Finally! Finally a good news day! So good, that box office is going to get its own little post! Because there is too much else to talk about.
First, Emraan is nice! I know his “brand” is sexy and dangerous, but I’ve always kind of suspected in real life he is more “nice and normal.” And, ha! Proof! Emraan has been super involved in cancer charities since his tiny little son survived cancer a couple years ago. A teenage cancer patient who is also a big Emraan fan wanted to meet him, so the hospital contacted Emraan’s team, and he showed up with candy and presents, spent hours at the hospital, and promised to take the fan and his whole family to see his next movie. Which will be a little awkward, because Emraan’s movies aren’t usually exactly “family” films.
Second, Shahrukh is in trouble! Kind of. He has received a notice from the Income Tax department asking him to meet with them and explain his off-shore investments. However, it isn’t clear if the taxwallahs actually have any evidence against him. Supposedly several big industrialist types have received these notices, and the rumor is that it is just an excuse to force them to come in and explain all their income in detail.
Salman, meanwhile, is out of trouble! Kind of. One of his two Rajasthan poaching cases has been settled. Well, “settled”, the prosecution still has the option of appeal. And the other case in Rajasthan is still pending. And I believe the reckless driving/manslaughter case is also pending appeal right now. But at least he is sort of moving towards a resolution of all his issues. If I were Salman, I would be looking at Sanjay and feeling very jealous that he has now completed his jail term and is officially done-done-done with all his legal whatevers.
Couple of small news items before I get to the grand finale (another Mohenjo Daro trailer). First, Kangna has been confirmed to be in a Rani Laxmibai film. Woo! That is PERFECT CASTING!!! I am a little nervous about the director, it is Ketan Mehta, best known for filming Shahrukh’s only nude scene, and also making the massive embarrassingly bad historical epic flop, Mangal Panday.
(Although, at least the teaser trailer for Mangal Panday was really really good!)
And Dishoom is going to be submitted to the censor board in an encrypted format in an effort to combat piracy. Which, if any film needs to worry about being pirated, it would be Dishoom! Because if the storyline leaks online in advance, I just really don’t see people being willing to watch it. That is, assuming it stays close to Mumbai Police that it is supposed to be a remake of (again, DO NOT click that link if you are planning to see Dishoom!).
And finally, Mohenjo Daro trailer! It looks like the romance will be a Roman Holiday/Aladdin type thing where the princess spends a day in the market like a “normal” and Hrithik falls in love with her. My big take away is that she is probably charming if you are in love with her, and just super super irritating if you are a small business person whose wares she is knocking over.
dontcallitbollywood 
SRK nude scene? Is that in Maya Memsaab? Have the DVD but haven’t watched it yet – that can be remedied… 😉
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Yep, Maya Memsaab! An odd movie. Shahrukh does a really good job with his role, but it is kind of a tiny part.
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My inner 12 year old is chuckling. Kind of a tiny part… 🙂 It is an odd movie but it captures the tone of Madame Bovary pretty well–the song sequences fit well in the sort of desperate fantasy world of the title character.
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I’ve never read Madame Bovary, and I feel SO GUILTY about it! Not in general, just because watching Maya Memsaab first means I have broken my personal “can’t watch the movie until you read the book” rule.
Also, I swear, I didn’t mean to make a “tiny part” joke! But now I can’t unsee it. My inner 12 year old is chuckling as well.
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Eh, the book is full of beautiful prose, but incredibly bleak. Once was enough for me.
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My inner 12 year old giggled too.
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Watched it. Yes, it was odd – arty. Felt a bit short changed with the nude scene, lol – not that I am a huge fan of nude scenes. SRK – torso, legs and possibly a fleeting glimpse of buttock. But the DVD was the uncut version with Deepa Sahi’s bare boob. Still, I guess it was pretty racy for Indian cinema at that time.
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Heck, it’s pretty racy for Indian cinema now! Doesn’t exactly come up a lot on Shahrukh’s “official” filmography. I mean, it’s not like it’s a secret, but when he is promoting his latest Rohit Shetty family funtime film, he doesn’t say “And if you like this, you should check out my part in the infidelity fable Maya Memsaab from back in the 90s”.
What I find really interesting is how it managed to integrate the Indian style song sequences and Indian setting, into an arty introspective character study type film. That one Shahrukh love song could have fit just as easily into something with Juhi Chawla from the same year, but it also worked here.
If you haven’t seen it yet, definitely check out Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa. It’s from the same era, and had the same slightly “different” feel to it from the usual movies, and Shahrukh plays a similarly innocent character. But the story is completely different, much lighter and happier and more innocent.
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I watched KHKN a while ago and it didn’t really grab me. I then watched Oh Darling, Yeh Hai India which I found more entertaining. Bizarre but entertaining. Another Ketan Mehta/Deepa Sahi team effort.
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You are the second person to recommend Oh Darling Yeh Hai India to me! I actually own it, but I have never gotten around to it. That, and Guddu are the only 2 Shahrukh movies I haven’t watched. And Devdas. And Shahrukh Bole Khoobsurat Hai Tu, but that’s just impossible to get a hold of.
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