Aamir Khan, who impressed the masses with his stellar act in Rajkumar Hirani’s PK has gone from weighing 68 kilos to 90 kilos. This massive weight gain is for Nitesh Tiwari’s Dangal, which will depict Khan as a 55 year-old wrestler.

Yes, the film, as we have already told you is based on the life of wrestler Mahavir Phogat, father of Indian women wrestlers Geeta and Babita Kumari Phogat. And given Khan’s perfectionist nature, he is going to great lengths to get the look right.

However, this ain’t the first time when Aamir has experimented with his look. In the past as well,we have seen him bulk up and lose weight as per the roles he plays. But this time around, Aamir is taking a major risk with his health for yet another successful film. Well, at least that’s what our health expert Arnav Sarkar, Owner, Sarkar Training thinks. Arnav has been involved in the fitness industry for many years now. He has worked with quite a few athletes and beauty pageant contestants till now. Excerpts from the interview:

Is it safe to gain or loose weight drastically in short span of time?

No! The body needs time to adjust to any weight gain or loss, and hastening this can lead to health problems.

How many kilos (maximum) can one gain in a span of three months? Is it possible without steroids? Or is this all due to heavy intake of protein?

It would depend on the current build of the individual. A tall guy is likely to gain more weight than a shorter guy. If a person is starting training and eating right for the very first time, then maybe upto 3-4 kilos would be possible in a safe manner without putting on too much of body fat. This much can be expected without steroids, but massive gains like 10 kilos or more would indicate the use of steroids.

What are the risks of taking steroids?

Many! Starting from less dangerous problems like skin problems, it can also cause more severe ones like high blood pressure, impotence, heart attacks, and even death. Steroids are simply not to be played around with.

What are the after effects of drastic weight gain and loss?

Drastic weight loss is often associated with muscle loss and weakness. Dizziness, fainting, excess cravings, mood swings are all commonly seen in people who lose weight drastically due to severely low food intake. Also, such cases also usually end up gaining the weight back quickly as they have not developed habits that are sustainable.

On the other hand, drastic weight gain is often associated with increased body fat levels and might also make one feel lethargic carrying the rapidly gained weight.

Your take on Aamir Khan’s weight gain and loss for various roles

Aamir is a professional actor who earns crores for each role he does. In his case the risks associated with such drastic weight gain and loss is somewhat justified considering the amount of money at stake. I wish it could be different and done in a safer manner, but realistically its just too much money to not take a chance for. However, it makes no sense for the regular man or woman who does not have crores to gain/lose based on how they look to take such chances. You can get great results with proper training, nutrition and rest by investing a little more time. Your body, health and general sense of well being will thank you for it.

Clearly, it seems that with such high stakes riding on him, this is a gamble even Khan cannot avoid.