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Made in India

Model-actor-producer Milind Soman has a lot on his platter - films, television and health foods

HOT MALE One can't get enough of Milind Soman PHOTO: P.V. Sivakumar

Not long ago, he created ripples in the glamour world — a face that launched haute labels (Rohit Bal included), offered scorching looks to music video realm much before the Kaanta laga happened (for Alisha Chinai's Made In India), rocked the ad world in his python-clad Tuff campaign shot by Prabhuda Dasgupta and added star appeal to A Mouthful of Sky, the novel English soap on the Indian tube.

Today, Milind Soman continues to surpass the Gladrags and Grasim labels as he sizzles and exudes those scorching looks. Ask women about town who went berserk at his recent appearance for the International Women's Day do in Ten Downing Street. "I am 40 years old," chuckles the model-turned-actor-turned producer. From Scotland to amchi Mumbai, it has been a long journey but Milind has created milestones all along. "I was swimming till I was 23 years old. I was a national champion for four years. In 1987, I didn't know that modelling could be a profession. I came from an academic family.

Now our models can take on the international industry, that's the only sector of the Indian fashion that has grown in these years. I think among designers Manish Arora and Rohit Bal are doing well. I was glad to see Manish's collection receiving rave reviews in Paris during my recent visit there," he recollects. Ask the Marithe et Francois Girbaud buff, on his participation in Lakme India Fashion Week, "I have been reading about it. That's news to me. Why would I. Maybe, if they give me lots of money," he says. Keeping him occupied are his television and motion picture houses. The one-year-old Phase Entertainment has been elementary in bringing a new whiff of freshness to the tube with productions across the various channels - Just Pooja, After Hours with Nina Manuel and more. "We are trying to convince the channels to do more contemporary urban programmes. People are stuck with saas bahu and saat pheras. There is lots of money there but unfortunately I can't think like that," he says. The other venture, e-motion, he started with director Parvati Balagopalan produced Rules: Pyar Ka Super Hit Formula, with Phir Zindagi on the anvil.

"Phir Zindagi is a funny film about a girl who wants to kill herself. Then there's a Marathi film that we are producing, in which I will be acting as well. I liked the script. This will have an all Marathi star cast that includes Urmila Matondkar and Nana Patekar," he says. Also on his platter is the health, read organic, food venture. "You have a lot of organic farms today. Star hotels have special organic food restaurants. It's healthy but not accessible. So you have international celebrities promoting, Bryan Adams (organic food), Richard Gere (HIV awareness) and Madonna (Kaballah), because they believe in it and not for fashion," he reflects.

Way to go. Keep watching this space as we bring you more updates on him.

SYEDA FARIDA

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