After
Bombay Drems' success, mainstream theatre productions in Britain
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Having discarded the AIADMK's Dravidian
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TODAY CONCLAVE
The
Conclave concludes on a high note. Al Gore, Stanley Fischer and other world
leaders listen and are heard. Catch up on the highlights. Take
me to Conclave now
CARE
TODAY
INDIA
TODAY HINDI
CURRENT
ISSUE DECEMBER 09, 2002
ENTERTAINMENT: CINEMA
Q&A: Asif Kaadia
"I'm not qualified to
direct a film here."
British-Asian
director Asif Kapadia talks about his feature debut The Warrior becoming
the first non-English British entry to the Oscars and why a foray into
the world's largest movie industry isn't a distinct possibility.
Q. The Warrior, UK's
first non-English entry to the Oscars. How does it feel? A. Great. It's a real surprise and feels very good to
be in that long list of movies. Now let's hope it makes it to the last
five. It should make filmmakers work out of the English language.
Q. Have films like last year's semi-finalist
Lagaan and Monsoon Wedding significantly expanded awareness about Indian
cinema globally?
A. Yes, they have. Though they are quite different movies, they have
on the whole been helping each other.
Q. What next? A Bollywood flick?
A. I'm writing three English film scripts. And though I do watch Bollywood
and Mani Ratnam is my favourite I don't feel I'm qualified to direct a
film here yet. I need to learn more about the structure and the style.
Summer of '42
Kapadia (left) and Naval in Leela
If heads turned when Akshaye Khanna wooed
a 40-plus Dimple Kapadia in Dil Chahta Hai, they don't anymore as
just about every film seems to be made with a Summer of '42 theme.
Ageing divas Kapadia, Deepti Naval and Manisha Koirala seem to be
having a field day playing Mrs Robinsons to a host of fresh-faced
teens. There was Koirala playing peekaboo with a 14-year-old in
the controversial Ek Chhoti Si Love Story and Kapadia, again in
love with a 20-something Amol Mhatre in Somnath Sen's Leela. Now
it's Naval, who has a passionate affair with her teenaged paying
guest in V.K. Pra-kash's Freaky Chakra.
Minister at Work
Sinha at the mahurat of Aan
With audiences rejecting
a spate of films, Bollywood is calling this its worst year. Big
films aren't being announced and among the biggest casualties have
been lavish mahurats which usually precede multi-starrers. But producer
Firoz A. Nadiadwala decided to be different. His film Aan-Men At
Work, which stars Union Health Minister Shatrughan Sinha-he sought
the prime minister's permission before signing the film-had the
year's biggest mahurat. Information & Broadcasting Minister Sushma
Swaraj sounded the clap for the film that also stars Akshay Kumar,
Sunil Shetty and Jackie Shroff. Aan, directed by Madhur Bhandarkar,
has all the lead stars playing upright policemen. Reason enough
for Police Commissioner M.N. Singh, who had earlier chided Bollywood
for lampooning the Mumbai Police, to attend the mahurat. Thankfully,
he didn't notice the police's bete noire, producer Bharat Shah,
in the audience.
BOX
OFFICE
Kehta Hai Dil, with
Kim Sharma and Jimmy Shergill, is a washout while the Shabana Azmi-starrer
Makdee has garnered average business. Four biggies are due out on
December 6-Rishtey, Karz-The Burden of Truth, Maseeha and the much-awaited
Kaante. Will it be the charge of the Light Brigade?
The Mess
CURRENT
ISSUE DECEMBER 09, 2002
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