Stardust March 2021 issue

Throwback: Controversies and scandals, yester-year actor Sonam bares all!

MARCH

2021

India ₹ 75.00 UK/Europe € 3.99 USA/Canada $ 2.99

A MAGNA PUBLICATION

Priyanka Chopra’s pal Meghan Markle’s shocking interview!

Explosive: “Nobody should feel privileged just because they are the son or daughter of so and so…”

Manoj Bajpai

Exposed!

Star Power Defeated, ‘Unlikely Heroes’ Seize Power!

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Publisher Editor Head of Business Development Graphics Designer

: Nari M. Hira : Sumita Chakraborty : Prashant Rane : Sayad Zaid Inamdar

CANADA For Advertising contact : Ms.Anki Khanna

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Please write to stardustindiamagazine@gmail.com and give us your comments, suggestions, opinions, criticism and feedback.

We have several new exciting things – from great articles, interviews, candid pictures and interactive competitions with great prizes in the offing, so watch this space for more…

50 Glorious Years Of Stardust

Kabir Bedi ................................................................................................................................................................. 06 Vidya Balan ............................................................................................................................................................. 07 Cover Story: Star Power Down, ‘Unlikely Heroes’ Seize Power! ......................................................................14 My Choice: Poonam Khubani’s Pick Of The Month ............................................................................................ 20 Get Snappy: Sanya Malhotra ................................................................................................................................. 26 Get Snappy: Vaibhav Tatwawadi .......................................................................................................................... 22 Court Martial: Manoj Bajpayee ............................................................................................................................ 38 Starry Extravaganza: Biggest movies of 2021 from the biggest stars of the nation .................................... 32 Excusive: Royal Oprah Unfolds As Meghan Markle Tells-all! ........................................................................... 28 In Focus: “Girl On The Train actor Shamaun Ahmed ........................................................................................... 50 Blast From The Past: Yesteryear actor Sonam’s throwback story .................................................................. 70

FEATURES

Music Room: “When a composer and a singer match each other’s wavelength, it’s easy to work.” - Hariharan .... 62 Wild Encounter: Mandini Karim ........................................................................................................................... 56 Starry Look: Kiara Advani ...................................................................................................................................... 61

COLUMNS Neeta’s Natter ....................................................................................................................................................... 08 Starry Sashay ........................................................................................................................................................ 46 Starry Dazzle ........................................................................................................................................................ 76 Stardust On The Go ............................................................................................................................................. 48 STARDUST is published monthly by the proprietors MAGNA PUBLISHING CO. LTD., Magna House, 100/E Old Prabhadevi Road. Mumbai 400025, India. Tel No: 91-22-67091234. Editorial texts and illustrations are the copyright of the publishers of this magazine. No one may reproduce any material before permission is obtained in writing.

All disputes are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of competent courts and forums in Mumbai (India) only 2020 Copyright Magna Publishing Co Ltd. Volume No 51 (No. 3) Please address all your advertising, subscriptions and trade enquiries for to: Magna Publishing Inc, 125 Central Park North, PH4, New York NY 10026. T: 212-725-7833 F: 212-889-3250 E: stardustmagazine@aol.com

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50 Glorious Years “You have always been a trailblazer. ” - Kabir Bedi Excerpts from Kabir Bedi’s message to Stardust.

Congratulation Stardust on th your 50 Anniversary. What an achievement! You have always been a trailblazer. I remember how you revolutionised coverage of people in the film industry from the very first issue. I remember how you surprised everybody when you made Shobhaa De the first Editor, when everyone thought she was a model. I was always thrilled when you put me on the cover. I was angry when you said bad things about me. But you’ve always been a great film from our days in Bombay to our days in LA. Congratulations once again!

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50 Glorious Years “Stardust For Me Has Been Synonymous With The Hindi Film Industry! ” – Vidya Balan Excerpts from Vidya Balan’s message to Stardust Congratulations Stardust for turning 50. Indeed, it has been a glorious 50 years. Stardust for me has been synonymous with the Hindi film industry. For all of us, it has always been an honour to be featured in it. For 50 years, Stardust has covered every aspect of the Hindi film industry. I wish Stardust the very best!

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Priyanka Chopra seems to be having a blast in the bling city of America.

Not only that, her hubby dearest still believes she’s the best thing on earth.

And why not? We do so too… Well, Nick has tweeted rather proudly that if there’s any of the Jonas who could win an Oscar, it would be Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Well, Nick knows best!

Well, we don’t know if PeeCee is going to bag an Oscar or not but she and Nick are all set to announce the nominations at the 93rd Academy Awards this time. The announcement was made by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in a statement posted on their website. Quite a proud moment for Priyanka and more so for hubby Nick.

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Talking about Priyanka, she sure is going places. PeeCee is opening a luxe restaurant called Sona in upscale New York which will serve Indian cuisine.

She’s even hired top chef Hari Nayak to serve the food that she loves to food enthusiasts. Not only that, Priyanka went about it all starting with a puja... the typical Indian way! Attagal, nothing like divine blessings to start the food business!

Talking about divine intervention, Akshay Kumar has posted a wonderful video of Lord Shiva on his social media on Maha Shivratri day just before he jetted off to a beach getaway with wifey Twinkle. They shared some cosy vacay pictures but of course, Mrs Funnybones doesn’t really do anything the ordinary way. She also posted pictures of her trying to strangle poor Akshay just so that he would pose for the cosy pictures.

By the way there are some very cool ads featuring Twinkle and her best buddy Karan Johar.

These two are the perfect foil for each other. God knows if their bitchy retorts were scripted or not? But we think KJo and Twinkle wrote it themselves – the sarcasm tipped darts they threw at each other looked too real for it to be scripted by some obscure copywriter.

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On the other hand, there seems to be no respite to the woes of the Kapoor khandaan.

This time ‘round, it’s Ranbir Kapoor who has tested positive for covid and has been quarantined at home in his personal space.

Mom Neetu Kapoor has confirmed this.

Unfortunately, the worst hit is his film Brahmastra as the schedule is postponed yet again.

Girlfriend Alia Bhatt however has tested negative but she’s been missing her Ranbir baby like crazy and has taken to Instagram to say “major missing happening” and the love sick gal has postponed her birthday bash too. Aww… never mind, Ranbir will be up and about soon, Alia and then you can rock your birthday with your honeybunch.

In the meantime, Alia and her best bud Ayan Mukerji visited a temple on Mahashivratri day.

Ayan, we know must be praying for Brahmastra’s speedy release.

Alia, I think must be just praying for her beau… after all, through Brahmastra’s shooting schedules, Alia gets to spend more quality time with Ranbir.

Talking about quality, Taapsee Pannu insists that she’s sasti no more. That’s right, the Income tax people raided Anurag Kashyap, Taapsee Pannu and many offices of the production house. Taapsee then took to twitter to say sarcastically that the IT were busy looking for her alleged bungalow papers in Paris, ending with sasti no more, which by the way was a jibe on Kangana’s sister Rangoli’s tweet that Taapsee was a sasti copy of Kangana.

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The Queen of Twitter Kangana Ranaut however insisted on having the last word. “You will always be sasti. You will always remain sasti because you are sab rapists ka feminist… your ring master Kashyap was raided in 2013 as well for tax chori… government official’s report is out if you aren’t guilty go to court against them come clean on this … come on sasti. Hmm… there’s no stopping Kangana, we see, over to you Taapsee!

Jackie Shroff has gone bare naked for one of his roles. That’s right! He plays the role of Pushpak in Hotstar Specials’ OK Computer, a show set in 2031. Talking about his experience of playing Pushpak, Jackie Shroff said, “I was so intrigued by this role that I felt I should be wearing an outfit made of fallen leaves and flowers but the creative team suggested the part about being bare naked and I incorporated that into my character.” Talk about getting into the skin of the character, Jaggu Dada does it best!

Kriti Sanon is the newest entrant in the film ‘Adipurush’. The versatile actress will be essaying the role of Sita against Prabhas as Ram. Kriti, who is known to be one of the directors’ favourite and bankable actresses, took to social media to break the news. Sharing the picture with the cast, the actress said she was “honoured and beyond excited” to be a part of this venture. Good for her!

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Arijit Singh has always swept the crowd off their feet with his soothing voice and his fans have always wanted more of him. The music sensation, who has given multiple hit songs, is now set to take on a new role as a music composer with Netflix’s Pagglait, starring Sanya Malhotra. Arijit avers, “I make my debut as a music composer with a project very close to my heart. The endearing story of Sandhya of self-belief and triumph is much like my musical journey and I feel honoured to be associated with a special film like Pagglait.” Sounds like the perfect gift, doesn’t it?

The gorgeous Romil Chaudhry is indeed in a class of his own. After finishing shooting of his film and music video, this romantic hero jetted off to an unknown destination to do what he loves best – trekking and travel blogging. He sure seems to going the Aamir Khan way – work done, follow your passions. Quite a superstar, isn’t he?

Kats doing extremely well by the way. She’s launched her new makeup brand which she’s very excited about.

Not only that she’s preparing for the third instalment of the Tiger series with ex beau Salman Khan. And of course, her personal life too is looking up thanks to one Mr Vicky Kaushal. So all in all, Kat sure is on fire.

Netflix’s much awaited series ‘Bombay Begums’ despite the many controversies, has captured the hearts of the audiences.

Amruta Subhash who essayed the character of Lily, a bar dancer, had too many inhibitions. Dancing was not something that comes naturally to Amruta.

So Alankrita, the director, arranged a meeting with Reshma apa, a bar dancer and made Amruta spend a day with her and that gave her Lily’s soul.” Isn’t that what method acting is all about?

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When Aparshakti Khurana and Vijay Varma get together, the house sure is on fire.

In an exchange of wits with host RJ Naved, Aparshakti Khurana and Vijay Varma talk about being star struck while visiting Aamir Khan and Amitabh Bachchan’s homes for the first time. Aparshakti narrated, “On the very first day when I reached Aamir Sir’s place, I clicked a selfie as I wasn’t sure when next I’d get a chance to visit his house. However, later I realised that visits to his residence is going to be day to day affair for Dangal’s rehearsals. After a point, he made us feel so comfortable that it felt like a place of our own.” Vijay Varma too was quick to jokingly add, “I did the same when I first visited Amitabh Bachchan’s residence.”

Karishma Kapoor’s daughter Samaira has turned 16, and obviously, there was celebrations all over. And the cute li’l bespectacled girl has turned into a real beauty. Looks like there’s one more contender from the Kapoor khandaan.

Indeed, the next gen of Kapoor’s will definitely be a force to reckon with.

Cat’s Crown

This month goes to...

Amitabh Bachchan Who despite not being well, still manages to tweet, rjay and post pictures of himself on Instagram. He’s positive, full of energy and fun. We sure like the Big B’s joie de verve!

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Cover Story

Star Power Down, While ‘Unlikely Heroes’ Seize Power!

Bollywood is going through a massive upheaval as star power diminishes and ‘unlikely heroes’ hold centre-stage.

Sumita Chakraborty delves into this crux of this problem and finds out what is relevant in Bollywood and what’s not!

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few years ago, somebody had rightly said, “Shah Rukh Khan or sex is enough to make a film a huge hit.” Well, we don’t know if sex can be on par with the tremendous hold of star power or not, but it is a proven fact that merely the names of big stars could make a film work, and how, prepandemic days. In fact, when the distributers would hear that Amitabh Bachchan, Salman

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Khan, Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan or even Ajay Devgn were in the cast of a film, they would grab it immediately… no questions asked.

In fact, before the horrific pandemic unfolded on us poor souls, the Hindi film industry complacently banked on their star power.

Nobody really cared about the screenwriter, screenplay or the quality of the film, one thing

was assured that if there was a big star in the cast of the film, the film automatically would garner an initial. In fact, even heroines were just added as a beautiful garnish – the films would work only on the names of big heroes.

No wonder, star power got its muscles from filmi khandaans which further gave birth to issues like ‘nepotism’ and ‘insiders versus outsiders’.

A few years ago, somebody had rightly said, “Shah Rukh Khan or sex is enough to make a film a huge hit.”

balance go haywire so what most producers did was just bank on the star power of the heroes and ignore the more necessary aspects of a film like the script and the quality.

Films ended up becoming slick, glossy but with no proper content. …And this was the rule of the game for many decades until… the great leveller in life – “change” decided to upset the apple cart.

Suddenly post-pandemic, the law of averages caught up with the film industry. The audience thanks to the entry of the Internet and the digital medium became wiser. They got their taste of international qualities and wanted

But the fact of the matter was that big names mattered for even before the film would release, the viewers would book their tickets just on the names of their favourite heroes. This unfortunately brought with it, its share of negatives. For instance, when a top hero was signed, he obviously would be raking in most of the moolah from the budget allocated to the film, which made the

“Sometimes, something doesn’t work and then overall, things go wrong. I went through a failure and it had to affect me.”

– Varun Dhawan

Image credits: Fossil

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The Badshah of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan after his Zero at the box office, took two years out to rethink, reinvent and resolve. the same in Hindi films. Unfortunately, our Hindi films remained stuck in a time warp and churned out entertainment fare that was seen, done and dusted.

For instance, Salman Khan, a huge name at the box office was sure his Race 3 would be a blockbuster – in fact even before the release of the film, the production team supposedly was all geared up to throw a huge success party pre-empting a blockbuster hit. Unfortunately, Race 3 was trashed by the critics and the audience, and in terms of a Salman Khan film, it did poorly. The reason was clear – it had all gloss, no soul.

Likewise, the 1995 Coolie No 1 starring Govinda and directed by David Dhawan – a combination that was magic at the box office – was remade with Varun Dhawan and Sara Ali Khan and

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directed by the man with the masala touch, David Dhawan. Even before the film released, the songs – Teri Bhabhi, Husnn Hai Suhaana, Mirchi Lagi Toh… were a huge hit. The industry soothsayers forecasted another huge hit. In fact, Varun Dhawan, the hero of the masses, had eight back-to-back hits with just KJo’s Kalank blemishing his flawless record.

Varun reasoned, “Having contacts in the industry does not guarantee a movie. I agree it was much easier for me because I had a platform, but you may know many people in the industry and they will ask you to come to their office, offer coffee, but not a movie. So if Karan didn’t see anything in me he wouldn’t have cast me. Being a star son only doesn’t help. But what does is that I am passionate about my work and I give it my all.”

So did the failure of Kalank affect Varun? He honestly admits, “Yes, it affected me. The film wasn’t liked by the audience and it deserved not to do well. It is very clear if the audience likes a film it should do well - and they did not like Kalank. It is a learning for me. I have processed it and learnt what I had to from it and I am taking it in stride.”

Unlikely heroes like Pankaj Tripathi who now practically carries webshows like Ludo or Criminal Justice on his shoulders are on the rise.

However, Coolie No 1 too ended up becoming a damp squib. The audience panned the film. David Dhawan had dished out the 1995 fare again to the now “entertainmentsmart” viewers without even bothering to change anything. The result: Coolie No 1 was a colossal flop and a huge blow to Varun Dhawan’s bankable name. Producers who had signed him for their future projects now went on panic mode and did a rethink. They scurried to their screenplay writers to make their scripts water-tight. Varun too decided to tighten his belt and work harder. He averred, “Sometimes, something doesn’t work and then overall, things go wrong. I went through a failure and it had to affect me. If it did not affect me, it would mean I don’t love my films. I love my films to death. I am glad it

affected me.” And that made Varun go back to the drawing board and start from scratch again.

Likewise, the very bankable Akshay Kumar who is known to give back-to-back hits, had a damp squib in the film he says is closest to his heart – Laxxmi. Though this film held all the promise of being a revolutionary out-ofthe-box product, it turned out to be a messy horror comedy which neither made people laugh or cower with fear. The result: It was a huge flop! …Suddenly the old order changeth – quoting the words of the great bard of Stratford-upon Avon – Shakespeare – and the film industry sat up to take notice of the upheaval in its midst. In the meantime, a new phenomenon arose – of good actors taking centre stage thanks to the OTT world – actors who had struggled for years suddenly felt the love from the audience. And, how! Unlikely heroes like Pankaj Tripathi who now practically carries webshows like Ludo or Criminal Justice on his shoulders, always the bankable Manoj Bajpai who played an action packed Agent in , Rajkummar Rao hailed as a hero in Stree

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“Training and education give you the courage to try out anything. I’m not scared of failure.” – Anupam Kher though currently he’s in the docks because of the poor showing of Roohi, Jaideep Ahlawat whose Pataal Lok wowed the audience, Abhishek Bannerjee who essayed the role of Hathoda Tyagi or Dibyendu Bhattacharya as the fabulous cop in Undekhi… the brilliant performances of these men won the hearts of the audience.

Suddenly these ‘unlikely heroes’ were elevated to superheroes and the audience wanted more of them. Who would think that in a web-show like Ludo, Abhishek Bachchan and Aditya Roy Kapoor would be a part of the star ensemble while Pankaj Tripathi would get top billing? So what has changed? What are these “unlikely heroes” doing right while the superstars who enjoyed a dream run at the box office, are embarking on the wrong path?

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Manoj Bajpai avers, “I believe that an actor should understand each and every genre and the requirements of it. One has to be ready with the craft and the skill and the passion to do justice to each and every role spanning any genre. So that’s what I follow and that keeps me interested all the time. If I do two or three independent films in a row, I want to get out and do something else. So I just do something middle of the stream or mainstream to keep myself fresh and interested in acting all the time. …And all these different directors keep me on my toes as they have different opinions about acting, different definitions of cinema …and I love it! I love to meet their expectations with my own craft and understand it.”

Anupam Kher further explains, “You can only do that if you are a trained actor.

Training and education give you the courage to try out anything. I personally believe that trained actors can be relevant anywhere in the world. But we have started giving importance to training five to seven years back? You know that solid base of

“I love to meet their (directors) expectations with my own craft and understand it.”

– Manoj Bajpai theatre – I was in the film institute – that solid training gives you confidence. It also gives you education which opens up your eyes. And it comes down to the same thing that I am not scared of failure. There’s a beautiful line by Osho which says if you try and you risk failure, then you don’t ensure it. Right? At a very young age, my father told me that failure is an event, never a person. So it is our own fear, which makes us mediocre, which sort of says that let me not get on to different territories, I did not have any such fear. And somehow when I’m working abroad, I feel in my mind, I’m representing my country and it’s a matter of pride for me. After every shot, I tell myself that my country should be proud of me so that even after I finish the film or project, they remember me. So luckily

for me, all the projects that I did not only did commercially well, it also did critically well. Whether it was Bend It Like Beckham, The Silver Linings Playbook or a British show that I did, New Amsterdam… it all became popular.”

The key words here is ‘thinking-out-ofthe-box’ and having the courage to try out something new. Varun did Badlapur very early in his career and it was a huge success. Akshay did a Padman while even Salman tried his hands at doing something that was new. For Varun and Akshay it worked, while Salman perhaps should have tried some other drastic measures.

The Badshah of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan after his Zero at the box office, took two years out to rethink, reinvent and resolve. Today, his Pathan is said to be far away from the run of the mill.

Indeed, it’s time for Bollywood to also rethink and reinvent. The audience is hungry for new content – Bollywood has it all… they now just need to focus on good stories that will hold the attention of the viewers. Hurrah for the new order!

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My Choice

Poonam Khubani’s Pick Of The Month

With all this brouhaha about remixes, originals and re-inspired songs, the multi-talented Poonam Khubani, producer, melodious singer, Founder & President of the Miami Indian Film Festival, picks 5 popular songs of yore that have been re-inspired and remixed again. Were the remixs better? Or were the retro songs best as they were? Let’s see…

Dum Maaro Dum: This iconic song from the film Hara Rama Hara Krishna co-starring the debonair Dev Anand, the super sexy Zeenat Aman and the very vivacious Mumtaz, was a blockbuster. Till date, nobody can forget the sultry Zeenat Aman dancing sensuously on it giving it the magical hippie vibe. However, this iconic number was recreated by eminent music director Pritam in the 2011 film Dum Maro Dum and picturised on the super sexy Deepika Padukone. They added a few rap lines and recreated the tune. Did we like it? Well, let’s just say, the old one remains gold.

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Yeh Mera Dil: The original Don costarring Amitabh Bachchan had the sexy Helen dancing on Yeh Mera Dil sung by the wonderful Asha Bhonsle, fabulously well.

Farhan Akhtar directed the remake of Don with Shah Rukh Khan, and though we love Big B, SRK’s Don too was pretty slick. This time ‘round, Kareena Kapoor danced to this sensuous number which was crooned by Sunidhi Chauhan, and yes, it went on to become a hot favourite with the classes and the masses.

Hawa Hawai: Who can forget the supremely talented Sridevi dancing to this peppy number sung by Kavita Krishnamurthy in Mr India? It was a masterpiece! A lot of singers tried singing the same tune to no avail because the bar set was really high. Suman Shridhar, however, gave it a complete revamp and sang Hawa Hawai for the film Shaitan. It was recreated to make it look modern and hip, and since it sounded very different, it definitely passed the test.

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Gabru: Honey Singh is so popular, isn’t he?

Everything he creates, is done with a lot of elan and style. Gabru was created for Honey Singh’s International Villager and was sung by J Star and Honey Singh. Shubh Mangal Zyaada Saavdhan however rebottled it. The multitalented Ayushmann Khurrana gave it his touch and voila, a new remix was born. What do we say about this? Not bad at all!

Dilbar Dilbar: This peppy number with Nora Fatehi grooving to it sensuously garnered more than a billion views. It was from the John Abraham starrer film Satyameva Jayate. However, perhaps just a a few years ago the gorgeous Sushmita Sen danced to it in the film Sirf Tum starring Sanjay Kapoor and Priya Gill. The movie didn’t do well but the song was a huge hit. Which version of Dilbar Dilbar is better? Well, both are great – tuneful, fabulous women grooving to it and picturised extremely well.

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Mere Rashke Qamar: This was sung by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan saab for the Ajay Devgn film Baadshaho. As with all Nusrat Ali Khan saab’s compositions, it is soulful, melodious and unique. A lot of singers have tried singing this but the best is Rahat Ali Khan. He hasn’t tried to modernise or remix it, he has given it his stamp yet retained the magic of the original.

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Get Snappy

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I remember one scene in Bajirao Mastani where Ranveer throws a dagger at me. After we shot the scene, Bhansali sir came and hugged me and said, “Chimaji, you have done a fabulous job.

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- Vaibhav Tatwawaadi

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versatile and passionate actor, Vaibhav Tatwawaadi has worked with some of the industry’s biggest names and has definitely left an impression on the audience’s mind. In a tête-à-tête, Vaibhav talks to Nikita Nikhil about his acting journey, his films and future projects. Read on…

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Vaibhav, you were an engineer before you became an actor. What made you choose this career?

I decided to be an actor when I was in the eighth standard. But since I belong to a middle-class family, my parents felt that it was really important to complete one’s education and following that, you can pursue your dream. When I was in 10th standard, there were only two options which came under good education, one was becoming an engineer and the other, a doctor. Biology was not my cup of tea so I opted for engineering. Till the 8th standard, I used to dabble between two things - I was a state-level

That’s when I decided that acting was my passion and then I pursued my dream. After my 12th, I went to Pune to pursue engineering from the College of Engineering, Pune. That t u r n e d out to be an acting institute for me because the kind of cultural group the college has, groomed me immensely as an actor and an individual. So those four years of my life in Pune changed for me a lot of things.

Looking back at your career in Marathi and Hindi films, how has your journey been?

I have done about 9-10 films as a lead in Marathi but in Hindi, I consider myself ‘new’ in that way because it is just a few years back that I did my first commercial Hindi movie. I consider myself lucky that I got a chance to work with the stalwarts of the Marathi and Hindi cinema. Even though I am new to this industry, I have worked with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Prakash Jha, Krish, and Tribanga with Ajay Devgn and Kajol. So as of now, so far so good.

badminton player and my dad was supporting me for that too. I wanted to make my career in sports. But when I started losing the tournaments, I realized that this was not my passion. I was enjoying it because of the perks that were associated with it. Whenever I won a tournament, my pictures used to come out in the newspapers of Nagpur. But it was acting that made me realize that even if there was no audience, I would love to act.

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it was kind of a no-brainer for me to say yes, considering the kind of team that they had. Frankly speaking, I did not expect this kind of response for the character and the movie too. But the kind of response that we got was overwhelming for each one of us. It was #1 on Netflix for so many weeks, that was very overwhelming.

Since you entered Bollywood, what were some of the struggles that you faced?

I feel when you don’t have contacts, it becomes a bit difficult. You have to develop contacts and make your presence felt, that is what the challenge is for people who are not from this industry. Having said that, when I did my first Hindi film a few years back, I had done a substantial amount of work in Marathi cinema. Because of social media now, people take cognizance of your work even if you are working in some other industry. So yes, the people whom I work with, knew about my work. So I don’t think it was a struggle as such but yes, in general when someone is not from this industry, the biggest challenge for him is to penetrate into the circle wherein people start knowing and take cognizance of you.

How was your experience working on Tribhanga?

It was a wonderful experience. I have always admired Renuka Tai. I had interacted with her a few times before the shooting of the movie started. And I have always been a big Kajol ma’am fan. So when I got a call from Renuka ma’am’s team saying that she really wants me to portray this character, 24

In your film career, Bajirao Mastani has been your biggest hit, box office wise. How did you bag the role of Chimaji Appa?

The casting director Shruti and Parag were looking for someone to play the character of Chimaji Appa. That time, it was either Atul Kulkarni sir or me - Mahesh Manjrekar sir suggested my name saying that I was doing some nice stuff in Marathi industry. So, they approached me and I gave an audition.

One day Bhansali sir called me and asked if I would play the role of Chimaji Appa. It was amazing! I said yes, I would. It was a wonderful experience working on the sets of Bajirao Mastani. People used to tell me that Mr. Bhansali is someone who is difficult to please and you need to be really up to the

mark and match his energy and expectations. I remember one scene where Ranveer throws a dagger at me. We were shooting for the scene for three or four days because it was a scene which was shot in an elaborate manner. After we shot the scene, Bhansali sir came and hugged me and said, “Chimaji, you have done a fabulous job.” I still remember that hug because it was full of warmth and as an artist that is the most important thing that your director is happy with your work.

You appeared in many notable films like Lipstick Under My Burkha, Bajirao Mastani, Hunterr, Manikarnika and recently in Tribhanga. These films had a strong star cast. Were you nervous?

Frankly speaking, I admire the star cast but at the end of the day, you have to do your work because that is the reason why you were made part of the team. You are paid for it. You are made a part of the team because they feel that you can deliver. So irrespective of the team or how much you admire people around you, it is really important for you to deliver the stuff. I concentrated on that.

Once you have this thought in your mind, I feel you gradually start concentrating on your role and lines. Especially when you are a part of Bajirao Mastani or Tribhanga where you have an ensemble cast and stalwarts around you. So, it’s really important for you to concentrate on your role and deliver. For Bajirao Mastani, the writer of the movie gave me a proper narration and told me that it is loosely adapted from a Marathi book called “Rau”. I read that book and because I did my graduation from Pune, I was aware of Shaniwaar Vada and Peshwai. Being a Maharashtrian, it comes in your blood because you have grown up hearing stories of Bajirao

and Peshwai. When it came to preparation, I read a lot of books and once you wore those costumes and go on the set, something happens and there is a paradigm shift and you suddenly start finding the character. So, it’s a gradual process. For Tribhanga, the role which was offered to me was Robindro, when I read that script, I asked Renuka ma’am, “Renuka ma’am, are you sure about this because he is a guy who has left everything and he is on a spiritual journey. Do you see me in this role?” so she said, “Yes, I can and I know about you”. Not many people know about this but I am into Kriya Yoga for a very long time now. So, the moment we did the first reading, she said I found my Robindro.

Which is the toughest role that you have done till date?

Chimaji Appa in Bajirao Mastani because I had not done a period movie or drama till that time. So it was really difficult. Even the dialogues were not colloquial and when you are not used to that, it becomes a bit difficult. Also, I had also not done a film of that massive scale before, so that too became a challenge initially, but later on, everything fell into place.

What are your future projects?

So, I just completed my first Hindi movie as lead, which is an untitled movie right now. It is with Anjali Patil and is directed by National Award-winning director Makarand Mane.

I’m really excited about that. There is one more Hindi web series now which I have just completed which would release in mid-2021.

Apart from that, there is one more web series and film in the pipeline right now. I am looking forward to 2021.

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Get Snappy

Sanya Malhotra

“It was amazing to share the screen with veterans and versatile actors like Abhishek Bachchan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Roy Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao, Fatima, Pearly, Rohit and everyone else.”

– Sanya Malhotra 26

Sanya Malhotra has been creating quite a buzz in the OTT world more so because of her much-appreciated performance in Anurag Basu’s Ludo. Here, Sanya talks about her character in Ludo, co-stars and more…

From a resurfaced leaked MMS video to a rogue suitcase of money, four wildly different stories that overlap at the whims of fate, chance and one eccentric criminal... Ludo has indeed been a wonderful watch. Sanya Malhotra, an integral character in Ludo has been much appreciated. Here, she gives us a dekko behind-the-scenes of Ludo, her projects – current and future and her co-stars.

How was the pandemic year for you Sania?

“Workwise 2020 has been a great year for me with some big releases like Shakuntala Devi and LUDO. Now when I look back, I feel happy to see how it has been a year full of learning and exciting memories working with some of the great names in the industry.

How was it working with Aditya Roy Kapur for the first time?

“Sharing the screen with Aditya was a sheer joy. He is a wonderful co-actor & I believe when you have such brilliant co-actors working with you, half the work is already done.”

The best of all was working in Anurag dada’s film- Ludo with such a huge ensemble cast. It was amazing to share the screen with veterans and versatile actors like Abhishek Bachchan, Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Roy Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao, Fatima, Pearly, Rohit and everyone else.”

What about the premiere of Ludo?

I always love watching films at home with my entire family. With LUDO’s World Television Premiere on Sony MAX, I can’t wait to microwave some popcorn and enjoy the film all over again. Ludo is a well-packaged family entertainer with comedy, romance, drama, and lots of twists and turns; I am sure audiences are going to love the film as much as we all loved creating it.”

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Royal Star

Royal ‘Oprah’ Unfolds As Meghan Markle Tells-all!

Sumita Chakraborty finds out more about the royal drama that has unfolded, as Meghan Markle gives an explosive interview to Ophrah Winfrey.

When Priyanka Chopra warmly wished her best friend Meghan Markle “a happy married life” at her beautiful wedding stating in an emotional letter that “the marriage stood for change and hope”, little did our Bollywood-turned-Hollywood star PeeCee envisage how dramatic events would later unfold in Meghan’s royal marriage. And unfold it did… like an undiluted full-fledged blue-blood drama… almost like those OTT TV saas-bahu soaps that keep the viewers gaping in sheer shock. Absolutely scandalous so much so that it even prompted a spoof video that originated in Pakistan making all this blue-blood brouhaha, a typical saas-bahu saga.

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The Explosive Tell-all Yes, we are talking about Prince Harry and Meghan Markel’s explosive ‘tell-all’ interview to Oprah Winfrey which shockingly brought the real truth in the forefront on how Meghan was treated extremely shabbily by the royal family, how they said her son Archie couldn’t have the royal title - in fact even before his birth, Meghan claimed that somebody from the royal family made snide comments on the baby’s colour making allusions to her intra-racial heritage…

This volatile interview brought the closeted problems out of the royal palaces of the blue bloods into the open for the world to see. Sheer outrageous, said the royals, while the world tut-tutted that Princess Diana too had given an almost similar troubled interview and nothing had changed over the decades, Meghan Markle was being treated exactly in the same way.

ther-in-law, Prince Charles, as they made their way to the altar at St. George’s Chapel. After climbing up the steps and making her initial entrance solo, she linked arms with the P r i n c e of Wales before heading down the aisle.

Indeed, what a beautiful moment!

Fairy Tale Marriage Hollywood actor Meghan Markle’s love story with Prince Harry was something like a fairy tale. The gorgeous red-headed Prince Harry practically whisked his beautiful bride into a romantic sunset brushing aside all the problems that came their way.

Meghan was from an intra-racial family and was also a divorcee… everything the

In the absence of Meghan’s father, Meghan Markle walked down the aisle in s stunning Givenchy gown, accompanied by her father-in-law, Prince Charles, as they made their way to the altar at St. George’s Chapel.

“conservative” royal family frowned upon.

But since the royal family “looked” so supportive during Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s marriage, one did imagine that the blue-bloods had done away with the antiquated laws of yore. In fact, in the absence of Meghan’s father, Meghan Markle walked down the aisle in a stunning Givenchy gown, accompanied by her fa-

Issues Galore However, within the next year itself after the grand royal wedding, one started hearing hushed whispers that Prince William’s wife, the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle were having problems with each other and supposedly “Meghan’s” acerbic words had even made Kate cry at times. However, Meghan set the record straight that it was not her who made problems but problems were created for her just before her wedding.

Issues were blown out of proportions so much so that tabloids printed many a story on how both Prince Harry and Meghan Markle were extremely unhappy amongst the royals. Things came to a boil when Prince Harry and Meghan Markle along with their son Archie moved to Canada signing off their royal heritage.

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In the jaw-dropping interview, Meghan for the first time outlined her ordeal, struggle and the issues that had weighed on her.

In a sit-down interview that spanned two hours, she spoke at length about how she felt cornered and even experienced suicid-

“I just didn’t want to be alive anymore.”

– Meghan Markle al thoughts. “That’s the sad irony of the last four years is I have advocated for so long for women to use their voice, and then I was silent,” the 39-year-old told Oprah. “I just didn’t want to be alive anymore,” she added.

Was It The Queen?

Though Meghan spoke out candidly about the issues that plagued her, she didn’t take any names. But she did clarify that she had a great relationship with the Queen who was always very warm to her and her husband Prince Phillips. However, she kept mum about the rest of the royals.

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Money Aspect Why did Meghan Markle give this tell-all interview to Ophrah Winfrey at this juncture, everybody wondered? Was it the money aspect? Ophrah however, right at the start of the interview clarified, “Before we get into it, I just want to make it clear to everybody that even though we’re neighbours... that there has not been an agreement. You don’t know what I’m going to ask, there is no subject that’s off-limits and you are not getting paid for this interview,” to which Meghan responded, “That is correct.”

Meghan and Harry reportedly did not earn from the interview. Instead, Oprah Winfrey’s production house Harpo Productions is said to earn millions from the interview.

CBS paid around $7-9 million to Harpo for the interview rights, as mentioned in a report in the Wall Street Journal.

The Interview Meghan said that she had suicidal thoughts when working as a senior royal. Harry, too, opened up about his fractured relationship with his brother and father. In one of the most damning bits, they claimed that an unnamed member of the royal family expressed concerns about “how dark” their son Archie was going to be. Harry said that the royal family cut him off financially shortly after he and Meghan stepped back as senior royals.

Harry also said that the Netflix and Spotify deals were also signed out of financial necessity. “All I wanted was enough money to get security and keep my family safe,” he said during the interview.

The duo was reportedly helped by media mogul Tyler Perry when they moved from Canada to Los Angeles in 2020. Perry offered them one of his Hollywood mansions to stay for free, they said in the interview. He also offered them his security. They said they decided to leave the location after it became known to the wider public. “We didn’t have a plan. We needed a house and he offered his security as well, so it gave us breathing room to try to figure out what we were going to do,” said Meghan to Oprah.

The Aftermath The tabloids and the media had a field day airing excerpts of Meghan’s interview until the royals were obliged to give an official comment. The Queen said she was saddened by what Meghan expressed while Prince Williams insisted

Harry said that the royal family cut him off financially shortly after he and Meghan stepped back as senior royals. that he hadn’t spoken to his brother but he would do so soon. Pretty wishy-washy but that’s the way the royals have always operated.

So for now, let’s just wait ‘n’ watch as we truly believe there is more drama that will soon unfold. Watch this space for more.

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Starry Extravaganza

BIGGEST MOVIES

OF 2021 FROM THE BIGGEST

STARS OF THE NATION The year 2020 made headlines bringing the whole world to a halt. And since the time we have resumed establishing the ‘new normal’, the headliners changed to our favourite stars bringing entertainment extravaganza to all. Here’s all what’s to look forward to after celebrating a great new year and to bring in an even better 2021 with our kitty full of movies.

83 Cast: Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Pankaj Tripathi, Sahil Khattar, Chirag Patil, Ammy Virk, Dhairya Karwa, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Hardy Sandhu, R Badree, Jatin Sarna, Jiiva, Addinath Kothare, Saqib Saleem, Dinker Sharma, Nishant Dahiya.

Director: Kabir Khan Production House: Reliance Entertainment, Phantom Films, KA productions, Vibri Media, Kabir Khan Films and Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment Short brief: 83 is the story of India’s first Cricket World Cup victory in the year 1983. With Ranveer Singh playing the role of Kapil Dev and Kabir Khan helming as the director, 83 is probably one of the biggest films based on real events. The movie was set to release in 2020 but due to the pandemic it was moved to 2021. The date is yet to be announced but the excitement around the movie seems to be ever increasing.

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Radhe Cast: Salman Khan, Disha Patani and Randeep Hooda Director: Prabhudeva Production House: Reel Life Entertainment and Salman Khan Films

KGF 2 Cast: Yash, Sanjay Dutt, Raveena Tandon and Shrinidhi Shetty Director: Prashanth Neel Production House: Excel Entertainment and Hombale Studio Short brief: Yash starrer KGF Chapter 2 has been one of the most anticipated pan India films after Baahubali 2. With chater 1 of the film being a massive hit, the expectations for this are very high.

Sanjay Dutt joins the cast and will be seen in a pivotal role; this film is the talk of the town. KGF being a Kannada film made quite a buzz when it went onto become a pan - India success.

Short brief: Radhe is Salman Khan’s next release which will see him opposite Disha Patani and is being directed by Prabhudeva. Radhe is one of the most anticipated films of 2021 and had created an immense buzz with the announcement video alone. Radhe is also the name of Salman’s character in ‘Wanted’ and it is one of the most beloved character by fans as well as by the actor himself. The film was supposed to release on Eid 2020 occasion but got postponed due to the pandemic. Trade now assumes that the movie may release on Eid 2021.

Toofan Cast: Farhan Akhtar, Mrunal Thakur and Paresh Rawal Director: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra Production House: Excel Entertainment & ROMP Short brief: Farhan Akhtar & Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra are reuniting for a sports drama film after the massive hit biopic on Milkha Singh Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. For this film, Farhan will be seen as an aspiring boxer and has made a massive physical transformation for the role. This also is Excel Entertainment’s next after Gully Boy, KGF 1 and Mirzapur 2.

RadheShyam Cast: Prabhas & Pooja Hegde Director: Radha Krishna Kumar Production House: UV Creations & T Series Short brief: This Pan India film starring Prabhas will see him in a romantic epic film for the first time.

The film is directed by Radha Krishna Kumar and will have Pooja Hegde opposite Prabhas. The film is an ode to love stories like Devdas-Parvati, RomeoJuliet and Salim-Anarkali.

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Laal Singh Chadda Cast: Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Vijay Setupathi & Mona Singh Director: Advait Chandan Production House: Reel Life Entertainment and Salman Khan Films

RRR Cast: Jr. NTR, Ram Charan, Alia Bhatt, Olivia Morris and Ajay Devgn

Short brief: Laal Singh Chadda will see Aamir Khan in a completely different avatar and is the official adaptation of Hollywood mega-hit Forrest Gump.

This is AKP’s next production after Dangal.

Director: SS Rajamouli Production House: DVV Entertainments Short brief: SS Rajamouli’s next after Baahubali series is a retelling of the story of our two freedom fighters Seetaram Raju and Komaram Bheem. Rajamouli has spoken about how he always wanted to make a film that shows the Indian freedom fighters in their glory.

Bob Biswas Cast: Abhishek Bachchan and Chittrangada Singh Director: Diya Annapurna Ghosh Production House: Red Chillies Entertainment and Bound Script Production Short brief: Bob Biswas is the Spin-off of Sujoy Gosh’s 2012 thriller Kahaani. The film will see Abhishek Bachchan in the titular role for which he has undergone a massive transformation.

This will be the second collaboration between Sujoy Gosh and Red Chillies Entertainment after the massive hit Badla.

Rashmi Rocket Cast: Taapsee Pannu, Priyanshu Painyuli and Abhishek Banerjee Director: Akarsh Khurana Production House: RSVP Films Short brief: Rashmi Rocket will see Taapsee Pannu play the role of an athlete. The film is being produced by RSVP and is directed by Akarsh Khurana who last directed Irrfan Khan’s Karwaan.

The film is being shot at the picturesque locations of Kutch. Tapsee Pannu has been training for the movie for more than a year now. Her dedication is commendable.

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Luv Ranjan’s Untitled Cast: Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor Director: Luv Ranjan Production House: Luv Films

Bachchan Pandey

Short brief: This Luv Ranjan’s next directorial will see Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor unite for the first time. Luv Ranjan is known for directing very successful romantic comedy films and hopes are high for his first collaboration with a big star

Cast: Akshay Kumar and Kriti Sanon Director: Farhad Samji Production House: Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment Short brief: Sajid Nadiadwala, Akshay Kumar, and Farhad Samji will be reuniting after the superhit film Housefull 4. The first look of the film was released sometime back which had Akshay in a completely different avatar donning a Dhoti.

Phone Bhoot Cast:Siddhant Chaturvedi and Ishaan Khatter Director: Gurmeet Singh Production House: Excel Entertainment

Badhaai Do Cast: Rajkummar Rao and Bhumi Pednekar

Short brief:Excel Entertainment’s next will see the very interesting pairing of Katrina Kaif, Siddhant Chaturvedi, and Ishaan Khatter. The film will be directed by Mirzapur fame Gurmeet Singh and is a situational comedy. The shooting for the movie has begun and the film is expected to release in 2021

Director: Harshavardhan Kulkarni Production House: Junglee Pictures Short brief: Badhaai Do is the second film in the Badhaai Ho franchisee from Junglee Films. Like its predecessor, this will be a family comedy with an interesting plot. The film will have Rajkummar Rao play a cop of a women police station and Bhumi Pednekar as a PT coach.

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Antim Cast: Salman Khan and Aayush Sharma Director: Mahesh Manjrekar Production House: Salman Khan Films

Love Hostel Cast: Bobby Deol, Vikrant Massey and Sanya Malhotra

Short brief: It is a two-actor film. Salman Khan will be sporting a turban for the second time in his career. The film is about two strong, powerful characters, creating an aura which is never seen before in Indian cinema. Both the actors will be seen sharing the screen in the Mahesh Manjrekar directorial.

Director: Shanker Raman Production House: Red Chillies Entertainment and Drishyam Films Short brief: The film marks the second collaboration between Red Chillies Entertainment and Drishyam films, after the critically acclaimed Kaamyaab which released earlier this year.

Baaghi 4 Cast:Tiger Shroff Director: Ahmed Khan Production House: Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment

Tadap Cast: Ahan Shetty and Tara Sutaria

Short brief:Tiger Shroff will reunite with Sajid Nadiadwala and Ahmed Khan for the 4th instalment of India’s biggest action franchisee Baaghi. Each film of this series has been a massive hit and broken records at the box office.

Director: Milan Luthria Production House: Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment Short brief: Tadap will see the launch of Sunil Shetty’s son Ahan Shetty and is a remake of Telugu superhit RX100. Sajid will be launching a new actor after the much successful launch of Tiger Shroff in Heropanti.

Kabhi Eid, Kabhi Diwali Cast: Salman Khan Director: Sajid Samji Production House: Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment and Salman Khan Films Short brief: Salman Khan and Sajid Nadiadwala have given a few of the most iconic films like Judwaa, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, and Kick. This will be their next collaboration and is expected to be one of the biggest films of the year.

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Anek Cast: Ayushmann Khuranna Director: Anubhav Sinha Production House: Benaras Media Works Short brief: Ayushmann Khuranna will be reuniting with Article 15 director Anubhav Sinha in his next outing. This film will be Anubhav Sinha’s next film after the critically acclaimed film Thappad.

Heropanti 2 Cast: Tiger Shroff Director: Ahmed Khan Production House: Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment Short brief:Heropanti 2 is the sequel to Tiger Shroff’s first film Heropanti which was an instant hit. For the film, Tiger will reunite with mentor Sajid Nadiadwala and director Ahmed Khan.

Dhamaka Cast: Kartik Aryan Director: Ram Madhvani Production House: RSVP Short brief: After the success of Neerja and Aarya, director/ producer Ram Madhvani is set to collaborate with Kartik Aaryan for another edge of the seat ride titled - DHAMAKA

Tejas Cast: Kangana Ranaut Director: Sarvesh Mewara Production House: Ronnie Screwvala Short brief: After celebrating the Indian Army with Uri: The Surgical Strike last year and recently announcing another war film in Pippa, RSVP’S air force film TEJAS has started shooting in December.

Tejas is the story of a daring and fierce fighter pilot, played by Kangana Ranaut.

The Indian Air Force was the first of the country’s defence forces to induct women into combat roles in 2016. The film takes inspiration from this landmark event.

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Court Martial

“This whole ‘insiders-outsiders’ talk is futile… nobody should feel privileged just because they are the son or daughter of so and so.”

– Manoj Bajpayee One of Bollywood’s most versatile actors, Manoj Bajpayee has received many accolades and adulation in his career spanning 27 years. He is multi-talented, passionate and has a knack of understanding his craft so well that he invariably gets into the skin of the character he plays. In a candid interview with Nikita Nikhil, Manoj talks about his film ‘Silence Can You Hear It?’, the future of cinema and the whole insiders v/s outsiders debate. Read on…

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You are extremely versatile and can essay various shades with ease. In fact, you ace every role that you play. Is there a particular secret mantra behind it?

I don’t know if there is a secret mantra for this, but one thing I do know is that I don’t judge any genre or insist I should play just characters of just one particular genre. I believe that an actor should understand each and every genre and the requirements of it.

One has to be ready with the craft and the skill and the passion to do justice to each and every role spanning any genre. So that’s what I follow and that keeps me interested all the time. If I do two or three independent films in a row, I want to get out and do something else. So I just do something middle of the stream or mainstream to keep myself fresh and interested in acting all the time. …And all these different directors keep me on my toes as they have different opinions about acting, different definitions of cinema …and I love it! I love to meet their expectations with my own craft and understand it.

Your film ‘Silence… Can You Hear It?’ is creating quite a buzz. What inspired you to select this film?

This is a murder mystery - something that I have never done before. I was on the lookout for one with a well-written script. Aban Deohans is a very old friend of mine and her husband K.D. (Kiran Deohans) too. I have known them since the time I started working for the film Aks. K.D. was the cinematographer.

When Aban gave me this script, I was completely intrigued. That’s why I decided I’ll go ahead and do this film. Of course, it was also an intention to support her and give her days on priority and adjust with her requirements and finish it as quickly as possible. And that’s exactly what I have done. Now we are ready with the film and it’s an interesting film, very intriguing. It will really keep your mind engaged. It’s going to be on Zee5 and will be quite a ride for the audience that I’m very sure about.

“

Anubhav Sinha keeps threatening me that he is going to come back again whenever he finds the right song.”

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person that I have come across. Then there’s Shishir, I have worked with him in Swabhimaan and now I’ve got a chance to work with him again. There are so many actors - superlatives ones and they just fit the part and that’s why they were cast in the first place. It was my pleasure and an opportunity to collaborate with such talents.

You worked with Prachi Desai and Arjun Mathur for this film. How was your experience?

Prachi Desai is a star in her own right.

She has done so well on television and has become a household name. And in films, she has done quite well so it always a pleasure and also an opportunity to know the person who has done extremely well in their career and how they look at the profession, how they hold the definition of their career. She is a fun-loving person and was quite chirpy, smiling and very caring at the same time. Arjun Mathur - I have been an admirer of his work since the time he started appearing in ads, I have been following his work. He is a very sincere and intelligent actor. He knows he’s tough. We sat down together on many occasions to share notes. So, it was great working with both of them. And not just them, there is Sahil Vaid, who is kind of a King of dubbing nowadays. And also, there is Vaquar Shaikh who has such a fantastic presence and a very genuine 40

Now that it’s the era of the OTT, what do you think is the future of cinema?

The future of cinema is always going to be the same as it was. It’s just that it is taking time to come back to normalcy because coronavirus is behaving in a very unpredictable way, that is pushing people inside or making them quite apprehensive about going to the theatres. Till then yes, you have only one medium of entertainment and that is OTT - it has such large storage of films and series that people choose to stick at home and not venture out. But when cinema halls really come back to normalcy, it will all be just fine.

Both the mediums will survive and thrive in their own respective ways. I believe that they will affect and influence each other.

You released a rap song on the plight of migrant workers ‘Bambai Main Ka Ba’ and it was an absolute hit. Do you have any other plans of entering the music industry?

“Bambai Main Ka Ba” was just a chance that I got from Anubhav Sinha. It was written so well and I speak Bhojpuri, that’s my

“

I believe that an actor should understand each and every genre and the requirements of it.”

mother tongue. I related to all the lines, all the ideas, and that kind of propelled me to just go ahead and try out something which is just not my scene at all. I am not a good singer but I am a great lover of good poetry. And the poetry was written so well by Dr Sagar.

So I thought let’s go ahead and have fun and also pay tribute to

all the migrants and their plight.

I don’t know when will it happen again but Anubhav Sinha keeps threatening me that he is going to come back again whenever he finds the right song. So let’s see, never say no to anything. If there is something that’s really resonating with you, one would definitely go ahead and do it.

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‘Secrets of Sinauli’ is of a completely different genre from that you have worked in until now. What made you choose this documentary?

Secrets of Sinauli is a COVID documentary for Discovery which I anchored during the lockdown. This was from my friend Neeraj Pandey and it was also a chance to sit with him and interact with him after a long time and work in a production which is monitored and mentored by him. It’s a part of history which was discovered just now and I knew about the news because it had come out a long way back that the villagers had run away with all the artifacts that they had found in their fields. And then the ASI got interested in this site -and they have been excavating and the findings are historical. So, I found it quite an experience in the sense that you come to under-

stand what happened 4,000 years back. It is going to be quite an eye-opener. I would urge each and everyone to sit with their family and watch this documentary. It is not only educational but will also unravel so many other things that we didn’t know.

Past records show that people have a lot of expectations from sequels. Does Family Man 2 have the same kind of pressure?

If you start taking it as a responsibility or get stressed that you have to meet the expectations of Season One, then you are going to fall down. It’s always better to start fresh and treat it as a new series.

“

I would urge each and everyone to sit with their family and watch this documentary ‘Secrets of Sinauli’.”

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“

When we started streaming Season one of Family Man, we were already through with the Chennai schedule of Season two.”

This is exactly what we have done. Family Man 2 was ready when the first Season was ready. Raj and DK worked in advance. They don’t write anything just because it was done well. When we started streaming Season one, we were already through with the Chennai schedule of Season two.

So this is the right way to go about sequels, to write things in advance so your mind is not influenced and you are not trying to please anyone.

So you actually doing it for the good of the script, you are trying to do justice with the script. This is exactly what we have followed in Season 2 and that is why it has become such an interesting one. I would say that it is going to be very exciting for the audience when Season 2 starts streaming.

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“

We as an industry should only focus on talent and nothing else and make it more democratic and make it healthier.”

You hail from a small village and come from a humble background. I read in an interview that during your struggling days, you were close to taking your own life. Making a mark in this industry was tough for you or in other words, you were an outsider. What are your thoughts on the whole insiders vs outsiders debate?

This ‘insider-outsider’ talk started nearly 20 years ago and it is something that was unnecessary. I somehow feel that the people who started doing this are very insecure people. Now that this is blown out of proportion, I really find it so futile to talk about it. Each and every insider was an outsider, their parents have come from outside to work in this industry. It is never about privilege. I always say whether you are an outsider or an insider, this industry should only focus on talent. Anybody can be talented, an insider can be talented, an outsider can be talented. Nobody should feel privileged here just because they are the son or daughter of so and so. We as an industry should only focus on talent and nothing else and make it more democratic and make it healthier.

This whole insiders-outsiders talk is all futile and we should really not encourage it that much. We should encourage talent instead of these kinds of inane and mundane topics.

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STARRY

SASHAY

Gone are the days when sweats and tracks were just a gym affair.

Today, athleisure is the trending look of the hip and it’s rocking parties, luncheons, and even airport looks! It is so ‘in’ right now... be it monochromatic, pastels, or neon, Athleisure has become a wardrobe essential this season.

We hand-pick some of the finest athleisure looks donned by our celebrities this season. So what are you waiting for? Grab a rating card and start ranking them now! Was their fashion choice on fleek or just about okay?

Ananya Pandey

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Karan Johar

Kriti Sanon

Ranveer Singh

Kiara Advani

Alia Bhatt

Disha Patani

Katrina Kaif

Deepika Padukone

Malaika Arora

Sara Ali Khan

Vicky Kaushal

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Stardust on the go Raveena Tandon looks like a Rajasthani princess

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Hrithik Roshan in a throwback picture with his niece

Sidhant Chaturvedi captures the silhouette

Bipasha Basu sunning in Maldives

Are actors outside their shooting world as glamorous as they look on the silver screen? Can female actors in Tinsel Town be good friends?

Who are the new lovebirds in B-town? Team Stardust brings you a bird eye’s view into the private lives of Tinsel Town eye candies.

Madhuri Dixit Nene looking as graceful as always

Varun Dhawan plays with a young fan

Kat looks pretty in blue

Ranvir Singh looks quite dapper in a blazer

Sanjay Dutt with his two daughters

Amitabh Bachchan tries some ‘Rj’ying

Priyanka Chopra doing a selfie with her people

Shabana Azmi clicks a selfie

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In Focus

“

It should be a responsibility more than a moral obligation to motivate and support your juniors. This industry is such a lovely place to be if we start helping and empathizing with each other.

”

-Shamaun Ahmed

He is talented, smart and has an amazing screen presence. He has worked with big names and banners yet he is under-rated and a bit of an underdog.

He is none-other than Shamaun Ahmed who has won many hearts with his power-packed performances in Girl On The Train, Bard Of Blood and so many other series. Read on to get an insight of his journey, experiences, and thoughts about the dreaded‘N’ word of B-town…

- Interviewed by Nikita Nikhil 50

I

read somewhere that you started your journey as a DJ but then transitioned into an actor. What made you choose the latter?

A few days ago, on social media, I posted this trailer and some of my school friends wrote to me discussing a play that I had actually conceptualized in 30 minutes when I was in class 4. I did not even remember this… but they said we knew it from that very moment that you would become an actor. As luck would have it, I was DJing, and I was very keen on it. To be honest, I have always been a person who likes to create things or try something new. I remember while DJing, I wanted to become a model but never really had the courage to admit it since I was a scrawny little guy. One day, the agency I used to be a DJ for, held a fashion show and one of their models did not turn up. So, my boss came up to me and asked about the duration of the track I prepared for the show. I replied, “30 minutes” since it was a long show. Then he said, “Do one thing, come and walk the ramp. The guy who was supposed to model did not turn up.” I was amazed because I was a scrawny little guy with long hair who used to walk at his own pace and rhythm. I agreed and stood there among supermodels. It was a fun experience. I was just 16 at the time and just 5’9 or 5’10 feet tall. When I was walking the ramp, the crowd was clapping! As a DJ when you are performing, it is obvious that people will dance and whistle. You expect that to happen. But when you start walking a ramp, you are not doing anything, you are just walking in branded clothes and people are clapping for you. It feels something different to you. When I finished with my part, I got down the stage and met my boss.

He complimented me saying it was a good walk but not to get overwhelmed by it all.

I got confused, thinking, “Is this something really to be arrogant about?” I was too naïve to even understand that. It was the choreographer who told me later that I should really be working in public spaces because at one side there were these tall 6’3-6’4 feet models with hunky bodies and then there was scrawny little me walking and that people were liking me. Then, before I knew it, I started getting more calls

to do more shows. I started getting still campaigns. So before I knew all of it, I was doing that. It was then that I started realizing that I would like to act. I enjoyed acting.

I think everybody else around me knew it before I did but I realized it much later. When I was acting on an ad film set for the first time, I performed my character without any

training. While performing it, I could feel that it was something fun. It was only post that that I underwent professional training to be an actor. For some initial years, I did not take any professional course, buss chal rahi thi dukaan. As a matter of fact, my parents told me years later that they used to get worried when I insisted joining martial arts classes.

They said, “Haath pair tudwa lega apne, shakal kharab kar lega apni” to which I would reply, 51

“Toh abhi kaunsi shakal acchi hai meri” which would make them laugh. My dad revealed that somewhere in his mind, he always knew I would take this path. I was stunned!

I mean which father says, “Son, you don’t become a doctor or engineer or even take over the business. You just go and become a hero!” You see how lucky I am that my parents had planned this and didn’t even inform me! When things started working out in my favor and people started praising me, that’s when my parents disclosed that this is what they have always thought.

Could you tell us about your film ‘Girl on The Train’?

‘Girl on the Train’ is based on the Paula Hawkins book which was a global bestseller.

Apart from that, it has also been adapted for an English film of the same name which stars Emily Blunt. Ribhu Da had this project on his mind for a very long time and wanted to make this movie. I remember even on the sets of Bard of Blood, he used to talk about this. Bard… was so intense for us, I mean, we used to shoot at -19 degrees Celsius so it was very strenuous and we all did not get to talk much. We would shoot and then return to our places. It was only a few months later after Bard of Blood premiered on Netflix that he called me to do this film.

But inherently this is an official remake with a little twist here and there.

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You have a lot of scenes with Parineeti Chopra, Kirti Kulhari and Aditi Rao Hydari in this movie. How was it working with them?

It was amazing. You see, unlike most directors, Ribhu Da has this habit with his actors that he won’t start the shoot with a light scene to warm up the actor. Other directors would normally start with light scenes so that the actor gets a hold of the character and gradually would shift to intense scenes. That’s the norm, that’s how it happens. But Ribhu da starts with the hardest scene first, a scene where you know wahan aapki band bajegi, he begins with that. He is that guy. He needs a six on the first ball. My entry scene for the movie was shot on the third or fourth day of my arrival because I was jetlagged. No one told me what was happening on the shoot.

It was only one night before my first shot that I was informed that I have a so and so bar scene with Parineeti, the coming day. I was asked to prepare and take my time. I got anxious. I was about to act with Parineeti Chopra, she’s a big star. The next day, I reached early and saw that there was hustle-bustle on the set. Parineeti was there shooting her own scenes and everything. So quietly, I sat in an ill-lit corner of the room. Ribhu sir started looking for me and asked everyone where I was. I was listening to the whole conversation on the

walkie-talkie. They all said I was present on the set but could not spot me. Then Ribhu sir shouted, “SHAMAUN!?” and I replied, “Yeah, I’m sitting right here.” He then asked me to come on the mark because of my scene with Parineeti Chopra. Parineeti greeted me and introduced herself. She could obviously sense that the guy standing in front of her was nervous. Parineeti was fun and amazing. Initially, she intentionally made mistakes in her dialogues so that I gained some confidence. Not that I asked her later, but I definitely felt she did that to help me. When you have done theatre, there is no chance that you commit a mistake while acting, especially on a set located at a historical place in London, which has now been turned into a club.

Then there was Ribhu Das Gupta present, Tribhuvan Babu is your cinematographer and Parineeti Chopra is also standing in front of you. Just guess the amount of pressure on me at that time! But the scene went on smoothly. That day, after we finished our work, I was about to leave for my place, I just walked up to Parineeti and gave her a tight hug. We both became emotional. We thanked each other but I mentioned that she helped me a lot with that scene because it was a bit intense.

She said that we are working together and it’s our responsibility to help each other.

I felt very contented after that. So, Ribhu

sir is like that. He would make you do the principal scene first. We have worked together in Bard of Blood so he knows me.

He will first throw you in the deep end by asking you to perform the toughest scene.

Ask Avinash and he would say the same.

When I shot with Aditi, she was also very helpful. I had some intimate scenes with her and… she is very delicate. So, I had a scene where she was standing in front of me and I had to be angry and look her in the eyes. The moment I did it, the first thought that popped into my head was, “Damn, she is really beautiful” (laughs). So overall, it was good. It didn’t feel like I was working with a star. It felt that the six of us were friends and we were having a party in London.

But you should credit yourself too. It was only because you were so well-prepared that they made you feel comfortable…

To be honest, I tell this to my friends in the industry that I am not aware of my talent.

So instead, I put in so much hard work that there is no chance of error. That’s what I feel that reduces the chance of errors. But obviously, when I see it afterward, a lot of flaws get noticed. But I put in so much effort that it earns me a little bit of respect.

I compensate for it with my hard work. I give it my 2000%, I overcompensate things with my hard work.

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We see a lot of remakes in our Bollywood industry. What do you think makes The Girl on The Train relevant in today’s time?

It’s a human story. Whatever Meera (Parineeti) is feeling in the movie, it has become extremely relevant in today’s time because of social media. There was one time when people used to think that Ranjeet and Pran were bad villainous people because of their reel life characters. Thankfully, now people have become aware and don’t think like that. But at the same time, even today we get misled by people on social media.

When we see people on Instagram, we think they are living a perfect life and we are not.

So somewhere on these lines, people in the movie think that Meera’s life is perfect. She has got everything but then they get to know that that’s not the reality. So, this story is very relevant in today’s time.

Do you think OTT can ever replace theatres?

How can someone who loves cinema say ‘yes’ to this? But one thing is definite that thanks to OTT, actors like us, who were supposed to do different things in life, can’t do television shows because it consumes you completely.

You don’t have time to do other things in life. It was difficult to enter films because the audience doesn’t know you and it becomes difficult for the director or producer to put 54

money on and launch you. So, OTT has opened a new avenue in that sense. Today people like us are getting a chance to come and perform. So, I am very grateful to OTT. Now I have come to a point where I just need to perform. Give me any role or character and I will do it.

What are your thoughts on the insiders vs outsiders debate that going on for a very long time now?

I think this debate started after Sushant Singh Rajput’s untimely demise. People became more vocal on this topic. It’s not like people didn’t talk about this in past. They did but in a very hush-hush manner and the audience could not understand it clearly. But I gave a deep thought into this matter, also because my last three films, including Girl on the Train, are produced by big studios. I have done work with Sony on The Big Bong Connection – a happy-go-lucky, slice of life kind of series where I played the lead role. Then I got to shoot a magnum opus called Bard of Blood.

It was obvious that I could not play the lead role in it because nowadays audience looks for familiar faces. This is what you and I do too, unknowingly. Then came Girl on The Train, which is produced by Reliance and Film Hanger – Steven Spielberg’s company.

So, I am getting my way through all this. I am growing with each movie and Inshallah, the

audience also might start recognizing me.

So, it kind of builds things up that way. When it comes to the whole ‘insider vs. outsider’ debate, I feel the industry is not at fault. I’m not saying all this to be politically correct.

You tell me if you are investing in mutual funds, would you be willing to take a risk by investing in some alien or new company that is unheard of? No! you would go for brands and big names. So where is the Producer at fault if he thinks that he should make a movie with a saleable name so that his investment does not get wasted? Yes, but I do think that our industry lacks in certain ways and I have seen this with my own eyes in the last couple of years that there are certain actors who are unknown or may not have a box office movie or do a small role, don’t get an equal amount of respect. I feel really bad about it. You should not give respect to the other person based on his box office value or the role he is doing in the movie. That should not be the basis.

Treat him with respect because he is also a human. I think this lacks a bit in our industry. I remember, I once worked with this guy a few years back. He was very young and used to say, “Shamaun bhai, mujhe na uss tarah se izzat nahi milti”. So, at that time, I preached him by stating that, “You have to earn respect. You’ll do it, don’t worry. Just hang in there.” But in reality, it does not happen that way. It should not happen that way. So that’s what happens in the whole ‘Insider-Outsider’ debate that if a person belongs to a family whose name associated with the film industry, he would get that respect vs. a newbie who won’t get respect in that way. I feel that is wrong on our part. As human beings, everybody should get respected. Let them grow. Also, I feel when it comes to insider-outsider or nepotism, the audience should be open to new people. I feel that is also happening right now. I mean, it is okay to have a star craze but there are many more stars standing in the queue waiting for their 15-minute spotlight so that they could prove their worth to this world. I also feel that you always have someone junior to you regardless of the position or field you belong to. So, it should be a responsibility more than a moral obligation to motivate and support your juniors. I have worked with actors from Emraan Hashmi to Adil Hussain to Kirti Kulhari

and they are so inspiring! So down to earth!

Even if you are a second-year college student, you should help the first-year students rather than rag them. Make their life easy. Help each other. This industry is such a lovely place to be if we start helping and empathizing with each other. It is crucial. I know I am being very optimistic, but in a small way, we should try to bring this change.

When will we see you next? What are your future projects?

I am a bit choosy when it comes to selecting movies. For the past some time, I have been saying no to projects because I didn’t get anything interesting. But now I have twothree interesting projects in the pipeline.

Two of them are definitive. I just have to sign them. The characters that I would be playing in these upcoming projects are very challenging. They are very different from who I am in reality. But yes, I am in talks. There are minor changes here are there in the script.

Just waiting for the script to lock and then I’ll sign them.

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W I L D E N C O U N T E R 56

She’s

Hot, Sexy

and extremely vivacious.

That’s right, Iranian actress Mandana Karimi who showcased her acting prowess in Bhaag Johnny and made her presence felt in Salman Khan’s Bigg Boss is a hot fave of the social media. Here’s she gives her taken on love, lust and life.

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What works for me is “buy me food”.

What are the three most essential things you carry with you all the time?

I carry my lip balm, phone and headphones always.

What in a man turns you on?

His eyes, a good conversation with him or perhaps someone who could make me laugh.

What in a man turns you off?

A man who lies.

What’s the mantra to impress a girl according to you?

Hmm…. It depends actually! What works for me is “buy me food”.

Just feed me basically!!

Have you ever been hit on by the same sex? What was your reaction?

Yeah, many times! I feel flattered.

When was the last time a guy chased you? Or you chased a guy?

Everywhere, anytime every day!!

Which is the most awful one liner you have come across till date?

Hmm there have been many but the worse would be “You love puppies? I’m up for adoption”

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“I don’t make out in strange places!!”

What kind of a body would you prefer?

A voluptuous one or a bikini bod?

I don’t really have a favourite! I’ve been voluptuous and I’ve been skinny. What’s important is that you need to love yourself, it doesn’t matter what body type you have!

I’ve been happy in both.

A situation you got awkward in?

When people ask about my personal life (sex life).

Have you ever drunk dialled anyone?

Yup, I’m sure we all have!

Ladies at times worry about the size of their assets, what is your point of view as an actress, does size really matter?

Well as I said “it doesn’t matter what size you are”, you need to (have to) be happy with what you’ve got! We all are beautiful in our own unique ways.

If you ever get into a relationship would you be a daunting or a chilled-out girlfriend? Hmm… Depends on how much I like him.

How many times have you been cheated on and at what age?

Hmm. well the one I know about - It was my first boyfriend when I was 19.

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What kind of a lover are you?

Sexy one I guess. Hahaha!!

Which is the strangest place you’ve made out in?

I don’t make out in strange places!!

How would you want your lover to be?

Hard and sleazy, wild and funny, soft What would you prefer to be? Girl next and surprising? door, power-packed performer or sex Mix of all I think. icon?

A power packed performer.

What is the first thing you notice in a guy? Eyes.

A film you saw only for the sex in it?

Definitely, Original Sin! Have you ever taken advantage of your celebrity status?

What’s your perfect kind of date like?

Oh yes!! Many times!

Being on the beach having a long conversation, wine, great meal and a great goodWhat’s your take on open relations? night kiss!

It won’t work for me. I’m either committed to someone or I’m not in relationship at all!

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Starry Look

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Beauty mantra: According to Kiara, beauty is having healthy and glowing skin. She says, “When I am off camera, I like to keep my look neutral, with little make-up and more focus on my skin.”

Skin Care Routine: Kiara starts her day by drinking a glass of water. Closely followed by a good skincare regime which starts with basic cleansing and moisturising. She washes her face with a gentle gel-based face wash and follows it up with the right moisturiser or serum. When outdoors, Kiara applies a good sunscreen. At night, before she goes to bed, Kiara removes her makeup.

Kiara’s Makeup essentials: Lip balm or lipstick, perfume, face mist, kajal and moisturiser.

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Music room

“When a composer and a singer match each other’s wavelength, it’s easy to work.”

- Hariharan Legendary singer Hariharan has collaborated with music maestro and composer Bickram Ghosh on an album titled Ishq – Songs of Love. Read on as the remarkable duo chats with Nikita Nikhil about the album, their musical journey, and their take on the contemporary music scene of India…

Please tell us about your new album Ishq – Songs of Love?

Hariharan: We were playing table tennis for two months and the ball was the song. He used to send me a song, then I used to sing it and send it back. Then re-sing certain portions. It has lovely compositions and the genre is geet. Yeh 6 gaane aise khelte khelte ho gaya in one-one and a half month. And I loved the compositions because they had Indian melody, the beat is raag or folk-based. I really liked the subject because it was six stories of love with different endings to the story but the basis was love. I really enjoyed singing and when you enjoy something, it finishes up quickly. So I sent the songs back to him. Then Bickram worked on the songs and arrangement of the sound aspect of it. He added some beautiful rhythm and harmony. So the voice was gliding on a streamlet of beautiful compositions of harmonies and rhythms. The tabla has its place and it’s very musical. It’s traditional but used in a very innovative and modern way. That is what drives the songs and makes the songs sound different. We really enjoyed the process. After this came in six videos. The recording company – Sufiscore, supported us in every way and gave a tremendous kind of push from their side, and we really enjoyed it.

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Bickram Ghosh: Well, four years back, I had sent Hariharan Ji a song and I had requested him to sing it. He immediately sang and sent it back - but I realised at that point and he too mentioned that I had only sent him one antara - normally a song has two antaras. That’s when I realised that my engineer and I had made a mistake.

Strangely, after that, four years just went by and we never got down to getting the second antara done of that song. Of course, Hari Ji and I have performed together on several occasions including one massive concert we had done at the Royal Festival Hall in London in 2010. Then there were other occasions when Ustad Rashid Khan, Hariji and I have performed. So we have done shows in the past but we have never collaborated on an album before. So, during the pandemic, we suddenly got chatting and I said, “Can I send you the song again?”. He said, “Sure, send it!”. Now this time I sent it with both the antaras and in two days, it came back, sung like a dream. Then I sent him another one and then again, he sang and sent it in a couple of days. So, this became a process over the next month or two. And in a couple of months, we had done all six songs. During that time, it was pretty crazy because of the pandemic so we were not travelling. If one is constantly travelling, you can’t do a project from start to finish. So, we got a break in the middle. In this case, there was no travelling for either of us. It just got finished very quickly in record time. And as Hari ji has said it himself, this is the fastest album he has done. I then spoke to a very dear friend, a famous director from Bengal, film director Arindam Sil and he came on board after we spoke to Sufiscore. Sufiscore was really excited and very supportive of the entire project and said, ‘Please do whatever you need to do’. We decided to shoot all six songs as videos. Then we got Arindam on board and I requested Hari Ji to come down to Kolkata to shoot this entire project. He came twice to Kolkata and we did all six videos in about four or five months. And of course, I travelled to Mumbai also, due to mixing and mastering which was done in Hari Ji’s studio in Mumbai. So that’s it! The project was ready.

Hariharan sir is a singer and Bickram Ghosh sir is a percussionist as well as a composer.

How did this collaboration happen?

Hariharan: When a composer and a singer match each other’s wavelength, it’s easy to work.

Bickram Ghosh: There are two aspects to what I do. One is being a tabla player or being a fusion artist, and the other, is a composer. So as a composer I make the melodies and do all the arrangements of all the songs and drive the soundscape of the song. So I had done some melodies initially and basic arrangements and then sent it to Hari Ji. But you have to understand that Hari ji is a mammoth singer, and when he digs into a song, he sings the song as his own and gives it a different kind of life. So when he sang the songs, I felt that I had to arrange it one more time because then it would be more in-sync with what he has done. He had given some interesting and new thoughts to the songs.

That’s why I worked again on the songs and we really achieved a wonderful synergy of sound, arrangements, singing and of course, my tabla playing pretty much came right at the

63

end because I wanted to play it in a way that it does not disturb the flow of the song and yet, doesn’t sound typical. That’s how it was done and I think that’s how it stands out.

There is a unique freshness to this album.

It is not like what you would hear today or you may feel some feelings from the past may creep into the songs. But eventually, it’s a very fresh sound and a special kind of approach for making these songs. As Hari Ji described as “geet” which are soft melodies that are hummable. And the soundscape is very different. Also, the way Hari Ji sang it, he has sung in such a way that you won’t find similarity of his singing with the body of work he has done. So it’s very unique what he has done. So I think that’s what made the album special and I would say that all of this was possible because we were so focussed throughout the period. We have really put our heart and soul into this project.

Hariharan sir, you are a legendary singer with so many wonderful songs and your musical career has been amazing. How did it all start?

I come from a music family. It was my mother’s and father’s combined contribution.

My mom has been a Carnatic musician and teacher. So, I learned and inherited my initial music from her. I have done my school-

64

ing from Don Bosco High School, Bombay.

So I had Carnatic music at home and at school, we were exposed to western music in school. I used to sing in the school group also. And then, of course, we were all exposed to Bollywood. For a long time, I used to sing a lot of geet from Bollywood, romantic songs and I have sung a lot of ghazals because those days so many ghazals were there and I used to sing them too, without knowing ghazals. So, from then, I have attempted to sing all these styles. Then I went to Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan saab and learned Hindustani music. That was a different world, I started learning khayal singing.

It was quite a good journey. So more than half the time went on learning music. I never learned music because I wanted to be a professional singer. In the ‘60s and the early ‘70’s, we didn’t have the television in front of us. So we had a lot of time to pursue this talent. So it was pretty normal doing that like cricket khelna hai, gaana bhi gaana hai, school jaana hai aur kuch padhai bhi karna hai. And that’s all. Then I got my first chance from Jaidev Ji for his film called Gaman. My first ghazal album was released in the ‘80s.

It was called Ghazal ka Mausam and was composed by Ghulam Mustafa Khan saab.

That started my journey towards ghazals.

And the rest is history!

Bickram sir, you are a tabla maestro, one of India’s greatest tabla players. You learnt tabla from your father who used to play with Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. You have performed with various global artists and singers. How has the journey been for you?

My journey has been very varied - a very different trajectory. I started as a pure classical tabla player which I learned from my father Pandit Shankar Ghosh. From a very early point in my life, I must have been 14 or 15, I learned the Carnatic percussion techniques from a great maestro called Pandit S. Sekhar. So those were my learning years and I ended up playing for Pandit Ravi Shankar ji. So I played for him for the first time in 1993 and then played with him for continuous 11 years where I would stay with them and play in all his concerts. So that period was a huge exposure for me, it was a learning experience and I also became his student. Thereafter, somewhere in 1998-99, I kind of started feeling that there was another form of music inside me that needed to express itself. That was the beginning of my fusion career which started off eventually with Rhythm Scape, my first album which happened in 2001. I still do a lot of fusion shows besides doing classical shows. And somewhere between doing those fusion concerts and fusion albums, I also started scoring for films. I have scored for 38 feature films, 10 Hindi and 28 in Bengali. My latest work is a Sanjay Dutt

film on Netflix called Torbaaz, directed by Girish Malik. Sonu Nigam and I have scored for some movies together named Jal, which got an Oscar contention for us. So the trajectory of my career has been in different directions. Hari Ji is a decade older than me, and I was subconsciously influenced by what he was doing because I always admired the fact that he was able to do so much. He was able to do Colonial Cousins and he was able to do Hazir (album) and Tu Hi Re, all those different things that he did. So I think I belong to that headspace. That’s why we ended up making an album and doing it so smoothly together. We do have a lot of varied interests. In the album, you’ll find a convergence of all these trajectories of Hari Ji and mine. There are some parts where you would feel like a fusion of a beautiful Ghazalish line or something. So those influences are all there. Then there are places where he is taking off or I am taking off on the tabla and doing something crazy for like five or ten seconds. There is a song called Bawra Yeh Mann where Hari Ji did a completely impromptu interlude. Initially, it was ending on ‘Pa’ and he does it on a higher scale and it was completely impromptu. We just went into the studio and I don’t know what happened at that moment, but he just thought that we should do something like this. It came off so wonderfully, such a treasure moment. That’s what we tried to do, we wanted to make something different, fresh, and

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something that would inspire people to make music that is more organic not following a certain kind of typicality. That’s how we are here.

Our life trajectories have been out of the box and that’s why we made an album like this.

Hariharan sir, of all the six songs that you recorded for this album, which was that one song which resonated with you the most? Which one did you enjoy recording the most?

Actually, I enjoyed all the songs. Each one had its own kind of melody and uniqueness. In an album, all the songs have to sound of a certain level. In fact, in these six songs we picked, Bickram has initially sent me 12 songs. Out of those, we chose these six. So these were already our favorite picks and that helped us put our heart and soul into them. Toh bada maza aaya. The first song I sang was Baaton Baaton Mein and then from there, we took off with each song.

Hariharan sir, your son Akshay is also into music. How was your experience working with him?

Yes, I have recorded some songs with him and I am a part of his journey. I keep doing songs with him - I have been doing it for the last 7-8 years with him. It is always a nice experience.

He is growing in his knowledge and style. Akshay is into electronic music and he is coming

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out with his album. It will be releasing this year.

We really enjoyed working together and had some good moments together. I didn’t have that much time when they were growing up because I have been traveling all my life. So maybe God has given us this time to know each other and have a good time.

There are so many remixes happening in the industry. What are your thoughts on this?

Hariharan: So it is basically what you do to remixes is that you keep the essence of the old and give it a shine of today’s times. But the soul has to be there. You have a song and you give it a modern kind of arrangement. So at the end of it when you hear it, you say, “Wow, that’s my favorite song from the ‘90s or ‘70s, and it sounds beautiful and different.” So it is basically about respect and also think about the creators of that song, the melody, the lyrics, the way it has been composed. Modernity is fine. Like our grandfathers and their fathers spoke and behaved in a certain way. Whenever we are talking about the same subject, our way of talking is different. So as society changes, the way you sing or interpret things are different but we think the same.

So you got to keep that in mind and bridge both the worlds through sound. When it’s a nice kind of a remix, it’s fine. It’s not like you can’t do it or something but you have the responsibility of giving it a new shape but not disfiguring it.

Bickram Ghosh: My views are a little different because I feel what happens is if you have a copyright law for 50 years, it’s already there, so I feel you should not be touching the song for a certain period of time. If the composer is alive and if he does not have anything to do with the remix, then I don’t think it is fair to touch it. The person had a certain kind of vision when he/she made it. Yes, I agree that certain songs are re-interpreted - the melodies, the arrangements are done in a fresh way. That’s also good because if a certain amount of time has gone and the composer is not alive anymore. But you have to take a song from the person who made it alive and then you do, as Hari Ji said, add value to that song. But most of the time you end up disfiguring it as Hari Ji said. If you make something lesser than the original then the purpose is not served. There are so many songs that you feel should have been left alone because they are such iconic songs. Like there are youngsters singing ‘Tu Hi Re’, they are singing covers for it all the time. But I don’t like it because what Hari Ji did to the song was ultimate. Uske baad kya hoga? It happens a lot in films because people want to cash in on the popularity of a song that is already there.

I don’t think that lasts at all. People may just forget it in two-three months and then it’s gone from the face of the planet.

You both are associated with bands, Hariharan sir with Colonial Cousins and Bickram sir with Rhythm scape. How do you balance your personal career with the work you do with the band?

Hariharan: Working with Leslie Lewis was amazing, it still is. We still do shows together.

In fact, few months back, we landed up doing eight cover versions of The Eagles. That was a great experience. There is nothing difficult about it. When you have two different kinds of music, the feel of each band is different.

Like I am doing ghazals one day with the same musicians, the next day I am doing something else, the repertoire also changes. One day I’m singing thumri and dadra and the next day, I’m singing Bollywood songs. The third day, I’m with Colonial Cousins and so on. So, we don these characters according to the genre. Our thinking changes, our mood changes for that amount of time when we are singing these songs and that’s what keeps me going, actually. When you are doing three-four things, you don’t get bored. Or you don’t end up doing just one thing around all your life. This is something common between me and Bickram which we felt too while working on this album.

Bickram Ghosh: I think Hari Ji just said it all.

The first and foremost thing that happens when you have different setups when your career has different trajectories. For me, there

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is a Rhythm Scape, then there is a tabla career of neo-classical and there is also film composition. So all of these give you opportunities to explore yourself as a musician. That’s very special because it keeps you engaged in your path. As Hari Ji said, we don’t get bored because we are doing different things. So if I have done a tour of Rhythm Scape and then I come back and I do a film score, it’s very fresh for me. So in your mind, that keeps you really attached to your craft because you are doing different things. We are lucky that we are able to straddle these different ports. That gives us a lot of leeways to experiment with our own craft. For me, Rhythm Scape is like a great aphrodisiac because when I do it, I suddenly become like a half-rock artist playing tablas.

The audience is different too. So we are moving from one zone to another and that is very exciting for an artist.

For the album, you have shot six videos across Kolkata. How was the shooting experience?

Hariharan: We did six videos across Kolkata and everything was outdoors. For Dil Hawaai Hai, we shot in six locations right from Maidan to North of Kolkata – Howrah Bridge and so many beautiful places. I could see North Kolkata, it’s very quaint looking. It comes from a different period, it’s colonized. It’s a very old area with small streets and very cute. We had great fun doing Dil Hawai Hai. Then we went to a 150 years old jute mill which has been closed for decades. The whole structure of the mill has been engulfed by the roots of the Banyan tree, acres of it. I have never seen anything like that. It was fantastic. We worked with top models, actors, and actresses in the Bengal film industry. They were really professional and it was really a treat to work with them.

Bickram Ghosh: The shooting was amazing.

All six have been shot by Arindam Sil. The experience was very intense because we literally shot six videos in eight days. We went to the city across Bengal actually, we went outside the city, some village locations, and an old mill too. So each video has a different location.

Arindam really put a lot of energy and thought into it and made some wonderful videos. A little bit of conceptualization was also helped by one of our lyricists Sugata Guha. We had a blast shooting the videos because in one video we are playing sutradhar, in another, we are playing two musicians in search of a

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memory. In one video, Hari ji and I have a conversation at the beginning of the video and I invite him to Kolkata to experience the ishq of the city. So the city becomes the metaphor for love. So it was a wonderful and enriching experience. The whole unit was so involved and we interacted with them too. We had so many wonderful actors from Bengal. We had Hari Ji’s son Karan who was the main lead in the video Radha. My wife, Jaya Seal Ghosh who has done several films in Hindi, was the main lead in the song Mora Mann Mehka. Then we had Ishaa Saha, Tuhina Das, Sauraseni Maitra and Priyanka Sarkar. So it was very enriching.

How do you think the music will resonate with the audience?

Hariharan:The genre which we have dealt with is Geet. It is a very delicate form of poetry and complimenting that would be the music which is very lilting and soft. I feel that it will hit the target and the people would love it because it’s a bouquet of love in terms of lyrics, singing, composition, and video.

Bickram Ghosh: The music will definitely resonate with the audience. We saw that happen for the last few days when the songs were released on 21st, the first video, and the album, and the people have been raving about it. At its music launch, all of the music industry came. Anupam Kher came too. They have all written back to us and even at the venue told us that it is such a fresh album, fresh sound, and beautiful singing. There is a feel of melodies of the past but with an edgy, modern soundscape. So yes, whoever is listening or watching the video is coming back and saying that they loved this.

What’s your take on the contemporary music scenario of India?

Hariharan: For contemporary music, there are so many influences, there is Electronic Dance Music (EDM). It has a lot of western influences along with folk music coming into play. Especially Punjabi music has become very popular. Most of it is based on Punjabi music. Western music in the sense that bands have come into play like rock bands and fusion bands. The fusion is becoming more and more refined. It’s becoming seamless. So, it’s growing in a big way and that’s absolutely interesting.

Bickram Ghosh: Let’s not restrict the scene to Bollywood especially now. I think the contemporary music scene has really expanded. There is so much music, there is, of course, traditional and classical music happening, that’s getting stronger again.

Ghazals are getting stronger again.Then there is a Bollywood chunk of music, which is filmy and that’s happening in its own trajectory. There is folk music taking a huge slice of the cake, more and more nowadays.

There are bands across the country. People are singing in English. There are instrumental performances. There are big festivals happening across the globe and in India. So, it’s a very good time for music. Personally, I feel the only thing that we require is to have more songs with good lyrics and melodies especially in popular space, which is why we have come out with Ishq.

What are your future projects?

Hariharan: I am doing a couple of songs for my son Akshay Hariharan’s electronic album.

It has a lot of Indian-style compositions and also contemporary compositions. I am looking forward to that. After that, I’m doing a ghazal album with Farhat Shahzad.

He is an amazing poet who has done a lot of work with Mehdi Hasan Khan saab. We are doing six ghazals, all different styles of ghazal in subjects which he has chosen, and accordingly, I have put them into slightly different genres of music. Both the albums Akshay’s and the ghazal album will come out this year.

Bickram Ghosh: I am doing a whole bunch of stuff. I just acted in a Hindi film called Band of Maharajas, directed by Girish Malik. I have scored Girish’s first film ‘Jal’ along with Sonu Nigam and we got an Oscar contention for

that. Then I scored for his second film called Torbaaz which is still running on Netflix. And the third film, Band of Maharajas, I have scored as well as played a role in that. I play this Afghan percussionist called Firoze Jamshed. That’s been a really interesting experience, shooting over three schedules.

We shot last in September, once the shooting opened. Besides this, there are tons of films in Bangla – Avijatrik, which is the fourth part of the Apu trilogy of Satyajit Ray. It is being filmed by Subhrajit Mitra in black and white. There is Arindam Sil’s film called Maya Kumari and a whole other host of films that I am doing. I am doing a new Rhythm Scape album which is very exciting after many years. The work on that is on. Then there is a collaboration which we are trying to figure out between myself and a couple of Indian artists including Ronu Majumdar Ji and some foreign artists like Barry Phillips on cello, who is a Grammy award winner. That’s an international project. More films in Hindi are coming my way. I’m looking forward to it. And of course, Hari Ji and I would want to do something in the near future, especially after Ishq has been so well received.

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m o r f t s a l B the past

This self-styled Madonna is in no virgin territory.

Over-exposed literally and figuratively, Sonam floated into the industry on a wave of controversy and the fifteen-year-old siren hasn’t stopped making gossip ever since. In our Court Martial, Sonam reveals that she is more than just a Barbie doll!

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Yash Chopra who once couldn’t stop raving about you, now can’t resist passing snide remarks every time your name is mentioned.

It’s common knowledge that he’s extremely upset with the way you’ve not been able to give your best to ‘Vijay’ only because you are signing films left, right and centre. Now don’t you feel guilty for using your god-father as a stepping stone and then conveniently kicking him aside?

I don’t think that Yashji is upset with me at all. If he was, he would have come and told me himself. He is a very frank and outspoken person. He fights his own battles. In any case he never did stop me from signing more and more films. His only condition was that ‘Vijay’ should be my first release. Otherwise he has no restrictions on me at all. Maybe he said what he did, in a jovial mood. He is a great kidder with a terrific sense of humour. Yashji, is one who loves progress in everybody and he wouldn’t ever

hinder anybody’s progress. In fact, whenever I sign a new film he is only too happy and gladly blesses me each time.

You seem to have rubbed a lot of big stars the wrong way. For you cannot deny that both Rajesh Khanna and Feroz Khan haven’t forgiven you for having taken them for a massive ride by promising to do their films and then happily ditching them for Yash Chopra. No wonder they’ve sworn never to sign you again.

I admit I was supposed to be launched by Rajesh Khanna, but nothing was finalized. But by the time talk of the film getting started was going on. I was offered a role by Yash Chopra. And I thought that a bird in hand is definitely better than three or four running around in the bush.

So I signed ‘Vijay’. Maybe because of that there was some misunderstanding between Rajeshji and me. I have heard that he is not the forgiving kind, but on the sets of ‘Vijay’ he behaves perfectly normal with me. As for Feroz Khan, as far as I am concerned I am still in ‘Yaalgaar’. I know there have been reports saying that I have been replaced by Madhuri Dixit, but I don’t know how far they are true. According to me I am still in the film because I haven’t got any news from Feroz Khan’s office informing me that I am out.

At least when you throw a person out of a film it is the duty of the producer to inform the star.

“All my physical growth is natural and I am not aware of the fact that such hormone injections and pills are available.”

Why should I go and ask whether I am still in the film or not? As far as I am concerned, I am still there because the role and everything was narrated to me. Only if I am personally told that I am out will I believe it.

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Your manly voice is the standing joke of the industry. For according to certain directors it’s difficult to differentiate between the hero’s voice and yours. How do you react to the fact that your disgruntled producers have got your voice dubbed in all your films?

I think my voice is perfectly okay. In fact I quite like it. It is so different from the normal, ordinary voices. It is distinct and characteristic of only me. And how can people say that it sounds bad on films? They obviously don’t know what they are talking about for I have yet to dub for any film. My voice will be heard on film only after I have dubbed. Then, let people form their opinions. I will be dubbing for my films soon and to the best of my knowledge no one else has dubbed for me so far. Jealous people just talk without reason. Maybe they have a lot of E.S.P. and sixth sense for being able to predict my screen voice without having heard it. In that case hat’s off to them.

You claim to be a mere fifteen-year-old but you surely don’t look it at all. Rumour has it that you took a lot of growth inducing hormone injections and pills only to increase your vital statistics. Is that why you wear revealing clothes all the time to show off your well-endowed assets?

Whether anyone believes it or not, I am only fifteen years old. While others try to hide their age by knocking off four or five years from it, I have to add two or three years to my age and tell people that I am much older. Otherwise I wouldn’t even be allowed in an ‘adults only’ film. All my physical growth is natural and I am not even aware of the fact that such hormone injections and pills are available. Will someone please tell me where to get them? I don’t think that such things are available in the first place. Because for every existing chemical, there has to be an antidote or something to reverse it. In that case why don’t people have special injections to make them young and healthy when they are old and ill? I am sorry to disappoint everyone, but I am not used to taking any such injections. Maybe there are people who do, that are why they expect others also to follow suit. Why not ask them because they are the real culprits?

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All those who know you insist that you are very ashamed of your background, especially your illiterate family whom you desperately try to disown while you gaily cavort with your dressdesigner aunt Sabiha who is well versed in the ways of the industry. Are you that enamoured by glamour that you’ve completely forgotten your roots?

I have not disowned my family. I think I belong to a very respectable khandaan. Tell me what’s wrong in not being educated? As long as I have sense I don’t need to be educated and the same goes for my family. There are many people who are educated, but they are worse than pimps and whores because they don’t have any sense. Many of our so called literates fit into that category and I look down on them. Frankly in the long run it doesn’t really matter whether you are educated or not. It doesn’t make a difference at all. What counts is the innermost instinct in your heart and mind. If you follow that, then you will always be right. I am definitely not embarrassed by the fact that I am not educated. I think I have got more than what most have got. Even Ph.D’s don’t get what I’ve got at such a young age. So why should I be ashamed?

Both Saaniya and you keep tearing each other apart at the first opportunity you get. In fact recently you even had a showdown with her where you almost scratched her eyes out. What has she done to you that you cannot stop hating her?

Who’s Saaniya? I don’t know her. I don’t know who you are talking about. Really! If any smalltime creature is bitching about me then how am I to know about it. One can’t pay attention to every small flea. And there is no question of me ever having got involved in a fight with her because I don’t squabble with glorified junior artistes. I am not even aware of the existence of a person called Saaniya and neither is the rest of the industry.

No one knows her kind of people though she goes on talking about the big-wigs in the industry. As if anyone would take her seriously. I am sure that everyone is laughing at her.

Farah dislikes you. Not because you have replaced her in the Yash Chopra camp, but because you have no individuality of your own.

For according to her you hopelessly try to copy Rekha and make a mess of it. Comment.

Farah may be a fiery person with a sharp tongue but her heart is in the right place. She is one person in the industry who is not a hypocrite. She might rub people the wrong way with some of her talk but then they are people who do not understand her.

She is not the kind of person who would back bite about anyone unless they have done some harm to her and then she will confront them directly. So since I haven’t ever said or done anything against her, she shouldn’t be upset with me. In fact Farah

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“If I am getting what Mandakini would have normally got, then it is entirely on my merit. You get roles only if you are capable.” then that is your bad luck. No, I am not saying that Mandakini is not capable. Her first film ‘Ram Tera Ganga Maili’ has proved her potential. It may have been a Raj Kapoor. They came to see her. She should get equal credit for the hit not just Rajji. Anyway what I’m trying to say is that I’ve not come here to grab positions or throw people out. I’m not here to interfere with others and I don’t expect others to interfere with me. and I even went to Dubai together recently. Besides I am also doing her home production ‘Jeene Do’. I don’t think she would have signed me for her home production if she had anything against me. In any case if she has said all those nasty things about me then I can’t help it. It is her way of thinking and I don’t want to change her trend of thought. On my side I like her very much because she has always been nice to me at least on my face, on the three or four occasions that I’ve met her.

Insiders insist that there is a lot of tension between Mandakini and you. For ever since you started stripping for the silver screen, all of Mandakini’s bare-all roles are being passed on to you, especially since you are willing to expose a lot more. Now do you blame her for being cut up with you?

I’ve come to the industry to act and I know better than anybody else about what I am doing. I go about my profession in a way that I feel is right. I will naturally do what is best for my interest. I have to protect that first. Everything else comes after that. I am not going out of my way to cut down Mandakini or trying to beat her at her own game. If I am getting what she would have normally got, then it is entirely on my merit. You get roles only if you are capable. If not, 74

You sure are a hard-core opportunist. You took full advantage of the Govinda-Neelam split by catching him on the rebound, which made things only worse for him. For while Neelam is signing film after film with his rival Chunky Pandey, you are getting him to recommend you as a strong answer. Isn’t it callous of you to play with someone’s emotions?

What went on between Govinda and Neelam is personal and I wouldn’t like to comment on anyone’s personal life. As far as I am concerned there is no question of my playing one against the other in order to get recommended. Whatever I have got so far has been thanks to me only. However I must add that if Govinda is recommending me, then I am very grateful to him. It is very sweet of him. But knowing Govinda, I don’t think he is the type who will spite anybody. He’s not the kind who plays games. I have worked with him in a lot of films and I found him to be a very decent, cultured and most of all a very humble boy.

Hardly have you entered the industry than you’ve already got too big for your boots. For isn’t it true that Bhappie Sonie happily dropped you in favour of Sangeeta Bijlani after you held up his new movie only because you didn’t like the outfits you had to wear. Aren’t you cursing yourself for acting so starry?

I am not the kind of person who would kick up a fuss over just an outfit. I am not made that way. And neither did I speak rudely to anyone. It’s not my habit. I was supposed to be doing that movie, but there was a slight problem. I do not wish to discuss it because that would be in bad taste. So let’s just say that things didn’t work out and now I am not doing the film. Honestly, I wouldn’t like to talk about Mr. Bhappie Sonie or anybody else who has replaced me.

One newcomer who has been giving you sleepless nights is the ‘Pushpak’ heroine Amala. For according to the grapevine some of your producers are replacing you with her. Is that the reason why you are keeping close tabs on her career?

I am not threatened by anyone because I am confident of myself. I know that I can deliver the goods. Others maybe good but I know my worth as well. Amala may be giving the other heroines sleepless nights, but I don’t see how I can be compared with her. That is because she has one release, ‘Pushpak’, to her credit while I am still waiting for my first release. So let’s talk about it after

even I have had my first release and people have judged my worth.

Whatever you may say your desperation for roles is obvious. Isn’t that the reason why are you readily signing movies with heroes like Vinod Khanna and Raj Babbar who are almost twice your age?

Now shouldn’t you be planning your career, instead of grabbing every film you are offered?

I have signed movies with Vinod Khanna but not opposite him. However, I wouldn’t mind doing so. I have movies opposite Raj Babbar and other senior stars too, but again, at my age, every hero is a senior hero and a big age difference is always there. Personally I feel that an age difference doesn’t matter as long as you meet the requirements. Raj Babbar is a good actor, so what’s wrong in working with him? You should work with all the actors. I feel one shouldn’t make a fuss about the whole thing.

Even Audrey Hepburn worked opposite on old Rex Harrison. And talking of age I have also signed a film opposite Jeetendra. In fact, I would even love to work with Dev saab as his heroine.

Omar Qureshi

FAST FORWARD Nothing much is known about the flamboyant Sonam after she left the industry. She got married to producer Rajiv Rai, son of Gulshan Rai and after that the couple moved abroad. They had a son. But there’s almost little or nothing known about them after they moved away from Mumbai. There were talks that there were threats from the underworld there were attempt made on Rajiv Rai’s life and that prompted him to whisk his family away from the Bollywood space but again, not much is known about this. Sonam and Rajiv with their child lived in Los Angeles first and then moved to Switzerland.

However, supposedly they did not have a happy marriage and lived apart for 15 years. In 2017, they were officially divorced. Sonam however came back to India and remarried a close friend Murali Poduval.

There were talks of her returning to Bollywood but somehow uptil now it never materialised.

- Sumita Chakraborty 75

Starry Dazzle

An ode to the multi-faceted charm of Delhi and it’s famous auto rickshaw!

Mr. Puneet Chhatwal, MD&CEO - IHCL and Mr. Anupam Kher, global actor, author and motivational speaker at the launch of The Connaught, New Delhi - IHCL SeleQtions. A vibrant new expression and hospitality address in the heart of the city. We also celebrated Mr. Kher’s recent book - Your Best Day Is Today! - Meeta Mishra

Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif who were shooting Ek Tha Tiger in Ireland insisted they loved the Irish fests and culture. But it is a fact that Irish Fests especially St Patrick’s Festival running from March 12-17 has always got the world sitting up and taking notice. This time ‘round too, it’s time to go green, and despite the pandemic, you can witness all the glorious festivities as St Patrick’s Festival goes virtual on SPF TV, a special online TV channel that will showcase over six days and nights one of the greatest national cultural events to bring to life the heart and soul of Ireland’s celebrations.

And not content with celebrating at home and online only, the Irish also take it to the next level as iconic buildings, historic sites and even rivers around the world go green for St Patrick’s Day. The annual Global Greening is a huge source of pride for Irish people worldwide, as the likes of the London Eye, the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, the Colosseum in Rome and Sydney’s Opera House all turn a shade of green on 17 March – matched in Ireland as key structures all over the country illuminate in similar fashion.

There is also a rich plethora of events, created by hundreds of artists, musicians, performers, makers, creators, arts and live events workers and community organisations across Ireland. The world thanks to the digital medium will also be able to witness it. So let’s go green and enjoy St Patrick’s Feast like never before. - Sumita Chakraborty

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Starry Dazzle It is a fact that Sonu Sood, the man with a golden heart, is doing fabulous work for the lesser fortunate people of the society. Friend and fellow fitness enthusiast, celebrity trainer and the Founder of Body Art Fitness Centre, Nawaz Modi Singhania insists, “So proud to share my dear

friend Sonu’s prolific, destiny changing journey with you.”

Kudos to Sonu for his good work and Nawaz for being such a pillar of support to the messiah of the migrants – Sonu Sood!

Congrats to the team of ‘Phir Se Ishq’ by Ruricola Records who have crossed a fab million plus views within a month. Ravi Chhetri, Chirag Mohini and Aniket Nayak who have launched their own music label Ruricola Records, plan to launch music videos packed with entertainment. Their recent release, the melodious ‘Phir Se Ishq’ featuring Rajat Shukla (he composed the song) and Shreya Jain created a great buzz and was extremely well received so much so that it hit million plus views within a month and still counting…Kudos to the team!

TAROT & ASTROLOGY Please join Jyoti Bajaj - The Tarot Whisperer LIVE on April 18th, 2021 for an insight on Tarot & Astrology.

ITS A FREE EVENT. The goal of both astrology and tarot readings are the same - which is to predict future events as accurately as possible. Tarot readings are great for short-term and immediate solutions whereas astrology is used more to predict the future. But a good tarot reader must have proper knowledge about astrology but an astrologer does not need to know about tarot cards.

Please click on the link below to register for the free event.

Join the event

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