Aamir Khan seeking foreign distributors for upcoming films
Peepli Live got a strong reception at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival last January. The film is a black comedy about a debt-ridden farmer who creates a media frenzy when he announces that he will commit suicide so that his family can receive government assistance. Khan is producing the film but does not appear in it.
Khan’s production company is also making Dhobi Ghaat, in which Khan plays the lead role of a painter. The film is the directorial debut of Khan's wife Kiran Rao.
Delhi Belly is a comedy produced by Khan and starring his nephew, up-and-coming Bollywood actor Imran Khan.
All three films are expected to release later this year.
Khan founded Aamir Khan Productions in 2001 and its first film, Lagaan (2001), starring Khan as a villager who takes on British authorities in a cricket match, was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 74th Academy Awards—which was only the third time in history that an Indian film has been nominated for the award. Khan’s production company has released only two other movies since then, Taare Zameen Par in 2007 and Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na in 2008—both were critical and commercial successes.
Two Bollywood films that released earlier this year—My Name Is Khan, starring Shahrukh Khan, and Kites, starring Hrithik Roshan—were both set in the U.S. and marketed to Western audiences, but they were less successful at the American and Indian box offices than the most recent Aamir Khan-starrer, 3 Idiots, a coming-of-age comedy about college students in India that released last December. The film, produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, is the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time, collecting more than $80 million worldwide, including a decent take from the U.S. market—$6.5 million—also a box-office record.
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June 10, 2010
