One of the most vivid memories of classic Indian cinema is the legendary Madhubala reflecting in a plethora of mirrors dancing her heart out to 'Pyar kiya to darna kya' in the epic 'Mughal-E-Azam.'
The song goes on to espouse how love should not be hidden as it's no crime to be ashamed of. This song became the anthem of defiance to obstacles in the path of love. What seemed so ironic was that the very industry which gave us this song didn't practise it.
Of late, Amrita Rao's gone from being single to very much in love with her co-star Nikhil Dwivedi. But the ardent ness with which they've been using the oft-ill treated 'just friends' phrase to mask their blossoming relationship makes us want to toss the love-anthem right back at them.
Quite naturally, two good-looking people working together all the time are bound to develop feelings for each other. And romance at work-place is not an alien concept. However, no one is more adept at denying these romantic liaisons than our stars. If you're lucky, you'll get a confirmation followed by passionate tidbits. If not, it'll be "no comments"; or even worse, a "we're just good friends" stance.
With time, our stars too, have evolved. Gone are the days of coyly hiding the matters of the heart behind vanity van doors. Our actors are proudly wearing their hearts on their sleeves and flaunting their partners all over town. But for every John Abraham-Bipasha Basu or Ranbir Kapoor-Deepika Padukone, you have a Rani Mukherjee-Aditya Chopra who'll go blue in the face denying their alleged romance. And now we can add Amrita and Nikhil to that list too.
Amrita had only two releases in 2008 ' 'My Name is Anthony Gonsalves' and 'Welcome to Sajjanpur'. While the first was a commercial disaster, the latter was well received at the box-office and by critics, with the Rao lass winning accolades for her performance as a village belle. However, she gained something fruitful from both. Even though 'My Name is Anthony Gonsalves' didn't send the cash registers ringing, it was here that Amrita met newcomer Nikhil Dwivedi.
Young, optimistic, enthusiastic and with a non-filmi background, Nikhil seemed like a regular, fun guy. And before you knew it, they were spotted at various events, restaurants and coffee shops, looking very lovey-dovey and comfortable with each other. Sometimes giving them company was Hurman S Baweja, and the trio cheerily painted the town red. Soon, whispers began to creep up about how there was more to than what met the eye and since everyone knew that Hurman was Priyanka's 'special friend', attention naturally turned to the two
single actors.
It wasn't long before the industry was abuzz with rumours about Amrita and Nikhil being a couple and quite an inseparable one at that. Amrita had been single and not linked with anyone else (the buzz linking her to Shaahid Kapoor being an exception). Word was out that they were quite serious about each other to the extent that Amrita was recommending him to various filmmakers that wanted to sign her. Now, while Amrita has been established as a versatile and sensitive actress, Nikhil hasn't exactly made anyone sit up and take notice of him.
It's not a phenomenon that's new to the industry. At one time, even Kareena Kapoor was promoting her ex-boyfriend Shaahid Kapoor in a big way. When we asked Amrita about her recommending Nikhil to directors, she said, "I would never think of putting any producer or director in an awkward situation by requesting them to cast me in their film. So recommending someone else is out of the question." She, however, didn't even acknowledge the question pertaining to the relationship between her and Nikhil.
But recommend she did and most recently, it happened in the case of Jagmohan Mundhra's new film. He had approached Amrita for an upcoming project titled 'Room-Mate'. Mundhra wanted Amrita to play a negative character in this thriller. And things took an unexpected turn when she asked him to consider Nikhil for a role in the movie as well.
When we heard the news, we called up the filmmaker who was rather reluctant at first to speak on the subject. After much hesitation, he revealed, 'I've known Amrita and her parents for a long time and she's like family to me. And it's true that I had asked her if she would be interested in playing a character in my upcoming movie. However, she wasn't too confident about doing a negative role at this point in her career and so things didn't materialise."
On being prodded about whether Amrita asked him to make Nikhil a part of the movie, he admitted, "Actually, she didn't ask me anything directly. But her secretary did speak to my assistant asking him to consider Nikhil Dwivedi for a role. However, since he didn't suit the role, I didn't bother meeting him or anything. Besides, since Amrita's not doing the project, there was no point in even thinking about it."
It seems pretty obvious that Amrita is serious about Nikhil as this doesn't really sound like a favour one would confer upon 'just a good friend'. We just don't understand why she is so insistent upon burying her love story behind closed doors especially since her contemporaries like Deepika, Bipasha and Kareena just can't seem to get enough of their boyfriends and flaunt them without a second thought.
Surely in today's times, having a boyfriend is not frowned upon. Practically all heroines at some point or the other confess and then flaunt their love affairs without denting their careers. And honestly, when you love someone so much, it is a tad belittling to hide that romance as if it were a dirty little secret.
Of course, there is the proverbial twist to the tale. And it comes in the form of Hurman S Baweja. After the colossal disaster that his carefully crafted debut 'Love Story 2050' was, his relationship with Priyanka Chopra isn't going great guns either (read complete story elsewhere in this issue). He met Amrita while shooting for his forthcoming film 'Victory' and the two got along like a house on fire. Stories of intimate dinners and long conversations flew back and forth from the sets.
It seems Amrita's petite shoulders were exactly what Hurman needed for support and her kind words and company worked as a salve to help him get through his trying times. It seems Amrita's embroiled in quite a love triangle. However, she's being very secretive about it and while her affection for Hurman is well-known, insiders insist she's actually quite unsure of the situation.
"Amrita and Nikhil are quite serious about each other," says a source. "However, she's also extremely fond of Hurman and they bonded fabulously while shooting for 'Victory'. And she is naturally flattered with all the attention he showers on her."
Is Amrita keeping her options open? If so, where does that leave things with boyfriend Nikhil whose career she still can't stop promoting? Only time will tell how this one works out. Let's hope at least someone gets a happy ending.
*COURTESY: STARDUST
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