In the 17-minute talk, SRK reflected on his youth, growing up in New Delhi, losing both his parents by the time he was in his twenties, and then, moving to the “sprawling metropolis of Mumbai”, to follow his dreams of becoming a movie star.
Here are 7 takeaways from his inspiring talk.
1. Shah Rukh Khan is self-obsessed and he knows it. He accepts it and also points out that humanity is a lot like him — an ageing movie star. “Wondering whether it (humanity) got it right in the first place, and still trying to find a way to keep on shining regardless,” he said.
2. To talk about what could be one of the saddest incidents of his life with a twist of humour is not a sign of insensitivity, but of acceptance. He said, “I lost my parent in my early twenties, which, I must admit seems a little careless of me now.”
3. To live through stark changes in life and to go with the times is important and we understand this when SRK recalled his some things from his childhood. “The framework of life was very simple then… I really thought that ‘gay’ was a sophisticated word for happy, and ‘lesbian’ was, of course, the capital of Portugal as you all know.” He quoted many such examples and spoke about how all this changed when he moved to Mumbai and said how words had a fluid definition and how he experienced “the miracle of human innovation and cooperation.”
4. The onset of technology and the unexpected way it has started to intrude on every part of life is something that kids today might not understand. However, for those of us who didn’t really know what Twitter meant till we stepped into college, SRK makes some valid point when he said, “I started tweeting when I was 40, and felt like a canary in a bird cage. Everything I said took a new meaning. Everything I did, good, bad, ugly, was there for the world to comment upon and judge. As a matter of fact, everything I didn’t was treated the same way.”
5. How fame and fortune affects someone, especially when combined with technology is something that not everyone might understand. To throw some light on this, SRK spoke about the rumours and gossip that was circulating during the time he and Gauri decided to have Abram. He said, “It was claimed on the internet that he (AbRam) was the love child of the first child who was 15 years old.” He explained how today, reality became virtual and virtual became a reality.
6. Trying to reinvent himself, SRK faced failure when Ra.One released. He spoke about it and said, “I tried to get into a skin-tight superhero suit, trying to ‘reinvent’ myself. I must admit, I failed miserably.”
7. Finally, he said that love triumphs all. “I have realised that whatever moves you, whatever urges you to create, to build, whatever keeps you from failing, whatever helps you survive, is perhaps the oldest, and simplest emotion known to mankind, and that is love,” he concluded.
