Background on MBPA

Mere Baap... Pehle Aap is a lighthearted attempt at the unique idea of having a man getting his father married. Comedy ace Priyadarshan directs this comedy and hopes it will emulate the success of his past endeavour, Bhool Bhulaiya.

At the crux of the story are Janaradhan Wishvanbhar Rane (Paresh Rawal) and his sons Chirag (Manoj Joshi) and Gaurav (Akshaye Khanna). A widower, Janaradhan has sacrificed his own life to give his kids a good upbringing.

His younger son Gaurav is particularly attached to him and wants his father to get married. Apart from managing the household chores and their business, Gaurav plays matchmaker and hunts for a bride for his father. Although he is the son, Gaurav has to contend with his father’s goof-ups and bail him out. Madhav Mathur (Om Puri) is Janardhan’s pal and the two fall in trouble once too often.

In an attempt to find his father a bride Gaurav meets Sheekha Kapoor (Genelia D’souza) and ends up striking a romantic chord with her. The film is a comedy of errors as both father and son look to tie the knot.

Co-producer
Mansi maroo

“Mere Baap... Pehle Aap is a film based on the idea of a father son relationship. What makes this film unique is that this relationship sees a role reversal. It is the son who lays down the rules for the father and governs his life. The son decides what clothes the father would wear, where he will go and what company he will keep.

Shemaroo had approached Priyadarshan for a film some time back and when he finally got back with the story of Mere Baap... Pehle Aap we were thrilled. Besides being an innovative concept, the film also brings us some sort of assurance. Father-son films have always done well and we’re banking on that fact.

At Shemaroo, we are as happy as one can be with the final product and our fingers are crossed for June 13 release should bring our film some good luck.”

THE BUZZ
Mere Baap...Pehle Aap is Priyadarshan’s new comedy flick. It is his first venture on the big screen after the blockbuster Bhool Bhulaiya last year. Like any Priyadarshan film this one too has a multi-star cast with ace comedians like Paresh Rawal, Om Puri and Rajpal Yadav. With Shermaroo backing this one promises to be worth a watch.

I get the impression that Shemaroo is oromoting this movie well. There's already so much stuff about this movie. Good for them.

Number 13

A lot of people, who believe in numbers, feel 13 isn’t the right date to announce, launch or release a film. But Priyadarshan thinks otherwise. His new film, Mere Baap Pehle Aap, is confirmed for release on June 13, which also happens to be Friday the 13th.

“Priyan feels the number [13] is lucky for him, hence we decided to release Mere Baap Pehle Aap on June 13,” Mansi Maroo of Shemaroo said. Meanwhile, the promos of the film have caught the fancy of everyone.

Incidentally, Akshaye Khanna’s Border was also released on June 13. So will the new Akshaye-starrer repeat history? We’ve got to wait and watch.

Role reversal for Akshaye

What's the common factor between MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP and GANDHI MY FATHER?

Well, apart from the fact that both the films star Akshaye Khanna in the lead, they also deal with parents. The difference here though is the genre of the two films and the character that Akshaye Khanna plays. While GANDHI MY FATHER was a serious drama, MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP is an out and out family comedy. Moreover, Akshaye Khanna too gets into a role reversal of sorts if one looks at the two films.

Says a source attached to MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP, "In GANDHI MY FATHER, Akshaye Khanna played the role of an errant son while his father (Gandhiji) tried to set him on the right route. However, in case of MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP, it is the turn of Akshaye Khanna to protect his father (played by Paresh Rawal). As an errant middle aged man who is spoilt by the company of naughty old men like Om Puri, Paresh always has Akshaye keeping a tab on him."

Now that's indeed quite some role reversal for the young man here who recently featured in 2008's biggest box office grosser so far - RACE. Even though GANDHI MY FATHER was a box office disappointment, now one looks forward to MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP which pretty much seems to be en route to hitting the bull's eye on its 13th June release!

(indiaglitz)


All Akshaye's movies are abou dads! But we are all excited about the young man here.

Akshaye Khanna in Love

Well, thats the headline at msn. Damn, video is not loading for me. Has anyone been able to see it?

What does it say?

Update: It's a waste of time. They don't name names. They do shows pics of the gal however. Says Akshaye is in love with Tara's friend who is a Delhiite.

MBPA dialog promo

Looks really hilarious. The movie is getting better n better!

More on the Lionsgate deal

The English-language version of "Gandhi, My Father", a film based on the Mahatma's relations with his son, is all set for release in the US as part of a strategic deal between Indian entertainment major Eros International and Hollywood's Lionsgate studio.

The film was produced by Bollywood star Anil Kapoor, who is currently in Cannes to attend a press event in connection with the formal announcement of the Eros-Lionsgate deal.

"I am really happy that the film is going into mainstream distribution in North America at last," said Kapoor, who is on his first-ever trip to the Cannes Film Festival.

"I've been walking around the film market for two days and can sense the buzz. This festival sets your mind ticking," he said.

The Hindi version of the critically acclaimed "Gandhi, My Father," featuring Darshan Zariwala and Akshaye Khanna in the pivotal roles of the Mahatma and his estranged son Harilal, opened in India in mid 2007.

Kapoor's second film as an independent producer, "Shortkut - The Con," starring Akshaye Khanna, Arshad Warsi and Amrita Rao, is now in post-production and he is already drawing up plans to launch a third production. "It should be rolling by the end of the year," he said.

Kapoor is looking forward in particular to his first-ever international film, "Slumdog Millionaire", which has been helmed by British director Danny Boyle. "It is an international film shot entirely in Mumbai with a completely Indian cast. I feel this film could prove to be a crucial turning point for our industry," Kapoor said.

The cast of "Slumdog Millionaire" includes Irrfan Khan. The Bollywood veteran, who has been seen in recent weeks in the commercially successful "Race", the box office dud "Tashan" and Subhash Ghai's off-mainstream "Black and White", asserts that he did not have to make any major adjustments to fit into an international set-up.

He said "I did not approach the project with any awe or deference. I knew how big Danny Boyle is but the way I thought was, I've done a hundred films; he has made only five. It was easy."

"One thing that I can say is that the experience was truly wonderful. Boyle was so open and professional all through the shoot. He has shown me the finished product - both the first cut and the subsequent one," Khan added.

"But of course it isn't like a typical Hindi movie villain," said Kapoor, who has been cast in a negative role in "Slumdog Millionaire."

Pathe is the European distributor, while Warner Bros has the US rights for the film which is scheduled for worldwide release later this year.

(Economic times)

Confusion

When Priyadarshan's MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP was announced, a lot of people were confused as to which Akshay had been signed to play the main lead. The reason being obvious, both have been a favourite with Priyadarshan. He has indeed proved to be lucky for both Akshay Kumar and Akshaye Khanna, both of whom share an almost cent-per-cent success ratio by way of the films directed by him.

Apart from the film buffs, another person who was confused as to which Akshay had been signed was none other than another Priyan favourite, Rajpal Yadav. Interestingly, Rajpal was the last person to have been finalized by Priyadarshan for MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP. And since he blindly trusts Priyan he signed the film without enquiring about his role or the cast. So when Rajpal arrived on location in Goa and heard the crew mentioning Akshay(e), he thought it was Akshay Kumar. But was pleasantly surprised to see it was Akshaye Khanna instead!

The much waited MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP is all set to hit the screens on 13th June 2008.

(Glamsham)

Gandhi My Father acquired by Lionsgate

On the fifth day of the Cannes Film Festival actor and producer Anil Kapoor announced a deal of his first production venture - Gandhi My Father - with independent Hollywood studio Lionsgate.

This is a part of the deal that Eros International, which holds the worldwide distribution rights of Gandhi My Father, is slated to ink with Lionsgate. The official announcement of the same is expected in a day.

Speaking to Businessofcinema.com, Kapoor said, "I am in Cannes to announce the distribution of my film Gandhi My Father with Lionsgate. The studio will be distributing the movie in the North American region."

Gandhi - My Father released in India on 3 August, 2007. The film stars Akshaye Khanna, Shefali Shah and Darshan Jariwala.


Awesome!

Akshaye's autograph

Akshaye signs off on the guest comments for this hotel.

The making of MBPA title song

MEre Baap Pehle Aap Title Song

Coool

A witty Akshaye Khanna for the weekend.

Finally

After Aamir Khan, almost every other actor is actively participating in promoting and marketing their films. The usually reticent and shy Akshaye Khanna has started taking an active interest in his future films.



Says a source, “Akshaye has never shown so much interest in a film as he’s done for Shemaroo’s Mere Baap Pehle Aap directed by Priya-darshan. He saw the film’s rushes and was very excited about it.

Now he makes it a point to come to every marketing meeting and briefs everyone as to what he feels should be the correct strategy. In fact, when Akshaye saw the first promo of MBPA, which was to go on air he felt something was lacking. Akshaye took a day off and re-shot the promo again at Mehboob with Priyan’s approval.”

Mansi Maroo from Shemaroo, says, “Akshaye saw the rushes and wanted to promote and talk about it. Akshaye has been very involved at every stage of promotion.”

According to Mansi, Akshaye was very clear about the first look of Mere Baap Pehle Aap. Mansi says, “Akshaye feels the first look of every film is most important.

After we shot the first promo and Akshaye saw it he wanted to shoot a special promo. He wanted to separate our promos from the other films to get noticed and he was right. He had the dialogue writer Manisha write a script, had it approved from Priyadarshan (who also attended the shoot) and shot the promo.”

Mansi reveals, “In the promo, the part where Akshaye is selling his father as the perfect groom to prospective wives like in a matrimonial ad is entirely his own concept.

Mere Baap Pehle Aap is about a unique father-son relationship where the son (Akshaye Khanna) disciplines the father (Paresh Rawal) and tells him whom to hang out with. Om Puri and Paresh Rawal get caught in embarrassing shenanigans and Akshaye has to bail them out.”


Our guy starts taking interest in promotion and marketing and it's very important.

Akshaye's lucky mascot

Akshaye Khanna is busy with his next release Mere Baap Pehle Aap which will hit the theatres in June.

The Priyadarshan movie will see Akshaye Khanna in a comic role yet again. So is he the lucky mascot of Priyadarshan considering that he is seen in most of his movies? Pat comes the reply, “I don’t know whether I’m his lucky mascot but I do believe that he’s my lucky mascot,” Akshaye says laughingly. Well, we got your answer Akshaye, but what does Priyadarshan have to say about this ‘lucky’ combination?

Akshaye in Philippines

Akshaye Khanna seems to have had too much. No wonder he's packed his bags and is off to the Philippines for a detoxification programme.

It may be recalled that Akshaye Khanna was spotted in high spirits at the opening of a city bar, where he finally left for home with his glass in hand.

According to an eyewitness Akshaye was wobbling and seen behaving rather strangely. He was finally helped to his car by his two friends. In fact the actor was a treat for the shutterbugs forever in search of 'moments'.


Akshaye Khanna
The actor who was recently in news for holding his drinks, and literally so, right up till his car has found a new way to say 'cheers!'. His visit to the Philippines may just get him out of his hangover. A source close to the actor says, "Akshaye had been looking forward to it and he finally flew to the Philippines for a special detoxification programme."

Akshaye was shooting for Mere Baap Pehle Aap when he felt that he needed to go for this programme. Producer Mansi Maroo was completely supportive of the actor and even postponed the shooting of the promos, and some sequences with Genelia D'Souza.

When contacted, Mansi confirmed that Akshaye had indeed gone to the Philippines for detoxification. She said, "Yes, Akshaye has gone to for a detox programme. He's been working very hard continuously for the past few months over Shortcut and Mere Baap Pehle Aap. It was a much-needed break and this outing will do him some good. He told me he'll be there for around a week. After he returns he will have to shoot for a song sequence and then he'll get busy with the promotions of our film."

Akshaye is expected to return on May 18, all refreshed and geared to get back to the grind.

What is Detox?

Detox, short for detoxification, in general is the removal of toxic substances from the body. In conventional medicine, detoxification can also be achieved artificially by techniques such as dialysis and (in a very limited number of cases) chelation therapy. There is a firm scientific base in evidence-based medicine for this type of detoxification. Many alternative medicine practitioners promote various other types of detoxification.

Detoxification can also refer to the period of withdrawal during which a person's body to return to homeostasis (The ability or tendency of an organism or cell to maintain internal equilibrium by adjusting its physiological processes) after long-term use of an addictive substance.

This is the time he needs unconditional support from his fans. Keep him in your prayers.

Akshaye and Paresh rock together

Priyadarshan, Akshaye Khanna and Paresh Rawal had quite some fun working together in Hungama and Hulchul. And though Paresh Rawal continued to be in the scheme of things for Priyadarshan (Bhagam Bhag, Bhool Bhulaiyaa), there was a little gap before Akshaye returned to have some more 'masti' to his name. Come June and the trio would be setting the house on fire with Mere Baap Pehle Aap which is already creating some curiosity, courtesy with it's catchy title.

Why a title like Mere Baap Pehle Aap?

Says our source connected to the film, "The film is about this bachelor boy, played by Akshaye Khanna, who loves his widower father (Paresh Rawal) to such an extent that he wants him to get married again. Such is the relationship he shares with his father that he wants the latter to get married even before he himself finds his lady love. Hence the call of 'mere baap pehle aap'."

She adds, "In spite of an age difference between the two, they had an amazing comfort level working with each other. Complimenting each other on their scenes together, they ensured that Mere Baap Pehle Aap was an experience worth remembering. You would agree after watching the film that the camaraderie they share is simply phenomenal."

There are also talks about Om Puri doing an item song in the film. How much of that is true? "Yes, Om ji has donned gone all out in making sure that his item number stands out. In any case, whenever he has come together with Priyan, there is an extra zing in his performance. Remember Hera Pheri and Malamaal weekly? Even though it is not the first time that Om ji has done an item number (he had put his dancing shoes on for King of bollywood), the one that he has done for Mere Baap Pehle Aap would be remembered for quite some time."

Coming back to the lead protagonists of the film, audience is expecting nothing but the best considering Priyadarshan, Akshaye and Paresh are coming together after a hiatus. Giving a vote of approval, the source says, "Audience can be rest assured that they would have all the fun the moment film's screening begins. The camaraderie shared by Akshaye Khanna and Paresh Rawal is phenomenal. Their relationship is so real and yet it brings on so much laughs."

Reconciled

I am reconciled to MBPA now!

Akshaye gives up yoga

Even the guys are not far behind. Actor Akshaye Khanna says he used to do yoga earlier but in the past year or so he’s stopped yoga. “But I’m keen on getting back to it again,” he says

Oh no! Is he getting lax about keeping fit again?

MBPA stills 2

MBPA stills

He looks soo young. Almost like Doli Sajake Rakhna days. He should maintain his weight from now, seeing that he looks so good.