Ayesha Takia postpones marriage in the wake of attacks

In the wake of the 26/11 terrorist attacks, Ayesha Takia's wedding to restaurateur Farhan Azmi has been called off.

The shaadi was to take place on December 25. It now has been postponed to mid-2009. But a date has not been finalised as yet.

Shaken up

Ayesha is currently in Greece shooting a song for Boney Kapoor's Wanted. The groom-to-be confirms, "When Ayesha heard the news of the attacks, she broke down. Dad (SP party leader Abu Azmi), was in a hospital recuperating from an operation; he too started crying when he heard about the terrorist attacks. None of us are in the mood for any celebrations this year. Our mood is too grim and somber. There can be no wedding celebrations as of now maybe mid-2009 and that too it will be a small and private affair."

Farhan adds, "We are all shaken up by what happened. I saw it happening next door, as Nariman House is seven buildings away from our home and very close to the Taj and Oberoi hotels. When the Oberoi was sealed, many guests came from there to Koyla and Cafe Basilico (both owned by Farhan). None wanted to stay, so I took them home. On the first night from Koyla, which is 500m away from the Taj, we could see the fire burning on the sixth floor and hear women and children screaming to be let out 'please help us'… It still gives me goose bumps to even think about it."
Back to work

Ayesha, meanwhile, is busy completing her last three projects Ahmed Khan's Pathshaala, Nagesh Kukunoor's Tasveer and Boney Kapoor's Wanted Dead or Alive. She had earlier informed her producers that she won't shoot in December, as she was planning to quit acting after tying the knot.

It’s child’s play for Ayesha Takia

When we arrived on the sets of Ahmed Khan’s Paathshala recently, we saw Ayesha Takia and a bunch of kids having a ball. It was only later that we realised the cameras were rolling and the freewheeling group were shooting. The sets resemble a huge boarding school and from the looks of it, academia was never this much fun. “It’s lovely to be around children. They can shoot for twenty hours together and not run out of energy,” she says admiringly. Ayesha’s role had to be snipped to accommodate the kids. But she’s taken it with a pinch of salt for the film, the great script and of course Ahmed and his wife, Shaira who are family friends. The child actors on the sets are apparently full of zest and have plenty of queries and compliments for Ayesha. “They compliment me on my hair. One of them asked me if my cheeks are real,” she laughs. Despite of all the masti, there are rules to be followed on the sets. Ahmed Sir after all has a film to complete and makes sure the fun is organised and controlled. “There’s no smoking on the sets, no shouting and no yelling on the mike,” he says. The mood was still upbeat when the shoot wrapped up, but Ayesha got a little emotional. Find out why.

Ayesha Takia to bid farewell to Bollywood, post-marriage!

Ayesha Takia is busy completing her last three projects — Pathshaala, Nagesh Kukunoor’s Tasveer and Boney Kapoor’s Wanted Dead or Alive as soon as possible. And guess why? She is getting married. But there is another piece of news which is highly disturbing and of course shocking for a few people. She has informed her producers that she won’t shoot after marriage, that is January 2009! Ayesha's decision to quit the film industry has caused inconvenience to only those filmmakers who had not started their projects with her. The actress has served a notice to all the filmmakers who haven't started work with her saying she'd like to opt out.

One such director who's left in a panic situation is Jagmohan Mundhra, whose Indianised version of The 40-Year Old Virgin is now heroine-less... This is the second film in a row after Rumi Jafry's Life Partner when Govinda is stranded without a proper leading lady even after shooting extensively .

Says Mundhra, "That's because we can't sign just anyone opposite Govinda. His co-star needs to match his comic timing. Ayesha fitted the bill." The role required an innocent, bubbly, totally Indian girl oblivious of the facts of life.

"It's almost the role of a child-bride... innocent and tomboyish, like Jaya Bhaduri in Uphaar or Moushumi Chatterjee in Balika Badhu. I could only think of Ayesha Takia. Even Amrita Rao would seem like a natural choice for an innocent character but even she is now turning into a glamorous entity on magazine covers. So Bollywood is really short of innocence these days. I don't know what to do because Govinda has given us dates in November. I've less than a month before I shoot."

With no sign of the child bride for Govinda among the established actresses, Mundhra has now decided to cast a newcomer. "Javed Akhtar has recommended Aditi Sharma. She featured in Subhash Ghai's Black & White. I'll watch the film and take a final call. But in principle, Aditi is on."