Those who live in the Bandra suburb of Mumbai, as I did for many years, are familiar with the popularity of Salman Khan.
The three Khans of Bollywood celebrities live in Bandra, but Salman is different. Shah Rukh Khan’s bungalow Mannat is large and visible and the door is on the main road. Few of his fans, however should be found around it usually. Fewer still are around the house and Aamir is such deliberate again, because it is more private than others. Opposite the house of Salman there is always a crowd, either in vacations, holidays or days of the week. He has star power of the purest kind.
This observation is supported by the post office in Bandra. Worked at a newspaper reported that the mail was the subject of Salman (this being before the time the email, I refer to the letters and gifts to the former) far exceeded that for the other two. If I remember correctly the mail to Salman was four or five times that Shah Rukh and Aamir together.
Disruptive behavior
One year before the accident that happened was sentenced Salman, Aishwarya Rai’s father had come to our newspaper. He was worried about her daughter, then in a relationship with Salman, whose behavior was terrifying the elderly. Salman appear in the middle of the night and start to break down the door, if not let he said. This was the time that Aishwarya had decided he wanted to leave, but he was not willing to let go.
In games of a film it is made by Aziz Mirza starring Aishwarya and Shah Rukh, Salman returned and began a shooting day on the road, preventing the shoot happen. This infuriated irritated things if Shah Rukh and later they were getting more hostile between them. During the same period came reports of unlawful confinement of wild animals in the Khan ‘farm near the town and a few years before the filming of wild deer, for which Khan was convicted.
And so it has been clear for many years that this man was in trouble and needed to be advised or carbine. Instead, it has encouraged and supported by the people in Bollywood. After his conviction last week, insiders as the singer Abhijeet blamed the victims for sleeping “on the road” (which were not) and thus inviting death to themselves.
Disproportionate influence
They are doing this, and continue to support Salman, no matter what happens for a reason. Bollywood is one of the three successful film industries around the world, the other two are Hong Kong and Hollywood. All three have a star system, but Bollywood is very small. Only four and maybe five men can ensure “open,” meaning that the money taken in the first days of liberation, which is the period that can make or break a movie.
These men are disproportionately powerful in the industry. Of course, this power is gained by them through the merits. No matter how Amitabh Bachchan has promoted his son, he could not become as big a success as the Khan because the crowds do not accept it as did Salman, Shah Rukh and Aamir.
But this power also has an internal dimension. All others in Bollywood, whether directors, singers, professional makeup, body doubles and so on, no matter how talented, should be aligned with one of these stars or reconcile make small movies (ie cheap) with de plus.
There are exceptions, for example people like Gulzar and director Anurag Kashyap, but not many. For most people in the orbit of the star, the relationship is parasitic and while there extends sponsorship, as well as the granting of a Mughal Emperor. Of course absolute and unconditional loyalty expected.
Underworld Connections
The star decides who works with, and unlike Hollywood, this extends to many more. Salman’s family, for example, is inserted into their projects regularly because the star is not only important for the film, which is the film.
When the Hindustan Times in Mumbai was launched a decade ago, his first major story was the transcript of a recording police Salman having a telephone conversation with Aishwarya, threatening underworld connections.
