Yash Raj Films’ ‘Pathaan’, featuring superstar Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and John Abraham, is close to breaching Rs 700 crore gross worldwide in nine days as SRK expressed his gratitude on Twitter to Brazilian author Paulo Coelho, amongst many such international celebs, for liking the film and calling him a ‘legend’.

The Siddharth Anand-directed spy thriller raised Rs 15.65 crore nett in India (Hindi – Rs 15 crore, all dubbed versions – Rs 65,00,000).

According to Yash Raj Films (YRF), ‘Pathaan’ has recorded Rs 259.6 crore in overseas territories alone, while gross collection in India stands at Rs 436 crore, a PTI report from Mumbai stated.

Also featuring Dimple Kapadia and Ashutosh Rana, the blockbuster film follows Shah Rukh’s Pathaan, an Indian intelligence agent, who resurfaces to thwart a terror attack planned by mercenary group Outfit X, led by Jim (John) on the Indian capital.

‘Pathaan’ is Shah Rukh’s first big screen release as a lead in over four years after ‘Zero’ (2018). It is the fourth movie in producer Aditya Chopra’s spy universe, following Salman Khan’s “Ek Tha Tiger’ and ‘Tiger Zinda Hai’, and ‘War’, featuring Hrithik Roshan.

SRK Thanks Paulo Coelho: On Friday SRK expressed gratitude to celebrated author Paulo Coelho for calling him a “legend”.

Commenting on Shah Rukh’s January 30 post on Twitter, where the actor is seen greeting his fans outside his house Mannat in Mumbai, the novelist had praised the superstar as a “great actor”.

In response to his tweet, SRK thanked the author for being “too kind” and asked him to meet up soon.

“You are always too kind my friend. Let us meet up sooner than soon!! Bless you,” Shah Rukh wrote, another PTI report said.

In his post on Thursday, Coelho had recommended his followers to watch Shah Rukh’s 2010 drama film ‘My Name is Khan’.

“King. Legend. Friend. But above all GREAT ACTOR (for those who don’t know him in the West, I strongly suggest ‘My name is Khan’- and I am not a terrorist”),” the author wrote on Twitter.

‘My Name is Khan’ featured Shah Rukh in the role of an autistic man who embarks on a journey to meet the US president after facing a hate crime. Coelho and Shah Rukh have often interacted on social media.