Effort under way to release Shah Rukh Khan's 'King' in Bangladesh, permission papers submitted

An effort is under way to release Shah Rukh Khan's new film 'King' in Bangladesh as well. The film is set for release on 24 December. As with earlier Hindi films, filmmaker-producer Ananya Mamun has taken the initiative, and his company Action Cut Entertainment is seeking the necessary permission.

Ananya Mamun said he submitted the permission papers on Thursday. A contract has been signed between Red Chillies Entertainment and Action Cut Entertainment, and those papers have been submitted to the Government of Bangladesh.

Mamun said there is no complication in the law, and that the rest now depends on the government's decision.

He noted that there is no barrier to importing films under the SAFTA agreement, the South Asian Free Trade Area agreement, and said he is hopeful about 'King' for that reason.

Mamun said he would try his utmost. In his view, such films should come to the country because they help cinemas survive, and he said halls are in a very poor state for lack of domestic films.

The report said that outside Eid, no notable film is released in the country's cinemas during the rest of the year, leaving halls in loss all year round. Many believe the release of a talked-about foreign film such as 'King' could ease that crisis somewhat.

Under SAFTA, importing one film requires exporting another. In this case, the 2025 film 'Jongli' will be sent to India, Mamun said. Directed by M Rahim and starring Siam Ahmed in the title role, that film did very well in Bangladesh.

Three years ago, Shah Rukh Khan's three consecutive films 'Pathaan', 'Jawan' and 'Dunki' were released in cinemas, including in Bangladesh. Among them, 'Jawan' received an outstanding response, the report noted.

In 2023, several more Hindi films were released in the country's cinemas. After that, because of the change in the country's political situation and other reasons, no further Hindi film has come.

'King' is directed by Siddharth Anand. Shah Rukh Khan's daughter Suhana Khan appears with him for the first time. Deepika Padukone is paired with Shah Rukh. The cast also includes Abhishek Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, Anil Kapoor, Jaideep Ahlawat, Raghav Juyal, Jackie Shroff, Arshad Warsi, Saurabh Shukla and Abhay Verma, among others.