He's the choice of the masses

FILMS

The nasal singer gets the thumbs up at the BO as well

People like us may not be thronging the theatres to watch Aap Kaa Surroor, but those who do watch Hindi movies first day, first show, have spoken. This Himesh Reshammiya starrer "" his first film as the main lead "" has had an opening response on par with blockbuster movies like Kkrish and Dhoom 2.

Says trade analyst Taran Adarsh, "Himesh enjoys tremendous popularity with the masses. Whether you like him or dislike him, you cannot ignore this man anymore." Agress film critic Anupama Chopra, "Honestly, Himesh has proved everyone wrong again." Chopra's reference is, of course, to the flak that Reshammiya has been at the receiving end of ever since he burst into the limelight two years ago with his first music video.

Critics have more often than not damned his voice for its nasal quality; then his foray into acting too was met with a lot of scepticism. And after the film was released, critics once again went hammer and tongs at it. But, responds its director Prashant Chadha, who studied film making in Canada, assisted Mukul Anand and has made all of Reshammiya's music videos, "Himesh's fan base is in the smallest centres. So you can't make an art-house film with him. We are catering to the masses here. This is not art house cinema."

Says trade analyst Vinod Mirani, "The movie is doing well in all territories."" And according to C R Sharma, north India-based film exhibitor, "People are already coming to see the movie again. And young people have appreciated the movie."

Assuming that the movie does sustain the opening response that it has got, what does the director of the film plan to do next? Says Chadha, "I am not in the rat race. Right now I am looking to take everyone for a nice holiday." But when pressed as to the possibility of a sequel he says, ""The market will demand it. It would be prudent to make a sequel and, really, why not?"

Why not indeed? Sequels in recent times in Bollywood have done well and given Reshammiya's ability to surprise, that too may have an equally good opening response. As for PLUs, time to get in touch with the real India, the one that appreciates Reshammiya and his brand of music and cinema.