Everyone’s craving a piece of Shakib Khan!

In an explosion of celluloid exuberance and riding confidently on the storm (Toofan), is Shakib Khan, the undisputed Rajkumar of Bangladeshi cinema.

In a tempest of bravado, glitz and machismo, Shakib, or The King Khan, as he is referred to, has turned the celluloid world upside down.

The apt way to describe the Shakib phenomenon is through his own words: This is not the end, it has only begun, there’s a long way to go!

Film lovers call him the messiah who has saved and elevated Bangladeshi filmdom, which, about 10 years ago, was down in the dumps.

Filmmakers regard him as one of the most bankable stars of the moment.

As the common belief goes: Get Shakib Khan (SK), cast him in a story with a few twists and you will have a money churner.

Mind you, Shakib and an original story – that’s the winning combination!

However, to trace and understand Shakib’s astronomical success plus his cachet, transcending borders, we need to look not only at the actor’s transformation but the evolution of the Bangladeshi film industry.

DISCARDING FORMULAIC FILM TEMPLATE

For too long, SK was cast in movies with plots, which were either dubious copies or a hotchpotch of several foreign films.

Poor or slipshod direction, hackneyed dialogue, done to death expressions, predictable endings and clumsy editing resulted in forgettable commercial movies.

But the tide started to change when new faces came in movie production/direction, driven by two clearly defined objectives: 1. Make commercial films that make money, and 2. Present the protagonist, not as the tedious epitome of virtue, but as the swashbuckling dark hero with vices.

Hence emerged the new protagonist of commercial flicks: the smooth talking badass, casually taking a swig from a whisky tumbler, smoking with panache and, unceremoniously brushing aside any impediment to get his love interest.

To use a Shashi Tharoor word: Agathokakological!

Well, heroes whose morals are not clearly delineated is nothing new in global cinema, but in Bangladesh, the usual template has implanted in us the notion of the honest, non drinking, non smoking, virtue laden protagonist with very puritanical ideas about man-woman intimacy.

That outdated staid persona is now overtaken by the image of the cool hedonist hero.

The audience is going wild, the women are drooling over SK and, I am sure, the King is loving every moment of it.

The metamorphosis in the industry came at a time when SK was at the right age with a decade of experience behind him.

Other actors, who had ruled the industry in the early part of the millennium, had either faded away due to several flops or, had lost the ‘hero’ appeal due to obesity and a reckless lifestyle.

SK also was heading towards the abyss at one point with his weight ballooning and his movies falling in a celluloid rut.

Perhaps, at that time, he had a Road to Damascus Moment when realisation dawned that if he truly put his mind to it, he could become an international film icon – something never achieved by a Bangladeshi actor before.

But his will would not be enough if the movies did not use state of the art equipment and followed the mega budget commercial film format.

Fortunately, SK’s realisation and the change in the industry happened almost simultaneously.

The actor who had played too many formulaic ‘romantic hero’ roles was challenged to play characters that were new both to him and the audience.

Out went the dreamy, effeminate expressions with pink lips and in came the scarred, world weary killer look.

Many critics have said that several SK roles are influenced by heroes of Tamil films.

This, to an extent, may be true, although the celluloid phenomenon of the anti-hero does not belong to any particular film industry.

Al Pacino classic Scarface influenced movies across the world and so did Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs.

PLOT TWISTS TO AMPLIFY ALLURE

While SK has toned himself to look more like a mega star, film success relies partly on the plot and, naturally, the unexpected twists.

The SK blockbuster from last Eid, Toofan, was shown across the globe with large numbers of Bengali expatriates going to the halls to taste the Shakib-stirred tempest.

However, the movie’s biggest appeal emanated from the cleverly placed twists with the last part of the film, providing the biggest thrill of all.

Following the stupendous success of Rajkumar, Toofan, Borbaad, one thing became clear – give the audience a stimulating plot, sudden surprises and they will be hooked to the film.

For the coming Eid-ul-Azha, the Shakib-starred Tandob is awaiting release and the teaser has already created buzz about another mega hit.

Again, the portrayal of a masked SK in the trailer has only whipped up interest.

Shakib Khan must have realised that when film lovers get all the features of a commercial film, i.e. dance, action, item number, exotic locales and sumptuous sets topped with a delicious plot, they will come to the cinema halls.

At the recently held Meril-Prothom Alo Awards, 2024, SK was recognised for his 25 years of contribution to the industry.

In a night of unlimited glitter and glamour, he came in true mega star style – smiling, composed, courteous but never vengeful.

One uses the word vengeful consciously because the film industry is a world where duplicity and chicanery lurk and fester behind the pretence of glitz and glamour.

SK’s rise to the top of the industry in the country and then turning into an international star has not been a smooth sail at all.

In this industry, there are always evil powers/syndicates determined to elbow out a rising star employing machinations plus intrigue no less wicked than what we often see in movies.

SURVIVING IS THE ART!

Those who ruled the celluloid industry when SK was a struggling actor have long gone out of the picture.

All detractors now seem terribly bleak under Shakib’s splendour.

Shakib Khan has survived, overcome the odds, cleverly negotiated the evil designs, redefined himself, become a crucial tool in the evolving film industry, earning the epithet ‘King Khan’ from Bangladesh.

Funny, how fortune changes!

A veteran film director said during his interview that in 1999, when SK was cast in a movie called Koti Takar Kabin, no leading actress was willing to be his co-star.

Reportedly, no actress even answered the phone of the director.

Later, in a desperate attempt to get the film project running, a new person called Opu Biswas, was cast and we know the rest.

Under the razzle dazzle of the Meril-Prothom Alo award show, Shakib Khan, attired in black, and surrounded by effervescent ladies must have felt a sense of vindication.

On stage, a prominent actress and also one of the moderators of the programme, enthusiastically expressed her desire to work with the king in a future film to which Shakib smiled and nodded.

Did he, for a second, think of the time when everyone used to turn down offers to work with him?

I am sure he did!

But that smile said it all and the entire event reverberated his assertion: Shomoy shesh hoy nai; shomoy to shobe shuru!

[Towheed Feroze is a former journalist!]