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Compelled by Jaideep’s post i went to see Hulla. Before going for the movie i read every review i could find and even the various comments on his post. I told myself the film can not be this bad. He is the guy who wrote “Local” and he can’t write something so unintelligent or non-entertaining. I remember him from when he interviewed me for his docu on “Indian Ocean” and few other times. This was one passionate man who would go to any length for what he believed in. I saw the film and it saddens me that people did not see in the film what i saw. It was so there, after a long time i saw a film where you saw the author, someone who observes, someone who had things to say. Oh yes it wasn’t a perfect film, it had its own weaknesses in terms of few …

Possibly India’s “Crash”.. or i don’t know how else to describe it..Saw the rough cut , on Nishikant’s avid.. he wanted to bounce it off me and i was cleanbowled.. again the familiar feeling went through me.. why did i not think of it and why did i not make it..

The film begins in a police station with cops discussing sunil more(the marine drive rape case), one(Vijay maurya) of who is going on a holiday and the other(Paresh Rawal) counting his last few days in the service..then it introduces us to the computer salesman(kaykay) with his unemployed friends in a irani cafe talking about cricket and you also see that he has a phobia of muslims or probably distrust and hatred, then you see the bicycle coffeeseller (Irrfan) who is fond of perfumes and then the film introduces us to the bite hungry TV journo(soha ali khan) and her boyfriend …

It was 2001 and censor had refused certification for Paanch. I was angry and pissed off and I wanted to say a lot. On november 9th 2000 there was a new state of Uttaranchal and six days later on november 15th Jharkhand was formed. The 27th and 28th state. I was upset about everything, as to why these new states were being formed to why can’t i release my film to why do people fall in love to what is the point of anything. At that time my actor of Paanch, Pankaj Saraswat(now the creator of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge) introduced me to a part time model. His name was Raja Chaudhary. I never took him seriously. He had written a story on college politics, which was a nice story but nothing more and I told him so. I told him this story needs a milieu, where it is …

Leaving in two hours for Jaipur to finally complete Gulaal. The film I have been trying to do for last six years. All these years before ZEE motion pictures came in , no body wanted to do Gulaal because of lack of star cast. Finally I meet producers who insist on seeing the product than asking for who is starring in it.

Am I happy, or am I ecstatic. I don’t know. This is the film that has meant the most to me. It’s personal, it’s universal, it’s political and it is real. Finally it is happening. I have been away from PFC because of various reasons. I had nothing to write about, i wanted to stay away, I just wanted to work.

No Smoking was the film closest to me that i made. I never got over the way it was rejected. I still feel bitter about it. The success of …

As written early on in a piece by oz, it is not a copy of Cavite.. the fact is the film was written even before cavite probably had a release, much before No Smoking and i promised to RK that we will get the film made provided you help me out in NS. Right from the beginning it has been discussed how it is a copy, on PFC, and i didn’t bother to react because i knew and even on PFC i had said that RK never saw the film even after he was accused the first time and chose to stay away from it, after all the clarifications, UTV and me decided to go seek permission from the original producers, just in case, and we even went and got that. The film that’s made by RK is something that all first time filmmakers should be proud of and should …

Simply because it has to pave the way for bigger better animation movies that can compete on the international level. Return Of Hanuman can’t, because it falls way below the mark. It has got great reviews but largely because the way it unfolds, it entertains , but when you talk quality, it’s lacking. Whose fault is it other than mine? What does it take to make a great animation movie? Time.. the money, because that buys us time, if not time then it buys us more manpower.. Who do we blame for the quality of animation.. You can not blame the animators..Certainly not TOONZ who did the animation, they have done far better work and if you see closely there are bits in ROH that are brilliant.. those are the bits that were done earlier, they took there own time before things were hurried up..We can not compare our level …

Is Aamir Khan all hype? Is he a media created myth? Why is he so approachable and humble when you meet him, when you expect him to be arrogant? You could talk to him with just your eyes? that’s exactly what i did after watching TZP, i couldn’t talk so i just said later. I never thought Aamir the filmmaker would be as brilliant as Aamir the choicemaker, but the my accompanying friend who is also my fan said after the movie, from now and for now Aamir is my favourite filmmaker.

Is the film brilliant? Yes. By leaps and bounds. Is it my kind of film? No. Is it aamir’s film? may be. but more so it’s a labour of love and compassion for children which i know Aamir has but so does Amol Gupte? Amol Gupte was my first teacher, I was doing theatre in 1993 and had …

I am really scared that they are going to kill a film that i think is an extremely accomplished work of art.OK the film is inconsistent in parts, maybe it was cut down too much hence bringing in the inconsistency but still it’s importance can not be denied. As usual i went in expecting the world like everyone else, too much noise on a premiere and too many familiar people whose opinion you want to know on a film that everyone is going to have an opinion on, it all often clouds your judgement. Even overheard someone making some bitchy remarks about it. What can i say, a lot of people discovered sudhir after they saw Hazaaron.. well Sudhir that I know and have seen from yeh woh manzil .. to main zinda hoon.. to Dharavi ..to iss raat is much more than that.. he really has done things before …

You know when they bring up their children in the mountains, especially in tibet, and their child sees the burning firewood and walks to it, they let him, when he wants to touch it, they let him, when he touches it and screams and cries, they let him , they ignore him, and that’s how the child learns to deal with fire..this is also what the monks do..
My dad always said something that i never forgot..he said “poot sapoot to ka dhan sanchay poot kapoot to ka dhan sanchay”.. it means why do you save money for your children, If your son is a good son he will earn his own, if he turns out to be a brat he will throw it away.. and he never did save and all three of us are independent and had never taken from him, since we left college..
I know a lot …

Sitting in rome reading the extreme reactions and reviews.. I don’t mind taran’s review for he in his seven lives would not have understood why someone would like to make a film like this.. Khalid reviewed me and not the film and from his review all i can say is neither has he read “Quitter’s inc” nor has he seen “cat’s eye”.. he just read the comments on PFC.. and i will say to him is , “Chutiye tu retire ho ja , tera time khatam.”
Rajeev masand’s POV is quite fair.. he expected a lot..probably another black friday but he is an honest man.. his review was more anger than criticism.. only thing that upset me was him calling it the worst movie of the year..it probably is from his POV but then he should have broken an Ostrich’s egg on camera and i would have bought it.. reviews that …

Finally the film releases.. the one that some critic said “the wierdest film of the week surprisingly to come out of india”.. well am dying to know what the indian audience thinks of it.. what PFC thinks of it.. am anxious, writing out of my hotel room toilet in Rome.. four drinks down.. it’s been a strange experience.. John was here and he is gone now.. Probably sleeping, probably anxious and awake.. i can’t sleep..
Today was the second screening.. the hall was 50% full.. they did not leave.. they clapped but it still was not full..have put in all in this one film..really want everyone to like it..will they .. won’t they.. i don’t know.. today i went to the zoo with aarti and my daughter.. was thinking all the time about the two o clock screening.. was pushing aaliyah to finish her lunch fast.. didn’t want to miss the …

Howard Roark can not be real.. rest can only be “wanna be him”.. the success of ayn Rand lies in the fact that she created a hero that everyone wants to be but is not.. she herself could not escape life and become one of her characters.. Wanting to change the world is good, trying to change it is sometimes enough, actually changing it is a miracle..

There are a lot of things we say in our interviews, there is a lot more we feel but are unable to say.. Anais Nin says “the role of a writer is not to say what we all can say but what we are unable to say”..what prompted this post is the constant accusations and labels that i am confronted with.. when i answer them in all it’s honesty , they are edited and rewritten often out of context to make it sensational.. …

We have the official confirmation letter in hand..No Smoking will have it’s world premiere in Rome.. I am anxious.. it’s great to be selected, but.. how will it be recieved.. i didn’t sleep last night and i can’t sleep tonight.. i have been anxious, hypersensitive.. reacting to littlest of provocations.. we haven’t started mixing yet.. everything is coming along great but so much pressure of trying to meet the deadline of no smoking, getting started on the post of Hanuman Returns, doing pre prod on Dev.D and rajkumar’s “Aamir”.. after having got five drafts in hand trying to get a proper sixth one of my next years project on which i m way past my deadline.. my head is so muddled up.. i am confusing things, not spending enough time with my daughter, how will i manage.. all these years was sitting, waiting for things to happen, forcing them to …

I woke up this morning and got a mail from someone i don’t even know that send me these two links on youtube and i got so emotional.. i screamed for vasan and anubhuti and showed it to them..

see how young i look..
see my eyes are so clear..
i sound like all those directors who say it’s a different film..

i was blabbering all of that..but made me feel so good.. even then i wore those adidas t-shirts.. just wanted to share it with all..

the one that shows the shooting of the song..i really look good man.. just being vain..

how i wish the film releases..OZ’s review not withstanding..still the best performance by KK.. here it is

[youtube]YrZKsyM6Ns8[/youtube]

Hindustan Times i thought was a prestigious newspaper.. every newspaper resorts to yellow journalism and it’s fine.. they all write gossip to sell their paper.. they will write about A having an affair with B , and add everybody’s denial to it and it’s still fine.. we all know it’s gossip.. but hindustan times gives a lot of freedom to it’s journalists to settle personal scores and it’s sad.. shame to the Bhartiya lady who owns it..
yesterday in their gossip “under honey’s hat” page, they wrote ..

DHOOMRAPAAN MACHALE..under which they wrote that the trailors of No Smoking were pulled off because they went whoosh over the audience’s head, and i laughed , thinking the purpose of the trailor probably went over madhu moti or whoever the fuck honey is.. but then how do you explain to them that tne purpose of the trailor is to create curiosity and not meant …

I really apologise that i keep adding to my ever growing list of films i am looking forward to but then it’s a great sign that suddenly there are so many films to look forward to..some of the first and final cuts that i saw in last one month and i loved them absolutely..

JAB WE MET;- I loved it absolutely.. the version i saw was on the avid, along with preetam and shivam nair..what a film..If you loved socha na tha, you will orgasm over this one.. I don’t like the title but i lovvvvved the film.. it took me completely by surprise.. IMTIAZ ALI’s sophomore effort proves his debut was no flash in the pan.. his repartee is the best i have seen in a long time on indian screen..kareena kapoor in a stunning performance.. probably the best by an actress this year.. a talkative, self loving, eternally romantic …

Had a great week.. saw some incredible movies and they underline the changing face of indian cinema.. here are the must watch hindi movies of next few months and believe me we have a great year ahead..

JOHNNY GADDAR- sriram raghavan is back and how, a MBA turned gangster, who tries to pull off few tricks too many and it’s all mayhem then onwards.. some rock solid turns by vinay pathak, zakir hussain and a brilliant debut from NEIL NITIN MUKESH, its a thriller with a dark heart and wow..

MITTHYA- rajat kapoor is back with his take on the underworld and it just might be the biggest surprise of the year, got a thundering applause at it’s very first screening at the OSIAN’s film festival, a laugh riot with some tremendous performance from Ranveer Shorey.. wasn’t expecting it to be such a trip that it was, a lousy actor replacing a …

Just got this newsletter from my favourite bookshop in the world, it’s closing down..and its even sadder that i won’t be there at it’s closing party.. the one place which became the necessary visit everytime i visited NewYork..one of the last few that remain in the world which really is only about the books i love.. somebody who can be there, pl be there and raise a toast to one of the last surviving treasurehouse of mystery, pulp and whatnot on my behalf..it’s the BLACK ORCHID bookshop on 303 EAST 81 ST, NYC 10028 TELE: 212 734-5980; FAX: 212 288-5918
WEBSITE: www.ageneralstore.com
HOURS: MON: CLOSED; TUES-FRI: 12noon—7PM
SAT:11AM—6PM; SUN: CLOSED

What follows is the newsletter..

Announcement
With mixed emotions we will be closing The Black Orchid Bookshop this September for both personal and business reasons. …

Now that it has been announced.. so let me say it here.. i am making Dev. D. in november with abhay deol.. we have been trying to make this since last year, never could find any takers, because the industry makes proposals and not films.. initially i would be very tentative about my intention to make this, because i didn’t want to jeopardise my so called market that’s supposedly open up.. everyone i would meet had the same thing to say.. Abhay is a very natural actor but.. BUT he doesn’t sell.. i would say we are selling Devdas not Abhay.. devdas is almost like the indian spiderman when it comes to selling.. you can’t sell devdas to indians.. come on.. but they would negotiate.. then i wouldn’t even tell them that a complete punjabi actress who has done films like “miti wajan mardi” and “Hawayein” is to play Paro.. …

I have been so edgy all week, things are happening for me, producers want to make my films, the big films with stars but no one wants to make my smaller films which I am so dying to make.. I tried writing a post then deleted it.. I have been hating everything happening around me, and then my friend sends me this link for a film called “Four Eyed Monsters”.. and it makes me feel like a whining idiot..
Susan and Arin , two first time filmmakers decide to make a film on how they came together, they decide to tell their own story, playing themselves, watching themselves with seemingly naked eye.. talking or you can say telling us about their loneliness and their quest to end it.. and making it an incredible filmwatching experience for me.. made by maxing out hundreds of credit cards, almost at the cost of …