Shah Rukh Khan and Bachchan feud ideal script for Bollywood blockbuster

Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan in a still from Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna.

By Kirti Pandey



05 May 2005 (Sawf News) - The Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan (SRK) rivalry has gained so much notoriety even the western media has dubbed it 'A tale of warring dynasties'. If a central theme is needed for an epical saga Bollywood need not look far, suggests a report on TimesOnline.

Septuagenarian Bachchan and SRK, 41, who have nursed a professional rivalry as the two leading stars of Bollywood, fell completely out of favor with each other over the elder Bachchan's failure to invite SRK to his son's wedding in April.

Analysts say the slight has split Bollywood between those on the side of the Khans and the acolytes of the Bachchans.

"There seem to be two clear groups in Bollywood now - the Bachchans and the Khans," Taran Adarsh, a trade analyst is quoted as saying.

The report calls the Bachchans one of the most powerful families in India by virtue of their box-office dominance and political connections, not to mention Aishwarya's entry as the new bride of Abhishek, Bachchan's son.

Khan and Bachchan regularly laugh off any talk of a rivalry and even appear in films together, but rarely miss an opportunity to take veiled digs at each other.

TimesOnline equates the rivalry between the two factions with the sisters Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland who competed neck to neck for an Oscar in 1941 and reportedly fell out with each other.

The more intriguing comparison is to the rivalry between Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. Davis was the queen at Warner Brothers in the 1930s; Joan Crawford ruled at MGM and the two's rivalry was depicted on screen in their 1962 film What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?



Part 2

Bollywood does not have to look far for its next script. A tale of warring dynasties, professional rivalry and social slights is being played out in the Hindi film industry’s back yard by the real-life characters of the big screen. The palpable friction between Amitabh Bachchan, 64, and Shahrukh Khan, 41, the two biggest stars in India, has been at the centre of a longrunning drama in Bollywood but industry watchers say the plot has thickened in recent weeks after the elder actor failed to invite his younger rival to his son’s wedding.

The omission of Khan and his wife from the guest list for last month’s wedding of Abhishek Bachchan, also a romantic lead, and Aishwarya Rai, the former Miss World turned actress, was the talk of Bollywood’s tight-knit social circles.

Although the three-day celebration was deliberately restricted to fewer than a hundred people because of the ill health of the groom’s grandmother, the Bachchans made a point of inviting certain actors and snubbing others.

Analysts say that the event has split Bollywood between those on the side of the Khans and the acolytes of the Bachchans, one of the most powerful families in India by virtue of their box-office dominance and political connections.

With the addition of Aishwarya, 33, to the fold, the family has become even more influential with studio producers and directors keen to cash in on the value of Brand Bachchan. “There seem to be two clear groups in Bollywood now – the Bachchans and the Khans,” Taran Adarsh, a trade analyst, said.

Among the chosen few at the Indian “wedding of the year” were Sanjay Dutt, Sunil Shetty and Preity Zinta. Those shut out included Karisma Kapoor, who was once engaged to Abhishek, and Salman Khan, who had a tumultuous relationship with Aishwarya. Vivek Oberoi, another of the bride’s ex-boyfriends, was also cold-shouldered despite being a childhood friend of Abhishek, 31. Kareena Kapoor, who is related to the Bachchans by marriage, was missing because of her sister’s former association with the groom. The rest of her family joined the party. In interviews, Khan and Bachchan Sr laugh off any talk of a rivalry and even appear in films together, but behind the scenes they continue to take veiled digs at each other.

Last week, Khan invited Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Priyanka Chopra and Kareena Kapoor – all fellow noninvitees to the Bachchan wedding – to be part of the season finale of Kaun Banega Crorepati, the Indian version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire?

The move was given more significance because Khan took over as host of the TV game show from Bachchan.

Star wars

— Bette Davis was the queen at Warner Brothers in the 1930s; Joan Crawford ruled at MGM. Their rivalry was depicted on screen in their 1962 film What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?

— The sisters Joan Fontaine and Olivia de Havilland competed for an Oscar in 1941. When Fontaine won she reputedly ignored her sister’s congratulations, so setting off a lifetime feud

— The director Lars von Trier fell out with his lead actress, Björk, on the set of Dancer in the Dark in 2000. He called her a “man woman” and accused her of trying to eat her costume

Mrinalini Sharma is Bhatt's next glamsham..

Continuing their trend of introducing new talents, the next one on the Bhatt's list is Mrinalini Sharma who marks her debut with Mohit Suri's Awarapan. However the actress has already starred in Prakash Jha's Apaharan. "Yes, that' true", confirms Mrinalini "But that was just a cameo in an item song. I agreed to do that because I wanted to work with Prakash Jha. He is such an esteemed director. Sadly, though as per the placement of the film the entire cameo and half the song had to be cut out because the pre climax situation killed the base of the film. So for me Awarapan is my launch film."

So how does it feel making a start with the Bhatts? "Oh, I feel extremely lucky. They are fabulous people to work with. It's such a big banner who gives great opportunities to newcomers. I don't know if any other banner has that courage to take newcomers and make them stars. For them, script is always bigger than actors and that is what I like about them. Vishesh Films doesn't fear taking newcomers in fact they show lot of confidence in them. I really don't know many people in this industry who have power to do that. I think I am really lucky that I am working with an excellent production house on a brilliant script."

And what's so brilliant about the script? "Basically it's based on the theme of freedom. I play a Pakistani girl called Reema. She gets trapped into human trafficking trade, which is very prevalent currently in the Southeast Asian market. Her journey thereafter and how Emraan eventually helps her to attain her ultimate mission of freedom in life is shown in the film."

So with Emraan at the helm of affairs, the next question becomes quite obvious. And Mrinalini is smart enough to get the hint. "No, the script doesn't demand any kissing scene. Emraan's love interest in the film is played by Shreya Sharan but even between the two it is a very clean love story. Basically, his character and mine don't have a romantic angle. He becomes my friend and eventually takes me to my destination which also becomes his final destination."

So what next after Awarapan? "Well, there's Showbiz directed by popular choreographer Raju Khan." That's going pretty fast in Bollywood. "That's true. In fact Showbiz went on floors even before Awarapan, though the latter will release first". But isn't Showbiz, again, produced by Bhatts? "Well, I have signed a three film contract with Bhatts", explains the actress. "I have done two films with them and there is one pending. They haven't started the third film as yet. They are perpetually working on the script and I am sure it won't be too long before we start".

So what's she doing in Showbiz? "I play the role of Shikha Verma. She is the chief head of a channel. It deals with the media at large. It talks about the good side and the bad side of glamour world. It says people from the entertainment industry also have right to privacy. They are just like any normal person."

Showbiz has another newcomer who is paired opposite Mrinalini. "His name is Tushar and he's an excellent costar. He will have a brilliant future in the industry. He is very good looking and extremely talented. He is also very well versed with the technique of filmmaking because he has assisted in Vishesh Films for five years prior to this film".

Shilpa Shetty says no to one more reality show

Shilpa Shetty was rumored to be part of Australia’s Big Brother too but I guess the lady has had enough of it and was quoted rubbishing the rumor off.

Her spokesperson and publicist Dale Bhagwagar was quoted saying, “She won’t be a part of another reality show. Shilpa participated in the UK ‘Big Brother’ as she wanted to do something new in her career and take one step ahead in life. It threw challenges untold and she emerged a stronger and more confident person. Since then, she has moved on in life.” Yes she has surely moved on in life and going places.

Hrithik with Uma Thurman on UTV banner

The ‘shehanshah’ of Bollywood seems unwilling to let his magnanimity in Bollywood go very easily. Recently we saw him fretting when the list for the highest tax payers named Hrithik at the top. He said that he paid more tax than Hrithik and claimed the title. Well something that the shahenshah doesn’t understand is that something about being young brings all the attention and in Hrithik’s case it is not just youth but talent also plays a good deal. UTV has big plans for the actor. UTV plans to cast Hrithik and Uma Thurman in its next action pact thriller.

You can almost imagine how well the both would merge- the Kill Bill assassin and the superhero. And hopefully the director would be Vishal Bharadwaj of Omakara fame. Oooh…I can’t wait for the movie for sure!

Bachchans to rock n roll on screen

The father-son duo has been doing great on screen and has also been people’s favorite. This season sees a lot of Abhishek Bachchan and Amitabh Bachchan duo sharing the screen together. You will catch the duo in Apoorva Lakhia’s “Shootout At Lokhandwala” and in YRF’s “Jhoom Barabar Jhoom”. Wait there is more…as it is all public that Amitabh Bachchan is going to ask for Tabu’s hand this summer with Balakrishna’a directorial debut “Cheeni Kum”, there is no doubt that the director wants more of this legend and plans to cast the father with his son in his next flick “Pa”. So let’s wait for more of the father-son duo this summer. And hope “Cheeni Kum” is not too sugary to ignore. WE will believe people when she says: “The film is very believable and real. It doesn’t try to explain and show that this is a love story about an old man and young girl. It’s very honest.”

Bachchans to rock n roll on screen

The father-son duo has been doing great on screen and has also been people’s favorite. This season sees a lot of Abhishek Bachchan and Amitabh Bachchan duo sharing the screen together. You will catch the duo in Apoorva Lakhia’s “Shootout At Lokhandwala” and in YRF’s “Jhoom Barabar Jhoom”. Wait there is more…as it is all public that Amitabh Bachchan is going to ask for Tabu’s hand this summer with Balakrishna’a directorial debut “Cheeni Kum”, there is no doubt that the director wants more of this legend and plans to cast the father with his son in his next flick “Pa”. So let’s wait for more of the father-son duo this summer. And hope “Cheeni Kum” is not too sugary to ignore. WE will believe people when she says: “The film is very believable and real. It doesn’t try to explain and show that this is a love story about an old man and young girl. It’s very honest.”

Will it be Rai or Bachchan for Ash?

Aishwarya RaiAishwarya Rai has decided to use her name as "Aishwarya Bachchan" and not "Aishwarya Rai Bachchan". In an article in a leading Mumbai daily three prominent numerologists namely Niraj Mancchanda, Sanjay Jumani and Anupam Kapil were asked to advise what name Aishwarya Rai should use after marriage.

Numerologist Niraj Mancchanda had suggested Aishwarya Bachchan because her name would come to number 46 and as she is number 1 (born on Nov 1) she should use her own number as it is always better to use you own number. Whereas Sanjay Jumani and Anupam Kapil had suggested Aishwarya Rai Bachchan so that she uses number 5 (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan comes to number 50)."

Even Amitabh Bachchan recently quoted "Ash desires to use the Bachchan surname. She signed her first autograph in Tirupati as Aishwarya Bachchan". Niraj Mancchanda comments "Not only Aishwarya Rai but any girl in the world who continues to write her maiden name before the husband's surname will always give more priority to her maiden family and the importance to the husband's family will be secondary after marriage. This is because the maiden surname is written before the husband's surname.

To give more importance to the husband's family is only possible if the maiden surname is dropped. As Aishwarya has decided to use the name Aishwarya Bachchan, she will value the Bachchan family and will also use her own number 46, which is the number of immortality.

29 Bollywood Stars with SRK

For her forthcoming flick ‘Om Shanti Om’ choreographer turned director Farah Khan has shot a song sequence with 29 leading Bollywood actors and actresses. All of them have worked for free in the song. In return, they’ve been gifted costly mobiles, watches and other accessories.

In the film, Shahrukh throws a grand party inviting Bollywood stars. For this Farah and SRK personally called up the stars requesting them to appear in the song. Now, who can say no to King Khan! So the song has Saif, Salman and Sanju Baba along with Dharmendra, Jitendra, Tusshar and Mithun Da. The leading Bollywood ladies like Tabu, Karishma and Urmila have also graced the song.

Watch out for Sush’s style

Sushmita Sen really knows how to stay in style. Her fans will see their style icon in Roberto Cavialli and Valentino costumes in her forthcoming venture ‘Dulha Mil Gaya’ with SRK. Sources reveal that her character in the film carries such style that nothing less than these designers would do for her, and for the actress carrying the costumes, we have no doubts about it. The lady can sure pull off any style and just any costume.

What has angered Rakhi again?

After the scandalous Mika kiss, someone has again upset Rakhi Sawant. This time it is the comedian Raju Srivastava, who co-hosts Sony weekly Comedy Ka Badsshah — Hasegaa India with her. Things got really messy at the Concorde Studios in Goregaon a few days ago when Raju was repetitively uttering suggestive dialogues like ‘main tumhe dekhna chahta hoon’, etc. and getting physical with her on the show.

Comedy Ka Badsshah — Hasegaa India has been conceived and produced by Sanjiv Sharma and Vipul D Shah, who earlier produced shows like Ye Meri Life Hai and the first season of Indian Idol (both Sony). Vipul is also the director of the comedy show.

The show also has a hilarious segment — Hamari Bahu Rakhi. Incidentally, Rakhi’s boyfriend, Abhishek Awasti, also featured in some episodes of the show.

Tanushree dutta is happy to be single...

Bong bombshell Tanushree Dutta says she’s happy to be single and is not just ready to mingle with anyone right now. Though in the past she has been linked with director Aditya Dutta of Aashiq banaya aapne, she insists that right now her priority is her work. Also, she says, toungue firmly in cheek, if she has to be linked then it has to be with Pierce Brosnan, no less. Must say, this one has pretty high expectations.

Dia Mirza upset with her boy friend?

Dia Mirza got a shock of her life when she did not get to dub for the scene shot by her for ‘Shootout At Lokhandwala’. Her role has been cut shot and this has been done by none other than her boyfriend and film’s director Apoorva Lakhia. Apoorva says that the decision to cut the scenes was taken during editing and an actor must think about the movie more than his or her role. On the other hand, Dia says that the scenes were cut without intimating her and this will definitely hamper the movie rather than benfitting it.

Tabu back to romance

Tabu is one actress who is known for her acting talents and excellent performance in many challenging roles. However, this 30+ actress is still unmarried. Tabu has had a lot of link-ups in the industry including Sajid Nadiawala and Sanjay Dutt. The latest addition to this list is Sushmita Sen’s ex-boyfriend Randeep Hooda who was seen in the recently released flick ‘Risk’. Sources say that they met at a discotheque in Juhu. Randeep ushered such paises on Tabu that the lady slipped off and now the couple is meeting frequently. Seems Tabu has made up her mind to say a full and final goodbye to her career so that she can romance freely.

Will the newbies make a mark?

It’s time to launch some new faces in hindi cinema,and directors Farah Khan, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and Harry Baweja are busy with just that. When we visited Film city last week,what struck us was the number of newcomers to be launched this year-Farah Khan will launch Deepika Padukone in Om Shanti Om, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Saawariya will see the debut of Ranbir and Sonam Kapoor while Harry Baweja will launch son Harman Baweja in Love Story 2050. All the three films are being shot at the same time,and all are scheduled to hit the screen sometime in november this year.what’s to be seen is which newbie will make the most impact!