Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bhachchan believes Indian films are being noticed worldwide as the country has become economically
stronger.
"The validity comes... when a country is economically strong everything about it gets noticed. This is one
of the reasons why anything coming out of India is getting attention," Bachchan said.
He also said that Indian films
were not really being made to draw more foreign viewers. "We don't deliberately make films to attract foreign audience but
if they come we welcome them."
Bachchan, along with the rest of the cast and crew of "Ek Ajnabee", interacted with
mediapersons at the Dream hotel in Manhattan here this week.
The 64-year-old Bollywood superstar plays a man on the
path of self-destruction who finds redemption when he is hired to protect an eight-year-old girl from a kidnapping plot.
Other
actors from the film who attended the event were Arjun Rampal and hotelier Vikram Chatwal, who plays the father of the child.
Leading lady Perizaad Zorabian and child artist Rucha Vaidya could not attend the event. The film, which is scheduled to be
released Dec 9, was shot in Bangkok, Thailand.
Apoorva Lakhia, the film's director, introduced the cast, addressing
Bachchan as "India's last cowboy."
Lakhia said that he wrote the script with Bachchan in mind. "The difficult part
was to ask him to work for us. He said yes in five minutes but it took two years to get his dates."
He added that the
film was based on the Hollywood flick "Man on Fire", but it had been adapted to Indian sensibilities.
Bachchan said
that he was flattered that at "64 you get to play a central character; Indian films don't show such generosity often." He
said Lakhia's experience of working in New York has given him an edge on production control.
He added that the Indian
film industry was gradually moving into a phase of planning and accountability. Lakhia, he said, had a team in place that
looked at all aspects of planning which helped him to finish the film in just 40 days.
He also praised the work of
his co-stars, including Arjun Rampal, whom he referred to as the "exceedingly good-looking man sitting next to me."
The
superstar was all praise for the child actors he worked with in the recent past, in "Black" and in "Ek Ajnabee".
"Children
really surprise you with their natural talent. The girl Ayesha in 'Black' was a real natural. It was her first time in front
of the camera. In fact, when she came for the premiere, she was entering a film theatre for the first time.
"Even
Rucha's expressions in this film are of a grown-up person. You think it will be tough to work with children but the minute
the camera comes on, they are altogether different, they know their lines, everything..."
Rampal said he really liked
his role in "Ek Ajnabee". " I was sold out 100 percent when I knew it was with Mr. Bachchan and 200 percent when I read the
script. Basically, I didn't have to do much; all I had to do is grow my hair and have tattoos on."
On the choice of
location, Lakhia said he chose Bangkok because he wanted his over-six-foot heroes to stand out and Thailand offered him that
since people aren't very tall in that country.
