Stop being an SRK Fan.

The time before all these social networks existed was so marvelous. We pooped with our butts only back then unlike now where there is more shit online compared to the sewerage. The shit in our minds is more stinky and lethal compared to the feces that comes out of our butt holes.

So what warranted this post? The way a lot of fans are reacting to Jab Harry Met Sejal. I'm not the kind of person who forgets bad things easily so I remember 2011 quite well. It was right after Ra.One released and a few days before Don 2 released. A certain film called Rockstar came out. Oh my goodness, people drove Shah Rukh nuts by asking him why he wasted time in Ra.One and why he didn't make a film like Rockstar. Why he doesn't work with Imtiaz Ali and some other high profile directors and lots of other whys. So fast forward to 2017, there you go. You have your wish fulfilled. Imtiaz Ali and Shah Rukh Khan collaborated and made a film called "Jab Harry Met Sejal". But now you say the story sucked, the script was stupid, Imtiaz is a conman, Shah Rukh should choose his scripts wisely, it is the worst movie of his career, he is finished, the WOM is bad, blah blah blah blah blah. SERIOUSLY, GO FUCK YOURSELF.

As a long time fan of him, I have seen how things narrowed down from believing that certain parts of the media always hate him to his own fans hating on him. In fact now I feel, the media persons who are always after him, are much better than those fans who are bringing him down. Because nothing hurts more than your own people being faulty and weak. This fandom of SRK should really shut down now. 

I used to get annoyed by those types of fans who bet on how much a film will earn on the first day, over analyzing the weekend, screens and what not. Then they get all sad when a film doesn't reach their expected figures. I never quite understood what's the point. It was exciting to eagerly wait for the figures during CE but after that it got boring. Every film releases during different circumstances. As someone who has been in the business for so long, I think he knows what kind of decisions to make and I'm pretty certain he also has enough professionals to advice him. Love and money never mixes together so don't try to measure your love for him by the box office figures of his films. It's much easier to sit back and enjoy when a film releases than to sweat over records and numbers. It is not your damn job.

Another group of fans who would piss me were the fans who expected CDI/Swades out of him 24/7. For these fans, he hasn't been acting since CDI. Every film of his that released since Aug 10th, 2007 has been pure nonsense. Even if he has gotten hurt 534654654 times while making all those films from Aug 10th, 2007 till today, it does not matter because he acted crap in all of them. Even if he invested millions and millions of dollars, who gives a fuck because they all sucked. There shall always be an excuse to put a film down...like the director, story, screenplay, music, VFX, art, cinematography, casting, or the fucking make up is just plain shit. He needs to choose different everything. And oh yes, he needs to tone down his way of promoting films. Because he always goes over the top, his way of promoting is too loud and annoying. Why though? Because Shah Rukh deserves the best of the best. 

At some point, I did make peace with these fans who had such grotesque expectations. But when I look at the following and remember his performances, I regret ever giving these fans any support.

Let me be straightforward, there is something horribly wrong with this fandom. Stop putting him or his choice of films down. If there is anything a fan has to do, then it's just to give him love in return of the love he gives us. Should there be anything that bothers you about him, try to keep it to yourself...don't go and join the haters' bandwagon. It's not cool to change sides and it's the most disrespectful thing you can do at this stage if you have been a fan of this man for this long. He has done over 50 films and if 10 or 15 of those bother you so much to the point that you have to start hurting his feelings then I'm sorry to say but you're not really a fan of him. For someone who dedicated his life to entertaining people, he does deserve loyalty and love. This counts not just for him, but for all actors in this world. 

What I noticed is that a lot of you get easily influenced by what other actors do or what their fans are doing. Then you start expecting the same from Shah Rukh as well. The most important thing is that you need to let Shah Rukh set and achieve his own expectations. He is at an age where I'm sure he wants to do things which he has not done yet, even if it's a small thing. And every actor is supposed to do something different than his contemporaries. Shah Rukh is a leader, not a follower, please keep that in mind. If you are unable to tolerate those who throw mud at him, you should not start supporting them under any circumstances. Why should negative opinions even matter to you? When someone becomes famous, it is obvious that there will be people who will hate him or her. These kinds of people will always search for an opportunity to spread negativity. But it is a fact that only love and support can help a person achieve greater heights of success. 

Okay, let's talk a bit about entitlement. Yes you do have the right to review a film you watched in theater because you paid for it. But there is a polite way to say it. Or even better if you say it once and move on. Don't make such a big deal about it. And please stop believing that if you do not like a film, that's when your "review" is considered honest. Stop behaving like a critic or smart ass. It doesn't make you look smart if you abuse or criticize something or someone in creative ways. Most of us are his kids' age, treat him with respect. Do you criticize your parents? Are you a professional filmmaker to give him inputs on how to choose films?

Be thankful that he is still making films, he is still putting in so much effort to entertain us all. Because if he ever decides to stop making films, it will definitely be the end of films for me. And please, not a single film from Bollywood is even worth watching nowadays. The quality is dwindling down faster than I ever imagined. This is not the Bollywood I knew. 

The day his film releases, it's like a festival...it's a function, a reason to celebrate, a reason to be happy in the entire calendar. And most importantly, be thankful that you can watch him on the big screen. There are so many fans around the world that have never watched his film on the big screen or they travel to other countries just to watch his film in theater. Or there are people who live in countries where selected, not even all, releases after several months. Have you ever thought how tough it is for them? Their happiness that they can watch SRK on the big screen is much bigger than pointing out the flaws of the film. Why spend so much energy analyzing something that is meant for entertainment?

Stop taking him for granted. Because he is not immortal. Stop thinking that you have the right to bully him by criticizing him day in and day out. Because he has not done any harm to you. Stop assuming that you know the best for him. Because he is experienced enough to understand what is best for him and us. Stop spreading your negative opinions. Because he does not deserve such filth from within his own fandom. If you can't stop it then please do him a favor and STOP CALLING YOURSELF HIS FAN.

Consuming Shah Rukh Khan

When you are a fan of Shah Rukh Khan or anyone, it becomes a habit to watch, read, hear, eat, sleep (hopefully not), drink him/her. This is a reason why these public figures have to keep rolling out new stuff to keep their fan bases going strong. Then let's get going about consuming Mr. Khan.

Shah Rukh did a variety of roles in the first phase of his career. He had nothing to lose and no one really to be scared of. Remember, he made a goal of doing about 22 films. You can only wonder when 22 films became 70+ films. Through these seventy releases, he won billions of hearts all over the world. Okay, I know this sounds like I'm teaching the English alphabet but many of us seem to forget the basic story about Shah Rukh's success.

We just keep wanting more and more from him. And he also wants to keep delivering the highest quality cinema possible so it can be worth the price we pay to watch it. He values the time we give to watch his latest in theaters so much that he doesn't even stop even if he gets injured. Health is wealth. But to him, his audience's happiness is his real wealth.

Of course there must be a personal benefit too as to why he allows us to consume him every minute and every second of the day. It's his dream to give back to the industry and its consumers in the most grandest way possible. It's also his ultimate escape from the original Shah Rukh Khan who is in great pain. Every time the actor Shah Rukh faces a failure or hurtful abuses, the original Shah Rukh takes the blows. Then he forces the actor in him to get to work.

He has an eye for details, which us analysts ignore often because hey, Bollywood films are just singing and dancing after all. He wishes to bring the best talent in the film technology field to India rather than outsourcing work to Hong Kong, China, USA, etc. Because India produces the most films in this world. And there is a growing popularity for the usage of visual effects. 

When he does masala movies, he makes it with the intention that a whole family will have something to enjoy in it. There are different palates in every family. One person might like romance, another may like action and another may love comedy. To make everyone smile in 2.5 hours is an amazing talent. And he tries his best to do so.

You know what it looks like when we cry over him not doing a certain film which did great? It looks highly ungrateful. We are being ungrateful to the man who have put in tons of sweat, blood and effort to keep us entertained. He constantly puts up a great fight with his physical pain. Why? So we can devour his work. When fans cried over him not doing 3Is, it was ridiculous. The last time he played a college student was in Main Hoon Naa and that too, it was situational. I can't imagine him in his underwear either. Good for the little one that he did 3Is.

You can't expect Shah Rukh to be in every blockbuster made in Bollywood. No one wished that he do a Border, Gupt, Sarfarosh, Krantiveer, Zakhm, etc. He kept rising because of his very own personal choices. Now he is the biggest star in India, a very important figure. With such power, comes great responsibility. He has to be wise about what he does now, because he has enemies watching him like hawks. One mistake and there will be a heavy price.

It is pretty easy to spend 3 hours of our valuable time to watch a film created by hundreds of people and made in the time span of months who think of nothing else but to present their project in the most perfect way possible. Sad fact is that some films are worth watching many times on the big screen while other films are worth watching once maybe. Should he takes a lot of risks that are political, financial or both and it goes wrong then will you be there to rescue him? Quite sure, you'll be the first to run away from him.

It is quite disrespectful to compare him with younger actors who are actually following his footsteps is another way that you are sucking on his blood literally. Hasn't Shah Rukh almost always experimented? Each film is an experiment on its own. If it wasn't, then it would be called a copy. Plus you know something? He has to be very careful about his choices because he is a superstar. A role that suits Shahid, Ranbir, Varun or any other younger actor, will not suit Shah Rukh. Many actors have come and gone in the last 20 years. The excitement of possibly finding a replacement of Shah Rukh Khan is always high but, I personally think that if he retires then that's the end of Bollywood. They are already remaking, adapting and continuing from scrapbooks of yesteryear.

It makes me sad that I have to repeatedly cross paths with fans who don't seem to appreciate him enough. And then I have to write such posts again and again. I hate repeating myself. If you don't like his latest movies, please shut up and keep patience. We can't predict what he has next up his sleeve. When you become a fan of an actor, you have to have faith in him or her. And seriously, Shah Rukh is the safest actor on whom you can place your faith on. Because he is experienced, experimental, and honestly the best name in Bollywood. It is shameful to see fans nodding with haters and saying that this and that film of Shah Rukh is utter crap.

Keep in mind that he is now 50 years old. His kids are growing up and I'm sure he would like to be able to spend more time with them. You realize he belonged to us before his children and dedicates more time to make us smile instead of his kids?  Yet, you would like to bestow your taste of cinema onto him because you think you own him? Right.

As a fan, you need to support him in his ups and downs. It does not make him feel any better if you criticize his choices. Trust me when he says he reads everything, he really does so. What makes us think that he can tolerate so much cribbing over his work if we can't tolerate someone criticizing us all the time? "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you". Consume him a bit responsibly because he is a human like us.

What is SRK's fault?

So, instead of writing my review of Dilwale, I decided consciously to write about the ongoing stupidity which is harming the business of Dilwale. It is highly disturbing to me because when I was hearing the interview which started all this ruckus, I had a fear that it would be blown out of proportion. My fear came true and how.

Let me start with how the conversation started.

Barkha: But is it frightening to you as a product of the syncretic background that today this country is trapped in battles over cow meat and whether Mumbai should ban a certain kind of meat during the certain kind of festival...that there is violence attached to this. This is no longer an academic debate. I mean, the current raging debate is intolerance. And do you believe that there is rising intolerance? Do you believe you live in an environment where it is getting tougher and tougher to just say something and not be attacked and not be assaulted?

SRK: I think the one reason for it also is that the platforms have increased. Maybe, there were similar attacks then but there were not enough platforms to hear the voice. Now there is social media, television has become much bigger, radio, everything...everyone speaking. Everybody is talking. Everybody has a right to talk and put it out there. So I think maybe, it might have been there earlier, I hope so. That it is not a modern phenomena, it is not a recent phenomena. I am assuming ke chalo yaar, pehle bhi aisa tha lekin sunayi nahi deta tha. Now you hear it a lot more. Second part of it is..yeah I think that just because you can hear it a lot more, like in my case, I think we should speak a little more sensibly. I think we should be a little more tolerant. We should give each other some levee. And what each other yaar? If this "our country" and religion...keep on talking about then we are going to go back to the dark ages. There is NOTHING, there is NOTHING less important than religious intolerance. It is shocking to me. I can't imagine. Yes, people tell me that maybe in smaller towns, the way people are brought up, it's different, blah blah blah. But I meet people from everywhere, maybe from the place I am is not enough. But I still meet people. Yeah, of course you can make their way of thinking different by public speaking or being larger than life and changing mindsets. But I don't think religion intolerance is any which way forward for any country. I think it's the worst kind of thing that can happen. And intolerance of any kind...and now we're looking at such small issues. And like you said, these are not small issues because they are leading to violence. It's really really shocking. And how do Indians go and show their face...you know when I'm outside, and people say...you guys don't do this? And I am not saying that this is what defines my country. Because I can tell you one million things that define my country beyond this intolerance part. But when somebody is asking me, you've got to answer it. And it doesn't auger well for us as Indians. To even answer in joke. What answer do you give to this? You certainly don't become serious about it. Because I rather talk about India in a manner which India really deserves to be spoken about. 

Barkha: And India's image is being hurt in the world. But that's not the primary reason to change it, we have to change it for ourselves?

SRK:  The change is for us. We don't have to change it for others, the imagery is okay. The imagery will be bettered or lessened by different things. The change is for us.

 If you are curious to hear those words from the man himself, this is the video to watch. Let me know when you hear him say "India is intolerant."

What did he say wrong? Is killing people over what they eat, something to be proud of? In any sane person's opinion, no my friend, it is actually quite shameful. You know, there is some level of intolerance in every corner of the world. Racists, ethnocentric people and xenophobic people are everywhere and they do ridiculously unethical acts. Such acts do attract criticism from people. Shah Rukh has done the same.

Dear Indian protesters, did you know that by protesting, vandalizing, and threatening...you are not proving yourselves to be very tolerant? In spite of not being spelled out loud, you are still adding fuel to the issue of religious intolerance. Now, you must realize some important key points. He is an Indian citizen like you. His vote counts as much as yours do. His taxes are used in the same way as your taxes are used. He has the same freedoms as you do, which includes the right to have a voice. So what wrong has he done by speaking about an issue? When other celebrities talked about the meat ban, no one decided to boycott him/her. Why SRK? Just because his father was a Pakistani born freedom fighter who chose India? Or because his parents chose to retain their original religion of Islam? What is the problem? Do you guys not have any actual serious problems to be concerned about? It is absolutely pitiful that Shah Rukh has to repeatedly say that he is an Indian and a proud one.You guys are dampening my happiness which lies in him. You all are a threat to this world, not just India alone because you guys are reproducing!!!

If you remember past hot situations, Shah Rukh has often been the victim of intolerance. People have pelted stones at his house. People have burned his posters. People have sent him death threats. People have disrupted his films in theaters. People tell him to leave India. People keep abusing him all the time. People even drag his kids and late parents when they abuse him. He has much more right to speak about any kind of intolerance because he constantly suffers because of it. But if he dares to speak about such things, he becomes the villain. In his industry and outside of it too, there is this acid like hatred for him which is very heart breaking at times. One cannot ignore negativity for too long.

Hate him because you are a fan of someone else or you think he is not a good actor or he is overrated. But stop making him the scapegoat of illogical political hate. If you disagree with him, be civilized for God's sake and respect his opinion. He is not your neighborhood dog that you can abuse and throw sandals at. He is a very important and respectable man, much more important than your alien political leaders who are not even worthy of standing on a international stage. Learn to respect the man who has made India proud. Most people know India because of him. Don't try to break the man who provides hope and happiness to millions around the world and in India through his work.
 

Beyond the horizon of CDI & Swades

It takes a special occasion nowadays for me to write on this blog. I am very sorry for the lack of posts :(

Anyway, so the issue I want to address for the umpteenth time is how versatile Shah Rukh is. I made a promise to myself that if I read another comment saying his best was Swades or CDI, I'm gonna go punch someone. But since I have no one to punch right at this moment, I'll just deal with it in words.

People need to realize the versatility of a certain actor called Shah Rukh Khan. He has those Filmfare trophies for a valid reason. He has the fan following of billions, not because those people, including me are "dim wits" but because he is much worthy of having fans. The one movie which earned him the love from people outside India who are not Hindi-speaking is K3G, not CDI or Swades. They loved the variety of traits Rahul's character had; whether it's the lovable son, endearing lover, caring brother, moody husband, fun dad or overly protective brother-in-law.

You have to understand that movies are made so people can be away from the hectic lives so many of us have. And Shah Rukh just provides that much through his movies.

I will never understand why some people limit him to just CDI and Swades. Is it because those films are patriotic? Or he is not romancing? Oh you may have missed the cuteness of Mohan and Geeta in Swades! If he keeps doing a CDI or Swades so often, I am sure you would still call him repetitive. When he did a 100% zero romantic villain in Don 2 (if you consider Don and Ayesha in Zara Dil ROMANTIC, you are hopeless) people still did not like it. When he did a Rizwan Khan, nope...still romantic. Would you stop being stuck in the days of Dil Toh Pagal Hai and Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge? That was more than a decade ago!!

I never found anything special in Swades or CDI, except that Swades was really long and CDI was very fun. For Shah Rukh, I felt both movies were cakewalk, they were not challenging roles. So that suggests the idea that critics want simple stuff from Shah Rukh. No I don't want that. I like stuff in the lines of MNIK, KANK and JTHJ which required him to fulfill both mental and physical challenges.

Trust me when I say that there is no longer a lot of romance in his movies nowadays. We already get to see less of him unlike some other actors who have half a dozen releases per year. But honestly, there is a lack of romance in his recent movies, they are more focused on the complex problem the story sets out to solve. Love and romance are just mere props. I have been a fan of him for a long time now and I actually feel his last romantic movie was Paheli. But it all depends on the definition of love and romance people have. For me, romance has to do more with gazes, pain, wooing, etc. I am pretty old fashioned when it comes to love. Actually he has never done any hardcore romantic movie. His way of doing romance is actually very mild but touching.

I call Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi my favorite movie but you need to understand the intentions of the characters. Taani for example, has stopped believing in love after she loses her first love AND her father in such a short gap of time. But Surinder loves her, so in order to make her believe in love and that not everyone she loves, will leave her, he takes on a goofy character. Kind of childish but that is why I love it so much. It does take a lot to restore someone's faith in love again. And another thing is that I have met a lot of ignorant people in my life so far so the leap of faith that Taani does not recognize her own husband made perfect sense to me. It is not romantic in my opinion, it is just more sweet and basic to me. It is true both story-wise and how the actors portrayed the characters. Each time I watch it or recall it, I do get a different interpretation because the more life goes on for me, even the most commonly named ridiculous movies seem real to me. People are weird I tell you.

So I kindly request you to stop stereotyping Shah Rukh who is no longer doing romantic roles, actually playing roles that suit his age and is becoming menacingly hot with each passing day. Admit it, there is no other man who looks so hot at the age of 48. Some of you men AND women look 60 years old at his current age!!

What's going on?

It's been a while since I have written anything about Shah Rukh. Well of course there have not been anything new that would be worthy of a mention on this blog. Just kidding, I have been lazy, that's all.

I have been missing him ever since he left twitter, feels like as if I've been cutoff from a big portion of my life. I know, I shouldn't be feeling like this because there was a pre-Twitter time as well. But guess what? I'm spoiled. And I can't help but not miss him. I do respect his decision to stay away from social networks and let his team sort out everything. But I am a fan of the man himself, not his team. It's alright, life will go on anyway.

So IPL started with KKR winning their first game and losing the second. By now, I should be used to everything (as usual) but a defeat is a defeat. I hate losing. It is one of the worst feelings ever, makes me wanna cry. Here's hoping they improve in the coming matches.

I actually feel very blah as I write this. I feel very empty. Past few weeks, I have been busy organizing my facebook pages that are dedicated to him of course and also creating what I had initiated 2 years back, the playgirl magazine. It is finished and published online. Took me a lot of time, thinking and hard work to create it. It is something very new for me because I personally have never looked at Shah Rukh and think, "oh he's so sexy and handsome" until very recently. So it is quite an amateur like edition and I kept Shah Rukh's own dignity in mind while creating it. I admit, I had plenty of times where feelings started arousing for him (but I controlled and still don't envy Gauri) because he is really God's best creation and the first man whom I have explored so much via images. LOL I know this sounds damn awkward but if you were in my shoes, trust me, you would feel the same.

I will confess another thing, I love hunting for his photos online, older photos. Then I dump it all in my facebook page, RetroSRK. It is fun to discover the many events he attended over the years. He has been associated with so many brands, causes, etc. It feels like an event in India is incomplete without his presence. He's the eye candy of every event he graces with his presence.

Oh yes, I never wrote about my mini SRK center. It actually is shamefully very mini, considering how long I have been his fan. There are selected DVD's, actually nearly complete collection from 2004 onwards. Posters too which I haven't put up yet. The OSO ones would be hung before in our garage but not anymore...we've moved too frequently in recent years. The autographed Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi CD is still in its original bubble envelope. I still cannot forget, Jan 24, 2009 when it had arrived, TOTALLY unexpected and it was not even something I was eager to win. A wise friend has said it right, when you don't expect, that's when things start happening. Anyway, then I have this Ra.One journal that I have filled with a few newspaper articles and tons of pictures. Those pictures are my favorites. I chose them carefully over the last 5 years.  Of course, Shah Rukh's gift is still with me, a little vial of perfume that is now discontinued. I also kept the envelope in which I would have put a letter for him and mailed it but I never did because I was confused about his address and I still am. Theater ticket stubs, magazines, a dard-e-disco decorative plate, books, all are in there. I am shocked they all fit in, considering how small the center itself is. I will keep improving it as much as I can.

What else am I missing? I have been fangirling even today over that JTHJ video chat where he answered two of my questions. Oh my, he made me fall in love with my own name. My family tells me that Shah Rukh knows me well by now and I can't help but laugh. I am just one fan in the crowd of millions. Seriously I am an ordinary fan, not following or leading, but just lost. Yes, I am lost in his fandom. It is most of the time, big, boring, too competitive, always demanding, you need to watch your words to avoid embarrassment and rude too (I am too sensitive). Best to keep shut or just take a break or be independent. I try to be independent as much as I can. Actually I no longer even talk about him in the social networks I am a part of. I don't know why but I am losing interest from this too big of a crowd.

God knows when Chennai Express will release, I still await for a official announcement. No promo yet either. Just a new still recently came out which reminded me of Koyla for a few reasons. I love the whole excitement when a movie's promo comes out or the release date is approaching. I have already collected pictures and videos to celebrate Shah Rukh and Deepika's pair. Can't wait to post them and free space from my computer!

Well, guess time for me to get back to my work...until another time, bye.

Obviously I had to write this

January is nearly over and how can we be without any blood boiling incident? Hey, we are fans of a man who is most of the time misunderstood after all! Anyway, they say relatives are equal to bugs, Shah Rukh seems to be facing the exact problem from Pakistan where his late father's and his proud relatives live. While it is not his relatives making his life blurry at the moment but two people in the country are doing so. Two people you ask? Just two? Yeah well two people who perhaps Shah Rukh does not even hear the names of on a daily or weekly basis. 

But as usual, the Indian media doing it again, their colors don't seem to lie just like Shakira's hips don't lie. They covered neighbors' Hafeez's and Malik's irrelevant comments on Shah Rukh's essay and used ONE line from the essay on which, thousands have pitted their hatred for SRK on.

I sometimes become the inadvertent object of political leaders who choose to make me a symbol of all that they think is wrong and unpatriotic about Muslims in India.  There have been occasions when I have been accused of bearing allegiance to our neighboring nation rather than my own country - this even though I am an Indian, whose father fought for the freedom of India. Rallies have been held where leaders have exhorted me to leave and return what they refer to my "original homeland".

Okay he said that. But is this enough to make you question his loyalty to India? If he was an ordinary man and not a superstar and he wrote this, perhaps it would either get overshadowed or few people would read and agree/disagree and that's it. I agree with him although I am not an Indian. How irritated would a HUMAN BEING be if he is occasionally questioned "Are you Indian for real?" or are you this and that? I ask to all Indians, if someone questioned your loyalty to India, won't you feel angered? I don't even care if you're a Hindu or Muslim! Ask yourself this question. Why do you seem to forget that PUBLIC FIGURES like Shah Rukh are ALSO HUMAN BEINGS? 

If I were an aggressive American and I read his essay, I would tell him not to ever put his foot in the soil of USA. Because he cleverly bashed America and his whole message was pointed to Americans who thinks Muslims are terrorists. But I have been brought up better fortunately. You might wanna read the following lines from his essay.

I became so sick of being mistaken for some crazed terrorist who coincidentally carries the same last name as mine that I made a film, subtly titled My name is Khan (and I am not a terrorist) to prove a point. Ironically, I was interrogated at the airport for hours about my last name when I was going to present the film in America for the first time.

I wonder, at times, whether the same treatment is given to everyone whose last name just happens to be McVeigh (as in Timothy)??

I don’t intend to hurt any sentiments, but truth be told, the aggressor and taker of life follows his or her own mind. It has to nothing to do with a name, a place or his/her religion. It is a mind that has its discipline, its own distinction of right from wrong and its own set of ideologies. In fact, one might say, it has its own “religion”. This religions has nothing to do with the ones that have existed for centuries and been taught in mosques or churches. The call of the azaan or the words of the pope have no bearing on this person’s soul. His soul is driven by the devil. I, for one, refuse to be contextualized by the ignorance of his ilk.

Why are YOU reacting when WE, Americans should be reacting and bashing him? Grow up India and Pakistan! And perhaps read EVERYTHING before forming your opinion based on one piece of INCOMPLETE news.But if you just decide to hate on him, then I feel sorry for you that you are not able to love a man like him.

And India has the biggest democracy in the world right? Why isn't the most prominent face of India not allowed to speak his mind? Why can't you respect his point of view and move on with your life? Why make a big deal about it? Why should he be shushed when he receives ill treatment from any part of the world? Why are you being such hypocrites? Just because he's a movie star?

How is he a bad Indian citizen? I don't hear him ducking his yearly taxes. I never heard him outsourcing his hard earned funds to Pakistan or any other country. The whole world knows he's an Indian actor, not a Pakistani actor. He received honor from UNESCO for his charitable work IN India, not abroad. He adopted villages of India, not Pakistan. Be sure to consider his deeds (which happens to be much bigger than an ordinary Indian citizen's...the same citizen who forms an opinion about him) before dismissing him as non-loyal to his country India.

If you have problems with him earning money the way he does then it's his choice and people like you pay him for the job he does. He gives back as much as he earns. He is saving money for his kids who are Indian citizens. Do you still feel he's not a loyal Indian? Even after I have stated so many points? Then you are most welcome to go shove your so called patriotic ass somewhere else. But do not make the mistake of judging Shah Rukh. You are no one to judge him and hurt him with your silly comments and opinions. 

Clash of Opinions Take Two

Here we go again! There is hullabaloo going on again in the SRK fandom!  This time, it's for the new project partly confirmed by Shah Rukh himself, Happy New Year by Farah Khan. Most of you must have gone, "Yay! Another SRK movie", "Awesome! OSO and MHN were great masala movies and were such BIG HITS" or "WTF? The other day they fought, today a movie?"

My reaction was similar to the third one while being split between the first two at the beginning. I get excited for all new SRK movies and considering the fact that OSO and MHN were superb movies, I'd have gotten very excited but then I reminisced the slapgate of Janurary 31st, 2012. Fabulous time! Shah Rukh had slapped Shirish Kundar, Farah's husband. After that, Farah said quite a bit of crap about Shah Rukh which totally removed the little remaining adoration I had for Farah. After that, I am not even ashamed to say but I hate Farah and her guts.

Somebody had guessed that the media would create news of Shah Rukh and Farah doing a movie after they patch up. I laughed it off saying Shah Rukh wouldn't do her movie since he may forgive people but he doesn't forget. But rumors started coming in of Shah Rukh "immediately agreeing" to do Happy New Year, a movie he denied for years. Even then I did not believe it. Later news came in that Shah Rukh is busy with other projects so HNY will have to be on the hold for a few years. I was soooooooooo happy that the media would finally shut up!!

A few days back, came the word straight from the horse's mouth, a.k.a Shah Rukh himself confirmed that he will be doing HNY but no one else is confirmed for other roles. My faith is shaken up quite a bit. Most people are giving examples of OSO and MHN to me, saying they were hits and I don't have to worry if HNY goes on to become similar. I have been least concerned about Farah's last movie, TMK. What I hate is that why did Shah Rukh agree to do a film with the lady who humiliated him so much? I will let go of Shirish too because he's not part of HNY (I hope). This is a question of self respect. I never thought in my whole life that I would go against a project of Shah Rukh's. But the fact is if I am not happy with something, I cannot at all be happy about it.

Imagine if Shah Rukh and Salman patched up and they agreed to do a movie together. Would you support it? I understand that SRK-Farah and SRK-Salman are two cases poles apart but the fact is that both Farah and Salman are the volunteered victims of my hatred. They hurt Shah Rukh which means they hurt me as well.

But I am still positive that Happy New Year won't happen. If I let superstitions kick in then see? It has been in writing mode for so long and the movie was supposed to happen before Om Shanti Om but problems. I hope without any damage to Shah Rukh's bank account, the movie still gets delayed or does not happen at all. I have never missed a Shah Rukh Khan movie and it will hurt me a lot emotionally to miss out on any of his releases. I can wait months/years for his movies but if Happy New Year is made, I cannot watch it.

The rest is up to you. If you would still like to celebrate HNY with Farah and Shah Rukh, I respect your decision but I thought I'd write this in order to present the idea why selected few are against HNY.

A Dilemma

Love. Shah Rukh Khan. That is it. Shah Rukh Khan somehow equals to love. For fans, that is how it is. Fans after all only love and respect SRK. They never criticize him. They applaud him. But then there are some fans who dare to criticize him. Then they get tagged as Shah Rukh Khan haters. But are they really hating SRK? Let's think...

Majority of SRK critical fans want him to do roles that are eccentric. He needs to get rid of the trademark mannerisms. Stop working with Karan Johar and such directors. They sound concerned about Shah Rukh's #1 spot. Other fans who make up the majority say no, he is still #1, they'll watch all movies SRK makes, no matter how they are. Now, are we sure that if Shah Rukh continues to romance girls half his age will continue to make him #1? Then what's the difference between him and Salman? Salman also does commercial movies, he never even attempted to do anything different. But I agree, Shah Rukh did attempt different roles. But it is just not enough I guess. I mention his age because age is definitely a factor when it comes to the film line. Especially in India. Somehow, toward male actors, audience are lenient than towards female actors aged beyond 30. Shah Rukh, Aamir, Salman, Sanjay, etc. are lucky that the audience still watches their movies. Had they been females, they would have retired ages back.

Anyway, coming back to critical fans, I will agree that Shah Rukh should work with more different directors. We need him in more critical-ac-claimable movies like Chak De! India and My Name Is Khan. He has to step aside from the commercial aspect of entertainment. Directors have to push him out of his comfort zone. However, I don't agree with him not working with Karan Johar because I believe Karan is the first director who pushed the envelope with Shah Rukh in My Name Is Khan and in some sense, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna as well. I can expect another MNIK caliber movie from Karan with Shah Rukh as the main lead. Karan is one director who goes to the next level always with each and every one of his movies that he directs.

Shah Rukh is at an age when we, the fans, will applaud him for starring in a movie with a leading lady half his age but others won't. And it is a fact that we fans are outnumbered by the "others". If we want SRK to get more fans in the upcoming time period, it is in his best interest to star in movies that not only sets a different trend but also pleases a minority or majority. He tried to please a majority with Ra.One but failed to do so because he, himself focused on wrapping the movie in a never before seen coating and left the inside to his team who failed him. Yes, now I have to say it that Ra.One lacked in terms of scripting and other ways. But technically it was a perfect movie, thanks to its world class VFX. It had a too simple script which seemed more dependent on proverbs and quotes rather than original dialogues.

Shah Rukh has to go back to his roots, as the actor who proved to the world that yes, the main lead of a film can be an anti-hero too. I am not saying he should do more anti-hero roles which is not bad either, considering how much people liked him in his last release, Don 2. But what I am saying is he needs to do different roles. Of course he does a variety of roles, none of his past roles are the same but the tag is the same, "Romantic Hero". He has to get rid of that tag. I want him to get the tag of a "Versatile Hero". He has to do more Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani (has a loose romantic track), Swades (same), Chak De! India (no romantic track at all), One 2 Ka 4 (again a loose romantic track). Money is not everything now. As his own dialogue goes, "Kabhi kabhi kuch jeetne ke liya kuch haar na parta hai aur haar ke jeetne wale ko baazigar kehte hain." We need our Baazigar Khan back! Swades and Dil Se were examples of how Shah Rukh was a baazigar, they bombed at the box office in India but won hearts instead.

I know, I contradicted myself. But I cannot ignore the fact that I cannot be selfish and take away from Shah Rukh's potentiality by never ever suggesting him to do this and that or criticizing him. Over the past few weeks, I have come to understood that truly, critics are one's biggest lovers. A person who tells you about your flaws is not your hater but he/she just wants you to do better. Bigger is not always better. I am sure Shah Rukh knows that and I don't have to tell him that.

At the end of the day, it is not me, who Shah Rukh will listen to, he will continue doing what he wants to. He hates criticism that are given in bad tone but I am not using a bad tone nor do I intend to. I, being one of his neutral fans, want him to do better and yet want him to do movies which give him pleasure. He has to balance between pleasure and differentiability, meaning he has to find fun and excitement beyond his comfort zone.

Red Chillies Entertainment - Truly Entertaining...

Red Chillies Entertainment is Shah Rukh's home production. To stay safe, Gauri signs the checks for all kinds of payments. Earlier Shah Rukh had a production called Dreamz Unlimited.

From Dreamz Unlimited, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani, Asoka and Chalte Chalte were produced.

From Red Chillies Entertainment, lots! :D

Although the company (RCE) has been around for long, I must say...they need to improve more. It's one company that requires more professional and helpful people. I know I sound a bit rude perhaps but RCE has a bunch of brainless idiotic employees. I speak from experience with them.

I won't get into details about my experience. But I did have a little interaction with them last year. They are just pitiful. Of course the issue I had called up about didn't get solved, I think they didn't understand what I wanted in the first place, although I spoke English and not my terrible Hindi. I was mad at them but later I laughed so much at them. It was rather hilarious.

They not only produce fun movies but also have a fun staff...bade mazaaki hai ji (they are very joking people). On a serious note, here's a open request for RCE to hire me and some of my friends! Here's my resume:

 I am not Indian, nor am I even my original country's citizen, all I know is that I will work hard, will never beg to meet SRK, I won't even take salary if I am given to live in Mannat...no, that's too much. I mean, I will even work for Rs. 20,000 a month and do everything in my capacity to make RCE one of the best film productions in India by all means. And I promise not to act like a typical fan-girl in front of my boss(es).

Look, many people grew up using say...Colgate and love that toothpaste a lot. Then they get a job at Colgate, you can expect me to behave the same if you hire me. I grew up seeing and loving SRK but that doesn't mean I'll faint in front of him, ask him to show me his six-pack abs or any other hideous act. I will work diligently. Because I care for the corporation of Red Chillies Entertainment.

Skills? I can write, I am creative, (read my blog, website(s), twitter) lead, work with well-mannered people. I can cook too...in case RCE has parties. I love organizing stuff, from files to parties. I can even act. I can do everything when it comes RCE because I love this company like my baby and I can become anything for it.

Experience? None, except for a volunteering thing I did. Have personal experiences of money-handling and handling external affairs. I have the experience of being an SRK fan for 20 years now. I learned from Shah Rukh's success and applied them to my life. Same with his failures.

Now RCE people: HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME HIRE ME you whores and bastards of bitches!

Untitled Ranting

Hello folks, hope 2012 has been treating you fairly well so far. As for me, 2012 so far has been great and emotional. I think for Shah Rukh, it's been the same too....he just started shooting for his upcoming film with Yash Chopra and won some deserving awards which are great but he's been quite emotional...well since last year which has been showing on his face.

It is not a top secret as to why he'd feel emotional. Well I won't get into that but I will speak about some recent things. I have been reading, seeing, listening, sensing, a lot of Shah Rukh Khan the past few weeks. In fact, daily. I never spent so much time behind SRK. Anyway, I have gone back in time and came back to the present. I lived my childhood with him now living my ongoing adulthood with him. He has matured a lot and so have I.

Before you jump into conclusions, let me clear it. I am talking about his time in the profession of acting and my time in the profession of acting like a human. If the film industry is a playhouse to Shah Rukh then this world is a Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) cage for me. We both get hurt, fight, win, lose, etc. But at the end of the day, we both are still alive and going on.

The biggest common thing we have in each other is what I just said above. It's hard to breathe in both professions when everyone around you are so much messed up and selfish. But toying around whatever we come face to face with has been our formula of staying alive and moving on in life. Since the whole world runs on the theory of survival of the fittest, Shah Rukh's industry is no different. In fact, the theory is much more louder and apparent in his industry than any other. Each and every hour, somebody somewhere says that Shah Rukh has lost his #1 place in the industry. His so-called rival, both personal and professional, has taken the #1 spot. When Shah Rukh came in the industry, numbers came with him. Thanks to him, something called box office records was introduced in the film industry. He continued to crush his own records throughout his career so the media did not give a damn. Now other actors have FINALLY understood the game at box office, media and fans are now concerned about SRK losing his spot.

Yes, this is the world we live in. A person adopts a hoard of boys and girls of all ages who were a MESS and becomes their father. He teaches them the ABCD of survival in the industry and the whole fucking world. Then the caretakers (media) of those boys and girls are concerned about the father's fatherhood because two or three of those boys are spotted trying to act like grown up men just like their father. OMG!!! There are too many boys who are trying to act like someone who they are not!

To them, I would like to say one thing, actually many. Firstly, Shah Rukh paved the road on which you are walking. It would have been a bumpy ride for you in the industry, be thankful for SRK. Secondly, learn to respect him rather taking a indirect or direct dig at Shah Rukh. Whether you are younger or older than him, have some respect for the man. Thirdly, if you are Aamir or Salman, "Khan", stop keeping track of your baap's movie box office figures. If you need to keep track of something then it's your bloody fucking BUSINESS. Whether it's going to the store room to check on how many bottles of booze you have left or finding another surrogate mother for another child...just mind your own shit. Lastly, if any of you think that the industry is high school or something and think that starting gossips and rumors will destroy Shah Rukh's image and position...I will say one thing, GROW THE FUCK UP!

OK, I am done ranting and comparing my life with Shah Rukh's. I have nothing else to say. Said enough for today. May Allah grant us all wisdom and strength to Shah Rukh.

Adios!

Shah Rukh is not the #1 actor

Past couple of weeks, we all must of have read many articles on the topic of Shah Rukh being no longer the number #1 actor in India. True, yep, that's true. Can you count how long it had been since Shah Rukh's last release? One year and nearly 6 months now. Currently, he is not #1 BUT speaking of all-time, nobody can take 1st place besides Shah Rukh.

Number games are popular in Bollywood. We all know that, right? That's why some people are asking if Shah Rukh has really lost his ROLE NUMBER in the class of Bollywood. Some say Shah Rukh has strong competition from his seniors, Aamir Khan and Salman Khan. Well, I had read this one article recently which is the source of inspiration for this blog post. It was written by Joginder Tuteja , titled "Reflections - Why so negative?"

The article talked about how people have been acting lately regarding Shah Rukh and his position in Bollywood. He also mentioned the way all these talk would settle down, and they are: Ra.One and Don 2.

I know I have said this quite a few times and will say it again. Don't get angry if you read articles or watch videos which pass a negative feeling to any SRK fan, keep your head cool, don't get into arguments. Because my friend, speaking is not enough. In today's world, nobody remembers the past, the present is more important. If you keep giving examples of how hit OSO, MNIK or any other movie was, it won't make any difference.

So how can you fight back? Watch Don 2 and Ra.One when they release. Watch both of them as much as you can. Let's make them the biggest hits of India! Let's break all records! And let's never compare the two with each other!!

You see, Shah Rukh earned the #1 position because we watch his movies to heart's content. This time, let us go out and watch these two movies to heart's content AND to shut those idiots who have been insulting our King!

So tell me, are you going to watch both Don 2 and Ra.One???