King Khan & KKR, take a bow. Congrats - Page 54

SRK..KR all the way

Der aaye durust aaye (Better late than never)

So said Shah Rukh Khan a week ago after keeping his fans waiting for four IPL matches this season to make an appearance at the Kolkata Knight Riders' home ground.

On Tuesday, he kept a 50,000-strong crowd at the Eden Gardens waiting for two extra hours before turning up at 4.04pm to rock the house with a 60-minute blitz that overshadowed everything that had taken place before.

The SRK...KR show saw King Khan dance, cheer, climb and woo the packed Eden like only he can. Metro gives a ringside view of Shah Rukh's IPL victory celebration.

The felicitation

"Aaj Kolkata ko entertain karna hai (I have to entertain Calcutta today)," SRK declared on arrival.

Mamata Banerjee was busy managing the gifts and Manvinder Bisla was in the middle of receiving a tray of mangoes when SRK made his much-awaited appearance to deafening cheers.

"Shah Rukh has arrived and our prize distribution ceremony will now start. Our heroes and heroines from Tolly and telly-wood will be handing over the gifts," chief minister Mamata said as SRK asked Juhi Chawla and Jay Mehta to step out from the crowd of players and stand next to him.

"But first we will cut the cake," Mamata added.

A knife was brought as SRK asked Mamata to come close to the table along with skipper Gautam Gambhir. SRK and Mamata jointly cut the specially made Sandesh Cake, the first bite of which he had before putting a piece into Didi's mouth.

Next came the trophy that the state government had got made " a gold-plated stand with a cricket ball on top " for SRK and his Knights. On the base of the trophy were the words: "Congratulations KKR. Mamata Banerjee."

As Mamata handed over the prize to Shah Rukh, he bent down to touch her feet. He then held her hand as she patted his head. All the players received a small trophy each along with a casket.

The victory lap

At 4.15pm, Shah Rukh tied the uttariya around his waist and put on his hat. "Jara maathey aachen, aapnara boshey porun. (Those on the field, please sit down)," Mamata exhorted, as if on cue.

"Police-er theke kintu aami bhalo bhir shamlate paari (I can control the crowd better than the police)," added the chief minister in jest.

King Khan gestured to Robin Uthappa to lead the walk with the trophy in hand and joined in alongside Juhi and husband Jay. The victory lap started from the clubhouse at 4.20pm and moved clockwise from Block L to B and so on. Click-click went the cameras, accompanied by deafening cheers and Korbo, Lorbo, Jeetbo Re in the background.

The trademark SRK wave, clap, bow and climb atop the police post were the five primary elements of the lap that were generously distributed among all 12 blocks at Eden.

As he walked past blocks L and K, Shah Rukh stopped, lifted his hands and bent down to touch his knees in a show of gratitude. The crowd screamed. A few steps ahead near Block J, he spotted a police watchtower. SRK paused, loosened his T-shirt dripping with sweat and climbed the flight of iron steps to reach the top. A shower of coloured confetti followed.

As SRK waved from atop the 15-foot post, Mamata asked the police commissioner: "Majboot achhe toh (Is it strong enough)?"

The stage show

King Khan took the stage at 4.38 pm, his six-pack peeping through the drenched white T-shirt, to shake a leg to 1,2,3,4... Get on the Dance Floor with actress June.

Mamata asked the crowd to settle down for the KKR team owner to say a few words. Shah Rukh pulled Juhi, seated on the right side of the stage, to the forefront before he began his speech.

"Sar jhukake saare team ke taraf se main aapka dhanyawaad karta hoon, thank you (Head bowed, I thank you on behalf of the entire team)," said SRK, bowing to the crowd. "Humko aapki taaliyan bhi pasand hain humko aapki gaaliyan bhi pasand hain (We love your bouquets as well as your brickbats)."

The ultimate tribute came next. "I don't think any other state in any other country in the world has this kind of support for its sporting heroes."

Later, as the national anthem was played, SRK sang along, eyes shut. A selfie with June and a picture with singer Soumitra Roy later, he was off the stage.

"Thank you very much for your support and kindness," SRK told police commissioner Surajit Kar Purkayastha as he was leaving. "Hope to see you again soon," the police chief replied.

1,2,3, 4...The June shake (For those who wanted Lungi dance at the Eden, but did not get it)

I was there to anchor the event and nothing more than that, but then Shah Rukh started dancing and I danced with him. Impromptu. I have seen Shah Rukh dance to 1,2,3,4 on screen. To have him next to me and doing this step was, I don't know how to express it... You don't even realise it then. It occurs to you later. At that point of time, you are celebrating a victory and everyone is together. It's the atmosphere and you get carried away with that. You are not thinking, just going with the flow. Then when you sit alone and pause you think Oh my god, did I actually do it?' My son (Shivendra) was writing his A-level exam when it was happening and when I entered home, my mother and (daughter) Shivangini were sleeping. So, there was no excitement when I returned home. But I got thumbs ups in group chats and my friends from (Modern High) school were excited, almost as if they had danced with Shah Rukh!

Pictures by Anindya Shankar Ray and Amit Datta;
Text by Priyanka Roy and Saionee Chakraborty

SRK's dream is joy every year'

Calcutta: The wait was getting longer by the minute. Finally, when he arrived a little after 4 pm, Shah Rukh Khan made the Eden Gardens crowd dance to his tune.

Having apologised for being late because of a technical snag in his flight, Shah Rukh made a round of the ground along with Juhi Chawla, Jay Mehta and the team. Swinging his arms, dancing, whistling and gesticulating in all directions, he kept the gathering spellbound.

For variety, there was also Usain Bolt's signature lightning' pose. Bowing repeatedly as a mark of gratitude to the fans, as the DJ belted out korbo, lorbo, jeetbo re...', he ensured there was never a dull moment. Even the sapping humidity couldn't stop his enthusiasm.

"No crowd is like that of Calcutta. They are simply the best... No doubt about it..." an overwhelmed Shah Rukh told reporters.

"I apologise for being late... I'm really sorry to have kept everybody waiting... Would have been great had I come a bit earlier... Nonetheless, better late than never. All of us had great fun out there in the middle," said Shah Rukh.

"Thoda sa dhakka bhi khaya (in reference to so many people being inside the ground), par pyar mein thoda sa dhakka khana padta hain."

Shah Rukh didn't forget to thank the people for their overwhelming support during the tournament.

"I tell my boys we should try and keep on winning because no one likes to lose. We all feel bad to lose. None of us want to play badly.

"Not just me, but each and everyone in Calcutta prayed for our success, before and during the final... It worked... Many many thanks..."

The superstar was also eloquent in his praise of the city during his short speech from the dais.

"I don't think any other state or country in the world has this kind of support for their sporting heroes. Thank you Calcutta for supporting us for our second win," he said.

"Our success for KKR, which is run by Venky Mysore and captained by Gautam Gambhir, is just because of you. I bow to you all on behalf of my team...

"Humko aapki taaliyan bhi pasand hain aur gaaliyan bhi (we appreciate both your love and criticism)... We will keep working hard, keep entertaining, and sharing our happiness."

To the millions of Kolkata Knight Riders supporters, he quipped: "Don ko agar koi pakad sakta hai toh woh KKR ke supporters hain..."

Shah Rukh thanked chief minister Mamata Banerjee for the warm reception and making them feel at home. "Mamatadi, you have made us feel this is our home, our own house. So three cheers for Mamatadi...

"Piyush (Chawla) just told me he has not seen such an electrifying atmosphere anywhere in the world... I want to thank this whole team... Many of the members have left to catch their flights, but all the boys of Gautam, I want to thank you all.

"Jay and Juhi, our owners and Venky Sir, we all thank you always. Thank you CAB, the police, everybody else who run the Eden Gardens and the outside, for being so loving and supporting. God willing, we will do well and keep winning your hearts and dance all the way to joy every year."

The felicitation began with CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya handing out gold rings to all the members.

Earlier, the players did a round of the Eden in six open jeeps. Gambhir, Shakib-al Hasan, Manish Pandey, Yusuf Pathan and Chawla were in the first jeep with the glittering trophy. Shakib and Orange Cap winner Robin Uthappa, who arrived along with Shah Rukh, joined the others on Tuesday.

While Gambhir, Kallis and Vijay Dahiya left after the cake cutting to catch their flights, the others took the stage with Shah Rukh.

The chief minister also felt for the few thousands who couldn't enter the stadium. She promised that the next time the celebrations would be held at the Brigade.