Kim Honeymoon

Monday, January 5, 2009

Here's Looking at Dabboo Ratnani's 2009 Calendar

B-Town photographer Dabboo Ratnani unveils his 2009 calendar today amidst the starry brigade. He is celebrating the 10th year of his work of art. To mark the decade, Dabboo has indulged in two things he has never done with the camera — shooting an actress in a sari and working with Sushmita Sen, who graces his calendar for the first time.

Who's in it

Apart from Sush, it features Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Kangana Ranaut, Sushmita Sen, Sanjay Dutt, Kajol, Riteish Desh-mukh, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan and Hrithik Roshan.

Mixed hues

"I have not restricted myself to any dramatic theme for 2009. Some are in black and white, some are in reds while the rest are in vivid colours," says Dabboo who begins work on his annual ritual in September every year. "Initially, I used to collect snaps of the stars I had shot and put them together for the calendar. But later, I began shooting them exclusively for it."

Kajol

Initially, it was supposed to be shot in a rundown garage. But when I saw Kajol in the gown and in keeping with her bindaas image, I put her on top of a cab. We shot for it on the streets of Oshiwara and despite the crowd, she was gung-ho. The concept is the morning after a party with the glass and her footwear carelessly thrown in.

Riteish Deshmukh

A Beatles-inspired black-and-white '60s look. I wanted to give the picture an extremely retro feel. In stead of having him strumming the guitar, I had him chucking it — just to make it look more cool. And check out Riteish's suit.

Deepika Padukone

This is the first time in all these years that I have shot an actress for the calendar in a sari. That is why the warrior queen/devi look with the sword in hand. The picture is sensual but has a lot of mood in it.

Sunjay Dutt

I had gone over to Sanjay's place to shoot him. But when I saw his Ferrari, I changed my mind. He had just bought it and as he is crazy about cars, it had to be him and his new pair of wheels.

Pin-up art

Kajol

Deepika Padukone

Sanjay Dutt

Ritesh Deshmukh

Sunday, January 4, 2009

Kajol Features On The Cover of Men's Magazine M (January 2009 Issue)

After Priyanka and Tabu, it's now Kajol's turn to be featured on the cover of M, a lifestyle and luxury magazine for men.

Bringing it forward

Says a source, "Normally, the magazine features one big actress a year on their cover. They feature strong, independent, successful actresses. While they shot with Tabu last year; for the February 2009 issue they shot with Kajol. They loved her picture so much that they decided to use it and the interview for the January issue instead. Kajol, too, was also very accommodating during the shoot. Though she is known to be difficult, when she was shooting the lights went off but she did not complain."

Kajol adds, "It was great fun to shoot and to see how far you can go. It's great working with Jatin Kampani. I think he can make anybody look good, even me."

On the wishlist

Pranav Capila, executive editor, M, "Why wouldn't a men's magazine want Kajol on its cover? She's certainly been on our wish list for a while. She's one of our most talented actors; she's intelligent and independent-thinking and isn't afraid to show it; she knows her mind and through her life choices has proved that she isn't a slave to celebrity — she can take it or leave it. And of course, she's a knockout! We believe that's exactly the sort of woman our reader wants to see on our cover — someone who isn't just window-dressing to sell the magazine"

Classy yet modern

Capila adds, "I think Kajol's feature turned out great. Visually, we wanted to present Kajol as both classic and contemporary and Jatin Kampani's photos delivered that feel."