When Shah Rukh Khan Sold A Dream

‘I
like
to
sell
a
dream.’
‘I
like
to
tell
stories.
I’m
a
very
good
storyteller.’
‘I
can
convert
the
most
boring
topic
into
a
riveting
tale.’

Ashutosh
Gowariker’s



Swades
released
on
December
17,
2004.

As
Mohan
Bhargava,
Shah
Rukh
Khan
gave
arguably
his
best
performance
ever.
Mohan
gives
up
his
cushy
job
at
NASA
to
return
to
his
roots
in
India.

His
journey
may
seem
a
little
touristic
but
the
film’s
heart
is
in
the
right
place. 

It
moves
you
in
ways
that
films
about

desh
bhakti
seldom
do.

Gowariker’s
direction
eschews
jingoism
and
rabble-rousing
rhetoric. And
SRK
has
never
been
more
stripped
of
his
mannerisms.

Swades
was
exceptional
because
it
was
far
removed
from
SRK’s
other
films.

When
we
spoke
about
it,
SRK
had
refused
to
mourn
the
failure.

“I
always
say
it’s
not
the

manzil
but
the
journey
that
matters.
I
often
don’t
watch
my
completed
film;
I
enjoy
the
process
of
acting
in
them.
I
push
it,
promote
it,
participate
in
the
projection,
and
then
I
move
on.

“I
don’t
make
any
inquiries
about
the
box
office
performance.
It
isn’t
that
I’m
detached
from
the
result
because
I
hope
for
the
sake
of
the
people
behind
my
films
that
they
do
well.
I
enjoy
doing
all
my
films
regardless
of
how
they
perform.
As
for

Swades,
I
told
Ashutosh
Gowariker
that
it
won’t
work
commercially.
The
film
was
nobly
intended.”

SRK
had
liked
himself
in

Swades:
“I
think
like
my
character
in

Swades.
Unfortunately,
I’m
not
in
a
position
to
change
the
way
our
society
functions.
My
efforts
to
bring
social
awareness
should
not
be
restricted
to
short
films
on
cancer,
polio
and
AIDS.
Cinema
is
a
very
important
medium
of
putting
social
messages
across.

“Paheli
was
again
an
entertainer
with
a
social
message.
It
talked
about
women’s
emancipation
but
wasn’t
a
bra-burning
propaganda
film.
I
want
the
message
in
my
film
to
be
more
fun-oriented.
That’s
where
I
come
from.

“I
started
with
street
theatre,
and
we
used
to
put
across
ideas
on
family
planning
or
dowry
with
a
lot
of
enjoyment.
I
love

nautanki,
folk
theatre,
cartoons
and
puppetry.
These
are
vibrant
forms
of
artistic
expression.
I
love
to
express
myself
through
basic
art
forms.”

Swades
propelled
SRK
towards
more
mainstream
themes.

“I
don’t
tell
film-makers
what
to
make
with
me.
I
didn’t
write

Swades.
I
can’t
tell
writers
to
write
a
film
keeping
in
mind
whether
22
people
or
22
million
people
will
like
it.
I
just
do
what
they
ask
me
to.

“I
like
to
sell
a
dream.
I
like
to
tell
stories.
I’m
a
very
good
storyteller.
I
can
convert
the
most
boring
topic
into
a
riveting
tale.

“I
tell
stories
to
my
children
every
night.
Some
stories
they
don’t
like,
so
I
avoid
them.
Others
they
like
and
I
repeat
them
with
variations.
I
can’t
keep
repeating
the
same
story
because
it
only
works
once.
Film-makers
also
need
to
understand
that.”