The Fanaa thread - Page 6

Bollywood filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt Thursday filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking direction to the police chief of Gujarat to take steps for the peaceful screening of the film "Fanaa" in the state.

A mention of this petition was made before a vacation bench of judges Arijit Pasayat and C. K. Thakker. The plea will be heard in the due course, the judges said.

Activists of Gujarat's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have prevented the screening of the film following lead actor Aamir Khan's remarks on the Narmada dam.

While the project is seen as a lifeline for drought-prone parts of the state, Khan had voiced his concern for farmers and tribals whose lands would be submerged due to the dam.

The BJP had asked him to apologise to the people of Gujarat for his remarks on Narmada. Khan refused saying he would continue to speak for the poor and the marginalised sections of the society.

Bollywood bigwigs including Amitabh Bachchan have defended Khan saying freedom of expression cannot be curtailed in a democratic society.

Film star Aamir Khan has given Bollywood much to cheer about with Fanaa, his second consecutive hit in a year that has seen box office collections drying up due to the lack of major successes. Fanaa has proved to be a universal hit.

Inspite of being panned by the critics, it has appealed to all kinds of audiences. It is a global hit and coming on the heels of Rang De Basanti, this is proving to be a golden year for Aamir Khan," said a leading cinema trade analyst.

"Though there have been moderate scorers like Taxi No 9211, Priyadarshan's Malamaal Weekly and a hit like Rang De Basanti, Fanaa has done so well that it can be called a blockbuster," he said.

Industry estimates show Fanaa has almost recovered its cost of about Rs 25 crore since its release on Friday, even though it is not being screened in Gujarat, a key market for Bollywood, due to protests by BJP activists against Aamir's comments on those affected by the Narmada Dam project.

Analysts said while the film got a good opening due to the curiosity factor of the first time pairing of Aamir and Kajol, audiences have appreciated it even after the novelty wore off.

And Bollywood can look forward to a slew of big releases that are set to follow in the next few months, they said.

"The industry is now banking on films by major banners like Krrish, Rakesh Roshan's sequel to Koi Mil Gaya, Karan Johar's much awaited multi-starrer Kabhie Alvida Na Kehna, Ravi Chopra's babul and Sooraj Barjatya's Vivaah all of which will be released in the coming months," an analyst said.

"This will be a very crucial year for the Hindi film industry as almost all the major banners have a release coming up. How these films do will decide the fate of the industry this year," he said.

Few films have managed to find favour at the box office this year and all of them have catered to niche audiences.

While Rang De Basanti appealed to urban multiplex audiences, a comedy like Malaamal Weekly scored with Hindi speaking audiences.

Source : http://123india.santabanta.com/cinema.asp?pid=10799