Bollywood flirts with notoriety

For the fortune-seekers in Bollywood,dark often holds a promise — that of creating a buzz,if not success. Apart from Bhatt,some other names currently trying to cash in on notoriety are CM Jain,who is eager to don the director’s hat for the film sheetalbhabhi.com,based on the web comic Savita Bhabhi; and Delhi-based producer Jagjit Singh Walia,who has announced a movie on Phoolan Devi’s murder-accused Sher Singh Rana. After Deshdrohi,Kamaal Rashid Khan sought attention again by making noises about The Love Story of Aarushi,a movie-based on Aarushi Talwar’s murder. In keeping with this trend,Manoj Nandwana has recently announced 2G Radia-tion that focusses on the prime accused of 2G scam,Niira Radia.

Even though these projects are often announced with necessary fanfare,most of them never see the light of the day. And in cases where they do,they fail to live up to the promise of a good film. Bhatt may call the process of working on the movie project “therapeutic”,but the truth is he is yet to find a producer and also a co-scriptwriter. Since papa Mahesh Bhatt is not too keen to put his money in this project,he intends to knock on the doors of Salman Khan Productions.

A case in point is The Love Story of Aarushi,which is yet to go on floors even three years after its announcement. “I was ready with the script but the CBI closure report gave a new twist to it. I have called off the project till next year,” says a defensive Khan,who claims to have spent Rs 60 lakh in the pre-production work. Nandwana too,claims to be ready with the script for 2G Radia-tion. “We are ready with the script. We will start shooting in April,” he says. For more instances,there is Ashok Chakra: Tribute to Real Heroes. Director S P Muneshwar announced this as his tribute to the martrys soon after the 26/11 attacks. But it failed to create an impact. Producer Nabha Kumar Raju’s film about ex-convicts,Hitlist,has been delayed for six years.

Walia — who was hardly a familiar name till he expressed his wish to make a “Rs 50-crore movie The End of Bandit Queen” — seems to be nurturing a mission other than making the movie. He wants to “disclose Phoolan Devi’s identity and find the real reason behind her murder”. He has even roped in her murder-accused Rana,who is lodged in Tihar jail,to write the script. “The script is 75 per cent complete and shooting will commence in September,” he says. The film in English is supposed to have a Hollywood crew,and the cast may feature Rituparna Sengupta and Leander Paes.

Unlike this,sheetalbhabhi.com has unknown faces such as Heena Rehman and Vikas Kalantri and not-so-happening actor Shakti Kapoor to boast of. Taran Adarsh,Bollywood’s trade analyst,reasons. “Since these films are planned on short notice,the budget is often not very attractive and the actors don’t have dates available.” He,however,concedes that there is an audience for such films if they are tastefully made.

Adarsh cites No One Killed Jessica as a fine example of a movie successfully retelling a story of murder and justice. The film,directed by Raj Kumar Gupta,which released earlier this year,not only managed to get two A-listers as its leading ladies,but was also declared a box-office success. Raginni MMS,produced by Ekta Kapoor,promises to be another such

venture,especially when the production house is still basking in the success of Love Sex Aur Dhokha,which explored many vices of urban society. Scheduled to release on May 12,Raginni MMS takes a cinematic look at various MMS scandals of the last decade.