Eyecatchers

India Today, February 8, 1999
Feb 8, 1999

24, Not a Second More
Let the record show that these guys have an eye on the Guinness Book. That explains why Hemnag Ramu and Hemnag Babu, two perfectly sane Tamil producers, are making a film in just 24 hours. With a Rs 10 crore budget, 10 directors and about two dozen stars (including Khushboo and Prabhu Deva), shooting starts at 8 a.m. on March 24 and ends at 7.45 the next morning. "I've been planning this for 10 years," says Babu. But why so many stars? Film's name is Swayamvaram, so take a guess.

Art to Art
M F Husain with Bal Thackeray When Bal Thackeray and M.F. Husain meet, what do you expect? Fireworks? Not this time. The artist, a target of right-wing forces in recent times, bumped into the Shiv Sena chief twice this week: at the inaugurations of an Internet art gallery, and nephew Raj Thackeray's exhibition of caricatures. Husainsaab even drew one of his famous horses for Raj, while Balasaheb surprised everyone with an impromptu cartoon of Husain. "Artist ki baat alag hai, politics alag hai (Art is one thing, politics is another)," says Raj. Raise your hands, those who disagree.

Yes, We Won It
Anupam Amod and Pratyusha Thakur "First I was reluctant," recalls Anupam Amod, 25 and an architect, "then I said, why not? I only lose a Rs 2 stamp.'' So he mailed a recording of his songs to the Coca-Cola & MTV Video Ga Ga Contest. And out of 7,500 entries, they picked him and Pratyusha Thakur. Their prize: the chance to star in a music video -- shot completely by MTV, and featuring veejay Maria Goretti -- which has them singing a remixed Jai Jai Shiv Shankar, that's being aired on the channel. Thakur, a 23-year-old zoology graduate, is still dazed: "Words have failed me." Good thing her voice did not.

Telling Tales
It's filmdom's latest fad -- write a book, tell a few tales...

Asha Bhosle's writing one. Will she discuss the problems she's had with Latadidi? Yes, says the grapevine.

Find out about the women in Saeed Jaffrey's life in An Actor's Journey, out in India this week.

In Milk and Almonds, Anupam Kher recalls the tough times he's had. His patched-up pants and other stories.

Pooja Bedi Is there anything more to tell of Mahesh Bhatt's life? Well, Burnout is about the mistakes he's made.

Mama Protima is Pooja Bedi's subject. Timepass owes its details to the letters from the mother to the daughter.

Name of book not known. Subject: Kabir Bedi on Kabir Bedi. What else?

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