Hrithik’s Quickie as Ghost Director

Hrithik’s Quickie as Ghost Director • For a Dream Disclosure • Subtlety Does It

Even as his dad, Rakesh Roshan, spends the next several months supervising post-production on Krrish 3 (which has finally wrapped filming and is scheduled to release around Diwali next year), Hrithik Roshan has decided to shoot a ‘quickie’ before he dives into Agneepath director Karan Malhotra’s next. That ‘inbetween’ film will be Anjaana Anjaani director Siddharth Anand’s remake of the Tom Cruise-Cameron Diaz starrer Knight and Day.

The film, which will be produced by Fox Star India, was originally meant to star Shahid Kapoor, but reportedly the project could not take off with the Jab We Met star because no A-list actress could be persuaded to work with him. Since the film is a globe-hopping romantic-actioner with equally prominent roles for both the male and female lead, the studio allegedly decided to look past Shahid Kapoor instead of settling for a B-rung actress opposite him. There is some talk now that Katrina Kaif has been approached to play Hrithik’s romantic interest in the movie.

Bollywood naysayers are already saying this could well turn out to be another Kites on Hrithik’s CV, given that the actor (and possibly his filmmaker papa too) will inevitably clash with Anand during the film’s production. Another source close to the star says Hrithik will in all likelihood ghost direct the film himself, given Anand’s filmmaking skills.

His thankless role in Heroine notwithstanding, Arjun Rampal appears to have made some smart moves as far as his next few projects are concerned. First, he plays the lead in Prakash Jha’s Chakravyuh as a committed cop who must take on his closest friend in the line of duty. Then, in January, Rampal stars in Sudhir Mishra’s ‘workplace drama’ Inkaar, which apparently touches upon the prickly issue of sexual harassment at the job and co-stars Chitrangda Singh.

Rampal is also more or less confirmed to star in Ra.One director Anubhav Sinha’s official remake of Buried, which could well turn out to be the best or worst decision of the actor’s life. A taut thriller featuring only one actor on the screen for the entire duration of the film, Buried starred Ryan Reynolds as a man trapped underground in a coffin with only his mobile phone for company. It was a testament to Reynolds’ terrific acting skills that he could hold your attention and keep you at the edge of your seat throughout the film. The question now is whether Arjun Rampal will use this opportunity to make a disclosure of his yet-unseen acting potential, or confirm what his critics have been saying all along… that he’s a good-looking block of wood.

There’s no end to the speculation and interest in the impending marriage of these two stars, but dates have repeatedly been moved, and neither seems particularly excited about sharing too much by way of detail. It appears now the big day has been scheduled for October. It’ll be a registered court marriage in Mumbai, followed by a reception in New Delhi.

Friends of the bride, a top actress, are a little surprised that the two have chosen to play it so low key, but the groom’s mother has revealed to close family that the bride has requested a relatively quiet affair because she’d be uncomfortable with a big song-and-dance being made of her wedding at a time when her own sister is going through a messy divorce. The groom too has reportedly told his mum he’d be happier with relatively modest celebrations, given that it’s his second time down the aisle.

Turns out the groom’s family is also currently involved in a bitter property dispute over his recently deceased father’s assets. The actor, his siblings, and his mother are apparently fighting off claims on his father’s wealth by assorted ‘relatives’ who have “suddenly appeared out of nowhere”. This is another reason the actor has cited for why he feels so uncomfortable about too much noise being made over his marriage.

Hrithik RoshanPrakash JhaSiddharth Anand