Posted:
Thousands attend 'Guru' premiere
Toronto's South Asian community out in force for Bollywood film showing
January 11, 2007
Canadian Press
Forget Brangelina. Or TomKat.
When it comes to Bollywood cinema no screen couple is hotter than Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai. And Toronto's South Asian community was out in force Thursday evening for the world premiere of Guru, the pair's latest film.
"Absolutely gorgeous. Both of them. Just stunning!" Arpana Vora declared with glee moments after the darling duo was whisked along the red carpet and into the screening.
"They're the Brad Pitt and Angelina (Jolie) of the Indian community!"
Rai, who wore a white sari, and Bachchan, who donned a black suit and headband, were several hours late for the gala because of flight schedules and didn't stop for questions.
The delay only served to build momentum at the historic Elgin Theatre, where police estimated 1,200 fans had been standing and screaming on the sidewalk behind barriers for up to six hours.
Another 1,200 or so filmgoers — some clad in vibrant Indian saris, ghagra cholis and salwar kameezes — were inside, along with international media outlets, many from India.
"We couldn't see her but we saw him and ... he looked so amazing!" said one fan who was amongst the dozens of ticket holders clogging theatre hallways and stairwells hoping to catch a glimpse.
"He is so sexy. Sexy man!" she screamed.
The producers chose Toronto for the premiere after an impressive response to another Bollywood film, Never Say Goodbye, at the Toronto International Film Festival in September. The gala crowd far outnumbered that for Brad Pitt's film "Babel."
"The South Asian community is very important to our city and so is the film industry. Bollywood brings them together," said Mayor David Miller as he walked into the screening.
Miller also stopped to chat and rally up the giddy fans and stated with a smile, "I've never seen anything like the adulation tonight!"
Producer Bobby Bedi (Bandit Queen, Fire) said at the premiere he chose Toronto for his premiere because it "by far is one most cosmopolitan city in the world."
Guru is loosely based on the life of a young man who rose from poverty in a small Indian village in the 1950s to defy the odds and become a major textile merchant. In the film version, the character of Gurukant Desai (Bachchan) employs unethical methods to achieve his materialistic goals but does what he has to do to crack a market firmly controlled by the rich and privileged.
Rai — who has been described as giving Halle Berry strong competition for the unofficial title of most beautiful woman in the world — plays his wife Sujatha.
"She was stunning. Stunning. Very beautiful," said Adesh Vora after he caught a glimpse of Rai. Looking at his wife though, he hesitated to concur that Rai is the most beautiful woman on Earth.
"My wife is number one," he said.
http://www.thestar.com/News/article/170274
Toronto's South Asian community out in force for Bollywood film showing
January 11, 2007
Canadian Press
Forget Brangelina. Or TomKat.
When it comes to Bollywood cinema no screen couple is hotter than Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai. And Toronto's South Asian community was out in force Thursday evening for the world premiere of Guru, the pair's latest film.
"Absolutely gorgeous. Both of them. Just stunning!" Arpana Vora declared with glee moments after the darling duo was whisked along the red carpet and into the screening.
"They're the Brad Pitt and Angelina (Jolie) of the Indian community!"
Rai, who wore a white sari, and Bachchan, who donned a black suit and headband, were several hours late for the gala because of flight schedules and didn't stop for questions.
The delay only served to build momentum at the historic Elgin Theatre, where police estimated 1,200 fans had been standing and screaming on the sidewalk behind barriers for up to six hours.
Another 1,200 or so filmgoers — some clad in vibrant Indian saris, ghagra cholis and salwar kameezes — were inside, along with international media outlets, many from India.
"We couldn't see her but we saw him and ... he looked so amazing!" said one fan who was amongst the dozens of ticket holders clogging theatre hallways and stairwells hoping to catch a glimpse.
"He is so sexy. Sexy man!" she screamed.
The producers chose Toronto for the premiere after an impressive response to another Bollywood film, Never Say Goodbye, at the Toronto International Film Festival in September. The gala crowd far outnumbered that for Brad Pitt's film "Babel."
"The South Asian community is very important to our city and so is the film industry. Bollywood brings them together," said Mayor David Miller as he walked into the screening.
Miller also stopped to chat and rally up the giddy fans and stated with a smile, "I've never seen anything like the adulation tonight!"
Producer Bobby Bedi (Bandit Queen, Fire) said at the premiere he chose Toronto for his premiere because it "by far is one most cosmopolitan city in the world."
Guru is loosely based on the life of a young man who rose from poverty in a small Indian village in the 1950s to defy the odds and become a major textile merchant. In the film version, the character of Gurukant Desai (Bachchan) employs unethical methods to achieve his materialistic goals but does what he has to do to crack a market firmly controlled by the rich and privileged.
Rai — who has been described as giving Halle Berry strong competition for the unofficial title of most beautiful woman in the world — plays his wife Sujatha.
"She was stunning. Stunning. Very beautiful," said Adesh Vora after he caught a glimpse of Rai. Looking at his wife though, he hesitated to concur that Rai is the most beautiful woman on Earth.
"My wife is number one," he said.
http://www.thestar.com/News/article/170274
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