Add roasted almonds and a sprinkle of cornflakes to your popcorn.

On Wednesday afternoon, that was the snack that kept us company as we placed bets on Indian Standard Time, Bollywood Standard Time and SRK Standard Time.

The invite said 4pm onwards. As per SRK time, it could mean anywhere between 8 and 9pm.

But when a celeb steps on stage as a father, he does the uncharacteristic.

The clock had just moved from 5.30 when Shah Rukh began his show, his arm in a sling (after an accident while shooting for King, his film with daughter Suhana, followed by surgery in the US). He followed Bollywood Standard Time for the first time in decades. On his birthday a few years ago, he’d sauntered in four hours late for a media meet hosted at Taj Lands End, next door to Mannat. But those days, he took a variety of unscripted questions with trademark charm and sporting wit.

It changed after Pathaan and Jawan. Instead of celebration, what was discerned was khunnas, a deep-rooted grudge. It went beyond an “I’ll show you” desire to hit out and demonstrate that, despite a series of failures, he was still the king of the box office.

Shah Rukh has always known how to laugh at himself. On the sets of Kal Ho Naa Ho, he had chuckled with me over being “the best”, a line he cheekily used for himself after the song “I’m the best” in Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani (2000). It was a film with which he’d launched Dreamz Unlimited with Juhi Chawla and Aziz Mirza. Four years later, wife Gauri and he began their dream run with Main Hoon Naa and their multimedia company Red Chillies.

What has stayed consistent is his ability to have fun at his own expense. So, what changed?

King, Badshah, Emperor. Call him whatever but it was the father in Shah Rukh that ruled most of all. He reeled under parental angst for the perceived media attack on son Aryan in 2021 and that showed up when he orchestrated his comeback in 2023 by dispensing with traditional promotions in the media. “I can do without you” was his unspoken message.

Whether a 20-something Salman at the start of his career, Shah Rukh in his 50s or Amitabh in his 80s, every celebrity has the right to decide how he wants to promote his films. Media-friendly Aamir Khan did a heap of podcasts. Kajol bared her heart before the same pile of podcasters. Salman did informal gatherings with the media. Ajay Devgn chatted amicably with journalists. The results have nothing to do with the method. Aamir’s Sitaare... let him down commercially, Salman’s Sikandar, Kajol’s Maa and Devgn’s Sons Of Sardaar 2 were failures. To each his own.

It worked for Shah Rukh to cordon off the media and turn ostensibly media events for Pathaan and Jawan into frenzied fan evenings.

But when a celebrity steps forward as a parent, fondly held grudges recede. For the Wednesday preview of son Aryan’s debut as director with Netflix’s The Ba***ds of Bollywood, apart from reaching YRF Studios early and starting an hour and a half after 4pm, the one noticeable change was that SRK did not turn it into an annoying jamboree to showcase fan hysteria. The dad in him ensured that the media got an undistracted blast of Aryan’s show.

It’s not just the show where he’s pulled out the stops to give his son the best introduction. For the preview, he hired the country’s most expensive compere — himself — and, taking no chances, made a rare departure from spontaneity to read off a teleprompter. Even his punchlines and jokes were pre-written and they landed with SRK’s customary skills. At one point, he also subtly moved to the wings, letting Aryan soak the spotlight on his own.

Dad’s done his bit. The Ba***ds of Bollywood looks Bl**dy good. It’s “Come September” for Aryan now.

Bharathi S. Pradhan is a senior journalist and an author