Show Buzz 8212; Going nowhere

Once the wait for a hit begins, it can often turn out to be an endless one. Shah Rukh Khan is probably familiar with that feeling. First ca...

Once the wait for a hit begins, it can often turn out to be an endless one. Shah Rukh Khan is probably familiar with that feeling. First came Koyla and the Khan camp claimed that he would leave the Sunils and Akshays far behind. But the film fizzled out. Then, came Yes Boss. But the audience said No8217; to that. And now Pardes, isn8217;t taking him anywhere. After all the nasty digs Ghai took at Mukul Anand viz Trimurti, the great showman has ended up with egg on his face. And Shah Rukh is left still waiting for Godot. Friend or foe? ONE minute they are friends and the second, they are sworn enemies. By the third minute they are buddy-buddy again. Filmi friendships are like that only. Mamta Kulkarni, who is going through a lean phase in her career, has announced plans to produce films herself. And guess who she wants to sign as director? Right. Who else but Raj Kumar Santoshi, the director she loves to hate.

Luck-lustre?

Is Urmila Matondkar going to end up as a one-film wonder? Let8217;s hope not. After Rangeela, Urmila hasn8217;t had a single hit for which she has been solely responsible. So far, she has had to share the credit with other stars. Who knows what made Judaai run? Was it Sridevi, or the script, or Urmila? But it appears that Urmila, in spite of her sex kitten image, cannot get an opening at the box office. Mere Sapno Ki Rani is not close to being a hit. And the buzz on Daud is not great either. Maybe, Urmila will be able to seduce the box office with her skimpy clothes.

Meanwhile, Ram Gopal Varma is not giving up . We hear that he has finalised plans for another film with his heart throb oops, we mean heroine.

Sinking ship

Like rats on a sinking ship, Bollywood8217;s luminaries are in a tearing hurry to see who can get out first. Once upon a time ABCL was the banner to work with. Now, everyone is backing out. To begin with, Mehul Kumar says he is having problems with Lal Badshah. Nana Patekar, who had signed the film earlier, wants a change of script. The next to follow is Sunil Shetty. He has backed out of a Big B project saying he doesn8217;t have dates.

Modest man

Gulshan Kumar8217;s death is a tragedy that has left Bollywood shaken. What is ironical is that he was particularly careful about not drawing attention to his wealth. I had once accompanied him to Delhi to do a story about his life. The music king lived in style. His Mercedes, which even eight years ago had a telephone, would be driven right into his living room 8212; the house had been designed in such a manner. But when the time came for a photograph, he would not let us click his car in the living room. quot;There are too many rich people getting kidnapped in Delhi for ransoms and I don8217;t want to attract their attention ,quot; he had said. Unfortunately, the word did get out and his worst fears were compounded. But no matter how rich he was, Gulshan never forgot his roots. He took us to the little house he stayed in when he was a mere fruit juicewallah. He was fasting that day. Not only did he eat nothing, he kept me starving too. The juice we drank at his tiny shop at Dariya Ganj tasted like nectar. But what made it sweeter was Gulshan8217;s humility. He picked up our empty glasses and put them away 8212; just like he must have done a 1,000 times when he was a vendor.