Allu Arjun to star in The Immortal Ashwatthama?

MUMBAI:MMNN:12 May 2023
Allu Arjun is one of the biggest names in the Telugu film industry. After the release of Pushpa: The Rise – Part 1, he has become a pan-India star, and now, everyone is waiting for Pushap 2: The Rule. There have been multiple reports about his next film after Pushpa 2, and now, a recent report suggests that he is in talks with the makers of The Immortal Ashwatthama to play the lead role.

The Immortal Ashwatthama will be directed by Aditay Dhar and earlier it was announced with Vicky Kaushal in the lead role. However, there have been reports of his exit from the film, and there was also a buzz that the movie will star Ranveer Singh.

this report of Allu Arjun being in talks about the makers of the film, has made his fans super excited. A netizen tweeted, “He should do it. Trivikram can wait. It is my intuition but i think Dhar with this film can give AA a bigger blockbuster than Trivikram can.” Another Twitter user wrote, “make it happen @alluarjun anna.” One more netizen tweeted, “This is the brand AA everyone wants to work with him.

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Urvashi Rautela Receives Flowers From Karan Johar As She Bags First Dharma Film

MUMBAI:MMNN:11 May 2023
Urvashi Rautela often makes headlines for multiple reasons and today, she is in the news as it looks like she has bagged her first Dharma movie. She took to social media and shared a glimpse of a sweet hamper she received from Karan Johar and captioned it, “New beginnings

Urvashi is back in the news as she has bagged her first Dharma film and while there's that, she's also gearing up for her Hollywood debut where she will co-star 365 fame actor Michelle Morrone. She also has a movie with Pothineni, Sampath Nandi’s Black Rose and a project with Randeep Hooda. The actress also has collabroated for a music single with Jason Derulo Last seen with Akhil Akkineni in Agent, the Surender Reddy directorial failed to work at the box office and as a result, one of the producers Anil sunkara, took the blame for the same. The movie hit the screens on April 28, 2023. Taking to Twitter, he wrote, ”We have to take the entire blame for #Agent. Though we know its an uphill task, we thought of conquering but failed to do so as we did a blunder starting the project without a bound script & innumerable issues including covid followed. We don’t want to give any excuses but learn from this costly mistake and see how we can turn around to make sure, we will never repeat the mistakes. Our sincere apologies to all those who put trust on us. We will make it up for the losses with dedicated planning & hard work in our future projects."

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The Kerala Story box office collection day 3: Adah Sharma starrer collects a fantastic amount in its first weekend

MUMBAI:MMNN:8 May 2023
The Kerala Story starring Adah Sharma has surprised one and all. The film, which was released on Friday, has received mixed reviews. But, it has taken the box office by storm.

The movie on its first day collected Rs. 8.03 crore which was very good, but because of the positive word of mouth and the buzz on social media, The Kerala Story went on to show a fantastic growth over the weekend.

On Saturday and Sunday, the movie collected Rs. 11.22 crore and Rs. 16 crore respectively, taking the first weekend total to Rs. 35.25 crore which is excellent. After such a great weekend, we can expect the film to be stable on weekdays as well. It looks like in its first week, the movie will cross Rs. 50 crore easily.

The Kerala Story has no star power and the makers didn’t promote it heavily. It is clearly riding on the word of mouth and the buzz on social media.

Talking about Ponniyin Selvan 2, the film did show a minor jump on its second weekend, but couldn’t reach a double digit number on any day. The film in 10 days has collected Rs. 152.50 crore which is decent, but not great. The first instalment of the movie had done much better than the sequel.

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Did Ranbir Kapoor hint at Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani sequel

MUMBAI:MMNN:7 May 2023
Filmmaker Ayan Mukerji’s directorial venture Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani has garnered immense love and appreciation from fans. The movie is considered to be one of the iconic films. Given the fact, the movie has received so much love, fans wonder if there will be a sequel. Well, going by his recent chat, Ranbir Kapoor dropped a major hint on the Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani sequel. Recently, in a virtual chat, on being asked which film of him aka Bunny would want a sequel, except Brahmastra, he said that the film ‘would make a good sequel’.

TTalking more about the details, the Shamshera actor further revealed, “Ayan also had a very nice story I remember. Then he went into this Brahmastra journey. But, never say never. He might make it after a couple of years,” he said.

Ranbir said that the story should be set 10 years ahead and how the characters are living in the current life. “I think the story will be 10 years forward where Bunny, Naina, Avi and Aditi, where are in their lives. I think it’ll be quite interesting and nice to explore those characters,” the Brahmastra actor said.

Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone starrer Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani was not just a movie but an emotion. From deep life lessons to relationships between friends and family, fans were relating to YJHD on many levels. And Ranbir’s recent statement can leave fans with tears of joy; however, we’ll wait for an official statement on the same.

Helmed by Ayan Mukerji, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani also starred Kalki Koechlin, Aditya Roy Kapur and Kunal Roy Kapur. Currently, Kapoor is gearing up for another sequel and that is Brahmastra. Part 2: Dev was announced to release in December 2026 whereas the final part will release in December 2027. He is also gearing up for the release of Animal with Rashmika Mandanna.

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Parineeti Chopra-Raghav Chadha To Make Their Relationship Official On May 13?

New Delhi:MMNN:2 May 2023
Actor Parineeti Chopra and AAP leader Raghav Chadha will finally announce their engagement on May 13 in New Delhi. The couple could be seen leaving a restaurant together in the pictures and videos that the paparazzi posted. Parineeti stopped to pose for the photographers and chatted briefly with them before getting into the same car, whereas Raghav went straight out to his car.
Parineeti and Raghav will make their relationship official with an intimate engagement in New Delhi on May 13 reports Indian Express.com. The duo haven’t responded to the report yet. Sanjeev Arora, the head of the AAP, had earlier congratulated them on their union. Parineeti Chopra and Raghav Chadha were seen together at a lunch date in Mumbai last month, which sparked dating rumours. The ‘Uunchai’ actress blushed when prompted about her wedding with the AAP leader.
Raghav Chadha finally addressed the rumours of their affair last month when questioned regarding the actress. He said, “Aap mujhse raajneeti ke sawaal kariye, Parineeti ke sawaal na kariye (Please ask me questions on politics, not Parineeti).” When questioned further regarding the rumours surrounding their relationship, Raghav blushed and responded, “Denge jawaab.”

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Ponniyin Selvan-2 Box Office Collection Day 4: Mani Ratnam Recreates History As PS-2 Crosses Rs 200 Crore Worldwide, Check Detailed Report

New Delhi:MMNN:2 may 2023
Mani Ratnam’s epic, PS-2 is on a roll at the Box Office worldwide and has crossed the winning mark of Rs 200 crore already. The film which was released last Friday is unstoppable at the ticket window and has been earning in double digits even during weekdays. The Chiyaan Vikram and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan starrer grossed around Rs 173 crore in its first weekend after which it didn’t slow down and reached Rs 200 crore in a matter of four days. The film has also crossed Rs 100 crore nett in India in four days and has become the third Tamil movie of the year to do so.
It took Ponniyin Selvan-2 four days to make a double century at Box Office while Ponniyin Selvan-1 reached the amazing benchmark worldwide in just three days.
Ponniyin Selvan-2 is now on its way to crossing Rs 400 crore and it shall even go over this in its lifetime run. The second part of the Mani Ratnam directorial has received better reviews than the first one and that will definitely add to the moolah. With the help of good reviews, the credibility of a master filmmaker, and a celebrated star cast, Ponniyin Selvan-2 is on its way to becoming one of the most successful historic dramas in the country. The film has a good window to perform until another biggie hits the screens which is not happening anytime soon. PS-2 is making waves on the big screen and it has emerged as yet another winner from South India.

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Filmfare Awards 2023: When and where to watch the 68th Filmfare Awards Know which actors will clash

New Delhi:MMNN:26 April 2023
Filmfare Awards 2023: Like every year, fans are eagerly waiting for the Filmfare Awards 2023. The Filmfare Awards are being held on April 27, 2023 at the Jio World Convention Center in Mumbai.
This award night will see a gathering of all the artists from the entertainment world. Several awards have been announced in technical and non-technical categories with nominations in 19 main categories.
This year, Salman Khan will host the award night and will be joined by stars like Ayushmann Khurrana, Manish Paul. Vicky Kaushal, Tiger Shroff, Govinda to Janhvi Kapoor will add color to the program with their performances on this award night.
This glamorous award night will be telecast on Colors channel on 28 April 2023 at 9 PM. Apart from this, you will also be able to see updates related to the event on Filmfare's website and social media handles. If you want to be a part of this award show, you can buy tickets from the official website. The award night has been organized on 27th April and the show will be aired on the next day i.e. 28th.
Best Director
Anees Bajmi (Bhool Bhulaiya 2), Ayan Mukerji (Brahmastra Part One: Shiva), Harshvardhan Kulkarni (Badhai Do), Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Gangubai Kathiawadi), Sooraj R. Barjatya (Height), Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (Kashmir Files).
Best Film Critic
'Badhai Do' (Harshvardhan Kulkarni), 'Bhedia' (Amar Kaushik), 'Jund' (Nagraj Poptrao Manjule), 'Rocketry: Nambi Prabhav' (R Madhavan), 'Vadh' (Jaspal Singh Sandhu and Rajeev Baranwal),
Best Actor in a Leading Role Male
Ajay Devgn (Drishyam 2), Amitabh Bachchan (Unchai), Anupam Kher (The Kashmir Files), Hrithik Roshan (Vikram Vedha), Karthik Aaryan (Bhool Bhulaiya 2), Rajkumar Rao (Bhadhai Do)
Best Actor Critic
Amitabh Bachchan (Swarm), R Madhavan (Rocketry: The Numby Effect), Rajkumar Rao (Congratulations), Sanjay Mishra (Slaughter), Shahid Kapoor (Jersey), Varun Dhawan (Wolf), Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female), Alia Bhatt (Gangubai Kathiawadi), Bhumi Pednekar (Badhai Do), Janhvi Kapoor (Millie), Kareena Kapoor Khan (Lal Singh Chadha), Tabu (Bhool Bhulaiya 2).
Best Actress Critic
Bhumi Pednekar (Badhai Do), Kajol (Salam Venki), Neena Gupta (Vadh), Taapsee Pannu (Shabaash Mithu), Tabu (Bhool Bhulaiya 2)
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Male
Anil Kapoor (Jugjag Jio), Anupam Kher (Height), Darshan Kumar (Kashmir Files), Gulshan Devaiah (Congratulations Do), Jaideep Ahlawat (Action Hero), Manish Paul (Jugjag Jio), Mithun Chakraborty (Kashmir Files)
Supporting Role Best Actress Female
Mouni Roy (Brahmastra Part One: Shiva), Neetu Kapoor (Jugjag Jio), Sheeba Chadha (Badhai Do), Sheeba Chadha (Doctor Ji), Shefali Shah (Doctor Ji), Simran (Rocketry: Nambi Prabhav) ,
Best Music Album
Amit Trivedi (Height), Pritam (Brahmastra Part One: Shiva), Pritam (Lal Singh Chadha), Sachin Jigar (Bhedia), Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Gangubai Kathiawadi)
Best music
AM Turaj (Jab Saiyan- Gangubai Kathiawadi), Amitabh Bhattacharya (Apna Bana Le Piya- Bheldia), Amitabh Bhattacharya (Kesaria-Brahmastra Part One: Shiva), Amitabh Bhattacharya (Tere Hawala- Lal Singh Chadha), Shaili (Maiya Mainu- jersey)
Best Playback Singer Male
Abhay Jodhpurkar (Mange Manzooriyaan- Badhai Do), Arijit Singh (Apna Bana Le-Bhedia), Arijit Singh (Deva Deva- Brahmastra Part One: Shiva), Arijit Singh (Kesaria-Brahmastra Part One: Shiva), Sonu Nigam (Main Ki Reason- Lal Singh Chadha),
Best Playback Singer Philmel
Janhvi Srimankar (Dholida-Gangubai Kathiawadi), Jonita Gandhi (Dev Dev- Brahmastra Part One: Shiva), Kavita Seth (Rangsari- Jugjag Jiyo), Shilpa Rao (Tere Hawale- Lal Singh Chadha), Shreya Ghoshal (Jab Saiyan- Gangubai Kathiawadi) )
Best Debut Director
Anirudh Iyer (An Action Hero), Anubhuti Kashyap (Doctor G), Jai Basantu Singh (Released in Public Interest), Jaspal Singh Sandhu and Rajeev Baranwal (Vadh), R Madhavan (Rocketry: The Numby Effect)
Best debut mail
Abhay Mishra (Doctor G), Ankush Gedam (Jund), Palin Kabak (Bhedia), Shantanu Maheshwari (Gangubai Kathiawadi)
Best Debut Female
Andrea Kevichusa (Many), Khushali Kumar (Dhokha: Round D Corner), Manushi Chhillar (Samrat Prithviraj), Prajakta Koli (Jugjag Jio)

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'Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan' earns Rs 68 crore in opening weekend, Salman Khan thanks fans for love & support

New Delhi:MMNN:24 April 2023
Salman Khan's highly anticipated family drama movie "Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan" has performed well at the box office, earning a total of Rs 68.17 crore in its opening weekend, according to the film's makers on Monday. The movie, directed by Farhad Samji, hit theaters on Friday, April 21, ahead of Eid, and marks Salman Khan's first big-screen release in a leading role in four years.

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New Trailer For Fast X Screeches Online

New Delhi:MMNN:20 April 2023
If you expect one thing from a new Fast & Furious trailer, make it FAMILY. Another? Physics mown down in a blaze of speeding car tires or exploding motors. Vin Diesel growling something. A giant threat to our heroes that can only be faced in demolition derby fashion and, yes, FAMILY again. The new look at Fast X has screeched in
Having fought off worries about franchise fatigue (Fast 9 didn’t hit at the box office quite as well as some of its predecessors) and behind-the-scenes drama (veteran director Justin Lin departed the movie after 10 days of shooting), Fast X is being described as the beginning of the end of the road, since the 11th main movie is the big finale for the franchise. Assuming you believe that…
So what's the story this time? Official synopsis time!
Over many missions and against impossible odds, Dom Toretto (Diesel) and his family have outsmarted, out-nerved and outdriven every foe in their path. Now, they confront the most lethal opponent they’ve ever faced: A terrifying threat emerging from the shadows of the past who’s fueled by blood revenge, and who is determined to shatter this family and destroy everything — and everyone — that Dom loves, forever.
In 2011’s Fast & Furious 5: Rio Heist, Dom and his crew took out nefarious Brazilian drug kingpin Hernan Reyes and decapitated his empire on a bridge in Rio De Janeiro. What they didn’t know was that Reyes’ son, Dante (Jason Momoa), witnessed it all and has spent the last 12 years masterminding a plan to make Dom pay the ultimate price.
Dante’s plot will scatter Dom’s family from Los Angeles to the catacombs of Rome, from Brazil to London and from Portugal to Antarctica. New allies will be forged, and old enemies will resurface. But everything changes when Dom discovers that his own 8-year-old son Brian (Leo Abelo Perry) is the ultimate target of Dante’s vengeance.
The regulars are joined by the likes of Brie Larson, Daniela Melchior, Alan Ritchson and Rita Moreno, and Universal are clearly happy with the job that incoming director Louis Leterrier was able to achieve, as he's returning for the next one.
Fast X is due in cinemas on 19 May. FAMILY.

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Avinash Tripathi honored with Maharashtra Dream Achievers Award
NEW DELHI:MMNN: 19 April 2023

Renowned writer, lyricist and filmmaker from Jaipur, Avinash Tripathi was honored with the Maharashtra Dream Achievers Award at a grand function held in Juhu, Mumbai. Avinash was given this famous award for his films and creative writing on social subjects. Renowned industrialist Capt. Dr. A.D. Manek while giving the award to Avinash Tripathi said that today Avinash is the most versatile media personality of the country, who is involved in journalism, film writing, song writing, Doing world class work in many genres including film production. Speaking about Avinash Tripathi, the organizer of the program, Vishnu said that Avinash Tripathi has given great height to his talent by producing and directing the maximum number of 750 short films. Present at the event organized by Sneha Event Company, Former Vice President of Uttar Pradesh Board and renowned filmmaker Tarun Rathi also praised Avinash Tripathi's multi-faceted talent. Significantly, Avinash has done the work of teaching in the famous private university of Jaipur. Lyrics written by Avinash, Famous Bollywood Singer Shaan, Kavita Krishnamurthy, Anwesha, Abhishek Ray, Many famous artists have sung the raga including Anupama. Avinash is also the Founder Director of International Festival which provides a world class platform to artistes. Avinash has also recently signed up as a screenwriter with many big production houses. Apart from Avinash, the Maharashtra Dream Achievers Award also presented the award to Mask TV owner Sanjay Bhatt, famous astrologer and Bigg Boss contestant Pandit Janardhan, and famous filmmaker Tarun Rathi.

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Pushpa The Rule: First look of Pushpa The Rule is out, makers shared video hint
NEW DELHI:MMNN: 5 April 2023

Pushpa 2 Teaser: On the special occasion of Rashmika Mandanna's birthday, the makers of Pushpa 2 have increased the excitement of the audience even more. The filmmakers have shared a video revealing the first look of the film. After the huge success of the film Pushpa, the audience is eagerly waiting for 'Pushpa The Rule' i.e. Pushpa 2. In such a situation, the makers of Pushpa have recently shared a video with which it is written where is Pushpa, your wait is going to end soon. You will get answers to all your questions on 7th April 4:05, because then you will know where your Pushpa is missing after escaping from Tirupati jail. After watching this video, the fans are now unable to wait till Allu Arjun's birthday. Today the teaser has been released on Rashmika's birthday and the trailer will be released on Allu's birthday.
Allu Arjun Pushpa 2 Video: Sharing this video of Pushpa from Tirupati Jail, you can see that the makers have left no stone unturned to establish Pushpa's threat this time. Everything is visible in the video of the Bloody Protest. With which only one question is being asked that where is Pushpa. This video has been shared on Pushpa's official Twitter account with a caption that reads The Hunt for Pushpa. Preparations are being made to release the teaser of Pushpa The Rule on Allu Arjun's birthday. After watching this video, the level of excitement of the fans has doubled.
Allu Arjun And Rashmika Mandanna Pushpa 2 Video: Released in the year 2021, Pushpa is one of the most superhit films of Allu Arjun's career. Allu Arjun, who played his sting from South to Bollywood, created panic in the film industry. Every song, every scene and every dialogue of the film is still seen rote on the lips of the audience.
Fans are quite excited to see Pushpa The Rule on the big screen. This video of Pushpa The Rule (Pushpa 2 Teaser) is trending with the release. It has been only a few hours since the release of this video that this video has been viewed more than 269k times.

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Priyanka Chopra says she was 'tired of politics' in Bollywood; 'I had beef with people'

New Delhi:MMNN:28 March 2023
Priyanka Chopra moved to Hollywood and made India proud. She is among the rare few from India who could establish her name and attain massive fame in the west. Not that she had less of a career in Bollywood but when Hollywood knocked, she grabbed the opportunity instantly. In a recent interview, Priyanka Chopra spilled beans on why she decided to go away from Bollywood. She said that she was looking for a way out of the industry as she was tired of politics.
Priyanka Chopra Priyanka Chopra opens up about her move to seek work in the US On the podcast Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard, Priyanka Chopra was asked what made her seek work in the US. To this, Priyanka Chopra said that Acharia of Desi Hits approached her for a music video and career in the US while she was shooting for Saat Khoon Maaf. She described that period as when she was looking for a way out of Bollywood. She added that she was tired of politics in the industry and that she needed a break from it. She was quoted saying, "I was being pushed into a corner in the industry (Bollywood). I had people not casting me, I had beef with people, I am not good at playing that game so I kind of was tired of the politics and I said I needed a break." She further said that the music video gave her the opportunity to go beyond boundaries, and not crave films that she did not get that required her to 'schmooze certain clubs and cliques of people'. She felt that she had worked for a long time in Bollywood and she needed to do it.

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India bags two awards at Oscars 2023: 'Naatu Naatu' claims Best Original Song
Guneet Monga and Kartiki Gonsalves' 'The Elephant Whispers' gets Oscar warrant
Mumbai:MMNN:13 March 2023
Today India was in the limelight at the Oscar Awards. India has got two awards in Oscars 2023. SS Rajamouli's film 'RRR' has created history. The song 'Naatu Naatu' from the film has won the Best Original Song award. RRR's song 'Naatu-Naatu' was nominated in the Best Original Song category. Along with this, 'Lift Me Up' from the film 'Black Panther', 'Hold My Hand' from 'Top Gun Maverick', 'Applause' from 'Everything Everywhere All at Once, This is a Life and Tell It Like Woman' Was nominated.
By giving a tough competition to all this, 'Natu-Natu' has won and won the Oscar in the Best Original Song category. After winning the award, the happiness of the makers knows no bounds. The song Natu-Natu has once again made the country feel proud. Let us tell you that the song 'Naatu Naatu' has been sung together by Rahul Sipliganj and Kaal Bhairava. The lyrical version of this song was released on 10 November 2021. But the full video song was released on 11th April 2022. The Tamil version of the same song was released as 'Naattu Kothu', 'Halli Naattu' in Kannada, 'Karinthol' in Malayalam and 'Naacho Naacho' in Hindi version. Actors Ramcharan Teja and Junior NTR have danced in this song and the choreography of the song is done by Prem Rakshit.
India won two Oscars
   
India got Oscar for the first time in the year 2023 and the country has won not one but two awards. Apart from the song Natu-Natu from SS Rajamouli's film RRR, Guneet Monga and Kartikey Gonsalves' film 'The Elephant Whispers' has been awarded the Oscar Award. This is a short film. It was nominated in the short film category of Best Documentary. This story is based on the bond between animals and humans.

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Kriti Sanon sports chic look in Feb issue of Grazia.
Mumbai:MMNN:2 February 2019
New Delhi, Bollywood actress Kriti Sanon aces the cover of Grazia’s February issue and she is effortlessly sporting a chic look.Wearing a printed shirt, cropped jeans, stone ring and a metal bracelet, Kriti looks strikingly attractive in the cover picture. Kriti as an actor always been grounded and doing things comfortably. Her beauty regime is simple yet, extremely effective. Regarding her busy schedule, Kriti has got the busiest time of 2019.Kriti has a hectic schedule ahead with her four films releasing this year along with multiple brand shoots on which the actress is working on simultaneously. Recently, Kriti clocked 17 million followers on Instagram and the actress thanked her fans and followers for their love and support. Only four films old, Kriti has an exciting film line up to look forward to with projects like ‘Housefull 4’, ‘Luka Chuppi’, ‘Panipat’ and ‘Arjun Patiala’. The young actress is leaving no stone unturned to treat her fans with her versatile performances in varied genres of films.

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Thackeray: Don't Pay Much Heed to a Film's Collection, Says Nawazuddin Siddiqui.
Mumbai:MMNN:1 February 2019
Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has been praised for his portrayal of Bal Thackeray in Thackeray, but the movie, based on late Shiv Sena supremo who had a controversial political career, has been slammed by some critics for being biased. The critically acclaimed actor says Indian audiences do not like to see the protagonist in shades of grey and that if only the negative side of the protagonist is reflected on the big screen, this will severly impact the box office. Addressing the critical reviews of the film, Nawazuddin told IANS in a telephonic interview: "For the past 40-50 years, we have been continuously presenting our heroes in a good light. The audience does not like to see the protagonist with grey shades. If I portray the only negative side of the protagonist, then it will not run at the box office." "Our society is not ready to see the negative traits in the heroes. My previous films 'Manto' and 'Raman Raghav 2.0' did not perform well. I tried my best to present the characters in those films without any polishing, but with lukewarm responses... I realised that our audience is not ready to see our heroes with negative characteristics." Keeping aside the critical reviews of Thackeray, Nawazuddin is "overwhelmed" to get his first biggest opening movie to date as a solo lead. The film registered over Rs 6 crore on Day 1 of its release (January 25). "I am overwhelmed with the responses and love which I am receiving from people. I am thankful to all of them. With 'Thackeray', I got my first biggest opening as the solo lead role. I am honoured and blessed that I got an opportunity to play Balasahebji on screen." But the 44-year-old also said he does not like "giving much attention to box office collections". "Honestly speaking, I don't pay much heed to a film's collection and numbers. But it is a weird place, many people judge films on the basis of the collection, no matter what the content is. "So many films have been made in our industry in which actors have performed well, but the film did not do well in terms of collections...and then they got declared as flops. And there are also so many films in which actors didn't perform well but the film turned out to be the biggest hit just because it collected a good amount at the box office...weird. So, in such scenarios I also can't totally overlook the box office collection of the films." Talking about the film's success, Nawazuddin said that "Thackeray" has motivated him to keep doing "challenging roles" in future projects. "It feels good that when your work is appreciated and now 'Thackeray' is doing so well, it is inspiring me to keep pushing my limits and do more challenging roles on screen. "I love doing challenging roles. With each film, I want to try something new. I hate doing roles in my comfort zone... I want to be a versatile actor. Now I look up to more new, different and challenging roles," he added.

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Simmba’ crosses Rs 100 cr mark, earns Rs 124.54 cr.
Mumbai:MMNN:3 January 2019
New Delhi, The Rohit Shetty directorial ‘Simmba’ crossed the Rs 100 crore mark at the box office across the country, trade sources said on Wednesday. Ranveer Singh and Sara Ali Khan starrer ‘Simmba’ earned Rs 28.19 crore on its fifth day, pushing its grand total to Rs 124.54 crore. Taking to micro-blogging site Twitter, Ranveer said on Wednesday,’All Hail The Blockbuster King! RO-BRO Be Slammin’ Century After Century #RohitShetty Ek hi toh hai’. ‘Simmba’ is Ranveer’s fourth film and Rohit Shetty’s eighth film to cross Rs 100 crore mark. ‘Golmaal Again’, which was Rohit Shetty’s 2017’s release, collected over Rs 200 crore.’Simmba’ is an action film directed by Rohit Shetty and written by Yunus Sajawal and Sajid-Farhad. A spin-off of the Singham franchise, the film is produced by Shetty under his banner Rohit Shetty Picturez and Karan Johar, Hiroo Yash Johar and Apoorva Mehta under the banner Dharma Productions. It stars Ranveer Singh, Sara Ali Khan and Sonu Sood, with Ajay Devgn reprising his role of ‘Bajirao Singham’. The film follows Sangram “Simmba” Bhalerao, a corrupt police officer hailing from the same town as Singham, who is forced to lead a more righteous path after tragedy strikes those near him.

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Raveena Tandon: 'Kader Khan Was A Rare Talent, I Was Bowled Over By His Comic Timing On Screen.
Mumbai:MMNN:2 January 2019
Actress Raveena Tandon, who has had the privilege of working with late veteran actor-comedian Kader Khan in several films like Dulhe Raja, Aatish: Feel the Fire and Main Khiladi Tu Anari, says she was always "bowled over by his comic timing". "I was always bowled over by his comic timing on screen and his erudition between takes. He was a scholar and an entertainer, a rare combination in the entertainment industry," she said. As Kader Khan died after a prolonged illness at a hospital in Toronto in Canada on Tuesday, Raveena said that she had "no idea of Kader Khan being so unwell". "Waking up to such a sad news was really disheartening for me. Kader Khan was such a rare talent and whatever parts he played he would add a different charm to it. Someone who can portray a comedian and a villain at same time with such ease is rare," she sighed. Also, while expressing her condolences over the 81-year-old's death, Raveena reminisced her memories with Kader Khan. She said: "I have had a chance to work closely with him on some of the iconic films of that times and on this day I cherish all the memories as it will stay with me forever." "I also remember being part with him in the show Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai and I still remember all the life lessons he shared on that show. I hope the family gathers the strength to come out of this phase and come out stronger. All my condolences to the family and may his soul rest in peace."

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This is my life’s best performance: Anupam Kher on ‘The Accidental Prime Minister.
Mumbai:MMNN:29 December 2018
New Delhi, Amid the controversy generated by his film ‘The accidental Prime Minsiter’, Bollywood actor Anupam Kher on Friday said, it is his best performance and he is not going to back off. Taking to micro-blogging site Twitter, the actor shared the picture of the movie’s poster and said,’I am not going to back off. This is my life’s best performance. #DrManmohanSingh will agree after seeing the film that it is a 100% accurate depiction. Will meet the media at 1730 hrs at Actor Prepares, Film Industry Welfare Trust, Santacruz. #TheAccidentalPrimeMinister’. ‘I read the book to imitate Manmohan Singh. In my first film I played a 65-year-old man at the age of 28. A Youth Congress Leader wrote a letter about this but first I ignored. We have created an accurate functioning system.We had shown the movie to the censor board and it came back after their approval.That is why it does not make any sense to show it to someone else,’ Mr Kher said addressing mediapersons. ‘In the span of 35 years and 515 films of my career this is the hardest movie.This film should go for the Oscars but the debate has begun. 25 years from now, when the history of the films will be written then the name of this movie will be taken first,’ he added. In appearance, Kher aces as Manmohan Singh, while Akshaye Khanna plays the role of Sanjaya Baru, who was Manmohan Singh’s media advisor from 2004 to 2008. The film’s plot is narrated through Sanjaya Baru’s character.’The Accidental Prime Minister’ delves into the internal politics of the Congress party and how Manmohan Singh handled the situations. The trailer also features Aahana Kumra as Priyanka Vadra, Arjun Mathur as Rahul Gandhi, and Suzanne Bernert as Sonia Gandhi.’The Accidental Prime Minister’ will hit the screens on February 11.The film is based on Sanjay Baru’s memoir of the same name that was released in 2014

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Anushka Sharma unveils her wax figurine at Madame Tussauds Singapore.
Mumbai:MMNN:20 November 2018
New Delhi, Bollywood actor Anushka Sharma is a global brand now and Madame Tussauds, Singapore stamped it by unveiling her wax figure on Monday. Given her popularity across countries, the wax museum at Singapore unveiled her first ever interactive wax statue that will vow the visitors. Anushka’s life-like figure holds a phone personally inviting visitors to snap a selfie with her, which can be digitally shared with friends and family. She will be the first wax statue in the Singapore museum with this feature. Anushka joins Bollywood celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, among others by enlivening the feel and experience of awards’ ceremonies like the IIFA for their fans by bringing it live in the museum itself.

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KGF’ ode to Salim Khan, Javed Akhtar’s cinema.
Mumbai:MMNN:19 November 2018
New Delhi, Actor Yash starrer ‘KGF’ is an ode to Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar’s cinema of 1970’s.Like many of Salim-Javed movies of the 1970s starring Amitabh Bachchan, ‘KGF’ traces the journey of Yash from his childhood. Excel Entertainment’s most ambitious project ‘KGF’ is set against the backdrop of the Kolar Gold Fields in Karnataka.’KGF’ showcases the story of Rocky (Yash), who aims to win the world and conquer the bloodiest gold mine. It is a period drama that traces the history of gold mining and the mafia running it in the generous fields of Karnataka’s Kolar region. The film is made in five languages, namely Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Malayalam. The magnum opus traces the period of the glory of the gold mine and gives insights into the history of the mines located in Karnataka. Starring Yash, Srinidhi Shetty, Ramya Krishna, Ananth Nag, John Kokken, Achyuth Rao in the lead, ‘KGF’ is a Homabale Films production directed by Prashanth Neel, produced by Vijay Kiragandur. ‘KGF’ would mark Excel Entertainment’s first Kannada venture and the production house is elated to be associated with a mega ambitious project as such. The period drama traces the tenure of late 70s and will be made in two parts. The first of which will be titled ‘KGF Chapter 1’ which is slated to release on December 21.

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Kedarnath’ makers release new song ‘Sweetheart’.
Mumbai:MMNN:16 November 2018
New Delhi, The makers of ‘Kedarnath’ have treated the audience with the second song from the film titled ‘Sweetheart’. The celebratory song features Sushant Singh Rajput and Sara Ali Khan shaking their legs on the peppy beats. Set in the mood of a wedding ceremony, ‘Sweetheart’ has Sushant wooing Sara Ali Khan as he dances in the celebration. Composed by Amit Trivedi, the song is penned by Amitabh Bhattacharya and crooned by Dev Negi. Dressed in traditional attires, both Sushant and Sara Ali Khan brighten up the screens with their refreshing chemistry. Looking breathtakingly beautiful, Sara Ali Khan showcases a glimpse of her dancing skills for the first time. While the teaser set the mood for the romantic tale based amidst the tragic floods of Uttarakhand, the first song ‘Namo Namo’ took the audience on a pilgrimage trip to the holy temple. The trailer received an exceptional response from the audience across quarters owing to the gripping storyline and crackling chemistry of the leading duo. ‘Kedarnath’ is an eternal love story set in the backdrop of the flash floods that wrecked the temple town in the June of 2013. It is a potent combination of love and religion, passion and spirituality. The floods that took the lives of over a hundred thousand people is a powerful backdrop for this epic love story. ‘Kedarnath’ marks the debut of Sara Ali Khan and also presents the second association of Abhishek Kapoor with Ronnie Screwvala along Sushant Singh Rajput after ‘Kai Po Che’. Produced by Ronnie Screwvala’s RSVP and Abhishek Kapoor’s Guy In the Sky Pictures, ‘Kedarnath’ is directed by Abhishek Kapoor and is slated to release on December 7.

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Stree Movie Review: Shraddha Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao Are Terrific In Madcap Film.
Mumbai:MMNN:31 August 2018
A zany supernatural parable that is both strongly feminist and uproariously funny, Stree, Amar Kaushik's self-assured first feature, delivers shocks and laughs in equal measure. Despite its repeated to-ing and fro-ing between conflicting tones, the horror comedy glides along a firm and steady arc almost all through its runtime of two hours and a bit. The film's fear quotient, like its comic flourishes, varies pretty wildly - in the climatic moments, it even wobbles just a touch - but the sight of fully grown men cowering in panic at the very mention of the spectral figure who gives the film its title is always hilarious, even when it tilts towards the terrifying. The director harnesses his resources to their fullest: the lighting, the camera movements, the sound design and the editing all serve the purpose of heightening the film's seamless tonal duality. It goes repeatedly swings between spine-chilling and hysterical, alarming and absurd without losing its grasp. Stree is a tour de force enlivened enormously by solid contributions from each and every technical department and the superlative turns from the principal actors. The cast is led admirably well by the splendid Rajkummar Rao and that man for all seasons who invariably seems to be a step ahead of the demands of the screenplay - the magnificently malleable Pankaj Tripathi. Filmed entirely on location in Chanderi, Madhya Pradesh, Stree combines the tangibility and the rough and tumble of a real small-town ambience and the flights of fancy of a weird fantasy based, as we are told at the start of the opening credits, "on a ridiculous phenomenon". Written by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK (also the film's co-producers with Dinesh Vijan), the script pulls wonderful tricks out of its bag to deliver an unconventional entertainer that uses the devices of Mumbai commercial cinema in ways that turn everything on its head. The hoary town has a dark secret that it wants to forget but can barely live down. This chapter in its long history of patriarchy, misogyny and toxic masculinity - it centres on a beautiful prostitute violently thwarted in her attempt to find true love - lies behind the terror that strikes the hearts of the men of Chanderi during a four-day annual religious festival. So, it is the time of year when the men are either on the run or are forced to hide behind closed doors, not daring to step out of their homes at night. It is a case of a woman getting her own back, and entirely on her own terms. There is no escaping the attention of Stree when she is out to make her ominous presence felt. Every home in this haunted area has "O Stree kal aanaa (O Woman, come tomorrow)" written on its walls with red ink created with special ingredients meant to keep evil away. The vengeful ghost is obviously literate and is very, very civil - a woman, even as a wild wraith, does not believe in using force and waits for the consent of her victims before abducting them, leaving only their clothes behind. She whispers a man's name and as soon as he turns around, she is upon him in a flash. The guy vanishes without a trace Vicky (Rajkummar Rao), a young man famed in the region for his exceptional tailoring skills, works in his father's shop when he isn't gallivanting around town with his two best pals, Bittu (Aparshakti Khurrana) and Jana (Abhishek Banerjee). Their carefree ways are disrupted when a mysterious, unnamed woman (Shraddha Kapoor) appears from out of the blue and sweet talks Vicky into agreeing to stitch a lehenga for her in two days flat. I want to wear it on the last day of the festival, she says. The guy, on his part, falls head over heels in love with the light-eyed lass. There is more to her than meets the eye, Bittu warns Vicky. But Jana eggs him on - with disastrous results Bittu's fears are strengthened when the town's resident know-all Rudra, a bakwaas baaton ka expert who owns a pustak bhandar, reminds Bittu and Jana of the legend of the avenging spirit on the loose and tells them what they need to do to ward her off. But that is easier said than done. It is hunting season for the wandering spirit and the men resort to desperate measures to stay out of harm's way. This construct is as crazy as it is comical, but the director injects just the right dose of goofiness to make it all consistently quirky and playful. The quality of the performances that Kaushik extracts from his actors lends Stree infectious flounce. Rajkummar Rao is terrific. Whether he is flummoxed, frightened or simply going along with the flow, he delivers with minimum apparent effort. Shraddha Kapoor is suitably icy as the enigmatic woman who traipses into the protagonist's life and sets off the tremors. Aparshakti Khurrana, full of beans, steals many a scene. Abhishek Banerjee delivers a high-energy yet controlled performance as the friend who suffers the most at the hands of the eponymous ghost. Pankaj Tripathi is in cracking form, giving the narrative a booster-charge whenever he is on the screen. Atul Srivastava in the role of Vicky's father leaves an impression in the handful of scenes he has in the film. Stree plays an unwavering hand in demonstrating that dread can be unbridled fun when it serves a larger thematic purpose. Go watch this spine-tingling film. It is completely madcap but there is method in its manic madness

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A R Rahman, Tabrez Noorani come together for ‘Love Sonia’.
Mumbai:MMNN:29 August 2018
New Delhi, After previously collaborating on Slumdog Millionaire filmmaker Tabrez Noorani and Grammy Award-winning composer A R Rahman have come back together for Noorani’s directorial debut ‘Love Sonia’. Mr Rahman along with breakout artist Bishop Briggs will record new song entitled I Am More for the film. The song is penned by Rianjali.Its round two for director Tabrez and Rahman, the two have previously worked together for the film ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ (2008). Rahman’s work gained him even more global prominence with the extraordinary success of his score for the film. Rahman will create the song along with young American-British singer Bishop Briggs who is best known for her popular single River. I have known Tabrez since ‘Slumdog Millionaire and then we went on to work on a couple of other projects. With this, he makes his directorial debut and I’m happy for him because projects like these happen with a lot of good intention to propel positive changes in the society,” Rahman said. It was a pleasure working with Tabrez, Academy nominated producer David and the talented artist Bishop Briggs for the song ‘I Am More’,” Rahman added. I Am More is truly magical and sung powerfully by Bishop Briggs. Its a wonderful combination of ARs Indian aethetics and the powerful voice of emerging international star, Bishop. Working with AR finally as a director was such an enriching experience, after hearing about various Directors talk about what it was like to work with him,” Tabrez said. He is truly a genius, understated, humble and so sensitive when it comes to representing the matter of the film. It was a truly unique experience to work with both AR, Bishop and Rianjali who wrote a truly beautiful song. I can’t wait for people to hear it,” Tabrez added.

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Lakme Fashion Week: Esha Deol Walks Out After Being Interrupted By Organisers.
Mumbai:MMNN:28 August 2018
Hema Malini and her daughter Esha Deol walked the ramp for designer Sanjukta Dutta over the weekend at the Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai. After the ramp walk, the mother-daughter duo, wearing beautiful Assamese silk saris, interacted with the media backstage, wherein Hema Malini spoke about their outfits and Esha's upcoming film Cakewalk. As soon as she handed over the mic to Esha, the anchor interrupted and categorically mentioned that it's not a media interaction but a photo op and asked the designer to take over. In the videos going viral on social media, Esha Deol, visibly upset, walked off, followed by mother Hema Malini. Walking the ramp with my most comfortable partner my mother Hema Malini for the awesome talented designer Sanjukta Dutta! Our best wishes to you," Esha had posted after the show. Of making an appearance with Hema Malini at the Lakme Fashion Week, Esha earlier told news agency IANS, "I am very excited to be back on the ramp with my mom Hema Malini for designer Sanjukta Dutta to promote my film Cakewalk, directed by Ram Kamal Mukherjee. The film deals with a certain issue which every women and men in our country will be able to relate." Cakewalk is a short film that tracks the story of a chef Shilpa Sen, played by Esha, who juggles between her professional and personal lives. Esha Deol hasn't made any screen appearance after 2015's Kill Them Young. She is married to businessman Bharat Takhtani. The couple are parents to daughter Radhya.

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Genius Movie Review: Nawazuddin Siddiqui's Most Forgettable Film.
Mumbai:MMNN:25 August 2018
The film is written, directed and produced by his dad Anil Sharma. Utkarsh Sharma's launch vehicle is understandably loaded heavily in his favour. A father's love knows no bounds. The film frequently grinds to a halt to allow papa's boy to launch into veritable monologues. The trouble is that in the end Genius - has a Hindi movie title ever been more presumptuous? - does no real favours to the debutant. By over-burdening the callow actor, this atrociously misshapen film only exposes his chinks. It doesn't help that the acting skills of the female lead (Ishitha Chauhan) is even more rudimentary - she simply doesn't have the chops to push her co-star to excel. The IIT Roorkee girl that she plays goes from uncompromisingly ambitious and snooty to cloyingly lovey-dovey and faithful in next to no time. Wish this insufferably long film - it clocks 165 minutes - had the same pace. The actors are stuck in the innards of a stupendously sloppy screenplay in which anything goes in a way that is reminiscent of the excesses that Bollywood would routinely foist upon audiences in the era in which Anil Sharma began making movies. Utkarsh Sharma, bearing the load of a bloated film, is condemned to mouthing lines like "bachpan hai toh bachpana toh hoga" and "aapke liye toh muft mein bik jaoonga". The former is pearl of wisdom is addressed to his RAW bosses who are exhausted with his youthful enthusiasm, the latter show of generosity is directed at his girlfriend after she enquires if he is free and he responds with "mehenga hoon". That is how smart this young man is. He has mastered both Ved and vigyan (the Vedas and science). He even declares something akin to Garv se kaho hum prachin hai (be proud to be ancient). Nor is that all. In a crucial scene in the second half, having gone rogue, the Indian security agency's hotshot agent corners a compromised minister and crooked RAW official and thunders: This is the business of patriots, yahaan sirf sanskaar hote hain, woh bhi antim. John Abraham's dialogue-baazi in Satyameva Jayate sound extraordinarily good. The writing in Genius is that abysmal. It seeks to turn an ordinary looking, slightly built young man into a destructive, insuperable mean machine endowed with abilities of the body and mind that do not sit pretty on his shoulders. Action hero, super spy, lover boy, computer whiz and an invincible patriot, the male protagonist is a man for all seasons and all reasons. When push comes to shove, the protagonist, Vasudev Shastri, an orphan raised by a Mathura temple priest after the death of his parents in communal rioting, is not averse to feigning insanity. Not that anything he ever does is normal. Right at the outset, after a physically bruising mission in Porbander leaves him with a pronounced limp and tinnitus-induced amplified hearing, is declared "medically unfit to be in the secret services", he is dismissed as delusional. He could be brain-dead soon, the doctor rules. Well, well, isn't the man already a basket case? As he is wheeled into a psychiatric ward for some quick shock treatment, the script intersperses his dramatic convulsions with a love song on a beach. Talk of the lack of dimaagi santulan (mental balance) - the malady afflicts the makers of Genius as much as it does the film's characters. The presence in the cast of Nawazuddin Siddiqui - he dons the guise of a terror mastermind who has an old score to settle with India's national security adviser Jaishankar Prasad (Mithun Chakraborty) and schemes to use the hero to serve that end - makes matters worse. Even at half tilt, Siddiqui operates in a zone entirely his own. Yet, Genius will quickly go down as the most forgettable movie he has ever been in. One cannot but laugh when the younger actor, in a bloodied and badly mauled state, snarls at the baddie: "Tu mujhe rok sakega (Can you stop me)?" No wonder Siddiqui isn't allowed to enter the fray until only a few minutes before the intermission. It is another matter that he, too, cannot do much to salvage Genius. What do you expect a villain to do when he supposed to exude menace by saying "Dhyaan se sun meri baat, nahin maani toh udda doonga sabko" (Listen to me with care, if you do not heed my words, I'll blow everything up?" The film itself needs no help to implode. Its first half is composed of a string of fuzzy flashbacks designed to showcase Utkarsh's range as an actor, a dancer, a campus star, and a combination of a geek and a cool guy. The emotional spectrum of the character is wide indeed, but do not expect a demonstration of a wide gamut of expressions. The performance stays steadfastly rooted in the same place. The second half of Genius is unabashed cinematic poop. It is so asinine that it is hard to believe that in this day and age there still are people in the Mumbai movie industry willing to sink money into such a travesty of an action film. In this maddeningly inept battle of Genius-giri between the good guy and the bad, the deshbhakt and the deshdrohi, the tricolour inevitably gets dragged in a few times. It needs no great intelligence to grasp the sheer shallowness of the posturing. The worse a Bollywood film is these days the more desperate it seems to be to fall back on patriotic fervour as a ploy to gloss over its glitches. But no amount of flag-waving and chest-thumping can deflect from the fact that Genius is an unspeakably shoddy film. Show some self-love and stay away from it. India will take care of itself.

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Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi Movie Review: Sonakshi Sinha's Star Turn Undermined By Unfunny Script.
Mumbai:MMNN:24 August 2018
This caper flick can't make do with one Happy. So it has two of them. Does that yield double the fun? No. Riding on a screenplay that yo-yos wildly between the utterly inane and the overly contrived, two's a crowd in Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi. One Happy (Sonakshi Sinha) does all the running. The other (Diana Penty, this time in a special appearance) flits in and out of the picture in a completely random manner. The result is anything but happy. Not that Sonakshi does not give the role her best shot. Hers is a lively star turn. It might have buoyed up the film if only it had the comic energy to go the distance. It doesn't get too far because it merely runs around in circles. Its gags are gratuitous and the one-liners too vacuous to hit home. When the two namesakes, after much listless huffing and puffing that sees them encounter old and new friends and confront sly foes, come face to face in Shanghai, Happy No. 1 promises Happy No. 2 that their next meeting back in Amritsar would be in less confusing and more relaxed circumstances. We aren't sure we are looking forward to it. Another Phirr would be one too many. The sluggish, singularly unfunny Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi, a follow-up to 2016's frisky Happy Bhag Jayegi in which the eponymous runaway bride had ended up in Lahore and a right royal mess, serves up a convoluted version of Chinese 'chukkers' that does not raise as much as a few mild chuckles. Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi unfolds in China, where key characters from the first film are joined by an Indian embassy man from Patiala (played by Punjabi singer-actor Jassi Gill in his Bollywood debut) even as a suave non-resident Pakistani gentleman - that is what he appears to be on the face of it - causes them no end of trouble. This wolf in sheep's clothing - his name is Adnan Chow and his Urdu is to die for - is played by Denzil Smith with self-effacing detachment. His refined performance is one of the few things that works in Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi. About the only time the film strikes a passably droll note is when Jimmy Sheirgill, in a meta-textual context, ticks off Jassi Gill for preening over his family name. 'You are Gill, but I am Sheirgill', the former retorts. Gentle bluster has its uses even in a film as lacklustre as this one. Sheirgill has obvious bragging rights in this comedy written and directed by Mudassar Aziz. He has been here before, playing a small-time politician thwarted in his plans to marry the female protagonist. This time around, however, he is reduced to the status of a mere hanger-on, strutting around spouting banalities and eventually settling for a tame "yeh bhi theek hai" in most exchanges with Usman Afridi (Piyush Mishra) or Jassi Gill's character Khushwant Singh Gill, Khushi miyan to Adnan Chow. Actually, nothing is quite right here. Ditto Ali Fazal, one of the more charming actors in the cast. He is summoned into the frame off and on to be by the side of the first Harpreet Kaur alias Happy while pursuing his singing ambitions. He jets into Shanghai for a proposed concert but finds himself instead on the campus of a university where the second Harpreet Kaur alias Happy is scheduled to begin a stint as a horticulture lecturer. The new Happy - she has a preeminent position in this film - is whisked away by a Chinese gangster named Chang (Jason Tham, who makes his presence felt in an extended cameo) who mistakes her for the other Happy. Robbed of her passport, Happy No. 2 runs into Khushwant Singh Gill, who, in turn, takes her to Adnan Chow who he believes could help her find a way out of the hole. Not to be left behind, Bagga (Sheirgill) and retired Pakistani cop Usman Afridi land in Shanghai to stir the pot further. A fretful dad (Raja Bundela) and a fugitive fiance; (Aparshakti Khurrana) are also thrown into the mix. Collectively, they unleash a great deal of commotion without setting anything meaningful into motion. The humour in Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi is puerile when it isn't outright racist or sexist. Besides the continuing India-Pakistan banter between Bagga and Afridi, there are the sickening lunges at the language and facial features of the Chinese. Bagga's argument is that we are Punjabis - two from Amritsar, one from Patiala and one from Lahore - and we have the inalienable right to be boisterous. Fair enough - this is typical Bollywood stereotyping of a community - but the form that their actions and words assume in this comedy are imbecile and irritating. The film's background score inevitably blends Punjabi drum beats and rhythms with strains of Mera naam chin chin chu. Qamar Jalalabadi's lyrics and OP Nayyar's composition also get the full-on treatment with Aparshakti Khurana swaying to the song in drag in a Guangzhou prison. There is a big reveal at this point of the plot, but the twist, like everything else, falls flat. The silliest part of the 137-minute film is its climax. Having been chased by the Shanghai baddies for all of two hours, the Indians who are themselves to blame for much of the muddle decide to leave their hosts - and the audience - in the lurch. Sonakshi does most of the heavy lifting, but the lightness of the film undermines her efforts. The high-on-enthusiasm Jassi Gill, too, is let down by a half-baked character. Jimmy Sheirgill, for once, is unable to rise above the script. Piyush Mishra hams his way through the film. His job is to add an Urdu icing on a Punjabi cake but all he manages to do is make you want to scream, on a cue from another character in the film:"Dimaag mat chaat." The primary problem with Happy Phirr Bhaag Jayegi isn't that it is pure drivel. That is something that could be pardoned in Bollywood laugh riot. But here, the hilarity quotient is low. The precursor had delivered on at least a part of the promise inherent in the quirky premise. This one goes through the motions without ever coming close to finding a genuine rhythm

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Aamir Khan's Eid Special Fam-Jam Pic Really Needs No Caption.
Mumbai:MMNN:23 August 2018
Eid calls for family time and that's exactly how it was at the Aamir Khan household, who had a grand fam-jam on Wednesday. After the festivities were nicely rounded off, Aamir Khan Instagrammed a priceless moment for the fam-jam and we agree with the 53-year-old superstar that the click needs no caption actually. In the photo, Aamir can be spotted posing with wife Kiran Rao, mother Zeenat Hussain, sisters Nikhat and Farhat Khan, nephew Imran Khan and his wife Avantika and others. Well, some of Aamir's guests are missing from him Eid-special photo, which include members from his Dangal family. Fatima Sana Shaikh and Sanya Malhotra, who played his onscreen daughters in the sports biopic were also there, who Instagrammed their own set of memories. Going by Fatima Sana Shaikh's Instagram story, Aamir's Eid party included scrumptious looking Biryani on the menu. Aamir, who was clearly busy attending to his guests at the party, resurfaced on Twitter in the afternoon to wish his fans and followers. Can you spot Aamir's son Junaid in this photo? Joining Aamir, Fatima and Sana were Dangal director Nitesh Tiwari and his filmmaker wife Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari. Busy man Aamir Khan always ensures that he takes a break from his packed schedule to spend time with his family on special days like on his birthday in March, he took a break from his Thugs Of Hindostan shoot in Jodhpur to celebrate the day with Kiran Rao at his Bandra residence. On the work front, Aamir Khan is looking forward to the release of Thugs Of Hindostan, in which he co-stars with Fatima again. Amitabh Bachchan and Katrina Kaif are also part of the cast. Directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya, Thugs Of Hindostan releases during Diwali.

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Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3: Sanjay Dutt, Jimmy Sheirgill And Cast Are Upto Scratch, Expected Firestorm Missing.
Mumbai:MMNN:28 July 2018
In the crumbling, amoral universe that saheb and biwi inhabit - Jimmy Sheirgill and Mahie Gill reprise their roles - well-past-their-prime royals employ wicked, wicked ways to manipulate each other and their susceptibilities. But do their exertions make for great cat-and-mouse drama? Certainly not quite to the extent, or in the manner, that the first two entries of the series - Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster(2011) and Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster Returns (2013) - did. Pretty much like the political prowess that the film's fading, flailing feudal figures and their cohorts exercise, the potential of the premise to deliver surprises has, on the evidence of this outing, waned significantly. The twists and turns that Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3 springs upon the audience have an arbitrary, laboured ring to them, what with new entrant Sanjay Dutt (in the guise of an angry-as-hell Uday Pratap Singh, a man who's made 'bad choices' and has been in exile for two decades) stomping around first a smoky London nightclub called House of Lords and then a palace-turned-heritage hotel back in Uttar Pradesh like a clueless grizzly bear that has strayed out of its natural habitat. It is around this very disillusioned, defiant man's talent for emerging unscathed from Russian roulette face-offs that the plot of this film revolves. But the shots it yields generate more noise - tame clicks and big bangs - than genuine excitement. The blank shots reverberate through the film, robbing it off the gunpowder-dry quality that is of the essence in this dark, bloody, dusty UP milieu where marriages aren't made in heaven and human bonds teeter on a razor's edge. It has taken the third Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster instalment five years to take shape. One had expected time to add value to it. That does not seem to have happened. Devoid of the delirious energy, sly swerves and deeply melancholic core that defined the earlier entries, Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3 struggles for the most part to hit the ground and run. Its sparks, too far and few between to form a recognizable pattern, do not yield the expected full-fledged firestorm. The desperate and devious methods that the greedy, going-for-broke men and women take recourse to fall all too quickly into a mechanical rut. One key character asks the 'saheb' of the pack, Aditya Pratap Singh (Jimmy Sheirgill): Is your blood still royal, or have the years of being in politics turned it into water? He does not answer the question, but taken in the overall context of the film, there can only be one response to that pointed query - royalty isn't just a matter of blood, it is just as much a state of mind. he malevolent characters that screenwriter Sanjay Chauhan and director Tigmanshu Dhulia's script rustle up in addition to Aditya Pratap and his ambitious, alcoholic wife Madhavi (Mahie Gill) exist in a limbo in the absence of the narrative support that could have turned them into meaningful pegs in a larger social commentary on a bunch of people so deeply entrenched in their sense of entitlement that they cannot see beyond their noses - and their guns. A political party is alluded to, workers are addressed from a desk behind which hangs a portrait of Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar and preparations for an upcoming polls are discussed but Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3 jettisons the hurly-burly of political machinations at the altar of perfunctory personal shenanigans. The role essayed by Sanjay Dutt (he comes across as rather rusty, to say the least) is framed against two others - his father Maharaja Hari Singh (Kabir Bedi) and brother Vijay (Deepak Tijori), both of whom are upset no end when the profligate elder son returns to India, deported from the UK following a murderous assault on an Englishman who dares to needle him in his den. Uday Pratap demands his share of the royal property, but there is little left in the family's kitty to spare. So conspiracies are afoot in the palace and elsewhere, endangering the lives of innocents like the courtesan Suhani (Chitrangda Singh), Uday Pratap's mistress. Lives do not count for much in the haveli of Aditya Pratap either. Guns are whipped out and fired at the slightest provocation. While Aditya, convicted for murder, cools his heels in jail, his wily consort merrily plots to keep him there as long as possible. When he returns home, his wife offers truce. He accepts, but with many riders that are left to the daughter (Pamela Bhutoria) of his fiercely loyal retainer (Deepraj Rana, another franchise fixture) to enforce. The performances, led by the ever-reliable Sheirgill's, are all up to scratch, but one wishes the female roles weren't so underwritten. Mahie Gill, playing the woman who cares two hoots about moral niceties, works with a familiar bag of tricks. She still sways in an inebriated state to Lag jaa gale ke phir yeh haseen raat ho na ho and gives no quarters when faced with faced with threats and inducements. Some of the tics come off, some don't. Soha Ali Khan (as Aditya's second wife) has only two and a half scenes. Chitrangda Singh as Uday Pratap's mistress is allowed more but her character does not see much palpable development. One of the actresses in the cast who certainly deserved greater mind space, and not just footage, is Pamela Bhutoria, playing Aditya's tech-savvy protector standing in for her father who has gone into hiding. This bitter battle for fast-vanishing turf centres on the pressing need to protect the family 'reputation'. In this fictional neck of the woods, conventional honour isn't a big deal and the act of flouting laws and norms is worn as a badge of courage. The nautch girl puts the tussle into context when she advises the feckless, untrustworthy Vijay Pratap to tread with care. She says to him with all the curtness at her command: "Jab naam ke alawaa kuch no bacha ho toh naam ko bacha bacha ke chalna chahiye (When nothing but your name survives, do all you can to protect that name)." That statement could well be directed at the makers of Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3. The title has a resonance thanks to the impact that the film's two predecessors had made. Frittering it away on a flimsy Russian roulette-style effort isn't a good idea. So when the team decides to come up with another follow-up - the final moments of this film suggest that the fourth may not be far away - it will have to go all guns blazing. Or not at all.

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Ileana D'Cruz Was Asked Why She Chose A 'Foreign Man' As Her Life Partner. She Said
Mumbai:MMNN:26 July 2018
Actress Ileana D'Cruz on Wednesday interacted with her Instafam through the "Ask Me Something" feature where one fan asked her who her life partner is? No points for guessing - she simply tagged Andrew Kneebone, whom she has been dating for many years. Soon after Ileana shared the answer, another Instagram user asked her why she selected a "foreign man" as her life partner and she replied: "I fell in love with a person's heart. His skin colour or nationality doesn't matter to me." Ileana, just wow. During the Q&A session, Illeana was also told that she and Andrew look great together. Last year, in her Christmas post, Ileana addressed Andrew Kneebone as 'hubby' in an Instagram post but when asked in person she refused to give away her relationship status. When she was promoting Raid, Ileana was asked if she was married to the Australia photographer. Her reply was: "I have kept my personal life fairly private. I don't like to talk about it too much. But it's pretty much there for the world to see." Ileana D'Cruz and Andrew Kneebone have been together for several years and he also attended the premiere of Ileana's film Happy Ending in India in 2015. Ileana is Andrew's muse and she regularly features in his shoots - most of them in Fiji. They've never shied away from romancing through pictures on social media, like her Instagram post for Andrew on his birthday, in which she wrote: "Seriously I don't know how you get sexier with every year I've known you!" But Ileana is resolute that she will not share details of her private life more than what can be accessed through social media. Ileana D'Cruz was last seen in Raid opposite Ajay Devgn and she's currently shooting for Telugu film Amar Akbar Anthony

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Yay! He Called Me A Film Star': Abhishek Bachchan's Reaction To Trolls Is Sarcasm Goals, No?
Mumbai:MMNN:25 July 2018
Abhishek Bachchan is single-handedly destroying trolls on Twitter. On Tuesday evening, the actor spotted a few attempts to mock him on Twitter as someone not worthy to be in the league of actors previously cast in Anurag Kashyap's films. The junior Bachchan dealt with them with so much calm and oh, sarcasm too. Mr Kashyap tweeted to announce that his upcoming film with Abhishek - Manmarziyan - will premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, when an user wrote: "From KK Menon to John Abraham to Abhay Deol to Manoj Bajpayee to Nawazuddin Siddiqui to Ronit Roy to Vicky Kaushal... All great choices. But *** Abhishek Bachchan? Are you suffering from KJo syndrome? It's all about loving the film stars?" In a sarcasm-laden tweet, the 42-year-old actor wrote: "Yay! He called me a film star," over which Abhishek and his friends also had a good laugh on the conversation thread. Meanwhile, the hater resurfaced to clarify: "I meant 'son of film star'. KJo ke friend circle me aane se choices bhi KJo type ho gayi hai... Ranbir, Abhishek... what next? Tusshar Kapoor?" This time, Abhishek's tone appeared to be rather firm as he tweeted: "Oh... you "meant"... Chalo, I'll consider it a Freudian slip. And BTW Tusshar would be a great choice." Abhishek Bachchan is one of Twitter's favourite actors when it comes to trolling celebrities. He is often at the receiving end of offensive tweets citing the lack of successful movies on his resume. On Tuesday evening, another Twitter follower appeared to enquire about the finances behind his recently concluded family vacation when Abhishek set the record straight with this tweet: "Sir, I have several other businesses that I run apart from acting and producing movies. Sports being just one of them." Abhishek co-owns the football team Chennaiyin Football Club with MS Dhoni and Vita Dani. Abhishek Bachchan recently condemned and dismissed a report about an alleged fight with his wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. The "made-up a false story" on a web-portal, which was taken down soon after his tweet, said Aishwarya did not let Abhishek take daughter Aaradhya's hand while walking out of the airport. Earlier in May, Abhishek was termed "useless" by an online misnomer, to whom he said: "Walk a mile in my shoes, brother. If you even manage 10 steps I'll be impressed." In April, he was criticised for living with his parents when he tweeted to say: "Don't feel bad about your life. Just remember Abhishek Bachchan still lives with his parents. Keep hustling everyone! Abhishek Bachchan's Manmarziyan hits screens on September 21.

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Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah Makers May Get This Actor As New Dr Hathi
Mumbai:MMNN:18 July 2018
Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah lost a much-loved and adored member of the cast with the tragic end of actor Kavi Kumar Azad, who is best-known for portraying Dr Hansraj Hathi in the popular sitcom. The character of Dr Hansraj Hathi is one of the most popular ones from the show and while the cast misses the presence of Mr Azad on sets, eliminating the character from the show will not be a smart move, producer Asit Kumarr Modi told SpotboyE. Meanwhile, a source close to the production told Indian Express that the team are hunting for the perfect replacement: "Producer Asit Kumarr Modi is personally looking into the casting and wants the perfect replacement. While it's really hard to find someone as talented as Kavi, we are doing our best. We should have a confirmation about the replacement soon." "Dr Hathi is a very important part of the show. The audience loves him and so the makers want to retain the character," added the source. Meanwhile, the makers may just select a former member of the cast, the source told Indian Express. Actor Nirmal Soni, who previously played the role of Dr Hathi for a year till Mr Azad took over in 2009, may just return as the new Dr Hathi. Kavi Kumar Azad died of cardiac arrest on Monday. He was reportedly 45. After his death, speculation was rife if Dr Hathi would continue to make appearances in Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah. We got a confirmation of sorts after Asit Kumarr Modi, who was also a close associate of Mr Azad, earlier told SpotboyE that the character of Dr Hathi must continue to remain on the show owing to its popularity. "We will have to replace Dr Hathi, if you want to know. It's the actor who has passed away, not the character." In 2009, Kavi Kumar Azad had replaced Nirmal Soni on Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah to join as Dr Hathi. Around the same time, his health deteriorated on sets and he had to opt for bariatric surgery. The actor reportedly lost some 100 kilos as he recovered after the treatment. In the later years, he's also been advised a second bariatric surgery, which he opted out of in the fear of not getting assignments in the TV industry. Kavi Kumar Azad's last rites were performed in Mumbai on Tuesday afternoon, which was attended by almost the entire cast of Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah.

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Spot Ranbir Kapoor In Alia Bhatt's Pic With 'The Girls.' Umm, No Brownie Points, This Is Easy
Mumbai:MMNN:17 July 2018
Ranbir Kapoor, filming Brahmastra in Bulgaria, made a brief appearance on rumoured girlfriend Alia Bhatt's Instagram profile. Oh, did you miss it? Don't worry, we have it curated here for you. On her Instagram stories, Alia, who is also in Bulgaria for Brahmastra, shared a picture with her make-up artist Puneet B Saini, hairstylist Priyanka Borkar and also Ranbir Kapoor. But, wait. Where exactly is Ranbir in the frame? Right at the back, folks! He is busy capturing the beauty of Bulgaria on his phone while Alia and others pose for the photo. "The girls... oh, and Ranbir," Alia captioned the post. The same photo has also been shared by Puneet B Saini, who wrote, "Babies for life." Here's the picture. Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor's dating rumours featured in headlines after the duo appeared before the cameras together at Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja's wedding reception. Later, the only thing Internet wanted to know was if Alia and Ranbir were dating. When mid-day asked the same question to Ranbir, he said, "Main iss sawal ka jawab dene ke liye raazi nahi hoon!" (Raazi is Alia's last-released film). But he's not single, BTW. "I'm not single. I'll never be single," he told mid-day. On the work front, Ranbir Kapoor recently shattered some major box office records with Sanju, which has already earned over Rs. 300 crore while Alia's Raazi was also a blockbuster film. Brahmastra, a trilogy, releases next year. The Ayan Mukerji-directed film also stars Amitabh Bachchan, Nagarjuna and Mouni Roy

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Soorma Movie Review: Diljit Dosanjh Makes The Best Of A Bad Deal
Mumbai:MMNN:13 July 2018
The film opens with a woman's voice on the soundtrack. It belongs to the character played by Taapsee Pannu. She introduces herself as field hockey player Harpreet Kaur but hastens to add that this isn't her story. It is Sandeep Singh's. It's the greatest comeback story in the history of the game. Doubtless, the real-life saga that inspired Shaad Ali's Soorma bordered on the miraculous. The film fails way short of harnessing its full dramatic potential. Meant to be a celebration of a sportsman's resilience, this is a mechanical, hackneyed, dour re-enactment of a remarkable life. The Sandeep Singh story deserved far better. Returning to Harpreet, the Soorma protagonist, an ace drag-flicker who beat the odds to return to action after a freak accident left him paralysed from the waist down, had a childhood sweetheart who played hockey at the same Shahabad academy as him. She eventually married him and gave up the game. Soorma, on its part, tells us repeatedly that Sandeep Singh took up hockey in order to win over the girl he loved, a fact for which he is at one point mocked by his otherwise hugely supportive elder brother Bikramjeet Singh (Angad Bedi), a no mean wielder of the hockey stick himself. A girl, but no goal, he is ticked off. Chastened, Sandeep intones: "Main India kheloonga India ke liye (I will play for the sake of the country)." The screenwriters have changed the name of the woman in Sandeep's life - and much else - and the result isn't entirely salutary. Soorma is as desultory as a goalless draw, which, as any hockey fan will tell you, is a near impossibility. This film achieves the impossible: it turns an inspirational real-life champion who wrested back the India colours after a long layoff into a hollow Bollywood hero who never comes out of the torpor that the screenplay foists upon him. Sandeep Singh, as envisioned by Shaad Ali, is as dynamic as a stenciled, unidimensional sketch. Lead actor Diljit Dosanjh does his very best to inject life into the character. Hobbled by Bollywood cliches that seem out of place in a sports biopic, he is left stranded in the midst of dreary moves and manoeuvres. Lack of depth permeates the whole film. The two hockey coaches we meet in Soorma - Kartar Singh (Danish Husain) and Harry (Vijay Raaz) are crass caricatures. The former, who runs the coaching centre in Shahabad in Haryana's Kurukshetra district, is a terror. He subjects his wards to physical torture. A traumatized Sandeep, aged nine, drops out of the academy. A decade later, his brother, who is nursing the disappointment of being passed over for national duty, spots the boy's natural talent for drag flicks - a trait that he picked up in the course of launching hockey balls into his tauji's farmland to chase away birds. So, Sandeep returns to the academy and takes the coach's excesses in his strides simply because he has now fallen head over heels for Harpreet Kaur - yes, the selfsame narrator of the story - and is willing to sacrifice everything for her. Their love story is a crashing bore despite the fact that a pretty Pannu might, by all reckoning, look like a trophy good enough to play for. But she is a girl with a mind of her own and, therefore, does not let him have it too easy. The second coach, who also revels in threatening to thoko (hit) and phodo (smash) everyone in sight, takes Sandeep under his wings in Patiala's sports institute and helps him hone his skills. Soon enough, we see him jumping around like a frisky kid on the sidelines as the defender goes about scoring plenty of penalty-corner goals for the country. Predictably, the hockey action, more often than not, centres on India-Pakistan matches in which the boys in blue emerge victorious. Earlier in the film, in a national-level tournament, the Patiala team takes on boys from Meerut in the latter's backyard. Young men in the stands have country-made firearms to scare away the opposition. But the Patiala coach is no pushover. He confronts the armed men and advises them to put away their guns. "Bihari hain hum, thook-ke maathe mein chhed kar denge (I am a Bihari, I'll spit and drill a hole in your forehead)." That is Soorma at its most humorous: bad news for a film about an athlete up against the harrowing prospect of a life on a wheelchair. The second half of Soorma is somewhat better than the first, which ends with the mishap that threatens to put paid to Sandeep's career. Harpreet pays him a visit in the hospital, delivers a gentle pep talk and then decides to leave him to his own devices so that the man is compelled to fight to get back on his feet. In another strand of the story, an emotionally disturbed Sandeep's recriminations upset his brother. There is one shrill confrontation scene designed to move the audience. The rehab in Holland, which, like the training scenes and the blossoming of young love passages, plays out to the accompaniment of a rousing song. Music has never sounded so gratuitous in a Hindi film. Dosanjh cannot be faulted. He makes the best of a bad deal. Pannu, an actress who always gives the impression that she is sailing through with ease, does her bit to give Soorma its rare convincing moments. Angad Bedi has a meaty role - he digs his teeth into it and steals many a scene. Satish Kaushik, in the role of Sandeep's travelling salesman-father, adds a few bright spots to Soorma. Soorma is more drag than flick, a hockey film sans genuine impetus. It is nowhere near the league of Chak De India despite telling a story that is no less intense than a wrongly victimized coach's struggle for redemption. Come to think of it, the Shimit Amin film was made over a decade ago. Why hasn't the Mumbai movie industry delivered another sports drama quite that good? The reason is obvious: Bollywood just doesn't do sports well. Its rules militate against the genre. Soorma, a wasted opportunity, demonstrates why and how.

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Shah Rukh Khan To Soumitra Chatterjee, Oscar Academy Invites 20 More Indians To Join
Mumbai:MMNN:26 Jun 2018
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has recently released a list of 928 new members across 59 countries, who have been invited to be part of the prestigious film body, on their official website. Just like last year, the list of invitees this year also includes several Indian personalities - 20, to be precise. According to the list, invitations have been sent out to stars such as Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Anil Kapoor, Tabu and others. Shah Rukh has been identified as the star of Chennai Express and Devdas on the list while Madhuri Dixit's best recognised films, as mentioned by the Academy, include her latest Marathi film Bucket List and also Devdas. Slumdog Millionaire and Taal are the two films mentioned with Anil Kapoor's name. Victoria And Abdul's Ali Fazal also features on the list. The veteran actors who find mention on the list include Naseeruddin Shah, Soumitra Chatterjee and Madhabi Mukherjee. Two filmmakers have also been invited to be part of the Oscar body - Aditya Chopra of Yash Raj Films and Guneet Monga, who has produced critically acclaimed films like The Lunchbox, the Gangs of Wasseypur series of movies, Masaan and That Girl In Yellow Boots. Designers Manish Malhotra and Dolly Ahluwalia have been invited to join in their capacity as costume designers. The list of cinematographers finds mention of Anil Mehta, who worked in films like Secret Superstar, Rockstar, Highway and Beyond The Clouds. Debajit Changmai, who has worked in films like Court and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, along with Bishwadeep Chatterjee, who has films like Madras Cafe and 3 Idiots on his resume, finds mention on the list of sound designers. Subrata Chakraborty and Amit Ray feature on the list as the selected production designers while film editor Ballu Saluja, who has worked in movies like Dangal and Touring Talkies has also been sent an invite. Music composers Sneha Khanwalkar and Usha Khanna are also on the list. Last year, Bollywood stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra and Irrfan Khan were invited to join the Academy in a list comprising 774 new invitees. Filmmakers Goutam Ghose and Buddhadeb Dasgupta were also on the list. This year, the Academy announced the probable list of new members along with a graphic representation of what appears to be an attempt address the issue of gender equality - the percentage of female membership has increased from 28 to 31 over the last year with the new list holding 49 percent occupancy for the female invitees. This year's list also includes revered celebrities from the international circle - actresses Emilia Clarke and Mindy Kaling, rapper Kendrick Lamar and author J.K. Rowling are a few of them.

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IIFA Awards 2018: Boney Kapoor Gets Emotional On Receiving Sridevi's Best Actress Prize, Son Arjun Stands By Him
Mumbai:MMNN:25 Jun 2018
It was an emotional moment for filmmaker Boney Kapoor, who accepted wife Sridevi's Best Actress Award (posthumously) for MOM at the 19th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards in Bangkok. Megastar Sridevi died in February in Dubai. She was 54. "I dedicate this award to the entire team of MOM," said an emotional Boney Kapoor, after collecting Sridevi's trophy, news agency IANS reported. MOM was Sridevi's 300th film. "I have mixed emotions today. I miss her every minute and second of my life. I still feel she is around here....I want you all to support Janhvi like you supported her mother," Boney Kapoor added. Janhvi is Sridevi and Boney Kapoor's elder daughter and Khushi is the younger one. Janhvi's debut film Dhadak releases next month. Pictures of Arjun, being by his dad's side, have also been shared widely. Arjun is Boney Kapoor's son with first wife Mona. He has a younger sister Anshula. Anil Kapoor, Boney Kapoor's brother, also came on stage. On being by Boney Kapoor, Janhvi and Khushi's side after Sridevi's death, Arjun had earlier tweeted, "Me and Anshula Kapoor represent our mother every single second we live. She would expect us to have been standing next to our father no matter what and be there for Janhvi and Khushi." In April, Sridevi was given her first ever National Award for MOM, which was collected by Boney Kapoor, Janhvi and Khushi. In MOM, Sridevi played the role of a mother, who seeks revenge for her daughter's rape. Her co-star Nawazuddin Siddiqui won the Best Actor In A Supporting Role for MOM. On social media, Nawazuddin said that he dedicates his award to the late actress. Irrfan Khan has won the Best Actor Award for Hindi Medium.

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Ranbir Kapoor, Who Is Reportedly Dating Alia Bhatt, Says 'Falling In Love Is The Greatest Thing
Mumbai:MMNN:22 Jun 2018
"When in love, even water tastes like sherbet," this is what Ranbir Kapoor said when he was asked if falling in love complicates his craft at Anupama Chopra's talk show. Ranbir, who is reportedly dating his Brahmastra co-star Alia Bhatt said: "Falling in love is the greatest thing in the world, the greatest feeling in the world. When you fall in love, everything is great, even water tastes like sherbet. You feel great." This is not the first time, Ranbir has spoken about the subject of love, in an interview for GQ India June 2018 issue, the actor kind of confirmed his rumoured relationship with Alia Bhatt and said: "It's really new right now, and I don't want to over speak. It needs time to breathe and it needs space." The actor was all praises for Alia and added, "As an actor, as a person, Alia is - what's the right word? - flowing right now. When I see her work, when I see her act, even in life, what she gives is something that I'm aspiring to for myself." The rumours of Ranbir and Alia's alleged relationship began after they arrived at Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja's reception together in March. After that, Alia Bhatt has been frequently spotted with Ranbir Kapoor in film studios and outside too. On Wednesday night, Alia Bhatt joined Ranbir Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt at his father Rishi Kapoor's home. Before that Alia Bhatt dined with Ranbir, his mother Neetu Kapoor and his sister Riddhima Kapoor Sahni. Pictures of Alia holding hands with Ranbir's niece Samara sent the Internet into a meltdown. It wouldn't be wrong to say that just like Ranbir, the Kapoors too have taken a liking towards Alia Bhatt. Before dating Alia, Ranbir Kapoor dated his Bachna Ae Haseeno and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani co-star Deepika Padukone. He even dated Katrina Kaif, with whom he has featured in films such as Raajneeti, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahaani and Jagga Jasoos. he was also linked to Pakistani actress Mahira Khan briefly. Ranbir Kapoor is looking forward to the release of Sanju on June 29 and he's currently filming Brahmastra.

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Alia Bhatt Dines With Ranbir Kapoor And Family, Walks Out Hand-In-Hand With His Niece
Mumbai:MMNN:11 Jun 2018
Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor are trending again and this time for pictures of the Udta Punjab actress exiting a restaurant with the Kapoors holding Ranbir's niece Samara's hand. On Saturday, Alia Bhatt dined with Ranbir's family - his mother Neetu Kapoor and sister Riddhima can be seen navigating their way through the paparazzi behind Alia and Samara, who were twinning in white. Alia looked protective of Samara as the photographers closed in while the Kapoors (Ranbir Kapoor included) trailed behind Samara and her new best friend. Samara is the daughter of Riddhima and businessman Bharat Sahni. The pictures of the Kapoors and Alia are all that the Internet can talk about. Apparently, a section of the Internet has given its blessing to the rumoured couple. Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor are co-starring for the first time in upcoming film Brahmastra. They are currently preparing for their next schedule of the film with Amitabh Bachchan. The cast and crew will soon leave for Bulgaria for the said schedule. Reports of Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor dating started doing the rounds on social media after they arrived together at actress Sonam Kapoor's reception in Mumbai. Recently, Ranbir Kapoor kind of confirmed their relationship telling GQ: "It's really new right now, and I don't want to over speak." From scraps of information on social media, we also know that Alia Bhatt gets along well with Riddhima and Neetu Kapoor. Riddhima, who is a jewellery designer, recently gifted a bracelet to Alia, which the actress "loved." Neetu Kapoor and Alia Bhatt often comment and counter-comment on each other's Instagram posts. We also know that Neetu Kapoor attended Alia's birthday celebration in Bulgaria with the rest the Brahmastra cast and crew: Brahmastra is a trilogy, the first part of which is scheduled for 2019 release. The film is directed by Ayan Mukherji and produced by Karan Johar.

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Sanju Director Raju Hirani's Version Of Why Aamir Khan Rejected Role Is A Bit Different From Actor's
Mumbai:MMNN:1 Jun 2018
Just a couple of days before, Aamir Khan had revealed why he refused to play Sunil Dutt's role in the upcoming film Sanju. Now, at the trailer launch event of the film, director Rajkumar Hirani opened up about what Aamir Khan said when he was offered the role of Sanjay Dutt's father. Sanju director told IANS that when he narrated the story to Aamir, he had asked him if he would play the role of Sunil Dutt but the actor refused to take up the role since he didn't want to play an older man post Dangal. "Aamir showed me Dangal and said, 'look I'm already playing an older man's role. And after Dangal, my next film has me play an older man again, then people will stop giving me a young man's role!' That was a valid argument. Finally, we had Pareshji (Rawal) playing Dutt saab," Mr Hirani told IANS. Aamir Khan played the role of an aged Haryanvi wrestler - Mahavir Singh Phogat - in Dangal. Actresses Fatima Sana Shaikh and Sanya Malhotra were cast as his onscreen daughters. Mr Hirani said that he read out the script of Sanju to Aamir not with the intention of asking him to play any character. But the director ended up offering him the role of Sunil Dutt in the film out of "greed". "Not with the intention of asking him to play any role. He reacted interestingly to the script and liked it. Then just out of greed, I asked Aamir if he would play Dutt saab's role? He took it seriously and gave it a thought," Mr Hirani added. Aamir Khan had said in a statement earlier that it was Sanjay Dutt's role that had "won his heart" and he was not willing to take up any other role. "In this film I can't do any other role apart from Sanjay Dutt's, which I can't do because Ranbir is doing," Aamir Khan said at a previous media interaction. Rajkumar Hirani has a tinge of humour added to every film that he directs and on being asked if Sanju will have the trait, the director said: "It is not that we haven't added element of laughter in it. There is definitely fun in the film but that percentage can be more and less." "I will never say my films like PK and Lage Raho Munnbhai were a comedy film because that film had strong message to tell. In that film, also there was humour but there was lot of drama and other emotions as well so, in this film there is lot of emotion but audience will not get feeling that it is less in humour, " IANS quoted Sanju director saying. Sanju stars Ranbir Kapoor as Sanjay Dutt, Anushka Sharma as a biographer, Vicky Kaushal as Sanjay Dutt's childhood friend, Sonam Kapoor as one of his love interests, Manisha Koirala as Nargis Dutt, Paresh Rawal as Sunil Dutt and Dia Mirza as wife Maanyata. The cast of the film was present at the trailer launch of the film which took place in Mumbai on Wednesday.

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Sanju Trailer: Ranbir Kapoor As Sanjay Dutt Is Brilliant. You Will Laugh And Cry With Him
Mumbai:MMNN:31 May 2018
The Sanju trailer is a must watch because "Itna variety wala life aapko kidhar milega?" Ranbir Kapoor, as Sanjay Dutt in the much awaited trailer, explains his point in the following line: "Main bewra hoon, tharki hoon, drug addict hoon, saab hoon.. lekin terrorist nahin hoon." Ranbir brilliantly paints the life of Sanjay Dutt in the powerful trailer with all shades available on the colour palette of emotion. The trailer begins with the younger days of Sanjay Dutt, when Sanju - his onscreen character - opens up about his drug addiction, his affairs and also makes a reference to an alleged connection with the underworld and the media speculation surrounding it. The trailer is proof that Sanjay Dutt did not shy away from sharing bold details about his much talked about controversial life, ranging from his drug addiction to multiple link-ups In one scene, Sanju was asked by a biographer (Anushka Sharma) about how many affairs he's had and as response, he provided a rounded off figure - 350. Sanju also reveals that the first time he experimented with drugs was when he was upset with his father Sunil Dutt (played by Paresh Rawal) and the next time he indulged in drug abuse was when his mother Nargis (played by Manisha Koirala) was under medical diagnosis. By the third time, he confessed to being an addict. All this while, you will find yourself on a rollercoaster ride with Sanju but soon, the ride ends on a rather harsh note when begins his trial for the illegal possession of arms in connection to the 1993 Bombay blasts. Just like with his colourful days, his jail term has also been brought alive with much animation, and this time, Ranbir as Sanju will indeed make-you teary eyed. The trailer also has glimpses of Sonam Kapoor, who is reported to have been cast as Tina Munim, who is rumoured to have been Sanjay Dutt's love interest. Dia Mirza features as Mr Dutt's wife Maanyata while Vicky Kaushal plays his childhood friend and now brother-in-law Kumar Gaurav.

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Priyanka Chopra And Nick Jonas' Pics Trend. 'Are They Dating,' Asks The Internet
Mumbai:MMNN:30 May 2018
"Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas, are they dating?" read a comment on their pictures, which are trending big time today. The pictures have reportedly been taken during their outing in Los Angeles. Both Priyanka and Nick are seen sitting next to each other and are accompanied by several other friends. The Internet has chanced upon two pictures of the stars - one appears to be taken during a group lunch and in the other they are enjoying a boat ride. "Seems they are dating" is what one section of the people think while the others have declared that the duo are surely in dating. "They're looking so cute together," read another comment. Priyanka Chopra, 35, is a Bollywood star and is currently busy with her Hollywood projects while Nick Jonas, 25, is an American singer-songwriter. Another video of them, where the duo are seen entering Los Angeles' Dodgers Stadium to watch a baseball match, has also surface online. 6 COMMENTSPriyanka and Nick met at last year's Met Gala event and had also posed together on the red carpet. He had posted two pictures of Priyanka from the Met Gala. On the work front, Priyanka Chopra is busy with her Hollywood projects - A Kid Like Jake and Isn't It Romantic?. She currently features on the American TV series Quantico 3. She made her Hollywood debut last year with Baywatch. Priyanka is expected to soon start shooting for Salman Khan's Bharat, her first Hindi film in two years.

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Race 3: Salman Khan, Jacqueline Fernandez Schooled On Consent After Boy Was Made To Hug Actress
Mumbai:MMNN:29 May 2018
The Internet is seriously upset with Salman Khan and Jacqueline Fernandez for "not understanding the importance of consent" after they appeared to playfully tease a young participant on dance reality show Dance Deewane recently. Jacqueline recently Instagrammed a short glimpse of the show, in which she and her Race 3 co-star Salman can be seen interacting with an adorable participant, who said he doesn't want to be hugged by Jacqueline Fernandez but eventually had to on Salman's insistence. Sometime later in the video, Jacqueline can be seen signing off from the stage with a tummy rub to the little dancer on stage, who was also asked by Salman to give one last parting hug. Jacqueline shared the video with the caption: "Kids usually love me, this boy was an exception.. at least I got my hug in the end," and her Instafam is furious about it. "Wow. I wish you understood the concept and importance of consent irrespective of age and gender Jacqueline and Salman," read a comment while another one sarcastically added: "Consent be damned." Here are some of the other comments with which netizens attempted to enlighten Jacqueline and Salman about consent. "Hey, heard about this thing called consent? It's not something only girls should have, and not something only adults should have. Can you imagine how awkward this would be if a female participant refused to hug Salman and he still went for it? And rubbing his tummy, for God's sake? You're making him uncomfortable on national television," said one user while another added: "How is this okay? It is important to teach children that their body is theirs and consent is important. The kid is totally uncomfortable. Expected better from you." Earlier this year, singer Papon apologised after he was spotted kissing an 11-year-old girl in a Facebook live video. Papon, who also added that he was "victimized for no fault", was seen requesting someone to edit the footage in the same video. The young girl was on the team of Voice India Kids, which Papon was mentoring. Salman Khan and Jacqueline Fernandez were also accompanied by their Race 3 co-star Anil Kapoor on the show, where they were promoting their upcoming film. Shashanka Khaitan, Tushar Kalia and Madhuri Dixit were also spotted on the panel of judges

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Sonam Kapoor And Anand Ahuja. Just Like This, Forever
Mumbai:MMNN:28 May 2018
Sonam Kapoor's husband Anand Ahuja delighted us with some yet other adorable pictures of themselves and they are sending the Internet into a meltdown (sort of). "Cool... not cool," Anand captioned his post with the hashtag 'Everyday Phenomenal.' (This was their wedding hashtag too). Sonam, currently busy with Veere Di Wedding duties, was quick to respond to Anand's picture and commented, "I'm cool always," adding wink and heart emoticons. (Sonam and Anand, you guys are adorable). "You'll are too cute and equally cool" and "they are setting the goals too high" are some of the several comments posted on their pictures. A couple of days ago, Anand Ahuja explained why they had zeroed in on 'Everyday Phenomenal' as their wedding hashtag. "Everyday phenomenal reminds Sonam Kapoor of the importance of appreciation, positivity, and gratitude...that happiness is not something you get, it's something you are," read an excerpt from Anand's post. Just few hours after Anand's post, Sonam filled Instagram with a loved-up picture of the duo, which was actually a response to her husband's post. In the comments section, Anand revealed why Sonam actually posted it. "Sonam to me: 'How come you get to post and I don't get to post!? I also want to post!'... 2 min later... 'Anand, see your Instagram!'" read Anand's comment. Sonam Kapoor married businessman Anand Ahuja in Mumbai on May 8. After the wedding, the couple hosted a grand reception for their friends and colleagues. Later, the newly-weds flew to Delhi (Anand's hometown) for a brief stay and from there, Sonam went to attend the Cannes Film Festival

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Cannes 2018: Desi Girl Kangana Ranaut Is A Retro Vision In Black Saree And Bouffant Hair
Mumbai:MMNN:10 May 2018
Kangana Ranaut is truly a vision to behold at the Cannes Film Festival. The Queen actress made her debut at the film festival in a glamorous black embellished saree by Sabyasachi. Kangana has accentuated her look with a teenmaniya necklace, crafted out of rose-cut diamonds, Colombian emeralds and basra pearls, as stated by the designer. Kangana's pictures were shared by Sabyasachi and the posts give a detailed description about her debut appearance at the Cannes. (Wow, wow and wow. Full marks to Kangana for her retro look). Kangana will attend the Cannes Film Festival for three days but will walk the red carpet on May 10 and she will also talk about the status of women in films. Take a look at Kangana Ranaut's ultra-glamourous look at the French Riviera. Kangana is attending the film festival in association with a liquor brand. "It is overwhelming to witness the recognition and appreciation for Indian cinema at international platforms like Cannes," Kangana had told news agency IANS. She left for French Riviera on Tuesday night and was pictured at the Mumbai airport after she attended Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja's wedding reception Meanwhile, actress Huma Qureshi is also there at the French Riviera and looks breathtakingly beautiful in white. "I'm very proud to be part of the celebration of cinema at a global platform like the Cannes Film Festival 2018," she had earlier said Deepika Padukone will walk the Cannes red carpet on May 10 and 11. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and newlywed Sonam Kapoor will walk the red carpet on May 12-13 and May 14-15, respectively.

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Sonam Kapoor And Anand Ahuja's Reception: Shah Rukh, Salman Khan, Anil Kapoor Dancing With The Newlyweds Will Make Your Day
Mumbai:MMNN:9 May 2018
Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja's reception on Tuesday night was one helluva event. The Kapoors and the Ahujas were on their feet since morning but they showed no signs of fatigue, in fact the groom was the heart and soul of the party as he danced to hit Bollywood tracks with Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and his father-in-law Anil Kapoor among others (now we know why he wore the sneakers!). Videos of celebs dancing like no one's watching hit the internet and it's a guaranteed smile on anyone's face. Salman Khan and Mika Singh engaged in a jugalbandi of sort as they sang Aaj Ki Party (from Salman's Bajrangi Bhaijaan) as SRK and Anil Kapoor danced. The trio pulled Sonam and Anand for a dance when Tan Tana Tan Tan Tan Tara was being played. Like the wedding hashtag said, "EveryDayPhenomenal." After the reception, Shah Rukh Khan in a heart-warming tweet said: "I kind of know, how it feels when a piece of your heart gets married. Danced and celebrated love for daughters with my inspiration Anil Kapoor." Sonam Kapoor and Anand Ahuja got married as per Sikh traditions on the morning of May 8 and the reception was held later in the evening. Several celebrities including Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri, Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Rekha, Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan and Alia Bhatt were in attendance. At the reception, Sonam wore a dazzling gown by Anamika Khanna while Anand Ahuja complemented her in an achkan paired with Nike sneakers. A bevy of Bollywood celebs had attended the anand karaj in the morning held in Sonam's aunt's Bandra Bungalow. Aamir Khan along with wife Kiran Rao and son Junaid, Amitabh Bachchan with his son Abhishek and daughter Shweta, Kareena Kapoor joined the Kapoors and the Ahujas.

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Its a wrap for Manoj Bajpayee, John Abraham’s Satyameva Jayate
Mumbai:MMNN:8 May 2018
Actor Manoj Bajpayee has wrapped up shooting for his upcoming film Satyameva Jayate. Director Milap Zaveri on Monday shared on Twitter a photograph of himself along with Manoj, who is seen sporting a police officers uniform. Its a wrap on Satyameva Jayate for Manoj Bajpayee sir! What a pleasure it has been to direct you sir You rocked each of the 1500+ dialogues I gave you, Zaveri captioned the image. Satyameva Jayate promises intense action and power-packed dialogues. It is produced by Bhushan Kumar of T-Series and Nikkhil Advani of Emmay Entertainment. The film, which also stars John Abraham, will release on August 15.

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Sridevi Died A Day Before Himmatwala Anniversary. Co-Star Jeetendra's Memories Of Her
Mumbai:MMNN:26 February 2018
Actress Sridevi died at 54 in Dubai late Saturday (February 24), just a day before her blockbuster film Himmatwala, co-starring Jeetendra, would have completed 35 years. Speaking to mid-day, Jeetendra, 75, revealed that Rekha was the original choice for the film and Sridevi's death has terribly shocked him. "We all know how it changed both our fortunes. Not many know that Rekha was the original choice for Himmatwala. But I guess Sridevi was destined to do the film - she bagged the role and the film became one of the biggest grossers of the year. And with it, Bollywood woke up to the magic of Sridevi. Today [February 25] marked the 35th anniversary of the film's release and it's tragic how she passed away just a day before... I was terribly shocked when I heard about her demise," Jeetendra said. Himmatwala, directed by K Raghavendra Rao, proved to be a turning point in both Sridevi and Jeetendra careers. Sridevi had made her debut as a heroine in Bollywood with Solva Sawan (1979) but it was Himmatwala, which made her a star. It was a remake of Telugu film Ooruki Monagadu, starring Krishna and Jaya Prada. Songs like Nainon Mein Sapna and Taki O Taki were instant hits. "I first met Sridevi at the 100th day jubilee function of one of her Tamil films. I walked up to this bright-eyed girl and congratulated her on her performance. Little did I know that we would be working together in a few months' time. I was going through a low phase after Deedar-E-Yaar (1982) - the film suffered heavy losses, and brought me back to square one as an actor and producer. Sridevi, too, was coming out of Solva Saawan (1979), her debut film as a full-fledged heroine in Bollywood. The film didn't fare well and almost put her out of the Hindi film industry. So Himmatwala, directed by K Raghavendra Rao, was a turning point for both of us," Jeetendra told mid-day. After the successful pairing in Himmatwala, Sridevi and Jeetendra co-starred together in 15 other films, including Tohfa, Majaal, Aag Aur Shola and Ghar Sansaar. "Sridevi was one of my closest co-stars and we did 15 movies together. She was an actor par excellence. What was even more admirable about her was her dedication to the craft - she would keep rehearsing a scene until she was fully satisfied with it. I had deep admiration for her discipline towards her work," Jeetendra told mid-day. "I remember I used to be nervous whenever I would have to dance with Sridevi. She was a fabulous dancer who would get the steps perfectly, right at the first attempt while I had to keep doing rehearsals to match up to her. I have so many beautiful memories of Sridevi. It's still so difficult for me to come to terms with the fact that the woman, who ruled over everyone's hearts with her shy smile and bright eyes, is no more," he added. Jeetendra's son Tusshar Kapoor condoled the death of Sridevi and shared a still from Himmatwala. "Ironically, today is also the 35th anniversary of #Himmatwala! Mam u will be missed! Huge loss for the audiences that welcomed her back to films!" he wrote. His daughter Ekta Kapoor also remembered the megastar. Himmatwala was later remade by Sajid Khan in 2013, starring Ajay Devgn and Tamannaah. Sridevi died after suffering a cardiac arrest in Dubai. She was also the star of blockbusters like Sadma, Lamhe, Nagina, Mr India, Chaal Baaz and Chandni. Her body will be flown to Mumbai on a private jet and the last rites are expected to be performed today. Sridevi is survived by husband Boney Kapoor and daughters Janhvi and Khushi.

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Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety: another hilarious romcom from Luv Ranjan with class act by Karthik
Mumbai:MMNN:24 February 2018
In Pyaar Ka Panchnaama and Pyaar Ka Panchnaama 2, he entertained us with stories on the flip side of love and relationships where men were at the receiving end of the flippancy of the women. In Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, director Luv Ranjan brings to viewers a fresh take on love and relationships with an element of bromance thrown in between. Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety is a story about two brothers from another mother, Sonu (Kartik Aaryan) and Titu (Sunny Singh) and Sweety (Nushrat Bharucha), who acts as a spoiler in their relationship. Titu is the sanskaari boy while Sonu is a street smart guy who is aware of all the tricks of love.Everything is fine in life of Sony and Titu till Titus family starts finding a suitable girl for him.Sonu, who has been his best friend at every juncture of Titus life and who has found a family in his parents, is now scared of losing him to a girl. The film is about the happenings among the trio of Sweety, Sonu and Tutu.The film seems to be an extension of the two films in the Pyar Ka Panchnaama series in that the director delves at length on the flippant and crafty nature of women in relationship with men. For instance, the film shows Sonu indulging in attempts to paint Sweety as greedy and one who is after Titus wealth.Infact , attempts by Sonu to paint Sweety as greedy leave the audience laughing in the aisles. As the director, Luv Ranjan gives us another hilarious romcom after the Pyar Ka Panchnaama series. In terms of performances, Karthik Aryan is clearly the best of the lot. After his monologue in Pyar Ka Panchnaama 2, Karthik again impresses with his comic timing. He also manages to look quite hot in the film, which is likely to leave the female audiences drooling over him. As the sanskaari Tutu, Sunny Singh comes across as the epitome of innocence with his innocent boy look evoking a sharp laugh among the audience. .As the greedy Sweety, Nushrat Bharucha does an excellent job. She exudes the required style and attitude for the role.Others like Alok Nath and Virendra Saxena too impress, especially with their ability to evoke laughs. The music of the film is another USP with many foot tapping songs. Hitesh Soniks background music is another highlight and carries forward the story.Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety is another hilarious romcom from Luv Ranjan with brilliant performances by the cast.

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Viral: Kareena Kapoors Son Taimur Ali Khan Can't Take His Eyes Off Dad, Saif Ali Khan
Mumbai:MMNN:23 February 2018
Taimur Ali Khan's recent picture of him looking at his father Saif Ali Khan's photo has gone viral. Dressed in a blue t-shirt with his curly hair tied in a cute pony, Taimur looked adorable. The picture was shared by one of Kareena's fan clubs. Taimur, who has always been one of the Internet's favourite star kids, surely knows how to get attention - just sit back and look cute. His pictures usually make it to the top trends, even if he's simply peeking over his nanny's shoulder. Take a look at Taimur's picture: Whenever Taimur is spotted with parents or his nanny, he instantly gets followed by the paparazzi, something which really annoys his grandfather Randhir Kapoor. During a media interaction Mr Kapoor said: "Every day, I get up in the morning and I see a picture of my grandson in the newspapers. Now everyone recognises his maid also! That's because of the paparazzi," reported Filmfare. Taimur is Saif Ali Khan's third child and first with wife Kareena Kapoor. Even Kareena doesn't want his son Taimur to be 'looked upon as a star kid'. "I just don't want him to be looked upon as a star kid. I want him to grow up as normally as possible. I want to let him be just the way he is," PTI quoted Kareena as saying. 7 COMMENTSKareena is awaiting the release of Veere Di Wedding, her first film since Taimur's birth.

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Amitabh Bachchan admitted in Mumbai hospital
Mumbai:MMNN:10 February 2018
Mumbai: Bollywood’s star of the millennium, Amitabh Bachchan, was admitted to the Lilavati Hospital in western suburb of Bandra on Friday for a routine check up. Mr Bachchan was earlier admitted in the hospital on few occasions, after he had complained of abdominal pain.

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PadMan Movie Review: Akshay Kumar Is Modest And Masterful In This Solid Film
Mumbai:MMNN:9 February 2018
cast: Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor, Radhika Apte Director: R Balki Rating: 4 Stars (Out of 5) Heres to the ones who cant sit still. Unlike his wife and neighbours, Lakshmikant Chauhan is unimpressed by the Hanuman idol at a village fair that breaks coconuts inserted in its mouth, simply because he can see how it works. Lakshmi makes things. He works in a factory, welding chains onto playground swings and taking care of whatever needs fixing, but he is at heart a questioner of the status quo and a finder of solutions. One of the first things we see him do is repurpose a wind up toy into an onion chopping machine, in order to spare his wife some sobs. Based on the extraordinary life of innovator Arunachalam Muruganantham, PadMan is a film about those who need to take things apart in order to build something better. Muruganantham did this with pads as well as with stigma. Menstrual hygiene is still an alarmingly taboo subject in India, with education and urbanity unable to prevent, for instance, a woman with her period from attending family rituals. There is an infuriating notion of the unclean attached to the period a notion that makes little sense in a country full of mother goddesses and is it a subject most conversations skirt away from. It is therefore impressive to watch this story told featuring Akshay Kumar, a mainstream hero known for his bulletproof manliness. In R Balkis inspiring and touching film, we have this very hero trying on a sanitary napkin, then riding a bicycle with his trousers bloodied. In a country where people buy undershirts based on what Kumar claims to wear, this feels historic. It is important here to note that while many a film can be labelled relevant or commendable, that does not automatically make it a fine film. PadMan written by Balki and Swanand Kirkire, based on a short story by Twinkle Khanna is a genuinely strong movie, telling an unlikely story in likeable fashion and doing it briskly and smartly. This is not a groanworthy melodrama or a government flattering Public Service Announcement or an overt collection of cliches (all descriptions that suit Kumars 2017 film Toilet), but instead an intelligent film that pays attention to detail. It is a film that aims for nuance. Like Muraganantham in real life, Lakshmi is branded a pervert for his single minded focus on creating affordable sanitary napkins, and the film allows us to relate both to his noble enthusiasm and to his familys inability to understand his attempts. Lakshmi is shushed by a chemist and told not to say sanitary pad out loud because women are present. But theyre the ones who use it, protests Lakshmi, confounded by the need to treat a medical product like a contraband drug. A disgusted villager calls him a dheele naade ka aadmi, literally a man with pants that come off too easy. Lakshmis wife, meanwhile, is perpetually distraught by her husbands obsession with impure things, and desperately asks, What kind of a man has his life trapped between a womans legs All he wants to do is serve. Lakshmi lovingly wraps each batch of homemade napkins in leaves and puts a jasmine flower on top. The films first song Aaj Se Teri tells us that Lakshmi has devotedly given himself over to his wife and will do anything for her, and asks merely for a smile, or for her to make malpua for him once in a while. Written by Kausar Munir, the songs have consistently superb lyrics. There is a particularly terrific line during one performed at a young girls coming of age function, saying kal tak thi gul, ab gulel lagegi, meaning she was a flower till yesterday but today shes the catapult from the plucked to the weaponised an intentionally pointed line in a film about giving women the power of choice. The first time we see Kumar, hes been catapulted already. Hes smiling his trademark smile wider than ever that broad grin of a good-looking doofus looking as if he cant believe his luck at getting married. The actor is exceptional in the film, calm and keen-eyed when at work, and it takes balance and restraint to play a character so singular and earnest and yet never appear cloying. There is a tenderness to his touch, be it when lifting a fingerful of candyfloss or when patting a girl s pillow with mosquito ointment (instead of daring to touch her). At one point, when a sanitary napkin of his making is described by a first user as just another pad, this attaining of regular status makes him swell with glee. It is an undoubtedly affecting performance, and one of the actors best. He is simplistic but never a simpleton. There are times Kumar appears naive, but only in the way that people who change the world often do. Radhika Apte, who plays his wife, performs entirely in gasps of different registers everything is a shock to this immediately appalled wife but she is evocative enough to make the whimpering work. Sonam Kapoor, who plays Lakshmis first user and later his assistant (modelled somewhat on the English language teacher Muruganantham had a crush on) provides a sharp contrast as the exact opposite, an entitled girl who, on hearing Lakshmi say abhishaap (curse) believably asks abhi what She is, importantly, the one who emphasises the importance of a female voice in the empowerment of women. Even women in villages dont like mansplaining. The cinematography by PC Sreeram is characteristically strong, with lots of aerial shots to emphasise greens and wide shots to establish the world. Amit Trivedis music is rather lovely, though the background score is irritatingly overdone as it tries to spell things out, swelling with hope and sighing with despair and doing so repetitively enough for us to notice. This is one of the reasons why, at some points, the film feels stretched, since we see Lakshmis triumphs converting some people over, and then again have to wait for further triumphs to convert the rest. Still, the lack of overwrought hysterics and a fine pace keeps the story ticking. The film ends with a grand speech delivered to the United Nations in a peculiar pidgin English, something Lakshmi winningly calls Linglish. It is a smashing speech, given to us in full, and really puts things in perspective as we see how, without an eye on profit or commerce, this inventor soldiered on to make the world a cleaner place. I loved this stretch because, for once, broken English was not played for laughs but for sincerity, and because Kumar handles it masterfully. Many years ago, there was a song with the words na main Amitabh, na Dilip Kumar, na kisi hero ke bachche, celebrating that Kumar may not be an all-conquering talent like those titans or the son of a kid, but was instead plain old Akshay (Akshay-Akshay, as that song goes.) More than two decades later, as Kumar attaches a makeshift bladder to pink underwear and squeezes it with joyous impunity, the song has changed. The PadMan title track revels in the fact that he doesnt have to break bones in slow-motion or leap tall buildings in order to be a superhero. Films like this are why a new actor may someday mouth a song about how he isnt Akshay Kumar. The cape is optional when the wings are built in.

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Shahid Kapoor On Daughter Misha Getting Paparazzi Attention: 'What's Her Fault?
Mumbai:MMNN:8 February 2018
Shahid Kapoor's one-year-old daughter Misha is as popular as her father but the 36-year-old actor told mid-day that he 'hates' the paparazzi attention on his toddler. "My daughter didn't choose this glamorous life. What's her fault?" he told mid-day. Shahid Kapoor, who was recently seen in "Padmaavat," added: "I hate to think of all the glare that's on her. That is probably the only time I feel I should have had another job. I don't want her to deal with it. It's not good for children to go through this. They have a right to a normal childhood." Shahid Kapoor also said that he had a 'regular childhood' despite being the son of actors Pankaj Kapur and Neelima Azeem. "No one knew I was Pankaj Kapur's son till I joined the industry. It was only after an IMDB page about me was made that people discovered who my father is. My mother was a struggling actor, who separated from my dad when I was growing up. I got to know my father only after turning 18. So, I had a regular middle-class childhood, devoid of attention," the Ishq Vishq actor told mid-day. But it's not the same for Misha, who was born in August 2016. "She has to deal with it because I am her dad. It's tough for me, as a parent, to make peace with that. I hope she will learn how to tackle it when she grows up," Shahid Kapoor told mid-day. Earlier, Shahid Kapoor's wife Mira Rajput has also requested the paparazzi to keep a distance from their children, when pictures of Misha playing in a park went viral. 1 COMMENTSSeveral Bollywood celebrities such as Rani Mukerji and Kajol among others have also spoken against the paparazzi clicking pictures of their children. Rani Mukerji earlier revealed that her husband Aditya Chopra is absolutely against sharing pictures of Adira on social media (she was missing from the photos of her own birthday party). She also told news agency PTI that they took steps to shield Adira from the shutterbugs. "My husband being a private person wants Adira to have a normal upbringing. Seeing the circumstances around her, where the parents are slightly known, there will always be an intrigue as to 'how our child is?'. You don't want them to have extra privileges or importance. You want them to grow up as normal people," Rani told PTI

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Bigg Boss 11 Grand Finale: Shilpa Shinde Is The Winner Of The Show
Mumbai:MMNN:15 January 2018
105 days, 19 contestants and umpteen tasks later, Bigg Boss 11 finally has a winner and the winner is Shilpa Shinde! The popular TV actress took the trophy home from the grand finale of Bigg Boss 11, which aired on Sunday night. Not just the trophy, Shilpa's winning basket also includes prize money of Rs. 44 lakhs and dher sara pyaar from her fans. While Shilpa was the star of the night, a considerable amount of limelight was also on Hina Khan, who was in the list of top two contestants. Puneesh Sharma was the first of the four finalists to be eliminated while Vikas Gupta was the second finalist to leave the house. Shilpa Shinde, Vikas Gupta, Hina Khan and Puneesh Sharma were the four finalists of the show, which was hosted by Salman Khan. It is not unknown that Bigg Boss always has a trick up its sleeves. And the last twist of this season was that voting lines were made live for 10 minute during the episode before the winner was announced, which gave fans of Hina and Shilpa a chance to shower more votes in favour of their favourite contestants What lead to the announcement about Shilpa Shinde's bigg win is a blockbuster grand finale of Bigg Boss 11, which was made entertaining times infinity with the ex-contestants performing on stage. And, as a surprise package, Akshay Kumar joined Salman on stage and the duo had loads of fun with ex-contestant Dhinchak Pooja. On the show, Akshay Kumar also spoke about his upcoming movie PadMan Puneesh Sharma and his girlfriend - ex-contestant Bandgi Kalra - also set fire on water with their performance to Tip Rip Barsa while there was a glimpse of Shilpa Shinde and Vikas Gupta's bitter-sweet relationship. Hiten Tejwani and Aarshi Khan also delivered a hilarious performance about their onscreen flirting-shirting. And who can forget Aakash Dadlani, who had some rapping-shapping to do Hina Khan performed with her two best friends on the show - Luv Tyagi and Priyank Sharma. Hina has also signed up for a solo performance to Main Heroine Hoon Ahead of the winning announcement, Salman Khan met the contestants through the live TV inside the house, when Shilpa Shinde was asked about how she managed to garner such a massive fan following. Shilpa, who turned out to be almost everyone's favourite Bigg Boss 11 contestant, said she had no strategy for the show but only to just be herself, which she thinks worked in her favour.

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Mukkabaaz movie review: Anurag Kashyap’s angry film spares no one; Vineet Singh is our own Rocky
Mumbai:MMNN:13 January 2018
Slow motion fist fight never looked more intriguing. A passionate but mostly untrained boxer is brawling with some ruffians on a congested street, and a mute girl is looking at him from a rooftop. There is pain, there is lust and there is a challenge. Can the boxer rise up, accept the invitation and fall in love with the girl who is so near yet so distant? A gritty young man Shravan Singh (Vineet Singh) wants to be known as a boxer. Its not just a game for him. Its his ticket to a better life, one that offers respect. He keeps Rockys posters and calls himself Uttar Pradeshs Mike Tyson. Boxing is the only thing he is good at, but he is way past the age he should have made it Like most of the sports federations in India, the UP federation is also cracking under political pressure. Bareilly politician and mobster Bhagwan Das Mishra (Jimmy Shergill) is the kingpin who makes or breaks careers. Unfortunately, the girl is his niece and that might kill Shravans only reason to breathe, boxing. Its a set-up we have accepted as part of our lives. Itna toh chalta hai As if struggle is the one thing aspiring sportspersons should accept as part of their career graph. The officials are neck-deep in corruption. Everybody wants to be in the good books of political heavyweights. A malfunctioning system is internalized, accepted. Shravan with his idealism is a misfit. He is angry, mostly aimless and certainly not the one to bow down. Even hundreds of punches cant bend his spine Director Anurag Kashyap takes us inside the modest Singh household where they dont understand everyday English; in fact they are irritated by it. They probably consider English as one of the reasons for their misery. The son talks about passion and the electrician father hears fashion and keeps lecturing him. Its weirdly funny and a tight slap on the face of the education system and a society which equates knowing English with being educated. Mukkabaaz keeps getting darker. In one of the scenes, Bhagwan Das asks a waiter to bring another jug for a harassed, helpless coach Sanjay Kumar (Ravi Kishan in a very unlike Ravi Kishan role), who belongs to a backward caste. Bhagwan Das, who is blind in one eye, immediately notices that the waiters right eye is of stone. For a second, it appears like the natures way of teaching him humility. But he isnt the one to leave his caste pride. Men like him are the reason boxing tournaments take place in open and the place allotted for it becomes somebodys private property. Players dont understand the difference between medicines and prohibited drugs. For them, winning the state or national level championship is about getting a government job. They never aspire to win medals. Kashyap brings all these facets out in the open and then makes strong comments From calling out gau rakshaks to calling the championship sponsor Bedaag (spotless), he teases us with in-your-face humour. You dont know whether to nod in acceptance or just look away when a boxing official tells Shravan, Nobody wants to know whats happening in your life. Kashyaps terrific form continues as he spares no one. From reverse casteism to the messed-up political scenario, he trains his gun on many evils. Mincing words was never his style, but this is bolder and very effective. Interestingly, Shravans love story with Sunaina (an enigmatic Zoya Hussain) never takes a backseat. It remains the prime emotion. The more ruthless the masters become, the more rebellious the oppressed get. Jimmy Shergill might look over-dramatic to some, but he has tried his best to justify his persona, but such characters are not rare. Political aspirations collaborated with a strong sense of entitlement can lead to fatal actions. Zoya Hussain is at the lack of words, but her eyes are not. She is aptly supported by the background music which needs a whole new article. Its wonderful and non-mainstream but the songs dare you to overlook lyrics And then there is Vineet Singh. This is the performance we all will cherish for years. Its legendary and who knows it might become his performance of a lifetime. You will root for him, youll duck the punches with him and then youll go down with him, but youll never leave him. He wont let you. Our very own Rocky is born. The 156-minute Mukkabaaz is the best film in last one year or so, and this year couldnt start on a better note. Lets cherish Vineet Singh and his thickheaded brawler with open heart

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Kaalakaandi Movie Review: Saif Ali Khan Makes His Character Work In Fizzy, Freewheeling Film
Mumbai:MMNN:12 January 2018
Delhi Belly scripter Akshat Verma's maiden directorial venture, in essence, possesses the madcap spirit that propelled the 2011 hit. Kaalakaandi is set in Mumbai and focused primarily on more mature characters. So its tone, texture and treatment are markedly different. The film is primarily in English, with only two underworld underlings conversing in street-level Hindi peppered liberally with expletives. It is clear that Verma is fascinated by mavericks and misfits. But armed with the quality of his writing, he turns the freaky, freewheeling, fizzy Kaalakaandi into a human drama that explores life's surprises, love, mortality, greed and betrayal. Not all of it adds up as neatly as one would have liked, yet it works. Wicked wit and macabre humour leavened with a sense of humanity define this dark comedy's more felicitous moments. The characters are quirky yet real, like the morally conflicted girl shaken by a hit-and-run case that she is involved in or a young man assailed by pangs of guilt at having cheated on his would-be wife Several other confused Mumbaikars have their already messed-up lives thrown into further disarray in the course of a single night that sees mishaps galore. A well-heeled man receives a grim, point-blank medical diagnosis: his days are numbered, he is told. Another, carried away by a gun-slinging Feroz Khan's curry-western act in Khotay Sikkey, accidentally shoots himself in the groin. There is more. Two partners in crime (Vijay Raaz and Deepak Dobriyal) hatch a get-rich-quick plan as they ferry bags of cash in a red hatchback - the plot ends in betrayal and quick comeuppance. Two men on a speeding motorcycle are knocked off their perches on a rain-washed road. And coitus interruptus mars an intended quickie in an upscale hotel room Led astray by alcohol, psychotropic substances, passion and the lure of money, every character in Kaalakaandi invites trouble for himself/herself and for all those whose paths they cross wittingly or unwittingly. It is an eventful plot all right, but most of the crucial reveals some via conversations that occur principally inside three moving cars, each denoting an aspect of the city of Mumbai. For cinema trivia geeks, Kaalakaandi is strewn with interesting takeaways. The principal protagonist (Saif Ali Khan), who like the conscientious but dull bureaucrat Watanabe in the Akira Kurosawa classic Ikiru, is diagnosed with stomach cancer and given only a few months to live. The character's name isn't revealed until the very end of the film, when he is drawn towards a comely wedding photographer. He could well be, like the self-effacing Watanabe, just another Everyman wasting away his life in the belief that being a "good person" is good enough. He does not smoke, does not drink, and has never done drugs except when his friends tricked him into eating a brownie laced with marijuana. It was an accident. So it wouldn't count as a transgression, he reasons. But be that as it may, he has a lot of lost time to make up for. He heads to the wedding of his brother (Akshay Oberoi). At the party, after popping a red star microdot, he takes the would-be groom for a prenuptial haircut. On the way, everything that could go wrong goes wrong, or right, depending on who is doing the judging. In another part of town, another pair (Kunaal Roy Kapoor and Shobhita Dhulipala) have their own seemingly insignificant issues to deal with. The couple weighs the pros and cons of the girl leaving for the US for higher studies. The girl is all for it. But the boy frets: Why are you so gorgeous? The white boys will fall for you The New York flight is still a few hours away. So the two drop by at the birthday celebrations of a friend (Shehnaz Treasury) in a nightclub. The threesome and the latter's boyfriend (Shivam Patil), who a little later in the film rattles off a whole string of Emraan Hashmi films and sheepishly admits that he is a fan (is that wrong, he asks), are caught in a drug bust. Angad, on his part, ends up with a gash on his forehead and the hero, motivated strictly by "scientific curiosity, Madame Curie curiosity," and drug-induced hallucinations, hooks up with a transgender streetwalker (Nary Singh). His life, or what is left of it, changes completely. The multiple tales unfold in parallel arcs. It is only in the penultimate scenes and a zany final shot that the plot connects a few of the characters but only in a tenuous manner. Kaalakaandi takes a while to warm up but when it does it sets a lively pace, especially in the second half. Three sequences stand out. One is a romantic, whimsical chit-chat between the hero and the wedding photographer that enthuses the former to forget the inevitable. The second is when the brother, wanting to be as fair as he can be, stands before the girl who he is about to marry to announce that he is having second thoughts. And the third is a scene in which one of the criminals, despite his best efforts, is caught lying by his wily boss (Arif Basra). COMMENTSSaif Ali Khan brings to the table just the mix of befuddlement and cockiness that is needed to make the character work. The performances around him (notably from Dhulipala and Dobriyal) are in the right zone. Kaalakaandi may not be for all palates, but the film has enough spice for those in the mood for an off-the-beaten-track Bollywood experience

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Tiger Zinda Hai Movie Review: When You Have Salman Khan, Why Do You Need Logic?
Mumbai:MMNN:22 December 2017
Tiger is on the prowl again. He is still a super adroit, unstoppable livewire. So what if he is borderline brain-dead? Given the cloak of invincibility he dons, he is in no danger whatsoever of going extinct. What goes missing without a trace in Tiger Zinda Hai, however, is logic. But what's that? The film is targeted at fans of Salman Khan. It's all strut and swagger, primed to give the constituency that the star serves more than its money's worth. He even sheds his shirt in one sequence. As for the rest of us, ordinary mortals who usually seek cinematic stimuli less extraordinary, Tiger Zinda Hai, directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, is a spy thriller that could have done with more sense and subtlety. But these attributes appear to be the last thing on the mind of the invincible, chest-thumping, Rambo-esque RAW agent-protagonist and his mates as they, teaming up with ISI operatives (yes, that's how woolly-headed it gets), take on their deadly common foes for the sake of aman (peace) and insaniyat (humanity) We hear the film's title being uttered by one character or other on four separate occasions. On the first occasion it's a question, on the second a firm assertion, and on the third it exudes assurance. The final 'Tiger zinda hai', reserved for the final scene, is a pointer to the possibility that we haven't heard the last of the insuperable secret agent. Sounds a bit like a threat all right, but if TZH roars loud enough at the box-office, we've got to live with it. Filmed predominantly in Abu Dhabi, which passes off for war-ravaged Iraq, TZH is strictly mechanical, by-the-numbers filmmaking that throws at the audience random allusions to contemporary geopolitics but makes it a point to disown any connection with reality. The film, as a pre-credits rider avows, is inspired by a true event, but all 'places and names' in the story are fictitious. We would have known anyways Tikrit becomes Ikrit and ISIS is rechristened ISC. But Mosul remains Mosul. There is also talk of a Caliphate. It is lorded over by a dreaded terrorist named Abu Usman. Fighting a last-ditch battle to save his turf from American drones and warplanes and the Iraqi army, he unleashes mayhem in the desert. The hyper-virile, stone-faced persona of Avinash Singh Rathore 'Tiger', which is stretched much further than it was in 2012's Ek Tha Tiger, strays dangerously close to snapping point. The spy walks in and out of raging fires with the nonchalance of a boy swatting flies. He has the blanket license to be part of improbable action sequences in which oil tankers turn into balls of fire, vehicles fly and do somersaults before exploding, and bullets are sprayed from all manner of weapons without let. Our man Tiger emerges from it all, time and again, not only in one piece but also without as much as a hair out of place That his survival instincts and combat skills haven't lost their edge is established right at the outset. Tiger, out camping in the Alps with his son, encounters a pack of wolves. He keeps his wits about him and shakes the predators off his back. No big deal - it's all in a day's work for him. The attack of the wolves prepares him for much worse. When a group of Indian and Pakistani nurses - 40 of them - are taken hostage by religious extremists in Iraq - this part of the plot is yanked from newspaper headlines - a resting Tiger is nudged out of his cozy sinecure in Austria, where he now lives with his wife of eight years Zoya (Katrina Kaif), the selfsame Pakistani spy who fell in love with him in the precursor. Summoned by the Indian spy agency chief (Girish Karnad), Tiger and Zoya plunge into the mission aimed at taking out the terrorists and saving the nurses. The hero handpicks his comrades-in-arms - ageing tech whiz Rakesh (Kumud Mishra, who provides the lighter moments), explosives expert Namit (Angad Bedi, who has just enough to do not be lost in the din) and sharpshooter Azaan (Sudeep), the token Muslim patriot who carries the tricolour in his backpack and has to do more than the others to demonstrate his love for the nation. Inspired by an incident that is also at the heart of the Malayalam smash hit Take Off, Tiger Zinda Hai goes haywire in pursuit of its outmoded notions of masculinity and heroism. The film robs the trapped women of any kind of agency. The only nurse allowed a voice and some space is Poorna (Anupriya Goenka, the sole female actor in the film who actually 'acts'). TZH has another bunch of cornered women - captives who work for the terrorists under duress. Zoya, who is instrumental in roping two ISI agents into the Indo-Pak rescue mission, turns the heat on the captors and liberates these girls single-handedly. Her entry scene, too, has the lady knock out a trio of muggers who raid a convenience store and live to regret the decision. End of story for Zoya. She, too, needs her hubby to rescue her from trouble in the film's climax. But we are getting ahead of ourselves. TZH simply isn't interested in achieving any balance. The emphasis is unwaveringly on Salman Khan the Saviour. Katrina, fetching but flimsy, is compelled to take a backseat. Mercifully, the principal antagonist Abu Usman, played by Iran-born, UAE-raised Sajjad Delafrooz, is no pushover: he makes his presence felt in no uncertain terms. Undeniably impressive in terms of its scale and flawless technical attributes - the production design is fabulous, the action sequences are spectacular and the camerawork by Polish cinematographer Marcin Laskawiec is dazzlingly good - Tiger Zinda Hai is an exercise that eventually rings utterly hollow. Its surface nous cannot conceal the sheer purposeless of all the noise Tiger Zinda Hai generates. May be, at least for some, the star power on show might help the film paper over its patchy screenplay

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Anushka Sharma, Virat Kohli Invited PM Modi To Their Wedding Reception
Mumbai:MMNN:21 December 2017
Prime Minister Narendra Modi received an invite to Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli's wedding reception, as revealed on his official Twitter account. The newlyweds posed for a picture with PM Modi, who congratulated them on their wedding. It is unclear if PM Modi will actually attend. The reception is in Delhi, which is Virat's hometown, on Thursday. It will be the first of two receptions the couple have planned. The second will take place in Mumbai on December 26. Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli married in Italy last week, after having managed to (almost) keep the wedding secret for a year. Anushka and her family were photographed flying out of Mumbai days before the wedding. They were headed to Italy where a heritage resort in Tuscany had been booked for the nuptials. Pre-wedding ceremonies included a mehendi and haldi. No celebrities were invited. The newlyweds made the wedding announcement on their Twitter accounts with an identical message: "Today we have promised each other to be bound in love forever. We are truly blessed to share the news with you. This beautiful day will be made more special with the love and support of our family of fans & well wishers. Thank you for being such an important part of our journey." Anushka and Virat also posted a honeymoon picture from somewhere snowy in Europe last week. On Tuesday, pictures of the couple in New Delhi went viral. They had flown back without the press being alerted After the Mumbai reception, Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli will fly to South Africa to ring in 2018. Virat will stay on to play a series, Anushka will return to resume work on her pending films, one of which co-stars Shah Rukh Khan and Katrina Kaif

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On Bill Gates' Best Of 2017 List, Akshay Kumar's Toilet: Ek Prem Katha
Mumbai:MMNN:20 December 2017
Bill Gates, no less, has listed six positive things that happened in 2017 (which has been 'a tough year') and the second of these six is.. wait, for it - Akshay Kumar's film Toilet: Ek Prem Katha. "Toilet: A Love Story, a Bollywood romance about a newlywed couple, educated audiences about India's sanitation challenge," tweeted the Microsoft co-founder. What a shout-out. The five other things on his list - Edwardo Sanchez, the first person in his family to graduate from college; Bhutan and Maldives eradicating measles; World Food Prize-winner Akinwumi Adesina using his award money for grants to young Africans involved in agriculture; a New York Times report on how helping others is good for your health; and a 'new sport' - extreme reading (to which he contributed). "There's no denying 2017 was a really tough year... but it also delivered some amazing moments of hope and progress," Bill Gates prefaced his list. "These tweets made me feel better about 2017 and more optimistic about the new year Toilet: Ek Prem Katha, starring Akshay Kumar and Bhumi Pednekar, received mixed reviews but was praised unanimously for its theme, which highlighted the need to build toilets in India, particularly rural India. The focus on sanitation meshed with the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We can give Bill Gates a heads up for 2018 - Akshay Kumar's new film PadMan shines a light on menstrual hygiene and spotlights A Murugunantham, the inventor of a low-cost sanitary napkin making machine. Put that on your list next year, Mr Gates

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IFFI 2017: 'Embarrassed' By Akshay Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan Tweets 'Not Done
Mumbai:MMNN:29 November 2017
Amitabh Bachchan was honoured with the Indian Film Personality Of The Year award at the recently concluded International Film Festival of India in Goa. The closing ceremony on Monday evening was a star studded affair, at which Information and Broadcasting Minister Smriti Irani and Akshay Kumar presented the award to the 75-year-old megastar. That's also when Akshay Kumar, in Big B's words, "embarrassed" the legend. No, it wasn't a joke or a commentary that got Big B tweeting about being embarrassed - it was actually Akshay's attempt to touch Amitabh Bachchan's feet. In photos shared on social media, one can see that Akshay, who was yet to present the award, reached for the actor's feet, who then pulled him up and greeted Akshay with an embrace. "Embarrassed that Akshay does this ... no Akshay this is not done," tweeted Big B. We can't decide what's more adorable - Big B's words or the IFFI moment Amitabh Bachchan also shared photos from the felicitation ceremony, along with a message: "A most humbling evening at the IFFI awards... honoured and filled with such gratefulness to IFFI and the extremely endearing words by Akshay Kumar, Karan, and the dignitaries The closing ceremony of the 48th International Film Festival of India was also attended by Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sidharth Malhotra, Huma Qureshi, Sonali Bendre, Bhumi Pednekar and Sushant Singh Rajput. Akshay first co-starred with Amitabh Bachchan in 2002's Aankhen and has also shared screen space with Big B in films like Rishtaa, Waqt and Family. Amitabh Bachchan will next be seen in Thugs Of Hindostan while Akshay Kumar's next is Padman.

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Manushi Chhillar Says No Bollywood For Now. An Aamir Khan Film Might Tempt Her
Mumbai:MMNN:28 November 2017
Will Miss World 2017 Manushi Chhillar answer if Bollywood comes calling, as Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Priyanka Chopra did before her? The 20-year-old pageant winner, now back in India after being crowned in China, says she has no celluloid dreams as of now - that said, she would eventually like to work in an Aamir Khan film. Manushi Chhillar, a former medical student from Haryana, is currently addressing press conferences across cities. In Mumbai, she was asked about a possible career in films. "Bollywood is just something that is not on my mind as of now so I really can't say anything about it," IANS quoted Manushi as saying. For now, Manushi Chhillar is drawing on her medical training to advocate for menstrual hygiene. "Sanitary pads are a necessity for every woman, so they should be available at a low cost. Indian women must have access to safe and affordable menstrual hygiene management," she said, according to mid-day. Through her year-long reign as Miss World, Manushi will travel across four continents to raise awareness about hygiene for menstruating women. But she's not ruling Bollywood out entirely. On Manushi's wishlist - a film with Aamir Khan. "I would like to work in an Aamir Khan movie because I think he has really challenging roles. His movies have a message and connect to the society. So, that will be very interesting to do," she told the press on Monday. Apart from Aamir Khan, Manushi also has a favourite actress: "In actresses, my personal favourite is Priyanka Chopra." Manushi is the sixth Indian contestant to have been crowned Miss World and a direct successor to Priyanka Chopra. Priyanka Chopra won the Miss World pageant 17 years ago in 2000. Priyanka and Aishwarya are former Miss Worlds who since built massively successful careers in showbiz. Diana Hayden and Yukta Mookhey also had brief stints as actresses. Manushi Chhillar was crowned Miss World in China's Sanya city earlier this month and touched down in Mumbai on Saturday. "I thank each and everyone who came to welcome me. It was overwhelming and I am grateful for your support. Thank you for showering me with all your love," Manushi told PTI after the grand homecoming.

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Padman New Poster Stars Akshay Kumar As A 'Superhero'
Mumbai:MMNN:27 November 2017
Akshay Kumar shared a new poster from his upcoming film Padman and we love it. In the new poster shared by Akshay, the 50-year-old actor is posing like a 'super hero,' which is also the tagline of his film, directed by R Balki. Padman is a biopic on entrepreneur Arunachalam Muruganantham (played by Akshay), who became a popular figure for inventing low-cost sanitary making machines and hence, the name of the movie. In the poster, Akshay can be seen standing on a pile of cotton, which looks like a set-up for making sanitary pads. Sharing the poster on Twitter today, Akshay reminded his fans about the release date of the film, which is January 26, 2018. "Super hero hai yeh pagla, aa raha hai 26th January, 2018 ko: #Padman," Akshay captioned the poster. Earlier, Akshay had revealed the first looks of his co-stars Sonam Kapoor and Radhika Apte from the movie. Radhika Apte has been cast as Padman's wife while Sonam's character appears to have helped him in his venture. Check out how Sonam and Radhika's looks from Padman: Earlier in August, the first look of Akshay Kumar as Padman pedalled his way to social media like this. The film was scheduled to release in April then but has now been rescheduled to hit screens on January 26. Padman will be co-produced by Twinkle Khanna's Mrs Funnybones Movies and KriArj Entertainment while Sony Pictures has also come on board for worldwide distribution of the movie. R Balki, who last directed 2015's Ki and Ka, said that this project is going to be as interesting as Sholay. In an interview to news agency IANS, the director said, "His (Muruganantham's) life itself is equal to Sholay. It is as entertaining as the biggest masala entertainers... And when you have a life that is so entertaining, why do I need to add entertainment." Sonam Kapoor is currently prepping for Veere Di Wedding, co-starring Kareena Kapoor Khan and Swara Bhaskar while Akshay will also feature in 2.0, co-starring Rajinikanth.

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Tumhari Sulu Movie Review: Vidya Balan Is The Heart And Soul Of This Watchable Film
Mumbai:MMNN:17 November 2017
Tumhari Sulu Movie Review: It is not a perfect film, but it is definitely well worth a viewing as much for the quality of the acting and for its technical finesse Cast: Vidya balan, Manav kaul, Neha Dhupia, Vijay Maurya, Malishka Mendonsa Director: Suresh Triveni Rating: 3 Stars (out of 5) A lady cabbie (Trupti Khamkar) drives the titular protagonist - housewife-turned-radio jockey (Vidya Balan) - back and forth from her suburban Mumbai home to the studio. In a conversation, she reveals her back story. Her husband, who initially missed her greatly when she opted for a job that kept her out for hours, got so used to her absence that he eventually left her. Nary a hint of regret in her voice, the chatty woman happy being free and unencumbered. Just a thought: wouldn't the story of the taxi driver, had it been expanded, have been far more interesting and radical than the one that Suresh Triveni's big screen debut film tells? Her dreams and aspirations notwithstanding, the Tumhari Sulu heroine is suspended rather indecisively between assertion and compromise. She doesn't have a real go at dismantling the status quo. Not that the unlikely turn of events in the placid life of the spirited Sulochana aka Sulu of Jal Padma Housing Society, Virar isn't of import, but it seems somewhat familiar in plot terms despite the fact that it is on the FM airwaves, a universe rarely portrayed in Hindi cinema, that she finds her true calling. The job gives her a sense of confidence and achievement, but it does not inspire her to attempt a full-fledged rebellion. We have of late seen several Bollywood films about strong female protagonists thriving on defying expectations. Only the other week, in Ribbon, located in pretty much the same social ambience, it was Kalki Koechlin's turn to grapple with the daunting task of striking a balance between work pressures and home front demands. That is exactly the place that homemaker Sulu, materially comfortable and stable thanks to the supervisor's job her husband Ashok Dubey (Manav Kaul) has in a garment sweatshop, finds herself in when she is hired as a radio jockey and called upon to be her seductive best on air much to Ashok's consternation umhari Sulu is a decent enough film propped up by a wonderful pivotal performance from Vidya Balan, but parts of it - most notably the facile climax - scupper the possibility of it soaring to the heights that at times appear well within its reach. In addition to dutifully discharging her household duties, which include keeping homing pigeons from pooping on the clothes drying in the balcony, Sulu loses no opportunity to participate in neighbourhood competitions and keep count of her victories and near-wins. When it comes to introducing herself to the world, she, however, never appends her husband's family name to Sulu. She is simply Sulochana. So it is a tad incongruous that the nameplate outside her home reads "Mr. and Mrs. Ashok". It should have been simply Ashok and Sulochana if it is the lady's individuality that the film is seeking to underline. Sulu and Ashok are, of course, no spring chickens. Ashok suggests that the couple should plan a sister for their 11-year-old son Pranav (Abhishek Sharma). Sulu is quick to point out they aren't young enough to make another baby. Interestingly, most of the songs that the couple croons - Batata vada (Hifazat), Zubi Zubi (Dance Dance) and, of course, Hawa Hawai (Mr. India), which receives a full-on party number treatment - are from films released in 1987. That sure is an indication of Sulu and Ashok's vintage. But as the radio channel head Maria (Neha Dhupia) exclaims the first time they meet, Sulu is a quick learner. She slips into her role pretty painlessly, but never ceases to be amused by the new-age colloquialisms she hears around her in the studio - what's up, chill, dude, bro - a fact that she shares with her hubby. Sulu's transformation from a happy-go-lucky housewife who preens at her success rate in all manner of insignificant pastimes - a lemon and spoon race, a sack race, a tug-of-war and radio contests for listeners - to a proud pro who uses her voice to stoke the nocturnal fantasies of lonely men is undeniably intriguing With Vidya Balan diving deep into the character and coming up with many moments of pure magic and a competent supporting cast led by the usually underutilized Manav Kaul contributing its mite, Tumhari Sulu, warts and all, is never less than watchable. It could have been an even better film had the second half not veered away from the delightfully tongue-in-cheek tone of the first, which follows the charming but somewhat impractical self-advancement plans that Sulu hatches, offering her husband a 50-50 partnership in every proposed enterprise, and her run-ins with her twin elder sisters Aradhana (Sindhu Shekharan) and Kalpana (Seema Taneja), dismissive of the high school dropout who seeks pleasures in trivial triumphs while devoting herself to looking after her husband and her son. It is making the abrupt tonal transition from the lighthearted to the somewhat melodramatic that Tumhari Sulu misses a few tricks, but director Triveni does have a way with the scenes that truly matter. Especially striking is the restrained treatment that he brings to bear upon a confrontation between Sulu and her scoffing siblings when a crisis precipitated by the former's son engulfs the family. The director takes no recourse here to shrillness or overt see-how-gutsy-this-woman-is grandstanding. A simple point is made forcefully as Sulu puts her foot down and refuses to budge from her chosen position. The scene conveys the strength of the steel that she is made of. The elliptical editing by Shivkumar Panicker is strikingly effective, lending momentum to Tumhari Sulu even when not much appears to be happening on the screen by way of 'action'. Director of photography Saurabh Goswami frames real spaces within a lower middle class home as well as the cheerful but charged atmosphere in the much flashier interiors of the studio where Sulu works Vidya Balan is the heart and soul of Tumhari Sulu, but the film also benefits immensely from the performances of the other cast members. Besides the impressively natural Manav Kaul, Vijay Maurya, cast as a poetry-spouting RJ who has to surmount initial misgivings before he mentors Sulu, gives the role his best shot. Tumhari Sulu isn't a perfect film, but it is definitely well worth a viewing as much for the quality of the acting and for its technical finesse. In any case, a film is easy to fall in love with when Vidya Balan is this stupendous

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Presenting Janhvi Kapoor And Ishaan Khattar In Brand New Dhadak Poster
Mumbai:MMNN:16 November 2017
Netizens woke up to a brand new poster of Janhvi Kapoor's Bollywod debut Dhadak, also starring Ishaan Khattar. The new poster arrived hours after the first looks of Janhvi and Ishaan were released in three fresh posters on Wednesday evening. Directed by Shashank Khaitan, Dhadak "is an official adaptation of Sairat," announced Karan Johar's Dharma Productions. Dhadak goes on floors next month and is slated to release on July 6 next year. While the first look posters had only mid-shots of the young on screen couple, the new is a more detailed glimpse of Janhvi and Ishaan's great on screen rapport The new Dhadak poster may remind you of certain scenes from Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone's Ram-Leela, courtesy Janhvi's colourful lehenga choli, Ishaan's bandhni shirt and the playful flirting.

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Padman: Akshay Kumar Shares Sonam Kapoor And Radhika Apte's First Looks
Mumbai:MMNN:15 November 2017
In delightful Padman updates, Akshay Kumar revealed the first looks of his co-stars - Sonam Kapoor and Radhika Apte - from the movie and we love them. Tweeting a photo with Sonam, Akshay captioned it: "The STRENGTH behind #PADMAN," while sharing a photo with Radhika, the actor wrote: "The REASON he became #PADMAN." Directed by R Balki, Padman is a biopic on entrepreneur Arunachalam Muruganantham (played by Akshay), who became a popular figure for inventing low-cost sanitary making machines and hence, the name of the movie. Mr Muruganantham felt the need to come up with a convenient solution to tackle menstrual health for women after he learnt his wife used newspaper and rags during her menstrual cycle. Radhika Apte has been cast as Padman's wife while Sonam's character appears to have helped him in his venture. Check out how Sonam and Radhika's looks from Padman: Sonam also could not resist sharing her first look from the much talked about film. She added a thank you not for Akshay and the director: "Such a pleasure working with the indomitable Akshay Kumar. He was the perfect person to play the role of #Padman and has brought a sense of humour and love to the film. Of course none of these would have been possible without the humble visionary R Balki." Earlier in August, the first look of Akshay Kumar as Padman pedalled his way to social media like this. The film was scheduled to release in April then but has now been rescheduled to hit screens on January 26. Padman will be co-produced by Twinkle Khanna's Mrs Funnybones Movies and KriArj Entertainment while Sony Pictures has also come on board for worldwide distribution of the movie The much anticipated Padman is taking fast steps towards its release date, which clashes with yet another Akshay Kumar movie - Rajinikanth's 2.0. Earlier in an interview with mid-day, the actor had said Padman will be moved from the Republic Day weekend if Rajinikanth decides to release 2.0 during that time.

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The Wait For Salman Khan's Tiger Zinda Hai's Trailer Is Becoming Impossible. Here's Why'
Mumbai:MMNN:6 November 2017
Each day the wait for Tiger Zinda Hai is becoming more tad-bit. Director Ali Abbas Zafar has flooded social media with thrilling and electrifying stills from the movie. With each new still, Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif, promise to take us on a never-seen-before ride. From guns, ammunition and action car sequences to riding an ATV bike in scorching heat, our favourite RAW agent Salman aka Tiger, has done it all. And, now he's back and all set, riding his way to reach you with the trailer of Tiger Zinda Hai soon. In the new still, Salman can be seen riding a stallion and black commandoes can be seen chasing him. The Morocco schedule of the film features high octane action scenes that Salman had to pull off riding on a horse. Amongst all this, Twitter can't keep calm. Hashtag #Calm before the TZH storm is trending Tiger Zinda Hai's team had hired expert horse trainers, who have worked on Hollywood productions, like Brad Pitt's Troy and Alexander. Salman spent just three days in preparation for this chapter of the action thriller. Ali Abbas Zafar explains, "Salman is a trained rider. He returned from the IIFA awards and took just three days to get familiar with his horse, Wado. A prized Spanish stallion, with a gleaming black mane, the horse was trained to cross hurdles, jump over barricades and ride down hills. We have shot risky and edgy portions on horseback with Salman. Getting Wado to know Salman and vice versa therefore, was key to ensuring that this portion of the shoot goes off well. We've shot for eight days and getting trained, skilled horses actually made this portion of the shoot fairly easy to execute." The trailer of the movie will be out tomorrow (November 7) but the makers as well as the actors have made sure to keep their fans eager by posting photos from the sets in continuous intervals. Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif will share the screen space in Tiger Zinda Hai after five years. They were last seen together in Ek Tha Tiger, which released in 2012. Salman and Katrina Kaif have made pit stops in four countries across the globe because Ali Abbas Zafar wanted the shots to be perfect. Amongst Morocco, Greece, Austria and Abu Dhabi, the central European country had unexpected challenges for the film's team and especially Salman. "For a significant chapter in Tiger Zinda Hai, we had to film in a place that had a certain amount of aloofness and isolation. We found that spot in the mountains of Austria, a place where time seemed to stand still and frozen," the director said in a statement, reported IANS.

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Bigg Boss 11: Sabyasachi, Bandgi should be kicked out this week, says poll
Mumbai:MMNN:4 November 2017
Fans of Bigg Boss 11 cant wait enough for Saturdays episode as the special Weekend Ka Vaar also brings host Salman Khan with it. However, Saturdays are dreaded by the contestants as it means one of them will be voted out of the game. During the nominations on Mondays episode, a record nine people were nominated for evictions, including Dhinchak Pooja, Sabyasachi Satpathy, Bandgi Kalra, Sapna Choudhary, Shilpa Shinde, Benafsha Soonawalla,Priyank Sharma, Hina Khan and Hiten Tejwani. Among the nine, Priyank was nominated for breaking an important rule of the house -- what is happening outside cannot be relayed to the contestants. After the nominations for this week, we ran a poll seeking votes for your least favourite contestant and the verdict is out! As per Hindustan Times readers, it is almost a tie between Sabyasachi and Bandgi with 21 and 26 per cent of the total 2,536 votes. While Sabyasachi has not been so active in the game, Bandgi has had her share of fights and controversies on the show. In just one month, she has managed to lock horns with Hina Khan, Zubair Khan and even initiated what looked like a fake relationship with Puneesh. Dhinchak Pooja comes a close second with 15 per cent of those who took the poll wishing for her exit from the Bigg Boss house. During her two weeks inside the house, she has already been linked to Luv Tyagi and Akash Dadlani. She keeps the housemates and audience entertained with her rap songs. Around 12 per cent of the votes were cast seeking eviction of Benafsha while nine per cent voted for Shilpa Shinde and Hina Khan to be kicked out of the show.Benafsha, Shilpa and Hina are some of the most visible faces inside the house, thanks to their full participation in tasks and some strong opinions that they hold. While Hina and Benafsha are often in the middle of fights because of their opinionated selves, Shilpa is mostly the instigator when it comes to tussles in the house. Priyank Sharma and Hiten Tejwani emerged as clear favourites among HT readers, receiving mere five and two per cent of votes respectively, seeking their elimination from the game.Hiten is one of the most well-mannered and quiet contestants this season. Priyank, on the other hand, was kicked out of the show in the first week itself when he attacked Akash. He was later brought back as a wild card entry.

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Ittefaq Movie Review: Sidharth Malhotra And Sonakshi Sinha Murder A Mystery Movie'
Mumbai:MMNN:3 November 2017
Ittefaq begins with a car spill, and it's one we've seen before. In the brilliant 2006 Bond film Casino Royale, Daniel Craig speeds through a bend in a secluded road when we sees a woman tied and trussed up in the middle of the road. Bond's Aston Martin screeches and swerves with appropriate urgency, and he flies over and past her in a spectacular pirouette that has already become one of cinema's most memorable crashes. In Ittefaq, Sidharth Malhotra flips a sedan while barrelling down a crowded Mumbai street while a generic background score desperately tries to excite. Dare we call it a Royale with cheese Credit where it's due, this remake of Yash Chopra's songless thriller does not skimp on the cheese. Made by Abhay Chopra, here is a film about an interrogation and differing accounts, and while that can be riveting - as we've seen in films like No One Killed Jessica and Talvar - things here are awfully basic and feebly performed. In a film about inscrutability, the only one hard to read is the cop. Both murder suspects look like they're trying their hardest to act innocent, which, given their credentials, doesn't go all that far There are two murders, there are two suspects, and there is one scowling police detective trying to unravel things on a very rushed timeline. Yet, for the sake of some non-linear flipfloppery, we have interrogations stretched over several days, as if the cop is only allowed to ask them one flashback's worth of questions at a go. Despite the relatively brisk running time and a double murder at its heart, the case runs cold and Abhay Chopra's film emerges unforgivably dull. The young man next to me in the theatre vanished after the intermission while I sighed enviously at the screen. 'Who cares who dun it' really doesn't have the same ring to it. So we have a writer on the run, played by Sidharth Malhotra, an actor who manages to makes the lam appear uninteresting. He bumps into Sonakshi Sinha, a housewife who spends rainy nights watching India TV in her negligee, and wears a permanently stunned expression, like she's wondering where the eve-teasing and item songs are hidden. Corpses of both their spouses are found on the same night, forcing Akshaye Khanna to play tough cop and grill them, looking like a decaffeinated Basil Fawlty. To me, the big and mysterious crime this film brings to light is the way Sidharth Malhotra now finds himself typecast as a novelist. It happened in Kapoor And Sons, and it happened here again, in this film that describes him as a "mashoor novelist" and where cops chase a murder suspect down the street yelling "Ei, writer!" as if it were an expletive. Then again, to those who make Hindi cinema these days, perhaps it is

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Ranveer Singh And Shahid Kapoor's Padmavati Costumes Decoded In Detail'
Mumbai:MMNN:31 October 2017
Padmavati, starring Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor, is one of the most-awaited films of the year. The characters, their exquisite costumes and the sets of the film, without any doubt, look absolutely stunning. Right from Deepika's jewellery and costume, to Ranveer's kohled-eye and Turkish-inspired robes to Shahid's Rajput look, everything in Padmavati seems to be perfect. Deepika plays Rani Padmini of Chittor and Shahid stars as her husband Rawal Ratan Singh while Ranveer plays the emperor Alauddin Khilji. mid-day reports that in order to reflect Ranveer and Shahid's characters in their costumes, director Sanjay Leela Bhansali hired the services of a brand co-owned by artist Vipul Amar and psychologist Harsheen Arora for certain sequences of the film. Harsheen Arora looked after the costumes for the final war sequence. "Ratan Singh was noble and honourable, Khilji believed in invasion and power. So, their attires need to reflect it," she told mid-day. Citing the importance of how colours play an important role in depicting different personalities, she added, "The colours used for Shahid's armour are red and gold. Red depicts honour and an eagerness to serve one's land. Gold represents courage, generosity and passion. His chest plate is made of sculpted vintage leather and is infused with metal. In the lower half of the armour, we have used geometric patterns in leather. Rajputs preferred geometric designs over floral. As for Khilji, the depiction of lions in his armour are to enhance the darkness of the character". Harsheen Arora and Vipul Amar also told mid-day that they consulted an engineer to check on the mobility in the armours. "It was imperative that the actors be able to perform stunts while wearing them," they said. Meanwhile, designers Rimple and Harpreet Narula, who worked on Deepika, Ranveer and Shahid's costumes earlier told news agency IANS that it was 'challenging' for them to design the costumes. "Working in tandem with Sanjay Leela Bhansali's vision, we immersed ourselves in the history of that particular period during the initial sessions in which he took us through the script and the characterisations. It is an extremely challenging task to envision and design garments," they said.

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HAHA... No": Twinkle Khanna Trolled For 'Lame Jokes' Tweet By Mallika Dua And The Internet.'
Mumbai:MMNN:30 October 2017
Twinkle Khanna shared two 'lame jokes' about her the ongoing controversy about her husband Akahsy Kumar's comments for his The Great Indian Laughter Challenge colleague Mallika Dua. Guess who did not find the jokes 'lame'? Yes, Mallika Dua. She reposted Twinkle's tweet and added: "HAHAHAHAHAHA....HAHA. No" Mallika Dua wasn't the only one unimpressed by this tweet, as the Internet thinks that Twinkle Khanna is "better than this." On Twitter user wrote: "I looked up to you till I read this tweet, This wasn't your best foot forward." On Sunday, Twinkle Khanna issued a statement regarding the controversy asking social media to keep her out of it. In an unaired clip of The Great Indian Laughter Challenge, which found its way on the social media, Akshay Kumar can be heard saying, "Mallika ji aaap bell bajao, main aapko bajata hun." Mallika's father, journalist Vinod Dua, rebuked Akshay's language and wrote on Facebook (the post is now deleted): "I am going screw this cretin Aksahy Kumar." Defending her husband Akahsy Kumar, Twinkle said in her statement: "Should Mr Dua's statement also be taken literally or interpreted in context." She added: "Words, especially humour, have to be seen in its right context. I have always stood up for freedom within comedy including defending AIB's infamous roast on numerous occasion in the past and that is my stance even today." Twinkle Khanna is the author of two bestsellers - Mrs Funnybones and The Legend Of Lakshmi Prasad. Akshay Kumar was last seen in Toilet: Ek Prem Katha and is awaiting the release of 2.0 and Padman in January 2018

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2.0 Poster: Rajinikanth, Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson's Blazing Look Needs A Cold Shower.'
Mumbai:MMNN:28 October 2017
A new poster of the much-awaited 2.0 is here and will definitely set your screen ablaze. Rajinikanth features with both Akshay Kumar and Amy Jackson in the new glimpse of the movie. Akshay plays the antagonist to Rajinikanth's Chitti the robot in the movie, and the clash is going to be a blockbuster one, reveals the poster. Have you seen Akshay's deadly stare? It's not for the faint hearted. "I've never done a role like this in my entire career," Akshay, who is currently promoting the film in Dubai, told news agency PTI. "And, I've never seen anyone doing a character like this. It was a whole new experience to play the role of an anti-hero," he added. The new poster arrived as a special treat for fans who are awaiting the grand music launch of the movie in Dubai, scheduled for later today. Dubai's Burj Khalifa is currently being prepped for the event, which will be hosted by Baahubali star Rana Daggubati. Rajinikanth touched down in Dubai earlier this week and kick-started the promotions with a press meet yesterday. At the press meet, Rajinikanth explained why 2.0 will have a global appeal. "It will appeal to both the global and Indian audiences. Director Shankar has a nice social message for everyone in the film," PTI quoted the megastar as saying. The hype around Rajinikanth's 2.0 is for more than one reasons. Akshay Kumar's first collaboration with the Thalaivar is a point of interest for movie buffs while fans of the Bollywood Khiladi are waiting to witness him in 12 different looks. Rajinikanth will reportedly feature in five different roles. Reports are citing 2.0 as Asia's most expensive movie so far with a budget of Rs. 400 crore. Directed by Shankar, 2.0 is scheduled for the Republic Day weekend in 2018.

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Salman Khan Books Eid 2019 For Next Film Bharat. Details Here.'
Mumbai:MMNN:24 October 2017
Superstar Salman Khan has yet again booked Eid for the release of his forthcoming film Bharat. The film will star Salman in the title role. Bharat is an adaptation of 2014 South Korean film Ode To My Father, reports news agency PTI. The film will be made by Ali Abbas Zafar, who has also directed Salman in Tiger Zinda Hai, which releases this year on Christmas. Bharat is will be produced by Atul Agnihotri (Salman's brother-in-law), who attended the screening of Ode To My Father at the Berlin Film Festival. Bharat will be shot in Abu Dhabi, Spain and India and will go on floors next year in April. Of the film, Atul Agnihotri told PTI, "It's the journey of a country and also a person, both of whom go by the name of Bharat.That film is just the starting point for ours but since it was an inspiration, we wanted in all fairness to officially own it and acquired the remake rights before going ahead with Bharat." Salman's last Eid release was Tubelight. Since 2011, the 51-year-old superstar has booked Eid for his releases, starting with Bodyguard, Ek Tha Tiger, Kick, Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Sultan. "It's a character that I thought would resonate with him. It's a huge responsibility making a film with Salman as there are big expectations that come with the job. I'm very conscious about Salman's fan base and what they want. And once again, I'm convinced that being a family film it's worthy of coming during the festive time. And anyway, an Eid release is always every producer's preferred choice," Atul Agnihotri told PTI, adding that Bharat's casting will be decided over the next three months.

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I Scooped Her Up, Headed To Bedroom": Nawazuddin Siddiqui's Biography.'
Mumbai:MMNN:23 October 2017
I was performing in a play in Mumbai which was when I finally had my first romantic relationship. Incidentally, she too happened to be an NSD graduate, though we had never met there. It was very sweet, like rain is after a very long spell of drought. Sunita had fallen madly in love with me. Every day, she would come over, hang out at my house in Mira Road and scrawl our names in tiny font all over the wall... Then she went off on a holiday to her home town in the hills to see her folks. When she returned, Sunita would not take any of my calls. And when she did at last, I was flabbergasted. After such a deep, passionate love, she simply said, 'Nawaz, you focus on your career. And I will focus on my career.' She cut off all contact after that and I plunged into another deep, deep depression. I took a bucket of fresh white paint and began to replace her artwork on my walls with the blank canvas that they were before... Living in Mira Road meant that the local train was our lifeline. We were at the station almost all the time. Soon after her call, one day I was at the station and stood there staring at the tracks. A train was coming, screaming its arrival with a lusty horn. It would be simple and instant. Should I jump on to the tracks and end it all? End this struggle, end this life? I had nothing. No love, no work, no money. But some being woke up in me and gave me a metaphorical slap. 'You know this is not your department,' the voice in my head said. 'Then why? Why did you go that way? Why!' it screamed at me. The train sped away, screaming pompously, cutting through the air... I decided that I would never again be emotional in any relationship... Never again did I allow myself to be vulnerable like that again, not even with my wife... Yet it was important to analyse what had happened... [Sunita must have been advised] she should probably date someone successful, not a struggling, desperate actor who was out of work. Today, Sunita tells everybody that she was once together with me in a very serious relationship. Incredible, isn't it?
'What happens in New York stays in New York'
Those years between 2006 and 2010 were pretty incredible too. The industry had begun to notice me... Strangely, the West was kinder to me first, both in terms of love and work... I was at a cafe once with my friend in New York City's Soho area. The stunning waitress kept staring at me... 'You? You are an actor?' she asked a rhetorical question. 'Yes!' I replied. 'Which film of mine did you see? Gangs of Wasseypur? She squinted, trying to remember, 'No, no,' she said. 'Another film!' After a few moments, she responded: Lunchbox! We got talking and let's just say what happens in New York stays in New York...
'Why are you not mailing me, Nawaz?'
Before that came Suzanne: a lovely, dear Jewish girl from New Jersey, who lived in New York City. We met there and hit it off. She came to Mumbai and began to live with me... Every few months, she kept extending her visa... The shooting of Miss Lovely commenced. Suzanne used to accompany me there. Then came the day when her visa expired and she needed to return to New York to sort it out. She was gone for many months. One day, while we were shooting a dance scene, something happened to my co-star Niharika Singh... She was suddenly cold, went out of her way to maintain a distance from me and began to keep mum. I was puzzled... She used to be friendly, social and talk quite a bit. I thought it was best to ask her what had happened and so I did, not once, not twice, but several times, for several days... I invited her over for a home-cooked meal, a mutton dish which was my speciality. She politely agreed and came over... Not only did she eat everything that was on her plate, but she praised it as well. Now you come to my house, Nawaz. I will cook mutton for you,' she said warmly. For the very first time I went to Niharika's house... When she opened the door, revealing a glimpse of the house, I was speechless with amazement. A hundred, or so it seemed, little candles flickered beautifully. She wore soft faux fur, looking devastatingly gorgeous, her beauty illuminated even more in the candlelight. And I, being the lusty village bumpkin that I am, scooped her up in my arms and headed straight for the bedroom. We made passionate love. And just like that, out of the blue, I began a relationship with Niharika Singh, a relationship which I did not know then would last for almost one and a half years... Meantime, emails from Suzanne started coming. 'Why are you not mailing me, Nawaz? What's wrong?' I did not respond... I trusted my silence would convey what needed to be conveyed. When I was checking my inbox one day, Niharika happened to see one of her emails. 'Who is this?' she inquired. 'You know very well who it is,' I said. 'It's Suzanne.' 'Wo-ow! It's still going on between you two! Amazing!' Niharika thundered in anger. 'It is wrong. I hope you know that...' From that day, Niharika began to send emails to Suzanne from my email address. She would type, 'I cannot continue with you ...' and sign off as me. Imagine the shock for Suzanne. She would send heartbreaking replies... After a few of these email exchanges, Suzanne figured that this was not my voice at all. 'Who is this writing, Nawaz? I know this is not you... Who is she? Who is this b***h?' 'B***h!' That word infuriated Niharika so much that she made me end all correspondence with Suzanne forever... I was very sad. Then I thought, so be it, it's all right, I am with Niharika. My melancholy evaporated quickly.
'I was a rascal who cared only for himself'
Niharika was an intelligent girl. Being an actor herself meant that she knew and understood my struggle for work... She would call me in frequent spurts throughout the day demanding to know of my whereabouts... [Then] The regularity of the questions felt like being nagged non-stop... There was another piece to this puzzle. Like all girls, Niharika obviously expected some of the sweet conversations that lovers have, to take place between us. But I was quite a selfish b*****d. I had a plain aim: go to her house, make out and leave. I could not talk lovey-dovey too much. It finally struck her that I was a rascal who cared only for himself. (Actually, all the girls I have ever been with have had this same complaint about me. I would only come to them for my own needs. Otherwise, I might not even take their calls.) When I went to her place next, she was wearing a silk robe. I ran my hand over its coolness around her waist, grabbing her but she pushed me away. 'No, Nawaz!' she said. 'I won't meet you again. This is enough.' I pleaded, I cried, I apologized. But she remained adamant. She had had enough. So that was that, we broke up cutting off all contact. Two months later, another girl came into my life in a most mysterious way. I did not know then that years later, I would marry her."

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Alia Bhatt, Sonam Kapoor, Mouni Roy and more attend Ekta Kapoor’s Diwali party'.'
Mumbai:MMNN:18 October 2017
With just one day to go for Diwali, Bollywood has gone into an overdrive when it comes to partying. Film and television producer Ekta Kapoor threw a bash on Tuesday which was attended by all the biggest names of Bollywood and TV. Rumoured couple Alia Bhatt and Sidharth Malhotra arrived together to the party, shutting down rumours of their breakup. Alia wore a gorgeous mint suit with oxidised silver earrings. Sidharth was seen in a red kurta pyjama Sonam Kapoor turned up in a heavily embellished white saree with a cold-shoulder blouse and frilly sleeves. She posed for photos with director Karan Johar and her sister Rhea Kapoor Television star Mouni Roy also wore a pretty lehenga and posed for selfies with Adaa Khan and other actors. The party was also attended by Divyanka Tripathi and Vivek Dahiya, Rajeev Khandelwaal, Sanjay and Manyata Dutt and more.

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Happy Birthday, Amitabh Bachchan. 10 Yaadein Bhari Photos, Ranked.'
Mumbai:MMNN:11 October 2017
Happy birthday, Amitabh Bachchan! As the Bollywood ka Shahenshah celebrates his 75th birthday on the beaches of Maldives, we would like to take a moment and thank him for having delighted us with an array of throwback pieces. Be it a Throwback Thursday or Flashback Friday, fans and followers rush to Big B's social media feed to always find some blast from the past. It's not just the senior Bachchan but his actor son Abhishek is also responsible for making us nostalgic. From the sets of Big B's iconic movies like Amar Akbar Anthony and Sholay to vintage-hued memories from family photo albums, all feature on the Bachchans' Instagram. Here's a look at the 10 best posts from and/or starring Amitabh Bachchan that has made us happy, ranked in order. We'll start with the one starring the "Bachchan bunch," comprising Shweta and Abhishek Bachchan and their cousins. This is from sometime in the mid-eighties, when Big B was hospitalised while shooting for a Manmohan Desai film and the kids had paid him a visit This is what Amitabh Bachchan shared to commemorate 40 years of Amar Akbar Anthony. Big B co-starred with Rishi Kapoor and Vinod Khanna in the cult comedy. Here are Big B and Dharmendra as harmless looking criminals. "Two very keen, committed, interested artists on the sets of Sholay, the jail sequence," Big B captioned.

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Salman Khan Gets Brother-In-Law Aayush Sharma His Ticket To Bollywood'.'
Mumbai:MMNN:10 October 2017
Salman Khan's brother-in-law Aayush Sharma is all set for his Bollywood debut - a love story to be produced by Salman Khan's production house. Aayush's first will be directed by Abhiraj Minawala - one who worked as the Assistant Director for films like Jab Tak Hai Jaan and Fan, and also with director Ali Abbas Zafar in Salman's Sultan. In an interview with Bombay Times, the 52-year-old superstar said that the yet untitled love story will go on floors next year: "Yes, we are producing Aayush's debut film. Shooting will start in February and we'll release the film later in 2018." Aayush is married to Salman's sister Arpita - the duo married in 2014 and they are parents to a son named Ahil Salman Khan announced the big news yesterday and Aayush has already received a warm welcome with Bollywood celebrities sending their best wishes on Twitter. This is how Aayush responded to the whole lot of love: "Honored and humbled with all the love I have received today. Thank you for welcoming me with open arms. Karan Johar, one of the first ones to congratulate Aayush, Instagrammed: "Welcome to the movies". "Dear Aayush Sharma , thrilled to hear your announcement made by Salman Khan - I know how hard you have been training for this #BreakALeg," tweeted Riteish Deshmukh while Varun Dhawan added: "Wishing you all the love and luck my gym partner." This is how Salman announced that Aayush is now a new member of Bollywood: "Now is the time for a lot of mehnat aur lagan. Wish you all success God Bless." Aayush Sharma has reportedly begun script reading sessions for the movie, which is expected to be set in Gujarat. On the work front, Salman Khan was last seen in Tubelight and Tiger Zinda Hai with Katrina Kaif is his next.

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Karva Chauth: Sridevi, Shilpa Shetty Lead Bollywood Festivities.'
Mumbai:MMNN:09 October 2017
Like every year, actor Anil Kapoor's wife Sunita Kapoor hosted a "Karva Chauth bash," in which actresses Shilpa Shetty, RaveenaTandon and Neelam Kothari joined the ladies of the Kapoor household. Actress Sridevi and Maheep Kapoor, who are Sunita's sisters-in-law, all grouped together for a bright Karva Chauth picture. Shilpa posted a short video of the all the women, dressed in their fineries, chanting, 'Happy Karva Chauth.' Sridevi looked stunning in a pastel green sari while Shilpa opted for a bright Lehariya sari. Maheep wore a bottle green sari with mukesh work and Raveena Tandon was dressed in a pink suit. Hostess Sunita Kapoor looked pretty in red. In another picture, Anil Kapoor, Sanjay Kapoor and Raj Kundra joined their wives and the other ladies. "Thank you Sunita Kapoor and Anil Kapoor, always amazing hosts," Raj Kundra captioned the picture. Here are snippets of Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty's Karva Chauth. Shilpa Shetty opened her fast by looking at a picture of the moon in Amritsar (sent to her on phone), as the Mumbai weather (it was rainy last night) made the moon's visibility quite difficult. Raj Kundra had shared this picture with caption: "Chand chupa iphone mean Sanjay Kapoor also posted a picture of himself with Shilpa Shetty and Anil Kapoor. Shilpa and Anil Kapoor have co-starred in films like Rishtey and Badhaai Ho Badhaai while she and Sanjay are co-stars of films such as Darna Mana Hai, Auzar and Zameer.

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Saif Ali Khan's Chef - 5 Reasons To Watch'.'
Mumbai:MMNN:6 October 2017
MUMBAI: Did you just ask - isn't Saif Ali Khan reason enough? That might be so but here are a few others. Chef, a remake of Jon Favreau's star-studded Hollywood hit of the same name, is this week's big Bollywood release. Saif is cast as the divorced chef who takes his son on the road with him in order to connect. A food truck takes them on a journey of discovery - they find not only great food but also each other. Here's why you should not miss Saif Ali Khan in Chef.
Spoilers Ahead

1) Saif Cooks Up A Delight
Chef is an out-an-out Saif Ali Khan film. His fans have loved him in films like Dil Chahta Hai (2001), Kal Ho Na Ho (2003), Parineeta (2005) and Omkara (2006) after which he occasionally delivered an impressive performance along with many duds. In Chef, they will get to see shades of Saif they missed all these years. The actor learned cooking to play the role with conviction, and it shows every time he is in the kitchen. Talking about preparing for the role, Saif told me, "Cooking is like magic, with a little bit of this and a little bit of that. With all completely different ingredients, you prepare one mouth-watering dish." The fact that he believes in the art of cooking reflects on the big screen.
2) Saif Still Has The Best Comic Timing
What clicked with the audience in Dil Chahta Hai and Kal Ho Na Ho about Saif's character were his poker face expressions and his comic timing. In Chef, there are many hilarious moments, which will leave the audiences in splits. What's important is that he is not trying to be funny in any of those scenes. It's his casual talk with perfect timing, which director Raja Krishna Menon has used very well.
3) Smart In-Film Jokes Always Work
It's not easy to make people laugh that's the reason filmmakers and actors always say that comedy is the toughest genre. When writing funny lines for actors like Saif Ali Khan who is good with good jokes, one has to think of smart lines. In Chef, when Saif Ali Khan is in Goa with his friend and his son, as a passing mention, he tells them about an incident that happened to him 20 years ago when he visited Goa with his two friends. He was mugged! Please don't make me spell it out for you!
4) Good Supporting Cast Plays a Key Role
As much as the lead actors may perform it's the supporting cast that keeps the narrative going on the big screen. Every actor in Chef performs brilliantly, which only means that Raja Krishna Menon didn't just keep his focus on his main lead. Padmapriya Janakiraman, who plays Saif's ex-wife, is outstanding. Terrific actors like Dinesh Prabhakar, Chandan Roy Sanyal and Sobhita Dhulipala bring a lot to the Chef's table. Singer Raghu Dixit who makes an appearance in a song is placed well and is there for a reason. Each of them has important roles to play. Chef works because of its significant supporting cast.
5) Chef Is A Good Pick To Be Made For The Indian Audience
Good food is not bound by geography - that's the reason an article, recipe videos, TV show or a film on food has no boundaries. Master Chef Australia is one of the most popular reality TV show across the world as the focus is always on preparing the best and the tastiest dish. Indians, as we know love food and the range of cuisines in India are worth a story. Chef may not talk about the delicacies that India offers, but when you watch Saif take his son to Delhi's Chandni Chowk to eat Chole Bature, you will wish you were right there biting into the hot and spicy street food of Delhi

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Hrithik Roshan Takes A Stand On Kangana Ranaut, Says 'Was Harassed For 4 Years'.'
Mumbai:MMNN:5 October 2017
Hrithik Roshan has tweeted a lengthy statement about the feud with Kangana Ranaut that has hogged headlines for a year-and-a-half now. The 43-year-old actor claims that he never spent any time alone with Kangana - they starred in Kites and Krrish 3 - and that he has been 'harassed' by the actress over the last four years. "We want to believe the other party because the rhetoric is - why would the girl lie," the statement says. Hrithik also says an examination of his passport will prove that he wasn't in Paris when Kangana claimed he was (proposing to her) and that he is speaking up in what he calls a 'dirty perverse mess' because 'families suffer, children suffer.' This is Hrithik's first public response about Kangana. Kangana Ranaut has alleged that she and Hrithik Roshan dated ever since Kites in 2009 - he disputes this and sent her a legal notice last year after she appeared to refer to him as a 'silly ex' in an interview. A public exchange of recriminations and accusations followed, with Hrithik also going to the police over e-mails that he claimed were sent to Kangana by an imposter pretending to be him. Kangana Ranaut allegedly sent over 3,000 emails to Hrithik Roshan, some of which were reproduced by news outlets this week, extracted from a police complaint filed by the Roshans' lawyer Mahesh Jethmalani. Hrithik Roshan has accused Kangana Ranaut of stalking him. The only responses from Team Kangana have come from her lawyer, who put out a statement, and her sister Rangoli Chandel who posted a series of tweets about Kangana having 'moved on' from Hrithik. Kangana Ranaut invoked the feud with Hrithik Roshan while promoting her film Simran last month. She spoke to TV channels in New Delhi saying that Hrithik and his father Rakesh Roshan had 'made fools of themselves' and that she wanted an apology. Rakesh Roshan told DNA that the complaint is now available in the public domain, that the "facts of the case will shock you," and that the Roshans are not "loose talkers."
READ HRITHIK ROSHAN'S STATEMENT HERE
"I choose to be on a path of creativity, productivity and constructive work. Anything that isn't in alignment with that, I tend to ignore, sidestep and treat as a distraction. I believe that ignorance, non reaction and staying on the path of dignity is the best way to discourage any persistent unwanted intrusions. But Just like a nagging health issue sometimes ignored can turn malignant, this situation for me has unfortunately turned malignant. In case of the matter at hand , it seems the media has no intention of letting go. I don't see any grace in adding to this circus by testifying in defence of my character in a situation that I have no involvement in whatsoever. I have been dragged into a dirty perverse mess without a choice in the matter. This is something that is not of my making. The truth is, I have never met the lady in question one on one in my entire life. Yes, we have worked together, but there has been no meeting in private. That's the truth. Please understand, I am not fighting against an allegation of an affair. Or being childish trying to uphold a 'good guy" image. I am very aware of my faults, I am human. I am in fact protecting myself from something far more serious, sensitive and destructive than that. Sadly, very few from the media or the public seem to be interested in the truth. This has been a hard-learnt fact for me. If the people are comfortable with a lie because it doesn't threaten their model of the world where a girl is the victim and the man the aggressor then so be it. I am ok with that too. Women have suffered centuries of abuse at the hands of men and it infuriates me how some men can be so brutal and they deserve the harshest punishment. But by that logic if it ordains that one man can't be vulnerable and one woman can't be a liar, so be it. I'm ok with that too. An alleged 7-year long, passionate affair between two high profile celebrities with no trail left behind. No evidence, no paparazzi pictures, no witnesses, not even a memento in possession like a selfie taken at the alleged engagement which is claimed to have happened in Paris in Jan 2014. Nothing that constitutes an exchange or any sort of proof of a romantic relationship. Yet we want to believe the other party because the rhetoric is -why would a girl lie. My passport details show no travel outside the country in Jan 2014, which is the date that this alleged engagement supposedly took place. In Paris. The only so-called proof presented of this alleged "relationship", was a photoshopped picture in the media. This was immediately exposed, the very next day by friends including my ex-wife. These questions are not even asked, because we are taught to protect the woman, as we should. I myself have been brought up to think the same way, by my parents and the wonderful women in my life who have been my rock and support system. I'm deeply grateful to them. I will do my best to teach my children the same values of family and dignity. And yes, I will teach them to stand up for women. Always. There are 3000 one sided mails which either I have sent to myself or the woman in question has sent to me. The Cyber-Crime Dept. can prove or disprove either story, in just a few days. Towards that purpose, I have surrendered all my devices including laptops / phones etc which are still lying with the cyber cell , but the other party has refused to do so. The investigation hasn't been closed. This is not, and I repeat, not a lovers spat. I humbly request people to stop labelling it as one and, for a second, try and see it for what it really is. I have been harassed by this for 4 years and the well meaning and probably necessary social bias toward women has deemed me helpless in defending myself. I am not angry, I have seldom allowed anger into my life. I have not had a single fight in my life, with a man or a woman. Even in my divorce, there was no fight. I, and those around me, have always chosen peace. I am not here to accuse or judge anyone, but it's time I defend the truth because when truth suffers the collective consciousness of society suffers. Civilization suffers. Closer to home, families suffer. Children suffer."

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Padmavati: Presenting Ranveer Singh As Sultan Alauddin Khilji.'
Mumbai:MMNN:3 October 2017
Finally, actor Ranveer Singh's much-awaited look for his forthcoming film Padmavati is out. The 32-year-old actor, who plays ruler Alauddin Khilji in the period drama, looks fierce in both the posters. Kohl eyes, long hair and a scar make his look deadly. "SULTAN ALAUDDIN KHILJI #Khilji," Ranveer wrote while sharing the posters on social media. His look was revealed just a few hours ago and soon, it became the top trends on the Internet. "A transformation of an all-rounder actor. Versatile and all-time entertainer. Can't wait for this movie," "Khattarrnaaakk" are some of the comments on Ranveer's Padmavati look. Alauddin Khilji was the most powerful ruler of the Khalji dynasty. Padmavati, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, also stars Deepika Padukone and Shahid Kapoor. Deepika and Shahid's looks have been revealed earlier. Deepika plays Rani Padmini of Chittor while Shahid features as her husband Ratan Singh. Soon after Deepika's look as Rani Padmini was released, a Rajput Karni Sena burnt posters of the film in Jaipur in protest. "While shooting in Jaipur, Mr Bhansali had promised to show the film to us and historians before releasing it. But since then no one has contacted us, nor has the film been shown to us," Karni Sena president told news agency IANS. Padmavati is Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone's third collaboration with Sanjay Leela Bhansali. He has previously directed the actors in Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela (2013) and Bajirao Mastani (2015). It is Shahid's first film with Mr Bhansali as well as Ranveer and Deepika.

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Shah Rukh Khan Posts Pic With Sridevi, Kajol, Rani Mukerji, Alia Bhatt And Karisma Kapoor. Internet's Smitten.'
Mumbai:MMNN:2 October 2017
Monday blues? Nah, superstar Shah Rukh Khan made our Monday morning bright, very bright. SRK posted a lovely picture collage with actresses Sridevi, Kajol, Rani Mukerji, Alia Bhatt and Karisma Kapoor and our day was made. In the first picture, SRK poses with Kajol and Rani Mukerji (his Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham co-stars) and in the second one, he shares the frame with Sridevi, Alia Bhatt and Karisma Kapoor. (Wow). "Some nights the stars with you shine brighter than the ones in the sky. Thank you ladies for your graciousness beauty & love," the 51-year-old captioned his post. (We would like to thank Shah Rukh Khan for this amazing picture). Like us, Internet too is smitten to see to see SRK with these actresses. "Looking so beautiful ladies and SRK so handsome," "Such a beautiful picture," are some of the comments on the post, shared just an hour ago. Meanwhile, SRK fans are delighted to see him, Kajol and Rani in one picture. "Oh, how sweet. Anjali-Rahul-Tina in one frame again," wrote a user. Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, directed by Karan Johar, was a massive hit. Shah Rukh Khan has co-starred with Sridevi in Army while he shared screen space with Karisma Kapoor in Dil To Pagal Hai and Shakti: The Power. Dear Zindagi, starring SRK and Alia Bhatt, released last year. Shah Rukh Khan last starred in Jab Harry Met Sejal and Raees was his other release of the year. He is currently filming Aanand L Rai's untitled film, co-starring Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma.

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Newton Movie Review: Rajkummar Rao Is Perfect As The Eponymous Everyman'.'
Mumbai:MMNN:22 September 2017
Newton movie review: Newton journeys to a terrain - physical and thematic - that Hindi cinema has seldom probed and tackles prickly issues in an impressively even-toned manner
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, Anjali Patil, Raghubir Yadav
Director: Amit V Masurkar
Rating: 4 stars out of 5 The infectious verve of a stand-up comic meets the acerbic acuity of a political satirist in Newton, Amit V Masurkar's second directorial outing. This film is a gem whose sparkle isn't superficial. Its glow emanates from the depths of its insight. Newton journeys to a terrain - physical and thematic - that Hindi cinema has seldom probed and tackles prickly issues in an impressively even-toned manner. Call the humour what you will - outright black, slyly sardonic or out-and-out confrontational - the real eureka moments of this delectably free-flowing, brilliantly written and wonderfully well-acted film spring from its seemingly more innocuous tics, which articulate the dark truths that the powers-that-be and the Mumbai movie industry's 'status quo' cinema would rather not confront. The defining image that ends the film's opening sequence is that of a life-size cutout of a political leader swaying feebly in the wind. It is as unsteady as the hollow electoral promises that the pompous, complacent neta has just made at a small rally and paid the price for. This sets the stage for what is to follow - a tale that blows the lid off the deficiencies of Indian democracy, the world's largest, where voters are treated as mere numbers. They are stepping stones to power. They catapult cynical self-servers to the role of people's representatives who, more often than not, do anything but represent the people. Later on in the film, the screenplay (Masurkar and Mayank Tiwari) touches upon yet another important aspect of the lopsided power equations that are at play in far-flung parts of the country where indigenous ways of life and languages are under constant majoritarian threat. A teacher of tribal students rues that she has to instruct her Gondi wards with the help of Hindi textbooks that they can barely read. The disregard for India's many sub-cultures and diverse linguistic traditions is obviously a direct attack on those that don't have the numbers to rise in resistance. This of course isn't the central theme of Newton, but the very fact that it has seeped into the narrative as a significant, if oblique, strand is a minor miracle. Newton sweeps nothing under the carpet, but it does not revel in muck-raking either. Its jibes at India's electoral system, bureaucracy and law and order machinery are always cloaked in gentility but are never less than trenchant and to the point. It is highly entertaining and gloriously illuminating: a rare feat that anybody that loves intelligent cinema must vote for with his/her feet. A newly recruited government officer Newton Kumar (Rajkummar Rao), who is earnest to a fault and has unwavering faith in the system, volunteers to lead a small poll team under army protection to a remote, violence-prone part of Chhattisgarh - Dandakaranya, "forest of the damned", to be precise. He steps into a breach created by the original presiding officer, who cries off at the eleventh hour citing medical reasons. We instantly know what Newton is getting into. He doesn't. He is just too focused on the job at hand to worry about the likely consequences. The booth in question, located in a Maoist-infested forest where elections haven't been held in years, is meant for only 76 tribal voters. For Newton, the paltry number is no deterrent, it is the process that matters. He is inevitably sucked into an adversarial contest with paramilitary commander Atma Singh (Pankaj Tripathi). While Newton is determined to ensure free and fair polling come what may, all that Atma Singh is keen on is getting out of the place with his men before darkness descends. Newton's team has two other members - 59-year-old government clerk and part-time Hindi writer Loknath (Raghuvir Yadav) and local schoolteacher Malko Netam (Anjali Patil). The former has seen it all and has reason to be disillusioned with the way life has panned out for him. The latter, a feisty and clear-headed tribal girl, is an object of suspicion for the man in uniform detailed to provide security to the polling officers In the course of a conversation, one character asks Malko: "Are you nirashavadi (pessimistic)?" Her reply is prompt and loaded: "I am Adivasi". Hers is the voice that reminds the audience of what is amiss in this part of the world - indiscriminate mining, exploitation of forest land, rampant insurgency, and a clunky political system that changes nothing on the ground no matter how many elections are conducted. Newton raises serious and weighty questions about the distortions that have crept into India's much-vaunted democratic processes, but it never succumbs to the temptation to embrace agitprop methods. It doesn't call for revolution; it seeks resolution. The film is always light on its feet, aided doubtless by a bunch of fine actors, and intersperses its little manic sprints with pensive pauses that open up space for introspection. Newton is Rajkummar Rao's film all the way. He is perfect as the eponymous Everyman who lets no doubt get in the way of his mission. The actor stamps his class both on the role and the tale. Newton also benefits immensely from the fabulous supporting cast led by the irrepressible Pankaj Tripathi. The brooding paterfamilias of Gurgaon and the jovial dad of Bareilly Ki Barfi transforms into a manipulative and mercurial security official with minimum apparent effort. Tripathi is a marvel. No less commendable are the contributions of the seasoned Raghuvir Yadav, who articulates the despair of a defeated man with the slightest of modulations, and the superb Anjali Patil, completely convincing as a woman whose understanding of the landscape and its people is far deeper than anyone else's. Sanjay Mishra, in a cameo as a sceptical election trainer who serves as the protagonist's sounding board, is utterly delightful. His fleeting appearance leaves as indelible an impact as the film does as a whole. Newton is, in one word, unmissable. It is only rarely that wit and wisdom come together in a Hindi film as felicitously as it does here.

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Deepika Padukone's Padmavati Unibrow Stops Twitter In Its Tracks.'
Mumbai:MMNN:21 September 2017
Deepika Padukone's unibrow... umm... we mean Deepika's Padmavati unibrow is what the Internet woke up to on Thursday and was left startled. Team Padmavati dropped the first posters of the movie on Thursday morning, featuring Deepika Padukone in an utmost regal attire and that talked about unibrow. Twitter in particular can't figure out what to say, actually. "I don't know how I feel about Deepika Padukone's unibrow in Padmavati though," read a tweet while another one found it hard to believe that Deepika actually sports a unibrow: "Is it just me or Deepika Padukone does seem to have a unibrow in the first look of Padmavati?" Deepika plays the titular Rani Padmavati in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali-directed period piece and a section of Twitter has taken up the responsibility to explain Deepika's brow-connection. Wonderfully put, here it goes: "Deepika rocking the unibrow, coz queens got no time to tweez their brows!" However, not all are happy to see their favourite actress in the new look. Some netizens even evaluated Deepika's look in accordance with cliched beauty standards. "Why is she having a unibrow? This picture is depressing," it said Majority of Twitter quickly shrugged off the tweets trolling the actress and moved on to better thoughts. Like how Kajol must be having a deja vu right now. One Twitter user made a hilarious reference to Kajol, who is known to have sported a unibrow for over two decades of Bollywood Padmavati is arriving in theatres on December 1.

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Ileana D'Cruz On Her Struggle With Depression And Body Dysmorphic Disorder.'
Mumbai:MMNN:19 September 2017
Actress Ileana D'Cruz opened up about battling depression and body dysmorphic disorder at the start of her career in a latest advertisement of a denim brand. She shared a snippet of the ad on Instagram and captioned it: "Unapologetic. Unfiltered. Imperfect. This is me. Flaws and all." The 29-year-old actress, who was last seen in Bollywood film Baadshaho, said that for the longest time she never knew she had a body image issues and when she started her career in films, 'it just made it a little bit worse.' In the advert, Ileana said: "There was a period, approximately three years ago, I'd go from happy to be completely depressed and not knowing what it was. The most comforting thought was, 'What if I just to end things now.' And I thankfully released that this is not right I was shy, self-conscious person once I hit my teens. I was constantly hit on for my body type. The obsession started when I was 15. My entire life goal was to be accepted by everyone. I think that's what I wanted the most. I never got it," said Ileana. Ileana says that acceptance is the first step to overcome depression. "I never expected to be someone who'd be dealing with anxiety, dealing with depression. I've got every possible thing I could want. And I wondered, 'Why am I so depressed?' I still don't know sometimes. Then they told me you have depression, you have anxiety, you are going through body dysmorphic disorder. There was an acceptance which almost came immediately and that I think is one of the biggest steps that you can take towards change. You can't move forward otherwise." "You're human, you're not meant to be perfect. You're meant to be flawed. I'm just going to keep pushing and try and be the best of version that I can be of me," she added. Apart from Bollywood, Ileana D'Cruz is quite famouls in Telugu cinema courtesy films such as Devadasu, Kick and Jalsa. In 2015, actress Deepika Padukone featured in headlines when she talked about her phase of dealing with depression, which started while she was filming Happy New Year. Later, she opened The Live Love Laugh Foundation to help those who need help in battling mental illnesses. Filmmaker Karan Johar also talked about dealing with depression in his autobiography An Unsuitable Boy.

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Emmys 2017: That's Priyanka Chopra, Not Chopa. Twitter Schools Announcer.'
Mumbai:MMNN:18 September 2017
Homegirl Priyanka Chopra, dressed in glittering Balmain white, acquitted herself with honours while co-presenting an Emmy with Blackish actor Anthony Anderson (to John Oliver for Outstanding Variety Talk Series). Not so much the Emmys announcer who appeared to flub the 'Chopra' while introducing Priyanka - missing out the R and making it 'Chopa.' Umm, oops? John Travolta's mangling of Idina Menzel's name at the Oscars comes to mind. While 'Priyanka Chopa' was not quite as extreme as 'Adele Dazeem,' Twitter is not pleased. Twitter is mightily outraged on behalf of the actress. Twitter is schooling the Emmys online. Here's a clip of Priyanka Chopra and Anthony Anderson presenting at the Emmys - honesty compels us to admit that we can't really tell if the announcer mispronounced Chopra but we've gotta say Priyanka and Anthony killed it with a quip about going to bed separately. Priyanka's appearance at the Emmys is being seen as a win for diversity, specifically for representation of Asian actors: Aziz Ansari won an award for Master Of None, so yay. This is the second year in a row that Priyanka Chopra has been to the Emmys, courtesy her starring role on the ABC drama Quantico. Last year, dressed in red, she presented an award with, wait for it, Tom Hiddleston. The big winners at the Emmys this year were Big Little Lies (actors Nicole Kidman, Laura Dern and Alexander Skarsgard all won awards) and Saturday Night Live. Alec Baldwin won an Emmy for playing Donald Trump on SNL and dedicated his award to 'Mr President.' An evening of very political speeches was briefly interrupted by the surprise cameo of Sean Spicer, former White House press secretary, who came out during host Stephen Colbert's opening monologue and poked fun at his own statement about the size of the crowd at Donald Trump's inauguration.

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Priyanka Chopra Made People Very Angry By Calling Sikkim 'Insurgency Troubled'.'
Mumbai:MMNN:14 September 2017
"Shame on you, Priyanka Chopra," the actress was told after she referred to Sikkim as a state "troubled with insurgency" in an interview to ET Canada, at the ongoing Toronto International Film Festival. Priyanka was speaking in connection with her new Sikkimese production - Pahuna - which premiered at the prestigious film fest last week. Twitter is furious and condemned Priyanka as "stupid" and "pea-brained" for her choice of words. Twitter is in no mood to pardon Priyanka and is also separately angered with the actress who tagged Pahuna as the first film from Sikkim. "Priyanka Chopra, you called Sikkim an insurgency affected state. Idiot. God doesn't give everything to everybody. Find better uses for your loud mouth," she was told. "Get your facts right before speaking out. Sikkim is one of the most beautiful states of our country," added another netizen on Twitter. Others invoked Bollywood and movie stars in general for the lack of sound political knowledge. "Infact it is foolish to create controversy on Priyanka Chopra's statement over #Sikkim as celebs like her are 'politically illiterate'," read a tweet while: "If you have no idea about Sikkim, don't speak about it then. "Big star"," said another. Priyanka was also slammed for appeared to have not been thorough with her research: "Priyanka Chopra says Sikkim is a troubled state in interview to US media. Pea-sized brain, zero homework. Is this how you make money?" a tweet said. A section of Twitter quickly resorted to Google to hand over a list of movies released from Sikkim - Kaatha And Myth and Letter By Samten Bhutia - are a few, highlighted Twitter. The first film to come out of Sikkim," is what the excerpt of Pahuna read on the official handle of the film fest on Twitter This is what Priyanka actually said in her interview to ET Canada: "This is a Sikkimese film. It is a small state in the North East of India, who never had a film industry or anyone who made films from there. And this is the first film ever that's come out of that region because it's very troubled with insurgency and troubling situations..." Priyanka's comments arrive amidst the Darjeeling shut down, which was initiated to demand a separate state. Apart from Darjeeling, other parts of North Bengal, which are close to Sikkim, are also witnesses of regional territorial issues. Pahuna, directed by Paakhi A Tyrewala, was applauded with standing ovation at TIFF. Apart from the director and Priyanka, the premiere was also attended by the actress' mother Madhu Chopra, who is the co-owner of Priyanka's production house Purple Pebble Pictures Priyanka Chopra is currently looking forward to two more Hollywood movies - Isn't It Romantic? and A Kid Like Jake and will also reprise her role in the third season of Quantico. Priyanka Chopra will not sign up for a Bollywood project this year - as told by her mother last month

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Twinkle Khanna, Akshay Kumar Kept Awake By Mumbai Rain. So Khiladi Suggested This.'
Mumbai:MMNN:13 September 2017
Twinkle Khanna aka Mrs Funnybones has time and again left us all in splits with her amazing sense of humour. The actress-turned-author has now shared a joke on Twitter which sums up her last night's experience. Twinkle Khanna and her husband, actor Akshay Kumar were awakened in the middle of the night due to powerful thunderstorm and rains in Mumbai. To make most of the time, the fitness enthusiast actor suggested an idea which seems to have frightened Twinkle a little. "Awake because of the thunderstorms and Mr K asks, 'Want to exercise? We can run up and down the building stairs!' #Yikes #MumbaiRains," she tweeted. Last month, Mumbai experienced heavy rains that disturbed the city's normal life and it was considered as the worst the city witnessed since 2005. Bollywood celebrities like Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Alia Bhatt and Abhishek Bachchan shared their concern on Twitter and asked people to stay safe and stay indoors. Twinkle Khanna and Akshay Kumar recently returned to Mumbai after their short vacation in the Swiss Alps where the family celebrated the Khiladi actor's 50th birthday (September 9). Twinkle Khanna had posted a picture on her Instagram account, in which she was seen trying her hands at paragliding. "Flying off the handle comes easy - now let's see how I handle just the flying off bit Twinkle Khanna got married to actor Akshay Kumar in 2009 and the couple have two children - Aarav and Nitara. Twinkle Khanna is the daughter of actors Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia. She is a former actress, who is best known for her role in films like Baadshah, Joru Ka Ghulam, Itihaas, Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai and Mela. In 2001, Twinkle Khanna quit acting and she is now an author of two bestsellers - Mrs FunnyBones and The Legend Of Lakshmi Prasad. Twinkle Khanna is also a columnist, interior designer and producer. She has co-produced films like Patiala House and Holiday: A Soldier Is Never Off Duty, which feature Akshay Kumar in the lead role. Twinkle Khanna is now producing Padman, her first film under her own production banner Mrs FunnyBones Movies. The film is being directed by R Balki and features Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor and Radhika Apte in lead roles.

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Parineeti Chopra Trolled For Pic With Koala Is Everything That's Wrong With Social Media
Mumbai:MMNN:12 September 2017
Parineeti Chopra, who is currently touring Australia by invitation of their PR, shared several pictures from her visit to the Island Country. One of her recent posts from Brisbane, in which she cuddles a koala, was trolled on the Internet for all the bizarre reasons. The 28-year-old actress was skinny-shamed (apparently her face looked thin but also 'resembled' the chubby and cute marsupial) while several Instagram users only noticed where the koala's paw was placed. Parineeti was least perturbed with the koala's paw and posted a lovely pout selfie, which she captioned: "This little furball is just what I needed to kickstart my holiday in Brisbane, never miss a Koala cuddle." But haters gonna hate and trollers gonna troll. One user wrote: "Ma'am pahle aap jyada khoobsurat thi" and another added: "Aap ki face bhi isi ke jaisa deikh raha hai... dieting band kar di jiye. Some Instagram users also posted comments like: "Very luck koala, at least he is touching your bust." Parineeti Chopra is not new to the concept of body-shaming and has often talked about her struggle with body-image issues. Last year in May she opened up about her weight loss journey in an Instagram post where she wrote: "I was constantly made fun of, but the person I was, I generously laughed with them. Today, many people ask me what triggered the weight loss, did I give in to the "Bollywood pressure"? To that I say - thank god I became an actor and had that pressure!" Parineeti starred in back-to-back flops in 2014 and took a sabbatical for a year during which she refashioned herself through her Built That Way campaign. "I feel more confident, I feel at peace, and I feel proud! Girls and women meet me all around the world, at airports, events, on the street; they hold my hand, hug me, and tell me their struggles and how I changed their lives," she had written in the Instagram post. Parineeti Chopra returned to the big screen in a special song for Dishoom (2016) and in 2017 she featured in Meri Pyaari Bindu opposite Ayushmann Khurrana. Her next release of the year is the Rohit Shetty-directed Golmaal Again. Parineeti has also signed up Sandeep

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Poster Boys Movie Review: Sunny And Bobby Deol Have A Rustic Charm'
Mumbai:MMNN:9 September 2017
Poster Boys Movie Review: It Is the base writing credited to Bunty Rathore and Paritosh Painter that keeps the momentum of the narrative well-greased. With puns, film referenced dialogues, fast-paced dumb repartee and farcical situations the film is a hilarious ride Actor-director Shreyas Talpade's Poster Boys is a screw-ball comedy about three men who find themselves socially ostracised after they feature in a poster promoting a public service campaign on suture-less-vasectomy. Adapted from the 2014 released Marathi film Poshter Boyz, directed by writer-director Sameer Patil, this film is now set in a fictitious village called Jangheti somewhere in North India. Initially on a mysterious note, the plot unravels the lives of the three men -- Jagaavar Chaudhary (Sunny Deol), Vinay Sharma (Bobby Deol) and Arjun Singh (Shreyas Talpade) in a parallel narrative. The selfie obsessed Jagaavar Chaudhary is an ex-army man, now a farmer. He is all set for his sister's engagement, when all of a sudden the ceremony is called off. Similarly, Recovery Agent Arjun Singh finds himself at tethers-end when his marriage proposal to his girlfriend Riya is called off and school teacher Vinay Sharma finds himself at loose ends when his 'son-fixated' wife Surajmukhi gives him an ultimatum for a divorce. No obvious reason is spelt out in each case, except that the cause of the mishaps is assigned to the trio's misdeeds. It is only after they chance upon the objectionable poster that their paths unite. The film is their journey, from being humiliated to inadvertently becoming ambassadors of the campaign. While the premise is wafer-thin, the frothy plot after a few minutes becomes tedious. But it is the base writing credited to Bunty Rathore and Paritosh Painter that keeps the momentum of the narrative well-greased. With puns, film referenced dialogues, fast-paced dumb repartee and farcical situations the film is a hilarious ride. The various social messages are astutely integrated, in a light-hearted manner, into the script, thus making the bitter pills more palatable. The performances of the entire cast are loud and over the top. Sunny and Bobby Deol have a rustic charm and they sink their teeth into their characters with natural ease. Bobby Deol's extra mile of histrionics to portray his quirky character seems a bit forced at times. Shreyas Talpade as the flamboyant Vinay Sharma seems more of a side-kick than a protagonist. He does stand-out more for his costume than his performance. The female leads; Sonali Kulkarni as Jagawaar's wife Sunita, Samiksha Bhatnagar as Vinay's wife Surajmukhi and Tripti Sharma as Arjun Singh's love interest Riya match their male counterparts with equal gusto. Bharati Achrekar as the fiery blind "Amma" is wasted in a cameo. Technically, sound and made with moderate production values the film offers a convincing appeal. The background score by composer Amar Mohile and the songs choreographed by Ganesh Acharya add life to the jamboree

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Daddy Trailer: Arjun Rampal As Gangster-Turned-Politician Arun Gawli Will Leave You Intrigued'
Mumbai:MMNN:8 September 2017
The trailer of Arjun Rampal's upcoming movie Daddy was unveiled by the makers of the film on Tuesday. The two-and-a-half minute trailer, which recreates the 1970s Mumbai, is sure to leave you enthralled as it gives a sneak peek into the journey of gangster-turned-politician Arun Gawli, to be played by Arjun Rampal. In the trailer, Arjun Rampal is seen in the signature Maharashtrian attire with perfect Marathi accent. Daddy has been directed by Ashim Ahluwalia and produced by Arjun Rampal and Rutvij Patel. The film, which also stars also stars Farhan Akhtar and Aishwarya Rajesh in pivotal roles, will be Arjun Rampal's first biopic. On Monday, Arjun Rampal had unveiled the first poster of Daddy. "Ambition.Power.Mystery! Experience a sneak peek into the life of Daddy," wrote the Aankhen actor. Daddy is scheduled to release in theatres on July 21. Arjun Rampal made his acting debut with Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat (2001). He got his breakthrough in Bollywood with Don (2006), starring Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra. Arjun Rampal has also featured in films like Aankhen (2002), Om Shanti Om (2007), Rock On!! (2008), Housefull (2010) and Ra.One (2011), in which his performance was highly appreciated by the film critics and the audience. Arjun Rampal has won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in 2008 movie Rock On!!, directed by Abhishek Kapoor. Arjun Rampal was last seen in 2016 movie Kahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh, co-starring Vidya Balan.

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Kareena Kapoor Khan On Nepotism And What Makes Kangana Ranaut 'A Great Actress''
Mumbai:MMNN:7 September 2017
Actress Kareena Kapoor Khan is the latest celebrity to speak on the nepotism debate, which was triggered after Kangana Ranaut branded filmmaker Karan Johar as the 'flag bearer of nepotism' on his popular chat show Koffee With Karan. In an interview with Filmfare, the 36-year-old actress said that nepotism exists in every possible field but in the film industry it 'makes for a nice read.'' "A lot of things seem out of context. Doesn't nepotism exist in every possible field? But nobody addresses that. In business families, the son takes over the business. A politician's son takes over his place. These are not considered nepotism but in the industry it makes for a nice read," Kareena told Filmfare. The Kurbaan actress added that film industry is a 'ruthless place' and it's that talent that matters. "Not many star-kids have achieved what their parents have. So I don't understand why people are going on about it. Basically, the industry is a ruthless place. It's about talent and survival of the fittest. Otherwise, a lot of star kids would've been No.1 stars in our country," Filmfare quoted Kareena as saying. Kareena Kapoor also said that nepotism is 'overrated.' "If there's Ranbir Kapoor, there's also Ranveer Singh who's not from the industry. So honestly, nepotism is overrated. More than in business, more than in politics, in the industry, it's your hard work and talent that will take you far. That's exactly the reason why Kangana Ranaut is considered such a great actress. And she's not from the industry. If there's Alia Bhatt, there's also Kangana. It's not only about star kids," Filmfare quoted Kareena as saying. Kareena is the daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita Kapoor. Her elder sibling is Karisma Kapoor. At the IIFA Awards that was held in New York in July, the nepotism debate was renewed after Karan Johar, actor Saif Ali Khan and Varun Dhawna took a jibe at Kangana Ranaut in her absence. The trio declared that they succeeded in the industry because of their parents and chanted 'nepotism rocks' in unison. Karan Johar, Saif Ali Khan and Varun Dhawan apologized for their comment after they were criticized for mocking the Queen actress. Varun posted an apologetic tweet, KJo expressed his regret in an interview with NDTV.com and Saif Ali Khan wrote an open letter on the issue in which he spoke about 'genetics', 'eugenics' and 'campism.' His Rangoon co-star Kangana found the letter to be 'disturbing.' On the work front, Kareena Kapoor Khan is all set to make a comeback to the big screen. She is currently shooting for Shashanka Ghosh's Veere Di Wedding in Delhi, co-starring Sonam Kapoor and Swara Bhaskar.

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Kangana Ranaut Vs Hrithik Roshan: His Ex Sussanne Khan Posted This. A Response To Kangana?''
Mumbai:MMNN:4 September 2017
Actor Hrithik Roshan's ex-wife Sussanne Khan has posted a picture on Instagram that is being seen by social media as a response to Kangana Ranaut's explosive comments last week. Kangana spoke to several media outlets while promoting her new film Simran in New Delhi and said, among other things, that she would like an apology from Hrithik, whom she claims to have dated - he disputes the alleged romance. Sussanne Khan, who divorced Hrithik Roshan in 2014, has now posted a picture of herself with her ex-husband. The caption accompanying this picture reads: "There is no allegation or a sad evil plot that can have the weight to triumph over a good soul." Sussanne added hashtags like #poweroftruth and #pureheart. Sussane's post has been liked by celebrities such as Twinkle Khanna, Priyanka Chopra, Varun Dhawan and Ekta Kapoor. However, many non-celeb users have criticized her and taken Kangana's side. Comments read: "Then why did you divorce him?" "I'm glad you said this. I support Kangana who at least has guts to confront this topic unlike this loser," "Our doubts are clear now. Kangana was right. This father-son duo can do anything." There were also some who want to see Hrithik and Sussanne together again. "You make the best couple. Clear the misunderstanding. Get back together and I will start believing in love again," read a comment. Hrithik Roshan, 43, and Sussanne Khan, 38, married in 2000 and divorced in 2014. They are parents to sons - Hrehaan and Hridhaan - and are still good friends.
Kangana Ranaut Vs Hrithik Roshan
The Kangana-Hrithik feud blew up at the beginning of last year after he sent her a legal notice demanding an apology for appearing to refer to him as a 'silly ex' in an interview. She responded with a legal notice of her own and the actors spent the rest of the year exchanging recriminations. Hrithik also went to the police claiming that an imposter had been corresponding with Kangana pretending to be him - she argued that there was no imposter and it had been Hrithik mailing her all along. The actors co-starred in the films Kites and Krrish 3. Speaking to India TV and News 18 last week, Kangana Ranaut said Hrithik and his father Rakesh Roshan had made fools of themselves, that she wanted them to apologise, that Hrithik avoids her and that she is still waiting for him to 'expose' the romance she claims as a lie.

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Shah Rukh Khan guides kids Suhana and AbRam through Ganpati Visarjan'
Mumbai:2 September 2017
Shah Rukh Khan was spotted celebrating Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai with his children, Suhana and AbRam. A fan club tweeted pictures and video of the star, who was seen carrying a Ganesh idol, surrounded by fans and staff In one of the pictures, he picked up his youngest child, AbRam, and carried him on his shoulders. Shah Rukh even showed AbRam how to do a namaste for the large crowd. Suhana, who is becoming more visible publicly, with rumours of her Bollywood debut reaching fever pitch, was also present, wearing ethnic clothes. Shah Rukh wasnt the only star who was seen celebrating the festival this year. Riteish Deskhmukh and Richa Chadha made special, eco-friendly idols for the occasion. On August 26, photos of stars such as Vidya Balan, Sanjay Dutt, Hrithik Roshan, Govinda, and Jackie Shroff were all over the internet.

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Baadshaho Movie Review: Ajay Devgn's Thriller Devoid Of Highs Despite A Passable Emraan Hashmi
Mumbai:MMNN:1 September 2017
Director Milan Luthria's fourth collaboration with star Ajay Devgn, Baadshaho, is anything but the emperor of all it surveys. It's more a like a king without a kingdom. The heist thriller is devoid of the sort of highs that could be talked about. Rajat Aroraa's screenplay yields no end of high-voltage action sequences, fist fights, shootouts and explosions staged to the accompaniment of ear-splitting background music. But it lacks the meat to lend the onscreen derring-do real muscle and hold all the flab in place. What's worse is that at the end of the sound and fury that the film generates, Baadshaho has no climax worth the name. It ends. Just like that. Seriously. We rarely, if ever, see a Bollywood action flick fizzle out so tamely. It's either a radical departure from norm or plain daft: make what you will of it. For this critic, it's the latter. The fictional tale is set in a real historical context contrary to what a mandatory upfront disclaimer claims. "Emergency hai, aadha desh jail mein hai," one desert rat claims with gleeful exaggeration in order to create the simulated setting for the witless, plotless yarn that unfolds amid the sand dunes and whips up a whole lot of dust to no real avail. The story is wildly fanciful but very basic: a young Rajput queen Gitanjali Devi (Ileana D'Cruz) has her ancestral gold hoard impounded from her palace by the government. The year is 1975 and we hear the voice of Indira Gandhi declaring Emergency while exhorting her countrymen not to panic. The maharani has earned the wrath of a rapacious Sanjay Gandhi lookalike (who answers to the name of Sanjeev and wields tremendous power even over the Indian army). Not one to go down without a fight, the slighted queen, serving time in jail, orders her brooding personal security in-charge Bhawani Singh (Ajay Devgn) to grab the lost booty back for her. The loyal Bhawani, who is the queen's retainer and secret lover, cobbles together a band of four desperadoes, including the maharani's trusted aide Sanjana (Esha Gupta), for the mission to waylay the high-value consignment when it is transported in an armored truck from Rajasthan to Delhi, an eight-hour trip by road. "Woh army hai, hum haraami hai," he declares, playing down the risk involved, to allay the fears of both the ageing cat burglar Tikla (Sanjay Mishra) and the happy-go-lucky gun-for-hire Dalia (Emraan Hashmi) that he ropes in. The bunch of badasses takes several detours as the gold is targeted and trailed, but there is little at the end of this flashy but vacuous exercise that glitters and glows. A no-nonsense army officer, Major Seher Singh (Vidyut Jammwal), surfaces and becomes a massive obstacle in the way of queen's assault team. It transpires that Bhawani isn't the only pawn on Maharani Gitanjali's chessboard. A big pre-interval reveal changes the rules of engagement and blurs the line separating the hunter from the hunted. It's a recipe for disaster. From here on, and that's pretty much all of the second half, all semblance of sense and logic is jettisoned. Cheesy lines - "jab baat zubaan ki ho toh jaan ki keemat kam ho jaati hai" or "main batua nahi churata dil churata hoon" - fly as thick and fast as the bullets. Baadshaho is the sort of film that banks solely on style. The story is strictly bare-bones, a glaring fact that is sought to be disguised through the means of gratuitous chase scenes and meaningless banter. How much can menacing, gun-crazy men, scheming, seductive women - the film throws in an item number featuring Sunny Leone for good measure - and doses of dark humour achieve when all that the characters have to play with is empty bluster? Baadshaho does have a couple of passable performances - one from Sanjay Mishra, whose comic timing as the alcoholic and wisecracking Tikla is phenomenal; the other comes from Hashmi as a loveable, fatalistic rogue. Kohl-lined eyes, a tattoo of a gun on one arm and witticisms such as "I am a camel, leave me where you want, I will find my way back home" define the character he plays. He pulls it off to the extent the script allows him to. Parts of this vapid actioner are made somewhat tolerable by the two actors who articulate just enough scepticism to mirror exactly what the audience feels about the goings-on on the screen. Sharad Kelkar, in the guise of a policeman, uses his booming voice to great effect. He is heard loud and clear above the din. But no matter how much he roars he remains a bit player. Sadly, there are too many others in the cast who are swept away by this sandstorm of a movie. The two actresses get the shortest shrift, if not in terms of footage, certainly with regard to what the plot permits them to be. They are pretty mannequins and just as lifeless. Ajay Devgn, whose entry scene takes one's breath away with its utterly nonsensical excess, merely goes through the motions It's been said earlier in this review: there is no dearth of surface sheen in Badshaho. But a peep behind the glossy curtain reveals an overcooked but terribly bland curry western that deserves instant banishment to the wilderness that it has emerged from. One is sure that there will be takers for this piece of cinematic tripe, but the audience deserves better. There can be no two ways about that.

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Kapil Sharma Keeps Baadshaho Cast Waiting, Ajay Devgn 'Storms Out'
Mumbai:MMNN:28 Aug 2017
Kapil Sharma just cancelled another shoot of his series The Kapil Sharma Show, reports mid-day - this time with actor Ajay Devgn and his co-stars from the film Baadshaho. Given that the 36-year-old comedian's health has been a concern and shoots with other stars have previously been cancelled, representatives for Baadshaho is reported to have checked in with Kapil Sharma's team in advance and were told that filming would take place as scheduled. This, apparently, was not what happened - the cast of Baadshaho waited 15 minutes and then 'stormed out' when he didn't show up. Kapil Sharma didn't show up at all, mid-day reports, allegedly because he struggled to wake up after a late night. In the last few months, a number of stars have shown up to the sets of The Kapil Sharma Show and then left without filming when their host failed to appear - these stars include Shah Rukh Khan and Anil Kapoor (with his co-stars) from Mubarakan. This ill-fated recording of The Kapil Sharma Show, scheduled for the Saturday that just went by, was meant to feature Ajay Devgn, Emraan Hashmi, Ileana D'Cruz and Esha Gupta. The Baadshaho actors were reportedly assured that Kapil Sharma would be present and on time. A report in SpotboyE quotes a source as saying, "Kapil's phones were switched off. The team was leaving no stone unturned to get in touch with him, but to no avail. Even Kapil's team did not give a proper answer." Kapil Sharma's colleague Kiku Sharda told BollywoodLife last month that the comedian was not depressed as some reports suggested. "Kapil's absence due to his ill-health has fanned stupid speculations. I don't want to comment and fan all this further. We have started shooting for the coming weekend," he said. The Kapil Sharma Show has been hit by falling ratings after a fraught few months that saw many cast members exiting. The departures were headlined by comedian Sunil Grover and spurred by an alleged brawl on a flight out of Melbourne in which Kapil Sharma, reportedly drunk, assaulted Mr Grover and insulted the rest of his team. Changes in line-up continued till some weeks ago when Archana Puran Singh was brought in to replace series regular Navjot Singh Sidhu.

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Gangs of Wasseypur is not the longest movie. This British film is'
Mumbai:MMNN:26 Aug 2017
We often crib about the length of Bollywood films - from three-hour Karan Johar movies to the five-hour Anurag Kashyap crime saga, Indians have an appetite for long films. We would like to believe that Indian films are the longest, but thats not true! You will be surprised to know that a UK film (London EC1, 2015) holds the record for the lengthiest films across the world since 1991. Anurag Kashyaps Gangs of Wasseypur (which was released in two parts in India but was one 5-hr-long film around the globe) comes on the second slot, even in India Subal Sorals Funusiin (2016) tops India list with 24-hour run time Globally, the German film Ember Glow (2015) ranks second with a reel time of 81 hours while the American film Fail (2016) ranks third with a run time of 78 hours. However, when we look at the average length of films, India ranks on the top with two hours 11 minutes of average run time between 1991 and 2017. Interestingly, South Korea is a distant second with the average films length being one hour 41 minutes. Argentina is the last one on the list with the run time of one hour 28 minutes for an average film.

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Babumoshai Bandookbaaz Movie Review: Nawazuddin Siddiqui Isn't At His Best In This Film Riddled With Holes'
Mumbai:MMNN:25 Aug 2017
Babumoshai Bandookbaaz Movie Review: Nawazuddin Siddiqui's film, in the end, is a tumbledown see-saw that never heaves itself off the ground. Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Bidita Bag, Jatin Goswami, Shraddha Das, Divya Dutta Director: Kushan Nandy Rating: 1.5 Stars (Out Of 5) As capricious as its unfounded title, Kushan Nandy's rough-hewn hinterland noir Babumoshai Bandookbaaz is a roaring mess. It misfires on most counts. So, what was all the kerfuffle for? While this Babumoshai obviously has no affinity with Dr. Bhaskar Banerjee, the thriller, no matter how hard it pushes itself, is merely a country cousin of Bollywood's gangster sagas. Bijuria - a fictional police station area somewhere in Uttar Pradesh - is no Wasseypur. And its denizens are emaciated shadows of the trigger-happy, fast-talking thugs that peopled Anurag Kashyap's cult film. Babumoshai Bandookbaaz, scripted by Ghalib Asad Bhopali, may seem authentic in terms of its location and lingo, but its plot is riddled with holes the size of craters. Even the ever-dependable Nawazuddin Siddiqui, hard pressed to pump life into the poorly conceived titular character of a coldblooded contract killer, can do little to salvage the film. It whips up plenty of heat and dust and packs rustic romance, love, lust, betrayal, doses of black humour and a great deal of carnage into its tenuous two hours. The characters turn upon each other like hungry hounds baying for blood. Logic is torn to shreds in the bargain. Babumoshai Bandookbaaz, in the end, is a tumbledown see-saw that never heaves itself off the ground. The men are louts and the women are impossible to fathom. As the deviants are introduced one by one, the least that the audience expects is that the characters, at least the pivotal ones, will emerge out of the crowd and assume lives of their own. They don't. The story, whatever there is of it, is all over the place. Titillation comes by way of a criminal-contractor who derives pleasure from watching the masseur go to work on his wife. A corrupt cop keeps impregnating his ageing wife because she is unable to bear him a girl. And a tough cobbler girl, a victim of sexual assaults by a politician and his brothers, extracts a price from the male protagonist when he hits upon her and expects her to reciprocate his passion. These are sought to be passed off as radical breaks from Bollywood convention. It just doesn't come off. If last year's Freaky Ali, in which Nawazuddin played the lighthearted lead role of a poor drifter-turned-gangster-turned-golfer with customary flair, didn't measure up to his talent, Babumoshai Bandookbaaz fares much worse. This twisted tale of an impoverished boy who grows up in the badlands of northern India and learns to kill at the tender age of ten for a couple of life-saving bananas, is by far the weakest film that the Mumbai-independent cinema poster boy has ever done. The character Nawazuddin plays, Babu Bihari, is a hired gun who works for two disparate individuals - the sleazy businessman Dubey (Anil George) and the paan-chewing, expletives-spouting politician Sumitra (Divya Dutta). His earning per kill - Rs. 25,000, 20 per cent of which he has to share with a middleman - isn't good enough to change his life. His strike rate is, however, high enough to instill fear in the hearts of both victims and benefactors. But soon enough, he has competition. Another sharpshooter, Banke Bihari (Jatin Goswami), is roped in by the power brokers to supplement Babu Bihari's killing spree. The people who pay to keep the guns blazing then begin to gun for each other. The upshot of the endless skirmishes (one leads into another without ever making much sense) is that the protagonist is caught in a battle of attrition with Banke Bihari, who admits to being a fan of the bandookbaaz. The tussle between the two men, which stems from one's desire to protect his long-held turf and the other's aspiration to wrest control, takes the form of a series of deadly games that soon adds up to much more than the mounting body count. It infects their personal relationships with unsurprisingly violent consequences. A pre-interval twist leads to an eight-year leap. But matters do not get any better. They only turn fuzzier as unsettling secrets are revealed and more people end up dead. Babu Bihari lives with Phulwa (Bidita Bag), who mends shoes for a living, and Banke Bihari has an open relationship with the local dancer Yasmin (Shraddha Das), who gets to away to a raunchy remix of Hai Re Hai Mera Ghungta. But after a point it stops to matter who is with him and who is out to get whom. It degenerates into an utterly meaningless rigmarole. Babumoshai Bandookbaaz hurtles towards an insipid, unintelligible climax, which includes a bout of Russian roulette between two adversaries. It is, in the end, much ado about nothing because the outcome of the life-and-death contest is as predictable as everything else in the film. Nawazuddin isn't at his best for he can be only as good as the script allows him to be. Bidita Bag makes a fair fist of her first Bollywood lead role. Jatin Goswami, too, makes his presence felt. Another proven actor who finds herself hard done by amid the mayhem is Divya Dutta. The only surprise - nay, shock - that Babumoshai Bandookbaaz delivers is an instrumental rendition of a Rabindranath Tagore hymn (Aguner Parashmoni) arranged by composer Debojyoti Mishra for the end credits. Has the bard ever had such an ignominy heaped upon him - tailed so casually to a film that revels in blood and gore? The lyric is a prayer seeking purification by fire. If that is what the makers of this film are looking for, let it be said that even a full-fledged inferno cannot purge Babumoshai Bandookbaaz.

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Twinkle Khanna, Trolled For Mocking 'Dignity Of Men,' Posts The Same Pic Again'
Mumbai:MMNN:22 Aug 2017
Twinkle Khanna is defiant after a picture she tweeted over the weekend offended some sensibilities. The 42-year-old author posted the same picture again today with this message: "I found the timing ironical with ToiletEPK's release and the OD free certification- If you see the sardonicism in it - fine! If not-so be it." The photo that earned Twinkle a string of reprimands showed an unidentified man squatting to do his business on a Mumbai beach. "I guess here is the first scene of Toilet Ek Prem Katha 2," Twinkle wrote, referencing her husband Akshay Kumar's newly released film which deals with the issues of sanitation and open defecation. Twinkle Khanna's sharp observations usually evoke a laugh from Twitter. Not this time though. "A public apology should also be made for playing with dignity of men," read an angry comment, one of several that asked Twinkle to take the post down. A case of shooting the messenger, one might say. At any rate, Twinkle Khanna wasn't taking this s*@t, pardon the language and the pun. Some of Twinkle Khanna's critics also accused her of making capital out of the situation in order to promote her husband's film - not that it needs it because Toilet: Ek Prem Katha has already made Rs. 115.05 crore in less than two weeks. However, Twinkle Khanna's's tweet also received instant approval from some. "Let's spread this as message to us that we should build more and more toilets," wrote a user. Twinkle also responded to a comment that said that people had the choice of using public toilets. "Exactly. The public toilet is a 7-8 minute walk from this particular spot," Twinkle wrote back. Twinkle Khanna is the author of two best-selling books - Mrs FunnyBones and The Legend Of Lakshmi Prasad. She and Akshay Kumar have been married for over 15 years now and are parents to son Aarav and daughter Nitara.

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Kalki Koechlin, Trolled For Viral Nude Pic, Says 'Never Been Ashamed'
Mumbai:MMNN:21 Aug 2017
Actress Kalki Koechlin shrugged off the hateful comments she received for posting a nude picture of herself, telling mid-day , I have never been ashamed of whatever I do. Kalki, 33, recently posted an image from a photoshoot on Instagram in which shes seen from the back and appears to be naked. Halfway between shadow and light, she captioned the picture, shot by photographer Riva Bubber. The post, which swiftly went viral, has received 331 comments so far, several of them slut-shaming the actress. Speaking to mid-day , Kalki said, "As women, we often are depicted through a man's perspective, but this picture was clicked by a woman photographer. That's why I found it significant to share the photograph." Kalki Koechlins intent may have been to offer a perspective other than the male gaze but her post appears to have provoked many of her followers, some of whom suggested the actress submit her picture to adult sites rather than post it on social media. Nudity limit me rakho, Indian culture ko barbaad tum jaise log kar rahe ho, read one comparatively restrained comment on her post. She was also told not to 'show off.' Some fans applauded the actress with comments such as 'Brave Kalki, keep rocking' - but these were in the minority. Just days ago, model-actress Esha Gupta was also shamed online for posting a series of pictures from a photoshoot in which she was partially unclothed. Esha also spoke to mid-day later, saying, Its my body. In an interview with news agency IANS last year, Kalki Koechlin said, "Of course it affects me, but I have learnt to stop responding to them. Heres one picture from the photoshoot with Riva Bubber, which was posted with a quote Harper Lees novel How To Kill A Mockingbird - She was one of the rare ones, so effortlessly herself, and the world loved her for it. Kalki Koechlin joins a select band of actresses to have the dubious distinction of being shamed on Instagram for photos of themselves - Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra, Sunny Leone, Soha Ali Khan and Dangalactress Fatima Sana Shaikh have all been recently trolled for outfits they wore in their posts. Kalkis short film Naked from earlier this year, in which she plays an actress who stars in a sex scene that is leaked and goes viral, addresses the theme of what happens when the covers are drawn back from womens sexuality. Kalki Koechlin is known for her performances in acclaimed film such as Margarita, With A Straw, Waiting and, most

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Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh spotted a day after viral kissing pic. See photos
Mumbai:MMNN:19 Aug 2017
A day after a picture of Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh lit up the internet, the rumoured couple was spotted on the streets of Mumbai. According to an Indian Express report, the two were out for a dinner date, and as always, the paparazzi lapped it up. While neither Deepika nor Ranveer has ever confirmed their relationship, situations such as this are very common. Ranveer even visited Deepika on the sets of her first Hollywood movie, xXx: The Return of Xander Cage. Only a day ago, an old picture in which the rumoured couple was seen getting cosy - it was a screengrab from a behind-the-scenes video of a photoshoot the two had done in 2015 - went viral. Several fans took to Twitter to share their favourite pictures of the two with the hashtag, ‘DeepVeer’. In an earlier interview to Deccan Chronicle, Ranveer commented that Deepika was the best kisser ever. “I think Deepika Padukone is the best kisser. Have you seen that ‘Ang laga de re, mujhe rang laga de re’ (song from Goliyon Ki Rasleela: Ram Leela)?” he said. The two have played lovers on screen twice, in director Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Ram Leela and Bajirao Mastani. They will re-team with the filmmaker for a third time in Padmavati, which is currently in production.

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Bareilly Ki Barfi Movie Review: Kriti Sanon Makes This Sweet Concoction Work
Mumbai:MMNN:18 Aug 2017
Bareilly Ki Barfi Movie Review:isnt the kind of film that will sweep you off your feet, but there is sufficient charm and chutzpah in this effervescent brew to keep you invested all the way through Cast: Kriti Sanon, Ayushmann Khurrana, Rajkummar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, Seema Pahwa Director: Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari Rating 3 Stars Ashwiny Iyer Tiwaris sophomore effort Bareilly Ki Barfi is a sweet and delicious but eventually slight concoction. But that isnt meant as criticism. It is a largely inoffensive, mildly diverting small-town romance that generally hits the right buttons thanks primarily to a crisp and lively screenplay, earthy dialogues and effortless acting by a fine cast. If not exactly scintillating, it is definitely entertaining enough not to fritter away its inherent advantages. Indeed, Bareilly Ki Barfi isnt the kind of film that will sweep you off your feet, but there is sufficient charm and chutzpah in this effervescent brew to keep you invested all the way through. There is indeed something to be said about a Bollywood romantic comedy that lays so much store by its script, its relatable setting and believable characters. The creative choices the director makes reflect amply in the final outcome. It does not ride on crowd-pulling stars. It does not need to because it reposes its faith unwaveringly and squarely in a lively story of secret love and deliberate subterfuge and props it up with light touches and the weighty talent of a bunch of actors who are endowed with the natural ability to breathe life into everyday situations with minimum visible effort. The stars of the show are Rajkummar Rao (in the guise of an unassuming young man who is pushed around too easily until he decides to take a stand) and Pankaj Tripathi (as the endearingly broad-minded father of a rebellious girl who thinks nothing of throwing caution to the wind in the conservative boondocks). Seema Pahwa, playing a sedate matriarch, is perfectly clued in to the spirit of the story and the setting. Not that the two actors who get top billing, Ayushmann Khurrana and Kriti Sanon, are overshadowed by the aforementioned trio. The former does a convincing job of mutating from a brooding jilted lover to a crooked manipulator who puts his own interests above everyone else's. The burden of making Bareilly Ki Barfi work rests upon Kriti Sanon and she doesn't put a foot wrong. Bareilly Ki Barfi is a loose adaptation by Nitesh Tiwari (the writer and director of Dangal) and Shreyas Jain from French writer Nicolas Barreau's 2012 English-language novel, The Ingredients of Love. The story is transported to the small Uttar Pradesh town of Bareilly where the emotions and aspirations of the young clash head-on with the entrenched traditions and mores. With Javed Akhtar providing an amusing voiceover narration, the film takes us into the world that pulsates inside Mishra Sadan, Ekta Nagar, Bareilly. This is home to sweetmeat shop owner Narottam Mishra (Pankaj Tripathi), his wife Sushila (Seema Pahwa) and only daughter Bitti (Kriti Sanon). Her father allows Bitti Mishra - she works in the customer complaints department of the state electricity board - all the freedom that she craves for, including an occasional swig and a smoke. Her schoolteacher-mother, infinitely more orthodox, is more intent on finding a suitable boy for her daughter. Kriti is a natural born rebel, loves breakdance, watches English movies and makes absolutely no concessions to the norms that society lays down for a middle class girl like her. When a potential husband asks her if she is a virgin, she shoots back: Are you It makes no difference if I am a virgin or not, replies the boy, but you better be one. I am not a virgin, says Bitti. The guy is put in his place, end of chapter, and its absolutely no skin off Bitti nose. Bittis exasperated mother is often at her tether's end and bemoans her luck: Harkate laundo wali karti hai, is sey toh achcha beta hi paida ho jaata". The girl's response, in a heart-to-heart chat with her sympathetic father, is: Ladki hona na disaster hai ekdum." Much later in the film, the mother wonders: Raat raat bhar ghumti rehti hai. Ladki hain koi chudail thodi hai. Nothing can stop Bitti in her tracks. She runs away from home, boards a train to nowhere in particular, and, during the trip that she eventually aborts, chances upon a novella titled Bareilly Ki Barfi. It changes her life. The heroine in the story is exactly like her and Bitti falls under the spell of the unknown writer Pritam Vidrohi (Rajkummar Rao). She seeks the help of printing press owner Chirag Dubey (Ayushmaan Khurrana) to locate the author. Chirag, himself coming off a failed love affair, traces the man to Lucknow, where he is now sari salesman. He brings the writer back to Bareilly with the intention of ensuring that Bitti rejects him outright. Chirag has developed feelings for Bitti but is unable to profess his love to her. Matters begin to spin out of his hand when the diffident Pritam, hiding behind a fake voice and demeanour, worms his way into Bitti's heart. Desperate measures spark more complications as Bitti's best friend and neighbour Rama (Swati Semwal), whose terrace is where the heroine hones her breakdance moves, is pulled into the frame. For all the energy that Bareilly Ki Barfi exudes, it never quite lifts itself above its featherweight category. But that is barely a disqualification. If anything, it keeps the film chugging along at an even pace, its tongue-in-cheek levity preventing it from being sucked into sticky sweetness. Bareilly Ki Barfi is definitely worth a watch provided you do not expect the world from it. It is happy to be what it is: a modest barfi from nondescript Bareilly. A bite wouldnt be a bad idea.

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Emma Stone Tops Forbes List Of Highest Paid Actresses. Missing: Deepika Padukone
Mumbai:MMNN:17 Aug 2017
Forbes has released this year's list of the world's 10 highest paid actresses and homegirl Deepika Padukone, ranked #10 in 2016, has not made the cut this time. As Forbes put it: "The list examined actresses the world over, but no stars from Asia made the cut, as Fan Bingbing and Deepika Padukone dropped off due to quieter years." Deepika's starring role in xXx: The Return Of Xander Cage - also her Hollywood debut - contributed hugely to her earnings of $10 million last year. She has no international project currently and is working on one film at home - the period drama Padmavati, co-starring Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor. Also absent from Forbes' 2017 list is Scarlett Johansson - this is the first time in three years that she hasn't made the grade So who is on the list? Emma Stone, Oscar-winner for La La Land, is #1 for the first time, with Forbes reporting earnings of $26 million. Jennifer Lawrence, who topped the list two years in a row, has slipped to third place, behind Jennifer Aniston. The Jennifers are at $25.5 and $24 million respectively - JLaw made just half of her 2016 total. The top three on the list of 10 are the only actresses to have made over $20 million. They are followed by Melissa McCarthy, Mila Kunis, Emma Watson, Charlize Theron, Cate Blanchett, Julia Roberts and Amy Adams. Forbes reports a 16% drop in the cumulative earnings of the world's top actresses - $172.5 million this year, down from $205 million in 2016. Forbes also notes that half the actresses on the list are over 40 - Jennifer Aniston, Melissa McCarthy, Charlize Theron, Cate Blanchett, Julia Roberts and Amy Adams - a significant achievement given the scarcity of roles for women their age. Forbes also flags another ugly truth - only 28.7% of speaking roles in films are filled by women.

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Priyanka Chopra attends fundraiser with Robert Downey Jr, dances with Jamie Foxx
Mumbai:MMNN:14 Aug 2017
The whole world knows that Priyanka Chopra is a busy girl. She is juggling between her next Hollywood projects and her hit-TV show Quantico. But, she always manages to take some time away from her busy schedule and enjoys her life to the fullest. The 35-year-old recently attended Ron Perlman’s Apollo fundraiser, where she can be seen enjoying and dancing her heart out with none other than Hollywood heavyweight Jamie Foxx. Meanwhile, the Baby Driver actor can be seen performing for the audience. He also introduces the actress to the people and dances with her afterwards. The Bajirao Mastani star is seen wearing a black sheer robed dress with a side waist high slit and a diamond studded brooch pinned on the front. On the work front, Priyanka is busy in shooting for his second Hollywood feature ‘Isn’t it Romantic?’ which also stars Rebel Wilson, Adam Devine and Liam Hemsworth.

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Toilet Ek Prem Katha: Here’s the secret behind Akshay Kumar’s ageless looks
Mumbai:MMNN:9 Aug 2017
Akshay Kumar is almost 50-years-old, and as he prepares for the release of his new film, Toilet - Ek Prem Katha, he reveals the secrets behind his ageless looks. He will turn 50 next month, but Akshay Kumar manages to look ageless on screen opposite co-stars like Bhumi Pednekar and Anushka Sharma, who are in their 20s. The Bollywood star says the secret lies in living a simple, easy and happy life. I have only one job in my life, and thats to do films. Then I take care of my family and workout. Theres no stress... I dont take too much stress. I concentrate on happiness and I exercise, take care of what I eat, and I control my intake of sweets. Theres no science behind it. Live a simple, easy life,” Akshay told the media here on Wednesday, When I used to stay in Chandni Chowk, we used to have a one bedroom house and around 22 people used to stay in it. But we used to feel happy in it. We have continued living with that happiness, added the actor, who is one of the most bankable actors in Bollywood today. The National Award winner is currently promoting his forthcoming film Toilet: Ek Prem Katha with co-actors Bhumi Pednekar and Anupam Kher. The movie, which is releasing on Friday, delves on the need for sanitation and is an attempt to urge people to stop open defecation to work towards a Swachh Bharat. The message coincides with Prime Minister Narendra Modis Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan. Asked if he will make more movies related to Modi’s various initiatives, Akshay said: I have made the film because I liked the script and not because anyone asked me to make this film. Its a different thing that when our PM came to office, he started spreading the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan message. This film is similar to his Abhiyaan and takes forward the Clean India message. But in general, Clean India is not a topic that he started... Its a topic relevant to each one of us... We have to keep our surroundings clean because it is directly related to us and our health. Its wrong if people think its a village-based problem. Even cities have a lot to do with this problem.”

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Salman Khan, Malaika Arora celebrate family love at Arbaaz’s birthday party. See pics
Mumbai:MMNN:5 Aug 2017
Bollywood actor-director Arbaaz turned 50 on Friday and his entire family, including ex-wife Malaika Arora and brother Salman Khan were in attendance when he rang in the birthday celebrations. Check out the pictures. Bollywood actor-director Arbaaz Khan turned 50 on Friday and his entire family, including ex-wife Malaika Arora and brother Salman Khan were in attendance when he celebrated his birthday late on Thursday. Malaika went out of her way to not only attend but also help in creating a fun birthday party for her ex-husband. She also shared several pictures from the gala on Instagram Salman Khan, who is shuttling between Mumbai and Morocco, balancing his shooting schedule for Ali Abbaz Zafar’s Tiger Zinda Hai and other commitments, also made sure he was in the city to celebrate his brother’s birthday. Sohail Khan was also in attendance. Malaika’s sister and actor Amrita Arora shared pictures from the party on her Instagram page. On the work front, Salman Khan is on the verge of completing the shoot of Tiger Zinda Hai opposite Katrina Kaif and is rumoured to begin work on his hit reality show - Bigg Boss. The first promo of Bigg Boss 11 has already been shot. Arbaaz, on the other hand, is currently working on the script of Dabangg 3.

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Jab Harry Met Sejal Movie Review: Shah Rukh Khan, Anushka Sharma's Film Riddled With Toe-Curling Mush
Mumbai:MMNN:4 Aug 2017
Jab Harry Met Sejal Movie Review: It is cinema's equivalent of a shiny bauble that glitters wholly in vain. Watch it only if you fancy a vicarious romp through Europe with an off-colour megastar trying hard to get going First half: breezy and unabashedly banal. Second half: riddled with toe-curling romantic mush. Sum total: a wayward, winding journey without maps that weaves concentric circles around sweet nothings and empty prittle-prattle. That, in a nutshell, is Imtiaz Ali's perambulatory rom-com Jab Harry Met Sejal. It leaves you wishing they hadn't met. A raffish man who isn't getting any younger, a standoffish girl who has an entire life ahead of her and a not-so-brief encounter in Europe that takes the rootless duo across several picturesque locations add up to a mothballed bromide that holds no real surprises. Jab Harry Met Sejal is all style. The frames are pretty. The lighting (of the interiors of and around the magnificent medieval structures that dot the locations) is exquisite. Cinematographer K.U. Mohanan's fluid camera possesses the kind of tactile grace that has a touch of mastery. It caresses the sights of Amsterdam, Prague, Budapest and Lisbon, and even the oft-seen swaying wheat fields of Punjab, with controlled sensuousness. If only the film had a story substantial enough to hold the construct together and propel it forward, Jab Harry Met Sejal might have amounted to more than just the slight gust of air that it is. Its all phurr... the sensation is fleeting. If you are looking for recent Bollywood reference points, Jab Harry Met Sejal is a cross between Imtiaz Ali's own Tamasha (where what happens in Corsica is meant to stay in Corsica but doesn't), Zoya Akhtar's Zindagi Naa Milegi Dobaara (where a road trip across Spain becomes an excuse for the untangling of matters of the heart) and, somewhat more tangentially, Dear Zindagi (where an older man plays agony uncle to a confused ingénue). To be sure, Jab Harry Met Sejal is underpinned by the unfettered, Sufi spirit of Imtiaz Ali's previous free-wheeling explorations of love and longing. It, however, lacks the flashes of ideational, experiential and tonal originality that livened up parts of the earlier films. This is essentially a two-hander in which the pivotal duo isn't believable at all. They are more stereotypical caricatures than tangible characters. The man is Punjabi, so he talks of farmers, tractors and high-pitched song. The girl is Gujarati, so for her it is money above all else. SRK's return to conventional lover boy terrain - he plays a louche but lonely tourist guide in Europe - does not yield the expected magic. This is certainly not for want for trying. The superstar plunges himself gamely into this shallow pool. Sadly, there simply isn't enough depth in here for a steady, refreshing swim. Many of the situations created around the character that he plays appear arbitrary and far-fetched. Anushka is a picture of poise and energy in the guise of a young, chirpy lawyer looking for a lost engagement ring, is high-spirited enough to push this plotless whimsy along for a while. In the end, the task proves too onerous for her not to be weighed down by its demands. Not that there is nothing in Jab Harry Met Sejal for hardcore SRK fans, but those moments come only in fits and starts as he dons the persona of the footloose Harindar 'Harry' Singh Nehra, who makes no bones about his womanizing tendencies. He even brags shamelessly about his amorous conquests while admitting to the many ways he's got into trouble owing to his rampaging libido. He is a superficially charming man all right, but he isn't particularly likeable. Sejal Zhaveri, on the other hand, is a diamond merchant's snooty daughter who takes inordinately long to warm up to Harry. Until that transpires, she misses no opportunity to take jabs at him. Yet, she has no qualms in taking offence when the guy dismisses her as a girl of the "nice, sweet and sister type". There is a limit to levity. The inconsistencies in Sejal's character are glaring. The screenplay would have us believe that she is a confident, no-nonsense girl who knows exactly where to draw the line. Why, then, is she in constant need of endorsement, of being told that she is worth lusting for. In one scene, she asks Harry: "Mere pe try maar rahe ho (Are you hitting on me)?" Harry replies: "Bilkul nahin (Not at all)." She shoots back: "Kyun main sexy nahin hoon (Why, am I not sexy)?" It is difficult to fathom why Sejal must stoop to objectifying herself, especially before a man she hardly knows. At one point, Harry, who Sejal calls "Hairy" in her thick Gujarati accent, describes her as a China vase - porcelain, delicate, not to be touched. However, when push comes to shove, he poses a barely disguised question to her: Will you be the kind of bad girl (cheap and ghatiya are the two adjectives he uses) who leaves her fiancée and runs away with her tour guide? Jab Harry Met Sejal, in the main, unfolds in this vein until the very end of a journey that winds up in Mumbai outside a wedding venue The beautiful locations are obviously eye-catching, but surely surface gloss, star power, lively music and sparkling cinematography can never turn a patchy and whimsical film into a convincing romantic drama about a pair of strangers thirsting for more than what their lives have offered them thus far. Harry is in search of true love. Sejal, too, is on a voyage of discovery. Do they get what they are looking for? Not a chance in hell. So flabby is this flighty film that it moves only in hops and skips. It never really gets off the ground. Jab Harry Met Sejal is cinema's equivalent of a shiny bauble that glitters wholly in vain. Watch it only if you fancy a vicarious romp through Europe with a megastar trying hard to get going.

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Sunil Grover Reportedly Doubled His Fee After Quitting Kapil Sharma's Show
Mumbai:MMNN:26 July 2017
The mid-air altercation between warring comedians Sunil Grover and Kapil Sharma had contrasting effects on the career graphs of the two. The Kapil Sharma Show witnessed a sudden dip in popularity with dwindling viewership ratings after Sunil quit the show to do solo gigs, special appearances and live shows. Now, a report in DNA states that Sunil has doubled his fee after exiting Kapil's show and only wants to sign up for "guest appearances and stage shows." According to the DNA report, Sunil Grover's remuneration has gone up by 100% - the actor comedian previously charged Rs. 7-8 lakhs per episode but now he demands a reported amount of Rs. 13-14 lakhs for a single appearance. "Sunil has been getting some really good offers for shows but he's focussing on guest appearances and stage shows. Sunil was previously charging Rs. 7-8 lakhs per episode on Kapil's show. Now, he charges around 13-14 lakhs per appearance," DNA quoted a source as saying. Meanwhile, Sony Entertainment Television, which airs The Kapil Sharma Show, has signed Kapil's rival comedian Krushna Abhishek to headline a new comedy series titled Comedy Company, which will also feature guest appearances by Sunil Grover. Amidst speculation about Sunil's upcoming projects and shows, it was revealed last month that the 39-year-old comedian will not sign up for one particular show permanently. "After his fight with Kapil Shama, Sunil Grover doesn't want to take on any show permanently. However, he will make guest appearances on Comedy Company playing different characters. He doesn't want to be bound to any one show or channel," a source close to Sunil had told DNA. However, Kapil was also looking forward to getting a contract worth Rs. 107 crores renewed with Sony, which has been stalled, reported DNA. Things are not really in order for Kapil Sharma. He recently reportedly failed to shoot two new episodes for being unwell - once for a show with the cast of Mubarakan and then for an episode with Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma. Earlier this month, a source told Indian Express that Team Mubarakan "waited for hours" for Kapil to turn up on sets while Arjun Kapoor (who stars in Mubarakan) later tweeted a clarification of sorts: "He didn't keep us waiting. He unfortunately fell sick. The Mubarakan team wishes Kapil Sharma gets well soon and keeps making us smile." According to a report in Hindustan Times, Kapil fainted ahead of a promotional episode for Jab Harry Met Sejal for being stressed, following which the shoot was cancelled. In an interview to Daily Bhaskar over the weekend, Kapil's sister Pooja admitted to Kapil being diagnosed with low blood pressure and added that he's been advised complete bed rest. "He is taking lot of stress due to low TRP of his show," she told Daily Bhaskar. Kapil's co-star Kiku Sharda dismissed reports that the show host is under depression and told Bollywood Life: "Kapil's absence due to his ill-health has fanned stupid speculations. I don't want to comment and fan all this further. We have started shooting for the coming weekend." Kiku Sharda is the only celebrity comedian who continued to be in Team Kapil Sharma after Ali Asgar, Chandan Prabhakar and Sugandha Mishra left the show citing creative differences. Mr Prabhakar recently made a comeback on The Kapil Sharma Show while Ali Asgar will be seen in The Drama Company.

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Avengers Infinity War Comic Con trailer leaked: Guardians meet Thor, Iron Man fights Thanos
Mumbai:MMNN:24 July 2017
The first footage from Avengers: Infinity War, which was debuted on Saturday at the ongoing San Diego Comic Con, has been leaked online. Marvel did not release the footage officially, much to the dismay of those who werent present at their grand unveiling at Hall H at the Convention Centre. Action was swiftly taken against YouTube and Twitter accounts sharing the blurry video, with several of them being taken down. The footage itself is a treat for Marvel fans, finally uniting their vast world on screen. The Guardians of the Galaxy run into Thor, Iron Man battles alongside Star Lord, and Thanos fights Doctor Strange. Photographs taken at the Con also showed new posters for the film, in which a bearded Captain America and a blonde Black Widow look concerned Avengers: Infinity War is scheduled for a My 2018 release. The incredible cast includes Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man), Chris Evans (Captain America), Mark Ruffalo (Hulk), Chris Hemsworth (Thor), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jeremy Renner (Hawkeye), Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther), Tom Holland (Spider-Man), Sebastian Stan (Winter Soldier), Anthony Mackie (Falcon), Paul Rudd (Ant-Man), Paul Bettany (Vision), Elizabeth Olsen (Scarlet Witch), Don Cheadle (War Machine), Brie Larson (Captain Marvel), Josh Brolin (Thanos), Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange), Benedict Wong (Wong), Chris Pratt (Star-Lord), Zoe Saldana (Gamora), Dave Bautista (Drax), Bradley Cooper (Rocket), Sean Gunn (Rocket, Kraglin), Vin Diesel (Groot), Karen Gillan (Nebula), Pom Klementieff (Mantis), Tessa Thompson (Valkyrie), Tom Hiddleston (Loki), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill), Benicio Del Toro (The Collector), Danai Gurira (Okoye), Winston Duke (MBaku) and Peter Dinklage and Terry Notary in as-yet-unrevealed roles.

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Kangana Ranaut writes her own open letter: Can’t compare hybrid racehorses to artistes
Mumbai:MMNN:22 July 2017
Kangana Ranaut has broken her silence on the nepotism debate, which hit the headlines when Karan Johar, Saif Ali Khan and Varun Dhawan brought it up on the IIFA stage, and said she would be “a farmer” if the point about family genes were true. The three stars chanted “nepotism rocks” in New York during the IIFA awards last week and Johar took a swipe at Kangana who had called him “flag bearer of nepotism” on his chat show. While Johar and Varun apologised, Saif claimed in an open letter that he had personally said sorry to her. The debate and exchange of thoughts on nepotism is “exasperating, but is healthy”, Kangana responded, also in an open letter. Quoting a part of her Rangoon co-star’s letter, where he “emphasised” on nepotism being an investment on tried and tested genes, Kangana said, “I have spent a significant part of my life studying genetics. But, I fail to understand how you can compare genetically hybrid racehorses to artistes! “Are you implying that artistic skills, hard-work, experience, concentration spans, enthusiasm, eagerness, discipline and love, can be inherited through family genes? If your point was true, I would be a farmer back home.” While she enjoyed some of the perspectives on this subject, she did find a few of them disturbing, she said. “Saif, in your letter you mentioned that, ‘I apologised to Kangana, and I don’t owe anyone any explanation, and this issue is over.’ But this is not my issue alone. Nepotism is a practice where people tend to act upon temperamental human emotions, rather than intellectual tendencies,” Kangana wrote. The actor said any business run by human emotions and not by great value-systems, might gain superficial profits, but cannot be productive enough to tap into the true potential of a nation. “Nepotism, on many levels, fails the test of objectivity and rationale. “I have acquired these values from the ones who have found great success and discovered a higher truth, much before me. These values are in the public domain, and no one has a copyright on them,” she added, giving examples of greats like Swami Vivekananda, Albert Einstein and William Shakespeare. Kangana said the aim of the conversation started by her was to encourage outsiders; her agenda was not to blame people from the industry. “I think the privileged are the least to be blamed in this debate, since they are part of the system, which is set around chain reactions. Change can only be caused by those who want it. It is the prerogative of the dreamer who learns to take his or her due, and not ask for it.” In response to Johar and his comments on the issue, she said talent does exist beyond the “superficiality of branded clothes, polished accents, and a sanitised upbringing The actress added that many examples of people succeeding on the basis of “genuine hard-work, diligence and eagerness to learn” do exist all over world in every field. “I don’t know if he was being misinformed, or simply naive, but to discredit the likes of Dilip Kumar, K Asif, Bimal Roy, Satyajit Ray, Guru Dutt, and many more, whose talent and exceptional abilities have formed the spine of our contemporary film business, is absolutely bizarre,” Kangana said. The Queen star clarified that she was not fighting with anyone in the industry and her views should not be misconstrued to pit her and Saif against each other. In her opinion, “Nepotism is an extremely pessimistic attitude for a Third World country, where many people don’t have access to food, shelter, clothing, and education.” “The world is not an ideal place, and it might never be. That is why we have the industry of arts. In a way, we are the flag-bearers of hope,” she said, adding that people who feel nepotism works for them are free to make peace with it

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Munna Michael movie review: This Tiger Shroff film makes even Nawazuddin Siddiqui look bad
Mumbai:MMNN:21 July 2017
Everybody, including Tiger Shroff and Nawazuddin Siddiqui, is out of sync in this film. Here’s our movie review. Rating: 1/5 Munna Michael
Cast: Tiger Shroff, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Nidhhi Agerwal
Director: Sabbir Khan
Rating: 1/5
Remember Lena hai, lena hai? A hit song of the 90s from a film titled Bomb Blast. That was the last time we saw Ronit Roy dancing. Here’s the video to remind you of how it looked He shakes a leg again in Munna Michael after almost three decades, and that makes for a promising opening. His character believes Michael (Jackson, of course) lives forever, but getting thrown out of his dancing troupe, wavers his faith in dancing as a profession. So, he takes to drinking. This is what disillusioned artists do in Bollywood. But that’s not all. He then finds an orphan in a dustbin and brings him home. Because this is also what Bollywood does. Like typical Bollywood kids, this one too grows up to become Munna (Tiger Shroff), a super dancer, in one song. His antics and need for money takes him to Delhi where he begins teaching dance steps to Mahinder Fauji (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), a land shark and a closet dancer. Their fine-tuned romance goes for a toss the moment Dolly (Nidhhi Agerwal) enters the frame. Oh, we never saw that coming! Just joking. Now, it’s finally a film where everybody would look disinterested and jump on a chance to break into a song. Why? Because this is what Bollywood does. Some assistant must have reminded Sabbir Khan that the current year is 2017 and the film is looking like the glossier version of the ‘80s movies. So, he brings in the idea of dance face-off and a reality show. How would you fit in Tiger Shroff otherwise? How innovative! Taking a cue from MJ’s signature moonwalking to picking a dialogue from Wong Kar-wai’s Chunking Express, Sabbir Khan keeps trying to infuse Munna with traits that can strike a balance between Delhi and Mumbai. It’s pretty simple math. Base the film in two biggest territories because that is what Bollywood does. He isn’t done yet, but Tiger Shroff can’t bear the pressure anymore, so Sabbir Khan shifts his focus to Nawazuddin, one of the finest of our times, and makes him do one of the most bizarre roles of his lifetime. Hamming his way to Hotel Bluestar, a property he owns in Delhi, Siddiqui probably knows how it is going to look in the end. Still he tries to not seem completely clueless. His efforts go in vein though. It’s sad to see him sleepwalking in Munna Michael after a top-class performance in Mom. Khan’s vision of making Nawazudin Siddiqui acrobats doesn’t help either. You can easily figure out the body doubles. Even if you don’t, background dancers make sure you do. Their close ups are so over the top that you would wander whether they all decided together to look in a certain way? Talking of close ups, the award for most exciting close up goes to Farah Khan who judges a reality show in Munna Michael. Her enthusiasm knows no boundary and every time Tiger Shroff does a summersault, you wait for Farah’s ‘oh my god’ reaction. All this is happening because Dolly wants to make her father proud by becoming an accomplished dancer. By the way, we never meet her father. She announces her arrival with these lines: Hil jaande sab mere naal, jab main shake karaan From UK to Nainital, sab shake karaan. It may sound like a conspiracy theory, but her striking similarity with Kriti Sanon might have prompted Sabbir Khan to cast her. Sanon was the heroine of Khan’s earlier film Heropanti.

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We’ve sold our souls for selfies: Shah Rukh Khan
Mumbai:MMNN:20 July 2017
Talking about the media frenzy around his family, SRK says, “(Being photographed is) the part of stardom that we all have accepted...I think everybody in this day and age is fair game. We’ve sold our souls for selfies. Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan has said his family has considers paparazzi culture a part of their lives and added that his family has sold their souls for photographs. “(Being photographed is) the part of stardom that we all have accepted...I think everybody in this day and age is fair game. We’ve sold our souls for selfies,” Shah Rukh told CNN-News18. Shah Rukh, who is married to Gauri Khan, has three children -- Aryan, Suhana and AbRam. In a video gone viral last month, Suhana, 17, looked helpless and uncomfortable as she tried to hide her face and turns around to escape shutterbugs while she waited for the doors of an elevator to open at a theatre’s basement. “I think the kids started feeling awkward with all the paraphernalia. Every time I go out in a public place, I don’t take them with me. My wife doesn’t come, my children don’t come. I go to functions alone or post they have gone,” Shah Rukh said. To avoid such occasions, Shah Rukh said he made few adjustments for his family. “Some adjustments have to be made - one of them was that I sent them abroad to study. Not because of the scrutiny, but because they were feeling a little awkward with all the attention they have,” Shah Rukh said. “I’m happy they’ve gone. Where they’re studying, to a large extent people don’t know me. (But) I’m Okay with them being photographed. I understand photographs (need) to be taken, I’ve explained it to my kids also that listen, if photographers come, stand, do the picture and say, ‘Please can I go now?’ And they’ll listen to you. I’ve known them for 25 years,” he added Shah Rukh said his children feel that being “photographed doesn’t make you important.” “More often than not they’ll tell me how to behave with the paparazzi. They’ll say, ‘Papa, now don’t lose your temper. There will be too many people.’ I think they’re quite mature about it,” he said.

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Kids’ reality shows: Former child artistes Sunidhi Chauhan, Shekhar Ravjiani weigh in on the debate
Mumbai:MMNN:17 July 2017
Filmmaker Shoojit Sircar’s tweet asking for a ban on kids’ reality shows has caused a furore in the industry. Will it yield any result or will the fire soon die down? From Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Lil Champs to The Voice, Sabse Bada Kalakaar to Junior Masterchef India and Super Dancer, reality shows featuring children are a common feature on Indian television. Last week, filmmaker Shoojit Sircar, known for films like Piku, Pink and Madras Café, tweeted that authorities should ban reality television shows for children. The tweet got close to 12,000 likes and was retweeted over 7,000 times, reigniting a long-standing debate. Other voices joined the debate, including filmmaker Amol Gupte, who worked with child artistes in Taare Zameen Par, and protested against the long working hours and exploitative conditions. Reality shows are sold as platforms to discover and showcase the latent talent of children. Parents and children from differing socio-economic backgrounds are attracted to the idea of a dream launchpad. In India, the success stories of singers Sunidhi Chauhan and Shreya Ghoshal, who were discovered as child artistes on reality shows, are the benchmarks that every parent with a talented child aspires towards. Sunidhi was 13 when she won India’s first singing reality show on Doordarshan, Meri Aawaz Suno. “The year was 1996 and it was pure competition,” reminisces Sunidhi. But her opinion of today’s reality shows is decisive: children are “exposed to so much, so soon”. “I would never want my children to go through this,” says Sunidhi, who has judged contestants on leading singing shows like Indian Idol and The Voice. “I don’t think it’s required for any reality show to make children do things that only older people would do. They don’t need to mature ahead of their age,” she says. In the name of showcasing talent, ‘cuteness’ becomes a saleable factor, blurring the line between precocious and inappropriate. For Shekhar Ravjiani, one half of the music composer duo Vishal-Shekar, and a judge on Indian Idol Junior Season one (2013) and The Voice India Kids (2016), singing show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa back in 1997 was his first break. While he doesn’t advocate an all-out ban, there are concerns. “Some shows encourage children to dress and behave like adults and that to me is jarring,” says Shekhar. “It takes away their purity, simplicity and most importantly their innocence and makes them aware of things that don’t matter at all.” Behind the scenes Reality shows featuring children have been around for a long time, but the pressures involved have changed. When Sunidhi participated in Meri Awaz Suno more than two decades ago, there was no system of vote-and-SMS from the audience. She was judged by legends such as Lata Mangeshkar, Bhupen Hazarika and Manna Dey, and the winners were chosen based on their performances alone. While a reality show was always a full-scale production, on-stage theatrics and appearances were kept to a minimum. “There were no back stories shared with the viewers, it was all about the quality of singing,” says Sunidhi. “Their singing will tell their stories, if they are good.” Back in the 1990s, popular dance show Boogie Woogie and the singing competition Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, both of which started as contests for adults, were introduced in an all-new avatar targeting children. “The idea then was to showcase young and obscure talent,” notes a 2008 article in Mint, “nothing was promised or bequeathed, except the vague idea that once seen, someone, somewhere would maybe sign them on for a minor playback singing role in a movie.” For Shekhar, his reality show stint meant recognition of his talent. “In an era where being a musician wasn’t considered to be a credible career choice, my talent was given the importance that made my family and others sit up and notice,” he says. The focus has shifted. Children on reality shows are not just ‘discovered’ or polished, but are groomed to become versatile artistes who can perform onstage and enthral millions. Meghna Prem, a TV programming and content strategist with an experience of over 20 years in the entertainment industry, says, “Teenage kids are expected to diet to look a certain way, dress a certain way. Because unlike yesteryears, today when you are selecting a reality star, s/he can’t just be a great singer and not be good looking.” When ambition meets pressure Aruna Broota, a Delhi-based psychologist has counselled several professional child actors and child atheletes. According to her, the pressures faced by children on reality shows are no different, perhaps worse. Not only are the participants too young to worry about discovering their ambitions, but are often under pressure from fame-thirsty parents trying to live their dreams vicariously. “The child’s ‘ambitions’ are artificially hyped, because it’s mostly an adult who takes the decision for them,” says Broota. “S/He might have that S-Factor, or the special ability factor, be it in singing, dancing or acting. But when one starts expecting a lot from one’s s-factor in terms of competition, it distorts the personality development of the child.” At an age when all they should be worried about is playing, studying and having fun, children are entangled in a web of competition and stress. This is not the first time that a discussion on the need to regulate child participation in reality shows has come up. In 2011, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) drew up new guidelines to prevent exploitation of children participating in TV shows and advertisements. Over five years have elapsed since the report was released, yet the realities on the ground paint a different, disturbing picture. Under the NCPCR guidelines, no child should be made to deliver lines or enact scenes that are inappropriate for his or her age. Yet, children dancing on raunchy numbers or belting out romantic songs is mined for applause and laughs.

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‘Devdas’ is Shah Rukh Khan favourite film
Mumbai:MMNN:13 July 2017
Mumbai: Superstar Shah Rukh Khan has thanked the cast and crew of “Devdas” to mark 15 years of the release of his “favourite film”. “15 beautiful years ‘Devdas’. Thanks Sanjay, Binod (Cinematographer Binod Pradhan), Bela (editor Bela Sehgal), Madhuri Dixit, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, Kirron Kher and cast and crew for my favourite film,” Shah Rukh tweeted on Thursday morning. Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, “Devdas” revolves around the scion of a wealthy family who is prevented from marrying the woman he is in love with. His life spirals downward as he takes to alcohol and a life of a vice to alleviate the pain. Currently, Shah Rukh is busy promoting his next film “Jab Harry Met Sejal”. The film is directed by Imtiaz Ali and also features actress Anushka Sharma in a key role. Shot is picturesque locations of Budapest, Prague, Lisbon and Punjab, “Jab Harry Met Sejal” is set to release on August 4

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Priyanka Chopra begins work on new Hollywood film, with Liam Hemsworth, Rebel Wilson
Mumbai:MMNN:11 July 2017
After Baywatch, Priyanka Chopra will be seen as a yoga ambassador alongside Rebel Wilson, Liam Hemsworth, Adam Devine in Isn’t It Romantic? The production of the romantic comedy is underway. Principal photography has begun on New Line Cinema’s romantic comedy Isn’t It Romantic?, under the direction of Todd Strauss-Schulson, read a statement. The film follows the life of a New York City architect Natalie, who works hard to get noticed at her job, but is more likely to be asked to deliver coffee and bagels than to design the city’s next skyscraper. She has an encounter with a mugger that renders her unconscious, waking to discover that her life has suddenly become her worst nightmare. Wilson stars as Natalie, alongside Liam Hemsworth as Blake, a handsome client; Adam Devine, as her earnest best friend, Josh; and Priyanka as yoga ambassador Isabella. Strauss-Schulson is helming the project from a screenplay by Erin Cardillo, Dana Fox and Katie Silberman, and Paula Pell. The movie’s filming is taking place in and around New York City. The film is set for release beginning Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2019. It will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros Pictures, a Warner Bros Entertainment Company.

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Watch: Tom Holland reacts to Desi Spider-Man and gets his ‘dil ka chain’ stolen
Mumbai:MMNN:10 Jul 2017
For Indian fans of Spider-Man, the mere mention of the Marvel superhero’s name conjures certain tunes and images in our minds. Desi Spider-Man – with his uninhibited dancing, unique fighting style that utilises utensils, and tendency to stalk his lover in fields – is unforgettable, and unavoidable. And what did an Indian interviewer show Spider-Man star Tom Holland when he met him? Desi Spider-Man. Spider-Man: Homecoming opened to massive box office numbers, and enthusiastic reviews on July 7. On July 5, Comic Con India posted a video interview with Holland, conducted by East India Comedy’s Sahil Shah. Sahil told him about the character’s popularity in India, and how there is an official, Marvel version of the superhero who swings across the Mumbai skyline in a dhoti. But this was all done to prepare Holland for the real deal – the infamous Bhojpuri Spider-Man video. He is justifiably bemused. And then, he his made to recite the evergreen lyrics, “Eespiderman, eespiderman, tune churaya mera dil ka chain.” The video became a popular viral sensation after being viewed millions of times. It is a dance sequence which is a part of a film.

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Salman Khan to shoot with Varun, Taapsee and Jacqueline for Judwaa 2
Mumbai:MMNN:4 Jul 2017
Salman Khan was seen in a double role in the 1997 hit Judwaa. He will make a cameo appearance in Varun Dhawan-Jacqueline Fernandez-Taapsee Pannu-starrer Judwaa 2 Bollywood star Salman Khan is all set to revisit the ’90s with a special cameo in Varun Dhawan-Jacqueline Fernandez-Taapsee Pannu-starrer Judwaa 2. Varun, Taapsee, and Jacqueline will soon be shooting the special cameo with Salman. While his role in the film is still a secret, Taapsee shared her excitement in a press statement on Tuesday. “We are all excited to shoot with him. Something we all have been looking forward to. He’s someone who everyone loved in the original film and is an inseparable part of the franchise and I’m glad he will be part of Judwaa 2 as well,” she said. Varun steps into the iconic double role in the film being directed by David Dhawan. He’s been posting songs from film, including Tan Tana Tan and Oonchi Hain Building, on his social media handles to ensure the buzz around the film doesn’t wane.

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Toilet: Ek Prem Katha gets embroiled in a Copyright issue! Here are all the details!
Mumbai:MMNN:1 Jul 2017
With just a few days remaining for the release of the Akshay Kumar starrer ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’, it’s needless to say that all the eyes are totally glued on to the film. The film, which happens to be a take on India’s Prime Minister’s dream project ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’, recently got itself embroiled in a copyright controversy. Filmmaker Praveen Vyas, whose 2016 docu-feature ‘Manini’, besides winning everyone’s attention and applause, also won the third prize amongst the 4500 entries which were shortlisted at the last year’s International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa. After seeing the trailers of ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’, Praveen Vyas was shell shocked as it resembled his ‘Manini’ in many ways. That’s why; he sent a legal notice to ‘Viacom 18 Motion Pictures’ (who happen to be the film’s production and distribution company) and also a ‘cease and desist’ notice on the promotional campaign of the film. As per a report, on his part, Praveen Vyas had allegedly stated that many scenes and dialogues from ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’ were a direct copy from his Manini. Praveen Vyas added that his film Manini followed the female protagonist and her protests for the lack of a toilet in her marital home on the first night of her marriage and the events which follow that. Praveen Vyas added that, even the scenes in ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’s trailer showed the similar kind of interaction between the characters. Praveen Vyas also added that no one could make any another cinematographic work or any other copied work without his written consent if their work directly resembled his work. Even though Praveen Vyas had sent a legal notice of copyright infringement through his lawyers of the Delhi based ‘Litmus Legal’, the makers of Toilet: Ek Prem Katha responded to that notice through their legal team at ‘Naik Naik & Co.’, only on June 28. Praveen Vyas added that, since the makers of ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’ had denied all their allegations and have also refused to financially reimburse them; they will now be fighting the case in court. Meanwhile, co-producer of ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’ Shital Bhatia along with Neeraj Pandey and Akshay Kumar has denied all of Praveen Vyas’ allegations. Shital clarified that their film’s script had been registered under their writers’ names, Siddharth and Garima, with the authorised industry association since the year 2013. He added that, they totally repudiate all the claims made by Praveen Vyas. Watch this space for developments.

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The Kardashian sisters invited India’s first openly gay prince over, and here’s what happened
Mumbai:MMNN:30 Jun 2017
The Kardashian sisters - Kim, Kendall, Khloe and Kourtney - invited India’s first openly gay prince Manvendra Singh Gohil to dinner for a new episode of their show, and here’s what happened The Kardashian sisters - Kim, Kendall, Khloe and Kourtney - had a special guest in a new episode of their reality show Keeping Up With the Kardashians: India’s first openly gay prince, Manvendra Singh Gohil. Kendall Jenner, who is an international model, first heard of the prince’s story when she visited India in February 2017 for a modelling assignment with photographer Mario Testino. She posed alongside star Sushant Singh Rajput, for Vogue India’s 10th anniversary issue. She told her sisters about the prince, 51, when she returned home, and they put together a dinner for him. “In India,” says Kendall in a clip from the episode, “it is not acceptable to be gay.” She drew similarities between the prince, and her father Caitlyn Jenner, who came out as a transgender woman. “What’s similar between him and my dad is the bravery to take that chance to come out,” she says At the dinner, the sister made an attempt to learn more about the prince, and his story. “My parents publicly disowned me and they disinherited me from the ancestral property,” he says, also talking about how people burnt him in effigy after he came out. And while his relationship with his parents has improved over the years - he credits the media for helping change mindsets - his relationship with his ex-wife, whom he divorced in 1992, is non-existent. “We haven’t spoken since the divorce,” he says. “I felt guilty about ruining her life.” But the prince, who came out in 2006, is working to make a change. He went to San Francisco to raise funds to make an LGBT community centre in India.

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Transformers: The Last Knight movie review - Made with rusty old parts, and Mark Wahlberg
Mumbai:MMNN:29 Jun 2017
Transformers The Last Knight movie review: Director Michael Bay returns for the fifth time, and Mark Wahlberg for the second, to pound your brain into a pulp with wall-to-wall cacophony.
Transformers: The Last Knight
Director - Michael Bay
Cast - Mark Wahlberg, Laura Haddock, Anthony Hopkins, Josh Duhamel, Stanley Tucci, John Goodman
Rating - 1.5/5
There is no worse treatment a movie fan could be subjected to than being made to feel guilty for liking a movie. Millions of fans of the Transformers saga would agree. How often have we been ridiculed for sticking by director Michael Bay’s most extravagant whims, despite knowing, deep down, that his movies were only getting worse. How often have we had to defend his almost fetishistic abuse of pyrotechnics, his blatant sexism, the occasional racism, and that ever-inflating ego which he represents so well in his art… Transformers: The Last Knight, the fifth in this series of films in which giant robots decapitate, sever, and butcher each other in the most violent manner, will be the acid test for fans. It will either be the moment when you slip into full-blown denial, willingly ignoring everything that is wrong with these movies (and with yourself), or, it will be the moment you finally snap out of it (as I have). Full disclosure: It is my opinion that the first Transformers film is a modern action classic, endlessly re-watchable, and filled with memorable characters and moments. It is Michael Bay at his best. I even wrote a long defence of the movie, arguing that it was an excellent example of the sort of film it was, a coming-of-age story disguised, like its hulking heroes, as an action blockbuster. The Last Knight is everything the first movie wasn’t. It is the evil, gloating Megatron to that film’s earnest Optimus Prime. It represents the worst, most self-indulgent, most conceited corners of Michael Bay’s personality, and is, despite not being the worst of the lot (that honour still belongs to Age of Extinction), a monumentally overblown film that constantly threatens to crumble under its own weight – much like an ancient building with a wobbly foundation upon which new floors are illegally added every year. When it all comes crashing down, it will take the neighbourhood with it. Its story picks up soon after the events of Age of Extinction, which, to everyone’s surprise, made us miss Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox, who were – and I maintain – the best parts about the Transformers movies in the first place. But now, after causing more destruction to the planet than even the humans had managed in their thousands of years pillaging its resources, the Transformers have, in the absence of their leader Optimus Prime, once again become the enemy. The world has seemingly turned into the United Nations of Donald Trump, where no immigrants are allowed in, and those that do manage to jump over the wall (or, in this case, crash land in burning fireballs from the sky into important landmarks), are hunted by the Transformer Reaction Force. The TRF is a multinational militia of sorts whose only purpose is to locate and destroy stray Transformers – without determining whether or not they’re the heroic Autobots or the villainous Decepticons. And Cade Yaeger, played for the second time by Mark Wahlberg, has made it his life’s mission to protect the aliens. There is also a labyrinthine subplot involving King Arthur (how unkind has the summer of 2017 been to him, am I right?), Merlin the Wizard, and a bemused Anthony Hopkins, who, in one memorable moment that will no doubt cause much second-hand embarrassment on his behalf, utters the words, “That’s a bitchin’ car”. So much happens in this movie, and yet, we get nowhere. It is a film in perpetual motion; new characters are introduced, and swiftly sidelined; there is, for the second time in the series, after the third film Dark of the Moon, a mini Coen Brothers reunion in the cast; the story spans thousands of years, but it feels like millions; and scenes cut - and not transition - to next one without a firm idea of where the story is headed. Often, it seems, the end goal is only to arrive at the next great action set-piece. The characters – the living ones, at least – are just stepping stones, crushed under the giant robots’ weight. It took six human beings to edit together this heap of rusty scrap metal into a whole, possibly with hammers and screws. It took four people to write it, and thousands to composite its undeniably magnificent special effects, and yet, the one man whose job it was to bring it all together, was busy flexing his muscles and smouldering at his own reflection in the mirror. Michael Bay earned a paycheck, as did the rest of his cast. And there is no more to this story than meets the eye. The Transformers universe is lush, and filled with lore, just waiting for a talented storyteller to come and play with all the toys – just as it was first intended. But Bay is satisfied with repainting an old chassis in glossy new colours, he is happy taking state-of-the-art tech (in this case, revolutionary IMAX 3D cameras), and cranking out the same, tired stories, populated with the same stock characters – the feisty female, the racist robots, the man destined to save the planet, and, of course, this series’ Death Star, Megatron. Now, it is up to them to win us back. No more free passes. No more passionate arguments against strangers. Shamefully, we have now arrived at a time when we must hide our true colours, for fear of being mocked, for being made to feel guilty. Here’s hoping that we wear them with pride sooner rather than later.

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Rajinikanth’s 2.o makers kick-off air balloon promotional drive. See pic
Mumbai:MMNN:28 Jun 2017
While Akshay Kumar will be seen playing an Ornithologist in 2.o, Rajinikanth will be seen as a scientist and a robot. Following the overwhelming response to SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali franchise, makers of superstar Rajinikanth’s 2.o are under high pressure to draw attention with their project. Lyca Productions, the makers of superstar Rajinikanth’s upcoming Tamil science-fiction action drama 2.o, are pushing the envelope as they begin the promotional campaign for the costliest Indian film. As part of the promotions, a hot-air balloon adorned with life-sized images of Rajinikanth and Akshay Kumar will travel around the world. “We plan to take the 100-foot-tall hot-air balloon to as many balloon festivals as possible across the world. Since we see our film as a Hollywood production, we also plan to tie up the balloon over the Hollywood signage in Los Angeles,” Raju Mahalingam, creative head, Lyca Productions told The Hindu. The balloon will fly to many countries such as London, Dubai and Australia among others as part of the promotional drive. On Tuesday, the makers gave audiences the first glimpse of the air-balloon and pictures went viral in no time. Amy Jackson is paired with Rajinikanth, and she is rumoured to be playing a humanoid robot. A sequel to Enthiran, the film also stars Sudhanshu Pandey and Adil Hussain. While Akshay Kumar will be seen playing an Ornithologist, Rajinikanth will be seen as a scientist and a robot. The project is bankrolled by Lyca Productions. The film’s satellite rights across all languages were recently bagged by Zee Network for a whopping Rs 100 crore, making it the highest amount paid for an Indian film. Tipped to be the most expensive Indian film being made on a budget of Rs 450 crore, 2.o is slated for release in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi next year in January in a record number of screens worldwide.

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Jagga Jasoos: After Govinda, now Sanjay Dutt joins Katrina Kaif and Ranbir Kapoor
Mumbai:MMNN:27 Jun 2017
Sanjay Dutt will be the sutradhar (narrator) for Jagga Jasoos that stars Katrina Kaif and Ranbir Kapoor in lead roles. Days after reports that Govinda has a special role in Katrina Kaif-Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Jagga Jasoos, rumours now claim that Sanjay Dutt is also part of the Anurag Basu film. A Mid Day report claimed Sanjay will be the sutradhar (narrator)?in the movie. Ranbir Kapoor had recommended Dutt’s name for the part, it suggested. Jagga Jasoos is a Hindi comedy-drama film directed by Anurag Basu and produced by Basu and the film’s lead actor Ranbir Kapoor. The film also features Sayani Gupta and Adah Sharma in lead roles, and is the story of a teenage detective in search of his missing father. Jagga Jasoos releases on July 14.

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Tubelight movie review: Salman Khan, Kabir Khan come up with a tearjerker
Mumbai:MMNN:23 Jun 2017
Tubelight, as Salman Khan is fondly called in the film, completely plays to Khan’s strength of adapting a Boy Scout onscreen. Here’s our movie review. Rating: 3/5. Tubelight Director: Kabir Khan Cast: Salman Khan, Sohail Khan, Zhu Zhu, Matin Rey Tangu Rating: 3/5 It’s been a while since Salman Khan started playing a clumsy yet golden hearted man-child. He has aced this game by now and Tubelight might be his best shot at it. Laxman Singh Bisht aka Tubelight is the favourite entertainer of Jagatpur in the Kumaon region. He doesn’t mind being bullied, mocked or slapped as he believes in humanity in its purest form. It also works as a tactic that will force the audiences, typically fans, to clap later in the film when he will resort to a ‘little action’.

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Seeti Maar: The next big chartbuster from Allu Arjun’s DJ is here
Mumbai:MMNN:21 Jun 2017
Days before the release of Allu Arjun’s new film DJ, the makers have released a promo to a song Seeti Maar featuring Pooja Hegde and Arjun. Allu Arjun is undoubtedly one of the best dancers in Telugu industry. With his latest outing, DJ aka Duvvada Jagannadham, slated for release in cinemas on Friday, its makers released the glimpse of the hit song Seeti Maar from the film on Tuesday and in no time it went viral. With its catchy lyrics and mass-appealing steps, the song immediately became a chartbuster. Directed by Harish Shankar, the film is tipped to be an action entertainer made on a whopping budget, and it marks the first time collaboration of Arjun and Harish, most popular for directing Gabbar Singh. Industry insiders reveal that the film has come out very well and the makers are very confident about its success. In the film, Arjun plays a brahmin chef, and he apparently took his role so seriously that he gave up eating meat, while shooting the portion where he plays the chef, as he wanted to get under the skin of the character and stay pure. His dedication stunned the entire unit, including his director and co-star Pooja Hegde, who plays his love interest. It’s for the first time in his career, Arjun is playing such a character and he didn’t want anything about it to stick out like a sore thumb.

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Farhan Akhtar’s short film on Vidya Balan has a strong feminist message. Watch the video
Mumbai:MMNN:19 Jun 2017
Farhan Akhtar has made a short film on Vidya Balan and her dad. The film is a sweet but strong message on gender equality Actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar has made a short film on Vidya Balan and her dad under his initiative MARD. Amitabh Bachhchan shared the short film on Sunday. Sharing the film, Amitabh wrote, “A short film on Vidya Balan and her Father, made by Farhan Akhtar .. a moving pertinent strong statement .” The six-minute film shows Vidya’s father PR Balan talk about bringing up two girls in a patriarchal society and how he never prayed for a son. Vidya Balan also enters the frame and reveals how supportive her dad has been throughout. The duo also discuss The Dirty Picture, the film that got Vidya Balan her National Award. The short film is both encouraging and sweet. Watch it here:

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Jagga Jasoos: Can Anurag Basu and Ranbir Kapoor repeat the magic of Barfi?
Mumbai:MMNN:15 Jun 2017
Anurag Basu gave Ranbir Kapoor a challenging role in Barfi and the actor passed the test with flying colours. The Sultan of Bollywood did just that as he returned from Mehboob Studios on Tuesday night. He was accompanied by filmmaker Ramesh Taurani. Director Anurag Basu has wished his frequent collaborator, Pritam Chakraborty, on his birthday and said the music composer is one of greatest strengths behind his movies. Pritam turned 46 on June 14.

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Salman Khan ditches his SUV for an auto rickshaw ride
Mumbai:MMNN:14 Jun 2017
The Sultan of Bollywood did just that as he returned from Mehboob Studios on Tuesday night. He was accompanied by filmmaker Ramesh Taurani. It’s not everyday that one would find superstar Salman Khan hopping into an auto rickshaw to take a breezy ride back home. The Sultan of Bollywood did just that as he returned from Mehboob Studios on Tuesday night. He was accompanied by filmmaker Ramesh Taurani.

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Sunil Grover, Ali Asgar to return on screen together, but not for Kapil Sharma show?
Mumbai:MMNN:18 April 2017
The fans of The Kapil Sharma Show have been eagerly waiting to see ace-comedians Kapil Sharma, Sunil Grover, Ali Asgar and Chandan Prabhakar in the same frame ever since their infamous mid-air fight left the team in chaos. Sunil, Ali and Chandan have so far chosen to maintain a safe distance from Kapil and his show. The trio has not spoken to Kapil and has also not turned up for the shoot even for a single episode. As a result, the comedy show has witnessed a drastic drop in its ratings leaving it out of the race of the top ten television shows. In fact, Kapil's new line-up of comedians has also failed to bring back the much-needed humour and life to the show.
But bound by a contract with channel Sony, Ali Asgar, Sunil Grover and Chandan Prabhakar have to abide by its demands till the day it ends. Probably this is the reason that will bring back, if not all of them, but at least Ali Asgar and Sunil Grover in the same frame. The two will be tickling the funny bone of the audiences in this week's episode of reality show Sabse Bada Kalakar which is being judged by Raveena Tandon, Arshad Warsi, and Boman Irani. According to a report in DNA, Sunil and Ali will shoot for an episode of Sabse Bada Kalakaar to live up to their work commitments with the channel. Though indianexpress.com could not individually verify the news.
Now, whether Ali and Sunil will appear in their Kapil Sharma show avatars of Nani and Doctor Mashoor Gulati respectively, or will it be completely new characters, is still unknown. If we go by the recent stint of Sunil on other shows and the feedback it got. then the duo will have to go an extra mile to beat the ratings of The Kapil Sharma Show, which Sunil failed to do the last time, during his appearance on the Indian Idol 9 grand finale.
Earlier in the day, Sunil Grover also made it clear that he will not be returning to Kapil's show when veteran actor Rishi Kapoor urged both him and Kapil to get back together. Also, he has been posting several cryptic posts on Instagram ever since his fight with Kapil took place over a month back.

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Judwaa 2: Varun Dhawan grooves with students at London University
Mumbai :MMNN:18 April 2017
Varun Dhawan, who is currently abroad shooting for the reprised version of song Oonchi Hai Building for Judwaa 2, is having a gala time grooving with students at London University.
The team recently flew to London for the film's shoot and the makers are currently filming the iconic track from 1997 Salman Khan, Karisma Kapoor- starrer.
While shooting the song, many students from the university have been stopping by and grooving along with Varun Dhawan and Taapsee Pannu, who will be seen performing to this track.
A source said, "Varun's affable nature allows him to bond with students easily. Over the weekend, a bunch of his fans had come to meet him and he was a thorough gentleman with them."
The song is being recreated by none other than Anu Malik and choreographed by Bosco.
Directed by David Dhawan and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, Judwaa 2 is set to release on September 29.

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Is Sunil Grover hinting at Kapil Sharma with his latest 'shoe' picture on Instagram?
Mumbai:MMNN:11 April 2017
It's been quite a few weeks since Kapil Sharma allegedly abused and misbehaved with comedian Sunil Grover, even hurling a shoe at him on a Melbourne-Mumbai flight. However, the controversy around the two seems never ending. Adding fuel to the fire is Sunil's latest picture on photo sharing app, Instagram.
Captioned 'Shoe Size US 10', Sunil can be seen wearing heavy boots. The timing of the picture is such that it might make anyone wonder if it is a hint thrown at friend-turned-foe Kapil Sharma, who was accused of hurling a shoe at Sunil during their fight.
While Sunil continues to boycott 'The Kapil Sharma Show' and is unlikely to return, there are reports that he might just come back with his own show with comedian Chandan Prabhakar, who played 'Chandu Chaiwala' on TKSS.
Talking about the same, a source had told The Times Of India, "Talks are on and several meetings have taken place, but Sunil is biding his time. He is getting offers from other channels too. He would be happy to take Chandan Prabhakar along as well. Chandan was also treated badly by Kapil on the same flight, which is why he too left the show."

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Kangana Ranaut responds to sexual harassment allegations against Queen director Vikas Bahl
Mumbai :MMNN:11 April 2017
Kangana Ranaut, the star of Queen, the film directed by Vikas Bahl who was recently accused of sexual harassment, has finally opened up about the controversy surrounding her director.
A few days ago, Vikas Bahl was accused of molestation by a female employee of Phantom Films, the production company owned by Bahl, Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane and Madhu Mantena. The news sent shock-waves through the film industry just weeks after The Viral Fever (TVF) CEO Arunabh Kumar was accused of sexual harassment by multiple women who have previously worked with the company.
Vikas Bahl, on his part, has denied the allegations and has said that he has known the accuser for a long time. The woman, Vikas added, is his friend and she never looked uncomfortable around him.
"I have heard about this particular lady you are speaking about and the Goa incident. She is not my employee. Yes, I am friends with her, we have worked together and there is a production job we have done together... but if she is feeling like this I would like to sit across a table from her and talk to her. I want to ask her if I have crossed a line, whether I have done anything to hurt her and if she feels that way I would like to apologise for it. I have known her for long," Bahl recently told Mumbai Mirror.
Now, at an event when Kanagana Ranaut was asked about her Queen director Vikas Bahl and the allegations against him, she said, "It's a very serious issue. I can only say that it is very courageous of a woman to come out and speak about sexual harassment. It's not regarding this particular event, because I am not the party involved, but generally speaking, women who face this should be encouraged to talk about it by their families and their colleagues without feeling ashamed about it."Noticeably, Kangana Ranaut refrained from commenting on Vikas Bahl even though she did acknowledge the seriousness of sexual harassment and considered it a matter of courage to come out and talk about being harassed in the open.
"More women should come out and talk about whatever they feel because that's how there will be awareness about these issues and of course, there will always be another side of the story as well and then there will be the authorities, who can decide what is the right thing to do. But people should speak up about whatever they feel, whether they are right or wrong, they must speak up and discuss," Kangana added.
On the work front, Kangana Ranaut was recently seen in Vishal Bhardwaj's Rangoon. She will be seen next in Hansal Mehta's Simran and has currently begun training her upcoming movie Manikarnika, based on the life of Rani Laxmibai.

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Sunil Grover and Kapil Sharma, you have no future without each other, it is time to patch-up
Mumbai:MMNN:4 April 2017
Sunil Grover and Kapil Sharma are like yin and yang, they complement each other. If Sunil Grover is the heart, Kapil Sharma is the soul of The Kapil Sharma Show. By no means is it a one-man show. And if The Kapil Sharma Show is witnessing a major dip in its TRPs, Sunil Grover’s solo gigs also fail to hit that comic spot which their jugalbandi always manages to do.
So, if Sunil Grover leaves the comedy show, the brunt will be borne by not only the channel and the fans of the show but also by Kapil and Sunil equally. This we can say with full confidence after attending Dr. Mashoor Gulati Comedy Clinic in Delhi and watching the finale of the singing reality show, Indian Idol 9.
Though Sunil’s live gig got a full house at Delhi’s Talkatora Stadium, the laughter dose was not strong enough to convince the audience that the funnyman can pull off a stand-alone show. He repeated punchlines and there were portions which were a drag. You know what we missed as he came on the stage as Dr Mashoor Gulati, Rinku Bhabhi and even Gutthi? Kapil Sharma! The host of the show used to set the base for Sunil’s acts, just as Sunil would make those moments shine when he was on stage.
Meanwhile, Sunil Grover, who seems to have made up his mind on not returning to the shoot of Kapil Sharma show, is content with his live gigs for the time being. He is also happy with the love and support being showered upon him by his fans. Post his Delhi show, the actor-comedian told the reporters, “I am overwhelmed with everyone’s love and support. I want to thank them for taking out time for our show. I feel that love is ultimate because everything comes and goes but love will remain forever.” Also, Sunil is planning to go ahead with his live shows as he believes, “There is a lot to be explored in the live medium.”
But we wish that the reality soon dawns upon both Sunil and Kapil and the comedians realise each other’s worth. And if nothing else, the actor-comedians must revisit the past when Comedy Nights with Kapil, which used to air on Colors, faced a drop in ratings after Sunil walked out of it and Sunil’s solo show Mad in India failed to take off.

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Parineeti Chopra: Had a non-romantic childhood
Mumbai :MMNN:4 April 2017
Actress Parineeti Chopra said she was a studious and disciplined girl as a kid and had a very "non-romantic" childhood.
The actress will be seen playing an outgoing girl in 'Meri Pyaari Bindu' which features Ayushmann Khurrana as Abhi. "I had a very non-romantic, non-love life childhood. I was a very studious person, very different from Bindu. I was very much like Abhi, disciplined and studious child," Parineeti said.
The Akshay Roy-directed film will see the actress returning to the big screen after a gap of nearly two years and Parineeti said the break helped her introspect about her life.
"The break came at a very important time in my life. I was going through some transformations in both personal and professional life. Before that I worked straight for three years. I felt bogged out. It was important for me to introspect about my life, do better work, look better and feel better.
I got a house. So, a lot of things were happening and ended up not shooting for eight-nine months. Now, I feel I am doing my best work. I am putting everything that I have. I am sleeping better and have a lot of stamina now. I just feel healthier to do better work," she added.
Ayushmann said the film is different from his 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha' and is more nostalgic in its approach. "In 'Dum Laga Ke Haisha', we had touched the 90s, there was this small arch about the music but this is all about nostalgia. We love nostalgia, we live in the past. I think that's a very Indian thing to do. Wherever we go, we listen to the old songs. The new ones come and go but the old stays," he said.

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Sonakshi Sinha's 'Noor' to release in Pakistan
Mumbai:MMNN:7 March 2017
Actress Sonakshi Sinha starrer 'Noor', which is based on Pakistani author Saba Imtiaz's novel 'Karachi, You're Killing Me', will release in Pakistan.
When asked if 'Noor' will have a release across the border, producer Bhushan Kumar said, "Yes, we are releasing the film in Pakistan." The Sunhil Sippy-directed film follows journalist-writer Noor's misadventures and love life as she navigates her way through Mumbai.
The setting of the movie has been changed from Karachi to Mumbai and the director says it was meant to be like that as the team worked hard to adapt the book into Indian setting.
"The book was really just the germ of the idea. We took those characters and adapted it to Mumbai. There is no link at all between the two, it's just the germ of the idea," Sippy says.
Sonakshi says her respect for journalists has grown after playing one in the movie. "I have tremendous respect for journalists. It is not easy being a journalist and especially the way you all work. I really respect that. Noor is also one of you."
"As celebrities we don't know in detail what journalists go through. While doing the film, I realised the kind of work journalists do." 'Noor' is scheduled to release on April 21.

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The Kapil Sharma Show: Alia Bhatt is Dr Mashoor Gulati's Dulhaniyas
Mumbai :MMNN:7 March 2017
The Kapil Sharma Show on Saturday has Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan of Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya as special guests.
Kapil's nani aka Ali Asgar brought Rishta for Alia and it was none other than Dr. Mashoor Gulati.
Unlike all the grooms, Dr. Gulati came on a donkey to take away his Dulhaniya. But Dulhan Alia had some other plans and sneaked out on the pretext of returning dressed as a bride.
And a happy Dr. Gulati is seen dancing on 'Tamma Tamma' and is joined by Varun Dhawan dressed as a bride.
Varun made fun of Dr. Gulati and everyone including Navjot Singh Sidhu was in splits.
Alia and Varun had some fun with Kapil Sharma as he asked them questions about the shoot. And then the trio started decoding the Tamma Tamma song.
And then Kapil revealed how he had failed in Maths and how good he was in English. Alia, Varun and the audience couldn't contain their laughter.
Alia revealed Varun's secrets, how he forgets lines.
Next came Bumper dressed as a bride but she revealed how she has married Varun Dhawan. And her banter continued with Kapil Sharma.
Kapil and Alia also sang the famous 'Tainu Samjhawan ki' and later Kapil also sang a few lines of 'Tere Bina nahi lagda Dil Mera dholna'.
Then came the famous band-Bhabhi duo Santosh and Rinku. Santosh gave her heart to Varun.
The show ended with a performance by Alia and Varun on the title track from their movie 'Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya'.
Keep watching this space for all the updates of The Kapil Sharma Show.

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Rangoon review: Saif-Kangana-Shahid's film has got grandeur and glamour but little else
Mumbai:MMNN:24 Feb. 2017
Bloody hell! Another Hindi release with the national anthem playing not once but thrice. If this is the frequency at which Rabindranath Tagore's creation would be played in a Hindi film, Tagore's kin should contemplate seeking royalties of some sort. How about donations to Shantiniketan?
From the conflict in Kashmir, Vishal Bhardwaj gives Bard a break to look at love in times of Indian freedom struggle. It's 1943 and the shayari and classical music-loving British major general David Harding (Richard Mccabe) wants Parsi movie producer Russi Billimoria (Saif Ali Khan) to send his studio's popular action heroine Julia (Kangana Ranaut) to the Indo-Burma border to entertain and motivate the Indian soldiers who are fighting against both the Japanese forces as well as their own countrymen in members of Subhash Chandra Bose's Indian National Army. Billimoria agrees but also never seeks permission of his "kiddo", a term which speaks volumes of their equation - he the master, she his pet.
It ends up being a bad move for once away from Bombay Julia loses her heart to Nawab Malik (Shahid Kapoor), a soldier who has been employed to be her bodyguard. A journey into the beatific wilderness, one involving leeches, sake and a mud fight, brings the patriotic soldier and the childish stuntwoman closer. Soon love joins fight for independence in the air.
Set against the backdrop of World War II and the contentious Indian freedom struggle movement spearheaded by Bose's rebel army, Rangoon joins the bandwagon that no love is bigger than that for one's country. But the love triangle here is surprisingly half-baked, the conflict never seeming dramatic. Far too many plot contrivances and listless songs, rare for a Bhardwaj film, don't help Rangoon. It doesn't take a genius to figure that there is more to Nawab than merely being Kevin Costner to Ranaut's Whitney Houston. One of the better etched characters of the film, Kapoor fits well into the part of a man whose loyalty is unwavering. Bhardwaj does well to look at the relationship dynamics between Billimoria and Julia, a stuntwoman who the makers want us to know is NOT based on 1930s-40s darling daredevil Nadia; though her attire and actions suggest otherwise.
Julia is a bit of a mystery. On one end she is shown as a feisty woman capable of fighting her own battles, on the other she seems strangely vulnerable whenever Malik is around.
There is also the naive pretty woman act which works only in the amusing lost in translation exchange she has with a Japanese prisoner of war. Ranaut channels all her enthusiasm but is limited by a weak character arc. More interesting is Billimoria, an erstwhile action hero whose career is cut short by a dangerous stunt. Khan as the dominating then jilted lover fits well. In one of the few noteworthy sequences, Russi and Julia indulge in a fierce sword fight on stage in which he unleashes his fury for her betrayal. Bhardwaj who has a knack for creating impressionable supporting characters this time around disappoints, despite having talented theatre actors such as Atul Kumar and Puja Sarup at his disposal.
At two hours and forty seven minutes, Rangoon doesn't satisfy either as a period love story or a rousing drama about India's fight for independence. Working on a big canvas, Bhardwaj has enough grandeur and glamour (the sets and costumes are striking) but is short on an engaging narrative. The overblown and protracted climax, with a touch of Tarantino thrown in, makes one giggle. And no it's not Bhardwaj flashing his sardonic humour card which he does rarely here. The filmmaker does seem short on ideas as evident in how often Julia uses the phrase "Bloody Hell". By the end of Rangoon, viewers are likely to use it to sum up the film.

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Sara Ali Khan gives a thumbs down to Karan Johar's Student Of The Year 2?
Mumbai :MMNN:24 Feb. 2017
Sara Ali Khan is being choosy about her maiden Bollywood project. While Karan Johar has taken the star kid under his wing, the 21-year-old is not letting KJo take all the calls.
And the latest buzz is that Sara has given a thumbs down to Dharma Productions' SOTY 2. While rumours were doing the rounds that Sara has been signed opposite Tiger Shroff for the sequel, seems like this is not happening.
According to a report in Miss Malini, Sara is not keen on doing a two-heroine film, and wants to be launched as a solo heroine. A source close to Dharma Productions was quoted as telling the website, "Sara will make her debut only in a solo-heroine film. Because of all the media pressure, Karan is getting very anxious about Sara's debut. He has taken on the responsibility of introducing her. And he wants Sara to be as successful as his other Student Of The Year debutante Alia Bhatt. The correct vehicle for Sara's debut is awaited."
Earlier, the reports of Saif being unhappy with Sara's debut with Dharma Productions went viral. But the Rangoon actor rubbished the rumours, saying that he was happy that his daughter was making her debut in a Karan Johar film. And this statement somehow "confirmed" the news that Sara will be seen in SOTY 2.
But the source has a different story to tell. "Saif has done no such thing. Saif only said that his daughter Sara will make her debut in a Dharma film. That's a fact. Saif didn't say anything about Student Of The Year 2. Karan Johar has taken on himself the task of introducing Sara to the silver screen. During the last one year, Karan has offered Sara every Dharma production including Karan Malhotra's comedy with Hrithik Roshan (which has now been shelved) and Student Of The Year 2."
Her debut has been kept under the wraps for quite some time. We need to wait and watch when the official announcement happens.

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‘Jagga Jasoos’ trailer: Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif strap on for a bumpy ride
Mumbai:MMNN:20 Dec. 2016
Strap on your seatbelts because it is going to get bumpy! The first trailer of Anurag Basu's 'Jagga Jasoos' starring Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, finally dropped online on Tuesday and must say, it was worth the long and excruciating 2-year wait.
The film, touted to be a musical, has its 2.44-minute clip starting off with its leading man Ranbir beatboxing before hitting the high notes with an acapella tune.
Although the trailer does little to shed light on the film's plot, it takes fans on a breathtaking journey across lush green hill tops, to the African savannas, to well-guarded military base camps and corn fields.
The clip does give us a glimpse into Jagga's childhood, that sees him watch helplesly as his father walks away, cut to his adulthood where he is still presumably awaiting his return. Katrina's character joins Jagga on his quest, but the short video gives us very little to reason with.
In what just might be a first of its kind, the trailer manages to pique your interest with just musical notes leading you on and absolutely no dialogue between the leading pair.
The clip ends on an adorable note with Ranbir trying his luck and kissing Katrina in her sleep. However, on being caught before the act, he decides to borrow some of her lip gloss saying, "Phat gaye thhe hont."
'Jagga Jasoos' hits theatres on 7th April, 2017.

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Bigg Boss 10, 19th December 2016 written update: Mona, Bani and Gaurav get nominated for eliminations
Mumbai :MMNN:20 Dec. 2016
Gaurav Chopra and Bani get into a spat. She says that she thought he came to apologize to her but in return he is showing attitude. She asks why he protected Mona from eliminations. He replies that he did what he felt was right.
Mona cries and appeals to the audience that she wants to come out of the house. Manu is seen talking to Lopa and Rohan about Manveer. He says that Nitibha is not letting him get involved with others in the house. He says that Nitibha is very cunning and that he saw Manveer telling Nitibha that they are the only commoners left in the show and they will survive till the end.
Next morning, Nitibha announces three most trending contestants of the house and they are Manveer, Mona and Rohan. These contestants get an opportunity to see the trending clips related to them. Manveer sees the clip of Bani where she is telling Gaurav about Manveer and Mona’s closeness. Manveer gets pissed off and goes to Bani and Gaurav for clarifications. Manveer and Manu fight with Bani and Gaurav by saying that they pretend to be broad minded people, when they are not. Manu confronts Bani that if she can hug Jason then why Mona can’t talk to her brother Manveer. Mona after listening all this, asks Gaurav to take a stand but Gaurav denies. Monalisa breaks down and Manu feels bad for her.
Next, Mona watches her boyfriend’s clip when he came on the show and spoke Salman Khan. Mona feels bad about it and cries. Manu threatens Swami Om. He also accuses Priyanka Jagga for siding with Swami.
The nomination process begins. Bigg Boss gives a special power to Lopamdura Raut, that whoever she names will directly get nominated. She nominates Bani.
Rohan Mehra nominates Priyanka Jagga for being rudeness, and Mona Lisa for knowing her enough. Manu nominates Priyanka Jagga. Gaurav Chopra nominates Mona Lisa calling her illogical and sensitive and Nitibha because she interferes in every matter.
Bani nominates Manu for poking his nose in every matter, and Mona Lisa for being too sensitive. Nitibha nominates Gaurav for being too game oriented, and Mona Lisa for being unaware about the game. Mona nominates Priyanka for supporting Swami, and Gaurav for being two-faced. Priyanka nominates Nitibha and Mona just because she does not like them. Bani J, Mona Lisa and Gaurav are finally nominated. Bani J and Gaurav Chopra apologize to Mona Lisa and Manveer Gurjar.
At the night, Priyanka Jagga is bitching about Mona-Manveer-Manu to Nitibha. She says that now Mona knows everything, she should stay away from Manveer and Manu. Bani J says even she is in a relationship and hence knows her boundaries on the show.

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'Jolly LLB 2' poster out! Here's when the trailer of Akshay Kumar starrer will be unveiled
Mumbai:MMNN:16 Dec. 2016
Akshay Kumar, who stars in the sequel to the Arshad Warsi starrer Jolly LLB, has tweeted the second official poster of Jolly LLB 2.
The poster clearly tells us that it's going to be "The State vs Jolly LLB 2" in the flick.
Furthermore, the poster also gives out the information that the trailer of the film will be out on December 9 at 11 AM.
The film, which also stars Huma Qureshi, Annu Kapoor and Saurabh Shukla is slated to release on 10th February, 2017.
In the second poster Akshay Kumar is seen coming out of a district court, dressed as a lawyer, holding a number of files in one hand and a lunch box in the other.

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Wajah Tum Ho movie review: No ‘Wajah’ to give this film a try
Mumbai :MMNN:16 Dec. 2016
Directed by Vishal Pandya, Wajah Tum Ho is one of those films which will leave you wondering what it was by the time you finish watching it. The film is a stale cocktail of lust, betrayal, revenge and vengeance. Barring Sharman Joshi, no one seems to be even trying to act. Wajah Tum Ho could have been a better film on cyber crime but by the time the film picks up pace, it is too late.
The story begins with the mysterious murder of ACP and its telecast on the nation’s biggest television network Global Times Network (GTN). Kabir Deshmukh (Sharman Joshi), an honest Mumbai cop, starts his investigation and accuses Rahul Oberoi (Rajneish Duggall), CEO of GTN for the murder. Siya (Sana Khan), Rahul’s legal advisor assures of his safety but Kabir is adamant about proving Rahul guilty in court. Lawyer Ranvir Bajaj (Gurmeet Choudhary helps Kabir in sending Rahul Oberoi behind bars. But is Rahul actually guilty of murdering ACP or is someone else using his channel to destroy him? This is what Wajah Tum Ho is all about.
Despite the steamy sequences which have the characters clad in satin lingerie in the trailer, the film doesn’t have a lot of skin show. Except for its abrupt songs, Wajah Tum Ho has nothing sleazy to offer. The film was wrongly marketed as erotica and the songs have been used a promotional tool to pull the audiences to the theatres. Zarine Khan (Mahi Ve) and Sherlyn Chopra (Dil Main Chupa Loonga) try enough to woo the viewers by undressing themselves but one can’t help but laugh at the pointlessness of their actions in most of the scenes. There’s a scene in which Sana confronts Sherlyn and soon after the latter shows off her assets in a swimming pool which will make you cringe.
The acting by the lead cast is a yawn fest. Just one-film-old Sana Khan, leaves you infuriated with her dreadful facial expressions. It also looks like Zarine Khan and Sherlyn Chopra (guest appearances) are sailing in the same boat. After debuting with Jai Ho opposite Salman Khan where she hardly acted, Sana seems to be way off the mark. Her glamorous dialogue delivery style especially in the intense scenes turns out to be comical. Gurmeet Choudhary and Rajneish Duggal are terrible. They really need to join some acting school.
Sharman Joshi is the only saving grace in the film and somewhat lives up to expectations. There are unnecessary songs in the film which have no sync with the narrative of the story except the romantic songs featuring Sana and Gurmeet.
Wajah Tum Ho has so many twists that after a while you start recollecting director Vishal Pandya's previous Hate Story franchise. The plot of Wajah Tum Ho is complex but the way it is executed is laughable. Once the film is on the verge of unfolding the truth, you are bound to feel that the film is a C-grade version of Hate Story franchise.
Cinematography by Prakash Kutty is average and the film looks cheap to the core. The recreation of cult songs Pal Pal Dil Ke Pass and Aise Na Mujhe Tum Dekho will depress you. The reviewer feels that there is not a single ‘Wajah’ to watch Wajah Tum Ho this weekend.

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‘Befikre’ box office collection Day 4: Ranveer-Vaani’s film witnessed a significant dip
Mumbai:MMNN:13 Dec. 2016
Aditya Chopra's romantic comedy 'Befikre,' which stars Ranveer Singh and Vaani Kapoor in the lead roles, witnessed a significant drop in its collections post the opening weekend.
The film, after collecting Rs 34.25 Cr in the first weekend, added Rs 5 Cr more to its kitty on Monday.
The drop from Friday when the film collected Rs 10.25 Cr, was almost 50 percent.
It could have been a little higher but since Monday was a holiday on the account of Eid-E-Milad, the film managed to earn a considerable amount. After a four-day run, the total collections of 'Befikre' now stand at Rs 39.25 Cr.
Day 1 Rs 10.25 crore
Day 2 Rs 11.50 crore
Day 3 Rs 12.50 crore
Day 4 Rs 5 crore

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Sara Ali Khan to make her Bollywood debut opposite Hrithik Roshan?
Mumbai :MMNN:13 Dec. 2016
It's been a few months since the news of Sara Ali Khan's big Bollywood debut has kept the fans and netizens confused. From SOTY 2 to an adaptation of Fault In Our Stars opposite Ishaan Khattar, Sara has been linked to many projects as her big Bollywood launchpad. But it seems that all of them were just rumours as the biggest Bollywood scoop is here.
Saif Ali Khan and Amrita Singh's 24-year-old daughter will make her debut opposite none other than Hrithik Roshan. According to a report in Mumbai Mirror, Sara will share screen space with Hrithik for her first Bollywood venture. Earlier, there were reports that she has bowed out of Karan Johar's film due to differences between her mom Amrita and KJo. But that's all in the past now. Directed by Karan Malhotra, the film is said to be a comedy-drama, and will be produced by Karan Johar.
A source was quoted as telling the daily, "She is back on-board, but with a bigger and better project, after the differences have been ironed out. She will be the leading lady of Karan Malhotra’s comedy film, a first-of-it's-kind journey."
Earlier, KJo, Hrithik and Karan Malhotra were to reunite for Shuddhi, but the film got shelved. However, the trio have come together for another big project. And the makers will soon make an official announcement.
"Malhotra and KJo have already worked on another script – a high budget comedy-drama which has been written by Malhotra. Now, with their leading pair on board, they’re ready to roll in March 2017," added the source.
Hrithik, on the other hand, is currently awaiting the release of his film Kaabil opposite Yami Gautam.

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Befikre Movie Review: Ranveer Singh, Vaani Kapoor's Chemistry Is Middling At Best
Mumbai:MMNN:9 Dec. 2016
A not-so-shudh desi romance, Befikre is posited as an extravagant ode to the adventures of unfettered youth. The film plays out mostly on touristy locations in the French capital and on sundry dance floors and nightclubs.
But are its pretty frames and foot-tapping songs worth the price of a multiplex ticket? Well, depends entirely on what one is seeking from a weekend watch.
Produced, written and directed by Aditya Chopra, the free-wheeling tale of lust and love gets buried under a crushing bulk of badinage that eventually yields no more than layers of surface gloss: nice to behold but flimsy in the main.
There is no denying that Befikre is beautifully staged and lensed. So, no matter how insubstantial the film is as an exploration of physical passion and its pitfalls, there is no reason to believe that it wouldn't be crowd-pleasing.
The film ends by exhorting the audience to "kiss free, love free, live free" while it seems to suggest that marriage is akin to jumping off a cliff into the sea.
But not to worry, the message that Befikre transmits is: if love is strong enough, you will float. If it isn't, you plunge into the unknown. The corollary: "love is life".
And that takes us right back to the motto of Yash Chopra's romantic dramas. So, all things considered, Befikre isn't as radical as might seem at first glance.
The script gives the currently high-flying Ranveer Singh all the opportunity he needs to give full rein to the natural ham in him.
As a carefree youngster who flips for every girl he sets his eyes on, the excess-prone actor makes the most of the role, going to the extent of flashing his derriere in one blink-and-miss moment sprung upon us out of the blue.
Although Ranveer's chemistry with the statuesque Vaani Kapoor is middling at best, the two leads deliver passable performances.
Unfortunately, Befikre has no plot worth the name to lift the emotional tug-of-war between the protagonists out of the morass of monotony.
The young couple hook up, break up and hook up again for reasons that are as slight as they are arbitrary. Flow along with the tide of unreason, and you might actually enjoy stretches of this whimsical stop-go ride.
The two lead characters want to come across as cool, modern, broad-minded, non-judgmental individuals, but neither stops short of calling each other names in a crunch.
Shyra is dead against the mushy kind of love that Hindi films propagate. So she isn't one to go gaga over her dishy boyfriend. On his part, Dharam, if not overly commitment-phobic, is happy just being a good friend.
So Befikre is a love story with a slight difference. If only it had more story and less love, it might have been a much better and more rounded film.
In the city of love, a stand-up comic from Delhi, Dharma Gulati (Ranveer), who has relocated to help liven up his friend's struggling bar frequented by desi loners, takes a shine to a Parisian walking tour guide Shyra Gill (Vaani).
The couple throws caution to the wind and begins a no-strings attached live-in relationship even as the girl's conservative Punjabi chef-parents silently frown upon the fling.
But it isn't the parents who pose the deal-breaking problems. Dharam and Shyra have no dearth of personal and emotional issues to deal with. This of course isn't Jaipur, where the Jaideep Sahni-scripted Shudh Desi Romance (which Adi Chopra produced and had Vaani Kapoor is a key on-screen role) was set.
This is Paris, where couples would once put padlocks on the railings of Pont de Arts and threw away the keys in the belief that it would lend longevity to a relationship.
Here, couples do not hold back when passion beckons, a fact acknowledged in the opening-credits song celebrating the act of kissing.
The kisses are countless in Befikre. They do no real harm to the flow of the film. The misses are far fewer in number, but the damage they do is infinitely bigger.
Especially disappointing is the film's bizarre climax, which dangles aimlessly between romantic drollery and outright absurdity.
Cinematographer Kaname Onoyama, who recently shot the Leos Carax documentary Mr. X, does a fine job of capturing the many charms of Paris.
One sequence that stands out for its camerawork is a long single take that captures an emotionally charged scene between the lead pair in which one of them feels ditched and hits back with a decision that smacks of recklessness.
The romantic romp looks good while it lasts, but it gives the audience little by way of takeaways. Befikre has shades of Tamasha (without the narrative layers), a film in which what happened in Corsica was meant to stay in Corsica.
In Befikre, what happens in Paris shouldn't have strayed beyond the main square of the Louvre. The film goes much further afield in search of true love and loses its way. If you dig that feeling, Befikre might be right up your boulevard.

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Akshaye Khanna to play Sunil Dutt in Hirani's Sanjay biopic
Mumbai :MMNN:9 Dec. 2016
For the last few weeks speculations have been rife about who would play Sunil Dutt in the Rajkumar Hirani-directed Sanjay Dutt biopic top- lined by Ranbir Kapoor. While many names have been doing the rounds, Mirror has learnt that the ball has stopped in Akshaye Khanna's court.
The 41-year-old actor, who is looking fit and fab, is the top contender for the role of the late actor-politician.
Akshaye returned from a four year hiatus earlier this year as the antagonist in Rohit Dhawan's 'Dishoom', also featuring John Abraham and Varun Dhawan. He was last seen in Rumi Jaffery's 2012 comedy 'Gali Gali Chor Hai' and has been shooting for Boney Kapoor's next production, the tentatively titled 'Mom' with Sridevi and Nawazuddin Siddiqui.
Speaking to Mirror (July 22) earlier about his self-imposed hiatus, Akshaye had admitting to feeling suffocated--creatively stifled--as acting is the only thing he knows or wants to do.
"Once I was in front of the camera, I felt like I was able to breathe again, there was a sense of belonging," he asserted, adding that once he was ready to get back, it took him a while to zero in on the right project because he was worried he might have got a little rusty in the interim. And so he has decided that the first couple of films should not rest on his shoulders alone.
"I wanted to test the waters before taking on bigger roles. I had to earn my stripes again, after being away for four years. I had to start from scratch like any newcomer," he had reasoned, going on to praise today's newcomers, from Arjun Kapoor and Varun Dhawan to Tiger Shroff, Ranveer Singh and Ranbir Kapoor who were all prepped up and polished in their first film itself and know how to handle the press and connect with the audience. "They are amazing!" he had raved.
Ranbir will begin shooting for the film in 2017 and is currently prepping up for the part. Sonam Kapoor and Anushka Sharma are also a part of the project.
Sunil Dutt rose to stardom with Mehboob Khan's 1957 epic drama, 'Mother India', playing Nargis's rebel son Birju. He saved the actress from a fire on the sets and later married her on March 11, 1958. He went on to do many more successful films like 'Sadhna', 'Sujata', 'Mujhe Jeene Do', 'Khandan' and 'Padosan'. Later, he turned to politics but returned to films shortly before his death, in Raju Hirani's 'Munna Bhai MBBS' in 2003, in which he shared the screen with his son Sanjay who played the titular role.

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Why Shah Rukh and Salman will probably never star in a film together
Mumbai:MMNN:6 Dec. 2016
Superstars Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan recently made headlines when they both vowed to do a film together provided a knowledgeable director approached them with a good script.
Now while the idea of Karan-Arjun returning to the silver screen is something fans would love to watch, executing that on the part of a filmmaker and a producer might be impossible.
While neither Shah Rukh Khan or Salman Khan won awards for their remarkable performances this year in Fan and Sultan in this year's Star Screen Awards 2016, both superstars did make for the biggest headline of the year by saying that they were open to working together. While this piece of news has generated immense fan frenzy, here's why a movie with SRK and Salman together at this stage in their careers is highly improbable.
For starters, either of the two Khans will have to produce the film; this, thanks to their exorbitant fees. Not many producers in the industry have the courage to shell out all their life earnings and much more to cast SRK-Salman together. Secondly, to come up with roles that suit the 50-year-old superstars, keeping in mind their much-talked about egos, is difficult beyond imagination. Something that both the actors are aware of.
To create roles for the two biggest stars of Bollywood films, some inspiration can be taken from the West. Remember the 1974 cult classic The Godfather - Part 2 ? Well, the movie had stalwarts Robert De Niro and Al Pacino sharing screen space with terrific roles for both. While De Niro played the don, Vito Corleone in his younger days, Al Pacino played his son Michael Corleone, the protagonist and the new don in New York City. Both actors won several awards for their roles and are still remembered for their outstanding characters.
Or more recently, Martin Scorsese's 2006 blockbuster The Departed that saw Leonardo Di Caprio and Matt Damon collaborate to essay strong characters with equal screen presence. While Leonardo Di Caprio played an undercover cop in the movie, Damon was a mole placed in the Police who leaks information to the bad guy Costello played by Jack Nicholson.
Neither of the two roles were overshadowed by the other. Both Di Caprio and Damon made a mark with their craft and both characters were equally loved by the audience.
The Khan superstars on the other hand have collaborated thrice in the past. First in Rakesh Roshan's 1995 superhit Karan Arjun, then in Karan Johar's 1998 blockbuster Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and then in the 2002 average grosser Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam that also marked their last outing together in well-defined roles.
Both SRK and Salman have also appeared in cameos in each others films like Har Dil Jo Pyaar Karega in the year 2000 and Om Shanti Om in 2007. Both actors, now aged 50 + have now started doing roles suiting their age. While Salman was seen playing an aged wrestler in his last film Sultan, Shah Rukh played young Alia Bhatt's life-mentor in Dear Zindagi.
The news of both SRK and Salman keen on working together is a mouth-watering prospect for Hindi film fans but finalising a script that does justice to their super-stardom and age and finding a producer who will have to manage Salman & SRK's dates and egos will not be easy.

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Salman Khan and brothers make amazing revelations on ‘Koffee With Karan’
Mumbai :MMNN:6 Dec. 2016
Bollywood’s famous brothers – Salman Khan, Arbaaz Khan and Sohail Khan – will make an appearance on the 100th episode of Karan Johar’s ‘Koffee With Karan’, scheduled to be telecast on October 11.
A teaser of the episode featuring the Khan trio has been unveiled by the channel airing the show. And going by the teaser, it can be said that the 100th episode of Koffee With Karan will by far be the best of the fifth season. Since Sohail and Arbaaz will join Salman on the show for the first time, it will be interesting to see what the two have to say about their big brother.
Talking about his relationships, Salman, who has dated Sangeeta Bijlani, Somy Ali, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Katrina Kaif, said, “I am not the nicest guy when it comes to relationships.” He also said, “I wasn’t good with them.”
Arbaaz promptly reacted to Salman’s remark by saying, “He was good to other people at that time.”
Apart from discussing the women in Salman’s life, the brothers also made naughty revelations about each other.
Best known for being candid, Salman said that he and his brothers wore each other’s underwear and they share their undies even today. (Well, only the brothers know how far this is true!)
Sohail also made an interesting revelation about Arbaaz. Surprisingly, not Salman but Arbaaz attracted women like a magnet. They used to call Arbaaz’s room as ‘Bermuda Triangle’ because women visiting their family used to head to his room!
Well, the episode featuring the Khan Brothers is going to be a too much fun for sure.
We can’t wait to watch the episode. What about you?

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Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi kick-start Jodhpur schedule of ‘Baadshaho’
MMNN:2 Dec. 2016
The cast and crew of 'Baadshaho', which stars Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi, have kick-started the second schedule of the film in Jodhpur.
While Emraan shared a picture of the Blue City on his Instagram account on Thursday, we now stumbled upon a new picture that sees Ajay, Emraan and leading lady Esha Gupta in a candid mood.
Another video of Ajay heading towards the set is also doing the rounds on social media.
Don't miss how one of his fans congratulates him saying, "'Shivaay' was awesome."
'Baadshaho' is director Milan Luthria's fourth collaboration with Ajay after 'Kachche Dhaage', 'Chori Chori' and 'Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai'.
The film's first schedule was shot in Mumbai and Sunny Leone shot a sultry item number for it too.

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Mentor Salman Khan miffed with Zareen?
Mumbai :MMNN:2 Dec. 2016
It is no secret that Sallu bhai has launched quite a few fresh faces in Bollywood and saved many troubled careers from drowning. One of Salman’s brightest finds is actress Zareen Khan.
Zareen, who had worked as body double for Katrina in the past, was spotted by Salman on the sets of ‘Yuvraaj’. After taking a screen test of Zareen, the superstar cast her in his period drama ‘Veer’. Rest, as they say, is history!
But things have turned sour between mentor-protégé cum good friends Salman and Zareen Khan.
It all started with Zareen featuring in an item number in Vishal Pandya’s erotic thriller ‘Wajah Tum Ho’. The song, which is a remake of 2002-released blockbuster movie ‘Kaante’ iconic song ‘Maahi Ve’, originally had former sister-in-law Malaika Arora in it.
The song went on to become one of the biggest item songs of the decade, making Malaika the most sought after item girl.
But Bhai, who had initially tried to dissuade Arora from divorcing his brother Arbaaz, is now miffed with Zareen for doing that song. If reports are to be believed, Salman does not share a very healthy relationship with his former family member Malaika.
Seeing Zareen performing on the same song, doing exactly the same steps and wearing similar-looking clothes, the superstar boiled with anger and is now rumoured to be upset with the actress.

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Dear Zindagi movie review: Incredibly cute Alia, Shah Rukh Khan need a more consistent script
New Delhi:MMNN:25 Nov. 2016
Dear Zindagi is clearly straining at the formula-ridden Bollywood straitjacket to give us a refreshing take on love and family, and for the most part it sticks to its guns. In the end, it does succumb to the pressure to bow to perceived public demand with passing mentions of what we have come to consider inevitable in every Hindi film, but the ride up to that point is so rewarding so often that it is tempting to look past those needless moments.
Writer-director Gauri Shinde’s Dear Zindagi comes four years after her remarkable debut with English Vinglish. If that film brought the charismatic Sridevi back to the big screen as a leading lady after a 15-year hiatus, this one redefines the concept of hero and heroine in Hindi cinema.
Dear Zindagi revolves around Kaira (Alia Bhatt), a talented young cinematographer in Mumbai who despises her parents, appears confident in her romantic relationships yet is ridden with insecurities about the men she is drawn to. Those insecurities lead her to deliberately hurt her boyfriends before they get a chance to hurt her. It does not take a degree in psychology for a viewer to figure out her behaviour patterns, but Kaira is naturally confused by her fears. She ends up seeking professional help, and with some wise counsel, finds her answers herself.
When one of the biggest stars in the history of Bollywood appears on screen about 40 minutes after the opening credits, it goes without saying that this is an extremely unconventional film. Bhatt’s Kaira is the focal point of the story from start to finish whereas Shah Rukh Khan – playing her therapist Dr Jehangir Khan – surfaces towards the latter part of the first half and is nowhere to be seen in the concluding scene.
In a male-obsessed industry still tending to subordinate women in most mainstream projects, this is a decision that shows guts on Shinde’s part and Khan’s evident willingness to experiment. That other MegaKhan, Aamir, took a similar gamble with rewarding results in Taare Zameen Par (2007), and this is a winning aspect of Dear Zindagi too.
SRK gets less screen time but owns every scene he is a part of. In fact, Doc Jehangir enters the picture just as the film is sagging and appears to be repeating itself. His arrival immediately lifts Dear Zindagi. It sags again occasionally thereafter, but never when he is around. Besides, there is such warmth in Kaira’s interactions with the Doc that it envelops the rest of the narrative too.
Kaira explodes in anger at one point when someone describes her as a pataka (firecracker). Well, that’s precisely what Bhatt is – a pataka with pizzazz and verve. What makes her so impactful is that she has had an internal journey with each of her roles so far, and not so far allowed that journey to be overshadowed by her attractive personality. Kaira is simultaneously exasperating and endearing, and Bhatt remains in control of that difficult blend throughout.
Still, the film needed more matter to wrap around these two lovely stars, and Dear Zindagi too often does not. Some of that comes from the failure to build up the satellite characters who are Kaira’s go-to people in times of need. We get that she is pre-occupied with her own emotional struggles to the point of not noticing their problems, but that is no excuse for the writing to neglect them too.
Who is Fatima (Ira Dubey) beyond being a mature, married friend? Who is Jackie (Yashaswini Dayama) beyond being a sweet, supportive, possibly younger friend? Who and what is that chubby male colleague beyond being chubby and funny? Who is her brother Kiddo (Rohit Saraf) whom she loves, beyond being her brother Kiddo whom she loves? Who and what are her boyfriends Sid (Angad Bedi), Raghuvendra (Kunal Kapoor) and Rumi (Ali Zafar) beyond being a good-looking restaurateur, a good-looking producer and a good-looking musician? (Spoiler alert) And then there are those two oh-no moments towards the end – you know the kind that make you say, “Oh no, you too Dear Zindagi”? One of them seems to go along with the traditional view that characters played a major male star and a major female star must inevitably be attracted to each other if they interact long enough in a story; the other underlines the essentiality of a man in a woman’s life to make her feel complete. Both are fleeting suggestions, but they pull down the film’s assuredness about what it is trying to say until then. Oh no, you too Dear Zindagi? (Spoiler alert ends)
For this and other reasons the film is inconsistent and intermittently lightweight. Yet, there is much else to recommend in Dear Zindagi.
The use of music, Amit Trivedi’s breezy tunes and Kausar Munir’s conversational lyrics are lots of fun, as are Kaira’s many amusing interactions with her friends. DoP Laxman Utekar fills the film with pretty frames of Goa beyond what we are used to seeing of that picturesque state, and is just as imaginative in his focus on Khan and Bhatt’s faces.
Watch out for the closing shots of Bhatt on a beach.
From an industry that usually treats parents as deities deserving to be worshipped, it is also unusual to get a story that does not ignore these gods’ feet of clay, especially considering that Dear Zindagi is co-produced by Karan “It’s All About Loving Your Parents” Johar.
Above all, it is nice to see a film making an effort to destigmatise patient-therapist interactions, in a portrayal far removed from the “paagalkhanas (lunatic asylums)” of an earlier Bollywood era.
Dear Zindagi then is a mixed bag. I loved SRK in the film, Bhatt is always a pleasure to watch, the story visits many themes that are uncommon in Bollywood, and several of the discussions are either witty or insightful or both. Overall though, the film comes across as being not enough because the writing needed more substance.

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Why we think Sahil Anand's entry would bring an interesting twist in Bigg Boss 10
Mumbai :MMNN:25 Nov. 2016
Cute-yet-macho, Sahil Anand would be entering the Bigg Boss house as a wild card entrant along with Jason Shah, Priyanka Jagga , Elena Kazan. Here are the reasons why we think, 'Student Of The Year' actor's entry would bring an interesting twist in the most talked reality show.
Reunion with Bani J
They had competed against each other Roadies 4 and now they will be coming face-to-face after a decade. There Roadies journey was full of lots of up and downs and after the show got over they lost touch with one another. It would be interesting to see how MTV India presenter's would react when she comes across Sahil in the house.
Fan connection with Jagga
As per the media buzz, Priyanka Jagga, who is better known for his trouble-making antics is Sahil's friend. Only a few people know that, after Roadies Priyanka became fan of Sahil and at that time she expressed her fondness towards him on social networking sites.
Although they know each other, but they were not in touch. It would be interesting to see Priyanka, who had topped the hate list of most of her co-contestants still hold a soft corner for Sahil?

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Sushant Singh Rajput, Kriti Sanon’s Raabta to release on June 9, 2017
New Delhi:MMNN:22 Nov. 2016
Actor Sushant Singh Rajput and Kriti Sanon starrer Raabta is set to hit the theaters on June 9 next year. Directed by Dinesh Vijan the movie is extensively shot in Budapest, Mauritius and Punjab. The movie which was slated to release around Valentine’s Day next year got postponed to avoid the clash with Akshay Kumar’s Jolly LLB 2.
The film is a love story based on dreams and destiny. Raabta, which got delayed by a year due to casting issues, is produced by Vijan and Bhushan Kumar and presented by T-Series and Maddock films.The directorial venture of Dinesh Vijan also features Varun Sharma who is all praise for his co-stars Sushant Singh Rajput and Kriti Sanon and feels the duo share a great chemistry in the film.
While the 26-year-old actor has worked with Kriti in superstar Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Dilwale, this is the first time he worked with Sushant and the young actor was left impressed by his talent.
While the movie was in making, there were reports about Sushant and Kriti dating each other. However, Kriti has dismissed these rumours. When asked Sushant about his reaction on Kriti’s statement, he said, “She always speaks the truth and whatever she has said is right.”
While Sushant, who is riding high on success of MS Dhoni: The Untold Story, is currently busy reading scripts, Kriti is shooting for next film titled Bareilly Ki Barfi.

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Tiger Shroff teaches Nawazuddin Siddiqui some dance moves
Mumbai :MMNN:22 Nov. 2016
Tiger Shroff who is well-known for his dance moves is teaching this non-dancer some dance moves. Nawazuddin Siddiqui is currently going through rigorous dance practice sessions for his upcoming movie Munna Michael with the Baaghi actor.
Junior Shroff recently uploaded a picture on twitter where the two can be seen sharing a funny moment. In the picture Tiger mockingly asks the Badlapur actor if he is "ready" to learn dance, to which a witty Nawaz replies, “Bachpan se”.
As seen from the image, Nawaz sports a completely different look when compared to his previous movies. The Raman Raghav star looks dapper in a leather jacket, sports earrings and a new haircut.
Being a method actor, the Gangs of Wasseypur star wanted to deliver his dance steps perfectly and Tiger happily volunteered to help him with the steps.
Munna Michael is a musical drama, directed by Sabbir Khan where Tiger’s character will be a Michael Jackson fan.

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From Adjusting Dresses to Flaunting Baby Bump: This Is How Top TV Stars Spread Their Sparkle at Indian Television Academy Awards (ITA)
MMNN:15 Nov. 2016
A number of TV stars including Mouni Roy, Karishma Tanna, Rubina Dilaik and others attended the recently held Indian Television Academy Awards. The stars were seen flaunting their stylish avatars at the red carpet as some came with their spouses while others attended the celebrated awards night by themselves.
Mouni Roy who is mostly known for her enviable bold style sense carried yet another stylish look. However, it seemed the diva was rather conscious about her dress slipping from places because she was caught on camera adjusting her gold gown.
What more? Even Shilpa Shinde who was in news a few months back for having left Bhabiji Ghar Par Hain was also spotted. Ronit Roy and Rohit Roy both came tagged along with their pretty wives. Veteran actor Jeetendra was also spotted cordially walking in with erstwhile actress Poonam Dhillon.
One thing that we could not help noticing is the fact that Jeetendra’s face looked weirdly botox as if the man is hell bent at looking younger than his age. He is the father of the most successful television producer Ekta Kapoor which made his presence at the award function all the more legit.
Other stars who attended the do included Debina Banerjee, Pooja Gor, Pooja Bedi, Roshni Chopra, Jiya Manek, Munmun Dutt and Deepshikha Nagpal with her husband.

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Bigg Boss 10: Who should be evicted from the show this week?
Mumbai :MMNN:15 Nov. 2016
A day after the shocking elimination of Navin Prakash, Bigg Boss 10 participants have nominated four contestants for evictions this week - Karan Mehra, Monalisa, Lokesh Kumari Sharma and Rahul Dev.
Monalisa’s nominations even caused a major fight between Manu and Om Swamiji but she remains nominated for eliminations this week.

Karan Mehra
TV actor Karan has been a silent player in the game since Day One. He has had no fights inside the Bigg Boss house during his four-weeks’ stay on the show. However, he also lacks entertainment quotient - he never takes any effort to entertain or engage the audience.

Rahul Dev
Actor Rahul Dev, best known for playing negative roles, has been high on fighting but low on everything else inside the Bigg Boss house. Be it discussing random daily work or manipulating someone in the game, he prefers doing it all from the comfort of his bed. Even Salman Khan chided Rahul for this “lazy, lethargic” behaviour.

Monalisa
Monalisa is one of the few balanced contestants of this season - she dances, sings and entertains herself as well as others in times of fun and is ready to take up any fight when the need be.

Lokesh Kumari Sharma
Lokesh certainly didn’t fit the bill in the list as Bigg Boss had asked for names of contestants who were boring. And with her awesome rapping skills, that weird talking style and a sweet smile, Lokesh is anything but boring. But thanks to Manu and Manveer’s decisions, even she is nominated now.

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Saansein to now arrive with Shah Rukh Khan’s Dear Zindagi
MMNN:11 Nov. 2016
The makers of Saansein have made a bold move. Instead of arriving today, they would now be coming on November 25. This is also the day when Shah Rukh Khan and Alia Bhatt‘s Dear Zindagi hits the screens. However, it is not about making a hasty decision or taking a call under duress due to lack of choices available. Instead, it is a calculated move.
“There was no way that we would have arrived today. Do you think ‘aam aadmi’ would stand in queue for a film or instead stand in queue for an ATM or a bank? Well, you guessed it right! In such times, when money is the biggest thing on people’s mind, you can’t expect them to think about entertainment,” says a source attached to the film.
Considering the fact that Saansein is looking at an equal split of arriving at the multiplexes and the single screens, the makers had no intention of rushing through the release just because an original date was decided for November 11.
“Of course, this puts the pressure on us to spend on marketing and promotion for two more weeks. However, it is better to do that instead of giving an excuse later that we could not do well due to demonetization drive,” says producer Goutam Jain.
But why November 25? “There is no point coming next week either because of two reasons. First and foremost, it would take at least a couple of weeks before people would be able to get their funds sorted. One doesn’t see this settling down in one’s week time. Secondly, there is also John Abraham‘s Force 2 arriving on 18th November and that film would also have good penetration in the single screens. Why to clash Saansein with Force 2, when latter had announced its release date first,” says a trade insider.
This meant bringing the film on November 25, even though there is a Shah Rukh Khan film releasing on that day.
“It is okay because by the very look and feel of it, the film is predominantly catering to the multiplexes,” the source adds, “Of course the presence of Shah Rukh Khan means that single screens would have its fair share as well. Still, it is not that there is no space for any other film. Considering the fact that Saansein is a horror musical, a formula that traditionally works especially when the budget is under control, it is getting a good deal with single screens. Moreover, there is no such scenario like 4-5-6 films arriving in a single week which would have made them all get lost in the crowd. Saansein is getting good visibility.”
Another date thought was December 2, but that was immediately ruled out since Rajneish Duggall, the leading man of Saansein, is also one of the leads in Wajah Tum Ho which releases on the same day.

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Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh to share Koffee with Karan couch? We are losing our chill
Mumbai :MMNN:11 Nov. 2016
Ranveer Singh and Ranbir Kapoor on Karan Johar’s couch — sipping coffee and spilling secret? The chances of former and present boyfriends of Deepika Padukone — alleged, of course — on Koffee With Karan together is making us lose our chill.
After Alia Bhatt and Shah Rukh Khan appeared on Koffee With Karan, everybody thought it can not get bigger and better than this. But it looks like Ae Dil Hai Mushkil director has decided to take his celebrity chat show a notch higher on entertainment, gossips, and controversies. Well, what else can you expect when you have the most compatible couple of B-town, Twinkle Khanna and Akshay Kumar on the hot seat of the talk show. Karan has definitely been gutsy while picking up his combination of guests this season.
While the fans of the chat show are still going gaga over the witty replies of Mrs. Funnybones, here comes another reason for all to talk about the KJo’s talk show. According to a report by Filmfare, Ranbeer Kapoor, and Ranvir Singh will be the next guests of Karan Johar. The duo will shoot for the show on Tuesday. Now this is something shocking for all those who thought that the two dashing actors will be pulling daggers at each other for the obvious reason, Deepika Padukone.
Ranveer Singh and Ranbir Kapoor have been called rivals time and again but they have been spotted together many times. Earlier this year, both of them were spotted at a party dancing their hearts out on songs Jumma Chumma De De, Badtameez Dil, and Dilliwali Girlfriend. Though both the actors have not yet shared the silver screen but the fans of the two handsome actors do wish to see them together sometime soon.
For now, it will be interesting to see what the two men have to say about their common love interest, Deepika. And, just to remind you, Ranbir Kapoor’s relationship with now ex, Katrina Kaif was officially confirmed by his cousin, Kareena Kapoor Khan on the couch of Koffee with Karan only.

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Sonu Sood’s Xuanzang is China’s official entry for Oscars
MMNN:4 Nov. 2016
Last September, Sonu Sood was busy shooting at the Daulatabad Fort in Aurangabad for his debut Chinese film, Xuanzang, which also starred B-Town actresses Neha Sharma and Mandana Karimi. It was a surreal experience for Sonu Sood. Over a year later, Sonu Sood is on top of the world as the film has been named China’s official pick for the 89th Academy Awards.
Commenting on the same Sonu says, “When I started shooting the film, I spent a year in China on and off. I knew I was getting to be part of history. The film had a star-studded premiere in Bejing and those who attended spoke highly of the movie. It is a special film and only China could have made it on such a grand scale. The China Film Group Corporation (CFGC)’s infrastructure allows them to make such massive productions”.
The actor, who played King Harshavardhan in the film, attributes the achievement to its unique perspective. “Finally, there was someone who could envision India as something more than what Slumdog Millionaire showed. My mother was a history teacher and as a kid, I had learnt about the gracious King Harsha. But, playing the character was enthralling.
The most important lesson that this film and my next one with Jackie Chan have taught me was that while whipping up grandeur on screen, one must also take detailing into account. This was a difficult subject to create and in between the script and research, we truly ended up making an authentic historical film,” he adds.
Xuanzang toppled the award-winning artistic film Crosscurrent in a neck-to-neck competition for the Oscar entry.
Two films from China nominated twice in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Academy Awards, but the country has not won the golden statuette so far.

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Shraddha Kapoor nervous to shoot Haseena with brother
Mumbai :MMNN:4 Nov. 2016
Shraddha Kapoor will be seen sharing screen space with her brother Siddhanth in the upcoming biopic Haseena and the actress is a bundle of nerves even before filming. The film is a biopic on underworld don Dawood Ibrahim’s sister Haseena. The Baaghi star will be seen in the titular role in Haseena — The Queen of Mumbai while her brother will be seen as Dawood.
“I am very excited and nervous because I’ve been thinking if I have to do a scene with him, I’ve to forget that he is my ‘bhaiya’. He is the character in the film who is also my brother,” she said in an interview.
“But ultimately I think it’ll help that we are brothers and sisters. I hope that bond translates on screen,” she added. The film is directed by Apoorva Lakhia. Sonakshi Sinha was initially roped in for the biopic but the actress dropped out of the project.
Shraddha, 29, says her brother has already started shooting for the film and she will join him soon. “I’ve not started shooting with him as yet but he started a schedule. I’ll be joining soon. I think this is the first time ever that a real life brother sister have come on screen as reel life brother sister.”
The film will chronicle the journey of Haseena from teenage to the time when she is 40-year-old. Shraddha meanwhile, will be next seen in Rock On 2.
Also starring Arjun Rampal, Prachi Desai, Purab Kohli and Shashank Arora (‘Titli’ fame), the film will arrive in theaters on November 11. It has been helmed by debutant Shujat Saudagar.

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Shivaay movie review: Ajay Devgn film is a bloated star vehicle
New Delhi :MMNN:28 Oct. 2016
Shivaay movie cast: Ajay Devgn, Sayyeshaa Saigal, Erika Kaar, Abigail Eames
Shivaay movie director: Ajay Devgn
Shivaay is a man of the mountains, fully alive only in their icy reaches. Then one day, love strikes, and everything changes.
Ajay Devgn’s second directorial outing, in which he plays the In and As eponymous hero, sweeps us up on to craggy cliffs and down into deep crevasses, both in the Himalayas and in Bulgaria, and then leaves us high and dry. Well-made, this could have been a cross-continental film about filial love and romantic betrayal, but ‘Shivaay’ is a monumental near-three hour long drag, giving you too much empty time to wonder just how much lower it can sink, and the next thing you know, it slips a few more notches.
Devgn has played father to a little girl before, and done a serviceable job of it ( ‘Main Aisa Hi Hoon’). He is, in fact, quite good around kids generally (‘Raju Chacha’). His first film as director tried exploring the thorny path those afflicted with Alzheimer’s have to tread: it may not have been all the way successful, but it was a brave choice of subject. And he is one star who’s never been afraid of underplaying, because that’s how real actors roll.
Here he abandons all actorly pretences and dons a dull superhero garb. He shares screen time with his speech impaired eight-year-old daughter (Abigail Eames) as he travels from a little hill town in India to Bulgaria in search of a woman (Erika Kaar) who abandoned them both. A clunky sub-plot involving violent child traffickers wearing creepy masks and a creepier old man come in the way, but Devgn is invincible and will brook no resistance.
And that’s where the problem lies. Devgn employs all his too-familiar tricks (slo-mo walk, slit eyes, scything arms and legs) from his one man army south remakes, and makes us forget that he is trying for a character. All we see is a grim, unsmiling visage, with no hint of the vulnerability or humour that he has been capable of in his best parts. He may be kitted out as Shivaay but he is still in ‘Singham’ mode.
When Devgn steps off the screen, which is not for too long, on come a bunch of clueless people: an unintentionally hilarious `ethical hacker’ (Vir Das, having the most fun in the film), a corpulent diplomat who delivers lectures on the virtues of being a Bihari (Saurabh Shukla), a middle-aged man in a wheelchair (Girish Karnad, not quite sure what he is meant to do), and a pretty girl (Sayyeshaa Saigal) whose sole job description is to look upon the hero in wide-eyed adoration, when not thinking deeply in a bath-tub.
The only thing your eye can rest on is the spectacular scenery. The rest is a bloated star vehicle.

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Ae Dil Hai Mushkil movie review: This brand new film feels same old
New Delhi :MMNN:28 Oct. 2016
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil movie cast: Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Lisa Haydon, Fawad Khan
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil movie director: Karan Johar
When I opt for a Karan Johar film, I want the stuff that he does best — the impossibly beautiful people, the lovely foreign locations, the humungous homes, the songs-and-the-dances, the zardozi and the flash — in spades.
What I also want is the heightened emotions and the messy love you-hate you-can’t live without you moments that he manages to create in his most felt work. He has to make me feel enough so I can keep the glitter at bay.
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil scores high on the first count. You can’t get better-looking actors than Ranbir Kapoor-Aishwarya Rai Bachchan-Anushka Sharma-Fawad Khan. You can’t get more atmospheric cities than London and Paris, ohhh. And instead of New York, there’s Vienna. So far, all slurp worthy.
But Johar is unable to go the extra mile it in the other department, leaving you wanting both more and less: less of the incessant yak-yak (you want to tell these impeccably-styled people to stop and draw breath and then speak, so that they, and we, can absorb the moment they’ve created), less of the non-stop background music (if it is real, you don’t have to underline it), less of the frantic reaching for the next old Bollywood classic line or song (because too many of these, and ‘Ae Dil’ is stuffed with these references, makes your brand new film feel same old); and more silence (the most effective parts of the film happen when it’s quiet), and more fresh plot points.
Meet Ayan (Ranbir Kapoor), Alizeh (Anushka Sharma), Saba (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) and Ali (Fawad Khan), the four who play ring around the roses with each other. Ayan is ‘private-jet’ rich but wants to be a singer, the out-going Alizeh loves Ali, and the happily divorced Saba is looking for love.
The most flavoursome relationship dramas, where characters pair up, leave, and return, are a compendium of sighs and tears and moments where you want the lovers to fall into each other’s arms because you can’t bear to see them apart. But I didn’t get there in ‘Ae Dil’. Or at least in not more than a couple of places.
That’s because of a lack in focus: this he falls in love with her-she loves another-he falls in lust with another-she teaches him how like is better than love is all over the place and stretched at ends, the intervening bits filled with songs (club, shaadi, even a ‘break-up’ ditty) and dialogue (yes, not lines, but dialogues, in the old-fashioned way: why, when your characters inhabit the here and now?). Sure, they play ‘shayars’ and singers, but their delivery makes a lot of those conversations feel forced and cheesy.
Of the actors, Sharma comes off most familiar even when she is the one who is given a clear departure. Rai Bachchan is eye-catching as the older, experience woman but I wish she was given more time to channel hurt. Poor Fawad Khan, over whom so much controversy broke out, is dishy but doesn’t really have much to do.
Lisa Haydon comes on in a walk-on part as a ditsy girl, and is a hoot. But the one who lifts this film, or as much as he can, is Ranbir. As the fellow who crumbles and cries and shoves his aching heart on his sleeve even when letting a pretty thing wipe his eyes, he is terrific.
There’s a nice bro-moment between Fawad and Ranbir, when the film sparks to life. And you wonder if this pair shared more screen space, would the se ‘dils’ have been in a little less ‘mushkil’ ?
I’m going to think more on that, and listen to some weepy old songs, and hope that Johar will come up with something newer and sharper the next time around.

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Pleased that Indian Army slammed MNS, Pakistan's cinema owners to lift ban on Indian films
Mumbai :MMNN:25 Oct. 2016
Pleased with the Indian army slamming the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, cinema owners in Pakistan said today they plan to lift their self-imposed ban on the screening of Indian films, the owner of a leading theatre told The Express Tribune.
"Indian Army's statement is a good enough evidence for the change in perspective on the other side of the border. So is the release of Fawad Khan's film in India," said one cinema owner who attended a meeting of theatre owners held on Sunday.
The person quoted was referring to the film 'Ae Dil hai Mushkil', which stars Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. Mumbai police and Indian government officials assured the film's director Karan Johar that his movie can be released safely.
Pakistani theatre owners had suspended screening Indian films after the Indian Motion Pictures Producers' Association (IMPPA), earlier this month, banned Pakistani artists and technicians from working in India. IMPPA's decision followed last month's cross border Uri terror attack that killed 19 soldiers.
The owner of a leading distribution company told The Express Tribune that resuming the screening of Indian films is something that had to be done because Pakistani "cinemas relied heavily on Bollywood movies for their revenue."
A formal announcement of the lifting of the suspension on Indian films is expected later today, the Pakistani newspaper said.

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Ae Dil Hai Mushkil vs Shivaay: Ajay Devgn movie is audience’s choice, reveals poll
Mumbai:MMNN:25 Oct. 2016
Ever since the release dates of Ae Dil Hai Mushkil and Shivaay were announced (October 28), it is not only the filmmakers but even the audience who has been eagerly awaiting their release. We already know that when two big films clash at the box-office, the promotion game is going to be extremely crazy. While the extensive promotion of Ranbir Kapoor,
Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s film has kept the buzz going, Ajay Devgn has not left any stone unturned to make sure that Shivaay does not lose its game against ADHM.
In fact, Ajay Devgn made a smart move to promote the film. From visiting the US office of Facebook to setting Raavan on fire at Delhi’s most popular Ramleela, he has been a one-man army when it comes to promotions. Meanwhile, Ranbir has been at the forefront of ADHM’s promotions.
To find out how excited the audience is about both the films, we asked them on Twitter which film they will be watching this Diwali. According to the Twitter poll on indianexpress.com, the audience is keener to watch Ajay Devgn-starrer in comparison to Karan Johar’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. In fact, 57 percent said they would watch Shivaay while 43 percent opted for Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. A total of 888 votes were polled.
The promotions for both the films have not without incident. It all began when Ajay, on his Twitter account, claimed that self-styled movie critic Kamaal Rashid Khan has taken money from Karan Johar to promote Ae Dil Hai Mushkil.
Later, Karan Johar and the film found themselves in the middle of a political storm for casting Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in the film. MNS ‘banned’ the film in the aftermath of Uri attack and was adamant that it will not be allowed to release despite a video clarification from Karan Johar. The matter could only be resolved after the intervention of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
We have to wait for October 28, the biggest box-office weekend of the year, to know what eventually happens. We hope both films are winners and we get to have a dhamakedaar Diwali. See you at the movies folks.

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31st October Movie Review: Soha Ali Khan's Film is Well-Intentioned
Mumbai :MMNN:21 Oct. 2016
It isn't enough for a film to be well-intentioned. It still has to get most of its punches in to put points on the board.
31st October, a rare Hindi film focused on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, decisively checks the first box. It, however, fails to score big on the second count.
Written by producer Harry Sachdeva and inspired by true incidents, 31st October makes a fair fist of recreating one of the darkest days in the history of independent India.
Directed by Marathi filmmaker Shivaji Lotan Patil, 31st October makes the right noises but is unable to direct and land its blows with the ferocity that could get the audience all pumped up.
That is a pity because it does serve a clear and necessary purpose. Its message is unambiguous - justice still eludes the victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and it is about time we as a nation did something about it.
To make its point, the film tells the story of a middle class Sikh family in Delhi cowering in fear in their home and dodging the attention of a marauding, bloodthirsty mob on the day of Indira Gandhi's assassination.
It is a day that begins as innocuously as any other. Davinder Singh (Vir Das), an employee of the Delhi Electricity Supply Undertaking (DESU), leaves for work after escorting his two sons to their school bus and paying obeisance at the local gurdwara.
His homemaker-wife Tejinder Kaur (Soha Ali Khan) goes about her daily household chores, much of which revolves around caring for her infant daughter.
31st October opens at 6.30 in the morning. We catch a group of people - both Sikhs and Hindus - prepping for a langar at a gurdwara. It is business as usual for residents of Tilak Nagar.
Less than three hours later, India changes forever. A serving Prime Minister is gunned down by the very men entrusted with the job of protecting her. Innocent people are sucked into the vortex of the madness and mayhem that the act unleashes.
By mid-afternoon all hell breaks loose. An India-Pakistan limited-overs international is quickly forgotten as news comes that Indira is dead.
Packs of men armed with machetes and hockey sticks take to the streets and go on a hacking and burning spree, targetting Sikhs and their homes, shops and businesses. Policemen look on without lifting a finger.
You want to root for 31st October. That is the kind of film it is. You want to will it on to punch above its weight. Sadly, it is too feeble in the legs to run the distance with its heavy burden. The dawdling pace reduces the narrative to a crawl.

31st October has its heart in the right place. What it lacks is genuine firepower. Despite the anger and anguish that drives it, it is unable to whip up urgency and force.
A series of title cards at the end of the film fills the audience in with broad details of what happened on that fateful day and its aftermath. It is as if the horrors that it depicts in the previous 100 minutes or so aren't enough to get the point across.
31st October suffers for want of a sharper and stronger screenplay. The quality of the acting, too, is rather rudimentary.
The film could certainly have done with a more apt lead pair than Soha Ali Khan and Vir Das, neither of whom look right for the parts of a Sikh man and his wife.
Despite all the time and footage that the film invests in this middle class family caught unawares as the anti-Sikh rioters go on the rampage, the couple does not emerge above the din.
31st October pulls no punches in exposing the ignominious role of the police but it names no party or leader. We do, however, spot at least a couple of characters who resemble real-life Delhi netas accused of inciting violence against Sikhs on those four days of utter lawlessness.
Knocks on the front door are heard frequently at the home of Davinder and Tejinder. It turns out that a DESU lineman Jhanjuram (Daya Shankar Pandey) is keeping a watch over them.
Other righteous Hindus, friends of Davinder's brother-in-law, surface and take upon themselves the onerous task of rescuing the stranded Sikh family.
Pal (Deepraj Rana), Tilak (Vineet Sharma) and Yogesh (Lakha Lakhwinder Singh) team up for the rescue mission. How the brave do-gooders and the family they want to save negotiate the threats on the way is what the rest of film is about. By then, too much time has been expended on not-so-crucial subplots.
All the dangerous encounters, especially those that they have with a cavalier cop, Inspector Dahiya (Nagesh Bhonsle), are just not enough to create the air of dread that is needed to push the drama forward.
31st October springs to life occasionally. In one sequence, a Sikh man chased by a mob is given shelter by an unnamed drunkard.
Such is the atmosphere on the streets - the film banks upon what look like two-wheelers on fire to convey fear and foreboding - that even when the sloshed man lights a beedi, the act invokes a sense of menace. But such moments are few and far between.
Its theme is of pressing relevance. Yet, 31st October doesn't leave a lasting impression. It isn't half the film it could, and should, have been.
Be that as it may, it is still is a film that needs to be widely seen.

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Only An Idiot Like Aamir Khan Could Have Done Dangal: Vidhu Vinod Chopra
Mumbai:MMNN:21 Oct. 2016
Filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra says a person who is crazy for the art of acting can pull off character like Aamir Khan's in Dangal. He praised the 51-year-old actor for excelling in preparing for the role of wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat.
The upcoming biographical sports drama features Aamir, 51, as Mahavir Singh Phogat, who taught wrestling to his daughters Geeta Phogat and Babita Kumari. The trailer of the film was released on Thursday.
Mr Chopra, who produced Aamir's PK and 3 Idiots, applauded the actor for his efforts. "I really like Aamir as an artiste. He is excelling himself," he told reporters, when asked how he found the trailer.
Aamir plays a much older man than him in real life. The filmmaker, who was speaking at the 18th Jio MAMI Mumbai International Film Festival, was asked if Aamir was setting a trend in an industry where often actors hesitate to play characters older to their age.
"Aamir is a mad man. We call him 'idiot' like you saw in 3 Idiots. So, only he can do this. If you aren't that then you can make a lot of money and leave the world but 'idiots' (people crazy for their work) remain forever," said Mr Chopra.

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Ajay Devgn’s Shivaay gets U/A certificate
Mumbai :MMNN:18 Oct. 2016
Ajay Devgn’s much-anticipated directorial venture, Shivaay, has been passed by the censor board with a U/A certificate.
The action thriller also stars veteran actor Dilip Kumar’s niece Sayyeshaa Saigal, Polish actor Erika Kaar, both in their Bollywood debut.
It has been produced by Ajay.
The film is clashing at the box-office with filmmaker Karan Johar’s Ae Dil Hai Mushkil this Diwali, on October 28.
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, which features Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in lead roles, has also got a U/A certificate.

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Bigg Boss season 10's creepiest contestant
Mumbai:MMNN:18 Oct. 2016
Bigg Boss season 10 on Colors TV has just barely just begun, but the controversies always come hand in hand. This season's most illustrious (we use the term loosely) contestant has to be Swami Omji, who also entered the Bigg Boss home first.
Everyone who watched the premiere show felt a unanimous sense of creepiness coming from Swami. Could be the way he talked about women and their bodies or marriage, but way too many people tweeted about their discomfort towards the Swami.
This reached its peak when he was speaking (almost bragging) to Deepika Padukone about how he assaulted actress Elizabeth Hurley because her dress was too revealing (he says he "cured her of her chronic backache" with the kick but spoke at length about her clothes).
Padukone managed to leave the house without losing her cool, but her raised eyebrows and shocked silence said it all.
Since then, in the two episodes that have aired, Swami can be seen flirting with the women contestants, talking about yoga and the flexibility of bodies.
He even spoke about how brahmacharis like him have an eternal fire and heat in their bodies, as opposed to men and women who share a bed (his words, not ours).
And now, as a cherry on the cake, an old video of the swami slapping a fellow guest on a debate show at IBN 7 has been doing the rounds.
Along with Swami, the video shows astrologer Deepa Sharma on the panel and the topic of discussion was Radhe Maa. After a heated argument, Swami questioned Sharma's authenticity, while she warned him not to get personal. Swami then got up to slap her, on national television.
After Sharma said, "Tameez se baat karo (speak courteously)," she tried to slap him and failed, but Swami then charged at her saying, "Tu kya maregi! (you think you can hit me)".
We're still confused about whether a character like Swami being on the country's biggest reality show is a laughable matter or if it's a serious consideration that we think this guy makes for good TV.

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Saat Uchakkey movie review: When gods co-exist with item numbers
New Delhi :MMNN:14 Oct. 2016
Saat Uchakkey movie cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Vijay Raaz, Kay Kay Menon, Aditi Sharma, Anupam Kher, Annu Kapoor
Saat Uchakkey movie director: Sanjeev Sharma
God who may be mad, an Anupam Kher who lives in a haveli a Muslim woman claims is hers, and a Kalawati who exists only in dreams. There is more going on in Sanjeev Sharma’s Saat Uchakkey than meets the eyes and, yes — despite the Censor’s objections — the ears. Sift through the abuses, those that have survived 90 cuts and a three-year wait for release, and the film is a delightful slice of life from that new pet haunt of filmmakers, Old Delhi.
However, it’s not the Old Delhi of just pigeon contests, closely knit houses and kite-flying, with Red Fort and Jama Masjid alternatively peeping over the horizon. Sharma’s Old Delhi is rather about the old ghosts and new dreams which co-exist here so organically, one feeding off the other, one fuelling the other. It’s about men who make a living “making antique idols”, or keys for “90-year-old iron locks”; the men who hawk wooden snakes alternatively as “engineering craft” or “sexual toy” to hassled but polite foreigners; the lawyers who fix cases through skinny, knife-wielding boys barely standing upright; and cops who must find order amidst this all. It’s also about the women who find their way through this, giving back as good as they get.
There are few ways out of this maze of narrow lanes, kachauris, card games, and hand-to-mouth survival. And one of the first offered to Pappi (Manoj Bajpayee) and company is a blithe deal: “bijli churani hai”, they are told over roadside tea. The second is more esoteric, in the form of a lunatic, Bichchi (Annu Kapoor), of mythical reputation. In Bichchi’s mutterings, Pappi sees the promise of a hidden treasure in that contested haveli of the diwan (Anupam Kher).
Where gods co-exist snugly with “item numbers” organised for Purnima, day begins with a flower-seller setting shop for Kaali puja, a dacoity must take into account the neighbourhood mosque, mourners break into a dance, and havelis come with Mughal lineage, nothing is impossible.
Manoj Bajpayee as Pappi; Aditi Sharma as Pappi’s resourceful love and the neighbourhood heartthrob Sona; Vijay Raaz as Jaggi, the lawyer with a waistcoat, a ponytail, and that undulating henchman; and Kay Kay Menon as daroga Tejpal keeping the order while nursing a secret love for Sona, are all excellent. Annu Kapoor as the narrator/god can’t help his dramatics, but Anupam Kher is just over-the-top.
Sadly though, director Sharma (who has worked earlier in Peepli Live, Raghu Romeo) lets the film drag to an exhausted and stretched ending. A film with such a sure touch didn’t need this heavy hand.

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‘Wajah Tum Ho’ trailer: Unarguably the most erotic thing you will watch today!
Mumbai:MMNN:14 Oct. 2016
If there is a Hindi film that can compete or even come anywhere close to with Dakota Johnson starrer ‘Fifity Shades of Grey’, it is this film! This ‘high-on-sex-scenes’ thriller is sure to blow your mind with the insanely sensuous-looking Sana Khan’s love-making scenes with Gurmeet Chaudhary and Rajneesh Duggal.
The opening scene is in itself a pleasant surprise for the audience, the one you wouldn’t want to miss! One hint: a female lead spreads her legs.
The only two characters who are away from the tempting seductresses Sana Khan and Sherlyn Chopra (yes, she is part of it) is Sharma Joshi. He will be seen playing the role of a police officer and perhaps the only one who has some interest in solving the murder mysteries.
Sana Khan, although a lawyer in the film, is seen outside of court most of the times flaunting her skimpy bikinis and carrying out her multiple sexual encounters with perfection.
A film by T-Series, the film has Rajneesh Duggal playing the character of a business tycoon trapped in a murder case and Gurmeet Chaudhary will don the role of a lawyer fighting against him. Both these characters have one thing in common – there involvement with the vivacious Sana!
While the trailer does not give a very good impression of the film, it is highly likely to do well. And, all eyes will be glued to one diva – Sana Khan!

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Review: Mirzya is underwhelming
New Delhi :MMNN:7 Oct. 2016
The visual blandishments on offer in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehras Mirzya, scripted by Gulzar, are plentiful and yet not enough to help the flashily mounted film paper over its rather thin and trite storyline.
In a bid to inject some novelty into the treatment of the love story, the director resorts to what are essentially tropes borrowed from theatre ? the use of a sutradhar (narrator) and the employment of songs as a commentary on the action.
Mirzya moves between three distinct time-frames ? one set in the distant past, the second some years ago in Jodhpur, and the third in the present in and around a royal palace in Rajasthan ? to showcase the ageless saga of Mirza and Sahiban, whose unrequited love is the stuff of legend.
But the film is unable to generate the emotional intensity that is needed to turn a story of doomed love across two lifetimes into a drama riveting enough for an audience looking for instant emotional connect.
What unfolds on the screen remains there ? static, bland and superficial ? despite the sparkling camerawork by Polish director of photography, Pawel Dyllus, and the sheer depth and power of the poetry with which lyricist Gulzar occasionally infuses the films huge complement of songs.
Newcomers Harshvardhan Kapoor and Saiyami Kher are a fetching sight as they play the young lovers whose passion for each survives for eons but cannot find a way around societal opposition to attain consummation.
In a contemporary reworking of the tale, the film homes in on a school-going boy and a police officers daughter who dote on each other. But in a tragic turn of events, the classmates are separated.
Several years later, the boy, Munish (Kapoor), now renamed Adil Mirza by the ironsmith (Om Puri, also the narrator) who makes him a part of his family, serves as a stable attendant on the grounds of a maharajahs abode.
The girl, Suchitra (Kher), daughter of a senior police officer (Art Malik), is about to marry the prince, Karan (Anuj Choudhry), when her path crosses that of her lost childhood love. Sparks fly again and the reunited lovers court danger just as they had done in a past life.
Since it is known exactly how the story will pan out, most of the interest centres on the route the film takes to the climax. Mirzya delivers no real surprises as it follows the lovers struggle to stay together no matter what.
This genre has assumed numerous forms over the years in Hindi cinema. Mirzya, laced with Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy compositions and Gulzars lyrics, offers another variant.
If only the film had a stronger storytelling spine and more consistent acting, it might have yielded better results. But in the form that it is before us, Mirzya is a slow, meandering mess.
The two leads are passable, but they are unable to consistently capture the madness of thwarted love. The blame for that lack of heft cannot obviously be laid wholly at their doors.
The one actor who stands out amid the ruins is the sultry Anjali Patil in the guise of a girl who has a soft corner for the hero but is acutely aware of the futility of her feelings.
If Mirzya doesnt work in its entirety, it is primarily because Mehras experiment with the genre and its form, daring as it may seem at certain points of the narrative, is too far-fetched to be consistently effective.
Watch Mirzya for its visual gloss and poetic flourishes. As for the rest of the gratuitously flashy film, it is disappointingly underwhelming.

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Akshay Kumar: Think about army, not about ban on artistes
New Delhi:MMNN:7 Oct. 2016
Bollywood star Akshay Kumar today said he is stunned that some people are debating the ban on Pakistani artistes at a time when soldiers have been killed in a terror attack. The 49-year-old 'Rustom' star, whose father was an army officer, posted a video in which he also slammed questions being raised about Indian army's surgical strikes on terror launch pads in PoK.
"Something which has been on my mind for the past few days and I just had to say it. Not intending to offend anyone... So here goes," the actor wrote on social media accounts alongside the video.
"I am not speaking to you as a celebrity today. I am speaking to you as the son of an army man. For the past few days, I have been seeing and reading that people are arguing and some are asking for proof about surgical strikes, some are demanding ban on artistes, while some fear that there might be a war," Akshay said in the video.
"Arey sharam karo (have shame). These debates can happen later. First one must realise that people have already laid down their lives at the border. Nineteen jawans died during the attack and a 24-year-old jawan Nitin Yadav died in Baramulla," he said.
The actor termed the current demand for ban on Pakistani artistes as trivial saying the families who lost their loved ones at the border don't really care about these debates.
"Are their families, or the families of our thousands of jawans, worried whether a film will release or not? Whether an artiste will be banned? No. They are worried about their future."
"And our concern should be to ensure that their present and future is better. I am, because they are. You are, because they are and if they are not there, then India won't exist. Jai Hind."

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This soldier’s open letter on why it is right to ban Pakistani actors is going viral
New Delhi :MMNN:4 Oct. 2016
After the Uri attacks, which claimed the lives of at least 19 soldiers and the injured many civilians in Jammu and Kashmir, there has been a constant state of unrest across India. This is despite the momentary euphoria that followed the Indian Army’s surgical strikes that were conducted along the LoC, in response to the brutal attack. Social media platforms were bombarded with messages of hate as well as those of love and peace in equal amounts, and from people from both countries.
Though the relationship between the two countries have been on tenterhooks since Independence, recent incidents have only led to further strain. In India, MNS (Maharashtra Navnirmana Sena) has called for a ban on Pakistani actors. Many have seconded the party’s decision, while many others in the industry and outside have supported the Pakistani artistes and questioned the MNS boycott. Karan Johar and Mahesh Bhatt have both spoken openly in support of Pakistani actors working in India.
While people are divided over the ban of the artistes, more and more former Army men are coming forth with their perspective on the state of affairs – both political and military. One such voice is of Major Gaurav Arya, who wrote an open letter on social media supporting the ban of the actors. “This conflict between India and Pakistan is not the soldier’s personal war. He is dying and killing for you and me. Imagine a situation in which the soldier felt, and behaved, like Karan Johar and Mahesh Bhatt? … How many of you would like it if a soldier felt that this was not his personal war”, he wrote.
Here’s the full text of his post.
“MALA FIDE INTENT
Our boys have just about returned from across the Line of Control after a very successful surgical strike. The entire nation is delirious with joy; the entire nation, except a few.
Today, I was part of a panel discussion in JNU, interestingly called “Intellectual Terrorism”. The term is self-explanatory, though wide-ranging. I will discuss one type of intellectual terrorism here. The proponents of this type of terror are to found in every walk of life, but the roots of this disease are embedded in some institutions of higher learning. More of that some other time.
Karan Johar wants to know if asking Fawad Khan to go back to Pakistan will stop terror. Mahesh Bhatt joins the chorus by saying “stop terrorism, not talks” implying that we must continue to talk to Pakistan. The cricket board will continue to play matches with Pakistan. Certain business houses will continue to do business with Pakistan. All this, while our soldiers are dying on the border.
Will sending Pakistani artists back, stopping cricket and business with Pakistan actually end terror from Pakistan? No, it most certainly will not. But there is an emotion called solidarity. You cannot make films, play cricket and do business as if everything is fine, because it is not. It makes the soldier wonder aloud, “Why should I alone bear the weight of conflict?”
This conflict between India and Pakistan is not the soldier’s personal war. He is dying and killing for you and me. Imagine a situation in which the soldier felt, and behaved, like Karan Johar and Mahesh Bhatt? Imagine if a soldier walked up to his superior and said, “Sir, while I am dying on the Line of Control, these people are going about as if everything is absolutely fine between the two countries.”
How many of you would like it if a soldier felt that this was not his personal war, and he, like Mahesh Bhatt, should walk across the Line of Control and shake hands with a
Pakistani soldier? Why should he alone sacrifice for India, when others were making merry?
A soldier will die before the thinks of such treason, but it’s certainly food for thought, isn’t it?
Patriotism and sacrifice is not the sole responsibility of the soldier. India is Mahesh Bhatt’s country, as much as it is the soldier’s.
The United States boycotted the Moscow Olympics in 1980, and the Russians did likewise when they boycotted the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984. This is what happens when national interest is held paramount. And this is what must happen now.
For 70 years, Pakistan has been killing Indian citizens. Are we so inured to the pain of our fellow brethren that making a movie or playing a cricket match takes precedence over a soldier’s mourning home?
18 families have been shattered like glass. Not a word for them by our Bollywood royalty, mind you. But the pain of Fawad Khan’s departure is too much to bear, it seems. A tweet in support of Pakistani artists is mandatory.
These directors and producers will have you believe that before Rahat Fateh Ali Khan sang for Bollywood, there was no music of significance in the Hindi film industry. The cricket board is so busy making money that a widow’s silent sob and an orphan’s scream does not matter. What actually matters are day and night matches between India and Pakistan. The most keenly contested sporting event in history, they say; even better than the Ashes.
And the soldiers? Well, as far as they are concerned, they are on another planet, far removed from the glitzy Bollywood studios, and the teak-paneled walls of the stately boardrooms of the BCCI. The blood, the mud, the screams and the exploding gunpowder are just distant and inconvenient, not very different from traffic during the Mumbai monsoons. Life must go on.
It’s easy to ask for peace when you are a thousand miles away from the Line of Control, and your primary concerns are which party to attend this evening and where to get financing for your next film.
Peace is not a punch line. It is the end result of war.
There is a 10-year-old girl, Aditi, who understands the nation and its ebbs and flows far better than Mahesh Bhatt and Karan Johar. See her letter attached. Then see the poster made by Mahesh Bhatt, which he so proudly displays.
I leave it to you to decide who speaks for you. My vote goes to Aditi. This little angel has the spirit of a soldier.
The others have mala fide intent. Jai Hind. Major Gaurav Arya
The post has been shared over 3,500 times at the time of writing, with many commenting on it as well – most of whom agree with the Army veteran. Though, India and Indians seem to be still divided over the debate, Major Arya’s post gives us much to think about, since it comes from a perspective so close to the border.

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MS Dhoni The Untold Story box office collection day 4: Film passes the Monday test, earns Rs 74.51 cr
New Delhi:MMNN:4 Oct. 2016
MS Dhoni: The Untold Story starring Sushant Singh Rajput has passed its Monday test at the box office. The film is going strong in its collections and has earned a total of Rs 74.51 crore. The has collected Rs 66 crores in its opening weekend.
Though the film, which collected Rs 21.30 crore on Friday, Rs 20.60 crore on Saturday and Rs 24.10 crore on Sunday saw a massive drip on Monday, as it collected only Rs 8.51 crore, still the film is strong in its collection. It features just three film old actor Sushant playing MS Dhoni.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh shared the latest figures of the film. He wrote: #MSDhoniTheUntoldStory has a STRONG Mon. Passes the ‘Mon test’… Fri 21.30 cr, Sat 20.60 cr, Sun 24.10 cr, Mon 8.51 cr. Total: ₹ 74.51 cr.
Taran earlier shared its first weekend collection of the film too, where he wrote: #MSDhoniTheUntoldStory is SENSATIONAL… Packs a SOLID total… Fri 21.30 cr, Sat 20.60 cr, Sun 24.10 cr. Total: ₹ 66 cr. India biz.”
Meanwhile, Rishi Kapoor has praised the biopic and said the film’s lead actor Sushant Singh Rajput has done a good job. M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story is a film tracing the life of India’s best-known cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Sushant plays the title role in the film, directed by Neeraj Pandey.
“Saw film Dhoni. Sushant was totally Dhoni! All characters did well. And the two new girls are sure stars in the making. Director… splendid job,” Rishi tweeted on Sunday morning.
Directed by Neeraj Pandey, the biopic shows the journey of the ace cricketer. Produced by Fox Star Studios and Arun Pandey of Inspired Entertainment, the film also features Kiara Advani, Disha Patani and Anupam Kher in pivotal roles.
Earlier, Suriya had also appreciated Sushant’s performance. Meanwhile, the movie has been declared tax-free in Uttar Pradesh and Dhoni’s home state, Jharkhand.
MS Dhoni: The Untold Story, which hit the screens on Friday, has garnered positive reviews from critics and viewers so far. In fact, Dhoni himself is stunned the way Sushant Singh Rajput has pulled off the role.

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