Shah Rukh Khan and the controversies surrounding him will always sell. Need proof?
His latest Bollywood love drama, My Name Is Khan, has been certified a box office hit in India, chalking up box office collection of Rs250 million (S$7.7 million) on the opening day alone.
The movie had initially sparked outrage in India because of comments made by the Bollywood superstar.
According to Channel News Asia reports, the extreme right wing party, Shiv Sena, based in Mumbai had taken offence to Shah Rukh's statement on India-Pakistan relations. Shah Rukh had earlier stated that cricket players of Pakistani origin should be allowed to play in India.
Party workers of Shiv Sena had since torn movie posters of MNIK and were threatening movie theatres against showing the film. Police had arrested 300 Shiv Sena members so that the movie screening would not be disrupted.
Elsewhere in the world, Yahoo! News India has reported that MNIK has grossed US$18 million (S$25.4 million) during its opening weekend, which is the highest ever recorded for a Bollywood film (In the US, MNIK collected US$2.3 million in its first four days).
Back in Malaysia, Shah Rukh continues to enjoy his supreme reign. The TGV cinema in Cap Square, which is the latest centre of Bollywood films in the country, reports that it's been a full house everyday since the movie opened on Feb 12.
"We expect MNIK to stay in the cinema for a month," Saravan Letchmanan, the marketing consultant for Suraya Film Distribution and Production Sdn Bhd, the distributor of the movie here, offers his optimistic view when contacted by The Daily Chilli.
"Aside from the Klang Valley, we've also released the movie in Malacca, Johor, Kedah and Penang. The response has been good with 75 to 85 per cent of the tickets booked. We're only left with the front seats," Saravanan adds.
Set against the backdrop of post-911 racial discrimination, the film features Shah Rukh as an autistic Muslim guy, Rizwan Khan, who embarks on a journey across America to win back the love of his life, a Hindu girl named Mandira, played by Kajol.
But upon his arrival in Los Angeles,Rizwan is unfortunately detained by authorities at LAX who mistake his disability for suspicious behaviour.
-The Daily Chilli/Asia News Networ
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