Emraan Hashmi and Vidya Balan shooting Hindi film in Bidar Fort

Huge crowds gathered on the Bidar Fort premises on Friday to witness the shooting of a Hindi film.

They climbed atop the 30-feet-high walls of the Diwan-e-Khas inside the fort to get a glimpse of the action taking place inside the royal enclosure.

The police and the staff of the Archaeological Survey of India had a tough time controlling the crowd.

The film, The Dirty Picture , being directed by Milan Luthria, is based on the life of south Indian actress the late Silk Smitha. It is being shot in Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bidar.

“A major portion of a song is being filmed in the Bidar Fort. We are shooting the song with the beautiful Diwan-e-Khas and Diwan-e-Aam in the background. The monuments are intact and imposing. The weather is perfect,” Shahana Dasgupta, assistant director, said.

The crowd, mostly comprising of young people, cheered on as the lead actor Emraan Hashmi arrived at the spot in the morning. People had to wait for hours to see the heroine Vidya Balan. She arrived late in the afternoon.

Chandrashekar Patil, who was watching the action from morning, said: “I'm amazed at the energy of the dance troupe members. They have been dancing from morning and they don't look tired at all.”


Off late, Bidar Fort has gained popularity among filmmakers. Parts of Kannada films such as Parole , Sanju Weds Geetha , Jarasandha and Bodyguard were shot here. A Tamil film directed by actor Prabhu Deva was also shot here recently.

Tourism potential

“Films shot around beautiful monuments like the fort, Bahamani tombs at Ashtur and the Madrasa of Mehmud Gawan will help boost tourism potential of Bidar and also in development of the backward district,” Deputy Commissioner Sameer Shukla said.

Source: The Hindu

URl: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/article2441095.ece