Title tattle

Producer Vipul Shah and director Anees Bazmee are overwhelmed at reactions to the title of their Akshay Kumar-starrer Singh is Kinng.

The title has found its way on the cover of political mag India Today, it has been used by serious newspapers, and by news channels as a nick for Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh as well as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

An ecstatic Vipul says, "In my wildest dreams, I hadn't imagined that our title would become a national rage and have such an impact! After the Parliament session on Tuesday, a TV channel was using my title; the SMSes I got were amazing. I think because of my title, I've become a very close associate of Congress Party and am enjoying their victory."

Vipul agrees that no title so far has created such an impact, "I can feel the film reaching out to all even non-Sardars. It's unreal that a title has become so big and has indirectly created awareness about the film. Even if I had spent 100 crore on the film's publicity, I couldn't have bought the impact. It's a complete blessing. Even while working on the title track, I would tell Pritam to make a song that would become an anthem for the Singh community but never thought it'd be such a hit."

Beyond the film

Vipul adds, "Akshay has got three times more messages than I have. He's shooting in LA.
Last night, he called me and asked 'What's happening? My phone is completely flooded with messages.' Akshay, being a Punjabi, has suddenly become synonymous with the Sikh community and got acceptance from them. In Toronto, during The Unforgettable show, the crowds kept chanting Singh Is Kinng! The title has gone beyond the film."

The story behind the title

While Vipul was working on the title, Akshay called me him and told him that he'd read Singh Is Kingg written behind a truck and he thought it was apt for our film. Vipul admits, "I told him it sounded solid but I wanted to check with Anees too. Two minutes later, we'd finalized and registered the title. It works brilliantly as Singh Is Kinng is about living life king-size, a king-size attitude, and a community that is brave, strong, truthful and whole-hearted.

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