In this episode of Hands Up! I discuss the book “Desperately Seeking Shah Rukh” by Shrayana Bhattacharya with Bency Ramakrishnan and Nikita Pathak.

Bency Ramakrishnan is a policy professional and a lawyer. She confesses that she was a closet Shah Rukh Khan (SRK) fan until recently. Nikita Pathak is a development professional who admires SRK and his work, but doesn’t claim to be a SRK fan.

Both of them bring in their unique viewpoint on issues related to gender and the perception of Shah Rukh Khan in the eyes of female viewers.

Unlike my guests, I am an SRK agnostic. I neither like him nor hate him. I read the book because of a recommendation by the book club Delhi Reads. This went on to deepen my understanding of the female fans of SRK and the connection I had with the person I was dating then.

During this episode the three of us discuss our equation with the hero Shah Rukh Khan, the importance he holds in the Indian cinema world, the contents of the book and gender related issues. We also shared notes regarding our reading experience and other miscellaneous thoughts around the idea of emotional intelligence and love.

Note: Apologies for mispronouncing Bency Ramakrishnan as Bency Ramakrishna. That was a rookie mistake that I don’t want to repeat.