Bollywood megastar multi-hyphenate Shah Rukh Khan, one of Indian cinema’s global icons, will be celebrated with an honorary award by Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea International Film Festival.
Khan — affectionately called King Khan — has won most popular actor accolades three times at the Central European Bollywood Awards.
A thriving actor-producer, Khan has been making his mark for decades: his romance “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge” has been playing nonstop for 24 years, and “Dil Se” was the first Indian film to break into the U.K. top 10. More recently, in 2018, he co-produced “Zero” through his VFX house Red Chillies Entertainment, but it underwhelmed. Undeterred, Red Chillies hit big with thriller “Badla” in 2019, and the company has its eight-episode political espionage series “Bard of Blood” currently running on Netflix. Inducted into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2018, Khan also co-owns cricket teams Kolkata Knight Riders and Trinbago Knight Riders.
“We are thrilled to be honoring Shah Rukh Khan, who is a remarkable talent and global superstar,” said Red Sea fest CEO Mohammed Al Turki, who added that Khan “has captivated audiences since his earliest performances and is one of the world’s most renowned actors working today.”
Khan commented: “I am truly honored to receive this award from the Red Sea International Film Festival. It’s wonderful to be here among my fans from Saudi and the region who have always been huge supporters of my films. I’m looking forward to celebrating the region’s talent and being a part of this exciting film community.”
The Red Sea fest’s second edition will run Dec. 1-10 in Jeddah, on the eastern shore of the Red Sea.
Naman Ramachandran contributed to this report.