Old for new

Many Bollywood heroines are being paired with relative newcomers who are
many years younger to them, writes Derek Bose

THESE are desperate times for Bollywood heroines. In the absence of work, they are signing whatever film comes their way, regardless of its storyline, role, the director, production house, cast or crew. Notably, many leading women are willing to be paired with relative newcomers many years younger, just in order to keep themselves busy. Or so it would seem.

But look closer and a different picture emerges. The current ‘older women, younger men’ syndrome on screen may actually be benefiting the heroes more than the heroines. For instance, Neil Nitin Mukesh needed a hit after a disastrous Johnny Gaddar and a tried-and-tested Bipasha Basu came to his rescue with Aa Dekhen Zara. The desperation could well be more on the part of the young male greenhorns — be it Ranbir Kapoor or Abhay Deol, Imraan Khan or Adhyayan Suman, Prateik Babbar or Aditya Srivastav.

Now look still closer and we have another scenario. More than the heroines and heroes, it would appear that the filmmakers are themselves caught in an intractable situation. All the top-ranking stars with saleable names (the three Khans, Akshay Kumar and Hrithik Roshan) have out-priced themselves and cut down on work. Among the heroines, the new lot with some marketability — Deepika Padukone, Sonam Kapoor and Anoushka Sharma — is over-booked till end-2010. So where do the producers go?

Obviously, there is more to that which meets the eye. On the one hand, there can be no denying that Bollywood is going through an exciting phase, what with a surfeit of talent showing up with new ideas and concepts — both creative and technical. If at all there is a problem here, it is one of plenty.

But since audiences have become mature enough and are receptive towards films that attempt to push the envelope in unconventional ways, nobody is complaining. Effectively, Hindi cinema is now more vibrant and less clich`E9 ridden than it was till about a decade ago.

On the other hand, producers have turned increasingly cautious as the old guard makes way for the new. Money is scarce in a recessionary market and with duds outnumbering hits, the faith filmmakers had on fresh talent is beginning to wear thin. Significantly, many of the producers who matter today are actors also.

For them, the so-called "older heroines" like Aishwarya Rai, Preity Zinta, Rani Mukherjee and Bipasha Basu (who are in their mid-thirties) have ceased to matter. Even Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra have become too old for them. They all need fresh-faced nubile nymphets to extend their shelf life as romantic foils. If a 60-plus Amitabh Bachchan could romance Tabu in Cheeni Kum (not to mention an 18-year-old Jiah Khan in Nishabd) and get away with it, why not the others?

It is this argument of the producers that has put many of our leading ladies in a spot. They suddenly find themselves with no takers among those they had once worked with and to make matters worse, newer filmmakers are having no need for heroines, whether young or old. Let alone romance on the tulip fields of Amsterdam, they are not even required to show up for that odd item number that used to be the forte of Shilpa Shetty and Mallika Sherawat.

Ironically enough, the only option left for the ladies to remain in circulation is to go the way the guys have after Bachchan’s Cheeni Kum and Nishabd. After all, why should boys have all the fun?

So we are treated to a 36-year-old Tabu being wooed by the debutant Kunal Kapur in Meenaxi — A Tale of Three Cities and a 29-year-old Ameesha Patel prancing about with 25-year-old Zayed Khan in Vaada. Likewise, Vidya Balan was paired with a younger Shahid Kapur in Kismat Konnection, Kangana Ranaut with Adhyayan Suman in Raaz – The Mystery Continues and Sushmita Sen with real-life love interest Randeep Hooda in Karma Aur Holi. Now Konkona Sen Sharma will be seen with Ranbir Kapoor in Wake Up Sid while Rani Mukherji shall be teaming up with Shahid Kapur in Yashraj Films’ hitherto untitled film on cricket.

One reason this role reversal seems to be working with audiences is that society itself has become accommodating towards liaisons of younger men and older women. Another reason could be that today’s heroines are exceptionally figure conscious and with their well-maintained bodies, manage to look much younger than they really are. Yet another reason could be Bollywood’s long history of featuring older heroines, beginning with Devika Rani opposite a much younger Ashok Kumar making his debut in Jeevan Naiya in 1936. We have also seen Meena Kumari teaming up with Dharmendra in Phool Aur Patthar and later, Madhuri Dixit and Saif Ali Khan together in Arzoo. Why, in 1996, Rekha did a raunchy number with Akshay Kumar (literally clinging to him under the shower) in Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi.

However, the compulsions of the past do not apply to the present.

Conditions in Bollywood have changed to such an extent that no heroine today can remain at the top for more than four to five years. Compare this to the career span of a yesteryear dream girl, like Hema Malini or Rekha, which lasted for almost two decades. The next generation of Sridevi and Madhuri Dixit could rule for 15 years. Their successors, Rani Mukherji and Preity Zinta have been around for just about 10 years and are now on the way out. Their replacements, such as Kareena Kapoor, Bipasha Basu and Priyanka Chopra are in for still tougher times as already the likes of Katrina Kaif and Deepika Padukone are snapping at their heels.

Ultimately, it boils down to public perception. After all, stardom is nothing but the projection of an image that conforms to the collective fantasy of masses. And right or wrong, the Indian masses still like to see their heroines as young, nubile and virginal. In the past, heroines fulfilled this fantasy by never growing up beyond the age of 26 years and remaining constantly in denial of all affairs and relationships with men. Today, we find Preity flaunting Ness Wadia around, Kareena making no secret of her break-up with Shahid Kapur and linking up with Saif, Bipasha in a steady live-in relationship with John Abraham, Rani waiting for her beau to sort out his divorce problems. There are also now-on now-off stories on Katrina-Salman Khan, Deepika-Ranbir and Priyanka-Harman Baweja doing the rounds. In these permissive times, girls might like to make a clean breast of everything in life. But does this honesty really help anybody?

HOME