'Thrilled with response to Aisha'

Anil Kapoor and Sonam made for a beaming father-daughter team, as both expressed happiness over the reception for their new film, Aisha. Sandhya Iyer brings the spot report

In spite of mixed reviews for Aisha, Anil and Sonam were in an upbeat mood, as they came as celebrity guests for the finale of Zee TV's Dance India Dance L'il Masters, held at Balewadi Sports Complex on Saturday evening.
At a brief press meet at Hotel Sayaji, Sonam walked in looking resplendent in a maroon-gold sheer sari. “I am so happy with the response to Aisha,” she gushed. “You know, I’m not so much into boxoffice figures, but my brother follows it closely. That's his forte. In the morning, he woke me up, saying ‘Didi, these are the numbers, and they are awesome!' The reviews have all been nice to me,” she said, looking genuinely pleased at the turn of events.



Anil too played the part of a proud, supportive father, “Actors must not get into the business aspect of a film. Bas, apna kaam karo. It’s the job of the trade and media to convey numbers correctly. I was on the phone with the PVR CEO just before coming down and he was very excited about the collections. The film is doing encouraging business everywhere. It has done a total business of 9 crores gross worldwide on the first day, which is phenomenal for a niche film, meant for youngsters – they are all loving it! And that’s great for a film all about girls. I am really proud of Sonam,” he said.
Many believe Aisha was produced by their home banner as a mega-launch and showcase vehicle for Sonam, though she debuted with Saawariya. Anil, however shrugged this off, saying that a launch was never the idea, “Our co-producer PVR was interested because Sonam was in it. She was the main attraction for them. I’ve never done anything to launch Sonam and I say this honestly.”

When did Anil first think that Sonam had it in her to become an actress? “When I used to see her dancing as a kid at our family events – that is when I knew she would be in films. The party would be over, everyone would have left, and here, she would still continue dancing on stage all alone. We all thought she might want to grow up and act in films. Then she decided she didn’t want to be an actress. And then again, she wanted to be one,” he said, smiling.

Aisha is about a young rich heiress who has a penchant for match-making. But Anil has no such ideas for pretty daughter, and believes people must find their own life partners. “That’s the best thing. Only if one feels that they are making a totally wrong choice, must parents advice them that ‘hey, you’re not doing the right thing’
Later both came for the finale of Dance India Dance and enthusiastically took part in the proceedings. There was a lot of playful banter seen between the show’s grandmaster Mithun Chakraborty and Anil – who kept pulling each other’s leg. Anil was effortless on stage, throwing excellent impromptu comic punches. When the show's achor, Manish Paul (superbly entertaining) asked Anil what he felt about Sonam's success as a father, the actor protested in mock anger, “Kya tum! Why do you keep saying, ‘father' father'. You must say, Mr Kapoor, how do you feel about your film, Aisha, as a producer? Kya mein father lagta hoon!” He asked the audience the question, and the entire mass of crowd lustily cheered for him.

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In a tightly fought contest, it was 11 year old Jeetu Moni who was declared winner of the immensely popular dance show on television. The Grand Finale, held in Pune at Balewadi marked the end of a thrilling dance journey for 16 bright kids from across the country, who dazzled screens with their performances week after week.