Doesn’t it make you feel a little proud when an actor you’ve been watching for years on the big screen is now a recipient of a doctorate from the University of Edinburgh. Love him or hate him, you just can’t ignore that it’s quite a feat for an Indian actor to be recognized abroad for his work. He was presented with the honour in recognition of his philanthropic work and being globally recognized as a stellar actor.
But apart from him receiving this doctorate to breaking into Lungi dance, the speech he made at Edinburgh was worth a listen. In case you missed it, here’s a few of his quotes. And even if you’ve come across it some place, give it a second read; something he said might inspire you.
- Study hard. Work hard. Play harder. Don’t be bound by rules. Don’t hurt anybody, and never ever live somebody else’s dream.
- There’s no such thing as ‘normal’. That’s just another word for lifeless. Madness (of the particularly nice/romantic kind) is an absolute prerequisite to a happy and successful life. Don’t ever treat your little insanities as if they are aberrations that ought to be hidden from the rest of the world. All the most beautiful people in the world, the most creative, the ones who led revolutions, who discovered and invented things, did so because they embraced their own idiosyncrasies.
- Being brave means being shit-scared all the way to the party but getting there and doing the ‘Funky Chicken’ in front of all your teenage kid’s friends anyway. Don’t let your fears become boxes that enclose you. Open them out, feel them and turn them into the greatest courage you are capable of. I promise you, nothing will go wrong. But if you live by your fears, everything that can possibly go wrong will go wrong and you won’t even have done the ‘Funky Chicken’.
- It’s okay to be confused. Confusion is the route to all the clarity in the world.
- Art is more important than the artist – have no attachment to your own art. It’s regressive, move on.
- Don’t become a philosopher before you become rich.
- If you aren’t charged up about doing something, if you don’t have, what in Hindi we call the “Josh”, the fire in your belly for it, then don’t do it.
- Live now, live today. Don’t be bound by rules, live your own dream.
- Chak De India taught me that whatever it is that is pulling you back, is not going away unless you stand up and start forging your own path with all your might in the opposite direction. Stop whining and start moving.
These are some of his words I absolutely loved. Way to go Shah Rukh, kal ho na ho, everyone knows your name is Khan.
