Movie: Bride and Prejudice
Director: Gurinder Chadha who debuted with her much-acclaimed film Bhaji on the Beach in 1993 and struck to fame with the super hit Bend it Like Beckham in 2002 is directing the film.
Cast: Aishwarya Rai, Martin Henderson, Anupam Kher, Namarata Shirodkar, Meghana Kothari, Peeya Rai Choudhary, Naveen Andrews, Nadira Babbar, Indira Verma, Daniel Gillies
Crossover Cinema
Now this film can indeed be termed, as a crossover film for it's neither completely a Bollywood flick nor entirely a Hollywood caper. A mix of both the cultures both in terms of the story and filmmaking! And for the first time, Bollywood beauty Aishwarya Rai is paired opposite a Hollywood star - Martin Henderson (of The Ring fame).
The film is adapted from Jane Austen's novel Pride and Prejudice with the only difference that while in the original the clash between Darcy and Elizabeth crops in due to their social status, the conflict between Darcy and Lalita over here is a result of their cross cultures. Another reason for the crossover effect!
Characterization
Anupam Kher as Mr Bakshi:
Mr Bakshi is a man who is always in a quandary when it comes to marrying his daughters. Coming from a not so rich family background, Mr Bakshi simply cannot afford to pay the wedding dowry.
Nadira Babbar as Mrs Bakshi:
Mrs Bakshi is the mother of four daughters and her sole aim is to find the perfect partners for her daughters.
Namrata Shirodkar plays Jaya:
Jaya is the eldest daughter of the Bakshi family and of marriageable age.
Aishwarya Rai plays Lalita:
Lalita is next to Jaya. Smart and stubborn, she is determined to seek her own love without the meddling of her mother.
Meghana Kothari plays Maya Bakshi and Peeya Rai Choudhary plays Lucky who complete the sibling quartet.
Martin Henderson plays Will Darcy
Darcy is an American hotelier who is instantaneously attracted to Lalita. Love at first sight but this time the Hollywood way!
Storyline
Mr Balraj anglicized as Mr Bingley (Naveen Andrews), is a British Asian from London and the new neighbor to the Bakshi family. Mrs Bakshi sees this good-looking personality as a prospective partner for Jaya.
Balraj's best friend, Darcy, meets Lalita on a social meet and instantly falls for her. Love at first sight for him (but this time the Hollywood way). However the same is not true for Lalita.
How the spark ignites between them and what hindrance comes in their path is subsequently revealed in the plot of the film.
Music
Anu Malik, whose musical compositions have already been used in crossover films like Monsoon Wedding (Chunari Chunari) and The Guru (Chori Chori), has composed seven peppy numbers for the film. Incidentally, Malik even plays a small part in the film. He plays a pundit who welcomes the family during the wedding.
One of the songs has been penned by Farhan and Zoya Akhtar. Gurinder Chadha states, “The music is a mix of West Side Story, Fiddler on the Roof, Grease and also Hindi film music”. With the success of Hollywood musicals like Moulin Rouge and Chicago, perhaps this musical too would be acknowledged overseas.
Renowned cinematographer Santosh Sivan (Asoka, Fiza, Terrorist, Tehzeeb) handles the camera while Saroj Khan is the choreographer.
Release
The film is under production and will release sometime in the last quarter of 2004.
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