‘SHAH RUKH THE PUREST ACTOR I’VE MET AND WORKED WITH’
Filmmaker Aanand L Rai says that Shah Rukh Khan, who plays a dwarf in his next film, is full of patience and passion for the craft
Filmmaker Aanand L Rai, who has worked with actor Shah Rukh Khan for the first time, in his upcoming film Zero, can’t stop gushing about the actor and his dedication on the film set. Rai says that the ‘superstar’ immerses himself into each character that he plays.
“He has a lot of patience. Zero is tough, and a timeconsuming film, and given the intensity [involved], one runs the risk of getting restless. Earlier, I used to think that I am the most patient person on the sets, but after working with Shah Rukh, my thinking changed. He is the most passionate actor, and I think he is also the purest that I have ever met and worked with,” says the director, who has made films such as Raanjhanaa (2013) and the Tanu Weds Manu series.
Zero stars Shah Rukh as a dwarf and is being seen as one
of the toughest and most ambitious assignments of the actor’s career so far. However, questions about why Rai did not consider casting a vertically-challenged actor in the role, in the way of Peter Dinklage in Hollywood, have been raised. Rai responds that casting Khan in the role was intentional, and essential.
“The story has the potential to reach out to a greater audience. I needed somebody of a bigger stature to get into that space. The story for me is a change of perspective. That change of height is a change of emotion, is what I have been learning while working on this film. For me, making the film with someone who people have seen before and loved, and for them to now see him playing a different character and size, will give them a different emotional experience. It’s a completely different space. I needed somebody like Shah Rukh to play this character,” explains Rai, who has also produced films such as Happy Bhag Jayegi (2016), Shubh Mangal Savdhan (2017) and Manmarziyaan.
And the connect the filmmaker enjoys with the actor goes beyond their professional relationship. Rai shares that just like Shah Rukh, he hails from Delhi, which helped both of them bond better. “The Delhi sentiment’ is obviously common and no doubt it’s one of the things that clicked between us. We both come from middle class families, so we would talk about how two middle class people have come together,” Rai signs off.
Earlier, I used to think that I am the most patient person on the sets, but after working with Shah Rukh, my thinking changed. He is the most passionate actor, and I think he is also the purest that I have ever met. AANAND L RAI FILMMAKER