Actor Abhay Verma has grown up idolising Shah Rukh Khan, so sharing screen space with the superstar in King has been a surreal experience for the actor. Recalling his first day on the sets with SRK, Abhay said, “That’s the man of my dreams,” and opened up about how working with his idol has changed his understanding of stardom.
In an exclusive conversation with India Today, Abhay spoke about meeting his idol, the lessons he has learnt from him and why he wants to become a person like Shah Rukh before becoming a better actor.
When asked what it felt like to have his idol as a co-star, the Operation Safed Sagar actor shared, “I don’t think I’ll be able to tell you that because I’ve seen—I’ve learned to see dreams by seeing him. A lot of people want to become an actor like him. I really want to become a person like him because that really wins. It sums it up. Every character that I do, every film I do, my whole intention is to become a better person and then become a better actor, if possible.”
Talking about the first time he spent time with Shah Rukh on the sets of King, Abhay said it took him some time to fully process the experience. “Meeting him was actually, he doesn’t make you realise that he’s him, you know? After spending hours with him on the first day itself, I was lucky, and when I was going back, I realised, ‘Oh shit, that’s the man of my dreams.’ That’s the one person that I’ve idealised all my life and seen dreams of. I’ve travelled all these journeys and fought difficult conditions in my life, like how he has fought difficult conditions in his films,” he said.
For Abhay, Shah Rukh’s influence extends beyond acting. He said the actor’s portrayal of family, love and relationships has shaped the way he wants to approach his own relationships.
“Like he has done in his films—just the way he has nurtured and valued his relationship with his sisters, I want to do the same with my sister. The way he has romanticised love and relationships, I also want to romanticise them like that with my partner. The way he has respected his mother in his films, especially the moment in Chak De! India when, in the end, he brings his mom outside and makes her see someone rubbing the word ‘gaddar’ off his house—that’s the feeling I resonate with. I really want to make my mom proud through whatever I do. So now, whoever praises me, it’s indirectly a praise for Shah sir. He’s the one person I have learnt everything from,” he added.
‘I was blown away by how simple he is’
Working with Shah Rukh has also changed Abhay’s definition of stardom. Speaking about it, he explained, “It has, it definitely has. I was blown away by how simple he is. I was just taken aback that after 35 years of seeing the world and winning everyone’s hearts, how can one person be wanting to shoot with the same zeal that he had 35 years back? It is legendary of him to be that simple. And I think, mostly, it happens—and I’m only guessing—because he loves his craft so much. He wants to give,” he said.
He continued, “That’s one takeaway from Shah sir. It would be the giving personality that he has—unconditionally, just being a giver to cinema, and taking less but giving more, supporting each other. I think he really understands the power of unity, and that’s what Operation Safed Sagar has also taught me. All the Air Force pilots and everything, shooting in real locations, shooting on real airbases, has unanimously taught me that together we achieve more. And that’s what I’ve also learned from Shah sir,” he said.
Abhay Verma on King delay
King has also taken longer than initially expected, but Abhay believes the scale of the film makes the wait worthwhile. “It is just a big experience; some things take time. They say, right, good things take time, so that’s what it is. And if a person is trying to give you something which our cinema has never experienced—so ussmein kitna bhi samay lage, I think it’s worth it,” he said.
Abhay also recalled something Shah Rukh told him about the audience he makes films for. “And with Shah sir, with all the perfectionist that he is, he wants to bring the best experience for people. He once told me a very beautiful thing: ‘Beta, hum uske liye kaam karte hain jo balcony mein ticket leke sabse peechhe baitha hota hai na. Uske liye humein kaam karna hai, taaki uski woh apne poore hafte ki tension bhool jaaye (Son, we work for the person who buys a ticket and sits right at the back of the balcony. That’s who we have to work for, so that they can forget all the stress of their week),’” he said.
He added, “So, after 35 years, if a person is thinking like that, I mean, who are we to hold any thoughts that, okay, we have given a hit, or we are on a pedestal? Nothing. He just grounds you so much.”
‘You’ll see a very different side of Abhay in King’
Abhay is also looking forward to showing audiences a different side of himself in King. “I think a very different side. Yeah, I think it’s a very different side that you’ll see in King. And thankfully, if I can say so, in Dilkashi, Laikey Laikaa, also, and Jacob Cardoso. So, let’s see. But I’m very excited to just be in the same film as my idol (Shah Rukh Khan),” he said.
King is an action thriller film directed by Siddharth Anand. It stars Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Suhana Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff and Rani Mukerji.
Source: India Today
