Shah Rukh Khan poses for a photograph.

Gulf Today Report

Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan’s recent movies may not have set the box-office registers ringing, but no matter. He is still a supernova in the film industry, who sends zillions of fans swooning over his colossal appeal.

Countless teeny-boppers, particularly girls, go into a tizzy over the mere mention of his name, such is his magnetic charm.

His admirers also know that he has a huge heart; he wears philanthropy on his sleeve. In 2019, the Shah Rukh Khan La Trobe University PhD Scholarship was launched in a tieup with the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne and La Trobe University. India's Gopika Kottantharayil Bhasi from Thrissur in Kerala was awarded the first scholarship.

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The actor graced the university to inaugurate this programme.

He was the chief guest at the IFFM festival then. However, the coronavirus put the halt on the scholarship for over two years. Now it is back.

The registration for the scholarship started recently from August 18 and will end on September 23.

The selected student will be receiving a four-year La Trobe University Full-fee Research Scholarship, according to Indo-Asian News Service.

The scholarship, valued at more than 225,000 Australian dollars, is meant for Indian students who are pursuing a PhD from the Australian university.

Demand for this scholarship has been hot with over 800 applicants.

The actor’s association with the festival goes back a long time, and this award carries a special meaning, according to an official. La Trobe University, one of the leading universities on the planet, has hosted some top luminaries from India, like former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, cricketing great Kapil Dev, Malaika Arora Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, and filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani.