Bollywood calling? Say yes!

KANAK HIRANI NAUTIYAL / TNN / Sep 7, 2006, 20:40 IST

Text Size

Small
Medium
Large

Director Satish Kaushik found his 'new face' in student Yamini Sharma, whose picture he spotted in the newspaper. How easy is achieving the big Bollywood dream?

Director Satish Kaushik found his 'new face' in student Yamini Sharma, whose picture he spotted in the newspaper. How easy is achieving the big Bollywood dream?
Stardom
All it took was a college protest and 18-year-old Chandigarh student Yamini Sharma landed herself a movie offer from Hindi film director Satish Kaushik. After her parents' approval, Yamini said yes, adding it was the opportunity of a lifetime to work with 'Satishji'.
But it will take a screen test to determine if Yamini is actor material. Till then other girls can continue to hope that one day, some director will 'spot' them and give them their ticket to stardom.

Which youngster doesn't harbour the big Bollywood dream? "Everyone wants to make it big in films," says assistant director Elahe Hiptoola, "it's such a lure. At 19, there's no bigger kick than seeing your face plastered on a poster outside your college."
For some it's the sheer joy of acting that attracts them, for others it's all about money and fame. Says actress Kulraj Randhawa, "It was never about the glamour for me. I was kicked about standing in front of the camera and performing," she says.

Singer-turned-actress Vasundhara Das only wanted to be a singer. "The acting happened because I was in the right place at the right time," she says...
...
Spotted!
How often does a 'Yamini' happen to people? Is it really that simple to get spotted by a well-known filmmaker? "No," says Kulraj. "I have never come across anyone who was spotted. It's very rare... Which filmmaker really cares about looking around all the time for the perfect face?"
Vasundhara was spotted at AR Rahman's studio, where she was recording a song. "I wasn't even inclined towards films, at least not till the offers got serious." The seventh offer was from Kamal Haasan, "and you don't say no to him," adds Vasundhara.
Searching
Vasundhara feels there are a lot of people always scouting for new faces, "And it could be anyone from the industry doing the scouting. When it's a new face being launched, a lot of money is saved," she says.
Elahe says wherever she goes, she's always looking for the 'next big thing'. "We spotted Deepika Padukone when she did the toothpaste commercial years ago; we saw the masti in her." But every starspotting session is followed by an audition, says Elahe. "And some of them fail miserably."
There are about 6,000 applications sitting in filmmaker Nagathihalli Chandrashekar's office right now. "That's the only way to do it — put an ad in the paper and hold walk-in interviews."
His attempts with talent scouting on the streets haven't met with much luck. "There may be many beautiful girls and good-looking boys in Karnataka, but when approached, most wouldn't give up studies for films," says Nagathihalli, who has a reputation of launching new faces.
Talent
Sometimes, the person you find may just be another pretty face with no acting talent. Says Kulraj, "You spot someone, but can they act?
You need talent; acting isn't a cakewalk. People often tell me, 'All you have to do is sit around with make up on your face. How hard is that?' Here's what: how many people have the patience to sit for 16 hours waiting for the next shot? Not just that, you have to have a spark.
If you're lucky to get a break, you have to work hard to sustain yourself."
Elahe says filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor and her search for fresh faces isn't always about the look. "It's more to do with talent. Of course, they must look the part," she says.
Elahe agrees signing a new face could be a huge risk. "For Rockford, we went through 500 kids before we found the right boy. For Iqbal, we couldn't get a Shahid Kapur or a John Abraham. It had to be someone who could bowl," Elahe says.
Nagathihalli adds it's important not to get into films only for the glamour.
"Most people who audition haven't read a single play. They don't even have decent pictures of themselves. You have to prepare for a screen test, if you want to make it as an actor. Bring along a 10-minute CD of you in different looks, with different expressions."

End of Article