Dhobi Ghat First Look At Andheri

Prateik: Aamir is like a father, brother and friend

Aamir Khan beamed like a proud father introducing prodigal son as he showcased the trailer featuring Prateik, as Munna of Dhobi Ghat.

Aamir proudly presented Prateik to the world saying, "I am here as a producer today. Prateik is a dream for a producer to work with. He was extremely dedicated. He practiced for 2-3 months, before we went to the DHOBI GHAT and interacted with the dhobis. He is ideal actor among today's generation. I'm very happy to present Prateik to you all."

Prateik had only kind words to say in return, "I'm very grateful for such a wonderful opportunity. I'm very lucky to have DHOBI GHAT as my first film. Usually actors have their first films which have a romantic track but DHOBI GHAT is a very different film, and the script is just so good, that I was drawn to it."

When Prateik was questioned about not being nervous, he said, "This is the Aamir Khan effect! Actually Aamir is just so many things to me. He's like a father, brother and friend so the comfort level I share with him is great..."

"Kiran can't stop me from promoting Dhobi Ghat"

When the first look of 'Dhobi Ghat' was revealed, director Kiran Rao did not want her husband and actor-producer Aamir Khan to attend the event so that the spotlight doesn't shift from the movie to him. But who can keep Aamir away!

"I was never meant to be away from the promotions of the film. I'm very proud of the film and I'm part of it, since I'm the producer and have also acted in it. Even Kiran can't keep me away from it," Aamir told reporters.

"I'm happy to be a part of it and I will be part of it till the end," he added.

'Dhobi Ghat' that stars Aamir along with Prateik Babbar, Monica Dogra, Kriti Malhotra, Kitu Gidwani and Nafisa Khan is a film about four characters from different classes of society and how their lives are intertwined. The film is Kiran's directorial debut.

It is slated to hit the screens Jan 21.

Asked if he helped Kiran in the filmmaking process, the 45-year-old actor promptly said: "If I had not helped her, she would have killed me. As her husband, it is my duty to help her always and as it is, as an actor, whatever film I'm connected to, I feel I'm a team player."

Aamir is playing the role of a painter in the film but he revealed that initially he wanted to take up Prateik's role.

"When I heard all the characters, I really liked Prateik's character and wanted to do that. But the character requires someone who looks 18-19 years old. So to prove it to Kiran that I can look that young, I did ‘3 Idiots'. But she still didn't agree. Thankfully she gave me some role in her film," he said.

Aamir also revealed that 'Dhobi Ghaat' will be released in two versions - one completely in Hindi and the other with a few scenes in English.

"The film has 8-10 scenes in English. But we realised that people who are not very comfortable with the language would be in a tough spot. So we dubbed those scenes in Hindi," Aamir said.

"We will release the film in two versions. One will be completely in Hindi and the other will have the original English dialogues. People can choose the version they want to see," he said.

The 45-year-old confirmed that both the versions will be released Jan 21.

Amitabh Remembers His Old Friend Smita Patil

Almost three decades after his near fatal injury during the filming of a fight scene for the film 'Coolie', Amitabh Bachchan revealed that actress Smita Patil had a premonition about the accident a day before it took place.

"Smita was a unique lady and she had a premonition about my accident," Amitabh told reporters in Mumbai.

"I was shooting for ‘Coolie' in Bangalore in 1982. One night at about 1am I got a call from Smita. She said, ‘I'm sorry to disturb you Amit-ji, but are you okay?'. I said yes I'm fine. Then she said, ‘I had a really bad dream and I just wanted to find out if you were okay'. Next morning, I had that accident on the sets of ‘Coolie'. It was just unbelievable," Amitabh said.

"Then, throughout my two-three months in the hospital, she was a regular visitor and even when I came back home, she used to come every evening to inquire if I was doing well. I can never forget that," he added.

The 68-year-old walked down memory lane and remembered the incident while talking about Smita's son Prateik, who will be working with the actor in Prakash Jha's forthcoming film 'Aarakshan'.

Amitabh said that working with Prateik will be an emotional experience for him.

"This film is going to be my first association with Prateik. Whenever I see him, I think about his mother. The resemblance, the attitude, is very much like her. I'm afraid that it's going to be a little emotional for me working with him because Smita was a very dear friend," he said.

Aarakshan Launch Pictures

Aarakshan - 2011's big starrer

After the blockbuster film RAAJNEETI, Prakash Jha is all set to begin his next AARAKSHAN, a high voltage drama based on one of the most controversial policies of caste based reservations in government jobs and educational institutions.

Laying to rest all media speculations, Prakash Jha, in an event, unveiled the power packed star cast of his film. Amitabh Bachan, Saif Ali Khan, Manoj Bajpayee, Deepika Padukone and Prateik Babbar form the cast of AARAKSHAN, making it one of the biggest multi-starrers of coming year.

Says the sorted filmmaker Prakash Jha, "AARAKSHAN has an amazing array of actors. They are some of the most talented people in the industry and I am confident that all of them together in AARAKSHAN, will create magic."