Posts tagged hrishikesh mukherjee

Sonam Kapoor readies for a ‘Khoobsurat’ makeover

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2 weeks ago
by Fenil Seta in

Vickey Lalwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 30, 2013)

 

Sonam Kapoor, who reprises the role played by Rekha in the remake of the 1980 comedy Khubsoorat, has got the blessings of the veteran actress. But here are some changes in the remake, which Rekha might not be aware of.

The remake of Khubsoorat, which will be produced by Anil Kapoor and directed by Shashank Ghosh, will not see the heroine land up at her sister’s marital home unlike the original.

Unlike Rekha’s character, who had just finished college in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s classic, Sonam will be a physiotherapist who works with cricketers. Also in the remake, the point of conflict is not between the heroine and the mother of the hero, but between the lead couple. Sonam’s sister Rhea is the brain behind the modifications.

When contacted, Rhea told Mirror: “Yes, we are making a few changes keeping in mind the fact that we are in 2013. My remake of Khubsoorat will be about embracing the one you love and then embracing the family.” A friend of Rhea told Mirror: “The war of words that ensues between her and the hero is because of their difference in perspectives. We are making the film more contemporary.” The hero of Anil’s film hails from a traditional family in Rajasthan.

The film is set to go on floors by end of this year.

Kareena could never look like 17 or 18-Basu Chatterjee

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1 month ago
by Fenil Seta in

The creator of classics like Chitchor and Shaukeen gives us his take on remakes and the trend of mindless comedies

Vickey Lalwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 28, 2013)

 

The 83-year-old veteran filmmaker hasn’t spoken to the media for the longest time. So, Basu Chatterjee sounds surprised when we call him for an interview. He agrees but snaps when we ask him for his address, telling us to ‘figure it out’. The maker of classics like Man Pasand and Rajinigandha greets us effusively at his simple Santacruz apartment. Excerpts from the interview:

Should classics be remade? Sai Paranjpye is very upset Chashme Buddoor is being remade. Ditto for your Shaukeen… At times, it is the producer who takes the call, the director has no say. Rajshri Films tried to remake my Chitchor with Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon, which turned out to be a dud. The concept of Chitchor revolved round a 17-yearold girl and they cast Kareena in the lead role, who could never look like 17 or 18. Classics should be taken on, but correctly and only if you are competent enough. Else you have to face the music.

You changed the face of television twice – with Rajini and Byomkesh Bakshi… I shall never forget those two shows. Do you know I fought with Doordarshan to not split the stories of Byomkesh into two episodes? Oh those were the days (looks away).

Do you watch your daughter Rupali’s show Uttran? Hardly. As needs wane, so does interest in various spheres. I have stopped reading too. Once upon a time, I was a More >

Not every filmmaker gets opportunity to relive his childhood after 30 yrs-Sajid Khan

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2 months ago
by Fenil Seta in

After delivering three back- to- back hits, Sajid Khan delves into untested waters with Himmatwala, his remake of the 1983 blockbuster by the same name. An otherwise jovial man, Sajid is a bit apprehensive before his film releases. He has opted for Ajay Devgn to step into Jeetendra’s shoes and newbie Tamannah in the role that made Sridevi a star

Itee Sharma (MID-DAY; March 17, 2013)

 

What are you feeling currently — excitement at seeing one of your favourite films, Himmatwala, come alive onscreen once again or anxiety over whether your version of the film will be able to recreate the same magic 30 years later? March 29 is going to be an emotional day for me. Not every filmmaker gets the opportunity to relive his childhood 30 years later. I am anxious but more as an viewer than as a filmmaker — Himmatwala is more than enough to satisfy the filmmaker in me, who wants to make entertaining family films free of bloodshed and sexuality. I am more amazed because in the last five years, every second film is a remake either of a hit Bollywood film or a South movie, yet everyone is talking about my official remake.

Why did you want to direct a remake? It is a remake only in name. I would call it a rewrite. My Himmatwala and the 1983 film are poles apart. Why direct a remake — the question is very valid… but I don’t know the answer. By the time I had finished my first draft of Himmatwala, I realised we didn’t need to buy the rights of the film.

The early response to the hit songs More >

I’ll now do some shit films to make them big hits-Neil Nitin Mukesh

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2 months ago
by Fenil Seta in

Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; March 16, 2013)

 

Neil Nitin Mukesh, 31, was born in a musician’s family, but changed route to become an actor. He debuted as a child artiste in Yash Chopra’s Vijay and has always been attracted to unconventional cinema and hopes to turn director one day. Over an hour-long conversation with Bombay Times, he talks about his family’s struggle, why is father is not his friend and why Jhamu Sughand will always remain special in his life. Excerpts:

Do you have memories of your grandfather, the legendary singer Mukesh? My grandfather died before I was born, so all my memories of him are through my grandmother. We stay on the first floor of the same building where my grandmom lived on the 7th floor. She introduced me to films and would show me all Raj Kapoor films and my grandfather’s songs. My entire childhood was with her. One complete wardrobe of mine is dedicated to all the belongings of my grandfather. I used to have two conditions of sleeping with her at night. I would tell her, ‘Badi mama, one, you have to give me any one thing of dadu’s, but that will be mine forever and second, you have to show me a film.’ She always wanted us to be with her, so she would give in to our blackmail. I slowly graduated from picking up his glasses, buttons and hats to his watches and got his entire Rolex collection. She would make me hear his recordings and talk to me about his struggle and journey to stardom and how their love story happened as he had eloped More >

Sunil Bohra to remake Satyakam

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4 months ago
by Fenil Seta in

Subhash K Jha (BOMBAY TIMES; January 11, 2013)

 

Joining the ranks of Hrishikesh Mukherjee classics being remade (Khubsoorat, Chupke Chupke) is Satyakam, which is considered by many to be the director’s finest film ever.

After months of chasing the producer of the 1969 film – Sher Jung Singh Panchi, Sunil Bohra (Gangs of Wasseypur 1 & 2) finally succeeded in buying the remake rights from him in late December last year. Bohra will be helming the remake of this film about idealism in the face of growing corruption and compromise.

While Mukherjee’s film was toplined by Dharmendra as the ideologue who would rather perish than compromise on his ideals, the remake may see the veteran actor’s nephew Abhay Deol reprise his memorable role. “There’s something very upright about Abhay. He reminds me more of Dharam Paaji than Sunny or Bobby,” said Bohra. When contacted, Abhay remained silent on the issue. The remake will go on floors this year.

Big B brought bad films; Haven’t liked a SRK film after DDLJ-Rakhee

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8 months ago
by Fenil Seta in

Rakhee breaks her silence after 15 years. Tells us why DDLJ was the last Shah Rukh Khan film she liked

Vickey Lalwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 18, 2012)

 

Why are you so reclusive? Why should I be in the public glare? I don’t need too much money. I don’t have too many responsibilities any more. I love my independence. There is nobody to question me. For the longest time now, it’s been my farmhouse near Panvel and my animals. I think I may have belonged to the animal kingdom in my past life. And then, I have my books. I am happy and contented.

Has your love for animals and plants landed you in a spot? I remember Yash Johar coming home one day and falling off the stairs because my dogs chased him. He ended up getting a hairline fracture. Another time, I got into an argument with Amitabh Bachchan when our car stopped and he started looking for the water bottles that had been kept inside. When he realised I had used all that water over some plants, he quipped, “Where are you coming from?” To which, I replied, “Why do you carry a sitar with you when you don’t play it?”

Why did you stop acting? I withdrew from films once I stopped getting roles of my choice. But I will always remember my journey and how lucky I have been in getting to learn from so many directors. I shared a great equation with the Barjatyas, Yash Chopra and Dev Anand. I still remember shooting at the TOI building when Satyen Bose slapped me when I didn’t get a scene right in Jeevan Mrityu. I recall when I More >

Amol Palekar’s tribute to Hrishida

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10 months ago
by Fenil Seta in

Subhash K Jha (MUMBAI MIRROR; July 18, 2012)

 

It’s only fitting that an actor, majority of whose films were directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, decides to pay a heartfelt tribute to the late director. And how!

After his 2005 film Paheli, Amol Palekar is back with another directorial. This time round a Marathi film titled We Are On-Houn Jaau Dya, inspired by two of Hrishida’s most popular films Golmaal and Naram Garam that starred Amol.

Apparently, Hrishida was so close to Amol that he had almost adopted him as a son. Getting sentimental about his association with Hrishida, Amol said, “It is quite a coincidence that my tribute to Hrishida comes at a time when there’s a revived interest in his work. I did five films with Hrishida. We got so close that he began to gradually treat me like a son.”

So much so, during the shooting of one of their films, Rang Birangi, Amol became Hrishida’s unofficial assistant as the director was too unwell to wield the camera.

“I’d say a lot of what I know about direction came from him. So it was only appropriate that one day, I make a comedy that is a full-fledged homage to Hrishida,” said the actor-turned-director.

We Are On-Houn Jaau Dya took three years to make. Speaking about his film, Amol said, “It’s the first time I am directing a comedy. It’s a zany comedy that Hrishida would have whole-heartedly approved of. The cast reads like the who’s who of the Marathi film industry, from the senior-most stars Dilip Prabhavalkar, Upendra Limaye and More >

Who cares about critics?-Rohit Shetty

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10 months ago
by Fenil Seta in

Rohit Shetty on making films without Ajay Devgn and not letting success go to his head

Kunal M Shah (MID-DAY; July 3, 2012)

 

He is not called Mr Blockbuster for nothing. His comic Midas touch has worked on film after film. Rohit Shetty doesn’t take it too seriously though. He won’t let success go to his head, he says. Now all set to show his Ajay Devgn starrer Bol Bachchan and to roll his first film without good friend Ajay Devgn (Chennai Express with Shah Rukh Khan), Shetty talks about working with Shah Rukh Khan for the first time and what exactly he thinks about film critics…

People in the industry have given you the tag of Mr Blockbuster. How seriously do you take the tag? I am not taking it very seriously and I have no clue how it started but obviously you feel good. At first, it did not sink in. These tags come with a big responsibility and bring in a different kind of pressure.

How do you manage to let success not go to your head? I have friends in the industry who are very honest and give me a reality check. I know that nothing is permanent and one Friday can change everything. There are many people behind my success and I will never forget them.

The critics love to hate you… Who cares about critics? I guess they don’t like my cinema. That’s okay. God has given me so much and the audience is more important to me than getting the stars. I have never claimed that I am making a National Award winning film, so I wonder what wrong am I doing? When I am clear that I am More >

Why are comedies so sexualized?

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11 months ago
by Fenil Seta in

Bharati Dubey | TNN (BOMBAY TIMES; June 10, 2012)

 

Suddenly, sex is not taboo in Bollywood. No one knows how and when the script changed and the plot of Bollywood comedies thickened with sex-heavy vocabulary. Probably it was Delhi Belly, written by Akshat Verma, that changed the rules. In a scene in the blockbuster, a lead character gate-crashes a wedding and throws the familiar line to the guests: “Yeh shaadi nahi ho sakti’’. Then he drops the bomb. Pointing a finger at the bride, he says, “She has given me a **** job.”

This line made millions of jaws drop. It just blew away the old-style comedy, generally a mixture of slapstick and stupidity. With Hrishikesh Mukherjee-style humour gone out of fashion long time ago, the industry as well as the audience lusted for change. So now, silly comedies have made way for adult comedies. If Vicky Donor, Masti, Delhi Belly, Kyaa Kool Hain Hum, Housefull and Housefull 2 are anything to go by, comedies with bold themes and bolder dialogues are mainstream now.

So how did the change happen? “The success of these films only goes to prove that a novel concept with good humour and a sprinkling of sex makes it a fun watch for the viewer,’’ says trade analyst Taran Adarsh. But media commentator Shailesh Kapoor attributes it to the change in viewer profile. “In 10 years, college-going youth have become the primary drivers of viewership. They expect their language and their psyche to be reflected on screen. And sex is definitely an important More >

Dharmendra talks about his toughest scene

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1 year ago
by Fenil Seta in

MUMBAI MIRROR (April 6, 2012)

 

I have done any number of scenes, both serious and comic. In my time, we just did what the director asked, to the best of our ability. However, one particular scene where I am on the death bed, in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Satyakam comes to mind as having been extremely challenging.

I remember that film vividly because its theme of corruption in the country remains more relevant today than ever before. I played Satyapriya, an idealist who won’t compromise even if it means losing out on a life of reasonable comfort for his wife and son.

In the scene in question, my character, who is suffering from cancer, has lost his ability to talk. I had to convey Satyapriya’s anguish wordlessly, through my eyes only. At some point, my spiritual guru, portrayed by Dadamoni (Ashok Kumar) walks into my room and says “Now I can berate you to my heart’s content without any retaliation from you”. The words are bitter but they convey his love for me. I had to express I understood what my guru was saying, and that it was out of sheer love he was admonishing me.

Next, my wife, essayed by Sharmila Tagore, who has been a silent witness to my uncompromising life, walks into the room with incriminating papers for me to sign that could relieve my family of poverty in the event of my death.

For the sake of my wife and son, I agree, for the first and last time in my life, to sign the papers. But before I can actually do it, Sharmila snatches the papers out of my hand and More >

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