Being India’s top actor, it’s no surprise that Aamir Khan is perennially in the news. But since Khan prefers to let his work speak for itself, rumours about his upcoming projects take up pages and pages of newsprint. And still it remains unclear what the actor is up to next.
Speaking for the first time since his last movie, Raju Hirani’s 3 Idiots, became the most successful Bollywood box office hit, Khan quashes the reports of his involvement in various projects, including Kaun Banega Crorepati 4 (KBC 4), Mani Ratnam’s Lajjo, and Anurag Kashyap and Danny Boyle’s Bombay trilogy. “Yes, I was offered KBC 4, but I’m not doing it,” Khan reveals. “I’m too busy with my three upcoming productions and I don’t have the time to take on anything.”
No TV for now Khan, who is perhaps the only A-list Bollywood actor yet to make his television debut as a host, says he is not averse to television, but doesn’t have the time for it at the moment. “I think TV is an extremely powerful medium and can be used really well to entertain or to engage,” he says. “But at this point of time, I don’t have the bandwidth for it.”
The actor has also been linked to Mani Ratnam’s revived project, Lajjo, where he is reportedly being paired on screen with his 3 Idiots’ co-star, Kareena Kapoor. He smiles, saying, “I was unaware of Lajjo being revived, until I read about it in the newspaper. It was news to me too! Because where I am concerned, talks about Lajjo were over more than two years ago.”
Khan, who is producing two movies, Anusha Rizvi’s Peepli Live and wife Kiran Rao’s Dhobi Ghaat in 2010, goes on to disclose that he is not looking at any scripts until February 2011, when his third upcoming production, Abhinay Deol’s Delhi Belly, will release. “I have taken on the responsibility of the films as a producer,” Khan says. “So while I may not be acting in it, Peepli Live is as much my film as 3 Idiots was. If you ask me what my next film is, I’ll say Peepli Live.”
But the actor does admit that he met Danny Boyle and Anurag Kashyap regarding their Bombay trilogy. “I met Danny just as a friend,” he says. “He told me about the project and I told him I’ll be happy to read the script when it’s ready. I’m not committed to Bombay Velvet any more or any less than any other project at this moment. My next film depends on the projects that come my way, and which excite me when I’m ready to sign films.” When asked if he is being unfair to directors by not signing films for a year, he laughs, “What about the poor directors who’ve made three films for me?
Aamir Khan’s next films as a producer
Peepli Live Directed by: Anusha Rizvi Starring: Raghuvir Yadav, Omkar Das and Nawazuddin Siddiqui Release date: August 13, 2010.
The film is a satire on farmer suicides. When two impoverished farmers are about to lose their land owing to debts, they decide to commit suicide to benefit from a government scheme. A journalist overhears their discussion and a media and political frenzy follows.
Dhobi Ghaat Directed by: Kiran Rao Starring: Prateik Babbar, Aamir Khan and Dan Husain Release date: End of 2010.
Like most of Khan’s projects, the story of Dhobi Ghaat is hidden safely by a veil of secrecy. It is only known that the film has four lead roles, and Khan plays one of them, while Prateik Babbar plays the other.
Delhi Belly Directed by: Abhinay Deol Starring: Imran Khan, Vir Das and Kunal Roy Kapoor Release date: January 2011. Delhi Belly is reportedly an urban sex comedy, set in Delhi. The movie is said to be unique in that the spoken language will be English, rather than Hindi. Khan has not confirmed any of the rumours regarding the story’s genre.
