Shah Rukh Khan calls his Devdas character a ‘loser and alcoholic’, reveals why he initially rejected the Sanjay Leela Bhansali film

Shah Rukh Khan has worked in several movies in his career. One of them is the 2002 period romantic drama film Devdas. The film was recently screened at the 77th Locarno Film Festival where he received a Lifetime Achievement Award. During an interaction with a crowd of 8000 audiences there, Shah Rukh talks about his Devdas character and reveals why he had rejected and does not look up to it.

Shah Rukh Khan on Devdas

SRK revealed that his initial reaction was a no to the role. He stated at the festival, “I said, no, he’s a loser, an alcoholic. I’m too cool to be Devdas!” Talking about how Sanjay Leela Bhasali was adamant on having him on board, SRK says, “So, it kind of petered out, and then before leaving, he just said one thing, which still sticks with me. Bhansali had said, ‘I’ll not make this film if not with you, because your eyes are like Devdas. So I said, okay. He said, ‘I would not cast anyone.” And for a year he didn’t. Then we met again, and I said, ‘Okay, if you can’t find eyes like mine, I’ll do the film. Again, I was privileged to work with Aishwarya Rai and Madhuri Dixit, Jackie Shroff. It was one of the most wonderful experiences of my life to play that character.”

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Revealing why he does not like a character like Devdas, SRK shares, “I don’t like to play characters that demean women. I’ll be honest. I didn’t want him to be liked for the reason in the film that he, you know, doesn’t commit to a woman and essentially abandons her. I wanted him to come across as a spineless person, not someone you should look up to. Yes, enactment might be nice. It’s enjoyable to watch, but it’s not a character you take back home. Devdas as a person was not admirable. He was tragic, but that doesn’t make him a hero.”

On the professional front, the actor delivered back-to-back hits in 2023 with Pathaan, Jawan and Dunki. He next confirmed Sujoy Ghosh’s King with Suhana Khan and Abhishek Bachchan.

Also Read: Farhan Akhtar reveals why he chose Ranveer Singh and not Shah Rukh Khan for Don 3, says, “Sometimes that synergy on a script doesn’t happen”