Directors pick Rani's best

Rani Mukerji turns 31 today. As she celebrates her birthday, we spoke to some of the directors she has worked with and they are well, (almost) unanimous in their decision that Black is her best performance so far. Read on to find out.

Vikram Bhatt, Director, Ghulam: Black would be my favourite performance of Rani Mukerji. It takes a lot of courage for an actress to de-glamorize herself and makes faces. It is very important for actresses to look pretty all the time and for an actress to sell all that for a performance that it noticed in mainstream Bollywood is commendable

Goldie Behl, Director, Bas Itna sa Khwaab Hai: I think everyone’s favourite performance if Rani would have to be Black and there are no two ways about it. I was awestruck by the way she carried herself and communicated without saying a single word. It was a sensational performance right from the first frame where she walks towards the Church.

Tarun Mansukhani, Assistant Director on Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Paheli and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna: I loved Rani in Black. My favourite scene in the movie is when she calls her mother to tell her she has failed. It is am amazing piece of work to say so much without speaking a word. She makes you cry and feel your own failures and then realize that we are all the same and go through the same emotions in life.

Aziz Mirza, Director, Chalte Chalte: Rani is a very fine, natural actress. No matter what the roles, she shines in all her performances. I can’t pick a favourite performance. She was brilliant in Black and very good in Chalte Chalte.

Ravi Chopra, Director, Baabul: Black has to be Rani’s best performance. She was terrific, she made me believe she was the character she was playing and not anyone else. You felt for her character. My favourite scene was the last scene in which she gets her degree.

Kunal Kohli, Director, Hum Tum, Mujhse Dosti Karoge and Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic: My favourite Rani film and performance would have to be Hum Tum. It was the first film with which I got success and she got her first best actress awards at all the functions. More importantly, she was a big support to me during the making of the film and I will always remember her very warmly for that.

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Premiere of Drona

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Indore Barometer: Monday witnesses 70% - 80% fall

Monday is one crucial day for movies. Will the collections remain steady? Or will the business sink? The answers are crystal clear on Monday. The two major releases, KIDNAP and DRONA, sank on Monday completely. The business fell by almost 70% - 80% on Monday, which says it all. Let's check out the Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday [highlighted in bold] figures at Indore, one of the key barometers of the industry:-

Inox
Kidnap: 99,100; 30,500; 28,000; 51,100; 11,800.
Drona: 73,300; 21,800; 19,400; 48,000; 6,700.

PVR
Kidnap: 1,52,600; 71,000; 67,500; 1,05,500; 26,400.
Drona: 1,38,400; 33,000; 63,500; 59,000; 18,300.

Velocity
Kidnap: 85,600; 28,800; 31,500; 41,000; 11,000.
Drona: 62,600; 16,000; 15,200; 23,500; 6,200.

Adlabs
Kidnap: 1,34,300; 41,000; 47,500; 68,200; 17,300.
Drona: 1,00,000; 26,000; 25,200; 44,700; 9,300.

By: Taran Adarsh

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Salman was not invited

The battle lines are clearly drawn. When it comes to the Bachchans, Shah Rukh Khan clearly has an edge, Salman Khan and his family were not invited to the Drona premiere at all.

You could argue that it was deliberate that Salman is away in London and wouldn't have made it anyway. But the snub isn't missed. The invite was not even extended to his family.

Says a source, "That's true. Salman was not invited. As far as the film's makers (the Behls) were concerned no one who insults their family, gets invited to a big day in their life. The Bachchans are more than family to Goldie and Shrishti Behl."

During the Khan Vs Khan squabble, the Sallu camp went out of their way to spread stories that SRK had made an inappropriate comment about the Bachchan bahu. But when Amitabh personally called SRK to invite him to the premiere, he made it apparent that the family didn't buy the rumours. The source continues, "Also, he isn't exactly a chum of Drona heroine, Priyanka Chopra either," says a source close to the Bachchans.

Everyone from the gregarious Karan Johar to the ultra-reclusive Sanjay Leela Bhansali showed up for this release. The Bachchans personally invited all their guests. Aishwarya, who's just back in town after shooting in Peru and France, rang up her friends from the industry and asked them to come. Sadly, her parents couldn't come because of her father's frail condition.

Goldie Behl and his wife Sonali were seen with their little son, Ranvir. "This is his first public appearance. I wouldn't let him miss this for the world," said Goldie emotionally.

Taking a break from her sari-clad avatar, Aishwarya stood next to a tuxedo-sporting husband in a chic blue-green gown. "Good to be unpredictable, no?" she laughed and played hostess to the hilt. Laughed Abhishek, "I thought I was dressed to kill. But my wife beat me to it hollow."

While the cast, crew and family members associated with the film proceeded to the Marriott for dinner after the premiere, Shah Rukh threw an impromptu Eid party and was heard inviting all his friends at the premiere for a get-together in his home. Fatigued and tired and suffering from a bad cold on the morning after the premiere Priyanka said, "Shah Rukh did ask me to come home after the premiere. But the Drona team headed for gupshup and dinner. So naturally, I was with them."

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NO patch-up between the bachchans and kapoors

Things between the Kapoors and Bachchans soured after the Karisma and Abhishek wedding was called off. Buddies Kareena and Abhi-shek, too, fell apart following this unfortunate split. So much so that the pair who hit the screen together in Refugee stopped speaking to each other.

Kareena believes that time would've healed the hostilities but things soured further when Bachchan junior got her nixed out of a few films.

Last week, there were reports that the Kapoor sisters were invited to the Drona premiere but a source close to the Kapoors reveals otherwise. Says Kareena's family friend, "Neither Abhishek nor Goldie or Shrishti (Behl) invited Bebo or Lolo." It is believed the Kapoor siblings are upset with Goldie and Abhishek for using their names to promote Drona. "There's no question of a patch-up between Bebo and Abhishek. She lost out on Dostana and Dilli 6 because he didn't want her."

The source continues, "Today, it's easy for Abhishek to say he would love to work with her again as she was his first heroine and hence, special. But he had her replaced when he was in a better position. Today Kareena's career is soaring and she doesn't feel the need to patch up. She can pick and choose who she wants to work with."

The Behls and the Kapoors are cousins and if Karisma had been invited to the Drona premiere she might have gone but she was in Delhi. She flew down for a day to Mumbai to attend Farah Khan's Eid party and flew back again to Delhi."

When asked if the Behls had invited the Kapoor sisters, Shrishti says, "I have nothing to say on this matter."

However Goldie Behl says candidly, "They (Kareena and Karisma) were out of town so there was no point inviting them."

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