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Post time 13-8-2006 12:42 PM | Show all posts
India ENews

Rituparno gets Naseer, Jaya to work in Sunglass?
Friday, August 11th, 2006

Mumbai - Well-known Bengali director Rituparno Ghosh is highly elated after managing to convince Jaya Bachchan and Naseeruddin Shah - two of his favourite actors - to join the cast of his second Hindi venture Sunglass?.

I've been dying to work with Jaya Bachchan and Naseeruddin Shah. They are now part of my Sunglass?,? Ghosh told IANS.

?aseer is one of my favourite actors. And, in fact, I've planned a whole film with him in the central role for next year. For now he has kindly consented to be part of Sunglass?,I said Ghosh, who ventured into Hindi films with Raincoat?, starring Aishwarya Rai and Ajay Devgan.

Sunglass?, to be shot simultaneously in Hindi and Bengali, is Ghosh? first commercial venture. It also has Sanjay Suri, Konkona SenSharma and Raima Sen in the cast.

Naseer plays the owner of a curio shop who gives Konkona the pivotal sunglass that manoeuvres the story forward.

The actor par excellence, who says he is bored of film acting and looking with passionate amazement at a career in direction after ?un Hota To Kya Hota?, is all smiles at the cameo.

?itu is a director I admire. When he hesitantly asked me to play this cameo, I happily agreed. Right now film acting doesn? excite me at all. I just feel happy being in films for friends like I did recently in ?ixed Doubles?. It was a walk-on part. But I stood by Rajat Kapoor just as he stood by me.

?gain in Vishal Bharadwaj? ?mkara? it? a blink-and-you-miss-the-link kind of role. But there? a lot more in ?mkara? that I wanted to be part of. It? going to be a very important film. I? sure I?l enjoy working with Ritu. I admire Ritu. He is one of the finest filmmakers of the country.

[ Last edited by  ldg at 13-8-2006 12:53 PM ]
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Post time 13-8-2006 12:44 PM | Show all posts
The Bihar Times

Will India's Greta Garbo accept Dada Saheb Phalke award?

Kolkata, Aug 11 (IANS) Will she, won't she? She won't, say those who know Suchitra Sen intimately. She might, hope millions of Bengalis smitten by her unsurpassed beauty and screen aura of the black and white celluloid era. The enigma of Suchitra Sen, who many consider the Greta Garbo of Indian cinema, lives on.

Ever since Suchitra Sen's name came up for this year's Dada Saheb Phalke Award, speculation has been rife on whether the screen goddess of Bengali cinema would come out of her Garboesque seclusion of 28 years and accept the honour, which is presented by none other than the president of India.

These days the 76-year-old actress, whose legendary romantic pairing with late Uttam Kumar created box office history in Bengali cinema, is reportedly not well.

"I am very happy that she is the recipient of this prestigious award but I am really unable to speak for her. Please, I cannot say anything about this except for the fact that we are extremely happy with the announcement," Bollywood starlet and Suchitra Sen's granddaughter Riya Sen told IANS from Mumbai.

Riya's more successful actor sister Raima Sen echoed: "It is celebration time for us but I am unable to say anything on her decision. She is a private person and she does not like it when we discuss her in the media."

Raima Sen shares more resemblance with Suchitra than her mother Moonmoon Sen (Suchitra's daughter) or sister Riya. She last spoke about her enigmatic granny when she was essaying the role of a naive Ashalata in Rituparno Ghosh's "Chokher Bali", which also starred Aishwarya Rai.

"My grandmother gave me tips on preparing for the role," said Raima, who won accolades for her performance despite the presence of Aishwarya.

Added Moonmoon Sen: "I am so happy that Ma has been chosen for the award. But I am not sure if she would attend the award ceremony," she said.

"She won't," averred Gopal Roy, a close friend of Suchitra and the only Indian journalist who has some access to the living legend.

"She has shunned the world of glamour and recognition. She has many wounded feelings and is not keeping well these days either," said Roy, who wrote three books on Suchitra Sen - "Suchitrakatha" (Words of Suchitra), "Sonali Nayika Suchitra Sen" (Golden Heroine Suchitra Sen) and "Romantic Juti" (Romatic Pair).

Her oeuvre of Bengali films apart, Suchitra acted in Hindi films like "Devdas" (with Dilip Kumar in 1955), "Musafir" (1957), "Champakali" (1957), "Bombai Ka Babu" (with Dev Anand in 1960), "Mamta" (with Ashok Kumar and Dharmendra in 1966) and the phenomenal 1975 Gulzar film "Aandhi" where she starred opposite late Sanjeev Kumar (one of her few friends in filmdom), playing with ?an a female politician resembling late prime minister Indira Gandhi.

"She takes no interest in all this now. The life she leads now is spiritual and has been doing so for the past three decades. The last time I saw her was two years ago. Of what I know, not even her daughter and granddaughters can go to her room any time," said Roy, a former journalist with a news agency.

"Even in this age of media explosion, none can ever take a photograph of hers. Earlier she used to take a walk in the lawns of the house on Ballygunge Circular Road. But since 1996, when the house was demolished and an apartment building came up, she does not even venture for a walk," Roy said.

A follower of the Ramakrishna Mission order, Suchitra now spends time in meditation and prayer. In 1989, when Bharat Maharaj of the mission passed away, she was seen publicly walking all the way to the crematorium from Belur Math near Kolkata.

"I feel that Suchitra has many wounds. Once she was slighted here in Kolkata after her name was thrown up for inauguration of an international film festival.

"It is also true that Hiralal Sen, who is hailed by some as the pioneer of Indian cinema instead of Dada Saheb Phalke, was a relative of Suchitra Sen. Hiralal Sen, who made at least 25 films, including feature and ad films from late 19th century to early 20th century, was actually her uncle-in-law," revealed Roy, whose fourth book on Suchitra Sen is to hit bookstores soon.

Interestingly, Suchitra Sen is the first Indian actress to be awarded in an international film festival (best actress award for the Bengali movie "Saat Paake Bandha" at the 1963 Moscow film festival). She had also received a best actress award for the Hindi film "Devdas" in 1955 (she played Paro).

Suchitra Sen made her debut in films in 1952 with an unreleased film, but her first released film was opposite Uttam Kumar - "Sharey Chuattor" (Seventyfour and half), a comedy. The film became a box-office hit. It is remembered for launching Uttam-Suchitra as a lead pair.

They went on to become the icons of Bengali melodramas for more than 20 years, becoming almost a genre in themselves. Their performances in films like the 1961 classic "Saptapadi" are still most popular in Bengal.

Suchitra Sen retired from the screen in 1978 after a career of over 25 years.

Now it remains to be seen if the highest honour for a film personality can bring her out of seclusion.
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Post time 13-8-2006 12:46 PM | Show all posts
The Hindu

Hair for a friend

Bipasha Basu was in the Capital to inaugurate Ambika Pillai's salon at Ansal Plaza  


HEROINE'S CUT Bipasha Basu's new haircut is attracting attention

Cashing in on the trend of inviting celebrities to support a cause or launch a product, noted hair stylist Ambika Pillai invited her friend and film actress Bipasha Basu to inaugurate her salon at Ansal Plaza.

She chose the right day - Friendship Day.

Imported equipment

This plush salon is equipped with imported equipment from Italy to cater to the growing client needs. Twelve designer hair stations have been installed for women while men have a separate section. A separate beauty section is also installed for women, offering manicure, pedicure and similar facilities.

"It is great to be here in Delhi on the occasion of Friendship Day with a friend," said Bipasha, who turned up in a black suit sporting a new look with short razor cut.

"It is a designer salon but more than that it's the fulfilment of Ambika's wish to have a modern salon in a shopping mall with all the equipments to take care of her clients," added Bipasha.Ambika, who has shifted her salon from Panchsheel Enclave to the upmarket Ansal Plaza, said, "For 10 years I have been working relentlessly to maintain the quality and creativity of my art. From handling 20 clients a day, we have grown to become the most talked about salon in New Delhi."

She continued to add, "Ask me where I see myself 10 years from now, and I would say in every nook and corner of India,"

As for her fringe cut, Bipasha revealed she was sporting the new look for Abbas Mustan's forthcoming flick. "I also needed a refreshing change," she quipped.

Her raunchy numbers in Vishal Bhardwaj's Omkara may be eliciting wolf whistles, but she chooses to call them "classy dance numbers".

Now Bipasha is looking forward to the release of the sequel of Dhoom where she would be seen with Aishwarya Rai for the first time. Among the other guests present on the occasion were National Award winning actor Shobana, designers Manish Arora, Rohit Bal and Tarun Tahiliani.

ANWAR AHMAD
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Post time 13-8-2006 12:47 PM | Show all posts
India ENews

Madhavan replaces Sanjay Suri in Sunglass?
Saturday, August 12th, 2006

Mumbai - Rituparno Ghosh? Hindi-Bengali bi-lingual Sunglass?, which went on the floors this month, has a surprise last-minute leading man - R.Madhavan.

The actor, who is wrapping up his work in Mani Ratnam? Suru?, is all set to step into the leading man? role in the Hindi version. Madhavan is over the moon, despite being asked to step in at the last minute.

Shooting with Ritu is such a joy! My god! What a director. He's so gentle and yet so definite about what he wants. It? just my luck that I had these dates because another project of mine got cancelled. God? ways, I guess,? Madhavan told IANS.

There are four filmmakers I've been dying to work with - Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Karan Johar, Aditya Chopra and Ritu. Though I don't follow Bengali, I saw Ritu? ?hokher Bali? and flipped for Ash (Aishwarya Rai). If only he make me look half as good ? ha ha.?

Ghosh had earlier signed Sanjay Suri for the bi-lingual.

Said Ghosh: Earlier I had Tota Raichaudhary for the lead in Bengali and Sanjay Suri in Hindi. But when Sanjay read the first draft of the script, he had certain reservations about the character. We thought it was best to part at that point and work together again on another project.

Is the script grew, I needed a man with a mischievous smile, a naughty flint in the eye and a devilish demeanour. A married man caught with his hands in the cookie jar. Someone who wants to get seriously naughty after five years of marriage.

The role seemed tailor-made for Maddy (Madhavan). I approached him with much trepidation, since there was no time. To my luck he agreed. Maddy is a wonderful boy and a terrific actor with great comic timing. We are having a ball shooting.?

Madhavan talks very highly of Konkona SenSharma, who plays the female lead in the film.

It's not just the temptation of working with Ritu. It's the entire team. I've never worked with Mr. Naseeruddin Shah, Jaya-ji and Konkona. I saw Konkona in ?mkara?, and fell in love? with my wife? permission.

? think she's amazing. Just having her stand in front of me on camera is inspiring. And we make a great pair. And I've never done a bilingual before.

[ Last edited by  ldg at 13-8-2006 12:51 PM ]
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Post time 13-8-2006 12:49 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 12, 2006
Bipasha? flight grounded at London airport!



Bipasha Basu has suffered many traumatic events, but what happened yesterday on her trip to New York is something she will never forget.

Thanks to the foiled terror attacks in the UK on Thursday, Basu was stranded at Heathrow airport for six hours before her flight finally took off for New York. She spills the beans on her nightmarish experience.

Says Bipasha, ?e were in transit (USA via London) when one of the cabin crew got a call from Australia asking if we were fine. That? when we got to know that there was news of terrorists planting bombs in the planes. Rocky and I made some calls and one of the first calls was to my mom. She was panicking when I spoke to her.?

Once the plane landed at Heathrow airport, she discovered that the airport was packed with stranded passengers.

?e could see the crowds from the plane itself. We were not allowed to disembark from the aircraft but had to wait in the plane for six hours,? says Bipasha, adding, ?urs was an Air India flight, that? why we could reach New York. I heard that most of the American and British airlines were still stuck at the airport. We landed in New York at 9.30 pm. We would have landed earlier but there was heavy rush at the airport and clearance took a lot of time.?

The trauma

How did her friends and family react? Bipasha shudders, ?t? scary to think that you can get blown off mid-air! My mom, who had no news of what was happening to me, was frantic till I called her up and told her I was safe.

We were getting messages from people asking if we were all right, and that? when it struck us how terrible the situation was. We could have had a bomb in the plane and would have been blown apart without us even knowing about it.?

Security risks

But Bipasha is all praise for the security arrangements at international airports. ?he security measures are fantastic but it? frightening to think that terrorists can still get past them. No matter how many precautions you take, your life is still exposed to risk.

According to the new safety rules, the aircraft crew was carrying transparent plastic bags with passports and other important papers in it.

Thanks to the rules, we are not allowed to carry any kind of liquids as the terrorists had planned to plant liquid explosives. Our luggage was checked thoroughly.

Travelling has become very dangerous nowadays. Anything can happen anywhere? says the actress, before signing off. She returns to Mumbai on August 18.
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Post time 13-8-2006 12:54 PM | Show all posts
Hindustan Times

Bollywood baddies rule the roost
Piyush Roy/ HT Style
Mumbai, August 12

Being bad works best in Bollywood - at least when it comes to getting critical wows and the audience? at tention. Both Saif Ali Khan (Omkara, Being Cyrus) and Sanjay Dutt (Anthony Kaun Hai) have proven it with their recent releases.

On Omkara?  posters Saif as Langda Tyagi has a larger presence than ?ero? Ajay Devgan. John Abraham as the stylish crook was similarly more appreciated in Dhoom. Come November, Dhoom? director Sanjay Gadhvi assures us that Hrithik Roshan as the bad guy in Dhoom 2 will whip up no less a fan run than his superman act in Krrish.

So why does one cast the conventional hero or heroine in a negative role? ?y having dashing villains, you veer audience sympathies towards their characters,? says Gadhvi. Agrees, Raj Kaushal, director of Anthony Kaun Hai, in which Sanjay Dutt was chosen to play a hitman because ?here was no villainy on his face?.

The credit for kicking off this trend goes to Shah Rukh Khan, who with his ?90s trilogy of Baazigar, Darr and Anjaam, made filmmakers aware of the box-office potential of a hero in negative roles, says Gadhvi.

While the focus may now be on creating ?umane? baddies, they still don? escape the villain? fate in the end.
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Post time 13-8-2006 12:59 PM | Show all posts
Arab News

?ing Khan?
Emine Saner | The Guardian
Thursday, 10, August, 2006 (16, Rajab, 1427)



I have been waiting for Shah Rukh Khan in the lobby of a central London hotel for an hour. The PR looks apologetic. ?e? not very good in the mornings,? she says. What can he be doing? His hair? Maybe it? just that he is the biggest film star in the world and that is enough of a reason in itself to keep people waiting. In the UK, few people outside Asian communities and Bollywood fans have heard of him (he sells out the vast Wembley arena in minutes when he comes here to perform song-and-dance routines from his films).

Shah Rukh Khan (also known as ?ing Khan?) has been in more than 50 Hindi films and has won 13 Filmfare awards, regarded as the ?ollywood Oscars.? He is the biggest star in Hindi cinema and this means billions of fans (Bollywood has a global audience of 3.6 billion; Hollywood has 2.5 billion). In India, where he lives with his wife and two children in Bombay, he can? leave his house without six bodyguards (the hysteria that follows him makes Beatle-mania look like a librarians? convention).

When he finally does appear, he is dressed in a black suit and an expensive white shirt and is shorter than I expect. His hair is a deep black, puffed up and slicked back ? perhaps this really is why he is late ? and he smells delicious, all fruity and woody (he has his own perfume). He is softly spoken and holds my tape recorder up to his mouth during the whole interview, like a microphone, and talks into it with an accent that bobs gently up and down like a boat on a calm sea. I start to swoon, but that might be all the coffee I have drunk while waiting for him.

We meet days after the train bombings in Bombay which killed 207 people; an Islamist group claimed responsibility. As one of India? most high-profile Muslims, Shah Rukh hasn? experienced any backlash. ?? not religious in terms of reading namaz (prayer) five times but I am Islamic,? he says. ? believe in the tenets of Islam and I believe that it? a good religion and a good discipline. There are a lot of people who misinterpret Islam, some in terms of understanding, others in terms of their actions. We need to somehow arrest the thought of violence, we can? only keep on arresting people (after terrorist attacks) because they are nameless, faceless zombies.
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Post time 13-8-2006 01:03 PM | Show all posts
continue...

Shah Rukh is in London because BAFTA is hosting a Bollywood weekend. (Later, I go to the BAFTA headquarters for the party to launch the weekend and when Shah Rukh appears, grown women rush toward him squealing.) The Indian film industry is the most prolific in the world ? some 900 films are produced every year. In 2004, the industry was worth $4.5 billion and it is expected to grow at 18 percent every year. In a country where nearly 80 percent of the population live on less than $2 a day, cinema provides an escape (some tickets cost mere pennies). It also provides an important cultural link for the Indian Diaspora ? the 20 million non-resident Indians, some second and third generation who might never have visited India. In the UK, the most successful Bollywood films regularly take more than ?2 million at the box office, and Shah Rukh has starred in eight of the 10 highest grossing.

Bollywood films do cross over into mainstream Western cinema ? Lagaan, starring Aamir Khan, was nominated for an Oscar in 2002 and Devdas, a romantic tragedy starring Shah Rukh, was nominated for a BAFTA and was the first Hindi film to be shown at Cannes ? but for an average Western viewer, Bollywood films still seem alien. In most, there are three hours of overacting, clunky dubbing, storylines as cheesy as mutter paneer, song-and-dance routines and dream sequences. In recent films, costumes are stuck somewhere in 1985.

? keep hearing that our films are escapist and unreal but I find our films the most real in the world,? says Shah Rukh. ?e don? have people going up in a rocket and single-handedly blowing up a meteor. We don? have a president on Air Force One saving the world or things coming out of people? stomachs. Our fantasies and escapism are real. It? just people singing and dancing in the street. If England had won the World Cup you would have seen people singing and dancing like that.?

Shah Rukh lives in a huge white mansion behind gates in Bombay? most expensive area with his wife Gauri, 35, son Aryan, eight, and daughter Suhana, six. He has six bodyguards but he only needs two when he is in London (his ?eople? won? allow him to go on a walkabout in Brick Lane or Southall because they would need police to control the inevitable crowds). He travels in cars with blacked-out windows. Doesn? he miss having a normal life? ? don? want to have a normal life,? he says. ?(Actors work) half their life to get recognized, then spend half their life wearing dark glasses so people don? recognize them. I don? like wearing dark glasses. I? happy with the fact that people know me. I want people to scream and shout at me, I want people to trouble me when I? having lunch, I like six bodyguards around me. I love being a star. I find it very strange when people who are famous say they don? want to be photographed. I don? want to be photographed first thing in the morning, I don? want people peeping into my bedroom, but besides that, it? a wonderful life.?

He is not an obvious Bollywood hero. He can dance but he can? sing (his songs are dubbed) and he is not as good-looking as other Bollywood stars such as Hrithik Roshan. Charisma, of which he has tons, can surely get you only so far. Why is he so successful? ? don? know,? he says, and I? surprised because many people have told me that he is famously arrogant. ?y actor friends keep telling me I? the longest-running fluke they know.?

Unlike many Hindi cinema stars who come from film dynasties, Shah Rukh is self-made. He was born in Delhi. His father ran a transport company and his mother was a magistrate, and Shah Rukh went to a private school. He was 15 when his father died from cancer; his treatment had been expensive and the family business collapsed. His mother worked day and night to build the business back up but never insisted Shah Rukh follow her into it (she died before Shah Rukh became famous). He didn? grow up wanting to be an actor ? he played cricket and hockey but injuries put a stop to that ? though he did watch a lot of films. ?e watched every Indian movie but I was more into MTV, Flashdance, Bill Cosby. For me, Indian movies were a little loud and garish; quite tacky.? The first film he saw after he graduated (with a degree in economics) that made him think he wanted to be an actor was Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, a film about star-crossed lovers, starring Aamir Khan and Juhi Chawla. ? didn? think I was as good-looking or as cool as they were, but somehow I felt I could do it.?

By then, he had met Gauri, a model from a Hindu family. Their romance was the stuff of a million Bollywood scripts ? her family weren? keen on Shah Rukh, but he won them over with charm. After moving to Bombay, Shah Rukh landed a role in a soap opera and then came to the attention of Bollywood casting directors. ? was told many times that I couldn? be a romantic hero because I was married,? he says. ? was told not to tell anyone.?

I scoured the Internet for scandal about him but could find nothing. ?? just good at hiding things,? he says and smiles. ? have security. There are nude women, and animals also, but nobody gets to see it.? He works with some of the most beautiful women in the world. Doesn? his wife ever feel threatened? ?hen you go through a profession like this for 16 years without having other women saying they are bearing my child, I think that? long enough to say, ? don? think he? going to wander off now.? My liking and respect for women is so immense, it goes far beyond just getting into their beds.?

Most Bollywood films are still chaste ? until quite recently, sex scenes consisted of shots of petals rubbing against each other, bees sucking honey from a flower or the rustle of a bush to denote anything more passionate than a peck on the cheek ? and Shah Rukh never kisses his lovers in a film. ? feel shy doing it,? he says. ? feel uncomfortable with so many people watching. If I? uncomfortable doing it, it will look odd and I?l never be happy watching it.?

How long will he get to play the romantic lead, though? He is 40 and, although he looks young, he confesses to dyeing his hair. He is Bollywood? most bankable star but there are new, younger actors coming through. Last year wasn? Shah Rukh ? best. His only release, Paheli, didn? do as well as expected, despite being India? official entry to the Academy Awards, so this year is crucial if he is to hold on to his ?ing Khan? status.

Things look hopeful ? he stars in Karan Johar? Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (Never Say Goodbye), out in the UK this Friday and already this year? most expensive Bollywood film. ? have had such success, I would be being ungrateful if I started being competitive,? he says. ?n my heart and my mind, I get up in the morning thinking there is nobody making a better film than I do. I say that to myself because I have to work that much harder.?

It is hard to work out how much of a fortune Shah Rukh has amassed (he won? say, but it is vast). Does he ever feels uneasy that he has so much? ?? hard-working in terms of what I do for money. I don? take money for a lot of things, in spite of what people think,? he says, although like most Bollywood stars, he promotes a range of products, from soft drinks to watches to soap, and he was reportedly paid ?300,000 to dance at the wedding of the son of the steel billionaire Lakshmi Mittal.

?? wealthy because I work fast and earn fast. I don? sit back. I do a lot for people ? I build stuff for people and I look after the sick ? but I don? talk about my wealth and the wealth I give to the poor. And it? not out of guilt. Somewhere in the Qur?n it says that if you do charity for a reason, it? not charity.? He says he never wanted to move to Hollywood, although he has gone to meet producers. ?t? not as if Steven Spielberg is waiting for me at LA airport,? he says. ?here are actors in Hollywood who look better than me, speak better than me, act better than me. Maybe not dance as well as I do. But apart from that I don? think there? any reason why I should be cast.? I don? think he needs any more fans ? half the world? population know who he is. ? want to be famous all over the world,? he says, then corrects himself. ?ctually, I want Indian films to be famous all over the world.
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Post time 13-8-2006 01:05 PM | Show all posts
Arab News

Who Else Is Big in Bollywood?
Samrana Hussain |The Guardian
Thursday, 10, August, 2006 (16, Rajab, 1427)



Aishwarya Rai: By the age of 32, Aishwarya had a tulip named after her and dolls in her image, and she was voted one of the most beautiful actors in the world. This former Miss World is an international face of L?real. Having wowed Bollywood audiences for more than a decade she has crossed over to Hollywood with films such as Bride and Prejudice and Mistress of Spices.

Madhuri Dixit: Until Ashwariya arrived, Madhuri was the reigning queen of Bollywood. In a male-dominated industry she was the first female actor to headline a film and choose her leading man. A trained classical dancer, she acted in more than 50 movies. Now 39 and living in the US with her husband and two children, she is rumored to be planning a comeback and reportedly turned down a part because it involved nudity.

Kareena Kapoor: This 26-year-old hails from the famous Bollywood Kapoor clan (think of the Redgrave dynasty) and is known for her midriff-baring tops. In 2004 she became embroiled in a kissing controversy (kissing in public is frowned upon in India). She said photographs of her kissing her boyfriend in public had been doctored, but later accepted they were true.

Rani Mukerjee: Has topped the Filmfare awards (an annual list of India? most influential people) for the past two years. She appeared at the closing ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, as part of a performance showcasing Indian culture. In 2006, she celebrated her birthday with the students of the Helen Keller Institute for the Deaf and Blind. She befriended members of the institute, when she was preparing for her role of a blind and deaf girl in the movie Black.

Amitabh Bachchan: The granddaddy of all Bollywood actors, Bachchan? career spans four decades and more than 150 films. In a 1999 BBC poll, voters named him the superstar of the millennium, ahead of Sir Laurence Olivier and Cary Grant. His comeback at the start of the decade began when he hosted India? version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? The highest-paid actor in Bollywood shows no sign of slowing down as he heads for his 64th birthday.

Hrithik Roshan: Known as the Indian Sylvester Stallone, Brad Pitt and Michael Jackson rolled into one. His breakout film in 2000 caused mass hysteria, which came to be known as Hrithikmania and led to him receiving 30,000 marriage proposals on Valentine? day in 2000. In the same year he earned $5 million from product endorsements.

Salman Khan: Known as Bollywood? bad boy, Salman? life has been colored by a series of legal and relationship problems, the latest of which resulted in a court issuing a notice against him for filing a false affidavit in connection with his gun license. His turbulent relationship with Aishwarya Rai filled gossip columns and the endless tantrums traumatized her enough to give a press conference in spring 2003, in which she declared that she would never work with him again for personal reasons.
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Post time 13-8-2006 01:07 PM | Show all posts
The Mercury News

Bollywood tackles epic love story
Posted on Sat, Aug. 12, 2006

Director Ashutosh Gowarikar will begin shooting a period romance next month starring top actors Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai, newspapers report.

The movie is a 16th-century love story between a Muslim emperor and a Hindu princess, Gowarikar told the Times of India. The film will be shot in palaces and forts in western and northern India, the newspaper reported Friday.

``It's a love story about one of the biggest alliances of the 16th century,'' he said. Titled ``Akbar-Jodha,'' the movie will be released next year.

The film centers on how an arranged marriage between Emperor Akbar and his wife turned into love, spanning their lives from the age of 13 to 28.

``We have always known that Jodha and Akbar married and Salim was their child, but what about how the relationship came about and a sharing of cultures,'' he told the Hindustan Times newspaper.

Gowarikar's films include the Oscar-nominated ``Lagaan.''
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:31 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 16, 2006
Aishwarya Rai Stunning!

Aishwarya Rai made Mehar Shah? day, when the little girl met the stunning actress at the premiere of her film, Bride And Prejudice in New York City.

In the picture, clicked by Mehar? dad Rajiv Shah, you can also spy director Gurinder Chadha in a pink outfit.



Unfortunately, Bride And Prejudice didn? do as well as Chadha? blockbuster hit Bend It Like Beckham. Ash, however, went on to star in Chadha? husband Paul Mayeda Berges? directorial debut, Mistress Of Spices, which also sank.
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:41 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 15, 2006
Bipasha Basu harrassed physically and mentally



Bollywood star Bipasha Basu has publicly accused two organisers of an India Day parade at Edison Township, New Jersey, of harassing her physically and mentally.

The movie star was scheduled to lead the parade ? organised by the Indian Business Association ? on Sunday, August 13, through Oak Tree Road, a centre of Indian businesses, as Grand Marshall.

Much to the chagrin of the estimated 10,000 Indians who thronged the parade that started at 3 pm, she did not turn up.

The organisers said she would join at the stage at the end of the parade, which was led by Edison Mayor Jun Choi, Congressman Frank Pallone, Woodbridge Mayor Joseph Vitale and others. Woodbridge is another town in New Jersey.

Before the parade reached the venue near Middlesex Avenue in Iselin, New Jersey, Bipasha appeared on stage.

? wanted to attend the parade, but I could not,? she said, adding that she was harassed physically and mentally in the car by two people who were taking her to the parade.

After the bitter experience, she could not turn up for the parade, she said.

Initially, many thought it was a joke. But the sultry Bollywood star insisted it was no joke and that she was telling the truth.

The organisers tried to cut her speech short, but she asked the people if she could speak and the people said ?es.?



She said the event is to celebrate Independence Day of not only men but women also.

? am coming from a profession that deserves respect. I also deserve respect,? she said.

At this point, one of the organisers intervened, and she stopped speaking.

?ee, they do not even want me to speak the truth,? she said, leaving the stage in protest.

The accusation and her sudden exit were noted only by a few people as the parade was still in progress. So it did not become a talking point at the event, which was largely successful and peaceful.

Satish Poondi, an Indian Business Association spokesperson, told that the organisation is taking Bipasha? allegation very seriously.

?e are a respected organisation that functions since 1991. We have to conduct a thorough investigation as to what happened. Till then we cannot comment much on the allegation,? he said.

Bipasha has not made a formal complaint to the organisers, he said. The alleged incident could cause a criminal investigation, but she has not lodged any complaint with the police either.

Poondi said Bipasha had breached the contract with the Indian Business Association. According to the contract, she was to attend the programmes on time.

?he came two hours late for the programme organised on Saturday night and did not turn up for the parade,? Poondi said.

Bipasha arrived in the United States on Saturday. Poondi said he did not have contact information for her or details of her itinerary.

He said the results of the investigation will be made public . ?e cannot call somebody guilty till it is proved,? he said.
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:43 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 16, 2006
Rocky - another rebel without a cause



An angry young man trying to change society? that not very new storyline forms the premise of the Zayed Khan starrer ?ocky - The Rebel? that releases Friday.

It is a story of today? youth, fighting to make this world an ideal place to live in.

The film revolves around Rocky (Zayed Khan), a rebel who can? stand injustice, social discrimination and so on.

While fighting corruption, something as old as history books, Rocky has to face opposition from his father who tells him to stay clear of matters that don? concern him.

But Rocky turns a deaf ear to his father? advice, arguing that this kind of irresponsible attitude was destroying society.

Rocky? family manages to accept their son? ideology. But destiny has something else in store for him and he finds himself in murky waters waging a battle for survival.

What does the ultimate battle in Rocky? life hold for him?

Zayed has yet to establish himself as a bankable actor. So far, no film with him as a solo hero has worked.

The track record of Suresh Krissna, director of ?ocky?, is not impressive either. He made duds like ?ove? with Salman Khan and Revathi, ?agruti?, which also had Salman with Karisma Kapoor, and the Kamal Hassan starrer ?bhay?.

?ocky? might go that same way.
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:46 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 16, 2006
Will Don be Special?



Now that Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna has released, the next Shah Rukh Khan film that is awaited with great anticipation is Don .

?on? has SRK going for a complete makeover from cynical Dev Saran in Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna to the suave and stylish Don.

SRK is quoted by a website as saying about the film that is a remake of the Amitabh Bachchan starrer Don (1978) : ?on of 2006 is ?imilar?, though not ?ame? as Don from the past. The subject remains the same but Farhan Akhtar has given the film a completely different treatment.?

But SRK emphasized that the best part of ?on? is its beginning and its end.

?he best part of the film is its beginning and its end. It is going to completely take you by surprise, believe me! The rest of the film has great moments too but it is the beginning and the end that makes it? special,? SRK said.

?on? is scheduled for a Diwali/Eid release on October 20, 2006.
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:48 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 16, 2006
Shah Rukh Khan? concert postponed in Mauritius!

The mega event ?raze 2006′ which was going to be held on Saturday 19 August 2006 at the Anjalay Stadium with Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra and Zayed Khan has been postponed. The new date will be announced shortly.

According to the communiqu? issued by the organisers (Entertainment Quotient and Pro Global Concept), it states that many necessary equipments and special firework products from London will not arrive before the show. This is due to the incidents which happened recently in London with the disruption of the terrorists? plot of the flights.

The organisers and producer (CineYug Entertainment) have promised a bigger event with more surprises. Mauritian fans will have to wait longer before Shah Rukh Khan? first concert in the beautiful island.

Meanwhile, ?abhi Alvida Naa Kehna? is doing very good business in most parts of the island since its release on Friday.
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:51 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 18, 2006
Karan Johar is not a pervert, says Amitabh



Women think Sexy Sam is very, very sexy. Comment.
Well, that is what he was supposed to be as per the script. I find it improbable, but if there are some women who find Sam to be very, very sexy then it? the triumph of a design conceived by Karan.

Did you have any reservations about playing the naughty Sam?
Not at all!

How did you prepare for the role?
I didn?, Karan did. He hired me to portray on screen his preparation. It was his story, his concept and his execution. He guided me through it quite deftly, I might say.

Did you have any reservations about Sam turning into an ?ld pervert??
Once I am on board a project, I do not fear its concept or its execution. I only fear my own incapability. If you have seen the film, and I trust that you have, you will appreciate the fact that all these wonderful adjectives that you or others like you, devise, to articulate a character, do not fall into the creative process of the director? mind. Perverts would think of perversion. And Karan is most certainly not a pervert.

Is Amitabh jealous of Sam? He seems to have everything, including a beta like Abhishek.
The most common mistake that invariably all questionnaires envelope, is when they seek parallels between reel and real. Cinema is a world of make-believe.

Characters involved in the screenplay and the story of such a world are fantasticated and hopefully, interesting props. Finding an equation between the two worlds is unfair. But even if it was not, and you were seeking a response, I would not tell.

The best compliment you got for the role? And from whom?
I couldn? possibly divulge. It? too personal. Telling you would send it across the world.

One thing Sam could teach Amitabh and vice versa?
This question and some of the others that follow are all falling in the realm of what I have expressed earlier. Equations! But if you were to push me for an answer, I would immodestly say, that I would not require coaching classes from Sam. And why on earth would I share my wiles with others!

Considering this is a very different character from the ones you?e played before, did you discuss it with Jaya or Abhishek?
Jaya and Abhishek had access to the script much before I did. Karan is family and he discusses his work with Jaya as an elder.

She was not too keen that I do this film and expressed her reservations to me. I went ahead and did it because, a) it? Karan Johar and Dharma productions, for God? sake! b) I would never have had the heart to defuse Karan? enthusiasm as he narrated the character to me.

Were you embarrassed mouthing any of the dialogues?
No. They did not invite embarrassment.

Name one friend Amitabh has, who he shares a bond with, like Sam and ?handigarh?.
You?e getting really presumptuous, aren? you!

Which older man would you be ? the one from KANK or the one from Nishabd?
This is a premise perhaps premature? let Nishabd be out, then we can talk about it.

Do you believe that people should separate, rather than live in an unhappy marriage?
My beliefs are guided by my own personal will. It? codes and conduct cannot be generalised for public consumption. The story chosen in the film raises points perhaps, for after-viewing debate. And this really could become very long-winded and inconclusive.

The director chose a topic that perhaps dwelt in his mind along the lines of the question you ask. He put it across to the world, draped it in three hours of story telling. It is his take. Marriages, happy or otherwise, can each have their respective situations and motives.

I know what my take is. Through KANK, you now know what the director? perceived take is. They could both be right. They could both be wrong. Or, one could be right and the other wrong. This is life?aby! Funny things happen here.

Some critics have not found your flamboyant role acceptable. Would criticism prevent you from doing other such roles?
I note with great sincerity my faults, as would I imagine, other creative artists. And at the end of the day we would want to reach a stage where both the audiences and the critics would express satisfaction. Bold roles? What is that? Specify! Poor boy falling in love with rich girl and battling all social norms to win and marry her? Bold? An ordinary dock worker striving to find his own space, dignity and right by taking on an existing, powerful and unconstitutional adversary? Bold?

An honest and law-abiding police officer, challenging, fighting and destroying single-handed a corrupt system, nurtured by equally corrupt politicians? Bold? A father-in-law propagating and succeeding in giving a new life to his own widowed daughter-in-law through remarriage? Bold? What is bold?

Do you ever feel trapped in a staid image? In Hollywood, actors over 55 are redefining sexiness.
How odd! You started by acknowledging my sexiness and flamboyance in KANK and the appreciation it was getting from members of the superior sex. You now talk of ?eeling trapped in a staid image?.

Perhaps your ?uperiority? got the better of you! Just kidding! But, truly, there is no image. It is not boring, and certainly not staid.

There is more variety now than ever before in my career. I am pleased and fortunate. And, for the love of everything that is divine and sane, do not make the West a referral for all things bright and beautiful in our part of the world. They are okay, we are okay! They can do without us. We can do better without them!

Would you do a film where you and Abhishek/Hrithik/Shah Rukh would be competing against each other romantically?
Great idea! Would you please tell Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Yash Chopra, Karan Johar or Ram Gopal Varma about this? And don? forget to recommend me.

Seriously though, there has been an effort by a prominent director to make a project, where an ageing Ashoka the Great marries a much younger girl, and where his own son from an earlier marriage gets romantically involved with a younger-than -him, step mother.

The writer had researched extensive historical facts on this.

Your favourite pin-up girl?
Why would I want to put up a poster on my wall? If ever there was one, and there were to be an inclination, I would rather make an effort to go and meet her directly.

Also, the fact that there hasn? been one has saved a great deal of space on my walls, which I might add are somewhat happily crowded with photographs of my granddaughter, grandson and my daughter. And let me tell you, they would give any of the top models a run for their money!

If a beautiful woman at a party commented on your sexiness, what would you say?
? think we need to sit down!
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:55 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 18, 2006
Arjun Rampal robbed in London!



Arjun Rampal has been hard at work completing the shoot of his maiden home production, I See You. The film, directed by debutant Vivek Agarwal, is being shot in London.

But recently, Rampal got the shock of his life when he came back to his room at the Washington Hotel in Mayfair to find that his safe had been robbed. Not just the contents, the entire safe itself!

Arjun disturbed

Says Arjun, ?t? true, but I don? want to talk about it.?

However, producer Shabbir Boxwalla, who is a close friend of Arjun?, elaborates on the incident. ?he Washington Hotel at Mayfair is a very reputed one. We don? know exactly what happened.

Apparently, two thieves walked into his room when he was away shooting and walked away with his money, a very expensive watch, the entire unit? air tickets and Arjun? passport.

Not satisfied with just the contents, they ran away with the entire safe! Fortunately, Arjun got a temporary passport from the embassy so that he could come back.?

Concierge attacked

Says a source close to Arjun, ?rjun is very disturbed about the incident, but he is happy that his wife Mehr and children were not in the room. The police was very cooperative and promised their support in catching the thieves. The hotel? CCTV has captured their faces so it shouldn? take much time to trace them.?

The source adds, ?he thieves took out his safe from the wall and were walking away with it when the concierge thought they looked suspicious and cornered them. They hit him on the head with the safe and ran away. He was hurt so badly that he had to get four stitches.
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Post time 20-8-2006 03:58 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 18, 2006
A very modest Bipasha Basu



Reader Chirag Nagpal, a trainee pilot in Vancouver, was bowled over by Bipasha Basu, when he bumped into her at Mumbai airport.

The actress and designer Rocky S were travelling to Dubai, while Chirag was on his way to Los Angeles.

Bips readily agreed to be photographed, and when Chirag asked for another picture with her, she asked, ?ou want to take another picture in case I looked bad??

Well, we?e blown over by her modesty too
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Post time 20-8-2006 04:00 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 19, 2006
Shah Rukh Khan was embarrassed doing role in KANK



Bollywood leading man Shah Rukh Khan says he felt uncomfortable taking on the role of a husband who leaves his wife and child for another woman in his latest film.

Khan usually plays the reliable son or the devoted father and said it was difficult to play a man who turned away from his family in ?abhi Alvida Naa Kehna,'? which hit theaters last week.

He told Cine Blitz magazine that infidelity wasn? what ? good man'? would do.

? was embarrassed doing some scenes of this film, I felt shy doing them ? I am not a prude but I felt odd,'? said Khan, who has been married for 14 years and has two children.

The movie about troubled marriages, directed by well-known filmmaker Karan Johar, also stars Amitabh Bachchan and his son Abhishek, Rani Mukherjee and Preity Zinta.

Khan had some words of wisdom for those tempted by extramarital relationships: ? think you have to work very hard after marriage to make it work. You can? go on believing that love will continue to take care of it.'?

?nreal expectations'? ruined relationships, he told the magazine.
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Post time 29-8-2006 02:01 PM | Show all posts
Bollywood Press

August 22, 2006
Aishwarya Rai Fully Loaded For Dhoom 2



Despite her fragile appearance, actress Aishwarya Rai has performed bold daredevil stunts in the new action thriller Dhoom 2, movie? director, Sanjay Gadhvi said.

He told a newspaper that Rai trained for months for the action sequences in Dhoom 2.

A former Miss World, Rai has acted in more than 30 movies. In her most recent film, she played a woman who kills her husband after 10 years of abuse.

Gadhvi did not give details about the stunts in Dhoom 2 and the plot of the movie, a fast-paced film about cops and robbers, which has been kept under wraps.

?sh has a lot of guts. She has done some awesome stunts in the film. She did power yoga for two months and has a perfectly toned body,? Gadhvi said.

The movie, which was filmed in Namibia, South Africa and India also stars Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan and Bipasha Basu.

Gadhvi described the movie, to be released later this year, as ?igger, better? and ?aster and more furious? than the original Dhoom.
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