"The Thinking Man's Dream Date"

Tabu is one of the most enigmatic personalities in Bollywood. She's often called one of the best actresses in the industry, winning numerous awards for her performances, and yet she's not often talked about. Perhaps it's because she won't allow herself to be pigeon holed as a certain kind of actress--she easily floats between commercial and non commercial films. She also generally avoids scandal, though she was present with Salman Khan and others when the endangered black buck was shot (she wasn't directly involved in the incident). And though she perfers spending time with friends and family uninvolved in the industry, she's not a recluse. She appears at movie premieres and other industry functions.

Amazing acting ability runs in Tabu's family. She is the niece of Shabana Azmi, one of the most respected actresses in India. And in watching a Tabu film, you can expect to see a solid performance from the young star--even if the film is a total disaster. A poster at Bollywhat.com said of Tabu: "I'd watch anything with Tabu. She could read the phone book and I'd be fascinated by her screen presence (OK, if it were Tabu, the phone book would drop on her head, then riccochet off her arms, killing her young baby, at which point, stunned and horrified she would open the phone book and read in a deadpan voice the list of names...personifying the bleakness and horror of an impersonal world in which people are reduced to names...)." Though the poster jests about the serious nature of many of her roles, Tabu can take any role and be convincing.

Tabu's actually an actress for all of India. She's done films in Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Tamil, Marathi, Kannada, Malayalam, and will be starring in Mira Nair's upcoming The Namesake, where she will speak English and Bengali. Oh, she also speaks Spanish. She's an actress with asperations to become a director and producer. She also writes poetry. She went to university to become a dentist, but left early when she was offered a chance to do films.

Tabu is starring in my two most anticipated films of 2006--Mira Nair's The Namesake, with Irfan Khan (with whom she starred in Maqbool, and Indian version of Macbeth) and Kal Penn (Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle) and Kunal Kohli's Fanaa, with Aamir Khan and Kajol (putting my three favorite Indian actors onscreen together!).

My favorite Tabu films:
Macchis (1996)--with Chandrachur Singh
Thakshak (1999)--with Ajay Devgan
Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000)--with Ajith, Aishwarya Rai, and Mammootty
Chandni Bar (2001)--with Atul Kulkarni
Filhaal (2002)--with Sushmita Sen and Sanjay Suri

Up next: Saif Ali Khan