Shah Rukh Khan always felt that he wasn’t cut out to play a romantic character. The iconic blockbuster ‘Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge’ recently completed 25 years.
Shah Rukh says, “Raj was unlike anything I had done. Before ‘DDLJ’, there was ‘Darr’, ‘Baazigar’, ‘Anjaam’—films in which I had portrayed negative characters. I always felt that I wasn’t cut out to play any romantic character. So, when I was presented with the opportunity by Adi and Yash ji of essaying the role, I was excited to work with him but had no idea how to go about it and also if I would be able to do it well.”
The ‘DDLJ’ ending has inspired scores of lovers across generations to visualise their love story to be like Raj and Simran’s. Many filmmakers have also used this scene as an inspiration for their films. SRK reveals that he didn’t expect the train sequence to become as iconic when they were shooting it.
The King of Romance adds, “I think ‘DDLJ’ helped me cement my place and brought me fame in a way that I didn’t think it would. As for perception, I always felt that I can play more unconventional roles because of my looks, but ‘DDLJ’ has belied that and I still struggle to make that one macho unconventional kick-ass character which suits me, or so I thought, but it’s been a struggle to not be considered romantic and sweet for the last 25 years — a struggle, I guess, I am happy to lose.”