Abhishek and Aishwarya in Guru

At Apsara, Anuradha and Pragjyoti cinemas, the latest Bollywood release — Mani Ratnam’s Guru, starring Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, R. Madhavan, Vidya Balan, Mithun Chakraborty, Sachin Khedekar and Manoj Joshi.

Woh Lamhe, released late in 2006 from the Bhatt stable, is being screened at Vandana. Directed by Mohit Suri, it stars Shiney Ahuja, Kangana Ranaut and Shaad Randhwa in lead roles.

Vivah has travelled to Aruna cinema this week. Directed by Sooraj R. Barjatya the film’s cast includes Shahid Kapur, Amrita Rao, Alok Nath, Seema Biswas, Anupam Kher and others.

AT THE BOX OFFICE

Without any doubt, it’s Guru that’s at the top. This is partly due to lack of competition (read new releases) and mainly due to the rave reviews that the film generated after the first day’s first show.

Its initial earnings do not match that of Krrish, Don or Dhoom:2 but the movie has quickly gained in popularity. According to ushers, the film’s present occupancy is between 75 and 80 per cent and is expected to grow. This is in spite of a rather unstable law and order situation.

And no doubt, the “hot” news — the confirmation of Abhishek and Aishwarya’s marriage — will pull in more crowds to see the “royal couple” as husband and wife on screen.

Apparently inspired by the life and times of industrialist Dhirubhai Ambani, Guru is a period movie set in the post-Independence era. An ambitious villager, Gurukant Desai (Abhishek Bachchan) arrives in Mumbai with wife Sujata (Aishwarya Rai), Rs 15,000 and his dowry of Rs 25,000 in order to start a business of his own.

He soon realises that the world of business is ruled by a handful of rich and influential people and that he has to fight his way through.

Nanaji (Mithun), owner of a newspaper, and Shyam Saxena (Madhavan), an honest reporter, stand up to fight Guru’s unjust ways and expose him. Discerning audiences can be heard raving about the fabulous storyline and Abhishek’s fantastic performance. Kishen Singh, an avid movie buff, said, “After Shahenshah Amitabh, it’s Guru Abhishek.”

His friend Gauri Pradhan, who does not miss a single Bollywood release, said, “It is a masterpiece of a movie. Mani Ratnam’s Dil Se and Yuva were great movies, but this one’s almost perfect.”

In the next slot is Vivah, doing good business even after consecutive eight weeks in the city, followed closely by Woh Lamhe.

NEXT CHANGE

Surprises are best.