After prayers at Vaishno Devi, SRK wins over Chennai at ‘Jawan’ event

From Jammu to Tamil Nadu, superstar Shah Rukh Khan covered the entire length of the country to promote his latest flick Jawan on Wednesday (August 30).

After offering prayers at the revered shrine of Mata Vaishno Devi in Jammu, the much-admired star was in Chennai by evening at a pre-release event of his highly-anticipated Jawan that marks a unique collaboration between him, director Atlee, and a host of talented actors and musicians from the Tamil film industry.

“I’ve come here to learn from you all,” Shah Rukh Khan told a packed audience in Chennai. His speech often drowning in cheers and whistles, Shah Rukh spoke about his memories of shooting for Mani Ratnam’s Dil Se… in 1998 and the friendship he formed with the director and cinematographer-filmmaker Santosh Sivan. He also spoke about how he became acquainted with actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth.

“I just want to tell everyone from the Tamil film industry who has worked in Jawan that I have only come here to learn from you,” Shah Rukh said, expressing hope that the audiences in Tamil Nadu appreciate “the teachings of the great team of Jawan”.

“People talk lovely things about me, there are lovely videos… ‘global star, I’m a big star’, but all that means nothing to me. To me, everything means that I learn from great talent like we have in Jawan, so I thank you all for allowing me to learn so much,” the actor said at the grand event at the Sri Sairam Engineering College.

On Chennai hospitality

The evening also saw Shah Rukh setting the stage on fire with a performance on Zinda Banda and One Two Three Four from Chennai Express with Jawan co-stars Priyamani and Sunil Grover.

The actor spoke about the Chennai hospitality, joking that he lost his six packs just by coming to Chennai. “You have fed me so well that I have lost my six packs. I have to go and work out now,” he said, adding that the food in Tamil Nadu is one of the “nicest, bestest, and the chilliest” he has ever had.

On a serious note, Shah Rukh said very early on, he understood that some of the finest cinema comes from Tamil Nadu.

“...And I was very happy to make two friends — one was Mani Ratnam and one was Santosh Sivan. And I came down here and shot Dil Se..., which was my first experience of a Tamil film. Then I got to know the wonderful Kamal Haasan and worked with him for Hey Ram. And that was the first and last time I ever spoke in Tamil... And then the greatest of them all became my friend by coming over one night and doing one shot for my film Ra One, the great Rajinikanth sir,” he recalled.

Sethupathi’s “revenge”

Director Atlee narrated how he could not believe it when Shah Rukh asked him to work on a film for him.

“Cutting back to 10 years, let me tell you a story. Enthiran was being shot in Mumbai and we were near Bandstand Road. I was an assistant director (AD) to Shankar then, and another AD made me stand in front of a house and said, ‘this is Shah Rukh’s house, let me take a photo of you’. Now that same gate opened for me, and King Khan said ‘please come in’.”

Vijay Sethupathi, who plays the antagonist in the film, said his “revenge” goes back to his school days.

“When I was in school, I loved a girl, but she didn’t know that. That girl was in love with Shah Rukh Khan. I didn’t realise that I needed this long to take revenge for that.”

Later, when his turn came to address the audience, Shah Rukh turned to Vijay to tell him, “You can have your revenge, Vijay, but you cannot have my girls. From here on, they belong to me.”

Haasan could not attend the event but sent a video wishing Shah Rukh success. In his video message, Haasan said Shah Rukh Khan has become the symbol of love in 30 years. “In spite of all the tumultuous times, your smile lights up thousands of frames. I want this film to succeed and you to succeed. The way you deal with everything with panache and dignity is inspiring,” Haasan said.

The pre-release event, one of the many in the run up to the film’s release on September 7, was also attended by music director Anirudh Ravichander and other cast and crew members.

Nayanthara, who stars opposite Shah Rukh in the movie, gave the event a miss. The film also stars Sanya Malhotra and has a special appearance by Deepika Padukone.

Trailer launch today

Jawan, a high-octane action thriller, is set to arrive in theatres on September 7. The film’s trailer launch is planned on Thursday with Dubai’s iconic Burj Khalifa serving as the backdrop.

Earlier on Wednesday, Shah Rukh offered prayers at Mata Vaishno Devi shrine atop Trikuta hills in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir. According to an official, the 58-year-old actor reached the shrine late on Tuesday night to pay his obeisance.

“The superstar reached base camp Katra on Tuesday evening and used the new Tarakote route to reach the shrine around 11.40 pm. He offered prayers and left immediately,” the official said.

A brief video showing the actor at the shrine, dressed in a hooded blue jacket and his face fully covered, is circulating on social media. Officials of the Vaishno Devi shrine board, some policemen and personal staff of the superstar could be seen in the clip.

The was Shah Rukh’s second visit to Vaishno Devi in nine months. The actor previously visited the shrine in December 2022, over a month before the release of his blockbuster hit Pathaan.

(With agency inputs)