Salman's bad boy image has cost him dearly. The poor actor has to drop his plans of playing Lord Rama in Bunty Walia's lavish production 'Ramayan' after the threats he recieved from some hardliners.

"I would not like to say who these people are who threatened us as it would create further controversy. I kept on telling them that Khan is just an actor and it should be taken only in that spirit. But you can't make some people understand" says actor who is mired in umpteen controversies.

According to The Asian Age, Khan received threats from the Bajrang Dal. Bunty Walia the producer of the film is also thinking to shelve the project due to huge investments of Rs 1 billion it envisaged. "We wanted to make it on the lines of Lord of the Rings. But a project of that scale demanded huge investments, making it virtually unviable in India," Walia added. The movie was to be shot in Ayodhya and also in New Zealand.