Amrohis decide on Singapore
After
Tajdar Amrohi was refused visa to shoot a substantial footage of
Hum laakh chhupayein pyar... magar in U.K., the veteran film-maker and his actor-director son
Mashhoor have finalized another foreign destination for the shoot: Singapore.
“After The British High Commission refused visa to the crew of my film, I was approached by as many as eleven countries, including Australia, New Zealand, Middle East, Malaysia, Thailand and Srilanka. Even a few European nations came forward. But Mashhoor found Singapore appropriate for the film, besides the benevolent co-operation that Singapore Tourism and Singapore High Commission offered to us. Believe me, even our spot-boys have been given a 2-year visa by the authorities, besides providing us with various facilities,” Tajdar informs me.
The cast and crew of
Hum laakh chhupayein pyar... magar takes off to Singapore on August 6, wherein major talkie portions and three songs will be canned.
When Arshad Warsi forgot ‘Circuit’…
Munnabhai and Circuit are coming back and this time, with a whole new adventure. The film
Lage Raho Munnabhai which will be the next episode of Munna and Circuit’s quest is releasing this September. Though director
Rajkumar Hirani is extremely happy with how the film has turned out, he definitely had a roller coaster ride while working with the dynamic duo
Sanjay Dutt and
Arshad Warsi. Apparently, Arshad goofed things up a couple of times, which left the director standing on the edge of a mountain cliff.
On the very first day of the shoot, they were shooting a scene at the dhobi ghat. This was same dhobi ghat where Arshad Warsi and Sanjay Dutt sat in
Munnabhai MBBS, chatting about their problems. This scene too was very much the similar.
So everything was set. The crew was ready to start rolling the second episode of Munnabhai. Director Rajkumar Hirani was also excited about working again on the concept that won millions of hearts. He shouted ‘ACTION!’ and Sanjay Dutt started saying his lines. Sanjay did it exceedingly well and then lines came to Arshad. Now, when Arshad said his first line, he didn’t sound like ‘Circuit’ at all. He was not even close to the character of ‘Circuit’. He sounded like ‘Arshad Warsi’, speaking with an accent. He continued 4-5 lines like that. Raju Hirani then called for a retake but still Arshad couldn’t do it. They did some five retakes but he was still the same. Hirani then went to Arshad and had a chat with him. He informed Arshad about how he was not sounding like Circuit. Arshad then turned to Hirani and asked “How was Circuit?” To Hirani’s shock, Arshad had completely forgotten how he had played ‘Circuit’ in Munnabhai MBBS. The Munnabhai team tried to remind Arshad but the attempts were fruitless. Arshad said that he plays a character and then forgets about it. The crew then had to stop the shooting. Rajkumar Hirani cancelled the shoot that night and gave Arshad Warsi a DVD of Munnabhai MBBS. Next day he saw the film about three times, and then he came on the sets. The director was still nervous thinking whether Arshad will pull it of or not. But he did. Arshad finally got it right and ‘Circuit’ came back. Sanjay Dutt then later told Hirani that he had also seen the film about 8-9 times before coming for shoot, just to get into the skin of the character.
Saif being sought for a film on soccer
A Bollywood director wants to make a film on football with
Saif Ali Khan in the lead role.
Vivek Agnihotri, who made his directorial debut last year with
Chocolate, is looking forward to make a film titled
Goal.
In Agnihotri’s words, the film will basically be a social drama set against the backdrop of the game of soccer. The filmmaker says he has been thinking of the idea of making the film even before the world cup in Germany.
Reports say Agnihotri has approached Saif to play one of the leading roles in the film. “We are talking to him (Saif) and keeping our fingers crossed,” the director is quoted as saying.
Saif is presently committed to two projects – an
Abbas Mastan thriller and
Salaam Namaste director’s next film. The actor has recently turned down offers from directors like
Feroz Khan (who wanted him for his
Qurbani remake) and
Mani Ratnam. Whether he gives his nod to Agnihotri remains to be seen.
Amitabh Bachchan's popularity in Afghanistan
Bollywood mega superstar
Amitabh Bachchan is so popular in Afghanistan that two Afghan teenagers walked for 18 days through Afghanistan and Pakistan just to meet him.
Reports are that the boys were jailed soon after crossing into India through Pakistan. The border guards arrested the pair for failing to have proper immigration papers in Jammu. During an interrogation, the boys, from a village outside Kabul, said they walked for 18 days through Jallalabad in Afghanistan and the Pakistani cities of Peshawar, Rawalpindi and Sialkot to reach India and try to meet Bachchan.
Kasim Din, 17, and his 14-year-old friend known only as Hikmat also wished to meet Bollywood superstar
Shah Rukh Khan and former film great
Dharmendra, the reports added.
"Afghanistan is fascinated with Bollywood films and Sholay is the all-time favourite of the people there," one of the boys told interrogators, the report said.
The two were currently in Arnia police station in Jammu. A spokesman for India's border guards, Prem Singh, told that although the two boys were minors, they would still "have to face the law.”
Bachchan starred in late
Mukul Anand’s
Khuda Gawah in 1992 that was shot mainly in Afghanistan.
Now Saif wants to do Hamlet!
Even as his performance in
Omkara has left many stunned, actor
Saif Ali Khan says he wants to do something bigger and Shakespearean with
Vishal Bhardwaj.
In
Omkara, an adaptation of Othello, Saif plays the Indianized Iago, probably the most challenging role he has played till now. Unarguably, it is Saif who gets the maximum footage in the film and his performance merits an award.
While Vishal Bhardwaj has vowed to stay off the Shakespeare for at least two years, Saif says he hopes to work in another Bhardwaj movie, possibly an adaptation of Hamlet.
Saif says he wants the next film to be even bigger than
Omkara.
Vishal has revealed in an interview that he would complete his trilogy with either
Hamlet (another tragedy) or
The Midsummer Night’s Dream (a comedy).
But it is not going to happen in the near future, as Bhardwaj wants to make a film on an original story first.
Amitabh, Kristin Scott may act together
If things turn out as planned, Bollywood superstar
Amitabh Bachchan and British actress
Kristin Scott Thomas may act together in
Jagmohan Mundhra's next film.
Now that Mundhra's proposed biopic on the life of
Sonia Gandhi has come under criticism from the Congress party, the filmmaker has put the project on the backburner and is rather concentrating on another film based on the July 7 bomb blasts in London last year.
The film, titled
Shoot On Sight, tells the story of a Muslim cop in Scotland Yard. The character is said to be modeled on the real-life Scotland Yard assistant commissioner,
Tariq Gafoor, who rose from the rank of a constable to a respected position in the police force.
Jagmohan Mundhra wants Amitabh Bachchan to play this 55-yr-old Muslim cop. British actress Kristin Scott Thomas, who has acted in films like
English Patient and
Horse Whisperer, is likely to play Bachchan's English wife in the film.
Reports say actor
Michael Caine is in the reckoning to play the police commissioner.
Naseeruddin Shah has already been signed to play an Imam (head of a mosque) and
Om Puri to play a meat shop owner in the film. Bachchan still hasn't given his final consent to the project.
The film basically looks at how the Muslim community was affected in London after the July 7 attacks.
Mundhra's film with
Aishwarya Rai,
Provoked, (also set in UK) will hit the theatres in the coming months. He wants to start
Shoot On Sight in August.
Raima-Sammir jodi works
Raima Sen and
Sammir Dattani are very comfortable working with each other. The chemistry between them shows on the screen.
Although Raima has been roped in for just a brief role opposite Sammir in director
Mani Shankar’s espionage thriller
Mukhbir , the duo made quite an impression on the movie’s producer while shooting together for a song.
The producer,
Sudhish Rambhotla, was so impressed by the chemistry between the two that he has decided to cast the pair in his next film also.
Going a bit into the past, Raima and Sammir have known each other since six years. The first music video they shot together was '
Valentine's Day'. To this day they're remembered as the 'Valentine pair'.
Sammir confesses that out of all the actresses, he is most comfortable working with Raima.
"It's true that I haven't been so comfortable with any of my leading ladies. It could be because we started our careers together," says Sammir.
The movie’s producer is upbeat about casting them together for one more film.
“Raima has the right mix of beauty, innocence and mischief to complement Sammir. I'm definitely going to sign them together for my second film,” Sudhish Rambhotla says.
Love scene in Omkara arousing curiosity
In the industry where a mere peck on the lips can make headlines, a love scene between the hero and heroine is sure to raise curiosity.
Well, even as
Vishal Bhardwaj’s film
Omkara is slated to hit the theatres this Friday, tongues have begun to wag about a lovemaking scene in the film between
Ajay Devgan and
Kareena Kapoor.
The film has Ajay playing a chief of outlaws, and Kareena plays his wife. The said lovemaking scene comes on their first night after marriage. The song, ‘
O Saathi Re’, plays in the background during this scene.
Reports say that Kareena was a bit reluctant to shoot this intimate scene with Ajay, who is many years senior to her. It was Vishal Bhardwaj who convinced her that the scene would be shot aesthetically.
And those who have seen the rushes of the film say that the scene has a decent mix of sensuality and aesthetics.
Besides Ajay and Kareena,
Omkara stars
Saif Ali Khan,
Vivek Oberoi,
Konkana Sen and
Bipasha Basu (special appearance).
The film will release on July 28.
Aishwarya or Bipasha
Aishwarya Rai is among the most beautiful women in the world, while
Bipasha Basu has captivated many with her sex appeal.
Sanjay Gadhavi's film
Dhoom 2 will see a reversal of roles for Ash and Bipasha. Ash, who has so far shunned sexy roles, will play a sensuous girl in the film. On the other hand, Bipasha, who has for long enjoyed the reputation of an oomph belle, will tone down and play a cop.
Obviously, Bipasha’s character will not be a very glamorous one. She will be seen as a chic and upright cop. However, sources reveal that Bipasha will indeed have her few moments of oomph in the film.
Those who expect sex appeal should rather turn to Aishwarya who is specially slimming down to get into a bikini figure even as the film’s shooting is presently underway in Namibia.
Ash is working out and taking fitness tips from her co-star
Hrithik Roshan to lose the extra fat she acquired for
Mani Ratnam’s film
Guru.
On previous occasions, the movie’s co-producer
Aditya Chopra has said that the film will not portray Ash as a sexy siren, but her character will indeed have some sex appeal.
The film has Hrithik playing a clever thief. Ash plays his sensuous, seductive partner in crime.
On the opposite side, Abhishek and Bipasha play two cops.
Dhoom 2 also stars
Uday Chopra. The film will release in November this year.
Choker Bali being shown as sleazy film
Reports are that
Aishwarya Rai's classic film
Chokher Bali has been dubbed in Tamil and being marketed as a sleazy film.
Titled
Aishwarya Rai ..Ulaga Azhagi the publicity for the film has stills of Ash’s bare back and a teasing caption under it.
Directed by
Rituparno Ghosh,
Chokher Bali is based upon
Rabindranath Tagore's famous novel of the same title.
The movie has Ash playing a young widow named Binodini. While the character of a widow – a subtle temptress who uses her beauty and charms to entice men. Ash plays a character caught between her widowhood and her desires most of which have sexual connotations.
So the distributors of the dubbed Tamil version, to rake in some extra bucks, have made the Bengali version look like a sleazy film, but sadly even that hasn’t helped their purpose, because the posters haven’t helped in drawing the audience to the theaters.
Reports add that Ash is quite oblivious to this.
Priyanka Chopra to don a swimsuit in 'Don'?
Yes, the former Miss World, who is presently basking in the success of
Krrish, has worn a sexy swimsuit in
Farhan Akhtar's forthcoming mega release
Don – the remake of the
Amitabh Bachchan and
Zeenat Aman starrer
Don (1978).
Sure enough, Priyanka who turned 24 a few days ago, not only has the class and sex appeal to carry the swimsuit, but she may also give some competition to
Kareena Kapoor in the film, who does a sizzling cabaret – the one done by
Helen in the original.
But Priyanka will not just only ooze oomph on screen in the film, but will also kick ass.
It has been already reported that Priyanka has received martial arts training for doing some karate and ju-jitsu.
Meanwhile, in an effort to give the audience a roller coaster ride, Farhan has introduced several twists and turns in the film making the entire storyline completely unpredictable.
Don is slated to release in October.
Oxford calling !!!
It’s back to school for
Akshay Kumar. The actor has been rumoured to quipped, “I got an entry into Oxford! Can you believe that? My childhood dream has come true!” Not quite understanding his decision of returning to academics, when probed further it was learnt that AK was actually in the campus of Oxford University, London shooting for
Priyadarshan’s
Bhaagam Bhaag. “I can finally tell everyone that I made it to Oxford, never mind what, why and how,” says Akshay. Now, that’s quite a sense of humour, huh! So, the next time you hear Akshay boast about his entry into Oxford, be sure to remember where it’s all coming from.
Adi Chopra looking to outdo ‘Krrish’ stunts
All actors of
Dhoom 2 are now realising that they have a demanding boss. First
Aditya Chopra asked
Aishwarya Rai to lose weight for the film, now he has asked
Hrithik Roshan to rework his stunt scenes. Producer Aditya Chopra has flown down special stunts experts from Hollywood for his film. According to industry insiders, he decided to rework the stunt scenes directly after
Rakesh Roshan showed him the action sequences of
Krrish in February. All in the name of some healthy competition.
Currently shooting in Namibia,
Dhoom 2, is directed by
Sanjay Gadhvi (who also directed the original
Dhoom). Hrithik Roshan plays a negative role in the film and has a lot of stunts in it. “Earlier the Chopras had signed famous action director
Alin Amin to choreograph the action sequences, but now they have also signed on a few experts from Hollywood,” says trade analyst
Amol Mehra.
So Hrithik Roshan is all set to redo many of the stunts. Hrithik is not allowed to use body doubles and there are some stunning action sequences which will create history in Bollywood cinema. The buzz goes that Adi Chopra will show the landing of an airplane on a road in
Dhoom 2.
Vidya Balan quits Kamal Haasan’s film
Vidya Balan’s dream of working with the actor she admires so much may not realize for the time being.
It hasn’t been more than a month when Vidya was approached by
Kamal Haasan to act in his Tamil movie
Dasaavatharam. Vidya, who holds Haasan in very high regard, was thrilled by the idea of working with the talented actor.
But now, it turns out that Vidya has politely excused herself from the project. The reason is that she is not able to spare the 90 dates at a stretch, which Haasan demanded for the movie.
Vidya says she rues missing the opportunity to work with Haasan, but she adds she has no other option as she has to meet her prior commitments.
Vidya’s Bollywood career began with
Pradeep Sarkar’s movie
Parineeta last year. This year, she has won the best debutante awards at almost all the major award functions.
Vidya’s forthcoming films include
Lage Raho Munnabhai,
Eklavya and
Salaam-e-Ishq. She is presently shooting for
Mani Ratnam’s film
Guru.
Ajay Devgan to give a social message
Ajay Devgan has taken a step ahead to throw light on social issues.
The reports reveal that Ajay is producing and editing a short film called ‘
The Awakening’ which will be directed by
Faruque Kabir.
The movie is based on the 26/7 (July 26) episode last year when heavy rains in Mumbai brought life in the city to a grinding halt and also claimed human lives.
The film revolves around a six-year-old child, played by a child artiste,
Anjaan Ali. This three-minute film shows how a child manages to survive when he gets separated from his parents in a traumatic situation.
The film is scheduled to release on 14th of July. The timing of its release could not have been more apt, particularly now when the city is going under another spell of deluge because of the ongoing monsoon rains.
Ajay explained that his purpose behind the film is to convey a social message that if a child can learn from a situation like this, then why can’t we be responsible?
The image makeover
He is enthralling one and all as the superhero in
Krrish , but
Hrithik Roshan is set for a major image makeover in his next film.
In his next flick
Dhoom 2 , Hrithik plays a suave thief, although he is quick to note that his character is no villain.
"He is a suave, charming man of few words. He is intelligent. He's another kind of super being," Hrithik was quoted as saying by an entertainment website.
"He is quite fantastic in his own way and he's so good at what he does. There is no other way for him but to be a thief," Hrithik added.
"
Dhoom2 is much, much more than bikes this time. There are other kinds of sports and different kinds of wheels," Hrithik said of the sequel of Dhoom that also stars
Abhishek Bachchan,
Aishwarya Rai and
Bipasha Basu.
In fact, the cast and crew are currently shooting action sequences in Swakopmund, Namibia, a world-renowned spot for sand boarding, which is like snowboarding but on sand dunes.
Clash of titans @ Diwali
Shahrukh Khan at one point of time was one of the major stars in the
Yash Chopra production house. The Chopra production house is extremely big and holds a lot of clout in the industry. Actors and actresses are more than happy to work with such a big banner. However it was later rumoured that there was a fallout between one of their biggest stars Shahrukh and the Chopra production house. Shahrukh was a superstar, but the Chopras refused to pay him his price for films. Unfortunately for Shahrukh one of the oldest and biggest production houses was not going to bend and instead signed on
Aamir Khan for their film
Fanaa. Now yet again Yash Raj Films is trying to gain clout for their next release
Dhoom 2 which will release around the same time as the Shahrukh starrer
Don.
Even though the Chopras and Shahrukh have patched up, the Chopra camp is taking no chances for the release of their next production
Dhoom 2. According to distributor Amod Mehra “Yash Raj has booked all the main theaters all over India for
Dhoom 2.” According to sources Yash Raj Films who were also distributing
Rakesh Roshan’s
Krrish have got theater and multiplex owners to make a verbal deal. According to this deal those theaters that are screening
Krrish currently will also have to screen
Dhoom 2. The problem arises as both
Dhoom 2 and
Don are slated for a Diwali (October) release. Hence
Don will have to be screened at fewer theaters.
However producer of
Don,
Ritiesh Sidhwani seems unperturbed by the Yash Raj strategy and says “I think there is enough room during Diwali for both films.” However according to sources from the industry when two big films clash they are bound to affect the business of the other. Nonetheless Yash Raj has a major clout over distributors and theater owners which was quite evident during the price hike for the screening of
Fanaa. Hence the release of
Don which releases during the same time is bound to get affected.
Bebo to play female Shah Rukh Khan
Kareena Kapoor is enacting a role what
Shah Rukh Khan had enacted in 1993.
Kareena is playing the role what SRK played in
Yash Chopra’s superhit
Darr, which also starred
Juhi Chawla and
Sunny Deol.
Kareena plays the obsessive lover’s role in
Farhan Akhtar’s sister
Zoha Akhtar’s forthcoming film featuring
Hrithik Roshan in the male lead.
Kareena plays a passionate psychic girl obsessed with Hrithik.
But that’s the only coincidence with
Darr. This one is in fact said to be adapted from the English film
The Fan. Surely, must be a treat to watch the petite Kareena going eerie!
'Rang De Basanti' to compete for Golden Globe
Reports have it that
Rakyesh Omprakash Mehra’s movie
Rang De Basanti has been selected for the Golden Globe Awards. Mehra’s superbly crafted film has already rocked the box-office and proved to be a huge success not just at home but also abroad.
The movie, starring
Aamir Khan,
Alice Patten,
Soha Ali Khan and a host of other stars has now got a rare honour in the form of selection at the Golden Globe Awards, which are officiated by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.
The official body for the Golden Globes has reportedly scheduled to screen
Rang De Basanti at the Clarity Screening Theatre in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, on July 27. The movie’s director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra and producer
Ronnie Screwala will attend the screening. The film will contend in the Foreign Language film category. This year’s winner for the Foreign Language film at Golden Globes was a Palestinian film titled
Paradise Now.
No Smoking
John Abraham will act in a film intended to give an anti-smoking message.
The film, titled
No Smoking, will be made by
Vishal Bhardwaj in joint production with
Kumar Mangat, who is also the co-producer of Vishal’s much-awaited film
Omkara.
Although Vishal is busy in giving final touches to
Omkara – that hits the screens on July 28 – plans have already been drawn to make a feature film that will give an anti-smoking message in an entertaining way.
So far only John Abraham has been signed for the movie. Ironically, John is a non-smoker. He smokes at rare occasions or when he is playing a role that requires smoking.
Bebo gets possessive
Kareena Kapoor has got possessive about something and it is not
Shahid Kapur.
Before you all let your imagination flying, let us tell you that Kareena isn’t dating another guy. She’s just got possessive about working in all the films that
Vishal Bhardwaj will make.
Kareena says that she loved working with Bhardwaj in his forthcoming film
Omkara so much she wants to star in all his future films.
"
Director Vishal Bhardwaj and I have formed a mutual admiration society," said Kareena in an interview.
"
I'm going to feature in every single film of his. And if I don't fit into a film of his he's just not going to make it, as simple as that," Kareena said.
It was not clear if she was joking.
Sanjay Dutt, John Abraham team up again
Sanjay Dutt and
John Abraham, the two stars of
Sanjay Gupta’s film
Zinda, will now act together in a movie to be produced by
Karan Johar.
The two hunks will come together for a yet-to-be-titled film that will be directed by
Soham.
Soham previously directed Kaal for Karan Johar and Shah Rukh Khan.
It is learnt that the film that Soham will now direct for Johar will be a thriller with elements of romance.
Kareena Kapoor will be one of the heroines.
Reports have it that one more actress will soon be signed for the film.
Meanwhile, Sanjay and John have already become good friends. They are said to be looking forward to work in more films in the future.
