While the Hill town slept, preparations were on from the wee hours of the morning for the shoot at the highest Railway station in India- the Ghoom Railway Station at an elevation of 7,407 ft. By 5am the shooting had started and continued till late in the evening on Wednesday.
As news spread like wild fire of the shoot and of the presence of Bolywood heart throb Ranbir Kapoor, crowds began to swell. Along with Kapoor, D’Cruz and Rupa Ganguly were also present.Cutting across all ages people flocked at the Railway station to catch a glimpse of Kapoor. Later the tourists returning from nearby Tiger Hill also joined in rescheduling their itineraries.
“From Tiger Hill, we were supposed to visit the Ghoom Monastery, Batasia Loop. However we decided to stay back and watch the shoot. It is a bonus to our Darjeeling trip” stated Rajesh Kapoor from Delhi.
Serpentine traffic jams threw Hill life out of gear, not that anybody minded. It was the jittery police having a tough time keeping the crowds at bay. “It is not everyday that one gets a chance to see Ranbir Kapoor in ones backyard. I have told my husband that we will eat out. I have skipped cooking lunch and am here” stated Diki Lamu, a housewife.
Ghoom was steeped in festive mood, as shopkeepers left shops to catch a glimpse of the shoot, school students skipped classes and devotees cut short prayers. “It is the auspicious day of Saka Dawa today. I had come to offer prayers at the Monastery with my family. Hearing about the shoot, I rushed to the station” stated Tenzing.
Darjeeling left no stones unturned to serenade Kapoor. With every appearance, the crowds, specially the youngsters shouted in ecstasy. “If only I could get his autograph” wished Sangeeta Chettri, a College student.
With the crowds swelling, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) was also deployed. It was a definitely an interesting situation for them. “We are usually in tense situations and here we are controlling Bolywood star struck crowds” stated a personnel.
“I am thoroughly enjoying Darjeeling. However it is a bit difficult with this huge crowd” stated Anurag Basu, Director, talking to HT. Basu stated that even Kapoor is in love with Darjeeling.
“On June 13, as he was driving up from the plains, over the phone he told me that he was thoroughly enjoying the beauty of Darjeeling. He was here with his parents as a kid and has fond memories of this place” stated Basu.
The shooting will be on in Darjeeling Hills tentatively till June 21. Along with locations in town including the Happy Valley Tea Estate, Chowrasta, Lebong Cart Road, Birch Hill Road the famous tourist spot Mirik Lake along with Tindhria Railway Station will also feature in the film.
by hindustantimes
Bollywood laps up Darjeeling again - Queen of hills goes gaga as stars hit the street | ||||
Darjeeling, June 15: Bollywood’s brush with Darjeeling, after almost a decade, today started from the charms of yore. If the hill town had found a place in Bollywood’s imagination through a Sharmila Tagore-Rajesh Khanna song sequence Mere Sapnon Ki Rani Kab Ayegi Tu in the film Aradhana, which was extensively shot in the famed Darjeeling toy train, Anurag Basu started the shoot for Barfee by embarking on the same journey. Aradhana was shot almost three decades ago and Basu, the creator of well-acclaimed films like Murder, Kites, Gangster and Life in a Metro is replicating the Darjeeling of the 60s and 70s in which his protagonist Ranbir Kapoor will be playing “a Darjeeling boy,” according to Uday Mani Pradhan, production co-ordinator for the film in Darjeeling. Ranbir stole the show at the Darjeeling Ghoom station, the second highest railway station in India, with an over enthusiastic crowd making it difficult for the crew to carry on with the shooting. “Difficulties existed largely because of the over enthusiastic crowd. At times, it almost turned out to be unmanageable with people frequently coming in the frame. But we have made much progress today,” said a member of the team. The production team tried hard to stop the crowd from taking photographs but it was a daunting task to stop the tourists and the local people.
If the crowd had come to see Ranbir, her co-star Illena D”Cruz, a Telugu actress making her Bollywood debut with the film, can take heart, for her fan base has definitely swelled in Darjeeling. “Ranbir Kapoor is what made me come here today. But I am now also a fan of the new star Leenaa,” said a coy Sharad Thami, clearly mispronouncing his new idol’s name. The shoot at times virtually threatened to halt everything in Ghoom today, largely because of the swelling crowd. Huge traffic snarls on NH55 became the order of the day, but none was complaining. The charms of Darjeeling — the pervading mist, the British era-railway station and the hoot of the steam engine — seem to have bewitched everybody. If the mass hysteria at the Ghoom station was any indication, the production team members have tough days ahead as shooting is scheduled to take place in Capitol Hall and Chowrastha, located in the heart of Darjeeling. Asked about the itinerary, the member of the production team said: “Only the director is in the know of things. He will tell us only in the evening where the next shoot will take place as weather is a big factor.” Basu is, however, determined to capture the nooks and corners of Darjeeling. Upon his arrival in Darjeeling on Monday, the director visited places like Bijanbari and Rangbull to find more locations. He will be shooting in almost a dozen places across Darjeeling, where more people will flock to have a glimpse of Priyanka Chopra, the heroine of the movie. The toy train is expected to feature prominently in the film and Basu will be hoping that the DHR’s luck will rub on the film. If Aradhana was a hit, so was Shah Rukh Khan starrer Raju Bangaya Gentleman in which King Khan had bid farewell to Darjeeling riding on the train. Saif Ali Khan starrer Parineeta, which was shot in the toy train (though in the foothills of Darjeeling), had a song whose opening line in Nepali was: Kasto Mazaa hai railei ma, ramailo ukali orali (What fun it is to ride on the train, up and down from the hills to the plains). The film too was a hit and there was none in the crowd today who did not believe that Barfee would be a hit too. courtesy: telegraphindia | ||||
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