Raj Mehta and his team of Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Ltd. seem to have nerves of steel. The production house was all geared to have the Rockstar concert in Bombay a few days before the release of the film when they learnt, at the eleventh hour, that the main sponsor of the show had backed out. Considering that the sponsor was to pay the corporate Rs. 2.5 crore, the retraction would’ve prompted any other producer to call off the show, but Shree Ashtavinayak is made of sterner stuff. It went ahead with the rock concert.
Said a source, “Rajbhai didn’t have the heart to cancel the show when A.R. Rahman, Imtiaz Ali and Ranbir Kapoor were so charged about it. So, rather than do the obvious, he decided to shoulder the cost himself and held the show as if nothing had happened.” Incidentally, Imtiaz Ali could not participate in the concert as he was very unwell. In fact, he had to complete the film’s mixing during those days when he was very sick, as otherwise, the release would have been impossible on the scheduled date. Informed Ranbir, “He used to come to the studio for mixing, wearing four sweaters and a monkey cap!”
Here’s what finally happened:
Ranbir Kapoor owned the stage at the Rockstar concert.A. R. Rahman and Ranbir Kapoor had the crowd swooning to their tunes.A. R. Rahman's sufi songs were a huge hit.The Rockstar team.Mohit Chauhan, Nargis Fakhri, A. R. Rahman, Ranbir Kapoor and Monica Dogra at the finale of the Rockstar concert,
Komal Nahta, the Editor of Koimoi.com, is Bollywood’s most trusted trade analyst & film reviewer. You can follow him on Twitter and check out his Video Blog.
