Sets appeal

A lot of figures come into play naturally when you set off for a ride on a golf car across Nitin Desai Studios at Karjat. A Rs 100 crore project, spread over 34 acres of land. Set for immediate expansion to 100 acres. A 10-year lease already signed with Twentieth Century Fox for 4 shooting floors, the rest of the studio already booked for the next 2 years.

There's more, as far as figures go. This soon-to-be 100 acre studios has been built by Nitin Desai who grew up in a 10 ft by 10 ft room. And yes, when Oliver Stone visited some studios in Mumbai while location hunting for his film Alexander in India, and flaunted Oscar award-winning attitude by screwing up his nose to say, "Hey, are these studios or warehouses?", Nitin decided to go plot hunting for building a studio. This was the 69th plot he saw, and liked. (And since we're at it, let's add that 68 staffers report to work here every day.)

But, when it comes to figures, first things first. Is Nitin planning to sell ND Studios to Reliance ADAG, as we've heard, and for how much? "I have big expansion plans for my studio, for which I am going to get external support," he says. "Eight big companies have shown interest in collaborating with me, one of who is Reliance ADAG. Yes, I am in talks about partnership plans, but I am not selling my studio. Why would I sell my dream?" For a few hundred crores, perhaps? "No" he insists.

But he will be putting in big, fat money to upgrade the studio. The model is ready, and work will begin from October. The plan is to put up villages of all states of India here, many of the forts and temples of India too, ready for shooting. The bigger plan is to set up all the wonders of the world here from the Taj Mahal to the Eiffel Tower. And the Taj Mahal in black marble too. "I guess we'll fulfil Shah Jahan's wish of making the Taj Mahal with black marble," says Nitin. He says it with a laugh, but it's obvious that he loves the sound of the fantastic words.

Now that's what's called a truly grandiose attitude, isn't it? "No, no," he says, getting his customary modesty back on very quickly. "I just want to open up this studio to the public. There will be tours of all the sets, including the Jodha Akbar set which I don't plan to demolish. That's my advantage here. I don't need to demolish my labours of love."  

As far as upgrading goes, there are some requests from the stars too, which Nitin must fulfil. "Some stars have asked for a spa here, some want an ayurvedic massage centre," he says. Well, stars needn't worry. Uncle Nitin plans to give it all to them.

"Stars seem to like the freedom of movement they get here, without any fear of crowds," he says, manouvering the car across the streets of Colaba set up here, built around Madhur Bhandarkar's 'traffic signal'. "Abhishek Bachchan, for example, cycles around all over the grounds, and especially here on these streets, whenever he shoots here."

Nitin is a collector, a hoarder actually. When you enter his storehouse, you know instantly that it's probably been 30 years since the last time he threw anything away. Columns from Madhuri Dixit's house in Devdas, lamps from 1942 - A Love Story, ancient cigarette tins, jailhouse utensils, train bogeys… they're all there.


He has even stored Aishwarya Rai's wedding doli here. "It will come in use some time," he says.

Is this his idea of Alladin's cave? "No, this is my idea of having my very own google," he says. I have the inventory of the millions of things here computerised, so even if I'm designing out of India, I know exactly what I have. I request producers to give me all their production stuff after shooting is complete instead of throwing it away, as is the normal practice."          Did a lot of industry guys help in the making of his studios? "You know how the film industry functions," he laughs. "If they smell a profit, a hundred guys come rushing in, otherwise they don't."

He adds, "In fact, when I set it up, I was told no one would travel to Karjat." But now they all do. And Anil Kapoor, who shot for Gandhi My Father there, puts it most succinctly when he says, "It's nice to get away from Mumbai to shoot here, away from Mumbai traffic and Mumbai journalists."

Yes, of course. But who can stop journalists from doing their job, read nosing around? And ever since the closely guarded Akbar Jodha sets have come up at Karjat, the curiosity factor about the studios has shot up overnight. So you too insist on doing your job and getting a guided tour of the Agra Fort, constructed to scale here for Jodha Akbar. Nitin obliges, but only after putting a gag order in place. So yes, been there, seen that. Seen Akbar's chamber, Jodha's chamber, the diwan-e-aam, diwan-e-khaas. But no tell.

• Abhishek Bachchan cycles around all over the grounds, whenever he shoots here -  Nitin Desai