Super star with super shows

By Anjali Malhotra

He is known to be brash, pompous, over-confident and, many even go as far as adding, arrogant. In short, he appears to play out his ``I am the best'' attitude of ``Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani'' (PBDHH) in real life.

And indeed, that is what comes across if you miss the mischievous smile that accompanies the bold assertions for which the uncrowned ``Badshah'' of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, is so famous.

Ask him why he has starred in both the movies produced so far by his company Dreamz Unlimited and pat comes the cheeky reply, ``Mere baap ki company hai!'' This is followed by an even more blunt remark: ``It is not that our company is not open to new artists, but any director who comes to us with a story idea would be stupid not to cast Shah Rukh Khan in his movie.'' Bold, but certainly true.

But just scratch the surface and the ``I am the best'' attitude is replaced by ``I think I have been very lucky. More often than not, I have got more than I deserve. God has been unusually kind to me''.

And like all actors, this superstar also experiences ``premiere night'' jitters: ``You can never judge what might click in the market. I have put in a lot into the film but I do not know how the market will respond to the film. I am very nervous about it,'' he admits, speaking about the release of his latest venture ``Asoka'' due for release this coming Friday.

Confidence mingled with a touch of impudence is closer to describing this Khan who has dominated the film industry for well over a decade now. But whether this ``Badshah'' can continue his reign over the masses and whether Santosh Sivan's perception of one of the greatest rulers of India's history will win over cinemagoers is something the coming week will decide.

"Ashoka", Shah Rukh insists, is completely different. ``By that I don't mean the film does not fit into the commercial parameters of Bollywood. It most certainly does. But the entire feel about the film -- the language, the clothes, the walk, the talk, the look, everything is different.'' And apart from being different, the star, who believes in being spontaneous and adds that he is not a method actor, insists that ``there is a lot of Shah Rukh Khan in the film''.

Working on a storyline that centres around the transformation of a person from one who believes in violence to someone who later tries to spread the message of peace, Shah Rukh agrees the film has influenced his life. ``However, not enough to give up my materialistic desires,'' he is quick to add.

``We are always planning for the future and in that we forget the present. This film made me realise the importance of living in the present,'' says the star.

``The desire to give something new'' sums up the reason for the superstar's entry into the production arena. ``Through Dreamz Unlimited, we wanted to open a window for newer and different ideas. And in a sense we have achieved that -- PBDHH was different as is ``Asoka''. But in both films we have also tried to remain within the commercial parameters.''

But how far they will be able to sustain their dream to give something different to the industry is something Shah Rukh does not know. ``It is very risky to do something different. We tried that with PBDHH but it did not do well. If ``Asoka'' does not do well, then I don't know whether the script writers in my company will stay!'' says the super-star with a smile.

Following close on the heels of ``Asoka'' is ``Kabhi Kushi Kabhie Gum'', keeping Shah Rukh's target of three films per year. And each film, he asserts, has been special for him. ``In each film, there are certain scenes which touched me a lot and where I got emotionally involved. Even though ``One two ka four'' did not do well, there are scenes in the film that were really special for me.''

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