"I started my career from TV when I was nothing; it is
a medium which is very close to my heart and now I feel excited
to be back on it again."
Shah Rukh made his acting debut in 1988 with the television
series "Fauji". After that he went on to appear in
several other television serials, most notably in Aziz Mirza's
1989 series "Circus".
King Khan, who has hosted shows like "Kaun Banega Crorepati"
(2007) and "Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?" (2008),
says TV is his personal favourite.
"I have worked on all the different platforms, be it theatre,
films, TV - but genuinely, TV is my favourite."
He, however, feels he lacks knowledge of the television industry.
"On many occasions I find myself lacking as far as TV knowledge
is concerned. I am not very well-versed with the working of
the industry, the terms and terminology of it; so I try to stay
away from it," Shah Rukh said.
"When I stand among people from the TV industry, I feel
awkward. I feel as if I don't know what they are saying,"
he said.
He has spent two successful decades in the film industry.
Shah Rukh made his Bollywood debut with "Deewana"
(1992) and since then has worked in films like "Baazigar",
"Kuch Kuch Hota Hai", "Devdas", "Swades",
"Chak De! India" and "My Name Is Khan".
And he says he is an original.
"I am the origin and original of what I do. I am the truth
and lie of what I do. I am the goodness and the badness of what
I do. Twenty years on, when you work the way I have with a lot
of integrity and honesty, these kind of thoughts don't come
to me.
"It would be very odious and wrong for me to say that
I could be ever compared in a pompous sense - it would be wrong
for me to say I'm incomparable, but I think it is right to say
that I don't like to be compared at all.
"I am not the number one star for myself because I try
harder every day; I have always believed that I haven't done
the best and could have done better. The day I stop doing that
I will stop working."
Asked about his current movie projects, he said, "I am
working on quite a few projects as of now. I am in the mode
to work round the clock with television and films. I am currently
shooting for 'Ra.One', 'Don-2', and Vishal Bharadwaj's film
which is an adaptation of Chetan Bhagat's 'Two States'."
So what is his selection criterion for scripts?
"I try to keep myself on the other side when I sit to
take a decision. I think about it with a third person perspective.
I take up projects which I find appealing and grow my interest
in them. 'If I like it, others will also like it' - this is
how my mind works."