Moms on a role

Maybe it all began in 1994, when actress Juhi Chawla8217;s mother Mona Chawla, who worked with the Taj Group, launched a production house. Juhi Chawla, by this time, had debuted with Sultanat, released one box-office hit Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, made it through a dud like Love, Love, Love, and had managed to establish herself in the industry. Says the actress daughter today, 8216;8216;It was called Juhi Chawla Productions Limited, I think. I can8217;t even remember.8217;8217; What Juhi Chawla does remember is that her mother8217;s JCPL, started along with her brother, thought up an idea for a serial, found a director in Ravi Rai, even managed to shoot a pilot. But Mona Chawla died in an accident the next year and Juhi closed shop.

Around the same time, actress Shilpa Shetty was creating quite a stir with her legs, Baazigar 1993 opposite Shah Rukh Khan and Main Khiladi Tu Anari with Akshay Kumar. Somewhere along the way, mom Sunanda Shetty was asked to get into the act. But she turned down all the offers, although she admits to have done a little modelling for Bournvita and Glaxo. Some people in the industry say it was because she was busy propping up her daughters but she denies it.

8216;8216;It8217;s just that I have never been interested in acting,8217;8217; says Sunanda Shetty hotly. 8216;8216;I was too busy with the family business. Besides, I came from an orthodox family, where acting was not an option. Times have changed and I do not mind my children being in films. I have been asked to play mother roles as well as some cameo roles but have said no. I am just not interested. The offers come even now,8217;8217; she says.

One mother who has said yes is Asha Patel, daughter-in-law of the legendary Rajni Patel. When her daughter Amisha was offered her debut role in the Hrithik Roshan starrer Kaho Na8230; Pyar Hai, she, like most star moms, accompanied her daughter to the sets. A couple of shots later, she was asked by the director if she would like to play the hero8217;s mother in the film. She agreed and is now onto her next movie 8212; her second without a screen test 8212; as Amisha8217;s mother in Suneel Darshan8217;s Mera Jeevan Saathi. Says Asha Patel, 8216;8216;This time I wasn8217;t even on the sets. Suneel just called me and said, 8216;Okay, we need you as Amisha8217;s mother. Can you come now.8217; And I said yes.8217;8217;

Unlike star kids, who simply cannot deny their star lineage and shrug dynastic rule, most 8216;star parents8217; hate being called the Part Twos. They fume at the allegation that they are piggybacking on their child8217;s new star status. K D Chandran, father of dancer-actress Sudha Chandran, is diffident when he says, 8216;8216;If you come to me as Sudha8217;s father, I am not interested. Come to me as K D Chandran, then we8217;ll talk.8217;8217;

Chandran is proud of the fact he began his acting career on Malayalam stage. 8216;8216;I may have introduced the character of the dignified South Indian in Bollywood, but I began a long time ago on stage as a woman. In those days, it was impossible to get a female to act.8217;8217;

Chandran was not picked up from the sets while accompanying his actress daughter. He stayed behind a desk at the USIS library in Mumbai while Sudha danced, won awards, had a movie made on her life Nache Mayuri, acted in bi-lingual films, and got herself mentioned in school textbooks across the country. It was in the early 8217;90s he made his debut, when director Mahesh Bhatt walked up to him and said, 8216;8216;I8217;ve got the perfect role for you.8217;8217; Hum Hain Rahi Pyaar Ke happened, then Pukar, Junoon, Teesra Kaun, Tere Mere Sapne, China Gate, Jab Pyar Kissi Se Hota Hain, Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega. His latest is Shararat, an Abhishek Bachchan starrer, has unfortunately found no takers among distributors.

Hirak and Mamata Basu, Bollywood8217;s new star Bipasha8217;s parents, are refreshingly candid when they concede the interviews, photo shoots and the lavish magazine features are all thanks to Bipasha, and they are proud of it. Says Hirak, 8216;8216;When Bipasha became a supermodel, she started getting a lot of ad offers. The coordinators used to meet her at home. One fine day, Mamata and I, too, started getting offers.8217;8217; Basu, in the construction business, now endorses telephones, computers and cement.

Two years ago, Priyanka Chopra was crowned Miss World. Today, while she shoots in Canada for Hero opposite Sunny Deol, her surgeon-father Dr Ashok Chopra is readying for the release of his first music album next month. Besides, he says, he is lending his voice to three films which he would not like to name yet.

Dr Chopra is, however, vehement when he says his new career has anything to do with Priyanka8217;s success. 8216;8216;About two months ago, Lalit Sen, the music director, heard me sing and he loved it. He didn8217;t even know I was Priyanka8217;s father. It is an album of eight light, romantic songs, raag-based but modern. The lyrics are by Wasim Barelvi and Aqueel Nomani. I8217;m so sure of the album8217;s success that if it is not so, I promise to stop singing.8217;8217;

Air Force Wing Commander Inderkumar Jhulka chose voluntary retirement in 1989, packed his bags and moved to Mumbai with his daughter, Ayesha, who had decided to be an actress. Nine years later, the Wing Commander was singlehandedly running an acting school called Avishkar in Mumbai8217;s Andheri West, which boasts of students like Hrithik Roshan. 8216;8216;The concept is Ayesha8217;s and she participates in the academy,8217;8217; says the beaming father. 8216;8216;She organises theatre shows and her group Ayshna gives Avishkar students a chance to act.8217;8217;

Aishwarya8217;s Rai8217;s mother Vrinda is in denial. Newspapers and websites have proclaimed that she is all set to produce a movie with her actress daughter but all she says is, 8216;8216;I have nothing to say yet, may be later.8217;8217;

The children seem quite in love with the idea of their parents acting. Bipasha gets excited every time she reads anything about her parents. 8216;8216;Bipasha was so thrilled when she read an article about us in Nainital that she sent us a copy!8217;8217; say the Basus. She is also amused by her mother8217;s sudden burst of courage in facing the camera. 8216;8216;Only I know how camera-shy my mother can get,8217;8217; she giggles.

Amisha is ecstatic because, as her mother explains, she gets to have her around all the time. Priyanka hums her father8217;s songs; Sudha says it makes her happy because her father seems to enjoy his new role.

Most parents dismiss their film career as anything more than a hobby. Says Asha Patel, 8216;8216;I have always lived a glamourous life and have received tons of modelling offers but I never accepted them. I just do the ones I want to.8217;8217; The Basus are indifferent too when they say, 8216;8216;We don8217;t need the money. Besides, we8217;re not great actors.8217;8217; K D Chandran is thankful he has had a 8216;8216;glorious first innings.8217;8217; But despite their protestations, perhaps the time has come to say thank you to their star children.