Shah Rukh Khan’s ambitious sci-fi venture Ra.One, which he both produced and headlined, hit theatres during Diwali 2011 amid soaring expectations. However, despite the hype, the film received mixed reviews and failed to live up to box office hopes.
The film was directed by Sinha who still feels sad about the way 'Ra.One' performed. In a recent interview, the director reflected on the film’s reception and how deeply it affected him. Anubhav shared in an interview with YouTube channel Ulta Chasma UC, “I meet a lot of people who now tell me they like Ra.One, but at that time, the film was declared a flop. There was a lot of pain after it flopped. I made a film with Shah Rukh Khan and it was a flop and people didn’t like it at that time.
That film broke me emotionally.
It took time for me to recover from that.”Speaking about his experience of working with Shah Rukh Khan, he added, “I was very fortunate that I was able to meet Shah Rukh Khan. I value him more than a star and an actor. Even if I don’t work with him ever, but I know him as a person and that is enough for me, you learn a lot from him. He is a very passionate, compassionate person. Despite all the stardom, he has a middle-class mind.
You can learn all of these things from him.
Of course, I would love to work with him, but I don’t have a story for him now and he also will not have time for me now.”In the years following Ra.One, Anubhav Sinha went on to carve a strong space for himself as a filmmaker with critically acclaimed projects like Mulk, Article 15, Thappad, and Bheed.