Kala Hiran Row: What Is Pakistani Influencer-Turned-ISI Proxy Shahzad Bhatti's Salman Khan Link?

Last Updated:June 18, 2026, 15:34 IST

According to intel sources, Bhatti’s threat to producer Amit Jani is part of a larger pattern in which Pakistan-based actors use high-profile controversies to generate fear

The latest death threat allegedly issued by Pakistan-based social media influencer Shahzad Bhatti to Kala Hiran producer Amit Jani has once again brought the spotlight on a man that Indian intelligence agencies increasingly view as more than just an online provocateur.

Jani claimed he had received threats from Bhatti over his upcoming film Kala Hiran, which draws from the controversial 1998 blackbuck poaching case that has long been associated with Bollywood actor Salman Khan. Bhatti allegedly warned the producer against proceeding with the project, prompting concerns among security agencies. According to intelligence sources, the threat is part of a larger pattern in which Pakistan-based actors use celebrities, filmmakers and high-profile controversies to generate fear, media attention and social polarisation.

According to top intelligence sources, Bhatti has emerged as a key proxy allegedly linked to Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), which is increasingly relying on low-cost, deniable actors to create disruption inside India.

Officials believe threatening celebrities and public figures serves multiple purposes. It guarantees widespread media coverage, creates anxiety within the entertainment industry and injects communal or nationalist themes into public discourse without requiring a large-scale terror attack. “The objective is not necessarily physical harm every time. The objective is visibility, fear and amplification," a senior intelligence source said.

The Kala Hiran controversy offers an ideal flashpoint. The film revisits the blackbuck poaching case that has remained politically and emotionally charged for decades, particularly because of its association with Salman Khan.

The threat also comes against the backdrop of shifting underworld equations.

According to intelligence sources, Bhatti was at one stage aligned with or maintained contact with elements associated with the Bishnoi gang. The gang has repeatedly targeted Salman Khan over the blackbuck issue, citing the animal’s religious significance to the Bishnoi community.

However, agencies say that relationship deteriorated after the Pahalgam terror attack, when gangster Lawrence Bishnoi-linked voices publicly backed India and criticised Pakistan.

Investigators believe the fallout created a fresh rivalry. “After the split, Bhatti increasingly positioned himself against individuals and causes associated with the Bishnoi ecosystem," a source said.

With Salman Khan remaining a symbolic figure in the long-running blackbuck controversy, agencies believe the Kala Hiran project may have become a convenient target for Bhatti’s network to exploit existing tensions while simultaneously challenging Bishnoi influence within both the underworld and Bollywood.

Indian agencies have increasingly linked Bhatti’s name to multiple terror and criminal investigations.

News18 had earlier reported that investigators probing a foiled Delhi-Mumbai attack plot had identified Bhatti as a key facilitator involved in selecting operatives and coordinating Pakistan-backed modules. In another recent operation, Delhi Police uncovered a Pakistan-backed network allegedly involved in arms trafficking, narcotics smuggling and recruitment activities. Investigators said several leads pointed towards handlers operating from Pakistan, including individuals linked to Bhatti’s ecosystem.

According to intelligence sources, Bhatti has built what officials describe as a “hybrid gangster-terror network" operating in parts of Punjab and northern India. The network allegedly combines traditional organised crime with extremist recruitment, narcotics trafficking and cross-border smuggling.

What distinguishes Bhatti from traditional terror handlers, agencies say, is his extensive use of social media. Officials allege he uses online platforms to identify vulnerable and unemployed youth, radicalise them and connect them with local criminal modules.

The network is also suspected of involvement in arms trafficking, drone-based delivery of pistols and grenades across the border, narcotics smuggling, and recruitment of local operatives. Investigators say the model allows handlers based in Pakistan to maintain plausible deniability while still influencing activities on the ground in India.

Security officials describe Bhatti as part of a broader shift in Pakistan-backed operations. Rather than relying solely on traditional terror organisations, agencies say handlers are increasingly using social media influencers, gangsters, smugglers and criminal intermediaries to achieve strategic objectives.

The approach is cheaper, attracts less international scrutiny and allows operations to be disguised as criminal activity rather than terrorism.

About the Author

Manoj Gupta

Group Editor, Investigations & Security Affairs, Network18

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