I'm a pioneer in marketing films, not myself: SRK

December 19, 2015

New Delhi, Dec 19: He's as successful an entrepreneur as an actor. Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan considers himself a "pioneer" in innovative movie marketing that has set trends aplenty in the over Rs.12,640 crore (approximately $2 billion) Indian film industry and steered his projects to hit status. But he does not agree that marketing skills are an "intrinsic" part of an actor's life.

sharukh"As far as marketing of films is concerned, I will 100 percent claim that I started doing it in this country, especially of the level that's prevalent today. Whether it was 'Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani', 'Yes Boss', 'Ra.One' or 'Happy New Year'.

"I'm genuinely a pioneer as far as marketing films is concerned. (But) Marketing myself, no. I don't think actors need to market themselves," Shah Rukh, who has his own film production company Red Chillies Entertainment banner with his wife Gauri, told IANS in an interview here.

Citing the example of Hollywood's "Batman" star Christian Bale, he added: "I don't think it's an intrinsic part of being an actor. You take a Christian Bale...he doesn't market himself. He is Christian Bale, and he's fantastic. And as a matter of fact, he's a very reclusive person. I don't think that's a prerequisite for an actor."

But when Shah Rukh - who has an experience of over two decades in filmdom and was given an honorary doctorate by the University of Edinburgh earlier this year - talks of his hold on film marketing, he doesn't say it for nothing.

His clutter-breaking strategies have been at the core of marketing films like "My Name Is Khan" -- for which actress Kajol and he rang the opening bell of the US Nasdaq stock market; "Ra.One" -- for which the 'Badshah' had a 10-month campaign with tie-ups worth Rs.52 crore with over 30 brands; "Chennai Express" -- for which a game and a karaoke app were launched; and "Happy New Year" -- to promote which the film's cast went on 'Slam! The Tour' and performed across cities in Britain and the US.

SRK's first pitch for his film "Fan", slated to release on April 15 next year, emerged in July this year. The walls of the actor's Mumbai bungalow were painted with messages, and it was only later revealed that the graffiti was indeed a unique promotional stunt for the Maneesh Sharma directorial.

And for his just-released "Dilwale", directed by Rohit Shetty, the 50-year-old Padmi Shri awardee planned a straight 20-day campaign -- an "experiment" that he feels has turned out to be "good".

Still, the actor -- who's known for his romantic roles on screen -- doesn't take full credit for the marketing of his films.

"I don't think I'm an expert in marketing... It's unfortunate that a lot of the credit for my films comes to me. They say, 'It's a Shah Rukh Khan hit'. It's not! It's a hit of 200 people who have worked on the film. I get the benefits because I'm the poster boy.

"For years, I've sat down with some very smart and intelligent young people who come up with out-of-the-box ideas. I'm in a position -- and I'm not trying to be modest here -- to use those ideas and have the resources to build up on them. But I'm not the birth-giver to those ideas," Shah Rukh said.

One of the highest paid actors of Hindi filmdom, Shah Rukh also does not feel "complimented" when people call him a "businessman or marketing genius". "It's not a compliment to me, it's a compliment to the people I work with. And since I'm just the face of it, it's awkward for me to accept that."

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News Network
June 4,2020

Mumbai, Jun 4: Casting director Krish Kapur, who had worked on films like Mahesh Bhatt's Jalebi and Kriti Kharbanda-starrer Veere Ki Wedding, passed away at the age of 28 due to brain hemorrhage, his family said.

There was speculation that Kapur died in a road accident but his maternal uncle, Sunil Bhalla, dismissed the reports, saying that the casting director fainted at his home in suburban Mira Road here and suffered brain hemorrhage.

According to Bhalla, Kapur breathed his last on May 31.

"He had no medical history. He was healthy and doing absolutely fine. On May 31, he just collapsed and started to bleed. He died of brain hemorrhage," Bhalla said on Wednesday.

Kapur is survived by his mother, wife and seven-year-old child.

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News Network
July 3,2020

Mumbai, Jun 3: Investigators will subject the cloth allegedly used by actor Sushant Singh Rajput to hang himself to "tensile strength" analysis to determine whether it can bear the weight similar to that of the filmstar, as part of probe into his death, an official said on Friday.

Rajput (34) was found hanging at his suburban Bandra residence on June 14.

According to the investigators, the actor ended his life by hanging himself from the ceiling using a green coloured night gown made of cotton.

No suicide note was found from the spot, the police had said then.

Besides viscera from the actors body, the police also sent the gown for chemical and forensic analysis at the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in suburban Kalina, he said.

It will take at least three more days to get final forensic report, the official said.

To ascertain the exact cause of death, forensic experts will check pattern of ligature marks around the actors neck and also determine the strength of the gown with the help of "tensile strength" analysis, he said.

The tensile strength test will technically establish whether the cloth can bear around 80kg, the weight of the actor, he said.

The test will help determine if there was any foul play, the official said.

Tensile strength is maximum load that a material can support without fracture when being stretched.

Viscera analysis will help in checking whether there were any traces of chemical, poisonous or narcotics substance in his body, the official said.

"Usually, it takes eight to ten working days to get s report from the FSL in regular cases. But since this case is sensitive, experts are taking more precautions to avoid any kind of error in their analysis," the official said.

The forensic report of the actors mobile phone is also awaited, he said.

Recently, the police received the final post-mortem report of the actor from Cooper Hospital, which mentioned the cause of the death as asphyxia due to hanging"

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News Network
March 12,2020

Los Angeles, Mar 12: Hollywood superstar Tom Hanks has revealed that he and wife Rita Wilson have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The actor couple, currently in Australia to shoot for the pre-production of Baz Luhrmann's untitled Elvis Presley film, decided to get tested after they felt "a bit tired".

"Hey folks Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus, and were found to be positive," Hanks said in a tweet.

The Academy-award-winning actor said the medical team had already taken over.

"The medical officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks will be tested, observed and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires," Hanks said.

"Not much more to it than one-day at a time approach, no? We will keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves!" Hanks tweeted.

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