Who is Shah Rukh Khan?

Shahrukh Khan | http://MikeGhouseforIndia.blogspot.com 

Source unknown, but posted by R. Padmanabhan at DallasIndians@yahoogroups.com

1. He's the grandson of a freedom fighter Gen. Shah Nawaz Khan who was the major general of Indian National Army under Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.

2. His father was also a freedom fighter who migrated from Pakistan to Delhi during the time of Partition.He is also a recipient of Tamra Patra from Indian Govt.

3. Only Indian to have a Statue in Grevin Museum, after Gandhiji.

4. Only Indian to be the 2nd Richest Actor in the world, more richer then Hollywood giants like Johnny depp, Tom Cruise (after doing all his Charity).

5. A rare species of orchid, Ascocenda Shah Rukh Khan, was named after him in Singapore.

6. Only Indian who is honoured with the prestigious Brand Laureate Legendary Award for his unmatched contribution to the world Cinema by Malaysian government.

7. Only Indian after amitabh to be crowned by Moroccan king.

8. Only Indian to be invited at Yale University, USA.

9. In 2010 he was invited to ring the opening bell of NASDAQ stock exchange, USA (world's biggest stock exchange) in New York.

10. Only Actor alongwith Dilip Kumar to win most no of Filmfare Awards

11. James Cameron: "I only want to come to Mumbai for an autograph of SRK. "

12. He is the most popular superstar in those places where Indian movies don't even release.

13. He has the most expensive house.......sorry.....Palace in Bollywood, coming from a middle class family with no parents to support him.(he's one of the highest tax payers in the country too)

14. He currently holds record of Longest running movie of Indian Cinema I.e, DDLJ

15. He Donated 2.5 million Indian ruppees to PM, Manmohan Singh for Tsunami Relief camp.

16.In NDTV's Greenathon event of 2009, he adopted 5 villages and Adopted further 12 villages in 2012 event.

17. Government of France awarded him both the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres and the Légion d'honneur - The greatest honour of France like Bharat Ratna in India.

18. He was honoured with Rajiv Gandhi Award for "Excellence in the Field of Entertainment" in 2002.

19. He was conferred the honorific Datuk title by the head of state of Malacca in Malaysia in 2007.

20. He was also honoured with an honorary doctorate in arts and culture from Britain's University of Bedfordshire in 2009.

21. In 2008, SRK named by Newsweek as one of the 50 most powerful people in the world.

22. Recently He became 2nd Indian who got awarded with an honorary doctorate by the University of Edinburgh after DR. APJ ABDUL KALAM

23. In 2013 SRK Appointed as goodwill ambassadorby the government of South Korea

24. In 2014 He was Honoured with Global Diversity Award at the State Room of Britain’s House of Commons. Britain’s Parliament honoured the king khan

25. He was awarded Best Indian Citizen Award in 1997 by the government of India

26. And also the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award from the Government of India in 2005

27.In 2007 – His lifelike wax statue was installed in London's Madame Tussauds wax museum. Due to high demand Additional versions were installed at Madame Tussauds museums in Los Angeles, Hong Kong, and New York in 2010.

28. In 2009 He was given a Black Belt Honorary in taekwondo by the South Korean government.

29. Also in same year 2009 He was awarded with an honorary doctorate in arts and culture by the University of Bedfordshire

30. In 2010 He became the first Indian actor to be given the rare honour of signing the guest book at Berlin's Town Hall.

31. In 2011 He became the first Bollywood actor to be featured on the cover page of Los Angeles Times he has also been featured on time Magazine's cover page twice

32.He was also invited to Harvard University for giving a lecture to its students. He is also world’s "first" actor to be invited at Google and Twitter headquarters.

33. He donated all the prize money KKR won in 2014, 15 cr rupees to the childrens hospital in Kolkata nd Mumbai.

34. He is the only Indian to win UNESCO's Pyramide con Marni award for his support of children's education.

35. He saw his father dying in front of him cause he had no money, his father died of cancer. So now He runs a free cancer ward in lilawati hospital,Mumbai and very few people knows about this.
I could have added more but I think it's enough, Shah Rukh Khan never beat the drums of his charity work. He, in an interview with 'Guardian' was Quoted as Saying "I follow Quran which says if you do charity for a reason, it's not a charity".He, in an interview with CNN, said "My friends advice me to have Photoraphs whole doing charity but i don't believe in it".//It's Really important to highlight because People think he's selfish and greedy.

No one can achieve what he has achieved in the last 20 years.He started at zero and reached at top.He was a common man came from a poor background with no parents and one mentally unstable Sister to be taken care of.He achieved everything through dedication and hard work.

He fell in love with a non-Muslim girl and married her without converting her religion.He hasn't even forced his religion into his childrens either and gave them the right to choose their religion once they get matured.

He is the real Indian,Secular and Patriotic Badshah of Bollywood-Shah Rukh Khan.

== Shah Rukh Khan - The Pride of India==
[ Must Share SRK fans & all true INDIANS ]

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Why Saira Banu's Glad Dilip Kumar Didn't Do Film With Elizabeth Taylor

I knew about Lawrence of Arabia, but did not know about Taj Mahal. Need to check if that movie was ever made.

Mike Ghouse

Why Saira Banu's Glad Dilip Kumar Didn't Do Film With Elizabeth Taylor

-Vikram Thapa   | December 13, 2015 17:47 IST (Mumbai)

Saira Banu and Dilip Kumar photographed at their Mumbai residence.

"DILIP SAAB NEVER WANTED TO BE IN HOLLYWOOD AND I AM GLAD HE DIDN'T DO TAJ MAHAL WITH ELIZABETH TAYLOR. IMAGINE WHERE WOULD I GO IF HE WOULD HAVE DONE THE FILM AND SOMETHING WOULD HAVE HAPPENED BETWEEN HIM AND ELIZABETH?" SAID SAIRA BANU. DILIP KUMAR RECEIVED THE PADMA VIBHUSHAN HONOUR ON DECEMBER 13



At the age of 93, two days after he celebrated his birthday Dilip Kumar was awarded with the Padma Vibhushan at his Bandra residence in Mumbai on December 13 by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh. And while the thespian wasn't keeping well to comment on his achievement, his wife and former actress Saira Banu was emotional.

"Why wouldn't I be (proud of him)," asked Saira. "The government has awarded him with such a huge award. I am the proudest wife in the world today." (Also Read: Dilip Kumar Receives Padma Vibhushan Honour)

"Dilip saab has always been a man of few words. He was very happy when he received the award and he even smiled," she said.

Dilip saab gave many hits at the Indian box office even the western world was well aware of his superstardom. Hollywood director David Lean wanted Dilip Kumar to play the character of Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia, he also wanted the actor to star in Taj Mahal.

"Dilip saab never wanted to be in Hollywood and I am glad he didn't do Taj Mahal with Elizabeth Taylor. Imagine where would I go if he would have done the film and something would have happened between him and Elizabeth?" said Saira Banu.

Dilip Kumar in Guinness world records

India has three legendary actors - Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor, all were born in the early 20's and each one has set the standards for the cinematic acting, they were pioneers. Dilip Kumar is one of the most emulated actors in India, he is an institution. Dev Anand just passed in December 2011 and I wrote a tribute about him and Raj Kapoor passed some ten years ago. 

I have had the honor of spending a lot of time with Dilip Kumar when he was in Dallas. Taj Bhai and I went to pick them up from the Airport and due to the traffic, the four of us were on the road for about three hours and then I was assigned the task of coordinating media interviews for him. The experience was a delight, what a great and humble man he was. I will write about him when I get a chance. We talked about the Ganesh Miracle, which was the biggest news in India at that time, and talked about Prophet Abraham. The way he spoke will remain etched in my memory for ever and I have to write those dialogues some time, they are worth reading. Dilip is a great human being... here are two quick stories.

1. Raj Sharma came to see Dilip and said he was a student in acting, as usual he touched Dilip's feet and sat down on the floor, Dilip would not let him do that.. he said sit by me, you and I are equals, we are in the same profession... you can imagine all that you want from this.

2. Checked Dilip and Saira into Omni hotel which was not a five star hotel, Saira was not happy with the pillows and the room size... they are the mega stars of India and this is what they get? Dilip explained to Saira, let's stay here, the money saved by the organization goes to the education of children... I almost burst into tears with such a pure emotion...

I will write more about it, meanwhile, here is what the report reads:

Veteran star Dilip Kumar recently bagged a prestigious entry into the Guinness World Records. He earned the honor for being the only living Indian actor to have won the maximum number of awards.

 Dilip Kumar will soon grace a special show produced by Guinness, where he will be interviewed by Preity Zinta. Read more: http://?143masti.blogspot.com/2011/?03/?dilip-kumar-enters-guinness?-records.html#ixzz1MARAxpK?H

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Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. A writer, thinker and a speaker and is available to speak on pluralism, politics, islam, peace, cohesive societies and a variety of topics. Check out 4 websites and 27 Blogs indexed atwww.MikeGhouse.net. Current articles at www.TheGhousediary.com

Dilip Kumar's Autobiography released - Dallas edition

DILIP KUMAR IN DALLAS
http://mikeghouseforindia.blogspot.com/2014/06/dilip-kumars-autobiography-released.html

Dilip Kumar is an Indian Phenomenon and is one of the three original icons of Indian cinema; they set the standards of acting in India. Indeed, he is the only living legend of India Cinema.

In the last 50 years, almost every major actor has taken pride in acting like Dilip Kumar - from Amitabh Bachhan to Rajendra Kumar and several in between.

His autobiography is released now, and in the synopsis, two things caught my eye.

The story he tells about his sister dressing down his barber for sitting in the drawing room, and Dilip apologizing to the Barber for the mistreatment and having words with his sister.

I see a whole lot more about this man here - humility for one, and treating people with dignity and respect and considering others on par. The age old saying, great men are humble beings is so true.

Some 20 years ago he was here in Dallas with AFMI - two things happened during his stay.

First he was booked in Richardson Omni Hotel, probably for proximity to the venue, it was not a five star hotel - Taj Bhai and I were assigned to take care of them, when we checked them in - Saira Banu went around checking the pillows... she was not happy with the room size and its furnishings and made it known, she was looking to be in a five star hotel. Indeed, once Lata Mangeshkar was placed in Lowes Anatole for precisely that reason, and a few others have done it too.  Amitabh Bacchan would have demanded the whole floor.

I was absorbing it all, and before we could do something about it, Dilip said to Saira - this program is for charity, the money saved is going to benefit the education of children, let's stay here.... Need I say more about his humility?

Second item involved Raj Sharma - a budding actor of Dallas. I was in charge of setting up meetings with Dilip including the media. So, Raj walks in as scheduled, touches Dilip's feet and sits down on the floor - a Indian tradition to show respect to the elders... within a few seconds Raj said to Dilip - that he is going to acting school and will be an actor soon... amazing thing happened then.! Dilip got up, gave a hand to Raj, pulled him up and asked him to sit face to face across on the other chair.... and said, "We are now on par".

There were a few more rich conversations in those 2 or three days with Dilip, and will write some other time. In the limo we spent nearly 4 hours on the road, and had some great conversations. Dilip and Saira were in Bangalore before they came here, that was a historic week in India - every where Milk was seen flowing from Ganesh and they had just seen that... then I had a conversation about Pluralism and some of the remarks he made, made me a greater fan of him. I was completely taken back receiving Saira Banu at the airport, she was the kashimir ki kali hoon may, mujh se na rootho babuji... and I saw the auntiji in Saira and wondered for a long time about our images of people years ago... and thought of Rip Van Winkle story.Mike Ghouse is an Indian American Public Speaker, thinker and a writer committed to offer pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. www.MikeGhouse.net

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Why Dilip Kumar refused to work with Nargis in Mother India

Arindam Mukherjee  New Delhi, June 16, 2014 | UPDATED 19:36 IST

Film actor Dilip Kumar's autobiography is a delight for lovers of Hindi cinema. Titled 'Dilip Kumar: The Substance And The Shadow', and narrated by veteran journalist and writer Udaytara Nayar, the book is rich with trivia and anecdotes from the life of the veteran actor. In this book, the thespian opened his heart for the first time to speak about acting, family, co-workers and lovers, the people who influenced and changed his life.

Many Bollywood celebs including, Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, attended the autobiography launch.

Here are 10 nuggets, among plenty else, from the book:

1. On his first appearance on the screen in Jwar Bhata: "When I saw myself on the screen, I asked myself: 'Is this how I am going to perform in the films that may follow if the studio wishes to continue my services?!' My response was: 'No.' I realised that this was a difficult job and, if I had to continue, I would have to find my own way of doing it. And the critical question was: HOW?"

2. On his love for Madhubala "Did it happen with me? Was I in love with Madhubala as the newspaper and magazines reported at that time? As an answer to this oft-repeated question straight from the horse's mouth, I must admit that I was attracted to her both as a fine co-star and as a person who had some of the attributes I hoped to find in a woman at that age and time... She, as I said earlier, was very sprightly and vivacious and, as such, she could draw me out of my shyness and reticence effortlessly

3. On his break-up with Madhubala, the actor says the relationship soured during the making of Mughal-e-Azam. Remembering the most sensuous scene from the movie he says: "The outcome was that halfway through the production of 'Mughal-e-Azam' we were not even talking to each other. The classic scene with the feather coming between our lips, which set a million imaginations on fire, was shot when we had completely stopped even greeting each other."

4. The actor refused a role in Mother India because he had romanced Nargis in his previous two films. "When Mehboob [Khan] sahab discussed Mother India with me in the early 1950s, I thought it was a brilliant and timely concept and it had to be made at any cost. The role he could offer me was one of the sons of heroine Nargis and I pointed out that it would be an incongruous casting after all the romancing she and I had done in earlier films, such as Mela (1948) and Babul (1950).

5.  On his love for outdoor shooting, he reminisced the making of Bimal Roy's Madhumati. "To us - Pran, Johnny Walker, Bimalda, Hrishida (Hrishikesh Mukherjee) and me - the time after 'pack-up' was very interesting. We got over the pressure of the day's work by spending the evenings in cheerful conversation and poetic exchanges while the cooks in the unit readied our dinner. Pran and I got along famously talking in Punjabi while Bimalda and Hrishida tried to outdo us in Bengali... It used to be a little awkward the following day when Pran had to brim with hostility as the negative character in the script. I must say he was amazingly true to the character Ugranarayan."

6. A stickler for rehearsals before his performance, Dilip Kumar says that actress "Devika Rani had advised me and all the actors she employed at Bombay Talkies that it was important to rehearse till a level of competence to perform was achieved. In the early years, it was a necessity for me to rehearse, but, even in the later years, her advice stayed with me when I had to match a benchmark I had mentally set for myself. In fact, I am aware that I am known for the number of rehearsals I do for even what seems to be a simple scene."

7.  On his famous hairstyle, and his barber: "The poor man [his barber] always had a problem with my hair which grew at jet speed, demanding fortnightly trimming. He was constantly crestfallen by my hair's refusal to be combed back and kept in place the way he wanted...The barber came home one afternoon and I had instructed him to wait if I did not reach the house on time. He took the liberty of sitting in the drawing room and my eldest sister took it as impudence on his part and gave him a dressing down, which was in progress when I made my entry. I apologised to him and I found him more bewildered than angry. Later, I took up the matter with Sakina Aapa [elder sister] and we had an unpleasant spat."

8. The evening of 23 August 1966, when Dilip Kumar met Saira Banu and fell in love: "When I alighted from my car and entered the beautiful garden that leads to the house, I can still recall my eyes falling on Saira standing in the foyer of her new house looking breathtakingly beautiful in a brocade sari. I was taken aback, because she was no longer the young girl I had consciously avoided working with because I thought she would look too young to be my heroine. She had indeed grown to full womanhood and was in reality more beautiful than I thought she was."

9. The actor learned how to play a sitar for the movie Kohinoor (1960). The movie "will remain etched in my mind for the efforts I made to learn to play the sitar. It was another chance for me to test my flair for the comedy genre in acting... I enjoyed the making of Kohinoor also for the camaraderie that grew between me and Meena Kumari after Azaad as we, who were known for our forte with  emotional drama and tragedy, came together for another light-hearted film.

10. Amitabh Bachchan was mesmerised by Dilip Kumar's performance in Gunga Jamuna. "Recently, while we were chatting casually, Amitabh Bachchan mentioned to me that he had repeatedly viewed Gunga Jumna as a student in Allahabad to understand how a Pathan was effortlessly playing a rustic character of UP and speaking the dialect with such ease," said the actor in his book.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/10-interesting-things-from-dilip-kumar-autobiography/1/367139.htmlindiatoday.intoday.in/story/honour-killing-in-uttar-pradesh-17-year-old-girl-shot-dead-body-set-on-fire/1/367156.html

Dilip Kumar and Madhubla; a powerful love story

I was the 65^th viewer of the this outstanding 33 minutes love story, it is one of the best real love stories with full range of emotions I have seen. I do regret that it is not in English or English subtitles. It is in Hindustani (Hindi/Urdu) language, the language of Indian Films.

This is a dream come true for guys like me who want to see Indian films in less than an hour (usually three hours)… if I did not have the passion for Pluralism; this is what I would have done; to reduce all Indian films to one hour. Here is the best example of such work.

This is the real love story of two of the greatest movie actors of Bollywood. It is incredible work, a story created from of pieces of different films, reflecting the real love story of Dilip Kumar and Madhubala.

It is one of most beautiful love stories laced with a touch of some of the most beautiful songs and dialogues, its indeed a hog’s heaven for the people of the subcontinent.

I had the luxury of spending over three hours with Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu, when they were in Dalals, and subsequently managing his media schedule. I was also their attendent along with Taj Bhai in checking them into the hotel. We had great philosophical conversations with them, indeed, we talked about Pluralism way back then in the early Nineties. It's been 18-19 years ago.

I thank the narrator lady Nigar Khan for putting this together, however, I really wish she had not acted and talked like villainous Bindu in the old Indian movies. I love that set with dim blue gray lighting.

I dropped everything to watch this film, and if you do, please let me know.

Thank you

Watch and enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cR3SEh2rM78&feature=player_embedded

~ ~ ~ ~

Mike Ghouse, watch the trailer of the film I am making on the website www.AmericaTogetherFoundation.com. When complete, it is a love story weaved into American Context, making a patriotic American out of all of us.

Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor

It is always a joy to see these three giants of India, the pioneers of India

Dilip Kumar in Guinness world records

India has three legendary actors - Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor, all were born in the early 20's and each one has set the standards for the cinematic acting, they were pioneers. Dilip Kumar is one of the most emulated actors in India, he is an institution. Dev Anand just passed in December 2011 and I wrote a tribute about him and Raj Kapoor passed some ten years ago. 

I have had the honor of spending a lot of time with Dilip Kumar when he was in Dallas. Taj Bhai and I went to pick them up from the Airport and due to the traffic, the four of us were on the road for about three hours and then I was assigned the task of coordinating media interviews for him. The experience was a delight, what a great and humble man he was. I will write about him when I get a chance. We talked about the Ganesh Miracle, which was the biggest news in India at that time, and talked about Prophet Abraham. The way he spoke will remain etched in my memory for ever and I have to write those dialogues some time, they are worth reading. Dilip is a great human being... here are two quick stories.

1. Raj Sharma came to see Dilip and said he was a student in acting, as usual he touched Dilip's feet and sat down on the floor, Dilip would not let him do that.. he said sit by me, you and I are equals, we are in the same profession... you can imagine all that you want from this.

2. Checked Dilip and Saira into Omni hotel which was not a five star hotel, Saira was not happy with the pillows and the room size... they are the mega stars of India and this is what they get? Dilip explained to Saira, let's stay here, the money saved by the organization goes to the education of children... I almost burst into tears with such a pure emotion...

I will write more about it, meanwhile, here is what the report reads:

Veteran star Dilip Kumar recently bagged a prestigious entry into the Guinness World Records. He earned the honor for being the only living Indian actor to have won the maximum number of awards.

 Dilip Kumar will soon grace a special show produced by Guinness, where he will be interviewed by Preity Zinta. Read more: http://?143masti.blogspot.com/2011/?03/?dilip-kumar-enters-guinness?-records.html#ixzz1MARAxpK?H

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Mike Ghouse is committed to building a cohesive America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. A writer, thinker and a speaker and is available to speak on pluralism, politics, islam, peace, cohesive societies and a variety of topics. Check out 4 websites and 27 Blogs indexed at www.MikeGhouse.net. Current articles at www.TheGhousediary.com

Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor