Bharat: Salman Khan's big Eid treat!

Salman pairs up yet again with Katrina Kaif to give a film which has a blockbuster mix of action, romance, comedy and emotion.

Salman Khan is back on the big screen this Eid with the Ali Abbas Zafar  directed Bharat. The film traces India's national journey over six decades through the life of a common man.
Salman pairs up yet again with  Katrina Kaif to give a film which has a blockbuster mix of action, romance, comedy and emotion.  We all know that patriotism is the flavour of the season in Bollywood and Bharat too is being sold for its nationalistic appeal.
The movie is an official adaptation of the 2014 Korean film, Ode to My Father, which depicted modern Korean history from the 1950s to the present day through the life of an ordinary man. Bharat, which is releasing  in the UAE today, was extensively shot here and we hope it will beat the record held by Sultan, which was Salman's biggest Eid opener.

Massive Eid release
In 2009, Salman's Wanted released during Eid and became an enormous hit. Since then, movies released during Eid have become an integral part of Salman's successful career and every year, his fans expect an Eidi (gift), in the form a movie release.
Sultan so far occupies the position of Salman's biggest opener on Eid, but Bharat has the advantage of a long Eid weekend. However, going by reports on advance ticket bookings in India, demand for the film has yet to pick up.
Also, the collection of Bharat might be affected because of India's other obsession - the  ICC Cricket World Cup, which is currently underway in the UK. And the big match between India and South Africa  happens to be on a Wednesday.
The patriotic nature of the film may work in making it a success. The storyline traces India's post-independence history from the perspective of a common man, it follows his life from the age of 18 to 70. Salman will be seen sporting different looks in the film ranging from a young stunt man to a middle-aged factory worker to a handsome, elderly person.

Salman, Kat back after 5 years
Another major win for this film is the sizzling chemistry between Salman and Katrina. They will be seen together on the big screen after a gap of five years. In the past, they have worked in super-hit films like Partner, Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya, Tiger Zinda Hai and Ek Tha Tiger. The pair also dated each other for a long time before Katrina left Salman for Ranbir Kapoor. But she has remained close friends with Salman.  Both actors have always spoken very highly of each other and have continued their professional collaboration in a smooth manner even after their relationship ended.
Bharat is also an important film for Katrina who is enjoying a new-found respect in her career post her spectacular performance in Shah Rukh Khan's Zero. Through the trailer, it is evident that Katrina has a substantial role in the film. Salman has been saying that the actress deserves a National Award for her performance in the movie. Tabu, Disha Patani and Sunil Grover also have significant roles in the film.
Disha's dance number, Slow Motion, is already a rage. It is the biggest hit this season and it is gaining a lot of attention for the chemistry between Salman and Disha.

The Salman-Ali combo
There are huge expectations from Bharat because the last collaboration between Ali and Salman, Sultan, was an massive blockbuster. Salman and Ali also worked together in another hit, Tiger Zinda Hai. Their combination so far got a great reaction from critics as well. We all know that most critics are not kind to Salman's movies. But time and again, the actor proves them wrong - the box-office numbers say it all.

Salman's dig at Priyanka
In a 2018 Tweet, Priyanka had expressed that she was looking forward to working with Salman again and the actor responded by welcoming her on board for Bharat. However, a few weeks later, director Ali announced Priyanka's departure from the project in a Tweet saying it was in the "Nick of time" (Priyanka married Nick Jonas a few months later).
Since then, Salman has been continuously commenting on Priyanka's exit from the film. In one of his previous interviews, Salman said: "Look, she did the right thing. She did what she wanted, and Katrina got what she deserved. She (Priyanka) informed us five days before the schedule was supposed to start... she must have thought that in this way, I would get upset with her and will never work with her. She spoke to me saying, 'Nick has proposed to me, and I want to get married, so there will be some date issues.' I said, 'Sure, get married, we can adjust those two, three days.'"
He also claimed that Priyanka had called up his sister Arpita Khan Sharma several times in 'desperation' for the Bharat role.
Recently in an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Salman said, "Over Bharat, she chose the USA in the 'nick' of time. She has worked all her life so hard, and when she got the biggest film of her life, she dumped the movie and got married. Hats off! Usually, people leave their husbands for a movie like this."
This interview got slammed across social media channels. Poor Katrina had to bear the brunt and do some damage control on behalf of the actor in the interviews that followed. While talking to journalist Rajeev Masand about the incident, director Ali Abbas said, "If anyone knows SK?(Salman Khan) very closely, you have to understand that this is his tongue-in-cheek humour. What he is doing to Priyanka, that happens to me on sets everyday."
Singer Sona Mohapatra called him the poster child of toxic masculinity after his constant dig at Priyanka.

The Abu Dhabi factor
A significant portion of the movie was filmed in Abu Dhabi. The crew was stationed here for over a month and they shot for the film across various location in the emirates. Over 200 international team were part of the schedule and 1,400 extras were used in filming in the UAE.
The production team spent 15 days shooting at four locations, including Liwa desert, Al Wathba and Al Ain, the latter featured a state-of-the-art set which replicated a 1970s oilfield.  These oilfield scenes were featured in the trailer of the film.
Key scenes were also shot at twofour54's backlot at KIZAD, where an Arabian marketplace was created. twofour54 also provided full production services, covering key areas such as location assistance, permits, and equipment as well as catering, accommodation, travel, and transportation. The film also took advantage of Abu Dhabi Film Commission's 30 per cent cash-back rebate on production spend in the Emirate.  The movie was also shot in Spain, Malta, Punjab, Mumbai, and New Delhi.
arti@khaleejtimes.com