THIS Sooraj Barjatya’s Prem is a beefy good-looker, only he stands a whole head taller than the old one.Hrithik Roshan has replaced Salman Khan as the new Prem; testament to how different Barjatya’s new film Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon is from his earlier Maine Pyar Kiya, Hum Aapke Hai Kaun and Hum Saath Saath Hain. “Salman is the eternal Prem, I could never be better. But I suit this Prem, who is flamboyant, other-worldly and intimidatingly loud,” he describes. When we meet, Hrithik is capped to hide his new haircut for Farhan Akhtar’s Lakshya in which he plays a soldier. He declares he isn’t allowed to show his new crop, but good-naturedly unveils for a peek. “I’m almost bald, what do you want to see?” Hrithik mock-grumbles, then places it back in a nanosecond. His head is covered in baby fuzz; attractive because it’s drastically different from the old Hrithik. Adhuna Bhabani of Juice “designed” the new, boyish look. While she clipped away, she says Hrithik seemed more curious than anything. “He even felt it was the best haircut he ever had,” Bhabani states. Adds director Karan Johar: “It also shows the trust he has in Farhan — Hrithik is paranoid about his hair.” Bollywood’s Greek god is characteristically picky about angles in a photo-session. Hrithik poses for almost 40 minutes, then meticulously culls out the best slants. Yet the same star locks his teeth in braces in Koi Mil Gaya to become a geek. In the film’s aired promotions, you see a metal-mouthed nerd struggling in tears. “He looks like a new person,” says Johar, who just saw Koi Mil Gaya, “Every verdict about Hrithik will change. The character is so endearing, you want to adopt him. Hrithik’s other films have been carefully spaced out — home production Koi Mil Gaya is slated for August. The hugely secret Lakshya will hit the marquee by February-March 2004. In MPKDH, Prem has a death wish — bungee-jumping, skydiving, scuba diving, snow-boarding and tumbling in the hay with Sanjana. “That’s just the tip of the iceberg. This guy is a giant of a human being, but I loved it. I’m a sucker for challenges.” The film has Barjatya touches, like the ‘I’m Happy’ bag that Prem sports. However, the only surface change Hrithik made as Prem is a temporary tattooed Sanjana heart on a bicep. “What better way to profess your love than to dedicate your body to her,” he says grandly, then turns pale when asked where his tattoos for Suzanne are. “I have a problem against anything unnatural, changing the body given to you. I don’t even understand piercing. That’s why I’ve never cut off my double thumb even when people thought it grotesque.”
