Bollywood ace filmmaker Karan Johar is so impressed with Tabu's performance in Mira Nair's The Namesake that he is eager to work with her.
"I saw Mira Nair's brilliant film The Namesake in Toronto. Tabu is superb in it. I'll work with her at the earliest opportunity," Johar told IANS.
Excerpts from an interview:
With the amount of travelling you've been doing are you acquiring NRI status?
Oh God! I was in Toronto for the festival. I'm on the way to Germany for another festival. Before that I judged the Miss World contest in Poland. I come back and I go for another festival in Tokyo after Diwali where my film is in competition in the Winds of Asia section.
I feel Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna has a huge international profile. I'm just making sure it reaches everywhere because it's taking not just my film but Bollywood to these far-off places.
Were you disappointed by its performance at the Indian box office?
I must confess I was. But it did more business than
Kal Ho Naa Ho
all over India. Maybe audiences were shocked with the content, or they didn't identify with the urban marital reality. Whatever the reason, yes, it was a disappointment in India. But in overseas market it is my biggest film.
Care to share your Toronto experiences?
They called it Beatle mania-revisited. There were banners for Shah Rukh Khan and 'Sexy Sam' (Amitabh Bachchan). To have a 2,000-member American-Canadian audience laughing and crying for KANK was quite an experience!
And I saw Mira Nair's brilliant film The Namesake in Toronto. Tabu is superb in it. I'll work with her at the earliest opportunity.
Ok, tell me why did you say no to judging both Jhalak Dikhla Jaa and Nach Baliye?
Jhalak... is a Sony show. And I had contractual issues with STAR. As for NachBaliye I already had Koffee With Karan on STAR. To do two TV shows required more hours than I had at my disposal. I already have a large production house to look after and I have to divide my time between making movies and these extra-curricular activities.
Ok, tell me why did you say no to judging both Jhalak Dikhla Jaa and Nach Baliye?
Jhalak... is a Sony show. And I had contractual issues with STAR. As for NachBaliye I already had Koffee With Karan on STAR. To do two TV shows required more hours than I had at my disposal. I already have a large production house to look after and I have to divide my time between making movies and these extra-curricular activities.
What do you think of the two shows?
They're both great shows and I'd have loved to be a part of them.
And now Koffee With Karan returns.
I loved the first season. And I'm looking forward to the second season. I start shooting in November and we should be on air in December or January.
A glimpse into the guest list?
Well! They are all the people that occurred in the first season - there's no getting away from the crème de la crème. They make interesting conversation. People love listening to them. You know it. You interview them every other day. Plus there would be some new guests too.
Like Mallika Sherawat?
There will be lots of film people. But this time I'll combine them with industrialists, sports personalities and other professionals rather than their colleagues from Bollywood. I want to keep it chatty, catty and conversational.
What Next?
You mean my next film? People ask me if I'm going back to feel-good cinema. But in my head I was never doing the same thing, feel-good or whatever, in my films. With KANK I didn't mean to do something path-breaking.
If you ask me, Rang De Basanti attempted something path-breaking. The Oscar nomination is totally deserved. Imagine mixing Bhagat Singh with contemporary issues. Sheer genius! I've never put across a single thought on cinema as brave as Rang De...
What about your loneliness of being single?
I love the fact that I'm single. I've my mother. She's my Miss World. Who needs another woman in my life? Why be married when I can be happy?