![]() Shah Rukh Khan
Birth date: 12th November Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge |
"There are a lot of qualities Shah Rukh Khan shares with both his
predecessors and his contemporaries. While there are those who claim
he's nothing more than a clever amalgamation of Dilip Kumar and Amitabh
Bachchan, there are others who swear he's made a fine art of hamming ('Darr's'
K..K..Kiran being the classic example) and is yet to graduate beyond six
set expressions.
However, there's one characteristic to Shah Rukh's personality that no
one can even hope to match - his boundless energy. You could be his
worst critic, but whether he's guiding you through a mindless comedy
like 'Duplicate' or an intense romance like 'Dil Se..' his own passion
is infectious. It's something you cannot shrug off easily and it is,
perhaps, the essence of his charisma.
The other attribute that sets him apart is his mind-boggling
self-confidence. How else can you explain a small-time television actor
from Delhi getting quick breaks like 'Deewana' (1992) and 'Kabhi Haan
Kabhi Naa' (1993) - both won him high praise - and then putting his
newfound career on he line with a trilogy of negative characters. 'Baazigar'
(1992), 'Darr' (1993) and 'Anjaam' (1994) were risks no established star
would have taken _ in fact he got 'Darr' only after Aamir Khan turned it
down.
But then, Shah Rukh has made no bones about the fact that he believes
he's the best. It is this belief and a sensible decision to seek out
respected names like Yash Chopra ('Darr', 'Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge'
and 'Dil To Pagal Hai'), Subhash Ghai ('Trimurti' and 'Pardes') and Mani
Ratnam ('Dil Se..) that has put him ahead of the competition. There's no
disputing the fact that Shah Rukh Khan is the most saleable Bollywood
star, both in India and overseas.
No wonder then that he decided to rake in the benefits of his own
popularity by turning producer with 'Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani'
(alongside co-star Juhi Chawla and director Aziz Mirza). While his labor
of love (which was released two weeks ago) hasn't gone down well with
audiences within the country, it has apparently secured a good opening
in the international market - where SRK has a loyal following amongst
NRIs.
But such is Shah Rukh's stature today, that neither the success nor
failure of any particular film is likely shake people's faith in him.
'King' Khan is here for a long and glorious innings that is just
beginning to shape up."
The first film I saw SRK in was Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, and I was completely impressed. He just seems like a fun guy to be around. I've seen quite a few of his films now, and have found them all to be enjoyable. There are already countless web pages out there to go on and on about him, so I'll make my summation brief: He's good, and so are his movies. Please check them out.