Why Brands Still Can’t Get Enough of Shah Rukh Khan

Kroll ranks him India’s most valuable celebrity brand, and his endorsement roster keeps growing across cars, telecom, finance and skincare.

Nearly four decades into his career, Shah Rukh Khan is still the celebrity advertisers reach for, even as the industry leans more heavily on creators and influencers. Recent industry reporting points to why.

The numbers behind the pull

Kroll’s India Celebrity Brand Valuation 2025, released on August 5, 2026, puts Khan’s brand at $177.9 million, up from $145.7 million in 2024. He rose from third place to first, ahead of Ranveer Singh ($162.9 million) and Virat Kohli ($158.4 million). The top 25 celebrity brands together were worth $2.0 billion, down 3.7% from the year before, so his gain came against a falling market.

Industry reports also say his endorsement portfolio grew from 28 brands to 36 in a year, and that TAM AdEx data showed him accounting for 10% of celebrity-led TV advertising volume from January to September 2026, ahead of MS Dhoni at 8%. I haven’t verified those two figures.

A roster that spans categories

Recent partnerships reported include Vodafone Idea (Vi), Visa (“Infinitely More”) and the skincare brand Foxtale. Long-running associations include Hyundai, which first signed him in 1998 to launch the Santro and, according to reports, ran a new campaign with him in July 2026. He also became the first male film star to endorse Lux, in its 75th-anniversary year of 2005, and he moved to Thums Up in 2022 after earlier Pepsi campaigns.

Campaigns that did more than show a face

Some of his ads used his appeal in more purposeful ways. Cadbury Celebrations’ 2021 campaign used AI to make personalised ads in which he promoted local shops by name, and Tata Tea’s Jaago Re work tackled gender stereotypes.

The emotional equity

Part of the answer lies in how audiences relate to him. Economist Shrayana Bhattacharya’s book Desperately Seeking Shah Rukh explores why women across backgrounds connect with his screen persona, linking it to aspiration, independence and respect in relationships. For brands, a face that has been part of people’s lives for decades brings familiarity that is hard to build quickly.

The risks

A big name carries reputational exposure too. His long-running association with Fair & Handsome has drawn criticism over skin-lightening messages, and his Vimal Elaichi ads are under scrutiny: the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration sent show-cause notices to him, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff alleging surrogate advertising of a banned product. A show-cause notice is not a finding, and Devgn has challenged his notice in the Bombay High Court.

What to watch

His film King arrives on December 24, 2026, and could bring a fresh surge of attention to his brand deals. The question for advertisers is less how long he can endorse than how well his reach translates to newer platforms. For now, the industry’s embrace of influencers has not dimmed the pull of an established star.

Sources: Kroll India; trade and industry reports.