Just a heartbeat away – Shah Rukh’s friends tell all!
Purnima Lamchhane
Every now and then, someone comes along to teach us what true success is all about and Shah Rukh is that person! He came from Delhi with Rs. 50 in his pocket, ambition and faith in a company and became one of the biggest success stories our industry has ever seen. But the toast here is not to Shah Rukh the superstar, but to Shah Rukh the human being, as he has won something that very few have achieved before him... Goodwill and friends!
Cine Blitz cornered five of his best friends – Farah Khan, Karan Johar, Aziz Mirza, Vivek Vaswani and Shashilal Nair – and left with some heartwarming anecdotes about the man they all love to love…
"I have known Shah Rukh since I started my career," Farah reminisced fondly. "We met during Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa and we bonded instantly. He was the brightest person on the sets. And to think that before I met him, I considered him arrogant and rude as people had warned me about him. But to my surprise, he was so sweet, so kind. Since KHKN was my second film and there was no money for assistants or dancers, Shah Rukh used to be my assistant, literally. I was very hot-tempered then and would have shouted at anyone but Shah Rukh came from behind, hugged me and calmed me down. I also remember that for one of the songs, they brought in locals from Goa who couldn't speak Hindi. I was freaking out as we had only two days to get the song done and we couldn't teach them the words. I left the set frustrated and upset but when I came back, to my utter surprise, I saw Shah Rukh teaching them to say, 'Chalo bhi jo hua, jaane do...', I was so touched.
Then there was this shot where two guys (extras) had to jump out of the boat at the same time. Since there were no dancers, we took the set shifters for the shots and put them in costumes. But they had no sense of timing and were driving me mad. So Shah Rukh lay down at the bottom of the boat and told these guys to sit on him. Then, on cue, he pinched their butts so that they jumped up in time! After that, we became friends.
Nobody can say anything bad about Shah Rukh to me, I will kill them! From that time on, it has been a union of mutual admiration! I admire him. I know he is six months younger than me but to me he is the elder brother I never had. I know that whenever I need advice or a shoulder to cry on or someone to talk to, Shah Rukh is always there.”
As she spoke, we could feel the warmth she must feel for Shah Rukh. The same with Vivek as he explained...
"Shah Rukh was not too keen to get into films in the beginning. I kept pushing him but he remained negative, saying, 'I don't want to do films as Gauri is not very keen on me acting in films. He had only agreed to do Ketan Mehta's Maya Memsaab. But after his mother died, one day he turned up at my door at five in the morning with two bags in his hand. The first thing he said was 'Let's do films!' Thus was born Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman."
"Shah Rukh is very nervous and hyperactive," reveals Vivek indulgently. "He is a highly educated man. He has an MA in arts, honours in literature. The reason he dropped out of college was because his college had nothing to offer him. He was a star athlete in college and also in basketball and football. He took care of his sister and mother on his own. What I always admired most about Shah Rukh was his confidence. He always said, 'I will be the biggest star the country has ever known' and that is exactly what he became!"
"Shah Rukh is more humble after his super success," revealed Farah. "He says, 'God has given me so much, I should be grateful for that'. Earlier, Shah Rukh had the demeanour and arrogance that every star should have. But he is more humble now, more generous. In the last shoot we did, one of the dancers had an accident and Shah Rukh immediately gave him Rs. 50,000, took him to Nanavati Hospital and took care of him. Nobody knows about these things as he does not disclose them and he does it daily. I know so many extras whose mothers' knee surgeries Shah Rukh has sponsored. And that too with the best doctors he goes to!
The other day this young guy came and fell at his feet. I said 'Shah Rukh, what does this mean?' He didn't tell me anything but later I came to know that Shah Rukh sponsored his mother's surgery. He is just a generous person with this big heart, which I think is great. He is one of the nicer things in the industry, at least to me."
"Shah Rukh has a big heart, the biggest I have ever seen," Shashilal admitted with his hands outstretched to emphasise his point. "You will be surprised to know that for many years he used to send truckloads of toys and clothes to an orphanage, but nobody even knew about it. That is his human side. It is not about being photographed to show, 'Yes, I have done something charitable'. He also has an account in Nanavati Hospital (you know how expensive it is), for treating every needy person in the industry. How else do you think Shah Rukh has become so big in just 10 years? He has become big because his heart is very big. And he tries to keep it a secret. He will not let even his right hand know what his left hand is doing.
The other remarkable thing is his attitude towards a producer," Shashi further revealed. "Producers are always dismayed when they first come to him as he doesn't take any money when he signs. While for other stars it's 'money first', he tells his producers, 'You borrow money and pay me. I don't want you to do that! I will take the money but only when I dub for the film. Put the money into the film instead! Pay your employees, the artists, pay everyone else first, I have so much!' And to think, many stars don't even turn up on the sets unless they are paid first. His philosophy is, 'I will do a Pepsi ad, some daaru ka (liquor) ads or dance at a show and earn money, why burden the producer'?"
"I don't think Shah Rukh ever thinks or behaves like a star," Farah explained. "During the shooting of Dil Se, we stayed in a government guest house in terrible conditions. And yet Shah Rukh gave his room to Manisha (Koirala) while he slept outside in the lobby, sharing space with his spot boy. He did not throw a tantrum of 'I am the star and should enjoy certain privileges'. I have never seen him demand things. Even if we cannot get him the things, he will silently instruct his own production to arrange it and pay for it too. I think he does not even take money for half the films he does! He just wants to work and see that the work is done right."
"If he gets injured on the sets, he does not tell anyone," Shashi added, his face full of admiration. "We all came to know later that Shah Rukh had injured himself! He does not want pity like some artists who make a fuss to get sympathy."
"He is an actor who can bear incredible pain," Aziz elaborated. "Once we were shooting in scorching heat. Everyone was in the shade while he had to run in the sun. He kept running in that heat without a word of protest, even though he was limping slightly after every take. When he finally got his leg checked after the shoot, his ankle bone had 26 fractures. Imagine how painful that must have been! Another time, Shah Rukh had to dress up as a woman for a scene. They wrapped something around him. He kept shooting even though we could see that he was constantly itching. It was only when the call was made that I saw the festering blisters all over his body! But he never complained!"
This spoke volumes about the man's dedication, although his professional exploits are not all that makes him popular...
"He is very generous with the people who have worked with him," revealed Vivek. "He is very generous with money. He is a normal human being. He can be irritable and difficult at times, but that is because of the immense pressure he is under. There are thousands of people in the studio who want to meet him. But he doesn't take his success that seriously. He loves Gauri. From the day I met him, his life begins when Gauri wakes up and ends when Gauri sleeps. Gauri is everything in his world! She is the only person he did all this for! He used to say, 'I brought Gauri from Delhi. I married Gauri, a rich girl (she had a house in Delhi), I want to give Gauri everything she is used to'! Hats off to the man for keeping his relationships intact, loving his wife so proudly, loving his children and his friends and being a loyal person!"
"Shah Rukh is very family-oriented," revealed Aziz Mirza. "He is very attached to his family and especially to his sister, wife and kids. He is very responsible towards his family and to take on such responsibility at such a young age is phenomenal in my opinion. He was 24-25 when his mother unfortunately passed away. To take on all that responsibility is admirable. He cares a lot for people and is very protective of them, exceptionally protective of people he loves. I think apart from his family, he is very protective of Juhi and me as he feels close to us. Sometimes he seems to be more of a father to me than I am to him. He has gotten away with so much in life despite his shortcomings... One of his biggest flaws is his exceptional shyness despite being a star. He gives the impression that he can handle anything, even though he is really shy, especially with women!”
“I think he is the best father,” Farah interjected enthusiastically. “He is really cool! He is not paranoid and treats his son like a friend. And he has so much fun being a father. You go to a party at Shah Rukh's house and you find Shah Rukh on all fours playing with Aryan and you just leave them alone… He has mellowed, become calmer, but that happens… He has two children now. He has such a beautiful home and has come so far. I think the only change in him is basic personal and mental stability.”
“His son thinks his father is Superman,” Shashi chuckled. “But you can't blame the kid for that. When he switches on the TV, he sees his father, when he goes to school, he sees posters of his father's films along the roads, and whenever his father gets out, people shout hysterically, 'Shah Rukh, Shah Rukh'! Gauri and he have been together since he was on the road... until now! If he is so loving with others, you can imagine how loving he must be with his wife!"
"He is a fabulous father," agreed Karan. "You can see from his child's reaction what a great father he is. There is the world on one side and his father on the other. His father means the world to Aryan. Shah Rukh and Gauri are truly the perfect couple. I love their interaction. I love the normalcy they have in common. I love the kind of space they give each other and especially I love the way they treat each other. I really think they are a perfect family.
The best thing about Shah Rukh is his compassion, his love, his kindness of heart," Karan further gushed. "I would rate him as the best human being I have ever known. My father has worked with a lot of people, he has been here for 40 years and the one person he can never forget, considering how good he was to us as a star, is Shah Rukh. It was Shah Rukh who took Duplicate off the ground. Everyone else gave up on the film. My father was not getting any younger either but he still tried to get the project off the ground. I can never forget what Shah Rukh brought and the effort he put in to ensure Duplicate got released. He worked like it was his own film. He treated us like he would treat his own family. I think that is something that neither my father nor we as a family can ever forget. We always had this myth that stars don't make such friendships but Shah Rukh and Gauri are like family to us. I always see the love in my father's eyes when he looks at Shah Rukh. As a family, we understand that he is so wonderful; he had so much compassion for us, for the problems we were going through.
A lot of people talk about how charitable they are," grinned Karan. "Sometimes Shah Rukh won't tell you or even his wife about the good works he does. Ask his employees about what kind of man he is. What a big heart he has. He believes that material possessions don't really matter. What matters is peace and happiness. I can't even tell you about the people who come to him for help. The money he just gives away and the best thing is, he never makes it public... He can't see anyone unhappy. He likes to see people laugh. Sometimes people may say, 'Oh, he's so reserved and reserved' but that's not how he is. He's just a shy person. Anyone who knows him will say he's one of the best people they've met."
"He feels for people," admitted Farah fondly. "He doesn't judge people. I could shout at a person, 'He's not doing it right', while Shah Rukh would say, 'Well, maybe he's having a bad day' and I will feel guilty for saying something to that person.
He has made me a better person than I was before at times. I have become more patient around him... And he is a lot of fun to be around! He plays a lot of pranks on me, most of the time. He is always picking on people - he is a ball of energy!
I will never forget the prank Shah Rukh played on me when we were in Norway," recalled Farah, laughing loudly. "Twinkle, Shah Rukh and I went to MacDonalds for some burgers, but when I tried to place my order, to my despair the clerk couldn't understand what I was saying. Shah Rukh then told me that he was asking my name! So I told him that I was Farah Khan, but the guy kept looking at me blankly! I was very irritated and started to spell my name to him! Then I saw Shah Rukh laughing roaringly. I will never forget it. There was this man asking me how many burgers I wanted and I spelled my name to him!”
“He has a tremendous sense of humour,” agreed Aziz. “I like his humour, which is sometimes misunderstood. I think he is one of those rare people who can laugh at himself. In every film he talks about his deformities… His nose, his teeth, his eyebrows, his stammer. He can joke about himself, unlike many others…
He is extremely sensitive but never lets anyone know how he feels,” Aziz concedes a little disapprovingly. “When he gets hurt, he doesn’t come out with it. He keeps it to himself, which is not right. You can’t keep your feelings bottled up – you have to let them out once. I am like that too and today my nerves are going crazy. I don’t want Shah Rukh to be exposed to that.”
“Shah Rukh is a very sensitive man,” Karan agreed. “Any negative words hurt him. But he uses it like a stepping stone and is right there to attack if he can. He remembers everything that has been said about him and luckily for him, by and large he will always get to a position where he can give it back to the people who attacked him.”
“But the beauty of the person is that nobody is ready to leave him,” Shashi enthused. “Nobody has ever argued with him and they go their separate ways. Everyone always wants to get closer to him. Whoever comes in contact with this bundle of energy will never leave him.”
“He has just become like this old man of cinema who has seen it all,” revealed Farah with a smile. “I have never seen him upset or confused. He knows that everything is a passing phase… He knows that hits will come and failures will happen and he doesn’t let it bother him! He is just absolutely confident in his abilities. I have never met anyone as confident and competitive as Shah Rukh. When he does something, he has to be the best. He does that for every film, every ad and every show he does!
Today Shah Rukh is on a different level! He is beyond just making films… he has big plans for himself,” elaborated Farah. “He wants to buy the equipment, he wants to set up a studio, he wants to have this huge facility where films can be made. I think it is a fabulous idea because nobody gives back to the industry what he or she gets from it! Nobody gives other people the opportunity to work. He's doing it and I think it's wonderful. Whether he's successful or not, God gives him strength. I know how hard he works to do it all. He danced at every show thinking, 'With this show I'm going to buy a camera, with this show I'm going to buy the equipment for my film.' Now he wants to buy a Helicam, so he's like, 'I'm going to do two more shows and buy them'! Lately he's doing 30,000 things at once. He's created this huge empire... he's just expanding in a whole different direction."
"And he deserves every bit of his success," Shashi declared steadfastly. "He is a great guy! I live four houses away from his. I have seen crowds of people flocking outside his house every morning, asking for help. He listens to their problems and helps them! I must tell you about this incident which will throw more light on the kind of person he is... Shah Rukh, Mukul and I were returning from shooting for Trimurti in Kulu Manali. It was our last day of shooting and Shah Rukh had to attend someone's shoot in Bombay. Unfortunately, due to heavy rain and snow, there was a landslide. I said, 'Let's go back'. But Shah Rukh said, 'No, I have to go back to Bombay and attend a shoot. They are waiting for me'. And guess what he did? He stopped the car, bent down and leaning against the embankment, started pushing the boulders away on his own. He cleared like 10 landslides and took us to the airport. He was not scared. Boulders were falling but he had only one thought in his mind that he had to go for this shoot. We were scared but he was not. Subhash Ghai and Jackie with his kids were behind us. Subhash Ghai said, 'No, we can't go! But Shah Rukh had only one mantra, 'Come on man, let's go. I will pave the way, don't be afraid'. And that is his character. His motto... 'I will pave the way'. To this day, that is reflected in his character. When he had to set up an office, he bought the entire building instead of just a flat or a floor. He bought the biggest house in Bandstand, almost a palace, but that's Shah Rukh..."
The man has not forgotten the simple pleasures in life either. Ask Vivek and he will surely mutter... "Chicken makhanwala, steak, chicken makhanwala, French fries, Pepsi, Classic cigarettes, coffee, that's what he lives on. He doesn't like anything fancy." But what makes the King stand out the most is his oft-mentioned energy...
"Shah Rukh doesn't want to sleep, he suffers from insomnia," revealed Karan. "He likes to sit late at night and talk, drinking 20 cups of coffee. We will all look like death the next day, but he is as fresh as ever. It's so funny because when he sleeps, he looks the most tired!" But it was Shashi who finally cleverly rounded off Shah Rukh with...
"People talk about this rivalry between Shah Rukh and Hrithik. But not many know that it was Shah Rukh who suggested to Rakesh Roshan that he should make Hrithik a film hero! Hrithik used to assist his father and during the shooting of Koyla and King Uncle, I saw the boy standing outside Shah Rukh's room like any other assistant director. However, Shah Rukh always felt that Hrithik had the potential to make it and he was right. Shah Rukh loves challenges and the last thing anyone can call him is insecure..."
Well, one thing is for sure. If nothing else, this indirect encounter with the real Shah Rukh has earned him another well-wisher and fan - me!