Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, who is best known for his work in films like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Chak De! India and Dil Se among others, says the core of his job as an actor remains to spread happiness and that the money, awards, and fame that come along are “peripherals”, which he is grateful about. The actor, whose TED Talk in Vancouver went viral on social media with his witty one-liners, words of wisdom, and more, spoke to IANS in an email interview about his thoughts on stardom, how he can motivate others to follow their dreams, how he has so many dreams in his life that if he was to be left alone, he can just live in their company.
How does the life he is living today as Bollywood’s King Khan compare to the dreams he had when he entered the industry?
Shah Rukh Khan said: “It’s extremely nice to hear the words King and Baadshah, heartthrob, loved, romantic hero, etc… All these things are really positive things. I’d rather be hearing these than some negative aspects that people might attach to my name. So, I’m extremely thankful and happy that this happened.”
“Having said that, my core job is to try and entertain people. Like I always say, make them smile… Fulfill some unfulfilled desire or emotion in them that might exist. Give them a couple of hours of happiness. It has to be as simple as that. Everything else that comes is peripheral.”
“Everything that gets attached to my acting in films… whether it’s the money, the fame, the name, whether it’s on a power list, whether it’s an award… all of those are windfall games,” Shah Rukh Khan said.
“I’m very happy about them and grateful about them. But the core of my job is can I make people happy whenever I’m in touch with them? Through my cinema? Through just talking to them or meeting them. When you’re a star, people feel happy just meeting you or seeing you pass in a car. So to me, the core is just that, nothing else.”
Often, the 51-year-old star has said he sells dreams. But does the thought that there might come a time when he loses this ability, bother him?
“No. It doesn’t bother me. I believe that anyone who has the capability, the ability, the desire to sell dreams, has to dream them first. So, I have lots of dreams. As a matter of fact, if I were to be left alone, I could just live in the company of my dreams.”
“I don’t really always need to get these dreams verified, quantified or substantiated,” he said, stressing that he prefers to see the “optimistic side of life”.
On the work front, SRK will next be seen in Imtiaz Ali’s untitled project which also stars Anushka Sharma opposite him.
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