‘Badshah of Bollywood’ Shah Rukh Khan is an institution in himself. Shah Rukh’s journey from coming to Bombay (now Mumbai) and becoming a superstar in the Hindi film industry continues to inspire his million fans around the globe. King Khan once got candid about his realization of being a superstar for the first time. SRK recalled that a director looked at him and called him a star.

During his interview with CNN in 2004, Shah Rukh Khan reminisced about his journey in Bollywood and learning how the Hindi film industry works. Shah Rukh recalled the time he was shooting near his bungalow, Mannat and a filmmaker referred to him as a “star”.

“The director looked at me and said ‘you are a star’. So I was taken aback. He said, ‘I went to a barber and he asked me, ‘Would I like a haircut like Shah Rukh Khan?’ which means in India you are a star. So it happened I think with the first few films they did very well with no input from me as far as commercial success was concerned. I wasn’t really aware,” King Khan said.

The Kuch Kuch Hota Hai actor took us back to his initial career in Bollywood. The superstar called the industry “familial” where there weren’t “too many outsiders” back then. SRK shared that he didn’t know that his first four movies were “special” and admitted that the superstar initially had no idea about commercial success at the box office. 

King Khan continued that he learned about being picky while choosing his roles in films. Shah Rukh recalled that he wasn’t supposed to wear shirts and jeans at parties and be well-mannered while meeting other celebrities there. 

SRK added that initially, people found him “irrelevant” with how he presented himself back then. The Jawan star also shared that his friends, especially his female co-stars, often laughed at him while being surprised that he became a film star.

On the work front, Shah Rukh Khan now has Sujoy Ghosh’s directorial venture, King in his kitty, co-starring his daughter, Suhana Khan. SRK made his film debut with Deewana in 1992.