My name is Khan - Tragedy of Muslims in USA after 9/11

On 1 February 2010, Khan and Kajol "became the first Indian movie stars to ring the opening bell of the New York stock exchange NASDAQ." They were invited by Fox Searchlight Pictures to do so as part of their promotion for My Name Is Khan.[37] Shahrukh Khan also appeared on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross as part of its promotion in the UK, becoming only the second Indian after Shilpa Shetty to do so.

My Name Is Khan opened very well in most places across the world, and set many records in the process.[38] However, the performance of the film could not sustain beyond the first or second week in some places, including India and USA. The film's performance in India was quite good but still is generally regarded as "below expectations" due to the high price, while the overseas performance of the film has been record breaking. As of 4 April, the worldwide gross revenue for My Name Is Khan from the box office is US$ 36,145,870.[39] Domestically, My Name Is Khan generated INR 731.4 million net (equating to INR 1.2 billion gross), while overseas the film generated roughly INR 735 million at the end of its first phase, the rough INR 1.95 billion worldwide gross makes this film the third-highest-grossing film according to worldwide collections behind 3 Idiots, which grossed INR 4 billion and Ghajini with INR 2.2 billion.

In India, the film opened with a massive INR 295 million (US$ 6,356,688), which is the third-highest weekend net for a Bollywood film, behind 3 Idiots and Ghajini. It recorded the third-highest first day business across India, behind 3 Idiots and Ghajini at the time of release. The film broke the record of Race for the biggest opening weekend in the first quarter of the year. The film was reported to have done very well in multiplexes, but comparatively on the lower side in single screens. The film managed to net INR 460.8 million (US$ 9,952,857) in its first week[40] and debuted at #1 at the Indian box office, thus attaining the third highest first-week net collections, again behind 3 Idiots and Ghajini.

After its first week, the film began experiencing large drops in collections from many parts of the country. The drops ranged from 60 – 70% for the first few weeks, and started reducing for the later weeks. The film generally did not sustain well at most places, and was therefore given a "Hit" tag, becoming only the second hit of 2010 (after Ishqiya). It is currently the seventh highest-grossing film according to Indian collections, and the highest-grossing film of 2010. The film managed to retain the #1 spot at the Indian box office for two consecutive weeks, and remained in the top five for six consecutive weeks. At the end of its theatrical run, My Name Is Khan earned INR 731.4 million (US$ 16,419,056) in India.

My Name is Khan grossed the biggest opening day overseas, taking an estimated INR 170 million, beating the overseas opening day collections of 3 Idiots. The film also grossed the biggest opening weekend overseas, taking an estimated INR 255 million, again beating the overseas opening weekend collections of 3 Idiots which grossed INR 185 million. In its first week, it grossed INR 393 million (US$ 8.5 million). In its first phase, the film earned a reported US$ 9,676,758.

In the UK, it made £123,000 on its opening day,[41] which was more than the combined total of 3 Idiots in its first two days (£121,000). By the end of the second week, MNIK became only the third Bollywood film to cross the £2 million mark in the UK, after Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna and Veer-Zaara, according to the exchange rates prevailing at their respective times of release.[42]

In Australia, the film earned an impressive AUS$ 39,000 (INR 16.1 lakhs) on its opening day, and was ranked #11 in the market. By the first weekend, the film earned US$ 437,687, defeating the previous record set by 3 Idiots (US$ 350,000).[43][44] In New Zealand and Fiji, the film earned NZ$ 13,627 on its opening day, and earned NZ$ 144,831 (US$ 100,698) in its first week. By the second weekend, the film earned NZ$ 268,838 (US$ 184,933).

In the Middle East and Pakistan,[45][46] the response to the film has been described as "huge" and it earned approximately US$ 300,000 on its opening day.[47] In Egypt it earned more than two Million Egyptian Pound.[48] By the end of its first weekend, the film grossed US$ 890,000, breaking the previous record set by Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (US$ 830,000). It broke all previous box office records by the end of the first week, earning US$ 1.75 million. The film is the highest-grossing Bollywood film in Pakistan, breaking the records set by Avatar , 3 Idiots and Wanted. [49] By its third week, MNIK has become the highest-grossing Bollywood film in the Middle East, earning US$ 3.3 million.[50]

My Name Is Khan debuted in USA in 120 theaters, breaking the record set by 3 Idiots which debuted in 119 theaters. The film broke the record for an opening weekend in the US, earning US$ 1,994,027. The film debuted at #13 at the American box office. By the end of the first week, the film grossed US$ 2,552,283, second only to 3 Idiots which had a Christmas holiday week. By the fourth week, the film earned US$ 3,868,891 (INR 193,820,016), breaking Shahrukh Khan's previous record set by Om Shanti Om. On the 51st day of screening in the US, My Name Is Khan broke the US$ 4 million barrier, and became only the second Bollywood film ever to cross this mark, after 3 Idiots. It is currently the second highest-grossing Bollywood film in the US.[when?][51][52]

My Name is Khan also opened well in Sri Lanka, South Africa and the Far East. In South Africa, the film earned US$ 85,214 (Rs. 39.28 lakhs) in its opening weekend.[53] In Malaysia, it earned MYR 105,527 (US$ 31,106) in its opening weekend, and by the second weekend, the film had earned MYR 410,864 (US$ 120,452).[53] In Nigeria, the film earned an "impressive" NGN 2,310,137 (US$ 15,362) in its opening weekend.[53] In Ghana, the film earned GHS 10,599 (US$ 7,443) by the second weekend. In Indonesia, the film has grown from six to 14 screens and has seen a jump of 300 percent in week three.[50] The film has also grossed $425,825 in 7 weeks at the Bahrain box office.[54] The film has also grossed an impressive $55,073 in Poland in its opening weekend.[55]The film grossed $270,698 in South Africa.[56] The film also made $58,683 in Lebanon region.[57]

The satellite television rights for showcasing My Name Is Khan were sold to Star Plus for a sum of INR 150 million (US$ 3,314,303).[58]

My Name Is Khan created several records, both in India and around the world. In India, the film smashed the record for a Bollywood release in the month of February, breaking the previous two-year record held by Jodhaa Akbar. The film also broke the record for a Bollywood release in the first quarter of the year, breaking the previous two-year record held by Race. In the UK, the film broke the four-year record of Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, and became the highest-grossing Bollywood film in the UK. In the Middle East it is also the highest grossing Bollywood film. As of date My Name Is Khan is the highest-grossing film in overseas markets.[11][39]

Before its release, My Name Is Khan generated a great deal of publicity for itself due to three main reasons, the first being the multiple political controversies surrounding the film and its lead actor, second because of Shahrukh Khan's presence in the film (he was last seen in a leading actor role in December 2008, when Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi released), and third being the re-unision of the "golden pair" of SRK-Kajol, who last appeared together in the film Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham in 2001. Most trade analysts were optimistic about the film. Box Office India stated that, "It would be interesting to see if the film does well as the SRK-Kajol fan base was at its prime roughly ten years ago. The question is whether that fan base is still as strong today", while others stated that the film would open very well and had the potential to become a very big success. Several media outlets predicted that My Name Is Khan would give very significant competition to 3 Idiots, both in India and especially in the overseas markets. However, there was a good amount of skepticism and criticism for the film due to its very high selling price. The film itself was made at a comparatively small budget, but was bought for a huge amount, estmated to be around INR 1 billion (although this was never confirmed by Vijay Singh, CEO Fox Star India) which many thought would be difficult to recover. There was also some discussion about its content, which was "serious" and "thinking", not a satirical entertainer like 3 Idiots.

It was generally agreed that My Name Is Khan would require an excellent opening at the box office, and would also require very significant "repeat value" so as to be able to recover its costs. Early positve reports and much comparisons between this film and 3 Idiots resulted in a massive turnout for the film during its initial weekend. However, Mumbai – the prime contributor to any Bollywood film's revenue, parts of Maharashtra and Gujarat posed a major problem to the film because of severe protests against the screening of the film in these places. This resulted in a limited release in these areas, which reportedly hurt its opening weekend collections.

The film faced considerable falls in collections after its first week. The drops in collections is evident from the fact that 63% of the film's net collections came from the first week, as compared to 54% for Race, 56% for Ghajini, 49% for Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and 39% for 3 Idiots. In spite of this, the film managed to retain the #1 position at the box office for two consecutive weeks. It was in the top 5 list of the Indian box office for six consecutive weeks. Though the mid-week collections saw a drop of 60% from the opening weekend, it held up well against other major releases and secured the highest first quarter collections, a record previously held by the 2008 film Race. Thus, the film can be called a financial success owing to its record-breaking overseas collections and healthy domestic collections.[59]

My Name Is Khan was screened as part of 60th Berlin International Film Festival's Official Selection in February 2010, out of competition.[10] The website eBay auctioned the tickets for the film's screening at the Berlin Film Festival for a record price of EUR 1,000 (INR 60,000) each. All the tickets were sold out in five seconds.[60]

My Name Is Khan received generally positive review by top critics in India. It received 6.5/10 at ReviewGang.[65] The website AllBollywood.com has a consensus rating of 91%, which is graded as A+. Yahoo! Movies has a user consensus grade of A.[66]

Subhash K. Jha (film critic and author of The Essential Guide to Bollywood) gave My Name Is Khan a rave review arguing that Rizwan Khan "repairs almost anything, including irreparably damaged relationships. But this film about damaged lives needs no repairing. My Name Is Khan is a flawless work, as perfect in content, tone and treatment as any film can get [...] My Name Is Khan is no ordinary film. Long after the wary-of-physical-touch Rizwan has finally shaken hands with President Obama, long after the heat and dust of racial and communal hatred has settled down the core of humanism that the film secretes stays with you. Yes, we finally know what they mean by a feelgood film." [67] Nikhat Kazmi of The Times of India also gave it five stars, describing My Name Is Khan as, "indubitably one of the most meaningful and moving films to be rolled out from the Bollywood mills in recent times."[68] Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave My Name Is Khan four and a half out of five stars and argues, "When a film stars two of the finest talents of the country, you expect nothing but the best. SRK, well, how does one describe his performance? To state that this is his best work so far would be cutting short the praise he truly deserves [...] Kajol is pure dynamite and casting her for this character was the most appropriate decision. No other actress could've matched SRK in histrionics the way Kajol has. In fact, SRK and Kajol complement each other wonderfully well and this film only proves it yet again. It's a powerhouse performance from this supremely talented actress." [69] Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN gave My Name Is Khan three and a half out of five stars, arguing that "the film shamelessly tugs at your heartstrings and on more than one occasion wallops you to weep. Aided by solid camerawork, tight editing and a layered story, Johar crafts an engaging, stirring saga that is earnest and noble. With this message movie in the mainstream format, the director takes a step in the right direction."[70] Noyon Jyoti Parasara of AOL India too rated the film 3.5 out of possible 5 stars and stated, "‘MNIK’ is not the strongest screenplay to have been made into a film. But the message and the performances make it a movie you should really not miss" [71] NkS Reviews It rated My Name Is Khan 3.5 out of 5 stars and said, "My Name Is Khan is among the best journeys in Bollywood. All of its angles like love, Islam, humanity, relationships & drama are done likeably. It is unbiased and outspoken with a steadfast message." [72] Omar Qureshi of Zoom gave five stars and the comment "zoombastic".

The film received mixed to positive reviews from U.S. critics and media outlets. As of 21 February 2010, the film has a score of 50 out of a scale of 100 on the review aggregate website Metacritic, based on seven reviews. According to user ratings, the film has 87% positive response.[73] The IMDb website has given the film a user rating of 70%.[74] Rotten Tomatoes lists an approval rating of 83%, with 5 positive and 1 negative review.[75]

Rachel Saltz of The New York Times states, "Khan is one of a handful of Hindi films (New York, Kurbaan) about Indians living in a paranoid, post-9/11 America, and there’s something fascinating about looking at this country through a Bollywood lens, even when the story is a kind of fairy tale. (Most interesting here is the link made between black Americans and Indians, especially Muslims.) Skillfully directed by Karan Johar and with an evocative score by Shankar, Ehsaan & Loy, Khan jerks tears with ease, while teaching lessons about Islam and tolerance." [76] According to Kirk Honeycutt of the Hollywood Reporter, My Name Is Khan is, "a film that delves compellingly into Americans' anti-Muslim hysteria" as it tackles "a subject American movies have mostly avoided—that of racial profiling and the plight of Muslim-Americans. It also allows Shah Rukh Khan to display his talent to an even wider audience. It's well worth the 162-minute journey."[77] Kevin Thomas of the Los Angeles Times argues that My Name Is Khan is "a potent, energetic heart-tugger and Khan and Kajol, major Bollywood stars, are highly appealing and equal to the demand of their emotion-charged roles."[78] Jay Wesissberg of Variety describes My Name Is Khan as a "riotously overstuffed and enormously enjoyable drama" with "confident camerawork [which] is matched by exceptional production design" He also states that Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol are a "delight together and her natural warmth makes the relationship even more believable." [3]

The soundtrack is composed by the critically acclaimed Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, who previously teamed up with Karan Johar to give hit music for his movies like Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006). The lyrics are penned by Niranjan Iyengar.[8] The music was released on 5 January 2010 ,[79] by Sony Music Entertainment (India) who has also previously released the music for Karan Johar's movies Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham…(2001) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, which gained global musical success.[79] The musical soundtrack consists of 6 original songs and 4 bonus tracks that are taken from Karan Johar's previous successful films that have featured Shahrukh Khan. The soundtrack includes one instrumental called 'Khan Theme', composed by Indrajit Sharma and the strings for the song are performed by the Bombay Film Orchestra. The songs such as Noor-e-Khuda blend western bar blues and techno sounds with Indian classical styles such as Sufi and Hindustani. The soundtrack is thus representative of the "indie fusion genre". Unlike Karan Johar's other films, this film has no lip-sync songs. All the songs are in background.[80] The total runtime of the original soundtrack is 27 minutes.

• Bollywood Hungama link
• Indo-Asian News Service link
• Planet Bollywood link
• rediff.com link
• The Times of India link

Upon its release, the album received generally positive reviews from most music 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."[81] 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 [Johar's] films is being looked at."[82]

'Sajda' became an instant favourite among the audience on its release, whereas 'Noor-E-Khuda' was appealed by the masses after the film's release since the song wasn't promoted heavily.

Although Niranjan Iyengar is alone credited for writing the lyrics for the songs, Niranjan penned the only two sufi songs in the film, i.e., 'Sajda' and 'Allah Hi Rahem'. The famous lyricist, Javed Akhtar was approached to write the lyrics for the remaining three songs. Earlier it was reported that he refused to write lyrics, because Javed Akhtar did not want to share the credits with another lyricist since Niranjan Iyengar has written two songs for the film."[83] Later Karan Johar confirmed that Javed Akhtar penned the remaining songs, but Javed did not want him to be credited as the lyricist when the soundtrack relesed as he had to share the credits with Nirinjan Iyenger.[84] Javed confirmed this and said, “I don’t like to share the credits. I would have got the publicity but the other person, who has done a fine job, wouldn’t have. I have read the songs penned by Niranjan and I think he has done a great job.”[83]

Khan has stated that due to his last name and religion, he (like Rizwan Khan) is frequently subject to excess security checks at airports. On 14 August 2009, Khan arrived in the United States in order to both promote My Name Is Khan and to participate in various South Asian-related events around the country (including Indian Independence Day). Upon arriving at Newark Airport in New Jersey, he was pulled aside by Immigration officers after his name popped up on their computers,[85] questioned for over an hour (Khan claims it was at least two hours) about the nature of his visit, and was later released. According to the Times Online, "In Delhi, Timothy J. Roemer, the American Ambassador to India, said that the embassy was trying to 'ascertain the facts of the case.' He added: 'Shah Rukh Khan, the actor and global icon, is a welcome guest in the United States.'"[86][87]

Khan said he was told that it was because "they said my name was common to some name that popped up on the computer."[88][89] The officials asked if he could provide names of people to vouch for him. Khan noted that he "had all the documents; they were asking me where I was going to be staying. I gave the name of FOX people with whom I had finalised a deal a few days ago as contacts." However because they wanted to check his luggage which the airline had lost, Khan said that he "was taken to a room where many people were awaiting a secondary check on visa, most were Asians. In fact many officers were reluctantly vouching for me, some people were asking for autographs and a Pakistani fan even said he knew who I was. But the officers said it was procedure and kept taking numbers from me."[88][90]