'Shah Rukh Is Always Cracking Jokes'

'Back then, Shah Rukh Khan had no style, but he understood his strengths.'
'He knew he was appreciated for his energy and that boosted his confidence.'
Rediff celebrates Shah Rukh Khan's 60th birthday on November 2 with a special series that introduces us to the man behind the superstar.

They have done two diversely different films in the 1990s.

Maya Memsaab was a drama inspired by a classic 1987 French novel while O Darling! Yeh Hai India! is a surreal musical thriller.

Ketan Mehta worked with Shah Rukh Khan before he became the 'King of Romance'.

"He was available to us any time of the day or night and even shot with 104 degrees temperature... Observing his desire to excel I knew with certainty that he would become a mega star one day," Ketan tells Rediff Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya.

'I saw the spark in him from the beginning'

I had seen parts of Fauji and Aziz Mirza's Circus.

I liked the wild look in Shah Rukh's eyes and his infectious energy which I thought was apt for Lalit Kumar, a character in Maya Memsaab, the film I was casting for at the time.

With Aziz and Saeed Mirza strongly recommending him, I invited Shah Rukh to my home which back then was near Mumbai's Opera House.

Saeed and Kundan (Shah) had put in a good word for me and he was very respectful.

Fresh from Delhi and new to movies, he impressed me with his zest for life and his self-confidence.

So yes, you can say that I saw the spark in him from the beginning.

'There was a sequence in the snow with Deepa and him'

I cast him opposite Deepa (Sahi, Ketan Mehta's wife and the film's lead actor), along with Farooque Sheikh, Raj Babbar and Paresh Rawal.

The first schedule was in Himachal Pradesh.

There was a sequence in the snow with Shah Rukh and Deepa.

Since we arrived there towards the end of March, the snow was almost gone.

Deepa and I, along with the DoP (Anoop Jotwani, director of photography) and a couple of others, had gone ahead.

As soon as we reached our hotel, a blizzard broke out.

The roads were blocked, so the rest of the team was stranded.

But Shah Rukh drove through the snow storm himself to reach Narkanda.

For the next two days, we shot there, walking through knee-deep snow.

There were no spot boys or production assistants, but Shah Rukh made absolutely no fuss.

Thanks to his enthusiasm and professionalism, I managed to shoot that snow sequence in Maya Memsaab, which had been my primary concern when we arrived in Himachal Pradesh.

'He is one actor who has experimented with almost every genre'

Maya Memsaab was an adaptation of Gustave Flaubert's novel Madame Bovary though we made substantial changes from the original.

I gave him the script to read and he was excited.

It was not a mainstream film, more art house cinema, but while Shah Rukh had come to Mumbai with the dream of becoming a big commercial star, he was open to exploring and had worked in Mani Kaul's Idiot earlier.

In fact, he is one actor who has experimented with almost every genre, from O Darling Yeh Hai India! and Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa to Swades and Paheli.

His performances in these films were really good.

Observing his desire to excel I knew with certainty that he would become a mega star one day.

'We shot through almost 100 nights'

We had just finished Maya Memsaab and had enjoyed working together.

I had this crazy script and offered him the role of the 'Hero' in the surreal musical thriller O Darling! Yeh Hai India!, which featured Deepa as 'Miss India'.

Hero and Miss India find themselves having to rescue India from being auctioned off by a don -- and after his death, his son, Prince -- and a lookalike of the President.

It's a story that unfolds in the course of one night and we shot through almost 100 nights.

Fortunately, Shah Rukh wasn't the superstar he is today or we would have been mobbed and shooting would have been a nightmare.

Neither of us had done anything like this before and it was an adventure for both of us.

He was available to us any time of the day or night and even shot with 104 degrees temperature.

I was impressed with his range; it was a superlative performance.

'Shah Rukh was only looking to excel'

I haven't seen the film recently, but O Darling! Yeh Hai India! was a magical journey despite all the challenges we faced making it.

There were no vanity vans at the time and night after night, we were out on the streets.

There were no starry tantrums from Shah Rukh.

He wasn't looking for comfort, only looking to excel.

Even though there were other actors, some of them big names like Amrish Puri, Anupam Kher, Paresh Rawal, Kader Khan and Sadashiv Amrapurkar, there were no ego hassles.

Shah Rukh was comfortable with everyone and only competed with himself.

We were both from theatre backgrounds and there was a lot of improvisation during this shoot.

I was constantly adding and changing scenes on location, it didn't throw him of his stride.

'In cinema, self-assurance wins you half the battle'