Kangana breaks director Deepa Mehta’s heart

She opts out of Midnight’s Children where she was roped in to play the role of Emerald. The reason behind her backing out is date issues.

The disappointed director stated “There were second and third choices for Emerald I only wanted Kangana.” “Yes, Kangana Ranaut has agreed to be part of Midnight’s Children.

I think she’s a wonderful actress, not quite like anyone else that I’ve worked with.” A source stated that dates always play the villain in this case.

Kangana is busy shooting for her upcoming flick “Dhamaal 2” which is all set to hit theatres soon. It’s raining movies for Kangana.

Her upcoming flicks include Salman’s movie, David Dhawan’s “Rascal”, Priyadarshan’s “Bullet Train”, Pritish Nandy’s “Actor” with Amitabh Bachchan, “No Problem”, “Tanu Weds Manu” and “Knockout”.

Mallika Sherawat returns to India

Mumbai, Sep 2 – After a long stay in Los Angeles, Bollywood’s glamour girl Mallika Sherawat has returned to India.

‘The media (can u believe it? Lol;), my fans gave me such a gr8 welcome home @ the airport, even at 2AM! I m humbled,’ she posted a message on microblogging site Twitter after landing here Thursday morning.

Mallika’s brother and producer Vikram Lamba and her singer friend Shweta Pandit had come to pick her up at the airport.

The actress keep herself busy by promoting her forthcoming film ‘HISSS’ and will also be shooting for ‘Dhamaal 2′, which stars Sanjay Dutt, Riteish Deshmukh, Javed Jaffrey, Aashish Chaudhary and Aftab Shivdasani.

‘Ranbir Kapoor can be the next Amitabh Bachchan’

After working with Ranbir Kapoor in two films, director Siddharth Anand feels the young actor has the potential to follow in the footsteps of megastar Amitabh Bachchan as the “complete Hindi film hero”.

“The day Ranbir does an action film and does it well, he has the potential to fill the void that Bachchan created,” said Anand who teamed up with Ranbir for the second time for his new romantic comedy Anjaana Anjaani releasing Sep 24.

The two had earlier worked together in Bachna Ae Haseeno (2008). Ranbir, 27, is the son of well-known Bollywood actors Rishi and Neetu Kapoor.

“Ranbir is the perfect guy to play Anthony (a character played by Big B in Amar Akbar Anthony), he can play coolie, he can play the characters Bachchan played in his prime. There is no one else but him,” said Anand.

“He has got everything it takes to be the complete Hindi film hero that Bachchan was.”

Anand, who debuted with Salaam Namaste (2005), says he has tried to push the boundaries with his first film and completely smashed it with Anjaana Anjaani.

“I have torn the boundaries here. When you see the film, it’s something unlike you have seen at any point of time. It’s a love story but its situations are very unique,” said the young director.

“I made Ranbir do strange things. During the shooting of the song Khuda jaane in Bachna Ae Haseeno I made him stand on the tip of a cliff and spread his arms and he was shit scared as he has a vertigo problem.

“In Anjaana Anjaani there is a sequence where they are stranded in the middle of an ocean. It was the Pacific Ocean and he had to dive into the freezing waters. He did it even though he has aquaphobia,” said the director.

Talking about the film that co-stars Priyanka Chopra, he said: ” Anjaana Anjaani is the story of two strangers who meet in strange circumstances and then part as strangers. So it’s a very unique concept for a Hindi film, but it’s deep-rooted as a Hindi commercial film. It has songs, stories, beautiful locations and fabulous performances.”

Siddharth says more than the actresses, he bonds well with actors.

“I am a hero’s director. I bond with my heroes more than I bond with my heroines. Once we become friends, I like to work with them repeatedly if they are okay with it. I have been fortunate enough to work with two superstars,” said Anand.

And what made him pair Ranbir with Priyanka?

“I wanted to have a virgin pair. I wanted a brilliant actress because the film is only about the chemistry between two people. It’s about their sparks, what they speak, and the banters to and fro.

“Ranbir is a brilliant actor; so I needed someone who would be able to match that. Priyanka just fitted in unbelievably,” said Anand.

The director insists that he is very particular about the songs in his films.

“I’m surprised people liked the song Hairat. I was very clear that I wanted music for a love story that you cannot imagine. It doesn’t belong to a love story. I didn’t want mainstream music,” said Anand.

Asked if he was planning to explore only unique love stories, he said: “Not really. I am a storyteller. If I am in a mood to make you laugh, I will tell you a joke. If I want to scare you, I will tell you a horror story. So it depends on what comes to me at that point of time.”

Pancharangi – Movie Review

In an interview to Oneindia.in, actress Nidhi Subbaiah had told, “Director Yogaraj Bhat is a magician. He doesn’t make movies, but creates magic on screen.” I strongly feel that it is true after watching his latest movie Pancharangi. The film  has a very simple story. Yet the director has managed to create a wonder out of nothing. Once again, he has proved that he is different from all other Sandalwood directors. Hats of to the innovative filmmaker!!!

Pancharangi is a humourous love story. The highlight of the film are Diganth’s humourous acting, Nidhi Subbaiah’s facial expressions, Raju Talikote’s comedy timing, Mano Murthy’s music, Yogarj Bhat’s dialogues and screenplay, Mayuri Upadhyaya’s choreography, V Thyagarajan’s camera work, beautiful locations of coastal area so on and so forth. It has lots plus points to talk about, but has very less to dwell on demerits.

The film has very simple storyline, but with his gripping narration, director Yogarj Bhat throws light on various aspects of life such as parents, friends, goals, success, failure, love, marriage, kids. It is all about a lazy boy’s lazy love story. Along with his parents he goes to see a girl for his brother. But the girl’s cousin falls to his humourous nature.

A special mention should be made about the dialogues. They are the first hero of the film. Although they are very witty and humourous, every single dialogue deals with philosophy of life. They are meaning full and have lot of punch in them. They engage the audience’s mind in such a way that they will not understand how the first half gets over. In the second half, romantic scenes between Diganth and Nidhi linger the audience’s mind.

The story revolves around a lazy boy (Diganth). He is doing his post graduation in philosophy. Lonce with his parents (Sundar Raj and Sudha Belawadi), he goes to see a girl (Ramya Barna) for his brother (Pavan Kumar), who is a software professional in US. Panchakshari, a marriage broker (Raju Talikote), mediates both the families. While his parents are a busy with seeing the girl, this wayward guy meets girl’s cousin Ambika (Nidhi Subbaiah), who is a naughty and tomboyish kind of a girl. Seeing his humourous nature, she falls in love with him. Whether they will unite or not will form the climax of the movie.

Diganth appears totally in a new and different get up. He has shown lot of maturity in his performance. Although one can see a shred of Jaggesh/Ganesh’s acting, his acting has lot of originality and individuality. His strange mannerism and natural dialogue delivery are the highlights of the show. Actress Nidhi Subbaiah has also done magic through her acting. She has lot of scope in the film and she has used it to prove her mettle. Through her facial expressions, she surely wins the heart of pranksters. Raju Talikote’s performance is another highlight of the show. With his north Karnataka dialect, he rocks the show. Other artistes have also delivered wonderful acting.

The film is full of rich production values. Main highlight is Mano Murthy’s music. Two of his compositions like title track ‘Are Re Pancharangi…’ and ‘Udisuve…’ are really melodious. V Thyagarajan’s camera work has also added colour to the show. Especially in the songs, he has captured the coastal area in a beautiful way. Mayuri Upadhyaya’s choreography, costume and art directions are commendable.

The title Pancharangi means five colours and the director has made it clear at the beginning of the film that these five colours represent 5 aspects of life. The film is not out of loopholes, but they are ignorable. Although the film is totally an original creation, it might remind the audience of Bollywood Blockbuster movie Hum Aap Ke Hai Kaun. Overall, it is a complete family entertainer and It is another trendsetter movie from Yogaraj Bhat. Audience will not get enough of it just watching it once.

Please don’t miss the movie.

Indian filmmaker asked to leave U.S. within 90 days

Indian filmmaker Vijay Kumar will remain behind bars without bail on federal immigration charges until allegations that he was illegally carrying brass knuckles in his checked airport baggage are resolved, a judge has ruled.

The immigration hearing was held on schedule but the judge denied a bond, and ordered voluntary departure under safeguard till he leaves USA.

Mr. Kumar has been asked to leave within 90 days.

Voluntary bond means that his departure as an alien from the United States would be without an order of removal.

Mr. Kumar is allowed to voluntarily depart concedes removability but does not have a bar to seeking admission at a port-of-entry at any time.

However, failure to depart within the time would result in a fine and a 10-year bar to several forms of relief from deportation. And if he does not depart within the 90-day period he will be deported.

However, his departure primarily depends on his criminal case hearing on Sept 8.

Unless the case is dismissed he cannot leave. If his case is resolved within four months, he can leave voluntarily and can ask to return.

Till then the judge has asked him to be in immigration custody.

Mr. Kumar has not yet been charged by immigration judge.

Mr. Kumar bonded out on Aug 23 and surrendered his passport to Harris County officials as a condition of his bail. When released, Mr. Kumar’s visa was revoked.

He was then detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, because he had neither a passport nor a visa.

At a hearing yesterday, a federal immigration judge refused to set a bail for Kumar. Federal officials would not say why Mr. Kumar’s visa was revoked.

John Connolly, assistant agent in charge of ICE in Houston, said that Mr. Kumar is not the subject of a homeland security investigation.

Mr. Kumar turned down an offer to plead guilty in exchange for time served because he did not want to jeopardise his chances to return to America, Mr. Kumar’s attorney Grant Scheiner said.

Now he faces the same dilemma.

If his case is resolved within four months, he can leave voluntarily and can ask to return.

If the case takes longer, he will be deported after it is complete, squelching his chances to return.

Mr. Kumar, 40, a resident of Malad in Mumbai, was detained at Houston International airport for allegedly carrying brass knuckles and jihadist literature in his luggage and is now in federal custody since last week. Mr. Kumar could get a jail term of up to 10 years if convicted.

Rahman’s CWG anthem gets thumbs down

Enough has been said about the Common Wealth Games this year to be held in Delhi. Right from corruption to shady jobs and sportsmen backing out, many hurdles have come in the organising of the whole show. However, one thing that everyone was positively looking forward was the motivational and energetic Common Wealth Theme song to be composed by the revered A R Rahman.

The conference where the song was to be launched, well, didn’t have the song but the details about it. The reason was that back then the CWG committee wanted the song to be tweaked and releasing it without the necessary changes would’ve been foolhardy. Despite all this, everyone was expecting a highly inspiring anthem from Rahman, given his current status in world music.

However, after the song came out on the internet, the response was far from encouraging. Rahman fans weren’t just disappointed, they were actually shocked. The comments ranged from “this song got no vibe…I mean you should be getting Goosebumps for some event like this. It was supposed to be more like an epic song” to “CWG Organizing Committee should be made to listen to this song 10,000 times as a punishment.”

Some supporters feel that the song will grow on people and with enough marketing people will like it, while some others feel that the lyrics lack the punch, still others from the music industry are of the opinion that with a wide range of Indian instruments that Rahman could’ve used, his song lacks Indian-ness and the sporting spirit of this event.

The theme song hasn’t gone down well with the CWG committee as well who feel that the song is nowhere worth the price (Rs. 5 crore) demanded by the music composer. They are insisting for the track to be recomposed, while others on board can’t understand why Rahman was given the sole responsibility for the composition and that too for six months.

Though Rahman’s die hard fans stand by him and insist that listening to this song over and over again would help and some others demand for a whole new song, one really wonders if any damage control can be done when we’re so close to the Common Wealth Games.

Aishwariya not to endorse Danone

Mumbai: Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, who has been associated the world over with many products, has not been signed on as the brand ambassador for Danone products, as mentioned in certain reports. This was confirmed by her publicist.

Danone, a France-based company, deals in dairy products. In India, they have launched with a joint venture with Yakult, which is endorsed by Kajol.

Sanjay Dutt hosts Iftaar party

Sanjay Dutt along with Aap Entertainment Ltd and the team of Knock Out hosted an Iftaar party on August 30 at Taj Lands End in Mumbai. The occasion also marked the unveling of the theatrical trailer of the film for the first time in India. Earlier it was shown at the IFFI awards.

Sanjay Dutt and Maanyata were seen welcoming guests like Ram Gopal Varma, Kunal Kohli, Satish Kaushik, David Dhawan, Sanjay Gadhvi, Apoorva Lakhia, Jackie Shroff, Rohit Shetty and others.
Written and directed by Mani Shankar and produced by Sohail Maklai, Knock Out stars Sanjay Dutt, Kangna Ranaut, Irrfan, Gulshan Grover and Rukhsar. The film releases on September 10.

Anurag to produce short films for the web

Anurag Kashyap’s production house is all set to make short films for the portal, Tumbhi.com. The films, though, will be directed by different people. Says Anurag, “Internet is the new media and one can show these films on You Tube and social networking sites .” His company will be making six films to begin with, the subjects of which are yet to be decided.
Following critical acclaim and box-office success in India, Aamir Khan’s home production Peepli [Live] will release in the United Kingdom on September 24.

“Producer Aamir Khan plans on touring UK extensively to promote the movie. He has also made a humble request to all his fans that they should watch the film only when it officially releases in the country and not through pirated DVDs or downloads. They should go to theatres to truly enjoy the Peepli [Live] experience,” sources close to the actor said.

Kerala priest renounces robe for films

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A Catholic priest in Kerala, who made an appearance in a recent Malayalam film, has relinquished his position in the Church here prompting allegations that he was under pressure from the clergy.

Johnson Karur, however, denied any such pressure and claimed that he “had left the Church for his own reasons”.

“For 10 years, I served the Church as a priest in Kollam. Now I’m leaving because of my own reasons. Nobody asked me to go. And it doesn’t have anything to do with my role in the film,” Karur, who had played a ‘not-so-holy’ character in the recently-released Malayalam film ‘Nirakakzhacha’ (Waves of colour), said.

Kangana quits the film Midnight’s Children

Director Deepa Mehta sounded very excited when she signed Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut for her next film Midnight’s Children, which is based on Salman Rushdie’s book of the same name. But now, the actress has quit the project by clearing the way for another actress to play the role of Emerald, which was offered to her.

On 10th August, Deepa Mehta was quoted stating to media that Kangana has agreed to act in her upcoming movie Midnight’s Children. The Academy Award-nominated director praised Kangana saying that she is a wonderful actress.

A source was quoted stating that Kangana is very busy with another movie Dhamaal 2, which will start shooting very soon so she could not manage her dates. Kangana will also be seen in Salman Khan’s movie that is to be directed by Mahesh Manjrekar. Moreover, she has committed for David Dhawan’s Rascal, Pritish Nandy’s film Actor with Amitabh Bachchan, Bullet Train by Priyadarshan, Tanu Weds Manu, No Problem and Knockout.

Earlier, actress Rani Mukherjee also quit the film because she was not interested to play a mother of a 14 year old. There was a report of Vidya Balan, also not taking up the project when she was offered a role in the movie. However, Deepa seems to be more upset when Kangana left the film. In fact, she was quoted to have said that she had second and third choices for the other characters but she wanted Kangana specifically for Emerald’s character.

Well, there is no other choice now for the director but look for a new face for the role!

Rajinikanth’s daughter Soundarya ties the knot

Southern superstar Rajinikanth gave away the hand of his daughter Soundarya in marriage to Ashwin, a Stanford graduate at a high profile ceremony at Rani Meyammai Hall in Chennai today.

Who’s who of the film industry, business world and politics attended the wedding in Chennai. The wedding was a typical Brahmin ceremony. It will be followed by a reception this evening.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, Sridevi, Boney Kapoor and a host of other high profile guests attended the wedding.

This is a moment Chennai is stopping to watch because this is being termed as the biggest wedding ever in the history of Tamil marriages.

The big wigs of every fraternity were seen at the ceremony. Home Minister P Chidambaram also blessed the couple, but had to leave early for an urgent meeting in New Delhi.

Ruling DMK party members were also there and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi is also expected to be there.

But AIADMK leader Jayaram Jayalalitha will not be able to attend the wedding since she is in Kodanad hill station to make arrangements for the forthcoming assembly polls in Tamil Nadu.

Though Jayalalitha was there at Rajinikanth’s elder daughter Aishwarya Rajinikanth’s wedding. She infact had given the ‘thali’ or the mangal sutra to Rajinikanth before he gave it to the daughter. But here she is going to be absent. So there’s interesting political connection as well.

According to reports, Rajini had also requested his fans not to attend Soundarya’s wedding ceremony. In a statement the actor said that though he wanted to invite all the fans to his daughter’s marriage, he was unable to do so because of space constraint and logistic reasons. But he wanted their blessings for his daughter.

Rajini has himself supervised all the arrangements for the wedding. According to reports the actor has gifted a brand new apartment to Soundarya.

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