Dilwale Updates Thread #6: Tukur Tukur song video out. - Page 12

UNCUT - Tukur Tukur - Dilwale | Shah Rukh Khan | Kajol | Varun | Kriti | Rohit Shetty | Song Launch

MUMBAI " As usual, he admits to fatigue before a release and wryly shrugs off a query about any pre-excitement. "Kaun si excitement, yaar (What excitement)?" he wryly grins. "Sirf thakaan hai (There is only fatigue)!" Shah Rukh Khan is back with "Dilwale," another home production full of entertainment, and he talks about the film, and his approach to cinema and life in a no-holds-barred chat.

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: The marketing blitz this time is uncommonly huge.

A: It's like this: "PK," "Bajrangi Bhaijaan," "Batman," "Superman," my film " I call them all superhero films, as they have an inbuilt promise of attracting everyone. I just feel realistically that since my film is a product that so many buy without watching " unlike a shirt or a watch " and there is no return policy either, the audience has to be told that this is what I am giving them, especially because I am the producer.

The audience will come anyway, so it is important that we explain all so that they do not feel cheated. Sometimes, they may not come at once, but, if the film is good, like a "Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai" or "Chak De! India," it will pick up.

I always say that films are a great leveller. So my job is to INFORM people what they are going to get. Somewhere, there will be this person accumulating a thousand rupees to watch my film with his family, and he needs to know what "Dilwale" is about by being told, "See, we have made this film from our heart, so now you decide if you want to watch it."

Q: At 50, you still do not look your age.

A: I think that by God's grace I have a plus point " I have a younger frame, so I look like a boy. My son and I in t-shirts look similar. My face too is boyish. I am frugal with my food and drink, don't have a habit of sweets, and even do a bit of exercise, so, in my completely disorganized way, there is this strange sense of organization.

Q: Kajol too is looking amazingly young.

A: Kajol is the exact opposite " she is completely organized. Plus, she is honest, always happy, frank to the point of being called ill-mannered, because she has a pure heart, and is open and upfront. She looks a bit eccentric, has no demands, and is not ambitious. And all that is seen on her face!

Q: How would you describe your 25-year journey?

A: I am from theater and television and came in wrongly assuming that popular cinema and all we do in it is not creative! I remember Hema Malini scolding me for giving her the wrong impression that I was a serious actor (Grins and imitates the actress chiding him!). "You did not tell me that you can dance!" she said when she saw my "Chamatkar" and "Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman" before her "Dil Aashna Hai" released. I told her, you never asked me! (Laughs)

I thus learned early that it was easy to be serious or create a definite character, as in "Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa." But it was tough to convince yourself to do all the standard things a hero has to, like taking off his shirt, falling on his face to raise laughs, and behaving like I did in "Om Shanti Om" with the heroine! I am an urban and educated guy, and I realized that the fantastic part of acting was more difficult than doing a "Chak De! India" or a "Swades." I was not at all comfortable singing "Iss Jahaan Ki Nahin Hai Tumhari Ankhen" in "King Uncle," for example.

But for someone who became a star and suddenly realized it one day, I seriously think that perhaps I do not deserve all my stardom. It's a tough cross to bear. I am, I think, a conscientious person, so I keep feeling, "Have I done enough work to deserve this? Perhaps I do not have such a body of work? There are huge hoardings of mine everywhere; I am called "Baadshah Khan" and King Khan," and I am invited to meet heads of nations. I am a kind of ambassador of India.

So now, I have finally decided that I do not deserve all this now, I should work in such a way that perhaps at the end of my career, I should feel I deserved all this! That's very important for me! My son too feels the same way, that he should deserve the good things he gets and not get them just because he is my son.

Q: You are blending smaller films with big movies now.

A: Yes, I want to do two to three films now if possible. I set up Red Chillies as a production house and studio 12 years ago, and I had to put it on a sound footing, so I did a lot of big films where I spared no expense to make the best possible movie. That also took up a lot of my time, as I was hands-on in everything. Now I have got a crack team, and, if I do everything like before, I will be wasting their time, because they are so good. So I just stick to the creatives and call them over to tell them what I want and then leave them to do the job. So I have a great time with my other activities and go with my kids for matches and so on.

For a 150-strong company, however, I still need to do that biggie like "Happy New Year" and "Dilwale." But I now want to also do those small movies that can be shot in 60 to 70 days instead of, say, 140, because I love those kind of films. I always loved doing a "Raju..." or a "Kabhi Haan..." and that's where "Fan" and "Raees" come in. Now Aanand Rai has come to me with the character of a dwarf, and that's very interesting. You see, I cannot WRITE a film for me. But I love such films. So I need to keep a balance.

Also people expect things from you, and you must give it to them. Aditya Chopra was going to make "Auzaar," a hard-hitting action drama, with me. But he changed his mind stating that people loved me as a romantic hero. He then made "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge" and continued making romantic films with me!

Honestly, I must tell you that some offbeat directors I respect come to me and want to make my kind of 200-crore film with me! I tell them I want to make their kind of cinema, and I will be good at it. If they tell me that they want to make a love story differently, I am game, because nobody knows love better than me! (Grins)

Q: There are all kinds of speculations about your price.

A: Let me tell you something very clearly. I have never been a co-producer taking some hissa' (part) of the profits. As an actor, I have never taken a territory as fees, and my price is decided, come Adi, Karan or anyone else, AFTER a film is made. I am an actor. I am very clear that I am not saleable " I am priceless! You cannot buy me. That's been a fixed rule for 25 years!

And the logic is very simple. As a Red Chillies man, I know that the producer takes all the risks, and he must get all the profits. I lost money on "Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani" and "Asoka," my first two productions, and just broke even with "Chalte Chalte."

Yes, I love the good life, so I make money from television, ads, by doing shows and by dancing at functions. But I put whatever I have made from films back into movies.