New targets on the block

doweshowbellyad=0; Akshay Kumar (TOI Photo) More picsSadly, this new trouble in the Bachchans’ backyard coincided with Abhishek’s birthday. Bachchan flew down from Simla to join his son in Jaipur. Jaya and Aishwarya flew down from Mumbai.
They all tried hard to keep their spirits from sagging. And they succeeded. You can’t let the party-crashers rain on your parade.Unless you happen to be the people behind Ashutosh Gowariker’s historical film, and start wondering if your film will be stalled for some new injury suffered by some community in some part of the world. Maybe the elephants’ trunks were not curled up in the right position in the war scenes. Maybe that bird in the cage looked too anorexic. Maybe the rangoli on that parapet wasn’t green enough. Or perhaps Hrithik’s moustache isn’t curled enough.
Someone somewhere is bound to get affected by something or the other in the entertainment business. I firmly believe there are sections of people deployed specially to start protests at the drop of a hat. These professional protestors sit around waiting to be told to disrupt the next celebrity’s next big moment. My fear is, filmmakers in this country will soon stop trying to do things that would take our cinema to another level. As one leading filmmaker with a track record of hits told me, “Why bother to be a Sanjay Bhansali or an Ashutosh Gowariker?” You can’t argue that logic. Not in a world where a celebrity can’t step out of his home without being questioned by the people who thrive on throwing stones at trees laden with fruits.
Now, I wonder if it’s safe to even make a film about any specific community. For instance, if a section feels Hrithik Roshan can’t play Akbar because he’s Hindu, another section of people might feel Akshay Kumar can’t play a Sardarji in Singh Is Kinng. What a pity that would be. Akshay Kumar is one of those rare actors who looks convincing playing anyone. This is the story of the man who would be Singh. And, the guy who gives that Singh-King feeling to the entire industry is none other than Akshay Kumar.
Akshay Kumar loves to sing. And, his close friends know he bursts into a song, preferably in Punjabi. His schedules and his awesome upward career graph don’t allow him the luxury of too many friends and too many songs. Also, Akshay wants to stay out of controversy’s way. Though he continues to be fun and funny, I feel somewhere in the quest for superstardom Akshay has lost the ability to enjoy his success. His eyes nowadays convey pain of remaining extra cautious. And, you can’t blame him for that. Akshay has been repeatedly let down by people whom he has taken into confidence. Today, apart from his immediate family, Akshay is a complete loner.
Akshay is an amazing mimic. He also has the patience and resilience of a monk. He combines heart with mind and comes up with solutions and remedies to problems that have no apparent rhyme or design. Today, Akshay ranks right up there with Shah Rukh Khan. It hasn’t been an easy climb for Akshay. He has worked really hard to get where he is. I think Akshay epitomises the struggle and triumph of the spirit. But, what if tomorrow he decides to use some of his wealth to build a school for those less privileged than him in Chandni Chowk where he hails from? Would the great grumblers get into action and ask him to shift the school to a more politically acceptable location?