‘Shah Rukh Khan and I hit it off immediately’: Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos on his equation with the Bollywood star

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos spoke about his equation with Shah Rukh Khan in a recent interview and had this to say.

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos opened up about his friendship with Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan. In an interview with Nikhil Kamath, Ted talked about how Shah Rukh was one of the first celebrities he met as soon as he came to India before the release of the OTT platform’s first Indian series, Sacred Games, in 2018. (Also Read: Ed Sheeran drops new song Sapphire with desi beats, Arijit Singh vocals. All Shah Rukh Khan fans care about is his cameo)

Ted Sarandos with Shah Rukh Khan during his 2017 visit to India.

Ted Sarandos on Shah Rukh Khan

Ted was asked to name an Indian celebrity who’s his ‘favourite’ and he said that he shares a good equation with Shah Rukh. He recollected, “Early in coming to India, I met Shah Rukh Khan right away. He hosted a very nice dinner for me, and we hit it off immediately. I’ve come back since, with my wife, and we’ve had nice times together. We visited each other in Los Angeles when his son was in school. So, having dinner with Shah Rukh Khan in India is much different than having dinner with him in Los Angeles.” Shah Rukh's son Aryan Khan's The Ba***ds of Bollywood will soon drop on Netflix.

On Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Heeramandi

In the same interview, Ted mentioned that he was also bowled over by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and his 2024 show Heeramandi, which he says felt like a ‘dare’. He said, “Doing Heeramandi was probably one of the most creatively interesting projects I’ve ever worked on in India. He (Sanjay Leela Bhansali) came in with his very big vision, almost like it was a dare. I dare you to make this, it’s so big. And remember, he’s a cinema legend. So, the idea that he was gonna make a TV show is almost unheard of. I think he came for us to say no. And when we said yes, it was a complicated production.”

Shah Rukh was last seen in the 2023 films Pathaan, Jawan and Dunki. He is now shooting for King, with director Siddharth Anand, his daughter Suhana Khan, and Abhishek Bachchan as his co-stars.