English - PRAVASI BHARATIYA - Overseas Indian

CINEMASUPER GROSSER‘My Name Is Khan’CREATES HISTORYReiterating the fact that Shah Rukh Khan is the king, MNIK becomesa global phenomenon, with the biggest openings ever for a Bollywoodfilm in the UK and the United StatesThat he is a bigger drawthan Hollywood superstarTom Cruise with the Indiandiaspora in the UK andthe US, is an earlier-known fact.This time Shah Rukh Khan hasgone a step ahead. His latest film,Karan Johar’s My Name Is Khan,has become a global phenomenon.Trade analyst Taran Adarsh says,“It has made the biggest openingever for a Bollywood film in the UK($1.4 million in its opening weekend),and also in the US ($1.86 millionin the first weekend). This reiteratesthe fact that Shah Rukh isking in the overseas market.’’The film has also taken severalother foreign markets by storm. Ithas broken the record for thebiggest initial for a Bollywoodmovie in the UAE. And is the firstHindi film to release in Egyptacross eight theatres. In the firstweek of March, the film released innine theatres across Jordan, Syriaand Lebanon.On its opening day, MNIK rakedin Rs. 250 million worldwide — thefirst of its kind.High on the praise he hasreceived from the Indian and foreignmedia, an ecstatic Karan said,“MNIK is the first global film thathas actually come from Bollywood.It has penetrated far deeper thanthe parameters of the diaspora marketsand has found patronage incountries like Poland, Germany andRussia where no Bollywood filmshave found such a huge favour. Wehave already added 25 odd printsacross the Middle East — Oman,Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, heartenedby the phenomenal first weekcollections in UAE.’’Fox Star Studios, Red Chillies andDharma Productions are smilingtheir way to the bank because inthe Middle East countries, the printcounts that stood at 61 will go up to71 by the first week of March. Thisis almost double the print tally formost Hindi films. In Singaporealone, the film has done phenomenalbusiness at the ticket windowswhich is a record for Hindi film.And the great word of mouth continuesto keep it on top, says thelocal distributor. Australia andNew Zealand have ended their firstweek collections with record ticketsales. In Hong Kong, the film is runningto packed houses.What has warmed the cockles ofKaran’s heart, though, is his recenttrip to the prestigious Berlin FilmFestival where SRK, Kajol and hewalked down the red carpet.Reports say there were 3,000 ecstaticfans braving the minus 10degrees temperature to participatein their moment of glory. Sourcessay that when Shah Rukh got the1,800 lucky viewers who finallymade it into the auditorium todance to the ‘Sajda’ number, he wonGermans for life.In India, despite controversy andcalls to boycott the film, hundredsof thousands thronged cinema hallsacross India, and MNIK opened topacked theatres.But Khan has a long journeyahead. Karan and Shah Rukh stillhave a couple of aces up theirsleeve. “We will be releasing thefilm in many other countries acrossEurope and America right till themonth of June,’’ says Karan. “Theactual assessment can therefore bemade only after July, when the realnumbers of the film start showing.’’Karan added.The film is also being dubbed inGerman and Polish so that the non-Hindi speaking SRK fans also get toenjoy MNIK. “Every country has adifferent requirement. In Poland, itwill be released with Polish subtitles.In Germany, we want the filmto go down much deeper to the Germanaudience and that particularmarket prefers films to be dubbed.So that's why we are dubbing it inGerman and Turkish,” Vijay Singh,CEO of Fox STAR Studios India,said.More than a name“My name is Khan and I am not a terrorist”These words today signify the majority of Muslims who live in constantfear that they will be branded terrorists simply becausethey follow Islam. This unfortunately is the latent fearthe majority of our Muslim brethren nurture — of beingbranded terrorists simply because they follow Islam!There couldn’t have been a better time for a film likeMy Name Is Khan when a growing number of people arevictims of what some call “travelling while a Muslim”. Apassenger, whatever be his religion, bearing a first nameor a surname like Muhammad, Khan, Rahman or any otherArabic name, must endure extra security checks and humiliationat international airports. One of the initial scenes inthe film has an American airport security officer jestinglyasking Rizwan Khan (Shah Rukh Khan) what message hewanted to give to the President of the United States, “Youknow where Osama is?” The scene captures a certainmood, paranoia, fear and disdain for Muslims in the USpost 9/11.In the last few years, many Bollywood films haveattempted to tackle the issue of terrorism. Many oftenclaim to have helped ‘remove’ the stereotypes about Muslims.But these storylines have failed miserably. The centralpoint being the characterisation of the key players inthe story, linking ‘Islamist terror’ with Islam. In almost allthese films, the protagonist who stood against terror waseither a modern and educated Muslim or a non-Muslim. Inthe former case, not because he did not have any theologicalunderstanding of Islam but because he had lived in theWest! And that leaves the stereotypes and confusion intact.This is why My Name is Khan is such an important film.The film tackles the subject head-on and triumphs. Theprotagonist, as well as various other supporting Muslimcharacters, are shown comfortable leading a normal ‘Muslim’life. They pray, they wear the hijab, and they have a social lifetoo outside their Muslim families. They have strong traditional rootsbut are not inclined towards any larger ‘plot’. The film acknowledges theproblems within Muslim communities and brings out into the open what is discussedunder the closet, but then counters them not from outside but from inside. MNIK’scentral character stands out against the system not in spite of his upbringing and ‘religion’,but because of it. MNIK is the story of Rizwan Khan, an Indian Muslim immigrant to theUS who is disabled by Asperger’s Syndrome. Rizwan can think only in black and white, rightor wrong and has little appreciation of social nuances. So he does things straight out of hisheart — be it offering namaz in public spaces, reciting the Surah Ikhlas while passingthrough airport security, offering Zakat at the 9/11 charity, donning traditional clothes, ordismissing his neighbour’s culinary skills on her face. Various other characters are authenticand taken straight out of daily life, be it that of Rizwan’s brother, his sister-in-law, or theGujarati motel owner. Khan’s life changes after his son becomes a victim to anti-Muslim‘hatred’. One of the most poignant scenes in the film is where Khan’s wife Mandira (Kajol) isnear hysterical and lashes out at him: “My son was killed because his name was Khan, if hisname was Rathore, he would be living. He was killed because I took on your name.”Bollywood has been faulted for timing, for its films on 9/11 and its effects have appeared 10years after the tragedy. Hence the most often asked question: “How is this relevant to us today?”After Mumbai’s 26/11 tragedy, the film becomes an effective vehicle for the message of tolerance,harmony and peace. Not least, in the wake of the Shiv Sena’s anti-SRK tirade and subsequentvandalisation of cinema halls. MNIK has a universal story to tell. — By Nandini S. Sen36 Pravasi Bharatiya March 2010Pravasi Bharatiya March 2010 37