Column

The Spectator

Now that the organisers of the Aditya Birla Group Zee Cine Awards managed to get Ash and Abhishek and Salman and Katrina Kaif to dance together for the first time in Malaysia, organisers all over the country of the other hundred odd film award shows must are wondering how to top that.

The following dialogue took place in the office of one such award’s organiser between two script writers for a forthcoming show.

“Why don’t we get Rajesh Khanna and Dimple to dance together?” said Mr A to Mr B “Rajesh can sing the song from Aradhana, you know the ‘Mere Sapno Ki Rani’ one, and then Dimple can come on stage in her Bobby pose and open a door and say the dialogue she said to Rishi Kapoor.”

“Good idea” said Mr B “but three decades too late — today no one even knows who Rajesh Khanna is, let alone that he and Dimple were once married to each other — and without that knowledge their dancing together will not mean any thing, at least nowhere near what Ash-Abhishek and Katrina-Salman dance meant.”

“Then how about having Rajesh Khanna, Dimple, Akshay Kumar and Twinkle all on stage together, surely then the audience will make the connection, and it will create a sensation having the whole family together, such a touching moment and all of that…”

“Look why don’t we leave the Khanna clan out of this! First of all it will be very difficult to persuade Dimple and Rajesh to appear on stage together — let alone with their daughter and son-in-law. Besides, even though Akshay is a very big star — bigger than most others because his films do well in small towns — Twinkle did not have much of a career to write home about — so it’s just not going to top the Ash-Abhishek or Salman-Katrina appearances.”

“Oh, ok, forget them —how about getting Dharmender and his two sons on stage, doing a fight scene together then? Every one knows the Deol men are not great dancers, but a fight scene — think about it — so much dishum-dishum and all that. And as a finale we might even ask Hema and Esha to do a dance with them...”

“Why do you want such big family scenes? Next you’ll say we should have Randhir Kapoor come on stage along with Karishma and Kareena — today’s audience does not care about these big family ensembles — can’t you come up with a simple hot coupling like the Ash-Abhishek or the Salman-Katrina one — which has so much cute factor and glamour factor not to forget off-screen meaning…”

“Oh OK, how about Hritik-Suzanne?

“No, not the same voltage.”

“Gauri-Shah Rukh?”

“No, though they are so cute together they’ve already come on stage at his birthday celebrations held by Nita Ambani at Sea Wind so the novelty is not there. No, the more I think about it you know what the only way we can top the Ash-Abhishek and Salman-Katrina appearance is?”

“No what’s it?”

“Is to request Aishwariya to dance with Salman!”

s_malavika@dnaindia.net