Shah Rukh Khan has always been known as Bollywood’s ultimate self-made star, the Delhi boy who came to Mumbai with big dreams and became one of the biggest superstars in the world. But a recent viral video has reignited an old debate: Was SRK’s struggle story exaggerated?
It all started with a book-Shah Rukh Khan: Legend, Icon, Star by entertainment journalist Mohar Basu. The book, filled with fan accounts and intimate stories about SRK, was picked up by a social media user who claimed that SRK’s middle-class struggle was a PR-manufactured myth.
A Twitter handle called @JaipurDialogue posted the video with the caption:
“This man has destroyed the fake story of Shah Rukh Khan that he was from a poor family who struggled a lot in life.”
The video’s narrator claimed that SRK’s background wasn’t as humble as people believed, citing facts like:
He attended St. Columba’s School, the same elite institution where Rahul Gandhi and Sanjay Gandhi studied.
When he moved to Mumbai, his mother supposedly gave him ₹10,000 (which would be about £3,000 today).
His family had close ties with politicians and bureaucrats, including Indira Gandhi.
The implication? SRK wasn’t the underdog he claimed to be.
As expected, the video sparked a full-blown Twitter war. While some agreed with the claims, SRK’s loyal fanbase was quick to debunk the allegations and defend their king.
One critic wrote:
“His mother, Lateef Fatima Khan, was no ordinary woman. She was a magistrate and had close ties with Indira Gandhi. This wasn’t a struggling family it was a privileged one. Yet, SRK sells the story of a self-made man, carefully curating an image that fits the Bollywood dream.”
Another user doubled down, calling SRK’s success a PR-manufactured illusion:
“SRK has always been a fake PR actor. His PR machinery is very strong. Always faking things just like they faked Pathaan and Jawan being superhits when no one could tolerate those movies for more than 15 minutes.”
But SRK fans weren’t having any of it.
One user hit back with a breakdown of his real struggles:
“SRK never said he belonged to a poor family. His father died of cancer in 1981, and his mother passed away in 1991. Cancer treatment was (and still is) expensive. Their illnesses drained the family’s savings. His sister fell into deep depression, and he had to take care of her while struggling to make it in Mumbai. That’s the struggle he talks about.”
Another pointed out the inconsistencies in the video’s claims:
“Stop with this nonsense that ‘his mother was seen with Indira Gandhi’. By that logic, every child of a person who has a picture with Narendra Modi should automatically become a Bollywood superstar?”
Fans also fact-checked the ₹10,000 claim, referencing an Indian Express interview where SRK stated he came to Mumbai with only ₹1,500, around £150 today, not £3,000.
One user sarcastically responded:
“If going to a good school makes someone a superstar, then every IIT or IIM graduate should be ruling Bollywood right now. Also, plenty of Bollywood stars went to foreign universities did that guarantee them success?”
While some argued that SRK’s connections gave him a head start, others insisted that his hard work, resilience, and talent were what truly mattered.
One tweet summed it up perfectly:
“Forget everything else. The most inspiring part of SRK’s story isn’t where he came from—it’s how he kept going after losing both his parents. That’s what makes him special.
Amid the online debate, Mohar Basu, the author of the book that started it all, stepped in to share her perspective. Commenting on an Instagram post about the controversy, she wrote:
“As the writer of this book, I don’t know how much I agree with you. I don’t think he was upper middle class. He did go to a great school and college, sure, but I don’t think the family was very well-off. In this very book, I have written about how the family had days when they had thinned dal, and his father couldn’t take him for a movie, so they sat near Kamani Auditorium watching cars pass.
I suppose they had their good and bad days with money. Which is why I feel he always encourages people to earn well and live their dreams. I do agree that privilege is a big deal, but what Shah Rukh Khan has achieved is entirely due to his hard work.
And may that always be the biggest takeaway from his story!”
Meanwhile, Shah Rukh Khan is busy doing what he does best—working on his next big project. After delivering massive hits like Jawan and Pathaan, he’s gearing up for Lion and Pathaan 2. And let’s be honest—no amount of Twitter discourse is going to stop the King of Bollywood.
