Is SRK a better investor or actor?

Korbo, Lorbo, Jeetbo Re Korbo Lorbo Re Jeetbo. This is the theme song of the high profile team Kolkata Knight Riders owned by the King of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan. Juhi Chawla and her husband Jai Mehta are co-owners of the team. The theme song has been composed by music director duo Vishal-Shekhar and since then this song has been played in all the stadiums where KKR has played.

Even before the auctions of IPL were initialised and it was in the stage of planning, SRK was sure who he wanted as the captain of his IPL team. Team India was playing an international match against a visiting team and SRK was also there to watch the live action. When India was batting, a television grab of Saurav Ganguly walking from the pavilion to the VIP stand to meet SRK seemed normal, as the actor has been friends with many cricketers. Well, but it turned out to be an association. Shah Rukh Khan bought an IPL team and made Saurav Ganguly the face of the team.

There were loads of expectations riding on KKR as Shah Rukh left no stone unturned in making his team a high-profile brand, with theme song, TV commercials, tie-ups with other brands, thus earning a huge fan following in the process.

Shatrughan Sinha’s son Luv Sinha, who debuted inSadiyaan, says, "Mr Khan is great at whatever he does because he does it with passion."

Brendon McCullum was not even in the playing 11 for his national team, New Zealand. But at the opening night of the first season of IPL, he smashed the ball at all corners of the park scoring 158 runs. This record is still not broken by any cricketer in IPL. Also, this knock guaranteed his place in the national side.

SRK jumped with joy when his team did well. He threw lavish parties for his team when they lost. TRPs were considerably high during KKR matches as SRK ensured his big family of Bollywood was also there at the stadium. Sometimes, he used to sit with the team in the dug out but ran into trouble when the ICC (International Cricket Council) issued a notice that no team owner will be allowed to enter the dressing room when the match was in progress.

With such hype around the team, controversies were bound to happen. A fake IPL player blog helped many electronic and print media to fill up their spaces, as lot of inside information was leaked through the blog. There were also rumours about a rift between SRK and Dada.

However, the blog died with the end of the first season of IPL and KKR finished at number of 6 out of the 8 teams. Too bad for a team where the owner has always been a winner. That year, SRK only had two releases; Bhootnath and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, both of which failed to set the cash registers ringing at the box office.

If IPL season 1 was bad, IPL season 2 was worse for Shah Rukh’s team. Not performing was just one side of the story. The team was in the news for all the wrong reasons. Saurav Ganguly was stripped of his captaincy and Brendon McCullum was made the captain overnight. Australian coach John Buchanan also introduced a new concept of multiple captains, which was completely thrashed by the experts. The fake player blog returned again with lots of more sensational information from the dressing room.

However all this did not stop SRK from what he does best, marketing his brand Kolkata Knight Riders. He also organised a talent hunt show and picked cheerleaders through the show. SRK has been known for coming up with unique marketing ideas be it in films or for his IPL team. Yes, he was grilled about the controversies but he tackled all the problems with his chin up. The second season of IPL was shifted from India to South Africa due to security concerns. In the first quarter of 2009, the actor had only one release, Billu.

In spite of nursing a shoulder injury, he didn’t leave the team alone. He travelled with the team to South Africa and cheered them all the way. This time, it was a different Shah Rukh Khan in the stadium. Unlike dancing in the stadium in India when the team did well, this time he was calm. He clapped when the team put up big runs on the score board and did the same when they lost.

Shah Rukh Khan is someone who follows his heart and is not scared to take risks. That is clearly visible from the kind of roles he chooses to setting up a production house with VFX technology.

Chandan Roy Sanyal, Kaminey fame says, “I have always been his fan for being the entrepreneur he is. He took a risk by acting in Baazigar opting for a negative role unlike other hero's who would have gone for a positive one. So it comes as no surprise for his IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders. He is a risk taker and he also gains benefit from it, something to take a leaf from his life."

It is not a cakewalk to keep the fans happy and also maintain consistency in doing well. But he makes it so easy inspiring millions of people. It is his sense of humour which helps him sail through troubled waters.

A nation where cricket is considered as a religion had reason to cheer for. IPL grew bigger year after year and the big news was that the third season was going to be in India and not in some foreign land.

After the 26/11 attacks, Pakistan players were kept away from the IPL action. Not that any rule was made, but none of the teams bought any Pakistani player during the auction. It was only Shah Rukh Khan who voiced his interest to include players from the neighbouring country.

Shah Rukh Khan starrer, My Name is Khan, one of the most anticipated movies of the year was dragged into problems by a political party in Mumbai. They demanded an apology from the actor but he did not bow down. Even though he couldn’t include any Pakistani player in the team, he had his way by hiring Wasim Akram as a bowling coach for Kolkata Knight Riders. He held his ground and gave a loud message stating sports is above religion.

IPL 3 came in with a lot of changes. Firstly, Saurav Ganguly was made the captain again and secondly, the team jersey changed from colour black to purple. So far the team is doing decent, winning 50 per cent of the matches played so far. “The weight of huge expectations is off KKR’s shoulders and the good thing for the team is that Dada is back with a bang. As for SRK, he is just better than the rest at everything he does”, says Vaibhav, one of the young actors in Teen Patti.

The league matches are going to end soon and now it is at the business end of the tournament, each team eying the semis berth. Saurav Ganguly and his team are on a winning streak and he himself is back in form. In a week’s time, it will be clear which four teams will be in the semis.

Shah Rukh Khan attended most of the matches until lately where he is in Goa shooting for his next action thriller. But he is not out of action. His tweets are more than enough to generate breaking news. He wrote on his Twitter that he will dance naked if his team enters the finals. It was all said in humour, but the big question is, will KKR make it to the finals? For now, we can only wait and watch.

Coming back to the big question, is SRK a better investor or a better actor, have your say...

BY MEHUL SATISH THAKKAR