A Salman Khan movie on Eid releases with such a deafening buzz that you could burst an eardrum. What's more, this time around, the decibel levels are higher because B-Town's Hero No. 1 is on a hat-trick; his two earlier festival releases Wanted (2009) and Dabangg (2010) did phenomenal numbers at the box office.
On August 31, Salman comes to the theatres with Reliance Entertainment's Bodyguard and the trade analysts predict the movie will set fresh records. Of course, he himself is very non-chalant about the hype and hoopla accompanying his festival release. Says Salman, "The media and the trade say that Eid and Salman have become synonymous, etc. I don't think like that. This time Eid and Ganpati are likely to be on the same day. I'm more excited about that. Hindu-Muslim revelry is something I cherish. If I bring a film that doesn't do it for my audience in a festival season, then it will not work. No one is going to see a film unless a promo excites them. The festive season is all about watching a purely entertaining film. If the promo is boring or ridiculous, then the audience will not come to see my film whether it is Eid, Ganpati or Diwali. You have to excite your audience.''
Asked if Bodyguard is the staple Sallu masala movie with the typical on-screen antics that he is now associated with, the actor says, "Bodyguard is special, because apart from all the action, the comedy and the music; the love story is beautiful. It is a different kind of love story. It has not been seen before. I love it. All the macho men; the stud kind of guys are going to come out with khushi ke ansoon. If you consider Maine Pyar Kiya as an innocent love story, Bodyguard is somewhere close to that.''
Flattered that many subscribe to the point of view that Salman, with his protective streak, is the ideal candidate to play a Bodyguard, he quips, "If you are loyal, respectful and sincere, you can be a bodyguard. I don't make a show of being anything that I am not.'' And finally are you Katrina Kaif's bodyguard or Kareena Kapoor's? "Interestingly, I am a bodyguard to both,'' he smiles.
