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MOVED
AND MOVING
SHE arrived fashionably late for the show, and almost immediately,
was gheraoed by the star-struck Calcutta crowd like no other
celebrity was that evening. Even as the posse of photographers,
their flashbulbs popping, pressed down upon her with cameras
held up like battering rams, the rest of the crowd quickly
forgot all about the boring speeches they were listening to,
and rushed for a glimpse of her. And it wasn’t until
after quite a struggle that the security men managed to whisk
her away to the safety of the dressing rooms, backstage.
Indeed, RANI MUKHERJI was the toast of Calcutta that evening,
when the Kalakaar Awards 2001 were presented by Cine Advance,
in association with ATN and the Lions Club. Later, when summoned
on stage to receive the best actress award for her performance
in Har Dil Jo Pyaar Karega, she repaid the compliment, almost
in kind. “Calcutta is my motherland, since my mom comes
from here. What I cherish most about the city is the love
I get here. I’m deeply moved by your affection,”
she said.
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FRACTURED LEG AND ALL
MADHOSH, his home production didn’t quite set the box-office
on fire. But FAISAL KHAN appeared all ready and eager to step
out of brother Aamir’s shadow with his susequent release,
Dharmesh Darshan’s Aamir-Twinkle starrer, Mela.
Having worked with Aamir, some of his brother’s dedication
and commitment seems to have rubbed off on Faisal, too. On
the sets of Basti, his forthcoming attraction, he’s surprised
producer Basharat Khan with his involvement. Basti, for those
who tuned in late, is a tale of two brothers who’re diametrically
opposed to each other in temperament. Samir Soni, he of China
Gate fame, plays his brother, with Shama Sikhandar and Sanobar
Kabir to pair them.
At a recent Basti shoot at Kamal Amrohi Studios, Mumbai, Faisal
turned down director Tarun Wadhwa’s offer of letting
a duplicate attempt the risky stunt of jumping from the first
floor of a building. The result? A great shot, and of course,
a fractured thighbone. Vincing and hobbling in pain, Faisal
volunteered, fractured leg and and all, to complete his day’s
scenes before letting the doctors attend to him.
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LEFT
IN THE LURCH
TALKING of Rani Mukherji reminds us, she’s the second
star, after Anil Kapoor, to have walked out of the Vikram
Bhatt-directed Tum Ko Meri Kasam. Incidentally, AFTAB SHIVDASANI
had been chosen as Anil Kapoor’s replacement in the film.
Now, producer Mukesh Bhatt is going to have to find a repacement
for Rani as well.
The reasons for Rani leaving haven’t been disclosed as
yet. She’s on a strong wicket, careerwise, and things
have never looked so good for her before this. What with a
glut of interesting projects coming her way, she’s probably
resolved to give the less enticing ones the miss. Or is it
that the prospect of working with Aftab has made her change
her mind, as rumours suggest? After the dismal showing of
Kasoor, Aftab, after all, isn’t exactly hot property
right now, this despite the fact that he’s got a dozen
odd releases coming up.
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RUSTLING UP SURPRISES
TABU, we swear, was almost unrecognisable when we met her
at the Om Jai Jagdish launch, sporting a glamorous short blunt
cut and a slinky blue  sequinned
dress. And as if these weren’t loud enough, she was tottering
on a pair of blue high heels, quite a far cry from the sedately
decked Tabu we’re used to seeing. For a minute we thought
it was Urmila Matondkar standing before us.
So are we in for a new-look Tabu in the film? “Well,
you’ll see me in glam getup only in one scene. Thereafter,
I revert right back to the girl next door attire,” she
reassures us.
Tabu, if you don’t know, has discovered a new fad lately:
rustling up Bengali delicacies to surprise her friends. “I’m
already famous for my rabris and rosgollas,” she brags.
“But there’s one dish I can never seem to get right,
the mishti toi. Mine’s invariably on the watery side.”
Care to pass on a few tips to her, any one?
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HER CROWNING GLORY
LATA MANGESHKAR’s thrilled to bits. Awarded the Bharat
Ratna, the highest civilian honour in the country (along with
Ustad Bismillah Khan, the shehnai exponent), Lata said she
felt as if there was no other award left to win.
Talking to Screen from her apartment at London by the Thames,
where she was “resting” following an attack of the
flu, Lata said, “I have never been so happy in my life,
both as a person and singer. I never dreamt of winning an
award as prestigious as the Bharat Ratna. After 50 years of
devotion to music and singing, I feel triumphant at winning
the award. I am indeed grateful to the people and the government
of India for showering me with so much affection.”
Asked what her plans for the future were, she said, “Kabhi
kabhi aisa lagta hai abhi kuch paane ke liye hai hi nahi.
Aur kabhi kabhi aisa lagta hai abhi aur bahut kuch karna baaki
hai. I shall continue to sing very select songs. I cannot
give up singing so easily. It’s God’s gift to me.
There’s also my father’s memorial, the Pune hospital,
to take care of when I get back next week.”
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MAMA MIA!
RATI AGNIHOTRI, as we’d hinted a while ago, is in a great
deal of demand in her comeback bid right now, as on screen
mom. She’s maintained her looks remarkably, and seems
the perfect choice for glamorous mom, a slot producers have
had a tough time filling up of late.
And Rati, sure, is enjoying every minute of it. “My last
film before I quit the scene temporarily was Tawaaif, with
Rishi Kapoor. My comeback film, Kuch Khatti Kuch Meethi also
had Rishi Kapoor in the cast. Obviously, he’s my goodluck
charm,” she twinkles.
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THE
SIX YEAR OLD SENSATION
THE little moppet’s a wellknown face on the telly, having
been a part of several prominent ad campaigns such as Maggie
and Britannia. Now, YASH PATHAK’s
all set to catch the eye of moviebuffs in the title role in
the Prakash Jha-directed film for Mukta Arts, Rahul.
Never mind the fact that he’s six years old, and playing
a boy who’s nearly two years younger, our friends in
the film’s unit claim Yash is a born natural in front
of the camera, and is bound to mesmerise movie goers. He plays
a little boy who’s frustrated by frequent quarrels between
his parents (Jatin Garewal and Neha), and tries to get them
to settle their differences and stay together.
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SANDSTORM GOES WEST
SURF through some foreign filmfest and movie sites like  www.sarasotafilmfest.com,
or www.smfilmfestival.com or even www.cinequest.org, this
week, and you’ll be surprised to see that their reviewers
have gone into near paroxysms of praise over an Indian movie.
Guess which one? Jagmohan Mundhra’s Nandita Das-starrer
Bawandar (Sandstorm), of course. The film has attracted epithets
such as “a jewel of a movie,” “amazing and
courageous,” and “riveting, complex, excruciating,
powerful, intelligent... a must see.”
When was the last time an Indian film deserved and won such
high praise? Well, that should give our filmmakers some food
for thought.
The movie may still be awaiting its censor certificate in
India, but it’s already going places in the West. It’s
been shortlisted for the Movie Awards at the Santa Monica
film festival for best dramatic film. The awards functions’s
slated for February 19, and the film’s team, also comprising
the likes of Raghubir Yadav, Deepti Naval, Rahul Khanna, Laila
Rouass and Govind Namdeo, is awaiting D-Day with butterflies
in their tummies. The film’s also scheduled to be screened
at the Gotemborg Film festival in Sweden and the San Jose
festival later this month, before travelling to Chicago for
a fund-raiser show for charity and the Asian Women’s
Film Festival in London in March.
So far so good. But the moot question, as a movie website
asks, is, “Will the film ever get released in India?”.
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DANDRUFF,
BEWARE
SO crusader SHAH RUKH KHAN’s all set to take his fight
against dandruff into  another
year. The Khan’s been signed again by Hindustan Lever
Ltd to promote Clinic All Clear, the company’s anti-dandruff
brand of shampoo that contains Zinc Pyrithione (ZPTNO).
The new ‘Dho Dala’ campaign features Shah Rukh with
the tag line, “Dandruff hataye, balon ko swasth mulayam
banaye.” The new commercial series has been directed
by Deven Khote, and has been shot against a colossal set,
the likes of which has never been seen before in Indian TV
commercials. An extension of last year’s series, it has
Shah Rukh, who dares to wear black, confident in the knowledge
that there are no telltale flakes of dandruff on his coat,
walking up to Ruby Bhatia to collect the All Clear Trophy,
presumably for the most dandruff-free hair.
Shaju George Alex
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