King Khan Unplugged!

Shah Rukh Khan's hurt his back again and as he sat at home, he spoke at length about his health problem, and his life and times in general. Excerpts…

You have hurt your back again?
Yes, I am not doing too well. I am currently bed ridden as you can see. I forget I am 43 and I tried to do a fight scene and got hurt very badly. I hurt my back and my neck. The doctor is coming every two hours to check my state and monitor me closely.

You are still going on and on… aren't you scared of a burnout?
I truly believe that even after so many years I feel like every film is my first and last film. I feel that if this doesn't work out then I won't get another film to work on. So I do it with that desperation, that intensity and that passion. I want to die doing a film.

I think I should not be working so hard. But then I have been made to do something which has been written in my destiny and hence I continue working.

A lot of my friends tell me, 'We've been telling you for the past 15 years that you'll burn out.' But I feel I will not burn out because I am still very excited to wear make-up. In my life I feel that picture abhi baki hai mere dost. I have not completed the most beautiful film of my life yet and I hope the last shot I give is the best.

You try and give a message through your films… like picture abhi baki hai mere dost…
Whenever I produce movies, I always try to give a message.

When I was in college I used to play cricket and football and wanted to represent India in the national team. When I injured my back it seemed like the end of my career. For two years I was depressed but that was the reason why I joined the film industry.

Once I joined the film industry my life changed for the better. Whatever I am today is only because of what happened then.

Like a few years ago both of us - you and me, were young. You wrote something negative about me and I got very angry with you. We fought as you printed something about me because maybe you didn't like me and after which I didn't like you. But now you're making a documentary on me and I feel you must have seen something good in me. In the end we're sitting together after 10 years since that happened. Hence "picture abhi baki hai mere dost".

You haven't been giving time to a lot of your friends who are now angry with you?
There are those who think that I only work and there are some friends who feel that I don't get the time to meet them.

I do 2-3 films and it takes 200 days. I also do around 15 endorsements with an average of 3 days per endorsement, which takes up 50 days.

I also manage to do some 20-25 live shows - whether it's the Filmfare awards or the rehearsals, which take about 40 days.

I also spend two months on my television shows and their promotions. I take about 1 and ½ months break from work to spend with my kids.

So I run short of 70 days in a year and hence I have to work a lot more. In the end, I don't get to meet a lot of people. There are a lot of friends, a lot of people whom I can't give time.

How has your journey been from Deewana to Dard-e-Disco?
Actually to tell you the truth, when I think about my journey from theatre to television to where I am today it doesn't seem so long.

I was watching ‘Chak De’ right now and it just doesn't feel like it's been two years since we shot the film in Australia. Sometimes the children also pull out old DVDs and tell me 'look at how you used to look before'!

Recently I was watching ‘Yes Boss’ because my son felt that I can't do somersaults in the air. So I showed the film to him to because I had done a somersault in it. In the film I had somersaulted into the car like Jackie Chan does in his films. So I showed him that I could do it when I was young. But when I was watching the film it didn't feel like it was a long time ago, it felt like it happened just yesterday or the day before.

A few days ago when Juhi (Chawla) had come over with her kids I was just telling her that it doesn't feel like it's been such a long time since we did this film together. I wanted to ask her also if she feels like that.

What is the feeling after so many years of work?
I'll be a 43-year-old man in few months and I still wear make-up in the morning, so how silly is that? I do a silly job, but well, that's the job I love doing. I adore it.

Do your children like your films?
My son's favourite film is ‘Baadshah’. When he watches it he tells me that 'the special effects are really bad, Papa'. So now I have to make a Baadshah that my son will like.

You have also acted in remakes of films like Devdas and Don… Trying to prove a point?
When I did ‘Devdas’, I wanted to say something to the people but everyone had a different take on it. Some said it was ostentatious while some said I was copying Dilip Kumar, etc. The film belonged to another generation but as an actor it's my duty to bring it to the notice of the people of today. They must know that ‘Devdas’ was a great film.

See my ‘Don’ and know what a great actor Amitabh Bachchan was.

A writer has alleged that you lifted his story idea to make Om Shanti Om. Comment.
Farah Khan narrated the script of ‘Om Shanti Om’ many years ago when I was shooting for Mani Rathnam's ‘Dil Se’. I did not do the film then. Farah and I then worked on the script of ‘Happy New Year’ with Amitabh Bachchan. But Amitji fell ill and was hospitalised and we knew that film could not be made because Amitji had a lot of scenes in the film.

I told Farah to bring over the script of ‘Om Shanti Om’ that she had narrated to me earlier and said that we can make it. So there was no way how we could have taken the script from anyone else as the said person has claimed.

Even the Manoj Kumar issue became big and you had to erase a few scenes.
Manojji is a veteran film person and we respect everyone from the industry. We will do what he wants as long as it makes him happy. There was no intention to hurt him in the first place.

SRK-Farah's 'Happy New Year' in 2009

Farah Khan just can’t seem to get enough of leading a busy life. After directing Om Shanti Om and delivering triplets, she is ready to make her next film, Happy New Year. When she had made Om Shanti Om, the buzz was that she had only changed the film’s title from Happy New Year to Om Shanti Om.

But those were just rumours, as Farah is now ready to finally make Happy New Year. The film is likely to go on the floors in 2009 and will be produced by Shah Rukh and Gauri Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment. Red Chillies recently re-registered the title, Happy New Year.

Farah confirmed and said, “Yes, I am finally going ahead with Happy New Year. We have made some changes in the earlier script. The truth is, I wanted to make Happy New Year before Om Shanti Om, but I wasn’t ready with the script then. Om Shanti Om’s script fell into place and things started to roll. So we made Om Shanti Om first.”

Needless to say, Shah Rukh will play the central character in the film. However, Farah did not reveal any more names for the film’s star cast. “I plan to have an interesting cast along with Shah Rukh. But, I still haven’t decided how many of the actors will be established and how many will be newcomers,” said Farah.

Farah added, “The first half of the script for Happy New Year is ready. Shirish (her husband) has helped me a lot with the film’s script.”

So what is Happy New Year about? “Oh well, I can’t say much about the film at this point of time. But yes, it will be my kind of cinema. I don’t want to prove a point to anybody. Happy New Year will be a commercial entertainer,” she said.

Farah is currently busy completing the script in her sprawling house at Seven Bungalows, Versova. “I am not going to exotic places to write the story. And while I am busy with the script, I am concentrating on my babies too,” Farah laughed and added.

Talking about her routine after she gave birth to triplets - Anya, Diva, Czar- six months ago, Farah says that she has not alienated herself from friends and relatives.

“I catch up with Shah Rukh and Karan (Johar) often. Recently, Shah Rukh was shooting at Yash Raj Studios and I dropped by to visit him with Anya, Diva and Czar in tow. Of course, I had also taken three of my maids, who I have for my kids. It was good fun,” said Farah.

Later this week, Farah will choreograph a dance number featuring Abhishek Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra and John Abraham for Karan Johar’s upcoming film, Dostana. She said, “Karan wanted me to do a song in Dostana. Moreover, I had promised Tarun Mansukhani (Dostana’s director) that I will choreograph a song in the first film which he will direct.”

The shoot will last for five-six days. “In fact, Karan made a very sweet offer to have a huge vanity van for me, with all the facilities, so that I can take my babies along with me. But they’ll remain at home. I’ll reach the sets by 10.30 am and leave by 6 pm every day,” added Farah.

Vickey Lalwani, Mumbai Mirror