Long before he became the global face of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan quietly appeared in a little-known English-language film that many fans of his career are only discovering today. The film, In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones, released in 1989 — nearly three years before Khan’s Hindi film debut in Deewana — and remains one of the earliest recorded screen appearances of the actor who would later become one of Indian cinema’s biggest stars.
The film itself had unusual origins. Written by Booker Prize-winning author Arundhati Roy and directed by Pradip Krishen, it was originally produced as an English-language television film for Doordarshan. Set in the mid-1970s inside an architecture college in Delhi, the story follows Anand Grover — nicknamed Annie — a perpetually struggling student trying to complete his architecture degree while navigating friendships, bureaucracy, and the eccentric rhythms of campus life. The narrative drew heavily from Roy’s own experiences as a student at Delhi’s School of Planning and Architecture, giving the film an authentic portrait of student culture rarely seen in Indian cinema of that era.
Despite being a modest television production, the film went on to achieve remarkable critical recognition. At the 1989 National Film Awards it won Best Feature Film in English, while Roy received the National Award for Best Screenplay. Over the years, the film gradually developed a cult reputation among filmmakers, students and cinephiles who admired its offbeat humour, sharp writing and unconventional storytelling.
Among the ensemble cast of young theatre actors was a then-unknown Shah Rukh Khan, who appeared in a brief but memorable role as a flamboyant senior student. At the time, Khan was active in Delhi’s theatre circuit and had not yet entered mainstream cinema. The film also featured another future powerhouse performer, Manoj Bajpayee, in a small early appearance — making the project a fascinating time capsule of talent that would later reshape Hindi cinema.
Within a few years, Khan would transition to television with shows such as Fauji and Circus, before arriving in Bollywood with Deewana in 1992, a debut that won him the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut and set the stage for a career that would redefine superstardom in India.
Interest in In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones has resurfaced recently as restoration efforts and festival screenings have introduced the film to a new generation of viewers. Preservation initiatives have worked to digitally restore the project, allowing it to be screened again at international festivals and retrospectives, prompting renewed curiosity about its cast and legacy.
For Shah Rukh Khan followers, the film offers something particularly intriguing — a rare glimpse of the actor years before the era of the “King of Romance.” What once aired quietly on Indian television has now become a fascinating footnote in the journey of a performer who would go on to become one of the most recognised movie stars in the world.