Jaya Bachchan - Page 2

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Thursday 01 June, 2006.

Jaya Bachchan files nomination papers for RS seat Two months after she was disqualified on the office of profit issue, film actress and Samajwadi Party leader Jaya Bachchan has initiated the process that would see her re-entry in the Rajya Sabha soon. Bachchan, who was the first MP to be disqualified on the issue, filed her nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha bye-poll scheduled for 15th June from Uttar Pradesh as a Samajwadi Party candidate. She filed her papers at a time when the office of profit issue has once again gained centre stage with President A P J Abdul Kalam returning the Bill that exempted 56 posts from being office of profit to Parliament for reconsideration. State Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav and Samajwadi Party National General Secretary Amar Singh and other senior party leaders were present when she filed her nomination papers with Returning Officer and U P Vidhan Sabha Principal Secretary R P Pandey. Former Samajwadi MP from Muzaffarnagar Amir Alam also filed his nomination papers for the other Rajya Sabha seat. The seat fell vacant following resignation of Industrialist Anil Ambani who had quit his seat in the wake of the controversy. Ambani was elected as an independent backed by SP and his resignation was seen as an attempt to distance himself from the Yadav-led party in the state. Bachchan was disqualified in March following a complaint filed by a Kanpur-based Congress leader that she held an office of profit. She was the chairperson of U.P. Pradesh Film Development Corporation, which she quit recently.

More Bollywood Actresses To Follow Pooja, Jaya

A Staff Writer in Hoboken, New Jersey When Pooja Bhatt toured several American cities with her drama troupe a few months, she found a warm reception. Director Ramesh Talwar scored a bigger hit when he persuaded Jaya Bachchan to play the title role in Maa Retire Hoti Hai which had a standing room only performances in more than a dozen American cities through May. Now many older Bollywood actresses are ready to take the plunge and test the waters for their theatrical debut. According to Rahul Dholakia, one of the sponsors for Maa Retire Hoti Haiin New Jersey (along with businessman H R Shah), actresses such as Dimple Kapadia have shown interest in coming to North America to appear in stage plays. "For the younger actors and actresses, there are those live, musical shows," Dholakia says. "But senior artists have now something to suit their talents and seniority, thanks to the wonderful success Pooja and Jaya have had in recent months." The success of the two plays also proved that there was a big audience for the Hindi language plays, Dholakia and Shah feel. "It was a given thing till recently that only the Gujrarati plays, that too comedies, would attract big audiences in many cities," Shah says. "But Jaya Bachchan and director Talwar have shown that a well-written and well-acted Hindi language play could be a big hit, too." Dholakia says that in New Jersey the higher tickets -- $ 50 and above -- sold first for Maa Retire Hoti Hai. Maa Retire Hoti Haiwas staged in some of the best auditoriums in Florida, New York and California. "The temptation to stage it in a school auditorium in order to save the money would have been there for many people," Dholakia continues. "But this play was so special that every sponsor and organizer decided to go for the best houses, which meant that we were cutting our profits," he explains. "But we felt it was wroth taking the risk. And we were proved right." "Does it not show that there is an audience out there that is hungry for mature kind of entertainment?" he asks.

Often the audiences are left hungering for good shows because promoters are afraid to take risks, Dholakia says. "But when you have a good show and organize it well in the best auditoriums possible, people will back you up."

Jaya, Ramesh Talwar Ready To Face Live Audiences In India

R S Shankar Ramesh Talwar wondered for a few seconds why the immigration officer at the Kennedy Airport in New York kept looking at his passport picture -- and then at him. "I think he was puzzled by my thick moustache, he could not recognize me for a second or two," says the movie and stage director. "Then I knew the moustache would do the right work." Director of half a dozen films (including Doosra Aadmi), Talwar says he grew a moustache to make his part in the Hindi play, Maa Retire Hoti Hai, an adaptation of the hugely popular Gujarati play Ba Retire Thai Che, authentic. "Many people say I have a baby face, and though I am far from being young, I had to have a look of authority in this play," he explains. Apart from directing Ma... he also played Jaya Bachchan's husband. The hit play, which premiered in America in April and has played to standing-room only audiences in over 10 cities, has engagements throughout this month. Jaya Bachchan was the main attraction. "With this play, one can certainly say a wonderful stage artiste is born," Talwar says. "It was not an easy decision for her to take (to be in a play) but once she decided she would take the challenge, she gave everything she has in her to this play." One of the reasons Bachchan was taken up by the idea of leading the cast was the play's "progressive" nature, he says. It upholds women's rights to get involved in activities beyond the confines of their homes. "It raises questions like how much should a mother or a grandmother be involved in her home, with her children and grandchildren," he continues. "What if she wants to spend more time for social work?" He says the play struck a chord among NRIs because "here in America too, people ask a lot of questions about older people, about parents and grandparents." Naturally, he says, he was not surprised when he saw many teenagers who knew little Hindi or not all and who had to seek continual explanations from their parents. Talwar, who has directed some of Bollywood's best artistes including Raakhee Gulzar, says now that the play has tested the waters in America, it is natural it will be staged in India. On Broadway, he has rightly heard, many plays or musicals open after they have had try-outs in other cities. "So you may say that we were trying-out this play in America, fine-tuning it and now we are ready to face audiences in India." NRIs, always hungry for live entertainment from India, are prone to be "more tolerant," he says, adding that Indian audiences could have demanded too much. "Now we are ready to face any tough critic," he says. "If we fail after these efforts, we cannot do anything about it."

"We are getting a lot of requests from the Middle East and England," he says. "If we can firm up the dates, we would love to perform before audiences in other countries too." He is not sure if he will be available to perform because he is discussion with a Detroit-based businessman to direct a multi-star film to be shot in India and the United States. "I will be returning to the big screen after several years." His last film, Sahibaan, starring Rishi Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt was a box-office miss.