We need to reconnect with past, Gandhi: Urmila

Mumbai, Oct 8 (IANS) The compliments for Urmila Matondkar after the first show of "Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara" were unbelievable.

So much so that a mock jealous Anupam Kher was heard grumbling: "Hey, this is my film too, you know! But I'm not bothered. I'm the producer. And no one can take credit away from me for that."

The Urmila season is on again. Praise for her magnificent performance in "Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara" (MGKNM) has just begun, but the actress was flying off to Paris on an invitation by Louis Vuitton.

Javed Akhtar was visibly moved. "I can't believe you can put in so much sincerity after so many years."

Alyque Padamsee couldn't believe Urmila's face could look so vulnerable after more than a decade in the business.

"Yes, that was sweet," laughs Urmila. "He came and spoke to me during the intermission because he felt there would be too much of a crowd at the show's end. He was right... The compliments haven't stopped coming.

"One of the best comments came from Mrs. Tushar Gandhi. She said we should call the film 'Hum Sab Ne Gandhi Ko Mara Hai'. That's truly appropriate. The film makes us collectively guilty for the death of the Gandhian ideal."

"The press is writing about me going to Paris for Louis Vuitton. Sorry, but compared to this film, going to Paris is no big deal. I'm not some teenybopper going to Paris for the first time," Urmila told IANS.

"I'm going out of my way to support the film. It's something I totally believe in. 'MGKNM' has made me totally conscious of the Gandhian philosophy. Youngsters today have gone berserk. They don't know where they're going. Sure, money and competition are important. But somewhere we've lost our will to appreciate the Gandhian ideology.

"Fortunately, my father told me about this great man called Gandhi. Somewhere we need to reconnect with the past. I was so delighted to read that Jennifer Aniston said Gandhian philosophy had helped her in getting through her divorce."

According to some cynics, such allusions denigrate Gandhi. Urmila disagrees. "On the contrary, I think she's carrying the Gandhian message forward. Chalo, Urmila Matondkar nahin Jennifer Aniston ki to sune."

Before beginning her Paris sojourn, she says: "Basically, I'll be representing Bollywood for Louis Vuitton. I'll be in Paris for four days. We shall be doing a dinner at the Eiffel Tower on the first night. The next morning there's lunch with a Japanese delegation - they're ga-ga over Bollywood in Japan.

"I'll also be doing a photo-shoot all over Paris for Verve magazine. I'm happy to be doing something new. I'm looking forward to meeting Uma Thurman who's the Louis Vuitton ambassador worldwide. After that I'm dying to take a few days off in Paris. I'd like to spend a quiet day in the countryside, lie on the grass, check out the museums."

After her return, Urmila will start a film with Harry Baweja to be directed by Vikram Bhatt.

"I play a very unusual role, very light-hearted and easygoing. I'm a little tired of playing traumatised women. Believe me, it's very, very draining. In Shyam Benegal's 'Chamki' (an adaptation of Carmen) I play a role which I don't think has been done on the Indian screen before.

"The woman is such an enigma... If I go wrong by even a fraction, the character will be ruined. The music will be done by A.R. Rahman along with a Spanish composer. I'm going to have a blast."

She did say no more offbeat films for her, didn't she?

"I certainly didn't! Why would I say something like that when I'm working with Shyam Babu. What I did say is I don't want to do another serious intense role like 'MGKNM' for a while. It's too exhausting. It would be silly of me to cut myself loose from any kind of cinema. I'd rather keep myself open to all kinds of experiences."

She returns to Gandhi. "If the film reaches out to audiences as a father-daughter film we've got it made. Though the title carries Gandhiji's name it isn't just about Gandhi."

One person completely moved by the film is director Rituparno Ghosh. "He was so moved. And he has offered me a film. But I'm petrified of working in a language that I know nothing about. I've done Tamil-Telugu films early in my career. But that was when I didn't know my limitations."

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Maine Gandhi Ko Nahi Mara