The film industry is now wary of making flicks around protagonists from the community; SIK2 plans dropped
The film industry is now wary of making flicks around protagonists from the community; SIK2 plans droppedThe double-trouble that came Bollywood's way after Sikh organisations objected to theu00a0 Sikh hero Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan's beard lengths in Singh Is Kinng and Love Aaj Kal respectively, has made the industry wary of walking the way of Sikh-centric protagonists.
Sensing trouble, the makers of the next Hindi film with a Sikh protagonist Shimit Amin's Rocket Singh Sales-man Of The Year are playing it safe. In Amin's film, Ranbir Kapoor stars as a young Sikh having a bad day at work.
Says our source, "From the start the producers Yashraj Films, the director and specially Ranbir were very cautious about getting it right.u00a0 Ranbir consulted his Sikh friends and in fact, had a Sikh coach to get the physical andu00a0 verbal details of his character right."
Much care has been taken over the length ofu00a0 Ranbir's beard and hair. But now after seeing theu00a0 manner in which Akshay and Saif were reprimanded, Ranbir and hisu00a0 team are being doubly cautious. Apparently, Rocket Singh will be shown to Sikhu00a0 heads of the state, their opinions reverently taken andu00a0 implemented before theu00a0 film is released.
The hurt remained
Says Imtiaz Ali, the director of Love Aaj Kal, "I had a very close friend in school in Jamshedpur who'd to always wonder why Hindi films couldn't have Sikh heroes. That hurt of his remained in my heart."
Imtiaz admits the process of making a film wth a Sikh hero has been difficult. The latest on this sensitive subject is that producer Vipul Shah has for now dropped plans of a sequel to the very successful Singh Is Kinng. Says Akshay Kumar cautiously, "Right now, my plate is very full. Let meu00a0 first finish what I have onu00a0 hand. Then we'll see."
A far cry from the earlier gusto with which the idea of a Singh Is Kinng sequel was welcomed, no?
Not the first time...Most films with their main characters as Sardars have had to face problems with Sikh organisations. Singh Is Kinng and more recently, Love Aaj Kal held special screenings of their films for the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and the Punjabi Cultural and Heritage Board respectively. Only after they okayed the film, could the release take place without further hassles.
