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By Judi Silva ©2003 Bollyvista.com |
His early years saw him as a restaurateur in New Delhi. But that venture was soon traded in for another, Bollywood's most sought after actor. It all began in the theater with Barry John, the one person he believes taught him all he knows about acting. July 16th of this year marks the debut of his first 12 years in the entertainment world. That year brought us the TV serials 'Fauji' and 'Circus'. Once SRK got his big break in Bollywood, there was no turning back. His hardworking, energetic, and "road runner" type personality, according to co-star Juhi Chawla, has helped him push full steam ahead with his career. And although he's had his share of falling on hard times in the industry, he hasn't let that slow him down.
Cast for the most part as a lover of various types, (it's been narrowed down to six), I find it amusing when he says, "For someone who doesn't even like love stories, I've played an awful lot of lovers." And for some unknown reason, which even Shah Rukh doesn't understand, he's played a character named Rahul for at least seven out of his plethora of films.
He has acquired numerous awards for his outstanding performances, including, but not limited to, Darr (1994), Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) , Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) , Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Mohabbatein (2000), Asoka (2001), Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), and Devdas (2002). "All that's left is the Best Actress Award," he mischievously laughs.
There's a strong desire within this actor to please. Summing up this admirable quality, he admits, "I'm an actor and I'm always entertaining. I'm a court jester. But my acting is for real. I'm on 24 hours. The only time I don't act is when I'm sleeping. But I'm genuine, I don't fake my emotions. I can't dissociate from acting anymore. You can take me out of the actor, but you can't take the actor out of me."
His career isn't just limited to acting though. When discussing his venture into the sphere of producers, together with actress and close long-time friend Juhi Chawla, and the man whom both of them consider to be a father figure, Aziz Mizra, he has shown himself to be very diplomatic.
"The logic of Dreamz Unlimited is not to make money but to make different films," he states matter-of- factly. "It should be a little bit different from what others are doing. If I find that everyone is opening a toy store, I would like to open a toy store with one special toy which nobody has. The idea is to make the kind of programmes that we would like to watch, programmes which don’t insult your intelligence."
To date, Dreamz Unlimited has brought lovers of the Hindi cinema three films. Chronologically they are, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani (2000), Asoka (2001), and newly released just yesterday, (June 13, 2003) this summer's promised blockbuster hit, Chalte Chalte.
Why go back to the fundamental romantic/comedy story-line, you may ask? Well, after his two brilliant performances of "larger than life characters," namely Devdas and Asoka, Shah Rukh wanted to play it safe and go back to profiling characters that the average person can relate to; a "four shirt and jeans" kind of guy. Putting it simply he explains, "Chalte Chalte is a story about two people who have problems just like you and me." And there you have the essence of what Hindi films should be about.
On that note, we wish our Star of the Week all the best with Chalte Chalte, his forthcoming films, Kal Ho Na Ho, Main Hoon Na, Swades, and the many others in his long future, as he continues to faithfully entertain us year after year. Abhi na jao chodkar Shah Rukh. Inshallah. |
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