Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan in Dubai to promote new film Dunki

The actor met fans at several events in the emirate ahead of the film's release this week

Shah Rukh Khan promoting his film Dunki at Vox Cinemas City Centre Deira. Photo: Vox Cinemas

Beloved Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan is currently in Dubai, promoting his new film Dunki.

The star has made appearances at Global Village and a Vox Cinema as part of a promotional tour in the days leading up to the film's release.

Appearing at Global Village on Sunday, he took to the main stage at the entertainment attraction, singing and dancing for a crowd of thousands. Fans lined up for hours before Khan's appearance, trying to secure a spot as close to the stage as possible.

On stage, he had a meet and greet with fans, throwing teddy bears and T-shirts into the crowd for a lucky few to take home.

At Vox Cinemas City Centre Deira, he was greeted by hundreds of excited fans at another meet-and-greet event on Sunday night.

Speaking during his appearance, he described Dunki as his “best film”.

The film is coming out in UAE cinemas on Thursday. Khan stars opposite Boman Irani, Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal, Vikram Kochhar and Anil Grover.

Shah Rukh Khan with a crowd of hundreds at Vox Cinemas City Centre Deira in Dubai on Sunday. Photo: Vox Cinemas

Directed by Rajkumar Hirani, the film is a “social drama” about a group of friends from a village in the Punjab, who all want to go to England. They don't have visas or tickets, but a soldier promises to help them get in through an illegal backdoor entry, known as a dunki or donkey flight. Khan promises a comedy with some emotional moments.

Parts of the film were shot in Neom in Saudi Arabia in 2022. Speaking about the project, Khan told Deadline it's “a story of people who want to come back home when you finally get the calling. It’s a big journey film and goes through different areas around the world and finally comes back home to India.”

Hirani is the Indian filmmaker and director known for 3 Idiots (2009), PK (2014) and Sanju (2018).

Khan is no stranger to the UAE – he has a home in Dubai and has shot many of his films in the city. He has also starred in a number of Dubai Tourism videos.

His last promotional film, Dubai Presents: Shah Rukh Khan, was released in March last year and shows the star singing and dancing to music by Indian duo Vishal and Shekhar as he explores the city.

In August this year he promoted his film Jawan at Burj Khalifa, with a projection of the actor appearing on the skyscraper.