Shah Rukh Khan’s September 2023 film Jawan and the recent release Dunki are poles apart, in terms of scale, grandeur and commercial elements. However, in both films, Shah Rukh Khan plays both a younger character and also its older version. SRK, in a rare instance, answered some media queries as part of the promotions of Dunki. He was asked whether it was deliberate that he chose to play older characters in his recent films.
Shah Rukh Khan said, “No, it’s not a conscious effort. I am 58 now. Mujhe aisa lagta hai ki mujhe age-centric roles karne chahiye. If I get an opportunity in a film (then why not). The older character in Jawan is more in-your-face. I won’t call it a caricature but it’s an over-the-top old person. In Dunki, it’s quite real. In Dunki, it’s about a soldier ka vaada. So, it’s a journey of a character and that is the most intriguing quality of the film. It spans 25 years.”
Shah Rukh Khan continued, “I would say that I have been age-honest the first time in Dunki. I don’t know Hardy’s (his character in Dunki) exact age. He must be 60 or 65 years old. But it’s more close to my age. I think I have tried to do it as real as possible. Woh kitna kamyaab hua ya nahin hua, woh mujhe nahin pata. It’s not a conscious effort but I feel more comfortable playing my age. And when I am playing the younger version, I am de-aged. I am with Taapsee Pannu, who’s younger than me. So, character-wise, it falls into place ki hero ki wajah se young heroine ke saath kaam nahin kar raha hoon. It makes me comfortable.”
Finally, he raised laughs in his trademark style, “Having said that, main itna young lagta hoon ki log mujhe older roles dena nahin chahte! I’ll continue playing 27 or 28 (smiles). But in all seriousness, it is fun to play a character spanning more than two decades.”
Also Read: As Dunki releases, Shah Rukh Khan interacts with the media for the FIRST time in 5 years: “We keep on talking too much about mass-oriented or content-oriented films. I think films are entertainment-oriented”
