BEFORE shooting Silsila (1981), Yash Chopra ran into a problem. No, not the controversial cast— comprising Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, and Rekha—this trouble had a poetic lilt. The second part of the song—“Dekha ek khwaab toh ek silsile hue/Door tak nighaaon mein hai gul khile hue” (As far as I can see, I can only see flowers)—tripped him. Where in this world would he find such a place? He asked Amitabh. The actor showed him a clip on his mini-projector: a garden awash in tulips. As far as Chopra could see, he could, indeed, just see flowers. He flew to the Keukenhof Gardens in Amsterdam, setting a trend synonymous with Hindi cinema: romantic songs shot in foreign locations.
Even though Chopra first travelled to the Netherlands, a country down south became his adoptive home: Switzerland. That’s where he shot his next, Faasle (1985), then Chandni (1989), then Darr (1993). (He set his 1991 drama, Lamhe, in London.) In the first two decades of his career, in fact, Chopra hadn’t left India. “Initially I used to shoot my films in Kashmir or Shimla,” he recalled in an interview, “but with the terrorism threat in Kashmir and the lack of adequate infrastructure in Shimla, I had to find an alternative.” His wife, Pam, elaborated: “You hardly needed permissions in Switzerland. But in India, if you had to shoot in a train, you had to start the paperwork six months in advance.”
Denne historien er fra January 01, 2024-utgaven av Outlook.
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Denne historien er fra January 01, 2024-utgaven av Outlook.
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The 'Invisible' Dalits
The debate over sub-categorisation of castes is likely to shape the political discourse in the upcoming state elections
Caste Census: To Conquer Or Conserve?
The caste census is generating heated debate, but even its most ardent proponents are not able to articulate a plan about how to use the resulting data
THE FATEFUL COMEDY
Actor-director Rajat Kapoor talks about adapting Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov into a Hindi play
Mad Hatter
When a leader takes off his topi and holds it in his hands while appealing for votes, it signals something extraordinary
Circle Within Circles
The caste question in Muslims.
Backward March
The Maratha reservation question may continue to mire the next government in the state
The 69% Exception
Quota within quota: lessons to be learned from Tamil Nadu
United Indifference
The perils of tweaking tribal identities
Two Nations, Two Destinies
The widely differing balance of power between the military and civilian leadership in India and Pakistan has significantly impacted democracy in the two countries
Crème de la Crème
The mainstream society thinks reservations are against right to equality. It’s high time they are seen in the context of right to justice.