Over three decades of Shah Rukh Khan’s career, he has performed many legendary roles. Among his roles was one of the tragic hero in Devdas. At the 77th Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland, where the Bollywood megastar received the Pardo alla Carriera award or Career Leopard, Khan took a moment to talk about this film that tested him as an actor and also became very personal by being a tribute to his lost mother. The actor also revealed that his production house, Red Chillies Entertainment, has bought the rights for Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s epic 2002 movie Devdas.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali directed this movie again in 2002 despite having been made more than eighteen adaptations from different media with Shah Rukh Khan playing its title role. During a masterclass at the festival, Khan expressed his delight on acquiring the copyright of this landmark film. “We as a production company bought back the rights of this film and I’m very proud that it belongs to our company now,” he said.
Shah Rukh Khan went deep into some challenges faced during this production including living up to legacy of previous versions especially 1955 one starred by Dilip Kumar who were both fans of Kumar’s parents.
He remembered how difficult it had been after making up his mind to take on this role. “By then I think there were about 18 films made based on that novel or maybe twenty or so and lots of other plays and songs” he said. Initially discouraged by colleagues who felt Devdas’ character was too far removed from what had brought him fame, “A lot of actors in Mumbai told me not to do the film.” They kept saying ‘this is not your zone.’ You are more pop culture’,” he said.
Regarding the cultural context within which this movie was made, Khan conducted an open conversation on that matter. “By the time Sanjay Leela Bhansali wanted to make this film, I think the general sentiment in India was that it felt outdated. The country was undergoing a cultural shift towards a more liberalized mindset, with audiences increasingly gravitating towards lighter, commercial fare like college musicals,” he said.
Devdas’ production had been an ambitious initiative marred by huge financial and logistical challenges. “It was the most expensive film being made in India, so it went through its own share of troubles. Money issues, and producers vanishing, we had to complete the film in a few days. It went overtime, over budget,” Khan disclosed.
Although he faced these obstacles, the experience was fulfilling for him and it was especially a tribute to his mother. “I enjoyed making this film because I thought it kind of… memory for my mother who loved movies.”
SRK remembers how massive the set was when he said, “We had 90 gen sets on the sets at one time lighting up the area and city of Mumbai ran out of generators because we had to light it so much. Very opulent, very lavish, very rich and very big and the costumes and the drama and everything of it.”
With co-stars like Aishwarya Rai, Madhuri Dixit, Jackie Shroff etc., Khan became part of complex characters with intricate emotions. This role was a different experience for Khan who is usually known for his roles in Devdas. “I did well. And you always wanted to do stark characters…an alcoholic and I fit into that character,” he added. Nonetheless, donning traditional Indian attire presented a challenge in itself. “A garb as intricate as this was something I haven’t done before,” joked Khan about wearing a dhoti. “Walking’s hard enough; you’ll trip several times. You’re supposed to tie it along like that; after sometime you need an expert to tie it for me. If I had failed to tie my dhoti by myself while others were shooting,” he explained. In a moment of candor during an interview with CNN’s Anjali Rao last week Khan admitted using -of all things- a zipper which he called ‘’blasphemous’’.
“It does define so much about Indian cinema up until now like its opulence and beauty or its larger-than-life-ness or…theatrics. So basically what you will see is really a dialogue-heavy, very dramatic musical film. And then I think there are some outstanding dance centerpieces of the world’s best that I have ever shot,” said Khan.
On the professional front, Shah Rukh Khan will next be seen in King which is directed by Sujoy Ghosh and stars Abhishek Bachchan and Suhana Khan.
