Bollywood King Shah Rukh Khan Cheers Team India to Victory !

As the Indian team celebrated the historic Twenty20 World Cup win, SRK exulted with uncontrollable joy.

Indian Film Superstar Shah Rukh Khan was constantly cheering the Indian cricket team on its way to victory in the finals of the Twenty20 tournament against Pakistan.

The New Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg was not short of energetic Indian fans who waved Indian flags and shouted slogans to cheer the men in blue in the crucial match against Pakistan.

But one man who stood out among the Indian supporters was Shah Rukh Khan, who watched the match along with his son Aryan from the stands. SRK, wearing a black suit and a indigo T shirt, constantly clapped when a dot ball was bowled from the Indian side and stood from his seat in joy whenever a Pakistani wicket fell.

In the final overs, when Pakistan’s Misbah-ul-Haq looked dangerous and the match seemed slipping away from India’s grip, SRK stood in the stands and gave a thumbs-up sign to Indian captain MS Dhoni in the field.

That was just a moment before the wicket of Sohail Tanvir, who had hit two sixes, fell and optimism returned to team India.

That was also the moment the DJ played a few lines of the song Chak De…Chak De India from SRK’s recent release Chak De India .

Words are not sufficient to describe what happened after that. A billion hearts erupted in joy as Haq flicked bowler Joginder Sharma’s ball into the air and Sreesanth caught it.

As the Indian team celebrated the historic Twenty20 World Cup win, SRK exulted with uncontrollable joy.

Later, SRK went to congratulate the players on the field. SRK hugged each player individually. Harbhajan Singh, who was completely ecstatic, lifted SRK up when the superstar hugged him.

SRK was heard saying to his son: “They (the Indian players) are the true superstars”.

Well said, SRK.

And a million congratulations to team India from us. You’ve made us proud.


N.K.Deoshi, ApunKaChoice

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Is it the 'Chak de' magic?

September 24: Third time in a row, it is Chak de for India. First it was football, then hockey and now cricket.

This time around the Men in Blue rocked the shores of South Africa in the just concluded inaugural Twenty20 World Championship. Team India beat Pakistan in the grand finale on September 24, a day that will be remembered in cricketing history.

It was a nail-biting encounter as the two teams fought with all their might to clinch the coveted title. But as luck would have it, the trophy went into the hands of the Men in Blue after the ball went into the hands of Sree Santh. In fact, the tournament was a big challenge for new Team India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his young brigade.

So as young guns brought back India's lost pride after a humiliating first round exit from the World Cup in the Caribbean.

Indian Film actor Shah Rukh Khan, along with his son Aryan, was present to grace the occasion and spell his good luck charm. Well, he is the latest sporting icon for India after the release of his film Chak de India . The film looks like a good omen for Indian sport stars.

It all started with the Indian football team creating history after lifting their first ever Nehru Cup title with a 1-0 win over a 10-man Syria in a tough final played in Delhi on August 29, 2007. The victory spurred a resurgence of football in India.

Undoubtedly the win was a return of sorts of the hit movie Chak de India , in which the Indian women's hockey team comes from behind to claim the World Cup.

The next big win for Indian sport came on September 9, 2007. And this time the game that brought laurels to our country was the national sport, hockey. Amidst a roaring crowd, the Indian hockey team did something they last did four years ago - of winning a major multinational tournament - and this time it was the Asia Cup. India retained Asia Cup beating South Korea 7-2 in a hard fought final in Chennai. Not just the convincing win, but the Indian hockey team also added another feather to its cap. Its tally of 57 goals in the event became the highest for any team.

Truely, a Chak de performance by the sporting sensations.

It looks like the stars are shining for Indian sport. As the year is drawing to a close, the match winning performances of India's sporting sensations have taken the nation to a realm of success following a never-ending exhilaration.

The title song of Chak De India is a big hit and overall the movie itself has spread its magic across all sport in India. As the adrenaline is running high with India's seemingly never-ending successes, it's time to say again Chak de India .


Divya Kalra, TimesOfIndia

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Shah Rukh Khan did a Chak de India at the Wanderers in Johannesburg as he watched the match and embraced the Indian team after their victory.

Former Pakistan captain Rashid Latif said it was the film Chak de India and actor Shah Rukh Khan's presence that inspired Dhoni and his men to victory.

Coach Khan was in the VIP lounge with his equally cricket savvy son Aryan, cheering for their favourite team right through the nail-biting finale.

From giving the cricketers his love to egging them on, Shah Rukh thoroughly enjoyed the match.

"It really was Chak de India. I am glad that my son and I became part of history. It was an exciting match and we played a strong team," said Shah Rukh.

Going by the excitement it created amongst the players, they were more than happy to exchange a jadu ki jhappi with the man who made hockey a household name.

NDTV-Correspondent

SRK speaks about his forthcoming film Om Shanti Om and how Bhansali's Saawariya is not a threat

Lately in news for his six packs, the Badshah of Bollywood aka Shah Rukh Khan speaks about his forthcoming film Om Shanti Om and how Bhansali’s Saawariya is not a threat.

The music of Om Shanti Om is catching really fast.

Vishal and Shekhar have given it a lot of thought before deciding upon the music for Om Shanti Om . The interesting thing about the music of OSO is that it has been made in two contrasting periods, one of the 70’s and one for 2007. So we hope that the music of both the eras is liked by audiences. Pyarelalji has composed the music for us for the first half of the film that depicts the 70’s. Farah too has a good sense of music. I do not have a great knowledge of music but I have been fortunate that over the years my films have always had good music directors. And the singers in the film Abhijeet, Sonu and Shreya have all been great in the film. There are two to three songs that are too good. I think youngsters will like Dard-E-Disco a lot apart from which we have also included dance mixes as well. Om Shanti Om , I would say, has a lot of variety to offer as far as music is concerned.

What sets Om Shanti Om apart from the conventional?

At the outset I would say that it is not possible to make every person happy. And also I am not in a position to explain how different Om Shanti Om is. Although the film is about reincarnation and has lots of drama, it has its humourous moments too. As a producer, to recreate the sets of the 70’s was very exciting for me and no filmmaker has tried to relive that period in Hindi cinema before. Hence it was a very enriching experience for me. Also I have a personal thinking that the term Bollywood has been derived from the 70’s cinema. Nor has it has been taken from the 50’s or 60’s or the 90’s. Bollywood has been identified by the global audience as having side locks, wearing bell-bottoms and having long hair and to portray that was exciting. I wanted Farah to do the same for her first film Main Hoon Na when we rewind to my youthful days. Om Shanti Om is a film from the 70’s and yet modern.

Do you personally have a belief in reincarnation?

No, I do not believe in it. I don’t think I can be born again.

How difficult was it for you to build your body that too at such short notice?

See nothing is difficult to achieve if you desire to work for it. Even our film has a main line that says everything turns out to be OK in the end and if it is still not ok then there is hope. I had hope even at my age that I can have abs and my children like it as well. Earlier I had a back surgery and I was told to have regular workouts to improve the flexibility. Four months back I was on diet control. I also took some supplements like amino acids and fat burners and I did 500 to 700 crunches. That has made a difference. And I feel good now having done it. I would advise all youngsters to do the same and stay fit because a healthy body leads to a healthy mind.

Whose idea was it to shoot a song with you wearing nothing but a shirt?

Farah always had this dream that I perform a song for her without a shirt. She tried it in Kaal where she made me wear a banian (vest). When I looked at bodies of Salman, John or Hrithik I felt that even I could try to compete with them, though they all have much more fantastic physiques. But I did not want to feel ashamed of myself and so I tried my best. I think that I have sort of succeeded in my endeavour. So the idea was certainly Farah’s but I had set a condition that I would bare my chest when I have a good one. I put in the efforts for the last three to four months and feel I have done just fine.

Tell us something about the characters in Om Shanti Om..

One of the characters is Om Prakash Makhija. And Shreyas who plays a very important role in the film always reminds him that he will never become a star because of his name which is Om Prakash Makhija. He is a 70’s character who is a struggling artist and wants to be a superstar but never succeeds. The second character is Om Kapoor who is a superstar but is not talented. These two characters along with Shanti (played by Deepika Padukone) form the storyline.

We hear that Om Shanti Om has a lot of comedy so then is the film a spoof of sorts at the 70’s era?

The film is certainly not a spoof. Of course there is humour in the film because Farah has a good sense of it. There are a lot of funny scenes in the film which we haven’t shown in the promos as yet but you’ll get to see it later in the trailers in October. What I like about Om Shanti Om is that it is a gritty film that has loads of drama but also has its funny moments. All in all Om Shanti Om is 2 ½ hours of pure entertainment and hope it’s happy 2 ½ hours for all who watch the film.

Was it necessary to rope in so many stars for the film?

The film is set in two different eras. One from the 70’s and the other in 2007 and most importantly the film is set in the film industry. So we felt that if we get genuine stars in the film that will make it more real and bring in a sense of reality. I am grateful to all the stars who gave their time and efforts for Om Shanti Om . Today’s actors are good friends but I must thank all the yesteryear stars like Dharamji, Shabanaji, Jeetusaab and Mithunda. They all came down at just one call to be a part of the 70’s era in the film. And I am really touched by other seniors like Amitji and Rakesh Roshanji who also are part of the movie. The film was about real people and reality, thus I felt it was necessary to get these original stars and not duplicates.

What is the best compliment that you got for the six pack abs that you sport in the song Dard-E-Dsico?

My son tells me that I am no longer fat and that I look better than before. But he thinks that I can still improve on my fitness. So I will keep at it.

Shah Rukh, you had called Salman the Dadasaheb Phalke of Bodybuilding. Now that you yourself have managed six pack abs, what would you say?

I am just a debutant. In fact I should get the ‘Best debut for bodybuilding’ award. Salman, I think, was responsible for the wave of physical fitness that came into India which was followed by Hrithik in modern times. Both keep encouraging me. In fact I showed the first photos of my body to them and they said it looked OK. I am happy that they thought that I looked nice.

Lastly, do you consider Saawariya as a possible threat to Om Shanti Om?

Firstly, whenever one makes a film they make it hoping that it is liked by one and all. To be honest, Sanjay is a close friend of mine. He has given me one of my most memorable films with Devdas which I think is a highlight of my career. I have a lot of respect for him as a friend and as a filmmaker.
Saawariya is being presented by Columbia Tristar. The film has big names like Salman Khan and Rani Mukherjee and also has two newcomers Ranbir and Sonam who love and respect me very much. In fact given a choice I would not want to compete with such a huge film and at the same time I love my film so much that I fear for it.
Business wise it would have been wiser if both films had released separately but since it is clashing, all we can do is wish all the best to them and wish that our film does well too. Ours is a comparatively small film but having said that I will try my best to make Om Shanti Om the nicest film of the year. There is no competition but yes, Om Shanti Om is my child.

Source: IndiaTimesMovies

Chak de: Shah Rukh eggs India on against Pakistan

Johannesburg: Indian film super star Shah Rukh Khan reached here to watch the Twenty20 World Championships final between India and Pakistan here on Monday.

"I am here to back India, who have been playing really well in this tournament. They have already done us proud and I hope they prevail over another team that has been doing well," said Shahrukh.

"Chak de India," he signed off in a brief impromptu session with some mediamen.

Shahrukh's recent film Chak de India has been a big hit in India and is one of the few films made in Bollywood based on sport.

It is a fictional account of the Indian women's hockey team going on to win the world championship with Shahrukh playing the role of the coach, who inspires the players to raise their game several notches.

Incidentally, the title song of that movie has been played in South Africa whenever India has won a match.

Source: IBN-Live

King Khan to attend Twenty20 World Cup final

SRK will cheer for Team India at the Twenty-20 World Cup finals against Pakistan.

Indian Film Superstar Shah Rukh Khan, business tycoon Vijay Mallya and BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla will join hundreds of fans to cheer for Team India when Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men take on Pakistan in the final of the Twenty20 cricket World Cup in Johannesburg on Monday.

Khan, who played a hockey coach in his latest release Chak De India , earlier made a surprise visit to the India-England third Test at The Oval last month.

Khan, Mallya and Shukla will leave on Sunday night by the liquor baron's private jet.

"We will root for the Indian team, which has made us proud by its commendable show. An India-Pakistan match is always a humdinger and we are going to enjoy every bit of it," said Shukla.

Source: TimesOfIndia

It is impossible to catch the "DON"

Getting combined dates from Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan can be quite an impossible task, it's driving Bhootnath producer Ravi Chopra crazy!

There seem to be no sign of a thaw in the cold war between Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan. The latest to be affected by the not-so-cordial relationship between the two bigwigs of Bollywood is producer Ravi Chopra. The expensive sets of Chopra's Bhootnath, at Mehboob Studios, have been ready for months but are lying unused as SRK and Bachchan are both unavailable for shooting together.

Apparently, Ravi Chopra got dates from Amitabh Bachchan to shoot on the day of the music launch of Shah Rukh Khan's Om Shanti Om. However, a cancellation was made at the last minute.

News of the cold war between senior Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan has been doing rounds for a long time but neither has openly admitted it. An industry source says, "Combined dates of Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan don't seem to be working out. When SRK gives his dates, Amitabh Bachchan is not available and vice versa. It is very obvious that both are not very keen to work together and are just trying their best to avoid coming face-to-face with each other."

Both actors have already shot for scenes for the film. "Both of them have shot their individual scenes and the film is almost 85 per cent complete. This schedule has to be completed before the entire unit leaves for the outdoor shoots to Goa for song picturisation which is scheduled in the second week of October," says the source.

There are certain requirements that have to be made on the indoor set at Mehboob Studios. Depending on the dates from the two stars the producers can make the technical arrangements before the shoot.

When contacted Ravi Chopra, he says diplomatically, "We have got some dates and we will start shooting at the Mehboob Studios sets from October 1-10."

Kunal M Shah & Bharati Dubey, MumbaiMirror

Ich Liebe Dich, Shah Rukh Khan

Heil Shah Rukh! say SRK's German Fans.

Shah Rukh Khan and Om Shanti Om appear to be the hottest thing in Germany right now. What else could explain the mass hysteria for the film there? Says director Farah Khan, “A hand-written petition, signed by 10,000 German fans, has been sent to Dorothy Brennar (the director of the Berlin Film Festival) to get Om Shanti Om featured at the Berlinale. Apart from that, the Om
Shanti Om website (omshantiomfilm.com) has gotten at least two lakh hits and posts from Germany, Poland, France, Austria and Russia. They all want the film to be released there, which is shocking!”

Khan adds that these SRK fans come from all over Europe to attend the Berlin film festival and hence want OSO to be shown there. “I have asked our distributors, Eros International, to release the film in Russia and thus open up a new market for us there,” says Farah, elated.

Euphoric feeling

However, as much as she’s delighted with the response and euphoria towards her film, Farah says she can’t show OSO at the Berlinale. “The festival is scheduled to take place in February. It’ll be too late to release it there,” she says.

Shah Rukh Khan, who is also aware of the petition, adds, “OSO will release in Germany, along with the rest of the world, on November 9.”
Farah adds that Shah Rukh has a huge fan following in Germany. “Main Hoon Naa did very well there after we dubbed it in German. His fans keep asking him to come there as they’re dying to meet him, and now they’re desperately looking forward to OSO. They have a lot of fun watching our films, and all the songs, dances and emotions that go with it,” she says.

The German love for SRK doesn’t end there. “The German magazine Rapid Eye is doing a book on the making of Om Shanti Om. They came here to cover the shoot and even sent their photographers. Mushtaq Sheikh is writing the book on OSO in India, while Rapid Eye will be in German,” says Farah.

Upala KBR, MidDayMumbai

For Some Dreams...One Lifetime is Not Enough...

The tagline for Farah Khan’s Om Shanti Om reads: ‘One lifetime isn’t enough to fulfil a dream’. After many years, the rebirth story has resurfaced in Indian Films.

Shah Rukh Khan, who starred in Karan Arjun, another reincarnation film, is back in a similar role. It’s a new avatar for the actor himself, what with the talked-about six pack and all. And that’s not all, Satish Kaushik has bought the rights to remake Karz, the 1980 Rishi Kapoor blockbuster.

Says filmmaker Apoorva Lakhia, “Two of my all-time favourite Hindi films, Karz and Karan Arjun , are based on the reincarnation theme. And I am looking forward to OSO to see what Farah Khan does with the script.” Everyone is, no doubt, but will an abstract theme like reincarnation work in the age of the Internet and palm tops? “Every religion preaches Karma and past life influences. I think it’s a cool subject to explore,” says Apoorva.

Actor Vijay Raghavendra says, “You never know. A lot of subjects that are from another era have worked in recent times. Plus, there are many examples that force us to believe in miracles.” Actress Sharmila Mandre points to Madhumati, Nagin, Hamesha, Karan Arjun and Karz, saying, “It’s been a long time since someone thought of that subject, so if the film is convincing, it’ll be a success.”

But not every movie-goer agrees. And Priya Sudeep is one of those few who isn’t too thrilled about OSO’s storyline. “I was looking forward to OSO but was slightly put off when I heard it’s a reincarnation story. I think the theme has been overused in Bollywood. I personally don’t believe in rebirth, so even when I saw Karan Arjun I couldn’t relate to it,” she says. “Then again, there’s the SRK factor. People will love it as it is.”

Apoorva explains, “There is no set formula in Bollywood. People just want to be entertained. When we started making Shootout at Lokhandwala, people had all kinds of apprehensions, but it was a hit.”
“I would love to do a reincarnation role,” says Sharmila. “It’s like playing two characters (a double role of sorts), which is very good for an actor,” she says. “And if the story is told well, people will believe in it too. I don’t know about the Karz remake, considering what happened to RGV Ki Aag, but the promos of OSO look fresh and good. With SRK, Deepika and a whole list of actors, I think the theme will just be that — an anchor,” says Vijay.


Resarch on rebirth

“There is a reference to past lives and reincarnation in every religion. While 60 per cent people don’t believe in God, all of them believe in the existence of past lives. Modern lifestyles lead people to live like there’s no
tomorrow, leave alone
another lifetime. But when they encounter serious
problems like trauma and chronic diseases, and all else fails, they think about past life influence. “Extensive research has been done on past life and it’s connection with our present. We practise past life regression therapies in which we hypnotise the patients and take them back to their previous lives to find the root of their problems. If there is enough evidence to show if the past life problem is solved, the present life will also get back on track.
“It’s just that people are not aware that
parapsychology was termed as a science in 1969. They fall for quacks and their tricks. But hopefully that will change soon.”
Sujendra Prakash, Psychologist and
qualified Indologist

Tejaswini Tirta, TimesOfIndia

"Digital is going to be big in India," says Shah Rukh Khan

Remember the time when prints were carted around in the boot of a car from one theatre to another in the first week of a film's release? Things may still remain largely the same in the bigger metros but satellites are increasingly being used for transmitting films to smaller centres, cutting not only costs but also curbing the rampant piracy existing there.

Digital prints require projectors that cost Rs 40 lakh plus transmission equipment to beam the film. But the economics works in its favour. Each physical print costs Rs 70,000 whereas the new technology allows a few master prints to be used to transmit the film across the country (see box). So, had Sajid Nadiadwala released 350 prints of Heyy Babby in celluloid, it would have cost him Rs 2.5 crore. But, by using digital technology, he managed to cut down costs by 80%.

Distributors and exhibitors gain by being able to screen the film in smaller centres in the initial weeks of its release. “There is potential for increasing box-office revenue by 100%. Piracy, which takes away 40% of the revenue, can be curbed better now,'' a cinema manager from Amravati said. New films hitting small towns like Amravati now coincides with their worldwide launch; places like Amravati are used to seeing new movies a week or two after they hit the metros and this allows pirated prints to reach these towns earlier.

Om Shanti Om and Saawariya are among the immediate releases whose makers are riding piggyback on digitalisation to broadbase their release.

“Digital is going to be big in India,'' actor Shah Rukh Khan said. Three hundred and fifty of Om Shanti Om's 850 prints are being released digitally; the plan is to bombard the smaller centres and capitalise on the hype in the first few days of its release.

Bharati Dubey, TimesOfIndia

Fab at 40

Men will always be boys. Be it their car, house or bank balance, size does matter. At least till they turn 40.

Then, all the locker-room talk is about keeping score - like how many minutes, calories and kilometres you clock on the treadmill. Or how many pull-ups you grind out.

And with even Shah Rukh Khan - who spent two decades proclaiming he was an actor, not a bodybuilder - showing off his newly acquired six pack, the bar has been raised even higher for 40+ men who're busy bench-pressing, squatting and running their to way to body beautiful.

‘‘By 40, men are settled in their jobs, have a picture postcard family, drive a hot set of wheels, own a house... personal fitness is the next obvious thing to look into,'' says Ajay Chand, a trainer at Delhi's Ozone gym. Chand reveals that the number of 40-year-olds enrolling at the gym includes businessmen and industrialists looking to work off their stress. ‘‘These members make for 40% of total gym users and the numbers are growing,'' he says. Adds Abhimanyu Sable of Pune-based Abs Fitness and Wellness Club, ‘‘I have many clients post-40 wanting a sixpack like Shah Rukh's.'' Of course, other Bollywood stars like Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar have long been fitness icons. And then there's Shekhar Suman who's turning heads with his brand new biceps. But it's SRK's metamorphosis that has really inspired people. The reasoning: If he can do it, so can I.

But be warned, King Khan's transformation didn't happen overnight. According to his trainer Prashant Sawant, Shah Rukh trained and dieted for over six months. ‘‘Shah Rukh has been working out regularly since his role in Don. But to achieve this look we needed something different. I put him on a high-protein, low-carb diet along with special exercises for his chest, shoulders and back. The result is for all to see.'' Can just anyone do it? ‘‘If you really want it and work with a good trainer, you can get it,'' he says.

Source: TimesOfIndia

Mrs Khan Steps Out in Style

For the first time ever, Gauri Khan will step out of the huge shadow cast in Bollywood by husband Shah Rukh Khan and into the limelight herself. Yes, the proud homemaker is doing a small walk-in role in Farah Khan’s Om Shanti Om, for which Gauri herself is producer. It’s the blink-and-you-will-miss-it kind of appearance that Alfred Hitchcock was famous for in Hollywood.

The scene requires Gauri to walk a red carpet for a song at the end of the movie as the credits come on. Typical of Farah, the technicians and crew members of the movie take a bow too in this number. Farah had tried earlier in vain to convince the elusive Mrs Khan to make a guest appearance in her first movie, Main Hoon Na . “But she ditched me. I think, Shah Rukh convinced her to do it this time,” said Farah.
Gauri is said to get bored very easily of the takes and several retakes while shooting.

“She has no patience, that’s why we don’t try to get her in front of the camera,” explained Farah. “However, for this shot, she just had to step out of a car and walk the red carpet waving to the crowd like a star.” According to the director, Gauri did not require to put in much effort for this scene. “She is very natural before the camera and is poised and stylish even otherwise,” said Farah. “Next time, I’ll try and get her to do an entire song!”

That Gauri is a style diva in Bollywood, is known. Men are also reported to find her hot! And she has constantly attracted the attention of ad filmmakers and movie producers who have all tried unsuccessfully to lure her onto the screen. Mira Nair was one of them.

Shah Rukh is among those who admits to Gauri being stylish and with a sense of fashion that is her very own. “Style is inherent. And Gauri has that,” he said. The Bollywood badshah and his begum have often been compared to British footballer David Beckham and his style icon wife Victoria. But Shah Rukh finds that amusing. “I thought we were the Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie of Bollywood,” he said smiling.

Afsana Ahmed, TimesOfIndia