Before Shah Rukh Khan became the megastar he is today, he was a newcomer in Mumbai with little more than dreams and determination. In those early days, it was actor, writer, and producer Viveck Vaswani who offered him a helping hand. When SRK had nowhere to stay, Vaswani opened his doors and gave him a home, a gesture the superstar has often acknowledged over the years.
Now, as Shah Rukh Khan recently turned 60, Vaswani reflected on their long friendship and his feelings about the way Bollywood was portrayed in Aryan Khan’s debut series The Ba***d Boys of Bollywood. Speaking to Radio Nasha Official, Vaswani shared his honest disappointment with the show’s depiction of the film industry. “What I felt was that when Shah Rukh came into the industry, the amount of love and respect that Aziz Mirza and Nirmala gave him, and that me and my mother gave him, and Saeed Mirza gave him… all of them gave him so much love, so much affection. So when did he come to the conclusion that Bollywood is a gutter and everyone in it is bad people? He is the one person who was treated with kid gloves as a rank outsider.”
Expanding further, Vaswani recalled how warmly SRK was embraced by those around him when he first arrived in Mumbai. “Not once did he struggle from the road. He was living in Cuffe Parade. And then after he got married, when he couldn’t stay in my house, Aziz gave him a house to stay in Bandra. Haroon treated him like a brother, Aziz’s son. Raheela treated him like a brother, Aziz’s daughter. I treated him like a brother. I gave everything I could to him. Everyone treated him so well, so warmly, without a single rift. So for me, and maybe I am the only one in this whole country who may have felt like this, but I am also the only one in the country whose house he lived in for two years. Toh haq banta hai to say: Why did you think we were a bad industry? Why did you personally think that everyone was bad? I can understand you showing whatever you showed. But why was there not one redeeming character in the show? Someone who says: Yes, maybe everything is bad, but there are also some good, decent human beings here. And he is living proof of that.”
Also Read | Shah Rukh Khan turns 60: Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Fan reveal an actor freed from bonds of superstardom
Vaswani also admitted that the show’s tone made him introspect deeply, wondering if he had unknowingly done something wrong to see such a portrayal. “So I just thought, did I do something wrong? Am I to blame? Did I say something wrong or hurt him enough for him to think that Bollywood is such a bad, such an evil place? I don’t think so. That was the thought I had. Because when a boy has been given VIP treatment by the industry, being a non–nepo kid, being a newcomer from Delhi, everyone gave him work, everyone gave him respect. Whether it was Rakesh Rajiv Mehra, Eagle Films, they all gave him films. He didn’t let them down either. He worked very hard. But why such a… you know… such a portrayal? I mean, this is my industry. If India is my janam-bhoomi, then Bollywood is my karam-bhoomi. But then it is Shah Rukh’s karam-bhoomi as well.”
The veteran actor-producer added that he understood his opinion might not be shared by everyone, perhaps not even by Shah Rukh himself. “So to show karam-bhoomi in that way, I thought that was a little sad for me. That was the only thing. And everyone has loved the show. Nobody will agree with my point of view. Shah Rukh will not agree with my point of view. But you asked me for the truth. And I felt a little sad. So that’s all I felt when I saw it. I binge-watched it. I enjoyed watching the show. I thought the cameos were fabulous. I thought Emraan Hashmi was absolutely superb. And I am very pleasantly surprised by the kind of performance Bobby Deol has given.”
Meanwhile, on the work front, Shah Rukh Khan is gearing up for his next project with filmmaker Siddharth Anand, titled King. The film’s first look, unveiled on Khan’s 60th birthday, has already generated massive excitement among fans and the industry alike.
Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.
© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
