Comedian Vir Das has responded to a question on how he would explain actor Shah Rukh Khan to people in the US. Speaking with Hasan Minhaj on his YouTube channel, Vir talked about his experience in the early days of his career after meeting Shah Rukh Khan.
Vir Das praises Shah Rukh Khan as a host, lauds his humour
Vir recalled a time when he was invited to Shah Rukh’s home in Mumbai, Mannat. He shared how he wrote “terribly immature” jokes, but Shah Rukh sat with him for three nights and played a wonderful host.
He said that when a comedian writes jokes for another person, he expects him to perform well. “He’s the only guy I’ve seen who will change it, and it’s just better. He understands a joke; he knows his way around a joke. He understands the misdirects, a pause.”
Vir on how Shah Rukh makes his fans feel
Vir shared how Shah Rukh came to Mumbai from Delhi, “looked out at the sea”, decided to “become King of the city” and turned it into reality. “He makes you believe it could happen to you, too. But at the end of the day, even if it doesn’t, you’re just glad it happened for him. You feel the room move when he walks in.” Hasan was impressed by how well Vir Das captured the feeling of the phenomenon that Shah Rukh Khan has become for desis.
Hasan Minhaj shares what he thinks about SRK
Hasan explained how he talks about Shah Rukh to people in the US. He tells them, “Do you know movies? He’s just the movies. I didn’t even use Tom Cruise as an analogy. I’m like, ‘He’s is as foundational to cinema as the opening credits are’. He’s in the DNA code of it.”
Vir talked about how fans would react after meeting Tom and Shah Rukh. He said while they would cheer for Tom, they would gasp and be in awe of Shah Rukh.
About Shah Rukh’s career
Shah Rukh featured in many serials before making in debut with Deewana in 1992. He starred in Fauji, Dil Dariya, Wagle Ki Duniya, and Circus, among others. In the last three decades, featured in Chamatkar, Baazigar, Darr, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, Anjaam, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Yes Boss, Dil To Pagal Hai, Devdas, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Om Shanti Om, Jab Tak Hai Jaan, Fan, and Jawan, among many others.
Fans will see him next in King, directed by Siddharth Anand. The film also stars Suhana Khan, Jackie Shroff, Anil Kapoor, Arshad Warsi, Rani Mukerji, Abhishek Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Jaideep Ahlawat, and Abhay Verma. In 2023, Shah Rukh featured in three films–Pathaan, Jawan and Dunki, all of which were box office successes.
