More from Dabboo Ratnani 2010 calendar

Last year, ace photographer Dabboo Ratnani had shot with 48 stars celebrating the completion of a decade of his calendar. This year he is back with usual count of 24 stars, but in black and white shades. Besides some of his old favorites, there are quite a few new names added to the list.
Talking about the calendar to NDTV.com, Dabboo says, “All the stars are comfortable with whatever I decide. They never question me, because we have faith in each other. So whenever I discuss a concept with them, they are happy to go along. I usually share three or four different ideas with the actor. If they are not convinced, we work on it. It is important to be confident about each other; only when the model is able to relate to the picture will he or she be able to give 100 per cent to it.
I have been doing the calendar for many years now. It makes me push myself to the next level. Way back in 2000 when I first shot the calendar, I gave away just a few to my close friends and people I worked with. But the response was so encouraging that I felt it was something I had to do on a regular basis. Every year the calendar pushes me to outdo my last year’s work. This also helps me evolve as a photographer. All through the year I am shooting for agencies, magazines and movies but the calendar is my creative outlet.
Our space had given you the pics of Deepika Padukone and Shahrukh Khan from the calendar. Now, we bring you some new pics of Priyanka Chopra, Katrina Kaif and Vidya Balan and what Dabboo has to say for each of them.
Ratnani is all praise for Katrina: “She is very attractive and photographs really well. She puts in a lot of effort for every picture she does. She will keep on giving the shot till it is completely done. Katrina will go to any extent to make the pic look stunning.”
He talks about Priyanka Chopra saying, “She is extremely photogenic. She gives her best in ever photoshoot and loves being in front of the camera. We have been working together since Priyanka’s modelling days and the chemistry we share is simply brilliant.”
Ratnani, who makes Vidya Balan too shed her inhibitions, says about the lady, “This is one of the hottest pictures of Vidya ever. I think she is always open to experiment. She trusts me completely and because of this trust she is very comfortable in my working environment.”

Vidya Balan styles up for ‘Verve’ and ‘The Man’

Vidya Balan has a string of movies to her credit- Parineeta, Munnabhai, Salaam-e-ishq, Guru, Eklavya, Heyy Babyy, Halla Bol, Bhool Bhulaiya, Kismet Konnection and most recently Paa. All these movies have given her critical acclaim for her acting talents, but nothing could give the sensuous tag to her the way the most recent ‘Ishqiya’ has given her.
She had been trapped being called as “Behenji” type actress who was constantly being criticized for her dressing style, but with ‘Ishqiya’ she has sent the message through that “she can be seductress too” signaling that she is ready to fit in current trend.
February sees her on the cover story of ‘Verve’ and ‘The Man’. For the latter, she was styled by Vikram Phadnis and her makeup was done by Shreyas Mhatre.
Here is an excerpt from her interview with ‘The Man’:
“I am a good listener but I rarely give advice. When the good times are between two people, the problems too should remain between them. A relationship is never perfect; you have to work at it. You can’t be running in opposite directions at the first sign of dissent.
There is no perfect person you can connect with at all levels. A guy can’t be a looker, intelligent, sensitive, the guy that your friends and family like, a guy who likes the things you like and all that. Sometimes, if he is all that and he is available he may not have a sense of humour. May be he seems perfect on the face of it, but when you get to know him, the problems start. No two human beings are a perfect fit. That’s the joy and beauty of being in a relationship.
When the dressing debacle happened two years ago, I was bothered by it. Until then I’d only been heaped with praises and then suddenly, the criticism came in truckloads. I didn’t know how to deal with it. Then I looked at it objectively — they did have reason to criticise me. Most of it was exaggerated. I am clearly not a fashionista.
As an actor people expect me to look my best all the time. I didn’t realise that people were actually happy seeing me the way I am. It was not just about clothes — I was going through a period of confusion where I was giving a certain vibe. I was unsure, not happy with the way I was looking and trying to be someone I am not.”
Check out Vidya Balan for the two magazines.