tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-87796842014073000972024-03-19T08:40:35.313+05:30100% Wholesome Indian FilmsNikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-73618106118839227752009-05-10T20:25:00.013+05:302009-05-10T20:43:23.048+05:30Happy Mother's Day<p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><br /></p><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Dear Ma, </span></p><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><br /></p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 253px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinC2-gGxaqf3fNIsLiHnIF0zdAFWFC7GQbPEU3N9s8MOLqDtThWh1I3GF3_mAwszML4HZ8Wm21pWVgtOp8WzJfPI2Eb8vCY4fbZs77Slwvl-YTIJEBq-zQVcqzCnnhyphenhyphenGXM382GA1m9I7M/s320/AladinMom(B:W).jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334212302678553090" /><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">… this is the only picture I have of you. I’m sorry it’s old and faded. But your memory lives on forever in my heart. </span></p><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">You named me ‘Aladin’ but I don’t even remember what it felt like to hear you call me by my name...to be scolded by you, to be told by you that everything will be alright, to be told to go to school and do my homework and eat my food on time and I...wish you were here to tell me everything will be alright. </span></p><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Wish I could wish you in person today.</span></p> <p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Miss you…</span></p> <p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Tell dad also that I love him and miss him.</span></p><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Love, </span></p><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Aladin</span></p><p class="Body" style="tab-stops:28.35pt 56.7pt 85.05pt 113.4pt 141.75pt 170.1pt 198.45pt 226.75pt 255.1pt 283.45pt 311.8pt 340.15pt 368.5pt 396.85pt 425.2pt 453.55pt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" white-space: pre;font-size:48px;"><br /></span></p> <!--EndFragment-->Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-70432810889016519482009-05-07T00:45:00.010+05:302009-05-07T08:05:44.102+05:30'Aladin' Genesis - Part 5 - Ringmaster Arrives...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfb6DVEXEKJ1Zewu_3Hd0PS-NKlFqvkM2sDrYn9UCIxixXTzbF4LMBjvLEIfLfKzXOBXSHI4ESqrqbdWxCPAmXyY_kf7E8akqXBIea-Vp0jgiHsLq_sj61y91dBTNx0Vjn0BqI5s3bMtc/s1600-h/RINGMASTER+ARRIVES.jpg"></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">EROS PREVIEW THEATRE, 1998</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I get invited to the screening of a film. For the first time in my life, I am seeing a film before its release. And here I meet for the first time, Sanjay Gupta, one of my favourite directors and a fine technician. The man who taught me that it’s always good to start with a poster when you are staring at a gaping blank wall. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">CUT TO:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">MEHBOOB STUDIOS. FLOOR NO 3. 1999</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">For the first time I am seeing an actual film shoot, and that too in Mumbai. Gupta is shooting ‘Jung’ and I have gone to meet him. Inside the studio there is a set - of a cage - in which two men are going to fight. Reminds me of ‘Naseeb’. Gupta is a little hassled, as he needs more extras. More spectators to surround the cage. He talks to his producer on the phone while I stand on one side. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And it’s only then that I see a huge man walking towards the entrance to the floor (that’s what a film set is called in industry parlance: floor - NV). There is a unique swagger to his walk. It’s evening, dark and his cigarette floats in the air ahead of him as he emerges from the shadows and into the light. A couple of men besides him. For the first time I see Sanjay Dutt, in the flesh. He speaks to Gupta and leaves. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">At that point in time he doesn’t even know I exist.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">CUT TO:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">MEHBOOB STUDIOS, FLOOR NO 3. 2008</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">My first day of shoot with Duttsaab. He gets out of his van and swaggers towards the same entrance. The cigarette floats in the exact same spot. Except it’s day and not dark. Everybody on set stands up. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Ringmaster has arrived.</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 330px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxWFzbb81zzGV1u0oTvdTiYeMnKnF7FT0dHdSpv9dy0S2Rm9J6kJzRfU69UawuiRtxZznAx7B71KwVCPQietDDPuyjsmhmI3eldYEgK6a0OJVL-YdSbV97M1zGclsw8Lwbk326Pp5MbRM/s400/IAMRINGMASTER2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332804965633888962" /></p><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">EPILOGUE</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">After my first draft of ‘Aladin’ fell flat on its face I revisited the script and the biggest flaw I found, apart from few hundred others, was Gamal, my main villain. The dude was only wrecking havoc on earth because my pen allowed him. Aladin really didn’t need the help of the all powerful Genie to bring Gamal down. A few strategic slaps and maybe even I could have brought Gamal down. So goodbye Gamal. Back to the drawing board.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I wanted to create a fun, evil character. A man who is happy in what he is doing. A man who is good at being bad. A man who doesn’t need to do twenty thousand bad things to prove how evil he is. A man whose smile would scare the living daylights out of you. A man so big that even the all powerful Genie would be rendered helpless in front of him. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And Ringmaster was born. The happy face of evil personified. He wasn’t always bad. He was once a Genie but his powers were taken away from him. He tried to reason, he tried to say that he only used his own powers for himself because he had to… but no one listened. The laws are strict in the land of the Genies. A Genie can only use his powers to serve his master</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">. Nothing else.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Nobody saw Ringmaster’s desperation or heard his plea. And now Ringmaster is not going to see or hear anything. He is going to find the lamp, kill the owner, get his powers back and destroy everything. And he is a fair man. If Genius and Aladin think they can stop him, they are welcome to try. But it’s party time for Ringmaster!</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); font-family:Georgia;font-size:16px;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfb6DVEXEKJ1Zewu_3Hd0PS-NKlFqvkM2sDrYn9UCIxixXTzbF4LMBjvLEIfLfKzXOBXSHI4ESqrqbdWxCPAmXyY_kf7E8akqXBIea-Vp0jgiHsLq_sj61y91dBTNx0Vjn0BqI5s3bMtc/s400/RINGMASTER+ARRIVES.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332805209366909762" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 200px; " /></span></p><p style="text-align: center;margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">CUT TO: </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">MR.BACHCHAN’S RESIDENCE. JALSA. 2006 </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I finish an almost 3 hour narration with Sir. This is my revised and seriously worked upon script. I have let the juice flow on this one. No holds barred. When I wrote I couldn’t give a monkey’s bottom what was possible and what was not. I didn’t care how much it would cost. The goal was to create serious dope on paper which will take the audience on their biggest high ever. I even storyboarded what seemed impossible on paper to help me visualise. And thank god I did.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">After the narration the first thing Sir said.. after a long pause and I remember it verbatim.. ‘…its going to be a nightmare to make this film but lets make it…’ YES. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Second sentence “But who will play Ringmaster? Who CAN play Ringmaster”</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">BEGIN FLASHBACK:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">PALI HILL OCT 2005</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I am in the best gym in the world(no really.. I kid you not) .. Duttsaab comes in and calls me. He asks me that if I could write something for him and this new kid who he is really very fond of. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">“Bro write something good for me and Ritesh” I agree. And then Duttsaab asks me his much-asked question: “Bro whats happening to Borivali? When are we doing that?”</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">EARLIER THAT YEAR</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">APRIL 2005</span></p> <p style="text-align: center;margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; min-height: 14px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">My Dad decides to take off upstairs. Like any other responsible dad he decides to go ahead to check out everything and make sure everything is in place when we arrive. It’s not a good time. Borivali was still stuck because of budget and I needed another actor who could stand up to Sir. But it was a very dark and disturbing role. Not many wanted to do that role. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">At the same time ‘Home Delivery’ was suppose to happen later that year and I was panicking big time because I had no cameraman. I was up shit creek. Everything piled up at the same time. I was once skiming through a Bengali film “Swapner Ferrywalla” in which one frame caught my eye. The lighting of the set was something I had never seen before. It was shot by an unknown cameraman called Sirsha Ray. I didn’t have time to go to Calcutta so I looked for a cameraman in Mumbai. I desperately needed help. Dad pulls his stunt on me and I have no option but to go to Calcutta. Sirsha Ray was my Dad’s parting gift to me.</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">When Gupta heard about Dad he called me up and somehow we got to speak about Borivali. “What about Sanju?” Gups said “Why haven’t you asked him? You meet him in the gym don’t you?” I did, but didn’t have the balls to ask him to do such a dark role. “Are you mad? Sanju is perfect. And no one but him has the guts to play this role...” Gups was confident. “You go to Cal and do your work peacefully. I’ll talk to Sanju”</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">CUT TO:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">MARIOTT HOTEL. JUNE 2005</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Duttsaab is having a meeting at the coffee shop. Gups drag me there. I am genuinely nervous. He calls Duttsaab out. He comes and joins us. Gups tells Duttsaab that I am in a bit of a problem and than can be solved if he did that role. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">“ Cool bro...I’ll do it”. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">That’s it. No script. No narration. All he needed to hear was that someone was in trouble and he can help that someone. Nothing else mattered. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">No heart gets bigger than this. He had to rush back to his meeting. As he was going, on his own he guides me: “Bro take a letter from me...it will help you”. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I still have that letter.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">END FLASHBACK</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">BACK TO:</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">MR.BACHCHAN’S RESIDENCE. JALSA. 2006 </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I tell Sir that the only person who can play Ringmaster is either Sir himself or Sanjay Dutt. “That’s it. Sunju is the only person.. where is he?” I have no clue where Duttsaab is. “Talk to him” Sir tells me. I prepare myself to talk to Duttsaab when I meet him in the gym that evening. But before I could tell him -</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">My mobile rings. Its Duttsaab. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">“Bro Amitji just called me.. he was damn excited.. what is this new movie we are doing now? And why haven’t YOU told me?” I try to explain that I was going to because I had no idea Sir was going to call. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">That evening I showed Duttsaab all my homework on Ringmaster and a storyboard of a Ringmaster sequence. He looks at everything and especially his getup and gives me his consent in 4 words. And this too I remember verbatim. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">“Keep the moustache Bro”. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">CUT TO:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">JULY 2007</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Aladin prep is on full force. We are almost there. Duttsaab takes a sabbatical. Things are unclear. There are choices laid out in front of me. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">But I am clear about my choice. Aladin will only be made with Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt and Ritiesh Deshmukh. Else it will not be made. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I wait. Happily. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Rest, soon...</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"> - Sujoy</span></p> </div>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-78257279955943730092009-05-02T20:04:00.018+05:302009-05-03T09:48:50.050+05:30'Aladin' genesis - Part 4<div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHMsSJtIDQn_H0kH2fZNW4vUARAHdgkMLjW0UWMbJFql5bHePEf9sxYdA5bufI-pQA8xlS_uD0PvO_C0ZBK6VApI_A8O1ZbDohsgTd1ZnOBNTaAec09qpQ_L2Dal5s333ByryrtTUiK8/s1600-h/Sujoy4.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 192px; height: 144px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisHMsSJtIDQn_H0kH2fZNW4vUARAHdgkMLjW0UWMbJFql5bHePEf9sxYdA5bufI-pQA8xlS_uD0PvO_C0ZBK6VApI_A8O1ZbDohsgTd1ZnOBNTaAec09qpQ_L2Dal5s333ByryrtTUiK8/s400/Sujoy4.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331238682613179714" /></a><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic; font-family:Georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">(The fascinating account of the genesis of 'Aladin' continues with Sujoy sharing some of his first concept drawings for the film when the project started, and was much different from the present 'Aladin' , as well as some home-made filmmaking gyaan...Note to readers: please ignore guffaws from Vishal Dadlani during the following narrative - NV)</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica">How do I make a movie that has never been made before?<br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica">How do I brave the assessments of others when I make my intentions known? I mean,when Christopher Columbus said the World is ROUND… did everyone around the dinner table look at him and go “…Oh you donkey! What have you been drinking?”<br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Riteish <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">(Deshmukh, not to be confused with Ritesh – Shah, my co-writer) </span>had a simple solution: JUST WRITE IT.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">WOW! What advice! That’s the solution I was lacking. My life wasn’t sad anymore. I didn’t need the last brownie on the dinner table. Julia Roberts could have it for all I care! </span>NOT. Easier said than done. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">(Note to self: Never ask Ritiesh for a solution.)</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I am not a trained filmmaker. <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; ">(I can see Vishal Dadlani reading this and guffawing “Ya - we saw that in Home Delivery!” - ignore him.</span>) I taught myself whatever that I know of filmmaking. I had to. I had no choice. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">For more than 2 years I knocked on every possible door - and I mean EVERY - with my script ‘Jhankaar Beats’. And when I finally found a producer I realized there was no one to direct it. I was offered the baton and I grabbed it without blinking an eyelid. At that point my knowledge of directing a film was a little less than that of assembling a nuclear missile. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Satyajit Ray says our job as a director is to tell a story. That’s it. Nothing more. Nothing less. By that definition I am a storyteller. I am Mehmood in ‘Pyaar Kiye Jaa’. I am an alternative image of my grandmother who told me the most amazing stories when I was growing up. If I am able to captivate my audience like the way my grandmother held my attention then I am a capable director, else I have no business being in this industry.</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">So this is what I did:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">I read as much as I could</span>. Novels, short stories, graphic novels, bog standard comics… caste creed religion no bar. I read.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">I saw as many movies as possible.</span> Apart from Sajid Khan, I can hold my fort on movies with most people.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">I learnt to listen</span>. To my editor, my art director, my cameraman… anybody and everybody who could teach me anything about films. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And that’s exactly the path I have followed for 'Aladin'.</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I saw every movie in the genre. You name it and I have seen it. Every Ray, Spielberg, Zemekis, Jackson and the Joe Dantes of the world. Even Ridley Scott and Paul Verhoeven. Kissi ko nahi choda.. I devoured them to learn how they told their story. And more importantly to make sure : whatever the audience has seen in those movies is not repeated in mine. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I read all my graphic novels all over again. Fables, Sin Cities, Preachers, Runaways, Sandmans etc. etc. etc. I read all the stories written by Satyajit Ray, Asimov, Bradbury, Philip K. Dick, Sukumar Ray, Roald Dahl, Lewis Carol.. sab kuch.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And then I started to write ‘Aladin’ with Ritesh (Shah, my co writer, not Deshmukh)</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And to charge us up, we made ourselves a poster. A visual really helps when you are staring from a gaping blank wall.</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic;font-family:georgia;font-size:13px;"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 219px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfahQ9yS-gUNrdvLAm9iiZmlSInmxM4WFr1avHb6Ybgi8ALKj69yh7XEoj74P6cCITw3Qi6Se9SFx99F3_VjkNNeEmoctid3xL6vWdvbsI1XqW9WrKDnmoWQyoimKzkUcpV1QiAhamgUY/s320/Aladin+Poster1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331241577372559058" /></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic;font-family:georgia;font-size:13px;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">That’s my very first poster. It was done by my friend Sucharita who incidentally put all my concepts on paper. </span> </span></span></span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" font-style: italic;font-family:georgia;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; ">We then did one more iteration after the first draft was ready. To include 'Gamal', the main man who was going to wreck havoc on earth on behalf of the forty thieves. </p><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 219px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNa1fRaGOBVaIwtOF-BH8bABDpaXMjLhW0DsADJTfOc9QphyphenhyphenuwNEPVUP98h96C1IFxQcQ5WP5x2GW6PKVSp5vG9BD9csuRPERH6N_X7l2HsnKP3sW97-VVAaW3F1tpftAwz9KhTS_A5cA/s320/Aladin+Poster2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5331245429892935058" /><p style="text-align: center;margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><br /></p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><br /></p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><br /></p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 12px/normal Helvetica; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Incidentally GAMAL was the name of the leader of the thieves in ‘Alibaba and 40 Thieves’ (just in case you wanted to know).</span></span></span></span></span></span></p><p></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica">It was going to be a modern Aladin. An Aladin of today. With the coolest of the cool Genie and a villain bigger than anyone seen on screen before. A modern Aladin with the most beautiful Jasmine.<br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">One of the biggest hurdles was to find a name for the Genie. Any writer will know the hardest part of writing is to come up with names. Suresh Nair, my friend and co writer, found out that the word ‘GENIUS’ is a derivative of the word ‘GENIE’. Problem solved. Our Genie was named 'Genius'.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">The first draft was soon ready. I told the story to Riteish… he was okay but that wasn’t quite the reaction I was expecting. But what does he know?! I was dying to make Mr. Bachchan hear. He instantly agreed. He was scheduled to shoot a Reid and Taylor ad at YRF studios. He asked me come there. Yippe! </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I ran with my script. It was an awesome script according to me. I was fully confident ... he was going to hear and instantly say 'YES!'. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">(Note to self: …Oh you donkey! What have you been drinking?!)</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica">Rest, soon...</p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"> - Sujoy</p> <p></p> <!--EndFragment-->Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-65544175045959843232009-05-01T00:21:00.010+05:302009-05-01T08:35:31.848+05:30Wha...?! (Sujoy Ghosh at his expressive best)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXl_01KKMX8UqAsZQBNDyZEbL0vB3omSPvlVJRWQz1f1UrFFEK8zG4ZfHWGCjGkexRWfkMTuQRkEkjmSt4v8jb8oUwH4yj2gD8OeADaAcXgAFcDGauOx0JAoWIKyZFOnrGAkhtB5EpRQs/s1600-h/Gulp+copy.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 212px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXl_01KKMX8UqAsZQBNDyZEbL0vB3omSPvlVJRWQz1f1UrFFEK8zG4ZfHWGCjGkexRWfkMTuQRkEkjmSt4v8jb8oUwH4yj2gD8OeADaAcXgAFcDGauOx0JAoWIKyZFOnrGAkhtB5EpRQs/s320/Gulp+copy.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5330565862153606642" /></a><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">There has been some misinterpretation by the media about something I wrote in my blog the last time. Just to clarify…</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">First and foremost: thank you for reading my blog. I thought only 8 people read it (out of which 3 are family).</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Secondly when I wrote that Sir wanted me to cast a fresh face, he was being totally professional and unbiased and that’s all I wanted to convey. Come on, if it was me, the first thing I’d have asked was to cast my son as ‘Aladin’. But not Sir. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And that’s why I refer to him as Sir.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">So hope that is clarified. I shall try and write more clearly in the future else, as Nikhil says, he will joust and oust me from this blog. Gulp!</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic; ">(As reference, kindly find attached with this post, a pictorial proof of: the location of the last man who did not do as Nikhil said.)</span><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 10.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>- Sujoy</p>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-90776446044744798852009-04-25T23:06:00.008+05:302009-04-25T23:26:00.279+05:30Sujoy Ghosh on the genesis of 'Aladin' - Part 3<div><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">(Get ready to sit back and enjoy a narrative that you won't want to end. Here Sujoy continues his series on the genesis of 'Aladin' and tells of the remarkable faith that Mr. Bachchan showed in him and also the sagacity of the great actor in suggesting to him the next film to make after the non-performance of 'Home Delivery'...not to mention a guest appearance, in the narrative, by Abhishek Bachchan, Mr. India and 'It's the time to disco'. So turn off those cellphones, get a cup of coffee and read on... - NV)</span></i></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></p><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 321px; height: 213px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZ99jgvHOwBtx7K_KNAf4q32rEaqYzqwxFkSY8oQqMHPEDvg7og3YXDYEgiw_RtazUHZ56xkaooyHNseV5Kx0rNjCalveGNwrFsnHJ7dwarKgUNuB7N5UcVs6KxeOJm4cajI_87wc3BCs/s400/BlogStill2.3.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328685478392894946" /><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I remember the day clearly...</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">FILM CITY. FLOOR 9. 2003</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I stand in one corner. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Atul Kasbaker clicks away stills for Dabur, while Mr. Bachchan poses. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Suddenly he shouts “STOP”! </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">- It’s too boring...let’s get some music on. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Hurry hurrush rush ... and a music sytem appears by magic in which he slides in a CD. The music is from a new film yet </span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">to be released. I had never heard the music before... </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">(It sounded OK. Very deep and intense philosophical stuff. Little did I know that this unreleased film is going to become one of my favorite films. Anyway…)</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Mr.Bachchan calls out to me... I go. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Atul pauses.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“So you are going to make Borivali?...” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Not me Sir.. WE are going to make it...no main or aap here... HUM…” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The song changes in the background(apt timing): </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Okay I am doing it. Make me look good” … </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">!!!! </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">YESSIR!!!! and I run out of the set lest he changes his mind. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">He shouts at my sprinting form: “But not before 2005 .. I’m packed till then…” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Chalega! That gives me enough time to do a small film and find money for ‘Borivali’ parallely (I know that’s not a word, but then..). </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The song in the background tells me what to do... </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">‘It’s the time to disco!”</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">CUT TO:</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I had written the first draft of Aladin with Ritesh Shah. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">This was a story of Aladin and an international cartel of forty men who wanted to rule the world. They had a simple game plan. Kill the real leader of the country and replace him with a clone. They succeeded in doing that across the world till they came to India and their paths crossed with Aladin. It was - at least I thought - a fun filled film. One scene being particular favorite... the clone of a bank manager robs his bank while being remotely controlled by the forty men... one of the forty men instructs him: ‘Keep an eye on the door ” … the clone takes out his mechanical eye and places it on the table which faces the door.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">After a few months the first draft script was ready. Now to take it to Sir. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I had very briefy mentioned ‘Aladin’ to him before.. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Sounds interesting… but not Abhishek as Aladin,” he had voiced his concern. “We are doing a few films together... take a fresh face…”</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">CUT TO:</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">YRF STUDIOS. Make-up Room. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Sir listens to my narration after a long Reid and Taylor shoot.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">As usual there in no reaction on his face. But rest assured he is listening to every word. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">After I finish there is a pause. He thinks for a while... </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">There is a silence in the room which reminds me of ...</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">FLASH BACK</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">JALSA. Mr. BACHCHAN’S OFFICE</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">…the same silence. </span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">‘Borivali’ was not working out. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It didn’t seem the right movie to embark upon after ‘Home Delivery’. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Also Sir had certain issues with the amount of action in the final draft of ‘Borivali’. There was too much action. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“I may not be able to give my 100% in these sequences and that worries me. The film may suffer... that makes me uncomfortable"… </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">(Honestly, at that point, I thought he was taking it too seriously but then every shooting day of ‘Aladin’ is standing proof that he takes his work seriously. Very seriously.) </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Also he is worried about me. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">After the failure of ‘Home Delivery’ he wanted me to make something bigger. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">!!??!!! BIGGER!!!!???!!! </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Here I was...people had already written me off...and Sir wanted me to make something bigger and happier! </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">‘Borivali’ was dark and disturbing. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Come back to it at a later time but for now trust me.. and write a brighter movie.” I am blank. “What do you say?”, he asked as he turned to the man beside me and that fellow nodded in agreement and took me to the next room.<br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span></span><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 219px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifi15Xxih9nS97a1n8ByCC4FLy3L_717c-HqXagYfWjLM7DuwGYLr_jxCCs26wGxDMumstN4ogzUStoS4ICKotodjG5oN17iaMD2juXZbTHpJl18gDD4tuf99rIk2DQ9WUIE8JRi5UC3s/s400/BlogStill2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328686777516067986" /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Don’t worry...is there anything else you can do?” that man asked me. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">After Borivali I had only one thing and ... </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Perfect! You write and I guarantee you dad will do it. But write a kick-ass script...who will you cast as Aladin?”. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">That was the simplest part. The answer came without thinking. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Ritesh”…</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Perfect ! He and dad will be a good pair”... </span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">But my worry was different. Script, Ritesh sab thik hain lekin who will give me the money to make Aladin? </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“If you don’t find a producer, I will produce it for you,” Abhishek said, “but write a mind-blowing script…” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I turned to Riteish for support but that was a complete mistake... </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">That dude was jumping up and down at the thought of making ‘Aladin’. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Write it, write it, write it NOW!” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">He was like one of those kids you would take to the zoo but bring back because there is no empty cage. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I tried to tell him ‘Dude I just had a flop film’. Riteish was rolling on the floor with laughter. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“...Yes. And with that you have added another flop to MY career… So now you owe me a hit” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I was going to hit him but then remembered he too was in ‘Home Delivery’. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I turned to Vishal and Shekhar and they had their own grumble.. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“You do whatever you want BUT will you film the songs or not? </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Yes”. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“All of the songs? In full? </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Er… Yes.” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Not like what you did in Home Delivery?” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“No.” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“@£$% it! We don’t believe you!” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Arre!!” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">But these are my brothers. Even if I walk on fire, they will walk with me. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">And it happens only in India.</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">BACK TO</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">The silence is broken. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Er... Sujoy it sounds great and has lots of new stuff…but what’s the story? I am not getting a feel for the story...and it sounds very childish…” </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I tried to reason which he patiently listened to. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">“Let me think about it,” he requested. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">I knew instinctively that he did not like the script. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">That night I re-read the script. I realised Sir was right...my script was potty! </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It was lots of gimmicks but no soul. It was a Van Helsing and not a Mr. India. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 293px; height: 261px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8FwN2riCKGOrXzL5Ok9T7C9myIB7w1IPnx85UFSayp9m1OqbbLDkGRdkvFhU0xzI0TEdPP2OSKsSt9di5FpA2UPDpqlZ9exM5ZWmRZINVfd3loeN0pvq6QW21raHQ1zR-VU4z7p2721Y/s400/BlogStill2.1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328687479803146722" /><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">This is India. We need to feel our films. This is where a bullet ridden Vijay Verma drives to the temple to meet his mother… and a dying Aman Mathur runs out of the hospital to meet his love...these are moments in which we shamelessly cried because this is what we are made of. This is India.</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">And so, back to the drawing board and to write such a script that will make Sir say yes.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">A big, happy movie.</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">So how does one write a script for a film which wants to be a BIG summer franchisee? A movie that is hundred percent made in India and nothing that the world has seen before... </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It will be like an ‘Indiana Jones’, a ‘Star Wars’, a ‘Harry Potter’, a ‘Spideman’, an ‘X-men’…but more importantly : like a ‘Mr. India’. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">And if we are going to put screaming Pterodactyls in it or a boy catching a flying comet : How Do I Do it? Kaise? </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">It has to be awesome. And even though Po the Kung Fu Panda may disagree, there IS a price to awesomeness!!</span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">… I was going to write about how I wrote Aladin but more important things beckon. I have got comments in my blog… Lord be praised! … and I need to reply to them. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Tejas – thanks man.. will keep it coming but its damn hard time wise.. so much post-production work is on.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Sam- will tell you soon,</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Adios – just allow me a little time and the photos will flow.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Fan no 1 - ?? I thought I was. 24</span></span><span style="font: 8.0px Georgia; letter-spacing: 0.0px"><sup><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">th</span></sup></span><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"> July Aladin is out. Please see.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Raman – Spot on Bro. The man is a superman.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Pratim – You give me dope on DADA ..I will give you on ‘Borivali’.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Fats and K – promos hit in May. We just cut a few. Looking fantatistic!!</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Me – Thank you. Am I talking to myself here?</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Prashant – High 5 bro ! We do what we believe in.</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Thanks for reading. </span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:arial;">Rest, soon…</span></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Georgia; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> </div>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-70224390933447467642009-04-25T11:47:00.017+05:302009-04-25T15:30:50.871+05:30MR. BACHCHAN IN 'ALADIN' - FIRST LOOK!!!!!Well, here it is...a first look at what Mr. Bachchan looks like in 'Aladin'. Taken from the shoot of one of the grooviest songs EVER. (Vishal-Shekhar are teh_roxxors!)<br /><br /><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXBUsE7iCEF5ptX7Koo931UUsYhwngZaPkzq7p7b8klZLKWwf5xHEP3LPA-Xqv5dreQSVmEhYFCe-WYCoZF3syqCOZ4DsQZbR8wUeo2Rq6pV9XNxbAV-NVhYHelD_xilJ2GXApcK5lluk/s400/Blog+Still1.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328566362082446162" /><br /><br />Yes, you're allowed to drool, genuflect, bow, pray, praise, swoon and jump with joy.<br />Ain't he THE coolest? Or, as the bigb group at Yahoo calls him lovingly, THE Boss! (apologies to Mr. Springsteen:p)<div><br /><br /><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 345px; height: 230px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwAfURDs9DsplgVPgp_CVcTwwC5mjBo6DFNOW9LSXyGUGqg-jtO_1pMGdATkPzxhd4GmV8dxpmz9ZZBGQH2PdO8wZ_X3LeAVYtjxwIJimZlDmwDtUJ0nuOIGinxvdwXc1iYL2Zo84XLyU/s400/Blog+Still2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328566566968394658" /></div><div><br />Bringing up the rear is the ultra-cool Ritiesh...or is it? That's something you'll have to figure out by seeing the film...you see, we love playing with perception, like we said...and this is just one of those little games :)</div><div>But that said, you HAVE to see how good Ritiesh is in 'Aladin'. You'll fall in love with him, want to take him home to mother - or just want to cuddle him and take care of him - 15 seconds into the film :) Got a hint now as to who is really standing behind Mr. Bachchan?<br />But, as the saying goes - this is just the tip of the iceberg.<br />With 'Aladin', you ain't seen nothing yet...keep watching this space. More goodies on the way.<br />Oh, and yes, there's a comments section.<br />Go wild ;) - NV<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">P.S - Sujoy has just sent in the next part of his posts on the genesis of 'Aladin'. It's awesome stuff. Give me a couple of hours to put it up - maybe with a few on-set pictures too :D Come back/refresh soon...NV</span></div>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-59707394430545264042009-04-24T23:16:00.002+05:302009-04-24T23:19:39.380+05:30The Himani Navratna commercial with Mr. BachchanHere's what we've also been up to recently. <br />Sujoy and Mr. Amitabh Bachchan got together to make this ad for Himani Navratna Tel and the fun they had while doing so is visible in the product! Most of the crew of 'Aladin' was on board for this commercial and it was like a family affair. The atmosphere on set was like it was during 'Aladin' - extremely high enthusiasm levels and even more camaraderie and fun - mixed with a lot of song and dance ;) The comfort levels that the cast and crew share with each other is to be seen to be believed. Will try and post more behind-the-scene exclusive pictures soon...<br />It's the first time that Mr. Bachchan has actually sung for an ad jingle. Don't you think he should do this more often? :) <br />Enjoy! <br /> - NV<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/aZ59NLCHx3Y&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/aZ59NLCHx3Y&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-25415416374328326072009-04-24T23:07:00.001+05:302009-04-24T23:16:21.436+05:30The Himani Navratna commercial 'Making Of' videoAnd here's a 'behind-the-scenes' look at it - NV<br /><br /><object width="445" height="364"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/JchbZGAcEOk&hl=en&fs=1&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/JchbZGAcEOk&hl=en&fs=1&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="445" height="364"></embed></object>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-15999490028841729702009-04-22T00:09:00.009+05:302009-04-24T01:02:46.717+05:30Sujoy Ghosh on the genesis of 'Aladin' - Part 2<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5QLUO-_fH86zvAZfssHc8-ny9HKIpCmvgOSmWjAsN-8cQesphIEJOjbg_Ctg66CFW5DVPBXFAz4-JvtwRtRbOpD-WG6gGIPB6HyHWjxWHpON31h10Y_OGiIiMV3lRAp6-DfkmMzxJq0/s1600-h/SujoyGrpFoto.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu5QLUO-_fH86zvAZfssHc8-ny9HKIpCmvgOSmWjAsN-8cQesphIEJOjbg_Ctg66CFW5DVPBXFAz4-JvtwRtRbOpD-WG6gGIPB6HyHWjxWHpON31h10Y_OGiIiMV3lRAp6-DfkmMzxJq0/s400/SujoyGrpFoto.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327221193156087026" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">(Part 2 of the long (OK, very long) essay by Sujoy Ghosh on the making of 'Aladin', THE Kolkata effect, his days of being broke(which haven't really ended, BTW), meeting Mr. Amitabh Bachchan, Charles Darby, Kishore Lulla and, in the middle of it all, forgetting to listen to saari kaaynaat as he attempts to make 'Borivali'... so here he is folks, posting all the way from London - NV)</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><i>‘Agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaho toh saari kaynat tumhe usse milaane li koshish mein lag jaati hai’<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; "></span></i></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; "><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>- Om Prakash Makhija</span></i></span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Things were cool. Were going to get cooler as I was off to London(very bad joke, sorry) to meet Charles. I was running seriously low on money and had just got permission to use a small gym in Pali Hill, FREE, which was outfstanding. Very nervously I had sent a text to the owner of the gym if I may use it and pat came the reply “…of course Bro!”</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"> </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And Sanjay Dutt had only met me once before. (If you look closely at that statue of Atlas holding the earth on his shoulder...you will see the face of Sanjay Dutt.)</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I met Charles in London and he gave me the lowdown on making a futuristic film. In such films creating the world is very important. The world in which the audience is going to reside for two-odd hours. The world they will see for the first time and hopefully won’t want to leave.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">In ‘Borivali’, as in ‘Aladin’, I was trying to create a new world … and that meant WORK. Everything needed to be worked out in precise detail. The look, the feel, and every single ingredient of that Mumbai of the future. It’s this work which would allow the audience to believe that a Mumbai of the future could exist. Just like we believed in ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Jurassic Park’ and in a watch that made Arun Bhaiyya invisible in ‘Mr. India’. It meant more than a year of pre-production, shoot and an equal amount of time in post-production. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">It meant embracing a long forgotten word - DISCIPLINE.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I was one stop short of fainting. It was a Charlie Brown moment of GOOD GRIEF! How do we make this? Suddenly a simple thriller became a very expensive simple thriller! And a lot of green cloth appeared out of nowhere in the budget... The lighting budget tripled. An 8 hour shift suddenly became just 2 hours of productive work and my number of shooting days got multiplied by 4. I was not allowed to move my camera. Moving the camera would be directly proportional to increasing the budget. HUH!!?? ... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">It was a wake up call. A resounding slap in the face. Even Rana didn’t slap Dr. Dang so hard in ‘Karma’! <i>Uss thappad ki gunj</i> still echoes in my ear! </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">With that budget-breaking news from Charles I headed towards a distribution house. My friend Shabbir had asked me to visit a company called Eros and meet a person called Kishore Lulla. I had no clue who he was... and at that point of time I didn’t care... I was too messed up trying to figure out how to make ‘Borivali’ work. Because I was almost there... just a stop short of getting to work with Amitabh Bachchan. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And now this whole funda of creating a world required me to rob a bank. Time was nigh to dig out copies of ‘Kaante’ and ‘Rififi’. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">But I had to. Nothing was going to stop me from working with Mr. Bachchan. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">EPILOGUE</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">When you are a Bengali, born in THE( pronounced THEE ) Kolkata...a few things are your birthright … Satyajit Ray, Rahul Dev Burman, Kishore Kumar and, of course, Amitabh Bachchan. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">No matter what you say, they are ours. No matter who tries to stop us... we will always love them. To prove a point in case.. let me narrate an incident which Mr. Bachchan told me. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Kolkata. Inside a cinema hall. ‘Main Azaad Hoon’. Last scene. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Azaad, as he promised, plunges to his death. Suddenly there is a cry up in the balcony… “GURU TUMI EKLA JAABE NA“( you will not go alone) and proclaiming this… the fan along with Azaad jumps from the balcony. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">PHWEEEEEE and THUD! (Thank god it wasn’t a SPLAT!). </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Q.E.D. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I could see Sir’s concern when he told me this... he felt responsible but had no idea how to stop something like that. God forbid anything happened to that fan he would have never forgiven himself. I have never seen anyone who loves his fans as much as he does and have also realized: it’s great to be a star, but not easy. As Aunt May said to Peter “… with great power comes great responsibility”.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">But somehow I like that incident. It is funny, it is scary, it is madness - but it is Kolkata. Love, king size. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And in 1978 I saw a film called ‘Muqadder Ka Sikander’ – the best DEVDAS ever - with the audience of Kolkata, and was converted. I just wanted to do 2 things. See every film of this actor called Amitabh Bachchan and get a middle parting in my hair. (Apart from Moses I think Sir is the only person who can claim to have parted anything on such a large scale.)</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">CUT TO:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">ICICI bank building in Prabhadevi, Mumbai. Sets of ‘Baghbaan’. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I met Sir for the first time and underwent what was... one of the most nerve-wracking experiences of my life. I was in complete awe and shit-scared … should I say something out of place... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">But he was very kind. He took my concept and promised to read it on the flight as he was leaving for Europe that night. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And after I came out of that meeting I realised I had just spoken to Amitabh Bachchan. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">That feeling, unfortunately, I cannot describe in words.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Since then I have met Sir on the sets of ‘Khakhee’, ‘Lakshya’, ‘Black’, ‘Babul’, ‘Cheeni Kum’… and finally, on the sets of ‘Aladin’... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I never gave up. And Sir never left my side. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Every time I met him he encouraged me. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">‘Home Delivery’ flopped miserably,.. He encouraged me more. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">The trick is to.. ‘rise again’.. he had told me. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And thank you for that Sir.. because.. rise we will. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">BACK TO: </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I sat in front of a man called Kishore Lulla. A complete bundle of energy. Watching him jump from one task to another was like watching a tennis match…</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">He painted the true commercial picture to me. ‘Borivali’ was going to cost a lot of money and did not seem a viable project at that point. I was mentally working out the time and cost to make Borivali and realised …it was going to take a bit of time… so I had to do a smaller film in between... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">My friend Suresh Nair and I had written a story called ‘Home Delivery’... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">“What other films are you thinking of?” Kishore had asked me.. I casually mentioned ‘Aladin’ to him. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">“...I will do it” Kishore said.. “Right now you have my commitment”... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">But I wasn’t listening. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">It came through one ear and straight out of the other. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">What ‘Aladin’? If I can’t make ‘Borivali’... how will I make ‘Aladin’? ‘Aladin’ was 20 times bigger in scale than ‘Borivali’…</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I wasn’t listening.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">… and I didn’t even hear the wheels of <i>saari kaaynaat </i>as they began to hum and grind that day...my mind was on other things...and stayed there a while…</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">(To be continued…)</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Times New Roman; min-height: 15.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> </div>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-32955885281429648672009-04-20T01:35:00.009+05:302009-04-24T01:02:00.208+05:30Sujoy Ghosh talks about the genesis of 'Aladin'<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrO86tJUJM93ek39gfqF69sQ2n567MtnPLv4FjguKLWRBbZEAEA6TJA7bJbjsOJ72MSUwgjRQqw4FG9o5XNEUedAVSTWDTw5fbaPWNqh7x4JPOESCq7hjzlTfZPdIAzURf2Ra07LKzrE8/s1600-h/SujoyOnSet.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 161px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrO86tJUJM93ek39gfqF69sQ2n567MtnPLv4FjguKLWRBbZEAEA6TJA7bJbjsOJ72MSUwgjRQqw4FG9o5XNEUedAVSTWDTw5fbaPWNqh7x4JPOESCq7hjzlTfZPdIAzURf2Ra07LKzrE8/s320/SujoyOnSet.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326500763799319298" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">(Part 1 of a long essay by Sujoy, the director, on the making of 'Aladin', how he got the idea, 'Jhankaar Beats', Mr. Amitabh Bachchan, doing what you believe in, Mr. Pritish Nandy (the man who has balls of steel) and other things of cinematic importance...so without further ado, here is Sujoy himself, posting from London - NV)</span><div><br /><div><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I have just realised that it’s far, far easier to write a screenplay than a blog! For the last 6 hours or so I have been trying to find THAT perfect start to my first ever blog, but like hell that’s going to happen in this lifetime.. so let’s just start..</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I am here to share my experience in film-making and in making ‘Aladin’ and hope it helps someone in their pursuing of an impossible dream, for that is exactly what ‘Aladin’ was – an impossible dream. Charles had told me that it takes time to make a movie like ‘Aladin’. The first rule of the game is … ‘ S L O W D O W N !!!’ </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">There is no rush. And if you are in a hurry… make some other movie. It’s a little more than fours years now... a year or so to script, year and a half of pre-production, 149 days of shoot, a year of post-production and finally it’s ‘SATYAKALPADROOM!’ The tree of imagination has come alive! </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">There are many reasons for me joining this industry… namely(in no particular order) Rahul Dev Burman, Kishore Kumar, Balraj Sahni, Anand Bakshi, Satyajit Ray, Naseeruddin Shah and Amitabh Bachchan. And of course the man who gave me admission… Mr. Pritish Nandy… the dude with balls of steel who took a gamble on a newcomer and a film called ‘Jhankaar Beats’. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I cannot write anything about myself without writing about Pritish Nandy first and, in particular, one incident which taught me about believing in what you do. To stand by what you believe in. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Because in this life, we can only do what we believe in.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">FLASHBACK TO:</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">The Censor Board had just seen ‘Jhankaar Beats’ and it was that awful moment of truth. What cert are we going to get.. we were desperately hoping for a universal certificate, however, deep in our hearts lurked a small fear. JB was the first film to have a blow-job in the movie and it was something which was required. In the movie, that is... to establish the normal healthy sex life of a married couple. A couple who loved each other very much and did not shy away from showing it physically. And since they didn’t ... they were, well, ‘caught’ under the radar of the Censor Board. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">The Board loved the movie and wanted to give an universal certificate barring that one scene. We tried to reason... here Mr. Nandy was definitely an Oscar candidate when he tried to convince the board that Nicky (the wife) went down to look for a tiffin carrier she had dropped on the floor of the car !!!!! it was a priceless moment... we all sat there trying to look serious and nodding our heads in agreement... but the Board was far too experienced and responsible to let such matters through. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">So the choice was simple: remove 48 frames and get an ‘U’ cert or keep and get an ‘A’(48 frames is exactly 2 seconds, by the way). Mr. Nandy chose the latter because he believed that was needed for the film. For 2 seconds he gave up what could be half of the possible revenue. Because he believed that the character of the film will not have the edge without that 2 seconds. He was in the game to make films. To make dreams happen exactly how they are dreamt. And he was right... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">‘Jhankaar...’ went on to create its own destiny. It is coined the ‘father of multiplex cinema’. Would that have happened if we deleted the 2 seconds? I don’t know and I don’t care because I love my film how it is. I am absolutely, totally and fully in love with ‘Jhankaar..’ and ‘Home Delivery’ and ‘Aladin’. These are my children and I will never stop loving them. Good or bad, they are mine. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And I have no qualms in bowing to Pritish Nandy every time he passes me because not only did he give me my film, he taught me to believe.</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">END OF FLASHBACK.</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And that’s how ‘Aladin’ happened. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Two people sat in the coffee shop of Mariott and believed that they will make a film which has never been seen before on the Indian screen. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">A visual delight. It will be like eating ice-cream with your eyes. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">They had met for the first time and they knew that between them they brought jackshit to the table. But they believed they could do it. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">I had just come out from watching the premiere of ‘Masti’ and I knew I wanted to work with an actor called Ritesh Deshmukh. His comic timing was immaculate. I got his number and met him that night at the BBC in Mariott. And we decided we will make ‘Aladin’. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">It will cost a lot of money but some how we will raise it. It would be as good as a ‘Harry Potter’ or ‘The Lord of the Rings’. I think we paused for a bit and laughed our guts out thinking what an insane path to embark upon but we wanted to and we did. Both of us had other dreams to pursue at that point... Ritesh had some 3 films he was committed to and I was pursuing my biggest ever dream... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">To work with Amitabh Bachchan. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">That was the reason for me being in the industry. No point being a director if I don’t get to work with Amitabh Bachchan. I was hoping to make a film called ‘Borivali’ with Sir. The film was set in the future and I was going off to London to meet this man called Charles Darby and see if he would consider working as an FX consultant on ‘Borivali’. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Just the day before I met a mad action director called Wiliam Ong from Malaysia who agreed to do the stunts for ‘Borivali’... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Ritesh and I left the coffee shop at Mariott thinking about what we had just agreed upon. At least I did... for all I know Ritesh could have been thinking about the huge bill he just footed. But I jest.. he never gave up on ‘Aladin’ and neither did I. We may have paused in between but we never stopped till ‘Aladin’ happened and I promise you.. you have never seen anything like this before…</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">(To be continued …)</span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica; min-height: 14.0px"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> </div></div>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8779684201407300097.post-89490953343378778872009-04-15T00:40:00.012+05:302009-04-24T01:00:22.682+05:30Aladin - Beginnings...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjycctlOqAz3P1XLvayJJbkhWoHMVgSAWVxXEowPTSfu1RswDdHk4oKdcY_VO4mmiK9GEGVp4KkEbYxp8v06xlnd0n48zOCcGNgVCKImrOklw0uXxNizHJ8OGnPZPe6lnGh11n85WQDtPg/s1600-h/AladinSgnpost.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjycctlOqAz3P1XLvayJJbkhWoHMVgSAWVxXEowPTSfu1RswDdHk4oKdcY_VO4mmiK9GEGVp4KkEbYxp8v06xlnd0n48zOCcGNgVCKImrOklw0uXxNizHJ8OGnPZPe6lnGh11n85WQDtPg/s320/AladinSgnpost.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324626738362554898" /></a><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And thus, it begins. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">A small board, put together hastily by the carpenters, set up in one of the many lanes in this beautifully mouldy backdrop of a film studio. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">A printout of the name of the production, the logo of the Production company and the producers, pasted onto a make-shift base. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And a large red arrow that points you to where a new dream is beginning... </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">In the dusty, quiet bylanes of Mumbai’s Bandra, taking a left before going on to Mt. Mary’s Basilica, lies a verdant, leafy valley, lined with old buildings and huge box-like constructions. A complex, if you will, of what we in the film industry call ‘floors’. This is Mehboob Studios, the famous landmark, where every day, countless small, insignificant human beings with superhumanly big dreams hold up their heads and scream ‘ACTION!’ - and see them come true. And months of hard work later see those dreams become significant for millions of others. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">October 21, 2007, we became part of that hallowed group. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">It was the first day of shooting ‘Aladin’. Or as it’s popularly called, the ‘mahurat’, the day we pause and pray for the entire shooting schedule, for the cast and crew and for the fate of the film. And then, break a coconut and spread the joy by giving it to all as ‘prasadam’. A day when we finally know - this is it! We’re doing it! We’re starting off on the journey, eyes locked onto the destination, prepared for the most incredible, astounding, heart-breaking, soul-destroying and in equal measure life-affirming and uplifting ways in which we’ll get there. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">It’s the day we tell ourselves movies are our life. Paraphrasing/reinterpreting Salinger - movies are not our profession - they are our religion. And the camera, the floor, the equipment, the passion of the people involved in the making of it - holy. So we thank whoever it is up there that likes us - for the opportunity, the blessing, the chance - to make a movie, to live the dream - of making dreams. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Georgia;font-size:16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:verdana;font-size:12px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Georgia;font-size:16px;"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiP96IJyuApA-zazFZbS1CsWW2GB9B9IPkf_BLKzTqgVErRWhK7R0dWyFgfBGyd9lCopLiIoWH1gYPd5nbk3dNI5AJXu2O0TIQrDyrYigFNNUFTIoS2pKPPijQm2OJF6XUJLLKLPEpIfEU/s320/CoconutBreak.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324628879857785634" /><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilv13ptQDOj2r2rttlr3rzMNRgsmHDuHPmOFtPlo6O3mpr5xryBQO-Hyzrvyufec-3gbgGGFEEv0EBO-TI2fTICvIG_ar4FJjNx71CGAVldkVenV2P_a8w2CIHuKAc2otbLW3ft_yAtf8/s320/Sujoy.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324628886635186114" /></span></span></span></span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Georgia;font-size:16px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:verdana;font-size:12px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Georgia;font-size:16px;"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA05y8HNP0D2NXUlfA4Tx5bfHCCOAvpMeqREfCn7EWXkcDry6RpCp0EZr6FFFtIqp3NQqDFRo7m8B9kxjkSdBN_lXQ6ofLccKDigQZ9jEgHnsV8gCljCvqj4vCgq2sfSGOapFQZu81eRQ/s320/FirstShot.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324628887605524994" /><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 180px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDNv17dK3xyDLWCNwvrxBo9TLinPcu8cwoG_9Fijt0BB5b4-8jwXjB8JFmCmHv-GjIAwO1Mg69t9cPFFObTPcotlSyQm4dU_MywI_jx2y_e5tgw0OIdtfUwIT8wvtHJyYm4cnuCMxPjSA/s320/FirstClap.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324628885617152226" /></span></span></span></span></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:Georgia;font-size:16px;"></span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><br /></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Orson Welles very famously said that a film floor/studio is the biggest electric train set any boy ever had. What he forgot to mention is how you don’t just get the toy-train set - you have to go out and look for it in marketplaces all over and buy it first. And not just buy it - look for all the right parts and pieces, spend time and money scanning the entire world for just the right engine and the perfect tracks and then the space to set up the whole thing and then have the skill and the patience to put it all together and make it run. But with a little help from your friends, all this is possible, in fact, even enjoyable. Like an adventure. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">These are our friends - the team that started it all and made it happen. Over the course of these (almost 2 years) of shooting and editing and scoring and post-production, more people came in. Some became friends, some stopped being friends and left, and this group from this number, collected here, grew to hundreds upon hundreds - and it’s still growing! And in the end, auteur-theory and every other ego-trip notwithstanding, ‘Aladin’ owes its existence to them all. Because they are the ones who put in unimaginable hours with a smile, took on odds and the insane problems that happen on set and off it, and turn them into opportunities to make the film, and make it the best that they can. They are the real genies … and they come without lamps. </span></p> <p></p><br /><div><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYFdrr-P3FIFoo9_zSowwmMp2HS3YIg_WYjfu4Gn0CuueNRgkQcM3MC4i3YfmJNLqUccjaINqkQw7ukGtRvv6zfZATh4XytGEf9HXJ188-62cuQFKSoQmPKcb6BYz6Sr16UZ-gP8v2YYk/s400/AladinTeam.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324629830513530962" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px; " /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">What is the purpose of this blog? To blog about the projects at our motion picture company ‘Boundscript’, a place we’re trying to make a powerhouse of motion-picture making in India, the kind you’ve not seen before. And as the poet said, in great dreams begin responsibilities. So we’ve taken it upon ourselves to try and lift the veil of some of the things we are doing and update you on what it takes to try and make hindi ‘Bollywood’ movies for the new millennia, in the new millennia. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">So come check on us often. You’ll find links to great sites that will help you hone your skills as screenwriters, directors, actors, sound-engineers, editors - the works. We’ll try and give you the lowdown on what’s going on in the mad and insulated world of ‘Bollywood’ and also, from time to time, keep you posted on ‘Aladin’ and our other productions. We’ll post art-work, concept drawings, special teasers, posters, work-under-progress and what have you. And we’ll ask you to join in over a few things which require a little more help from new friends...so keep checking back regularly. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">For all those of you tired and jaded and blasé about Indian, especially hindi film-making, let us invite you to read a new chapter. Let us try and challenge the reality of things and make a new beginning. ‘Aladin’ is an attempt at that. From the conception to it’s final execution and marketing, we’ve tried to push the boundaries of what is possible in ‘Bollywood’. It is for you to judge, as it readies to release and you see glimpses of it, whether we’re on the right track. But this we know - this is the way we want to make movies. And we’re damn proud of it. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Over time, our cast and crew and friends will step in and blog, pitch, joke, bitch, rant, rave and go through the attendant phenomena of e-living. Sujoy Ghosh, the director, will tell you about how ‘Aladin’ came into being, how he managed to convince such awesome big talent to sign up for it, what he’s prepping next. Ritesh Shah, the writer, will talk about the unfairness of people who judge film scripts based on the films they see - and the whole deal with ‘content is king’ that's in fashion now. The DOP of ‘Aladin’ Sirsha Ray will talk about the difficulties of setting up and shooting such a film. Sabu Cyril, art director extraordinaire, will walk you through the stunning sets he created and the thought processes behind each. And there’ll be bits and bytes from the various crew members who braved the elements and temperaments to make ‘Aladin’. Not to mention dope onthe new films we are prepping and producing - their cast and crew will join in the fun and hopefully keep you entertained enough to keep coming back for more. </span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Thanks for reading, and before we leave, a fine example of what makes film-making such a joy, despite the pressures and impossible deadlines and choices and working hours. A photograph on set that we discovered among the piles we’ve collected. If you look carefully, you’ll probably see ...the genie...of course you’ll say it’s just perception. But then that’s what we do. That’s our religion. Playing with perception. And we'd like to believe we're the best at what we do. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">So watch this space. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Regularly. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Coz you'll have never seen anything like this before. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">And that’s a promise. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Cheerio. </span></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"> - NV</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-style: italic; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: normal; font-family:Georgia;font-size:16px;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMBDe50MjXSvG-Vr02rSt0E756eG5f0yUuJf36T968KC1JXGKm6p3PwZGdIjSzyKUK55RXSYcqvA2rheqhzN0OGefUAfjIkobqas6-QGRe5AmFCULDk6QDP_7f-OFKaYsJ6cfnZC8e7qs/s1600-h/GenieOnSet.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMBDe50MjXSvG-Vr02rSt0E756eG5f0yUuJf36T968KC1JXGKm6p3PwZGdIjSzyKUK55RXSYcqvA2rheqhzN0OGefUAfjIkobqas6-QGRe5AmFCULDk6QDP_7f-OFKaYsJ6cfnZC8e7qs/s400/GenieOnSet.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324636680352892354" style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 225px; " /></a></span>‘</span></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255); font-style: italic; ">The only solutions that are ever worth anything are the solutions that people find themselves.’ - Satyajit Ray</span><br /></p> <p></p> <p></p><p></p><p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 12.0px 0.0px; font: 12.0px Helvetica"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:verdana;"><br /></span></p> </div>Nikhil V.http://www.blogger.com/profile/07928273643189900575noreply@blogger.com6