I don't expect short-term profits from IPL: SRK

MUMBAI: On a high with his team leading the standings in the inaugural IPL, actor and owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders Shah Rukh Khan on Wednesday said he would be happy even if his team did not break even financially, as long as they win the Twenty20 championship.

"I would be happy if we win even if we don't break even," Khan, who has paid USD 75 million for his team, said at a function organised by a retail chain here.

The Bollywood superstar said he did not expect any short-term profits from the Indian Premier League and after a point he had stopped looking only at the profits.

Khan, who is travelling abroad and could miss the next matches of his team, said his absence would not affect his team's performance in the ongoing championship.

"I have belief that the Knight Riders will win with or without my presence." In a humourous vein, the actor remarked that the only contribution he was making to the team's players was teaching them some dance steps.

The actor said he was hopeful the IPL would bring in a sports culture to the country and the owners of teams should not expect any short-term profits.

He denied that the presence of filmstars at games was taking away the focus from cricket. "Stars don't need the cricket field to promote themselves nor does cricket need them to popularise it...It will settle down in the coming weeks to only be about cricket."

Despite actors like Aamir Khan and Amitabh Bachchan turning to blogs to keep in touch with their fans, Khan said he had no immediate plans to follow that path. "I do not write since I get into enough trouble speaking."

The actor said currently he had no plans to contribute to his team's website since it was more about the players and the coach. "I will do it if my team wants me to."

However, he declined to comment on the team strategy, saying he had left it entirely to coach John Buchanan and captain Sourav Ganguly. "For the first four matches Buchanan had done the planning in such a way the team gels together."

The actor expressed hope the team's brand would be built by its performance in the coming matches and would sustain itself in the years to come.

The star, who will soon be seen on the television hosting `Kya aap panchvi pass se tez hain?' (Are you smarter than a fifth grade student?) said he expected the quiz show to be a success.

"I plan to carry a television set if necessary when I go for matches to watch the show," said Khan, who had earlier hosted popular quiz show `Kaun Banega Crorepati'.