Shah Rukh Khan Birthday Special: Do You Know He Played An Effeminate Character In This 'Forgotten' Debut Film?

Recommended Video

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan made a big splash in Bollywood with Rishi Kapoor-Divya Bharti starrer Deewana in 1992. The film was well received by the critics and was a major success at the box office. But do you guys know that this wasn't King Khan's first appearance in a film? Yes, you heard that right!

While Shah Rukh Khan was still a struggling actor in the Delhi theatre circuit, he made his screen debut with an English telefilm titled In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones which also featured Arundhati Roy, Arjun Raina and Roshan Seth. Helmed by Pradip Krishnen, the film was telecast once at midnight on Doordarshan channel.

Set in the 1970s, the film touted to be a comedy, follows a group of architecture students in their final year of college. Shah Rukh Khan plays an effeminent college student named Senior. He appears in four scenes and has dialogues in only two of them.

In an interview with Film Companion in 2016, King Khan spilled the beans about how he bagged this itsy-bitsy role in In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones. The superstar revealed that initially, he was supposed to essay the role of Mankind until the student it was based on showed up and bagged the part inside. King Khan who had grown his hair and beard for the role, had to shave the same and got the minor role of Senior instead.

In another interview, Shah Rukh Khan admitted that he was uncomfortable and nervous during the shoot for his film because he was directed to be flirtatious with his eyes. In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones bagged two National Awards (Best Feature Film In English and Best Screenplay) in 1989.

Shah Rukh Khan also featured in TV shows like Fauji, Dil Dariya, Umeed, Wagle Ki Duniya, Circus amongst others, before he made his debut on the big screen with Deewana. After a string of hits and misses at the box office, it was his anti-hero act in Abbas Mustan's 1993 film Baazigaar alongside Kajol and Shilpa Shetty which catapulted his fame. Yash Chopra's Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge turned out to be another turning point in his career as he redefined romance on screen with his act as Raj.

Over the years, the actor has delivered several blockbuster films and is touted to be one of the biggest superstars in Indian cinema. SRK is currently awaiting the release of his upcoming film Pathaan co-starring Deepika Padukone and John Abraham.