Back to Main Page                                                                Archives

BOTTOMLINES

Harry Potter gets interactive on site (Go To Top)

          Washington: Check out Harry Potter's website if you are a big fan of the be-spectacled wizard. According to Teen Hollywood, loads of new features have been added to the offical Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban site. These include a countdown to the movie's release date, loads of cool downloads and games, and even a fully interactive Marauder's Map. Not only this, one can also play Harry Potter film facts on the phone. Users will receive up to five Harry Potter trivia questions a week, which they can answer directly on their handset. They will be able to participate in Harry Potter polling, which promises to update them with minute polling statistics directly on their cell phones.

It's tattoo number 9 for David Beckham (Go To Top)

          London: It seems David Beckham has a penchant for tattoos and his body has almost become a work of art. According to the Sun, the Real Madrid footballer's latest tattoo is a winged cross etched over his neck. The four by six inch motif is the ninth to adorn his body. Becks, 29, jetted his tattooist pal Louis Molloy to Madrid to get the job done. Louis said: "The design doesn't really signify anything. It's just one he really liked." According to TV psychologist Dr Linda Papadopoulos the tattoo signifies that Becks has put marital problems behind him. "The wings could well signal that he wants to move on and rise above it all," she said. "The cross and wings are spiritual signs and all that can mean honesty. It may well be it is the start of a new chapter in his life," she added. But an onlooker at his Real Madrid training ground said: "It's horrible - the worst yet. He looks like a yob." Beckham already had the names of his sons Brooklyn and Romeo on his back, along with a huge guardian angel. While his left arm has a Hindi tribute to wife Victoria, VII signifying the Number 7 shirt at Man United is on his right. Two Latin phrases and a second angel were later added on to his right shoulder.

Singapore offers millions to lure Indian films (Go To Top)

          Singapore: Singapore's tourism authorities have offered hefty grants to international film makers to make the Asian nation a hub of film making. The Singapore Tourism Board has set up the "Film in Singapore" scheme wherein film makers who shoot in Singapore can claim up to half of all production costs or 5.8 million dollars. Singapore Minister for Information, Communication and the Arts, Lee Boon Yang asked Indian filmmakers to utilise the scheme at the ongoing International Indian Films Academy (IIFA) weekend in the country. "But this film in Singapore (incentive) is a financial package that we have put together and is supposed to be offered over the next three years with (in) a batch of 10 million dollars and the expences would be for another cost related to doing shoots in Singapore such as accommodation and hiring of Šlocal talents in Singapore as well as post-production services," saiid Yang.

          Indian film directors appeared upbeat about the offer. "We should look for financing, co-structure and Asian people should be coming together and creating a comon platform of which cinema is one of the most important," said Shekar Kapoor, internationally acclaimed for his "Elizabeth" and ""Bandit Queen." The IIFA film awards eye India's almost 20-million strong diaspora and also attempt to market the nation's prolific film industry across the world. Nearly 400 Indian actors, directors, scriptwriters and producers are taking part in the three-day long IIFA awards ceremony. The awards, held last year in South Africa, are in their fifth year and compare with the Oscars. Overseas Indians generate about 100 billion dollars annually and pump back about 30 billion dollars each year into India. According to one estimate by U.S. bank Citigroup, there are 150,000 Indian millionaires overseas. But while expanding globally, Bollywood still struggles to move beyond kitsch plots that often revolve around dimestore villains and poor boys meeting rich girls and bursting into song in hillsides, lush fields and other unlikely settings.

Elton John sees red over Ivy (Go To Top)

          London: London's celeb haunt restaurant, The Ivy, seems to have lost out on a prestigious guest. And it's none other than the Rocket Man, Elton John. According to the Sun, the singer has threatened to shun The Ivy after he was mobbed by his fans. He claimed that there was no doorman to hold the fans back. "The doorman was not on hand to control photographers and fans outside and Elton was besieged. Flashes were going off and there was a bit of a scrum," a source was quoted as saying. "Elton was furious he had to go through that. He just wanted a quiet night out with his friends," the source added.

BBC apologizes for fake Arab battle goof-up (Go To Top)

         London: Britain's top broadcasting channel has admitted filming a mock gun battle near London's Heathrow Airport. According to Ananova, the BBC has apologized for dressing up actors as Arabs in an attempt to rake up a scoop. The incident caused panic at the airport and some of the flights had to be delayed as a dozen armed officers responded to the reported gunfire. It was only later that the officers spotted BBC's filming units and realized that it was a fake battle. "It beggars belief that the BBC can organize a gun battle beneath a flight path without alerting us. It's fair to say our officers were not impressed with these idiots," A senior Thames Valley Police source was quoted as saying.

Prince Williams, Harry say no to a chat with Paul Burrell (Go To Top)

         London: Paul Burrell's newest chapter to the new paperback version of his book "A Royal Duty" might be his way of raking out more muck on Prnicess Diana, but it seems her sons are unfazed. According to the Sun, Princes William and Harry were reported to have arranged a secret meeting with Diana's butler, Burell, but it was annulled recently. A Clarence House spokesman said, "The princes have not met Mr. Burrell. There are no immediate plans to." The Princes are supposedly said to fear that Burell would reveal a "secret" their mother had spoken of in her last letter to him. Diana wrote in the letter, "I wanted to write on paper how enormously touched I am that you share this excitement with me as well. What a secret."

Keira Knightley becomes UK's second highest paid actress (Go To Top)

          Washington: Film actress Keira Knightley has signed a massive money deal to play the all-time favourite romantic heroine. The 'Bend It Like Beckham'' actress will be paid a staggering eight million dollars to portray the character of the headstrong Elizabeth Bennett in the silver screen adaptation of Jane Austin's classic novel 'Pride and Prejudice'. According to TeenHollywood, the lucrative deal makes Keira Britain's second highest paid actress after 'The Mask of Zorro' star, Catherine Zeta Jones.