Shah Rukh Khan will be the first Bollywood actor to have an official opus. King Khan, the Official Opus of Shah Rukh Khan is a 37-kg, 800-page diary with personalised extracts and never seen before pictures sourced from the actor’s family, friends, Kolkata Knight Riders matches and even his mobile phones down the years.

“They’ve sent cell phone pictures to Scotland Yard to be blown up. The team also covered the RA.One shoot in London and got pictures of me wearing the body suit that even our guys in India don’t have,” he says. A booklover, the actor-producer has an extensive library that has the opus of pop stars Michael Jackson and Prince, premier football club Manchester United , fashion designer Vivian Westwood and the Ferrari.

Walking down London streets, he’d come across these huge books, but never imagined he’d be the subject of one. “The call two years ago was a surprise and even after I’ve signed the first page of the first of the collector’s items, it still seems unbelievable. There’s one coming up on the Haj and another on cricketer Sachin Tendulkar that’ll probably be released around the same time as mine,” he exults.

Anupama Chopra, Mushtaq Sheikh and Deepa Gahlot have all written books on him but, as he points out, they were Indians. This one will look at Indian cinema through his two-decade reign. “Many don’t respect me as an artiste, but the fact that Westerners are taking an interest in our movies is a matter of honour for me,” he asserts.

Only 999 marquee editions will be launched but smaller copies will be available, along with DVDs. The opus can also be digitally downloaded on iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch and Android platforms. It’ll be a unique birthday gift for King Khan in 2012.