Archiv » Jahr 2003

Sunday, April 27, 2003 Lead Article



It takes two to tango
Bonding of the bubbly belle & the brooder


Ajay Devgan and wife Kajol are a study in contrast


THEY seem the most unlikely couple. He is dark and likes to brood. She is full of life and bubbly. Now, the couple has been blessed with a baby girl. Kajol despite being Hindi cinema's most popular heroine right through the 1990s, has never let gloss conceal her natural exuberance. Making public appearances with undone eyebrows, oiled hair and glasses, this salwar-kameez clad girl is simply herself.

Ajay, right from the '90s, has been a star who refused to sell himself as a brand. Self-promoting interviews, stage-shows, endorsements or buttering up big banners haven't meant much to Devgan, who has opted for the substantial over the shallow.

Kajol and Ajay are equally unconventional in their personal equation. Refusing to convince the world about how great the going is between them, the duo care little about making public appearances for the flashbulbs. Confident about belonging to each other, they consider space a pre-requisite for growth.

The ballerina and the brooder

The daughter of film personalities Tanuja and Shomu Mukherjee, Kajol dominated the silver screen in the '90s. The saga of Shah Rukh Khan's trek to stardom would be incomplete without the mention of Kajol. Though, she debuted with Rahul Rawail's Bekhudi, and impressed with Sapnay and Udhar Ki Zindagi, this half Bengali-half Maharashtrian girl was all fireworks when she teamed up with SRK in films like Baazigar, Karan Arjun, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham.




Ajay, the shy son of fight-master Veeru Devgan, made his mark with Phool Aur Kaante in the early nineties. Initially noted for his daredevil stunts, Ajay's stature as an actor has finally got the much-needed recognition. His films Jigar, Kachche Dhaage, Najayaz, Zakhm (which won him a National Award), and the recent Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Company and The Legend of Bhagat Singh have taken him to the performer's gallery.

As co-stars, the couple has appeared together in Gunda Raaj, Hulchul, Dil Kya Kare and Raju Chacha. But it was Ishq and Pyar To Hona Hi Tha that hinted at their cosy compatibility.

The romance between the brown-eyed firebrand and the deep-as-still-waters Ajay hit off, reportedly, on the outdoor shoot of Hulchul. Unconventional, even while they dated each other, Ajay recalls, "We never resorted to the usual 'I Love you,' routine. A proposal never happened. We grew with each other. Marriage was never discussed, but it was always imminent.'

Marriage makers

The couple formalised their commitment on February 24, 1999. A simple ceremony was held on the groom's terrace. Draped in a kashti (Maharashtrian saree) with a pearl nathni (nose ring) highlighting her nose, Kajol looked the typical baiko (Maharashtrian wife). Ajay, the Punjabi munda, lived it up with a cream-coloured sherwani, his face peeping bashfully through the sehara. A two-month long honeymoon in Europe followed the conventional rites.

"Kajol is bubbly, while I am an introvert.`85 She is all that I would ever want to see in a woman.`85 In our differences we complete and complement each other," says the proud husband.

At home

Slipping easily into the Devgan household, Kajol went public in her adoration for her mother-in-law, "I could not have scripted a better mom-in law. I am more like her daughter than her daughter-in law." The only hot spot, where Kajol admits to a wee bit of adjustment, has been the hot Punjabi food. "But being a foodie, I have now begun to lap it all up," she adds quickly. "Living with Ajay is like living with your best friend. There are no barriers between us. I love sharing my experiences and joys with him. Marriage has been an enriching experience," says Kajol about the companionship they share.

Ajay, very much a millennium husband, has no qualms about his wife continuing to romance the screen, "My sisters were free to do their own thing. So why should it be any different for Kajol." The spunky granddaughter of the late actress Shobhana Samarth agrees and retorts, "Do you think I'd keep quiet if he tried to dominate me?"

Considering her hubby more of a buddy, Kajol says, "I have grown by leaps and bounds during the last four years. Marriage has been therapeutic. It's the best thing to happen, if you find the right guy. I have found mine."

Letting love live

Despite nasty rumours writing off their relationship, the marriage has only grown stronger. When Ajay won the National award for Zakhm, his beaming wife said, "I sensed Ajay's potential ages ago. No wonder, I chose him over the rest."

Graduating from acting, Ajay has produced Dil Kya Kare, Hindustan Ki Kasam and the Rs 30-crore Raju Chacha, under the banner of Devgan Entertainment And Software Ltd. Not one to neglect his wife, Ajay says, "I make it a point to spend quality time with Kajol despite work schedules ... she understands the ethics of the workplace and never complains. Even today, I am as excited about seeing her every evening."

Kajol, a bemused wife, says, "Although Ajay has a horde of irritating habits, I would have him no other way. A perfect man would be so predictably boring." Enjoying some of his idiosyncrasies, she says, "He has a weird sense of humour, is a great cook and has a fetish for cleanliness."

When Kajol was expecting their first child, Ajay Devgan kept calling up his wife every hour, no matter wherever he was shooting, asking after her health and advising her on the diet. He even sent boxes of fruits to her daily.

Professionals on field

Kajol is one of those rare actresses whose star-appeal has remained unaffected by matrimony. In fact, her recent teaming up with Shah Rukh Khan as the girl from Chandini Chowk in Karan Johar's Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham has perched the actress high up on the victory stand.

The film has thrown open a second innings for the actress who had almost lost herself in domestic luxury. It is believed that Kajol has signed a pact with buddy Zoya Akhtar that she would feature in her debut film.

The low-profile, high-performing Ajay, on the other hand has Ram Gopal Varma's Bhoot, J. P. Dutta's LOC, Babloo Pachisia's Zameen, Deepak Bahry's Parwana and Harry Baweja's Qayamat in his date diary.

The horizon yonder...

Since Kajol was always of the view that there is life beyond the studios, she now has other plans buzzing — opening a book-browsing store and a kindergarten are a few of them. "I owe a life to myself and I plan to get it. I won't let myself stagnate," says she.

Kajol is as passionate about life as she is sentimental about love when she counts "the cute mangalsutra" gifted to her by Ajay on their second anniversary as her most precious gift. Getting mushy about motherhood, she says: "Can anyone resist a child reaching out to you with its tiny hands?"

The wife, who has no qualms about purchasing a vodka for her husband in much the same manner as she picks up goodies for herself, says: "Marriage is a two-way street, you have to give as much as you get."

For this couple, giving is all about gaining! — LMN

http://www.tribuneindia.com/2003/20030427/spectrum/main5.htm

http://www.telegraphindia.com/.../story_2311597.asp

Bollywood digs up Bhagalpur blindings
TAPAS CHAKRABORTY

Ajay Devgan
Bhagalpur, Aug. 28: Over 20 years after police blinded 31 undertrials in Bhagalpur, their harrowing tale will be reprised in a fictional film.

But for Patel Shah, now in his late forties, the event of 1979-80 is no story. He was one of the 31 who had acid splashed in their eyes.

“I was 25 then. I was told to wash my face in gangajal that was brought to us. They (policemen) said I had committed a sin so I needed to be washed clean. But before I could do anything, acid was poured into my eyes,” Shah recalls.

Police’s extra-judicial attempt to control crime in a small town will come alive on the screen as Gangaajal, from the name the event acquired in the Bhagalpur blinding case — Operation Gangaajal.

Director Prakash Jha has assembled Ajay Devgan, Mohan Agashe and Gracy Singh, among others, to explore the uneasy relationship between the police and society, exemplified by this dark chapter in Bhagalpur’s crime history. “The film focuses attention on a district police chief (Devgan) caught in a moral dilemma over the short-cuts in crime control and the ambivalent position society takes on the issues,” Jha said over the phone from Mumbai.

“While the ordinary man does not cooperate with police in bringing an offender to book, he strangely becomes a silent accomplice in the brutalities that police indulge in,” he said.

Yesterday, Sadhu Yadav, brother of Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, moved Allahabad High Court, seeking a stay on the release of the film. Yadav, a member of the state legislative council, said Jha was trying to tarnish his image by giving the main villain of Gangaajal the same name as him.

“Being the people’s representative, I feel it is an insult to the MLC because the central villain of the film has his (Yadav’s) name,” a legislator who is close to Yadav said.

But Jha says the villain has nothing in common with Yadav other than the name, pointing out that his villain is “64 years old”.

Shah, sitting in his Moodichowk hut here, is not so much bothered about the film as the effect it will have on his life. “Is it going to rake up our case again?” he asks. He is crestfallen when he hears “no” for an answer. He was hoping that the film would somehow help increase his compensation from the meagre monthly Rs 500 he is getting now.

The Bhagalpur blinding case had made criminal jurisprudence history by becoming the first in which the Supreme Court had ordered compensation for violation of basic human rights.

“How far can one go on Rs 500?” Shah asks, the despair evident on his disfigured face.

Deserted by the media and social workers, who had once thronged Bhagalpur, Shah now prefers to avoid everybody. All these years later, he is still scared of the footfalls of an approaching stranger. His first words always are: “Aap thane se hain kya? (Is this the police?)”

“When they (social workers) come calling, they pour out rhetoric, but nothing happens, no change in my life. On the street, too, there are not many sympathisers to offer alms,” he says. Jaimala, his wife, says she had to beg to get their four daughters married.

As 26 of the 31 victims – at least five are dead by now –- are reduced to a mere statistic in Bhagalpur police case files, their plight hardly bothers the town’s residents.

Elderly Atul Prakash says why: The 31 victims had several cases registered against them, ranging from rape to robbery and murder.

“I do not support the blinding. But one of the reasons why Bhagalpur residents had taken out rallies in defence of the police officers who were suspended in the case is that they (the residents) had suffered a lot,” Prakash says.

But Devraj Khatri of Ishakchowk, another victim, disagrees.

Accusing the state and social-action groups of ditching them, Shah and Khatri have now approached Supreme Court advocate Kapila Hingorani to plead for a hike in their compensation.

Kajol's new role

EASTER SUNDAY was a lucky day for Kajol and Ajay Devgan, as they welcomed their daughter into their family. With Kajol and the baby, doing fine at Mumbai's Breach Candy hospital, the proud papa Ajay was not shooting that day.

Ajay, who's just completed Ram Gopal Varma's Bhoot, has his call sheets almost brimming, but the new papa is so excited that we hear he is on a fortnight's paternity leave to spend time with the baby! As for Kajol, it is a new role, which she has been looking forward to. Her meteoric rise and sparkle in Bollywood are worth reminiscing for the sheer hits her films proved to be in such a short time-frame.

The bubbly actress, acted in about 25 films in about a decade's time, gave 11 hits, amongst which three were blockbusters. The actress, who bagged four Filmfare awards, is all set to play the best role of her life!


Compiled by Ranjani Govind
http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/mp/20...50100730203.htm