Raja Bundela goes Hollywood

Article Updated 19 July, 2005 10:04:47 AM IST

Raja Bundela goes Hollywood

Indian Cinema is enjoying unprecedented appreciation all over the world. Names like Mira Nair, Gurinder Chadda, Deepa Mehta and Shekhar Kapoor have held the Indian flag high in the world of cinema. The latest to join this eminent list is Raja Bundela.

Raja has just returned to the country after directing a full-length feature film 'That Game Of Chess' in Los Angeles. The film has an entire Hollywood cast and crew apart from one artiste (Alok Nath) and the director (Raja).

Dwelling on the story, Raja says, "'That Game of Chess' is the story of a young man, Rahul (Viresh Sinha who is actually a US resident) from a middle class Indian family who goes to USA to realize his big dreams of opulence, name and fame. Rahul promises his dad (Alok Nath) that he will refrain from wine, women and drugs, which is so very common in the West but soon falls prey to all three. His predicaments lead to a break-up with his girlfriend (Melenie Malia) followed by another relationship (Kaize Guluam), which slowly but surely helps him to recover."

Produced by Boney Sharen, Amresh Sinha and Anuradha Sharma (who also stay in the US), 'That Game of Chess' includes actors like Spencer Scott Cazzy Golomb, Christie Hsiao, John Bozeman, Paul Hapeney and Kevin Carter. Raja explains the title, "Rahul finds himself in unusual predicaments throughout the film. How he maneuvers and wriggles himself out is one of the important aspects involved, something very similar to how a player juggles his game in chess."

Raja says that he shot 'That Game Of Chess' in March in 22 days flat. "The producers saw my film 'Pratha'. They asked me if I could complete the film in one schedule and I agreed. Shooting in LA was an unforgettable experience. The professionalism there has to be seen to be believed."

Raja was planning a film with Manmohan Shetty starring Amitabh Bachchan. "Shetty and Bachchan have the script, but they haven't got back to me," he offers, adding, "I may start off with a film titled 'Tina' for Pratap Singh. It's about a village girl who comes to the city and gets into prostitution. We have spoken to Urmila Matondkar and Amisha Patel. I am also going to approach Mallika Sherawat. Also, I may direct for Satish Kaushik. Talks are on," he says matter-of-factly.

That Game of Chess is targeted for an August release. "We plan to release it in India and the US simultaneously," he concludes excitedly. Raja Bundela is a graduate of the National School of Drama and the New Delhi Film and Television Institute of India (Pune). He has been associated with the making of films ('Pratha', 'Kis Ne Bharmaya Mere Lakhan Ko') and TV serials ('Mujhe Chaand Chahiye', 'O’ Maria', 'Scandal', 'Rajpath', 'Haadsa', 'Colgate Top 10', 'Milte Hain Break Ke Baad' and 'Yeh Shaadi Nahin Ho Sakti'). He also acted in many films like 'Arjun', 'Vijeta', 'Shola Aur Shabnam', 'Parmatm' and 'Swati', to name a few.

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