British
director
Peter
Webber,
best
known
for
his
Scarlett
Johansson-Colin
Firth
starrer
feature
debut
'Girl
with
a
Pearl
Earring',
says
he
would
love
to
make
a
cross-cultural
film
with
Bollywood
megastar
Amitabh
Bachchan.
"I
would
love
to
work
with
Amitabh
Bachchan.
Who
would
not?
He
is
a
living
legend.
He
is
amazing
and
I
would
like
to
make
a
movie
with
him,
which
has
elements
of
both
India
and
England,
basically
a
cross-cultural
film.
That
would
be
interesting," Webber
told
PTI
in
an
interview.
Amitabh
was
last
seen
in
The
Great
Gatsby
which
marked
his
Hollywood
debut.
The
British
director
is
in
India
to
judge
the
International
Competition
section
at
the
ongoing
Mumbai
Film
Festival
with
filmmakers
Mahamat
Saleh
Haroun,
Ritesh
Batra
and
Ron
Mann.
Webber
said
Bachchan
and
other
Bollywood
stars
like
Shah
Rukh
Khan
enjoy
huge
popularity
in
England.
"There
is
a
big
Indian
community
in
England,
so
we
all
know
about
Bollywood
actors
and
they
are
really
famous." Webber
is
looking
forward
to
watching
some
Bollywood
films
as
he
is
not
well
acquainted
with
contemporary
Indian
cinema.
"I
am
not
an
expert
on
contemporary
Indian
films.
I
have
not
watched
any
but
I
am
fond
of
the
old
era
of
Satyajit
Ray
and
Guru
Dutt's
times.
I
like
those
movies.
I
am
hoping
to
catch
on
some
good
Indian
stuff
now,"
the
filmmaker
said,
adding
that
he
would
like
to
collaborate
with
Indian
filmmakers.
As
a
part
of
the
jury,
Webber
says
he
does
not
have
any
set
criterion
to
mark
the
films
in
competition
but
will
look
for
storyline
and
performances.
"I
will
see
if
a
story
is
captivating
enough,
if
it
is
told
in
an
interesting
manner
and
whether
performances
are
great
or
not."
Webber,
who
mostly
chooses
history
as
his
main
subject
in
his
films,
will
next
direct
'Piano
Tuner',
based
on
Daniel
Mason's
acclaimed
historical
novel.
It
is
set
in
1886
and
follows
a
piano
tuner
who
receives
a
request
by
the
British
War
Office
to
deliver
a
rare
grand
piano
to
a
legendary
British
Officer
in
the
remote
jungles
of
northeast
Burma.
The
16th
edition
of
the
Mumbai
Film
Festival
kick
started
yesterday
with
the
premiere
of
Jennifer
Lawrence
and
Bradley
Cooper
starrer,
Serena.
The
festival
is
organized
by
the
Mumbai
Academy
of
Moving
Image
(MAMI),
and
conferred
Bollywood
actress
Helen
and
French
actor
Catherine
Deneuve
with
Lifetime
Achievement
Awards.