Farah Khan, one of the few mainstream female directors in contemporary Bollywood, is not the only Khan associated with Om Shanti Om. Megastar Shah Rukh Khan plays (ironically) an unknown film extra Om, in love with Shanti, a larger-than-life 1970s film star. The film’s title is a tongue-in-cheek pun that reprises a religious incantation and film song “Om Shanti Om” from Subhash Ghai’s 1980 thriller Karz. It tells a story of revenge and reincarnation, in which Om and Shanti must find each other by decoding clues left behind by their onscreen doubles. At once a romantic costume drama, ludic period film, art deco fantasy, and film-within-a-film, Om Shanti Om offers bold and spectacular reflections on nostalgia, stardom, and cinephilia in Bombay cinema.
India 2007. Dir. Farah Khan. With Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Arjun Rampal. Costumes Karan Johar, Sanjeev Mulchandani, Manish Malhotra.
+ Travelling Lady
USA 2014. Dir. Jessica Mitrani.