Many of his films touch on social issues in India, from women’s rights in rural areas and the sports industry, to the toxic culture in higher education and disability rights.
However, Khan has refused to be boxed into just one type of movie or role.
“I’m happy to jump genres and, experiment with different kinds of stories. I like to surprise myself and my audience.”
He is also not afraid to admit slip-ups, and has been vocal about his disappointment with his last performance in Laal Singh Chaddha.
The 2022 Indian adaptation of Tom Hanks’ Forrest Gump was a rare blip in the otherwise glowing critical reception of Khan’s work.
“I’m not really happy with my last performance, actually,” said Khan, adding that he thought he was too high-pitched in the role.
“I hope this one’s better,” he said of his upcoming film Sitaare Zameen Par, which he says is a “thematic” sequel to Taare Zameen Par, a drama about special needs education.
Despite winning dozens of Indian film awards as well as India’s third-highest civilian award, the Padma Bhushan, Khan still grounds his idea of success in the film itself.
“Filmmaking is very difficult… telling a story through so many art forms which come together to form cinema,” he said.
“So when I look at the film that we’ve made, and then I look at the script that we set out with, (I ask): Has the film reached where we thought it would?”
“And if we’ve reached where we wanted to, and we’ve made the film that we set out to, then it’s a big relief.”
