New Delhi: There is something interesting about revisiting Shah Rukh Khan’s lesser-known films. They reveal an actor who wasn’t always chasing the next blockbuster or trying to fit into a particular mould. From befriending a ghost to playing three characters in a single film, Khan took chances, even if the results wouldn’t be promising.
Not every film needs to be a masterpiece to deserve a second look. And in an industry that often celebrates Shah Rukh Khan the superstar, perhaps it is time we paid a little more attention to Shah Rukh Khan the actor.
On SRK’s 61st birthday, here are five films that aren’t often talked about.
1. Chamatkar (1992)
Directed by Rajiv Mehra, Chamatkar arrived in the same year as Shah Rukh Khan’s Bollywood debut in Deewana. The fantasy comedy saw him play Sunder Srivastava, a young graduate who dreams of building a school in his village but finds himself cheated by a friend and stranded in Mumbai. Things take an unusual turn when he meets Marco (Naseeruddin Shah), a ghost who needs his help to seek justice for his murder.
What makes Chamatkar an interesting watch is its combination of fantasy, comedy, friendship and revenge. Shah Rukh plays the naive, slightly clumsy Sunder.
It is also a reminder of how comfortable SRK was with unconventional stories at the beginning of his career. The film may not have been a box-office success, but its premise makes it an enjoyable revisit.
2. King Uncle (1993)
The 1993 family drama follows Ashok Bansal (played by Jackie Shroff), a wealthy and stern businessman whose rigid outlook on life begins to change after an orphan, Munna, enters his household. Shah Rukh plays Ashok’s younger brother, Anil, a character who is more carefree and rebellious than his elder sibling.
This was SRK and Shroff’s first collaboration. They later went on to work together in Devdas (2002) and Happy New Year (2014). However, in an interview earlier this year, Shroff recalled his first encounter with SRK on the sets of King Uncle.
The actor recalled that SRK would always sit in a corner and was “very silent.”
“Shah Rukh Khan played my younger brother in King Uncle, and I thought he was very silent. He would always sit in a corner. Every time I looked at him, I felt like he was a volcano waiting to erupt. He was extremely quiet. Then we worked together in Devdas, and years later he cast me in Happy New Year. The only brief he gave me was: ‘Look handsome’,” Shroff told Yuvaa.
3. Zamaana Deewana (1995)
The expectations were high with Ramesh Sippy’s Zamaana Deewana but the film did not quite live up to them. The 1995 action comedy featured Shah Rukh Khan and Raveena Tandon as Rahul and Priya, two lovers caught in the middle of a bitter feud between their fathers, played by Shatrughan Sinha and Jeetendra.
The film had all the ingredients of a quintessential Bollywood entertainer: romance, family rivalry, action, comedy and a stellar cast that also included Anupam Kher and Prem Chopra. Yet, it struggled to find its footing at the box office.
What makes it worth revisiting is the theatricality of its storytelling and the opportunity to see a young SRK in a more conventional masala entertainer. It may not be Sippy’s finest work, but it is an entertaining time capsule of 1990s Bollywood.
Also Read: Give King Khan all the action movies. We have had our romance
4. Guddu (1995)
If there is one film in this list that deserves a closer look for Shah Rukh Khan’s acting, it is Guddu. Directed by Prem Lalwani, the 1995 romantic drama saw him play Guddu, a young man who falls in love with Salina (Manisha Koirala). Their lives take a tragic turn after an accident leaves Salina blind, forcing Guddu to confront the possibility of losing the woman he loves.
The film also explores the ideological differences between Guddu’s parents, with his father (Mukesh Khanna) being an atheist and his mother (Deepti Naval) a deeply religious woman.
The film gave SRK room to explore romantic devotion and family conflict in a melodramatic setting. Something he later aced with the 1995 romance musical Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.
5. English Babu Desi Mem (1996)
Perhaps one of the strangest entries in Shah Rukh’s filmography is English Babu Desi Mem. It is the kind of film that makes you wonder what the makers were thinking, but at the same time it is difficult not to be entertained by its eccentricity.
Directed by Praveen Nischol, the 1996 romantic comedy features SRK in a triple role, playing Gopal, Hari and Vikram. The story follows a wealthy Indian businessman raised in England who returns to Mumbai after his brother’s death and finds himself caught between family responsibilities and an unexpected romance.
In this film, SRK was cast opposite Sonali Bendre. It was their first collaboration, which was followed by Duplicate (1998) and Kal Ho Na Ho (2003). In English Babu Desi Mem, Bendre plays Bijuriya, who takes care of his orphaned nephew, Nandu. What follows is a rather unusual mix of romance, family drama, comedy and mistaken identities.
SRK gets to play three distinct personalities, switching between characters with varying degrees of seriousness and charm. While the film’s storytelling is all over the place, it is also an example of the kind of unabashedly commercial cinema Bollywood once embraced. It failed to make a lasting impression at the box office, but its sheer oddness makes it an interesting watch today.
(Edited by Insha Jalil Waziri)