Happy New Year and it's Promotion !!

A film's promotional drive is usually a big component of its budget. But what if the campaign can be tapped to fetch massive returns? That's exactly what Shah Rukh Khan has in mind for his next home production, Happy New Year, which is gearing up for a big Diwali release.

So, while other producers are pushing their stars to give time for interviews, photo shoots and TV shows, Mirror has learnt that SRK has a new game-plan in mind. He is planning worldwide shows with the film's cast, including Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Sonu Sood and Boman Irani, ahead of the film's release. Director Farah Khan will also join the Happy troupe.

The preparation for the travelling mega show has already begun. The actors have been asked to allot dates in August for rehearsals, which will be conducted in SRK's office. They have already allotted dates for the shows, which will be held in September and October.

"The cast agreed to the arrangement as SRK will pay them over and above their acting fee. Around 140 professional dancers will also be hired. It's an ambitious venture which aims to be even bigger than the Temptations Reloaded concert tour," says a source close to the production house. Incidentally, the shows will be organised by the same company which put together Temptations Reloaded in October 2013. Rani Mukerji, Madhuri Dixit and Jacqueline Fernandez had performed but SRK stole the show with his lungi dance from Chennai Express.

The upcoming shows will focus on UK, US and Canada, SRK strongholds, with a few pitstops in other countries. In anticipation of the SRK blitzkrieg, organisers in the US and Canada are cancelling local shows slated around the same time. After the foreign tour, the team is also expected to perform in India.

"There will be around 25-30 shows and each is expected to fetch SRK Rs 7 crore. Going by this calculation, they could add almost Rs 200 crore to the kitty even before the film opens in the theatres," says the source.

If SRK, who has always been a trailblazer, succeeds in making sweet music this time it could open up new avenues of revenue generation for Bollywood's dream merchants.

long Live SRK

source _-TOI