IANS

Public relations (PR) agencies should take a tip or two from Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan on how to turn the charm on the media.

The suave and sharp Shah Rukh, who has also been blessed with the gift of the gab, subtly bailed out a high-profile PR agency that was managing an event for Pepsi, the cola giant, on Sunday.

The Pepsi train ferried Shah Rukh, his "Don" co-star Priyanka Chopra, journalists and others from Delhi to Jaipur for the India-England match.

When some members of the camera-toting brigade refused to budge after they had had their fill of shots of King Khan and Priyanka at a press conference, the already hyper media manager of the PR company became even more edgy.

"Aap ne apna vaada tod diya (you have broken your promise)," she shrieked into the mike time and again. "Bhaisahab mere saath co-operate kariye (co-operate with me)," she pleaded.

But the camera-toting brigade, who were perched on chairs, refused to "cooperate" because she was behaving like a "schoolteacher".

Shah Rukh patiently watched her struggle for a few minutes and then took the mike. "I am sorry if you are being inconvenienced," he told the reporters. "But I think it is mostly because of your own selves," he chuckled.

He had driven home the point most charmingly and no one seemed to object.

Before the media could bowl their questions, he pre-empted their first query: "I know you all will be dying to ask me when was the last time I travelled on a train. Seven years ago..."

He fielded questions from all sides - on cricket, his son, his movies, his endorsements - and rephrased nervous questions and put everything into perspective for the media.

He even explained the shift in the focus of Pepsi's new campaign, of which he is an ambassador, more articulately than the Pepsi marketing head herself.

The media manager, who was keeping tabs on the time, screamed into the mike again. "Last two questions." Shah Rukh cut her midway and smiled into the mike, "No. Last four questions."

The media cheered him.

Four questions over, the media manager asked the print media to leave and make way for more of the camera-toting brigade, who also wield mikes.

She asked the journalists to hand her their mikes, to which they objected. With a scramble over who would do a one-on-one with Shah Rukh-Priyanka first, Shah Rukh decided to play the star-cum-media manager.

"Let me coordinate with them," he said loud and clear to the media manager.

The media was, of course, happy that he had taken over and they would not have to hear more about "broken promises".

The one-on-ones over, which seemed more like cattle grazing on the same patch of green, the media were asked to leave.

Although Shah Rukh had no problems spending more time with the media, the manager didn't seem game.

Even as the security shooed away the media persons "to the left" as if they were "untouchables", Shah Rukh was very gracious - still stopping to sign autographs and answer questions.

Without being rude he put the journalists, who overstepped their limits, in place.

A cub reporter asked him for an autograph and he willingly obliged. Next she asked him for his number he rattled, "601...". She said she wanted his cellphone number. "My personal numbers are not for you, sweetheart!" he said, patting her shoulder and walked away.

It was amazing to see him multi-task - answering questions, signing autographs, humouring Pepsi honchos - even as others looked bleary-eyed at the early morning event.

At an awards ceremony some years ago, Shah Rukh was interrupted by the hostess because the time allotted to him to speak was over. Few minutes later we saw the hostess melt into the darkness of the backstage and Shah Rukh hosting the show impromptu.

He did a pretty good job - being at his wittiest best, all along taking pot shots at the hostess, who was never seen in films again.