I THINK SHE MUST BE HURT: SALMAN KHAN
Never underestimate the one who prefers to keep silence. Salman Khan, the man who never uttered a word during the months of unending controversies, is still reluctant to speak out his heart. The simple reason, he gives, is that clarifying one issue would only lead to some fresh controversy. Tere Naam is on the verge of release and that's probably the only release why he is little bit forthcoming to say something. And while he speaks, slowly, in soft voice and sober manner, you are bound to pay absolute attention to every word he says. And as the conversation moves on, Salman not only divulge details about the reel-life records, but he also let's you know facts about mostly all those issues that were used to tarnish his image. Here is Salman unplugged for you...
Tell us about Tere Naam...
Tere Naam has a very beautiful concept. Still its narrative is about losing everything. Though I never seen its original version before signing the film, I heard the story in nutshell and liked it very much. The film has action but they are strongly linked with emotions. The whole film is good. Lots of people (in love) get involved in a situation like this. But it's a film and one should not take it other way.
What's your character in the film?
I am playing Radhey in the film. He is an ex-student of a college who always stands by for justice. He falls in love with somebody who hates him. It's not a negative character and the villain in the film is coincidences.
Some people have started saying that it's a true story of you. Maybe because the catch line, 'unfortunately a true love story' is used.
It's all bullshit. Tere Naam is earlier made in three different languages. It's not close to my life. Those whose English is poor and don't interpret it well have extracting whatever meaning they want from the film's catch line. Tere Naam is a tragic film which revolves around true love. That's it.
You have donned different getups for this film.
Yeah...because the character I play is a local hero of a small town. Portraying it well needed a different look. And then, Radhey passes through various situations and a drastic change was required for the narrative. That's why I have different getups.
Past few months had been troublesome for you. Why you never bothered to clarify your side?
What should have I said? I am asked (by my producers) to talk and that's why I am speaking to you. Otherwise, I don't like to speak out like this. And I felt silence is the best thing.
What is your take on the Vivek Oberoi issue...he called a press conference and said a lot about you...
(Laughs)...(waits)...I could not stop my life that time. And you know that he is a good boxer...(smiles)...that's why I kept mum.
You went to London the same night of the press conference.
Yeah...(smiles)...actually, I ran away from India. But I want to tell you to ask him to produce mobile bills, if he is right in claiming that I had called up several times to him. And then, I will produce my mobile bill, which I certainly have with me.
Will you do a film with him, after whatever has happened?
The problem is with him and not mine. He is a little kid. I wonder how he must be bearing himself all the time...but I don't mind working with him.
And what you would say about Aishwarya Rai episode?
(Pauses)...man, no one will sit and write poems when she feels angry...I think she must be hurt...something must have hurt her and so...
The media took a tough stance against you when the accident happened and during every problem which came in your life.
There are few people whose ego is hurt when I decline to speak to them. But then I don't like to clarify. What's the use of issuing clarifications every now and then? I will speak once and the same words will do damage in some fresh manner. Leave it, friend. Some people say that Salman beats up anyone and everyone but you tell me, how many times I have done it? Except for Subhash Ghai, I have not beaten up anyone. And in that case, I had to beat him because things went up to that level and I could not control myself.
But all those happenings have tarnished your image.
I don't understand how people can make judgment on others without knowing facts. They judge a person the way they want just because they don't have access to him. You must be bad sometime, but not as bad as the media portrays you. That's very bad...very bad.
What would you like say about the accident?
That was tragic but few things are bound to happen in life. And this happens with so many others but I being a star, things were stretch too far. One has to pay price when such accident happen and you have to pass through (legal) formalities. Mumbai only records 5-6 accidents like this every day. My driver kept saying that, "It was me who was driving the vehicle and not my Baba (Salman)" but no one listened to him. And when some say that I should be treated like a layman by the law, I say that a layman has no access to the media. I also kept away from giving any clarifications. Yet, when I was freed after paying Rs. 900 bail, they started crying again. Why?
Are you emotional?
I am not emotional...I am fool. Emotional reactions are not backed by logic. What I have learnt is that you should not react to every issue.
Recently you said that you want to change yourself and then the country.
(Smiles)...Sometime such comedies happen inadvertently. And there is nothing I need to change in myself. I don't know whether I would be able to change the country but yes, I want to do something good for Bandra, the suburb where I live. I think you must do something for your family, your friends and for at least one neighbor. That's more than enough. And for my locality, I wish to do some things that can ease the life of people and give me true satisfaction.
What good you have done for the family whose member died in that accident?
I have deposited a big money to the court for the family. That sum is very big and can make life of that family better. And once the case is over, I will do my best for the deceased's son, be it education or giving him a job in my home production.
What's happening in the home production front?
We have two movies on the cards. One is Lucky in which I will be playing the lead and the other will have Sohail. Mithunda (Chakraborty) is playing an important role in Lucky. Moreover, we have plans to make Ramayan also. And we may start a movie staring three of us (Salman, Sohail and Arbaaz) together but nothing is decided as yet.
Which other films you have after Tere Naam?
Dil Churake Chal Diye and Bagbaan will hit theatres after this film. I am doing a guest appearance in Bagbaan. Merigold is slated to go on the floors in November, which maybe postponed to January next year also. I am shooting for Sanghaar now and Bajirao Mastani will be started in March next year.
What about Pritish Nandy Communication's Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam?
I am committed to do a film with PNC but I am yet to know whether it is Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam or some other film.
And finally, can we say that your career will get a new start with Tere Naam?
No, because I was there, I am here and I will be very much there in future. To those who think otherwise, I want to say that they never made me or they can't even break me. The moment I will feel I am through, I will give up myself.
Kareena
Every one knows it already.
Kareena change from the Poo role to different kind of role.
In Line Of Control she will be playing a Soldier.
In Bewafa we heard she is playing a Killer.
In Sanjay Leela Bhansali she is playing in a classic film
Also in Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam.
Kareena even change of picking Films.
Before Kareena use to just sign film because of the director and Producer.
By next I hope Kareena will have good films with good stories. By the mean time, we have to see how her other film is. Line of Control which is cast with Hugh Stars. at least 25 star in this film.
Kareena have some good film coming up.
Beside Line Of Control, Bewafa, Bajrao Mustani and Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam.
Kareena Have another Film with Abbas-Mustan, Dil Chor directed by Satish.
They are other film. (Not sure yet)
Sooraj Barjatya other film
Aditiya Chopra Film
Karan Johar Film
SRK INTERVIEW: I MAKE SHIT LOOK GUD!
Shah Rukh Khan is back where he belongs. In Mannat, in Mumbai, in the thick of movie madness. He’s a changed man, though, after his surgery—he’s got a shining new titanium disc in his spine. The old backache’s gone, but post-operative pain has him moving in strangely deliberate style. Difficult to think of this hi-energy star with brakes on, but he’ll have to be more careful from now on, he admits. Happily, King Khan continues to shoot from the lip, using his own brand of shock-and-awe tactics. Thank God some things don’t change.
Good to have you back, repaired, as you put it. Your surgery was an issue of national concern for some time going by the amount of newsprint devoted to it.
And that was becoming of someone as big as I am. Anything less would have been disappointing. God has given me everything in abundance, and that includes my illnesses. I've got all the good things in large doses and I look on this, too, as a good thing.
A good thing?
Yes, I've got a titanium disc in my body now. As you know, white metal is in. So I have a trendy piece of jewellery in my spine. Besides, the disc shows up so clearly in my x-rays, they can never get lost.
So you’ll be one up on everyone even in the X-ray room?
yes, my spine will shine through.
Nearly, you’re not yet fully recovered. Are you in more pain than you let on?
Well, I have a very high threshold of pain (which is why my injuries have got aggravated over the years). Also, I don’t want my family to feel I'm unwell. And lately, without realising it, I've been spreading myself too thin. Acting is itself so time consuming, I have two productions going on, I've had a little stress about property matters, and then this surgery. When you fall sick like this, you start worrying about whether everything’s in place in case something goes wrong.
Are you going to cut back on work for some time now?
I’m not saying yes to any film at the moment. I’m on standby now and so are all those who wish to be. I don’t want to push it because this was a serious surgery and from now on, as age progresses, things can only get worse. You're not getting younger, as they say.And I've subjected my body to too much stress.
Take a song like Ishq kameena— I shouldn’t have done it. It was only a guest appearance, I’d just come back from London, been repaired, rested three—four months after Devdas but I said, Okay, kar leta hoon. You know, I was shooting for a hectic song for Chalte Chalte just an hour before I came to the Filmfare Awards function. When I look at the song now I say, Shit, this was 24 hours before my surgery.
The problem is that I can't say no to somebody when it comes to work. A lot of people’s films are dependent on me and they are good friends and they get disturbed. I need to take some serious calls but I can't explain that to them and it's reaching a stage where I just want to run away.
Hey, this sounds like a new Shah Rukh. Have you come out of this surgery a changed man or what?!?
No way—see, I'm still smoking! The other day somebody asked me whether I had time for introspection. That’s all nonsense. There’s no introspection till the end of day. I think it's all stupid and silly and an excuse for being lazy. A friend of mine told me the other day, I'm taking a year off. I said, a year off from what? From life?I just worry, though, that when I die and go to God, He will look at me and say, `Okay, holiday’s over, now starts the work.’ I hope the lazy guys won’t be having the last laugh and saying, `You guys didn’t know what life was meant to be.'I can't say no to somebody when it comes to work. I need to take some serious calls but I can't explain that to people and it's reaching a stage where I just want to run away
you were pretty emotional just before you left for your surgery, though, weren’t you?
Yes, I was really feeling sorry for my kids. Because I deserved what I got. You always get what you deserve. I should have been more careful, I’ve called it upon myself, I have to pay for it. That is very clear.
But I didn’t want the kids to be affected. Aryan has always wondered how I had a scar in Koyla and not in real life. So I told him I was going to get a scar and I got it, so he was thrilled. Of course, both he and Suhana knew I was not well and they used to pray for me every day. I’m told they learnt the Gayatri mantra and verses from the Koran, they used to stop at temples and churches to pray. So they learnt to pray, which is good.
How long does the doctor expect it will take you to get back to normal?
The doctor has said that one day I'll wake up and find the pain gone He says it could take up to three months, which means that day could be the 90th or the 62nd. Like they told me I would take anything from six minutes to six days to start talking again; I was talking in six minutes.
I also have to build up muscle in my left arm. It's about an inch-and-a-half thinner than the right one now. I need to slowly, slowly, slowly–and everything is slow now–get back to normal, so that when I return to full time work, my muscles should not be weak in any way.
Given your hyperactive reputation, has it been a restless or relaxing break for you?
Believe me, I can be a complete slob when want to be. I can either work very hard or be in a state of complete dormancy. If I’m working, I don’t stop. If I stop, I don’t want to move.
Is this the longest you’ve been way from the sets?
No, I didn’t work for quite a few months last year. I did just two days shooting for Devdas in April and then didn’t work at all from May to September. But yes, from last May to this May, I haven’t been too much on the sets.
Are you itching to get back?
No. I’d like to not work for as long as I need to. I know that when I have to, it will take me just 10 or 15 minutes to get back, so to speak.
And I’m enjoying myself reading immensely these days–about Churchill, Hitler, Rasputin and the Russian revolution. Fiction too– The Life of Pi, the Booker Prize winner.
Besides, reading helps me do something about the stock emotions, stock thoughts and stock expressions I’ve got caught in as an actor. My acting has been based on this strategy for years--I read something, hear something, I try to express it physically, do it through the face or the body.
Take a phrase like, he entered the room silently like a crab. I try to physicalise it, walk like a crab, use that walk one day in a film. Or `He erupted’. I want to erupt when I'm angry on screen. But for that I want to understand how a volcano erupts, how the lava comes out--whoosh. Can I do that whoosh? I have, in a film. And such moments bring me great personal happiness.
This strategy lends itself sometimes to overacting, sometimes to a very different interpretation, sometimes to incomprehension; sometimes to completely tangential stuff. But the bottom line is that whether you understand it or not, you feel the anger when I do the whoosh.
How long have you been getting by with your stock expressions?
For years now, for too long. Two or three years into acting I used to say I have only five expressions. I tell all the younger actors – there’s so much to know and so easy to be satisfied as an actor. It's just so difficult not to be taken in by yourself in 70 mm. Even a donkey will fall in love with itself. It's all so big and beautiful and shot so prettily and here you are, just a 5’ 8”-5’9”guy with a bad hairstyle and you say, Wow, I make this shit look good.But I’m never satisfied as an actor. Because I've realised I'm so stock. With every movie, I ask myself, `Can I do two things in this whole damn film that will make me want to be an actor?’ I've always watched actors like Robert de Niro, Amitabh Bachchan., Aamir Khan (who I think have an amazing repertoire) and said, `God, I wish I could act like them.’ I’m yet to see a film of mine and say, `God, I wish I could be like Shah Rukh Khan.’ That’s the quest. Can I be like Shah Rukh? Can I fool myself with my own acting? Can I convince myself to cry?
Scripts don’t make sense to me. I can't understand music. Or background music. Lyrics don’t matter to me. Acting is what I understand.
Have you ever moved yourself to tears?
Actually, I don’t like watching my movies after they’re complete. One catches scenes here, scenes there during dubbing, but the complete film I can see only once. I don’t like me and most of films are only me. So I don’t like watching them. Not that I'm embarrassed about them. But I've finished my job, done everything I had to on the sets. I'm proud of it, but I don’t want to live with it.
have you got yourself some new expressions?
I hope so. I’m reading, it's all getting collected in the mind. It could be a phrase, it could be another actor. The other day I saw a shot of Tabu crying and I want to cry like her. And I will one day. It will be my interpretation, because I can’t do a girlie shot. But when I do a Tabu, even Tabu won’t know.
You’ve worked a lot with first-time directors who happen to be your friends. Sometimes saying yes without asking for the story or script. Is liking the director good enough for you?
Yes. Because if I like someone, I know clearly that they like me and if they like me, then we’ve sort of matched thoughts, and once we’ve done that we can't go wrong in terms of my thinking and expectations.
But I never, never, never get into a personal issue with a director, actor or actress on the sets.
How do you mean, personal issue?
Let’s say you have a bad temper, come late on the sets, have bad breath, take time to change, are rude. I could be guilty of all that too, but that should not bother you or me when we’re doing a shot together. When I’m on the floors, ( very slowly and very firmly) I don’t want anybody to bring anything personal there. And if anybody does, I negate it completely.
If a girl or boy is sitting and reading a book instead of reading the scene, it's okay. So long as they do the scene well. If they don’t, I'll be disturbed.
Some directors like Sanjay (Leela Bhansali) or Adi (Aditya Chopra), who are otherwise fantastic to talk to, are very serious on the sets. Adi may come to my house and play video games, but on the sets he is not my personal friend. For me the personal and professional are completely separate. That’s the only way to retain sanity. Because I can't like the way everybody works. But you can bear anybody’s inconsistencies or shortcomings (according to you) for a year and move on.
If a friend came to you with a bad script, would you do the film?
But I don’t know anything about scripts. I realised that about five years ago. So when people ask me, do you like the script, I say, it's not a question of like or dislike, I just don’t understand it, I can't judge it. The way I can’t tell if a carburetor is good or not. What I do know about is acting. Main jaan kha jaoonga So if Karan (Johar) or Sanjay or Farah (Khan) says it's the best damn script and it will be the greatest film and they are ready to give one year of their life to it, then it must be good. It's good enough for me.
Does that make it a largely emotional decision?
No, I think it's all about clarity. Scripts don’t make sense to me, so I'll leave it to the experts. There are some aspects of the film-making process that I don’t want to get into. Like I can't understand music. You give me a song, I’ll dance to it. But don’t ask me if I think it’s good or bad. I don’t understand background music either. Lyrics don’t matter to me. Acting is what I understand, what I do best. Give me a bad scene and I'll make it look good. That’s what I’m paid for. Give me any scene and I'll make it palatable, plausible, I’ll try to make it near-perfect, really wonderful. And I don’t take extra money for that; I don’t take extra credit for that.
So often I hear actors saying, Yaar, yeh picture ka sabse best scene hai or Kya scene likha hai. My logic is: Kya scene likha hai--bullshit. But I’ll make it work. Or kya location diya hai. What location, I'll make it look good. Or the dance master will say, Kya song diya hai; I say, I'll make it look good. That’s what I tell my directors – give me any scene and I'll make it look good. That’s my job and I'm not being pompous about it. If the scene is written well, shot well, they make me look good, if everything is good, then what I am doing? What am I being paid so much money for? What do I bring to the floors?
My part of it is that the cameraman should look through the lens and say, `Wow!’ The writer should say, `Hey, I never wrote the scene like that.’ I want the director to say, `Shit, I never thought the scene could be played like this.’ And I want the audience to say, `Hey, everything’s silly, but it works!’
That does happen ever so often.
That should happen. That’s the way we make films. So what are we sitting and nit picking for? Though I have a lot of respect for people who do that also, because that’s what works for them.
Let’s move to your next film, Chalte Chalte…
It’s about a couple – Rani plays a girl called Priya and I play Raj (which I’m usually called in films)…
‘Scuse the interruption, but would you ever ask a scriptwriter or director to change your name?
A rose by any other name would smell as sweet. It’s more of a marketing thing. Doesn’t make a difference to me. Call me anything you want, I'll make it look good. I'll make sure people say ‘Yeh Raj naam bahut achcha lagta hai aapko’.
Back to Chalte Chalte and Raj and Priya…
Ask me what the story is, I'll tell you I don’t have a story. It's about a man and a woman, and that’s the greatest story in the world, I think. That’s how God meant it to be. But it’s also a very simple story.
As an actor and as a producer (along with Aziz and Juhi) I wanted to go back to the basics after Devdas. Do a role that had no strings attached, was not larger than life. K3G, Asoka, and Devdas were overwhelming; bigger than I am. The one question I was asked all through the making of Devdas was, After Devdas what? (in dramatic tones) `Shah Rukh, it’s been 10-11 years. Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman. From deewana to Devdas. Now what?’
With all due respect to Devdas, it was for me as an actor, no different from my other films. It's the most wonderful film I’ve ever done, the director is absolutely outstanding, perhaps the best director in the country, the film is written well, has lovely shots, lovely situations, wonderful sets, all the back-up an actor needs to make this shit look good.
But I had as much fun doing Badshah as I had doing Devdas.
What was it about the Raj of Chalte Chalte that appealed to you?
That it was a very common character, a la a Hrishikesh Mukherjee film, that kind of simplicity. Pyar to aisi hi hota hai. Love is blind, marriage is an eye opener. Love is forgetting her birthday, not remembering his mother’s anniversary. Two or three scenes in the movie have happened to me. And everyone in the cinema hall should, at one point, nudge his or her partner and say, that’s us. Or if your partner is not with you, you should go back home and say to him or her, I went to that movie to get away from you, and I was reminded of you; shit, I couldn’t get away from you. I think we’ve managed that.
What did Rani Mukherjee bring to her character?
I don’t want to say Rani is my friend, because it's such a misused term. So I’ll call her my student. Because she did her first big film, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, with me. And nobody knows this but I chose her for that film. She had just been launched and Karan was looking for a girl. I had seen just one shot of Rani but I told Karan, `Take that girl, she’s got a very interesting face; she’s got something as an actor.’ Otherwise, I never suggest heroines.
I think Rani’s never really been given her due. She can be a little scatterbrained but if she puts her mind to it, she can come up with great stuff. This movie was made in four months, she wasn’t doing anything else, so she’s been focused on it and she’s outstanding. She’s the reason to watch this film. By the way, she’s Gauri’s favorite actress.
Aishwarya Rai is very upset with you for dropping her from Chalte Chalte, going by some of her recent remarks.
As a friend, co-actor, someone’s who extremely fond of her, I’m really sad that happened. On a personal level, I am really sorry and I would apologise to her and keep the apology personal, not make it public. But I stand by my decision as a producer and if I'm not mistaken I've apologized to her as a producer. It was a collective decision taken on behalf of the company. We’re in debt, we’re making a movie after two pictures that haven’t done well and we couldn’t have this sort of thing happening. In 11 years and 40 films, I've done nothing to ever give anybody professional stress. At this age and stage I don’t expect it to happen to me.
I have gone to the floor with a broken arm. I have lost close friends, been unhappy, but gone and danced on the sets. I will jump from the 40th floor with a broken spinal cord if need be. I'm not the kind who reports on the sets at 9 am and some of my co-actors and colleagues might have waited for me. But overall, I’ve never stepped on anybody’s toes because of my personal problems.
Personally, Aishwarya’s a lovely person, I don’t have an iota of a complaint against her. I don’t think anybody has. I’m truly sorry as a friend and I've said so to her--at the Filmfare Awards night, I think. But I can understand her anger, I can understand a relationship being spoilt.
Has the relationship been spoilt?
I don’t know. If it has, I can't complain. Life will go on.
Who knows, you might be working together again soon.
Inshallah. But I only work with directors, not actresses. Or actors. Whenever anyone comes up to me and says, You’ve never worked with me, I ask them, Have you turned into a director? Because I only work with directors. It’s the director who casts the film and I’ll work with whoever is cast.With every movie, I ask myself, `Can I do two things In this whole damn film that will make me want to be an actor?’
Considering that you keep the professional and personal very separate, how far would you help a friend on the sets?
I do it with all my directors. I always suggest different ways of doing a scene. I usually act it out for them. But I would never ask a director to take my suggestion just because he or she is my friend. And I may argue, but I will do exactly what the director wants even if I don’t agree with it. I will give my suggestion, but if you don’t agree with my good suggestion and go with a bad suggestion, then it‘s my job to make even that bad suggestion look good. Because there’s no right or wrong way to do something in acting or any creative art. And if the directors’ belief is so strong, I'll go with it. For instance, I might have liked to do some of the scenes in Devdas differently, but did exactly what Sanjay asked me to.
Even if you thought there was a better way of doing it.
Better is the killer of good. Good is good enough. Sholay ka Shaan mat banao. Rameshji won’t like this, but that’s the way they put it in the industry. If a scene is good, then leave it. Don’t try and make it the nicest, the best, the greatest…. Good is good enough.
How did you react to Vivek Oberoi calling you, along with others, a wimp for not speaking out against Salman Khan?
No, I will not get drawn into this sad incident. I don’t think it deserves an external comment from me, not because I think I'm too big to do so but because it is too small to talk about. I am not a participant, it doesn’t affect my life at all. I work too hard, I respect myself too much to comment on this incident. For me, it's sadly irrelevant.
One is asking you the question because you’ve been specifically mentioned.
Yes, I've seen the interview. But till you pointed it out to me, I didn’t even feel anything. Lots of people say lots of things about me. But other than what my family and close friends say, nothing touches me or affects me. Call me cold-hearted, crass, selfish, self-centred, egoistic, say I’m a dog, an asshole … I am untouched inside my ivory tower. That’s the way I am. I am completely unemotional about it. I don’t want to divert my energies into reacting to such things; I’d rather use that energy for my films.
In any case, he hasn’t called me a wimp to my face. And, as you know, video and telephonic conversations are not admissible as evidence in court of law. People have called me worse things to my face; it's absolutely all right. I just observe it and use it in my films. And if I’m in a good frame of mind, I might even tell the person that I used it--This is how you slapped me. Or, This is the nice thing you said to me.
Even at home, I never get angry. My driver went and bashed up my car on the very day I bought it. Gauri was upset, but I said, these things happen, let’s move on.
Do you control your anger or just don’t feel it?
I don’t feel it. The bottom line is that I've been given so much that I cannot complain about anything. Sometimes I'm scared--when something really big and bad happens to me, will I have the right to complain to God? Will He think I’m really ungrateful? My lot has been blessed with so much I cannot, cannot, cannot, for the life of me make an issue of a small thing. It's just the thankfulness of having so much.
So what would make you really angry?
It bothers me when people let down people. There should be trust and honesty and that is all that is important for me. I’ve lived life like that and it's been very good for me.
For a man who asks a lot of questions, you have an unquestioning faith in God.
I believe that God is good, caring, understanding and if he’s taken a decision for me, it has to be good. It's like the way I take decisions for my family. Sometimes they may seem harsh, sometimes they may seem wrong, sometimes they may seem right. But I take them with a lot of goodness and I think He does the same for me with much, much, much more goodness. I have no questions now to ask Allah. I used to at one time. But not any more….
Shit, I told you no introspection and that’s what I'm doing…
Madhuri Dixit Nene named son Areen
Madhuri Dixit Nene has called her son Areen. The name means "to him no obstacles shall come". And Madhuri Dixit is busy playing real-life momma to the hilt. Her acting career has taken a backseat for the moment. After her fabulous performance in Devdas and her long tenure at the top spot in the glamour industry, this actress surely deserves a break. But she insists that she'll be back to doing what she does best, sooner rather than later.
"Bhoot" strikes in Delhi
New Delhi, June 19: A mysterious death in a cinema hall has added a touch of Hitchcock to a Hindi horror movie "Bhoot".
A theatre manager in New Delhi on Thursday said a man was found dead in his seat on Monday after the late-night screening of the horror movie "Bhoot".Roop Ghai, manager of the Paras cinema hall, said the theatre's cleaning staff found the man, aged around 50, slumped in his seat after the end of the showing of "Bhoot."
REMAKES MAY GET BOLLYWOOD IN A SOUP
Most of the remakes do not do well at the box office; filmmakers are still trying their luck on the remakes. Even this year may witness a lot of remakes. Even in the middle of the second month of 2003, there have already been six remakes either of South Indian or a Hollywood flicks.
This year's maiden release 'Aapko Pahle Bhi Kahin Dekha Hai', had its roots in Robert DeNiro's 'Meet The Parents', while 'Tujhe Meri Kasam' can be traced to a Malayalam film called 'Niram'. Interestingly, in the second week of January there was 'Kucch To Hai' which was inspired from 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' and 'Jism' inspired from 'Double Indemnity' and 'U-Turn'. Then there was Vivek Oberoi's 'Dum', which was inspired from a Tamil film 'Dhill'. Incidentally, barring his maiden film 'Company', Vivek's released films have been remakes. His second release 'Road' was inspired from 'No U Turn' and his third 'Saathiya' was a remake of Mani Rathnam's 'Alai Payuthey'. Boney Kapoor's Fardeen Khan- Kareena Kapoor starrer 'Khushi' was a remake of a superhit Telugu film of the same name.
'Raaz', was a reworking of the hit Hollywood supernatural thriller 'What Lies Beneath'. 'Analyse This', a hit comedy starring Robert de Niro as a mafia don and Billy Crystal as his reluctant shrink, was remade as 'Hum Kisise Kum Nahin'. The 1997 hit, 'My Best Friend's Wedding', inspired 'Mere Yaar Ki Shaadi Hai' although the role of the gay friend was changed to that of a girl. Other Hollywood remakes in 2002 were 'Pitaah' 'A Time To Kill', 'Tumko Na Bhool Payenge' 'The Long Kiss Goodnight', 'Awara Pagal Deeawana' 'The Whole Nine Yards', 'Aankhen' 'Dobermann Gang', 'Humraaz' 'The Perfect Murder', 'Mujhse Dosti Karoge' 'You've Got Mail', 'Chor Machaye Shor' 'Blue Streak', 'Ek Chhotisi Love Story' 'A Small Love Story', 'Yeh Kya Ho Raha Hai' 'American Pie I & II', 'Deewangee' 'Primal Fear', 'Kehtaa Hai Dil Baar Baar' 'Meet The Parents' and 'Chalo Ishq Ladayen' 'Throw Mama From The Train'. Similarly, if you were impressed with 'Kaante', give due credit to Quentin Tarantino for the plot (Reservoir Dogs) and Guy Ritchie 'Lock, Stock and Barrel' for the execution.
The Southern remakes of 2002 included films like Telugu hits 'Koi Mere Dil Se Pooche' 'Pelli', 'Kya Yehi Pyar Hai' 'Suswagatham ', 'Kuch Tum Kaho Kuch Hum Kahen' 'Kalasivundham Raa', 'Kya Dil Ne Kaha' 'Swayaruvaram', 'Badhai Ho Badhai' 'Shubhankshalu', 'Humko Tumse Pyar Hai' 'Pelli Pondiri', 'Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam' 'Pottachi Nirgi', 'Pyar Deewana Hota Hai' 'Seenu' and 'Shakti' 'Anthahapuram' which was based on Hollywood flick 'Not Without My Daughter'.
There are quite a few films that are remakes of either a Telugu or a Tamil film or from some Hollywood flick lined up for release this year. The Tusshar Kapoor and newcomer Anita starrer 'Yeh Dil' is a remake of a Telugu film 'Nuvvu Nenuv' while Anil Kapoor starrer 'Calcutta Mail' is a remake of another Telugu hit 'Chudalani Vunni'. And if you find any similarity between 'The Wild Things' in Kalpana Lajmi's 'Kyon' or the Milind Soman starrer 'Saazish' (both the films are based on the same Hollywood film), 'The Road To Redemption' and '3 Deewarein' and for that matter similarities between E.T and Rakesh Roshan's 'Koi Mil Gaya', just pretend it's a coincidence. The newly launched 'Sannata - The Silence' with Talat Jani as its director is said to be based on Nicole Kidman starrer 'Others' and Juhi Chawla has been signed to play Kidman's role.
The word remake doesn't exist in the tinsel town vocabulary. Thyat's why most queries regarding the originality of a film or its source result in such answers. It is said that is not a remake of that film.... We've just taken the basic idea from it... if you watch our film, you will realise how different it is.
However, remaking or getting inspired from Hollywood flicks will sooner or later get Bollywood producers into trouble. After 'Kaante' Hollywood is said to be taking a serious note of the many Hindi films that are being remade. Until now Hollywood they did not find it worthwhile to tangle with filmmakers in a Mumbai court. They are waiting for is a real big hit Hindi film based on a Hollywood flick to assess how much money such remakes make in the East. Then they will investigate how closely such movies are copying the originals.
Of course, Bollywood films are not exact copies of Hollywood and they have something new to say. Moreover, most of these remakes have failed badly at the box-office.
The stark truth is that the students, especially in metropolitan cities, have started opting for Hollywood movies instead of usual Hindi ones. The changeover from Bollywood to Hollywood is due to the ongoing plagiarism. They trace the origin of one Hindi film to three Hollywood scripts. Thus they have shelved watching Hindi movies in theaters, causing a huge loss of Rs 100 crore, say, 20 million US dollars, to the industry.
Besides, the imitation of Hollywood films is blind. The producers not only borrow the scripts, they fail to adjust them according to Indian conditions. If a character in the west is copied in India, his surroundings, dress etc must change.
A section in Bollywood considers it all right. This section feels that films are made to entertain. They need not contain high art. Films are not about creativity, originality or vision. They are about entertaining audiences across the board. The advocates of creativity in films blame such directors as they shoot directly after watching a foreign VCD and remake what they saw frame - by- frame. Filmmakers decry these directors for saying that there is a dearth of good storywriters. India has plenty of literature. It is a myth that Hollywood is the last word in filmmaking.
Kareena Behaves Charismatic!
Believe it or not, Kareena Kapoor, one of the hottest heroines of Bollywood, has changed a lot nowadays. The gorgeous girl who in known to speak bold and frank, and in turn, to create troubles for herself, has learnt an all new way of conversing with the media.
Recently, she met a group of journalists to speak about Rajshri's forthcoming movie Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon as a part of strategy worked out by Sooraj Barjatya. The meet was organized in Hotel Sun-N-sand in Juhu and Kareen came there wearing black jeans and a light blue colored top.
As television scribes kept her busy for more time than expected, she managed to face the print media only after one and a half hour of the decided time. "Sorry," said she in gentle voice, "I did not know the TV interviews will go on for so long…" and then she gave answers to as many questions as possible in the next one hour or so.
According to Kareena, MPKDH is not a woman oriented movie and both the male protagonists, Hrithik Roshan and Abhishek Bachchan, have as strong roles as hers. Though Karishma's relationship with Abhishek is broken, Kareena was all for praises for the junior Bachchan.
But the most interesting answer came from her when someone asked whether she would like to join television like several other stars. "Karishma has joined television only after 13 years in the industry and I have hardly seen four years as yet. Let me see my rest of the years and I will give a though to the idea of working on the small screen," Kareena said in a charming way. Well said, Bebo.
Operation Heroine Hunt
Mumbai, June 12: Hollywood's search for an Indian actress to play James Bond girl did not materialise. However, its opposite is happening in Britain.
Britain's Channel 4 is launching a talent search for Asian women. The winner of the talent search will become an actress in Bollywood. According to sources, the talent search requires the woman to have the basic skills to make it to Bollywood. Prominent among these skills is the ability to dance.
Amitabh Akshay Bobby together.
After getting acclamation from one and all for his last venture KAANTE, Sanjay Gupta is all set to go ahead with his next venture. The casting of his previous film was talk of the town. He managed to get as many as six big stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Sunil Shetty, Lucky Ali, Mahesh Manjrekar and Kumar Gaurav. This time again he has done it! His next film has been titled MUSAFIR and it stars Sanjay Dutt, Anil Kapoor, Sunil Shetty and Sameera Reddy. This will be for the first time that Sanjay Dutt and Anil Kapoor will be seen together.
Horror flicks are in the vog.
After the success of Ram Gopal Varma's BHOOT and Govind Menon's KHWAHISH, it seems these days thriller, horror and sex oriented movies are the latest trend of Bollywood. Films like Mukesh Bhatt's SAAYA, Ram Gopal Varma's DARNA MANA HAI, Kushan Nandy's 88 ANTOP HILL and Guddu Dhanoa's HAWA are all complete and nearing releases. The latest to join this group is Ekta Kapoor. Though,Ekta's last project, KUCCH TO HAI could not manage to do well at the box-office. She is all set with the super natural horror flick KIBERLY COTTAGE NO. 16, starring Sohail Khan, Isha Koppikar and Natasha. Apparently, Guddu Dhanoa's HAWA, starring Tabu is the remake of Hollywood flick, THE ENTITY. It seems that after making people cry in most of her films, Tabu is all set to scare them. The film tells the story of mother (Tabu) who is trapped in a haunted house along with her children. The promos of the film is on air and they indicate that Tabu has given some bold scenes, which promises to scare the daylight out of you
This is for the fourth time.
Despite the fact that Zayed Khan’s debut venture, CHURA LIYA HAI TUMNE could not do well at the box office. He has managed to get several projects. He is playing the second lead in Shah Rukh Khan’s next home-production, being directed by choreographer-turned-director Farha Khan. He is also playing the lead role in A. Poornachandra Rao’s IDIOT, being directed by Deepak Shivdasni and starring Celina Jaitley in the female lead. By the way, prior to this IDIOT has been made three times in the past. The original film, APPU was made in Kannada. It was directed by Puri Jagannath and had yesteryear superstar Rajkumar’s youngest son in the lead. It celebrated silver jubilee in as many as eleven stations. Puri also directed the Telugu version of the film, titled IDIOT. This film celebrated 100 days in 71 stations. While, the Tamil version of the film CHIMPU was super hit too.
Five movies but same plot.
What is the common thing between these coming ventures? Raj Kumar Santoshi’s KHAKEE, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgan and Tusshar, Madhur Bhandarkar’s AAN, starring Shatrughan Sinha, Akshay Kumar and Sunil Shetty, Prakash Jha’s GANGAJAL, starring Ajay Devgan, N. Chandra’s KAGAAR, starring Om Puri and Nandita Das and last but not the least Govind Nihalani’s DEV, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Fardeen Khan and Kareena Kapoor.
All these films tackle with the issue of police officers. The backdrop of all these films is law. Interestingly, all these films are making brisk progress and are scheduled to release one after another.
It is going to be a very tough time for the audiences to select the best one to watch
SRK out of action
Mumbai, June 15: Shah Rukh Khan is likely to be out of action for another two months. The actor is currently undergoing physiotherapy for his back surgery in London.
Meanwhile, his latest flick to hit the theatres, 'Chalte Chalte' with Rani Mukherjee has received good opening. This is good news for Dreamz Unlimited productions considering that their earlier two productions, 'Asoka' and 'Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani' had proved to duds at the box-office.
Once bitten, twice shy
It is said that people learn from their mistakes and make sure that they don’t repeat them in the future. This theory applies even more to those makers who are now trying to complete their films as early as possible, after burning their hands and wasting years together on making a film. Take the case of Raj Kumar Santoshi, whose most of the project, CHINA GATE, GHATAK, took an indefinite period of time in the making.
Bollywood is starting to break decades-old stereotypes by dealing openly with sex.
In a marked departure from formulaic storylines and hackneyed treatment of love scenes, several movies are also dealing in generous doses of skin in an attempt to draw in audiences after the industry has not seen a single big hit so far this year.
"Andaaz" which hit screens across the country last week, features a former Miss Universe and a former Miss World, whose skimpy costumes have generated more buzz than their acting abilities.
"Khwaish", slated for a June release, is being billed as a phenomenon in Indian cinema -- with no less than 17 kissing scenes and portraying a young couple who are anything but shy about discussing their sex life.
For many years, Hindi films shied away from showing even a kiss, with scenes cutting away chastely to shots of birds, bees or flowers.
In other soon-to-be released films, "Oops" explores the murky world of male strippers, while "Fresh Lime" is about a businessman who fantasises about women in the office.
Several other recent films have shown the female star wearing only a bikini. "It's a reflection of our lives. College girls these days dress to reveal more and conceal less," says Vinod Mirani, editor of Box Office, a film trade journal.
He attributes the change to a "couldn't care less attitude of the new generation." But he also said that after several hyped big-budget films flopped, the industry was looking for other factors to pull in audiences.
Trade experts say the trend began with the biggest grossing film so far this year -- "Jism" which tells the story of a woman who is unapologetic about using her sexuality to persuade her lover to kill her rich husband.
The small budget film turned out to be a surprise hit and its star, Bipasha Basu, is now one of the most sought after actresses in Bollywood.
"The success of "Jism" showed that Indians are no longer ashamed of watching a steamy scene in a full house," says leading filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who wrote the film's screenplay.
Bhatt says the film reflected a change in the mindset of the Indian viewer. "Earlier, a steamy film would be shown in small towns and would be seen by men who came for titilation, but now urban women throng upscale halls to watch such films."
The film also breaks stereotypes about women, Bhatt said. "In earlier films, only bad people had sex, while good people fell in love."
But the phenomenon has been restricted so far to small budget films in Bollywood, which is known for spending millions of rupees on sets, costumes and lavish song and dance sequences.
Bhatt said it was because the producers of big budget films meant for a pan-Indian audience could not afford to take the risk of offending people.
Movie Review : Bhoot
