The unit of Imtiaz Ali’s Rockstar finally wrapped up their shooting schedule in Delhi on Monday. The shooting of the movie, which went on for almost three weeks at various locations in the NCR, concluded at the F Bar and Lounge in Chanakyapuri.
The unit of the movie walked into the bar sharp at 9 on Monday morning. The unit vans were parked inside the hotel, next to the nightclub Capitol. There was much hustle and bustle at the location – spotboys holding lights rushed around inside the venue, packed food and mineral water was stocked in one corner, and one guy was busy ironing clothes for the extras.
Soon, Ranbir Kapoor, the film’s lead, arrived and got out of his white van, while Imtiaz came in a blue van. One of the spotboys, who was serving tea to the unit members, happily walked up to us and offered us a cup of tea too. He smiled and said, “There are more than 100 people who have come down from Mumbai for the shooting. Today is the last day. It’s been a very hectic schedule, Delhi mein bahut garmi thi ... hum sab Mumbai ki baarish miss kar rahe the. The Delhi shoot will resume in the last week of October. After that, there are also plans to shoot in Manali and Jaipur.”
Security arrangements at the bar were quite stringent. Four private bodyguards dressed in safari suits, headphones in hand, were stationed at the entrance of the bar. Inside, there were more than 80 crew members, all busy running around. At around 11.30am, Ranbir walked onto the sets and got ready for the first shot.
Dressed in a black tee and denims, he adjusted his hairdo and got his touch-ups done by his make-up artiste Inder. The shot, a song sequence featuring Ranbir and some firangs, was of the dance floor inside the venue. A miniature bar (a replica of the real bar there) had been created in one corner.
Ranbir took a break for lunch and returned to the sets around 4pm. By this time, his fans had gathered outside the lobby, waiting to catch a glimpse of the star. As Ranbir passed the lobby on his way to the venue, a group of young girls screamed and shouted out to him, but he rushed past.
According to F Bar officials, “Security had been heightened since morning. Luckily, we didn’t have to get extra security as Imtiaz had already got his own security boys along with him. The team had hardly any time to eat anything; they would munch some snacks during the breaks. The owner of the bar, Rajan Madhu, came with his wife Ala and three kids in the afternoon to watch the shoot.”
The shoot ended at around 6.30pm,and Ranbir rushed towards his van escorted by his bodyguard and make-up artiste. This time, he was wearing a white bandanna, and a golden shirt peeped out from the black one on top. When he emerged from his van, he’d changed into a checked blue shirt with denims and a cap. At the end of the day, Ranbir decided to be sweet and obliged his fans with autographs and photographs.
