After a blockbuster year with three record Bollywood box office smashes under his belt, Indian star Shah Rukh Khan says his burning ambition to break into mainstream cinema is as strong as ever.
At the World Governments Summit in Dubai – a city he calls a second home – the actor and producer known as SRK took a swipe at Hollywood for failing to offer him any notable roles in his 33-year career.
But, since passing up the opportunity to play the quiz show host in Danny Boyle’s 2008 hit Slumdog Millionaire, Khan said he had received few offers of work in US or UK cinema.
I want to end my career by making that film which is loved by the whole world - then nobody will ask why I haven't I crossed over into Hollywood
Shah Rukh Khan
While one of the biggest roles of all – the next James Bond – may be out of his reach, he might be suitable for more villainous character, he said.
“I really wanted to [be the next James Bond], but I think I'm too short,” said Khan, who is 1.69 metres tall.
“But of course, as a baddie – I’m brown enough.
After a series of cinematic flops and a four-year break from the industry, SRK enjoyed a resurgent 2023.
Releasing three films in 12 months – Pathaan, Jawan and Dunki – that accumulated $330 million at the box office, he was catapulted back into mainstream focus.
“I've said this honestly, but nobody believes it – nobody’s ever offered me any crossover work of substance,” said Khan.
“I had conversations with people from the English and American film industries, but nobody's offered me any good work.
“I've never been offered [a role] in Hollywood or in England.
“Yes, Slumdog was there and I spent a lot of time with Mr Boyle. He's very sweet. But I was doing, Who Wants to be a Millionaire? on television successfully at that time.
“I just felt, in the [Slumdog] story that was being told, the guy who was hosting was very mean, he was cheating and dishonest. I found that strange, so I explained to Mr Boyle that I wouldn't like to do it.”
Determination
Khan has not let those disappointments stop him, and puts his drive down to some tough early life lessons.
“Perseverance happens to some people, you don't have any option. I lost my parents very early and then you realise there's no rewinding or coming back from death. You have to continue to make the most of what you have.
“I was a youngish orphan and had to work my way through. It could be the nature of the beast that with dogged determination you keep on working.”
Such is SRK's gravitas, this week his office had to deny rumours of his involvement in negotiations to release former Indian Navy personnel held in Qatar on espionage charges.
As a result, SRK was trending on X for much of Monday, as the eight veterans were freed after intervention from Indian authorities.
Khan believes technology could offer an alternative path into mainstream cinema as AI becomes more widely used.
“When I started off, I just wanted to survive to be able to get a week's work or a month's work or a year's work and say my films should do well,” he said, speaking in Dubai.
“As the years have gone past, my whole job has become more motivated towards bringing new technology into the Indian film industry,"
Now he is looking to continue working for three more decades.
"I have another good 35 years to go, but I want to end my career by making that film which is loved by the whole world.
“Then nobody will ask why I haven't I crossed over into Hollywood.”
TECH%20SPECS%3A%20APPLE%20WATCH%20SERIES%209
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
The biog
Favourite films: Casablanca and Lawrence of Arabia
Favourite books: Start with Why by Simon Sinek and Good to be Great by Jim Collins
Favourite dish: Grilled fish
Inspiration: Sheikh Zayed's visionary leadership taught me to embrace new challenges.
Britain's travel restrictions
- A negative test 2 days before flying
- Complete passenger locator form
- Book a post-arrival PCR test
- Double-vaccinated must self-isolate
- 11 countries on red list quarantine
Results
2pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 40,000 (Dirt) 1,200m, Winner: AF Thayer, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
2.30pm: Maiden (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,200m, Winner: AF Sahwa, Nathan Crosse, Mohamed Ramadan.
3pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,000m, Winner: AF Thobor, Szczepan Mazur, Ernst Oertel.
3.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 2,000m, Winner: AF Mezmar, Szczepan Mazur, Ernst Oertel.
4pm: Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum Cup presented by Longines (TB) Dh 200,000 (D) 1,700m, Winner: Galvanize, Nathan Cross, Doug Watson.
4.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh 40,000 (D) 1,700m, Winner: Ajaj, Bernardo Pinheiro, Mohamed Daggash.
HOW DO SIM CARD SCAMS WORK?
Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.
They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards, often by claiming their phone has been lost or stolen
They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.
The criminal can then access any online service that requires security codes to be sent to a user's mobile phone, such as banking services.
2021 World Triathlon Championship Series
May 15: Yokohama, Japan
June 5: Leeds, UK
June 24: Montreal, Canada
July 10: Hamburg, Germany
Aug 17-22: Edmonton, Canada (World Triathlon Championship Final)
Nov 5-6 : Abu Dhabi, UAE
Date TBC: Chengdu, China
New UK refugee system
- A new “core protection” for refugees moving from permanent to a more basic, temporary protection
- Shortened leave to remain - refugees will receive 30 months instead of five years
- A longer path to settlement with no indefinite settled status until a refugee has spent 20 years in Britain
- To encourage refugees to integrate the government will encourage them to out of the core protection route wherever possible.
- Under core protection there will be no automatic right to family reunion
- Refugees will have a reduced right to public funds
How to avoid crypto fraud
- Use unique usernames and passwords while enabling multi-factor authentication.
- Use an offline private key, a physical device that requires manual activation, whenever you access your wallet.
- Avoid suspicious social media ads promoting fraudulent schemes.
- Only invest in crypto projects that you fully understand.
- Critically assess whether a project’s promises or returns seem too good to be true.
- Only use reputable platforms that have a track record of strong regulatory compliance.
- Store funds in hardware wallets as opposed to online exchanges.
What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl, 48V hybrid
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 325bhp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh359,000
On sale: now
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
