Shah Rukh Khan made his name playing villains before becoming Bollywood's romantic king
A shoulder injury ended a Delhi schoolboy's sporting dreams, so he turned to stage plays and impressions of film stars. Grief after his mother's death in 1991 finally pushed him toward cinema. Within two years Shah Rukh Khan had shocked audiences as a murderer in Baazigar and collected his first Filmfare Best Actor award.
Born on 2 November 1965 in New Delhi, Khan spent his first five years in Mangalore, where his maternal grandfather ran the port as chief engineer. His father, Mir Taj Mohammed Khan, had campaigned for a united India alongside the nonviolent Khudai Khidmatgar movement; his mother, Lateef Fatima, was a magistrate. At St. Columba's School he won the Sword of Honour, the top award, then studied economics at Hansraj College while spending much of his time learning acting from Barry John at the Theatre Action Group.
Television came first. Production delays on Dil Dariya meant the 1989 army-cadet series Fauji became his debut, and critics soon compared him to Dilip Kumar, though he doubted he was good enough for films. After moving to Mumbai he was quickly signed to four pictures. Deewana, released in June 1992, became a hit and earned him the Filmfare award for Best Male Debut.
Rather than playing safe heroes, he took antagonist roles that were then considered risky for a leading man. Darr cast him as an obsessive lover whose stammered line to Kiran became famous and began his long partnership with Yash Chopra; Anjaam brought another Filmfare prize, for a negative role. He named the 1994 comedy-drama Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, where he played a love-struck musician, as his favourite part.
Romances such as Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge in 1995 and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai in 1998 then took him to international audiences. His filmography now tops 90 titles, and the actor nicknamed King Khan has won 15 Filmfare Awards and a National Film Award, and received both the Padma Shri and France's Legion of Honour. Off screen he co-owns the Kolkata Knight Riders cricket franchise, and Time listed him among the world's most influential people in 2023.
Source: Shah Rukh Khan
