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Vidhu Vinod Chopra is sure directing a film after seven years but he is also making raving news about his 3.5 crore Rolls Royce gift to Mr. Bachchan (This apart from the big signing amount that he gave to Mr. Bachchan).

The duo’s journey doesn’t end here; they will be seen together in Talisman which will be directed by Ram Madhvani. According to Vidhu, “Talisman is a fantasy; it is Indian’s reply to Lord of the Rings. It is really something that is very huge.” Apart from Talisman, Munnabhai Cahle Amrica and 64 Squares are his next planned ventures.

Eklavya- The Royal Guard is surely going to be a fond memory for every actor and the director for long as all the stunts in the movie were done by the actors themselves. And hence follow some real interesting gripping stories on the sets: Mr. Bachchan again proved his dare devil attitude when he agreed to do the risky scarf burning scene in the movie all by himself in spite of his fear of fire (he had suffered severe burns on his right hand in an accident in the past). In another terrifying incident Big B got almost got crippled by the camel he was supposed to ride. But the legendary actor sums it up in his humility by saying, “When you are doing an action scene, you obviously know action sequences are action sequences, and it can go wrong. They are manufactured sequences; it’s not like its on real time. And when you manufacture some things, the balance, the timing can go wrong. The camel decided to kick me in the head. These things happen… Actually, I should thank Vinod for giving me the costume, because the turban saved me!” Boman Irani who plays the King also has some interesting tale to tell: “You know there is shot of me sitting in the car and the bullet goes past my ear and through the back screen of the car. Mr.Tinu Verma decides to fire a live bullet into the back screen and he is sitting right there between my legs with a gun, pointed and says “Thoda darne ka acting karo”. I’m like Tinuji don’t worry mein dara hi hu, I’m really scared and so the performance will come. Tinnu Verma shoots and the bullet went past my ear and hits the back screen of the old vintage car. Tinnuji was supposed to hit the center but it goes two inches high and hits the metal frame. And I dread to think what if it hit the frame, and rebound and hit my ears. But I swear I’ll never do that again. I swear I’ll never do it again”. After hearing to these accounts it is humanly impossible to not wait for the theatre packed release of this Vidhu Vinod Chopra film.

Amitabh Bachchan again features as the protagonist in Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s ‘Eklavya- the Royal Guard’ and Big B dons a new look with the new character. “The look had to be contemporary and at the same time have a hint of the traditions of India; that’s what Eklavya is all about; hence a lot of effort was taken for Bachchan’s bearded look and costumes in the film to appear authentic. Mr. Bachchan was gracious enough to toil through the numerous beard and costume tests to finally get the right look.” says Chopra. Chopra had worked very hard to get the right kind of look for the character and Fashion Designer Raghuvendra Rathore, who is of Royal clan, and costume designer Subarna Rai Chaudhari helped him out with the venture.

Amitabh Bachchan says, “With Vinod being the perfectionist that he is, he tried his level best to convince me to stop all other work to grow a real beard to get the authentic look. Since that wasn’t possible, we ended up having several sittings – beard trials to get the right hair, colour, etc. This was just the beginning… then we went on to the turban, then the dress which went on for months. I eventually realized Vinod has a penchant for perfection and I like that attitude. It’s wonderful to be told after 35 years that I think you are wrong and this should be done in this manner and that’s what Vinod did and I appreciate that. I hope the look is finally presentable and people will like it.”

Sure this combination is going to create a hit. Hopefully the film would rise upto the expectation.

Shantanu Moitra does his trick again successfully again with ‘Eklavya- The Royal Guard’. Picturised on Vidya Balan, the song ‘Chanda Re’ has a classical feel and a crisp laidback energy that reminds you of the music in Parineeta. The promos have promising and a good sign for the coming music release of the movie’s music. The movie, Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s directorial venture after seven years, itself is one of the much awaited movie of 2007.

Vidhu Vinod Chopra is a happy man again. His directorial venture seven years after ‘Mission Kashmir’, a violent family saga ‘Eklavya-The Royal Guard’ has managed a U-certificate with no scissors touched on it from the censor board. A contemporary dramatic action thriller, the film revolves around Eklavya (Amitabh), the loyal guardian of a royal dynasty whose duty is to protect the erstwhile royal family in Devigarh, Rajasthan. The cast of characters also includes Prince Harshwardhan (Saif), an irreverent police inspector (Sanjay), the king’s scheming brother (Jackie), his son (Jimmy) and the prince’s childhood love (Vidya). What follows is a story of deceit, revenge, drama and action. Set in present day India, the film has a special resonance for today’s world, endangered by hateand violence borne of fanatic belief. The movie is shot in locales never seen before on celluloid. A multistarrer with non-stop action, drama, thrills and song, Eklavya is slated for February 16 release.