ON a warm windy afternoon in North Mumbai,the twirling figure in orange and black - with sweat beads flying and hair scattered over his forehead - could not have looked more carefree. Between rehearsals with the gorgeous Sonali Bendre and a group of dancing belles for a forthcoming stage show, the Khan still finds time to kick a ball around with his little son Aryan, who romps about completely at home on his father's turf.

Wait, shouldn't there be more bathos in this scene? After all, this is the reigning lion of the industry - allegedly weighed down by a thousand woes, not the least of these being moronic queries about 'dethronement' and the 'biceps threat', etc. We catch him between twists.

You're looking pretty chilled out, considering...

Considering what? Excuse me, do you think I care if it makes somebody's day to be able to ask me, 'Shah Rukh, are you feeling insecure?' 'Get a life!' I tell them all! I've never been happier in my life. So much so, that now, whenever I have a problem, I don't pray to God for help, simply because He is going to think me the most ungrateful wretch! Every hour I spend with my son is filled with a million happy moments; to top that, I have a beautiful daughter and a lovely wife, and genuine friends - only a few, but I do have them! There's my writing, my creativity, my moments by myself, and, need I say it, my acting... Tell me, is Dilip Kumar insecure? Is Amitabh Bachchan insecure? Do you know how I see myself? Like an Olympic runner in the hundred metre race. You simply get off the block and fly towards the goal; you cannot afford to look around, you cannot look back to see who is catching up.

Is it true that you are less approachable these days?

What do you mean, less approachable? I am the same guy I always have been. But yes, I don't enjoy meeting people who ask me the same set of stupid questions every time. You know what I hate? Uneducated people asking me uneducated questions! I do not enjoy being dissected endlessly - how long will he last? How does he feel about a rival? Is he clapping when someone gets an award? I am sick of justifying myself all the time, sick of smiling just to appear goody-goody! You know, all these years, I've worked honestly and sincerely and never shortchanged my audiences. That's why I'm where I am. I'm the man who has built up a solid body of work over 10 years, who has made a huge difference to the bottomline, who has won eight Filmfare awards in 10 years... And I want more...

Do you like 'The Badshah of Bollywood' label?

I hate all labels! In any case, who coined this one? Someone must have got up one morning and thought, 'Eureka! I've got a new one for him - it fits and makes great copy'. And so 'Badshah of Bollywood' came into being! Just like that. Never mind that I'm not looking for thrones! It's like calling yourself the Raja of Rampur or the Queen of Chandivili; how does a label matter? But the way it works here, is that someone crowns you at random, then tomorrow someone dethrones you - also at random! I'm far above all this; I want to go beyond praise, beyond awards, and definitely beyond slander!

Would you agree that a superstar is public property?

Let me put this very clearly: Shah Rukh Khan is not public property, his work is. Nobody has the right to comment on me per se, only on what is up there on the big screen. But there are people who violate my dignity as a matter of routine, just to get a vicarious thrill. Like this guy on television who asks me to comment on my sexual preferences. You know, it's ironic - when I entered this industry, I was a trendsetter and a role model because I took pride in my marital status. I was a married hero who made it to the top. But today, just because I don't sleep around, don't 'do' my heroines, as the term goes (I don't 'do' 'gori' women either!), I am being questioned about my sex life!
I live my life with dignity. Even in my on-screen romances, I may do pelvic thrusts or flirt with the heroine, but there is never anything that one can't watch with one's family. I'm old-fashioned in that sense. There is a certain piety that I attach to the whole process of acting...
And because I do good, clean acting, I am a good, clean person. And then it angers me when someone slanders me without reason.

What are you searching for in your journey through life?

Right now, I see myself as this mountain climber who is a man possessed. He wants to break all limits, go upwards and upwards. And he cannot be bothered by questions like, is it cold up there? Have I carried enough provisions? Will my rope break? Am I scared about falling? All I know is that I'm searching for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The glory, the megastar status is great, but beyond that, there is something that I'm searching for. And my biggest worry is whether I will find that pot... Does it even exist at all?

All I know is that I'm searching for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The glory, the megastar status is great, but beyond, that there is something that I'm searching for. And my biggest worry is whether I will find that pot... Does it even exist at all?