Why Salman Khan-Priyanka Chopra’s Bharat is highly anticipated
There will be five versions of Salman Khan in the movie
If the recent trend of successful movies in Bollywood has taught the filmmakers one lesson, it is this: for commercial viability as well as critical acclaim, the theme of nationalism has no parallel.
Unfailingly, there is one such movie every year, and a lot goes behind the making of it. For this successful recipe, so far, one needed Akshay Kumar, a contemporary cause such as Swachh Bharat (Toilet – Ek Prem Katha) or a real-life incident like that of naval officer KM Nanavati (Rustom), and numerous occasions and dialogues that fill the heart with pride and patriotism. But now we have something bigger.
We have one Salman Khan, an Ali Abbas Zafar, Hollywood-return Priyanka Chopra, and a storyline spanning over 70 years of Indian history, including the Partition. Within a few days of the shooting kicking off – following Salman Khan’s bail in the blackbuck poaching case – the movie, Bharat, is being considered one of the most anticipated films of 2019. Also, it will be an Eid release.
And it begins “Bharat” @BeingSalmanKhan . A journey of a man and a nation together . Eid 2019 pic.twitter.com/nD05ca2FDE
— ali abbas zafar (@aliabbaszafar) 16 April 2018
Priyanka’s comeback to Bollywood
The last Hindi movie Priyanka Chopra was seen in was Jai Gangaajal (2016). She essayed the lead role in that movie. Before that, we saw her in Bajirao Mastani.
Bharat will be her comeback after a two-year stint in Hollywood. In an interview to an international magazine, Chopra said, “It’s the quintessential Bollywood movie, which I haven’t done in many years. A lot of them were dramatic and thematic. This one’s going to be out-and-out entertainment. I’m excited! I haven’t been back to do a movie in two or three years now.”
In her Americal TV series Quantico, Chopra is an FBI recruit who later becomes a prime suspect of a terrorist attack on Grand Central Terminal. After such a challenging role, what impressed her back home should be interesting.
India and Partition
Bharat will be an adaptation of Korean film Ode to My Father, which depicts modern Korean history from the 1950s to the present, through the life of an ordinary man. In the Indian version, the ordinary man is Bharat, the character to be essayed by Salman Khan. While it was alleged that Salman’s Tubelight was also inspired by a Korean movie, Bharat will be an official adaptation and rights of the movie have already been bought.
Five versions of Salman Khan
If all this is not enough to pull in crowds, there will be five versions of Salman Khan in the movie. If reports are to be believed, these versions will include his Karan Arjun avatar. In Sultan too, Ali Abbas Zafar experimented with Salman’s looks. But this will be something different, involving a lot of age-reduction methods. The prosthetics and VFX team of The Curious Case of Benjamin Button are being consulted for the film.
Yesteryear actor Manoj Kumar used to be called Bharat Kumar, after the name of his character in a number of movies such as Upkar, Purab Aur Paschim and Roti Kapda Aur Makaan. The fact that both Akshay Kumar and Salman Khan seem to be vying for that moniker has not eluded the notice of the veteran actor. "I am happy that superstars like Salman and Akshay are playing heroes who can bring about a social awakening, a new dawn, naya Bharat,” Kumar recently said.