Biography
Shah Rukh Khan attended the elite St. Columba's School in New Delhi where he won the school's highest accolade, The Sword of Honour.
Khan was born in 1965 to Muslim[6] parents of Pathan descent in New Delhi, India.[7] His father, Taj Mohammed Khan, was an Indian independence activist from Peshawar, British India. According to Khan, his paternal grandfather was originally from Afghanistan.[8] His mother, Lateef Fatima, was the adopted daughter of Major General Shah Nawaz Khan of the Janjua Rajput clan, who served as a General in the Indian National Army of Subash Chandra Bose.[9] Khan's father came to New Delhi from Qissa Khawani Bazaar in Peshawar before the partition of India,[10] while his mother's family came from Rawalpindi, British India.[11] Khan has an elder sister named Shehnaz.[12]
Growing up in Rajendra Nagar neighbourhood,[13] Khan attended St. Columba's School where he was accomplished in sports, drama, and academics. He won the Sword of Honour, an annual award given to the student who best represents the spirit of the school. Khan later attended the Hansraj College (1985–1988) and earned his Bachelors degree in Economics (honors). Though he pursued a Masters Degree in Mass Communications at Jamia Millia Islamia, he later opted out to make his career in Bollywood.[14]
After the death of his parents, Khan moved to Mumbai in 1991.[15] In that same year, before any of his films were released, he married Gauri Chibber, a Hindu, in a traditional Hindu wedding ceremony on 25 October 1991.[16] They have two children, son Aryan (b. 1997) and daughter Suhana (b. 2000). According to Khan, while he strongly believes in Allah, he also values his wife's religion. At home, his children follow both religions, with the Qur'an being situated next to the Hindu deities.[17]
In 2005, Nasreen Munni Kabir produced a two-part documentary on Khan, titled The Inner and Outer World of Shah Rukh Khan. Featuring his 2004 Temptations concert tour, the film contrasted Khan's inner world of family and daily life with the outer world of his work. The book Still Reading Khan, which details his family life, was released in 2006. Another book by Anupama Chopra, King of Bollywood: Shahrukh Khan and the seductive world of Indian cinema, was released in 2007. It describes the world of Bollywood through Khan's life.[18][19]
Film career
Background
Khan studied acting under celebrated Theatre Director Barry John at Delhi's Theatre Action Group (TAG). In 2007, John commented thus on his former pupil that, "The credit for the phenomenally successful development and management of Shahrukh's career goes to the superstar himself."[20] Khan made his acting debut in 1988 when he appeared in the television series, Fauji, playing the role of Commando Abhimanyu Rai.[15] He went on to appear in several other television serials, most notably in the 1989 serial, Aziz Mirza's Circus, which depicted the life of circus performers.[21] The same year, Khan also had a minor role in the made-for-television English-language film, In Which Annie Gives it Those Ones, which was based on life at Delhi University and was written by Arundhati Roy. When Khan appeared in those teleserials, people found in him some resemblance with legendary actor Dilip Kumar and also compared his acting style with the thespian.[22]
1990s
Upon moving from New Delhi to Mumbai in 1991,[15] Khan made his Bollywood movie debut in Deewana (1992). The movie became a box office hit, and launched his career in Bollywood.[23] His performance won him a Filmfare Best Male Debut Award. He went on to star in Maya Memsaab, which generated some controversy because of his appearance in an "explicit" sex scene in the movie.[24]
In 1993, Khan won acclaim for his performances in villainous roles as an obsessive lover and a murderer, respectively, in the box office hits, Darr and Baazigar.[25] In Khan's entry in Encyclopedia Britannica's "Encyclopedia of Hindi Cinema" it was stated that "he defied the image of the conventional hero in both these films and created his own version of the revisionist hero."[26] Darr marked his first collaboration with renowned film-maker Yash Chopra and his banner Yash Raj Films, the largest production company in Bollywood. Baazigar, which saw Khan portraying an ambiguous avenger who murders his girlfriend, shocked its Indian audience with an unexpected violation of the standard Bollywood formula.[27] His performance won him his first Filmfare Best Actor Award. In that same year, Khan played the role of a young musician in Kundan Shah's Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, a performance that earned him a Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance. Khan maintains that this is his all-time favourite among the movies he has acted in.[28] In 1994, Khan once again played an obsessive lover/psycho's role in Anjaam, co-starring alongside Madhuri Dixit. Though the movie was not a box office success, Khan's performance earned him the Filmfare Best Villain Award.[29]
In 1995, Khan starred in the two biggest hits of the year in India. His first release was Rakesh Roshan's Karan Arjun. The film, which dealt with reincarnation, became the second-highest grossing film of the year.[30] He followed it with Aditya Chopra's directorial debut, the romance Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. A major critical and commercial success, the movie became the year's top-grossing production in India.[31] In 2007, it entered its twelfth year in Mumbai theaters. By then the movie had grossed over 12 billion rupees, making it one of India's biggest movie blockbusters.[32] Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge won ten Filmfare Awards, and Khan's performance as a young NRI who falls for Kajol's character while on a college vacation, won him his second Best Actor Award. In 2005, Indiatimes Movies ranked the movie amongst the 25 Must See Bollywood Films, citing it as a "trendsetter of sorts".[33] In that same year's retrospective review by Rediff, Raja Sen stated, "Khan gives a fabulous performance, redefining the Lover for the 1990s with great panache. He's cool and flippant, but sincere enough to appeal to the junta. The performance itself is, like the best in the business, played well enough to come across as effortless, as non-acting."[34]
1996 was a disappointing year for Khan as all his movies released that year failed to do well at the box office.[35] This was, however, followed by a comeback in 1997. He saw success with Subhash Ghai's social drama Pardes — one of the biggest hits of the year — and Aziz Mirza's comedy Yes Boss, a moderately successful feature.[36] His second project with Yash Chopra as a director, Dil to Pagal Hai became that year's second highest-grossing movie, and he won his third Filmfare Best Actor Award for his role as a stage director who falls in love with one of his new actresses.[36]
In 1998, Khan starred in Karan Johar's directorial debut, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which was the biggest hit of the year.[37] His performance won him his fourth Best Actor award at the Filmfare. He won critical praise for his performance in Mani Ratnam's Dil Se. The movie did not do well at the Indian box office, though it was a commercial success overseas.[38] Khan's only release in 1999, Baadshah, was an average grosser.[39]
2000s
Khan at the Zee Carnival in Sun Tech City, Singapore, in 2008
Khan's success continued with Aditya Chopra's 2000 film, Mohabbatein, co-starring Amitabh Bachchan. It did well at the box office, and Khan's performance as a college teacher won him his second Critics Award for Best Performance. He also starred in Mansoor Khan's action film Josh. The film starred Khan as the leader of a Christian gang in Goa and Aishwarya Rai as his twin sister, and was also a box office success.[40] In that same year, Khan set up his own production house, Dreamz Unlimited with Juhi Chawla (see below). Both Khan and Chawla starred in the first movie of their production house, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani.[40] His collaboration with Karan Johar continued in 2001 with the family drama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham which was the second biggest hit of the year. He also received favorable reviews for his performance as Emperor Asoka in the historical epic, Asoka, a partly fictionalised account of the life of Ashoka the Great (304 BC–232 BC).[41]
In 2002, Khan received acclaim for playing the title role in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's award-winning period romance, Devdas. This was the third Hindi movie adaptation of Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay's well-known novel of the same name, and surfaced as one of the biggest hits of that year.[42] Khan also starred opposite Salman Khan and Madhuri Dixit in the family-drama Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam, which did well at the box office.[42] In 2003, Khan starred in the moderately successful romantic drama, Chalte Chalte.[43] That same year, he starred in the tearjerker, Kal Ho Naa Ho, written by Karan Johar and directed by Nikhil Advani. Khan's performance in this movie as a man with a fatal heart disease was appreciated. The movie proved to be one of the year's biggest hits in India and Bollywood's biggest hit in the overseas markets.[43]
2004 was a particularly good year for Khan, both commercially and critically. He starred in Farah Khan's directorial debut, the action comedy Main Hoon Na. The movie did well at the box office. He then played the role of an Indian officer, Veer Pratap Singh in Yash Chopra's love saga Veer-Zaara, which was the biggest hit of 2004 in both India and overseas.[44] The film relates the love story of Veer and a Pakistani woman Zaara Haayat Khan, played by Preity Zinta. Khan's performance in the film won him awards at several award ceremonies. In that same year, he received critical acclaim for his performance in Ashutosh Gowariker's drama Swades. He was nominated for the Filmfare Best Actor Award for all three of his releases in 2004, winning it for Swades.[44]
In 2006, Khan collaborated with Karan Johar for the fourth time with the melodrama Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna. It did well in India and much more so in the overseas market, becoming the biggest Bollywood hit in the overseas market of all-time.[45] His second release that year saw him playing the title role in the action film Don: The Chase Begins Again, a remake of the 1978 hit Don. The movie was a success.[45]
Khan's success continued with a few more highly popular films. One of his most successful works was the multiple award-winning 2007 film, Chak De India, about the Indian women's national hockey team. Earning over Rs 639 million, Chak De India became the third highest grossing movie of 2007 in India and won yet another Filmfare Best Actor Award for Khan.[46] The film was a major critical success.[47] In the same year Khan also starred in Farah Khan's 2007 film, Om Shanti Om. The film emerged as the year's highest grossing film in India and the overseas market, and became India's highest grossing production ever up to that point.[46] It earned him another nomination for Best Actor at the Filmfare ceremony. His 2008 release, the romantic drama Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi was a box office success. His only 2009 release was Billu where he played film superstar Saahil Khan who is reunited with his childhood friend Billu played by Irrfan Khan.
2010s
Khan's next film was My Name Is Khan, his fourth collaboration with director Karan Johar and the sixth movie in which he is paired with Kajol. Filming commenced in December 2008 in Los Angeles and ended in October 2009. While on one shoot in Los Angeles, along with his wife Gauri and director Karan Johar, he took a break from filming to attend the 66th Golden Globe Awards, held in Los Angeles, California, on 11 January 2009,[48][49] where he was introduced as the King of Bollywood.[50] Khan introduced Slumdog Millionaire, a movie he had previously turned down, along with a star from the film, Freida Pinto. My Name Is Khan was released on 12 February 2010.[51] Based on a true story, and set against the backdrop of perceptions on Islam post 11 September attacks, My Name Is Khan stars Khan as Rizwan Khan, a Muslim man suffering from Asperger syndrome who sets out on a journey across America on a mission to meet the country's President and clear his name. During a promotional visit to the United States, Khan was detained at Newark Airport, New Jersey because of the similarity of his last name to known terrorists.[52] Upon release, the film received positive reviews from critics and became the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time in the overseas market. Khan won his eighth Filmfare Award for Best Actor for his portrayal, thereby joining Dilip Kumar as the record holder in this category. He is currently filming for Anubhav Sinha's science fiction Ra.One opposite Kareena Kapoor, which is due for release on October 26, 2011.
Producer
Khan at the 2008 Berlin International Film Festival in Germany
Khan turned producer when he set up a production company called Dreamz Unlimited with Juhi Chawla and director Aziz Mirza in 1999. The first two of the films he produced and starred in: Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani (2000) and Asoka (2001) were box office failures.[41] However, his third film as a producer and star, Chalte Chalte (2003), proved a box office hit.[43]
In 2004, Khan set up another production company, Red Chillies Entertainment, and produced and starred in Main Hoon Na, another hit.[44] The following year, he produced and starred in the fantasy film Paheli, which did poorly.[53] It was, however, India's official entry to the Academy Awards for consideration for Best Foreign Language Film, but it did not pass the final selection. Also in 2005, Khan co-produced the supernatural horror film Kaal with Karan Johar, and performed an item number for the film with Malaika Arora Khan. Kaal was moderately successful at the box office.[53] His company has gone on to produce Om Shanti Om (2007), in which he starred, and Billu (2009), in which he played a supporting role as a Bollywood superstar.
Apart from film production, the company also has a visual effects studio known as Red Chillies VFX. It has also ventured into television content production, with shows like, The First Ladies, Ghar Ki Baat Hai', and Knights and Angels. Television advertisements are also produced by the company.[54]
In 2008, Red Chillies Entertainment became the owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders in the BCCI-backed IPL cricket competition.
Television
In 2007, Khan replaced Amitabh Bachchan as the host of the third series of the popular game show Kaun Banega Crorepati, the Indian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?.[55] The previous had hosted the show for five years from 2000–05. On 22 January 2007, Kaun Banega Crorepati aired with Khan as the new host[56] and later ended on 19 April 2007.[57]
On 25 April 2008, Khan began hosting the game show Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?, the Indian version of Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?,[58] whose last episode was telecasted on 27 July 2008, with Lalu Prasad Yadav as the special guest.[59]
In February 2011, he began hosting Zor Ka Jhatka, the Indian version of the American game show Wipeout, on Imagine TV.[60]
Awards and nominations
Main article: List of Shahrukh Khan's awards and nominations
Khan has been awarded several honours which includes the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award from the Government of India in 2005.[61] In April 2007, a life-size wax statue of Khan was installed at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, London. Another statue was installed at the Musée Grévin in Paris, the same year.[62] During the same year, he was accorded the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of the Arts and Literature) award by the French government for his “exceptional career”.[63] There are also statues in Hong Kong [64] and New York [65]
In October 2008, Khan was conferred the Darjah Mulia Seri Melaka which carries the honorific Datuk (in similar fashion to "Sir" in British knighthood), by the Yang di-Pertua Negeri Tun Mohd Khalil Yaakob, the head of state of Malacca in Malaysia. Khan was honoured for "promoting tourism in Malacca" by filming One Two Ka Four there in 2001. Some were critical of this decision.[66] He was also honoured with an honorary doctorate in arts and culture from Britain's University of Bedfordshire in 2009.[67]
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