Actresses today are better looked after: Farah Khan

By Durga Chakravarty

New Delhi, July 10 (IANS) Hotshot Bollywood filmmaker-choreographer Farah Khan, who has worked with the who's who of Bollywood for over two-and-a-half decades now, feels actresses today are looked after better than yesteryears' heroines.

"I feel today, everything is looked after much more, though I don't see any lack of hard work on the part of today's girls. They are as hardworking as the girls earlier. It is just that the girls earlier had to do a lot more. They did not have personal trainers, managers or vanity vans. They had to work harder in a sense," said Farah, who has worked with actresses spanning generations as director as well as choreographer, from Sridevi, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Kajol, Rani Mukerji, Tabu and Malaika Arora to Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif, Alia Bhatt, Janhvi Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor, besides heroes from Shah Rukh Khan to Hrithik Roshan to Tiger Shroff.

When it comes to dancing, she diplomatically avoids comparing today's heroines with the earlier generation.

"It's been 25 years, and I have choreographed Sridevi and Madhuri (Dixit Nene) and also the girls of today. You can't compare them (today's actresses) to the yesteryear actresses," Farah told IANS.

Farah, who became an overnight sensation as a choreographer with her slow-motion choreography of the song Pehla nasha pehla khumar in the 1992 film Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar, branched out to directing films with "Main Hoon Na" in 2004, and later helmed "Om Shanti Om" (2007), "Tees Maar Khan" (2010), and "Happy New Year" (2014).

"What I enjoy most is making my own film, which I am looking forward to this year. I enjoy it a lot but it is also a tiring process --- especially when you have three children. I am a hands-on mother, so I take long gaps between films. For me, that is the most creatively satisfying process," said Farah, who is currently working on a film in collaboration with filmmaker Rohit Shetty.

According to reports, Farah is all set to remake megastar Amitabh Bachchan's "Satte Pe Satta", which released in 1982.

Talking about working on a remake, Farah said: "My children haven't seen old films. I feel classics need not be touched --- like I would not think of remaking a 'Sholay' because I know 'meri bajne hi waali hai usme'! Such films stand the test of time," she said, adding: "You have to be careful of what film to remake. You have to take a loved movie but not something that you know you would be compared and (then) torn to shreds. Remakes are now done all over the world. At one time I used to wonder why (remake a movie)? Now I think it would be fun modernising movies I love."

Farah has also branched out to the digital space. She is producing Netflix's "Mrs. Serial Killer", directed by her husband Shirish Kunder.

"Mrs. Serial Killer" is about a wife whose husband has been framed and imprisoned for serial murders. She needs to perform a murder exactly like the serial killer to prove her husband's innocence.

(Durga Chakravarty can be contacted at durga.c@ians.in)