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Hrithik sets Udaipur ablaze!

Komal Nahta

There's a buzz about Udaipur these days. Actually there has been a buzz for the last six days.

The reason? Heart-throb Hrithik Roshan was shooting a song in the lake city for Subhash Ghai's Yaadein.

Joining him were Kareena Kapoor and Jackie Shroff among others, dancing to Anu Malik's tunes penned by Anand Bakshi.

Going by the crowds' ecstatic response, the song holds all the promise of a surefire hit. It is a celebration song for the 25th wedding anniversary of Hrithik's screen parents played by Anang Desai and Supriya Karnik (of Taal fame).

Ghai ran true to his showman image as he shot the entire cast and junior artistes, dancers and models in and atop boats, using the remote-controlled crane which Mukta Arts recently bought to shoot the song.

Watching Hrithik, you could easily be excused for thinking he was remote-controlled, too. He just kept going on and on and on... through the umpteen retakes what with requiring the coordination of five boats and close to a hundred people.

And there was Hrithik. Looking as fresh as a dewdrop, after an hour-and-a-half-long shoot.

Ghai and the drummer boy

Guess who Subhash Ghai has used for three songs of Yaadein? Give up?

It's Sivamani, flamboyant percussionist.

The beat-me-if-you-can drummer was head of rhythm at A R Rahman's studio. Known for producing rhythmic sound out of anything, Sivamani has featured in numerous programmes nationally and internationally.

He has also worked in Humma humma (Bombay) and Chhaiyyan chhaiyyan (Dil Se). Going by Ghai's penchant for flamboyance and the drummer's own, this sounds like a memorable combo!

Two-and-a-half love notes... in the bag!

Super Cassettes and producer-director Raj Kanwar have certainly taken Dhaai Akshar Prem Ke quite literally in their promotional bid.

The two have been gifting their friends in the industry an attractive cardboard designer bag. In which is a plastic container, a replica of a film reel can. In the can is a music cassette and a CD of the film along with felt pens, a notepad, two cello tapes, a small alarm clock... And a longish calendar.

Now that got me wondering until I decided it's symbolic of hero Abhishek's height!

Har dil agar Sajid ke jaisa hota!

Now, here's a deviation from the norm.

When you hear distributors singing Hosannas about their producers, you just know that's one for the record books! That's exactly what the distributors of Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega are doing. About Sajid Nadiadwala.

Not without reason, though, methinks. To celebrate the grand sale of the film's music, Sajid not only invited his all-India distributors for the party that he and Super Cassettes recently hosted in Bombay, he also arranged for a three-day stay at the Centaur Hotel, all at his cost. Sajid also plans to take his distributors to Mauritius for a brief holiday soon.

Asked for the reason for this hitherto unheard-of largess, Sajid said, "They are my distributors; they've stood by me through thick and thin."

The long and short of it

Time, for some, is just another four-letter word.

For others, it is of the essence. On the one hand, you have directors like Sooraj Barjatya and Aditya Chopra who find three hours too less for a film. On the other, there are those like David Dhawan, who believe three hours are too long to sustain audience interest.

David's films are, therefore, not more than two hours and 15 minutes.

But then what does one do with the public, who wants longer David Dhawan films to get their money's worth? Perhaps that's why the director's films are not finding favour with people these days.

Trivial pursuit

What does Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega, Dhadkan, Deewane and Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai have in common?

They're all love triangles. The first and the last have two heroines in love with one hero. While Dhadkan and Deewane have two guys and a girl.

What does Deewane and Har Dil Jo… have in common?

An important character in the film -- Ajay Devgan and Rani Mukherji respectively -- slips in and out of comas.

What do Dhadkan and Deewane have in common?

* Mahima Chaudhury plays almost identical roles in both.
* Both titles begin with a D.
* Both have seven letters in their titles.
* Both have heroes with action image (Ajay Devgan in Deewane, and Akshay Kumar and Sunil Shetty in Dhadkan) playing romantic lead.
* Both took a beating at the box office.

A look at the week

**Ratings based on box office collections and cost of the film**

Rating	Film	Production House	Verdict	Position Last Week	No Of Weeks Since Release
1	Tera Jadoo Chal Gayaa	Puja Films	Disaster	New	New
2	Dhadkan	Venus Records & Tapes Ltd	Disaster	1	2
3	Deewane	S P Creations	Disaster	2	2
4	Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega	Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment	Average in some circuits and above average in some	3	3
5	Kunwara	Tips Films	Loser (above average in some circuits)	4	5
6	Jungle	Varma Corporation Ltd	Above average	5	6
7	Refugee	J P Films	Above average (fantastic initial) average in a couple of circuits	6	8
8	Josh	Venus	Above average in Bombay & South (average to losing in other circuits)	7	11
9	Bichhoo	Bhagwan Chitra Mandir	Above average in North India (average in some circuits)	8	7
10	Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai	Film Kraft	Super-hit	9	32

Komal Nahta edits the popular trade magazine, Film Information.

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