Customer Reviews

King of Bollywood: Shah Rukh Khan and the Seductive World of Indian Cinema

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I looked forward to this book, and I wasn't disappointed. I am a fan of its subject, India's most charismatic film star, and also of the author, who writes often for the New York Times, among other places, about the Bombay movie world.

There are lots of great stories about Shah Rukh packed into King of Bollywood , nice pictures too, but the book is about India and Hindi language popular movies made in Bombay, from the greatness of the 50s (barely known in the west - too bad) to the pretty severe non-greatness of the 80s, as much as it's about Shah Rukh and Hindi films today. Its easy, entertaining, and accurate telling of the story make it the first book on the subject I'd think of giving to a friend who is not a Hindi movie fan

It is true that Shah Rukh has "an Elvis-like effect" -- I saw it first-hand when he shot a film in New York -- and Chopra has some ideas about what goes into his being such an icon for India right now.

If Elvis' power had something to do with "a black soul in a white body", Shah Rukh, she says, presents something like an Indian soul in a western persona. Particularly in a handful of crucial roles created for him by a couple of inspired young directors*, Shah Rukh is the face of "a glittering new India," with a soaring economy and a middle class almost as big as the whole population of the US.

In movies that are like fairytales for all ages, the romantic characters that sealed Shah Rukh's superstardom live in great wealth in London or New York, but resolve their dramatic crises in an entirely Indian way.

Interestingly to me, a big percent of the still-small number of westerners in the Hindi movie audience were drawn there to start with by just these films. The archetype of someone totally eastern and totally western may be useful in the twenty-first century to even more of human society than the mere three billion already in love with the world's most loveable man.

* Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (Sub Dol) (The Braveheart Will Take the Bride), 1995

Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (Sometimes Happy, Sometimes Sad), 2001

Coming in at 250 pages, Anupama Chopra's authorized biography of Shah Rukh Khan covers from his parents' courtship in 1959 to January 2007. Ms. Chopra adds more details to Shah Rukh Khan's familiar backstory: on his father's business ventures, Shah Rukh's time at St. Columba's School, his parents' illnesses & deaths, & Shah Rukh Khan's training as an actor & his first steps in Mumbai. Several facets of Shah Rukh Khan's career are highlighted, particularly his daring acceptance of the anti-hero roles in Baazigar & Darr, the importance of Yash Chopra, Aditya Chopra, & Karan Johar in the creation of his screen persona, being contacted by the Mumbai mafia, box office slumps, in India, during the Dreamz Unlimited period, & resurgence with Veer-Zaara & Devdas. One gets new details on SRK's life & career but many questions go unanswered, like how did Shah Rukh train to dance, which parent did he inherit his dimples from, & what is a shooting day like on set?

Anupama Chopra's writing is skillful, so much so that I wished this biography was 3-4 times longer & more academic & detailed. There are no endnotes or footnotes within the chapters, but there is an extensive bibliography, arranged by chapter, at the back of the book & a list of people interviewed. There is information on Khan's parents that I had not read before, but Shah Rukh Khan's statements appear to be from past interviews. There are new photographs in the book provided by family & friends of Khan. I wish Ms. Chopra had given more information on the evolution & workings of cinema in Mumbai, on Shah Rukh Khan's & his family's personal lives, & on the family clans that dominate Hindi cinema. Neither her treatment of Shah Rukh Khan's career to present nor the discussion of Hindi cinema in Mumbai feels complete. However, I thoroughly enjoyed her writing (& the thoughtful translations of Hindi words & movie titles) & recommend the book for those who enjoy Shah Rukh Khan's work & Bollywood movies.

Bollywoodmania is an addiction. For Westners that will discover and appreciate it in the next years (and be sure they will!) it is the disclosure of a fairytale world of moviemaking that was there all the time but that we simply didn't know. Well, when this will happen the first and probably most important gateway will be the actor and the movies interpreted by Shahrukh Khan. And after having seen some of these, no one will be able to resist curiosity on this great actor.

Anuparma Chopra is a member of the Chopra family that makes up the establisment of Bollywood and is also an estimated journalist. From her priviledged point of view she has written this biography of the still young King Khan integrating his personality with the history of Bollywood cinema in the last 20-30 years. Naturally, the biography is authorized and as such may not contain episodes that are not consistent with the image modern Bollywood and Shahrukh Khan want to convey. All the less, there is a sincerity that transpires throughout the book and allows the reader to connect with the actor and his environment.

The first part on the youth of the actor is full of episodes and sometimes takes on a mythical aspect, but that is a common feature of all biographies. The chapters on the later years are a little sketchy and skip many well known facts. But we must not forget that this book has and will have a different impact on Indians or the Indian-culture public and "Westner's". The Author wanted to write about something new or at least not well known to her main public, that practically reads at least two or three articles a day on Shahrukh Khan. Reading the Indian reviews of the book that criticize the small amount of new information this aspect is very evident.

The book's point of force is the analysis of the reasons for Shahrukh Khan's success, that trascend the actor's talent and are deeply rooted in the transformation of Indian society and how modern Indians envision themselves in these years. An important weight is correctly given to the directors (Chopra and Johar) that have created Shahrukh's winning image and cinema personality, while some movies and directors he also worked with are only mentioned.

The bibliography is quite extensive for a short biography such as this and cites many interesting books on Bollywood cinema. A filmography of the actor is missing and I would have appreciated a brief comment on his less well known movies.

I suggest to read this book even if you are not a Shahrukh fan just to be updated on modern entertainment and on the reasons and pulsions that contribute to create our "collective imagination".

Gives great insight into Indian cinema actors. Shines a light in the evolution of cinema from India. A great read for those interested in Bollywood cinema and Shah Rukh Khan.

This book is a very good book if you want to know some inside truth about Shah Rukh Khan and some other celebrities. I gain a lot of knowledge of who Shah Rukh is and why he is the way he is. For the most part he grew up with a lot of love and great morals and principals and that is why he is such a loving person it comes a cross in is family and romance films. I liked the part when he was younger and he was involve in a gang, and all the gang was that they were kool guys they didn't get into any trouble. the police got them playing field hockey late one night but that was it. This gang didn't walk around bullying other people or kids. Also great insight on some of the directors in India. so all in all it's a great book to me!!! You will enjoy it.

I was looking forward to read this book for a very long time.
I'm a Bollywood enthusiastic and, of course, I admire SRK's work. I've seen many of his movies so I found very interesting reading about his life and how he became the legend he is now, only compare to Big B.
Anupama Chopra has a way to make you see what she's writing and you can be transported to where she places her narration in a very easy way.
This book was helpful because you get to understand Bollywood's standards and is an easy gate to apreciate their movies more openly.
This book has some history, is a documentary and a biography. All condensed in a very enjoyable reading material.
I so recomend this book to all Bollywood and SRK's fans.

This is an enjoyable, insightful read telling both the rise of Shah Rukh Khan to superstardom and the rise of India cinema. Once I started reading, I couldn't stop. To understand the country and people of India, you must understand their movies which reflect their cultures, religion, and worldview. India is as complex as America with bloody religious conflicts, terrorists attacks, the extreme poor living near the extreme rich. It is a nation with over three thousands years of history and is currently the the largest, by population, democratic country in the world. Many of the most popular Bollywood movies are fantasy musicals filled with fun dance and end happily, unlike the real world. Bollywood films become the key link for 2nd and 3rd generation Indians who live overseas. How they perceive their culture and roots if from these movies.

Enter Shah Rukh Khan who came from a humble background to rise to the top of Bollywood. A Muslim boy who came a superstar in Hindu movies. His passion for movies and ambition continue to drive him. Neither terrorists, mobsters, or box office flops have stopped him.

For anyone interested in Bollywood or India, I highly recommend this book. I do suggest, though, to wait to read this book until after watching several of the more popular Bollywood movies so you will have a frame of reference. A must see movie you need to watch is Dilwale Dulhania le Jayenge (often just called DDLJ). Which translates to "The Brave-hearted Will Take the Bride". It is the movie which launched Shak Rukh Khan to superstardom and is the longest running movie in Indian Theaters (its still running to this day).

Book reads more like that written by an admirer than a journlist. There is too much of glorification, often unjustifiable. For example, on one hand, the author says that the family of the Shahrukh Khan was utterly poor often with no food to eat, yet on the other hand the family had a car and his sister was staying in an expensive hostal of an expensive college. How can that be? And if so, then certainly the parents had their priorities screwed up (yet they are glorified). The book has no mention of Madhuri Dixit even though Shahrukh acted with her in several movies. His loud manners and use of obsene language are presented as credentials rather than his failings.

Overall, the book falls short but is still better than the overacting of Shahrukh Khan in his more recent movies.

Title: King of Bollywood
Author: Anupama Chopra
ISBN: 978-0-446-57858-5
Publisher: Warner Books
Review By: Diana Rohini LaVigne, Indian Life & Style Magazine

Packed with scrumptious lesser known facts of one of, if not the top Bollywood actor of modern day, Shah Rukh Khan, King of Bollywood is a fun book to read and fun book to share. Being one of the most talked about personalities in the world today, SRK is a legend already but King of Bollywood feeds the hunger of his fans globally on what is the man like behind the mask of superstar.

Although it shies away from some of the less flattering aspects of the actor's life and lifestyle, it does deliver some notions of challenges faced, failures along the way and allows readers to travel from his days as a penniless boy traveling to Bombay on a whim to the grand master of marketing and box office smashes. His story is so extraordinary and almost bigger than life, but Anupama Chopra tells the story in a way that allows fans to follow along and relate their own personal struggles to those of the actor's. Expertly written, King of Bollywood puts SRK's life into chronological order while recalling old memories into current day stories for insight into his physiological make up. Chopra really works on getting the actor's words into the book and calls on friends and family to help build the story from outside his prospective.

There is no doubt that Shah Rukh Khan is a master at the game of Bollywood and the art of persistence. King of Bollywood tells the tale of a boy, turned into a husband, who becomes the actor he always dreamed of being and then remaining the man he always was at heart. This wonderfully written book will provide entertainment to Bollywood lovers around the world and for ages to come.

This is a great read for people interested in Bollywood. It not only tells the tale of one of the most popular actors in the film industry, ShahRukh Khan, but it also puts his history in the context of Bollywood's history. It is a great combination of in-depth information and socio-cultural analysis of Bollywood and ShahRukh Khan's life. It is extremely well written-interesting, poignant, and funny. For those who already know a lot about Bollywood or for those who are completely new to it, this is a great book for both kinds of people. I loved it and I highly recommend it. :)