(On the occasion of Shah Rukh Khan’s birthday, The Quint is republishing this story about his craziest fan.)
We’re not kidding. This picture is for real and so is the man in it.
We all know he is a superstar and has fans all over the world, but Shah Rukh Khan has a fan who may make you wonder whether his fandom has gone just a little bit overboard.
Meet Vishal Singh.
Just like the character Gaurav in Khan’s new release Fan, this Lucknow based businessman is obsessed with the actor. Khan turns 50 today and nothing has changed for this fan who religiously cuts a cake on his birthday and spends the day watching his idol’s films.
Here’s the best part: Vishal Singh is now Vishahrukh Khan. No, really. Vishal has changed his name to express his love for his idol. If this has already begun to creep you out, wait till you see his work place and meet his kids.
The 41 year old has more than 22,000 pictures of Khan; every inch of his house is covered with the star’s film posters.
Singh’s house is a shrine dedicated to Khan and is called...no, not Mannat...Shah Rukh Khan palace! There are SRK cutouts on the ceiling, the television, on cushions, his phone and even in his car. Phew!
Vishal runs a wholesale homeopathic medicine business and his shop is also wall to wall display of Khan madness.
Do you think he needs help? That’s exactly what his parents thought initially too, but later realised that his love for the actor was unconditional and endless. Basically, they gave up on him.
Even his children have not been spared. His daughter is named Simran and his little son is called Aryan.
Although Vishal has met Khan several times, one incident stands out. It is outrageous, but we’ll let you decide for yourself if he is SRK’s craziest fan, or just a guy who’s a bit cuckoo. Vishal drove more than 1,300 km with his wife to Mumbai on their honeymoon. Yes, you heard that right! He spent his honeymoon standing outside Mannat, just to get a glimpse of the actor. I feel sorry for his wife.
Apparently, Khan has promised Vishal that one day he will visit his house in Lucknow. That day, however, is yet to come.
(This story was first published on 2 November, 2015)
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