kollywood

Sonu Sood talks about Salman

2010-09-08T06:49:00.000-07:00

Actor Sonu Sood, who plays a pivotal role in ’Dabangg’, says he had fun shooting with Salman Khan who was like a guiding force.

’Salman is a very cool person. He always encourages you. We used to work out together, so he used to tell me a lot about exercising and fitness. On the whole, since he is a more experienced actors, he was like a guiding force for me,’ Sonu told IANS.

The two actors also had a little game going on during the shoot of the film.

’I am a vegetarian and Salman a non-vegetarian. He really wants me to convert to a non-vegetarian, so a lot of times he used to secretly put chicken or mutton pieces on my plate and would tell me to eat it.

’Similarly, I used to force him to eat more vegetarian dishes. So this game of ours used to keep carrying on,’ he added.

’Dabangg’ is slated to release Sep 10.

SRK and Akki to teams up

2010-09-08T06:47:00.000-07:00

Now, it is heard that the superstar duo would be producing a film together and star in it. That would be something to watch out for! Two of the most energetic performers in Bollywood coming together in a film would send the boxoffice into a tizzy, for sure!

The bond between Akki and SRK grew stronger when the latter openly praised the former’s ’Tees Maar Khan’, being directed by none other than Farah Khan. As we know, Farah and SRK had moved away from each other recently as she had signed on Akki for her ’TMK’.

Now, if reports are to be believed, Shah Rukh is using the good offices of Akki to mend fences with Farah, who had been King Khan’s very close friend for long.

Mysshkin and John join hands together

2010-09-08T06:44:00.000-07:00

Mysshkin, who is a name to be reckoned with in Kollywood, will soon be making his big Bollywood debut with a John Abraham film. The director turned into an actor in the highly-anticipated film Nandhalala (which is yet to see the light of day) when he could not find a suitable actor for the protagonist’s role.

Mysshkin, who is busy with the post-production of his next, Yuddham Sei with Cheran, spoke to DC about his Hindi venture in this exclusive interview.

This still-untitled Bollywood film is being produced by UTV Motion Pictures and has John Abraham playing the lead. “Bringing John on board did not happen all of a sudden. I have been interacting with him for quite some time now,” is how he began the conversation. Mysshkin described it as, “A full-on action film in which the story happens over 12 hours. John watched my earlier Tamil film Anjaathe on DVD, to get to know more about my style of filmmaking and he was very impressed. He called me to Mumbai to narrate the script and once he listened to it, he fell in love with the role and decided to go ahead.”

He gave an assurance that this would not be a remake of his Tamil hit, but a fresh script written for the Hindi film. To an enquiry about whether John asked him to make any changes in the theme to make it more commercial, he was quick to respond, “Oh, no. It is an out-and-out action film. So the question doesn’t arise. All the same, I hardly watch Hindi movies, which I guess, is a blessing in disguise. I will stick to my story and whatever it demands will be scrupulously incorporated.” As for the heroine selection, he said no leading lady had been finalised yet. He was still fine-tuning the script and in all probability, the movie would go on the floors in January 2011.

Vishal Dadlani talks About Oscar winner

2010-09-08T06:38:00.000-07:00

Negativity surrounds music director A R Rahman’s Commonwealth Games theme song; people have openly expressed their dislike and said the Oscar winner couldn’t live up to their expectations. But, for composer Vishal Dadlani, a part of Bollywood’s music fraternity, people should understand and appreciate what Rahman has done for music and India.

Vishal has reacted vehemently to all the bad comments about the CWG theme and writes on Twitter, “The only infallible one is god, who sends music to us all. Everyone else is human, including Rahman. We’re all allowed off days. Be nice. All you doubters, and haters, please understand that Rahman has done more for music and India’s international image than almost anyone else.”

Rahman will appear on the show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Singing Superstar that has Vishal as one of the judges. No doubt, Vishal is on cloud nine as he is going to meet the iconic music director for the first time. The episode will be aired soon.

Earlier, song writer Mehboob too defended Rahman and claims that people are forgetting that the number is not for a film but is a theme song for CWG

Deepika Padukone in vishal movie

2010-09-06T06:57:00.000-07:00

Vishal Bharadwaj’s next film is called Dream Sequence and he has roped in Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone for the film. Our source close to the director said, “Though Vishal has been busy with the music sessions and mixing of Saat Khoon Maaf, he has already started working on the script of this movie.”

Apparently, Vishal found Dream Sequence to be an apt title for his film. “It is a very engrossing story. Vishal gave Saif and Deepika a brief description of the plot and both of them are looking forward to the movie.

In fact, Deepika is looking forward to working with Vishal. The movie is all about dreams coming true.

There were stories in the media that Priyanka Chopra was likely to play the lead opposite Saif Ali Khan in Dream Sequence but it seems that Deepika, who pipped Priyanka to bag the role, will be playing the lead in the film.

Akshay interested in Cooking

2010-09-06T06:51:00.000-07:00

As Akshay is gearing up to host the reality show Master Chef in India, the actor is making sure that he hones his culinary skills before the show begins. Sources inform that, “Akshay, who is a superb cook himself, signed up for a culinary course recently to brush up his cooking skills. Akshay has been training hard so that he does not fall short when an emergency arises on the sets. He also wants to have enough knowledge about cooking and recipes so he can be a master chef himself before hosting the show.”
Everyone knows that Akshay started his career as a chef in Bangkok but the actor has forgotten how to fix a quick meal. Akshay does spend time in the kitchen whenever he has some free time after shooting or on a holiday and tries to conjure up a tasty meal for wife Twinkle and son Aarav.
The show will go on air by the end of this year. In the meantime Akshay is busy shooting for Anees Bazmee’s Thank you in Canada.

Currently, the actor is also in talks with the production house on ways to make the cookery show interesting. Akshay who had earlier hosted the reality show Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi for two seasons had done some stunts himself to pep up his contestants. The show was a huge success. Similarly, Akshay will want to whip up a tasty dish for his contestants so that they are comfortable on the show. Will his culinary skills cook up a storm in the ratings? Let’s wait and watch.

Salman Khan rarely loses his temper before the media people.

2010-09-06T06:45:00.000-07:00

Salman Khan seems really upset with the press folks for their consistent queries on his ’troubled’ relationship with beau Katrina Kaif. He asked why his affair was given so much importance while there were so many problems that affected the people in the country.
"...why is Salman-Katrina relationship national news? I am not giving any clarifications, the media can write whatever it want. It is my personal life...," Salman was speakinbg in an interview to a national TV channel. The questions were triggered by the recent quotes by him and Kat, who had said that they were ’single’. Later, Salman denied having said anything of the kind.
The 45-year-old actor said he was very happy for Aishwarya Rai and her marriage with Abhishekl Bachchan. He said, "I am very happy she is married to Abhishek. He is a great guy from a good family. The best thing I can want for her is that she leads a happy life."

On his supposed animosity towards Shah Rukh Khan, Salman said, "I have a lot of respect for Shah Rukh as an actor. We shared some good times playing brothers in `Karan Arjun`. There is no clash between us, but some misunderstandings crop up time and again."

‘Double Dhamaal’ is in launch

2010-09-06T06:30:00.000-07:00

It was all excitement and going down the memory lanes as the cast and crew of ‘Double Dhamaal’ came together for the launch of the movie at the Mehboob Studio this Wednesday. The original cast of the movie remains the same with Riteish Deshmukh, Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, Javed Jaffrey and Aashish Chaudhary and actresses Kangana Ranaut and Mallika Sherawat being the additions.

Actors Aamir Khan and Anil Kapoor, too, graced the event of Indra Kumar and Ashok Thakeria’s ‘Double Dhamaal’ launch getting all too emotional and carried away.

“Anil and I have very fond memories working with Indra and Ashok. As an actor, I have done three films with Indu. We wish all the very best to the whole team and I am looking forward to a highly entertaining film,” Aamir told reporters.

Anil Kapoor said, “Indra and Ashok are like my brothers. They are in the field since I started my career. The first film I did with them was Mohabbat. The mahurat was also in Mehboob Studio.”

Ranbir has the potential to be one:Siddharth Anand

2010-09-03T04:32:00.000-07:00

Now, this is something anyone would think twice before proclaiming. But director Siddharth Anand whose next film Anjaana Anjaani stars Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra says Ranbir has all it takes to be the next Amitabh Bachchan of Bollywood.

“He (Ranbir) has got everything it takes to be the complete Hindi film hero that Bachchan was,” Anand is quoted as saying by a news agency.

According to Anand, Ranbir has to add an action film to his filmography to become an actor on his way to become the next Bachchan.

“The day Ranbir does an action film and does it well, he has the potential to fill the void that Bachchan created,” claimed Siddharth.

He has previously worked with Ranbir in the Yashraj production Bachna Ae Haseeno.

Siddharth added that Ranbir has the versatility like Big B showed in his heydays.

“Ranbir is the perfect guy to play Anthony, he can play coolie, he can play the characters Bachchan played in his prime. There is no one else but him,” Anand gushed.

We aren’t sure how many movie buffs will agree with him.

Saif has his hands full with projects

2010-09-03T04:28:00.000-07:00

The reason being heard is that Saif has his hands full with projects. Currently he is busy with his home production ’Agent Vinod’. His forthcoming films include films by Vishal Bhardwaj and Kunal Kohli.

Abhishek Bachchan is being considered for the role, says our Bollywood source. The film is in the scripting stage and the filmmakers are planning to make film that excels the original in style and glamour.

Of the original cast, Bipasha Basu and Katrina Kaif would not be present in the sequel. In their place, Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka chopra are expected to come in. Anil Kapoor will play one of the male leads.

“I have a huge amount of respect for Aamir and Salman:SRK

2010-09-03T04:24:00.000-07:00

Shahrukh Khan was shockingly self effacing and expectedly generous in his comment about his perceived arch foe Salman Khan and good friend Aamir Khan at a promotional do of Karan Johar’s film We Are Family recently.

In case, you are wondering why SRK - who doesn’t even feature in the movie - cared to give his sound byte, don’t forget he, K-Jo and Arjun Rampal are like a family.

So no surprises that SRK butted in during the promotional interview of the film with the film’s lead stars Kareena Kapoor and Arjun Rampal. But what was shocking was SRK’s self-effacing comment in which he said he hoped to become a big star like Aamir and Salman.

Here’s what SRK said.

“I have a huge amount of respect for Aamir and Salman...I think they’re wonderful. I think they’re great stars, I know them personally and they’re great human beings. And they’re much bigger stars than I can ever be. I hope one day I can be like them in terms of work.”

Abhishek Bachchan has completed his first decade in Bollywood

2010-09-03T04:20:00.000-07:00

Abhishek Bachchan has completed his first decade in Bollywood. The actor who made his debut with J.P. Duta’s Refugee in 2000 worked in about 14-15 films before he got his first hit with Dhoom. And the Bachchans are now contemplating throwing a big private bash at their residence to celebrate the same.

Our source said, “The Bachchans have not had a celebration party after Abhishek’s wedding with Aishwarya three years back. Now they want to celebrate this occasion and Big B is also keen. He thinks it is time to thank everyone who has been instrumental in building Abhishek’s career. Amitabh himself is known to be a gracious man and this was evident when he publicly apologised to Salim Khan a few days ago after he learnt that Khan was upset with him.
As part of the celebrations, they plan to invite each and every filmmaker that Abhishek has worked with in the last 10 years. However, the bash is still in the planning stage and things will be finalised in a month or so.

Salman Khan has turned into Producer

2010-09-01T07:08:00.000-07:00

Actor Salman Khan has no immediate plans to follow his brothers Arbaaz and Sohail into production. But says he would love to invest in “small and entertaining” films if he does. Asked about his plans on film production, Salman said “Not now. But if I do I would like to do simple, small and entertaining films.”

Dressed in a black shirt and blue jeans, the actor was at the Kingdom of Dreams complex in the suburb of Gurgaon adjoining the national capital to launch the IIFA Buzz Café in Culture Gully and promote his new film Dabangg. He was accompanied by co-star Sonakshi Sinha and brother Arbaaz.

Also present at the launch of IIFA Buzz Café were actor Hussain Kuwajerwala and actress Kashmeera Irani, who are a part of Bollywood musical Zangoora, to be staged at Nautanki Mahal Sep 17 in the Kingdom of Dreams.

Dabangg, which is Arbaaz’s first movie as a producer, has been directed by debutant Abhinav Kashyap, the younger brother of acclaimed director Anurag Kashyap. It is slated for release on September 10.

The film is set in a small Uttar Pradesh town and has Salman in the role of a policeman. It is also the launch vehicle for Sonakshi, the daughter of veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha.

Malaika Arora walks ramp for Jewellery

2010-09-01T07:07:00.000-07:00

Actress Malaika Arora Khan will dazzle in a diamond-studded bustier costing a million euros when she walks the ramp as a showstopper for a jewellery store in the capital Wednesday.

The bustier is crafted from over 500 carats of the finest Belgian diamonds, said a statement from the jewellery store.

Apart from Malaika, models like Carol Gracias, Indrani Dasgupta and Krishna Somani will be showcasing the jewellery, crafted by ORRA’s design centres in London, New York, Tokyo, Antwerp and Mumbai.

Akshay Kumar is little busy right now

2010-09-01T06:58:00.000-07:00

Akshay Kumar recently got stuck in a traffic jam and reached the sets of ’Tees Maar Khan’ a little late.

And Katrina, his costar in the lead, followed suit. So, what did didciplinarian director Farah Khan do? She gave them a dressing down!

Hear it in Akki’s own words: "Uh Oh! Over trained this mornin now I’m late stuck in one of Bombay’s finest traffic jams...Farah Khan’s gonna blow her top, luckily I have the excuse of Bombay rains to save me..thank u god :)."

This was what Farah did. "C i told u Farah was gonna kill me 2day:) she came storming out of d studio,screamin & cursing,banging on our van doors 4 nt being on d set."

And, here is the climax. "she scared the life out of Kat but of course was winking at me the whole time, what a woman :)" Kat should have been very uneasy as her delay in turning up at an endorsement appearance made it to the headlines recently.

'Ra.One' release date is not fixed

2010-09-01T06:55:00.000-07:00

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has clarified that the release date of his superhero film ’Ra.One’ has not yet been decided, unlike what has been reported.

According to certain media reports Tuesday, the actor-producer is planning to release the film June 3, next year. But Shah Rukh has denied it.

’Nice to know that the release date for ’Ra.One’ has been fixed by someone... somewhere. Maybe they can now come and finish it as well,’ Shah Rukh posted on his Twitter page.

’Will work backwards in terms of post-production and announce the release date in tandem with office guys. Should be around June,’ he added.

In another message that seemed like an indirect dig at the recent alleged involvement of Pakistani cricketers in match-fixing, Shah Rukh wrote: ’It seems everything is being fixed everywhere. For a change let’s unfix a few things, get unhooked, unhinged... free from set plans and float a bit.’

Siddharth and Kareena are family

2010-08-30T06:29:00.000-07:00

Six degrees of separation …is all that separates us from one another. Latest instance: Siddharth Malhotra, who is directing Kareena Kapoor in Karan Johar’s We Are Family, is part of her family!

Siddharth is the grandson of the famous villain Premnath who thrived on playing notorious characters. Premnath’s sister is Krishna Raj Kapoor, wife of the legendary Raj Kapoor. Kareena is Raj Kapoor’s granddaughter - so if you know your math, that makes Siddharth and Kareena part of the same family tree. Talk about We Are Family being an apt title.

Salman Khan granted girl wishes

2010-08-30T06:26:00.000-07:00

A female fan of Salman Khan managed to sneak into the press conference the actor held in New Delhi to promote his film Dabangg along with the film’s leading lady Sonakshi Sinha and co-star and producer Arbaaz Khan.

Not to be content with just a glimpse of Salman, the fan, named Komal, wanted to ‘touch’ the 44-year-old star. She was with her husband at the event, when she requested Salman to allow her to touch him once. She said it was her lifelong wish.

Salman was sporty and granted an excited Komal the wish. Not only did he allow her to touch him, he also chatted with her.

“I am happy because he was really nice to me. He asked me my name and waved to my husband in the crowd. And he looks so much better in real life,” Komal told a news agency.

After Salman granted Komal her wish, there were other fans as well who wanted to touch Salman. But security intervened to keep them at a distance.

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala is ready for next project

2010-08-30T06:12:00.000-07:00

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala is all set to announce three major projects and each will have big have names - Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan and Saif Ali Khan. The total budget for the three projects is Rs150 crore.

After the box office success of "Housefull" and the positive buzz surrounding his forthcoming "Anjaana Anjaani", Nadiadwala has decided to make more films.

One offing on the cards is a sequel to "Housefull" directed by Sajid Khan starring Akshay, then there is "Kick" with Salman and lastly an untitled film with Saif. All the three projects will be made under his banner Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment Pvt Ltd.

"Sajid Nadiadwala has the knack to recognise out-of-the-ordinary storylines and talents and his belief that no opportunity is beyond reach ensures the cash registers ringing at the box office. He works with the best in the industry since he’s of the belief that the audiences deserve only the best,” said a source close to the filmmaker.

For now, the producer looks forward to his forthcoming film "Anjaana Anjaani". Starring Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra, the film will release Sep 24.

Big B complaints against blog

2010-08-30T05:58:00.000-07:00

Big B says it is months since he has been suffering from the insults of the unknown guy.

He wrote on his blog: "There is a serious effort by a member that writes and comments on this blog to use language and expression that is abusive, filthy and utterly disgusting." He adds, "...This individual has been sending me the most unprintable abuse on SMS on my phone. I have, after great tolerance for months, reported the matter to the police and they will be taking serious punitive action, not just in my country but in the country of the origin of these missives."

The actor said he had lodged a complaint with the authorities regarding this. "I have brought this to the notice of the authorities and (sought) corrective measures to see none of the stuff that comes from this foul mouthed individual shall ever be allowed on this platform. Any further attempt from this person shall now be under legal cyber space action, now very prominently activated in the country."

Amitabh Bachchan a ‘police informer’ in Jharkhand

2010-08-27T06:16:00.000-07:00

Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan has worked as an “informer” of the Jharkhand Police, or so the police want the people to believe.

The shocking police claim was exposed during a court hearing earlier this week in which the government said money from a police fund was distributed by Jharkhand Police to some bogus informers, including one named Amitabh Bachchan, on the pretext of getting details about Maoists’ activities.

The scam, involving Rs.8 crore, is related to the Secret Service Fund (SSF) of the Special Branch of the state police that is used to distribute money among informers.

The alleged scam was exposed last month by an informer who was made to receive payments under the assumed name of Amitabh Bachchan.

A letter written by “Amitabh Bachchan” to Chief Secretary A.K. Sharma last month gave details of the fraud perpetrated by former director general of police V.D. Ram.

During the hearing on a public interest litigation (PIL), the state government in an affidavit Aug 22 told the Jharkhand High Court that it was not averse to a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the SSF scam.

Ram, currently posted as director general of fire brigade services, is under the scanner for misusing over Rs.8 crore from the fund.

The money was withdrawn on two occasions in cash to be distributed among police informers.

The police informer from Giridih district, who wrote to the chief secretary, alleged that Ram forced him to sign a document.

The document on which he signed was related to payment of Rs.21 lakh but he got only Rs.10,000, said the informer.

The informer, in his letter, alleged that two bills of Rs.18 lakh and Rs.3 lakh respectively were signed by him on the instructions of the former police chief.

According to sources, the chief secretary, in his report to the high court, said that Rs.5.60 crore was withdrawn till the end of the 2005-06 financial year from SSF and Rs.2.40 crore was withdrawn in 2006 in the name of “Mission Divide” at Morhabadi by Ram.

Kareena and Saif are going very deep

2010-08-27T06:11:00.000-07:00

Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan are going very strong and their love for each other only keeps growing stronger with every passing day. Its been more than three years, they are seeing each other.

Kareena is very happy with Saif and feels lucky to have him by her side.

“Very few people get love in life and such a supportive partner. Of course, I am very lucky that I have got a partner like Saif. He is a very unique man. His thoughts are much different from others and he always encourages me to work,” Kareena said in an interview.

Kareena says very often Saif is unaware of latest developments in Bollywood, including the new films she’s signed up.

“He is like a Hollywood actor who stays mostly in his own world. He wants to do certain films and produce movies like Hollywood star,” Bebo talks about her man.

The duo have been shooting together for Agent Vinod for some time now.

Americans likes Tere Bin Laden

2010-08-27T06:08:00.000-07:00

Praised in India, banned in Pakistan, Tere Bin Laden, a satire about the world’s most wanted man, is now winning hearts in the US.

The film directed by first-timer Abhishek Sharma and starring Pakistani actor Ali Zafar and new find Pradhuman Singh, was released in the US with a limited number of prints. It has got positive reviews from critics and now the rumour is that none other than the President Barack Obama might watch the film at a special screening.

“Mr Obama has not seen the film as yet. Beyond that, I cannot comment on this at the moment. All I can tell you is that our film has attracted the most unexpected eyeballs in the US,” the film’s director Abhishek Sharma is quoted to have said.

The film tells the story of a Pakistani journalist (Ali Zafar) who stumbles upon an Osama Bin Laden lookalike (Pradhuman). The man is a poultry farmer and is made to impersonate as Osama to record threat messages to the US.

According to Abhishek, the film has got positive reviews from the American media, including New York Times, Variety, Chicago and Daily Herald.

SRK cleared the doubt

2010-08-27T06:04:00.000-07:00

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan has cleared the air over a reported rift with choreographer-director Farah Khan, saying that just because he wasn’t on her next project didn’t mean that they weren’t friends.

He wished her luck for her next film "Tees Maar Khan", for which she signed on Akshay Kumar instead of Shah Rukh.

"My friendship with all is as it was before, love them the same way. Many times if we are not working with each other doesn’t mean that I hate her or end of friendship. I don’t take my wife’s decision, how could I take others. I want to see everyone doing well.

"When I am shooting with someone, I am more in touch with him. This time I am not in touch with Farah but wish her all the success and hope this film (’Tees Maar Khan’) becomes a bigger hit than ’Om Shanti Om’, which was her last film. I just hope she become even a bigger producer. Yes, she is a friend of mine. I am not doing a film with her, which doesn’t mean I don’t love her," said Shah Rukh.

Shah Rukh played the lead role in Farah’s last film "Om Shanti Om".

Neil career has seen a big drop

2010-08-25T06:44:00.000-07:00

The failure of Lafangey Parindey has spelt disaster for Neil. After a spate of flops, with Aa Dekhein Zara, Jail and now Lafangey Parindey, Neil finds himself in a spot of bother. Apparently the producers of The Italian Job have asked Neil to renegotiate his asking price.

Our source said, “Neil was signed for over one crore initially. However, his career has seen a big drop with back-to-back flops. Lafangey Parindey was his big ticket but it failed to even take a decent opening. Given the current scenario, the producers of the Bollywood remake of The Italian Job have told directors Abbas-Mustan to ask Neil to reduce his price by 50 per cent.
The situation is not very encouraging and the director duo are left with no choice. Incidentally, Neil is also not ready to slash his price."