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Hindi (U/A) Cast: Shahrukh Khan, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Waluscha de Sousa
Director: Maneesh Sharma
Khan still can. ‘Fan’ is proof enough. The star is finally pushed out of his comfort zone by one obsessed fan whose prosthetics takes all the room reserved for the regular SRK romance rigamarole.
While it is welcome change for a hero trapped in years of Yashraj mush, the movie isn’t particularly gripping for non-fans.
It’s is just a plain story of a star trying to handle his overwhelming stardom, at the same time doing everything to greedily retain it.
The man, the fame, the legion of admirers... ‘Fan’ seems like a been-there-seen-that till the stalker turns the tables on the hero. The Delhi guy with a “one-way wali girlfriend” turns at the gate of his hero, only to get drowned in the sea of people trying to get a glimpse of their reason to live. One encounter with his screen love, and the fan grows fangs and horns. While the film explores the “art” that is hero-worshipping in India, it also reveals that the fall from the pedestal comes with a costly thud.
Shahrukh makes the most of his double role, switching effortlessly between the star and the worshipper. Clearly showing that stars too are as insecure and fallible as their millions of viewers, Khan gives a good performance.
But despite all the getting-under-the-skin act, it’s the still-incomprehensible equation between the hero and the fan that brings down the movie to the average ground.
And the fan himself sums it up: “Rehn de. Tu nahin samjhega.”