Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; August 4, 2019)

Govinda’s effortless dance moves, comic timing and flashy style set him apart from his contemporaries. His recent revelation of being offered James Cameron’s science-fiction epic, Avatar, set tongues wagging on social media platforms. In a heartfelt chat with Bombay Times, the actor reacts to being mocked, talks about his tumultuous film career, what caused his rift with David Dhawan and the lessons learnt from all of it. Excerpts:

Your revelation in a recent interview that you were offered James Cameron’s Avatar (2009) has become a matter of joke on social media. The memes have gone viral. Do you stand by your statement that you were offered the Hollywood blockbuster?
I am not active on social media, but my daughter Tina keeps me in the loop. I am fine with people wondering how someone like Govinda could refuse a James Cameron film. I can understand where they are coming from. I respect that thought. They are entitled to have that opinion, but to say how come Govinda got that offer in the first place, is wrong. It’s not like meri aukad nahi hai. It’s prejudiced behaviour. Chai wala aagey kaise badh sakta hain? TV actors films mein kaise aa sakte hain? This is that same elitist, superiority complex. Yeh galat hai. Aapko vishwas nahi karna hai toh mat kijiye, but don’t say things like this.

Did James Cameron mention anything about seeing your work? How did your casting come about?
I was a superstar then. He must have seen my films, but I am not too sure about that. There was a sardarji, who knew me well, and belonged to the medical world. He was my senior, and Dev sahab’s (Dev Anand) friend. He was also one of the financers of the film (Avatar). James Cameron and he met me in London, where I was narrated the story of Avatar. In a way, while I was talking to him, I suggested the title to him. Mere muh se woh shabd (Avatar) nikal gaya aur unhone pakad liya. However, I refused the film. The sardarji even complained to Dev sahab that I had refused this big Hollywood film despite the massive money that I was offered for it. Dev sahab even called me and asked about it.

The film was being directed by one of the most celebrated filmmakers in the world. Why did you refuse the film?
When I heard the subject, I thought I won’t be able to match up to the physicality required to essay that character, that needed to be covered in body paint for over 400 days (Australian actor Sam Worthington played the role of Jake Sully, a disabled former Marine in Avatar, the part which was offered to Govinda). Iraada accha tha, but uss process ko sehne ki kshamata mujh mein nahi thi. I remember Yash Chopra ji had also offered me a similar role in Chandni (1989), which was eventually played by Rishi Kapoor. The character is physically challenged for a certain portion of the film. I had refused that one as well. Dates were an issue, plus, you need to be able to do justice to a role that’s physically demanding. Also, at that point, given the image that I had, I wasn’t sure if people would accept me in such a role.

Hollywood has a certain working pattern and casting process. Many believe that if someone like Irrfan would have spoken of turning down Avatar, it’s still believable since he has worked in American films. You didn’t have that kind of background (of working in films in the West) and perhaps, that’s why it was looked upon as a joke?
People making a laughing stock of me is not new. I was mocked even at the beginning of my career because I dared to become an actor. They thought, I am from Virar gaon, yeh kaise hero banega! Even after my films did well, a certain section of people believed iska success toh fluke hai. When I worked with legends and superstars, they said, ‘Govinda won’t be even noticed in their presence. Yeh mahaan logon ke saamne kya acting karega.’ When my films started doing well, I was conveniently labelled as a ‘comedy actor’ and not a ‘good actor’ and I would only get nominated for awards in the comedy category. When you don’t segregate other genres (romance, tragedy, drama, etc.) why make only comedy a separate category? The intention was to push me to a corner and restrict my reach. Eventually, I realised that this is how the industry treats you when you don’t have a Godfather. You have to find a way to survive. I became Govinda because of my hard work. I had to look after my entire family, so acting was more than just a passion for me. It was my means of survival. The struggle was to succeed with whatever limited means I had.

Why did you speak about being offered Avatar after so many years?
How is that no one wondered why Govinda was asked this question on that show? I did not tell the anchor (of the television show) about it before the show at all. He must have heard about it from someone. In fact, I was shocked when I was asked about it. I couldn’t have avoided the question, so I gave an answer, and whatever I said, is the truth. Jo sach hai, woh bola. Maybe people thought yeh uss layak nahi hai. Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, Taal, Devdas, Nayak, Chandni and Slumdog Millionaire… I have declined all these films, too. Why just Avatar, kya baaki films achhe filmmakers ne nahi banayi? All these films turned out to be huge hits.

What was your reason for turning down Slumdog Millionaire?
I was offered the role that Anil Kapoor played. Danny Boyle had come to meet me. I think this was right after Partner (2007) had released. Jab aapka bad patch chal raha ho and everyone is demoralising you, aapka khud par se vishwas thoda hil jata hai. I was surprised that he came to meet me. I didn’t do that film, but told him it will do well. I loved the thought of the film that you don’t have to be highly educated to make it big in life, you have to be streetsmart. However, I had two objections with that film… the poop scene in the beginning and the title. I wasn’t comfortable with the word ‘Slumdog’ and that scene.

But when these films that you refused, turned out to be blockbusters, did you regret it?
I have always trusted my instinct and though it has mostly benefited me, but of course, I also know that you can go wrong at times. You assume people want to see you a certain way, and so you avoid taking risks. When the screenplay writer read out the script of Gadar to me, I felt that it had too many gaalis (cuss words). I was later told that, ‘You didn’t do it, Sunny Deol did and it’s a huge hit. Aap darte ho.’ I told them Sunny Deol ji is Dharmendra ji’s son. Unkey parivar mein aadha dozen stars hai. Main toh Govinda hoon aur mujhe apni puri family ko dekhna hain, so it is difficult for me to take risks. Hum thodey se haath jodke hi nikley hain.

Why do you think people are finding it hard to believe that you were offered Avatar?
I thought about this a lot. I am a blessed child of my parents and of course God. I have never had a supporter or a Godfather, who showed me the way. I started looking for work at the age of 14 and managed to get it at 21. Where was the time to work on myself? I am neither educated enough, nor politically correct. There was no one to tell me how I could present myself or how to socialise with people. Fashion kya hoti hai, yeh maloom tak nahi tha. Today, actors have a team of stylists and PR, who tell them what to do, say and wear. In those days, these things didn’t exist. I was labelled as a massy entertainer and I had no issue with it as it suited me. That could be a reason why the thought of me rejecting Avatar sounds funny to people. Woh ek ‘massy’ (dance and comedy) image logon ke dil mein beth jaati hai. I was never called a superstar; I was always ‘Virar ka chokra’ in all the articles. When I was listed by a media house in the UK in 1999 among the Top Ten Most Popular actors in the world along with Mr Amitabh Bachchan, (we were the only Indian actors on that list), I couldn’t believe it.

David Dhawan and you gave multiple hits together. What went wrong between you two?
I haven’t spoken to him for over nine years now. On one occasion, he was talking to my secretary, who had put the call on speaker. David told him, “Govinda ko jo bhi chotey-motey roles miley, ussey kar lene chahiye. Ab woh hero nahi ho payega.” My secretary had called him after I couldn’t work with him on Chashme Baddoor (2013). I heard what he said on that call about me. We haven’t spoken since then. Hota hai film line mein yeh sab. I have learnt not to expect much from people when it comes to your profession. However, there are also those who acknowledge me. Rohit Shetty, Ranveer Singh, Salman Khan, Amitabh Bachchan sir, Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan… I want to thank all of them and my fans who still believe in me.

You shot for certain portions of Jagga Jasoos, but those scenes were chopped from the film without you being aware of it. Did that upset you?
I look at the film industry as family and somewhere I was wrong in the way I thought. You should not have these expectations. Perhaps, these people are not wrong. I need to change myself and get more professional and practical in life. Time pe pohcho, time pe niklo, don’t immerse yourself in work beyond that. I am doing that now.

Your alleged lack of discipline and superstitious attitude were cited as the main issues according to many.
If I wasn’t efficient, I wouldn’t have done the number of films that I have. If you are doing your work sincerely, imaandari se kar rahe ho, you don’t look at work as a ‘number of hours’ thing. It’s not possible. I wasn’t so ruthless ke kisika paisa laga hai, but I will leave because mera time ho gaya hai aur ghar jaane ka. I will finish that and only then I will leave. But yes, times have changed for the better. Everything is more organised now, so I am working on being punctual, too. Payments happen on time. Having said that, back then the work atmosphere was more family-like, which isn’t the case today. As far as being superstitious is concerned, who in Bollywood isn’t?

You started working early in life. What are the lessons learnt?
If your films do well, everyone behaves like they are your children. If your films don’t do well, sab aapke baap ban jaate hain. After I quit politics, I signed some big films, but they got stuck and took years to release. Mani Ratnam’s Raavan, for instance, took a while to release. I figured you can’t plan anything in life. God is the ultimate planner. Usiki chalti hai. Yes, I regret not doing as many films, but now I am open to trying different kinds of cinema across platforms.

Nayandeep Rakshit (DNA; November 28, 2018)

Akshay Kumar has never stuck to the age-old industry norms. Instead, he’s redefined them. With the kind of films he’s been a part of, it’s difficult to typecast him. Now with 2.0, where he plays supervillain to South superstar Rajinikanth’s Chitti, he has once again managed to surprise viewers. Undoubtedly, his character as Pakshiraja has created immense buzz. The Bollywood superstar reveals what appealed to him about it and why this is the best technologically-advanced film India has ever produced.

This is the first time a mainstream superstar has taken up a role like this. What went through your mind the first time you heard it?
I was immensely excited because I had never heard something like this before. I have done so many social films, but this was a movie that gave a universal message — that the world is not only for humans, it belongs as much to the animals around us, I was surprised that Shankar thought of something like this. At the same time, I was happy that I was getting a chance to work with Rajinikanth and Shankar, who’s one of the best directors of our country. Plus, they told me that it’s going to be India’s most expensive film. So, I got a chance to be a part of that and it was an overwhelming experience.

So, it was a ‘yes’ from the word go...
Absolutely. As soon as he finished the screenplay, I told Shankar that I was doing it. I didn’t even have to think much before saying yes to a film like this. It’s an extremely commercial film and not like Pad Man where the social message is given out in a certain way. Imagine a Transformers having a message. 2.0 is just that.

What were the things that you learnt from Rajinikanth?
We used to speak in Marathi on the sets because he is a Maharashtrian. The beautiful quality about Rajini sir is that you give him any regular dialogue and he will transform it into an epic. He makes every line entertaining. Moreover, he is an extremely professional and a humble man. Humility is one quality of his that I would like to imbibe. He is what he is — there is no putting on a different image. Even when it comes to his appearance, he is realistic. He’s not worried about how his hair is looking or anything else.

Today, India is at a challenging position in terms of global cinema. What kind of expectations do you have from 2.0 technology-wise?
This is the best technologically advanced film India has produced. It’s an original 3D film and not one that has been transformed to 3D. I would say Shankar is equivalent to James Cameron on steroids. Everything is larger than life. When we watch a Transformers and see two robots fighting, we are mesmerised. This is India’s attempt at making something at that level. We can’t compete with them because their budget is 17 times higher than what we have. Trust me, at  ₹500 crore, they cannot make what we have produced here. I think people will appreciate the technological aspect. As for the rest of the film and screenplay, ’ll leave it up to them.

You have successfully played villainous roles in several films. What excites you about such parts?
When you are playing a villain, you shoot for fewer days (laughs). I just shot for 38 days for this film, while Mr Rajinikanth shot double of that. It’s very much his movie — I’m just his Amrish Puri in the film (smiles).

The make-up and prosthetics must have been a tedious process? 
It was hard to sit in one place for three-and-a-half hours. You just need to stay calm and be on a chair while three people are working on your body. I have a lot of patience but this mellowed me down further. Then after I would finish shooting, I had to sit for two-and-a-half hours to get each piece removed. Every night, before going to bed, I knew I had to go through the same thing all over again the next morning. I had to do this for 38 days, and that was very painful. Also, when you are shooting with prosthetics all over, the pores of your skin can’t breathe because there is no oxygen as your whole body is packed. So the five to six hours that I used to shoot, all the sweat used to remain inside my body; it didn’t have a way to come out. I still remember when they used to remove the whole thing, I used to smell of sweat. Moreover, I wasn’t allowed to eat. My physique had to be intact as the body suit was made according to my size. So, I was on a complete liquid diet and consumed only milkshakes, juices and water while I was shooting.

What was your reaction when you got ready in that look for the first time?
When I got ready in that get-up, my family was with me, so I kept on clicking pictures with my wife and children. I still have them on my phone.

Aarav understands cinema now. What was his reaction when you told him you were doing 2.0?
He was quite happy and excited. He saw my look completely from scratch. And today’s youngsters love these kinds of films and looks. They are in tune with the changing technology, so he enjoyed it immensely.

Several actors have said they wanted to play superhero for their kids...
I could have played a superhero long back if I wanted to. I could have even made a film for myself. But I needed a proper script to do it. I liked the idea and story of 2.0 and that’s why I’m doing it. I’m not just being a part of this project kyun ki mujhe apne bachchon ko khush rakhna hai par logon ka nuksaan kara doon.

Rachit Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; November 28, 2018)

Reinvention has been the story of Akshay Kumar’s career so far. He’s gone from being an action hero to pulling off comedy roles and social dramas with ease and conviction. But through his diverse career, he has never done a film like 2.0 and by his own admission, he’s never experienced the grist and gruel of a CGI and make-up heavy movie. In a chat with BT, the actor talks about the travails of being trapped in multiple layers of make-up and the hours spent getting out of his costume and character. But he agrees that epic films like this need that much sweat and blood to go into it. Excerpts...

2.0 has been in the making for three years, it has a mammoth budget, too. How do you feel about the expectations around the film?
It is the biggest film of my career and it is India’s biggest film to date. It has a budget of Rs 510 crore and that’s huge. There’s a lot of nervousness and excitement, because the sheer magnitude of the project makes it a big risk. But the good thing about 2.0 is that it will release in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi, so it has a very good scope for earning money across diverse markets not just in the country, but around the world. Another thing that will work in favour of the film is that the publicity and promotions of the film haven’t really revealed the true story. Everything has been kept under the wraps, so the audiences will have something to look forward to.

The audience also hasn’t really seen you playing a villain before. Were you looking forward to playing a character with grey shades?
I have played bad guy roles before, so this wasn’t really about the chance to play an antagonist. What I really liked about the film was the screenplay and my character in particular. I’m not the sort of actor who thinks about these things too much. It doesn’t matter if I am playing the villain, what matters is that it’s an engaging character. And what really got me going was the fact that 2.0 is a social film. It has a strong message to give to audience around the world. People will realise the impact of that message once they have watched the film. I had never worked with Shankar sir before, so the chance to be directed by him was another aspect that drew me to the film. And to top it all, this was my chance to work with Rajini sir as well. As I have said before, it was an honour for me to be punched by him.

How difficult is to work in such a VFXheavy film? Surely, the process of acting in a movie that largely depends on the CGI to take it on to a different level must be distinctly different...
You have to feel and assume so many things that aren’t really happening to you. While you’re in front of the camera, you have to actually assume that you’re being punched, because in reality there’s no one punching you. You are made to stand in front of a fan and you have to pretend to fly. As an actor, I prefer to work on my instincts, so that helped me during the process of this film. I trust my director and I do everything that he asks me to do. I take his inputs, I take the inputs of the VFX guys, the camera man, and then I just go with my gut and impulse. Main actor hoon, mujhe kucch sochna nahi hai, mujhe sirf acting karni hai. Sochne ka kam director aur uski team ne already kar diya hai. My job is to focus on their instructions and bring my best to the table.

A part of gearing up for this character was the tedious process getting the look right with the heavy, detailed makeup and the prosthetics. How did that experience turn out?
My makeup was handled by professionals from LA and they told me that the makeup that they used in 2.0 was by far one of the most detailed and toughest ones they had done in their career. They summed it up like third degree torture, because the layers of makeup that was put onto my face and body was actually thicker than a sweater. One of the most challenging experiences of being inside this shell of silicone, plastic and rubber was that I would sweat a lot, but there was no way the sweat could escape from the suit. The costume used to hold all the sweat for as long as I wore it, which was usually all day long. We have shot in Delhi and Chennai during summer and in temperatures as high as 45 degrees. I remember, every time they would get me out of the suit, I would smell of sweat and I felt terrible. I couldn’t even go to the washroom for hours together and I was only allowed a liquid diet while I was wearing the suit. It was an exhausting experience. I would be sitting in a chair inside a compact room that had wheels. They would take that room around to wherever the camera was set up. I would be asked to step out of my chair and that room only after the entire setup was ready and there was pin drop silence around me. And then, I would emerge from this small cabin to give the shot. I really felt like a bird in a cage. They would open the cage door and ask the bird to come out, peck on the seeds and then go back in.

Does it get tough to focus on the performance in the process of getting into the look of the character becomes so tedious and time consuming? How does an actor deal with such a situation?
Getting the makeup on was such a tedious task that it really tested my patience. I consider myself as a very patient guy, but what the prep and makeup for 2.0 really pushed the limits of my patience as well. Thankfully, I succeeded in going along with that ordeal and I didn’t blow my top or have an episode of throwing tantrums and hitting somebody. I would sit quietly in the room as the makeup team would do their work for hours at end. Beyond the physical ordeal, it’s the mental challenge that is the hardest. The makeup is essentially stuck to your face and body using a gum. It’s quite a yucky feeling to say the least. But I have to thank Shankar sir’s entire crew and team. They took such good care of me during this phase. Their number one priority was to make me comfortable. Once the makeup is on, you just have to go with your cues and lines. Then it’s all about your dialogues and performance.

Having experienced these challenges, would you do a similar, makeup and VFX-heavy role again?
I wouldn’t do it at the moment. Going through the experience of having gum on and off my body has been a little overwhelming for me. Kabhi kabhi aisa lagta hai, I still have some of that silicone adhesive attached to my skin (laughs!).

Rajinikanth is a superstar and he is loved and worshipped by his fans. People who have worked with him have also spoken about his aura as a star. How did your interactions with him pan out?
He was always nice to me and he is such a humble human being. But it is very interesting to work with him because he has such a unique style and his mannerisms on screen and in front of the camera really entertain you. He says a simple line like, ‘Hello! How are you?’ with such charisma that you feel mesmerised. His persona and his ability to charm you are really unique.

This is also the first time that you were working with director Shankar. He’s known to be a filmmaker who creates visual epics. What are your views on his style of storytelling?
Shankar sir is a visionary. Getting to know his thought process alone can be overwhelming. When you watch a film made by him, you feel ‘Wow! How does he even do this?’ It’s the same sort of feeling when you watch James Cameron’s Avatar or Michael Bay’s Transformers. Movies like 2.0 make you question, ‘How is that even possible?’ and that thought is what entertains you. That’s what I like to tell viewers, critics and fans alike, when you watch these high-concept movies, it’s important to acknowledge the fact that you’re watching something out-of-the-box, something that has been created to engage your imagination and creativity. And I feel, Shankar sir does a fabulous job of telling such stories.

2.0 is being billed as India’s most expensive film.The Baahubali movies, were also projected in a similar fashion. Do you feel South films have surpassed the scale and production values of Hindi cinema?
Filmmakers and producers down South can dare to make a movie with a 510 crore budget because they know they have those kind of markets that offer them the opportunity to earn the big numbers. In Hindi cinema, we’ve managed to reach numbers like 250 and 325 crores, too. Slowly but steadily, we’re getting there as well. The markets for Hindi films are growing as well. Today, a market like China contributes a major amount to the box office numbers of Hindi films as well. So, as these new territories open up, Hindi films too will be able to scale up their budgets and production standards. Honestly, a few years ago, no Hindi film producer would have ever thought of making a film with a 300 crore budget, but now we’re doing that and hopefully, those numbers will only get bigger and better.

Do you think Indian filmmakers and films are now competing with Hollywood films around the world?
In fact, our concepts and subjects are far more evolved and detailed than Hollywood’s films. They have bigger budgets, better technology and they are more advanced in terms of their filmmaking technique, but when it comes to depicting human relationships in high-concept ideas, I feel Indian films and filmmakers are far ahead of Hollywood.

Asserting that 2.0 will be a “super duper hit”, megastar Rajinikanth lauds director for his vision; compliments co- star Akshay Kumar for his dedication
Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; November 5, 2018)

The trailer launch of 2.0, easily the most anticipated film of the year, was a landmark unto itself. Ahead of Rajinikanth’s arrival at Chennai’s Satyam theatre to unveil the promo, a large crowd gathered outside the cinema, bursting with enthusiasm to meet their cine idol. The untimely rains did not dampen their excitement either as they danced to the Thalaivar’s songs, only to break into an uproar when the megastar made a grand entry.

The upbeat mood extended to Rajinikanth himself, who declared to a cheering audience, “Mark my words. This film will be super duper hit. I am saying this not because the film is made on a budget of Rs 600 crore. It’s simply because some movies have magic and others don’t. This one belongs to the former category.”

Having delivered two blockbusters — including Robot (2010), the prequel to 2.0 with Shankar in the past, the superstar took the opportunity to reiterate his faith in the director’s vision. “Shankar rarely fails his producers. He has been growing as a director over the last 25  years. He is a showman, a magician; to me, he is India’s Steven Spielberg and James Cameron.”

Knowing too well that a hero is only as good as his villain, the makers found an able antagonist in Akshay Kumar to Rajinikanth’s all-powerful robot, Chitti. If Kumar has intrigued the audience with his quirky look in the film, he impressed the Thalaivar with his dedication to the craft. Heaping praise on his co-star, Rajinikanth said, “Akshay’s make-up would require four hours, but not once did he complain. Hats off to him! No other actor would have as much patience as he does.”

Rajinikanth admitted that the shoot was so cumbersome that he considered bowing out of the project. “I had to wear body suits that weighed 10-15 kilograms. I was unable to do it as I wasn’t keeping well. I told the director that I won’t be able to do justice to the role and promised to return the advance. It was Subaskaran [producer] who held my hand and saw me through.”

The actor’s sci-fi romance drama will clash with the Oscar-winning filmmaker’s next this Christmas
Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; July 21, 2018)

After the US schedule of his upcoming sci-fi romance drama Zero, which was followed by a brief family vacation, Shah Rukh Khan dived straight into the Mumbai schedule of the Aanand L Rai directorial. The fi lm’s team is racing towards wrap-up to keep its December 21 date with the box-office. It will be up against Academy Award-winning Hollywood fi mmaker James Cameron and Jon Landau’s upcoming production, Alita: Battle Angel, which has snagged the same date for its worldwide release.

Directed by Robert Rodriguez, the cyberpunk action film features Canadian-American actress Rosa Salazar as a young cyborg Alita who goes on a journey of self-discovery. Vijay Singh, CEO of Fox Star Studios, who is distributing the film in India, says, “We are releasing Alita: Battle Angel during the Christmas holidays this year. It is the perfect holiday film conceived by James Cameron almost a decade ago and like Avatar, is set in an entirely new and unique world. With some high-end special effects and stunning action sequences, we are sure the film will create ripples at the box-office around the world.” Anupam Kher recently revealed that his biographical political-drama The Accidental Prime Minister, also opens on December 21.

Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; December 21, 2017)

In the late 1890s, four Englishmen on a visit to Luxor came across the mummy of the Princess of Amen-Ra and bought it. One of them carried it up to his suite. A few hours later, he walked out into the desert and was never seen again. The next day, his friend was accidentally shot at by an Egyptian servant and his arm had to be amputated. The third returned home to bankruptcy while the fourth fell seriously ill, lost his job and ended up selling matches in the street.

The mummy reached London and entered the home of another businessman which caught fire soon after. Three members of his family were also injured in a road accident and these misfortunes prompted him to donate the mummy to the British Museum. While the coffin was being unloaded, a workman broke his leg and another died two days later. Afterwards a night guard complained of sobbing from the ‘Egyptian Room’ and frantic hammering on the door. The child of a disdainful visitor died suddenly and a journalist who'd photographed the casket killed himself after seeing the developed pictures. The ‘unlucky mummy’ was then banished to the basement. The supervisor who oversaw the transfer died, and the museum, in a hurry to get rid of the exhibit, was happy to sell it to a private collector who after a series of accidents, locked it away in his attic till an archaeologist bought it from him and boarded a luxury liner sailing to America with it. On the night of April 14, 1912, the ship hit an iceberg and sunk to the bottom of the Atlantic with 1,500 passengers. The ship was the H.M.S. Titanic.

Fact or fiction? No one is sure, though the story seems more rooted in fantasy, like that of 17-year-old Rose DeWitt Bukater and penniless artist Jack Dawson, the ill-fated lovers of the Titanic, which was a figment of writer-director James Cameron’s imagination. His co-producer, Jon Landou, on a visit to India in 2012, admitted that more than the doomed ship, it was the love story that had struck a chord with him because Rose was so like his spirited mother Edie who, when other women were producing babies, was producing films like Long Day’s Journey Into The Night, The Pawnbroker and The Chosen with husband Ely.

Rose and Jack also made Jon believe that someone somewhere was waiting for him. That ‘someone’ turned out to be a colleague working with him on Beach Street. “For a year, I’d drop Barbara off on her dates. Then, I took her out to dinner and for the last 27 years there’s been no one else,” said the genial American, his eyes turning misty at the mention of his wife and mother, as I cradled the Oscar statuette he carried in his backpack.

This was just one of the 11 Oscars Titanic bagged. I remember James on stage booming, “I’m the king of the world” while Jon who had grabbed the mic ahead of him, thanked 53 cast and crew members in a winning speech that went on and on. He later admitted it was used the following year to show nominees what “absolutely not to do” on stage.

Twelve years later, ahead of the release of his Avatar which opened in the US on December 18, 2009, James, in an interview, confided he'd been creating spacecrafts, creatures and distant worlds in his head for a long time and the ‘blue film’ might have followed Titanic which opened on December 19, 1997 had it not been for the logistics involved.

Avatar grossed over $2 billion and broke Titanic’s box-office records to become the highest grossing film of all time, as also the bestselling film of 2010. It was nominated for nine Oscars and won three, but when it came to the Best Picture Award, James could only watch as his ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow (right) became the first woman to walk away with the coveted statuette for her little big film, The Hurt Locker. As she went up, he mouthed, “Yes, oh yes!” even as his hopes of an Oscar drowned. Fact, as they say, is stranger than fiction, and love the strangest of all emotions.

Upala KBR (DNA; August 10, 2017)

Fans of Terminator 2: Judgement Day had a lot to cheer about when the makers announced that they will be releasing the 1991 masterpiece around the world again, this time in 3D. Now, India has all the more reason to look forward to the James Cameron-directed sci-fi film that releases on August 25. Buzz is, the acclaimed director, who has helmed path-breaking films like Titanic (1997) and Avatar (2009), is headed to Mumbai for the premiere of Terminator 2. The Hollywood filmmaker is expected to include a day-long visit to India — his second after his trip to the country in 2010 — in his itinerary that also has Australia, Japan and New Zealand.

Yusuf Shaikh, who is distributing the movie in India, says, “It [Cameron’s visit to India] is being considered. He will promote the film in China and Japan, so he may stop in India en route. We’ve spoken to the production house [StudioCanal, the studio that distributed the film then] as well as to James Cameron’s team. We’re in the process of working the dates out.”

While discussing the possibility of attending the India premiere of the Arnold Schwarzenegger action fare, it was Cameron who suggested that Bollywood’s action heroes be invited to the event.

Shaikh continues, “He [Cameron] said, why don’t you get all the action heroes of Bollywood and we all can watch it together. We’ll be inviting everyone, from Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra, to Sunny Deol, Suniel Shetty, Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar. The young action heroes — Arjun Kapoor, Tiger Shroff, Sidharth Malhotra and Varun Dhawan are also on the guest list.”

Shaikh says Cameron thought his Schwarzenegger film deserved a revisit in this day and age: “In those days, there were no Dolby screens. When he sat down to make it a 3D film, he realised there’s so much he can add to it. He feels T2, in its 3D format, is a visual spectacle — [something] that the young generation will enjoy.”

DNA (April 14, 2015)


While review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave it a ‘Rotten’ rating with the film scoring a paltry 23 per cent, the words of Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter says it like it is: “According to its publicity materials, filmmakers James Cameron and Alfonso Cuaron have described Broken Horses as ‘an artistic triumph’ and ‘overwhelming’ respectively. It only serves to demonstrate that of the many prodigious talents these esteemed directors possess, film criticism isn’t among them.’

Stephen Whitty for New York Daily News says, “Inside some bad movies, there’s a good one, fighting to get out. Inside Broken Horses there’s just another bad movie.” In one reference to the film, he even uses the term, ‘Lousy idea.’

Ben Kenigsberg of Variety adds, “This contemporary Western might as well be set in the Twilight Zone.” The other terms he uses in his review about the film include ‘absurdities’, ‘bad laughs’, ‘heightened melodrama’ and ‘glaringly fake.’

Frank Scheck of the Hollywood Reporter says in his review, “Vidhu Vinod Chopra makes a highly uneasy transition to American films with this weirdly baroque modern-day Western that, while it boasts undeniably imaginative visual and plot flourishes, is far too absurd to take seriously.”

The New York Times reviewer Nicolas Rapold calls it a ‘deeply silly drama’. He adds, “Mr. Chopra says his well-liked fraternal drama Parinda inspired this film, but something happened on the way to Broken Horses, which makes a risibly sentimental refrain of Buddy’s (one of the film’s protagonists) expression of excitement: ‘I’ll go bananas. Bananas!’”

Mike D’Angelo of AV Club says, “This wan crime drama plays like the equivalent of a Hindi novel that’s been run through Google Translate..”

Michael Phillips of Chicago Tribune states, “There are secrets and revelations in Broken Horses, none of them revealing...The expression on Yelchin’s face suggests a man coming to the realisation that his film is not working.”

Craig J Clark from The Dissolve Lead calls the film ‘predictable when it isn’t threatening to go off the rails... Broken Horses lays on the heavy-handed symbolism so thick every action is freighted with significance that the flimsy cardboard cutouts populating it can’t support.’

Subhash K Jha (DNA; May 1, 2014)