Thursday, May 29, 2008

Bollywood Diary: Kareena goes Khan-hopping


No, not what you're thinking - stop that! It's simply that dear Bebo's next project will see her starring alongside Mr Khan.

No, not Saif, but Aamir. The duo will be seen in Rajkumar Hirani's Idiots.

The diva - dubbed 'Czarina Kapoor' by a trade insider - is a-rolling now, with three biggies in her kitty which include Sajid Nadiadwala's Kambakht Ishq, Renzel d'Silva's untitled film with current beau Saif and now Idiots.

"It's a dream," she exclaimed, "we recently came close to working on two films together - Vishal Bhardwaj's Mr Mehta and Mrs Singh and Mani Ratnam's Lajjo, but it's finally happening now!"

Shahid gets Jiah rid of her long mane

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Jiah Khan who made her debut with Nishabd and is also known for lovely long tresses (she claims Orlando Bloom complimented her on her beautiful hair) has finally chopped them off. The reason is her latest co-star Shahid Kapoor. Shahid insisted that Jiah should opt for a different look. Shahid and Jiah are working together in Ken Ghosh’s next flick.

Jiah who is starring in Ghajini along with Aamir Khan was required to have long hair for her role, but being a very big fan of Shahid she couldn’t say no to him. Shahid took her to his hair stylist Dilshad Pastakia and got her a haircut. Shahid was very happy with the result.

Sacrificing your hair for Shahid, what next Jiah? Learn to say ‘ NO’ girl!

Bhumika Chawla ready for wedding bells


The little birdie in the tinsel town brings in that Bhumika Chawla is set to enter into the bonds of marriage soon. The lady has been dating yoga expert Bharat Thakur for more than two years now. The two first met through a common friend who recommended Bharat’s name to Bhumika for yoga lessons.

According to reports, Bhumika and Bharat will tie the knot on October 25 in Mumbai. The wedding will be on a small scale with family and close friends, including some celebrities from the film industry.

Bhumika was last seen in Feroz Abbas Khan’s movie ‘Gandhi My Father’.

Promotion of Bollywood film ‘Mission Istanbul’ held in Mumbai

Suniel Shetty

Promotion of Bollywood Film ‘Mission Istanbul’ was recently held during the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) fashion extravaganza news conference in Mumbai.

Present at the occasion were Bollywood stars Vivek Oberoi, Zayed Khan, Shweta and Niketan Dhir and leading fashion designers Vikram Phadnis and Manish Malhotra.

Ekta Kapoor, Shobha Kapoor, Sunil Shetty and Shabbir Boxwala have jointly produced the film ‘Mission Istanbul’ which is written and directed by Apoorva Lakhia, who is known for his films like Mumbai Se Aaya Mera Dost, Ek Ajnabee and Shootout at Lokhandwala.

Apoorva Lakhia’s film stars Vivek Oberoi, Shriya Saran, Zayed Khan, Sunil Shetty and Shabbir Ahluwalia besides many others.

Mission Istanbul is the story of a journalist being played by Bollywood actor Zayed Khan who is offered a job by Suniel Shetty in Istanbul.

Zayed Khan who had put on 11 kilograms to weigh 75 kilograms for the first time in his life spoke about his hectic workout schedule at the behest of Apoorva Lakhia.

Yes, I have really gained weight for this film but it was only on the request of my director at the end of the day these three months were very painful. I had to really workout double and eat the right foods and not associate to any chocolates or to any intoxicating drinks. So it was really hard for me considering I love life and I love to live. I have many good habits as I do have bad, said Zayed.

Vivek Oberoi who made his debut in Ram Gopal Varma’s film Company said that he had really worked hard for this film and was excited about it too.

We are very excited as we have worked very hard for the film ‘Mission Istanbul’ which is releasing on July 11. As you all know that IFFA, is a big platform for interaction with media and with our fans. We are happy that Mission Istanbul’ will be showcased on the big screen and we all will be doing live performances on the music of the film and will be promoting its songs. So we will be performing on the stage and we are very excited about it, said Vivek.

Music of the film has been rendered by Annu Malik, which is slated for a July release.

This year IIFA Weekend 2008 is being held from June 6-8 in Bangkok. The highlight of this year’s event will be the spectacular Idea IIFA Awards, which are considered amongst the most-watched global annual events.

IIFA is a movement that brings together the worlds of Indian and International cinema and business on a common global platform.

Bollywood IIFA awards go to Bangkok

After being held in Yorkshire last year, 2008's International Indian Film Awards (IIFAs) will take place in Bangkok, Thailand from June 6. Why Bangkok? Amitabh Bachchan, brand ambassador of the IIFAs explains: “The idea is to move to different parts of the universe, to try and make this a global effort; to build bridges rather than just make this another awards ceremony.”

Director Karan Johar will host the IIFAs award ceremony. Actors Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor, and Govinda are confirmed to attend. The highlight will be the premiere of Sarkar Raj, the Godfather remake, which reunites all three Bachchans – Amitabh, his son Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan – after their last screen appearance in Bunty aur Babli.

Bachchan is also excited about his upcoming Unforgettable World Tour which will be unveiled in Toronto from July 18. “We are going to Europe and America and the West Indies; Trinidad is one of the places.” In addition to the Bachchans, Akshay Kumar, Preity Zinta and Ritesh Deshmukh are confirmed to appear in the song and dance extravaganza. Madhuri Dixit, the leading actress of the 90s, will be joining the global show. Dixit confirms: “We are in talks.”

Putting on weight

Aishwarya Rai looked stunning in her various appearances on the red carpet at this year’s Cannes Film Festival so it is a mystery as to why she has been told to lose weight. Tamil director Shankar has allegedly asked Ash to revert to her stick-thin Dhoom 2 look for her forthcoming Robot. Her secretary confirms: “The weight loss is necessary because Ash had put on weight for her role in ‘Jodhaa Akbar’.” Has marital bliss led the self-confessed foodie to pile on the pounds or is a baby B on the way? Let’s wait and see!

Cowboy Khan

“The first horse I rode was called Charlie and he was really cute,” Salman Khan reveals. “Once the saddle broke and he smiled at me as if daring to ride bareback and I did!” Khan’s latest horse is called Maximus and it is one of four which he has stabled at his farmhouse. Khan is perfecting his riding skills for his role in the forthcoming Veer. It is not the Bollywood version of this week’s release Zoo which deals with people who share a predilection for animals.

Goa lovers

The recent tragic murder of a British teenager in Goa has not deterred Bollywood and international celebrities from vacationing and even buying holiday homes in the Indian state. Meg Ryan recently spent a week in the former Portuguese colony. Akshay Kumar bought a bungalow near to the famous Anjuna Beach and the latest to gush about Goa is former Miss Universe turned Bollywood actress Lara Dutta. “I plan to spend my weekends and holidays with my family at this second home. I love Goa!”

Indiana John

After cutting his trademark long locks for his recent release Goal, John Abraham will sport a new look for his forthcoming Aashayein. John will adopt the Indiana Jones outfit as both the director Nagesh Kukunoor and John are major fans of the series. Kukunoor openly admits that it was only after watching Raiders of the Lost Ark that he decided to become a director.

Just good friends

Is former Miss World turned Bollywood hottie Priyanka Chopra dating her Love Story 2050 co-star Harman Baweja? Chopra, in true Bollywood fashion, denied this: “He’s a good friend; I am friends with all my co-stars. I don’t call Harman at 4 in the morning.” Baweja, on the other hand, was not so boringly discreet when he was asked to name his one 4am friend: “Priyanka Chopra.”

Just close friends

It looks like the Aamir Khan-Shah Rukh Khan blog war is over. Last week Aamir apologised for any offence he may have caused by revealing that his pet dog was called Shah Rukh. “The blog was just in good humour. My sincere apologies to all who were disturbed by that posting. There is no misunderstanding between Shah Rukh and me. We are close friends.”

Roadies winner heads to Bollywood

Young dhaba owner Ashutosh Kaushik's life has taken a U-turn since he won the just-concluded fifth season of MTV's reality show Roadies last week. Now he is set to try his luck in Bollywood.

"I'm feeling great after winning. I am in Mumbai now and will be joining acting classes soon. I want to act in films," Ashu said. He hails from Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh where he owns a roadside eatery.

The 27-year-old, who has won an expensive Hero Honda Karizma bike and Rs.230,000, gives the credit of his win to his fellow contestant Sonel, by whom he was totally smitten.

Sonel, a model by profession, always stood by Ashu through the game.

"Sonel was a dumb player but is more intelligent than most others on the show. She is my special friend and, yes, I still have to go on a date with her. Our relationship is very much on and I am really grateful to her," he revealed.

The show is now over and Ashu does not get to see much of Sonel but speaks to her whenever they have the time.

Although rejected in the Delhi and Lucknow auditions, he didn't lose hope and went to Jaipur for the audition and got selected.

On being asked whether he has plans of expanding his dhaba into a swanky restaurant, he said: "A restaurant won't do well where my dhaba is. And at the moment I am not so well-off that I can open a good restaurant anywhere."

"Even my film's website is futuristic" - Harman Baweja

It is not just Love Story 2050, season's biggest and most spectacular release, which is on the right path of being a 'futuristic' launch for Harman Baweja. Even film's website is, as per the newcomer. Harman Baweja talks to Joginder Tuteja about the 'futuristic' website.

Why the effort?
Why not, I would ask? For a movie which is set in future, has a sci-fi theme, talks about flying cars, 200 storey buildings, a revamped Mumbai, robots, a love story and of course red hair (chuckles), you can't have a mushy looking conventional website with red rose petals dominating the screen! You can't have a fluorescent/glossy look and feel to justify a love story which belongs to a different era. And of course, you can't have captions of 'When Two Hearts Meet etc. etc. etc.'!

So what was the idea?
Clichéd as may it sound but the fact was that while working on the promotional design for the film, I was set thinking around how to make the film's website turn out to be a cut above the rest! How could I actually have it set in a futuristic mode? How could I have it designed in a way that the love story theme could be amalgamated with a setting 40 years from now? Net net, how could it turn out to be different (in true sense) from anything that surfers would have seen in a Bollywood film website.

Cool idea, but how about execution?
I was in talks with Bollywood Hungama team for promotional tie ups. This is when the suggestion around designing a site like this came up. I had a vision, they had the skills and together we sat down on a plan. I was amazed with the way the team out there started putting the plan on paper and then from paper to actual visuals.

We deliberated upon the kind of stuff we wanted to have on a very frequent basis and in just a matter of 2 months, we were ready with the final version. Yes, 2 months sounds a little on the higher side here but then we have to also see that this wasn't a basic HTML/flash website for a regular film which could perhaps be readied in a jiffy. We were talking about something which hadn't been attempted before, just like the movie, and considering that, I am amazed that we could still get so much done so soon.

What makes the website special?
See it to believe it, that's all I would say for now (smiles)! The moment you enter it, you would realize it for yourself that you have marched into a different space altogether, pun intended. And by the way, it is not going to be like 'one single click and voila, I am in the site'. You would have to have a permutation and combinations of clicks to enable you to crack a code which would allow you success.

A friend of mine took 2 minutes to crack it though. He created a record - well, that of being the slowest cracker ever! And guess what, he is an IT professional! I am sure regular surfers would be able to do it much faster.

Movie v/s Website
Website took 2 months to make; the film took us 3 years. Doesn't that tell the tale? The point here is, don't try to judge the enormity of the movie through the website. The website is great but at the end of the day, it is mainly a promotional vehicle. What you would see on the big screen would certainly be far more grandeur than what you see on your 14-inch monitor. The clips you see on the website are mainly 2D while in movie there are ton leads of 3D graphics. To put it right, the website here mainly acts as a teaser to give you an idea around what bigger to expect!

How about some website promotion?
Yes, for the first time in the history of Indian cinema, especially after the advent of websites being made for Hindi movies, we have great plans to promote the website itself. We have designed 15 second teasers around the website itself and these would be out on all prominent websites. These teasers would indicate what to expect from the Love Story 2050 website which we are making LIVE soon. We are arriving with a bang and once the website would be up, we won't be leaving it just till that. We would be continuing to upload newer stuff on a frequent basis to make it the most happening site of the season!

Sarkar Raj to kick off IIFA weekend in Thailand

Amitabh Bachchan starrer "Sarkar Raj" will kick off the 9th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards starting from June 6 in Bangkok.

The annoucement was made here Wednesday.

"I am delighted that my film Sarkar Raj is being premiered at the prestigious IIFA awards and am eagerly looking forward to this splendid event," Amitabh, the IIFA brand ambassador, told media.

Directed by Ram Gopal Varma, the film also stars Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Ra. The three day event will end on June 8 with handing out of the awards .

The event is expected to draw Bollywood fans to Bangkok from around the region and to generate more business between India and Thailand. The two countries have signed a trade agreement.

The IIFA Weekend Bangkok is being sponsored by the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Dusit Thani Hotel group, Siam Niramit Co, Indorama Group and the Bangkok Post newspaper.

Saif Ali Khan latest film's music release

Saif Ali Khan at music launch of "Thoda Pyar Thoda Magic"

After Tashan's box office failure, the Chopra's have pinned their hopes on their next. Saif Rani-starrer "Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic". So, let's check out what's the 'pyaar' and what's the 'magic' all about from none other than actor Saif Ali Khan.

Saif Ali Khan speaking about the music after its launch said, "I think the music is quite different from the music of other films. It is always nice to see Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy playing music on stage. There is a nice blend between the movie and its music."

Talking about the movie, Saif said, "The movie is about the four orphans, and I play the role of a stern businessman and a loner who is not used to dealing with kids. A moment comes where I need to deal with others. Rani plays the character of God or angel. The character I play is attractive since we never se him in a comfortable situation."

Speaking further about his role, and asked whether he plays the role of a bad boy, Saif explained, "It is not really the role of a bad boy."

Saif has some appreciative words for the four kids who were part of the movie. Saif said, "It is nice to work with them. It was always fun and very easy."

On the question of working with director Kunal Kohli, Saif elaborated, "He is tremendous film maker, and as a person he is much more chilled out. I always have success with him and also tremendous experience. We both got along really well specially since "Hum Tum".

Harman versus Imraan- The battle of the debutants

harry1Aamir Khan is determined to make a success out of his nephew Imraan's career, come what may. And even if that means taking on the competition headlong, so be it. Anything for family, seems to be the marketing motto, as Harry Baweja puts in 80-crore plus Priyanka in the hi-fi sci-fi Love Story 2050 to ensure his son's super success on July 4.

Enter Aamir Khan with nephew Imraan's Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na and on same Friday as Harman's debut. "The Bawejas were shocked," says a source close to the film. "They had planned and strategized their film's release almost six months in advance. They had spoken to all their potential competitors from Salman and God Tussi Great Ho to Ram Gopal Varma and Sarkar Raj to Apoorva Lakhia 's Mission Istanbul and Aziz Mirza's Kismat Konnection to Yashraj and Tips. Harman called them up personally to make sure his film comes on a freed Friday. Then suddenly Aamir showed up to create an almost Saawariya-Om Shanti Om crisis. Jaane Tu's release was nowhere in sight when Love Story 2050 was announced. Suddenly they came out of the blue! "

Harry Baweja made a panic call to Aamir. Says the source, "Harry Baweja knows Aamir from the time he did B. Subhash's Love Love Love where Harry was an assistant director. Ever since then they've been in touch. When they spoke, Aamir told Harry he was indeed thinking of coming on 4 July. The reason given was that Sanjay Gadhvi's Kidnap in which Imraan has a key role was coming on July 25. Aamir reasoned that Imraan couldn't have two releases too close to one another. Later, the Bawejas were horrified to know that Kidnap was scheduled for August 22. Harry urged Aamir to move his film to July 11. But Aamir is adamant. "

Incidentally, Genelia Dsouza who plays Imraan's leading lady is also Harman's girl in his second release Victory. "The Bawejas first trailer started on a Sunday. That same day a blog went up saying 'Imraan Versus Harman'. That's when the Bawejas first came to know that the Khans were planning to release on the same day. Since then there has been a systematic campaign to bring down Harman on the blogs with comments like 'Harman looks gay'. He looks like a lot of things. But not gay. One of the blogs comments cattily on actors like Hrithik Roshan and Harman Baweja relying on their physique. Someone even broke into a website (wikipedia.com) sponsoring Harman's film and defaced it. They even changed Harman's picture to an unidentifiable man, and said the film was budgeted at 60,000 rupees and was to be released for 30 seconds in July 1950. The Bawejas traced the defacers to Delhi. The identity of the hackers was used just once, to deface Harman's face."

Harman smiles off all the competition. "Healthy competition is always welcome. I'd rather focus on my work. We've just started the promotion of our first song. It's one of the costliest songs ever filmed."

‘Bollywood must produce less films’

Raghav Sachar, touted as India’s first multi-instrument pop star, is not happy with the Bollywood scene today. He thinks there are too many films releasing in Bollywood. With more films, comes more music. And that is deteriorating the quality of composition. And unlike the West, where music composers are valued more than singers for their originality and effort, they lose out on their identity in the big melee here.

Raghav says, “The number of films produced in India should be cut drastically. Every production house producing 30 films should concentrate on making just four. That will bring some much needed originality in film music.”

Raghav, who has composed music for films like Sunday, Kabul Express and the recent Haal E Dil, is disappointed with the fact that music composers are widely ignored during the film’s promotions as actors steal all the limelight.

“In India every credit goes to the actor, more so due to the illiteracy of the audience. In Bollywood everything is actor-centric and this is a big disadvantage to cinema,” he says.

Raghav, who is in talks with Yash Raj and Popcorn for a couple of films this year, wants to stick to these banners because he thinks that other production houses interfere too much in the work of music directors.
He says, “The kind of creative freedom that Yash Raj gives is found nowhere else.”

Raghav is also not too happy with the fact that many singers are opting for singing remixes as a short cut to launch themselves in the music world. He says, “Remixes are definitely overkill. Since there is already an original track and composition, all that the singer does is to rearrange the track.”

However, he thinks that there is no future for classical music in the market. He says the target audience of music companies has changed and fusions and international blends are the types of music that appeal to the audience.

His disappointment has reached such a level that he wants to deviate to acting. “I have been getting so many offers to act. But unfortunately they are all for second leads. After taking acting classes for quite some time now, I think I am ready to audition for lead roles,” he says.

And when asked what kind of role he would like, he shoots back, “Maybe roles in films that revolve around music and rock stars.”

Kareena kapoor - From zero to one!!

Just when we thought it was going going gone, Kareena has bounced back with a size one figure. Kareena who is currently shooting with Salman Khan in Australia has finally started binging on food. The hectic shooting schedules keep her busy while, lessening her workout time. Fashion designer Manish Malhotra who has signed up Kareena as the show stopper for his collection was heard saying “now that she is a size one, I have to work doubly hard to get the clothes to fit perfectly”.

The upcoming IIFA, to be held at Bangkok from June 6-8 will see Kareena shaking a leg on some hit numbers and walking the ramp for Manish. The designer who has done makeovers of many Bollywood stars will present a bridal collection at IIFA 2008. He discloses “, I am looking forward to the international Indian platform that will allow me to showcase my art. I will be using 15 female models and 5 male models. But right now, I am concentrating on Kareena.”

While Kareena will fly to Bangkok only a few hours before the show, anxious Manish is trying hard, contemplating with designs that will best accentuate Bebo’s new figure!!

kareena kapoor

Mirror, mirror…. who’s the slimmest of the all?

After Kareena Kapoor and Ayesha Takia shedding their body weight, buzz is that Om Puri has joined the bandwagon. The weight loss fad is catching on like fire in Bollywood.

Om Puri who has been visiting health clinic for the last few weeks says “I had developed a paunch. When I saw myself in Don, I realised how hideous I was looking. I’ve been working on it. I’ve already lost about nine kilos, and I intend to knock off another nine in the next few months.” On being asked about his formula he likes. “Diet mainly, but I’m also taking medical help. Five years ago I underwent a back surgery, the same one that Shah Rukh Khan did.”

But actress Bipasha Basu holds a different opinion. She seemed to be very concerned about this trend of unhealthy weight loss in Bollywood. “For god’s sake, don’t starve yourself to stay in shape. It gives you a prematurely aged look. Eat, sleep and live well. And avoid getting obsessive about losing weight.” she says.

While actor Aryan Vaid boasts “Most of them doctor their abs to make them look perfect before the camera. There’s a lot of coloring and contouring going on to make the abs look prominent on those midriffs. Very few actors have authentic six-abs. I do,”
It seems that Bollywood is walking on the foot steps of Hollywood.

ayesha takia

Shahid convinced his little fans to study hard!

The chocolate boy Shahid Kapoor is as much loved by children as by girls. Recently, during a shoot at Pune, Shahid was seen surrounded by more than 200 students who had swarmed towards him as the school bell rang for recess. The students stood there even after the recess got over. Students refused to go to their classes till Shahid spent some quality time with them.

Shahid despite of being over possessed by shooting schedule managed to get some quality time with students, he talked to them and told they shouldn’t miss their classes and study hard which student listened though, reluctantly. Thus he managed to convince them with his charismatic personality.
Three cheers to Shahid!!!

shahid kapoor

Aamir Khan gets sweet and salty with Monacco biscuits

After Samsung phones, ‘Mr. Perfectionist’, Aamir Khan will now be seen endorsing the sweet and salty flavour of Monacco biscuits.

The ad shows a political party campaigning for its leader on the road, while Aamir and his friends are in a tearing hurry to cross the road, and they do not want to get late for the film at any cost. Even as they cross the road, they are stopped by one of the cronies of the political leader. That’s when Aamir gets his ’salty’ elements in place and ’sweetly’ manages to cross the road and is even on time for the film!

Now, we can very well guess that this ad had been shot quite a long time back because Aamir sports a full grown hair for the ad as opposed to the current hair he is sporting for his forthcoming venture ‘Ghajini’.

aamir khan

Meet Shruti Hassan on the covers of ‘Verve’

Well, we have the child of two yesteryear superstars gearing up to step into the glamour world. Talking about Shruti Hassan, daughter of Kamal Hassan and Sarika, she rocks the covers of the latest issue of ‘Verve’. The issue talks about Shruti, what it is to be a child of two superstars and about her fancy for black nail polish and army jackets.

Shruti does not have just looks, she also writes her own songs, croons, jams with the tabla and piano, and has performed at bigger venues than your mind can ever think, venues as big as Whiskey A Go Go, Hard Rock Café etc… to say the least. Though Shruti does not have any Bollywood project in her hands at present, she is waiting for the right moment to knock at her doors. Well, Shruti, we are more than convinced that the right moment is not far behind!!

shruti hassan

shruti hassan

shruti hassan

shruti hassan

Hansika Motwani - Big dreams, small age!

After Om Shanti Om’s petite actress Deepika Padukone, it is the Anushka Sharma, who will be seen as King Khan’s costar in “Rab ne bana di Jodi“. Like Deepika, she also hails from Bangalore. She is quite luck to have support of Aditya Chopra and SRK like as Deepika who was backed up well by SRK and Farah to get an initial break in tinsel town.

The actress from Bangalore is a model and made several appearances in many TV commercials. Pursuing graduation in economics from Bangalore, she was showstopper in Wendell Roderick’s show at Lakme Fashion week this year. “It was her beautiful expressive eyes which made me select her as my showstopper” said Roderick.

Even Yash Copra has lots of applauds for her, according to him, she fits perfect for the role, “We were looking first and foremost for someone who could truly embody the spirit of small town Punjab and we know we have found her in Anushka and while she has no previous acting experience, we have seen that unique spark in her that makes us confident that she will be a standout even opposite Shah Rukh,”

“Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi” that is scheduled for shooting from May 16 will hit theatres worldwide on Dec 12. While discussing about the film Shah Rukh said, “The first day of shooting is what gave me goose bumps like nothing else and to make films with Yash Raj, that too when Adi is directing, is an experience that is more than 100% exciting”.
So , lets keep our fingers crossed for another Yash Raj venture!!

anushka sharma

anushka sharma

anushka sharma