Paoli as Geeta Dutt?

ArindamDe is getting ready for a film on the life of the ���50s diva; Indraadip Das Gupta to score the music
Her voice inspired a million dreams and her tragic life a million rumours. Geeta Dutt ��� the diva of the ���50s, who was also actor-director Guru Dutt���s wife ��� was defined by mystery, sorrow and the golden songs she left behind. Now, Tolly director Arindam De is set to make a film inspired by the singer���s life that may star Paoli Dam.
The film comes close on the heels of Kamaleswar Mukherjee���s Meghe Dhaka Tara, which was inspired by Ritwik Ghatak���s life and has created quite a buzz in the industry. Arindam, like Kamaleswar, has stressed on the fact that his film will not be a biopic. ���The story revolves around a singer, who���s the nightingale of the Indian music industry. The character might resemble Geeta Dutt in some ways, but I���ll be weaving fictional elements into the storyline. You can call it a tribute to Geeta Dutt. And yes, I���ve spoken to Paoli for the role,��� he said. While the director is writing the script with Arijit Biswas, Indraadip Das Gupta will do the music. Paoli, who spoke to CT from Mumbai, said, ���Arindamda has approached me with the concept of the film, but I���m yet to read the script. So far, we���ve only had a preliminary discussion. Once I���m back in Kolkata in end-February, I will speak to him in greater detail.���
Though the script���s focus is not yet clear, Geeta���s life always had the dramatic potential for a gripping film. Blessed with a voice that was an antithesis to Lata Mangeshkar���s melodious singing, she worked with music directors like SD Burman and OP Nayyar. She���s best remembered for Babuji dheere chalna (Aar Paar, 1954) and the wildly popular Mera naam Chin Chin Chu, which was filmed on a gyrating, seductive Helen in Howrah Bridge (1958).
Her fairy-tale romance and subsequent marriage to actor-director Guru Dutt was the stuff of Bollywood lore. He even launched her as the singing star in his Gauri (1957). But Dutt���s alleged involvement with a leading actress led to a dramatic breakdown of their marriage.
While he died of an alcohol and sleeping pill overdose at the age of 39, Geeta succumbed to liver cirrhosis in 1972, when she was just 41.
Arindam will have his task cut out as he chooses the relevant bits from such a varied and tragic life. His first film, Ajob Prem Ebong Ekti Bus er Golpo, also starred Paoli and was selected for the Bridge Fest International Film Festival. The director is currently busy making Chhaya Manush with Parambrata Chatterjee and Raima Sen.