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