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Three Bollywood films with different storylines are slated for
release Friday - "Apne" featuring Dharmendra and his two sons Sunny
and Bobby, "Aap Ka Surroor" starring the maverick singer Himesh
Reshammiya and "Awarapan" from the celebrated Bhatt camp. A big
fight for the box-office is expected.
Bollywood's report card shows dismal revenue collection figures
in the first half of the year. Now producers and distributors
expect to ride on these films, which have received saturation
publicity.
"Apne" is already riding high by projecting the film to be the
first to cast three Deols. With Dharmendra returning to play a
major character in a film after many years, trade magazines say the
movie has caught the fancy of the audience.
The promos of Himesh's movie have been running on television for
over a month. So the "Aap Ka Surroor" mania may give stiff
competition to the Deol film.
To a certain extent, "Awarapan", directed by Mohit Suri, has been
overshadowed by the hype surrounding the first two movies.
"'Apne' is about a father (Dharmendra) who dreams about his
life," suave actor Bobby Deol told a news conference here. "He was
a boxer who wanted to make it big but was unfortunately not
successful, and it is through his sons that he wants to fulfil his
desire."
Bobby plays the role of the younger son who has a childhood
accident, leaving his left hand non-functional. But he aspires to
be a musician despite the odds.
Himesh's acting debut "Aap Ka Surroor" revolves around the nasal
singer who plays the role of an Indian rock star. The film, which
also casts Mallika Sherawat, is a romantic thriller in which Himesh
is caught in a murder mystery but manages to solve the crime.
"Awarapan" narrates the story of a man's vain attempt to find joy
and happiness.
"All the three movies releasing this Friday are going to be nice. I
have not yet decided which one to go for. There are so many
options," said Ankit Chawla, a college student.
With all three films hoping to do well, marketing and promotions
may play a big role in deciding the box-office winner.
"Previously, it was only through posters that (the) audience got to
know about the next release. Now, a film has become more of a
product and it has to be sold like a vendor who sells his
vegetables by displaying them," Dharmendra said.
Multiple releases have not been very good for Bollywood recently.
But analysts say this is not a drawback.
"Multiple releases are very much capable of doing good business
simultaneously. Remember 'Lagaan' and 'Gadar' opened on the
same date but they did great business," veteran trade analyst Komal
Nahta told IANS.
Indo-Asian News Service
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