SRK springs a surprise
l-r: Raja, Aneek and Amanat with Shah Rukh Khan
Shah Rukh Khan was conspicuous by his absence at the Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007, Om Shanti Om special episode on Monday for he chose to cheer the Indian cricket team in Joannesburg at the T20 final against Pakistan. The episode was shot with director Farah Khan and leading lady Deepika Padukone promoting the film. The mega-finalists Aneek, Amanat and Raja were terribly disappointed when they learnt that they wouldn't be able to meet SRK. But the SRK had a surprise up his sleeve!
On Tuesday, Khan informed Zee that he would like to meet the contestants at Mohan Studio where he was shooting for an ad film.
According to Payaol Patel (Creative head of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa), the entire credit for making it happen goes to Farah Khan. "We were co-ordinating with Farah regarding this. She continuously assured that us that the meeting with SRK will surely take place. It goes without saying that we are extremely thankful to SRK also for keeping his commitment," says Patel.
So what happened between Khan and the contestants? When the contestants were told about the meeting they were really excited. Says a source from the set, "They couldn't believe that they were actually meeting the superstar in person. SRK follows the show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Challenge 2007 as much as possible. He told Aneek, Raja and Amanat that he had seen their performances and gave them a few tips as well."
He told Aneek that he especially liked him singing 'Ek chatur nar' (from Padosan) last week. Referring to Raja as the Bikaner ka Raja, Shahrukh performed a dance step from the 'Chaiyan Chaiyan' song (Dil Se again) and asked him to sing it in the forthcoming episodes. Finally, he extended a warm welcome to Amanat from Pakistan and told him that his own forefathers also hail from the same country.
Amanat tells us, "I simply couldn't believe that I was seated with Shah Rukh Khan and had a conversation with him for so long. He was very warm."
Indian Idol 15
