And guess what? This 21 year old is employed at the actor’s company Red Chillies Entertainments Pvt Ltd….
Shah Rukh Khan hardly harps about all the good things he does for others. He does whatever he thinks needs his stardom to move forward. But his imprint on people’s lives is immense. Recently, he helped a fan of his propose to his girlfriend. A few months back, he tweeted about the book written by Bilal Siddiqui, who works in the actor’s company Red Chillies Entertainment Pvt Ltd as a Marketing Executive and is a huge SRK fan . The book called The Bard of Blood is an espionage thriller. The rights to the book’s on screen adaptation has already been bought by Junglee Pictures who recently released Dil Dhadakne Do. When you have SRK throwing his weight behind an author, his work of art will definitely get the push in the right direction.
Shah Rukh Khan had tweeted:
But how involved was the actor in this book building exercise? Let’s find out from the author, Bilal Siddiqui himself!
1. The Bard Of Blood is an intense war novel. Where did you get the germ for it?
The Bard of Blood is an espionage thriller, the kind that hasn’t quite been penned in India yet. Having said that, it is also unique in terms of its plot-line and characterisation when pitted against international books of a similar genre. I firmly believe that India needed a strong spy, who can hold his own without looking like a rip-off of a James Bond or Jason Bourne. I was also inclined towards picking terrorism as backdrop, which is extremely relevant. Hence, with a strong character and a strong backdrop, everything else fit in well.
2. Since you work in Red Chillies Entertainment, did SRK know about the book?
SRK sir did not know about the book until I presented one to him. I chose not to tell him until I had the copy myself. In fact the first and only advanced copy that Penguin sent to me – the authors copy – I gave to him as he was leaving for Croatia to shoot. That made it more special for me.
3. What was his first reaction when he saw your book?
He was extremely happy, hugged and congratulated me on writing the book. In fact, after he read it, he even tweeted a picture of us with the book. It was a great gesture and I am extremely thrilled that he liked it.
4. Did he give you any inputs?
He did not give me any inputs. He told me it’s awesome and wished me luck!
5. A film is getting made on your book. Who do you think can play the lead in the film?
I would love SRK sir or even Emraan Hashmi to play the lead. In fact, I asked Emraan sir to launch my book, because in my head he was a lot like my protagonist. But, it’s up to the makers of the film, really.
6. Do you think a few of the parts in the film can stir up a controversy since it talks about Security agencies and terrorism?
That again depends on the makers of the film. I haven’t written anything controversial, besides it’s fiction set in a realistic backdrop.
Well, the fan’s wishlist is ready and we hope SRK is reading this!