‘Ye picture hit hai’: Mahesh Bhatt recalls Bipasha Basu in Raaz reminded Paul McCartney of Sophia Loren |
Mahesh Bhatt recently recalled Paul McCartney watching Raaz and getting impressed by Bipasha Basu’s performance and Nadeem-Shravan’s music. Bhatt even revealed that McCartney personally called the actress and compared her to Italian icon Sophia Loren.
Bhatt shares his encounter on Pooja’s podcast
On Pooja Bhatt‘s podcast, the director shared his encounter with McCartney. Pooja revealed she wasn’t talking to him at the time because of an argument, and he tried to bribe her by asking her to join him to meet McCartney, who was visiting India in 2002. “I wanted to meet him to tell myself and the world that I met Paul McCartney. I used to style my hair like him and sing his songs to your mother. He came with his girlfriend Heather,” Bhatt recalled.
A puzzling conversation with McCartney
He further added, “I asked him, ‘Do you dream of John (Lennon)?’ He said, ‘Yes, I dream of John. He’s too powerful a person not to dream about.’ Then he talked about how music would flow through him, coming from ‘up there’—from ‘some mysterious power.’ I replied, ‘If that’s the case, Paul, why did you copyright your music? You want stardom and divinity.’”
Special screening of Raaz
Bhatt said McCartney didn’t know how to respond, but he agreed to attend a special screening of Raaz. Dino Morea helped translate the film for him. According to the filmmaker, McCartney was clearly enjoying Nadeem-Shravan’s music. “I remember showing Raaz at Dimple Theatre. Such a generous guy; he was even singing the tune of ‘Aap Ke Pyaar Mein Hum.’ When it was time for his flight, he reluctantly got up, still watching the screen. I thought, ‘This film is a hit,’ because if it can make Paul McCartney turn around and watch…”
McCartney praises Bipasha Basu
Impressed by Bipasha’s performance, McCartney personally called the actress and told her she reminded him of the Italian actress Sophia Loren. Not just McCartney—Oscar-winning director Jane Campion, who directed The Power of the Dog, also watched part of Jism while visiting India. “She said the movie is going to be a hit,” Pooja recalled, adding that Campion compared John Abraham to Robert Mitchum.The Vikram Bhatt directorial also starred Dino Morea, Malini Sharma, Ashutosh Rana, Ali Asgar and others.
