Upala KBR (DNA; April 14, 2017)

The trailer of Kabir Khan’s Tubelight is one of the most anticipated ones this year. Starring Salman Khan and Chinese actress Zhu Zhu, the film is set for an Eid release this year, but the trailer of the film is not out yet. Touted as the Bajrangi Bhaijaan duo’s next blockbuster, the actor’s fans keep asking the filmmaker every day about its release. Here Kabir gives details on the plan...

Kabir says that the publicity campaign is a double-edged one. “We are first going to release the teaser which will be out by the end of April and that will be followed by the trailer in May. People ask me why we are releasing the trailer so late. I’m one of those people who doesn’t believe in those extended periods of marketing but only closer to the release.”

But in today’s times, marketing and promotions is the name of the game. Kabir disagrees, “I don’t believe in going berserk with marketing. As long as you are able to get your message out and tell the people you are coming on a certain date and make people aware of that, it’s more than enough. We will have a teaser and then, the trailer. I won’t tell you the message now. Let people discover through the trailer what message we want to convey.”

An exciting part of the publicity campaign is that his leading actress will fly down to India to promote the film.

He informs, “Zhu Zhu will also come down to India for a certain period of time to promote the film.”

Tubelight and Kabir’s mini series titled The Forgotten Army are both period dramas. “Yes, The Forgotten Army is set during World War II, but it also has a contemporary track. Tubelight is based in 1962 and is set against the backdrop of the Indo-China war. It is tougher working on a period film because more attention has to be given to detail... you have to do thorough research. You have to pay attention to clothes, settings, etc. So yes, in that sense, it does definitely take more homework. But having said that, it’s ultimately your storytelling, so it’s exciting.”