Nov 07, 2003 04:15 PM
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(Updated Nov 07, 2003 04:15 PM)
Preamble
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Shahrukh Khan gives me hope. He is living proof that man can by accident achieve fame, fortune and what not. In his earlier avtaar as a small screen actor, he came across as a nice boy next door. But even then on closer look you could find traces of his stuttering parrot preening act. Watch Fauji & the final episodes of Circus to find out what I mean. Editors Haji Mastan oops Abbas- Mustan were looking for a guy to play an anti hero and thanks to half the industry chickening out the role went to Shahrukh and the rest as they say is HIS Story!
But for a man who believes emoting is all about making chimpanzee faces and dialogue delivery means necessarily to add a heeeey, mmm, haaan at regular intervals this was the chance he needed and he grabbed it with all four... I would like to believe that baazigar was a hit because of Shilpa Shetty at least she was the one who caught my fancy but I know otherwise. He has given phenomenal hits like DDLJ, KKHH, Devdas to name a few. But did he act in any of them. I am not sure.
The Task In Hand
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It is an embarrassment of riches. From the ocean of hysteri(a)onics to chose only five is a Herculean task but I'll give it my shot.
At Five would be Chaahat- remember the film where SRK plays a rustic - folk artist If my memory serves me right?- with the abominable showman Anupam Kher as his hideous father and the squinty superbrat Pooja Bhatt as his love interest. If you thought that this was chinese torture you had Naseer in what was his second worst performance as a landed gentry. Asprin sales doubled the day the movie hit the theatres.
Four you have to hand it to Ram Jaane, don't ask me the story I don't know in the hour & a half of the flick I saw I can remember only one thing, SRK was always in the street and always wearing a coat without a shirt or a vest. Maybe the coat had something to do with his parentage I do not now know... something like Moses I suppose. But he had a repugnant grin for most of the movie or was it a grimace?
Three would be Double trouble. Duplicate. SRK is by himself very funny but when he tries his hand at spoof , the result has the makings of a greek tragedy. I got conned by the slick trailer and the gals- It takes immense courage to sit through the movie.
For the runner up spot the competition is intense, is it Oh Darling I love India, English Babu Desi Mem or Koyla. But I will give it to his performance ina film whose name itself I do not remember. My nephew might help me with this one as he was - or is- a great fan of Manisha . Guddu or guddiya I think the movie was. It was supposed to be a younglove story. It was a torrid yaaawn story.
The creme a creme is undoubtedly for his contribution in making Sarat Chandra's ashes wince ( assuming he was cremated and not buried:-)) . To do this and pocket a clutchful of awards is what I think is black magic. So for this wonderful performance in and as Devdas SRK gets the rosgolla and swallows it too!
Tailpiece
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As I said at the beginning SRK gives me hope!
