The 4th Bollywood Film Festival in Poland has caused a stir by failing to clinch a deal to show My Name is Khan across the multiplexes of Warsaw, Krakow, Wroclaw, Poznan, Gdansk, Gdynia, Szczecin and Zabrze where the festival is being held. SRK is a megastar in the country and JJ Singh of the Indo-Polish Chamber of Commerce says, “To have a film festival in Poland without Shah Rukh Khan’s movie is like playing Hamlet without the King of Denmark. Shah Rukh’s popularity in Poland is amazing and every Bollywood buff knows him. His biography has been translated into Polish.”
The Festival, which runs from Mar 22-28 does have an interesting roster however, including Laaga Chunari Mein Daag, Tandoori Love, Amal, Dulha Mil Gaya, Jannat, Blue and Videsh/Heaven on Earth.
Of these, the pick of the bunch is probably the little seen Canadian movie Amal, shot in Delhi. It tells the story of a poor rickshaw driver Amal, who is the most honest and decent fellow that a rich businessman ever meets. When the businessman dies, he decides to leave his money to Amal – but there is a timescale. If Amal is not found within a month, the money will be inherited by the businessman’s not-so-pleasant offspring. It’s a finely balanced film with believable twists and turns and interesting sub-plots that keeps you on the edge of your seat as the clock winds down. The cast is excellent and includes Rupinder Nagra, Naseruddin Shah, Seema Biswas, Tanisha Chatterjee and Koel Purie. It’s worth visiting Warsaw just to see it!
