Delving in the past to make new Hindi films

Article submitted by Naz

By: Subash Jha, INAS

Just when you thought Bollywood has exhausted every possible formula for success, it decides to surprise you by remaking old classics.

If Pradeep Sarkar's "Parineeta" had already been done in 1953 by Bimal Roy, this week's "Paheli" was made by avant-garde filmmaker Mani Kaul in 1973 with Ravi Menon and Raisa Padamsee playing Shah Rukh Khan and Rani Mukherjee's roles.

These aren't just isolated instances. There are many other filmmakers who are doing what has already been done earlier.

Akbar Khan's "Taj Mahal", chronicling the immortal romance between the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan and his lady love Mumtaz, was done in 1963 by director M. Sadiq.

And the 'forbidden' relationship between Mughal emperor Akbar and his Hindu wife Jodhabai, already a part of the mythic "Mughal-e-Azam", is now going to be the fodder for Ashutosh Gowariker's proposed costume drama "Jodha-Akbar" with Hrithik Roshan and probably Aishwarya Rai.

The trend of remaking old Hindi classics started earlier this year when in "Bewafaa" Dharmesh Darshan remade, or shall we say, unmade, B.R. Chopra's bold and unconventional "Gumrah" from the 1960s.

There are many classics being remade this year.

The coming year would have its own share of remakes -- Pritish Nandy Productions plans to remake Guru Dutt's "Sahib, Bibi Aur Ghulam" with Priyanka Chopra playing Meena Kumari's role while J.P. Dutta is making "Umrao Jaan" with Aishwarya Rai in the role that Rekha patented in Muzaffar Ali's courtly musical in the 1970s.

An erstwhile assistant of Sanjay Leela Bhansali is planning to remake Guru Dutt's "Kaagaz Ke Phool" with Amitabh Bachchan while the master himself plans to remake the Gujarati classic "Saraswati Chandra" which Govind Saraiya immortalised in the 1960s.

Why this urge to reclaim time-tested classics?

Says J.P. Dutta: "See, my take on 'Umrao Jaan' will be quite contrary to what Muzaffar Ali did. My dad's (O.P. Dutta) script for 'Umrao Jaan' has been with me for two decades. In fact, my father, who wrote the script, wanted to make it with Nimmi in the lead.

"Having said that, I must say the craving to reclaim the past has to do with the utter aridity of writing talent in the film industry. The quality of films from the past was often extraordinary. Wish we could say the same about today's films."

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Why Ash agreed to be Gowarikar's Jodha

By: Subhash K. Jha

Source:IANS

Date: 22nd July 2005

Mumbai, July 22 (IANS) It all began with an SMS - "WILL U B MY JODHA?" Aishwarya Rai got the message from director Ashutosh Gowariker while she was playing a battered wife in London for "Provoked".

"It was so sweet of him. I said of course I will... We finally met up last week here in Mumbai and shook hands on the deal," says Ash who is on vacation for a few weeks.

"My schedules on vacation are so tight - catching up with long-pending appointments, meeting old, long-neglected friends and relatives, listening to scripts - I think I need a vacation to get over my vacation!" she jokes.

Ash's schedule for the next year is airtight. She goes into Yashraj Film's "Dhoom 2" this month and then flies off for her first full-fledged international film, "Last Legion" (with Colin Firth and Ben Kingsley) in August. Then she might squeeze in a schedule of Raj Kumar Santoshi's "Samna" (with Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgan) before, "I go straight into J.P. Dutta saab's 'Umrao Jaan'".

Wait. Don't breathe easy as yet. Because before Dutta's opulent film, Ash might do a Walt Disney film. Finally in July 2006, Gowariker gets to dress her up as the haughty and defiant Rajput princess Jodha.

"It does look like a chock-a-block schedule," Ash admits. "But it has always been like that. Every time I think I could take a breather, some film gets delayed, or I rush into a new project, which comes out of nowhere.

"But I will concede this much... this looks like one of the most productive phases of my career... I feel as charged as I did when I did my first film 'Iruvar' or when I did 'Devdas' and 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam' with Sanjay Leela Bhansali."

An admirer of Gowariker's works, Ash is all praise for his commitment. "I love the painstaking research he does for each film. It showed in 'Lagaan' and 'Swades'.

"For 'Jodha-Akbar', he's going into reams and reams of homework. It's almost like rediscovering a whole new era with the director... a very fascinating process for any actor, specially at a time when he or she is trying to discover new facets to her personality, like I am."

Pausing for thought, she continues: "Ashutosh had made it clear from the start that it would be either a new girl or me for Jodha. I respected his clear-headed thinking. When he came to me I was delighted."

How will the two "Ash"-es be told apart on the sets?

Aishwarya bursts into peals of laughter. "I never knew people called him Ash until I was on a world tour with Aamir. I constantly heard him talking to someone called 'Ash' on the phone. Since it wasn't me I wondered who it was!"

Playing two Rajput princesses one after another is a big challenge.

"It sure is. But the Rajput princess in 'Jodha-Akbar' is as different from the one in J.P. Dutta's 'Gayatri Devi' as humanly possible. The two roles go into two different eras and sensibilities. Only the ambience is similar.

"Likewise, for my collaboration with Hrithik Roshan in 'Dhoom 2' and 'Jodha-Akbar'. We're being paired for the first time, in not one but two films that are distinctly different. I mean no two films can be more different than these."

Ash is all praise for Hrithik.

"I've done a world tour with him. He's such a focused, dedicated and passionate actor. Working with him would definitely be an enriching experience. With every film I hope to evolve as an actor. With someone like Hrithik for a co-star that process of growth becomes even easier."

She's also looking forward to working with Sanjay Leela Bhansali again.

"Of course, I am, and I am sure I will. 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam' and 'Devdas' gave a new direction to my career and personality. I want to complete at least a trilogy of films with Sanjay."

Aishwarya on Jodhabai, Gowarikar, Hrithik

Source: Apun Ka Choice

We recently told you that the gorgeous Aishwarya Rai will star as Jodhabai in Ashutosh Gowarikar `s next film, which has Hrithik Roshan as Akbar the Great. Here is why she agreed to do the film.

Ash tells an entertainment website that while she was shooting in London for `Provoked', she got an SMS from Gowarikar, which read "WILL U B MY JODHA?" And Ash instantly responded by saying yes and the two later met in Mumbai and shook hands on the deal.

An admirer of Gowarikar's works, Ash is all praise for his commitment. "I love the painstaking research he does for each film. It showed in Lagaan and Swades .

"For 'Jodha-Akbar', he's going into reams and reams of homework. It's almost like rediscovering a whole new era with the director...a very fascinating process for any actor, specially at a time when he or she is trying to discover new facets to her personality, like I am."

Pausing for thought, she continues: "Ashutosh had made it clear from the start that it would be either a new girl or me for Jodha. I respected his clear-headed thinking. When he came to me I was delighted."

Ash added that she has been paired with Hrithik in not one but tow films now, first 'Dhoom 2' and now 'Jodha-Akbar' but the two films that are distinctly different.

Ash was all praise for Hrithik.

"I've done a world tour with him. He's such a focused, dedicated and passionate actor. Working with him would definitely be an enriching experience. With every film I hope to evolve as an actor. With someone like Hrithik for a co-star that process of growth becomes even easier."