Charge of the glam brigade

<div class="section1"><div class="Normal"><script language="javascript" src="Config?Configid=43376741"></script></div> <div align="left" style="position:relative; left: -2"><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" align="left" border="1" width="77.7%"> <colgroup> <col width="100.0%" /> </colgroup> <tr valign="top"> <td width="100.0%" colspan="1" rowspan="1" style="" valign:="" top="" background-color:="" f3f3f3=""> <div class="Normal"><a href="javascript:popUp(&quot1;photopop?msid=209250&type=0&quot1;)"> <img border="0" align="left" src="/cms.dll/thumb?height=195&width=195&photoID=209250" hspace="12"" /></a></div> </td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td width="100.0%" colspan="1" rowspan="1" style="" valign:="" top="" background-color:="" f3f3f3=""> <div class="Normal"><span style="" font-size:="">Click to enlarge picture</span></div> </td> </tr> </table></div> <div class="Normal">NEW DELHI: Earlier if you thought art house, you imagined Shabana Azmi, Om Puri.These days, you think Nandita Das, Konkana Sen, Rahul Bose. <br /><br />Looks like your thinking is set to change again. That is, if the country''s most hyped cinema fest, the International Film Festival of India (IFFI), is any indication of trends in avant garde cinema. <br /><br />The bigger draws at this year''s event boast of Aishwarya Rai, Sonali Bendre and Urmila Matondkar, all stars once dismissed as glam-dolls or sex sirens. <br /><br />The only constant has been Tabu, who stars in two festival films (Vishal Bhardwaj''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Mian Maqbool</span> and Gautam Ghose''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Abar Aranyer</span>), who has managed a fine balance between experimental and commercial. <br /><br />For the rest, their latest ventures could well be the defining turn in their careers. <br /><br /></div> </div><div class="section2"><div class="Normal">Aishwarya Rai might have turned a new leaf in her career with Sanjay Leela Bhansali''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam</span>, but it''s Rituparno Ghosh''s <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Chokher Bali</span> that has given her the big ticket to international film festivals. <br /><br />Rai''s choice as Binodini, the young widow who refuses to conform to societal pressures 100 years ago, continues to raise eyebrows. <br /><br />But it''s difficult to discount her contribution to the film, if not for her acting prowess, then for her surreal breathtaking beauty that makes it difficult to take your eyes off screen. <br /><br />And to be fair to Rai, she may not be the one of the finest actresses around, but she has turned in a convincing act. <br /><br />Two weeks into the release in Bengal and the film is already a blockbuster. <br /><br /></div> </div><div class="section3"><div class="Normal">"It''s a misconception that mainstream actors can''t act in these films. A popular actor adds far more to the mass appeal of a film," says industry analyst Taran Adarsh. <br /><br />Directors, of course, are not as forthcoming on their choice of actors, their standard reply being the actor fitted the role. <br /><br />Ask Ghosh about why he chose someone from Bollywood, and he quickly comes up with how he featured Sharmila Tagore in <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Shubho Mahurat</span> and Mithun Chakravarty in <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Titli</span>. <br /><br />Ditto Rai, who draws the example of her first film, Iruvar, which was in Tamil and not Hindi. "It doesn''t matter whether cinema is regional or parallel." <br /><br />If <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Chokher Bali</span> was the first Bengali film for Rai, <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Anaahat</span> is the first Marathi flick for Bendre, whose casting as a 10th century queen who discovers her sexuality has raised less hackles and won more accolades. <br /><br /></div> </div><div class="section4"><div class="Normal">Urmila Matondkar hasn''t exactly won as much acclaim for the upcoming <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Pinjar</span>, which opened the festival. But again, to give her the due, it''s an impressive performance. <br /><br />Mainstream stars in <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">avant garde</span> cinema isn''t exactly a new phenomenon, remember Karisma Kapoor in <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Zubeidaa</span> and <span style="" font-style:="" italic="">Fiza</span>? <br /><br />But perhaps never before have mainstream Bollywood stars been so eagerly sought after by auteur filmmakers. <br /></div> </div>