Why 2006 is Bollywood's big year
After a superb performance at the box office in the first six months of 2006, Bollywood is geared up for bigger films in the later half. rediff.com takes a look at what you can expect.
Omkara Music director-turned-film director Vishal Bharadwaj's previous attempt,
Maqbool, met with disappointment at the box office. It did receive much critical acclaim though. He must be doing something right though, considering actors like Ajay Devgan, Saif Ali Khan, Vivek Oberoi, Kareena Kapoor, Bipasha Basu and Konkana Sensharma all agreed to be part of
Omkara. Based on Shakespeare's
Othello, the film is set in the badlands of North India, where Ajay Devgan as Omkara rules his village with an iron hand.
The promos look promising, but one wonders if city audiences will be able to relate to the film. One of the advantages it has is its timing. It will be out two weeks before Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna and there is no major film that can clash with it.
Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna Five years have passed since Karan Johar's last directorial venture,
Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.
KANK is an acid test for him, as it is his first without the help of his father, producer Yash Johar, who passed away. In the last four years, Karan has also produced two films,
Kal Ho Naa Ho and
Kaal, both of which worked well at the box office.
KANK is also a test for Shah Rukh Khan, as it is his first film of 2006. Aamir Khan and Hrithik Roshan have both delivered big hits with Fanaa and Krrish, so King Khan is definitely hoping for a hit.
Munnabhai Lage Raho
The promos look promising. Circuit (Arshad Warsi) and Munnabhai (Sanjay Dutt) are back, after a gap of three years. The film went through a couple of name changes, starting with
Munnabhai Part II. After
Munnabhai Meets Mahatma and
Munnabhai 2nd Innings, producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra finally picked this title on the basis of an audience poll.
Unfortunately, Sanjay Dutt didn't win an award for Best Actor for the first film, and he had to settle for Best Comic Actor. Hopefully, Munnabhai Lage Raho will change that.
Dhoom 2 Following the successful
Krrish, Hrithik returns with Dhoom, where he plays a villain for the first time. In a recent interview with
rediff.com, the actor said, "There has to be a challenge in life, as far as acting is concerned." He will be sharing the screen with Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai.
Out on October 20, the film has been shot in Namibia and Brazil. John Abraham, who played a villain in Dhoom, won't be part of it, but audiences may not complain considering Hrithik has stepped in.
Don After the much-hyped but disappointing
Lakshya, Farhan Akhtar will soon give us
Don, a remake of the Amitabh Bachchan hit now starring Shah Rukh Khan. Priyanka Chopra will play the role of Zeenat Aman and it is believed that Kareena Kapoor will play Helen's role by dancing to R D Burman's
Hey Mera Dil Pyaar Ka Deewana. It is set to release on the same date as
Dhoom 2 and there are rumours that the Yash Raj camp has booked all theatres and multiplexes, leaving the distributors of Don with little room.
After
Baghban, it's
Baabul for producer-director Ravi Chopra.
Baghban stared out slowly, picking momentum by word of mouth to become one of the biggest hits of 2003. Hema Malini looked gorgeous at 55, as did Amitabh Bachchan, dancing to the track
Chali Chali. In Baabul, the Big B plays the role of father-in-law to Rani Mukherji, whose husband is no more. When Bachchan fell ill a year ago, there were apprehensions about whether he would be able to complete Baabul. He recovered soon though, and the film is expected to release in the latter half of this year. It will also mark a return of the family drama to Indian screens.
Kabul Express Even Hollywood studios may not think of this idea, but Yash Raj Films has gone ahead and done it. It has successfully completed the shooting of
Kabul Express in Afghanistan. Directed by documentary filmmaker Kabir Khan, the film is about journalists in Afghanistan. Arshad Warsi and John Abraham play the lead roles.
And yes, this is the first film to be shot in Afghanistan after Amitabh Bachchan's Khuda Gawa.
Karma Confessions and Holi One can truly call this a marriage between Hollywood and Bollywood. Drena De Niro, daughter of Hollywood actor Robert De Niro, is producing the film, while Sushmita Sen plays the lead. It marks Sen's entry into Hollywood after Aishwarya Rai. Super model Naomi Campbell also has a role, as does our own item girl turned actress Deepal Shaw. The film also stars Sushmita Sen's former boyfriend Randeep Hooda. Little is known about it, except that people from different cultures come together on Holi and make some confessions, hence the name. Will the confessions appeal to Indian audiences? We'll have to wait and see.
July 10, 2006
Vivaah Can Shahid Kapur be the next Salman Khan? We don't know, but he is working with director Sooraj Barjatiya here. It is Barjatiya who gave Salman his first break in
Maine Pyaar Kiya, which was a huge hit. The director's last film,
Main Prem Ki Deewane Hoon, pulled off a casting coup by getting together Abhishek Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor, but it didn't make an impact.
Now, it is Shahid and Amrita Rao's turn, in a film set to release late this year. Vivaah is important for Shahid, as 36 China Town is his only hit after Ishq Vishq. He has a tremendous fan following though.
Jaaneman His wife Farah Khan made it big as a director with
Main Hoon Na. Now, it's Shirish Kunder's turn to prove himself, with the help of Salman Khan.
Jaaneman also stars Akshay Kumar and Preity Zinta. Akshay and Salman had a huge hit in 2004 with
Mujhse Shaadi Karogi.
Jaaneman was reportedly sold at a huge price of Rs 7.5 crore for the Mumbai territory even before the film was completed. The film has been extensively shot in New York, and has been delayed by almost three months because of non-availability of dates from Salman.
It is now complete, and there are a lot of fingers crossed.
Anupamaa
5