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He is the undisputed Badshah of Bollywood, but there is a lot more to the humble boy from Delhi’s Rajinder Nagar than fame, money and power. Shah Rukh Khan, the TAG Heuer brand ambassador, is also one of the most stylish Indian actors. Yet he says, “Personally, I am not a very stylish person. There are stylists and designers who have helped me look this way. So if you think I am well turned out, it is because of their creative inputs.” He adds, “I wear a black suit and I am good to go, almost anywhere. The other day I saw myself in a fashion magazine which declared that I am one of the ten most stylish people in India and I was honestly embarrassed.” Of the many films he has done, Khan says, “some have grabbed the audience’s fancy, while others have receded into the inner spaces of their memory. Here is my list of favourite trendsetters.”
Romancing the Polo
“I am made to understand that the blockbuster Kuch Kuch Hota Hai was a path-breaker as it introduced Polo, the ubiquitous brand, which subsequently became a household name in India after this film. That was all Karan’s (Johar) doing. I made no contribution to it, except wearing what I was told to. For the first time sportswear had been given a chic new avatar and it looked fabulous on 70 MM, now that I look back.”
Carefully careless, and how
I think Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge was cool. It had this half-shirt-in and half-shirt-out look which is how I wear my shirts in real life too. So it worked well for me and is remembered as a touchstone of sorts for style aficionados.
Chak de India was an interesting diversion from what I had been doing. Beard, short hair and tight t-shirts. It was me as a coach, but a sassy coach, and the girls somehow liked that hairy look, which how I am now -- with a ponytail and a beard.
When abs did the talking
Dard-e-Disco, the chart-topping number, would be a style statement in Farah Khan’s Om Shanti Om. I didn’t know six-packs would become such a buzzword. When I started working out, it was more to keep fit, but the six-packs didn’t hurt. Girls were swooning over them. I had no clue it was such a craze, but now fitness has become a part of my life – though I must admit getting that body was a labour of love, lots of hard work, correct eating habits and unadulterated discipline. I am sure there were actors who had a better body than me but possessing six-packs became “the thing” with Dard-e-Disco.
Don, I think, is extremely stylish because Farhan (Akhtar), the designers and the stylists who created this look envisioned it to be sexy, edgy and uber cool. Farhan understands the nuances of good dressing, so he knows how to map your look according to the character you are playing. So Don is my most favourite among all, with its sculpted leather jackets and gloves, smooth shades and, of course, the wicked smile (laughs), style-wise.
