It was a few years ago that Shah Rukh Khan proudly proclaimed: ‘I am the last of the superstars’. This statement has been debated and analysed to death in those writing on Hindi cinema in the years since. But now, a leading international publication has reasserted this claim. In a new profile of the superstar on his 60th birthday, American news platform CNN called the actor ‘the last of India’s mythic superstars.’ The fans agree almost unanimously.

CNN calls Shah Rukh the last Indian superstar

The article, headlined ‘The last of India’s mythic superstars,’ is as much a profile of the actor’s stardom as it is an analysis of how the next generation may never be able to match up. “In today’s fractured attention economy of streaming, the barbed wire of polarising politics, and the cacophony of social media, winning adoration on this scale isn’t just difficult; it might be impossible,” states the piece.

“While the adoring thousands gather outside his home to worship a film deity, they may also be witnessing the twilight of India’s cinematic gods,” sums up CNN.

Fans agree with the assessment

Fans of the actor agree. After the article was shared on Reddit, many Bollywood fans nodded in agreement. “It’s incredibly difficult for Bollywood to recreate the stardom like SRK; the industry is currently in need of new stars of his calibre,” wrote one.

Another echoed the sentiment and added, “There will be no new stars, because people don’t care about movies anymore. Entertainment is more diversified with social media + web series + politics (Trump is probably the most talked about guy now), and I would say our brains are already saturated with no place for boredom.”

Some, however, said that the next superstar from India may be different. “There won’t be another SRK. The next Indian megastar will be very different from SRK, it would be someone global like Lady Gaga, Rihanna or The Weeknd,” argued one.

Shah Rukh Khan’s career

Shah Rukh Khan has been the most successful actor in Indian cinema over the last 30 years. A recent report from IMDb on the top Indian films in the last 25 years saw 15 of his films in the top 25. After a brief lull in his career, the superstar roared back at the box office with back-to-back action blockbusters Pathaan and Jawan in 2023. He will return to the mass action genre with King, his 2026 release directed by Siddharth Anand.