The official line

We Are Family,if it hits bulls-eye,will encourage more filmmakers to pay their dues and officially adapt and remake Hollywood movies.

We Are Family,the first full-blown Hindi adaptation of a Hollywood film with the necessary permissions will be out this week. It would be interesting to watch the audience response to the film that is essentially Stepmom redux. Opinions on whether it will work or not are divided.

Those who closely follow Hollywood movies are of the opinion that people who have already watched Stepmom would find it futile to watch the same film all over again albeit in Hindi. Perhaps they know better.

My own curiosity to watch Hindi film actors,especially the main protagonists Kajol and Kareena Kapoor,makes me believe otherwise. Considering its an adapted work,attention to details such as contextualising situations in a cultural milieu that the home audience is familiar with should do the trick.

Dharma Productions has been at the helm of some pretty major global forays and this global-local experiment seems a natural extension of its efforts in recent times. Early on this year they tied up a neat worldwide deal with Star Fox Studio for the distribution of My Name Is Khan,which seems to have worked well for them.

With their squeaky clean reputation at work,it is fitting that they should be first off the block in such efforts. Remakes with due credits and permissions in an industry with a reputation for plagiarising ideas is something of a novelty. In the recent past,films like Partner and Bandaa Yeh Bindaas Hai have run into trouble due to permissions or the lack of them.

We Are Family,if it hits bulls-eye,will encourage more filmmakers to pay their dues and officially adapt and remake Hollywood movies. Speaking of remakes,any takers for The Devil Wears Prada?

First wives club

If King Khan is in town,can product endorsements and announcements be far behind? Last week was no different with Shah Rukh Khan announcing his and wife Gauris association with a home furnishing company. This once it was Gauri who was chosen the face of the product,with the superstar playing second fiddle! To his credit,he was ultra-generous in sharing space.

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Gauri Khans entry into endorsements comes close on the heels of Twinkle Khannas Bling campaign and suggests a departure from the old industry truism about star-wives,being seen,not heard. To see them attempt to carve their own identity is heartening. Even more encouraging is to see their husbands play enthusiastic cheerleaders.

Akshay Kumar,at the launch of his wifes resortwear line,was heard saying that he wanted to be a supportive husband. Hrithik Roshan,once shy of posing for magazine covers with his wife,now often walks the ramp with Suzanne for company while Kiran Rao is a constant presence by Aamir Khans side. Like all other film industry standard practices,perhaps this one with regards to first wives too is undergoing a change.