I make this shit good look
Shashi to Bali
Shah Rukh Khan is back where he belongs. In Mannat, in Mumbai, in the midst of the movie madness. But he is a different man after his surgery - he has a shiny new titanium disc in his spine. The old pain in his back is gone, but the post-operative pain gives his movements a peculiarly deliberate style. Given his high energy, it is difficult for the star to put on the brakes, but he admits he will have to be more careful in future. Thankfully, King Khan continues to shoot from the hip, using his trademark style to shock and intimidate. Thankfully, some things don't change.
Good to have you back, fixed as you said. Your operation was a matter of national importance for a while, considering the amount of newsprint devoted to you.
And that's fitting for someone as big as I am. Anything less would have been disappointing. God has given me everything in abundance and that includes my illnesses. I have received all good things in generous doses and I consider that a good thing too.
A good thing?
Yes, I now have a titanium disc in my body. As you know, white metal is in. So I have a fashionable piece of jewelry in my spine. Plus, the disc shows up so clearly in my x-rays, it can never be lost.
So you're going to put yourself in the X-ray room?
Yes, my spine will be scanned.
No doubt you are not fully recovered yet. Are you going to cut down on work for some time?
Right now I have not committed to any film. I am on standby and so are all those who want me. I don't want to push it because it was a major surgery and things can only get worse from now on as you age. You are not getting any younger, as they say.
And I have put too much stress on my body. Take Ishq kameena - I shouldn't have done it. It was just a damn cameo, I had just come from London, had a surgery, had rested for three, four months after Devdas, but I said, okay, let's do it. You must know, I shot for a hectic song for Chalte Chalte just an hour before I came to the Filmfare Awards. Now when I see the song, I say, shit, that was 24 hours before my surgery.
The problem is that I can't say no to anyone when it comes to work. A lot of people's films depend on me and they're good friends, and they're worried. I have to make some serious calls, but I can't explain this to them, and it's getting to a stage where I just want to run away.
Hey, that sounds like a new Shah Rukh. Did you come out of that surgery a different man or what?
No way - look, I'm still smoking! Someone asked me the other day if I had time for introspection. That's all rubbish. There is no introspection until the end. I mean, all this is silly and stupid and an excuse to be lazy. A friend of mine said to me the other day; I'm taking a year off. I said, a year off from what? From life?
In fact, I'm just worried that when I die and go to God, he will look at me and say, okay, the holiday is over, now the work begins. I hope the lazy guys don't have the last laugh and he says, you guys didn't know what life was for.
You were quite emotional just before you left for your surgery, is that right?
Yes, I really felt sorry for my children. Because I deserved what I got. You always get what you deserve. I should have been more careful, it was my fault and I have to pay for it. That is very clear.
But I did not want the children to be affected. Aryan always wondered why I had a scar in Koyla and not in real life. So I told him I will get a scar and I got one, so he was delighted. Of course both he and Suhana knew that I was ill and they prayed for me every day. I told them learn the Gayatri Mantra and the verses from the Quran; they stopped at temples and churches to pray. So they learned to pray, that is good.
How long does the doctor expect it will take you to get back to normal?
The doctor has said that one day I will wake up and find the pain is gone. He says it could take up to three months, which means that day could be the 90th or the 62nd. So they told me it would take me anywhere from six minutes to six days to start talking again, I was talking in six minutes.
I also have to build up the muscles in my left arm. It is now about an inch and a half thinner than the right. I have to take it slowly slowly slowly - everything is slow now - to get back to normal, so that when I return to full activity my muscles should by no means be too weak.
Given your overactive reputation, was it a restless or relaxing break for you?
Believe me, I can be a total slacker when I want to be. I can either work very hard or be in a state of complete rest. When I'm working, I don't take a break. When I'm taking a break, I don't want to move.
Was that your longest absence from the sets?
No, last year I didn't work for a couple of months. I only shot for Devdas for two days in April and then didn't work at all from May to September. But yes, from last May to this one, I wasn't on the sets too much.
Are you tempted to go back?
No, I will not work for as long as I have to. I know that when I want to, it will only take me 10 or 15 minutes to come back, so to speak.
But at the moment I am enjoying reading immensely - about Churchill, Hitler, Rasputin, the Russian Revolution. Also fiction - The Life of Pi, the Booker Prize winner.
Also reading helps me to develop my repertoire of feelings, thoughts and expressions that I need as an actor. My acting has been based on this strategy for years - I read something, hear something; I try to express it physically, through the face or the body.
Take a phrase like; he crept into the room quietly like a thief. I try to internalise that, to walk like a thief, one day I will use it in a film. Or he exploded. I want to explode when I'm angry on the screen. But to do that I want to understand how a volcano erupts, how the lava flows - whoosh. Can I deliver that whoosh? I have, in a movie. And such moments give me great personal satisfaction.
This strategy sometimes lends itself to exaggeration, sometimes to a completely different interpretation, sometimes to misunderstanding, sometimes to completely irrelevant stuff. But the bottom line is that whether you understand it or not, you feel the anger when I deliver the whoosh.
How long have you made do with your supply of expressions?
Well, for years, all too long. After two or three years of acting, I used to say I had five expressions. I tell all younger actors there is so much to know and it is so easy to be satisfied as an actor. It's just so difficult not to get caught up in the 70mm, even a jackass will fall in love with himself. It's all so big and beautiful and there you are, a guy, just 5' 8" - 5' 9" with a terrible haircut and you say wow, I make this shit look good.
But I'm never satisfied as an actor. Because I've realized that I'm so equipped. With every film I ask myself, can I do two things in this whole damn film that make me want to be an actor? I have always watched actors like Robert De Niro, Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan (who I think has an amazing repertoire) and said, God, I wish I could act like them. I am yet to watch a film of mine and say, God, I wish I could be like Shah Rukh Khan. That is the quest. Can I be like Shah Rukh? Can I empathise with my own acting? Can I make myself cry?
Have you ever been moved to tears?
The fact is, I don't like watching my films after they're finished. You catch scenes here and there during dubbing, but I can only watch the whole film once. I don't like myself and most of my films are just me. So I don't like watching them. Not that I'm embarrassed by them. But I finished my job, did everything I had to do on the sets. I'm proud of it, but I don't want to live with it.
So have you picked up some new expressions?
I hope so. I read, it's all collected in my head. It could be an expression, or another actor. The other day I saw a recording of Tabu crying and I want to cry like her. And I will one day. It will be my interpretation, since I can't do a girl's recording. But if I act like Tabu, even Tabu won't know.
You have worked a lot with debuting directors who happen to be your friends. Sometimes saying yes without asking for the story or script. Is affection for the director enough for you?
Yes. Because when I like someone, I know without question that they like me and if they like me then we have exchanged our thoughts and once we have done that we can't go wrong in terms of my view and expectations.
But I never, never, never get personal with any director, actor or actress on the sets.
What do you mean, personal matters?
Say you are in a bad mood, come late on the sets, have bad breath, take time to change, are rude. I could be guilty of all of these but that shouldn't bother you or me when we are doing a record together. When I am in the studio, (very slowly and very emphatically) I don't want anyone to bring anything personal there. And if anyone does, I completely ignore it.
If a girl or a boy reads a book instead of reading the scene, that's okay. As long as they act the scene well. If they don't, it bothers me.
Similarly, Adi (Aditya Chopra) may come to my house and play video games but on the sets, he is not my personal friend. For me, the personal and the professional are completely separate. That's the only way to keep sanity. As I can't work the way everyone works. But you can put up with someone's contradictions or shortcomings (according to you) for a year and move on.
If a friend came to you with a bad script, would you do the film?
Well, I don't know anything about scripts. I realised that about five years ago. So when people ask me do you like the script, I say, it's not a question of liking it or not, I just don't understand it, I can't judge it. In the same way, I can't say whether a carburettor is good or not. What I really know about is acting. That's my life.
So if Karan (Johar) or Sanjay or Farah (Khan) say it's the damn best script and it's going to be the biggest film and they're ready to give a year of their life to it, then it must be good. It's good enough for me.
Is it a largely emotional decision?
No, I think it's about clarity. Scripts don't make sense to me, so I'll leave it to the experts. There are some aspects of the filmmaking process that I don't want to get into. So I don't understand music. Give me a song, I'll dance to it. But don't ask me if it's good or bad. I don't understand background music either. I don't bother with song lyrics.
Acting is what I know, what I do best. Give me a bad scene and I'll make it look good. That's what I get paid for. Give me any scene and I'll make it palatable, plausible, I'll try to make it almost perfect, really wonderful. And I don't take any extra money for that; I don't take any extra thanks for that. So
many times I hear actors say, Yaar, yeh picture ka sabse best scene hai or Kya scene likha hai. My logic is kya scene likha hai - nonsense. But I will make it work. Or kya location diya hai. Whichever location, I will make it look good. Or the choreographer will say kya song diya hai, I say I will make it look good. That's what I tell my directors - give me any scene and I will make it look good. It's my job and I'm not pompous about it. If the scene is well written, well shot, makes me look good, if everything is good, then what am I doing? What am I getting so much money for? What am I contributing to it?
My part is that the cameraman should look through the lens and say wow! The writer should say I never wrote the scene like that. I want the director to say shit, I never thought the scene could be played like that. And I want the audience to say it's absolutely silly but it works!
It happens a lot, really.
It should happen. It's the way we make movies, so why do we sit around and nitpick? Although I also have a lot of respect for the people who do it because it works for them.
Let's move on to your next film, Chalte Chalte...
It's about a married couple - Rani plays a girl called Priya and I play Raj (as I am usually called in films).
Excuse the interruption, but would you ever ask a scriptwriter or director to change your name?
Any other name would make a rose smell too sweet. It's more than a matter of marketing. It makes no difference to me. Call me whatever they want, I will make it look good. I will make sure that people say, yeh Raj naam bahut achcha lagta hai aapko (The name Raj feels good on you?).
Back to Chalte Chalte and Raj and Priya...
Ask me what the story is about and I will tell you I don't have a story. It's about a man and a woman and I think that's the greatest story in the world. It's the way God intended it. But it's also a very simple story.
As an actor and producer (along with Aziz Mirza and Juhi Chawla), after Devdas, I wanted to go back to basics. I wanted to play a role that had no strings attached, was not larger than life. Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Asoka and Devdas were overwhelming, bigger than me. One question I asked myself while creating Devdas was, what comes after Devdas? (in dramatic tone) Shah Rukh, it's been 10-11 years since Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman. From Deewana to Devdas, what now?
With all due respect to Devdas, for me as an actor, he makes no difference from my other films. It's the most wonderful film I've ever done, the director is absolutely superb, maybe the best director in the country. The film is well written, has beautiful shots, beautiful situations, wonderful sets, all the support an actor needs to make this shit look good. But I had as much fun making Badshah as I had making Devdas.
What appealed to you about Raj from Chalte Chalte?
That it was a very ordinary character, a la Hrishikesh Mukherjee film, that kind of simplicity. Pyar to aise hi hota hai. Love is blind, marriage is an eye opener. Love is forgetting your birthday, not remembering your mother's anniversary.
Two or three scenes in the film happened to me. And everyone in the cinema hall should toast their partner once and say, this is us. Or if your partner is not with you, you should go home and tell him or her, I went in this film to get away from you and I was reminded of you, shit, I couldn't get away from you.
What made Rani Mukherjee choose her character?
I don't want to say Rani is a friend as it is such a misused term. So I will call her my student. Because she did her first big film, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai with me. And what nobody knows is that I chose her for this film. She had just started and Karan was looking for a girl. I had only seen one shot of Rani but I said to Karan, take this girl, she has a very interesting face, she has that something as an actor. Otherwise I never suggest the heroines.
I think Rani has never been given her due credit. She may be a little scatterbrained but when she focuses she can come up with something great. This film was shot in four months, she was not doing anything else, that's why she was so focused on it and is remarkable. She is the reason to watch this film. Incidentally, she is Gauri's favourite actress.
Aishwarya Rai is very upset with you for taking her out of Chalte Chalte considering some of her recent remarks.
On a personal level, I really regret that it happened. But I stand by my decision as a producer and lest I be misunderstood, I have apologised to her as a producer.
In 11 years and 40 films, I have never done anything to cause anybody any stress. At this age and at this stage, I did not expect this to happen to me.
I have gone to the studio with a broken arm. I have lost close friends, been unhappy but went and danced on the sets. If necessary, I will jump from the 40th floor with a broken spine. I am not one of those who are on the sets at 9 am and some of my co-actors and colleagues might have been waiting for me. But overall, I have never stepped on anyone's toes because of my personal issues.
For me, Aishwarya is a lovely person; I don't have one iota of grievance against her. I don't think anyone does. As a friend, I am genuinely sorry and I told her so - on the Filmfare Awards night, I think. But I can understand her anger; I can understand that it destroys a relationship.
Has the relationship been destroyed?
I don't know. If so, I can't complain. Life will go on.
Who knows, you might work together again soon.
Inshallah. But I only work with directors, not actresses. Or actors. Whenever anyone comes to me and says you have never worked with me, I ask them, have you become a director? Because I only work with directors. It is the director who casts the film and I will work with whoever is cast.
Considering that you keep the professional and personal very separate, how far would you help a friend on the sets?
I do it with all my directors. I always suggest different ways of doing a scene. Usually I act it out for them. But I would never ask a director to take my suggestion just because he or she is my friend. And I may argue but I will do exactly what the director wants even if I don't agree with it. I will give my suggestion but if you disagree with my good suggestion and come with a bad suggestion then it is my job to make even the bad suggestion look good. Because there is no right or wrong way to do something in acting or any creative art. And if the director's belief is that strong, I will go along with it. For example, I would have liked to have done some of the scenes in Devdas differently but did exactly what Sanjay asked me to do.
Even if you thought there was a better way to do it?
Better is the killer of good. Good is good enough. Sholay ka Shaan mat banao. Rameshji (Sippy) won't like this but it's the way they keep it in the industry. If a scene is good, leave it. Don't try to make it the prettiest, the best, the grandest. Good is good enough.
How did you react to Vivek Oberoi calling you, along with others, a wimp for not speaking out against Salman Khan?
No, I will not get dragged into this sad incident. I don't think it deserves an external comment from me, not because I think I'm too big to do it, but because it's too petty to talk about. I'm not a party to it; it doesn't affect my life at all. I work too hard; I respect myself too much to comment on this event. For me, unfortunately, it's irrelevant.
The question arises because you were specifically mentioned.
Yes, I saw the interview. But until you pointed it out to me, I felt absolutely nothing. Many people say many things about me. But apart from what my family and close friends say to me, nothing touches or affects me. Call me cold-hearted, rude, selfish, self-centered and egotistical; say I'm a dog, an asshole... I'm untouchable in my ivory tower. That's the way I am. I'm completely sober about it. I don't want to waste my energies reacting to such things; I'd rather use that energy for my films.
However, he didn't call me a wimp face to face. And as you know, a telephone conversation is not admissible as evidence in court. People have said worse things to my face, that's absolutely fine. I just observe it and use it in my films. And if I am in a good mental state, I might even tell the person that I used it - This is how you hit me. Or this is the nice thing you said to me.
Even at home, I never get angry. My driver drove off and dented my car the very day I bought it. Gauri was upset, but I said these things happen, forget it.
Do you control your anger or just don't feel it?
I don't feel it. The bottom line is that I have been given so much that I can't complain about anything. Sometimes I'm scared - if something really big and bad happens to me, will I have the right to complain to God? Will he think I'm ungrateful? My destiny has been blessed with so much, I can't make a problem out of such a small thing, no matter how hard I try. It's just gratitude to have so much.
So what would really make you angry?
It bothers me when people disappoint other people. There should be trust and honesty, that's all that matters to me. I've lived my life like that and it's been very good for me.
For a man who asks a lot of questions, you have an unconditional faith in God.
I believe that God is good, caring, understanding and if he has made a decision for me, it must be good. It's like the way I make decisions for my family. Sometimes they may seem harsh, sometimes they may seem wrong and sometimes they may seem right. But I make them with a lot of integrity and I think he does the same for me with much, much, much more integrity. I have no questions for Allah now. That was once. But not anymore.
Shit, I told you, no introspection and what do I do...