I feel like we are reintroducing historical figures, with the explorer Marco Polo and the grandson of Genghis Khan, Kublai Khan, the ruler of the Mongol empire, the trading place that everybody wanted to get involved in.
Nicholas I has been called 'Genghis Khan with a telegraph.' Stalin was 'Genghis Khan with a telephone.' But Mr. Putin is not Genghis Khan with a BlackBerry.
In 2007, I did a horseback trip across part of central Mongolia with my 13-year-old son - we encountered Marco Polo at all these historical places where Mongolian nomads would reference his accounts and his relationship with Kublai Khan.
It always circled back around to Marco Polo and Kublai Khan. That always fascinated me because so few people make the connection between the two.
There is still one of which you never speak.' Marco Polo bowed his head. 'Venice,' the Khan said. Marco smiled. 'What else do you believe I have been talking to you about?' The emperor did not turn a hair. 'And yet I have never heard you mention that name.' And Polo said: 'Every time I describe a city I am saying something about Venice.
Initially, I wanted to do films with A-list actors when I was struggling. I was hoping that I could also get that platform where I'm launched with Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan or Aamir Khan... and with them my career could also start, but it didn't happen. And then came 'Queen.'
When people hear the name 'Marco Polo,' they tend to think of a map or explorer. Very few people know the true story of Marco Polo, and it's so much more compelling and exciting than the mythology.
Ranveer Singh and Varun Dhawan both have a body like Salman Khan. But they can't say it. If they call themselves as Salman Khan, then they won't get films. They can't afford to be against Khan. This is how the filmy world works.
I would love to work with Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Abishek Bachchan and a lot more... even Imran Khan, Hrithik Roshan and Ranbir Kapoor are damn good with their acting.
I don't like Kublai Khan, let's just kill him off!
The real stars who have dedicated their services to the film industry are Salman Khan, Shahrukh Khan, Aamir Khan, and Akshay Kumar. I do not come in this league at all.
The stars that I've worked with started their careers almost at the same time as me. Whether it is Shah Rukh Khan or Aamir Khan or Salman Khan.
I don't think there has been a huge shift. Most of the films still focus on Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar, etc. The percentage of films that have someone like a Kangana Ranaut shining in it is really low.
Kublai noticed this uncommon perception that Marco Polo has, with the idea to explain and talk about his country so vividly that he can see it.
I got a real kick when a series was set in the court of Kublai Khan or in Nero's Rome.
My father was somewhat to the right of Genghis Khan.
The Goliath Corporation was to altruism what Genghis Khan was to soft furnishings.