My Name is Khan (General, 2009)



My Name Is Khan is a 2010 Bollywood film based upon a true story. It is directed by Karan Johar, co-produced by Johar (Dharma Productions) and Shahrukh Khan, (Red Chillies Entertainment) has a screenplay by Shibani Bathija, and stars Khan and Kajol. The musical trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy composed the film's score. Cinematography is by Ravi K. Chandran. 



The film is slated for a February 2010 release. On 7th August, 2009, Shahrukh Khan signed a deal for 1 billion INR with Fox Studios, who will market and distribute the film in India (FOXSTAR) and worldwide (Fox Searchlight). 



Plot



The film begins with the child, Rizwan Khan (Tanay Chheda), a Muslim who has Asperger syndrome, growing up with his mother (Zarina Wahab) in the Borivali section of Mumbai. Later as an adult (Shahrukh Khan), Rizwan moves to San Francisco and lives with his brother and sister-in-law. While there, he falls in love with Mandira (Kajol). They eventually marry and begin a business.



After the events of 9/11, Rizwan and Mandira begin to face a number of difficulties. Following a tragedy, they separate. In order to win her back, Rizwan embarks on a long journey across the United States.



Themes



In an August 2009 interview, Shah Rukh Khan stated that My Name Is Khan is "not about terrorism, or 9/11. It’s about a relationship between two people, between an individual and the State, and between an individual and the country. In short, there the three important components: love story, Islam and a mild form of autism."



In an earlier July 2009 interview, Khan also noted that the film focuses on themes concerning "the relationship between the Western world and Islam and how that has changed over the past few years." He describes the film as about "the journey of one family and how it changes because of 9/11" and suggests "we touch upon that in a very unbiased and educated way." In another early interview, he also stated that, "it’s not about a disabled man’s fight against disability. It’s a disabled man’s fight against the disability that exists in the world — terrorism, hatred, fighting [...] My Name is Khan is also about Islam and the way the world looks at Islam but we are not taking any sides. We are only trying to say that there are only good people and bad people. There are no good Hindus, bad Hindus, good Christians, bad Christians. Either you are a good person or a bad person. Religion is not the criterion, humanity is."



In late 2008, journalist Madhureeta Mukherjee (referring to the post - 2008 Mumbai attacks atmosphere in India) suggested in an interview with Karan Johar that, "My Name Is Khan starts at a time when Hindus and Muslims in India have united like never before." In response, Johar stated: "I think it’s an exceptionally relevant time, as the unity of our nation is of paramount importance, and I am very happy to witness such a movement in front of my eyes. We are all coming together to fight for a common cause – called humanity. Everyone knows that terrorism has no religion and it will never have a religion. As a filmmaker, I believe that I have a social responsibility and I promise to fulfill that." 



Pre-production and casting



Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol were cast in the lead roles, reuniting them after many years. Kareena Kapoor was also considered for Kajol's role, but Kajol was Johar's first choice. The film faced a temporary setback during late December when actor Aamir Bashir was denied a visa to the United States. He was eventually replaced by Jimmy Shergill as Shahrukh Khan's younger brother. Although Shabana Azmi was originally cast as Shah Rukh Khan's mother she left the production after Shahrukh Khan's shoulder injury delayed the filming schedule. She was replaced in the role by Zarina Wahab. Tanay Chheda will portray Shah Rukh Khan's character as a child living in the Borivali section of Mumbai. Chheda was chosen because he resembles Shah Rukh Khan and because he is recognizable to an international audience after portraying "middle Jamal" in Slumdog Millionaire. American actor Christopher B. Duncan was chosen to portray President Barack Obama. Duncan is known for his interpretation of Obama on the The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.



Johar also asked Khan to co-produce the film, as "we were both passionate about the subject, we said why not co-produce the film? We’ve known each other so long ... that this new initiative is just an extension of our emotions. Besides, I can never make a film without Shah Rukh. He is a big part of me and my family. He’s like the older brother I never had. I love SRK as a unit — that includes his wife, children, sister and his in-laws."



Filming and post-production



Production of the film is taking place in India and the United States. Filming began in Los Angeles during December 2008 and one of the locations used was UCLA. Johar next continued production in Mumbai during April 2009. During June 2009, production moved to San Francisco and the Bay Area, where they filmed a key scene at the Children's Discovery Museum of San Jose.



Johar had difficulties finding a mosque to film in. According to actor Arif Zakaria, "I don't know if Karan tried to get permission in Mumbai. But we were to shoot in a mosque in Los Angeles and hard as Karan tried to convince the authorities that his film would not propagate anti-social values, he was denied permission [...] We finally shot the two-day scene with Shah Rukh Khan on the set of a mosque constructed at The Club in Andheri."



After filming in Los Angeles was completed, Johar stated that, "in all my 11 years as a filmmaker I’ve never felt the experience to be so different. The content of My Name Is Khan is diametrically opposite to whatever I’ve done in the past." He described working with both Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol again as "magic. They build an inexplicable energy on screen." Johar also stated that he was "blown away by Shah Rukh who had done monumental research on his autistic character in the film. I was zapped by how much he knew about the subject."



The production in the United States was handled by Bollywood Hollywood Productions and Line Producer Prashant Shah.



Distribution



On 7 August 2009, Karan Johar signed a deal for 1 billion INR with Fox Searchlight Pictures, who will market and distribute it in India (FOXSTAR) and worldwide (Fox Searchlight). Shah Rukh Khan was later asked in a December 2009 interview if he feels that My Name Is Khan is "a more international film which should be seen by all and will have a far reaching influence." Khan responded that:



    I have never been a strong advocate for global cinema because I don't think our films turn the tide around though my directors and distributors feel otherwise. Having said that, I will add that MNIK is a very special topic about humanity in the garb of a Muslim character [...] The film is made on a large canvas and made larger with Fox coming on board. The subject material is adapted in terms of humanity in a very entertaining way. And with Karan, the best filmmaker in India today directing the film and Fox distributing it -- the message of love, the way it has been shot internationally and the way of releasing it, might have all the possibilities of an international release. It's going to be released in a way no Hindi film has been released internationally before with mega prints and the trailer releasing with Avatar in a first of its kind. 

	

Soundtrack



Track 	Song 			Singer(s)

01 		Sajda 			Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Shankar Mahadevan, Richa Sharma 	Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy 	6:05

02 		Noor E Khuda 	Adnan Sami, Shankar Mahadevan, Shreya Ghoshal 	Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy 	6:37

03 		Tere Naina 		Shafqat Amanat Ali 	Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy 	4:38

04 		Allah Hi Rahem 	Rashid Khan 	Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy 	4:01

05 		Khan Theme 		Strings 	Indrajit Sharma 	2:43

06 		Rang De 		Shankar Mahadevan, Suraj Jagan 	Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy 	3:45



Reception



The soundtrack met with generally positive reviews from critics. Gianysh Toolsee of Planet Bollywood states that the soundtrack is "very much about transcending the boundaries set by Bollywood by venturing into an emotional state through Sufism and spirituality." Joginder Tuteja of Bollywood Hungama gives the album a three out of five stars, suggests that director Karan Johar along with musicians Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy and lyricist Niranjan Iyengar "have brought not a partial but a substantial difference to the way music in  films is being looked at."



Director



Director Karan Johar has described the "message" of the film as being "in strong support of humanity, which at the end of the day is the only way to rise above any of the cultural or religious differences that continue to engulf us." In addition, during an interview with Johar, journalist Madhureeta Mukherjee (referring to the prevailing post - 2008 Mumbai attacks atmosphere in India) stated, "My Name is Khan starts at a time when Hindus and Muslims in India have united like never before." In response, Johar stated: "I think it’s an exceptionally relevant time, as the unity of our nation is of paramount importance, and I am very happy to witness such a movement in front of my eyes. We are all coming together to fight for a common cause – called humanity. Everyone knows that terrorism has no religion and it will never have a religion. As a filmmaker, I believe that I have a social responsibility and I promise to fulfil that." 



Filming



Filming began in Los Angeles on 15 December 2008.  The film faced a setback during late December when actor Aamir Bashir was denied a visa to the United States. Bashir was eventually replaced by Jimmy Shergill as Shahrukh Khan's younger brother.



Shahrukh Khan, Gauri Khan, and Karan Johar took a break from filming to attend the 66th Golden Globe Awards held in Los Angeles on 11 January 2009. Khan introduced Slumdog Millionaire along with a star from the film, Freida Pinto.