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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Mumbai

Pathaan and the king of cinema blast Bollywood out of the doldrums

Fans of Shah Rukh Khan gather outside a cinema in Kolkata to celebrate the release of Pathaan.
Fans of Shah Rukh Khan gather outside a cinema in Kolkata to celebrate the release of Pathaan. Photograph: Dipa Chakraborty/Pacific Press/Rex/Shutterstock

For Ganesh Lokhande, an usher at the Regal Cinema in Mumbai’s southern tip of Colaba, it’s been a quiet few years in the job. That was, until last week.

Pathaan, a new Bollywood action thriller starring Shah Rukh Khan – an actor whose superstardom has elevated him to be known in India as “the king” – has been released in cinemas, triggering excitement across the country. Long queues formed outside theatres as millions flocked to catch a glimpse of Khan’s return to the screen after four years away, now aged 57 but still playing the ravishing muscular hero.

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