By Deepti Kaul and Sajjan Singh Thakur (HindustanTimes.com)

New Delhi, Oct 13: Bollywood showed its strong presence at the HT Leadership Summit on Saturday as Shah Rukh Khan’s conversation' with Karan Johar kept the audience spell-bound. The two got several rounds of applauds for their witty chitchat and spontaneous one-liners.

Brand SRK spoke on many things, ranging from entertainment to marketing Indian films to his new six-pack abs to some serious stuff. While discussing Indian cinema, the Badshah of Bollywood said, "I can imagine India as a global entertainment portal. Today we have amazing number of entrepreneurs who can take Bollywood to a new high.” However, he added that marketing of films in India is still in a nascent stage and we can take cue from the West in promoting our films abroad.

“We have sold enough sad stories of our country. It's time to sell happy stories. I want our movies to showcase the celebration of India which will work as a USP for our film industry," SRK said while talking about the global appeal Indian cinema can have. In a lighter vein, he added, "I Imagine the Oscars coming to India, Charlize Theron giving me the award."

"We should change the format of our films, shortening the length and switching themes. Better infrastructure and nice studios can lure western filmmakers to India,” Shah Rukh said. However, the actor added, “The largest filmmaking nation (India) must not ignore its own domestic market, which is being eyed by the big business houses of the world.”

On being asked why many famous Indian actors are not seen in Hollywood projects, SRK said, “I don’t think doing a Hollywood project will make me a better actor. And it’s not that Indian actors are not being roped in for Hollywood ventures; Aishwarya Rai, Gulshan Grover and many more actors and directors are working for Hollywood films.”

When asked about his crossover ambitions, he did not fail to mention that acting has no language. "But I would prefer to rule hell rather than serve heaven," he added.

The top actor doesn't shirk away from his responsibilities as an Indian citizen. "Being the father of young kids, I avoid foul language in the movies. I have a responsibility towards them," he said. "Banning alcohol and smoking in films is narrow-mindedness," he felt.

Finally coming to politics, he said, "Politics to too self-sacrificing and I am too business-oriented to be a politician." "Also I am too good-looking to be a politician," he quipped.