If you ever thought that Salman Khan was too reckless to make for a good father, think again. In a recent survey, the youth of the nation surprisingly voted the Dabangg Khan as their favourite father figure. Considering Salman has hardly ever played a father figure on screen and is very much single in real life as well, the results are unexpected to say the least. And it has caused a stir among many, who are all still wondering what must have put Bollywood’s favourite brat on a paternal pedestal. Veejay and television anchor Mini Mathur, who wasn’t aware of the survey, was quite shocked when we posed the question to her.

However, she soon gathered her wits and said, “Maybe the results have been prompted by the fact that Salman is a very giving person, one who has a lot of love for everybody. Despite all the controversies he gets embroiled in from time to time, he is a very genuine man at heart. Also he is a family man who is very close to his parents and siblings.” Actress Puja Gupta, who has always been a big Salman fan, couldn’t help gasping at the news, but she too agrees with Mini. “It’s very important for a man to be kind if he has to be a father figure to someone. And Salman is the one of the most kind-hearted persons in the industry,” she gushed.

The superstar’s mammoth amounts of charity work certainly seems to have earned him a lot of brownie points. Says photographer Dabboo Ratnani, “I have known Salman even before Maine Pyar Kiya, when he was a model. And I can say for a fact that he is the same person even today. He will go to any lengths to help his friends. And the phenomenal charity work that he is doing through his ‘Being Human’ foundation goes on to show just how generous he is. I don’t think any other person in the industry contributes as much to charity. It’s a very rare quality.” Perhaps it’s these qualities that help Salman beat the good and bad paradox within him and connect to the common man. “People are overlooking his bratty side because deep down, they know that he is a misunderstood man who means good,” Dabboo adds. And fans couldn’t agree more. Says Ishita Chandran, a media professional, “I loved the way he portrayed the role of a father in Biwi No. 1 and that came to him naturally. His equation with his nephews and the fact that he takes care of a million children through his charity, makes him an adorable father figure.”