SRK Took Personal Responsibility for Abhishek’s Career in King

Abhishek Bachchan is stepping into King with Shah Rukh Khan, and he wants fans to know it is not just another action film for him. In a new conversation with BBC Asian Network, the actor traced his bond with SRK back to childhood cricket Sundays and shared the piece of advice that still shapes his choices.

Childhood Sundays and an elder brother

Long before the two shared a frame, Bachchan spent Sundays playing cricket at Aditya Chopra’s home alongside Uday Chopra, Hrithik Roshan and Sikandar Kher. Shah Rukh Khan, already the senior in the room, was the guide the younger actors looked up to.

Bachchan described Khan as an “elder brother” who has always pushed him as an actor. He added that the superstar has “literally taken personal responsibility several times now, including in King as well.”

The career rule that stuck

Bachchan also recalled asking Khan, before his own debut, which film was his favourite. The answer stuck: “My favourite film is the film I am doing right now.”

Bachchan said the logic was simple: if the film in front of you is not your favourite, why are you doing it? He now brings that focus to every project. “Right now it is King,” he said.

Why King is becoming a big-screen event

Directed by Siddharth Anand, King is produced by Gauri Khan under Red Chillies Entertainment alongside Siddharth Anand and Mamta Anand’s Marflix Pictures. It also carries a milestone for the Khans: it marks the big-screen debut of Suhana Khan.

• Suhana Khan plays a young protege trained by Shah Rukh Khan’s veteran assassin.
• Deepika Padukone, Rani Mukerji, Abhay Verma, Jaideep Ahlawat and Arshad Warsi round out the ensemble.
• King is set for a worldwide theatrical release on December 24, 2026.

That holiday date frames King as a major year-end release, and the casting gives it both legacy and new-generation energy.

What comes next

Bachchan was last seen in the ZEE5 film Kaalidhar Laapata, the Hindi remake of Madhumita’s Tamil film KD A Karuppu Durai. King now puts him inside a larger Shah Rukh Khan universe at a moment when SRK is clearly invested in reintroducing his daughter to cinemas and leaning on actors he trusts.

Source: India Today