“I’m sitting here in Locarno because of him”: Shah Rukh Khan on Yash Chopra

Locarno [Switzerland], August 12 (ANI): Superstar Shah Rukh Khan and veteran filmmaker Yash Chopra collaborated on several remarkable projects, including ‘Dil To Pagal Hai’, ‘Darr’, ‘Veer-Zaara’, and many others. The ‘Pathaan’ actor recalled watching Chopra’s 1973 thriller ‘Joshila’ at a very young age and said that he is sitting at the 77th Locarno Film Festival because of him.

In a conversation with Giona A Nazzaro, the artistic director of the Locarno Film Festival, said that it was his mother, who took him to watch the film in the theatre but there was a condition that she put in front of him. As he mentioned, “In school, Hind was not my strongest point. My mom said, ‘I’ll take you to a movie hall to watch a film if you get 10 on 10 in Hindi dictation’. I think I copied one answer from a friend, but I did get 10 on 10, and then my mother took me to watch a film in a theatre for the first time.”

The film was Chopra’s 1973 thriller ‘Joshila’. It is a 1973 Bollywood thriller film directed by Yash Chopra. The film stars Dev Anand, Hema Malini and Raakhee.

“It was ‘Joshila’, which was of the director with whom I did a maximum number of my films later on in my life… Mr Yash Chopra, it was his film. I’m sitting here in Locarno, Switzerland because of him, because of that movie I saw,” he added.

SRK recalled his early exposure to cinema. “We had what was known as a video cassette recorder… it was a big thing to own one,” he said. “My mother’s sister was very rich, so she gifted us one.” The actor described watching films while “pressing” his mother’s feet.

He continued sharing that after his parents died he wanted to leave New Delhi, his hometown, and come to Mumbai.

“I thought, I’ll get some roles. Then I thought I’d work in front of the television, and then I came into films…. And then one thing led to the other. I came to Mumbai for a year in 1990 and I said, ‘I’ll work for a year… buy myself a house, and then go back and become a scientist or a mass communication journalist. And, I hadn’t gone back yet,” he added.

On August 10, SRK became the first Indian personality to be honoured with a lifetime achievement award, the so-called Pardo alla Carriera, or Career Leopard at the 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival.

Like always, King Khan left the audience in awe with his everlasting charm. Several visuals from the festival surfaced online in which SRK can be seen making the crowd go crazy with his presence.

Decked up in a sleek black blazer and matching trousers, Shah Rukh’s dapper look for the festival definitely acted as a feast for the eyes. His long hair made his look breathtakingly captivating.

The main highlight was surely his speech, which drew constant cheers and other ecstatic reactions. The Instagram handle of the Locarno Film Festival is flooded with pictures and videos of SRK from the festival.