RAEES update #3 - Page 11

Last night the crew of Raees along with lead actor Shah Rukh Khan quietly left Mumbai to shoot for two songs in Dubai and Morocco. Buzz is that Pakistani actress Mahira Khan will join them there. This comes in the wake of the decision taken by the CM of Maharashtra, MNS, and the Producers Guild together that no films will Pakistani actors will be shot from the time the ban was given.

Says a source, "The producers of Raees have always maintained that the film was shot before the (Uri) attack happened. The ban against three complete films (Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, Raees and Dear Zindagi) which starred Pakistani actors was lifted but a decision was taken by the CM of Maharashtra, MNS, and the Producers Guild together that no other films with Pakistani artistes will be released and no films with Pakistani actors will be shot. But fact is, that two romantic tracks were left to be shot between Shah Rukh and Mahira. The diktat left the director Rahul Dholakia and producers Red Chillies Entertainment and Excel Entertainment in a dilemma as to where to film the two songs with Mahira and Shah Rukh."

But, post the release of Raees trailer things changed. The source continues, "Now, that the dust has settled down and the Raees trailer has got a great response the makers of the film decided to shoot the remaining songs with Mahira Khan who plays SRK's love interest - but outside India and a country where nobody could object. Mahira has received a good response too in the trailer and the makers are more confident. They decided to fly to Dubai first and shoot one song in Abu Dhabi or Bahrain and then fly to Morocco for the second. It is all being done under the utmost secrecy and is very hush-hush till the songs are shot and the team flies back, so that nobody finds out. Whatever patchwork remained was complete a few days back with SRK in Mumbai. After the two songs are shot abroad, Raees is complete."

Set in Gujarat during the 1980s, Raees is the story of bootlegger Raees Alam (Shah Rukh Khan) whose business is challenged by police officer, ACP Majmudar (Nawazuddin Siddiqui).