The Hindu Business Line : The year of remakes and sequels...

The first week of the year has pretty much meant dismal tidings for Bollywood. This year too, the new films have yielded a mixed bag. Aparna Sen's powerful portrayal of the life of a schizophrenic young woman, 15, Park Avenue, will keep small-capacity multiplex theatres full for a while. The unenthusiastic reception of the other two releases, Jawani Diwani and Devaki (the first, full of bikini-clad women and typical Emraan Hashmi sizzlers, and the second, a simplistic look at the condition of women in India) means that the movies will not last beyond the week.

But industry watchers, still flush with the successes of 2005, are upbeat. PVR group's Bijan Bose points out that in 2006, all the titans are back in play, as opposed to last year. Crystal-ball gazing in showbiz is something even the most prescient old hands steer clear of, because no one knows what will work. But if anything has a chance in a chancy market, it is the big banner movie, which comes attached with all the bells and whistles: big stars, exotic locations, exciting action, and, because this is Bollywood, lots of emotions.

The most eagerly awaited films, valued at roughly Rs 150 crore, have already gained blockbuster status through carefully orchestrated hype. Topmost is Karan Johar's mushy musical Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna (Shah Rukh Khan); followed by Rakesh Roshan's Krishh (Hrithik Roshan), the sequel to the super-hit sci-fi-cum-romance, Koi... Mil Gaya; Farhan Akhtar's Don (SRK), a remake of the 1970s' smash-hit; and Yashraj Films' Dhoom II (Abhishek Bachchan), another sequel, whose USP, apart from the macho men and the even more macho bikes, appears to be Aishwarya Rai appearing in a bikini. The other Chopra production, which should also come out this year, is Fanaah (Aamir Khan). Its chief attraction is Kajol's comeback after a hiatus. Yashraj Films was visible last year with its distribution ventures; the others have been out of theatres for a while now.

The line-up also includes Ravi Chopra's Babul, the sequel to Baghban, in which Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini proved that passion is not the property of 20-somethings, and gave their selfish children a lesson or two. Ram Gopal Varma should be back, too, with his controversial remake of Sholay, which he calls literally, and completely unimaginatively, Ram Gopal Varma Ki Sholay, in which the cast keeps changing. In fact, judging by the never-before-numbers of moviemakers re-doing old hits, wags have already dubbed it the year of The Remake.

Let's also take a look at what the superstar Khan trio, whose movies have the power to resuscitate the industry, is up to. SRK, still going strong at 40, will be back all guns blazing with Kabhi Alvida... and Don. Last year, he produced and acted in the off-beat Paheli, which for reasons best known to film selectors, has been chosen as India's official entry for the Oscars; for the past month, SRK has been wrapping up the shoot for Johar's film in New Jersey, and promoting Paheli ahead of the Oscars in Los Angeles. The trade is relieved: SRK being back in his kind of movies means major bucks at the turnstiles.

It's never a good idea to keep fans waiting for too long, because audiences are not prepared to be as forgiving these days. The sorry fate of Mangal Pandey has made sure that Aamir Khan returns to the screen within six months. His Rang De Basanti, for which he began shooting in an uncharacteristic hurry as soon as Mangal Pandey's promotional tours were over, is out two weeks from now.

But there is a cautionary note attached to Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra's film, the promos of which look fresh and come overlaid with A.R. Rahman's music. His previous Aks, a dark, beautifully shot but ultimately turgid tale of good and evil, didn't fare well at the box office, and as Farhan Akhtar discovered with the failure of his great-looking but ultimately unconvincing Lakshya, it's not enough to use pretty faces and camera angles, you also need a story which the audience connects to.

And Salman, ever the wildcard of Bollywood, who met with failure in Kyun Ki, his only solo-hero project last year, will appear with Amitabh Bachchan in Babul. Of his other films, the one most likely to release is Marigold, his first `Hollywood' venture (the finance is coming from a US-based company, and it has an American actress), which has been in the making for some time.

And then there is the Big B (Bachchan Jr has had a bit of a setback at the year-end with his con-movie Bluffmaster diving at the box office). Amitabh was first on everybody's top 10 lists last year. Black, Bunty Aur Babli, Waqt, and Sarkar were major money-spinners. In Viruddh, he pitched in a career-best performance. In Dil Jo Bhi Kahey, he played the hero's father. The film, whose leading man was the producer's son, was a disaster because of its mothballed story and treatment; the only person you remember is Amitabh, giving it all he has, doing the bump-and-grind, and the laughs, and the tears.

Like his son, his last movie of 2005, Ek Ajnabee, bombed. But the blame has been placed neatly, and legitimately, at the door of the director, who couldn't even do a decent rip-off of the Hollywood actioner, Man On Fire. As far as the audience was concerned, even at 60-plus, Amitabh looked swish and swung a mean left hook; it was a pity that the movie was a dud.

He's back today with Family. It is, once again, the role of a patriarch, and the movie has been made to launch producer Keshu Ramsay's son. But Amitabh has learnt the secret of longevity in this fickle world of movies: solo-hero projects should be left to the Shah Rukhs (can't say the same, anymore, for even Aamir and Salman). Strong, supporting roles are the way to go. And this is one lesson that all leading men, especially the aging Khan brigade, can take to the bank: there is safety in numbers.