Life style

Shah Rukh Khan grabs life by its lapels — and refuses to let go. This man has never done anything by half measures. And today what drives the turbines of Shah Rukh's not inconsiderable enthusiasm is his company, Dreamz Unlimited.

Shah Rukh attends his multi-storeyed Bandra office everyday when he is in Mumbai. Here, the groundwork for his next ambitious megaproject — Asoka The Great — is taking shape. Simultaneously, Shah Rukh keeps himself busy with his web site and other business matters — hiring people, overseeing concepts and performing as a veritable fount of ideas. "I don't think one should limit oneself to doing just one thing," the star has said, "I feel I can do more than one thing at a time."

Indeed, energy and involvement are the twin virtues which spring to mind when anybody in the film industry talks of Shah Rukh. 'Yes, he is like Beep Beep, the road runner," chuckles Juhi Chawla, close friend, business partner and sometime baby-sitter to Shah Rukh's son, Aryan.

Shah Rukh's almost legendary energy has to be largely inborn considering he seems to subsist on cigarettes and Pepsi: there's a soft drink dispenser at home and at office too. But Shah Rukh realises his energy has stood him in good stead.

It's made him arguably the biggest male star of the 90s, one of its most prolific hitmeisters and definitely its most awarded (four Filmfare Best Actor trophies since 1993 ... and counting).

Sure, he stumbled at the beginning of the new millennium with his overhyped debut production, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani, which performed much below expectations at the box office. A lot of speculation resulted especially since it coincided with the release of the Hrithik Roshan blockbuster, Kaho Na Pyar Hai. But the thumping response to his role in Mohabbatein proved beyond doubt that his appeal is still intact.

Now, Shah Rukh is at an interesting stage of his career. He can either choose to play safe or expand his creative horizons. Looks like he's opting for the latter. Directors like David Dhawan and Ram Gopal Varma have been waiting to begin films with Shah Rukh, but Shah Rukh has chosen to start Ashoka The Great, which is being directed by noted cinematographer and director Santosh Sivan who will be handling a production of this stage for the every first time. Never one to bother about the Best Chest lists, Shah Rukh is now enthusiastically working out for this role.

Perhaps, what attracts Shah Rukh to the idea of creative ground-breaking is the fact that he won big-time stardom with two unconventional roles as murderous heroes in Baazigar and Darr. Born in 1965 to comfortably-off parents, this Delhi-bred actor came don to Mumbai soon after his mother's death. Early films like Deewana ('92) hinted at the histrionic potential which was brought to the fore with his searing performances in the twin triumphs — Baazigar and Darr (both released in late '93).

His subsequent super-success mellowed Shah Rukh and, if anything, made him a better person. He was stridently opinionated when he first came to films. But his personality has since revealed measures of empathy and a desire to help. Strangely, this has co-incided with the sun-washed emotionalism of his latter films like Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Dil To Pagal Hai and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.

Shah Rukh readily admits that a lot of his geniality and his strength comes from the anchor of his life, his wife, Gauri. His family is now picture perfect with a son, Aryan and a daughter Suhana. Also important are his beloved dogs and his proud possession, his huge Bandra bungalow. "It seems I have it all, but my parameters are different," says Shah Rukh.

There are even now a million ideas bubbling and brewing in Shah Rukh's head. "I want to improve the technical side of our industry. We have great creative thinkers, now if companies like Dreamz can arrange the latest cinema equipment we can do so much more."

Excitement courses through Shah Rukh's veins as he seeks fresh worlds to conquer. The star jokes that when he goes to heaven he would not give God a list of things he has done, but a list of things that he has not done. "That's because I hope that list will be much shorter."