Dubai: After making waves in the media with her bold talk shows and thought-provoking articles, a Jeddah-based Saudi woman is now all set to break into the glitzy world of Bollywood.
Sameera Aziz, 36, is putting together the nuts and bolts of a Hindi film called Reem which revolves around the true story of a Saudi girl who travels to Mumbai to look for her lost mother but ends up falling hopelessly in love with an Indian man.
“A lot of people think that Saudi women live a fettered life. That’s not true. We live life to the hilt and that’s precisely what I want to show in Reem,” said Sameera, who has not just written the script of the movie but will also be directing and producing it under her production house Sameera Aziz Entertainment.
In Dubai to receive the GR8! Women Achievers Award held last fortnight, Sameera said the movie will be shot in Mumbai and her hometown Jeddah.
“I have been wanting to get Reem off the rails for some time now. There were some hiccups, but now that everything has fallen into place, we are looking to go on the floors by August. I have done my homework and learnt the nuances of filmmaking from Hollywood and Bollywood directors, besides doing theatre in Mumbai. So it’s not an unfamiliar territory for me,” said the mother of two, who was just 15 when she got married.
Sameera said the movie will also take viewers on a roller-coaster ride of emotions, complete with Bollywood songs including a peppy item number.
“It will also show Jeddah in a new light. There is more to Jeddah than meets the eye. We have identified several beautiful locations in the city and will be showing it to the world for the first time,” she said.
Will there be any big names in the movie?
“No,” she said. “Stars have tantrums and I can’t deal with that. In any case, my budget is just Dh13 million. Also, I think the biggest USP of the movie will be me, not the actors. Come on, how often do you hear of a Bollywood movie from Saudi Arabia, and that too by a Saudi-born woman?”
