Date: JUNE 18, 2003
Hrithik Roshan tries hard to hide his crew-cut under a cap. ‘‘It is for Farhan Akhtar’s film,’’ says the Bollywood star, who plays an Armyman in Lakshya. Farhan’s film, set against the backdrop of the Kargil conflict, also stars Amitabh Bachchan and Preity Zinta.
For those who visit tinsel town, chances are that one will find Hrithik and many of his colleagues in fatigues and crew-cuts, walking around. For, the Army suddenly seems to have many celebrity recruits -- thanks to a plethora of films set along the Indo-Pak border.
LoC, JP Dutta’s follow-up on Border, is another tribute to the heroes of the Kargil conflict. And the director has got half of Bollywood packed into his magnum opus -- Ajay Devgan, Sanjay Dutt, Akshaye Khanna, Suniel Shetty and Abhishek Bachchan ‘‘This time round, I am telling the story of five battalions involved in five different battles,’’ says Dutta, who admits he has no clue what the budget of his film will eventually amount to, ‘‘There are so many characters and so many stories to be told through this one film.’’
Incidentally, Ajay Devgan and Sanjay Dutt are said to be joining hands to make another film based on the Kargil war. On the other hand, Subhash Ghai is still doing research work for his next film, which is tentatively titled Homeland. ‘‘It is about prisoners of war,’’ says the showman, ‘‘This will probably be my costliest film ever.’’ While Ghai is yet to finalise his cast, the buzz is that he will rope in some of the biggies for his film.
But while Kargil seems to be on everyone’s mind, Hollywood inspiration is not far behind. So, Gaurang Doshi’s Deewaar is allegedly an inspired version of Von Ryan’s Express and will star Amitabh Bachchan, Akshaye Khanna and Sanjay Dutt.
Directed by Milan Luthria, the movie is set in a PoW camp across the border. Admittedly, it would be hard for Bollywood to do a Saving Private Ryan, but chances are that, with the Army itself being supportive of the efforts, the audience might get to see a series of desi war films worth their time and ticket price. And that, of course, makes for a hit!