Some positive reviews are coming on of TMBWITW Aishwarya Rai’s Hollywood debut in Bride and Prejudice. And to promote Bride, which opens in NYC/LA/and Washington D.C. on February 11, and in the rest of the U.S. in the next couple of weeks, Ash seems to be making the rounds. First 60 Minutes, then her appearance on Nightline, and now, well actually tomorrow, Tuesday Night, she is going to be making an appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman. I hope Letterman’s heart can take it. Actually, I think it will be quite amusing to see how Letterman deals with Ash on the show. The film will have its glitzy red-carpet premiere tomorrow in New York as well.
Additionally some reviews of the film have been trickling in, and most have been kind of positive, especially with regards to Aishwarya’s performance. Ebert and Roeper gave Bride two thumbs up, and Peter Travers from Rolling Stone (who BTW mistakenly list Kareena Kapoor in the credits instead of Namrata Shirodkar–whose performance exceeded my expectations) proclaims
“Rai is a world-class hottie with talent to match, as she proves in her first English-speaking role. Pity pretty boy Martin Henderson (The Ring), who plays Darcy, the American in love with Lalita despite the prejudice of his hotel-magnate mom (Marsha Mason). He looks lost in his scenes with Rai. Like a kid driving a Rolls, he’s out of place and outclassed.The script unravels as it moves to London and Los Angeles and stuffs in new takes on Austen’s characters. But Chadha, the shrewdie, keeps the movie alive with swirling color, music and movement. The songs are deliciously silly, especially “No Life Without Wife,” which Lalita and her sisters sing in mockery of Mr. Kholi (a scene-stealing Nitin Ganatra), the bachelor who wants a bride for his new L.A. home. Purists who think Austen will be spinning in her grave will be wrong. She’ll be dancing.”
I think Travers was right on, but more than that, I think Bride highlights Chadha’s directing ability. You may say the film is nothing more than a kitchy musical ode to Bollywood, and essentially that is what the film is, in spite of its amazingly witty dialogue and charming song and dance numbers. However, when you begin to compare the performances given in Bride by Ash, and by Namrata Shirodkar, from those typical to a Bollywood film, to me it was as if they were transformed from being just pretty faces, which they definitely are, to people who I wouldn’t hesitate to call actresses. And I think that must be attributed to the director, or some really, rally good acting lessons.
I found the film thoroughly enjoying, and will definitely be seeing it a few more times. You should too. And don’t forget to check out Ash on Letterman tomorrow.
I can
t watch it because Im in Nippon but I expect you guys to do a thorough rundown of the segment. I think Letterman is going to gush over her the entire time. She`ll have to calm him down like a overheated pet.I hope she does not do what she did on 60 minutes (too cutesy).
Her “first English-speaking role”?? Seems an odd thing to say when maybe as much as 10% of the dialogue in Bollywood films is English…
Umm, am waiting for the day when the American media discovers Black….a deaf, mute, blind girl, her teacher who suffers from Alzheimer’s…an incandescent performance by Amitabh Bachchan (probably his best since the glory days in the 70s) and a once in a life-time performance by Rani Mukherjee…
And yes, no songs !!
Wonder what Hollywood will make of that !
Letterman has a thing about Indian women. A few years ago he was infatuated with Daljit Dhaliwal and he slobbered over her when she appeared on his show as a guest.
i know this is a big ask but it would be really appreciated if some one in the US (or other country where is is aired) could rip her segment on Letterman and share it eg bittorrent
/me prays
🙂
I saw the movie twice(on DVD)over the past weekend and loved it!!
The NYC premiere will actually be on Wednesday.
I’m just going to cut and paste to reiterate….
Ank G, February 1, 2005 02:55 PM: I saw the movie last week…while I was a fan of the dialogue, cinematography, editing, and plotline of G.C.’s Bend It Like Beckham, Bride & Prejudice is a disappointment…
Pleasantly, Aish isn’t the submissive woman you would predict, but the film tries to do way too much towards the end…the film spends a lot of time re-developing the same character traits over and over, and in the final 30 minutes, finds itself trying to tie up way too many loose ends…it tries to quickly make sense of multiple plotlines that leave the viewer wondering “where the hell did THAT come from??…”
…although I can stomach Bollywood stars lip-syncing to flawless songs, asking me to tolerate Aish singing broadway tunes is more than any man (or amateur movie critic) could handle…
The concept is good – just not exexuted well in this firm…there is one bright spot though – Nitin Ganatra- as Mr.Koli, your resident DCBA, is hilarious…
And, for those who aren’t aware of it – Martin Henderson (the male lead, Will Darcy) was also Clay Ford in “Torque”…
does anyone know how to get tickets to the NY premiere on wednesday?
Yeah: find someone with tickets and bump off his date 😉
lol … any better options? =)
Don’t know how to get more tickets to this particular event, but sign up on the Desipina and Sangam Entertainment mailing lists for future premieres.
“Letterman has a thing about Indian women. A few years ago he was infatuated with Daljit Dhaliwal and he slobbered over her when she appeared on his show as a guest.”
I think it’s just attractive women period. He recently had Salma Hayek on, and his jaw was open throughout the whole interview. Then again, I’d probably react the same way.
Sonia – linking your name to an Indian Wedding site is probably a bad way to get invited by a random desi guy in NYC 🙂
haha, thanks for the note Ennis. I’ll keep that in mind next time Aishwarya is in town. Meanwhile, spread the website to your engaged friends =)
A little bit of an underwhelming interview — Dave seemed completely flustered (what man wouldn’t be?), and Aish seemed a little cold. But, as ever, she lived up to her TMBWITW status…
i can’t believe they showed a clip that indicted tourists and americans for contributing to imperialism. that took a lot of balls.
dave sucked. he could have talked to ONE desi person before the show to find out that it’s not that weird for an adult kid in india to live with their parents…aishwarya was okay (i liked that she stood up for herself).
What’s the 411 Mutineers? I know more people have comments on Aish’s American nighttime debut.
Does anyone know where to find the interview online? I couldn’t watch it last night!
Okay interview. She HAS to get off giggling like a teenager!!! Too short an interview and too many eyebrow lifts to Paul!! Dave should have done his homework. A number of people in US do KNOW her. It so happens to be JUST the immigrant population and their American kids!!
Bah, they changed it from Wed to Tues night…
The interview was fluff – that was no surprise. Granted, Letterman is not a newsman, but just doing a quick search on Google would have helped. But, Rai did get in a neat jab, when after seeming to grow tired of talking about how she got started in entertainment, asked him, “So, how did you get started in this job?” Letterman, showing why he’s the best in late-night, said, “Well, the regular guy called in sick.”
I thought her Letterman appearance was much better than the early “60 Minutes” interview; she seemed more at ease, and less giggly.
from my diary:
I think her appearance on the Letterman show was all in all pretty good! I agree with Anna, she looked beautiful as always, but her outfit could have been better 🙂
Yeah, I’d like to see a clip too. Fell asleep on the couch before I could see her….yikes! I feel way to young to keep doing that, but, I keep doing that. Stupid east coast time!
I disagree.
I was embaressed for her. I dunno I gues she was OKAYU…but my GOD how bland can you be.Yeah she looked good but…yawn. I mean really who gives an eff. She is attractive yes, she is also a bad actress in a bad movie. She had this practiced laugh she did at wierd moments this sort of thow back your hair “hahahahaha”…oh david you cad! I dunno just boring. Dont get me wrong I am glad she was even given the chance, but I just wihsed she was a bit less “media trained” and more herself.
peace
Yeah, I say the same. The appearance was a bit lackluster given the “most beautiful woman in the world” and “billions of fans” lead-in. There seemed to be a gnawing awkwardness between Ash and Dave. The previous segment with Kevin James was a real contrast in terms of flow and ease of conversation. Oh, well. It’s her first time on the show. She’ll get better at these.
“Letterman, showing why he’s the best in late-night,”
Carson Daly is better at late night than Dave…okay, I exaggerate, but I think Stewart, Leno and Conan are all better…
What does this have to with Ash? I think a Leno interview would have been less of the awkward pseudo-interview this one was…
Kal Penn is in the new superman movie. He plays Lex Luthor’s right hand man. Dude is blowin up. They should have his skinny brown butt on Letterman. He would be ten times better that Ass-worrier Rai.
“but I think Stewart, Leno and Conan are all better.”
Briefly,
Stewart – arrogant, actually thinks he matters in the big scheme of things. Falling prey to Bill Maher syndrome. Leno – master of the soft-ball interview, which is why he is a fav for celebrities, but makes for dull television. Oddly, probably would have been better for Rai to appear on his show, since he would be easier for her.
O’Brien – okay, his comedic bits are better than Letterman’s, but his interviews are as bad as when he first got the show.
I took a step back, and watched Ash’s appearance on Letterman as if she was anyother star and thought she did amazingly well, 100 times better than the sixty minutes appearance. She was matching Dave’s wit, and seemed a lot more natural and at ease. I liked her clothing selection (I wouldn’t have expected her to wear some hard-core designer outfit on Dave), and thought the interview was extremely successful. And, I have a good feeling that she will be on Leno very soon.
just saw her at the premiere in NY… only one word … WOW
Okay I thought Ash wasn’t too bad on Letterman! But I am really pro-Bollywood…I think it is fantastic that everyone is looking up and noticing India and all that it has to offer…I agree with the gittiness that needs to go…but you can tell it’s just like a “nervous twitch”..and you can totally tell there is a difference between the “Indian Sense of Humour” and the “North American Sense of Humour”…that’s what I think created the awkardness….she just didn’t get it sometimes and that’s okay, she will get there eventually! I personally loved her outfit…I thought it was chic and good colors for the occassion, and besides its fashion week in NY…got to come looking a little “mod”!
People should stop making excuses for her (“she did better than on 60 minutes, she’ll warm up, she held her own, Dave had bad questions”).
Ash comes into the Hollywood market with more than most actors could ever dream of — a “Miss World” title, 25 odd movies, as star of the largest film industry in the world, and with reference to as the most beautiful woman in the world — and she still can’t hold a 7 minute interview?
She alienated Americans, David Letterman, and me, someone who actually used to think she was an unfair target of the Indian media. All she had to do was smile, be nice, and make some polite, moderately interesting, conversation. Instead, she appeared defensive, fake, boring, strange, and anti-American – not the sophisticated, charming, woman that she should be.
She sucked and it is no one’s fault than her own (and her handlers I suppose).
SFgirl,
You don’t think that Dave approaching her as if she were a martian had anything to do with her poor response?
Stewart – arrogant, actually thinks he matters in the big scheme of things. Falling prey to Bill Maher syndrome.
It might be a sad commentary on the state of the “real” media, but Stewart does matter in the big scheme of things.
Bill Maher and Stewart aren’t even in the same category. Maher generally has simple opinions designed to shock like “religion is bad”; Stewart does softball interviews with politicians, but the rest of his bits and particularly his media criticism are really pretty searching for a popular show on broadcast media.
arrogant, actually thinks he matters in the big scheme of things
KXB, isn’t this humanity in a nut shell? Isn’t that why your writing here?
here’s a query kiddos.
Is it ever possible for a male indian movie star to break through. I mean from India. and I mean real bollywood guy, not your Om Puri or Naveen Andrews, I say no way. No way Shah Rukh or Salman Khan could make it over here. For various reason really, culture, style etc. Its just easier for the women because they are immeidatlly exoticised and objectified by the western media. I dunno. discuss!
no way an indian actor could make it big here. first of all, most aren’t even attractive as indian men, let alone attractive globally (unlike aish). And no one here is into guys that can dance, but everyone loves a hip shaking woman. and the indian accent on a woman may seem exotic coupled with great looks, but on a man it will just look fobby.
While Hollywood is more open to casting foreign actresses, that does not guarantee they will be successful. To name just a few actresses who have either limited or no lasting success in Hollywood:
Michelle Yeoh Gong Li Penelope Cruz Paz Vega
I think the jury is still out on Salma Hayek and Monica Bellucci.
The last Asian actor who tried to make it a go in Hollywood was Chow Yun Fat. Now, I thought he was the coolest cat around in “Hard-Boiledâ€Â. You will not experience a greater adrenaline rush than seeing him, sliding down a banister, guns blazing. But I think the language barrier was just too much to overcome. Jackie Chan has had some commercial success, but only when paired with Chris Tucker or Owen Wilson.
The two groups which seem to be exempt – Brits and Aussies. I do not include Canadians like Jim Carrey and Mike Meyers, since Canada does not count as a country.
Ahem… not that he’s my cup of tea, but Ricky Martin and his hip-swivelling seemed to do pretty well here for a while.
An indian actor has just as much of a chance if he can act, and is “globally attractive”. But frankly, I think that chance is slim for Aish, Shah Rukh, or anyone else from Bollywood. The industries measure success differently. It’s more likely that someone like Sunil Shetty would do well in Hollywood- moderately successful by Bollywood standards, very masculine, and fairly easy on the eyes.
For the timebeing, at least we have Naveen Andrews and Kal Penn. Can’t really name two actresses of South Asian origin who have been that successful in Hollywood films…can anyone else?
yeah not too many south asian actresses hitting it big in hwood. Sheetal Sheth is in the new ALbert Brooks movie and Parminder Nagra in the ER titanic. Thats about it. Is anyone else amazed by Kal by the way. Dude is blowing up. He’s got 5 movies coming out next year. FIVE! hes like Jude Law. He’s like the Indian Kevin Bacon. crazy. For my money though, Naveen is the friggin man. Dude was ricockulous in English Patient. alrighty then. peace out.
I have really mixed feelings about this whole Aishwarya thing. I’m not a huge fan of Bollywood, but as someone who grew up in the US with messages that beauty and glamour equals Christie Brinkley, I’m proud that there is finally so much hype over an Indian (and that too Mangalorean:) ) girl like me. But so far she hasn’t really impressed me with her personality on either 60 Minutes OR Letterman. She seems to come off alternately stiff, bland, and snobbish, although that might just be her nervousness with a new audience. It was such a contrast to Kevin James- he seemed intelligent, personable and self-deprecatingly witty in comparison. And maybe the dumbfounded Letterman was at fault too. But regardless of how gorgeous they are, Americans like their celebrities to be someone they can relate to, rather than someone who is larger than life and unless she learns to act that way, it will be hard getting that kind of appeal in the US based on just looks alone.
ak, I’d agree with you, except that I felt that way when Rai won the beauty contest. There are plenty of beautiful people who have no business acting (see your aforementioned Christie Brinkley for evidence).
I want to throw my 500 yen into the mix here! I think Aamir Khan is tha bomb. He can act. He is also easy on the eyes 😉 I think he could go hollywood if began in the art movie market. I think Preity Zinta can act. She would crossover well. Of course both actors are very Aryan looking. On the dusty hued side, I think Vivek Oberoi is interesting. I can’t decide if he has acting chops though but he rocked in “Company”. I also think Bipasha could translate well (lookswise) in Hollywood!
Way to go Aishwarya!
http://www.SanjayMadhav.com
Ash is beautiful but for some reason I can’t get pass that tiring expression she makes in all of her publicity shots – that “top model†expression! Yes! She has been doing her home-work on how to achieve that world class “Hollywood†image. She looks great!! Perhaps she wants to be the Indian Beyoncé Knowles. At this moment She is flying good with the media but not with good directors. Chadha’s “Bride and Prejudice” is not a good film and did not do much for Ash as the leading lady and as a result Ash did not do justice to Lalita’s role – I was distracted by her bad accent and untrained acting ability – and by the way as a fan of some Bollywood films I’m not impress with what she has done so far and why all the hype I may add. Do you people out there really warship Ash as a big star and buy her posters on site and honor her on your web-site, so forth? I am amazed! You are all making her quite rich! America hasn’t seen Rani, Preity or Susmita as yet! I think if David Letterman had an opportunity to interview any of these women he would have a better impression of Indian women!
Greatest Indian Actress is Praminder Nagra , She is growing on her own talent, Aishwarya Rai with her green eyes and push from Millions of people and big Advertising Agents cannot beat her… Nice to note Beauty Cannot beat Brains or talent.. Three cheers to Parminder Nagra, her every piece of action has been extrordinary and if she makes 1/2 the make up Aishwarya Rai does, she will definitely look better.