(From our issue dated 20th August, 1994)
CHAAND KAA TUKDAA
Saawan Kumar Productions (Films) Pvt. Ltd.’s Chaand Kaa Tukdaa is a musical formula film replete with romance, comedy, suspense and vendetta. The story-line is thin and there are too many twists and turns, several of them unnecessary. Suspense seems to have been added to the story to afford some thrill only. A young business tycoon from London comes to India in search of a life partner, but he is trapped by the villains who had killed his father and who have plans to kill him too so that they can loot his empire. The hero, however, foils their plan.
While the story is routine, the screenplay is one of convenience. Romance is devoid of freshness. The pairing of Sridevi and Salman Khan looks odd and that is one reason for the romantic portion falling flat. Revenge lacks excitement. A few comedy scenes do tickle the ribs.
Sridevi is not in form. She goes through her role mechanically. Salman Khan does well. Anupam Kher switches between comedy and villainy without any logic. Although his characterisation is weak, his performance is good. Raza Murad is fair. Mehmood tries to entertain. His comedy track is contrived. Shatrughan Sinha delivers a restrained performance and creates an impact in a small role. Rama Vij, Gurbachan, Lalit Tiwari, Guddi Maruti, Rakesh Hans and Zeba Khan pass muster.
Saawan Kumar has given the film a lavish look but has not been able to make the drama enjoyable or entertaining. Music (Mahesh Kishor) is very good. ‘I am very very sorry’ is already a hit. ‘Aaj Radha ko Shyam yaad aa gaya’, ‘Tu ladka hai London ka’ and ‘Tu lage chand ka tukda’ are also very well-tuned numbers. Song picturisations are lavish. Locations are eye-catching and they have been beautifully exploited. Technical values are of standard.
On the whole, Chaand Kaa Tukdaa is a disappointment.
Released on 19-8-’94 at Minerva (matinee) and 22 other cinemas of Bombay thru Mahalakshmi Films Distributors. Publicity: very good. Opening: average. …….Also released all over. Opening was below the mark at many places.
DO YOU KNOW?
* The two songs of Romu Sippy’s AMAANAT, ‘Din mein leti hoon’ and ‘Daloonga daloonga’, have been slightly changed. The lyrics now go as ‘Din mein kehti hoon’ and ‘Ladoonga ladoonga’.
* HUM AAPKE HAIN KOUN..! has created a theatre record by collecting 2,38,230/- in 2nd week at Hind, Calcutta.
* HAHK..! created a theatre record by collecting 1,30,519/- in 2nd week at Panchsheel, Nagpur. It has also created a city record by collecting 1,73,100/- in 2nd week at Smruti, Nagpur.
* HUM AAPKE HAIN KOUN..! has created a city record by collecting 1,14,171/- in 2nd week at Chitra, Amravati. Better than 1st week (1,12,729/-) despite heavy rains.
* HUM AAPKE HAIN KOUN..! has created a theatre record by collecting 1,47,892/- in 1st week at Rambha, Bhopal.
SNAPSHOTS
SUBHASH GHAI’S 7-CRORE PROJECT
As 24th October draws near, the guessing game has started. That Subhash Ghai will launch a film on that day, which is his wedding anniversary day, is a foregone conclusion. A reliable source tells us that this film, to be produced and directed by Ghai, will be his costliest ever. If inside reports are to be believed, it will be a Rs. 7-crore project and will be a story with an army background, against the backdrop of the Indo-Pakistan border. It will star two top heroes and a new heroine. The search for the girl is on. The film will be titled…. let that be now. Read more about the mega-project in our forthcoming issues.
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TELECAST YAHAN, PENALTY YAHAN
Producer Raajiv Kumar will have to pay Rs. 1 lakh as fine to the CCCA for having telecast his Swarg Yahan Narak Yahan before the completion of five years of its premiere release. The CCCA was not registering his Kranti Kshetra despite court orders to that effect. With Kranti Kshetra release around the corner, Raajiv Kumar had no option but to agree to pay the fine. He will pay half the amount now and the other half afterwards. Besides the fine, he will have to pay Rs. 40,000 to his C.P. distributors and Rs. 20,000 each to his C.I. and Rajasthan distributors.
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MUSIC MANIA
The Bombay distributors of Main Khiladi Tu Anari are the happiest persons today. They’ve sold the rights for Gujarat and Saurashtra at extraordinary prices, almost covering the entire MG royalty paid for Bombay. It is the magic of music again.
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NO FREE STAY
The voting in the CCCA elections used to be exciting affairs every year, besides the elections being very largely-attended too. The reception committee used to look after the stay of the members who used to reach the venue of the annual general meeting and voting from all corners of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. But the CCCA has now decided to do away with the system of the reception committee hosting the stay of the members. From this year, therefore, members would have to themselves make arrangements for their stay. This is likely to have a direct (read that adverse) effect on the attendance at the annual meeting and elections. The AGM is fixed for September 28 this year in Jaipur. Elections to the executive committee will be held the following day.
YOU ASKED IT
How much does tax-exemption help a good-average film?
– More than 50%.
When a film doesn’t take an opening, the trade very conveniently says, “Public ko khushboo aa jaati hai”. What does the public smell?
– If the trade knew what the public can smell, wouldn’t trade people also begin predicting which film will take an opening and which won’t?
These days, one doesn’t hear of many announcements of small film producers. Why is it so?
– Many small film producers as also small artistes have turned to the small screen.
MERCHANDISING OF ‘HAHK..!’
Rajshri is going the Hollywood way in granting licensing rights of the stills and logo of Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! to interested parties to manufacture and market their products using them (stills and logo). Archies, known for its cards and posters etc., has been licensed the rights to manufacture and market posters, notebooks, diaries, photo albums, file folders and gift wrapping papers, using stills and logo of the film. Similarly, Aquarius (Bombay) is merchandising key-chains and stickers of the film. Another company has developed paper-weights resembling the dog in the film.
GUILD TO BREAK OFF FROM FMC?
The Film Producers Guild of India is contemplating separating from the Film Makers Combine. The FMC’s expulsion of Subhash Ghai, a member of the Guild, is said to have prompted the Guild to think on these lines.
The Guild has written to the FMC, asking it to show cause why it (Guild) should not leave the FMC.
RAMNATH SACHDEVA DEAD
Film and finance agent Ramnath Sachdeva passed away in Delhi in the early morning hours of 19th August. He was unwell for the past two days but the end came suddenly.
Ramnath-ji was in his sixties and a bachelor. At the time of his death, he was the manager of Friends India Combine, Delhi. Ramnath-ji used to also manage the affairs of Mushir-Riaz’s production concern, M.R. Productions, many years back when he was in Bombay.
ARTISTES BREAK TIES WITH FMC
The Cine Artistes’ Association has decided to discontinue the joint arrangement with the Film Makers Combine. At a joint meeting of the representatives of both the Associations, held on 14th August at Asha Parekh’s residence, it was conveyed by the CAA to the FMC that the joint arrangement vide their agreement signed on 12th July, 1992 stood cancelled.
Members of the CAA have been advised to approach their own Association for the redressal of their complaints/problems.
GOPALA RAO DEAD
Telugu cinemas’ villain and character actor and former Rajya Sabha member Rao Gopala Rao died at a private nursing home in Madras on 13th August. He was 57 and is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter.
Ketan Desai Launches ‘Deewana Mastana’
Muhurt of M.K.D. Films Combine’s Deewana Mastana was performed on Aug. 16 at Hotel Leela Kempinski. Amitabh Bachchan sounded the clapper-board, Yash Chopra broke the auspicious coconut, Shammi Kapoor switched on the camera, and Anil Kapoor, Govinda and Juhi Chawla faced it for the muhurt shot. It was directed by Subhash Ghai. Before the muhurt, Amitabh Bachchan made a short and very well-worded speech in Hindi. Manmohan Desai, whose photograph was put up on the dais, was fondly remembered for his films and humanitarian qualities.
The birthdays of director David Dhawan (Aug. 16) and producer Ketan Desai (Aug.17) were also celebrated.
The film, being directed by David Dhawan for producer Ketan Desai and associate producer Bharatbhai Shah, is based on a story-screenplay-dialogues by Aneez Bazmee. Additional screenplay: Prayag Raj. Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal. Lyrics: Anand Bakshi. Cinematography: Rajan Kinagi.
The launching party was very well-attended. Among those who came to wish Ketan and David were G.P. Sippy, Raaj Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Shakti Samanta, Ashim Samanta, Feroz Khan, N. Chandra, Rahul Rawail, Randhir Kapoor, Karisma Kapoor, business tycoon Anil Ambani, Tina (Munim) Ambani, Romu Sippy, Raj Sippy, Dinesh Gandhi, Pranlal Mehta, Mehul Kumar, Anu Aggarwal, Sooraj Barjatya, Kiran Shantaram, Satish Kulkarni, Tolu Bajaj, Sultan Ahmed, K.D. Shorey, Kirit Desai, Surender Sehgal, Tutu Sharma, Padmini Kolhapure, Indra Kumar, Surinder Kapoor, Boney Kapoor, Vinod Khanna, Ramya, Archna Pooran Singh, Keith Stevenson, Karan Shah, Nirupa Roy, F.C. Mehra, Umesh Mehra, Rajiv Mehra, Nutan Naik, Naraindas Mukhija….
3-E
Education-Entertainment-Enlightenment
Slow Flow
Suddenly, the flow of releases seems to have slowed down considerably. After two and three star-cast releases a week, there will be solo releases in the coming weeks. Kranti Kshetra is the only star-cast film due next Friday. In the following week, it may be only Brahma. Thereafter, Nazar Ke Samne may be the single release.
The Lighter Side
The muhurt shot of Ketan Desai’s Deewana Mastana was a long one, besides being comical. And rarely has one seen the audience laugh so heartily in a muhurt shot as one saw at the Deewana Mastana muhurt. Anees Bazmee, the writer of the film, revealed later, “I wrote the dialogues for the scene only a few hours back. I work best when I work under pressure.” Ketan and director David Dhawan would do well then to not release the pressure.
The Emotional Side
If the muhurt of Deewana Mastana had the invitees laughing, there was also an emotional moment when a picture of late Manmohan Desai’s smiling face on the stage (in between the film’s logo) was uncovered for people to see. In the background, a portion of the ‘Ae mere bete, sun mera kehna’ song from the late maker’s favourite film, Aa Gale Lag Jaa, was played. Amitabh Bachchan’s opening speech soon thereafter further accentuated the emotional impact.
Second Line Of Defence!
Sunil Shetty truly has a head full of business acumen on his shoulders. His career enhancement and business expansion go hand in hand. As he puts it, “Films is a very unpredictable business, so I have to also concentrate on my hotel and fashion garments businesses, as a second line of defence.” Not surprisingly, close on the heels of a ‘Mischief’ franchise boutique which will open today in Bombay, he has bigger plans afoot. Like, for instance, his soon-to-open hotel, ‘Mischief The Dining Hall’, which would be a three-storeyed structure near Prasad Chambers comprising a banquet hall with a 25-people capacity and a bar. And keeping up with his fitness image, the ground floor of the family restaurant would be a non-smoking zone. His expansion plans also stretch to Dubai where, by October-end, he would open a boutique. That apart, the ace up his sleeve is to endorse fitness equipments which could be used at home. In fact, he recently visited Ahmedabad to have such a tie-up with a gymnasium. As Sunil tongue-in-cheek remarks, “Fashion, Fitness and Food can never go out of fashion.”
Cautious After A Hit
A flop usually discourages a distributor from buying films. And a hit spurs him to buy more films. But Nizam and Delhi-U.P. distributor Tolu Bajaj, who is now opening a distribution office in Bombay too, behaves differently. He usually never buys a film soon after releasing a hit. According to Tolu, “Once you release a hit, you tend to believe that every available film in the market is reasonably priced, because you have the business of the hit film in front of you. Because of this, you may land up paying more than a film’s actual worth. Besides, the ratio of successes to failures is always the same. It is not as if there will be more than 15 to 20% successes.”
Craze Among Ladies & Families
Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! has become a veritable craze among ladies and families. Old ladies coming to Liberty, Bombay, to see the film, take 10 minutes to climb the staircase but their enthusiasm is creditable. As in Hyderabad, so also in Bhilai, ladies come to the cinema with their lunch boxes. Reports from Manjushree cinema, Kanpur, reveal that an elderly lady, who was to be operated upon, expressed her desire to see HAHK..! one day before the surgery. Another old lady, who came to Manjushree cinema, asked for Mr. Sethi, the manager. Mr. Sethi had died way back in 1975, which means that the lady was coming to Manjushree after almost 20 years! A person saw the film thrice at Bombay’s Liberty and penned the following lines in praise of Sooraj Barjatya: (1) Wah wah Sooraj-ji/ Picture kya banayi/ Rajshri Pictures ko/ Badhai ho badhai. (2) Chandni chand se hoti hai/ Sitaron se nahi/ Hum Aapke Hain Koun jaisi film/ Sooraj Barjatya se hoti hai/ Kisi aur se nahin. At Liberty again, a group of eight girls saw the film and, after the show, walked into the manager’s cabin and insisted for tickets for the earliest next show. A family friend of the Barjatyas saw a film (HAHK..!) after 40 years on 19th August. Since the film has not been released in Gwalior, some people have travelled from Gwalior to Agra (travelling time: two-and-a-half hours) to see it.
Performers On The Up!
According to Paresh Rawal, the day of performers has arrived. He cites the example of the success of Mohra (Naseer) and Krantiveer (Nana Patekar) but very self-effacingly fails to mention himself as a performer of reckoning. “Nana,” says Paresh, “has proved that he does not only have a following in Maharashtra but is popular all over India. Emotions have universal appeal. Krantiveer is proof enough. He may be now asking for a high price but, I feel, he can command, and there are people who would even be ready to pay him double of what he asks. He is sensible in being choosy.” Paresh himself has five or six films on the floors and also gives time to stage which is his first love and without which “I would go mad doing only films.”
K.K., The Hot Favourite
Writer K.K. Singh is flooded with offers after Krantiveer. But the funny part is that most producers queueing up at K.K.’s don’t come with any concrete idea except that they want a story for Nana Patekar. Obviously, to all such Nana-waalas, K.K. Singh says, “Na, na.”
Secret Of Youth: Legal Battles
Want to know the secret of Bombay exhibitor-distributor U.A. Thadani’s prim and proper health? When someone asked Thadani how he had managed to remain the same for so many years, Thadani replied: “I am fighting so many cases in the court that I can’t afford to change. If I do, the judge will not recognise me!”
Condemned…. With Regards
It was not many days back when FMC general secretary K.D. Shorey had gone on record to say that the FMC had unanimously expelled Subhash Ghai for flouting the star ceiling. He minced no words to condemn Ghai’s act. It came as a jolt then when Shorey went up to Ghai at Ketan Desai’s party to launch Deewana Mastana this week and, giving Ghai a loving embrace, said, “I have the highest regard for you.” Highest regard and all that is understandable. But why make a show of the regard without any rhyme or reason? Or was there a reason?
The Young Papa
And here’s a funny one to keep you smiling through the long weekend.
A young writer approached the middle-aged handsome hero who is all set to launch his son into stardom, to narrate a story revolving around a father and his son. The writer had the middle-aged hero and his son in mind. Imagine his disgust then when the middle-aged hero approved of the story and asked, “And who will play my father in the film?”
