“Very few people can turn their passion into profession. I am one of those lucky few.” – Shah Rukh Khan
There are Bollywood actors and then there is the Badshah of Bollywood. There are Khans and then there is King Khan. Talking about King Khan, the name that instantly comes to our mind is the one and only Shah Rukh Khan…the man who has won the hearts of millions of people with his charm and acting skills.
Most of us have grown up watching Shah Rukh Khan as the ideal romantic hero, the man whom the ladies have fantasized to be the man of their dreams. He is known as the King of Romance in Bollywood. But, is that all he has done throughout his career? I guess the answer would be ‘No’.
Apart from playing the characters of the sweet, charming, romantic hero, Shah Rukh has also portrayed some excellent characters that have created an identity of its own. So, today as King Khan celebrates his 52nd birthday, we would like to take you through those interesting and iconic characters that Shah Rukh Khan has portrayed in his career spanning over 25 years.
Ajay from Baazigar
“Haar ke jeetne wale ko baazigar kehte hai…” and that’s exactly what King Khan has done. When you are steadily approaching the peak of your career, you’d not risk that for anything. But, Shah Rukh has always been a risk taker and Baazigar was one of the biggest risks that he had taken in his career. The film was rejected by many established actors but Shah Rukh took up the challenge of playing the character of Ajay, who was the bad guy, and came out successfully with flying colours. Ever since then, he is known as the Baazigar of Bollywood.
Raj from Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (DDLJ)
The one name that ruled the movie was ‘Raj’. When he sang ‘Tujhe dekha toh ye jaana sanam’, millions swooned. Shah Rukh Khan made Raj, the ultimate man, the man every girl wanted as a lover. Raj became the epitome of love and romance. He broke the stereotypical image of the Hindi film hero and created the new image of a romantic hero. The success of DDLJ created history and is still going on in Mumbai’s Maratha Mandir.
Raj Aryan from Mohabbatein
Well, the moment we say ‘teacher’, we get an image of a strict, disciplined person who is always into the world of books. But, Shah Rukh Khan made us look at teachers differently. He broke the stereotypical image of teachers and created a new image of cool, suave, friendly and loyal person. It goes without saying that the passion for Megha, made him the most adorable teacher on celluloid. Guru-cool indeed!
Mohan Bhargav from Swades
Swadesh, directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar, is one of those movies that clearly showed all the critics what Shah Rukh Khan is capable of doing on the silver screen. The character of Mohan Bhargav was extremely different from the ones that he had done till then. There was no drama, no elaborate grand sets – it had the simplest of stories. He played Mohan Bhargav with so much ease that he made us feel at home, and made us realise that home is where the heart is.
Kabir Khan from Chak De! India
When we talk about commercial movies, we always tend to look forward to a man with his leading lady and some interesting plot. Generally, the Indian audience never responds to anything but cricket, and sport stories aren’t exactly money spinners in Bollywood. But, Chak De! India showed how to bring that change with simply a great story and powerful characters. With no leading lady to romance, this movie could’ve easily been a disaster, but when you are the King, the rules don’t apply to you. Thus, Kabir Khan sweeped off the audience with the vibrance and the film had a stellar run at the Box Office.
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