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First it was Mallika Sherawat for "Unveiled", then Akshay Kumar
was taken for "Australian Bandstand" and now Salman Khan's
"Marigold" is ready for release - the West appears to be
increasingly welcoming Bollywood stars. These films will not
feature Indian actors in character roles or
blink-and-you-miss-it-parts as in the past, but as the main
protagonists.
Akshay, who will star with British actress Rachel Weisz in
"Australian Bandstand", is also expected to romance Mexican beauty
Salma Hayek in a joint production of Hollywood Studios
International and India's Carving Dreams Entertainment.
Big or small, there is no dearth of offers from the West for
Bollywood actors who are getting good opportunities to rub
shoulders with veterans from Hollywood.
Superstar Amitabh Bachchan was recently offered an important role
in Ridley Scott's thriller "Body Of Lies", alongside Leonardo
DiCaprio and Russell Crowe. But the Bollywood icon hasn't yet
given the green signal.
"Ridley Scott wants me to play a part of the Jordanian in the film.
I've asked for more details. I need to see the script before I
take a call. Let's be realistic ... who will notice me when
DiCaprio and Crowe are in the same film?" Amitabh was quoted as
saying.
But the Big B has agreed to work in Mira Nair's "Shantaram", an
adaptation of Gregory David Roberts' novel. While actor Johnny
Depp, star of films like "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Finding
Neverland", will be playing the lead role, Amitabh will be the
kind-hearted Mumbai gangster.
"Shantaram" is about an Australian bank robber and heroin addict
who escapes from prison, flees to India and makes Mumbai his base.
On the other hand, Mallika's "Unveiled" is the story of a Muslim
woman who has two husbands and one lover.
Then there is Los-Angeles based producer Uru Patel's ambitious
project "Hanuman" that is getting bigger by the day.
Patel has roped in Hollywood director Luis Mendoki to direct the
movie, where Keanu Reeves is paired with Shilpa Shetty as Lord Rama
and his wife Sita. Indian actor Aseem Merchant will play Rama's
younger brother Laxman.
All these projects are in a nascent stage but Salman Khan's
international project "Marigold", directed by Willard Carroll, is
ready to hit screens. In the love story, the Bollywood hunk is
paired with Ali Larter.
British filmmaker Danny Boyle, who has made acclaimed docudramas
such as "Trainspotting" and "Shallow Graves", visited Mumbai last
month to adapt Vikas Swaroop's satire on consumerism entitled
"Q&A".
Swaroop's bestseller is about a young Mumbaikar who wins a fortune
on a "Kaun Banega Crorepati" (KBC) styled game show. Boyle has
roped in "Mera Pehla Pehla Pyar" star Ruslaan Muntaaz to play the
lead role of Ram Mohammad Thomas.
And the list does not end there. Bollywood actor-director Satish
Kaushik is the leading man in a British film "Seven Seas", based on
the bestseller "Brick Lane" by Bangladesh-origin author Monica Ali.
"It is a big achievement for me because nobody has been offered a
lead role in Hollywood films except Om Puri. He played the main
lead in 'East is East'," said Kaushik.
Veteran Hindi cinema actor Naseeruddin Shah's "Shoot on Sight"
about the July 7, 2005 bombings in London has also gone on the
floor with Jagmohan Mundhra wielding the megaphone.
"Our film storyline is based on Scotland Yard's order to shoot
suspicious Muslim terrorists after the July 7, 2005 London bombing.
It highlights the predicament of the predominantly peace loving
Muslims in the face of Islamic extremism," said producer Aron
Govil.
Shah plays a Muslim police officer of Scotland Yard, who's asked
to hunt down suspected suicide bombers involved in the July 7
attacks. The film will also star British actress Greta Scacchi as
Naseer's wife.
Earlier, attempts by Bollywood actors to step into Hollywood were
sporadic. Only a handful like Persis Khambatta, Kabir Bedi,
Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Gulshan Grover could transcend the
borders.
Sabu, who became famous as the 'Elephant Boy' in Hollywood, was
the first Indian actor to find a firm foothold in the global arena.
Till Shilpa Shetty made it big in Britain by winning reality show
"Celebrity Big Brother", Aishwarya Rai, whose first international
release was "Bride and Prejudice", was one of the few Indian actors
known abroad.
Her "Last Legion" was recently released in Britain, Germany, Italy
and Spain in April. Intense actor Irrfan Khan too was seen in "A
Mighty Heart" with Angelina Jolie.
By Arpana
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