On Wednesday evening, Shah Rukh Khan got into a brawl with security guards at the Wankhede Stadium, and later revealed that he reacted the way he did because his daughter (and the other kids with him) were being pushed around. This prompted a front-page story in Mirror which talked about his “meltdown” and implied he was losing popularity with fans and well-wishers. Do you agree?
Personally, I feel the article has blown everything way out of proportion. Fans have stuck with their superstars through far worse than public brawls (Salman Khan, anyone?), and this case it seems like SRK may at least have justification for his actions – even if he took things too far.
Shobhaa De says: “Had he expressed regret and apologised for his aggressive, abusive behaviour (regardless of the provocation), he would have earned a few brownie points instead of alienating fans. Someone should’ve advised him better.”
Like Shobhaa De, I wondered about his defensive attitude in his comments as well. Shah Rukh is usually so polite in public, even if only to keep up the perception, that I don’t believe he’d lash out like that (and remain resolute in the subsequent press conference) if he didn’t honestly believe he was right. Not that I think his behaviour and language were appropriate, especially considering he was surrounded by kids – but if indeed his daughter (and the kids he was responsible for) were manhandled, then I think almost anyone would react in a similar manner. Is it right to expect different from him just because he’s Shah Rukh Khan?