Tussaud's waxes eloquent on Indian filmstars

Tussaud's waxes eloquent on Indian filmstars
Rajeev Masand

An Indian celluloid star is soon to be immortalised in wax at London's Madame Tussaud's museum, which has a collection of nearly 400 wax statues of eminent personalities. The shortlist has five names -- Amitabh Bachchan, Raj Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Aishwarya Rai and Shah Rukh Khan -- and the final choice will be made after conducting an opinion poll and assessing the height of the star's continuing popularity and his/her appeal.

On a recent visit to Mumbai, Samantha Wade, an accounts manager for the museum said the museum adds 15 new statues every year, and in the wake of increasing requests from visitors to include Indian movie stars, it has decided to devote one statue to a popular Bollywood actor this year.

Prem Subramanium of the British Tourist Authority (BTA) revealed the decision on which star's statue would grace the museum would be taken by a team of Madame Tussaud's based on opinion polls and the forecast of the star's continued popularity, and his/her universal appeal. On May 11, Madame Tussaud's Diane Moon said the aforementioned five Indian stars had been shortlisted ``after consultation with a panel of Indian movie buffs, trade pundits from film and entertainment magazines, community radio stations, the BBC, and Bollywood insiders at B4U.''

Amitabh Bachchan is part of the list because ``his career spans three decades and with over 100 films under his belt, he is a Bollywood icon. He was recently voted the most famous star of stage and screen in the world over in a BBC-online poll.'' Madhuri Dixit is on the shortlist for having ``appeared in some of the most successful Bollywood films of recent years, and she is considered by many as the biggest female star of Hindi cinema.'' Raj Kapoor, of course, is ``a cross between Clarke Gable, Gary Cooper and Gregory Peck, a legendary movie mogul who was hugely popular until his death in 1988. Shah Rukh Khan is among the lucky five for being a ``respected and versatile actor. Besides, ``he has a huge and faithful international fan following in addition to being one of the most prolific and best-loved actors in India. And Aishwarya Rai's ``performances to date have attracted much attention, and early predictions are for a long and illustrious Bollywood career").

Also, for the first time ever, Madame Tussaud's has invited the public to vote for the star they want to see immortalised in wax. The museum has invited fans to register their votes online at www.madame-tussauds.com and has announced that the result will be declared at the International Indian Film Awards (IIFA) to be held at London's Millennium Dome on June 24.

The museum says it will take up to six months to create the first statue of an Indian actor. Subramanium explains, ``The star chosen has to agree to the same, and must give time for an extensive shoot in India.'' He adds the star will also be expected to participate in sittings for the statue-makers and will need to loan an appropriate costume for the same. The chosen one, Subramanium mentions, ``must be prepared to come to the UK for the launch. Also, the star would have to be available if the wax model is transported to India for PR opportunities.'' Incidentally, Subramanium says, a wax model costs 30,000 British pounds (approximately Rs 21 lakh) to execute.