TICKET TO BOLLYWOOD - NEWCOMERS ON THE GO!

Hello Everybody,
How have you been? And how did the month go by? Being an avid film buff,understandably you must have found that 90% of all that I blog about is film, films and more films...a topic that has so many dimensions be it about the process of film-making,the people involved in the craft,the actors,technicians or films in itself makes for an interesting topic of discussion, debate or chat. Alright....this time,I'm not getting critical or cynical unlike the last time when I was lambasting the process of film-making in India...this time the mood is sombre and appreciative of performances by newcomers making their foray into Bollywood.

Bollywood alias Hindi film industry has always been known to welcome everyone and it is also one of the shining models of secularism where you have Hindus,Muslims,Christians, Punjabis, Bengalis, South Indians etc all working harmoniously together.While this has always been the case...but the same was never true as far as newcomers were concerned until a decade ago and especially if you happened to have no backing of star parents or relatives of super stars,God fathers or sugar daddies in the film industry so to speak of and yet despite all these stumbling blocks there were some actors (when I mention actors it also mean actresses,make note of it!),did manage to make impressive debuts...that may or may not have been written about..but today, I chose to write about them because I felt they deserved this space! In this month's blog, by writing about them, I also want to acknowledge their presence,their resolve and their contribution when they decided to tread untouched waters and enter an industry knowing very well the risks where an actors credentials are put to test every Friday! It is also heartening for all newcomers who have no film background and want to make it big in showbiz that there have been success stories too when rank outsiders made it to the top on their own steam!


 It is laudable to know that while some of these debutants had the tide going against them,firstly the biggest of all was to have no backing from the industry whatsoever and the next could possibly have been their unconventional looks or the path they chose to traverse to the big screen,which is from the television medium so tradewallahs didn't give them a second look as they felt that the aura behind a star was lost due to over-exposure on television or being a model,the myth that they could not act became a stumbling block in their journey towards stardom.In this melee, some of them in their pursuit of success got lost along their way (let's not get into the post-mortem of how and what went wrong),while some gritty one's who were determined to hit the marquee and make it big struggled big time before success kissed their feet!
 

One actor of whom I have to make a  mention at this juncture is the struggle and success of Shahrukh Khan... no star parent, not your regular looking 6 feet tall,fair and handsome hero and dabbled into the big screen from television not before working in serials like Circus,Fauji etc.....and he then choses to make his debut in Hema Malini's women-centric film Dil Aashna Hai...but as luck would have it his film Deewana releases before and is declared a super hit while Dil Aashna Hai bombs. And after picking up awards for his debut he strikes again the next year with Baazigar and Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa and picked up two awards in two different categories at the Filmfare award function that year,a feat no actor could boast of! And after that, there's no looking back...now this was one success story. Another promising story was that of Chandrachur Singh who made his debut with the musical Tere Mere Sapne and lapped it up the same year with another fine performance in Gulzar's Maachis which dealt with the issue of terrorism in Punjab...and not surprising that year he took home many awards when both these films garnered success at the B.O. After a string of flops which followed, he appeared in second leads in films like Daag the Fire, Josh and Kya Kehna which were moderate successes...but after that he was not heard of until a few months back when he re-surfaced on the filmy circuit for the publicity of his much-delayed film..by then public memory of him had faded,after all every Friday a new star is born,while some shine on,some others fade into oblivion.So, here are two shining examples of two actors put in a similar situation and how each one chose to write their own destiny! 

Okay...I now have a question for you.If I asked you to randomly name five actors in Bollywood over the last two decades, you'd  churn out a list with the likes of Shahrukh Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Imran Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Sanjay Dutt, Sunny Deol,Anil Kapoor, Govinda, Karisma Kapoor,Kareena Kapoor, Raveena Tandon etc.Now if I came up with a rider, asking you to name five actors in Bollywood over the last two decades who were not star sons and daughters and did not have any backing so to speak of..you'd have chewed your nails and few names that would instantly come to your mind instantly would have been Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Preity Zinta perhaps and you'd have hung your boots up there! And honestly speaking,I don't blame you...understandably, the star system was and is so ingrained and predominant in Bollywood where actors passed their batons to their sons and daughters to carry their legacy forward whether they had the talent or not and newcomers who didn't have any film lineage were considered as 'outsiders' until a decade ago when the model brigade took Bollywood by storm and Miss Indias took to the center-stage. When models debuted,the stigma that they could not act got attached to their persona while some accepted this fact and got relegated to doing item numbers and supporting roles but some gritty ones pursued and are currently ruling the roost with the likes of Priyanka Chopra,Lara Dutta, Katrina Kaif, Bipasha Basu,Arjun Rampal,John Abraham and many others.

But,as we all know that in Bollywood what's important today is that if you have to enter this industry where stars are made or fade away from public memory every Friday, you have to mark your presence with a bang and this is even more important if you do not have backing of any sort which is from the God-fathers or sugar daddies of the industry. Madhuri Dixit and Juhi Chawla had to struggle a great deal after they made their debuts before they could leave a mark. Same was the case with Arjun Rampal, when he had been written off and the industrywallahs re-iterated their belief that models for nuts could not act, he surfaced with a bang with some mature performances in Rock On, Om Shanti Om, Don and more recently in We are Family. And yes, do not forget...he has also won the National award in the Supporting Actor category for the film Rock On. Likewise was the case when Boom doomed at the box office and Katrina Kaif was boomed out,she fought with a vengeance and has now suddenly become a darling at the box office with actors pining to work with her, directors suddenly acknowledging her presence and producers queuing up to sign her for their next even though they silently believe that Kareena may be a better actress...such hypocrisy!  But as long as Katrina rakes in the moolahs for them...she is their lucky mascot until someone else comes their way! Such is the way Bollywood works! 

So, all I'm trying to say here is that it is imperative that when a newcomer makes a conscious decision to enter the Hindi film industry, they must take time to choose a film which would be a perfect launch vehicle rather than accept anything that comes their way...because this is what is going to get them noticed and their talents will be judged by the bigwigs of the industry, this in turn would ensure that they get their future assignments and all this is not before they have their PR machinery in place that would make it a point that they are written about and in the news always pre and post-film release. Also having a right agent in place would help them i.e. the actor get the first preference of casting directors or directors working on their new project and all this is not before their agents knowing the true potential of their client would make the right pitch!

Before I list out some outstanding and sincere debuts by actors who didn't have a silver spoon to get their big break in Bollywood...here are my observations on what their parameters may possibly have been when they decided to mark their debut.  

1. A Big Director --Take the debut films of Seema Biswas,Mahima Chaudhary, Anushka Sharma and Chandrachur Singh in Bandit Queen,Pardes,Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi,Maachis respectively...you surely got my point home!Besides a dream come true,being chosen to play the lead actress opposite a big time director definitely grabs eye balls from both the big daddies of the industry and the media...you definitely get a first time watch and this may get you some work...but it all depends how well you cash your publicity and success once the film is released. The advantage of being launched by a big time director is that he knows what to expect from you in terms of performances and he will make every effort to mould you into the character and may even put you through some acting workshops or ask you to research on your role...but its worth the effort....and this is education when you get to learn the ropes of acting and opportunity to understand the technique of internalizing and preparing for your character at the cost of the producer! And if you thought that this special attention is lavished on you because you think you are the director's eye-candy...think again! You're absolutely wrong....it is simply because the film-maker has a reputation to to live up to...so it's twice the effort for him if he happens to launch a newcomer! Got that!!

2. Debuting opposite the 'Khans' or for that matter a top notch A-grade actor/actress --Take the debut films of Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta,Asin or for that matter Bipasha basu in Om Shanti Om, Andaaz, Ghajini,Ajnabee respectively.While it was a known fact that Salman Khan was and continues to encourage and readily work with newcomers him be it Bhagyashree, Chandni,Sneha Ulhal, Sonakshi Sinha, Zarine Khan, Sonam Kapoor,Bhumika Chawla and even with actresses whose career had hit a slump and later went on to become B.O. wonders after working with him like Aishwarya Rai and Katrina Kaif...but the same cannot be said about the other two Khans Shahrukh and Aamir who always worked with their favorite co-stars with whom they shared a camaraderie like Kajol, Madhuri,Rani or Juhi...till they began experimenting recently as their popular pairing took a back seat when their chemistry failed because of repeated casting in films or when actresses got married and were no longer considered a 'hot property' according to the term coined by film producers and financiers (with the exception of Kajol!), so this left them with not much option but to work with newcomers who in turn did not disappoint either. Take Asin,Deepika Padukone or for that matter Anushka Sharma. Even Akshay Kumar joined the league and a bevy of beauties were launched with names like Lara Dutta, Priyanka Chopra, Bipasha Basu making their tall entry into tinsel town!

3. Being signed by a top notch banner --Ad film-maker Pradeep Sarkar was taken under the wings of Vidhu Vinod Chopra to direct Parineeta for his banner which also happens to be his best in his filmography so far. The film marked not just the film-makers' debut but a new face was launched of a girl who charmed us in several television commercials and got a break rather late in the day but it was worth the wait...yes I am talking of Vidya Balan. And then came a string of impressive performances like Lage Raho Munnabhai, Hey Baby,Paa,Ishqiya and several others. In my opinion, I think she can be touted as the next Madhuri Dixit.. because she has a very endearing personality and emphasizes more on her performance rather than skin show...at least that's what I think of her at the moment...but we don't know what happens next in insel town and I hope she doesn't disappoint us either!
Likewise was the case with the tall dandy lass from Himachal Pradesh, Kangana Ranaut whose brush to stardom began when the Bhatt's launched her as the gangster's moll in the film Gangster,which won her not just the sympathy of the viewers for her subdued performance but also the Filmfare Debutant trophy that year...and since then she went on to do some performance-oriented roles in films like Woh Lamhe,Raaz the Mystery Continues, Life in a Metro,Fashion and more recently in Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai.And pssst...for your information Kangana has also won the National Award in the Best Supporting Actress category for her portrayal as the fallen model in Madhur Bhandarkar's Fashion. In the 1990's when ABCL Corp was at its peak and did some enterprising work when it brought the first ever and only Miss World pageant to India...it also launched the careers of Chandrachur Singh, Arshad Warsi, Priya Gill and Sucheta Khanna in Tere Mere Sapne.While Chandrachur showed spark and did some good work in Maachis, Josh, Kya Kehna and won several awards but somewhere he got lost is along the way. Interestingly, the dark horse in the making was his co-star from the same film Arshad Warsi who after a great struggle found his moorings as an actor in not just comedy but in performance-oriented roles like Kabul Express,Sehar and more recently Ishqiya.

4. Choosing the off-beaten path with a performance-oriented role --Now if you're not lucky in having a known banner or for that matter a commercially successful film maker directing you...fret not, you could also consider marking your entry with a dark role having shades of grey or an unusual role for your debut....but mind you,you'd have to do your homework and research really well if you have to take up such a role... because this very role could win you accolades,rave reviews by the critics and define your career or it could fall flat on your face and mark your entry with a disaster! Take the successful debuts of Shiney Ahuja and Chitrangda Singh in Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi, Shreyas Talpade in Iqbal or for that matter Rajeev Khandelwal in Aamir....you surely understood what I meant when I said taking the off-beaten path!

5. Working with an ensemble of newcomers --Now, the last option may or may not be a viable one but it is worth considering working with an ensemble of all newcomers sincerely working to making it big...and when the intentions are so pure and noble where it is everyone's first and all want to make it a fine product...the prayers are bound to be answered as was in the case of the film Tum Bin. The sincere performances by newcomers Priyanshu Chatterjee, Himanshu Malik,Rakesh Bapat,Sandali Sinha,the directorial debut of Anubhav Sinha, the exotic locales of Canada where the film was shot,the story and yes the hummable music was a complete package that was instantly adjudged a super hit with the young audience! I shall discuss more about the film Tum Bin next month in the concluding part of this article.

And of course having all the right ingredients of the above like a big shot director,an A-list actor,a good banner is an icing on the cake for any debutant choosing to make his her debut.Mahima Chaudhary was paired opposite Shah Rukh Khan in Subhash Ghai's Pardes.Deepika Padukone in om Shanti Om was cast opposite Shah Rukh Khan in his home production Red Chillies and directed by Farah Khan.Likewise was the case with Anushka Sharma debuting opposite Shah Rukh Khan in Yash Chopra's Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and so many others...

Okay...now comes the most interesting part of this month's posting wherein you, yes my dear readers,it is 'YOU' who will be voting for your top 5 debutants during the last two decades in films. And I will be compiling a list of my favorite top 10 debutants too from the nominations randomly listed below...so all in all it'd be interesting to compare and note if our frequencies match, I mean if there are any commonalities we share and plus you won't have any grouses on the biases I may have,if any!

PLEASE READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS BEFORE YOU CAST YOUR VOTE
I. The list of nominations comprises of nominees who have debuted in the Hindi film industry during the last two decades starting from the 1990s till 2009.

No.	DEBUTANTS	THEIR FILMS
1.	Shah Rukh Khan	Deewana Dil Aashna Hai
2.	Priyanshu, Himanshu, Rakesh, Sandali	Tum Bin
3.	Chitrangda Singh Shiney Ahuja	Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi
4.	Shreyas Talpade	Iqbal
5.	Deepika Padukone	Om Shanti Om
6.	Kangana Ranaut	Gangster
7.	Mahima &  Apurva	Pardes
8.	Vidya Balan	Parineeta
9.	Chandrachur Singh,Arshad Warsi,Priya Gill,Sucheta Khanna	Tere Mere Sapne
10.	Chandrachur Singh,Jimmy Shergill	Maachis
11.	Rajeev Khandelwal	Aamir
12.	Asin	Ghajini
13.	Anushka Sharma	Rab Ne Bana De Jodi
14.	Seema Biswas	Bandit Queen
15.	Pooja Batra	Virasat
16.	Priyanka Chopra,Lara Dutta	Andaaz
17.	Bipasha Basu	Ajnabee
18.	Shahana Goswami Prachi Desai	Rock On
19.	Preity Zinta	Soldier
20.	Bhumika Chawla	Tere Naam
21.	Rimi Sen	Hungama, Baghban
22.	Rahul Bose	English August
23.	Divya Bharti	Vishwatma, Deewana
24.	Shilpa Shetty	Baazigar
25.	Madhoo	Phool Aur Kaante
26.	Mugdha Godse	Fashion

II. The films of debutants chosen to be nominated are those who were not star sons and daughters and did not have any backing of any sort from any God-pas or relatives of the industry

III. The films chosen are those which did well at the B.O., when I say this, I re-iterate my point at what I have been saying in the article which is, successful debut of films by newcomers be it commercial money-spinner or critically acclaimed.

IV. You are requested to bring to our notice if there are any ambiguities by way of --
a) If I have failed to mention a fine performance by a debutant in their launch pad
b) If any of these actors actress have had any connection with the film industry by way of star parents, relatives,producers or director's son or daughters etc.

V. You will be required to choose the TOP 5 films by Debutants from the above list.

VI. The results will be based on maximum occurrences of that film in the vote cast by our readers. The list which has the maximum occurrences on an individual's lists will be ranked No.1 and so forth.

VII. You have to select the top 5 films that mark the debut of 5 or more distinguished debutants in their respective films,for example --

1. Mahima Chaudhary and Apurva Agnihotri in Pardes
2. Kangana Ranaut in Gangster
3. Rajeev Khandelwal in Aamir
4. Vidya Balan in Parineeta
5. Shiney Ahuja and Chitrangda Singh in Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi

a) Those entries will be outrightly rejected if only film is nominated in the list of top 5 or any incomplete entry.
b) Multiple votes by one person will not be considered.

VIII. Two or more newcomers debuting in one film will be considered as one entry. Take the case with the above example where debutants Mahima Chaudhary and Apurva Agnihotri are slotted at # 1 or for that matter Shiney Ahuja and Chitrangda Singh are at #5 for their films Pardes and Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi. But bifurcating the entries in the nomination list is not allowed. For example Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi or for that matter any film that has two or more newcomers will not be slotted as two different entries by two newcomers for the same film. We cannot have an entry where at # 1 we have Shiney Ahuja for Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi and at #2 we have Chitrangda Singh for Hazaaron Khwaishen Aisi. It will have to be Shiney Ahuja and Chitrangda Singh for any one given slot in your top 5 films.

IX.You can send in your votes to sonyaa.random.musings@gmail.com OR type in your entries in the comments section of this article http://sonyaa-random-musings.blogspot.com/2010/12/ticket-to-bollywood-newcomers-on-go.html#comments

X. All entries must reach us by the 28th December 2010.

So...get set VOTE! I'm waiting to read which debutants made it to the list of top 5 and at the same time I'm eagerly waiting to list out my favorites too...though it's a tough choice we have to make...after all we are crowning the top 5 debutants from a list comprising of nothing but the best! So...get going!!

Take care and ciao until the New Year! I take this opportunity to wish all my readers a Happy, Joyous and a Blessed New Year.
Love,
Sonyaa