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The kingmaker

REGAL MOVES Vipul Shah.

Vipul Shah is “still dazed” at seeing the hype the title song of his latest production, “Singh is Kinng” has created. To justify the hype, the ace Bollywood producer had to “pull out all the actors of the film from what ever they were doing” to do some promotional activities across India. For it, his budget went up manifold, he says. Though this is a film which he “didn’t start with any budget” in mind. And the result is, he adds, “It is now going to be around Rs.55 crores.”

But hasn’t he himself created the hype around the film releasing this Friday? “No, it’s the Sardar community, especially from Punjab, who now take Akshay Kumar as their representative as Akshay hails from Punjab,” he quips. And Shah promises that the community would only be pleased to see him as the symbol of courage and the one who follows the basic tenets of Sikhism in the film. It will also change people’s mind about a community which is always a target of jokes. “But,” he adds, the film will change the image in a hilarious way. “There is no lecturing or documentary kind of statement.” And entertainment in the film, he assures us, doesn’t mean buffoonery or a spoof, but “genuine humour.”

Though Shah is quite clear about it, he nevertheless has to face a section of the community in some parts of the country seeking a ban on the film for showing the community in a bad light.

Shah, the producer of comedies like “Namastey London” and “Welcom”, though, sticks to his guns. “The comedy filmmakers often ask audiences to leave their brains at home, but I would say bring your brains along, have a hearty laugh and take back some message conveyed playfully.”

The film’s story revolves around a mission that Akshay undertakes, that is, to bring a dear friend from Australia back to his home in Punjab while Katrina, the film’s heroine, is “much more than his love interest,” adds Shah, refusing to reveal much.

What’s exciting for Shah is also that “Sardars from Delhi and Punjab have called me up to say that they have started wearing florescent green and pink turbans after seeing Akshay wearing them in a song from the film. We tried to keep the pagdi very simple and yet it made a style statement because Akshay carried it so well.”

Akshay is often seen as Shah’s “lucky charm”. The popular actor has worked with him in two of his earlier films – his debut venture “Aankhen” and “Waqt”, followed by “Namastey London” and “Welcom”. The films did do quite well. Says Shah, “While ‘Aankhen’ was the biggest hit of 2002, ‘Waqt’ was the third big hit after ‘Bunty aur Babli’.” Talking about adding an extra ‘n’ to ‘Kinng’, Shah says, “This was to help me financially”.

“I did so for astrological reasons. I have put tremendous money in to the film. Anything that helps me get this money back is acceptable, even at the cost of people calling me superstitious,” he concludes, laughing.

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