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6 biopics to watch out for in Bollywood

After the calm, there could well be a deluge in the near future: innumerable biopics - the abbreviated term for films based on real-life biographies - are currently in the works.

Sporadic attempts to initiate projects culled from the life stories of celebrated Bollywood film personalities may have not worked out. Reason: unresolvable difficulties in acquiring rights and permissions from the celebrities' families. Hence, various projects recreating the lives of such legends as Raj Kapoor, Madhubala, Meena Kumari, Guru Dutt, Kishore Kumar and R.D. Burman couldn't ever get off beyond the conceptual stage.

Here's looking at six biopics, then, which are sure to arouse the curiosity of the audience, which cares for a touch of authenticity in the weekly quota of Bollywood movies:

BIOPIC OF MANTO:
Drawn from the tumultuous life and times of Urdu writer Saadat Hasan Manto, who penned provocative stories, plays and essays, besides authoring film scripts, this endeavour directed by actress Nandita Das (earlier she helmed Firaaq in 2008) is almost ready to go. Manto, whose essays on yesteryear film stars like Nargis, Ashok Kumar and Pran are the finest examples of forthright journalism, had moved to Pakistan following the Partition. He was charged in court for 'obscenity' for some of his stories, which are, ironically, regarded as literary masterpieces today.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui enacts the title role. Das' tribute to the writer may not find an enormous audience, but is more than likely to appeal to those who cherish the memory of Manto, who passed away in Lahore at the age of 42 in 1955.
BIOPIC OF SANJAY DUTT:
The still-untitled project inspired by the extreme highs and lows experienced by today's 58-year-old Dutt Jr is one of the most-anticipated movies of 2018. Directed by Rajkumar Hirani, who collaborated with the actor on the Munnabhai movies, the film toplines Ranbir Kapoor with Paresh Rawal incarnating Sunil Dutt and Manisha Koirala portraying Nargis Dutt.
Whether the film will turn out to be a whitewash job or an objective account is the question. Going by the blitzkrieg of reports, the women who crisscrossed through Sanjay Dutt's private life are to be enacted by Sonam Kapoor (as Tina Munim), Dia Mirza (as wife Manyata), Karishma Tanna (as Madhuri Dixit) and Tabu as herself. Hirani, who has never gone down the route of sensationalism, may just pull off this tricky biography, which ends with Sanjay Dutt's release from jail last year.
PADMAN:
After the fictional Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, Akshay Kumar continues with his mission for a clean India with this real-life story of a small-town entrepreneur, Arunachalam Muruganantham, of Tamil Nadu, who worked towards providing low-cost hygienic facilities for women in rural areas. The first film production venture of his wife Twinkle Khanna, the film also stars Sonam Kapoor and Radhika Apte in prominent roles, with a cameo by the director R. Balki's lucky mascot Amitabh Bachchan.
SUPER 30:
This one's a take on the 44-year-old Patna-based mathematician and columnist, Anand Kumar, who trains underprivileged students to gain admission to the prestigious Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and who founded the educational programme Super 30. It has already made waves - but for the wrong reasons. Casting snafus led to a toss-up for the lead role between Hrithik Roshan and Akshay Kumar.
The math scholar had travelled to Mumbai. Photos clicked with the stars, separately, indicated that there was a fallout between the project's producers. Once the dust settled, Hrithik Roshan has been confirmed for the biopic to be directed by Vikas Bahl, who after the whopper success of Queen, dished out the disappointing Shahid Kapoor-Alia Bhatt romcom Shaandaar. Filming still has to get off the ground. We're keeping out fingers crossed for now.
SAARE JAHAAN SE ACHHA:
Prolific ad filmmaker Mahesh Mathai, who directed the little-known indie film Bhopal Express (1999), has pencilled in Aamir Khan to portray Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian astronaut to travel into space back in 1984, as part of a joint mission between the Indian Space Research Organisation and the Soviet Intercosmos space programme. The picky Khan has given his assent in principle; the script is being readied. And the buzz is that Priyanka Chopra will portray Sharma's wife Madhu.
BIOPIC OF SAHIR LUDHIANVI-AMRITA PRITAM:
To be produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and to be directed by first-timer Jasmeet Reen, this look back in affection at the bond between the poet-lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi and author Amrita Pritam was to topline Priyanka Chopra. However, news updates proclaim that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will play the muse of the poet to be essayed on screen by Abhishek Bachchan.

So why the abiding fascination for bio-movies anyway? That's a no-brainer, really. In recent years, the genre has yielded widely-praised films such as Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, Paan Singh Tomar, Mary Kom, Neerja and M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story.
Moreover, slices of real life are often far more palatable than usual far-out fantasies, aren't they?
wknd@khaleejtimes.com