Shah Rukh Khan: Numero Uno Via Zero

First things first.

When I first heard about Shah Rukh Khan and was forced [courtesy my younger daughter, a blissed-out fan] to see an episode of a TV serial called Fauji in 1989, I admit I was pleasantly surprised, but nothing more. A hard-core film journo, totally into interacting with the biggies – Rajesh, Amitabh, Shashi, Shatru, Jeetu, even Mithun, Anil, Jackie – this unknown TV actor was no more than a blimp on my radar.

Although, not technically handsome, I had to concede that the guy did possess an interesting and engaging presence [expressive, energetic, screen-friendly], but not in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine that he would scale the insane heights he later did. Even during our long interview [his first ever!] at my South Extension flat, he was fun, lively and charming, regaling us with hilarious anecdotes of his post-Fauji success, but no STAR appeal came through.

As we got friendlier, I found him getting increasingly restless and impatient to get his teeth into mainstream Bollywood with a solid role as a leading man. He often bemoaned the fact that he only seemed to be offered roles in small, art-house/parallel cinema or as Sunny Deol’s brother – something that troubled him no end! I urged him to have patience, but I guess, for a young man rarin’ to go, patience is a dirty word! Soon, it happened.

The calls came and he shifted to Tinsel Town. Deewana & Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman gave him both visibility and noticeability in a cluttered and competitive market. Having tasted blood, desperate to break into the big time with big banners and flamboyantly unconcerned about the image/type cast factor, he leapt into a series of negative roles, with wild abandon. Baazigar, Darr and Anjaam was nowhere near what the good doctor ordered for a newcomer, but fortune favours the brave and the Khan kid got lucky! It was a clear case of right time, right place, right role, right content, right pitch to a right new-age [youngistan] audience-base open and ready to embrace new, young actors with new styles. Salman and Aamir had already entered the frame and now with Shah Rukh, the picture was complete. Each had his own distinctive style and the trio seemed to have totally cornered the Bubble Gum–Teeny Bopper market!

As every SRK junkie knows, DDLJ was a watershed and defining moment for the young actor and the Yash Raj banner played a huge part in converting him to both a star and a brand. If Salman was perceived as the Hot Bad Boy, Aamir the Mr Perfectionist, SRK was Mr Romantic, the Prince Charming that all young women dreamt about and pined for…the Raj who Raj-ed over the collective fantasies of the chloroformed lasses! Powered with this image, the Dilwale danced, sang and romanced his way through tons of super-hits, winning fans and zonking sponsors and producers across the globe.

However, with time – sharp, intelligent and grounded as he was – he realised that this honeymoon could not last forever. The law of averages was bound to catch up and old must give way to the new. He would need to explore other areas in terms of content, roles and directors if he wanted to remain in contention.

His early thrusts in this area – Chak De and Swadesh fetched him mixed results, with the former a glorious success but the latter, a huge disappointment with audience footfalls. Well, win some, lose some and generally wait for perceptive content-providers to offer him roles that – while keeping his star-value in mind – gave him scope to move beyond his trademark widening of arms to demonstrate his widening of acting armoury. This was critical because in the altered environment [DDLJ was two decades old, remember] where grounded story-lines, gifted, glamour-free actors performed in the background of small town locales and were winning audience-approval all the way, re-invention and re-positioning were vital.

Further, the fact that Dilwale, Fan, Raees, Dear Zindagi, When Harry Met Sejal did not get the expected response from audiences [curiosity, excitement, thrill] sent a sharp message to one and all: Were SRK’s best days over? Were his loyal fans – 20 years older – bored and distracted with other issues? Were today’s kids unable to really connect with a once Mr Romantic, happier bogeying with the likes of Ranbir-Ranveer-Varun-Ayushman-Siddharth-Aditya and gang?

It is against this scenario that his latest film Zero releases. The SRK brand [despite it all] clearly sizzles as endorsements, advertisers and corporates, making an endless beeline for his signature indicates. His personal appearances in shows, events continue to be pre-sold and greeted with huge fanfare. His birthday is a well-known tamasha with crazy crowds outside his home begging for darshan.

SRK is totally aware of all this, but his focus is clearly to retrieve the status that he once owned as a Supernova…this time not as a Dilwale but a consummate actor with solid star-power, which is exactly why – like he did at the beginning of his career – he is fearlessly doing the central role of a vertically challenged character in Zero. While any resemblance to Kamal Hasan’s Appu Raja is a coincidence, it shows SRK’s courage and confidence to set off on this voyage of discovery. It also demonstrates his thinking of safety being the most unsafe and risky proposition for an actor totally comfortable with reality-checks, open, willing and ready to move with the times and change with the needs of an altered narrative in Bollywood cinema.

Way to go SRK. More wind beneath your wings.