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When Aishwarya Rai Was Mobbed by Fans on the Sets of Sarabjit
New Delhi:MMNN:23 Dec. 2015
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan made a not-so-spectacular comeback in Sanjay Gupta's Jazbaa in October this year. Nonetheless, Aishwarya's stardom remained unaffected by the film's outcome when she arrived on the sets of her upcoming film Sarabjit, which is directed by Omung Kumar.
Hundreds of fans (nearly 400) converged on the sets of the film, which was only a three-hour drive from Mumbai, to get a glimpse of the 41-year-old actress.
At the end of the day's shoot, Aishwarya was mobbed by the fans, who wouldn't let her get to her vanity van before taking her autograph.
Aishwarya, who plays the role of Dalbir Kaur (Sarbjit's sister) was sporting a non-glamorous look, therefore, the onlookers initially didn't recognize her. However, once Aishwarya's guise was revealed, her fans' Jazbaa knew no bounds and a five-minute drive to her vanity van became a half hour one drive. Aishwarya had to request her fans to make way for her to leave.
"Aishwarya's Stardom is like the warmth of the sun, no doubt everyone there wanted to bask in it. She brings the same warmth to the character, and I can relate to the onlookers who mobbed," said the film's producer Sandeep Singh.
At a recent award show held in Mumbai, Aishwarya said that she is happy with the initial reaction to her look in Sarabjit. She told : "We have started filming and would like to first say that, the picture is already out and I am very thankful for the response. It has been very encouraging, even for the choice of subject. Work has begun and it is (the film) intense."
The film is a biopic on Sarabjit Singh, who was beaten to death in a Pakistani jail. Randeep Hooda will be seen in the titular role and actress Richa Chadha plays the role of his wife.
Bhumi Pednekar: Parineeti Chopra is my inspiration
Mumbai:MMNN:23 Dec. 2015
Bhumi Pednekar might have stunned the audience with her new slim ‘avatar’, but it is actress Parineeti Chopra’s weight loss that has been an inspiration for the Dum Laga ke Haisha star.
Bhumi, who made her Bollywood debut earlier this year with the Yash Raj Films, praised Parineeti for her new look. When asked if she inspired the Hasee Toh Phasee actress, Bhumi said, “No I didn’t inspire her.
In fact, Parineeti is an inspiration to me. The way she has lost her weight it’s amazing.”
The actress was talking to reporters at the 11th Guild Awards here. While her fans have praised her new slim avatar, many have criticized Parineeti, saying she is trying to encourage thin figure for women.
Bhumi, however, feels it is more important to be fit than being slim. ”More than being thin, it’s ultimately important to be fit and healthy. That’s what matters,” she said.
Bhumi would soon be reuniting with her Dum Laga Ke Haisha co-star Ayushmann Khurrana in Aanand L Rai’s production Manmarziyaan. The film also stars Masaan actor Vicky Kaushal. ”I am excited to share screen space with Ayushmann and Vicky. I think they are an amazing team to work with,” she said.
Vicky Kaushal starrer 'Zubaan' to release on March 4
Mumbai:MMNN:21 Dec. 2015
Director Mozez Singh's debut feature film 'Zubaan' is all set to release on March 4, next
year.
The film, starring Vicky Kaushal (of 'Masaan' fame) and 'Angry Indian Goddesses' actress Sarah-Jane Dias, is a
coming-of-age-story of a young man who has a fear of music and is set between Punjab and Delhi.
'Zubaan' won accolades when it opened at the Busan International Film Festival earlier this year with Mozez
bagging the 'Rising Director' award.
"I'm glad that my debut film has been praised by one and all at several prestigious film festivals it has been screened. For me, it is a passion project and I eagerly lookforward to showcase the movie on March 4, 2016," Mozez said in a statement.
The musical, produced by Guneet Monga and Shaan Vyas of Sikhya Entertainment and Metamozez Entertainment, will be
presented by Wave Cinemas. "We are happy to bring 'Zubaan' to cinemas on March 4, 2016. It's an inspiring film and I am sure people will relate to it," Monga said.
Wave Group chairman Raju Chadha and filmmaker and CEO Wave Cinemas Rahul Mittra said they were impressed by the movie's unique and fresh approach to mainstream filmmaking and feel it is going to be a significant film for Bollywood.
Bhushan Kumar's T-Series is on board as the music label.
Shah Rukh Khan- Salman bond over games in Bigg Boss 9 on Day Two
Mumbai:MMNN:21 Dec. 2015
There was more fun and games in store for Shah Rukh Khan on Day Two of Bigg Boss 9. For starters, the Khans – SRK and Salman – organised a media version v/s real version of their infamous fight.
The Khans indicated that for most part their fight was hyped by the media while in real they were far from squabbling with each other. While the media showed the Khans raining blows on each other, if the actors are to be believed they were just cleaning lipstick marks off each others shirts. Oh yeah, we believe you.
Game two was more fun with both Shah Rukh Khan and Salman holding a board that had the name of an actor/actress printed on it. While SRK held the board, Salman through sign language gave King Khan clues of the name of the person.
From Deepika Padukone to Aamir Khan, every actor whose name appeared was imitated by both Khans, the best being Anil Kapoor who Salman indicated to SRK as an actor who is hairy.
The next one had both dancing to each others popular numbers. Salman and Shah Rukh even grooved to the tunes of Katrina Kaif’s item number ‘Chikni Chameli’ from Agneepath.
For the last game, Kajol joined the duo and whipped up more fun. This one had the trio wearing headphones with music playing in it. And with the headphones on, the actor wearing it had to guess what the other one was saying.
Double meaning words were spoken making the headphone wearer confused if the other person was mouthing something bad and abusive on national TV.
SRK and Kajol were later ushered into the house where both were greeted warmly by the inmates. Shah Rukh even got to kiss every female contestant on cheek as they froze after his arrival.
Day three will see Kajol and SRK giving the inmates some lessons in love.
No 'Ashiqui 3' happening for Sonam Kapoor
MMNN:18 Dec. 2015
If you were waiting to witness Sonam Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan's sizzling chemistry in 'Ashiqui 3' after their musical video, then it's time to pop the bubble as Sonam recently revealed that she has not signed the film.
During the trailer launch of her upcoming flick 'Neerja,' the 30-year-old actress said, "I haven't signed anything as of now, currently I am just working on my sister Rhea Kapoor's production."
The 'Prem Ratan Dhan Payo' star added, "I am in talks with many people, but I am very 'sanki' as everyone knows, so I don't know what I will do next."
Based on the life of flight attendant Neerja Bhanot, the Ram Madhvani-directorial also stars Shabana Azmi and Film score composer Shekhar Ravjiani.
'Court' out of Oscar race, other Indian regional films still in
Los Angeles:MMNN:18 Dec. 2015
Filmmaker Chaitanya Tamhane's debut Marathi film 'Court' is out of the Best Foreign-Language Film category of the upcoming 88th Academy Awards.
However, other Indian regional films like 'Jalam', 'RangiTaranga' and 'Nachom-ia Kumpasar' are still vying for a spot in the nominations for the upcoming gala.
'Court' - a courtroom drama that brings alive injustices of India's legal system - lost its battle to films like 'The Brand New Testament' (Belgium), 'Embrace of the Serpent' (Colombia), 'A War' (Denmark), 'The Fencer' (Finland), 'Mustang' (France), 'Labyrinth of Lies' (Germany), 'Son of Saul' (Hungary), 'Viva' (Ireland) and 'Theeb' (Jordan).
Featuring actors like Vivek Gomber, Vira Sathidar, Geetanjali Kulkarni, Pradeep Joshi, Usha Bane and Shirish Pawar, 'Court' was selected by a 17-member jury at the Film Federation of India (FFI), headed by veteran actor-filmmaker Amol Palekar.
Though India is out from the Best Foreign-Language Film category, some movies are still competing in various other categories for the golden statuette.
Compositions from Malayalam movie 'Jalam' and Indo-Australian film 'Salt Bridge' are among the 74 songs contending for nominations in the Best Original Song category of the awards gala.
'Bhoomiyilenghanumundo', 'Koodu vaykkan', 'Pakalppaathi chaari' and 'Yaathra manoradhamerum' are songs from 'Jalam' that are fighting for a spot in the category.
Starring Priyanka Nair and Prakash Bare, 'Jalam' is directed by M. Padmakumar.
Also, seven songs from 'Salt Bridge', which stars Rajeev Khandelwal and Usha Jadhav, have made it to the long list.
The songs are: 'Aankhon me samaye dil', 'Bachpana thaa', 'Kanpne lage tum', 'Kyaa bataaun tujhe', 'Le jaaye jo door tumse', 'Na jaane kitni door' and 'Sookha hi rang daalo'.
Konkani film 'Nachom-ia Kumpasar', Malayalam film 'Jalam' and 'Salt Bridge' are also amongst 112 films that contending for a spot in the Best Original Score category.
Two Kannada films 'Rangitaranga' and 'Care of Footpath 2', which stars television actress Avika Gor along with actors Esha Deol, Deepp Pathak, Jaya Karthik Kishan S and S. Dingri Naresh, are among the 305 movies that made it to the list of eligible movies for the 88th Academy Awards.
'Nachom-ia Kumpasar' is also up against these films.
The final nominations will be announced on January 14, 2016 and the ceremony is set to be held on February 28 at Dolby Theatre here.
Saala Khadoos trailer: R Madhavan packs a solid punch
Mumbai:MMNN:16 Dec. 2015
Raju Hirani's upcoming production venture, 'Saala Khadoos' made news a while ago, when the makers unveiled the first look of the film with R Madhavan in his rugged avatar.
Given the intensity in his eyes that dripped even through the poster, it was impossible to not be impressed by the actor. The makers are now out with the trailer of 'Saala Khadoos,' and it has left us awestruck.
Shedding his coy avatar from Tanu Weds Manu, the actor has donned the rough and tough look as the boxing coach in Saala Khadoos. His character is trying to fight the blatant politics that is prevalent in the system while pursuing the sport that he reveres.
After being unceremoniously bared from boxing (following a major clash with the authorities), Madhavan shifts base, in search of someone to coach and live his dream through them. His search stops at a girl, played by Rithika Singh.
A wrestler in real life, Rithika manages to make an impact despite sharing screen space with someone as talented as Madhavan.
Directed by debutant Sudha, the film is slated to hit screens on January 29, 2016.
Deepika Padukone: I haven't signed any film for 2016
MMNN:16 Dec. 2015
Deepika Padukone is yet to sign a film despite a busy 2015 as the actress has not found anything exciting so far.
"Expect nothing because I have signed no films for 2016," Deepika told PTI in an interview. When asked about not having any film despite being the top actress at the moment, she said, "I have reached a stage where I don't have to do work to keep myself busy. I don't want to do films just for the heck of making announcements.
"I don't need to do a film to keep my calender busy. I have read a lot of scripts, but I have not been excited about anything that I have read. I am okay with it."
In 2015, Deepika did three films - 'Piku' with megastar Amitabh Bachchan and Irrfan Khan, 'Tamasha' with ex-boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor and the soon-to-be-released Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Bajirao Mastani', opposite rumoured beau Ranveer Singh. "The most challenging part is doing three films simultaneously. The films, the characters and the directors are different. It is not the ideal way of working as I would like to do one film at a time and dedicate the time to that film," she said. At the same time, the 'Piku' actress says she will not leave any interesting projects.
"I am not going to let go films that I am excited about. But if that happens, then you have to balance that out. I am happy with the way this year has gone. I am very proud of 'Piku' and 'Tamasha' and I am topping it up with 'Bajirao Mastani'," she said. In the past, Deepika also rejected some plum offers, including 'Dhoom 3', 'Shuddhi' among others.
"Rejected is a harsh word. Actors are never in a position to reject anything. Actors are offered films, if you feel connected enough you do it and if you don't feel connected, you don't do it. If you don't do it, somebody else would do it. I don't regret it (not doing films)," she said.
Birthday Special: 5 of Raj Kapoor's most loved movies
Mumbai:MMNN:14 Dec. 2015
A showman, a risk-taker and a passionate artist, Raj Kapoor was celebrated as an actor, director and producer of Hindi cinema. To mark his 91st birth anniversary today, let us take a look back at some of the classics he gave us:
1) Awaara (1951): After sharing screen space with Dilip Kumar in Andaaz, this was Raj Kapoor's first stint as a lead actor in Hindi cinema. He played the role of a poor 'Raj' who becomes the victim of class struggle. The movie is remembered for its universal theme. Kapoor's performance in Awaara was ranked as one of the top ten greatest performances of all time by Time magazine.
2) Shree 420 (1955): Donning a tramp look and portraying a common man, this 'Charlie Chaplin' of Hindi cinema amazed audiences with his performance. It is also considered as one of the most romantic movies of Indian cinema, starring the hit pair of Raj Kapoor and Nargis. Also, who can forget the famous song- 'Pyaar hua ikraar hua..'
3) Jis desh mein ganga behti hai (1960): Delivering yet another thrilling performance in this film, Raj Kapoor skillfully portrayed the tragedy of the tribal class and their sufferings caused by the Government. The movie is still known for its impressive locations, excellent camera work and some interesting choreography. Kapoor's role as the 'ideal son of Mother Ganges' is still appreciated.
4) Sangam (1964): Starring Raj Kapoor, Vyjayanthimala and Rajendra Kumar in lead roles, this first colour film of Raj Kapoor showed various shades of humanity through friendship, love and during fulfilling a relationship like marriage. Not only are its songs listened to and enjoyed till date, but the filming and the stylish get-up of the stars is also noted. This was also the last successful movie for Kapoor in which he had acted.
5) Mera naam Joker (1970): Taking six years to film his dream movie, Raj Kapoor made sure he could do everything to bring it closer to the standards of Hollywood. However, in spite of grand sets, amazing performances and inspirational value, the movie could not attain commercial success on box- office. Yet, it is still remembered as a cult classic from Raj Kapoor's repertoire.
The Padma Bhushan awardee Raj Kapoor received many awards for his ability to showcase the vérité of society in his cinema. India remembers him for his contribution to different facets of Indian filmmaking.
Bigg Boss 9 : Tension over the 'cool' group creates chaos
MMNN:14 Dec. 2015
It is known to all that 'equations' and 'differences' do not last for a long period of time in Bigg Boss house.
With contestants like Rochelle and Kishwer coming together after having faced a tiff before in a group called the 'cool' group, the house seems to have been divided.
It all started after the entry of wild card entrants Giselle Thakral and Nora Fatehi in the house and the contestants' constant differences with Priya and Mandana.
In an attempt to make their stay longer and presence stronger in the house, Kishwer, Suyyash seemed to have joined with Rochelle and Keith who were then supported by Prince and Nora to make a 'cool' group.
In opposed to this, Giselle, Priya,Rishabh and Mandana seemed to have separated themselves into another clout and wish to be away from the 'cool' group.
However the tension arising due to this grouping cannot be ignored.
Jiah Khan suicide case: Court raps CBI for leaking chargesheet
New Delhi:MMNN:11 Dec. 2015
The hearing in the case of Bollywood actor Jiah Khan has been adjourned till January 18th and the special CBI court has also taken cognisance of the chargesheet filed by the agency. However, the court rapped the CBI for releasing the chargesheet to the media before sending it to the accused (Sooraj Pancholi) first.
“On the fateful day, Jiah Khan had left the residence of said private person (Sooraj) where she had stayed with him for two-three days. She had accused him of lying about his meeting with a common lady friend. Jiah Khan, who continuously messaged in this regard to him, had infuriated him, and he deleted her BBM account from his mobile. Later, he had received a call on his mobile from her at midnight which lasted for about 400 minutes. Meanwhile, he had also sent certain messages to Jiah which were abusive and accusatory,” the press release from the agency alleged.
According to reports, the CBI charge sheet, submitted at the sessions court in Mumbai on Wednesday, mentions in graphic detail how Sooraj extricated Jiah’s foetus as she bled. Reacting strongly to the reports, Zarina Wahab , Sooraj’s mother, has said, “Who is giving all these details? Has the CBI or the court said this? Once ‘she’ got to know that Sooraj is free from getting charged with murder, she started telling stories.”
She also lashed out at media houses saying, ““The entire charge sheet is not out yet. How dare anyone write anything about Sooraj without knowing the contents! We will take action against people giving incorrect information.”
Announcing the filing of chargesheet against Sooraj Pancholi, a CBI statement read, “It was alleged that a 3-page note seized by the state police on 10/06/2013 was written by Ms Jiah Khan, which narrated her intimate relationship, physical abuse and mental torture that she experienced at the hands of the said private person (Pancholi). The documents and the material objects of this case have been thoroughly and scientifically examined. The Board of Forensic Medicine Experts has opined that the death was suicidal in nature, which corroborated the observation and opinion of the post-mortem doctor. The forensic statement-analysis of the note written by the deceased has opined that the said note allegedly represents her mental status genuinely and the circumstances and reasons behind her suicide.”
Meanwhile, Jiah’s mother Rabia Khan expressed her unhappiness at the proceedings and said that the probe is hiding a bigger picture to the tragic incident. “There is more to this and I am sure the truth will definitely come out,” Rabia said on Friday.
Sooraj Pancholi has been booked under section 306 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for abetment to suicide while murder has been ruled out.
Jiah Khan was found dead in her Juhu apartment in Mumbai on June 3, 2013 and Pancholi, who was allegedly her boyfriend at the time, came under the radar in the investigation.
Shah Rukh Khan Unseats Salman Khan As India's Top-Earning Celeb
NEW DELHI:MMNN:11 Dec. 2015
Shah Rukh Khan has regained his position as India's top-earning celebrity with estimated earnings of Rs. 257.5 crore this year, pushing Salman Khan to the second position in the latest Forbes list.
Shah Rukh had lost his top rank to 'friend and archrival' Salman last year and had slipped to the third position, Forbes said in its annual India Celebrity List for 2015 today.
Incidentally, the list comes a day after Salman Khan was acquitted by Bombay High Court in a nearly 13-year-old hit and run case.
Salman's estimated earnings, as per the latest list, stands at Rs. 202.75 crore -- more than Rs. 50 crore less than that of Shah Rukh Khan. Amitabh Bachchan is at third position, down from his second position last year.
Forbes said the total wealth of top 100 celebrities stood at Rs. 2,819 crore, while cinema and cricket dominate the top-ten positions.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been ranked fourth and is followed by Aamir Khan, Akshay Kumar, Virat Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar, Deepika Padukone and Hrithik Roshan in top-ten.
Besides the earnings estimates, the overall Celebrity 100 list also takes into account the fame. "Their gross pre-tax earnings are combined with their fame scores to arrive at the Forbes India Celebrity 100 List," the magazine said.
In terms of earnings alone also, 50-year-old Shah Rukh topped the list while Salman is at the second position.
However, Akshay Kumar ranks higher at third position in terms of earnings and is followed by Dhoni and Bachchan at fourth and fifth places, respectively.
Forbes said Shah Rukh's estimated earnings at Rs. 257.5 crore is the highest ever any celebrity has made in the four-year history of the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list.
"In fact, his earnings make up as much as 9 per cent of the total wealth of the top 100 celebrities this year - Rs. 2,819 crore," it said, although he still lags behind at number-four in terms 'fame' ranking where 73-year-old Bachchan reigns at the top position.
Aamir Khan has made it to the top five for the first time.
He is at number 5 on the list this year and his superhit movie PK and revenues from brand endorsements helped him rake in an estimated Rs. 104.25 crore, his highest in the last four years.
"It is an increase of 145 per cent to the amount he earned in 2012. On the other hand, Alia Bhatt and Madhuri Dixit have moved up the list despite any movie release in the time period under consideration (October 1, 2014 to September 30, 2015).
Their rise on the list is entirely due to earnings from brand endorsements and their fame quotient," Forbes said.
The list this year has also witnessed a few who jumped ranks and moved up considerably higher in just one year. Among the top-three rank gainers are Dhanush (who moved up 41 ranks) and is at number 37, Rohit Sharma and Allu Arjun (both moved up 38 ranks) and are at number 12 and number 42, respectively.
This year's list has 14 debutants, among them cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin, who comes in straight at number 31.
Filmmaker SS Rajamouli and actor Prabhas make it to the list due to the monster hit Baahubali.
There were more dropouts this year though -- 19 celebs lost their ranks on the Celebrity 100 list for 2015 including Sanjay Leela Bhansali, A R Murugadoss and Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.
Katrina Kaif is really worried about Chennai floods!
MMNN:4 Dec. 2015
Chennai has seen such a deluge of rains since a century now. There are many submerged areas in the city. Rains lashed at it so badly that people there are grappling for life. Images from the city are heart breaking. Everybody is doing their bit in helping them. South superstars like Rajnikanth, Dhanush, Sidharth have come forward with help to save the people of the city.
Today, the rains have subsided but the water persists. Everyone is worried about the people stranded there. But apart from the safety and well being of the people affected by the floods, Katrina Kaif also has other concerns. She is concerned about her mother who stays very close to one of the affected areas.
Katrina spoke to the media during a fashion night about the Chennai floods saying, “My mom lives very near in the area…actually today I was very worried about it because someone had called me from there.
Unfortunately, natural disasters are not something that we can really do much about. But I think if there are any groups or relief work that is happening, everyone should do their bit for sure.”
We totally agree with you Katrina. We all in our own way should help those are affected by floods and also look for ways to not let such a disaster happen again. We are sure her words would motivate others to help people in Chennai and do their bit.
BiggBoss9, Day 53: Prince & Rishabh get treated to an erotic dance
MMNN:4 Dec. 2015
As part of this week's luxury budget task, Paanch Dosh, Prince and Rishabh were subjected to a self-control test, which the former won.
Day 53 would have been the toughest day for Prince Narula and Rishabh Sinha, as they had to maintain self-control in 'lust test' with millions of people watching them on TV.
As part of the luxury budget task, Paanch Dosh, the second test was that of lust. The two teams had to select a candidate from the opposite team, to go through the test, which was to be supervised by Priya.
Rishabh and Prince, the chosen ones, were treated to an erotic dance in the activity area. The test for them was to maintain self-control during the performance, as their heartbeats were to be monitored.
The two boys were seated in the activity area where a beautiful dancer performed an erotic dance number for 3 long minutes. Prince and Rishabh both looked totally in control during the task, but when their heartbeats were tallied, Prince emerged victorious.
In other news, the Bigg Boss house is currently witnessing turbulence in friendships. While on one hand Mandana feels Rochelle and Keith are trying to uphold their image, Prince, Kishwer and Suyyash are dealing with changed dynamics of their friendship.
When Prince, Keith and Rochelle felt that the 'ego task' was getting too ugly--because many personal belongings and items of sentimental values were getting destroyed--they decided to quit the task, but Mandana refused. When Rochelle and Keith tried to reason with her, she refused to listen to them.
Later, she was seen telling Rishabh that both Keith and Rochelle want to keep their image intact, which is why they asked her to quit when the game got ugly. Keith overheard the conversation and told Mandana that he doesn't care about his image and that they took the decision to quit the game because they didn't want more items to be damaged.
Emotionally charged Mandana failed to see the reason in his statements and blasted both Keith and Rochelle. Later, Rishabh told Mandana that she should not treat Keith and Rochelle like this, since they are her friends and they looked after her when she was ill.
Suyyash and Kishwer, who have slowly drifted away from Prince, finally told him that things have changed between them. Priya starts the conversation by saying that Prince has become snappy in the past few days. Suyyash tells Prince that he and Kishwer have taken a step back in the relationship, which wasn't evident initially, but Prince's changed behaviour now was very obvious.
Suyyash also revealed that since Kishwer doesn't have a brother, she genuinely considered Prince as her brother. Prince goes on to say that no matter what, he will always remain Kishwer's brother.
I never want to reinvent myself: Sunny Leone on her past, settling in Mumbai and 'Mastizaade'
MMNN:30 Nov. 2015
Sunny Leone's rise from the adult entertainment industry to Bollywood has been unique and phenomenal. When Pooja Bhatt introduced Leone in Jism 2, moralists and purists laughed. But Leone, with her supportive husband, pushed on, creating a tantalizing niche for herself in Hindi cinema.
Though she is far from attaining acceptance from Bollywood's A-list actors and filmmakers, Leone is perfectly happy with getting the kind of attention she had only dreamed about during her stint as the queen of adult content. Here are excerpts from an interview with the down to earth diva:
A lot has been happened to your career in Bollywood . How do you feel about the changes in your life and career?
This has been the most amazing transition that I could hope for. Being accepted and liked in another country is not something that happens all the time.
How accepting has Bollywood been of you? Do you feel completely at home here?
Bollywood has been very accepting. I know there are people out there that don't like me but there are more people liking me so it doesn't bother me. I am very lucky that when I entered Bollywood I was coming with a fan-following already. And Big Boss Season 5 show helped everyone else get to know me as a person. Moving to India from Hollywood was one of the easiest moves I have ever made. Effortless, really. When I was a child I wanted to play football, hockey, basketball and so on, so this is a challenge for me to learn a whole new art.
How much of the Indian film industry have you so far come to terms with?
I am not sure I fully understand this question. But I grew up in a typical Punjabi home and watched Hindi movies during my childhood. I understand Hindi and Punjabi and the Indian film industry is like every entertainment industry across the world. It all functions the same just in a different language. I have moved my whole world here and love this industry of Bollywood.
Do you feel it's hard for an outsider like you to crack the Bollywood code?
I can't speak for someone else's experiences in life, but my background and the fact that I have been in entertainment for 13 years, did give me the basic understandings of how things work. I work very hard around the clock, trying my hardest to learn everything that Bollywood is. I'm not even sure if I have fully cracked the "code" but I have begun the process hopefully. It all depends on how my second, third and forth movie do. In all reality I have only made one movie that has been released to the world. It all depends on how the world accepts me in those movies to come.
Are you now a full-on Mumbai girl?
I feel very comfortable living here and it's been the easiest move for my husband and I. We are very much settled and know the ins and out of Mumbai. I think the day I felt totally comfortable was when I started giving my driver directions.
How does your family react to your new career as a Bollywood actress?
My husband obviously is my biggest supporter. He runs two other businesses and has his own musical band and yet still finds the time to be my husband and manage my career, he's kind of like superman. My brother is very very supportive and has been from the beginning of my career. If my mom and dad knew I met Madhuri Dixit, I know they would have been so excited. My father always told me over and over again, do what you want in life but make sure you are the best at what you do and work hard. My father left India to Canada with $200 USD in his pocket and worked his way up and I always admired his hard work.
Have you bought your own home in Mumbai? Was it difficult for you to get property in Mumbai?
I have not purchased a home yet because my husband and I decided to see how things would move forward here in Bollywood before committing to buying something. It has also giving us a chance to get to know our surrounding and neighborhood that are nice to live in. It was a very easy process to find something we like and all tenants were very excited at the thought of a Bollywood actress living in their place. We are currently looking at new builds that fits in our time frame to buy. It's very exciting.
Have you left your days as an adult star behind? How do you look back on that experience?
Right now my whole focus is in Bollywood and nothing else. I believe I have been given the opportunity of a lifetime and I plan to keep my focus and energy here till the fans want me. If it wasn't for my past I would not be who I am. I am not ashamed of it because it has brought me here to India. If I came here as regular me with no entertainment experience then I would not be as popular as I am today with the public.
Is it true your husband Daniel is also seeking a career in Bollywood?
My husband is entertaining several opportunities and for information you'll have to ask him.
Women and children in India have lately been subjected to unprecedented violence and brutality. How do you react to the perception that the commodification of women in the glamour industry is a major cause for provoking crime against women?
Well, what has been going on is not something that just started recently, but the media has been bringing light to these horrible, psychotic events. It's not an industry that makes people do things, it's an individual and that individual needs help. These things happen all over the world at every minute of the day. The entertainment industry can not be blamed.
Do you still feel like an outsider in Bollywood?
Yes, I do feel like an outsider in the film fraternity. But I feel I’ve been accepted by my fans.
How much acceptance have you experienced within the Mumbai film industry?
Enough. So much so that I have been busy everyday this last year.
This is the era of the female hero in Bollywood. What do you feel about the trend of woman carrying films on their shoulders?
I think it's great the woman can carry a movie on their own. It should be like this.
How do you look back on your career in Bollywood so far?
Insanity! I love it; I have grown so much and learned so much. It's a world I never thought I would be a part of.
You've spoken to me earlier of the restricted acceptance you've found in Bollywood. Do you still feel ostracized and isolated?
Well, I think those words are a little strong but I know I don't exactly fit in. But I'm okay with that. I want to work and do good work that's it. If I make friends along the way then that's awesome and if not then I'm fine with that too. I have acceptance from my fans and they are the ones that keep me going.
A-list heroes are told by their wives not to work with you. How do you react to that?
I don't care. I should be the least of their worries. I respect marriage and love more then they know. One day when they meet me they will see that.
Your film Mastizaade has been passed by the censor board. Your thoughts on this film?
I am so excited for this film. We all had worked so hard while shooting and it's finally approved. I know my producer and director had a trying time getting it passed but with the grace of God it has. I believe people are going to love this film and will be laughing so much.
Mastizaade again takes you into the adult zone. Don't you pine to get away from that area and do something that would be acceptable to family audiences?
This is a comedy and I strive to make movies that I love. This film reminds me of the movies in the US and no one looks down on Hollywood a-listers for this and I don't think Bollywood should either. It's entertainment and it's fun. I signed this movie right after Ragini MMS 2 so it's been something in the works a long time. Some of my movies that are releasing this year are in the more serious zone. You'll just have to wait and watch.
How will 'Sunny Leone' reinvent herself during the coming months?
I actually dislike the word reinvent. I never want to reinvent me, I love who I am. But what does happen very organically is I grow and evolve as human being, actress and professional. So over the months, yes things will change but it's not something that is planned.
Bigg Boss 9: Salman Khan’s Dabangg act tonight will leave you SMITTEN, all over again
MMNN:30 Nov. 2015
There is a reason people are still putting up with this season of Bigg Boss despite it being boring and distasteful. No points for guessing that it is Salman Khan's weekend episodes which have made many watch it anyway.
It's simply bewildering to see how he transforms into this dashing looking man. You just can't take your eyes off him everytime he comes on TV. The Sultan look works amazingly on him.
The body that he is working on to play a wrestler in the film is inspirational. But it's his inimitable style of conversing with contestants that wins us over.
So, obviously we were crestfallen when he didn't host the last Saturday episode. Weekends without him is sort of hard to spend. But it seems the actor knows how to please his fans, if his entry in today's episode is anything to go by!
We have a video that has Salman performing on the Dabangg title track looking STUNNIN G. He does his signature belt step from the song and we are floored.
Now, we hear it's a new experiment that the channel has taken up. Salman made it to the episode yesterday which was such a relief. According to reports, from now on he will feature in episodes to be aired on Sunday and Monday. Today, elimination will happen which we have already reported.
Rimi Sen's wish finally came true and she's shown the door. We doubt anyone would miss her in and out of the house. Tomorrow, the nominations will be carried out again, supervised by Salman, we hear. Well, as long as Salman makes it to the show, we don't care!
Varun Dhawan: 'Dilwale' has a lot of twists, turns
MMNN:27 Nov. 2015
Actor Varun Dhawan says Rohit Shetty's directorial Dilwale has all the ingredients of a commercial Bollywood potboiler, but it also has an intense and emotional element with twists and turns.
"There's a lot to Dilwale. It's a very big film. I don't think the entire film can fit into one trailer, but there is a plot, a story which is totally logical. It has a lot of twists and turns," Varun said of the movie, which stars Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol as the lead pair.
"This film has romance, drama, action... there is everything for the viewer in this. But there's a sort of a twist in the second half which I'm looking forward for people to see. It's a very intense and emotional part," he added.
The film has Shetty's typical touch.
"Rohit Shetty makes films for the families. Nowadays there are very few directors who make films for the families. Honestly, I do films so that when people watch it in the theatre, they smile," Varun said.
The Dilwale trailer showcased a bit of what's in there in the movie, but not much is known about the plot of the film.
When asked about it, Varun said: "We've purposely not shown too much about it because we want the audience to come to the theatre and enjoy. If we show everything at the start, then what's the fun."
Releasing on December 18, the film also features Kriti Sanon.
'Men in Black 4' to have female agent?
Los Angeles:MMNN:27 Nov. 2015
Men In Black 4 producers are giving serious thoughts to include a female agent in the film.
Laurie MacDonald, who is producing the film with husband Walter Parkes, said they are keen on including a 'women in black' to play a significant role, reported Variety.
"There will be a prominent Woman in Black in the fourth (film)," MacDonald said.
The first film in the franchise that released in 1997 seemingly included Linda Fiorentino's character into the agency at the end of the film.However she was seen nowhere in the next two films.
Men in Black II had Lara Flynn Boyle playing villainous Serleena, but the MIB has yet to have a female agent take a lead role.
Star of the franchise Will Smith is still not attached with the fourth film, but Parkes says that the actor could be lured back.
"Never count Will out...We are quite early on in it. We sort of looked at the first three in retrospect as a bit of a trilogy," Parkes said.
The last installment in the franchise, Men in Black 3 was released in 2012 and earned US $624 million worldwide.
Captain America: Civil War’s first trailer pits superhero against superhero
MMNN:25 Nov. 2015
Captain America fans can take a deep breath. Now that the first trailer of Captain America: Civil War is here, we can tell you this is not yet another Avengers. Yes, it has Iron Man, yes it has Black Widow, yes it has Hawkeye, yes it has a host of other would-be superheroes but the film is all Cap.
After the excellent Captain America: Winter Soldier in 2014, this was the least we could expect. Brothers Anthony and Joe Russo, who directed the last film, are back with this superhero vs superhero caper and we like what we see.
The last film ended with Steve Rogers (Chris Evans), called Captain America when he is suited, saving his friend Bucky aka Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) who was brainwashed into going rogue. The trailer opens with Rogers and Falcon (Anthony Mackie) interrogating Bucky.
The government is after Bucky and Cap will save him at all costs, even if that means other Avengers will become his frenemies and the government (now wearing the face of William Hunt) will brand him a vigilante.
As revealed earlier, Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr) and Cap will go head-to-head but that’s not because our dear Tony Stark takes his penchant for staying on the wrong side of right too far. For once, it seems, he is on the side of the law.
While Cap, Bucky and Iron Man fight it out, this exchange does tug on our heartstrings: “I’m sorry, Tony, you know I wouldn’t do this if I had any other choice,” Rogers tells Stark in the trailer “But he’s my friend.” “So was I,” Stark replies.
Not much else gets revealed here except who else is involved: Natasha Romanoff (Scarlett Johansson), War Machine (Don Cheadle), Scarlett Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner), Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and the first appearance of Chadwick Boseman as Black Panther.
Winter Soldier got Marvel $714 million, with the generous dose of superheroes from Marvel Cinematic Universe, the production house will be hoping to beat Avengers’ $1.5 billion record. We are all prepared for the big, fat superhero showdown which releases on May 6 next year.
Plea seeks ban on 'Bajirao Mastani' for 'distorting' history
MMNN:25 Nov. 2015
A petition has been filed in a Pune court seeking a ban on Sanjay Leela Bhansali's upcoming film Bajirao Mastani, alleging that it has distorted history relating to late king Shrimant Bajirao Peshwe and his family members.
The case will come up for hearing on November 26 before Pune Metropolitan Magistrate S S Bhule, according to advocate Wajid Khan, who appeared on behalf of Hemant Patil, president of NGO- Bharat against Corruption, who has filed the plea.
The petition, filed yesterday, alleged that historical facts had been wrongly portrayed in the film while showing late king Bajirao Peshwe and his wives Kashibai and Mastani.
The 'Pinga' song in the film shows leading heroines Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone dancing together, which, the petitioner said "distorts" history.
'Pinga' dance is an integral part of Marathi culture and has been portrayed as an 'item song' in the film, the petition alleged.
Besides Bhansali, Chopra and Padukone have been named as respondents.
The court will hear the sides on November 26 to decide on issuing notices to the respondents. The Magistrate has allowed the petitioner's plea on the point of jurisdiction of the Magistrate court in Pune to hear the matter, said Wajid Khan.
Earlier, Prasadrao Peshwe, the descendant of Bajirao Peshwa I, had also alleged that historical facts have been "altered" while portraying the late king and his wives in the film.
In a letter written to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis yesterday, Prasadrao has demanded that the government look into the matter, review the soon-to-be-released film, investigate the matter and take a decision accordingly. The film is set for release on December 18.
Spectre review: This Daniel Craig starrer can't decide if it's a Bourne film or a Skyfall rehash
MMNN:20 Nov. 2015
People had almost lost interest in James Bond when Die Another Day limped out of theaters more than a decade ago. The Bond films were becoming increasingly cartoonish and every subsequent installment became more of a drinking game than an entertaining and smart thriller. It took a rather special effort to turn it all around as Daniel Craig burst on to the scene with Casino Royale and followed it up with the slightly disappointing Quantum of Solace and the terrific Skyfall.
In the latter, Bond was brought down to his knees, things got personal and the hero, who usually deals with over the top machinery and ludicrous firearm technology, was made to fight against a daunting enemy with handmade weapons and a radio. It was also the most beautiful looking Bond film to date. Director Sam Mendes had well and truly found a heart in the Bond films, capturing the essence of what makes Bond so classy and giving him a genuine threat to deal with. Bringing back Mendes for the new film signaled some more quality entertainment.
Unfortunately it all comes undone in the new film Spectre. Since Mendes already dealt with humanizing Bond in Skyfall, this time the filmmaker gives us the Bond from the Roger Moore era. Which means everything that was ludicrous and over the top in Bond movies makes a grand return in Spectre.
From flying helicopters and planes randomly making an appearance, to driving fast cars while dodging bullets and calmly chit-chatting in the midst, the silliness of Bond is back in Spectre. But that’s not the biggest problem in the film – the real problem is that the film isn’t sure whether it wants to be: a Bond movie or a Bourne movie. Both are vastly different tones, which don’t really gel together when the film tries to swing between both.
Those who were looking for answers to many of the questions posed in earlier Daniel Craig Bond movies will be disappointed. We finally get to know the big organisation that’s been using all the previous films’ villains as puppets. The annoying part is, that’s all the story is about, there’s nothing else. We get to know Franz Oberhauser (Christoph Waltz) is the big boss, and we get very little info on how and why he became the villain of villains.
To capitalize on the ‘personal’ angle that Mendes milked so beautifully in Skyfall, this time too there is a personal vendetta but one that doesn’t make much sense nor does it seem relevant to the plot. It feels like the writers John Logan, Purvis and Wade just had to make it personal for Bond because it worked the previous time and generated money. The film therefore plays out like a product of a massive focus group discussion and cynical market research than a Bond movie made by a bunch of genuine Bond fans.
Post the Austin Powers movies, Bond films that take themselves too seriously often come across as ludicrous. The clichéd, overtly contrived torture weapon made by a sneering villain is laughably bad. More hilarious than that is the fact that such a big mastermind of masterminds forgets to check if there’s some small strap that Bond can escape with.
How every woman in the film falls for Bond like he’s a sack of pheromones is perhaps the funniest bit in Spectre. As hard as it is to believe, one scene actually contains Bond asking a woman, "what shall we do next," and they begin making out. This is the kind of cheesy, dribble we saw in the earlier Pierce Brosnan movies, and they seem out of place when juxtaposed with the muscular grit of the thrills typical of Craig’s movies. The much hyped Monica Bellucci cameo gets over in a flash and Lea Seydoux is quite embarrassingly hammy as yet another Bond girl who falls desperate in love with Bond after hanging out with him for two scenes.
While Craig is still as classy as ever, Waltz’s big bad villain suffers from the same fate as Cumberbatch’s reveal in Star Trek Into Darkness. Even those who can’t figure out his identity will be left cold as to what the purpose of positioning the villain as the unstoppable, invincible force was, especially with the ease with which he gets taken down in the end.
There’s a whole section where Oberhauser spends time in the shadows, whispering in people’s ears to maintain anonymity, and later simply prances around in bright light simply telling Bond all his plans – it just doesn’t compute. The only truly admirable aspect of Spectre is the cinematography by Hoyte Van Hoytema – though even that pales in comparison to Deakins’ work in Skyfall.
Bigg Boss 9: Will wild card entry Kanwaljeet Singh be this season's Dolly Bindra?
MMNN:20 Nov. 2015
It’s raining wild card entries in the Bigg Boss house and the newest contestant on the block is set to bring about yet another entertaining twist in the tale! Designer Kanwaljeet Singh who will enter the show this week will energise the house with his flamboyant personality, wicked sense of humour and loving nature. Being the eldest member of the house, Kanwaljeet is also expected to add some words of wisdom and be the go-to person for the Bigg Boss contestants.
Full of panache and oomph, this designer contestant is known to be quite the fashionista too! Kanwaljeet is a renowned designer and is widely known for having designed for B-Town biggies like Amitabh Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Raveen Tandon, Mun Mun Sen, Riya Sen and ex-Bigg contestants Dolly Bindra, Rakhi Sawant, Kashmera Shah and Ravi Kishen.
Kanwaljeet also happens to be the childhood friend of ex-Bigg Boss contestant Imam Siddiqui and if anything like his friend, he is sure to light the house on fire... not literally! Known to have a catty image, his wicked ways will sprinkle masala onto the ongoing drama inside the house.
Speaking about his entry into the Bigg Boss house, Kanwaljeet said, "I feel as if my nine year itch has finally been relieved. I have been an ardent fan of Bigg Boss since season one and cannot wait to bring in some excitement in the show.
I want to represent the gay fashion community through Bigg Boss and definitely want to come out as the winner. I believe for a show like Bigg Boss, one need not do any preparation and just follow your own instincts!"
But the fashion designer also clarifies, "All my friends think I'm very bitchy (Laughs). So obviously, equations inside the house and the atmosphere will change." He reveals that it was good friend Dolly Bindra who asked him to take up the show. "Dolly convinced me to take this up. She had told me years back that I am tailor made for the show. She is my inspiration."
Shah Rukh Khan will be in Don 3; rest of the cast will depend on characters: Farhan Akhtar
Mumbai:MMNN:18 Nov. 2015
While fans are eagerly waiting for the announcement of ‘Don 3’ from Farhan Akhtar and Co., the actor-director said on Wednesday (November 18) that he doesn’t have a script ready yet for part three of the successful franchise.
However, Farhan did indicate that it will be Shah Rukh Khan who will reprise Don’s character but didn’t offer any confirmation on Priyanka Chopra and the other star cast.
When asked if the original pair Shah Rukh and Priyanka Chopra will reprise their roles, Farhan said, “I don’t have a script ready yet. So, it will be difficult to tell who will be in it. Don (SRK) will definitely be in it. Apart from that I don’t know. It will depend on what characters are written.”
Admitting his love for Don’s character, Farhan Akhtar said: “I enjoyed that character tremendously. He is a very exciting character to write.
Also I had a tremendous time working with Shah Rukh Khan so hopefully something will come along but I don’t have a plan yet.”
Shah Rukh Khan has donned the role of Don twice. Farhan Akhtar will be seen in Wazir with Amitabh Bachchan.
Airlift teaser: Akshay Kumar is reminiscent of Liam Neeson in Schindler's List, except his mission is in Kuwait
MMNN:18 Nov. 2015
The much-awaited teaser for Akshay Kumar-starrer Airlift is out. In fact with a runtime of two minutes, you could actually call it a trailer rather than a mere teaser. This film does hold better promise because it is based on real events and has been moulded like a gritty action drama. Similar 'serious' films like Special 26 and Baby have done better for Kumar over the last few years than his regular mindless comedies.
The teaser proudly proclaims to be the latest offering from the "makers of D-Day and Baby". Although the director Raja Menon is relatively new, the production team seems to be the same one that brought us sleek, patriotic but realistic action thrillers based on real events. So, what exactly does Airlift promise?
Airlift recreates certain events during the Gulf War of 1990, when a huge number of Indian expats had to be evacuated from Kuwait as Saddam Hussein's army invaded the nation.
Through his own voiceover, Akshay Kumar explains that he plays Ranjit Katyal, an entrepreneur of Indian origin in Kuwait who used to be a big shot in the pre-war period. But his world comes crushing down, along with thousands of other Indians, as the war starts. In short, he plays an Indian Oskar Schindler (memorably portrayed by Liam Neeson in Schindler's List) who saves many lives using his resources and clout.
The most heartening thing about the film seems to be its production values. Airlift has been shot somewhere in West Asia and the war-ravaged Kuwait has been recreated well with ominous music and newsreel-like footage. There is a good dose of patriotism too as the character exclaims “aaj unhe bacha sakta hain to woh desh, jinhe unhone khud yaad karna band kad diya tha!” (If anyone can save them today, it is that nation that they had themselves forgotten).
We can only hope that Airlift sticks to its promise and does not deviate too much. The only complaint about the teaser is the negligible footage given to Nimrat Kaur, who is billed as Kumar's co-star. Surely an actress of her calibre deserves a better deal compared to the mannequins who generally appear in other Kumar films.
Saeed Jaffrey, Film Star and Shakespearewallah. A Passage From India
New Delhi:MMNN:16 Nov. 2015
Actor Saeed Jaffrey, whose film credits include Shatranj Ke Khiladi and Gandhi, died at the age of 86, wrote his niece Shaheen on Facebook on Sunday. "A generation of Jaffreys has passed away," read her Facebook post.
An interview with Independent that Shaheen quoted in her post described Mr Jaffrey as an actor with "two careers: he's well-known in Britain, and he's huge in India." Mr Jaffrey was, perhaps, among the first Indian actors to have built a career of repute internationally, much before actors like Om Puri, Naseeruddin Shah, Shabana Azmi and Anupam Kher, all of whom are about 20 years or more his junior.
It all began in Malerkotla, Punjab where Saeed Jaffrey was born on January 8, 1929. A student of history, Mr Jaffrey was an alumnus of Aligarh Muslim University, the Wynberg Allen School and the Allahabad University. He later studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and was awarded his second post-graduate degree, in drama, by The Catholic University of America.
Saeed Jaffrey's introduction to showbiz was on the stage. As a young actor in Delhi, he ran a theatre company named Unity Theatre, which produced plays based on the works of Tennessee Williams, Christopher Fry and Shakespeare. Mr Jaffrey was the first Indian actor to tour America with his theatre company, performing Shakespeare.
At home, Mr Jaffrey struck a balance between critically acclaimed films and mainstream Bollywood. He was directed by Satyajit Ray in Shatranj Ke Khiladi, winning a Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor. He starred in Mandi, Masoom and Chashme Buddoor. His masala films include Ram Lakhan, Ram Teri Ganga Maili, Dil and Aaina .
His international CV contains names equally illustrious as Ray. In Gandhi, he played Sardar Patel, working under the stewardship of Richard Attenborough and with an august cast led by Ben Kingsley; in A Passage To India, he was directed by David Lean; in John Huston's The Man Who Would Be King, his co-stars were Sean Connery, Michael Caine and Christopher Plummer; he made The Deceivers with Merchant Ivory and Pierce Brosnan; he starred with Daniel Day-Lewis in Stephen Frears' film adaptation of Hanif Kureishi's My Beautiful Laundrette, scoring a BAFTA nomination in 1985, the first Asian actor to do so.
Saeed Jaffrey also appeared in the TV miniseries The Far Pavilions and The Jewel In The Crown, long-running British soap Coronation Street, and headlined the cast of sitcom Tandoori Nights. Apart from his screen career, Mr Jaffrey was the Radio Director for All India Radio between 1951 and 1956 and Director of Publicity and Advertising at the Government of India Tourist Office. Saeed Jaffrey was married to actress-author Madhur, with whom he has three children - Meera, Zia, and Sakina, also an actress. The couple divorced in 1965. In 1980, he married casting director Jennifer Sorrell, who also acted as his agent. Mr Jaffrey was the first Indian to receive the Order of the British Empire or OBE.
Sonam Kapoor garners praise for 'Prem Ratan Dhan Payo'
MMNN:16 Nov. 2015
Sonam Kapoor, has much reason to celebrate. She was lauded for her performance in what could only be described as her career's biggest film so far - Prem Ratan Dhan Payo.
The actress was the quintessential Sooraj Barjatya heroine in the family drama where she was paired with superstar, Salman Khan. She impressed the audience and the trade alike, with her performance in the film.
All praise for Sonam, Taran Adarsh says, "First of all to be cast opposite Salman Khan in a Sooraj Barjatya film is a big achievement. Sonam is not a decorative piece in the film, she has acted really well.
Initially when the cast was announced people had raised eyebrows but then everyone saw how lovely a couple she and Salman made as Prem and Maithali. There is no stopping this girl. She has a very bright future."
Komal Nahta agrees and adds,"Sonam is very good in the film. Not only does she look beautiful on screen but also got under the skin of her character. Although she has a very urban image she fit beautifully into the character of a traditional girl. This film is a turning point in her career."
The actress, who has played the part of an Indian princess in the film, has been on a high with the stupendous success of the film.
Prem Ratan Dhan Payo review: Salman and the film are predictably sweet, just like a Diwali ladoo
MMNN:13 Nov. 2015
There is a scene in Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, where at it’s most romantic moment, Rajkumari Maithili (Sonam Kapoor) gives Prem Dilwala (Salman Khan) a huge, white feather pen and asks him to write on her back. She goes on to shut all the doors of the large palatial kitchen, signaling her surrender to Prem. As she expresses her love with a Himesh Reshammiya composed song, Prem looks touched, shy, loving and reluctant all at once.
It’s the classic Barjatya romance, full of the nineties’ sensuality and moral, virginal men and women. The kitchen or a terrace is the romantic playground.
In 1994, it was no different. Khan was the same, shy and gentlemanly Prem, who was served a loving meal, late at night by Nisha (Madhuri Dixit). Soon they danced to a sensual SP Balasubramaniam number, “Pehla pehla pyaar hai”.
It all started for both Barjatya and Salman Khan in 1989,when they made their debut with Maine Pyaar Kiya. Khan was a younger Prem who gracefully covered Suman (Bhagyashree) when she unrobed herself for him. Once again, SP's bass-heavy voice in "mere rangon mein..”brought out the beautiful, sensual mood of the sequence.
Back to 2015, Barjatya’s sense of romance is still the same: virginal, old world and musical. The hero’s name is the same: Prem. The sentiment is the same: pure love. The values are the same: strong sense of family duty.
The PRDP world is almost the same: rich, big families, but with a difference. They are not the deeply loving joint families of Hum Aapke Hain Kaun or Hum Saath Saath Hain. This Rajshri world has a family full of discord. There are half brothers and half sisters, one father with three wives. They are not just rich. They are royal kings and queens who live in palaces.
This sheesh mahal has a bhool bhulaiya zone full of Mughale e Azam like mirrors and huge chandeliers which are used to display an element most uncharacteristic of a Barjatya film: Violence. Little wonder, that it is the most unconvincing part of the film.
What comes before and after the fight sequences, is the most predictable of plots yet the most appealing part. It works because of what Barjatyas are really good at: massive and blatant emotional appeal.
The film starts with the introduction of this universe. There is a prince called Vijay Singh (Salman Khan, in a small double role). He is betrothed to princess Maithili. Vijay has a half brother, Ajay Singh (Neil Nitin Mukesh) who resents Vijay’s authority as the eldest. Vijay has two half sisters (Swara Bhaskar and Aashika Bhatia) who resent his rightful heritage denied to them because their own mother was not their common father’s queen. There is a secret plot to kill Vijay. In the midst of the story of the prince and princess comes a pauper and a look alike of Vijay Singh—Prem Dilwala.
In some rather contrived ways, Prem ends up resolving family issues while entertaining with too many songs. There's also a football sequence along the way (remember cricket in HAHK?) while a small moustache also plays a significant, romantic role. The screenplay stretches for a good 170 minutes and goes into lengthy brother- sister tearful sagas . A dialogue is thrown in to coincide with the festive time of the film’s release. It goes, “rishta behnon ka hai lekin naam to hai, bhaidooj.”
The acts are well pulled of by Khan with his usual playful balancing; Mukesh charms with his sizzling screen presence and Bhaskar is entertaining in her heartwarming portrayal. Sonam Kapoor is sweet and adequate as the innocent princess but has little to do. The Indian regal costumes in cold pastels, don’t do her slim frame, much justice. She and Khan make an interesting and pleasant pair, even at their subdued best—feathers et al.
Not surprisingly, this Barjatya film is as nice, predictable, old fashioned and sweet as a Diwali laddoo. Full of emotionally engaging, PG-rated Prem leela.
Interesting fan-made posters of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol’s 'Dilwale'
MMNN:13 Nov. 2015
Dilwale, the most awaited film of the year, will reunite one of the most popular pairs of Bollywood – Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. Considering the ensemble cast, much talked about stunts and the presence of King Khan himself; it is not a surprise that fans are already excited about this film. Some fans have also gone to the extent of designing impressive posters for this Rohit Shetty flick. Take a look at some of the most interesting ones…
This fan-made poster sure seems to have been inspired by the Fast and Furious series. The car blasts and the intense look on the face of the lead actors add to the thrill quotient.
Featuring the whole cast of the film, this poster perfectly represents the ensemble cast of this Rohit Shetty venture. Apart from SRK, Kajol, Varun and Kriti, it also includes Boman Irani, Vinod Khanna, Kabir Bedi, Johnny Lever, Varun Sharma and Sanjay Mishra.
If not for anything else, this fan poster stands out for its striking similarity to the iconic train scene in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. The only difference being that the train has been replaced by a chopper. Also the title of the poster, Dilwale Dulhania Uda Le Jayenge is sure to leave you in splits.
With hearts, stars and floral patterns all over, this fan-made poster is successful in capturing the essence of romance, which is the central theme of the film. The red-black background further adds to the ‘lovey-dovey’ feel.
This fan-made poster only features the male leads of the film – SRK and Varun Dhawan. In spite of the missing female leads, the poster is nothing less than a delight to the eyes.
This fan-made poster, which is an exact copy of the Hollywood film The Best of Me poster, is no doubt the best of the lot. Featuring all the lead actors, this mesmerising poster sure has a romantic feel to it.
All you need to know about 'Dilwale' trailer!
MMNN:9 Nov. 2015
Finally, the wait is coming to an end! After months of waiting, the first look and the logos of Rohit Shetty's Dilwale was launched earlier last week.
Now, it's time for the grand unveiling of the theatrical trailer. While the trailer will be launched amidst much fanfare on Monday evening, the director along with his leading cast and crew- Kajol, Shah Rukh Khan, Kriti Sanon and Varun Dhawan will be meeting the media for a quick round of questions and answers.
Shah Rukh Khan just revealed the first look from the film on Twitter last night and given how witty he is, he called it 'half a look' poster. We agree! With that enough to get our energy pulsating, here are few things that you can expect from the Dilwale trailer!
Two and half minutes long!
Like most trailers, Dilwale theatrical trailer will also be two and half minutes long. Yes, following the standard trailer duration, the trailer has been well edited to bring out the flavour of the film to the core. And whoever's watched it have loved it!
More than just a sneak peek
Team Dilwale met media representatives in Hyderabad for a brief tete-a-tete where they even showed a 20 minute long clip from the film, which had some of the best moments from the film. A source tells us, "While some of them will be seen in the trailer too, there will be another additions. so whoever has watched the sneak peek on YouTube too will be surprised." We can't wait!
Varun's dhamakedaar entry!
Unlike other superstars, SRK is very secure. Reason? He's done ensemble films with consummate ease and comfort and ask any of his co-stars and you'll know why he's possibly one of the most caring co-stars ever. More so with Dilwale because he's the producer as well. In a recent interaction with us, Varun told us, "Shah Rukh sir takes care of everyone in the best way possible." Now, although SRK is definitely the biggest superstar in the cast, it will be Varun's entry scene that will catch your eye. "He's having a superstar entry in the film, something that he's never had in any other film." With Rohit Shetty in tow, expect firecrackers!
The love anthem!
Now this is something we all are waiting for. While the small teaser video has got our pulse racing, we'll get to see a major glimpse of the Iceland shoot in the trailer too. Titled 'Rang De Tu mohe Gerua', this song will being back fond memories of the super-hit SRK-Kajol combo on screen! True, some love stories never end. Kajol and SRK's sizzling chemistry will be a major highlight of the trailer and this time, they will romance, in Rohit Shetty ishtyle!
Bigg Boss Nau: Eliminated contestants from the season
MMNN:9 Nov. 2015
Yuvika Chaudhary eliminated from the Bigg Boss house!
Doll-face Yuvika Chaudhary entered the Bigg Boss house with partner Vikas Bhalla with positivity and a constant smile on her charming face. When Vikas Bhalla's snores created a ruckus for the rest of the house, Yuvika's patience stayed strong and she displayed her understanding nature.
Adjusting to the lack of sleep, instead of cribbing , Yuvika made arrangements to make her partner feel comfortable Winning the first captaincy task against strong contenders Kishwer and Aman, Yuvika and partner Vikas became the first captain Jodi of Bigg Boss Double Trouble.
Their captaincy style received multiple brickbats for but they even sailed through it with much postivity. She developed a strong bond with partner Vikas Bhalla and he supported her when she fainted during the Lagaan task.
Trying to up her game, wildcard contestant Rishabh's advice guided her through the last week. Her fight with Mandana surprised housemates and viewers alike.
While Prince Narula had expressed a romantic interest in her, she thought it was all a part of the game and showered Rishabh with attention.
When Prince proposed to her with a heart-shaped parantha, Yuvika only blushed and smiled. She finally revealed that she does not feel the same way for Prince and that Rishabh is a 'sweetheart'. Her exit from the house left Prince visibly upset.
Speaking about her journey in the Bigg Boss house, Yuvika Chaudhary said, "I tried to stay as real as possible inside the Bigg Boss house and have learnt the art of saying no when needed. This experience will stay etched in my memory for my life. I am glad to be out of the house and cannot wait to start my journey once again!"
Deepika Padukone finds Ranveer Singh's look in 'Bajirao Mastani' 'hot'
MMNN:6 Nov. 2015
Actress Deepika Padukone has openly called her Bajirao Mastani co-star Ranveer Singh "hot" on micro-blogging site Twitter.
"Hello Hotness! #BajiraoMastani @RanveerOfficial," she captioned the pic.
The Piku star and Ranveer, 30, who came close during the shoot of Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela, had earlier praised each others work on Twitter.
In Bajirao Mastani, Ranveer plays the mighty Maratha warrior Peshwa Bajirao while Deepika will be seen donning the role of his second wife Mastani.
Also starring Priyanka Chopra as Kashi Bai (Bajirao's first wife), the Sanjay Leela Bhansali-directed film will hit theatres on December 18.
'Haraamkhor','Chauthi Koot' bag top honours at Mumbai film fest
MMNN:6 Nov. 2015
The 17th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival came to a close on Thursday with films such as Haraamkhor, Chauthi Koot and Thithi bagging the top awards.
Bollywood superstar Salman Khan was the guest of honour at the closing ceremony, which was followed by the award function. Speaking on the occasion, Salman said: "I'm sorry I missed the opening ceremony of the festival. I wouldn't miss it the next time".
"I'm so happy that the festival has been reintroduced thanks to Kiran Rao, Anupama Chopra and their team who made this possible. I think this festival is the second best thing that has happened to Kiran after Aamir Khan," he said. Salman also said awards won at this festival will always remain special because they are given on merit.
Celebrities such as Saif Ali Khan, Riteish Deshmukh, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Nandita Das, Esha Gupta, Radhika Apte and Vidya Balan were present among others. The international competition jury, headed by Ava DuVernay, awarded the Golden Gateway of India trophy for the best film in the international competition section to "Ixcanul Volcano", directed by Jayro Busatamante.
The jury gave the Silver Gateway of India trophy to Kyrgistan film Heavenly Nomadic, while the jury grand prize was awarded to Kannada film Thithi. The special jury award in direction was won by Cesar Augusto Acevedo's film Land and Shade.
The jury awards for best screenplay and best acting were given to Songs My Brother Taught Me and Sleeping Giant respectively. In the India Gold category, the Golden Gateway of India trophy was won by "Chauthi Koot", which was directed by Gurvinder Singh.
Director Shlok Sharma's Haraamkhor, starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui, was presented the Silver Gateway of India trophy.
A special jury award in this section was awarded to The Illusion of My Mind. Directors below the age of 25 pitted their skill in a short film competition Dimensions Mumbai category, which is headed by filmmaker Dibakar Banerjee.
The jury awarded the Golden Gateway of India award to Dhruv Sehgal's Kunal and the Silver Gateway of India trophy to Disha Rindani's "Meet the Voice".
In the Half Ticket section, Malayalam film Ottaal, about child labour, won the Golden Gateway of India award. It also won the Film for Social Impact award.
The Silver Gateway of India trophy in this category was awarded to Norway film "Operation Arctic".
The special jury awards were given to Nagesh Kukunoor's Dhanak and British film X+Y. My Grandfather was a Cherry Tree won the Golden Gateway of India award in the Half Ticket shorts category while Russian film "About a Mother" was given the Silver Gateway of India trophy.
The jury special award for direction in this section was given to Daan Durft.
Authors Balaji Vittal and Anirudha Bhattacharajee won the Excellence in Writing on Cinema award for their book "Gaata Rahe Mera Dil", which offers a sneak peek into the making some of Bollywood most popular hit songs.
The Young Critic award went to Wayne Demello for his passion and deep understanding of the film medium. The Young Critics jury awarded "Kaul", directed by Aadish Keluskar, the Silver Gateway of India trophy. The audience choice award went to Iranian film Taxi by Jafar Panahi.
After Prem Ratan, Neil Nitin Mukesh to play a royal in GoT
New Delhi:MMNN:4 Nov. 2015
Prem Ratan Dhan Payo is yet to create magic at the box office but actor Neil Nitin Mukesh is already reaping benefits off it. The actor disclosed to Mumbai Mirror that he has been offered a role in the Emmy-winning hit series, Game of Thrones.
The offer came via Hollywood action director George Powell who is also the stunt director on the Salman Khan starrer, which is being directed by Sooraj Barjatya. Powell has earlier worked on such high profile projects such as Avengers: Age of Ultron, Fast and Furious 6 and Harry Potter.
“Greg has directed two sword-fighting sequences in PRDP for which I had to train for over a month in order to get the stance and wrist movements right.
He seemed pretty impressed with all the hard work I put in and made the offer when we were shooting for the climax scene a few months ago,” Neil told the Mumbai-based tabloid.
The actor revealed that a representative from the show will come and meet him in Mumbai to further discuss the role. He also divulged that he will be playing a royal on the show, like in PRDP. GoT’s sixth season started filming in July and chances are we will see Mukesh in season seven.
India seems to be the flavour of choice on American television. After Priyanka Chopra won hearts with her portrayal of Alex Parrish on Quantico, it is now the turn of Mukesh to add an Indian royal touch to American television.
Radhika Apte to join the shoot of Rajinikanth’s Kabali in December!
MMNN:4 Nov. 2015
After romancing B-town heroines like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Deepika Padukone and Sonakshi Sinha, Tamil superstar Rajinikanth is all set to share screen with none other than Radhika Apte.
The Hunterrr actress has signed the dotted line to star in Pa Ranjith’s Kabali opposite Rajinikanth. Kabali has already been making waves across Kollywood thanks to Rajinikanth’s stylish salt and pepper avatar.
Currently, the Kabali craze has taken over Malaysia as Rajinikanth and Pa Ranjith are shooting the second schedule of the film at Malacca prison in Malaysia.
Latest news about the film is that, Radhika Apte would be joining the Kabali team this December and would finish filming her portions in one go. It is being said that 70% of the shoot is complete and Rajini would be back in the country to celebrate his birthday on December 12.
If this is true, then Radhika might be joining the Kabali shoot once the crew is back from Malaysia.
Rajinikanth is said to be playing an ageing gangster, who is forced to return to the dark world when his daughter Dhansikaa, goes missing. Radhika Apte will be playing Rajini’s wife in the film.
Does this mean Radhika will be playing an older character in Kabali? How great will be her chemistry with Rajinikanth? The answers await at April 2016.
Rajkumar Hirani won't remove underworld from Sanjay Dutt's biopic
MMNN:2 Nov. 2015
Rajkumar Hirani, who is presently working on Sanjay Dutt's biopic, recently revealed that his film will delve into the controversial side of the actor's life, including his alleged involvement in the underworld.
The 52-year-old director said that everything will be a part of the film as they are not cutting it, reports the Dawn.
Talking about the underworld's inclusion in the flick, Hirani said that he was skeptical initially as underworld part is not one of his favourite worlds,
but when he sat with Abhijat Joshi, he discovered that he wishes to make this story because this is a human story.
He further clarified that he is not making this film to glorify the 56-year-old actor, but he has made it because it is a great story.
The flick that stars Ranbir Kapoor will go on floors next year.
Bigg Boss 9: Vikas eliminated, Rishabh is first wild card entry
New Delhi:MMNN:2 Nov. 2015
Actor Vikas Bhalla was eliminated from Bigg Boss 9 even as the first wild card entry of the season TV actor Rishabh Sinha was revealed on Sunday night.
Rishabh claimed he would like to keep his distance from contestants Kishwer Merchant and Suyyash Kumar Rai.
“I like Mandana (Karimi), Yuvika (Chaudhary) and Aman (Verma), and would like to be friends with them. I don’t like Kishwer and Suyyash. Most of the time they are just jabbering and are loud for no reason,” he said before entering the house.
The actor also added that according to him, nothing much is happening in the house. “Everyone is so thanda. There is no fire and I think I am going to be the one to light it. I don’t understand why people don’t admit that they are in a group. I’ll not do that. Whatever I do, I will do it in the open.”
While he is looking forward to being locked up in the house, he will miss a few things. “I think I will miss playing computer games and listening to music. A lot of people say that they will miss their parents but since my mom and dad will see me on the show, I don’t think that will happen with me at least,” he said.
Vikas, who was voted out of the show on Sunday, began the game with partner Yuvika Chaudhary and they soon became each other’s support system. He even sacrificed his luggage for Yuvika and was seen sporting. In the captaincy task, the duo was unanimously voted to be the first captains of the house beating competitor jodi Kishwer and Aman.
Vikas was later blamed for excluding women in the house in major decisions during the his captaincy task. Getting into a tiff with Prince a few days before elimination, Vikas had gradually begun revealing his egotistical side.
Speaking about his journey in the Bigg Boss house, Vikas Bhalla said, “Bigg Boss is a show where you cannot fake emotions. You almost get transported into a parallel world. It has been an experience which will always be engrained in my memory. I made quite a few genuine friends inside the house like Yuvika, Suyyash, Prince and Arvind and would like to keep in touch with them even in the real world.”
Filmy Friday: ‘Titli’, ‘Main Aur Charles’, ‘Guddu Ki Gun’ release today
New Delhi:MMNN:30 Oct. 2015
The Box Office is still reeling under the debacle of Shahid Kapoor and Alia Bhatt starrer ‘Shaandaar’, giving comedy ‘Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2′ maximum opportunity to grow its stakes. The three releases today (October 30) seem to have an undefined future at the ticket windows and hence, given that the Luv Ranjan directorial a chance to survive another week.
The first release this weekend is Yash Raj Films’ ‘Titli’. The movie is being hailed as one of the hard hitting indie films ever made in India. The movie’s trailer was modified to suit the taste of Indian audiences and hence, one can imagine how hard and deep the movie is slated to hit.
Marking Kanu Behl’s directorial debut, ‘Titli’ stars Ranvir Shorey, Amit Sial and newcomer Shashank Arora. The movie has been produced by ‘Detective Byomkesh Bakshy’ director Dibakar Banerjee and Yash Raj Films.
The movie tells the story of Titli, the youngest member of a violent car-jacking brotherhood, who plots a desperate bid to escape the ‘family’ business. His struggle to do so is countered at each stage by his indignant brothers, who finally try marrying him off to ‘settle’ him.
‘Titli’ received rave reviews when it was first screened at the 2014 Cannes International Film Festival where it was the official selection in the Un Certain Regard section, and has since then travelled to 22 international film festivals, winning eight awards and has opened to immense box office success in France and Germany.
The film hasn’t been promoted at all and thereby, stands a chance only if the word of mouth is good enough.
The second release is Randeep Hooda starrer ‘Main Aur Charles’, which is not a biopic on the ill-famous “bikini killer” Charles Sobhraj, but a larger than life account of his adventures.
The setting of the movie takes us back to the ’80s and how Sobhraj conned tourists. The writer-director Prawaal Raman’s detailing looks intricately woven and hence, promising. With a good mix of intrigue, and sex, ‘Main Aur Charles’ does make for an interesting watch. -
Charles Sobhraj is considered to be one of the most suave conmen in modern history and ‘Highway’ star Randeep has captured the nuances of his character perfectly.
Also starring Richa Chadha, Saurabh Sarkar, Satyaendra Gupta, Sandeep Punia, Lucky Morani, Vipin Sharma, Dijana Dejanovic, Mandana Karimi, Alex O’Neil, Shanti Mei and Anastasia, the movie has been promoted decently and like ‘Titli’ looks to thrive on a good word of mouth.
Another release this weekend is Kunal Kemmu starrer ‘Guddu Ki Gun’. Coming out as a movie in which a male has been objectified for the very first time, the movie has a limited reach due to its risque subject.
The dialogues too appear bold enough for the Indian audiences and hence, stands to derive extreme reactions. Not promoted well, the movie may well become a coming-of-age comic caper or a dud with further demeaning Kunal Kemmu’s career. Helmed by director duo Shantanu Ray Chhibber and Sheershak Anand, the movie also stars Bengali actress Payel Sarkar, who makes her Bollywood debut with the project and Aparna Sharma.
With three intriguing releases, this proves to be a good week for the viewers who like their movies a bit different and distinct in looks and taste.
Huma Qureshi will have great global cinema launch with my film: Gurinder Chadha
Mumbai:MMNN:30 Oct. 2015
Indo-British filmmaker Gurinder Chadha says her upcoming historical-drama "Viceroy's House" will be a great launch pad for Bollywood actress Huma Qureshi in the international film world.
The movie also stars English actor Hugh Bonneville as Lord Mountbatten, the last Viceroy of British India, Gillian Anderson, Om Puri among others.
"Huma is a great actress. And with "Viceroy's House", she will get a great launch in global cinema. For the role, she had to ditch her Mumbaiya accent and get into the prim and proper British one," Gurinder told reporters here at the opening ceremony of the 17th Jio MAMI Mumbai film festival.
Shot in India, the film will chronicle the inside life of the Viceroy's House during the partition in 1947.
"The film is set in 1947 and will be about India's independence from a British perspective. It's on the editing stage in London right now," the 55-year-old filmmaker said.
"Viceroy's House", which will hit the theatres in 2016, comes six years after her last venture - comedy film "It's a Wonderful Afterlife" (2010).
Huma, 29, will be next seen in the remake of 2013 Hollywood film "Oculus", co-starring her brother Saqib Saleem.
Priyanka Chopra hopes Quantico opens new doors for Indian talent
Mumbai:MMNN:28 Oct. 2015
Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra has expressed hopes that her leading role in hit United States television show Quantico will help pave the way for other Indian actors to make it big in America. In an email interview to AFP, the Mary Kom star said, “I can only hope that it opens the right doors. I truly believe that we have a huge pool of talent in India, which spans actors, directors, technicians and the like, and there is a huge window of opportunity for them to explore outside India.”
Priyanka, 33, has been steadily spreading her wings in the US. She first launched a music career and later lent her voice to a Disney character for film Planes. Besides, she has been a part of mainstream American television drama , ABC’s Quantico. On Quantico, she plays the lead character of Alex Parrish, a half-American half-Indian who becomes the FBI’s prime suspect.
The former Miss World is blazing a trail as the first Indian lead in a US TV series, playing FBI agent turned suspected terrorist Alex Parrish in the ABC thriller. She has received glowing reviews for her Quantico. She has also received an offer to host a celebrity chat show for ABC. Priyanka is busy with Quantico and her Bollywood commitments, but she liked the concept of the talk show and plans to accommodate dates for it, sources were quoted as saying.
While Bollywood actors Anil Kapoor (24), Rahul Khanna (The Americans) and Nimrat Kaur (Homeland) have all featured in American shows, Priyanka is the first actor from India to headline an original series. Her face is plastered across billboards in major US cities and Priyanka , who was crowned Miss World in 2000, said she felt the pressure. “I was nervous... period! Firstly I am trying something new, I was attempting it in a whole new geography, I was doing it in a different language from what the audience is used to for my onscreen persona,” she explained.
The star of Bollywood hits such as Dil Dhadakne Do and biopic Mary Kom added that she felt it was important that her Indian-American character was ethnically ambiguous. “There is a lot of diversity in the characters on Quantico but it’s not a cliched representation,” she said.
“It is, however, more a mirror to society in the USA -- a multi-cultural mix of people from all over the world, connected to their ethnicity in some way but who primarily consider themselves citizens of the United States of America,” she added.
Back home, Priyanka gears up for the December release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s most-talked about project Bajirao Mastani. She also has Prakash Jha’s Jai Gangajal in her kitty. The movie will hit theatres next year.
Manoj Bajpayee: Role in 'Aligarh' made me a better person
MMNN:28 Oct. 2015
Actor Manoj Bajpayee, who has essayed the role of a professor in Hansal Mehta's Aligarh, says it changed him and made him a "better person".
"My role in Aligarh is so gentle and pure hearted that it made me a better person. I have not seen a noble human like him (the character in Aligarh). It is a great story to tell. You will be moved by the character," Manoj told IANS in an interview. The actor also said that "acting is the most difficult job in the entire world".
"It is always tough to get into somebody else's skin and to understand somebody else's soul or his journey when you are doing serious acting. So nothing gives you immense pleasure when you resemble the role you are playing," he added.
Talking about his character in Aligarh, Manoj said he felt the story moved the audience which primarily focuses on the treatment of homosexuality in Indian society.
Set in a town in Uttar Pradesh from which the film takes its name, Aligarh is the story of a professor (Manoj Bajpayee) fired for his sexuality and a young journalist (Rajkummar Rao) who tells his story to the world.
As the film garnered applause and received a standing ovation following its screening at the 20th Busan International Film Festival and London Film Festival, an elated Manoj said "We got huge appreciation at Busan and London Film Festival. Critics and audience admired the film and emailed me, left messages. So this proves that Aligarh is a great film and doesn't matter whether it is about homosexuality or not, but it is a great story to tell." Aligarh will open the 17th Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival here on October 30.
Subhash Ghai to produce a biopic, action-drama
MMNN:26 Oct. 2015
Filmmaker Subhash Ghai is gearing up to produce a biopic, action drama and a film with social message.
"We are working on three projects one is an action drama film with an A-lister actor. The second project is a biopic and another film is with theme of social elements. These two films will be made with new generation of actors," Ghai told PTI. Presently, Ghai is supervising these projects as a producer.
"We have not signed any actors for the film. I am good friends with most of the A-list actors like Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Sanjay Dutt and Hrithik Roshan, Jackie Shroff, Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit," he said.
Mukta Arts celebrated its 37th anniversary in a small gathering at the Iskon Temple in suburban Juhu. The company has come a long way from its inception in 1978 to having produced movies like Karz, Hero, Karma, Ram Lakhan, Saudagar, Khalnayak, Pardes, Taal and Yaadein among others.
Away from films, the company is also credited with o creating India's largest and only private world-class film institute, Whistling Woods International.
Hrithik Roshan to play a pirate captain in his next!
MMNN:26 Oct. 2015
The rather picky Hrithik Roshan is soon building an interesting line-up of films. He plays a prince in Ashutosh Gowariker’s Mohenjo Daro and a pirate in Vijay Krishna (Victor) Acharya’s Thug, a big-budget action-cum-love story, produced by Yash Raj Films.
A source informs, “YRF is working on two action dramas — Thug and Dhoom 4, both directed by Victor. The story of Thug is kept under wraps as Hrithik begins shooting for it from January next year.
It’s a fantasy film, set against a fictional historical setting, and revolves around the adventures of a dashing pirate captain (Hrithik) and his crew. Hrithik’s character is something like Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and what he plays in the Pirates Of The Caribbean (POTC) series.
As Aditya Chopra has made a successful franchise of the Dhoom series, the idea is to make a Thug series if the first one is successful. Hrithik is excited about playing a swashbuckling pirate, something he hasn’t done before. He has been sitting through various look tests with Victor and Adi. The shooting of Thug will begin from January next year.”
The source adds that a huge set of a ship will be put up in YRF during the next couple of months where the major scenes on board will be canned. “The first schedule is a lengthy one — 150 days — after which, more than half of the film is expected to be ready. The lead actress opposite Hrithik is being finalised.”
Shaandaar review: Even Alia, Shahid and the Kapurs can't save a forgettable film
MMNN:23 Oct. 2015
Once upon a Sleeping Beauty time, there was a princess. She slept for a hundred long years. One day a handsome prince rode into her dreams and her non-existent life. He kissed her. She woke up. The two lived happily ever after.
Once upon a Hum Aapke Hain Kaun time, there was a good boy called Prem and a good girl called Nisha. The girl danced in a ghastly purple saree. The boy aimed a slingshot at her big derriere. She blushed, he laughed. The Sooraj Barjatya brand of filmmaking lived happily ever after, with the audience in love with wedding home videos
Now it’s the time of Shaandaar love story days. No, we are not talking of achche din, but of sleepless nights. There is a wedding in the pipeline.
Before that, there is a princess who cannot sleep. It’s a world where Barjatya’s wedding scores meet the fairy tale world of animated frogs.
The princess is an orphaned child, Alia (Alia Bhatt), who has been adopted by a kind man, Bipin Arora (Pankaj Kapur). He lives in a palace with a beautiful, but bossy, rich queen (Niki Aneja, in a welcome appearance) and an overweight and sweet daughter, Isha (Sanah Kapoor, Pankaj Kapoor’s daughter). The adopted princess cannot sleep. The kind father gifts her a box of dreams and hopes she will meet a prince who will put her to sleep.
As in all fairy tales, there is a witch. She is a wheelchair-bound powerful naani, who lives in a castle in some unknown country. Her witchy and bitchy behavior extends to a simple word against the adopted Alia:"Anaath".
The wicked witches in the good old fairy tales were far more delightfully original in their evil acts. Who would have thought that one day, they would be sorely missed and a clichéd actress like Sushma Seth would play the mercenary granny? The granny fixes Isha’s wedding with a rich Sindhi family to rescue themselves from bankruptcy. Seth, however, is actually better at making eyes at Jagjinder Joginder aka JJ (Shahid Kapoor) to the soundtrack of “who’s this hottie?”
Oh yes, who is he indeed? It’s clear that the hottie prince or wedding planner pauper—an insomniac himself--- is there to put the sleepless beauty to sleep. But beyond that, Kapoor has little to do. It’s quite commendable therefore, that he grins and bears the non-role with style and verve after the heavy duty Haider. So, when Alia sits on his lap, he does not whisper sweet nothings. Instead he feeds her muffins and talks about his mom… ZZZZZZZZZ….. Little wonder Alia falls asleep.
Somewhere between the prince and the princess, the modern fairy tale moves into confused wedding sequences revolving around Alia’s sweet sister, Isha. Isha’s groom dances his way in, bare chested, with a gold jacket, to show off his 8-and-a-half pack abs. His Sindhi, flamboyant dad, Fandwani (Sanjay Kapoor) does a terrific replay of Taal’s mad Anil Kapoor, armed with a gold gun and a line: "This is the crazy.."
Director Vikas Bahl takes entertaining potshots at Sindhis and flashy Indian weddings, but loses the plot mid-way. The rather clichéd story gets repetitive and childish. Alia and JJ’s romance ends up about playing cutesy hide-and-seek and dancing to a recreated peppy version of the classic “Eena Meena Deeka”. Bhatt’s hot pink bikini act does little to keep you engaged any further.
The film flits from amateurish caricatures of animated cartoons to a black-and-white ballroom romance. Screenplay and dialogue writer, Anvita Dutt’s spoofs on the “like totally” Gen X that is restless, sleepless and clueless, sparkle at times. But it amounts to popcorn fluff and little else.
Richa Chadha joins Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Randeep Hooda as cast of 'Sarabjit'
Mumbai:MMNN:23 Oct. 2015
Actress Richa Chadha has signed on to star in director Omung Kumar's upcoming biopic Sarabjit, which sees Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Randeep Hooda in lead roles.
The 26-year-old actress, who is riding high on the success of Masaan, will play Sarabjit's wife (Hooda) in the the film based on the Indian, who died in a Pakistani jail.
"Yes they have approached me and I will be doing it.
However, at this point of time paper work is being done and I can't comment anything more.
I have been offered the role to play Randeep's wife and I will sign on the dotted lines soon. It is an interesting role and can't wait to talk more on the same," Richa said in a statement.
This will be the actress' second film opposite Hooda. The two will be seen together in upcoming film Main Aur Charles, also a biopic.
In the film, Aishwarya will play Sarabjit's sister, Dalbir Kaur, who fought for her brother's release from the Lahore jail but her quest ended tragically when he died in 2013 following a brutal attack by fellow prisoners.
Kunal Kemmu: Man objectified for first time in 'Guddu Ki Gun'
MMNN:21 Oct. 2015
Actor Kunal Kemmu says that his upcoming adult comedy Guddu Ki Gun doesn't have any condescending dialogues against women and doesn't objectify women but rather men - for the first time.
"It's the first time a male is being objectified and not a woman. And there are no condescending dialogues against women. There is no double meaning which the people are imagining. Just the concept is adult, people termed it sex comedy but we said that it is unisex comedy," said Kunal in an interview on Monday as part of promotions for the film.
Kunal plays a Bihari washing powder businessman - a Casanova who plays around with the "bhabis" of Kolkata. The story revolves around, him finding his private parts strangely turned into gold - resulting in chaotic situations throughout the film with everyone including media and gangsters wanting to get hold of the "prized possession".
So shocked was Kunal after hearing the script that reportedly, he had thrown the directors Shantanu and Sheershak out of his house when they narrated the concept. "When someone narrated to me the idea of the film, I had turned it down. I was apprehensive about the fact that for the sake of shock value this film shouldn't become a vulgar film."
"Sometimes there are good concepts but that opens up in 15 minutes, but you have to narrate the film's story over 2 hours. And when I read the script of the film, I was very surprised that writer-directors created a concept which will surprise the audience but even with such a concept, the treatment was very innovative, unique and simple," he added.
Guddu Ki Gun, also starring Payal Sarkar, Sumit Vyas, and Aparna Sharma, is hitting the theatres on October 30.
TV actor Hussain Kuwajerwala to co-host 'Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi' with Amitabh Bachchan
Mumbai:MMNN:21 Oct. 2015
Popular TV actor Hussain Kuwajerwala will be seen co-hosting some segments of reality show 'Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi' alongside Bollywood veteran Amitabh Bachchan.
The series, which premiered last Saturday on Star Plus, is an adaptation of British show 'Tonight's the Night' and revolves around those, who have accomplished something extraordinary in their life.
Hussain, 38, who started shooting for the show last week, confirmed the news, saying, "It was my birthday on Monday and on Tuesday, I started shooting with him. There couldn't have been a better birthday gift for me."
On being asked about his prior experience with the 73-year-old 'Piku' star, Hussain said, "I have interacted with Mr Bachchan when he had come to the Indian Idol stage to promote KBC but that was for a few minutes. Here, I will be co-hosting with him. It's a great feeling."
'Aaj Ki Raat Hai Zindagi' aims at spreading smiles with each episode and will see a gamut of celebrities share the stage with Bachchan. It will air every Sunday on Star Plus.
Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 box office collection: This women bashing film earns Rs 22.40 crore over the weekend!
MMNN:19 Oct. 2015
A sequel to Pyaar Ka Punchnama which released in 2011, Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 had a superb opening weekend at the box office. The film revolves around the love-stories of three young men. It takes a snide, gender-biased stance towards women, calling them the root of all evil.
Notwithstanding the sexist plot, the film is doing well at the box office because of its witty writing, clever, albeit cruel, jokes and wonderful performances. Also, it had no competition as such, except for Anushka Ranjan’s Wedding Pullav which had no buzz at all.
As per the figures, the film garnered around Rs 6.60 crore on Friday, Rs 7.60 crore on Saturday and Rs 8 crore on Sunday. It is interesting to know that the trade pundits had predicted the exact same figures for the third day! The figures sure give the makers of the film and of course the star cast a reason to party.
Good reviews given by both masses and media have sure helped the movie’s collection. PKP 2′s plot and overall treatment given to the issue has been lauded by people and we can’t wait to watch how the film performs over the week.
Here’s what trade analyst Taran Adarsh had to say on Twitter:
#PyaarKaPunchnama2 has a ROCKING Day 3 [Sunday]. Early estimates: approx 8 cr+. Weekend total: 22.40 cr+. SUPERB!
But judging by the box office figures till now, we are sure that PKP 2 is striding in a right direction.
Bigg Boss 9: Weekend Double Trouble episode with Salman Khan
MMNN:19 Oct. 2015
Ankit Gera was the last contestant to enter the 'Bigg Boss' house along with his Gujju bhai Arvind Vegda but had the shortest journey in the 'Bigg Boss Nau' house.
Riding on the unpredictable chance of drama breaking out, Ankit Gera entered the house alongside ex-girlfriend Roopal Tyagi being one of the housemates.
Mostly seen relaxing and crooning along with his partner Arvind Vegda, the two men quickly became thick. Ankit displayed his patient side by not only sacrificing his luggage for partner Arvind but also by dealing with his loud snores in the night.
Ankit happily borrowed clothes from Arvind, donned tattoos like him and even addressed him as 'motu bhai'. The duo did fairly well in their first luxury budget task and won points for the housemates. Ankit remained unaffected by ex-flame Roopal Tyagi's presence in the house but was seen playfully taunting her at several occasions.
Initially he chose not to speak to Roopal but got along very well with her partner Digangana. However, they further broke the ice and were also seen spending time with each other.
Upon Ankit's exit from the house, Roopal was seen crying incessantly clearly displaying her affection for him.
Speaking about his journey in the Bigg Boss house, Ankit Gera said, "I had a great time inside the Bigg Boss house and it was a wonderful experience.
I was fortunate to get a partner like Arvindji who took care of me like a younger brother. I feel we made a great pair and I am going to miss him a lot. While my stay in the house was a brief one, if given a chance to go back, I would most definitely take up the opportunity!"
Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 Movie Review
MMNN:16 Oct. 2015
Boys will be boys. No issues. But must they be such insensitive dolts? Luv Ranjan, director of Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2, seems to think that the worse they are the better.
His film homes in on a trio of Delhi-NCR boys who share a swanky flat, drink like fish, party hop, and rib each other endlessly as they hunt for love.
By the look of their spacious pad and the abandon with which they blow up money, the threesome appear to be doing fine in life.
What they clearly lack is tact, common sense and luck in relationships.
The girls that they hook up come with their own set of problems and the three boys have no clue how to tide over them.
They sink deeper and deeper into a quagmire because, like the film they are in, they believe a girl is only an object of desire to be acquired and controlled.
Each of them hits upon a girl without so much as a by your leave, and proceeds to boorishly force himself upon her.
The first encounters take place in a party, at a wedding and in the gym and the film has no room for either subtlety or finesse in the way the relationships evolve.
The 2011 sleeper hit of which Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 is an ill-advised repeat act was a passable, if seriously dodgy, romantic comedy in which women were blamed for all the troubles of mankind.
Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 does pretty much the same, but the novelty has worn off and it is saddled with an insufferably inept screenplay.
The result: this tawdry boys-meet-girls rigmarole is a whole lot of unbearable blather.
The very first scene of the film points to what might be up ahead. Three boys in a car are caught in a Delhi traffic jam.
They bicker angrily over who should drive on the way back from the party that they are headed to.
Life is a party for these guys all right, but once the bingeing is done, messy snarls are inevitable. And they go around in circles and get nowhere.
Happy-go-lucky yuppie Anshul/Gogo (Kartik Aaryan) meets the bohemian Chiku (Nushrat Bharucha), who, like the boys, shacks up with a couple of her friends.
Complications arise when her ‘best friend’, a boy nursing a broken heart, moves in with her. What the hell, goes Gogo, but his woes do not go away.
Software engineer Siddharth/Chauka (Sunny Singh) falls for Supriya (Sonnalli Sehgall), who lives with her ultra-conservative and possessive parents and cannot bring herself to tell them that she is dating a boy.
Trouble erupts when the girl’s dad asks Chauka to create a profile for his daughter on a matrimonial website and the latter has no choice but to comply with his request.
To the lot of Tarun/Thakur (Omkar Kapoor) falls the cautious and independent-spirited Kusum (Ishita Raj), who on their very first date insists that they must split the damages for a bottle of wine.
The endless prattle that the boys indulge in among themselves, and with the girls in their lives, is so irritating and shrill that no earplug can shut it out.
Matters are worsened by the songs. One of them is the rueful Dekho ban gaye kutta (See, we’ve become dogs).
Every time Chauka is painted into a corner by his girlfriend, the wailing of a puppy in pain can be heard on the soundtrack.
If Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 is suggesting that boys in love are like helpless domesticated canines, what better can one expect from a film that is gone to the dogs from the word go.
It actually does much worse in pouring scorn on the distaff side of humanity.
The character played by Kartik Aaryan, when things begin to go out of the control of the cocky boys, launches into a monologue enumerating the many disruptive frailties of women.
Coming from a guy who uses his mobile phone to secretly record a conversation between his girlfriend and her flat-mates and then plays it back to them to claim victimhood, the misogynistic tirade is as misplaced as anything else in the film.
Nothing in Pyaar Ka Punchnama is more grating than what is sought to be passed off as acting.
The cast members should have been put through a crash course on how not to go overboard and fall over each other when the camera is switched on.
The worst offender on this count is the over-enthusiastic Nushrat Bharucha, who hams away to glory.
About the only relatively likeable performance is delivered by Sunny Singh, who plays the boy who is reduced to running errands for the girl who has him in her thrall.
But not all the pyaar in the world can compensate for the pea-brained piffle the film dumps on the audience.
Wedding Pulav Movie Review
MMNN:16 Oct. 2015
Bland and unenticing, Wedding Pullav is a concoction that is too stale and sloppy to tingle even the least evolved of cinematic taste buds.
There is much in the film that defies logic. But nothing is more mystifying than the names of Binod Pradhan and Rishi Kapoor in the credits.
How did Pradhan, one of India’s finest cinematographers, get dragged into directing this laughably vapid love story?
Wedding Pullav is anything but a befitting directorial debut for an accomplished technician who has lensed films like Parinda and Rang De Basanti, among many other memorable titles.
And what, pray, is Rishi Kapoor doing in this film? The veteran is reduced to the status of a glorified extra.
He sleepwalks through a splotchy role that requires him to alternate between an ever-efficient resort manager and an amateur love guru dishing out unsolicited gyaan on matters of the heart.
The clumsily scripted and executed Wedding Pullav is meant to be a launch vehicle for Anushka Ranjan, daughter of producers Shashi and Anu Ranjan.
With the film clearly destined for oblivion, this outing is unlikely to help Anushka’s acting career hit the fast lane. She would need to do much better to make a mark.
She plays Anushka, the tomboyish best friend of the film’s male protagonist, Aditya Sodhi (Diganth Manchale), who is engaged to his employer’s daughter Riya (Sonnalli Sehgall).
In a Thailand hotel for the imminent wedding, Anushka begins to realise that there is much more to her relationship with Aditya than just back-slapping friendship.
Anushka, on her part, is all set to get hitched to Jay (Karan V Grover), a painter of nude models she fell in love with while in London.
In this four-cornered romance, the characters are given utterly meaningless lines to spout about how to conduct oneself when in love.
As Wedding Pullav nears its business end, the hero tells the heroine that love should be expressed in no uncertain terms as soon as it happens.
In the very next scene, Jay, who has been waiting for dinner with Anushka, points out to her when she finally arrives for the rendezvous that no matter how hard one tries, love simply cannot be hidden from eyes of the world.
Anushka’s befuddlement isn’t reduced one bit when Jay grandly declares that “I haven’t just loved you, I have lived you.” Go figure!
In another scene, Riya’s industrialist dad (Parmeet Sethi) issues an ultimatum to Aditya, a motorcycle designer whose professional future hinges on the former’s continuing support.
Love my daughter so much that she forgets her past; she will love you back so much that you will forget your friends, he says. Got the drift?
The tycoon doesn’t stop there: he summons Anushka and orders her not cross the thin line between friendship and love so that his daughter’s planned wedding can go ahead without a hitch.
This friendship-mutating-into-love formula is very, very hackneyed. But that is not the only cliché that Wedding Pullav falls back on.
It has a ‘cool’ granny who loves a swig or two and a foster-mother (Himani Shivpuri) who flips for the suave hotel manager.
There is also a contrite workaholic entrepreneur seeking to reconnect with his estranged wife (Kitu Gidwani). Mujhe meri galti ka ahsaas hai (I am aware that I erred), he intones.
And, of course, there is the inevitable daaru song early on in the film, with the crooner celebrating the virtues of bacchanalian excess.
Wedding Pullav appears to have been made by people high on cheap liquor. They believe that overkill works best. The rest of the world knows it doesn’t.
Love triangles click only when the actors in the key roles can make the audience believe that sweet nothings aren’t as vacuous as they sound.
Gulshan Kumar’s daughter Khushali Kumar debuts with revived ‘Mainu ishq da lagya rog’ video
Mumbai:MMNN:14 Oct. 2015
After the success of the reprised version of 'Dheere dheere,'
that was sung by Honey Singh and picturised on Sonam Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan,
T-Series is back with a recreation of 'Mainu ishq da lagya rog' which seems to be a family effort in all regards.
The song from the 1991 film, Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin, starring Aamir Khan and Pooja Bhatt has been given a new lease of life by Tulsi Kumar besides marking the onscreen debut of sister, Khushali Kumar.
The daughters of late Gulshan Kumar have made the song as a tribute to their father.
Khushali Kumar looks every bit promising in the music video which also reminds us of Aamir Khan's 'Captain' cap from the film.
Now all we are waiting for is Khushali's film debut!
Bigg Boss 9: Ankit not sure of his relationship with ex Roopal
New Delhi:MMNN:14 Oct. 2015
Former couple Ankit Gera and Roopal Tyagi are co-contestants on Salman Khan’s Bigg Boss 9, and the actor says though he shares ‘cordial’ professional terms with his former girlfriend, he is not sure how they will live under one roof.
“I have a normal relationship with Roopal Tyagi and have never spoken about what happened between us to anybody. We have worked together and share cordial relationship. But here (Bigg Boss house) we are staying together and we have never have done this, so let’s see what happens,” Ankit told over phone from Lonavla before entering the Bigg Boss house.
Ankit and Roopal starred in TV drama series Sapne Suhane Ladakpan Ke and started dating then. But the pair eventually broke up amid cheating rumours. The actor feels break ups are a part of everybody’s life, but “in celebrities life such things become controversies”.
Ankit has entered the reality show, in which celebrities have to live in an isolated house for about three months sans any luxury. He emphasised that he decided to do the show, famous for controversies and constant brickbats, in order to have a change in his life.
“Everybody wants a change in life and and I was tired of doing daily shows. So, I wanted to do reality show and I think Bigg Boss is the best and the biggest reality show on Indian television,” he said.
The actor, who also featured in Mann Kee Awaaz Pratigya and Maharakshak Devi, added that his anger won’t be an issue in the Bigg Boss house as he knows how to control his temper. “I don’t get angry very fast. When someone says something to me I prefer being silent rather than retaliating,” said the actor.
Reasons to watch Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt starrer ‘Shaandaar’
Mumbai:MMNN:12 Oct. 2015
After impressing audiences and critics alike with his intense performance in Vishal Bharadwaj’s ‘Haider’, Shahid Kapoor will be back as a lover boy in ‘Shaandaar’ opposite Alia Bhatt.
The film directed by Vikas Bahl and jointly produced by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and Phantom Films, is slated to release on October 22. It is certainly one of the most awaited movies of 2015’s last quarter.
The trailer of the film has got a tremendous response of so have the songs from the album.
Here’s taking a look at reasons to watch ‘Shaandaar’:
Shahid Kapoor & Alia Bhatt
Shahid returns to the silverscreen as a lover boy after the portrayal of ‘Haider’. The hunk of an actor, who has an ocean of fan following will be seen essaying a happy-go-lucky character in the film. This young girl had had a great journey so far, as an actress. Each of her films has done well at the Box Office. And ‘Shaandaar’ promises to be another hit-film.
Shahid-Alia chemistry
Alia had confessed that Shahid was her childhood crush. And Shaandaar brings together in icon and his admirer together! The two look incredibly cute together.
Cast
The film also stars Pankaj Kapoor, Shahid’s real life father. ‘Shaandaar’ also marks the launch of Sanah Kapoor, Shahid’s real life half-sister.
Music
The songs of the film are already a huge hit.
Vikas Bahl
Vikas Bahl of the ‘Queen’ fame has directed the film. It would be interesting to see what he has in store for us now.
Theme
The film is touted as India's first wedding destination film.
Prince Narula on ‘Bigg Boss 9’, wants ‘reality king’ tag
Mumbai:MMNN:12 Oct. 2015
With “Bigg Boss Nau” being his fourth non-fiction show in a year’s time, Prince Narula wants to be known as the “reality king” of Indian television.
The Chandigarh-based model, who gained momentum after showcasing his tough guy image in “Roadies X2” and “Splitsvilla 8”, said he opted for “Bigg Boss” because it will give him the maximum limelight.
“I am on ‘Bigg Boss’ predominantly for Salman (Khan). I am a huge fan of the star. Moreover, it is my fourth reality show in a year’s time and I want to be known as the ‘reality king’ of the television,” Prince told.
‘Bigg Boss Nau’, which sees Salman returning as the host for the sixth time, has 14 celebrity contestants from different sphere of life and they are holed up in a house for three months without with multiple cameras watching their every move.
Prince said he will find motivation from his parents’ struggles whenever he will be deadlocked in extreme situation. “I come from a business family and my parents have seen many ups and downs in their lives. Their struggle will be an inspiration for me to face every situation inside the house. It will help me to concentrate on the show.”
The “Mr Punjab” runner-up said he no game strategy in mind and is entering the Colors show with an aim of making good friends. “I have not figured out any strategy yet. I will only observe people and will react according to the moment. As I am not from showbiz, I am looking forward to make some good friends on the show,” he said.
Prince said he will not be a part of reality shows anymore and will try his luck next in fiction format. “‘Bigg Boss’ will be my last reality show. I will do fiction next after coming out of the house,” said the fitness freak.
Rishi Kapoor wants 'Do Dooni Chaar' sequel
Mumbai:MMNN:9 Oct. 2015
Rishi Kapoor's film Do Dooni Chaar has completed five years and the veteran actor says the team should have attempted to make a sequel of the comedy-drama.
The Habib Faisal-directed movie marked the on-screen reunion of the hit Rishi-Neetu Singh pair as a lead couple, who previously acted in numerous hits during the 1970s.
"Time flies. 5 years of DDC. Habib we should have attempted a sequel. Anyway, a film we the team will cherish," Rishi posted on twitter.
Do Dooni Chaar, which released on October 8, 2010, is a story about a middle-class school teacher who tries to keep his wife and children happy in inflationary times and dreams of buying a car.
Sidharth Malhotra, Katrina Kaif at ‘Baar Baar Dekho’ wrap up party
Mumbai:MMNN:9 Oct. 2015
Katrina Kaif and Sidharth Malhotra who were busy shooting for ‘Baar Baar Dekho’ in Glasgow have completed the shoot schedule for the same.
Sidharth posted an image on twitter of the wrap up party on sets saying,
“#Glasgow na #BaarBaardekho wrap on schedule…super memories n now party! #KatrinaKaif”
‘Baar Baar Dekho’ is said to be a love story co-produced by Excel Entertainment and Dharma Production and will be distributed by Eros International. The film is slated to release in 2016.
Kangana Ranaut May Star With Irrfan Khan in Feature on Begum Akhtar
New Delhi:MMNN: 7 Oct. 2015
Actors Irrfan Khan and Kangana Ranaut may reportedly star in Ketan Mehta's film on renowned ghazal and thumri singer Begum Akhtar.
Titled Ae Mohabbat, the film on the life and times of the singer was announced on Tuesday by Shri Anup Jalota Productions and Ae Mohabbat Productions.
Actor Irrfan Khan will play the male lead. The film's leading lady is yet to be finalised, but Kangana may reportedly end up doing the project. Oscar winner AR Rahman will score the film's music.
"We are trying to get Kangana Ranaut to play one of the stages of Begum Akhtar in the film," Mr Jalota told IANS when asked about the female lead of the film.
"We have grown up listening to and idolising Begum Akhtar. I have been wanting to initiate such project and a tie-up with Ae Mohabbat Productions. Associating with Rita Ganguly, who knew her personally, is a real blessing," he added.
Rita Ganguly, who used to be a student of Begum Akhtar, and calls her "Ammi", says that the noted singer's life, the highs and lows she went through and her personality 'had a cinema quality' which could be made into full-length feature film.
"It is not really a biopic but a feature film. The screenplay is ready and it will have full formula of a superhit film . We are planning to release it next year as it's a period film and lot goes behind making such projects," Ms Ganguly told IANS.
As Begum Akhtar originally belonged to Faizabad and was buried in Lucknow, the film also got the support from Uttar Pradesh government, Mr Jalota revealed.
An icon of Indian classical music, Begum Akhtar was bestowed with the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan posthumously by the government.
Don't deride or abuse other films and colleagues; not cool: Shah Rukh Khan's message to fans
Mumbai:MMNN:7 Oct. 2015
Taking a stand against online trolling, superstar Shah Rukh Khan has asked his fans to refrain from abusing and deriding other films and actors on social media.
It seems the triggering point was the usual fan-war between his and superstar Salman Khan's followers, which was laced with expletives. While the two actors have buried the hatchet, some fans still continue to ridicule them.
Shah Rukh, 49, took to Twitter and said that social media gives people the liberty to say what they want but they should not misuse the power to troll others.
"On social media you do/say what you feel, free expression blah blah, But will request my people not to deride or abuse other films & colleagues. Not cool."
Calling the users, who use abusive language as "idiots", the ‘Chennai Express’ actor further tweeted, "But your life your rules. Am not here to teach manners. But I deal with idiots with sarcasm... (sic)."
Earlier, Salman had warned his fans to stop trolling other celebrities, threatening to even quit social media because of "nasty, ugly, abusive" Twitter fights.
"Fan who is on a false identity using it to put another actor, friend, colleague down, is no fan of mine, don't like..." he had tweeted.
Recently, veteran actor Rishi Kapoor and actresses like Sonakshi Sinha, Sonam Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra among others also took a strong stand against online trolling.
Thank you, Priyanka Chopra, for showing Indian actresses aren't simpering, no-kiss divas in Quantico
MMNN: 5 Oct. 2015
The burning question of Quantico is, will the FBI catch up with Priyanka Chopra before her accent does? But before that, I must give a standing ovation to Priyanka Chopra for what she’s managed with Quantico.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you already know that the ABC series Quantico is about a bunch of recruits at the FBI Academy in the US. That’s not why it’s worth excitement. Quantico is the first time an Indian actor has been cast as the central character in an American television show. Glass ceiling, say hello to Priyanka Chopra.
The opening shot of Quantico’s pilot episode shows debris. The camera zooms in on to the wrist of a prone figure. It wears a wristband with a silver om dangling on it. Attached to the wrist is an unconscious Chopra.
Then Shah Rukh Khan steps into frame. Okay, no. But I did keep expecting that to happen.
What actually does happen is that we’re shown a flashback from nine months ago, when Chopra is seen jogging in Oakland, California. She says bye to her mother, who thinks Chopra is going to the train station, only to go to the airport and take a flight to Washington DC. We then see a number of other people – a blonde woman who seems to be living alone in a mansion; a priest from Salt Lake, Utah; a Muslim woman in a headscarf, in Logan, Ohio. They all behave a little oddly and are all headed to the FBI Academy.
Oh, and lest I forget, we are introduced to five different versions of the American desi accent, courtesy Chopra.
Chopra plays Alex Parrish – which is either the name of a monastery or a rock star — daughter of a woman named Sita, just in case we needed any confirmation that she is mostly Indian. Five minutes into the show, she does what none of our crossover Indian actresses (and I’m not counting Mallika Sherawat here) have done – she has sex on screen, that too with a stranger, in a car. Not just that, she enjoys it and isn’t apologetic.
Lord hail the Indian actress who believes in playing her role without thinking about how it will affect the hypocritical film fraternity and audiences back home! The only other Indian actress to have accomplished this feat is Freida Pinto, and it’s no coincidence that she’s an actress in Hollywood with practically no prospects to speak of in Indian mainstream cinema. God forbid one of our heroines do something as normal and blasphemous as kiss or hump on screen. She would immediately be considered tainted goods, unfit to play the sati savitri female lead in commercial cinema.
No such hangups in either Chopra or Quantico. Back at the FBI Academy, the new batch is given an assignment that requires them to investigate each other. Cut to the present: Chopra is lying in the middle of the debris without so much as a scratch on her. No wonder those investigating what is described as the worst terrorist attack on America since 9/11 look at her suspiciously.
Alex is told that one of her classmates is a terrorist and responsible for this attack. She’s asked to recount what happened at the academy. So she does and with each cut back to the present, Alex and the audience both realise that nothing is quite as it seems. Alex is in danger, she’s probably being framed, and there seems to be no one she can trust.
It’s an extremely taut first episode. There’s banter as well as twists and turns. It’s also eventful and stuffed with issues. Random sex, daddy issues, pedophilia, suicide — Quantico’s got it all. This is a gripping beginning.
That it’s an ABC Production is evident from the first frame. The world of difference that is there between our Indian TV or film productions and American television shows is heartrending. Quantico’s sets aren’t particularly elaborate and neither are its locations particularly striking, but they all feel real. Unlike what we see in our home productions, nothing in Quantico is obviously a set. Even our really expensive shows like Yudh and 24 come nowhere near these programmes in terms of production value.
However, what is most impressive is what Chopra has achieved. It’s not that our Indian actresses haven’t tried to cross over before. Nimrat Kaur, first spotted in The Lunchbox, is brilliant in Homeland. However, she is very much part of the supporting cast. Aishwarya “No Kiss” Rai Bachchan starred in a number of big foreign productions, like Bride and Prejudice, Mistress of Spices and The Pink Panther. Mallika Sherawat writhed in Hisss and has been Jackie Chan’s co-star.
Box office: Singh Is Bliing likely to collect Rs 100 crore, Talvar gets decent opening
MMNN:5 Oct. 2015
The week that was, witnessed the release of Singh Is Bliing and Talvar at the Box Office. Both the movies have garnered a positive response from audience and critics alike. As things stand today, the Box Office collection of Akshay Kumar, Amy Jackson starrer Singh Is Bliing is Rs. 54.44 crore.
On the opening day, the movie managed to collect Rs. 20.67 crore Director Prabhu Deva and Akshay Kumar have teamed up once again for Singh Is Bliing after Rowdy Rathore. Do you think Singh Is Bliing will enter the Rs 100 crore club? We will have to wait and watch!
Irrfan Khan and Konkana Sen Sharma‘s Talvar minted over Rs. 9.5 crore during the weekend. A suspense dramatic thriller, Talvar is an intense story brilliantly portrayed without theatrical hysteria. In spite of its docu-drama style of narration, the movie unspools the mystery in the most authentic and objective manner.
Meghna Gulzar directorial, Talvar has come across as a highly gripping investigative thriller with a smooth screenplay. The film features crisply written characters portrayed by Irrfan Khan, Konkana Sen Sharam, Neeraj Kabi and Sohum Shah who are seen playing pivotal roles.
All the actors play their parts with conviction delivering realistic performances. Talvar being based on the Aarushi Talwar Murder case, deals with the highly sensational subject with utmost sensitivity.
The witty one-liners, and Punjabi dialogues in Singh Is Bliing are simply fun to watch. Even though the jokes are illogical, you can still laugh it off and just go with the flow. while Talvar, on the other hand, is an intense movie based on real life incidents, has a storyline that is unsettling, unnerving.