May, 2000 - downloads.movies.indiatimes.com
TOPSY TURVY
A roller-coaster ride with Akshay Kumar
"Unfortunately Water will have to be shot in India only. If we shoot it abroad it'll have to be titled Evian Water."
"There are no bad vibes between Shilpa Shetty and me despite our split. We're still friends."
"Jaanwar ran because it had Hindustani sentiments unlike most films today which are love stories made for NRIs."
"Twinkle Khanna is not responsible for my split with Shilpa. Though we tried hard, Shilpa and I couldn't make things work for us."
"I'm not the only guy who has had five broken affairs! So why is the media hell bent on maligning me."
He's done it again! It's splitsville for Akshay Kumar and Shilpa Shetty. An actress friend of Shilpa's who wishes to remain unnamed says that she's taken the split very badly. "It's sad. The last time Shilpa and I were together she seemed so happy with Akshay. The two of them spoke about everything from their impending marriage to their children."
Studio corridors are abuzz that Akshay and Shilpa split on account of his latest affaire de coeur, with his International Khiladi co-star, Twinkle Khanna. For those who came in late, there was much speculation that Akshay and Twinkle were a cozy twosome during the Canada outdoor of International Khiladi in September 1998.
Akshay who was then "engaged" to Shilpa Shetty had flatly denied the rumours. Ditto Twinkle. Needless to add, when International Khiladi proved to be a damp squib, both the press and public lost interest in the Kumar-Khanna love affair.
Akshay Kumar and Shilpa Shetty continued to be together. Reports of the `We're-very-much-in-love' couple's cosy candle-light dinners at the hi-fi Chinese restaurant, Sampan, the long mid- night drives to the outskirts of Mumbai city and the family get- togethers at Akshay's fancy duplex--where his family indulged their soon-to-be-bahu, filtered in.
But Akshay was beset with personal problems as well. In August 1999, tragedy truck. Akshay Kumar lost his father to cancer. The star was grief-stricken. On the fourth day after the tragedy, he joined Rekha and Manisha Koirala on a world concert. And was away for a good one month. Work, not love, provided him solace. Yet when he returned, all was not well. He was smarting from the unpleasant experience he underwent on the world tour. Apparently, the organisers had botched up the "Stars Of The Millennium" concert. He and Manisha Koirala had to play second fiddle to Rekha. And he had made his displeasure known in clear terms. Subsequently, the organisers tendered a letter of apology.
But today, on the sets of Keshu Ramsay's Khiladi Mera Naam, Akki magnanimously adds, "I was hurt. But there's no bad blood between Rekhaji and me. The organisers played dirty. And since they've apologised there's no point in raking up the past."
Flashbacking to his father's tragic death, the actor says, "My life has changed ever since. I'm now responsible for my family. I've to put my mother and my sister's interests before my own. Though I don't wish to talk about my grief in detail, I felt all alone when tragedy struck." Akshay continues, "All through the day I'm at work. But at night when I'm in bed, I stare at the ceiling and my father's face flashes before my eyes. I haven't got over his death. I'm not the only one in the world who has lost a parent. But there are times when I feel completely lost." He smiles sadly as he adds, "Funny how even stardom can't compensate for the loss of one's loved one." Yeah Akshay, you win some, you lose some.
A cause for joy also is the recently-released Jaanwar. The film has completed a 100-day run in many centres in Mumbai and up- North. AK beams, "As usual the film was panned by pseudo critics. Everyone tends to go gaga over love stories which are made for the NRIs. But the success of Jaanwar proves that there are centres in India, where Hindustani sentiments are appreciated."
Akshay also informs me that though Tanuja Chandra's Sangharsh was a dismal flop, he's been getting a lot of fanmail for his performance. "Earlier people only spoke of my dancing... and my action. Finally they're also taking me seriously as an actor." The actor is also gung-ho about Abbas Mustaan's Ajnabi, a whodunit.
Come September and he'll start work on Deepa Mehta's Water. He pooh-poohs talk about his being in Water only because Ajay Virmani, the film's financier, is his best buddy. "It's true that Virmani and the Canadian Government are financing Water," the actor informs. "But it's ridiculous to suggest that I landed the role only because of my friendship with Virmani. Deepa Mehta is no push over. She has me there because she believes I fit the bill." Akshay adds that it's a pity that there's been much brouhaha over Water. "I'm a Hindu," he says. "I won't do anything that goes against my religion. I've read the script twice over. Believe me, there's nothing in it to antagonise anyone. I'm sure even the Government of India knows this. But there are a handful of people who're trying to exploit an unfortunate situation."
Akshay adds, "Unfortunately we can't shoot Water any where else but in India. (Laughs) If we shoot it abroad, it'll become Evian Water."
Talk then veers to his current flame Twinkle Khanna. Is it true that he had recommended her heavily for Keshu Ramsay's Khiladi Mera Naam? "No way," he shrugs. "Mahima Chaudhary and Antra Mali are my heroines. I've never interfered with the casting of any of my films... I'll never do it."
Akshay states that he's kept away from the media for the last eight months because he's fed up of the constant specultion about his love life. "I'm not the only one who's had four or five broken affairs," he says. "But the media is hell-bent on maligning me. It's unfortunate that my relationships have not worked out. But I'm still better than several married stars who have affairs on the sly. I'm a bachelor and I'm not doing anything behind anyone's back."
He refutes all stories about Shilpa and he sharing bad vibes post their split. "We cared for one another. But unfortunately things didn't fall into place. But we're still friends. I'm shooting with her for Dhadkan in Switzerland. I'm certain that the atmosphere on the sets will be congenial. Shilpa's a sweet girl who comes from a good family. She's certainly not the type to make her private feelings public."
Turning crimson, Akshay insists that Twinkle Khanna is just a friend and is in no way responsible for his split with Shilpa. "Nothing could be further from the truth," the star insists. "Twinkle and I are good friends. That's it."
Of course.
Meena Iyer
