OVERWHELMED AND EMBARRASSED

There is no figure from Indian cinema who grips the imagination like Gabbar Signh. The villain of India's classic SHOLAY, he's the Darth Vadar of Bollywood - a pop creation who casts a long shadow.

Now that Ram Gopal Varma's SHOLAY remake is in production people want to know what he looks like since he's being played by Amitabh Bachchan, who played one of the  heroes in the original film. Wait no more, because his look was just unveiled, causing the Big B to feel "...overwhelmed and embarrassed."

"Gabbar Singh in my SHOLAY as opposed to Gabbar in the Chambal Valley is that the latter [the original] is cut off from civilisation," says RGV. "Mr. Bachchan is a devious gangster who lives in Mumbai and challenges the authorities to catch him. So he isn't on the run, nor is he in prison. He will be suave, dapper and elegant...He's in touch with the minds of terrorists from all over the world...There is no huge changes in his look, we aren't using a wig...and no, he doesn't sport stained teeth. But he does exude terror."

Varma has faced intense criticism for his SHOLAY remake since the original is one of the most popular movies ever to burst out of Bollywood. The son of Amjad Khan, the original Gabbar Singh, has issued a statement saying the movie shouldn't be remade at all and numerous industry folks have warned Varma not to remake this classic. But, as Varma says, "Well I've one consolation for them. Since the critics have already exhausted all their expletives for SHIVA, they'd have nothing left to say about SHOLAY." This is his reference to the fact that his much-anticipated recent film, SHIVA, was eviscerated by critics. Varma says he knew the movie would get bad reviews. Whatever, dude. It still got trashed. Would you please go back to making good movies?

(Thanks to Victor and the gang at NaachGaana)