Chacha's angels: Sush, Lara, Bips

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal"><span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Sush, Lara or Bips doing a Lara Croft...It might be a long wait for Bollywood </span><br /><br /></div> <div class="Normal" style="" text-align:="" center=""><img src="/photo/822220.cms" alt="/photo/822220.cms" border="0" /></div> <div class="Normal"><script language="javascript">doweshowbellyad=0; </script>What if the stunning Lara Dutt did a ''Lara Croft'' and Sushmita Sen kicked some butt on screen? What if Sunny or Akshay gets bashed up only to be saved by a kick-boxing Bips in ''shining armour''? <br /><br />Sounds unlikely? Blame it on the mindset of the urban Indian whose ego, say stars and directors, will be hurt if a woman is seen "doing all the <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">dhishoom dhishoom</span> and emerging the real star".<br /><br />Funny, since there are actresses like Isha Koppikar, Pooja Bedi and Tabu''s sister Farha -- martial arts experts who can take on any man in real life. <br /><br />Talk to Bedi, who is heavily into Kickboxing and Tai Chi herself and she says, "I would just love to watch any of our present actresses as lean mean fighting machines, but it will take some time before people start accepting that. <br /><br />“Thankfully in recent years the ''male domination'' concept has changed and women have portrayed stronger roles. But for them to do aggressive physical roles, it will take some time." <br /><br />Ad-man Alyque Padamsee is more direct, when he puts the blame squarely on makers of Bollywood movies who, he says, are living in the past. <br /><br />"Unfortunately, the intellectual capacity of scriptwriters, producers and directors hasn''t undergone a change. How would you explain the fact that Bollywood storylines have shifted a mere millimetre in the last 40 years," he says. <br /><br /><br /></div> </div><div class="section2"><div class="Normal"><br /></div> <div class="Normal" style="" text-align:="" center=""><img src="/photo/822221.cms" alt="/photo/822221.cms" border="0" /></div> <div class="Normal"><script language="javascript">doweshowbellyad=0; </script>Padamsee is sure that today''s leading ladies have no problems throwing a punch or a flying kick. "There are heroines like Mallika Sherawat and Sushmita Sen who might be forced to do traditional roles but would love to do films like <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Charlie''s Angels</span> too," he says. <br /><br />Agrees one of Bollywood''s biggest ''action'' (of a different kind) stars, Bipasha Basu: "I would love to do a <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Charlie''s Angels</span>, but definitely not with the current kind of infrastructure, training and special effects that we have in place. We need intensive training or else on screen it will look ridiculous," she says. <br /><br /><br /></div> </div><div class="section3"><div class="Normal"><br /></div> <div class="Normal" style="" text-align:="" center=""><img src="/photo/822222.cms" alt="/photo/822222.cms" border="0" /></div> <div class="Normal"><script language="javascript">doweshowbellyad=0; </script>Basu though feels that Bollywood films will not "break out of its traditional shackles" till "directors and producers broaden their horizons." Also, as she says, "the public mindset will have to change. Films will always be made depending on what the audience wants. Now sex sells so much because a huge majority of the Indian audience demands it and laps it up like candy." <br /><br />But would you really hate to see a woman defending herself successfully? 19-year-old Ajit Prakash, an avid movie goer, provides the answer: <br /><br />"I have seen Tomb Raider a couple of times and absolutely loved Lara Croft. Frankly we are tired of the same old mush from Bollywood where the heroine is eternally waiting for the hero to save her from the goons. I wish at least some Bollywood films get out of that mould." <br /><br /><br /></div> </div><div class="section4"><div class="Normal"><br /></div> <div class="Normal" style="" text-align:="" center=""><img src="/photo/822223.cms" alt="/photo/822223.cms" border="0" /></div> <div class="Normal"><script language="javascript">doweshowbellyad=0; </script>''Real life'' women too want a change. Says Zeal Shah, all of 17: "One can''t blame film makers for the tried and tested romancesex- action formula. That''s what the general public want. Though, I for one, would really love to see a Charlie''s Angels being done in Bollywood." <br /><br />Action hero Akshay Kumar admits that "Hollywood films where women are super heroes or are black belts, do really well here." But the hunk feels what''s needed is the right kind of sets, special effects, intensive training from experts and finally a right script for such films to go down well with the urban Indian male. <br /><br />Well, as long as the ''pretty damsel next door'' doesn''t kick butt we might just have to suffice with seeing Mallika Sherawat in action with Jackie Chan and wait for our directors to make a film where a leggy Lara Dutt can do a Lara Croft...! <br /><span style="" font-style:="" italic="">shivli.tyagi@timesgroup.com</span></div> </div>