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He may be increasingly feeling tempted to carry out experimentation with his film scripts and storyline but actor-producer Aamir Khan wants to reach out to the maximum number of people through his movies. Even an unusual story can be told in an interesting manner to the taste of the multitudes, he believes.Perhaps Aamir Khan has done just that with his latest venture, “Taare Zameen Par”, narrating the story of a child afflicted with learning disabilities, and getting accolades from the critics and the masses alike. According to trade circles, the film within a month of its release has broken the record of his earlier hit “Rang De Basanti” and is poised to be the biggest hit of 2008. “I get attracted to unusual stuff. I have got a kind of weird taste when it comes to themes,” said the versatile Khan, who brought new dimensions to the Hindi film industry (he dislikes the word Bollywood), during a “conversation” with Shoma Choudhary on the penultimate day of the weeklong Literature Festival here on Saturday.“An unusual story can be told in an interesting manner,” he said, obviously emboldened by the success of his latest experiment. “For me, filmmaking is story-telling,” he asserted. “I want to reach out to a large number of people through my films. I want the whole country to watch ‘Taare Zameen Par’,” he said, adding that he was a sentimental person. “Cinema is a mass medium. I have done films which I am ashamed of,” the vibrant actor said talking about his making over the past 18 years. “It had been a process for me all these years. I have been working with my imagination and common sense,” he said refusing to accept that the hugely successful “Lagaan” was any turning point in his career. Aamir fans, along with parents and children from families with disabilities, thronged Diggi Palace, the venue of the Festival, to have a look at the star that brought “taare” (stars) from the sky, in a convincing manner. But Aamir himself was disappointed as he had come all the way to Jaipur to meet the famous writer Gore Vidal who did not turn up finally.
“Till the last minute the organisers kept me in the dark about Gore Vidal’s absence,” he said rather jokingly.The actor did not hide his misgivings on the media, especially the electronic media. “Switch on the television sets and you will know what I am talking about. The TV news channels should call themselves entertainment channels,” he said rather cryptically.He did not hide his disappointment with taking up causes in the past such as that of Narmada dam displacement victims and Gujarat riot-affected and getting his fingers burnt in the process. “My experience was mixed…I am not sure but still I feel it was important for me to take a bold stand. If more people had stood by me then that would have made a difference,” he said. “If there are many of us willing to stand up against injustice the oppressors would not be able to break us,” he added.
Aamir and Kiran to the rescue With his directorial debut Taare Zameen Par being declared a smash hit, Aamir Khan has already proven that he’s a director to reckon with.The Bollywood star, however, offered to take a step back and don the mantle of the first AD (assistant director) to bail out good friend and filmmaker Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra from a crisis recently. It so happened that while shooting for Dilli 6 — starring Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor — Mehra was left in the lurch when his first AD had to fly back home to US urgently. Reveals an insider, “The first AD is critical on the sets and it was a serious setback for the unit. Mehra was in a fix as the schedule was already underway. He shared this with Aamir who immediately volunteered to come and help.” But though Aamir was keen to fly down to Jaipur to assist Mehra, he could not take any time out as he got caught up in the shooting of Ghajini , and his absence would upset the entire schedule of the film.Confirming this, Mehra says, “Aamir wanted to help himself, but then suggested that his wife Kiran Rao (who had previously worked as an assistant to Ashutosh Gowariker) would come.”Aamir adds, “Rakeysh is a very dear friend and my first instinct was to go and assist him. I began my career as an assistant director and I quite enjoyed my role. But unfortunately, I couldn’t go.” Incidentally, Aamir had offered to help knowing that the movie had Bachchan Jr in the lead. “Considering Aamir’s recent equation with the Bachchans, it was a very sweet gesture,” insists an insider. Talking about Kiran as the AD, Mehra says, “She was a great help on the sets. She is a thorough professional and very sincere at work.”
Aamir Khan and Kajol are expcted to be Raju Hirani’s next tentatively titled Idiot. Both stars are believed to have said yes and work is on to get the film started in the third quarter of 2008. The two films that Aamir Khan Khan and Kajol have done together, Ishq and Fanaa have been successes. Firoz Nadiadwala the maker of big budget commercial extravaganzas like Phir Hera Pheri and Welcome will soon start a film critically acclaimed director Govind Nihalani. The film is said to be a period drama set in 1850. Ram Gopal Verma’s Sarkar Raj has been delayed further and now the film is expected in July/August. Thriller specialists Abbas Mustan are planning to get into production in a big way. They have signed Rumi Jaffrey and Rohit Jugraj to direct for their banner. It is also believed that Priyanka Chopra has been signed for the Rohit Jugraj directed film.
“We beat a team which is unfortunately very arrogant and decidedly badly behaved on the cricket field. I fail to understand why arguably the best team in the world has to behave so badly,” says Aamir Khan about India’s stunning Perth victory down under in his latest post (The washer and dryer effect) on his blog, aamirkhan.com. Basking in the glorious response to his directorial debut Taare Zameen Par, Khan admits that he doesn’t have time to rest as he starts shooting for the remaining portion of his next film Ghajini remake from January 22.It’s also a known fact that Aamir Khan is producing an English film titled Delhi Belly (shooting for which will commence in March) but what you don’t know is that Aamir Khan Productions is producing another film (untitled so far), the shooting for which will start later this year. The only film under AKP that will release this year is Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, the launch vehicle of Aamir’s nephew Imran Khan who is being touted as one of the most promising newcomers. Khan is currently working on its release plan. According to Aamir Khan, TZP has overtaken Rang De Basanti’s box office collections. Although he is very happy with the way the film is being appreciated but at the same time he is unhappy with a certain section of his fans as well. “I am deeply disappointed with those of you who have watched TZP on a pirated DVD/VCD, or when illegally shown on cable or on websites which have illegally uploaded the film. How can you be my fans or fans of Indian cinema or any cinema for that matter if you steal from us? Sad.” And the good news for his fans is that he has finally given up smoking.The only release of 2008 for Aamir Khan (as an actor) will be Ghajini remake that is slated to release on Diwali. The actor is supposed to shave off his hair for the latter half of the film.
