At the 77th edition of the Locarno Film Festival, Indian superstar and global icon, Shah Rukh Khan will be awarded with the Festival’s career achievement award, the prestigious Pardo alla Carriera Ascona-Locarno Tourism. The award will pay tribute to his remarkable career in Indian cinema consisting of more than 100 films in a breathtaking multitude of genres. Popularly known in India as ‘King Khan’ – the emperor (‘Baadshah’) of Bollywood – Shah Rukh Khan has become a living symbol portraying the vibrance and vitality of Indian cinema. 

The actor will receive the award on the evening of Saturday, August 10 at Piazza Grande. In addition, a key film from Khan’s career – Devdas directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali in 2002 will be screened during the Festival, and SRK will appear at the Forum @Spazio Cinema for a conversation open to the public on Sunday, August 11. Many of Shah Rukh Khan’s films are loved globally and have made him a hugely popular name amongst audiences around the world, leading him to represent his country and many of his films across numerous prestigious film festivals across the globe.

In the subsequent two decades, Khan’s career would feature high-profile collaborations with some of India’s most prominent directors and stars leading to tremendous recognition internationally as well. Khan was awarded the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2007 and the Légion d'honneur in 2014 by the French government. Shah Rukh Khan’s recent releases include three films that were released in 2023, Pathaan (2023), Jawan (2023) and Dunki (2023), all of which were huge commercial successes and garnered immense appreciation from global audiences. Jawan (2023) produced by Khan’s own production house, Red Chillies Entertainment has entered the history books as the highest grossing Hindi film ever, reaffirming the actor’s status as one of the most beloved Indian stars of his generation.