Heart of London Business Alliance today revealed the latest statue to join Leicester Square’s ‘Scenes in the Square’ movie statue trail will be of the king of romance, Shah Rukh Khan, alongside his co-star Kajol, from their film Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. This will be the first ever long-term Bollywood statue erected in the UK. The announcement, thus, marks the 25th anniversary of Indian cinema’s most loved film, DDLJ, and also coincides with the big 50th year celebrations of Yash Raj Films.
Written
and directed by debutant Aditya Chopra, DDLJ shattered all box office records
and is one of the biggest all-time blockbusters in the history of Hindi cinema.
It also went on to become the longest-running Hindi film of all time! DDLJ is
also the winner of a record-breaking (at the time) 10 Filmfare Awards and the
film literally changed the face of Bollywood globally.
The
film was made at a budget of 4 crore and the blockbuster, in 1995, collected 89 crore in India, 13.50 crore in overseas
markets. Thus, total collections stood at 102.50 crore worldwide in 1995! In today’s inflation
adjusted value, DDLJ’s collection stands at a staggering 455 crore in India and 69 crore in overseas
territories, taking the total worldwide collections to a phenomenal 524 crore!
DDLJ,
often dubbed the Romeo & Juliet of Bollywood cinema, is about two
non-resident Indians, Raj and Simran, and their star-crossed love story across
Europe and India, beginning on a train from King’s Cross Station. The statue is
set to be unveiled in Spring 2021, when organisers hope that its stars Khan and
Kajol will be able to travel to unveil the statue in a special celebratory
event.
The
location couldn’t be more fitting, as Leicester Square featured in DDLJ in a
scene when Raj and Simran first cross paths, albeit unbeknown to one another.
Fittingly, the scene features two of the square’s cinemas prominently, with Raj
seen in front of the Vue cinema, and Simran walking past the Odeon Leicester
Square. The new statue will be positioned along the eastern terrace, outside
the Odeon cinema, honouring this scene. Other London locations featured in the
film include Horseguards Avenue, Hyde Park, Tower Bridge and King’s Cross
Station.
The statue will join nine other film icons from the past 100 years, eight of which were unveiled in late February and recently granted longer term residency by Westminster Council to remain in Leicester Square until at least July 2023. In September a statue of Harry Potter also joined the original line up, while visitors can still encounter Laurel & Hardy, Bugs Bunny, Gene Kelly in Singin’ in the Rain, Mary Poppins, Mr. Bean, Paddington and iconic DC Super-Heroes Batman and Wonder Woman.
Mark
Williams, Director of Destination Marketing at Heart of London Business
Alliance, says: “It’s fantastic to be adding such titans of international
cinema to our trail as Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge is
one of the most successful and important Bollywood films of all time, and it’s
exciting to be able to bring to the trail the first film that actually features
Leicester Square as a location. This statue is a fitting tribute to the global
popularity of Bollywood and the cultural bridges that cinema can help build,
and we’re in no doubt it will attract fans from all around the world.”
Avtar
Panesar, Vice President of Special Projects at Yash Raj Films, added: “When
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge was released 25 years ago, it changed the face of the industry
and captured the hearts of everyone who saw it. We’re thrilled to be able to
announce this statue, and to be the first film of Indian origin to be
represented in ‘Scenes in the Square’. We are honoured that these Bollywood
superstars have been recognized alongside the Hollywood elite, from Gene Kelly
to Laurel & Hardy, and this is a great way to express the international
appeal of cinema.”
