Expensive Action Sequences to be Shot for ‘Agent Vinod’

Producer Saif Ali Khan has asked his “Agent Vinod” director Sriram Raghavan to shoot three very expensive action sequences.

“I will have only three action sequences. But I won’t compromise on quality. I’ve spent considerable time writing the action sequences into the script. Now comes their execution,” Sriram said.

The next schedule of “Agent Vinod” is in March 2011.

“There are three big action sequences still to be shot. They require major prepping.I want to plan them out and shoot them on priority. There was no point going into another schedule without the required budget. We now have that in place for March. These sequences are VFX heavy and it’s better to do them first before I do my balance scenes. We’ve shot about an hour of footage already,” he added.

Sriram still hopes to release the film towards the end of next year.

“Both Saif and Kareena would have to be trained before we do the remaining action sequences,” Sriram said.

Making an action film as slick as its counterparts in Hollywood is not easy. Two of the pending action sequences would be shot in the UAE, far away from the country where they are located in the script, to economize on the rapidly spiraling budget.

Sriram admits he has been asked to keep costs down. “I need to keep a quality check while making sure we don’t go over-budget. There are three big action sequences to be shot. And yes, you’ve heard right. Two of them might be shot in the same location. For one of them I need choppers flying in the night. In India we aren’t allowed choppers at night. So we’ll have to shoot in the UAE.”

Sriram, who has already edited 65 minutes of footage for “Agent Vinod”, needs to shoot a very stylish prologue to go with the opening titles, and an epilogue which requires four days of shooting in Britain.

Would the prologue be as as stylish as the ones in the James Bond flicks?

Laughs Sriram: “I wish! But we don’t have that kind of budget.”

Kareena Kapoor has been telling the world that she has no heavyduty action sequences to perform with Saif in “Agent Vinod”.

The fact is, she has not one, but two very stylish and complex action sequences in “Agent Vinod”. For this she needs to undergo some amount of training. Apparently these sequences have been postponed until she finds the time to train, and until the budget permits them to be shot.

If preparedness is all, then “Agent Vinod” is not all there. Not yet.

Saif, Deepika to Sizzle Again in Adajania’s Next

After wowing the audience with their sizzling chemistry in “Love Aaj Kal”, Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone have teamed up again for Homi Adajania’s untitled film.

“I’m very excited about this story. It is romantic, funny and has a great balance of drama and entertainment. I’ve wanted to do a love story with a modern sensibility and treatment and I know that Homi will give us exactly that,” Saif in a statement.

“I’m also looking forward to my pairing with Deepika again…. She has a fantastic role in this and I think she has grown impressively since ‘LAK’ and will handle it very well,” he added.

Deepika is also excited to be working with Saif again.

“I have seen Homi’s ‘Being Cyrus’, and absolutely love his work, I have great respect for him, and I’m confident he is the perfect choice to direct this film. I haven’t played shades of a character like this before. This film also marks the reunion of the Love Aaj Kal team,” said Deepika.

Imtiaz is writing the script for the movie, which will be shot in London, Spain and Delhi. The film is being produced by Saif’s ex-business partner Dinesh Vijan under the banner Illuminati Films.

“It’s a similar space from where ‘Love Aaj Kal’ left off and then it roller-coasters from there… Imtiaz (Ali) has given us a hysterical and open-minded celebration of relationships that explore the various choices that life may offer… and what people are willing to surrender for love or sacrifice for friendship,” Adajania said in a statement.

Deepika Padukone Photo Gallery

Saif-Kareena red hot in ‘Agent Vinod’

Now that Kareena Kapoor is finally going to be part of Saif Ali Khan’s production plans no stone is being left unturned to ensure her presence is justified in the Khan-produced venture. Apparently in the beginning the leading lady’s role in Agent Vinod was relatively less substantial than Saif’s.

Says a source, “In fact Kareena wasn’t sure she wanted to do Agent Vinod because the title clearly indicated whom the film belonged to. But Saif convinced Kareena that her role would be on a par with his. Then he convinced Sriram with whom Saif has a deep rapport since they did Ek Hasina Thi together to make sure Kareena’s presence in the film is justified.”

Quiz Kareena about this, and she laughs, “Do you think I’d agree to be part of the film if my role was not as exciting as Saif? I mean, can you imagine what would happen? Saif and I will be smouldering-hot in Agent Vinod. Even the posters will be designed to highlight us as the coolest hot pair.”

Clearly, after Rensil d’Silva’s terrorist drama in which Saif and Kareena look and act very real the pair is in no mood to get into the authentic space once again.

But here’s where the problem sets in. While Kareena and Saif are looking to do a high-gloss big-budget espionage thriller director Sriram Raghavan is looking at making a gritty life-like spy drama.

Says Raghavan, “I grew up watching those really filmy spy films like Farz, Aankhen, Yakeen and of course the Rajshris’ Agent Vinod. I’ve been fascinated by the genre. However times have changed and so have definitions of espionage. My film will occupy a more real space.”

He admits his spy drama will be more in the mood of Mani Shankar’s recent Mukhbir than the old Agent Vinod . At the same time Raghavan admits the high budget of the new-age Agent Vinod forbids any over experimentation, “I’ve never worked on this kind of a budget before. And I can’t afford to be experimental. The market has to be kept in mind. So there will be music and songs. But no lip sync songs.”

With Saif wanting to be Tom Cruise and Kareena looking as hot as Nicole Kidman in his arms Sriram Raghavan could be heading for more excitement than he bargained for when he starts shooting in July.

Kareena Kapoor Photo Gallery

Kareena’s Coldest Night With Saif

Kareena Kapoor experienced the coldest night with her beau Saif Ali Khan while shooting in Philadelphia. The couple is otherwise quite cosy together but Kareena needed a whole lot of winter wear including jackets, shawls, boots and pullovers to keep warm while shooting for Karan Johar’s flick with Saif.

She said, “It was the coldest night of my life… You’ve no idea what it was like in that heavy snowfall with a unit of 80 people. But it looked like heaven.”

No points for guessing who made it ‘heavenly’ in such freezing cold for Kareena. The couple decided to keep shooting in such an extreme climate because they want to take a break from Christmas to New Year for Saif’s annual family bash at his ancestral home.



Source: http://bollywood.celebden.com/?p=5419