Imran Khan has been out of work for a very long time. His last starring role was in the godwful 2015 Katti Batti which could best be described as 500 Days of Summer meets a banal Ekta Kapoor daytime soap while his films before that were also disasters of equal gargantuan proportion. Mind you, Khan is by no stretch another throwaway star kid. He’s lovable, has boyish good looks and, even though he’s seldom credited for it, he actually starred in a few of the most successful, forward-thinking films in Bollywood history. But Imran’s now dormant career is in dire need of a resurgence, and to achieve that, he could learn a thing or two from his highly influential Italian doppelgänger, politician, Luigi Di Maio.
In 2012, the leader of the popular Movimento 5 Stelle (Five Star Movement), Luigi Di Magio was living at home with his parents, five years later, he’s one of the biggest household names in Italy. What’s even more impressive is that he’s only 31 years old. Many believe his meteoric rise to fame boils down to three factors – his lovable personality, boyish good looks and his ability to carve a niche for himself in the maelstrom that is Italian politics. Sound familiar? Yes, Khan and Di Maio do not just share an eerily physical resemblance but also a few personality traits. However, the difference between him and the Italian legislator is Khan’s reluctance to put himself out there.
Despite his young age, Di Maio is one of the most popular politicians in Italy.
For example, when it comes to social media, Di Maio is very active while Khan is a total recluse. This is a terrible move on the struggling Bollywood actor’s part since social media would greatly benefit him by allowing him to engage in and reconnect with his still massive fan base. Indians constitute one of the largest single presences on social media and are known to be using these platforms to look at and follow their favorite celebrities’ every move. Khan has always come across as pleasant, intelligent and worldly in public, all of which could translate very well on social media and garner him an even larger fan base than he already has. He is also undoubtedly one of the best looking actors in the industry and the hyper visual world of Instagram could be very good to him if he was on it more often as say, Di Maio, who posts regularly and whose photogenic looks have undoubtedly attributed to his success.
Imran Khan is curiously not capitalizing on his good looks.
Khan could also take notes on Di Maio and how he managed to be the unique candidate in the last elections in Italy by catering to supporters from both of the political aisles. Indeed, his movement propagated policies that fit neither paradigm of the political spectrum. For example, his leftist policy on environmental preservation juxtapose with his strong anti-immigration stance.
I am not at all insinuating that Khan should share his doppelgänger’s divisive political views (I personally don’t and I doubt he would) but what the struggling actor could learn from Di Maio is how to carve a niche for himself in a Varun Dhawan world. Several years ago, Khan did stand out from the crowd when he did two of the most envelope-pushing films in Bollywood history – the deliciously obscene black comedy, Delhi Belly, and the critically acclaimed, Woody Allen by way of Karan Johar rom-com, Ek Main Aurr Ek Tu. Unfortunately, he then followed up those up with two back-to-back shit films that deservedly failed at the box office, Gore Tere Pyaar Mein, and the aforementioned Katti Batti, a particularly odious films.
Imran Khan’s Delhi Belly – one of the most groundbreaking films in Bollywood history.
Katti Batti was the final nail in the coffin for Khan’s career and he hasn’t been able to recuperate since.
He needs to go back to making groundbreaking films and this is the ripe time for that. In an era where we see small-budget, controversial films like Queen, Pink and Veere Di Wedding entering the 100 crore club, it is the time for Khan to go back to making quality films like Delhi Belly.
This won’t only allow him back into the limelight but it would secure him a place in it for an indefinite period of time.
