Satish Kaushik To transpose Karz from Ooty to foreign locations

It's not very clearly known at what point Satish Kaushik decided to pay a homage to one of his favourite colleagues and associates Subhash Ghai. But when Himesh invited Satish to hear his tunes for the neo-Karz, Satish was won over.

But homage it was, when Satish decided to remake Ghai's Karz. "But in a totally modern idiom. The story will be transposed from Ooty to a foreign location. We're looking at various possibilities in Europe," says Satish excitedly. "Karz is a dream come true. Himesh Reshammiya is like the Michael Jackson of India. So we've four brand equities coming together for the Karz remake – Subhash Ghai, Himesh, Bhushan Kumar's T Series, and me and Anupam Kher's Karol Bagh Films who will be the online producers on behalf of T Series."

What changes will Satish bring into the new Karz? "The locations, of course. This will be a 25-30 crore budgeted film. And Himesh's tracks have to be heard to be believed! When I heard them I was stunned. Himesh and I go back a long way. He has done the music for four of my films including Tere Naam which was a turning point in Himesh's career."

Speaking about Himesh The Actor, Satish says, "I'm capable of extracting performances from my actors. Tusshar Kapoor is yet to equal his success in my Mujhe Kuch Kehna Hai. Himesh has already proved himself a success as an actor. Now we've to build on that."

The crucial question on the Karz casting. Who will play the other key role played by Simi Garewal in the original? "It has to be lady with a great grace, poise, mystique and seductive quality living alone in this secluded mansion. I've to find someone who fits the bill fast."

Satish discounts the rumour that the roles of the two protagonists before and after the reincarnation will be turned into a double role for Reshammiya. "No. We'll have another actor for the first role, while Himesh will play the character reborn as a rock star. I'll try to stick to the spirit of Subhash Ghai's film as much as possible. What a film that was! Will I be able to do justice to it?"

What qualified him for the job? "I think it was the way I filmed those lavish songs and dances in Roop Ki Rani Choron Ki Raja. Karz requires a lot of on-stage direction."

UTV signs co-production deal with Kher and Kaushik

UTV announced that it has signed a co-production deal for the entire slate of productions to be launched by Anupam Kher and Satish Kaushik under their banner of Karol Bagh Film and Entertainment.

Anupam Kher and Satish Kaushik will each direct one production per year and produce atleast two others, which means UTV and Karol Bagh will together release at least four co-produced films per year.

The vision of this association is to make movies that span a variety of genres with varying themes, scales and budgets. The intention is to develop a blend of projects featuring established talent from the industry while also tapping into the wealth of young talent trying to get a foothold in the industry today.

UTV will co-produce, market and distribute all these productions, while Karol Bagh will focus on creative development and line production.

Announcing the association, Ronnie Screwvala of UTV said, "UTV has had a long creative relationship with both Anupam and Satish, and we are very happy to be associated with them in their new venture under the banner of 'Karol Bagh'. I am confident we can combine our strengths to make movies that break through the clutter, both commercially and creatively."

Anupam Kher and Satish Kaushik said, "This association is the best thing that could have happened to a creative team such as ours as it will enable us to concentrate on the creative aspects of film-making. We think that UTV would make an ideal combine with us, as it not only has an enviable record in the business, but it also has a global vision for the industry."