Going by the standing ovations, the tears and sometimes the stunned silence of viewers, "Black" has created an emotional impact that is rare in the history of Indian cinema.

At the IMAX multiplex theatre in Hyderabad Sunday afternoon, the entire audience stood up and clapped at the end of the film!

"And this is true in many, many parts of the country," says the film's overwhelmed leading lady, Rani Mukherjee.

"All of us expected the film to make a very deep emotional impact. But this is beyond anything we expected. Never in my life have I heard of any film getting a standing ovation, not just once but repeatedly in every corner of the country. I can't thank Sanjay Leela Bhansali enough for giving me such a role so early in my career. My only fear is where do I go from here? Nothing I do can equal 'Black'."

The film's much-feted director is fatigued but relived. "'Black' is my most heartfelt work. The emotions were so personal, I knew they'd touch the audience.

"More than me it's Bachchan and Rani who're being celebrated by audiences. People are going so far as to say Rani's is the best performance by a woman actor in 50 years. As for Bachchan, they're calling him god."

Bachchan is content beyond measure. A night after he performed live at the tsunami concert with son Abhishek, he cannot get over the praise for "Black".

"People are simply stunned. Never in my life have I seen such an overpowering response to any film, let alone anything I've done. Sanjay Leela Bhansali has devastated me. Nothing I do can compare with this. Absolutely nothing. I've to work with him again," he says.

Praise for "Black" pours in from all quarters. From within the industry there's a stunned disbelief.

Says Salman Khan, "Sanjay Bhansali had done it earlier in 'Khamoshi', 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam' and 'Devdas'. Now he has done it again."

"A truly inspirational film," says Priyanka Chopra who cried after seeing it, while Manisha Koirala describes "Black" as "the best film I've ever seen".

Urmila Matondkar says: "After watching what Sanjay Bhansali has done with Amitji and Rani I can only say no actor can be considered complete without working with this filmmaker. Every gesture on screen seems to have a relevance and special meaning. That special quality of the whole experience makes 'Black' so unique."

There are efforts to downplay the film's triumphant climb to glory. According to trade whispers, "Black" is not doing well in the overseas market. Again this is an assumption made on the basis of the traditional non-resident Indian market where the Karan Johar-Yash Chopra films are pitched.

"But that isn't the audience I'm depending on. My audience is anyone who connects with my protagonist's struggle to come out of darkness into light. I can't see any negativity affecting my film's fate in any way. I've made three other films. But none has got such an overwhelmingly positive reaction. In no other film of mine has the audience at the end stood up spontaneously and clapped collectively in the most random corners of the country. I couldn't have hoped for a better response," says Bhansali joyously.