Birthday Special: When Shah Rukh Khan Was Threatened By The Underworld In Bollywood, 'Be In My Film Or I’ll Blow Your Head Off'

Shah Rukh Khan was ruling Bollywood at a time when the underworld had quite a lot to say about the movies being made or the actors in them.

New Delhi: Shah Rukh Khan is not just known for his generosity, wisdom and charm but also his fearlessness in the face of danger. SRK was ruling Bollywood at a time when the underworld had quite a lot to say about the movies being made or the actors in them. Although that era is long gone now, only recently King Khan was given Y+ security cover from the Maharashtra government, in light of threats to his life.

On the occasion of the superstar's 58th birthday today, on November 2, we revisit the time when Shah Rukh Khan spoke about the threats directed at him in the 90s.

He said, "They would set up a system, and they would say you do it. I may not have succumbed to it, but then they shoot you. So, sometimes it’s nice to do a film.” An amazed show host comedian-actor Ruby Wax asked, “You’re seriously saying someone calls you and says be in my film or I’ll blow your head off?” Shah Rukh nodded, and said, “Not as nicely as you’re saying it.”

Shah Rukh Khan then told her that the film industry is an easy target, and a lucrative business. When asked if his life was threatened, he said,"Oh yes, on many occasions… I had a lot of security for three years.”

In journalist and film critic Anupama Chopra'a book, 'King Of Bollywood: Shah Rukh Khan and the Seductive World of Indian Cinema, there is a mention about this phase of SRK's career.

The megastar would get threatening phone calls from gangster Abu Salem, who was upset that SRK was not doing as he was told. "He would tell me that he could see me,” Shah Rukh recalled. “It was like living under a telescope. It was very depressing and very scary.”

As advised by Mumbai police chief Rakesh Maria, SRK was said to be delicate in his dealings with the underworld. He shared that in his interactions with the underworld don, he was terrified, "I’m not macho enough to turn around and say that I wasn’t scared of any of these guys. I was s**t scared,” he said.

Shah Rukh Khan also recalled getting holed up at his own house. "I got very disturbed. Our house was small, my son was young, and their socks used to smell. It was just claustrophobic.”

However, when the advice about what films to do came from the don, SRK found a clever way to retort with, "I told him, ‘I don’t tell you who to shoot so don’t tell me which film to do’.”

Shah Rukh Khan's friend Karan Johar has also spoken about those days on some occasions. In a recent interview with Mid-Day, he recalled how SRK was confident when Karan Johar received similar threats ahead of the premiere of his debut film 'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'.

When Karan was too scared to attend the premiere, SRK urged him to take a stand and assured him that he will not leave his side. "I’ll never forget how Shah Rukh brought me out. He said, ‘I’ll take the bullet for you, you just stand here’. That’s when I realised that this is a relationship that is forever,” Karan recalled.

The 'Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani' filmmaker also recalled the same situation in his autobiography 'An Unsuitable Boy'. SRK said, "What nonsense!’ He went inside and dragged me out. He said, ‘I’m standing here in front of you. Let’s see who shoots you. I’m standing right here.’ I said, ‘No, no, no, my mother was…’ He told my mother, ‘Nothing’s gonna happen. I’m a Pathan. Nothing can happen to me and nothing will happen to your son. He’s like my brother. Nothing’s gonna happen’, he wrote.