Sunday, December 3, 2000		Scene Stealers

ARE male models just good-looking hunks with no grey matter? "This question is posed by every interviewer to every male model. In fact, we normally give the answer even before the interview starts," say two male models -- Vijay Balhara and Sachin Khurana-- in unison. Casually dressed in shorts and sweat shirts, Vijay and Sachin looked like goodlooking college boys, sans airs, attitude or celebrity hang-ups.

Vijay is topper. A B.Sc. in geology, he is studying in L.L.B. IIIrd year. He is doing well academically. Modelling "happened" to him by chance, after he was spotted at a petrol filling station. It was Ashish Soni, who gave him his first break and Femina was the first magazine to feature him. Working for music videos gave him good exposure. After he gets his law degree, Vijay wants to move to Bombay and join films. He feels modelling is a good initial career option, "but you cannot make it your life. Even in a field where brains are supposedly not required, one’s public relations have to be perfect. Young boys who feel only looks will help are mistaken. For this competitive field you need your wits and intelligence all the time," says this new model on the block.

Sachin has been modelling for seven years now. He has been Mr India 96 and Mr Grasim. A B.Com from Hindu College, Delhi, Sachin comes from a business family. "I am financially secure about my future." At the moment, he is working in the serial Rajdhani on Star Plus.

According to him, the glamour line is very dicey and "you have to keep your feet planted firmly on the ground. Though I have featured in high-profile ads I still feel I am new to the field and learn something every day." Sachin is fond of theatre and has taken part in it. He warns the new aspirants: "The line is tough, it entails real hard work. You have to stay out of suitcases 20 days of the month. Every day new and fresh faces make their entry, so you have to be punctual and forge relations. Nothing comes easy and, like in any profession, hard work is required."

Meeta Pandit was in Chandigarh for her first performance in the city for a music festival. She stayed on because she wanted to hear other artistes who were to sing on subsequent nights. At a very young age, Meeta has acquired tremendous fame and she has been praised even by critics. She comes across as a traditional girl, who has very Indian looks, lovely soulful eyes and a wheatish complexion. She also wears lot of bangles.

She has been educated in the best of institutions. Her school was St Mary’s Convent, Delhi, and she did her B.com (Hons) from Lady Shri Ram College. It is music, however, that is an integral part of her life."Music has been a part and parcel of my life. Even before I learnt to speak properly, I could sing. The entire atmosphere in the house was suffused with music. I remember reciting a few musical notes as a child and being given Rs 10 by Halim Zaqar Khan Saheb. Even when I excelled in studies, it did not give me a high. I used to get elated only when I sang well,"she says.

Meeta carries a heavy burden of tradition on her young shoulders. She is the sixth generation singer in the unbroken lineage of the Pandit family of Gwalior gharana. She is the grand-daughter of the famous Padma Bhushan Krishnarao Shankar Pandit and L.K. Pandit. After her elder brother, Tushar, died in an accident, she knew she had to carry the heritage of 300 years forward. "It is a tremendous responsibility. I know I have to keep it up. I am also the first female singer in the family. When I visit Gwalior, I realise the greatness of the heritage."

Her father is her worst critic. "If he says aaj awaaz theek thi, it is indeed high praise. It is difficult to quantify the time I devote to riyaaz. I normally practice early in the morning. I am also teaching students, so even the time I sing with them, can be counted as riyaaz." Meeta was born to sing. She has never felt stage fright. "I love eye-to-eye contact with an appreciative audience." She has an eclectical tastes in music. She listens to Michael Jackson with the same degree of enthusiasm as she does film songs, ghazals and Indian classical music.

Meeta was also fond of dancing, but wisely realised that the two art forms require total dedication cannot be pursued simultaneously. Her first solo album is ‘Footsteps’ which was recorded by Music Today in 1998. Now HMV has also recorded her second album. She is unhappy that classical music is loosing its purity and becoming a marketable commodity. "Everyone wants fusion music, no one wants better quality in the classical form. I am trying to introduce classical music on DD-1 in Subhah Sawere and explain its notes and connotations to laymen for a better appreciation of our art form."

Meeta is still single."I have not met the right person. I do not want a musician husband but definitely a person who appreciates my music. I do not have many friends; firstly, because of lack of time and, secondly, becausemost people do not understand the demands of my lifestyle." She knows she has to traverse a long distance in her quest for perfection. However, even now she has developed a distinct style and a typical ingenuity which should stand her in good stead in the future.

— Belu Maheshwari