According to Shah Rukh Khan, he is more at ease portraying his age in Dunki: “Because I appear young
Shah Rukh Khan’s film Dunki opened in cinemas on Thursday, but reviews were not entirely positive. Taapsee Pannu and Vicky Kaushal are also featured in the Rajkumar Hirani-directed movie. Being ‘age honest’ in Dunki was something that SRK disclosed for the first time, during a recent interview with the film director.
Shah Rukh Khan compared this part to his character in Jawan, saying he feels more at ease portraying people who are closer to his own age. “I feel like I should play roles that are age-centric now that I am 58,” he said. Jawan was more of an “in-your-face,” commercial kind of character. It was an exaggerated elderly figure, but I won’t call it a caricature. He is so genuine in this (Dunki). It’s also fascinating to be that age and have lived for that long. I think this is the first time I’ve ever been “age- honest” in Dunki. It’s closer to my actual age. And I believe I’ve done my best to portray it as authentic as I can. I don’t really try, but I feel at ease acting my age and other people’s. People don’t want to cast me in older parts because I seem young.”
Rajkumar Hirani said during the conversation that he chose the actors only after drafting the screenplay. He remarked, “I decided whatever the character is, we will (him and SRK) work together,” breaking the norm for SRK.
Speaking on his hiatus from the entertainment industry, Shah Rukh Khan said, “I didn’t really take a break for four years.” To be honest, I felt that I had become more detached from myself throughout the last year and a half. An actor must have a deep relationship with oneself. However, sometimes movies may be so massive and impactful that people lose sight of their own real-life experiences—not in a negative sense. I thus only want to be by myself.”
“I figured I should sit for six to eight months, and to be honest, I didn’t have any film either,” he said. In breaks, I don’t sign movies. I don’t worry about what movie to sign next. Internally, I’m a touch lazy. I believe I took a year-long sabbatical before the epidemic struck, making it four years in all. It was not the result of a deliberate effort or cognitive process.”
He went on to describe his hiatus in more detail, saying, “I saw a lot of movies during that time, in every genre. Because we work on sets, we often don’t have time to watch movies. I reasoned that because I liked certain movies a lot but the public didn’t, I needed to work on improving those movies. Thus, such ideas occurred. For all actors, the most important thing is to amuse as many people as possible. Though financially satisfying, I believe that every creative in the film industry wants to know how much they were able to entertain. Thus, I’m overjoyed that I was able to provide so much entertainment this year. The highest high I’ve had this year has been finishing my enjoyable year with Dunki, and I believe the audience will enjoy it immensely. It may keep me entertained for two or three years at a time.”
