Deewar II, too has Bachchan

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal">It''s been 28 long years. But the Yash Chopra-directed classic <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Deewar</span> — the film which established Amitabh Bachchan''s reel image as that of the angry young man — has lost none of its charm.<br /><br />Twenty-eight years later, in 2003, Bachchan is all set to star in <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Deewar</span> again.But wait, before you jump to conclusions, this <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Deewar</span> is titled <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Deewar</span>: Let''s Bring Our Heroes Home. And Yash Chopra has nothing to do with the project; rather, the man at the helm of affairs is Milind Luthra, who made his directorial debut with <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Kachche Dhaage</span>. <br /><br />But the most important difference between the old and the new is that the <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Deewar</span> of 2003 has nothing to do with a difference in values or the underworld. Instead, the backdrop of the film is Pakistan. In other words, it seems as if the deewar (wall) between brothers (Amitabh Bachchan and Shashi Kapoor in the Yash Chopra-directed film) has now been replaced by a deewar between two neighbouring nations.<br /><br />Apart from the Big B, the new <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Deewar</span> features Sanjay Dutt and Akshaye Khanna. The film is being produced by <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Aankhen</span>-maker Gurang Doshi, whose father had made Nastik with Bachchan.<br /><br />As for the storyline, Bachchan plays a prisoner of war (PoW) stuck in Pakistan. Akshaye Khanna, who plays Bachchan''s son, wants to help, but is unable to do so; on the other hand, Sanjay Dutt, who is also a PoW can help Bachchan, but doesn''t want to. "It''s not a war film,"'' maintains Doshi, "Rather, it deals with post-war issues and the impact of war on human emotions."'' <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Deewar</span> will be shot in Rajasthan, Bhuj, Madhya Pradesh and Mumbai and is expected to be released in 2004.<br /><br />Meanwhile, Bachchan has turned singer again in Baghban. "I have sung three songs in the film,''" informs Bachchan, "and there is one more to go... a background number with Abida Parveen."<br /><br />Recently honoured at the Deauville Film Festival with a retrospective of his films and honourary citizenship, Bachchan''s hands are full, with two films in which he plays a cop — Khaki and Dev. Well, after he robbed banks in <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Kaante</span> and <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Aankhen</span>, reel law has finally caught up with Bachchan!</div> </div>