‘FOR’ MR. SHAHRUKH KHAN – A True Story from Melbourne – Australia

Actor/Activist/Teacher of Method Acting Mr. Bobby Chakraborty completed 20 years as an actor in February 2022.

He shared an interesting anecdote with us from Australia…Regarding ‘HIS FIRST INCOME’ as an artist…which in many ways is – ‘For’ Mr. Shah Rukh Khan he said… Here’s what he narrated to our correspondent… 
” The year was 2001. I was still serving as a Marine Engineer,floating around, in the ships of ExxonMobil company to different parts of the world. It was the month of May when our ship ‘Waneta’, carrying crude oil, arrived in Melbourne, Australia from Singapore. Being in the Southern Hemisphere, it was winter then.     As a humanbeing, I am always very curious to know about the literature, culture, customs,food habits of different countries. So whichever country I went or go, the first thing I do is to get a guide and then I go out to discover that new country!    The first day in Melbourne when I got a leave from my ship duty,was on May 26th, Saturday. The car from ‘Stella Maris’ Marine Club came and picked me up from the port. As it ran through the city,towards the club,I saw clear,blue,sunny sky and felt the very cold air all around me. Waves of golden maple leaves all over the road. The roads were very clean and impossibly beautiful! It was a dream like state I was in!       The song ‘I Have Fallen from the Stars’ by ‘Simply Red’ was playing inside the black  Audi car. One of my favorite songs, yet I don’t know why, but the natural beauty all around, especially the Maple leaves flying in front of the car, transported me again and again to the scene of the famous song ‘Hum Ko Humi Se Churalo’ from the movie ‘Mohabbatein’! It seemed I had transformed into the character played by Mr. Shah Rukh Khan, ‘Raj Aryan’!    About half an hour later I reached the Stella Maris Club. I was introduced to my guide of that day, Mr. Rom Kucera(in the photo). A very soft spoken gentleman. He asked me where I wanted to go and what my hobbies and passion were etc. He will sketch the plan of the day out accordingly he said. I gave him the big list which I had already prepared, before my ship entered the Australian waters. I told Rom that I wanted to watch a movie, I wanted to ride an Australian tram, I wanted to ride a horse, I wanted to eat special Aussie food here, I wanted to go to the ‘Gold Coast’ beach, I wanted to see the world’s largest indoor cricket stadium ‘Colonial Stadium’ …so on and so forth! But first I wanted to call home. It was 8:30 in the morning in Melbourne. I calculated that it would be 3am at night in Kolkata! I felt it would be a little extravagant to wake everyone up at my home! So we took off for sight seeing. One by one, almost all of my demands were humbly met by Rom that day. Movies, meals, shopping, hanging out, phone at home, everything!      At around 3pm our tram dropped us near the University of Melbourne. We decided to walk the rest of the way back to the club. We started walking along the extremely clean sidewalks…and it was exactly when a gust of cold air blew away, a swarm of maple leaves in front of me…and reappeared ‘Raj Aryan’ once more from within Bobby!  I started playing the imaginary violin with my hand, with my imaginary glasses on, dancing around, my imaginary fiancé…the divine ‘Mansi’! I was so engrossed in the magic of the ambience that I forgot about everything and started singing that song from ‘Mohabbatein’…’Humko Humi Se Churalo ‘! After finishing the first paragraph totally lost in my act, I sensed a crowd of people around me. Many of them were Indians! They were clapping and tapping every rhythm with a smile, singing with me! Super excited, I finished that song and started the DDLJ chart topper ‘Tujhe Dekha To Yeh Jana Sanam’! The crowd and their applause began to grow. By then, Marine Engineer Bobby Chakraborty was totally lost and artist Bobby had come to full swing! Then I started ‘Koi Na Koi Chahiye’ from ‘Deewana’! The excitement of the audience had reached its crescendo! Rom was a llittle shocked and speechless with all of this! The camera was forgotten in the bag which lay on the sidewalk ,with other packets of mine!  I finished with yet another song of Mr. Shah Rukh Khan’s movie ‘Phir Bhi Dil Hain Hindustani’…’Tum Aaye To Hawaaon Mein… ‘, which is my favorite SRK song! While singing clapping and dancing with the audience, I had put down all the bags and packets from my hand. After that song was over, I could hear a huge round of applause and a loud cheer! An Australian gentleman put something in my right palm. A 20 cents coin! Everyone followed and put some money either in my hand or in my red jacket or on the bags that lay around me! I wondered if my scattered packets, ruffled look and dishevelled clothes made them assume that I was a homeless vagabond! When I wanted  to return their money, Rom stopped me and explained that the street singers or artists here, are highly respected and that is exactly what they thought of me! Rom said, “Hold on Bobby. That money is a token of love and respect for your artistic being and your talent…so please accept it with all your humility”! I obeyed Rom that day!       Within an year, the wheel of fortune turned big time! I opted out of my well secured job of a marine engineer, returned from Atlanta…to take up an unsecured job of an actor!        It has been a rollercoaster of a ride for the last 20+ years…lot of hard work, lot of struggle, lot of ridicule, lot of insult …met a lot of love ,appreciation, respect and praise too, since 2002…as an actor, activist and a teacher of other aspiring actors!     Today, when I look back at my journey, I can shout out to the world, that my first income as an ‘artist’ , was before 2002, on the Australian soil, with the blessings of Mr. ShahRukh Khan!     I have carefully preserved that 20 cents coin I earned for the first time, in the capacity of an ‘artist’!      I have met Mr. ShahRukh Khan several times, but there was always a lot of rush and crowd of other actors around him! I never wanted to get lost in that crowd.      Whenever that day and opportunity comes, when he will recognize me outside the crowd, I will hand him over…that ’20 Australian cents’…MY FIRST INCOME AS AN ARTIST! I will tell him:-“This Gurudakshina, is ‘FOR’ you .”and… “I am what I am today, is ‘FOR’ you.”