Workaholic and an ace cook: Shah Rukh Khan

Superstar discusses his work ethic, women empowerment and his love for cooking

He has been on the top of his game for 25 years now, during which he has successfully taken up different kinds of roles in films. Even now, as Shah Rukh Khan seems to be mixing up his roles successfully, especially with his last three releases – Raees, Fan and Dear Zindagi, the superstar says it wasn’t a deliberate decision, reported Hindustan Times.

“Just because I starred in different kinds of films, it does not mean it was planned. The actual line-up was supposed to be Happy New Year, Raees, Dilwale and Fan, before Dear Zindagi came around. So my plan was good, but as they say, God spoils all plans. I might suddenly seem like an intellectual, but I’m actually not,” said Shah Rukh.



The actor recently confessed that he works on his characters in secret and also keeps mum about his enactments. When asked whether he implements his ideas directly in his performances or shares them with his directors first, Shah Rukh clarified, “I would definitely share something like what I did in My Name Is Khan or Suri’s voice from Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi with my directors after I practice it innumerable times myself. For instance, I even prepared how I would mouth ‘Taaniji’ in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi.”

Shah Rukh is shooting for Imtiaz Ali’s next project, alongside Anushka Sharma. Stating that Ali is the kind of director who would like Shah Rukh to enact a scene for him, he said, “Anushka and I rehearsed our scenes sometimes even till four or five in the morning, because Imtiaz likes it that way. I am ready to do whatever the director wants. A lot depends on the film as well. Farah Khan and Karan Johar have known me for many years, so they write the scripts in a way that is easier for me.”

The Dilwale star has worked almost without a break throughout his career. Speaking about workaholism, he said, “Yes, and that’s because I can’t wait, as I like to keep working. I can’t sit at home waiting for six months because then I change my state of mind.” His fans have greatly enjoyed seeing him essay different avatars in films such as Chak De! India, Om Shanti Om and Chennai Express. “I love taking up different roles, and that’s why I love mad, comic capers too. I know they are unrealistic. It’s not like I am considering them to be anything else, but I like the entire idea of this ‘big film’ experience. So, I find films such as Now You See Me with all the magicians very interesting, because it’s over-the-top, weird and erratic,” Shah Rukh stated.



In another interview, Shah Rukh revealed that he likes the process of cooking food and owns some nice pans and pots. “I know it sounds very girlish. But then, I’m all for the empowerment of women. I want to be equal to women. I want to go higher up to their level, instead of thinking that they have to go higher. But I genuinely want to cook. Imagine, if I open a chain of restaurants and stores, kitna business karunga main,” he quipped. “Having said that, Juhi Chawla once asked me, ‘Why have you named your company, Red Chillies?’ And I was like, ‘just in case film-making fails, I’ll open a restaurant by the same name. Red Chillies Restaurant toh chalega hi.”

The actor said he has been telling his friends and colleagues that once he learns how to cook, he would love to call them over and serve them food. Drawing parallels to acting, he said, “I think of acting too as serving. As an actor, when you serve and present your acting, you hope people like and enjoy it as much as you enjoyed making the film. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t. You just serve. I like to serve people in the house.”

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