Shah Rukh Khan's forthcoming film Fan can offer a refreshing take on fandom

India’s biggest Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan commands celebrity status among scores of fans, but the roles are reversed in his forthcoming movie Fan, where he plays a boy obsessed with a movie actor called Aryan Khanna, who’s a lot like Khan.

So far, Fan’s teasers show a lot of promise and suggest that this could be an interesting, one-of-its-kind foray into India’s love for movies and the cult status enjoyed by Bollywood stars in the country. The second teaser of the film was released on the actor’s 50th birthday yesterday, and quickly notched up 1.1 million views on YouTube.

In the film, which will be released in April 2016, Khan does a double act as both the superstar Khanna and his ardent fan Gaurav. The teasers are shot from Gaurav’s perspective, with sequences of the young protagonist watching his idol on television interviews, the big screen and billboards, and collecting his posters and photographs. We see his adoration growing into obsession over the years, until the climactic scene where he wins a local “Super Star Competition”. Khan’s new look as the buck-toothed Gaurav has been a pleasant surprise for fans.

Directed by Maneesh Sharma, the film has been shot in Mumbai, Delhi, London and Croatia. Its first trailer was released a couple of months ago.

Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.