When Bollywood stars leaped into Hollywood

With the news about Nargis Fakhri letting go off a meaty role in a Bollywood film for a Hollywood project trickling in the spotlight is on how Bollywood actors strive for a part in the West Whether the role is substantial or belongs to the blinkandyoumissit variety will be known when the film releases But intermittently there is always talk about how some star big or small has been approached by a leading Hollywood filmmaker The truth is most think bagging a role however teenyweeny in a Hollywood film is a step ahead of Hindi filmsAnil KapoorLast year there was buzz that Deepika Padukone turned down Fast and Furious 7 as it was clashing with Ram Leela The actress is open to doing roles in the West irrespective of length if the character is a strong one Apart from Dippy there was buzz that a whole lot of actresses from Sonam Kapoor to starlets like Rekha Rana had been approached for Fast and Furious 7Richa ChadhaRemember Bipasha Basursquos outing in Roland Joffersquos Singularity which was filmed in 2010 She was linked with costar Josh Hartnett The film shot in Australia and India hasnrsquot seen the light of dayA Bollywood insider says ldquoBollywood has always been fascinated by Hollywood They lift their stories and ideas and now want to be part of it The actors think that it adds to their star value if a Hollywood production house is showing interest in them They feel that they will be put on a global platformrdquoStarlet Richa Chadha claims that she had not one but three Hollywood offers She had to turn each of them down as she was not comfortable doing intimate scenes that required her to go nude ldquoIt has something to do with Indian psyche I can not do nude scenesrdquo she had stated then Ask her about the people involved and she is evasive She says that since she is not a part of the film she doesnrsquot want to talk about itAnother starlet Neetu Chandra was wooed by the West and she managed to do a Greek film What happened to it is not clear anymore Her PR team went into an overdrive claiming that Neetu was mistaken for a Spanish actress and that she was roped in to play the lead in a film called Island of the Blue Dolphins The film was said to be directed by Joe Johnston of Jumanji and Captain America fame It was later discovered that there was no such film as some fraudsters had conducted fake auditions on SkypeAmong recent examples is R Madhavan who is part of Night Of The Living Dead Origins produced by Simon West of Con Air and Lara Croft Tomb Raider fame It is a remake of 1968 zombie film Night Of The Living Dead In an interview he stated that India is a popular flavour in Hollywood ldquoThey filmmakers suddenly realised that Indian actors get more eyeballs than Hollywood actorsrdquo he saidSays the insider ldquoActors feel a sense of importance when they star in Hollywood films They feel that there is a bigger platform out there and they might just get noticed It exposes them to another style of working and proves to be a learning experiencerdquoAnil Kapoor who had a significant role in Danny Boylersquos Slumdog Millionaire 2008 did go on to be a part of the TV series 24 and Mission Impossible mdash Ghost Protocol 2011 where he had a nowyouseehimnowyoudonrsquot role While Mallika Sherawat starred alongside Jackie Chan in the 2005 film The Myth her Hollywood career petered out as she landed forgettable roles in films like Hiss 2010 and Politics of Love 2011 which never hit the marquee Sherawat shuttles between Mumbai and Los Angeles still hoping to revive her careerOver three years ago there was news that Shah Rukh Khan and Hollywood star Leonardo Di Caprio would come together for Paul Schraderrsquos Xtreme City which would be produced by Martin Scorsese Nothing happened on that front Amitabh Bachchan however did share screen space with Leo in The Great Gatsby where he had a rather disappointing cameo Big B definitely deserved better