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The Hindu : Seamy side upFilmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar is all set to turn his searchlight on the world of fashion, writes MINI ANTHIKAD-CHHIBBERPHOTO: MURALI KUMAR K.HARD HITTING Madhur Bhandarkar likes to show it as it isMadhur Bhandarkar is all about the gritty side of life — be it the life of bar girls or the sordid underbelly of the air-kissing glitterati. His latest film, “Fashion” finds the director turning the heat on the world of haute couture.“I have had to face some criticism,” the filmmaker comments, of his dwelling on the grime behind the glitter. “But bouquets and brickbats are part of any creative person’s life. Now I have this image. Like the other day, I had gone to the hospital to visit my friend’s father. The doctors were all hovering around me asking if everything was alright because they thought I was making a film on hospitals!”Madhur says he researches his movies thoroughly. “Journalists loved Konkana’s character in ‘Page 3’.” And when you demand why he went in for the stereotyping of crime reporting as the serious kind of reporting, Madhur dives under the “it is not a documentary” cover.“Fashion” is the director’s most ambitious project yet, in terms of scale. “While my palate usually favours the greys and blacks, if the movie is going to be about fashion, it needs to be opulent. The budget is about Rs. 18 crore. There are 11 ramp sequences. I have experts in field as consultants from Rita Dhondi to Lubna Adams and Wendell Rodricks. But though the sets are high on glitz and glamour, the characters, dialogues and situations are within the parameters of reality.”The inspirationTalking of the inspiration for the film, which stars Priyanka Chopra and Kangana Ranaut among others, Madhur says: “I made ‘Traffic Signal’ as I wanted to break from the high life of ‘Page 3’ and ‘Corporate’. After ‘Traffic Signal’ I wanted to move away…More