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Shah Rukh Khan reveals, ‘It took a lot of convincing to tell John that it’s okay, you can punch me’

Mumbai: Pathaan, Shah Rukh Khan’s first film in a major role in over four years, is planned to release this summer. Shah Rukh talked about his co-stars Deepika Padukone and John Abraham in a new featurette for the film, and playfully revealed that ‘it’s been a long time since (he) has entertained people with a good film.’

In the film, Shah Rukh plays a spy, and he is excited to play an action hero. “I came to the film industry 32 years ago the be an action hero. But I missed the boat, they made me a romantic hero instead. I only wanted to be an action hero. I love DDLJ, Rahul, Raj, and all these sweet boys’ characters. But I always thought I am an action hero. So for me, it’s my dream come true. To be able to surprise as an actor you really have to give yourself into the hands of a capable director, and Sidharth Anand undoubtedly knows to ace this genre”, said Shahrukh Khan in a conversation with the production team.

It was wonderful to have a senior action performer like John Abraham on board, according to Shah Rukh, since John would provide significant information into executing combat scenes. In the film, John plays the villain, and Shah Rukh stated that he was afraid to fight him on screen because he wasn’t sure if it would appear credible for a star of SRK’s status to get beaten up. John referred to Shah Rukh as a “national treasure” and told him, “I will not hurt you, I can’t.”

But Shah Rukh supported him too, and characterised him as a ‘gentle giant’. “It took a lot of convincing to tell him that it’s okay, you can punch me, I won’t get hurt. But he’s so proficient in action, he really helped me look nicer, in body language. Many times, he would say, ‘Shah bhai, do it like this’. It was very kind of him. If you’re doing an action film, and you have John with you, there’s a lot to learn. Being the star that he is, and the respect that he has for me, the way the film has gone smoothly, it’s a big challenge for someone like him. I hope, genuinely, that when Pathaan comes out, the most liked character is John. I really wish for this. Because it takes a lot of guts to do what he has done, as an actor, as a star.”

Shah Rukh was equally effusive about Deepika. He said, “You need someone of the stature of Deepika to be able to pull off a song sequence like Besharam Rang and then you know, to be able to do action, where she takes a guy and pulls him right over herself and beats him, she’s tough enough to do that too. That kind of a combination could have only been achieved with someone like Deepika. It’s a quite a layered character for an action film heroine so to say.”

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