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Another avatar for Lucky

Aparajita Saha

The acting bug has bitten Lucky Ali again. After all, everything said and done, blood is thicker than water and eventually asserts itself. And if one has the legendary Mehmood for a father, acting does seem to be the inevitable conclusion.

But acting chose the singer rather than Lucky Ali choosing acting again. Friend Aditya Bhattacharya, producer of Avataar, convinced Ali to do the title role. Says Ali, "I had approached Babla (Bhattacharya) to make the video for my new album and the meeting resulted in him convincing me to play the lead in Avataar!"

Bhattacharya is the son of the late film director, Basu Bhattacharya, and the grandson of the legendary Bimal Roy. After his directorial debut Raakh (with Aamir Khan) failed, he moved to Italy.

Asked about the latest development in his professional life, the unflappable Ali replied, "I am taking it all in with a pinch of salt!"

Ali will also produce an album with the same name. He will also sing a few tracks from the album for Bhattacharya's movie.

Avataar will be filmed in English and also star New York-based actress Nandana Dev Sen, who also has a famous father (Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen). It revolves around an Indian singer seeking an international break. The singer, played by Ali, ultimately encounters the break he desires in a most unlikely place. Nandana plays one of the three romantic leads opposite him. Another will be portrayed by one of the celebrated Rossellinis. (Another Indian connection there. After his marriage to Ingrid Bergman broke up, director Roberto Rossellini married Sonali Dasgupta, who was previously wedded to documentary stalwart Harisadhan Dasgupta.)

Laughs Ali, "The movie has a mixed cast, with some international stars and local people, such as myself!"

The movie will be completed in six weeks; shooting will commence in August. Avataar has the backing of Ali's record label, Sony Music (India) Ltd, apart from Sony Entertainment, MTV Asia, the Prasad Group, Nude Records London and Twentieth Century Fox.

This is, of course, not Ali's movie debut. That happened with Hamare Tumare (the comedy starring Sanjeev Kumar and Rakhee). Then, in the early eighties, he played a brooding charmer in Shyam Benegal's Goan epic, Trikaal. He is listed in the credits under his real name Maqsood Ali. After Trikaal, he also featured in Benegal's television series Bharat Ek Khoj, before abandoning stardust and tinsel for a life of washing carpets for a while.

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