Bollywood on self-healing path with four hits

New Delhi, Aug 25 Energetic openings to Bollywood's four recent releases, 'New York', 'Kambakkht Ishq', 'Love Aaj Kal' and 'Kaminey', have succeeded in getting the business perk up. Wounded by a long strike earlier this year, the film industry is perhaps on a self-healing path now, say trade pundits.

The two-month-long stand-off between the producers-distributors and multiplex owners over revenue sharing, which was resolved June 5, led to a whopping Rs.300 crore (Rs.3 billion) loss to the Hindi film industry.

The dry spell was broken by Kabir Khan's 'New York' that released June 26 followed by the other three films -- 'Kambakkht Ishq' that came July 3, 'Love Aaj Kal' July 31 and 'Kaminey' Aug 14 -- raking in a net profit close to almost half the losses so far this year.

'These four films will do a net business of Rs.150 crore (Rs.1.5 billion) put together,' revealed an industry insider.

Said trade analyst Taran Adarsh: 'The industry is definitely on a recovery path... it is getting better now, but we do need a big number of hits to follow as even an A-list movie like 'Luck' bombed.

'Every movie has a luck of its own. For example, a small-budget film like 'A Wednesday' had a moderate release last year but proved to be a dark horse. At the end of the day it's the content that will win.'

Complaint against John Abraham's "nude pic";police asked to probe

Complaint against John Abraham's "nude pic";police asked to probe
Bollywood star John Abraham could be in trouble as a city court Tuesday asked Delhi police to file a report on a complaint seeking registration of a criminal case against him for posing allegedly nude in a photograph published in a daily.

Metropolitan Magistrate Ashish Aggarwal directed the station house officer (SHO) of the Moti Nagar police station to submit the report to the court within two weeks.

"Since the complaint alleges commission of cognisable offences under Section 292 and 294 (relating to spread of obscene material) of the Indian Penal Code, the SHO is directed to file his report within two weeks," the court said.

C.M. Dua, who runs an NGO, sought registration of a first information report (FIR) against the model-turned-actor as well as the publisher and the editor of the daily.

"....the lascivious, prurient and obscene acts and photographs being published and shown by established members of society and publication house... tend to corrupt young minds, which is very dangerous and suicidal for the coming generation, if not taken care of," Dua said in his petition.

He said he was appalled to find the magazine supplement of the daily dated June 11, 2009, carrying a "nude photograph" of Abraham at the study desk of his children.

Dua said police had not taken any action on his complaint, prompting him to approach the court.

The Box Office Smiles on New York

It took a while for it to happen, but the year's first proper hit has finally happened and the film is none other Yash Raj Films' New York, starring John Abraham, Katrina Kaif and Neil Nitin Mukesh. It may be hard to believe, but if trade reports are to believed, then this movie seems to have managed to best even Sajid Nadiadwala's Kambakkht Ishq, which had a phenomenal opening of 95 per cent all over.

Now it remains to be seen if Kambakkhth Ishq can keep up the momentum. But the drought at the box office has been broken and New York can safely be called the first genuine hit of 2009. Of course, the year also saw films like Raaz The Mystery Continues and Dev D which did pretty good business as well at the box office. But the year had far too many flops than hits like Chandni Chowk To China, Billu, Delhi 6, Aa Dekhen Zara, 8x10 Tasveer etc. It may not have taken so long for the year's first hit to arrive if the feud between the multiplex owners and producers had not taken place. The trend of the hits and flops this year shows that it is the content which is king at the box office. With the floodgates at the box office being open now, there is a glut of films which are waiting eagerly for their turn at the box office like Shortkut The Con Is On, Luck, Love Aaj Kal, Blue, Kaminey, Dil Bole Hadippa, What's Your Rashee?, Kites, 3 Idiots, Rocket Singh Salesman of the Year, De Dana Dan, London Dreams, All The Best, Aladin, Wake Up Sid, etc. But before they hit the box office, it will be worth the watch to see if Kambakkht Ishq joins New York as the year's hits or not.

Kabir Khan now wants to drop 'serious filmmaker' tag

His 'Kabul Express' was critically acclaimed and his latest release 'New York' has turned out to be a commercial success widely appreciated by critics as well. Ecstatic with the phenomenal response that his film on terror has generated, director Kabir Khan now wants to move on to lighter subjects.

"I am getting a little uncomfortable with that 'serious filmmaker' tag that is being gifted to me," laughed Kabir whose 'New York' has got the best opening in a year that has spelt terrible business for Bollywood.

"In a way it's a two-edge sword. While I have been able to build an identity after the first two films of mine, I don't wish to be slotted as someone who can only make films belonging to a particular genre", he added.

Both 'Kabul Express' and 'New York' have been based on terrorism. While his directorial debut took viewers to Afghanistan, his second film explores life for Muslims in the US after the 9/11 terror attack.

"Yes, both these films dealt with issues, but my next won't have an issue dominating the proceedings. Of course, there will be a certain context to what I'm trying to deal with in the film's storyline. However, the issue will be subtle. Yes, once again I will be looking at telling a tale set in contemporary times," he said.

Kabir believes that filmmakers often suffer because they don't set their stories in a particular time period and zone.

"I can't dream of making a film in la-la-land. In fact, I believe that it is easier to make a film when you know which time period and zone it belongs to. It's so easy then to get the right actors in place and make them understand what is expected out of them. It gives an altogether different peg for your film," he explained.

When it comes to telling a sensible tale with an issue being in the midst of affairs, Kabir believes 'Lagey Raho Munnabhai' is an ultimate example.

"Look at that film - even that had an issue, but it was never once in your face. Raj Kumar Hirani kept it all so subtle and yet conveyed the message so well. It was as commercial as it gets and audiences too were thoroughly entertained. That's the way to make movies because it not just made all parties happy but also had a satisfied director at the end of it all," he said.

Apart from Hirani, he feels that one can learn a lot from Mani Ratnam, who made films like 'Roja' and 'Bombay'.

"His are what one can term as truly humane films. The man has made so many marvellous films over the years and all so different from one another. Still, one can't miss his genius in any of his films. He is someone who has got it just so perfect when it comes to pleasing masses as well as intelligentsia," said Kabir.

'New York' hits bull's eye, grosses Rs.350 mn over weekend

Yash Raj Films' 'New York' that sees director Kabir Khan tackling an unconventional and serious subject has brought much-needed respite to the box office by grossing Rs.350 million worldwide over the three-day weekend.

'New York', released worldwide on Friday, is about three friends whose lives change post the 9/11 terror attacks on the twin towers. It stars John Abraham, Katrina Kaif, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Irrfan Khan in pivotal roles.

The movie that hit over 900 screens across the world had promising advance bookings and continued to register more demand from the audience after the first day of its release.

According to Tushar Dhingra, COO, BIG Cinemas, the film "opened very soundly and is giving good results".

"It has proved to be a strong box office ledge for multiplexes. After a long, long time, this movie has been able to pull the crowds to the cinema halls again," Dhingra told us.

Apart from its success in India, 'New York' has also garnered positive response from movie buffs in the US, Britain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where it was released across around 60, 40 and 30 cinema halls respectively.

The movie has opened at the number three slot on the Australian charts and 10 in Britain at the weekend. It was the top earner in UAE for 2009, said a press release by Yash Raj Films.

'New York is the kind of film that no actor could afford to miss'

He's gorgeous, can act and not shy about letting it all hang out.

And though Neil Nitin Mukesh is just two films-old, he's not scared of playing strong roles or posing in the nude if the script demands it.

The light-eyed 27-year-old spoke to Nithya Ramani about his latest film New York directed by Kabir Khan and co-starring John Abraham, Katrina Kaif and Irrfan Khan. The film, which is based on the backdrop of the 9/11 attacks in the US, releases this Friday. Neil also talks about his nude scene in Madhur Bhandarkar's upcoming film Jail.

What is New York about?

It is a film about three friends and a particular incident that changes their lives completely. It is a very intelligently made film. Kabir Khan has made it into a youthful film where you can connect with the characters and identify with what they go through.

What is you role?

I play Omar, a Muslim boy from Delhi who goes to New York University to study. He meets two lovely friends -- Sameer and Maya -- who help him change his attitude towards life completely. Everything is fine until one day an incident changes all their lives.