How Aamir Khan’s homebody habits may have saved him from Bishnoi gang’s shooters

The alleged shooters behind the attack on actor Tiger Shroff were initially told to target Aamir Khan, police sources told The Indian Express, adding that this was “in line with” the threats that Khan had received in July, allegedly from the Lawrence Bishnoi gang.

According to sources, during their nearly month-long stay in Mumbai, the alleged shooters conducted a recce of the area where Khan lives at least three times, but found that he was mostly away on film shoots or did not step out of his house for days. The target then shifted to Shroff, who was found to be more accessible, turning up for football on most Sundays at the park in Juhu where he was attacked on October 18.

In July this year, in a screenshot shared on social media and an audio clip, a person claiming to be Arzoo Bishnoi, a member of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, threatened Khan over his marriage to Gauri Spratt on July 5, alleging that it was “against Sanatan Dharma and the nation”. The message warned that the gang “would not tolerate” such acts and would “respond very soon”.

Tiger Shroff Firing: A view of Salman Khan’s residence, Galaxy, is seen where security has been heightened after three assailants fired at Tiger Shroff yesterday, at Bandra West in Mumbai on 19 October 2026. (Express photo by Sankhadeep Banerjee)

Khan had later said in an interview that Spratt was a Catholic, and that none of his two former spouses had converted to Islam.

Multiple sources confirmed to The Indian Express that while Salman Khan may have been the gang’s target since 2018, he remains inaccessible due to his security ring. This time, Aamir Khan was the “more realistic and main” target when the alleged shooters were sent from Haryana to Mumbai on September 20, the sources said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Raj Tilak Roushan did not respond to queries on this.

“The shooters had been told to target Aamir Khan. While the shooters claimed to not know the motive, we suspect it is in line with the threat issued earlier this year,” said an officer.

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Based on the interrogation of the accused and the police probe, sources said the two alleged shooters, Phool Singh and Rehan Ansari, visited the area where Aamir Khan’s residence is located three times to conduct a recce. In fact, when they arrived in Mumbai on September 20, they stayed at a lodge in Bandra East, close to the area where Khan lives.

According to sources, the target shifted to Shroff because the alleged shooters found that “Aamir Khan was away for film shoots a lot, and when he came to his residence, he did not step out for days”.

“After conducting a recce for a few days in September and meeting with no success, the accused got in touch with Anil Pandit towards September-end, and a decision was taken to pivot to Tiger Shroff,” police sources said. US-based Pandit had claimed responsibility for the firing at Shroff in a purported audio clip in which he also indicated that it was linked to the Lawrence Bishnoi gang.

By the first week of October, they decided to target Shroff instead. The alleged shooters then moved from Bandra to Andheri, as the Pushpa Narsee Park, where Shroff played football on Sundays, was closer.

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Shroff had earlier praised Salman Khan, calling him the “real tiger of Bollywood”. Police source said that while conducting a recce of Aamir Khan’s residence, the alleged shooters may also have seen Shroff leave his house frequently, as they two actors live a few kilometres away from each other in Bandra, and realised that he was an easier target.

According to sources, before deciding on Shroff as the target, the alleged shooters also hired a cab for a day, paying the driver Rs 3,000 for a “darshan” of actors’ residences in Andheri and Bandra. They changed hotels three times in Andheri, before eventually moving to R R Residency Hotel, from October 14 to October 18.
ENDS