A new star on the horizon of Punjabi pop
Parbina Rashid

UPCOMING Punjabi singer Parminder Guri could not wait to quit job as an economics teacher to embrace singing as a profession. He has recently launched his first solo album ‘Pee Ke Paran Karo’.

"Our education system has many drawbacks, one of which is not relating the subject matter to the realities of life," says Parminder who recently in the city. "As I could not change the system, I decided to change myself," he adds, referring to his new ‘avtaar’ as Punjabi pop artiste.

Parminder, who has been trained in classical music by Late Prof Tara Singh, later became Sangeet Visharad from Pracheen Kala Kendra. He got his first break in 1996, when he sang the title song of ‘Chharatta - 97’, a new year programme on Jalandhar Doordarshan. He is also the winner of ‘Meri Aawaz Suno’, a song-based programme telecasted on DD-I a couple of years ago.

Talking about his new album Parminder, who has also composed the songs, says the album contains eight folk numbers infused with the right dose of romance in the backdrop of east-west fusion music to give the songs a peppy effect. The album also has two Hindi numbers.

The singer's classical training is strongly reflected in all his compositions which are based on different ‘ragas’ like Bhairvi, Todi, Bilawal, Kalyaan and Saarang. Talking about his future plans, Parminder says he plans to open a music academy to teach classical music, especially of the Patiala Gharana which he feels is near extinction. "The Patiala Gharana of music which is a rare blend of ‘alaap’ and dance stopped growing after Bade Ghulam Ali Khan," says the artiste."Though Pakistan has many disciples of Ustad Ghulam Ali Khan, in India it is being preserved only in music academies," he adds.

Justifying his switch to Punjabi pop, Parminder that says to establish oneself in the world of music, one has to mould oneself according to public tastes. "The robust Punjabi audience has no time to sit and listen to classical songs," rues Parminder. "If you can fulfil their demand for music to which they can tap their feet, you are an instant hit," he says. Nevertheless one needs talents and right packaging of music to hold their interest for long, he adds.

Parminder has already written the lyrics for his next album which he hopes to release soon. In the meantime he is waiting for his big break in playback singing. "I am already in the final stages of negotiation with two big banners for playback singing," says a beaming Parminder.

Parminder's album ‘Pee Ke Paran Karo’ was officially released by noted film producer - director Harpal Tiwana. The lyrics have been written by Ajay Jhingran, Raji Salanewala, Ravail Pushp, Parveen Komal and Parminder himself. The music has been given by director duo Sanjiv - Santosh.

A woman with a mission
Lakshmi Menon

SHE'S already being hailed as the new face of the millennium — Bollywood’s next big thing. A far cry from the nubile nymphs who flash on and off screen, Kareena Kapoor is clearly here to stay. She is a woman with a mission.

She had a dream debut with Abhishek Bachchan in J.P. Dutta’s ‘Refugee’, followed by Satish Kaushik’s ‘Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai’, with fresh-faced star kid, Tusshar Kapoor. There’s also Karan Johar’s ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham’, Subhash Ghai’s ‘Yaadein’, which has been released recently, Santosh Sivani’s ‘Asoka’, Yash Chopra’s ‘Mujhse Dosti Karoge’, Sooraj Barjatya’s ‘Main To Prem Deewani’....

Unlike big sister Karisma Kapoor, who came up the hard way by having to work with anybody and everybody, from Lawrence D’Souza to David Dhavan, Kareena has had it relatively easy. And she is not suppressing the fact that luck has been on her side.

"Yeah, I have been a bit lucky," she smiles. "My sister had to slave for ten years before she could get anywhere close to the No. 1 position, whereas I got everything on a platter. She has the killer instinct, I don’t. Her dedication humbles me."

If the long lineage from Prithviraj Kapoor, Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor down to Rishi Kapoor, not to mention dad Randhir and mom Babita fazes her, she isn’t showing it. "I am not going to knock the fact that I have an illustrious lineage," she asserts.

"There are bound to be expectations. I know that girls far more talented than me are languishing in the sidelines. I’ll do my best. All my directors will tell you that I am a good student. Also, working with actors like Shahrukh Khan helps. He gave me so many inputs for my role in ‘Asoka’."

But would she say that acting is in her genes? The question stumps her. "I am not half as good as I am made out to be," she replies evasively. "I’ll say, everybody has been very kind and encouraging. I am looking out for the kind of roles Smita Patil did. I am a die-hard fan of Kajol. I just gape at her in awe as she performs on the sets of Karan Johar’s ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham’. I love the roles that Tabu does too."

She isn’t complaining though. For her, this is a time to learn the ropes of her profession and come to terms with her celebrity status. If there is anything that bothers her it is missing out on the simple pleasures of life like walking down the street or going out shopping.

"You grow up too fast in the film industry," she complains. "At 20, I have seen so much already. But then, I also know there are hundreds of girls who would willingly step into my shoes. In any case, I do not miss college life or anything."

Quiz Kareena about her contemporaries like Amisha Patel and Diya Mirza and she will relapse into the stock-in-trade reply: "There is place for everyone in the film industry. It is not fair to compare one with the other. But watch out for Esha Deol. She’ll be a sizzler when her film hits the screen."

And what about the talk linking her with Hrithik Roshan?

"All lies", she insists. "Hrithik is a good friend. Please don’t believe all the lies written about us. I am not into married men. There are enough fish around. And I would like to think that I am a pretty girl who will find her Prince Charming just like it is in the movies." (MF)

Son to complete Ray film
Asha Singh

SATYAJIT Ray’s biographers often point out that one of his biggest regrets in life was his inability to film ‘The Alien’ — the script he had written on the basis of his Bengali short story, ‘Bankubabur Bandhu’. The story happened to be very similar to that of Steven Spielberg’s ‘Encounters of the Third Kind’.

The maestro’s son, Sandip Ray is now completing his father’s unfinished work. An accomplished director in his own right with half a dozen films like ‘Phatikchand’ and ‘Target’ under his belt, he has already started shooting in and around Calcutta.

"More than half of the film has been canned," Ray Jr told the press. "We are trying to keep as close to the original Bengali story as possible. Even the original title, ‘Bankubabur Bandhu’ is being retained, rather than drawing upon ‘The Alien’ screenplay."

The plot revolves around Bankubabur, an elderly village priest who first sights an extra-terrestrial being in a bamboo grove. The latter’s presence creates panic all over the village till a little boy, Haba, befriends the playful alien and peace descends.

Samaresh Bandopadhyay, a stage actor and contemporary of Utpal Dutt, plays the title role while the alien being would be created digitally. The film is being made initially in Bengali while a shorter version in English, would be telecast as a two-part serial later.

According to Sandip, the sci-fi author Arthur C. Clarke had encouraged his father to make ‘The Alien’ regardless of how Spielberg had treated ‘Encounters’ and ‘ET’. Ray had even gone to Hollywood in 1967 and clinched a deal with Columbia Pictures. But somehow nothing came of that project. (MF)