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to get work under good Also, the basic character of the film banners. industry is undergoing a subtle but sig- The classic case of nificant change. box office success being Thanks to the mushrooming of the predominant factor in any actor’s multi-screen theatres across the country, career is that of the late hero Rajendra it is now possible for producers to make Kumar. niche films, targeted at select audiences. In the ‘60s and ‘70s, his films did so During the single-screen era, when well that he was nicknamed Silver each theatre seated close to a thousand Jubilee Kumar. people, producers felt obliged to cater to But once he featured in three box the lowest common denominator. office duds in a row, he found no takers. It was financially risky to make Likewise, Rajesh Khanna in the ‘70s meaningful art films. and ‘80s was the original super star. Then, the accent was on saleable However, once lady luck turned stars, formula story-lines, songs and against him, he was shunned by produc- dance sequences around trees and, gen- ers. erally, on an escapist, feel-good fare. On the other hand, , a Now, due to a large educated middle gangly youth who hit pay-dirt in his class and growing economic prosperity, very first film, Band Baaja Baaraat film makers are experimenting with eso- (BBB), is the new star on the block. teric themes and tasting success. So is the female lead opposite him in For instance, Peepli, an ironic take BBB, . on the 24x7 news television, made by a The film was a surprise hit of 2010 completely new team of directors, writ- and catapulted both Ranveer and ers and actors made a huge splash on Anushka to stardom. the multiplex circuit. Produced under the most prestigious Traditional cine-goers shunned it Bollywood banner of , while the educated middle classes BBB’s lead actors have now been signed embraced it. up for yet another film by it. Made on a shoe-string budget, it Another big new star who emerged made pots of money for its producer, last year due to the stupendous success actor Aamir Khan. of the Salman Khan-starrer Dabaang is Small wonder then that a whole new Shatrughan Sinha’s daughter Sonakashi crop of young actors and directors have Sinha. found acceptability in Bollywood. Though Dabaang was a hero-oriented Aside from the lead actors of BBB, a film, Sonakashi’s presence in the film as number of new faces are set to make Salman’s love interest was enough for their debut this year. producers to line up outside her door Since the male heroes have a much with new film offers. longer shelf life than their female coun- It is lady luck, you see. terparts, already heroines like Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Sonam Kapoor are established stars. Breaking into the citadel of male stars is a tougher task. Among the new male actors are Arjun Kapoor, Nishant Dahiya and Saaqib Saleem. Given that films remain a very chancy business, the presence of big stars on the marquee is not a guarantee of box office success. Akshay Kumar, for example, is one of the most pricey and saleable stars. After starring in a string of big hits, he featured in three straight duds, all of them big-budget, big-banner films. So, casting a newcomer in his place as the male lead is a better prospect because the latter would not cost even a small fraction of the fee and there is an even chance that the film might hit the jackpot. Unlike earlier times when the Dharmendras and the Manoj BY COOMI KAPOOR THE STAR/ ANN end of their unquestioned Smita Kumars had to reign as superstars, a young Patil’s struggle hard for ffsprings of established actors crop of heroes and heroines are waiting son, has that elusive who had their break in the film in the wings to take their place. also done a break in films, Oindustry in recent years are now For instance, , the 26- couple of sleeping on foot- slowly making a mark for themselves. year-old son of Rishi and Neetu Kapoor, films. paths and gener- Age is catching up with the current a popular star-pair of the ‘70s and ‘80s, However, ally facing crop of Bollywood heroes. The Khans - seems ready to grab the number one slot the film humiliation Shah Rukh, Salman and Aamir - are all in Bollywood. industry, from producers, in their 40s, and no longer look pleasing His pedigree might have ensured the when all is present-day aspi- on the eye when romancing damsels half initial break, but it is his talent coupled said and rants for star- their age on the big screen. with immense good looks that have done, is nei- dom get to show- If they still do, and occasionally pull helped him consolidate his position as ther a case their talent it off at the box office, it is due to the the brightest prospect among the new respecter of talent nor pedigree, but of on the myriad accumulated goodwill earned over the heroes. lady luck alone. general entertainment televi- year. Sons and daughters of other estab- So long as an actor continues to pull sion channels. With youths constituting the core of lished actors who have got a break in the in audiences, he is assured of success in first got the cinema-going audiences, film makers industry in recent years are now slowly Bollywood. public exposure in a TV serial, per force introduce younger actors in beginning to make a mark for them- Once his films begin to flop, he is Fauji, in the 80s before he got his break the hope that they will click at the box selves. dumped like a hot potato by producers. Since she was the heroine in the in films. office and soon replace the aging stars. Sons of very talented actors Anupam Thus, Amitabh Bachchan’s son, biggest hit of last year, even though her Nowadays, it is routine for wannabe That is why new stars seem to Kher and Naseeruddin Shah are already Abhishek, despite getting a number of role was not very significant, casting her film stars to do television while doing emerge after every decade or so. seen doing character roles in films. films because of whose son he is, has in their films might rub off Dabaang’s the rounds of producers and directors Now that the Khans are nearing the Prateik, Raj Babbar and the late star been dubbed a flop and may find it hard success on them, the producers hope. for that all-important break. The gentle martial art of growing old gracefully lderly people should take up the gentle mar- cal health. backed by several charities and support groups for tial art of T’ai Chi for the sake of their phys- “We recommend T’ai Chi for older people for its sufferers of different diseases, the researchers Eical and mental health, according to academ- various physical and psychological benefits.” looked back at the “uncertain” evidence for its ics. T’ai Chi was developed hundreds of years ago clinical effectiveness. A new study has found that the ancient Chinese in China as a series of graceful physical move- They found 35 existing systematic reviews of exercises, enjoyed by millions of people every ments combined with deep breathing, and is now T’ai Chi papers published between 2002 and 2010, morning, can help pensioners avoid falling injuries thought to be practised by 2.5million people around which examined whether or not the exercises and boost their psychological well-being. the world. helped conditions ranging from breast cancer to This is because its slow movements improve It is based on the Confucian and Buddhist phi- heart disease, as well as the ailments of old age. balance while its deep breathing techniques aid losophy that the exercises can balance the opposing Overall, 20 of the reviews concluded that T’ai relaxation. life forces of “yin and yang” that govern our Chi “might be effective” while eight said it was not The authors of the paper, published online in health. and seven were inconclusive, but some of the pre- the British Journal of Sports Medicine on Tuesday, But Dr Myeong Soo Lee at the Korea Institute of vious studies were said to be flawed. conclude: “Our overview showed that T’ai Chi, Oriental Medicine and Prof Edzard Ernst of the There was a “relatively clear consensus” that which combines deep breathing and relaxation Peninsula Medical School at the University of T’ai Chi “was effective for improving the general with slow and gentle movements, may exert exer- Exeter, say that “regardless of these assumptions”, health of older people, improving psychological cise-based general benefits for fall prevention and the slow movements and short postures undoubted- health, and for preventing falls”. improvement of balance in older people as well as ly affect the muscles and circulatory system. © The Telegraph Group some meditative effects for improving psychologi- Because the “slow motion” martial art is now London 2011