Shah Rukh Khan, the site for Dubailand

Mumbai, Nov. 30: Property pangs in Dubai? Not if it’s Shah Rukh Khan, who is now building a stadium in the debt-laden playground of the rich.

The superstar, an unofficial brand ambassador of the Dubai Tourism Development Company, has joined hands with top emirates developers to build the stadium as part of an entertainment complex in the desert city, which is reeling under a debt crisis and is swamped by crumbling real estate projects.

The project, called Dubailand, is spread over 278sqkm and is owned by a wing of Dubai Holding, a state-owned company with diverse interests. Dubailand includes some 45 projects, among them theme parks, luxury hotels and stadiums.

The actor is already developing a $2.2-billion beachfront residential project at Ras Al Khaimah — an adjoining emirate — called the Shah Rukh Khan Boulevard.

“The fate of that residential project hangs in the balance after the Dubai debacle, but SRK is moving full steam with the stadium,” said a source aware of the project details.

“Shah Rukh is immensely popular in the UAE and he wants to give something back to them. His project, among other things, involves a state-of-the-art sports training and coaching facility for the poor and underprivileged people in the emirates who cannot bear the expenses,” said the source.

Shah Rukh is a keen sports follower, and owns the Kolkata Knight Riders team in the Indian Premier League. The team, which has had a poor run on the cricket field, has been a brand success because of Shah Rukh.

The actor’s brand value will also help the stadium, expected to be operational by 2013 and set to have facilities to host international cricket matches as well as other global sporting events. The AED (Arab Emirates Dirham) 360 million (Rs 455 crore) project will include an adjoining enclosed multi-purpose arena for sports, art, special events and exhibitions.

The actor, the source said, also plans to hold his Bollywood stage shows in the emirates at this venue.

Shah Rukh, the source added, intends to visit the emirates more regularly and is in the process of building a residential villa in Ras Al Khaimah on the lines of his Mumbai home Mannat.

Like other state-owned companies in the emirates, Dubai Holding too belongs to the government, at least on paper.

The emirate’s ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has a 99.67 per cent stake in Dubai Holding.

But the company, which has stakes in, among other entities, Daimler Chrysler and Madame Tussauds, is not guaranteed by the government.

“It deals with all parties on this basis and its borrowings are based on its projects and not on the guarantee of the government,” said the source.

This provision, said sources, could create a flutter of worry for Shah Rukh.

The Dubai government today used that clause to disclaim responsibility for the debts of Dubai World, one of the three big holding firms of the emirate along with Dubai Holding and Investment Corporation of Dubai.

Dubai World and its struggling real estate wing Nakheel have sought a six-month standstill on repaying their debts, sending world markets into a tailspin and triggering fears of another credit crisis.