by Rinky Kumar
Films and life go together for Tisca Chopra
“You are lucky if you are passionate about your job. That way you won’t have to work another day,” says Tisca Chopra. Pearls of wisdom from an actor who has dabbled in films, theatre, television and will be seen shortly in Aamir Khan’s directorial debut Taare Zameen Par. The model vouches Aamir is as good a director as he is an actor.
“He has a deep understanding of human nature and knows how to translate it on film.” Tisca spent a lot of time bonding with the kids in the movie over games like X-box, Gameboy and Uno.
Currently, the Olay Total Effects believer is busy with Nandita Das’ directorial debut and a script she is co-writing with a friend. A travel buff, she likes to take off every two or three months to get a taste of different cultures. She straddles her dual role of homemaker and actor with ease. As she puts it, “you can build a great career on a great relationship but you can’t build a great relationship on a great career.” Indeed.
Verve, Volume 15, Issue 12, December, 2007
Monday, December 10, 2007
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Winsome Wonder
By Rinky Kumar
With her homespun, pretty looks and pixie charm, Amrita Rao is the perfect embodiment of the girl next door. But her achievements are far from ordinary. Rao’s demure portrayal of a small-town girl in Sooraj Barjatya’s Vivah not only grabbed the attention of audiences and painter M F Husain, it won her the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award – at the ripe old age of 23!
It was an ordinary day with an extraordinarily happy ending. Recently, when Amrita Rao returned home after a day’s shoot, she had no idea the contents of an envelope lying innocuously on her table would change her life forever. The letter informed her she had been chosen to be the new recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award.
“It’s the best thing that has happened to me. Fifty four members from 36 associations within the film industry had unanimously selected me; they found me worthy to be honoured with the award. It was a moment of huge pride for me,” she gushes.
Rao’s small but noticeable role as Bhagat Singh’s fiancée in Rajkumar Santoshi’s The Legend of Bhagat Singh helped her bag the lead in Vivah. Though critics panned it, the film did well at the box office, recently completing its silver jubilee. The movie gained much mileage from word-of-mouth publicity. Small-town folks, especially housewives in cities like Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Kanpur, Jaipur and Gwalior lauded its traditional values.Rao attributes much of the success of Vivah to film-maker Sooraj Barjatya. “I translated the persona of Poonam on the big screen exactly the way Soorajji had visualised it. It wasn’t difficult for me to envision the character. Poonam’s simplicity, her old-world charm and the truthfulness of her emotions made her very appealing.” Rao did her homework well, visiting Mathura and Vrindavan to study the mannerisms of small-town girls to draw upon while essaying this role.
The film also made her M F Husain’s new muse. The octogenarian watched Vivah 17 times and was struck by Poonam’s simplicity. When Rao first heard about this, she was ecstatic to share the honour with leading lights like Madhuri Dixit and Tabu who had caught the painter’s fancy earlier.Grateful to the banner that has got her so much fame, Rao is quick to rewind to the Barjatyas’ track record of creating winners. “Rajshri has a glorious history. All heroines who have worked with the banner have soared the heights of success, be it Jaya Bhaduri in Uphaar, Meena Kumari in Aarti or Nutan in Saudagar.” No exception herself, Rao is being wooed by top banners today. Currently she has Anil Kapoor’s Shortcut, E Niwas’s My Name is Anthony Gonsalves, David Dhawan’s Hook ya Crook with Siddharth and a Telugu film with Mahesh Babu. She also makes an appearance in a song in comedian Sajid Khan’s maiden directorial venture, Hey Baby.
Verve, Volume 15, Issue 6, June, 2007
With her homespun, pretty looks and pixie charm, Amrita Rao is the perfect embodiment of the girl next door. But her achievements are far from ordinary. Rao’s demure portrayal of a small-town girl in Sooraj Barjatya’s Vivah not only grabbed the attention of audiences and painter M F Husain, it won her the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award – at the ripe old age of 23!
It was an ordinary day with an extraordinarily happy ending. Recently, when Amrita Rao returned home after a day’s shoot, she had no idea the contents of an envelope lying innocuously on her table would change her life forever. The letter informed her she had been chosen to be the new recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award.
“It’s the best thing that has happened to me. Fifty four members from 36 associations within the film industry had unanimously selected me; they found me worthy to be honoured with the award. It was a moment of huge pride for me,” she gushes.
Rao’s small but noticeable role as Bhagat Singh’s fiancée in Rajkumar Santoshi’s The Legend of Bhagat Singh helped her bag the lead in Vivah. Though critics panned it, the film did well at the box office, recently completing its silver jubilee. The movie gained much mileage from word-of-mouth publicity. Small-town folks, especially housewives in cities like Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Kanpur, Jaipur and Gwalior lauded its traditional values.Rao attributes much of the success of Vivah to film-maker Sooraj Barjatya. “I translated the persona of Poonam on the big screen exactly the way Soorajji had visualised it. It wasn’t difficult for me to envision the character. Poonam’s simplicity, her old-world charm and the truthfulness of her emotions made her very appealing.” Rao did her homework well, visiting Mathura and Vrindavan to study the mannerisms of small-town girls to draw upon while essaying this role.
The film also made her M F Husain’s new muse. The octogenarian watched Vivah 17 times and was struck by Poonam’s simplicity. When Rao first heard about this, she was ecstatic to share the honour with leading lights like Madhuri Dixit and Tabu who had caught the painter’s fancy earlier.Grateful to the banner that has got her so much fame, Rao is quick to rewind to the Barjatyas’ track record of creating winners. “Rajshri has a glorious history. All heroines who have worked with the banner have soared the heights of success, be it Jaya Bhaduri in Uphaar, Meena Kumari in Aarti or Nutan in Saudagar.” No exception herself, Rao is being wooed by top banners today. Currently she has Anil Kapoor’s Shortcut, E Niwas’s My Name is Anthony Gonsalves, David Dhawan’s Hook ya Crook with Siddharth and a Telugu film with Mahesh Babu. She also makes an appearance in a song in comedian Sajid Khan’s maiden directorial venture, Hey Baby.
Verve, Volume 15, Issue 6, June, 2007
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Journey Women
by Rinky Kumar and Shanaya Lalkaka
They are young, free-spirited and love to explore the world. For them, travelling is a way of life. Verve takes a peek into the personal albums of four feisty women bitten hard by the travel bug-
SHRUTI SETH: Actor, VJ, television anchor, modelThis self-confessed travel buff enjoys wandering around and getting a taste of the local life. Her uncle played a key role in igniting her passion. "My uncle is an out-and-out roadie. As a child, I visited various parts of India with him."
Shruti says travel gives her an opportunity to explore different dimensions of her personality. She has fond memories of her first trip to the US last year where she revelled in the sights and sounds at St Augustine, Orlando and Miami. "I almost became a child again at Disneyworld. I also saw some fantastic Broadway musicals and a performance by Cirque de Soleil."
Shruti is now raring to explore the Indian north-east. Ask her how many times she would like to be out each year and she says: "In a Utopian world, I would have ended up hitting the road every third weekend. Sadly, in the real world I have to contend with year-end trips."
Published: Volume 15, Issue 4, April, 2007
They are young, free-spirited and love to explore the world. For them, travelling is a way of life. Verve takes a peek into the personal albums of four feisty women bitten hard by the travel bug-
SHRUTI SETH: Actor, VJ, television anchor, modelThis self-confessed travel buff enjoys wandering around and getting a taste of the local life. Her uncle played a key role in igniting her passion. "My uncle is an out-and-out roadie. As a child, I visited various parts of India with him."
Shruti says travel gives her an opportunity to explore different dimensions of her personality. She has fond memories of her first trip to the US last year where she revelled in the sights and sounds at St Augustine, Orlando and Miami. "I almost became a child again at Disneyworld. I also saw some fantastic Broadway musicals and a performance by Cirque de Soleil."
Shruti is now raring to explore the Indian north-east. Ask her how many times she would like to be out each year and she says: "In a Utopian world, I would have ended up hitting the road every third weekend. Sadly, in the real world I have to contend with year-end trips."
Published: Volume 15, Issue 4, April, 2007
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