‘John Abraham who?’: Salman Khan’s two-word response summed up their cold war

4 min readNew DelhiJun 23, 2026 04:42 PM IST

Salman Khan and John Abraham were once at the centre of reports about a long-running Bollywood cold war.. (Photo: Instagram/John Abraham, Salman Khan)

Salman Khan and John Abraham‘s reported cold war has been the subject of Bollywood gossip for years. While neither actor has spoken extensively about the issue, stories about their strained equation have continued to surface over the years. One such incident was recently recalled by entertainment journalist Vickey Lalwani, who shared how a routine attempt to verify a report about Salman ignoring John at an event led to an unexpected phone call from the superstar.

In a conversation with Siddharth Kanan, Lalwani revisited a period when Salman Khan and John Abraham were believed to be on less-than-friendly terms. According to the journalist, the episode unfolded after an event where both actors were present and Salman ignored John, prompting Lalwani to seek a reaction from the superstar before filing his story.

“There was a function, I think it was one of the Police Mela events. Both John and Salman were there. Everybody knew they weren’t getting along at the time. Salman ignored him at the event, and someone called me about it,” he said.

As was his practice, he decided to verify the information before publishing the report.

“I always reach out to actors, directors and producers before filing a story. I messaged Salman and wrote, ‘Salman, I want to reach out regarding something. Can I talk to you for two minutes?'” The su[perstar called him after the second message.

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The message that prompted Salman to call back

Once he explained the issue, there was laughter on the other end. “He said, ‘You called me for this?’ I said, ‘Yes sir, for this.’ I don’t think many people call Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan or even Amitabh Bachchan for quotes on stories. Very few instances like that happen.”

What Salman said next caught him by surprise.

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“He told me, ‘I thought you needed money. I thought somebody at your home was unwell and you needed help.’ He genuinely thought I needed help because I had written that it was urgent. That’s why he called.”

Salman’s response to his question was brief. “He said, ‘John? John who?’ After that, someone from his team took the phone and said Salman had only called because he thought I needed help. They thanked me and ended the conversation.”

The exchange eventually inspired a headline. It consisted of just two words: “John Who?”

What was the Salman Khan-John Abraham issue?

While neither Salman Khan nor John Abraham has publicly detailed the exact reasons behind their reported fallout, industry reports over the years have linked it to disagreements during the 2006 Rockstars concert tour. Several reports claimed there were differences regarding financial contributions and other tour-related matters, after which the relationship between the two actors reportedly turned cold.

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The tension was said to have carried over to the period when they worked together in films such as Baabul and Salaam-e-Ishq. Over the years, reports of a cold war between the two stars surfaced repeatedly, although neither actor openly discussed the matter in detail.

There were also reports linking the friction to a separate controversy involving Katrina Kaif during the early years of her career, though John denied having any role in her removal from a film and maintained that he did not have the authority to influence casting decisions at the time.