Madras Cafe is India’s Argo: John Abraham

“My studio people saw the rushes of the film day before yesterday and the only thing they said was, ‘Thanks for this opportunity to support this film because this is like the Argo of India’,” the 40-year-old said on Thursday at the unveiling of Star Week magazine cover featuring him.

“According to me, Madras Cafe is a very international film and I also feel it is a film that India can proudly showcase and say, ‘We also make a film of this kind’,” he added.

Directed by Hollywood actor-producer Ben Affleck, Argo talks about an Iran hostage crisis in 1979. The film had received seven nominations for the 85th Academy Awards and won three trophies — best film editing, best adapted screenplay and best picture.

John — whose first production was Vicky Donor — plans to break the stereotype image that Bollywood films have in the west.

“Normally we are very proud of our films, I enjoy films like Golmaal and Housefull because they make you laugh — it’s fun. But normally when we go out, our films are typecast as just a Bollywood film. It becomes a caricature.

“I have tried to break that caricature with Madras Cafe and I create a film that I take to the west and say ‘Listen, this film is as good as your film, if not better’,” John said.

To make it even bigger, John has planned an international release for the movie in North America and Europe.

“Madras Cafe is a film that I choose to release completely in the North American market and not just for the Indian diaspora there. I feel it’s a film like Amores Perros or any of the international films that release in North America and Europe on a wide scale. So I will plan a release with Paramount Pictures and make it big,” John said.

In Madras Cafe, John plays an army officer. Directed by Shoojit Sircar, the film also stars Nargis Fakhri and is slated to release in August.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 3^rd, 2013.

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