The fan of fans

Shah Rukh pays homage to Indian legends whilst promoting upcoming movie

MUMBAI: It might feel strange, hearing a star of Shah Rukh Khan’s stature claim to be in awe of anyone or anything. However, the Bollywood actor – who is currently busy with the promotions for his upcoming film, Fan – recently revealed how proud he is of Indian film, sports and political greats like Mahatma Gandhi, Yash Chopra, Rajnikanth and Sachin Tendulkar.

Taking to Twitter, Shah Rukh admitted to being a “proud, true and eternal fan” of each one of them. As part of the launch of Jabra Fan – the first song from the Fan soundtrack – the superstar lauded Chopra for showing the purity of Punjabi culture. He then went on to share a link of the song in Punjabi, dedicated to the late filmmaker. “Yash Jee, no one has shown the purity of Punjabi culture like you did. This one is for you. I am your eternal fan,” Shah Rukh tweeted.

Interestingly, the song has been released in four different languages, Bhojpuri, Gujurati, Bengali and Punjabi and Shah Rukh chose to dedicate a specific version of it to each of his idols. Just a couple of years ago, he paid tribute to south Indian superstar Rajnikanth in his through the song Lungi Dance. This time, he expressed his admiration by mentioning how he is one amongst many of Rajnikanth’s countless fans. Shah Rukh shared the Tamil version of the Fan anthem with Rajnikanth saying, “Rajni Sir, I’m not a star but just one of your countless fans and am proud to be one!”



Next came Sachin Tendulkar, who the Marathi version of Jabra Fan was dedicated to. The Don 2 star spoke of the respect he holds for the cricket legend, saying that, “Sachin, for me, you will always be not-out, no matter what the umpire says! I am your fan!” Last but not the least, Shah Rukh heaped praise on the late Indian politician Gandhi, calling him the “father of the nation” and someone he has always been looked up to.  “Gandhi Jee is the world’s biggest star. The whole nation and the world is his fan!” Shah Rukh tweeted, along with a link of the song’s Gujarati version.

In Fan, Shah Rukh will play the role of a young man obsessed with a reigning superstar who travels to Mumbai to meet his idol. Directed by Maneesh Sharma, the movie is slated for an April 15 release. 

Published in The Express Tribune, February 25^th,  2016.

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