Zero (2018 film)

Zero
First look poster
Directed by Aanand L. Rai
Produced by Gauri Khan
Aanand L. Rai
Karuna Badwal
Written by Himanshu Sharma
Screenplay by Himanshu Sharma
Starring Shah Rukh Khan
Katrina Kaif
Anushka Sharma
Music by Ajay-Atul
Cinematography Manu Anand
Edited by Hemal Kothari
Production
company
Distributed by Yash Raj Films (Overseas)
Release date
  • 21 December 2018 (2018-12-21)[1]
Country India
Language Hindi
Budget ₹200 crore[2]

Zero is an upcoming 2018 romantic drama film written by Himanshu Sharma and directed by Aanand L. Rai. The film is jointly produced by Colour Yellow Productions and Red Chillies Entertainment's Gauri Khan and distributed by Yash Raj Films.[3] It stars Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma.[4] The plot follows Khan playing a man of short stature, who falls in love with a superstar played by Kaif. Sharma portrays the character of a girl with intellectual disability.[5]

Produced on a budget of ₹200 crore, Zero is Khan's most expensive film. It was conceived by Rai in 2012, announced in 2016, and set to be released in the financial week of Christmas, 21 December 2018. It marks the second collaboration of the lead trio,[6] the fourth collaboration between Khan and Sharma[7] and the second collaboration between Khan and Kaif.[7] This marks the last film appearance of Sridevi, who died on February 24, 2018, shortly after completing the film.[8]

Cast

Special appearances

Production

Development

"Like the way we say that perfect is boring, imperfection is much interesting... Our film is also celebrating the same. The story of the film is celebrating a perfect love story of two imperfect people. Though the protagonist of the film is a dwarf but more than the physical disability of an individual, the story talks about the space of emotional incompleteness of our life."

Aanand L. Rai on the decision to name the film Zero and its implications[21]

Director Aanand L. Rai conceived the film in 2012 after watching Krrish and drawing parallels of the titular character with that of American superheroes such as Spider-Man, Batman and Superman. He appreciated the achievements of Indians having their own superhero film but felt wary of the outreach, saying, "I loved seeing Hrithik Roshan fly off a 250-feet building, it was brilliantly done, but deep down I felt this wasn’t us. Apart from our mythological demigods, Indians aren’t ready for superheroes, we are still short in height. That’s what made me want to live life from the perspective of a dwarf [[sic]]."[22]

The film was initially titled Katrina Meri Jaan. However, this was later scrapped because the producers thought the title would be too misleading to people and make them presume the film is about Kaif.[23] In between productions, the film underwent through numerous working titles such as Bauaa, Bauna, Butka, Bandhua and Batla. Red Chillies Entertainment registered three names for use as the film's title.[24] In the end, a unanimous decision was made to call the film Zero.[25][26][27] Bollywood Hungama reported the budget of the film to be around ₹150 crore.[28] Rai refuted these reports and stated that the film did have a big budget at that time, but less than the reported amount, and that the amount might change.[29]

In October 2018, after post-production work was completed, the film's budget was revealed to be ₹200 crore, making it the most expensive film starring Khan.[2] Himanshu Sharma, who wrote the script, confirmed the story to be a romantic drama.[30] He stated that while the story does feature a little person as a character, the plot does not revolve only around that character.[30]

Casting

Initially, Salman Khan was approached for the role in 2012.[31] The role then went to Shah Rukh Khan. His casting was confirmed in March 2016.[32] He plays a three-four foot physically challenged man.[33][34] Rai cast Khan to play the lead role because he needed a big star for the story to penetrate globally. He needed "an intelligent actor, who also can carry that happy-go-lucky attitude," and he felt Khan possessed those qualities.[21][35] Rai realised the difference between a six-foot tall person saying "I love you" and a four foot tall person; hence he hired Khan.[22] Khan is the fifth actor of normal stature in Indian cinema to play a little person after Kamal Haasan in Apoorva Sagodharargal (1989),[36] Johnny Lever in Aashiq (2001), Jagathy Sreekumar in Athbhutha Dweepu (2005) and Anupam Kher in Jaan-E-Mann (2006).[37]

After much speculation, Rai confirmed Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif as the female lead actors in the film in June 2017.[38] Kaif was cast after Salman Khan suggested her.[39] Sharma was reported to play a differently-abled person,[23] whereas Kaif confirmed that she will portray the role of an actress.[25] Both Sharma and Kaif were offered the role not because of their stardom but because they fit the role according to Rai.[35] According to Kaif, she was offered the film before Khan was cast. She was initially supposed to play herself in the film, but the character was later revised to be a satirical take on herself.[40][41] She later confirmed that the script and story of Zero had changed over two years, hinting that Khan recommended this.[42] Tigmanshu Dhulia will portray Khan's father. He showed interest in the project after hearing about its heavy technical involvements.[23] Khan refrained from signing any other film during Zero's production.[43] The film will feature guest appearances by Salman Khan, Rani Mukerji, Deepika Padukone, Kajol, Alia Bhatt, Sridevi, Karisma Kapoor and Juhi Chawla who will portray themselves.[44] This will mark Sridevi’s last appearance in a movie as she died before the release.[23]

Principal photography

In August 2016, it was said that filming would begin in December 2016.[45] This was later postponed to 2017.[46] Principal photography of the film eventually began in May 2017 in Mumbai.[47][48] In May, an accident occurred on the set, in which crew members were injured.[49] In June 2017, Khan revealed that only 10 minutes of footage had been completed.[50] Kaif joined the team on 22 September 2017.[51] Sharma started shooting in September.[52] On 8 January, she resumed her shooting after taking a break for a couple of weeks for her wedding.[53] Two days later, Khan was photographed on the sets of the film in suburban Mumbai.[54] The crew took a break during the Makara Sankranti festival.[55] The shoot was also extended to Bandra, Mumbai.[56] Around January 2018, Kajol completed filming for her cameo.[57]

Visual effects were heavily used to make Khan's character three feet tall.[33] According to Khan, this was done as "I would have a problem if I have to do it on my knees. I am trying to avoid that part because that looks unreal also, and in today’s time and age, you don’t want to do that."[58] The makers took inspiration from the technology used in The Lord of the Rings. The character was shot using Forced Perspective, which according to NDTV, is "a technique that employs optical illusion to make an object appear farther away, closer, larger or smaller than it actually is. It will make SRK look shorter."[59] According to Rai, the film will use the most visual effects for an Indian film.[60] Most of the film was filmed entirely in Film City.[61] In February 2018, it was reported that the post-production work of a second teaser was being carried out.[62] From 4–8 April 2018, Khan shot the film's schedule in Vasai, Mumbai, flying in a helicopter to avoid the traffic.[63] In middle April, the film's shooting was reported to shift to the United States for a sequence.[44] Some sequences were also filmed in Alabama.[64] Khan finished filming for Zero, and wrapped the film's principal photography in Orlando, during the month of June 2018.[65]

Music

Zero
Soundtrack album by Ajay−Atul
Released 2018
Genre Feature film soundtrack
Label T-Series
Producer Ajay−Atul
Ajay−Atul chronology
Thugs of Hindostan
(2018)		 Zero
(2018)		 Super 30
(2018)

The film's soundtrack is composed by Ajay-Atul and lyrics written by Irshad Kamil, Prashant Ingole, Yash Bhardwaj, and Sreekanth Agneeaswaran. A song titled "Issaqbaazi" was used in the second teaser. The song is written by Kamil and sung by Sukhwinder Singh, Javed Ali and Atul Gogavale. The other singers are Arijit Singh, Navraj Hans, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Dev Negi, Monali Thakur, Jyotica Tangri, Shreya Ghoshal, and Ronkini Gupta. The film's soundtrack is produced at Ajay Atul Productions.

Marketing and release

The title of the film was announced by Khan and Rai on 1 January 2018 in a minute long teaser posted on Twitter due to robust demand from fans. The video showed Khan in his dwarf avatar singing and dancing to Mohammed Rafi's "Hum Ko Tum Pe Pyar Aaya".[66][67] Although neither Kaif nor Sharma appeared in the teaser video, in one of the scenes, Khan wore a jacket with a collage of Kaif's pictures imprinted on it.[68] In less than 24 hours, the video garnered over 3 millions views on YouTube alone, and Khan's announcement tweet had over 30,000 likes.[69] Red Chillies Entertainment later announced that Zero-related posts had reached over 10 million views, likes and mentions across various social media platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram.[70] The following day, the first teaser poster with the tagline "21st December 2018 se aapke piche" was unveiled by Red Chillies Entertainment, revealing that the film would release on 21 December, during the financial week of Christmas.[21][71]

According to Rai, Zero was chosen to be released in December since it is "a month when we celebrate life and what better time for a boy who celebrates that he is physically incomplete and in his incompleteness completes others as he travels from Meerut to New York. There is a beauty in incompleteness we are celebrating."[35] During the Islamic festival of Eid, a promotional teaser[72] was released on 13 June 2018, featuring Shah Rukh and Salman, the latter in the attire sported by him in the film Tiger Zinda Hai (2017).[73] In late August 2018, Rai confirmed to news agency Bollywood Hungama that the trailer for Zero would release on 2 November, Khan's birthday.[74]

References

  1. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan's new film with Anand L Rai to release on february01, 2019". The Indian Express. 31 August 2016. Archived from the original on 9 November 2016. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Shah Rukh Khan Has A Contingency Plan For His Film, Zero". Mid Day. 6 October 2018.
  3. ↑ "Shahrukh Khan dazzles in his upcoming film's teaser - Daily Times". Dailytimes.com.pk. 3 January 2018. Archived from the original on 26 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  4. ↑ "CONFIRMED: Shah Rukh Khan, Anushka Sharma Katrina Kaif in Aanand L Rai's next". Bollywood Hungama. 1 June 2017. Archived from the original on 1 June 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  5. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2 January 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  6. ↑ R.M. VIJAYAKAR. "Shah Rukh Khan's Next Film with Aanand L. Rai Is Titled 'Zero'". Indiawest.com. Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  7. 1 2 CONFIRMED: Shah Rukh Khan to ROMANCE Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif after 'Jab Tak Hai Jaan' in Aanand L Rai's next Archived 6 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ↑ "Sridevi will be seen one last time in Shah Rukh Khan's Zero. See pics". hindustantimes.com/. 2018-02-25. Retrieved 2018-02-26.
  9. ↑ "Zero teaser: Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan wish Eid Mubarak in style; watch". The Financial Express. 2018-06-14. Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  10. ↑ "Zero teaser released: Fans celebrate Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan's friendship with hilarious memes". Retrieved 2018-06-16.
  11. 1 2 "Katrina Kaif has joined us, Anushka Sharma will join soon: Shah Rukh Khan on Aanand L Rai's film". Hindustantimes.com. 25 September 2017. Archived from the original on 24 October 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  12. ↑ "Abhay Deol to play Katrina Kaif's love interest in 'Zero'". Bizasialive.com. 5 March 2018.
  13. ↑ "Aanand L Rai signs Tigmanshu Dhulia for his next film starring Shah Rukh Khan". Mid-day.com. Archived from the original on 29 July 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
  14. ↑ "Zero Movie Teaser - Zero Eid Teaser - Shah Rukh Khan - Salman Khan". Southcolours.in. 15 June 2018.
  15. ↑ "Zero Wiki, News, Trailer, Songs, Cast and Crew and Release Date - Movie Alles". Movie Alles. 2018-08-21. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  16. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan share a selfie moment on the sets of Anand L Rai's next film leaving fans curious, see photos". Indianexpress.com. 6 July 2017. Archived from the original on 29 July 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2017.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 "'Dwarf' SRK serenades his lovely ladies again - Pune Mirror -". Punemirror.indiatimes.com. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  18. ↑ "Deepika Padukone Talks About Her Role In Shah Rukh Khan's Next With Aanand L Rai". Businessofcinema.com. 18 October 2017. Archived from the original on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 4 November 2017.
  19. ↑ ‘I had to keep looking down on SRK’, says Juhi Chawla Archived 9 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  20. ↑ Gaikwad, Pramod (24 May 2018). "Madhavan to star in Aanand L Rai's Zero alongside Shah Rukh, Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma". International Business Times. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
  21. 1 2 3 Shruti Shikha (2 January 2018). "Zero First Poster: Pint-Sized Shah Rukh Khan Makes Huge Impact". NDTV. Archived from the original on 2 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  22. 1 2 Roshmila Bhattacharya (7 August 2017). "AANAND L RAI OPENS UP ABOUT HIS DWARF FILM WITH SHAH RUKH KHAN: I WANTED TO CUT TWO FEET FROM A STAR AS BIG AS KHAN SAAB". Mumbai Mirror. Archived from the original on 2 October 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  23. 1 2 3 4 "Zero: Everything we know about the Shah Rukh Khan starrer so far". The Indian Express. 2 January 2018. Archived from the original on 2 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  24. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 6 January 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  25. 1 2 "The ex-factor? Here's why Katrina Kaif had the name changed of her film with Shah Rukh Khan". DNS India. 24 August 2017. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  26. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan is not in any hurry to reveal his look in the Aanand L Rai film". India Today. 10 November 2017. Archived from the original on 18 December 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  27. ↑ "Unanimous decision to title the movie Zero, says Aanand L Rai". The Asian Age. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2018.
  28. ↑ Hungama, Bollywood (17 March 2017). "BREAKING: Rs. 150 cr. budget for Dwarf film starring Shah Rukh Khan? - Bollywood Hungama". bollywoodhungama.com. Archived from the original on 7 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  29. ↑ Does Shah Rukh Khan's upcoming dwarf movie have a massive budget of Rs 150 crore? Director Aanand L Rai answers Archived 28 March 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  30. 1 2 Size doesn't matter: Shah Rukh Khan's next is a romantic drama, says writer Himanshu Sharma Archived 10 June 2016 at the Wayback Machine.
  31. ↑ Aanand L Rai on his 'dwarf' drama, working with Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan's cameo in the film Archived 31 August 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  32. ↑ "Confirmed! Shah Rukh Khan to play a dwarf in Aanand L Rai's next - Shah Rukh Khan: Lesser known facts | The Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  33. 1 2 "Zero first look: Shah Rukh Khan reveals title, teaser and release date of upcoming film with Aanand L Rai". Firstpost. 1 January 2018. Archived from the original on 1 January 2018. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  34. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan talks about playing a dwarf in Aanand L Rai's next: We don't have to empathise with differently abled people". Indianexpress.com. 3 June 2017. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  35. 1 2 3 Roshmila Bhattacharya (2 January 2018). "ZERO DIRECTOR AANAND L RAI ON SHAH RUKH KHAN: 'EVEN IF YOU CUT TWO FEET OFF, KHANSAAB WILL STILL STAND TALL'". Mumbai Mirror. Archived from the original on 1 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  36. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan, 2-Feet Shorter. Director Reveals Why He Made 'Khan Saab' A Dwarf". NDTV.com. Archived from the original on 7 August 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  37. ↑ Jain, Arushi (4 January 2018). "Not just Shah Rukh Khan, these actors also took the role of a vertically challenged man". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 4 January 2018.
  38. ↑ CONFIRMED: Shah Rukh Khan, Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif in Aanand L Rai’s next Archived 1 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  39. ↑ "Salman Khan behind SRK-Katrina casting coup for Aanand L Rai's next?". Deccanchronicle.com. 29 May 2017. Archived from the original on 6 July 2017. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  40. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  41. ↑ "Katrina Kaif on SRK s film: I was supposed to play myself in Zero". Mid-day.com. 5 January 2018. Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  42. ↑ "Katrina Kaif just confirmed that Zero's script and title has been changed over the last two years". Times Now. 20 January 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  43. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  44. 1 2 "For Zero, Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma visit US Consulate Mumbai". Timesnownews.com.
  45. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 19 August 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  46. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 10 January 2017. Retrieved 3 January 2018.
  47. ↑ Leaked: SRK begins filming Anand L Rai's untitled next where he plays a dwarf Archived 29 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  48. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan victim of death hoax, European news network says star died in air crash". The Indian Express. 1 June 2017. Archived from the original on 1 June 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  49. ↑ Shah Rukh Khan escapes accident as 2 injured on Anand L Rai film set Archived 3 June 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  50. ↑ "The Status Of Shah Rukh Khan's Film In Which He Plays A Dwarf". NDTV.com. Archived from the original on 12 September 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  51. ↑ PHOTO: Katrina Kaif begins shooting for Aanand L Rai's film with Shah Rukh Khan, and we can't keep calm Archived 11 November 2017 at the Wayback Machine.
  52. ↑ Anushka Sharma soon to begin shoot for Aanand L Rai’s next Archived 3 January 2018 at the Wayback Machine.
  53. ↑ "Anushka Sharma Returns to Zero Set, Shah Rukh Khan Extends a Floral Welcome". News18.com. Archived from the original on 11 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  54. ↑ "SRK's another experiment with VFX - 'Zero': Interesting facts about the Shah Rukh Khan starrer film - The Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 8 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  55. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan celebrates Makar Sankranti on 'Zero' sets—Pic". Zeenews.india.com. 15 January 2018. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  56. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma spotted on the sets of Zero, see pictures". Indiatvnews.com. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  57. ↑ "Kajol shoots for Shah Rukh Khan's Zero". M.filmfare.com.
  58. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  59. ↑ "Honey, I Shrunk Shah Rukh Khan. The Role Of VFX In His Next Film". NDTV.com. Archived from the original on 12 September 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  60. ↑ "Aanand L Rai on working with Shah Rukh Khan in Zero: There is nervousness and I enjoy that". Indianespress.com. 7 January 2018. Archived from the original on 8 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  61. ↑ Media, Sanskriti (24 January 2018). "Aamir, Salman and SRK to shoot together!". Emirates247.com. Retrieved 26 January 2018.
  62. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan all set to promote Zero during all festivals this year". M.filmfare.com.
  63. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan flies from Vile Parle to Vasai to escape Mumbai traffic for Zero shoot". m.businesstoday.in.
  64. ↑ "Indian movie megastar Shah Rukh Khan filming in Alabama". Al.com.
  65. ↑ "Shah Rukh Khan Wraps Zero, Thanks Crew For 'Fruitful And Hectic Shoot'". Ndtv.com. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  66. ↑ Anvita Singh (1 January 2018). "Zero: Shah Rukh Khan reveals title of his next film, set to impress in a never-seen-before avatar". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 2 January 2018. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  67. ↑ "Aanand L Rai: I wanted to celebrate incompleteness with 'Zero'". The Times of India. January 2, 2018. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  68. ↑ Divya Goyal (2 January 2017). "Shah Rukh Khan's Zero: Could You Spot Katrina Kaif In Film Teaser?". NDTV. Archived from the original on 2 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2017.
  69. ↑ "Zero: Everything you need to know about Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif, Aanand L Rai's ambitious film". Hindustan Times. January 2, 2018. Retrieved January 2, 2018.
  70. ↑ "10 Million and counting! Thank you for the love .. #ChhaGayaZERO Watch the title announcement now - bit.ly/Zero-Title @iamsrk @aanandlrai @AnushkaSharma #KatrinaKaif @gaurikhan @cypplOfficial". Twitter. 2 January 2018. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2018.
  71. ↑ Hungama, Bollywood (9 January 2018). "Behind the Scenes: Here's how Avinash Gowariker shot the poster of Shah Rukh Khan's Zero - Bollywood Hungama". Bollywoodhungama.com. Archived from the original on 11 January 2018. Retrieved 11 January 2018.
  72. ↑ Red Chillies Entertainment (2018-06-13), Zero | Eid Teaser | Shah Rukh Khan | Salman Khan | Aanand L Rai | 21 Dec 2018, retrieved 2018-06-14
  73. ↑ "'Zero' teaser: Shah Rukh Khan dances with Salman Khan in a never seen before avatar - Times of India ►". The Times of India. Retrieved 2018-06-14.
  74. ↑ http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/news/bollywood/zero-trailer-shah-rukh-khan-film-unveiled-birthday/
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