When several of his movies tanked, Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan took a sabbatical from Hindi cinemas in 2018 to introspect. His comeback in 2023 set the box office on fire with three back-to-back hit films.
He shared that pizza had a role to play in his comeback. “During the time, I learnt how to make the best pizza in the world,” he said. “I learnt perseverance because it takes millions of square pizzas to learn to make it completely round.”
The 58-year-old actor was speaking on the third and final day of the World Governments Summit (WGS) 2024 in Dubai, where India is a guest of honour. The three-day conference brought together heads of countries and some of the brightest minds around the world to discuss various issues pertaining to governments.
Listening to people
Shah Rukh Khan spoke extensively about everything he did during his four-year-long hiatus and said one of his biggest lessons was that he had forgotten to listen to people.
“I had stopped hearing the crowds,” he said. “I had become too innovative and I was looking for perfection. I started failing. I needed to be unique but I needed to look at what the audience wanted.”
He said this realisation helped him plan his comeback better. “People wanted to see me give them hope and happiness, so I decided let’s get back to that,” he said. “Whatever you do, you have to do for the people or the consumer or your audiences.
He said his family’s support was immense during this period and this helped propel him back to work. “Thankfully they did not say your pizzas are better than your movies so stop making movies,” he joked. “They were very encouraging.”
In 2023, Khan had three releases – Jawan, Pathaan and Dunki. All three movies were commercial hits and Jawan and Pathaan became Hindi cinema’s second and third biggest grossers worldwide.
Pre-release ritual
He also revealed that there were certain rituals he followed ahead of his movie releases, which happen on Friday morning in India. “On Thursday evenings at home in Mumbai, I rinse myself with a two-hour bath,” he said. “It is a ritual to rinse myself off the work I have done.”
He explained that the business of making movies is one that never stops. “When I deliver a big hit film on Friday, everybody is happy,” he said. “Then on Monday I realise it is a big blockbuster and I have to get back to work to make a better film. If you have a flop film, on Monday, you have to get back to work to make a better film. So Mondays are for making better films.”