Friday fare hopes to recreate Bhoot success

"My Jhankaar Beats is [Ram Gopal Varma's] Bhoot with songs," quips debutant director Sujoy Ghosh. "I have waited very long for this moment and, boy, the Bhoot factor sure makes a difference."

Joining Ghosh's Jhankaar Beats this Friday at the box office is Padam Kumar's Supari. Unlike Ghosh, Kumar is not entirely new to the marquee. He earlier made the Sunny Deol-starrer Champion, which introduced Rahul Dev.

Like many filmmakers ready with non-conformist mainstream products, Kumar feels the success of Varma's Bhoot can only add tickets to Supari at the box office.

Though Ghosh and Kumar share an admiration for Bhoot, their films are different from Varma's spooky trendsetter and from each another. "Yes, but there are similarities," Ghosh points out.

Both

films chronicle the ups and downs in the lives of a bunch of suburban youth. While Kumar's actors Uday Chopra, Rahul Dev, Purab Kohli and Akaash Saigal drift into the murky underworld, Ghosh's three young protagonists -- played by Rahul Bose, Sanjay Suri, and newcomer Shayan Munshi -- stray into smiles, sex and, yes, songs.

Both films stress songs and music. Both feature a score by Vishal-Shekhar.

According to producer Pritish Nandy, Jhankaar Beats is a fun film, one that takes the definition of entertainment to new areas.

"The film industry is undergoing tremendous upheaval," says Ghosh. "During one week, we get a mainstream film like Andaaz. The very next week, we are given Bhoot. Now, after last week's love story Chalte Chalte, it is time this week to push the envelope again."