However, I must admit to feeling uncomfortable around the hysteria and frenzy. The stars create the excitement, the buzz, and they are a necessary part of the film world, and I understand that. Photo courtesy Andrew Adams Photography Back down on earth Bollywood actress Dia Mirza at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel during the IIFA Awards. She didn’t want me to take her picture, so I didn’t. She looked lovely, very sweet and she was wearing a tasteful and stunning evening gown. Madhavan, who I am hoping to interview, and had a fun little moment with Dia Mirza in the hallway after the IIFA Awards show - she was carrying her shoes and told me her feet were hurting. “That’s not the first time you’ve heard that, is it?” I said, to which he good-naturedly shook his head. And when I saw Sharman Joshi, one of the stars of the hit film 3 Idiots, I blurted out, “Oh, wow, it’s an idiot!” Which he took in stride. The interview is reprinted on my blog Role Models. I reminded Priyanka Chopra that I had previously interviewed her, and she seemed to remember (which shows character, if you ask me - and I am impressed by her: she is not only gorgeous, she seems like a nice person). Otherwise, I had only brief conversations and didn’t interview anyone else - except Shahrukh Khan, of course, which I wrote about in my blog Meeting Shahrukh Khan.
BOLLYWOOD GEMINI CELEBRITIES MOVIE
I wish people would actually imbibe what the movie is all about, and accept it and use it… but that’s not going to happen.” With regards to the Gandhi sub-theme, he said, “Some people got it, some people didn’t. A complicated message is said in simple words by two idiots.” I laughed, “Two lovable idiots!” And he agreed. The writer and director (Rajkumar Hirani) really put his heart and soul into the script, and you can see that.
It’s a simple movie, made from the heart. He said, “It’s the simplicity of the film that people like. I asked him about the success of that film, its enduring appeal and Gandhi’s legacy. The film is about a small-time crook who falls in love with a radio personality and imitates a Gandhian scholar to win her. I briefly interviewed Arshad Warsi, as I am a big fan of the film Lage Raho Munna Bhai, which he starred in (along with Sanjay Dutt). Bollywood actor Arshad Warsi at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel during the IIFA Awards. Madhavan, Dia Mirza, Zayed Khan, Sharman Joshi, Shabana Azmi and Harman Baweja milling around the hotel. I had a media pass, so I was able to gain access to off-limit areas, and it became normal for me to see stars like Anil Kapoor, Sonu Sood, Ritesh Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi, Priyanka Chopra, Boman Irani, R.
Every time a Bollywood star entered or left the hotel, a bubble of excitement burst in the lobby, resulting in a chorus of near-hysterical cheers. The pillars of excitement at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel during IIFA were definitely the stars. I had the good fortune to be the “embedded” blogger at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel, the IIFA’s host hotel, during the Bollywood invasion, so I was right at the centre of the action.
BOLLYWOOD GEMINI CELEBRITIES SERIES
Bollywood in Toronto My top five favourite moments This is the third in a series of blog posts about my favourite moments of the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards weekend in Toronto, June 2011.