DDLJ and more: Shah Rukh Khan is Goddess Lakshmi's favourite Diwali star

In many parts of India, Diwali is a day that belongs to the goddess of wealth, Lakshmi. This has held true for Bollywood, which takes festive days very seriously because a holiday tends to make film lovers flock to theatres. Diwali is one of those days that can mean jackpot winnings for film producers, especially if it’s around a weekend. And ever since Baazigar released in 1993, the one who has been Lady Lakshmi’s favourite Bollywood star is Shah Rukh Khan. Baazigar (1993)

It was actually Baazigar , that made Hindi film audiences sit up and really notice Khan. He’d had a couple of releases prior to this film, but the actor’s performance as an obsessive young man who would stop at nothing to avenge the misfortune that befell his family, established Khan as a hero to be taken seriously. Khan in fact managed a double whammy with Baazigar. Not only did he play an anti-hero and get the audience to root for him in spite of all the horrible things he did in the movie, he managed to make the film a hit despite a thoroughly sad ending. Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995)

Two years later, Diwali saw the release of another SRK film that would make history in Bollywood: Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995). Directed by Aditya Chopra, this film has been one of Hindi film’s triumphs in the romantic genre and it redefined Khan. He went from the edgy, new actor to the heartthrob of millions with this portrayal of the NRI hero Raj. This was the film that gave Khan his arsenal of charm, ranging from what is now his trademark arms-wide-open stance to a charming combination of comedy and sniffle-inducing earnestness. Raj made Khan an icon and Dilwale Dulhaniya… was on its way to becoming the longest running film in the history of Indian cinema. Since then, Khan has repackaged and presented Raj in a number of movies, including the Diwali blockbusters Dil To Pagal Hai (1997), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Mohabbatein (2000) and Veer Zaara (2004). Audiences loved Khan as the romantic lead and he gave them what they wanted again and again. He’d furrow his brow, and hearts beat faster. He smiled, and fans swooned. He sang songs to his heroines, and countless men imagined doing the same while women dreamt of him serenading them. And all of it added up to box office earnings that established Khan as the Badshah of Bollywood. Don (2006)

In 2006, Khan shook his romantic hero image up when he starred in a remake of the Amitabh Bachchan-starrer Don. Also titled Don, this film tipped its hat to Khan’s anti-hero beginnings. Directed and written by Farhan Akhtar, Don saw Khan playing a ferocious drug lord and a simple, common man named Vijay. Filled with exotic locations, slick stunts and cooler-than-thou wardrobes, Don was a big hit and the sequel titled Don 2 came out in 2011. It wasn’t a Diwali release but did very well at the box office). Om Shanti Om (2007)

As successful as Khan’s foray into the action thriller territory may have been, audiences tend to prefer Khan as the lover boy and this was evident with the success of Om Shanti Om, in which Khan played a double role. In the first part of the film, he was Om Makhija, a lowly junior artist in 1970s’ Bollywood who falls in love with a leading lady. The film joyously romped its way through the absurdities of popular Hindi cinema and Khan, with his poufed hair and bell bottoms, was particularly good in the comedic bits. When Om Makhija dies, he’s reincarnated as Om Kapoor, better known as OK. It was as OK that Khan flashed a six-pack for the first time, much to the delight of his adoring fans. The abs came in response to the cult of buffness spawned by Salman Khan and Hrithik Roshan. Ra. One (2011)

Khan flashed his abs again in his home production Ra. One (2011), which was also a Diwali release. This science fiction adventure, in which Khan played both a Tamil scientist as well as a robot, was dubbed a hit but the box office earnings ultimately weren’t quite as spectacular as was expected. Happy New Year (2014)

Coincidentally, Khan revealed an eight-pack this year, as publicity for another Diwali release made by Om Shanti Om director, Farah Khan. If the video that the actor recently released on Twitter is any indication, then Farah has a role to play in Khan’s new physique. In the video, she’s heard encouraging him to do what look like seriously stomach-churning exercises in order to turn his body into what we see on Charlie in Happy New Year. With Happy New Year, which comes out in theatres the day after Diwali, Khan is in familiar territory. Directed by Farah Khan, the film is a huge spectacle that hopes to recreate the success that Farah and Shah Rukh enjoyed with Om Shanti Om. Khan’s added a blonde streak to his hair for his character Charlie, but will his lucky Diwali streak continue with Happy New Year? Only Lady Lakshmi can tell.