Lead role for cops in Parineeta Scene II

Pratim D. Gupta

Siliguri, Oct. 31: Saif Ali Khan stole the show on Day I of the three-day Siliguri stint for Parineeta. On Day II, local police tried to take the top slot.
The rifle and lathi-wielding personnel outdid the Bollywood-bitten mob in their enthusiasm to keep them at bay.
An officer said: “We were told by the higher authorities last night that we were not up to the mark on the first day and the shoot was hampered. Today, we decided not to allow anyone in the vicinity.”
It was an action replay of the Main Hoon Na shoot in Darjeeling last year as policemen resorted to shoves and threats. “We are asking everyone to clear out. If they are not complying, we are having to use force,” said Bagdogra circle inspector Prodyut Chandra Das.
The man of the moment did not mind the power policing though. Playing protagonist Shekhar in the adaptation of the Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay classic, Saif munched fruits and read Hamlet between shots. “It’s just a different vibe today. No one’s fooling around and everybody’s like let’s do it..,” he said.
The comfort level, however, clashed with his celebrity status. Saif added: “There will be crowds… It does feel good when someone in the crowd tells me ‘hey, that’s our didi’s (Sharmila Tagore) son’.”
The police did clear the tracks for director Pradeep Sarkar and crew to can shots of the moving toy train at Sukna and Rongtong stations.
“This was always going to be a very difficult sequence to shoot and a lot of risk was involved…. feels good to see we’re being able to achieve what we had set out to do,” said Sarkar, even as he okayed a take at Elephant Hill.
Hill Cart Road was cordoned off and there was no glimpse of the star ladies either. Vidya Balan, who plays the female lead, Lalita, was not on location — unlike yesterday when she was confined to her vanity van — Dia Mirza was tucked away in her hotel room.