I Am An Employee To The Myth Of 'Shah Rukh Khan'

The inimitable Shah Rukh Khan on disliking criticism, being a fakir in his personal life, 

- Pratishtha Malhotra

“I have not come here to compete; I have come here to rule! I don’t have a father, mother, grandfather who can give me an extra push in the city so I am going to create something for myself which did not exist and will never exist after me.” The dimpled boy with dreams in his eyes made everything come alive for himself. Today he is a phenomenon which occurs once in a blue moon and if you’re lucky enough, you get to witness it with your own eyes. The zeal and the gusto that he has for life, even after working harder than ever for 25 years, makes you want to pull up your socks and be the best that you can because, as he says, you shouldn’t ever be second best! Excerpts from our conversation…

Back in the day you once said that everyone is a slave to the myth Shah Rukh Khan is and you are the master slave. Do you feel that Fan explains what you were trying to tell the world at that time?

I think everyone who is a movie star is a slave or a worker to the image. Yes, I am an employee to the myth of Shah Rukh Khan but I am not that myth myself. I am very clear about that. As stupid as I may sound that I would lose my fans, I talk as an employee, I don’t talk as that image which is larger than life, who flies, cries and dances with girls. I am none of that. When I was shooting