SAAWARIYA TO OPEN SOUTH ASIAN FILM FESTIVAL IN NEW YORK ON NOV 7

Saawariya, the first Bollywood production from a Hollywood studio, is to open a prominent festival of South Asian films in New York on November 7 and release commercially two days later in over 80 theatres in North America.

Produced by Sony Pictures and directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, it is the much awaited debut film of Ranbir Kapoor (son of actor Rishi Kapoor) and Sonam Kapoor (daughter of actor-producer Anil Kapoor).

Saawariya is the timeless tale of two young star-crossed lovers from different religions whose passions almost take them to the brink of self-destruction. It is based on Dostoevsky's short story White Nights.

It is the main draw at the five-day Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival, which will screen 70 films, including diaspora, Bollywood and short films.

The festival's closing film is The Last Lear by Rituparno Ghosh, considered heir to the legendary Satyajit Ray. The film has Amitabh Bachchan playing an ageing Shakespearean actor who takes on the bard's most challenging role. It is based on Utpal Dutt's play Aajker Shahjahan.

The festival will conclude with six awards being presented for best film, best director, best actor, best actress, best documentary and best short film.

MIAAC film festival's executive director Aroon Shivdasani said 2007 marks a groundbreaking year as Hollywood studios such as Warner Brothers, Viacom, Disney and Sony Pictures have started to invest in Bollywood films.

The festival, now in its seventh year, has earlier featured films by Mira Nair, Ismail Merchant, Deepa Mehta, Gurinder Chaddha and Nagesh Kukunoor.

The festival is organised by the Indo-American Arts Council, which is a not-for-profit organisation that promotes Indian artistes in the fields of performing, literary, visual and folk and fusion arts.

JAYAPRADA ISN'T YET OUT OF FILMS, HERE SHE TAKE A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE

ON HER DEBUT IN TELUGU FILMS
My mother loved art and got me enrolled in music and dance classes. I began learning traditional Indian dance forms when I was only seven. My dancing skills were noticed at the school’s annual function and I ended up bagging a three-minute role in the Telugu film Bhoomi Kosam. I was paid Rs 10 for the role.

ON THE REACTION OF HER FRIENDS
I suddenly became a star even for my close friends. The distance they were maintaining made me uncomfortable

ON HER ENTRY INTO BOLLYWOOD
My big break in Hindi films came in Sargam in which I portrayed the role of a mute dancer. The film was a remake of the Telugu film Siri Siri Muvva. I observed mute students closely in preparation for the role. The film opposite Rishi Kapoor was a resounding success.

ON HER INTIAL LANGUAGE PROBLEMS IN BOLLYWOOD
I kept a tutor who rehearsed my lines. I was keen to do my own dubbing. I would get up at 5 am, take my Hindi class and then leave for my shoot. I would again work on my diction at night.

ON HER FIRST BREAK WITH AMITABH BACHCHAN IN SHARABI
It was my first film opposite Amitji. I was very nervous on the sets. But he made me feel comfortable and corrected my lines. And the comfort level we shared was apparent on the screen. Amitji is a unique and sensitive artiste. Acting opposite him, one can learn a lot by carefully observing his skills.

ON HER NEW FILMS
I am playing a character similar to that of Jhansi ki Rani in a Kannada film. It is about a fiery queen who fought the British in 1800. In October, I will do a Bengali film directed by Ashok Vishwanath. It will be shot in 45 days in Kolkata. Then there is a Tamil film Dasavatharam with Kamal Haasan.

ON DEHA HER UPCOMING HINDI FILM
Mahesh Manjrekar plays my husband. Even though he cheats on his wife and distrusts her, the wife struggles to keep the marriage going.

ON WHAT KIND OF FILMS SHE LIKES
After a hard day's work, people want to watch entertaining movies. Thought-provoking films like Black are also being made. Of course, I don’t like classics like Mughal-e-Azam being remade. I cannot imagine anyone else playing the character of Dilip Kumar or Madhubala in that historic film.

ON HER REPORTED RIVALRY WITH SRIDEVI
There was no jealously. All our films were done in a professional manner.