My friend S P Dutt, whose way of staying in touch is by sharing with e-pals interesting items he reads on the web, sent me a Guardian story on the making of a Malayalam movie, Ezham Mudra. The movie, inspired by Casablanca, would have in the lead Suresh Gopi and Mandira Bedi in the roles immortalized by Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman.
Director Rajeev Nath, who is scheduled to start shooting in Kerala in September, is reported to have said his film would be a tribute to the original (he has watched it 20 times). Most film goers of today are unlikely to have watched the original to compare Mandira’s performance with Bergman’s.
A notable aspect is that this sad love story, set on a beachfront café in southern India, would play out in the background of Tamil Tigers’ fight against the Sri Lankan authorities. There was an earlier film in Tamil with the militancy in Sri Lanka as its backdrop – Mani Ratnam’s Kannathil Muthamittal.
Copy or inspired, Ezham Mudra raises viewer expectations. For those familiar with the old classic I’ve a question: Which desi name comes to mind at the mention of Ingrid Bergman?
Multiple choice - Mandira/ Monica/Pooja/ none of the foregoing.
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2 comments:
oh GVK - you have written about my favourite movie & a face that forever remains etched in my mind -Ingrid bergman. A desi equivalent ??? madhubala of course..check the expressions & eyes..I guess it will turn out to be a decent movie, though i would have preferred mohanlal instead of suresh gopi..
BTW did I ever tell anybody that though the movie Casablanca is set in Morocco, the events that took place relate to Istanbul Turkey?
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