Akshay: I won’t pretend living in a world of rainbows

In his two decade career so far, Akshay Kumar has done close to 100 films so far. However, in majority of films that he has done, he has played a cool urban guy. Also, even in those films where he may not be cool after all and would be closer to the real world (read HERA PHERI, HOUSEFULL, DE DANA DAN, 8X10 TASVEER), the background has always been urban. No wonder, when he got into a small town setting for KHATTA MEETHA, eyebrows were raised. Doesn’t Akshay feel that a small town setting is a little risky because could have alienated a larger segment of urban audience?

“If people refuse to see a film because of its poorer settings then all I can say is that you obviously don’t live in the real world”, says Akshay, “I mean no harm but it is our villages that supply urban cities with milk and food and other basic things. You cannot pretend to refuse to acknowledge them.”

Akshay: People’s negative opinions don’t affect me

KHATTA MEETHA has released and Akshay has yet again been accused of being repetitive. Is there something that he may do soon that would help people go quiet for a good time at least?

“Go quiet? Now that’s impossible”, Akshay comes up with a hearty laugh here, “I could have played a one armed blind man and people would still say that I was playing the same old character doing the same old scripts. It’s okay, people’s negative opinions don’t affect me really, they amuse me a lot, though. It keeps me focused. I know that in HOUSEFULL, I played a very straight faced, unlucky, useless and an Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) kind of a character. Not once in my career have I played all of that in one movie, if at all. Still, people are free to say what they want.”

Akshay Kumar tries a hand at the Amol Palekar genre!

The era of the seventies, where mostly action oriented films worked and just one name, Amitabh Bachchan, the angry young man ruled the roost, also saw actor par excellence, Amol Palekar winning the hearts of the audience with his middle class, common man act. The continuous struggle with life, its ups and downs and fight against the system to achieve a simple objective, survival, was portrayed perfectly by Amol, sometimes through hard hitting films like GHARONDA and at times in a humrous manner through light hearted projects like CHHOTI SI BAAT, CHITCHOR, GOLMAAL, BATON BATON MEIN etc.

Just recently we were privy to a debate on the Amol Palekar phenomenon which was aired on a regional television channel and the participants discussed in detail the contribution of Palekar as an actor to the Hindi film industry and his glorification of the common man. Though the common man’s cause was also taken up by other actors the most recent act that we remember was that of Shah Rukh Khan, who did it with effortless ease in Aditya Chopra’s RAB NE BANA DI JODI. And now after Shah Rukh it’s the turn of the ‘Khiladi’ to champion the cause of the middle class man and depict his struggle against the system with his upcoming political satire (as he prefers to call it!), KHATTA MEETHA.

Trisha: Akshay thought I was very quiet

A veteran of over 30 films down South, Trisha Krishnan is all set to make her Bollywood debut this Friday with KHATTA MEETHA. Though she has been in the business of films for close to 7-8 years now, it was an altogether new start for her when it came to her Bollywood sojourn. No wonder, she was a little reserved to begin with, something that caught the notice of her producer and co-star Akshay Kumar who did all to make her feel comfortable on the sets.

“That’s right; I wasn’t interacting much with people during my early days KHATTA MEETHA. Also, for every actor the first couple of days on any film are a little awkward since you are playing a new character. I was in the same state for KHATTA MEETHA as well,” remembers Trisha who is enjoying a mega Bollywood debut that sees Priyadarshan calling the shots, “In any case, I am a bit reserved by nature. Also, I was a little tense about dialogues because this is my first Hindi film. This is where Akshay came in and told me what he thought about me.”

Akshay helped me open up: Trisha

Trisha Krishnan was reserved and quiet on the sets of Priyadarshan’s comedy film Khatta Meetha. Being her first Hindi film, the girl from South was obviously nervous about delivering her dialogues in Hindi. Akshay Kumar, her co-star in the film noticed this, and prompted her to open up.

“I wasn’t interacting much with people during my early days in ‘Khatta Meetha’. Also, I was a little tense about the dialogues because this is my first Hindi film. Akshay came and told me girls in Mumbai talk so much while I was the opposite as I was so much quieter,” Trisha is quoted as saying by a news agency.

After Akshay’s observation, Trisha did make an effort to loosen up and get more involved in the proceedings. She says that though Akshay is a big star in Bollywood, he always tried to make her comfortable.

“Credit to him actually for making me feel so much more involved. He is such a veteran and could have easily opted to stay in his own world but he still made an effort,” Trisha added.

In the film, Trisha plays a district collector while Akshay plays a road construction contractor. Trisha will be seen mostly wearing saris in the film, but she says that doesn’t mean she can’t pull off a glamourous role with aplomb.

“Just because I am wearing a saree in the film doesn’t mean people are not going to see my glamorous avatar. I am sure that tomorrow, there would be many more opportunities,” said Trisha who is looking forward to doing more films in Bollywood.

‘Khatta Meetha’ is set to release on July 23.

Akshay`s bullshit creates furore!

The controversial track Bullshit from Akshay Kumar’s forthcoming film Khatta Meetha is already creating ripples in the political arena.

The song, which takes potshots at corrupt politicians, has not received a flattering response from the community. Featuring unswerving lyrics such as, Sadak aur bridge banainge (Bull Shit), traffic main nahi phasain ge (Bull Shit), waqt pe kaam honge (Bull Shit), it pokes fun at the politicians in a very direct manner.

The timing of this uproar has come as no surprise. With the recently concluded Bharat Bandh, due to the hike in prices, one would expect the politicos to be touchy about issues that would further add fuel to fire. Whether any action will be taken, we’re not sure! Guess we’ll just have to wait and watch!

khatta meetha preview

KHATTA MEETHA SYNOPSIS
Directed by Priyadarshan Khatta Meetha is a satire based on the road-mafia. Based on a true incident, this film unveils the charade of the common man. According to reports, Khatta Meetha is a satirical comedy on misuse on government funds by government contractors responsible for highway construction and repair in India. The film will mark the Bollywood debut of Trisha.

KHATTA MEETHA MOVIE INFO
Country : India
Language: Hindi
Genre: Comedy
Release Date: Jul 23 2010
Banner: Shree Ashtavinayak Cinevision Ltd TANGY TUNES - THE KHATTA MEETHA MUSIC REVIEW Listening to the music of Khatta Meetha can be as refreshing as having an ispecial cutting chaiwith cheese burger instead ofvada pav. The album has four originals and three remixes, and a musician like Pritam who has perfected the art of creating hits. It’s really long since we had a full-on masti number. The ispecialsemi-Marathi and hip-hop numberNana Chi Taang is truly ‘kewl’, and as the song is picturised onAkshay Kumar, it is no less than a double bonanza. This song byKunal Ganjawala has a pace and tune that makes it click instantly with the listeners. The Nana Chi Taang Remix is no different. Remixed by Kiran Kamath, the song is even better than the original with an extra punch. With that unmistakable rap touch of Flo Rida’s super hit number Right Round by U.R.L, the dance number is an excellent fusion. PS: Don’t plague your mind with ‘Nana Chi Taang’ phrase; it means ‘Teri Aisi Ki Taisi’ in Hindi. Sajde, a typical Bollywood love ballad, is a mushy number which allows the beautiful pair of Akki and Trisha to dance in gorgeous dresses against lovely backdrops. The number isn’t mind-blowing, but yeah, it will have many takers because of its simple melody and romantic lyrics by Irshad Kamil. The Remix version gets a sensuous touch with Harshdeep Kaur’s voice. The number is an average composition. Paying ode to the theme of corruption is the song Bull Shit, composed by new-age composer Shani. Singer Shehzad Roy belts out this song in which the sarcastic lyrics stand out more than the music. The number takes a pot shot at the corrupt system and political scenario of the nation. In a bindaas style, Daler Mehndi sings in Marathi instead of Punjabi. Aila Aila is soused in Marathi folk. It is another fun track like Nana Chi Taang. The sensational vocals of Kalpana Patowary add to the USP of the track. Kamath does the Remix version and peps up the mood. The album is short but fun-filled. The tracks will sure add to the buzz surrounding the movie. The Priyadarshan-Akshay-Pritam troika hardly fails when it comes to music and withKhatta Meetha they have hit the bull’s eye again. With throbbing music and punchy remixes, Khatta Meetha has a balanced soundtrack. Nana Chi Taang, Nana Chi Taang remix, Sajde, Aila Aila remix are enjoyable numbers. Rating - 3.5 stars out of 5

My Hindi is very good: Trisha

Actress Trisha Krishnan who makes her entry in Bollywood with Akshay Kumar starrer ‘Khatta Meetha’, is fluent in Hindi but the actress has used a dub in the new film. Trisha’s voice is being dubbed by a professional in this Priyadarshan directed film because the actress, who plays collector, was required to have a perfect diction.“I actually did want to dub for my lines in ‘Khatta Meetha. I can read and write Hindi very well; my spoken Hindi is quite good too,” Trisha, who is in Europe shooting for her new Tamil film, told PTI. “Since I enact the role of district collector, the spoken language had to be impeccable. It had to be perfect Hindi with no slang being used whatsoever.