Shah Rukh Khan and Suhana Khan will head to Scotland in September for a crucial phase of filming for King, the father-daughter duo’s first feature collaboration. Industry insiders say the schedule will be packed with action, emotion, and sweeping outdoor visuals.
The much-awaited thriller, helmed by Pathaan director Siddharth Anand, has already kicked off production in Mumbai. Now, the film is set to make its next move in the Scottish Highlands — a location picked not just for its scenic appeal, but for the raw cinematic intensity it can bring to screen.
A Family Affair On and Off Screen
This project is not just another film on Shah Rukh Khan’s packed resume — it’s also a special one. King marks his first full-length collaboration with Suhana, who made her acting debut in Zoya Akhtar’s The Archies on Netflix.
The emotional weight of a real-life father-daughter duo sharing screen space is hard to ignore. The bond between the two is expected to add depth to the film’s narrative. That’s not PR talk — people close to the production say Siddharth Anand is intentionally shaping several scenes around their off-screen dynamic.
It’s not going to be a fluffy father-daughter drama though. Think more along the lines of Logan meets John Wick, with Anand’s signature flair for cinematic scale.
Why Scotland?
Sure, it’s pretty — castles, cliffs, lochs, moody skies — but that’s not the only reason Anand’s team zeroed in on Scotland. The director is reportedly chasing a visual intensity that only certain landscapes can offer. Cold, rugged, and vast.
According to location scouts working on the project, sequences are set to be shot across both the Highlands and urban backdrops like Edinburgh’s historic alleys. One assistant production manager based in Glasgow shared (on condition of anonymity) that permits have already been filed for complex action scenes around late September.
The UK shoot isn’t just for visual grandeur, though. It’s where the film takes a darker turn.
“The Scotland leg carries a pivotal tonal shift,” says a source from Red Chillies Entertainment. “It’s where everything starts to spiral for Shah Rukh’s character.”
What We Know So Far
Here’s what’s public — and what’s floating around the industry grapevine:
-
Shah Rukh’s character is reportedly a morally grey figure — not quite villain, not quite hero.
-
Suhana plays a tech-savvy operative, possibly his daughter or protégé.
-
Siddharth Anand is aiming to merge Pathaan-like scale with character-driven storytelling.
-
Composer duo Vishal–Shekhar have been roped in for the music.
-
Dialogues are being written by Abbas Tyrewala, who worked with Anand on War and Bang Bang.
In terms of budget, King is not a small film. Trade sources peg the film’s overall cost at around ₹300 crore, with nearly 25% earmarked for international shoots and VFX.
That’s not a Marvel-level budget, but for a non-franchise Bollywood film, it’s huge.
Shah Rukh’s High-Stakes Prison Scene in Mumbai
Before jetting off to Scotland, Shah Rukh wrapped what is being called one of the film’s most “chaotic” sequences — a prison break scene shot in Mumbai over five nights.
The sequence reportedly involved:
-
Over 200 stunt performers
-
Real explosions and rigged pyrotechnics
-
A 360-degree camera rig
-
Industrial-size set pieces including collapsing corridors and crumbling cell blocks
The shoot required a shutdown of multiple studio floors and intensive on-site safety rehearsals. One crew member quipped, “It looked like something out of a Dark Knight movie.”
The scene is expected to serve as a dramatic midpoint — the calm before the storm that is the Scotland sequence.
Siddharth Anand’s Vision: Beyond Action
You’d think Siddharth Anand is all about glossy action by now. Pathaan, War, Bang Bang! — they all delivered on that front. But King is shaping up to be more textured.
Here’s a quick breakdown of Anand’s recent trajectory:
| Film | Year | Lead Actor(s) | Box Office (Worldwide) | Core Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bang Bang! | 2014 | Hrithik Roshan, Katrina Kaif | ₹340 crore | Action-Romance |
| War | 2019 | Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff | ₹475 crore | Action-Thriller |
| Pathaan | 2023 | Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone | ₹1,050 crore | Spy-Action |
| King (Upcoming) | 2025 | Shah Rukh Khan, Suhana Khan | TBD | Action-Drama |
What stands out here is the tonal shift with King. It’s less spy-gadget fantasy, more grit-and-emotion.
The director is reportedly experimenting with a stripped-back aesthetic in the Scotland shoot — natural light, handheld cameras, and minimal CGI.
Suhana Khan: The Newcomer Under Spotlight
Let’s talk about Suhana for a sec.
It’s easy to dismiss her as just another star kid. But she’s been training hard — acting classes at NYU Tisch, theatre work in London, and now a high-octane role opposite her superstar dad.
People close to the project say she’s got some tough scenes ahead. One of them, we’re told, involves a sequence shot atop a Highland cliff with gale-force winds and minimal retakes.
She’s also undergoing combat training — knife work, close-quarters defence, and high-wire harness stunts.
One crew member joked, “She’s going to earn that Khan surname in this one.”
All Eyes on September
The Scotland schedule is slated to begin the first week of September and stretch across three weeks. A second international schedule — possibly Eastern Europe — is rumoured to follow.
Shah Rukh is expected to return to the screen with this project by late summer 2026, although dates may shift depending on post-production timelines.
There’s a lot riding on King. It’s more than just another action film. It’s a father-daughter collaboration, a potential franchise launcher, and Anand’s attempt to blend scale with soul.
Let’s see if the Scottish winds favour Bollywood’s biggest name once again.
