News & Views

Protest against 'Dil Pardesi Ho Gaya'

            This Friday saw the release of Saawan Kumar Tak's "Dil Pardesi Ho Gaya" nation-wide. This Indo-Pak love story seems to have affected the sentiments of lots of people. The Muslim community has objections to many scenes and dialogues in the film. There was a huge protest at Mumbai's Novelty theatre. These protesters were really annoyed with producer director Sawaan Kumar for projecting Muslims in bad light in "Dil Padesi Ho Gaya". They were protesting with slogans of boycotting Saawan Kumar and his film. They all jointly demanded ban of the film from the theatres. Meanwhile all the theatre owners have made adequate police and security arrangements at the theatres where this film is running.
-Dec 12,  2003

Hrithik Roshan felicitated

           Noted Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan was felicitated for his performance in this year's super-hit "Koi Mil Gaya". This award was presented to Hrithik at the 16th annual awards of Sahyog Foundation at St. Andrews auditorium in Bandra in Mumbai. Prominent personalities who attended the function was Dharmendra, Sunil Dutt, Jaya Prada and Simi Garewal. Music director Rajesh Roshan was also present at the function. Sahyog Foundation is a prominent socio-cultural organisation dedicated to the cause of the poor and the downtrodden besides taking up the cudgels against social evils.
-Dec 12,  2003

Emami files case against Rakesh Roshan's Filmkraft 

           Calcutta-based cosmetic giant Emami has filed a case against Rakesh Roshan's production company "Filmkraft" for infringement of contract. Emami has alleged that the Roshans failed to fulfil an endorsement contract, which the company had entered into over "Koi Mil Gaya". According to the complaint, Rakesh Roshan had allegedly approached Emami for in-film marketing tie-up for a sum of Rs 12 lakh. Emami had signed a contract with Roshans. According to the contract, Emami products were supposed to be endorsed by the characters and the brand would be prominently featured in the film. However, when the film released, Emami officials discovered that the scenes were not incorporated in the film. As a result, they have filed a case in a Mumbai court. Roshans are yet to receive a legal notice to the effect. The case will be up for hearing in February 2004.
-Dec 10,  2003

Anu Malik in Gurinder's film 

           Music director Anu Malik will be seen as an actor in Gurinder Chadha's "Bride and Prejudice". Anu Malik will appear in the role of a pundit in the film and will be seen welcoming the family in a wedding sequence. Our west bishes are with Anu for his new role in the tinsel town.
-Dec 12,  2003

Vidhu Chopra acknowledges SRK's inputs 

           Producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra's first choice for the role of Munnabhai MBBS was Shah Rukh Khan. But the acclaimed actor could not do the movie due to problems with his back and his subsequent spinal operation. With the film due for release, Chopra has thanked Shah Rukh Khan for providing special inputs to the script. At the same time, Chopra does not undermine Dutt's commendable performance in the movie, saying he has done justice to his multi-colored character.
-Dec 11,  2003

Urmila's psycho role in Ramu's Ek Haseena Thi 

           After playing a rape victim in Pinjar and an emotionally repressed girl in Tehzeeb, Urmila Matondkar will be seen playing the role of a psycho convict in Ramgopal Varma's Ek Haseena Thi. The film revolves around a girl's trauma after she is wrongly accused in a crime. Saif Ali Khan plays the male lead. Interestingly, Ek Haseena Thi is the first Hindi film to be produced by 20th Century Fox. It is scheduled to hit the theatres on December 26.
-Dec 11,  2003

'Plan' in trouble! 

          Sanjay Gupta's "Plan" is stuck at the post-production stage following differences between lead actress Priyanka Chopra and the movie's associate producer. Sanjay says that the movie is a situational comedy that will appeal to both youngsters and the family. If Kaante was full of expletives and double meaning dialogues that didn't go well with the family crowd, Sanjay Dutt and Sanjay Gupta's second production "Plan" promises to be different.
-Dec 11,  2003

Flaws in Tehzeeb! 

           Film critic-turned-director Khalid Mohammad's "Tehzeeb" delves into the complex relationship between an influential mother and her daughter. But the film is receiving flak from film critics. The movie is a very emotional one and the credit for it partly goes to a well-written script and intense performances by both Shabana Azmi and Urmila. Diya Mirza just about manages to play her role. A cameo by Namrata Shirodkar seems to be forced into the narrative. Diana Hayden looks pathetic and superficial, speaking highly accentuated Hindi.
-Dec 11,  2003

Colonial hangover syndrome in Bollywood!

           Indian beauties have made a mark on the international scene. But lately a strange phenomenon called a colonial hangover can be observed in Bollywood because of which Indian models are getting a raw deal vis-a-vis foreign models. Models like Yana Gupta, Roxanne, Lisa Ray, and Katrina Kaif have foreign origins and all of them are bold and beautiful. And all of them have a flourishing career in a short career span with support from filmakers, choreographers and sponsors. Obscene pay packets for foreign-bred beauties have left desi babes crying foul. Indians seem to suffer from white skin syndrome where girls who have Caucasian origin, who speak with accents and who are ready to get bold for any campaign are preferred by choreographers and fashion designers.
-Dec 11,  2003

Amitabh plays a blind lawyer in his latest film, 'Zamanat' 

           Indian film industry's most bankable actor Amitbah Bachchan has teamed up with the newly-married actress Karisma Kapoor to finish the final schedule of "Zamanat" being made for the last seven years. The film directed by S Ramanathan also stars Arshad Warsi, Vijayashanti and Anupam Kher. The film was delayed earlier due to problems between the producers and the director. The last schedule of the film was being shot at various locations in Chennai.

          The film revolves around a blind lawyer, played by Amitabh Bachchan, who is out on a mission to save an innocent engineer accused of murdering his mother. Bachchan, who has worked with various south Indian directors, was quite impressed with the discipline down south. "The atmosphere has always been good. I have always said the kind of discipline in south Indian film industry is amazing. You don't see the same kind of professionalism in Bombay, though it is catching up now. But here the discipline and order has been great for years and it's always an honour to work here. The atmosphere of work here is very good," he said in Chennai.

          Bachchan, fresh with the success of "Baghban", one of the biggest grossers of 2003, is currently the busiest star in Bollywood with top big-budget films in hand. Karisma Kapoor, whose celebrity marriage created a lot of media attention in late October, had earlier worked with Bachchan in "Mrityudata". Karisma was earlier engaged to Bachchan's son Abhishek Bachchan but their engagement was called off.

          Karisma, who plays the role of a strong-willed girl, said she enjoyed shooting for the film. "Basically I am playing a strong-willed girl. She is fighting for a cause, fighting for her love. She has been framed. Right now we are shooting the climax of the film where everything is going to finally fall in place, the right way," she said. Five songs of the film have alreay been recorded and after the completion of the post-production work, "Zamanat" will be released by March next year.
-Dec 10,  2003

Amitabh and Shah Rukh as jokers 

          Amitabh and Shah Rukh will be doing a film together and the film is funnily titled as Joker. Director Ashok Sharma will be making this film. After Mohabbatein and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, this is Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan's third film together. Though very few details are available on "Joker", the film is rumoured to be starring South actress Ramya.
-Dec 10,  2003

Dino on international mag 

           Dino Morea is going places not only in Bollywood but in Hollywood as well. Apparently this is a fallout of his by now famous shoot for the famous magazine Maxim. The magazine is running a story on Bollywood in its current issue. The story has a photo feature on Salman Khan and Dino. The story is about Bollywood through the eyes of Dino. So how did the Italo stud get to feature in this world-famous mag?

           "The Italian photographer Attilio Concario of the magazine had contacted the Italian consulate in Mumbai to help out," explains Dino. Naturally the first Bollywood name they could think of was Dino Morea, half-Italian, half-Indian. And so he got featured in the magazine. So where does the Hollywood part come in? Apparently the Attillio was so impressed by Dino that he asked Dino to come to Italy where he would introduce Dino to some top showbiz personalities. Now these people, who Dino would be introduced to, are also closely connected to Hollywood.

        Now Italy has had a long association with Hollywood. Sophia Loren, Leonardo Di Caprio, the spaghetti westerns (English movies produced by Italians) and a huge roster of producers and directors come to mind. We hear that Dino has picked up a little Italian these days. So with Dino possibly flying off to Rome in the near future, will it be a Roman Holiday for him "at Hollywood? And it is chutti for his Bollywood producers? "Good God, no!", says Dino. "My feet are firmly planted in India. I have a number of movies in hand. There is Saurav Shuklas Chehra with Bipasha. Ishk Hai Tum Se and Plan. So there is no question of my going off anywhere?"
-Dec 10,  2003

Mira Nair's 9/11 depiction 

           Monsoon Wedding, Kamasutra and Salaam Bombay fame director Mira Nair's short film on September 11, based on a real life incident involving an American Muslim boy, will be among the opening fare at the 8th International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK), starting in Thiruvananthapuram later this week. Nair's film was part of a series of 11 short films by leading directors from different countries on the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Centre and other US landmarks on September 11, 2001. The collection of 11 films, each of the duration of 11 minutes, nine seconds and one frame (11'9''01), was a talking point at the Toronto and Venice film festivals last year. While Mira Nair's short feature will share the honours with the Turkish feature film ''Encounters'' as the opening movies of the week-long IFFK, starting on December 12.
-Dec 10,  2003

Funt2ssh new-comer 

          Iqbaal Khan The last new-comer of the year making his debut is a straining Kashmiri boy Iqbal Khan in Imtiaz Panjabi's Fun2ssh. About his first film Fun2ssh he calls it a crazy comedy with a crazy role of an aspiring actor. Not belonging to any family tree of famous personalities of Hindi cinema, Iqbaal comes from a family of professionals. His father is a retired IAS officer, his two sisters are doctors and his brother is a computer analyst. "They wanted me also to take computers as a profession but I didn't like studying. So to get some money I took to acting," he tells cheekily but then immediately counters, "For cinema too you have to study although it is more to acquire trade related knowledge. Cinema is not only about good body, impressive face and facing the camera with confidence." Regarding 'Fun2ssh' Iqbaal is very confident of its success. Before signing his maiden film he had ensured that it had some known names that were acceptable on the box office window. "This film has Paresh Rawal and he has his fixed fan following." So this will ensure initial draw and later he is confident that film will make its own impact to retain the viewers.
-Dec 10,  2003

Dadasaheb Phalke Award for Dev Anand 

          Bollywood evergreen hero Dev Anand has been selected for the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2002 for his outstanding contribution to Indian cinema. The award, which carries a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh, a shawl and a swarna kamal, was instituted in 1969 to commemorate the outstanding contribution of late Dadasaheb Phalke to Indian cinema. President APJ Abdul Kalam will give away the award at a ceremony scheduled to be held on December 29, official sources said in New Delhi.

          Born on September 26, 1923 in Gurdaspur as Devdutt Pishorimal Anand, he graduated in arts from Punjab University and wenr to Mumbai to join elder brother Chetan Anand who was already into films. The initial years were full of struggle as, among other things, he even had to sell some of his possessions and even worked in the Military Censor's office reading soldiers' letters to their families. The film "Ziddi" in 1948 at Bombay Talkies was Anand's first success. The following year he turned producer and launched his own banner, Navketan. Navketan's first offering was Afsar (1950) and then Taxi Driver, CID, Kala Pani, Guide and Jewel Thief, among others.
-Dec 9,  2003

Lata, Dev honoured 

          Melody queen Lata Mangeshkar and evergreen Bollywood actor Dev Anand have been honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Awards at the second International Film festival held in Pune. Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar honoured Anand by giving him the traditional Puneri cap, while he presented Mangeshkar with a shawl. Holding world record for the most recorded songs, Mangeshkar is India's most famous woman singer. The eldest of five children, Lata made her debut in films as a child artist at the age of just 11. Four years later she started singing, struggling to match her immature voice to adult heroines. Her voice has personified woman characters in films right from the black-and-white period to the modern era. Mangeshkar has been awarded with the Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian honour.

          Dev Anand is one of the greatest stars the Bollywood has seen. Handsome and debonair, he was the epitome of the suave, urban gentleman. The stylish actor has often been called as Bollywood's Gregory Peck. His forte was the boy next door. Part lover, part clown, part do-gooder. Anand continues to make films today and though his last few films haven't been successful, he just keeps going with amazing energy. On January 26, 2001 he was awarded the Padma Bhushan for his contribution to Indian cinema.
-Dec 9,  2003

Amit Behl on an all-time high 

          Actor Amit Behl is on an all-time high with two releases coming up this month. On December 12, there is G Krishna's Ishq Hai Tumse in which he plays Big brother to Dino Morea followed by JP Dutta's LOC. And at the same time, theatre is welcoming him with open arms. Behl has also acted in Rangmanch productions with Neena Gupta and Shubha Khote among others. Meanwhile, his next play is with Himani Shivpuri and Pallavi Joshi, which will again be a Rangmanch production. And yet, Behl boy has an interesting array of serials in his kitty. There is Ashok Pandit's Mukammal and Arun Frank's Zindagi Teri Meri Kahani both on Sahara and then Awaaz Dil Se on Zee.
-Dec  9,  2003

Manisha's cashing on home production 

          Manisha Koirala is keeping her fingers crossed as her home production Paisa Vasool, the first film under her production banner, is soon going to be released. Remarkably the film has two female characters as its protagonists and no heroes at all. Since the movie is her first film as a producer, the actress says that she has learned quite a few lessons and admits that she can now empathise with producers she had previously worked with.
-Dec  9,  2003

Ken's Fidaa 

          Admen Ken Ghosh has already begun shooting for his next film called Fidaa, which stars Fardeen Khan, Shahid Kapur and Kareena Kapoor. Plans are that he will complete the film by March so that it releases in April. The director is mum about the plot but reveals that it will be a love triangle and the subject is quite different from others. Director Ken also reveals that he plans to make a horror film after Fidaa.
-Dec  9,  2003

Bullet - the first Indo-Bulgarian film 

           Seems like Bollywood is finally opening up to new ventures with outside countries. Following up on this trend is an Indo-Bulgarian joint venture called Bullet the Target, which is reportedly almost complete. Shot entirely in Bulgaria and Turkey the film's patch-up scenes were shot at Mumbai's Kamalistan studio on Monday. Producer Asad Sikander completed the entire shooting in a non-stop 60-day marathon shooting schedule in Bulgaria with a 200-strong unit from India, Hollywoood and Bulgaria. The film introduces model Aseem Merchant with Iqbal Khan of Funtoosh in the main lead and Miss Bulgaria Natalia Kurgova, Rosy Vanarose, Saasha and Saadhika provide the female support.
-Dec  9,  2003

River Moon in troubled waters 

          Deepa Mehta's River Moon seems to be sailing in troubled waters. First Rahul Khanna backed out and John Abraham was roped in, and now it is Kareena Kapoor's turn to back out. Apparently, Kareena could not meet the consecutive 40-day Deepa Mehta wanted. But insiders insist that what prompted Kareena's walkout was the story of River Moon, which is reportedly the same as Water. Set in the 1930s, the film shows the plight of widows who were either forced to beg or become prostitutes. Deepa Mehta has also reportedly planned to shoot the film in Chhattisgarh and not in Varanasi because of the tension it had stirred amongst the people and political parties earlier.
-Dec  9,  2003

Raghu Romeo rocks! 

          Mumbai's much acclaimed 6th International Film Festival ended last week. Rajat Kapur's "Raghu Romeo" won the award for the best film in the Indian Competition category. The film is a satire on a bartender who has fantasies of a TV soap opera actress. Other film that was honoured at the festival was Adoor Gopalakrishnan's "Nizhalkkuthu" that won the International Federation of Film Critics' Award. The film deals with a hangman's guilt in Kerala. VK Prakash's "Freaky Chakra" received special mention at the festival.
-Dec 8,  2003

Wajahh launched!

          Director Gautam Adhikari launched his new film "Wajahh - A Reason to Kill" at Mumbai's Kamalistan studio. The film will have a marathon schedule after the muhurat. Gracy Singh has been paired opposite Arbaaz in the movie. Gautam Adhikari has "Bhookampt" and "Chehraa" to his credit. This movie, presumed to be a crime thriller, also stars model- turned-actor Zulfi Sayed and Shamita Shetty in parallel roles.

          "Wajahh" will be co-produced by Makrand Adhikari and Anand Pandit. Arbaaz who made his debut in a thriller "Daraar" will be seen in the role of a doctor with pyschopath shades. After the muhurat, the director shot a sequence between Arbaaz and Gracy where Gracy comes to visit Arbaaz in a clinic. The director has refused to give any detail about the storyline of the movie.
-Dec 8,  2003

Karishma-Amitabh together!

          Karishma Kapoor faced the camera after a long break for her pending film "Zamanat" with Amitabh Bachchan. However, to everybody's surprise they were quite civil to each other and behaved normally. Raam Raj Kalamandir's "Zamanat" is being shot in a 9-day schedule. The film was shot in Mumbai's Filmalaya studios till December 5. A song and some scenes were canned on Karishma Kapoor and Arshad Warsi. Choreographer Chinni Prakash picturised the song on the set of a 'basti'. The film will also be shot in Chennai for the climax on Amitabh Bachchan, Karishma Kapoor, Vijayashanti, Arshad Warsi, Anupam Kher, Sharat Saxena, Govind Namdeo, Ayub Khan, Arushee, Prakash Raj, Salil Sudhakar and Raju Mawani.
-Dec 8,  2003

Anil Sharma's desert love

          Anil Sharma of "Gadar" fame is now fancying Rajasthan. He has canned a desert race and three songs for Movie World's "Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo" at various locales in Jaisalmer and Bikaner. The shooting took place from November 20 to December 2. Amitabh Bachchan, Bobby Deol and Sandali Sinha are the leading actors of the movie. The film also stars Akshay Kumar, new-find Divya Khosla, Kapil Sharma, Surendra Pal Singh, Rajesh Vivek, Vivek Shauq, Danny Denzongpa, Govind Namdeo, Vishwajeet Pradhan and Ashutosh Rana. The music is by Anu Malik.
-Dec 8,  2003

Ekta's Krishna Cottage!

           Soap Opera queen Ekta Kapoor is busy with her next film "Krishna Cottage". Balaji Films Ltd.'s Prod. No. 2 Krishna Cottage's final shooting is in progress at Manori and Phoenix Mills where the final song is being filmed on Sohail Khan and Natasha under the supervision of choreographer Remo. The film also stars Isha Koppikar, Divya Palat, Vrajesh Hirjee, Raj Zutshi, Hiten Tejwani, Ali Hasan, Usha Nadkarni and Rati Agnihotri. The producers of the film are Shobha Kapoor and Ekta Kapoor. The director of the film is Santram Varma. Music is by Anu Malik. The thriller is a Jeetendra presentation. The dubbing of the movie is already over. The background music recording will begin next week. Ekta has "Kyonki Main Jhooth Nahin Bolta" and "Kuch To Hai" to her credit.
-Dec 8,  2003

Win Kal Ho Naa Ho dresses

          Fame Adlabs, the buzzing multiplex at Andheri, brings a life-time opportunity to win dresses of the stars worn in the film Kal Ho Na Ho. Fans will be delighted to know that four of the Manish Malhotra designs will be out for grabs only at Fame Adlabs. Fame Adlabs announced a week-long on-ground and on-site contest and the winners will be decided by a lucky draw to be held on Saturday, December 20. One can look forward to winning the dress worn by Preity Zinta and Saif Ali in the much hyped song Mahi We..., a black formal suit and the sexy dress of Preity.
-Dec 7,  2003

Dharmendra's day

          Come December 8 and it's the birthday of Dharmendra who has been in the industry for past 35 years. As a successful hero, Dharmendra's innings are so long that he has ironically played hero to the leading ladies who have also co- starred with his own sons. But success to him did not come easy either. He struggled hard to make his mark in tinsel town and when his first film Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere was launched, nobody recognized him at the premier of the film.
-Dec 7,  2003

A joint effort 

          Tigmanshu Dhulia is working on the last song of Mediatrack's maiden film 'Charas - A Joint Effort', produced by Anjum Rizvi at film city, Mumbai. The song is picturised on Namrata Shirodkar and choreographed by Remo and while the film is being wrapped the entire cast will participate in the shoot. Written and directed by Dhulia of 'Haasil' fame, the film is a complete youth-oriented adventure thriller based in the valleys and jungles of Kulu Manali.
-Dec 7,  2003

Tehzeeb pairs Urmila and Shabana after 25 years 

          This week Bollywood will be seeing only one film releasing at the box office, Tehzeeb. Directed by film critic-turned-director Khalid Mohammed, who had earlier directed Fiza, Tehzeeb is an emotional story of a ghazal singer Rukhsana and her daughter Tehzeeb. The film premiered on Thursday at Mumbai's Fun Republic. The entire cast, film crew and many famous names of Bollywood attended the show. Tehzeeb stars Urmila Matondkar in the title role along with Shabana Azmi playing the role of Ruksana. Arjun Rampal plays Urmila's husband Salim and Diya Mirza plays Urmila's mentally- retarded sister Nazneen. Miss World, Diana Hayden makes a cameo appearance in the film as Shiba.

          Tehzeeb pairs Urmila and Shabana almost 25 years after they played mother and daughter in Shekhar Kapoor's Masoom. For Urmila, it was another challenging role after her internse performances in Bhoot and Pinjar. In Tehzeeb, Urmila plays the rather tough role of a daughter who breaks the rule to reveal a secret. Shabana is the main attraction of Tehzeeb with her coquettish performance as a quintessential music diva.

          A R Rahman has scored the music for the film and Santosh Sivan is the cinematographer. The film is an adaptation of Ingmar Bergman's Autumn Sonata and director Khalid Mohammed acknowledges it. But he says he has fed in the lives and relationships of several close friends in the film. According to Khalid, the story of Tehzeeb has emerged as much from his conversations and interviews with friends and psycho analysts, as also from his relationship with his mother whom he lost early in life.
-Dec 5,  2003

Saawan Kumar's love and peace message 

           Director Saawan Kumar Tak is ready with his latest venture called "Dil Pardesi Ho Gaya", a film which deals with lovers separated by the border. Essentially, it revolves around Sunny and Rukhsar who fall in love and experience hardships because they belong to two countries whose sentiments are so ingrained in hatred. According to Tak, the message of the film is that peace and love is the only way to exist. He wants to make a strong statement supporting harmony between India and Pakistan via the medium of this film.
-Dec 5,  2003

Romesh Sharma reunites with the Big B 

           Actor-director-producer Romesh Sharma will launch his home production next year, which will have Sharma's good friend Amitabh Bachchan and his 22-year-old son Karan Sharma in key roles Apparently Jaya Bachchan is Sharma's oldest friend. They met when both were studying at the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune. Sharma had produced Hum featuring Bachchan, Rajnikanth, Govinda, Kimi Katkar, Shilpa Shirodkar and Deepa Sahi in 1991.
-Dec 5,  2003

Urmila on Pak music video shoot 

           Urmila is packing her bags to fly to Karachi for a three day shoot of a music video that will see a Pakistani actor starring opposite her. In the video, to be directed by ad man Prahlad Kakkar, Urmila will play a Pakistani girl. She strongly believes that the entertainment industry and artists can play a significant role in bridging the gap between the two feuding nations. Recently, she visited the Wagah border for the music release of her movie Pinjar.
-Dec 5,  2003

Koena Mitra has another item number! 

           Koena Mitra has another item number in her kitty. Sanjay Gupta's joint venture Musafir with Sanjay Dutt will not only have Yana Gupta shaking a leg in an item number, but will also feature another item song on Koena. Producer-Director Sanjay Gupta was not satisfied with only Yana Gupta gyrating in Musafir, so now he has roped in Koena Mitra too. The sultry Koena, who hasn't been seen on the big screen after her sizzling number in Ram Gopal Verma's 'Road', is sure to add more 'spice' to the film.
-Dec 5,  2003

Meghna Gulzar in comeback music video 

           Meghna Gulzar is back after taking a short break following her debut directorial venture - Filhaal. She has now come out with a music video for Javed Akhtar's Shairana. The first song from the album "Chandani Si....' by Alka Yagnik is being aired across all music channels and it will be followed by the sequel "Hazaron Chehron Mein....' by Shankar Mahadevan. Meghna, the daughter of poet Gulzar and veteran actress Rakhee, had earlier directed the music video Marasim.
-Dec 4,  2003

David's latest film on the wrap 

           David Dhawan known for his comedy films is currently wrapping up his latest film, Mujhse Shaadi Karogee, at Mumbai's Film City. Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, the film stars Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan and Priyanka Chopra. Nadiadwala and Dhawan have reportedly spent Rs.5 crore on a special that depicts the scenic backgrounds of Goa. Fifty percent of the film has been completed. The songs of the flick will be shot overseas.
-Dec 4,  2003

Dino and Bipasha's romance 

         Paired earlier in thrillers like 'Raaz' and 'Gunaah', models-turned-actors Dino Morea and Bipasha Basu will now be seen in a romantic film called 'Ishq Hai Tumse'. Produced by G A Seshagri Rao under the banner Padmalaya Telefilms, the film is directed by G Krishna. Bipasha plays a Muslim girl called Khushboo, who falls for Arjun played by Dino. The film has been shot in Hyderabad.
-Dec 3,  2003

Ashish gets noticed! 

           Harry Baweja must be very impressed with Ashish Chaudhary's work after seeing his work in 'Qayamat'. He has already signed Ashish to play the lead role in his next film. The projected film will also star Esha Deol and Isha Koppikar along with Ashish. Beside signing up Baweja, the excited actor is also looking forward for the release of 'Shaadi Ke Ladoo', a comedy flick that will hit the theatres in February 2004.
-Dec 3,  2003

Fardeen's gesture on AIDS day

          Fardeen visited Mumbai's red light area, Falkland Street, to talk to sex workers on World AIDS Day on Dec 1, along with actor Rahul Bose. At the Alankar theatre he stressed on the need to take action to curb the disease from spreading. The sex workers who had earlier watched 'Jungle' cheered the actor who managed to charm his way and make himself the 'hero' for the day.
-Dec 3,  2003

LoC slated for Republic Day release 

           JP Dutta's epic war film LoC will be released on January 26, 2004 on the Republic Day. The date of release will be a Monday instead of the usual Friday but then it will be a perfect tribute to the martyred soldiers of the Kargil war. Considering a huge cast of heavyweights and starlets in the film, one wonders how director Dutta could have possibly managed to complete the film! The film is produced and directed by Dutta, lyrics have been penned by Javed Akhtar and set to the tunes of Anu Malik.
-Dec 3,  2003

Secret of Amitabh energy!

          Every notable function has the Big B as the chief guest and, if not, he certainly is on their wish-list. This time though he was just a guest at a function held for the release of Richard Rothman's book 'Intelligent Endings'. In a jovial mood Bachchan said that he would have to be present at the function because the American author was a diplomat and hoped he would not have to stand in queue for a US visa in case he needed it. He even made it to another function later the same evening to inaugurate a furniture function, where the artists had Bachchan's film artily crafted as the furniture theme. On his unflagging stamina to present himself in never ending functions, the Big B says he gets his energy from 'Dabur Chawanprash'!
-Dec 3,  2003

A new patriotic film in the making 

           The desert town of Jaisalmer is buzzing with activity as a Hindi film crew begins shooting for "Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Sathiyon". An out-and-out patriotic melodrama, the film comes from the banner of Anil Sharma, whose earlier "Gadar" based on the bloody partition broke box-office records. Acting legend Amitabh Bachchan leads the patriotic bandwagon in this venture, which also stars musclemen Akshay Kumar and Bobby Deol with Sandali Sinha and debutante Divya Khosla providing the romantic touch.

          Besides the army angle, the film, replete with the regular Indian dosage of songs and dances, explores the relationship between a grandfather and a grandson. Bobby Deol, who is playing the rebellious grandson, said audiences could expect the film to be a complete entertainment package. "This is not just a patriotic film but is being made primarily with an army background. This film is basically about the relationship between a grandfather and a grandson. There is also a love triangle but it is basically based on the army," Deol said during a shooting schedule of the film on Monday.

          Sharma, who is known for his penchant for larger-than-life drama, said: "This film is a story of a family, it is a story of army soldiers who believe that dying for one's country is what life is about. These are people who believe boundaries only lead to division." The film, which has music by National Award winning Anu Malik, will also be shot in exotic locales of New Zealand and South Africa. The film releases by Diwali next year alongwith a slew of other patriotic movies like "Deewar", "Lakshya", "Aan" among others.
-Dec 1,  2003

Karan Johar on Cloud Nine! 

           Karan Johar is on cloud nine with his 'Kal Ho Naa Ho' generating cash all over India. In the United States, the film has raked in a million dollars in the first week itself. This certifies that Shahrukh Khan remains in the top bracket as an all-time favourite actor, though the other two leads, Preity Zinta and Saif Ali Khan, have also given commendable performances. However, the character of Shahrukh is the focal point in the film. Shahrukh's fans now await his next release, ' Main Hoon Na', which will mark the directorial debut of choreographer Farah Khan.
-Dec 1,  2003

Rajiv has his hands full! 

           Rajiv Ruia, director- writer- producer, is currently on an all-India promotional venture for his debut film Mission Mumbai. He has another ambitious project Jalan: The Fire Inside, an erotic psycho thriller. Rajiv is believed to have approached Mahima and Manisha Koirala to play the leading ladies. He has also talked with models like Aryan Vaid, Shawar Ali and Milind Soman for the male lead in the movie. However there is no confirmation as to whom has he roped in. Rajiv says about the film, it will be a 'psycho-sexual thriller' that will highlight the power of female sexuality. However, he clarifies that the movie will not have just sex but many other elements of modern cinema.
-Dec 1,  2003

Ruheen, Fardeen are still a pair!

          The presence of Ruheen at the Janasheen premiere, held on Tuesday at Mumbai's New Excelsior theatre, set at rest all rumours about their split. Ruheen flew down from Delhi just to be with her beau on the eve of the film's release. This is for the first time that a Hindi film has been released on Wednesday. The Khans wanted to celebrate Eid as well as the release of their film with friends and relatives in the film fraternity. Amongst the friends were Abhishek Bachchan and Karan Johar and cousin Zayed Khan. Sanjay Dutt made it a point to attend the party even though he could not attend the film's premiere.
-Dec 1,  2003

A dual role for Hema again! 

           'Sita Aur Gita' started a new genre of dual role characters and especially Hema Malini's hit formula which paved the way for many double trouble flicks. Now, Hema is all set to do a double role in a television serial produced by Sahara India Mass Communications. Let's see if this serial will be able recapture the magic of 'Sita Aur Gita'!
-Dec 1,  2003

Amitabh releases 'Intelligent Endings' 

           The literary influences of Amitabh Bachchan came to the fore again at a book release function where he released "Intelligent Endings", a collection of short stories by Richard Rothman, the head of the Commercial Section of the U.S Consulate in Mumbai. He was quite enthusiastic about the event and given that a compilation of his father's poems, the late Harivanshrai Bachchan, is also in the pipeline. He seemed to enjoy the reading of the stories after the book release. He advocated reading as a habit in age of computers.
-Dec 1,  2003

Amitabh, Dimple pair up again! 

           Seen last in Shashi Kapoor's 'Ajooba' in 1991, Amitabh and Dimple are coming together again in Sony Juneja's 'Hum Kaun Hai'. This is bilingual film in Hindi and Bengali. Amitabh and Dharmendra are doing guest appearance in the film. Last night, Amitabh and Dimple were shooting a song sequence at Mumbai's Joggers Park for the same.
-Dec 1,  2003

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