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With Shah Rukh Khan, it is now a widely acknowledged fact that he has a habit of showing up late. This is something everyone around him has come to accept, and schedules are often adjusted accordingly. Veteran celebrity and fashion photographer Jayesh Sheth recently recalled one such instance from the shoot of the poster for the film Josh, when Shah Rukh, true to form, arrived late.
On The Pooja Bhatt Show, Jayesh said, “So Shah Rukh was supposed to come at 10 o’clock in the morning. Then his secretary called and said that the shoot would be delayed and he would only come by 2 o’clock or so. I told her honestly that by that time I would be taking my afternoon nap. It has been my routine since childhood.”
And that is exactly what happened. When Shah Rukh finally arrived, Jayesh was fast asleep. “So when he came at 2 o’clock, he told my assistant, ‘Let him take his nap, I’ll wake him up after I finish my makeup.’ I didn’t even know when Shah Rukh Khan arrived, went to his makeup room, and got ready. Meanwhile, I was snoring. I thought he would only come by 3 p.m. and then get ready, but suddenly I heard Shah Rukh saying, ‘Mr. Sheth, can I take the liberty to wake you up?’ I was stunned to see him. I thought, ‘Shah Rukh, you came? I didn’t know, and you’ve already finished your makeup too?’”
Jayesh Sheth also recalled how Shah Rukh Khan had complained that there was no picture of him on Jayesh’s display wall. Jayesh promised that the photo they were shooting that day would go up. He further described the discussion about the concept of the Josh poster: Shah Rukh did not want blood to appear on the poster, while producer Ratan Jain insisted. Eventually, they decided to shoot according to Shah Rukh’s vision. But just as the shoot was wrapping up, an idea struck Jayesh, one that changed everything.
“After the shoot got over, I could understand the producer’s point of view. So I told Shah Rukh, ‘If we show the blood without actually showing the blood, how would that be?’ He asked, ‘What do you mean?’ I said, ‘We’ll just put a small drop of blood on the tip of your nose. When it starts dripping, you’ll wipe it, so it’ll show on your thumb. The blood is there, yet not there, and you’re wiping it off as an attitude.’ And that was used. In fact, Shah Rukh loved that picture so much, he said, ‘Jayesh, my Red Chillies doors are open for you anytime.’ That poster became so famous. It’s a very iconic picture for me.”
For those unfamiliar, Jayesh Sheth is a photographer whom Akshay Kumar assisted before he entered films. In the same conversation, Jayesh addressed suggestions that he should do more PR or hire an agency so that the world knows about his work. Responding candidly, he said, “What PR? And what for? I don’t want to do all that. I don’t plan to open an agency. If I had to, I would have started back in the day. But then I didn’t have the foresight or the mindset. Otherwise, I would have signed Akshay Kumar at that time. He was my assistant. I could have signed him for four films.”
Earlier, in a conversation with Rediff, Jayesh had opened up about his association with Akshay: “I met Akshay in 1985. Back then, he was called Rajiv Bhatia. He looked different from now, he had a moustache and long hair. He was taking dance and acting lessons from Madhumati. I never thought he would become an actor, though he was good-looking and a good dancer. But he wasn’t like a hero then.”
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