Shekhar Kapoor is back with Buddha
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Ok the Western king of “I start 100 projects and shut them all off” – our very own Shekhar Kapoor is back in the news. (FYI: The Eastern king of “I start 100 projects and shut them all off” is Ram Gopal Varma).
Apparently Kapoor is re-starting the project “Buddha”. The movie was first announced two years ago where it was rumoured that Brad Pitt and Aishwarya Rai would be in the movie. Not this time though.
The movie was relaunched in Los Angeles recently where the Dalai Lama himself came in to “bless” the project. According to DNA India
Producer Bhupendra Kumar Modi organised a special luncheon party in Los Angeles to seek the blessings of the Dalai Lama before launching his $120 million epic feature film Buddha to be directed by Shekhar Kapur.
So who is this producer BK Modi?
Well according to the Buddhist Channel
Modi is the president of Mahabodhi Society of India
Modi is settled in Beverly Hills and is in talks with Google for a talent search for this movie. The Buddhist Channel furthur quotes Modi (via the Business Standard where the interview appeared)
He said a lot of people across the globe had shown interest in playing the role of the Buddha, but not one matched the image of the Buddha.“A leading actor of the Japanese film industry has approached us for the role. But it was not an ideal match. We want to do the film in a way that it becomes a reference point for Buddhists and for mankind,” he said.
It seems software engineers will play a vital role in deciding which actor will play Buddha. Don’t believe me? Here’s what Modi says
He (Modi) made it clear that the hunt (for the actor who will play Buddha) would be based on images of the Buddha generated by software engineers in Silicon Valley.
“The software engineers have come up with wonderful images based on history and other information available from various Buddhist societies. We need a face that fits those images. The character of the man who will play the Buddha is also important,” he added.
I didn’t know this – that Buddha had forbidden people from creating images of himself.
Several parallel streams have created different images of the Buddha. The Buddha was born six centuries before Christ in Kapilavastu, on the border of present-day India and Nepal, into a princely family, and had forbidden the creation of any image of himself.
The Buddha was represented by an empty throne, or a pair of feet, or a wheel (kala chakra).
Respecting this advice, Buddhists did not create any image of the Buddha till more than 500 years after his death, when artists of the Gandhara school in Kandahar combined Indo-Grecian influences, and Indian sculptors at Mathura created his first images.
Three astounding images of the Buddha were destroyed by the Taliban in the Bamiyan hills in Afghanistan in the recent past. Stylised images of the Buddha can be seen in the Ajanta and Ellora caves. Hindus, respecting his divinity, later said the Buddha was an “avatar” or incarnation of Vishnu, and created another type of image of the Buddha.
Back to the luncheon to celebrate the launch of Buddha. DNA quotes the Dalai Lama
“From the Buddha’s life story … maybe you will get inspiration. Our intention is not the propagation of Buddhism, but helping the world,” said the Dalai Lama, who was the guest of honour at the luncheon.
The Tibetan spiritual leader said cinema was an effective medium for sharing the universal message of inter-dependence and inter-connectedness, according to a press statement.
The screenplay actually is based on a book:
The English film, which will be made under the banner of Modi’s M Films, is a screen adaptation of Vietnamese Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh’s book Old Path White Clouds. It is to focus on the life and teachings of the Buddha.
This is Modi’s first production under the M Films banner and he’s leaving no stone unturned to see this film “does” get made
“It will make history as the most expensive film ever to be shot in India. Casting for the film will begin immediately and the producers are currently considering A-List stars for the lead roles. Principal photography is slated to begin in 2007 and the film should be ready for worldwide release in 2008,” said Modi.
M Films has also roped in Hollywood Producer Michel Shane, executive producer of Hollywood blockbusters like I Robot and Catch Me If You Can for the film.
What do you guys think? Will Shekhar atlast be able to start, progress and complete a movie? Or do you need a coin to answer that question? ;)
Tags: English - Other
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What’s his name – the guy in Sleeping tiger hidden dragon – chow yun fat or something – he’ll be good as buddha.
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for more info
http://www.shekharkapur.com/blog/welcome.htm
I think he should for a change shut up and get down to work … (this goes for Ramu as well)
Let his work do the talking and not generate futile bakwaas …
Both Ramu and SK should take a leaf from Manirathnam’s approach … No talk .. no interviews during the film … Only when it is complete …will he give few interviews here and there …. concentrates on his work more than anything creating sound buzz…
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news right out of the camp.. ramu started shooting sholay wednesday.. mohit beta, acting class lena shuru kar bhi de
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- Striker, gayee bhains panee mein :((
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oz, haven’t touched programming in a while, but here’s my attempt at desi programming in reference to what you said..
shuru //begin
dikha>bhains; //equiv. to cin
agar (bhains==”mohit”) //if statement
{
dikha
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agar (bhains==”mohit”) //if statement
{ dikha
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damn.. never mind that attempt at desi programming.. the characters won’t show. my fault folks.. suffice it to say i’m just really bored at work |-)
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And it just keeps getting worse…
http://www.indiafm.com/features/2006/10/06/1672/index.html
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The role of Buddha should not be given to popular actors. That will dilute the image of Lord Buddha.
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I thought that the movie was going to be written by a Hollywood director, David Ward. But now there is no news on the website www.buddhathefilm.com
does anybody know whether it’s still in production?
i am BUddhist and am eagerly awaiting a film about the Buddha
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