Shah Rukh Khan has been my childhood hero, says actor Zeeshan Ayyub

Zeeshan Ayyub was seven when Shah Rukh Khan made his debut, and he says working with the superstar after years of admiring him off screen has been a surreal experience.

The actor, known for playing best friend Murari in Raanjhanaa, will be seen sharing screen space with Shah Rukh in his forthcoming coming film Raees.

"Working with him has been outstanding. He has been my childhood hero. When I was seven-eight-year-old, he had made his entry in Bollywood. So when I was growing up, getting to understand things, it was Shah Rukh sir whom I thought as my hero," he told PTI.

Zeeshan, who made his debut in 2011 with No One Killed Jessica and has worked in more than ten films so far, says he has never seen anybody as hardworking a his Raees co-star.

"Shah Rukh is unbelievably humble and down to earth. It is an absolute surreal experience to sit with him and share screen space. I have never seen anyone work so hard in my entire life. He rehearses every scene as many as 15-20 times.

He is the most intelligent person I have ever met." Zeeshan says he has learnt about hard work from Shah Rukh.

"The one thing which I learnt from him is hard work. He has taught me a lot about life in general. How to handle success and failure, the mindset to have while you are working on a film. His outlook towards life is really admirable.

"The day he tweeted about me, I couldn't sleep for the entire night. It was the most fulfilling and rewarding experience in life."

The actor will be seen playing Shah Rukh's friend in the Rahul Dholakia-directed film, which also stars Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Pakistani actress Mahira Khan.

"It is not a typical character though. He is a very positive zone friend who is important to the screenplay. I am enjoying the role." said Ayyub.