Here Is Why Zero Is Probably The Most Important Shah Rukh Khan Release In The Last Decade

For every Shah Rukh Khan fan, his film release is no less than a festival in itself. With the release date of Zero inching closer, the excitement is surely there on the rise, but there is also a strange tension. To cut to the chase, one simply has to accept that Zero is probably the most important release of Shah Rukh Khan at least in the last decade. Here are the reasons.

Box-office Woes

Let’s face it, the last big hit of Shah Rukh Khan’s career came in 2015 with Dilwale, which again was panned by the critics. After that, while Raees have done somewhat decent business, Fan and Jab Harry Met Sejal has been total disappointments. In a scenario like this, Shah Rukh simply cannot afford to go wrong with Zero. It is not Shah Rukh’s box-office record, but the brand Shah Rukh Khan that will take a massive beating if Zero fails to work.

Clashes Against SRK

In 2015, when Bajirao Mastani clashed with Dilwale, it was sending out a clear message that even relative newer talents are not afraid of a clash with SRK at the box-office anymore. Kaabil followed that with a clash with Raees and now Simmba, which is releasing merely a week after Zeo, is going the same route. If Shah Rukh does not emerge victorious in this battle, it will perhaps a usual in Bollywood to have a clash against SRK.

Too Much Investment

Just like Ra.One, Shah Rukh is heavily invested in Zero. He is not only producing the film but has also given around 2 years of his life to the project. We all know the impact the Ra.One’s failure had on his career and clearly he is not in a position to take another fatal blow like that.

Losing The Trust Of Content Believers

The preference of Bollywood audience has through a major transformation in the last couple of years. A large part of the audiences have made it evident that they do not care who the star of the film is if they are being served a good content. While with films like Dear Zindagi, Shah Rukh has forayed into the genre, his experiments like Fan have not gone down too well. Zero, which looks like a fine balance of content and mainstream, can either garner a new loyal fanbase for Shah Rukh in content-driven audiences, or he will lose the faith of the content believers forever. Also, he has failed with experiment (Fan) and he has failed with romance (Jab Harry Met Sejal), if he fails with the combination of both, he will simply run out of options.

The 300 Crore Club

It might come across a little bit strange, but come to think of it, Shah Rukh is the only leading actor who does not have a 300 crore film. Salman, Aamir, and even Ranbir and Ranveer have entered into the zone. Zero is perhaps the last vehicle that can make Shah Rukh enter the prestigious the 300 crore club in Bollywood

Being The Leading Khan

If we look at the box-office numbers, the war of Khan has mostly been between Salman and Aamir in the last couple of years with Shah Rukh almost missing from the picture. But 2018 has changed a lot of equations. Both Salman’s Race 3 and Aamir’s Thugs of Hindostan have taken a beating. Zero could thus be the perfect opportunity for Shah Rukh to emerge as the victorious of this year.

The Anand L Rai Factor

After his first two movies that no one even cares to remember the name of, Anand L Rai has emerged as one of the most trusted directors in Bollywood right now. With hits like Tanu Weds Manu, Raanjhnaa and Tanu Weds Manu Returns, he is now the go-to person for films that are a perfect balance of content and mainstream masala. With Zero, it is not only Shah Rukh’s position that is on stake. Anand L Rai simply cannot lose his winning streak and more importantly Shah Rukh Khan cannot be the one responsible for that.