The secret of Shah Rukh Khan's success

The three Khans of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan have never shied away from praising or appreciating each other's work. So, when actor Shah Rukh Khan was asked during the media interactions for Eid celebrations at his residence Mannat whether he would like to try the wrestling genre now that both his Khan contemporaries are doing it he brushed it off by saying that he will let Aamir and Salman handle it, as he is noted for his romantic and emotional characters and would keep doing that.

Shah Rukh Khan is doing it again! Giving us more reasons to fall in love with him that is… So an editor of a popular filmi magazine recently tweeted a video of an old episode of ‘Aap Ki Aadalat’ where Rajat Sharma is interviewing SRK, along with a tweet that read, “Years ago when @iamsrk appeared on aap Ki adalat. I think before DDLJ. Sweet ya he's just the same:))) and so funny.” King Khan being his usual funny, witty self, replied back with a hilarious tweet. He wrote, “Yes my friend I was young and foolish then…now I am just foolish.” How awesome is that! Well, Khan just proved that it’s not without reason that he’s crowned the King of Bollywood.

Click here to check out SRK’s interview.

The actor might have called himself foolish, but we know better than to believe it. In fact the actor himself admitted of being a marketing genius a while ago. Move on read all about his genius...

SRK calls himself a 'marketing genius'

SRK is a true marketing genius and expectedly didn't want to take the usual route to promote his upcoming movie, Dilwale, starring Kajol. Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol are not leaving any stone unturned to promote their movie. Actors promoting their films on their official twitter handles is an established trend. However, Shah Rukh Khan did the same in what we would like to term a rather smart manner. As he tweeted, "‘D’ for Delhi, D for dapper,D for Don’t miss my Dilwale logo phone cover. Damn I am such a ‘marketing genius’ ha ha." [sic]. That is really a smart way Shah Rukh...

Click to the next slide to know why Shah Rukh seems to be in the comfort zone, as far as entertainers are concerned.

SRK: Whatever I feel like doing, I'll do

After films like Chennai Express and Happy New Year, Shah Rukh seems to be in the comfort zone, as far as entertainers are concerned. When prodded about feeling the need to do different cinema, like his earlier days as an actor, Shah Rukh says, "Since the last 3-4 years, due to my injuries and working on my production house, I have ended up doing only one film a year. Lately, I have felt that it takes away my happiness as an actor. After every 3-4 months when I finish shooting for a film, I feel like attempting a different kind of film. We could risk doing this earlier by working round the clock, in three shifts. This year I have made a decision that whatever I feel like doing, I'll do. Like now, I felt the need to do a good, family entertainer, so I did it." Explaining how decisions are also made keeping the company in mind, Shah Rukh elaborates, "The company also likes it when their film is a blockbuster. The two other films that are coming up are not in the commercial zone. As far as Dilwale is concerned, it had been two years since I had worked with Rohit in Chennai Express and I wanted to do another film with him. And everyone knows that Rohit only makes entertainers. You can't expect him to make a film like Nishabd."

While he is looking forward to newer type of films, he is also endorsing some cool stuff. Check out the details on the next slide...

SRK to promote Bengal as the 'sweetest' tourist destination

Bollywood superstar, Shah Rukh Khan, will be promoting Bengal as the 'sweetest' tourist destination in the entire country, as the state goes on an overdrive to attract domestic and foreign travellers. According to a report on Mid-day.com, during a media interaction, the state tourism minister, Bratya Basu, claimed that they have roped in superstar Shah Rukh Khan for promoting tourist destinations in West Bengal and that he will soon come over to the city for a two-day shoot. The report has quoted the state tourism minister as saying that new ad-films will be made featuring Shah Rukh in Hindi and English languages, and that a Rs 8 crore budget has been earmarked for showcasing Bengal as an attractive tourist destination.

Read on to know as to how is Shah Rukh Khan involved in the distribution of Dilwale...

Shah Rukh Khan and Karan Johar to co-produce a film?

Seems like Karan Johar and Shah Rukh Khan, who were the best of friends until an alleged fallout, have buried the hatchet. The duo is said to be producing a film together. According to Shah Rukh's interview with Hindustan Times, he was not doing a film that was being directed by Karan. In fact, SRK was quoted saying that he was co-producing a film with KJo which would be very interesting, as the script was interesting. The script has been chosen by Karan and Shah Rukh, and the report also stated that KJo has a good mind and he liked the fact that the latter was joining hands with his company.

SRK is known for his keen business sense and investing in ventures. Read on to know how the Badshah of Bollywood spent money buying an important franchise...

Shah Rukh Khan to be involved in the distribution of 'Dilwale'?

Rohit Shetty's Dilwale, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Varun Dhawan and Kriti Sanon has generated a lot of curiosity. The film which has partly been shot in Bulgaria, is one of the most awaited films to release this year. What makes it more interesting is that King Khan's Red Chillies Entertainment will distribute the film. According to Bollywoodlife.com, a daily states that the film has already been sold to exhibitors in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Nizam and Rajasthan. Further to the report, the figures are apparently expected to be around Rs 280 crore.

SRK is known for his keen business sense and investing in ventures. Read on to know how the Badshah of Bollywood spent money buying an important franchise...

Shah Rukh Khan has purchased the Trinidad & Tobago franchise in the Caribbean Premier League. According to reports, Khan's company Red Chillies Entertainment Pvt Ltd, along with Kolkata Knight Riders co-owners Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta, has invested in the T&T franchise. The next edition of the tournament is scheduled to run from June 20 to July 26, 2015. Khan is the first owner of an Indian Premier League team to own an overseas cricket franchise. He told TOI, "This is in line with our vision to expand globally . We are thrilled to become part of the cricketing tradition of Trinidad & Tobago. The passion for franchise cricket in the Caribbean is evident with the success of CPL and we hope to bring all the best practices of KKR to the T&T franchise."

Hollywood stars Mark Wahlberg and Gerard Butler already own CPL franchises. Wahlberg owns reigning champions Barbados Tridents, led by Kieron Pollard, while Butler owns Jamaica Tallawahs, captained by Chris Gayle.

While this is just one of the many ways SRK mints money, read further to know about other ways…

Shah Rukh Khan seems to be one of the busiest actors these days as he is working on multiple projects. SRK is working simultaneously on projects for the small screen and the silver screen. Since he is making a comeback on television, Shah Rukh is shooting for his reality show, Sabse Shaana Kaun. However at the same time he is also shooting for Yash Raj Film's upcoming movie, Fan. The actor posted about his busy schedule on micro-blogging site, Twitter. He wrote, "Hectic day on Fan & I hav to get back to Sabse Shaana Kaun 2. Eventful & packed days & nite but no pain no gain....so i go on relentlessly" [sic]

Aptly put by the Baadshah Khan, there is definitely no gain without pain. Read on to know how Shah Rukh Khan makes all the big bucks.

Bollywood’s baadshah Shah Rukh Khan has been named as the second richest actor in the world. In fact, Shah Rukh has beaten Hollywood biggies like Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Clint Eastwood or Adam Sandler in terms of wealth and status. A report in Wealth-X has estimated SRK to be worth $600 million. Not only is he a great actor, producer, TV host but is also a co-owner of an IPL cricket team. He is sharp, intelligent and has an excellent business sense. Be it movies, endorsements or business venture, whatever SRK touches becomes gold. Let us go through ways which has helped SRK make money.


By Pritika Ghura

Innovative ideas: When a new movie is to be released, promotional activities take a huge chunk of the budget. Be it city-to-city press conferences or launch parties, these promotional activities are very important for the film’s success. But what if the campaign can be tapped to get massive returns? That's exactly what Shah Rukh Khan did to promote his home production, Happy New Year, which was 2014's big Diwali release. A Mumbai Mirror report says that instead of asking the cast of the movie to give interviews and shoot pictures, SRK had a new game-plan in mind. He conducted worldwide shows with the film's cast, including Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Sonu Sood and Boman Irani, ahead of the film's release. Called Slam! The Tour, SRK and his team performed in the US and UK. The organisers and promoters of the 'SLAM! The Tour' cashed in on the hype and each show was reportedly estimated to make around Rs 7 crore.

High-profile endorsements: From endorsing cold drinks to talcum powder, cars to fairness creams, no one can beat Shah Rukh Khan in the advertisement world. The superstar has apparently bagged a Rs 20 crore worth endorsement deal with a pan masala brand. This is touted to be one of the highest endorsement deals signed by a Bollywood actor. In fact, King Khan endorses so many brands that he has created his own ‘Brand SRK.’ He is very popular in the endorsement world as he is able to connect with both classes as well as the masses. His easy charm, personality, box-office success and good looks make him a favourite in the advertisement world. Also his self-made man image makes him more attractive.

Selling satellite rights: Shah Rukh Khan is a smart filmmaker. He knows that there is a huge audience that cannot afford to watch movies in the multiplex. However, if it gets telecast on TV there is no way they will ignore it. Though SRK’s Chennai Express did extremely well at the box-office, he sold satellite rights of the film to Zee Entertainment for Rs 48 crore. In fact, a TOI report says that the filmmakers had a deal with the channel that if it crosses the Rs 100 crore mark, they will get more money for selling the rights. Interestingly, this was the first time ever that a film's satellite rights were sold with such a pre-condition. Quoting a source, the report adds that SRK was involved with every area of the film's marketing and branding.

Performing in weddings: It is not easy to make King Khan dance and no one knows that better than industrialists or politicians who pay Shah Rukh Khan in crores to make him perform at their family weddings. A Mumbai Mirror report says that King Khan charges about USD 15,000 for an appearance and close to Rs 8 crore for a wedding performance. In fact, these reports emerged when the actor gave a 30-minute performance at a high-profile wedding in Dubai last year. It is said that SRK enjoys a monopoly of sorts as Salman Khan is advised not to dance given his health conditions and Aamir and Saif don’t like to perform. Hence, he gets the price he demands. Apparently the Mirror report says that he received around 250 invites for wedding appearances or performances in 2012 but took up only 10 of them. That means he can easily make Rs 80 crore in a year by just performing at high-profile weddings.

Marketing strategies: When it comes to movie promotions and marketing strategies, Shah Rukh Khan is unbeatable. And this has been proved by the stupendous success of his movie Happy New Year. In fact, he is credited for introducing the concept of a huge promotional campaign before and after the release of a film. So doing city tours, attending press conferences, coming on TV reality shows, SRK does it all. In fact, reports suggest that it was SRK’s idea to give one Chennai Express ticket free with every two tickets purchased in Delhi. He also took advantage of the hype around the movie and increased the price of ticket before the release of the film. Even a hike of Rs 10 per ticket can have huge impact on the overall collection of a film.

Smart investments: Shah Rukh Khan values money and believes in investing it smartly. The superstar has invested his money in properties across the world, an IPL team and a production house Red Chillies Entertainment. A Mid-Day report says King Khan has invested in Imagination Edutainment India Pvt Ltd, which is a local franchise of KidZania, a global chain of indoor theme parks for children. By making smart investments, SRK knows he will only get higher returns and be able to double his money.

Sharing profit percentage: Though Shah Rukh Khan is not the only actor who demands a percentage of the profit for a film he is acting in, he is one of the first few actors who started this trend. So while Aamir reportedly claimed 33 percent of the profits for YRF's Dhoom 3, Shah Rukh Khan makes more. A TOI report said that King Khan also has a large share in the profits of Vishal Bhardwaj's film, produced by Sajid Nadiadwala. Rumour has it that he has at least a 60 per cent share.

TV shows: You will be surprised to know that Shah Rukh Khan, who started his career with TV soaps Fauji and Circus, is among the highest paid actors of TV as well. After ruling the box-office, SRK again made a foray into television as the host of three reality shows- Kaun Banega Crorepati Season 3, Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain? and Zor Ka Jhatka: Total Wipeout. However, SRK's fee went up with each show. A TOI report says that in 2011, he charged Rs 2.5 crores for Zor Ka Jhatka..., an Indian adaptation of the American reality show Wipeout. With this kind of money, no wonder SRK is indeed the richest actor of India.

Has a thirst for knowledge: Shah Rukh Khan has a huge appetite for knowledge and loves to read. He is among the most updated and informed actors of the film industry. His study is littered with books of all genres and he makes it a point to stay abreast of the latest news as well as gain knowledge from books. Another thing that keeps him focused is that he loves his job and puts in utmost dedication and hard work. Hence, it is his passion, thirst of knowledge and dedication that makes SRK the top most star of the country.