Priyanka Chopra has finally found her bearings in Bollywood. For far too long has the former Miss World been floundering about from one super-flop to another - Big Brother, My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves, Chamku, Love 2050, God Tussi Great Ho and Drona. Madhur Bhandarkar’s Fashion helped her break the jinx and now, with Tarun Mansukhani’s Dostana, she is out to prove that she is no longer box-office poison.Fashion has salvaged the career of Kangana Ranaut also and introduced a new face to Hindi cinema, Mughda Godse. Together with Priyanka, they played true-to-life glam-dolls with enough oomph and style to lure audiences into an enchanting tour of the dark, inner recesses of a world swirling in sexual exploitation, drugs and booze. Through all their tales of success and failure, frustration and compromise, longing and loneliness, agony and ecstasy the image that stays with you, long after the film is over, is that of a bevy of scantily-clad, leggy models in an orgiastic celebration of the body beautiful.
None of these girls match up to the traditionally-held view of the Hindi film heroine.They cannot be considered item girls either - let alone bar dancers, cabaret artistes and the like. They just do not fit into the persona of any of the prototypical Bollywood women who serve as male appendages to define the conventional macho act. A closer look at their roles would however reveal that these uber-cool, sexy wildcats are actually as much heroines as they are vamps, as they are item girls and yet, they are none of them. In this category of new age leading ladies are a host of scene stealers answering to names like Katrina Kaif, Mallika Sherawat, Rakhi Sawant, Koena Mitra and Manjari Fadnis. There is nothing subtle or understated in their act. Everything about them - right from the clothes they wear to their false eyelashes - screams for attention.Such exhibitionism was the most convenient ploy adopted by little-known starlets, desperate to get noticed.
But now mainline heroines seem anxious to step into the shoes of these spice girls. For instance, Aishwarya Rai after her ‘Kajra Re’ in Bunty and Babli not only eclipse the performances of the lead stars, but has outlived the film in public memory. Likewise, Bipasha Basu’s ‘Bidi Jalai Ley’ number in Omkara? The dare-bare act is the most tried and tested trick in the book, right from the days of Mumtaz, Bindu, Kalpana Iyer and Zeenat Aman. Their present-day sisters are girls like Shilpa Shetty, best remembered for that raunchy ‘Main aayi hoon UP-Bihar lootke’ number from a forgettable Shool. When Mallika saw her career going nowhere, she danced to Aap Ka Suroor - The Real Love Story and landed the lead role in Ugly Aur Pagli. This is exactly the kind of break wannabes like Isha Koppikar and Momaith Khan (‘Dekh Le’ in Munnabhai MBBS) and Koena Mitra are looking for.But it will not be easy for them. During the days of Mumtaz (who started out as a group dancer) and other yesteryear heroines, there was always scope for the girls to graduate to leading ladies.
Films were conceived according to a set ‘formula’. The very same ‘formula’ has gone for a toss, with non-heroine films - be it Bheja Fry or Taare Zameen Par, Aamir or Mumbai Meri Jaan - turning out to be stupendous hits. Meanwhile recent releases like U, Me Aur Hum, Tashan and Karzzzz which boast of seasoned actresses have bombed.It does not therefore make much sense for a filmmaker to provide for a strong female presence in the cast, unless of course, it is an all-woman show like Fashion. At best, the heroine is being accommodated in a peripheral role, in which she serves an ornamental purpose, usually with an item number. Replace her with another girl, however inexperienced she might be, and it would make absolutely no difference. This is where the spice girls come in.They are all young, full of spunk, have no starry airs, look good and come cheap.They raised the glamour quotient of a film and are ever willing to go that extra mile to make an impression. Most importantly, their youth serves as a welcome foil for our ageing heroes. Those who understand this are doing well for themselves.Those like Rani Mukherji and Deepika Padukone, who refuse to reconcile, are finding themselves rapidly side-lined.Others, including Urmila Matondkar, Kareena, Bipasha and Katrina Kaif are accepting whatever roles come their way in order to remain in the reckoning.After all, this is no time to stand on false pride and past glory.
