 |
| Madhur Bhandarkar With Columnist Nisha JamVwal |
Madhur Bhandarkar, a man of many shades, all ambitious, interesting, observant and real! He is a good friend and a keenly observant film-maker. I remember a dinner party of mine, where he just stood like a fly on the wall and focusedly noticed interactions, hardly participating. He just moved around, looking, drinking in the ambiance and making mental notes. Post which he had churned out 'Page-3'. I was riveted by some real-life sequences in the film. I even did a tiny cameo for him in that film. Today he's working on 'Calender-girls' and enjoying working with a bevy of beautiful newcomers. Thats the beauty of Maddy as I call him affectionately. I've known him for years, nothing changes him, from his humble beginnings to today, hes as comfortable at a tiny quaint fish lunch joint as he is at a rooftop gourmet fine dining restaurant. With women falling all over themselves to act in his films, keen to 'hang out ' with him, Madhur manages to keep his personal life very steady. He has had his share of controversy but his own home and relationship stays unscathed.
Friendship and camaraderie in a marriage can blow over the biggest storms that a relationship goes through in its journey. You just sail though tumultuous rocky weather without imminent shipwreck, and Madhur Bhandarkar is a great example of this.
Severe allegations and court cases thrown at him by a struggling starlet through the last few year didn’t chink his fortress, instead it stood tall. This apart from all the hot stars that he’s been linked to.
“I don't believe in elitism. I don't think the audience is
this dumb person lower than me. I am the audience”- Q
What according to Madhur keeps his marriage from breaking up, when the
newspapers have linked the names of Raveena, Tabu, Mughda Godse with his?
CLICK ON THE 'READ MORE' LABEL TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE.......
How has he retained the equanimity of his marriage and kept it going despite so many ups and downs?
CLICK ON THE 'READ MORE' LABEL TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE.......
How has he retained the equanimity of his marriage and kept it going despite so many ups and downs?
“I
dated my wife for four years before we got married, she is more a friend and
gives me space. She understands the ups and downs of film making. The creative
process I am involved in takes research, time. Yes, I am away a lot so it
wouldn’t work if we didn’t have an understanding. She knows me since I was a
no-body. So the liberty she gives me is what keeps us going. She watches me
shooting enough to know what goes into it.”
Madhur’s
best films have strong women protagonists. He seems to have a deep
understanding of the conflicts and paradoxes that make a woman. How come he is
so empathetic to women?
“Emotional
aspects of a woman attract me. Women protagonists are even more equipped to
emote as they deal with society at many levels and contribute largely to
society. Women are stronger than men in my view.
For me attraction is not about
beauty. A woman’s knowledge is a magnet. I enjoy achievers, strong women are
attractive me. I grew up in a female dominated home where my mother and sister
have been strong influences and they inspired me. It was a poor family and we
went through difficult times. My mother held the home together through dire
poverty. She was always there as a sturdy force. She came with me to receive my
fourth national award to Rashtriyapati Bhawan, she was in tears.”
What about a relationship excites Madhur, what attracts him?
“Liking is more important than attraction in a man woman equation, because that is what lasts- liking. In a relationship, I enjoy conversation the most. A woman’s personality attracts me the most.” he shares emphatically
What about a relationship excites Madhur, what attracts him?
“Liking is more important than attraction in a man woman equation, because that is what lasts- liking. In a relationship, I enjoy conversation the most. A woman’s personality attracts me the most.” he shares emphatically
Madhur’s
protagonists are very conflicted, I’ve always connected with his idea of
ambition, frustration and the pain of age-ing stars and models who become
inconsequential and are ousted as they age. How can human beings retain
personal happiness in an ambitious world where they lose consequence I wonder
aloud, and Madhur feelingly shares-
“The glamour industry is very transient
Nisha. To maintain sanity, a person should not take success or failure
seriously. Ups and downs are imminent. But it is difficult to survive if you
take anything too seriously, because nothing is forever. Values change, and
changes in human relationships actually challenge me.
I
enjoy seeing human equations change– when I see success, there are more
friends, if I am not successful, and I loose friends” we laugh together at the
shallowness that makes up society. “I am a school dropout, I’ve never been to
any institution. I don't come from a film family. I’ve seen famed actors being
made to sit on the fourth row if their film did badly. I’m a strong observer. I
go to Siddhi Vinayak and observe people in traffic.
As a human being I feel the
film industry is very superficial, it is not real. My sanity is because I know
there is no reality in glamour and so I show actual reality in my films. No
permanent friendships- no permanent enmity- that's the philosophy of the film
industry”. A long way indeed to
come from a video library delivery boy, Mahdur!!
Written for & Published By Deccan Chronicle & Asian Age
By
Nisha JamVwal
No comments:
Post a Comment