Shah Rukh Khan – My friends say I’m girlish!
Lata Khubchandani
Most stars love to put themselves on display, but in the case of Shah Rukh Khan, it has been transformed into an art. As a result, he has acquired half the country as his admirers. Hugely popular, Shah today sells like no other. And not because of any great acting skills, but because he is an extremely hardworking actor, graced with the goodwill of Mother Luck. While critics marvel at his energy, no one has ever been able to call him a talent to reckon with. Yet Shah Rukh Khan sells!
His fans fawn over him and hang on every word he says - and he surely has plenty of it, be it about women, his attitude, his money, his career, his love for his wife or how he plans to raise his son Aryan Khan. Here we present his views on some topics.
About money :
He believes that the highest earning is that which comes from hard work. He is perhaps the only star who does not take the signing fee when signing for a film. "I do not believe in taking money until I have worked for it, but after I have worked, I want my fee to be paid. I believe in retail and see myself as a successful star businessman. I work hard and expect to be paid for my work. People say that I am the highest paid actor. I do not think so. In fact, to be honest, I do not get paid that much when I work for big banners. I do not even know how much others get paid. So, when magazines write such things, they should back up their facts first. To be honest, I earn money from my advertisements and the shows. As far as films are concerned, I would love to earn as much money as they speculate, but I really do not. I do not have a lifestyle that depends primarily on money. I don't wear the best clothes or drive the best cars.
I really do own some of the best cars. But it is simply a gift from God that I am given this luxury at the lowest rates. I have never gone out of my way to buy a car. Someone offers me a big car at a good rate, I buy it. Actually, I don't get to spend the money I earn, both my wife and I are quite frugal. I have always had money to buy what I wanted, even before I got into films. Moreover, I have never thought about what my bank balance should be. I have never been calculative with money. I believe that one should work hard and get what one deserves, and what one earns is what one should spend. I am not comfortable borrowing money and never do. If someone cheats me, I don't try to get that money back. I believe that if someone has to work so hard to cheat me out of my money, they need it more than I do, so let them keep it."
About women:
"As far as my costars are concerned, I have a good rapport with all of them. There is no question of not getting along with anyone as I give everyone a lot of space except the people I love. Then I become very possessive. I never step on my costars' toes. I don't expect them to do what I say. If a costar is tired, I suggest them to rest. I think I am a very giving actor and I find it easy to be friendly. I have a good rapport with Kajol, who I treat like a younger sister, Madhuri, who has a fantastic sense of humour, and Juhi, as we practically started our careers together and overcoming failures together becomes the basis of a bond. We are friends and can walk into each other's rooms and chat. Neither of us is aware of the fact that we are of the opposite sex, although they are very pretty and desirable co-stars. I offer them normal courtesies, like if one of them didn't have a car, I would make sure they used mine and got home safely.
I have also realised that I am not a man's man. I recently mentioned to my wife that I like women more. I feel more comfortable talking to them. Of course, I am still too shy to be friends with them, but when I get to know them, I like them more. So I am not one of those guys who say, 'Hey man, let's lift some weights!' or 'Hey buddy, what's up, let's go hunting!' That is not for me at all. I have seen my male friends get excited when they see a new car and they are like, 'Man, what a great car!' I just don't do that and a lot of my friends say I am a bit girly. I think that is why my wife Gauri has no problem with me. Because I don't come home and start watching a game with the boys or whatever men do."
About Gauri:
"Her greatest quality is her sincerity. And now that I'm part of this unreal world of films, it's such a pleasure to come home to someone who is so real. She's outspoken, she can be rude at times, but she never gives in to diplomacy, to pressure, to materialism. She's everything I'm not. She complements me. Sometimes she indulges my whims and sometimes she doesn't. Gauri is very good with me. When I'm home, she expects me to do everything and I do. There are times when I look at her and am in awe of her grace. She's more of a high society person, in the sense that she has more grace, she dresses better than me, carries herself so well and knows more about high society etiquette than I do. If I hadn't known her earlier, she would have intimidated me, as much as high society ladies do. For some reason, anything blatant intimidates me. I can't identify with it. That's why I don't feel comfortable at parties. There are times when I meet my own co-stars at parties and don't talk to them because they seem so different. I get really embarrassed."
And this is Shah Rukh at his casual best. The same man who, when his son was born, excitedly said he would encourage his offspring to do anything naughty. Now he says thoughtfully, "I will give him an education and a home, but whatever he spends, he will have to earn."
At long last:
Dil Se, Mani Ratnam's latest film, has not fared well at the box office despite Shah Rukh's total commitment. "Mani Ratnam and I come from different schools of film. While he believes in realism, I believe in reality but with a touch of performance. That's how we used to brainstorm ideas. I hope the effort shows. The film is different but how different can I be after 25 films? It would be foolish of me to say I'm different but we tried."
Maybe they tried too hard. Because the effort shows and the gift wrapping is more beautiful than the gift inside. But there are other vehicles lined up for Shah Rukh, namely Karan Johar's Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, expected for an October release. And if Shah Rukh's fairy godmother does her job, she should erase his recent slip-ups.