It is a burning high summer in the Swiss lakeside town of Locarno and the Indian movie star Shah Rukh Khan is flying in: the king, the emperor, the Baadshah of the movies, the man whose fanbase-headcount makes him one of the world’s biggest stars.
Starting as the Bollywood bad guy in early 90s films such as Darr and Baazigar, Khan made a sensational breakthrough in 1995 as a puppyish romcom lead in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (The Brave-Hearted Will Take the Bride). From here, he became a Bollywood superstar in all manner of genres: musicals, melodramas, thrillers and comedies, including the 2001 family saga Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (Sometimes Happiness, Sometimes Sadness), the romantic drama Devdas and the action spectacular Jawan. Shah Rukh Khan is his own genre. Now, having taken a break during Covid to recharge his batteries and nurture his mojo, he has returned to acting and, at 58, is receiving the Locarno film festival’s Pardo lifetime achievement award – and giving his first interview in two years.
