Q. How did you take the failure of your debut film Koi Mere Dil Se Poochhe?
A. I was upset initially but then it was just a beginning ... a dream come true for me. I am still at the learning stage and should be given more time to prove my worth. I am, however, very careful now.

Q. Do you feel pressured when compared to your mother, Dream Girl Hema Malini?
A. It is, in a way, a compliment. She has set such a high standard for me that I have a very long way to go to touch that mark. My mother is a friend, philosopher and guide to me.

Q. What is your take on your second film NTJNH?
A. I am somewhat anxious. I have improved a lot from my first role and this one is a sincere performance.

Q. What is NTJNH about?
A. It is not a typical love triangle. It is a story about a girl's transition to womanhood and her romance.

Q. What are your forthcoming assignments?
A. I am working on two films with Tusshar Kapoor-Kya Dil Ne Kaha and Kya Pyaar Karoge Mujhse.

BOX OFFICE
Romantic Blues

Normally considered a safe period for new releases, April this year turned out to be a jinxed month for Bollywood. The fate of the Hrithik Roshan-Amisha Patel starrer Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage was sealed by day two. While Govinda's Pyaar Diwana Hota Hai got a response commensurate with its insipid theme, Deepak Anand's Tum Se Achcha Kaun Hai failed to get any.

The Godfather

EVIL'S ADVOCATE: The Boom team

The underworld, it appears, has strong links with Bollywood. Thematically. With bad being big and back, Company is being followed with another flick with negative shades. Boom has Jackie Shroff playing a smuggler with sirens Madhu Sapre, model Padma Laxmi and debutante Katrina Kaif providing the oomph. Haute couturiers Tarun Tahiliani, Rohit Bal and Wendell Rodricks will portray themselves before the camera. Bombay Boys' director Kaizad Gustad's slick flick is based on the razzmatazz of the fashion fraternity and its links with the underworld. Says producer Ayesha Shroff, "It's an international project with all the entertaining ingredients." Is a boom time assured then?

WORDS WORTH: Ali

Secular Song

Not content with his status of child artiste-Indipopper-and now adult cinestar, crooner Lucky Ali has donned a new cap: of peace ambassador. So perturbed was he by the communal violence rocking Gujarat that Ali met up with several minority and religious leaders in Mumbai and Bangalore. At a recent communal harmony meeting attended by top religious leaders at United Theology College in Bangalore, a wiser Ali said that anger or vendetta might provoke to do more "stupid" things which would further harm the social fabric of the society. Ali, who has volunteered to visit Gujarat "if the need arises", says, "Being a celebrity if my words have any weight I would like to put them to the best use."

—compiled by Sheela Raval