SRK, superstar

Discovery Channel showcases a new documentary on King Khan.

On the face of it, an image of a man selling samosas on the streets of Mumbai is anything but rivetting. In Living With A Superstar-Shah Rukh Khan, a 10-part series (it premieres on Travel & Living on February 26, every Friday at 9 pm), however, the same shot captures a telling moment. As crowds throng in front of Mannat, superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s home in Mumbai, to catch a glimpse of their “god”, a young samosa wallah senses a business opportunity and sets up “shop”. The city of dreams comes to life in this one image, which at once encompasses both the King Khan brand name as well as the survival skills of the young roadside hawker.

In these small details lie the success of this documentary, one which promises a rare glimpse into the life of superstar Khan. From a tour of his home Mannat, to the people with whom he works on a day-to-day basis (his bodyguard, his Man Friday, other staff members in his home), time spent with his family members, his children Aryan and Suhana, on the the sets of his films, the series plans to show it all.

Living With A Superstar, says Discovery Channel, will get audiences even closer to Khan. The first, which will be aired on February 26, 2010, takes us on a tour of London with Khan on a holiday with a group of his friends and family. For any fan, it would be thrilling to see Khan order coffee for himself, take a stroll in Hyde Park, play soccer with his children, enjoy a lunch out with a group of his close friends while letting Gauri (his wife) fuss over what he should eat and which wine he should drink. It’s almost like looking through a personal photo album, or travelling with Khan on a journey. It helps that Khan himself is the narrator, talking passionately about his children, imagining himself as a “72-year-old when Suhana will take me to bookstores”, and sharing some of his very personal thoughts with the audience.

While forthcoming episodes should reveal more interesting aspects of Khan’s life, the first one, which we previewed, was interesting in parts, but didn’t have a lasting impact. Thanks to PR machinery and numerous news supplements, Shahrukh-isms are always, and invariably, in constant supply. And while we may not be able to predict his next move in films (My Name is Khan is a challenging, out-of-the-box attempt even for the actor) Twitter and other social networking sites ensure that we get a constant update on the actor’s thoughts. Also, Nasreen Munni Kabir’s documentary on the star (Inner/Outer World of Shahrukh Khan, Rs 2,000, available at leading DVD stores), in a way, had the first mover advantage and gave us a fair sense of his lifestyle.

However, it’s hard to give Discovery’s documentary a miss. Like it or not, everyone wants a piece of the superstar. Everyone wants to inch closer to him, get a sense of how he lives, what he drives, what he wears and what he thinks. In that sense, Revealed: Shah Rukh Khan, another one-hour offering from Discovery (it premiered last Friday and repeats tonight at 8 pm),works very well. The show had admakers, film critics, film scholars and anthropologists discuss the rise of Khan in the context of changing India, taking into cognisance his different roles against the backdrop of a young India that believes in chasing dreams. After all, that’s what has made Shah Rukh Khan the brand name that he is today.