Bachchan-Balki team up for 15 minute film

Mumbai: Director R Balakrishnan and superstar Amitabh Bachchan, who together gave two extremely unconventional hits - "Cheeni Kam" and "Paa" - will now team up for a 15-minute film celebrating 100 years of Indian cinema. While details of the project are yet to be finalised, it is understood that PVR Cinemas has commissioned eight leading filmmakers to make 15-minute films which would all be released as one feature film in 2013 when the Indian cinema celebrates 100 years of existence.

The first director to start his film would be Balakrishnan or Balki as he is fondly called. "Doing a short film with Amitji would be a special challenge for me because I`ve never done a film in that format before, and neither has he. We`ve done numerous ads and two feature films together. Now let`s see what I can do with Amitji in the 15 minutes that we`ll be provided," Balki said. Balki said that another film with the Big B, irrespective of its duration, was imperative. "I was beginning to get withdrawal symptoms. That man is addictive. Once you work with him there`s no way you can resist working with him over and over again." While the challenge of creating a 15-minute full and comprehensive film replete with a plot and a background score will be taken up by Balki in the pre-winter months, at the end of the year, he`ll start his third film with Bachchan. Apparently, it would be Big B`s most intense romantic film since Yash Chopra`s "Kabhi Kabhie" in 1975. And no, this time there would be no Abhishek Bachchan. IANS