Thursday, February 17, 2011

‘Harry Potter’ author JK Rowling’s story to be made into a movie in Canada

Melbourne, Feb 17 – ‘Harry Potter’ author JK Rowling’s rags to riches story is to be made into a movie in Canada.
The film based on Rowling’s rise from struggling single mum in Edinburgh to multimillionaire author of the Harry Potter book series is set to begin shooting next month.

Scotland’s The Herald newspaper reported that film producers initially toured Edinburgh in their search for shooting locations, but decided to move production to Canada to save money because they found similar buildings there that could be used as backdrops.

Rowling, 45, has not authorised the television movie, reports News.com.au.

She refused to comment on the film, which has the working title ‘Strange Magic’.

Australian actor Poppy Montgomery, who stars as FBI agent Samantha Spade in the hit US television series Without a Trace, will play Rowling. (ANI)

‘Dhobi Ghat’ to be commercially released in Germany

New Delhi, Feb 17 Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao have another reason to celebrate as a German distributor has bought the rights of their critically acclaimed movie ‘Dhobi Ghat’ to release it in theatres in Germany later this year. 

The film has been produced by Aamir Khan and distributed by UTV Motion Pictures. The deal with Rapid Eye Movies includes theatrical distribution rights, home video rights and free TV rights of the movie for screening in Germany.
‘We are excited to work with Kiran Rao who has made a beautiful and touching film about life in Mumbai and we believe it will touch the hearts of German audiences,’ said Stephan Holl from Rapid Eye Movies.

Set in Mumbai, ‘Dhobi Ghat’, which is Kiran’s directorial debut, narrates joy, sorrow and heartbreaks of four individuals who come from distinct backgrounds and how they deal with it.

‘It is a special film and we are pleased to announce that the film will now be seen by German audiences. We are happy to join hands with Rapid Eye movies who is the ideal partner for this film,’ said Amrita Pandey, UTV’s senior vice president, international distribution & syndication.

Aamir, who also stars in the movie, is currently on the jury at the Berlin Film Festival, which is ending Sunday. 

IANS

Ranbir gives dance lessons to Sehwag (With Images)

New Delhi, Feb 17 – Bollywood ‘rockstar’ Ranbir Kapoor, who will be seen giving batting tips to cricketer Virender Sehwag in a new TV commercial, actually taught him to dance during the shooting of the ad. 

Ranbir, who has showcased his dancing prowess in movies like ‘Saawariya’, ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’ and ‘Anjaana Anjaani’, has teamed up with the cricketer for Pepsi’s cricket World Cup special commercial.

‘Thoda grace se hila… Kamar bhi hila… shakal pe expression la… Upar se aane ka, niche dabane ka, piche uthane ka, haan!’ will be the background song for the ad.

A source from the sets revealed that Sehwag was initially shy, but being a true sportsman, quickly got into the groove and started following Ranbir’s instructions on the dance floor.
The actor sports a loud and carefree look in the ad, which has been designed by Aki Narula who gave him a pair of ripped jeans and a colourful bold checked shirt to wear over a white fitted tee. 

To complete the edgy and chilled out look, Narula decided to give Ranbir white wayfarers, a chic hat and a leather cuff.

For the first Ranbir wears a ponytail, styled by Hakim Aalim.

The new commercial will go on air Saturday. 

IANS

Sushant wants to leave ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 4′

Mumbai, Feb 17 Sushant Singh Rajput, one of the most promising contenders on Sony TV’s ‘Jhalak Dikkhla Jaa 4′, wants to quit the dance reality show Thursday due to a back injury. But judge Madhuri Dixit has asked him to stay on. 

A source from the sets informed IANS that Sushant declared during the Thursday shoot that he wants to quit.

‘Sushant told the judges that he wants to quit as he is not in a position to perform, and said he doesn’t want to be unfair to the other contenders by not performing and still doing the vote appeal,’ said the source.

Apparently Sushant, who has been performing consistently and getting perfect scores, suffered the injury during the technical rehearsals with his choreographer Shampa. 

Though he has excruciating pain, but is not happy with his decision.

‘Madhuri told Sushant that he is one of the best dancers on the show and she would love to see him dance. She also said that she is confident he will find place in the top three finalists, and so he should take a call only after a second thought,’ added the source.

Host Mona Singh interrupted and told Sushant: ‘We’ll talk about it later!’
Recently, there were rumours that Sushant had threatened Sony TV about leaving the show when his girlfriend Ankita Lokhande was eliminated. However, in an interview to IANS, Sushant had denied doing so. 

IANS

Fan ‘in dreamland’ after meeting Shah Rukh Khan

Kuala Lumpur, Feb 17 – A fan who met Shah Rukh Khan while he was shooting in Kuala Lumpur for his Don sequel, said she was ‘in dreamland’ after the meet.

“It is an indescribable feeling and I am so happy to have finally met him. I feel like I am in dreamland,” the Star Online quoted 27-yr-old Mehjabeen Erum Alim as saying, after meeting Khan yesterday at a resort in Ayer Keroh.

Khan met Erum and seven other fans at the resort just as he was about to enter his car to go to the film location at Sungai Udang for his latest movie Don 2.
“Fortunately, he spotted us just as he was about to get into the car and agreed to sign autographs and take photographs,” she said.

Erum added that she managed to draw his attention to the story in The Star about her wanting to meet him. Khan autographed the news article for her.

“It was just a fleeting moment and he didn’t say a word but merely nodded and gestured to us as he rarely speaks before filming so as not to come out of the character he is playing,” she said.

Erum and other diehard fans from Kuala Lumpur and Shah Alam had staked out the Don 2 film set in Malacca over the last two days. (ANI)

Mika is a big fan of online dating

Melbourne, Feb 17 – British pop star Mika has admitted that Internet gives him the courage to approach potential partners.

The singer is a big fan of online dating, and says “anyone with an Internet connection does it in some way.”

“Let’s face it, anyone with an Internet connection does it in some way. Even if you meet someone for the first time in the flesh, if you’re interested you go online and see what you can dig up,” the Daily Telegraph quoted the singer as saying in a column for La Repubblica.

“We find ourselves piecing together their life, from holiday snaps with drunk friends, to whether they have children or if the pictures of them alone seem too egocentric or staged. At the end of all the online digging you might as well had met online. Perhaps there really isn’t a difference any more.”

The ‘Grace Kelly’ singer also admitted the first date he organised online (via MySpace.com five years ago) was a disaster but it hasn’t kept him from logging on to look for love, according to celeb site AceShowbiz.

In his column, the pop star said the best thing about the Internet is that you can approach someone that you “would never be brave enough to” or even have time to in real life. (ANI)

Dancing girls back in Pakistan’s Swat Valley

Islamabad, Feb 17 – With the departure of the Taliban from Pakistan’s Swat Valley, the music has returned and fair-skinned dancing girls are back in business.

A locality in the eastern part of Mingora city in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province is famous for its dancing girls. But there is no electricity in the area and the narrow alleys are dark.

But its women, once targeted by the Taliban, are back in business and music reverberates till late at night, the Express Tribune reported.

A young boy opens the door to a cramped room of a two-storey house. The room is bare and a tattered sofa lies in a corner. A gas burner dimly lights up the room.

He ushers in two young girls into the room. Attired in black and red dresses, they say they are cousins and introduce themselves as Rani and Muskan.

In late 2008, at the peak of militancy, Muskan and Rani left their homes in Swat Valley for Karachi to escape persecution from the Taliban.

Barely a month after their departure, in January 2009, Taliban militants knocked on a door opposite to their house and dragged out a dancer named Shabana. They took her to Green Chowk – also known as Khooni Chowk – and shot her dead.

Shabana’s death created a ripple effect and almost all girls left their homes for safer places.
‘We heard the news of Shabana’s death in Karachi. I was sad and scared. We too could have met the same fate if we had not left our homes,’ Muskan said.

‘The situation has improved now and we no longer fear anyone. Swat is our home and we cannot live somewhere else,’ said Muskan, who is also a model and appears in Pashto song videos.

Rani said their business has improved and now musical events are arranged with no restriction from the police or religious clerics.

‘We learnt dance from our cousin, Laila. After her wedding, we started performing to feed our 18-member family,’ Rani said.

‘There are at least 20 houses associated with this business at Bunrh and now there is no fear of the Taliban,’ her brother Ashfaq said.

‘But there is fear. The first door my friends and I had knocked at was Shabana’s, and no member of her family came to open the door. They do not want to talk about that incident,’ my friend said.

Pervesh Shaheen, a local historian, said there was official patronage to the dancers and they were paid a fixed amount after a function. No one was allowed to throw money while they danced, he said, adding that the girls were not involved in prostitution.

IANS

Justin Bieber has been ‘dating’ girls since the age of 11

Washington, Feb 17 – Teen sensation Justin Bieber thinks he understands what love means – because he has dated “one or two” girls since he was 11 years old.

The 16-year-old singer gets annoyed when people suggest he knows nothing about love because he has been “seeing girls” for five years, and feels he has learnt more about them.

“When people say, ‘Oh but he’s 16 what does he know about love.’ Have you ever had a dog? Did you love him? Every kid loves their parents,” Contactmusic quoted him as telling BANG Showbiz. 

“Then when you get to like 11 or 12 you start seeing girls. And you’re like oh, ‘I want to see this person because she’s cute.’ You don’t know the real meaning of love but you think you do.
“By the time your 15 or 16 you have a little bit more knowledge, because you’ve had, like, one or two girlfriends,” he said.

However, the ‘Never Say Never’ star – who is reportedly dating 18-year-old actress Selena Gomez – thinks love is something you learn as you get older, and he reveals he is unlikely to ever “figure out” girls.

“But I think love is a learning process throughout your life, you learn how to be better at it. I’m still learning, I’m not saying I know everything about love, I’m still trying to figure out girls, I don’t think you ever fully figure out girls,” the singer said. (ANI)

Kangana Ranaut not out of ‘One And Only’

Mumbai, Feb 17 Kangana Ranaut’s spokesperson has clarified that the actress is not opting out of ‘One And Only’, launch vehicle of Chirag Paswan, son of politician Ram Vilas Paswan

‘Kangana has almost finished the film and there’s no question of her wanting to opt out. This was never discussed and is a completely false story. Given the number of films Kangana is doing this year, there are bound to be some date issues, but that’s nothing out of the ordinary,’ the actress’ spokesperson told IANS.

It was reported that after a tussle with the makers of ‘One And Only’, which is being produced by Maverick Productions, the actress decided to walk out of the project.

‘Kangana has always been choosy about her films and has signed it because of the script which is very engaging. She is excited about the film and is looking forward to its release,’ said the spokesperson.

‘One And Only’ also stars Sagarika Ghatge, Poonam Dhillon, Vinod Khanna and Dalip Tahil, among others. Directed by Tanveer Khan, the musical love story is expected to release in April this year. 

IANS

Sonakshi gets into Katrina's bath-tub


Sonakshi gets into Katrina`s bath-tub
It is her first television ad campaign.And Sonakshi Sinha riding high after the Dabangg and the slew of awards last year, has bagged the coveted campaign as the brand ambassador for Dyna soap. The soap was earlier endorsed by Katrina Kaif. Coincidentally both the divas are Salman Khan’s protégées.

So you would think there would be tension between the two divas, specially since Sonakshi is doing a spate of Salman films. But no such thing!

The two ladies get along very well, thank you. Sonakshi is full of admiration for her senior and thinks Katrina conducts herself in the entertainment industry with great dignity.

She doesn’t think she has replaced Katrina in the soap ad.

Says the sprightly softspoken Sonakshi, “Katrina had done the Dyna campaign many years back and they haven't had a brand ambassador after her. So like every brand and celebrity move on, so have Dyna and Katrina. She has moved to Lux. I’ve come into Dyna, Simple!:”

Sonakshi is glad to be successor to Katrina in the ad. “Not every newcomer gets to represent one of the highest-selling soaps in the country."

What was it like shooting the campaign specially since it required Sonakshi to get into a bath tub?

Says Sonakshi, "It was good fun. The team was excellent the shoot went off smoothly.I wasn't the least selfconscious about the way it was shot. It's a very aesthetically shot ad. It was completely in my comfort zone."

Interestingly both Katrina and Sonakshi are very particular about appearing dignified on screen.

As Sonakshi puts it. “Just getting into a bath-tub doesn’t mean one has to be unaesthetic.” 

By Subhash K Jha

Who's Ameesha's new guy?

The actress is increasingly being spotted in the company of a friend who resembles her ex! And he is even producing a film for her

After her split with Kanav Puri, Ameesha Patel has been lately spotted in the company of a guy called Kunal.

The businessman has been stepping out with her at events and bashes. Shutterbugs have been merrily clicking the duo. And B-Town's razor-sharp tongues have begun wagging. Buzz is that he is producing a film for her.

The actress has been spotted with him at Shilpa Shetty's bash. He even accompanied her to Dubai for the New Year celebrations.

They were together at Imran Khan's wedding reception too. Initially many mistook him to be her ex flame Kanav Puri as there is some resemblance.

Interestingly, Kunal is married! Sometimes his wife Shaalu even accompanies him and Ameesha to parties. Says a source, "She has known Kunal for a long time.

But when she was linked with filmmaker Vikram Bhatt and later with London-based Kanav, he did not accompany her to bashes. He remained a close friend. But after her break-ups, she has found a shoulder to lean on.

He has always been around for her and has been a source of immense support especially when she was estranged from her parents (Asha and Amit Patel) and brother (Ashmit Patel). Even after her patch-up with her folks, she is still close to Kunal."

Adds the source, "Years ago, Kunal too had harboured acting aspirations and there was buzz that he was to be launched in a movie. He has been part of Ameesha's circle for almost a decade.

Now that she has had her share of heartbreaks, she has turned to him. It appears that he is besotted with her."

Ameesha however says, "Let the speculation continue. I can't be bothered to clarify being seen by my best friend of nine years because people keep mistaking him for Kanav Puri."

Courtesy: Mid-Day.com

Lara Dutta is now Mrs Mahesh Bhupathi

The details of Lara-Hesh's registered marriage, sangeet and the Victorian style wedding in Goa

By the time you read this, Lara Dutta will be Mrs Mahesh Bhupathi. The actress had a registered marriage with the tennis star in Mumbai today.

It was attended only by his and her family at the groom's Bandra residence.

The actress wore a white outfit from designer Ritu Kumar's Falaknama collection. Later today, the Mr And Mrs will fly down after that to Goa.

Pre-wedding

There will be a sangeet on February 18 at Club Fresh, a newly opened beach resort on Candolim beach. It was chosen by the bride because of she felt it was ideal for her sangeet a blend of Goa and the west.

At the sangeet, she will don a Manav Gangwani sunflower orange lehnga studded with Swarovski crystals, while Mahesh will wear an ivory coloured kurta pajama with a sunflower orange stole. She will also wear a traditional polki jewelry set in gold and uncut diamonds.

The functions have been put together by wedding planners, Dreamz Kraft, run by Priti Sidhwani (sister-in-law of Ritesh Sidhwani, who is also producer of Don 2 featuring Lara).

Priti has also handled other celebrity weddings like Neelam Kothari's and Neha Oberoi's (daughter of Dharam Oberoi).

The shaadi

The following day the couple will have a Christian-style wedding at the Sunset Venue the Taj Aguada. The setting at Lara-Mahesh's wedding and Club Fresh will be very Victorian in keeping with the bride's tastes.

Lara will wear a white Ellie Saab gown with jewellery in white gold and diamonds, while the Tennis star will be seen in a black and white tuxedo designed by an international designer.

Says an insider, "Lara wanted something romantic, chic and intricate. The Sunset Venue is atop a hilltop which overlooks the ocean and it's here that Lara will exchange rings and vows with Mahesh and be blessed by a minister."

Over 200 guests are expected to be present. Among them will be Raveena Tandon Thadani, Priyanka Chopra, David Dhawan, Riteish Deshmukh, Dia Mirza and Sajid Khan.

Lara's Don 2 co-stars Shah Rukh Khan, Farhan Akhtar and Riteish Sidhwani are expected to fly down from Malaysia.

The next day, the newly-weds return to Mumbai where they are hosting another reception.

Courtesy: Mid-Day.com

First Look: Meet Salman's new British girl Hazel


Actor takes Hazel, a British model under his wing

Salman Khan loves to play Godfather to newcomers. He has now taken an actress called Hazel not to be confused with Hazel from Mera Pehla Pehla Pyaar under his wing.

She plays the role of Kareena Kapoor's friend in Atul Agnihotri's Bodyguard.

The star is seen giving her a lot of tips on how to handle her career. She is of course grateful for his time and attention. They are often seen chatting on the set, and they even went for a bike ride.

She's tomboyish

A source informs, "Hazel is a British model and has a very heavy Brit accent. She is full of attitude, just like Sallu. They hit it off well from the word go. She is very tomboyish and rides dirt bikes."

One day after finishing the shoot, the actor decided to bike ride with her from Symbiosis Lavale to their hotel in Pune, Marriott. Hazel was riding the bike and he sat behind her.

Their chemistry is visible even in the pictures.

Atul says, "All I know is that her name is Hazel and her mother is Indian and she has moved to Bombay. She plays one of Kareena's friends in the film and will be seen in the college sequences."

When asked about the bike ride with Salman, he adds, "No, in fact, she doesn't know how to ride a bike. Salman was teaching her. In fact, she banged the bike into the wall."

Fan spends $3,300 to meet SRK

Mehjabeen Erum Alim, of Bangladesh, kept a patient vigil and spent a whopping 10,000 ringgit (about $3,300) over two days to meet Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan along with some other fans in Malacca.

She did realise her dream -- but the actor only smiled, gave autographs, posed for photographs and left, blowing flying kisses. Mehjabeen was told that he does not speak before shooting to stay within the character he is playing.

Khan, who is on a month's schedule to shoot a sequel to his earlier blockbuster "Don", saw the news of Mehjabeen spending big money on her vigil in The Star.

"Fortunately, he spotted us just as he was about to get into the car and agreed to sign autographs," Mehjabeen said, adding that she managed to draw his attention to the story in the daily about her wish to meet him. Khan autographed the news article for her.

"It is an indescribable feeling and I am so happy to have finally met him. I feel like I am in dreamland," Mehjabeen said after meeting Khan Wednesday at a resort in Ayer Keroh town.

Khan met her and seven other fans at the resort just as he was about to enter his car to go to the film location for his latest movie "Don 2".

Mehjabeen, 27, is happy, but not satisfied. She said she would still love to meet him again just to hear his voice.

"It was just a fleeting moment and he didn't say a word but merely nodded and gestured to us as he rarely speaks before filming so as not to come out of the character he is playing," Mehjabeen, pursuing her masters in business administration in Kuala Lumpur, said.

Besides taking home memories of the meeting with Khan, she said she was glad to have made new friends who shared a similar passion for the Bollywood heartthrob.

Immensely popular in Malaysia, Khan was conferred the title of Datuk, akin to knighthood, by the Sultan of Malacca in 2009.

Goa police keeps a check on Dum Maro Dum

Added to the blue sea and green meadows, Goa now has shades of grey. Rohan Sippy may have chosen to show these in Dum Maro Dum, his next film on drugs, sex and the state's underbelly but his journey will be anything but easy.


Sippy was busy gearing up to start the promotions of the film but he was in for a rude shock when Goa police authorities demanded to see the promos and all his publicity material before it went out.

One wouldn't deny that post the Scarlett murder case and the increased number of social conflicts between the Russian mafia and Goan locals, the state's government has been apprehensive about any negative publicity in the media.

As far as Sippy's film is concerned, it is obvious that the police authorities want to perform this prior check to see how Goa has been portrayed in it.

They want to ensure that the portrayal in no way affects the state's tourism. Our source said, "Dum Maro Dum is about the underbelly of Goa and has been entirely shot there.

Abhishek Bachchan plays a cop from Goa police. So, when the actual Goa cops learnt that the film's promotion was underway, they sent a letter to the makers of the film requesting them to show them all theatrical promos and posters.

Natuarlly, they want to make sure the film does not show Goa cops in poor light." The letter was apparently sent to them on Tuesday morning.

According to sources, Sippy doesn't have any qualms in showing them everything, as he does not want any issues in future.

The authorities were very helpful to him during the shooting of the film. However, he would not be able to show them the first look of the film, as it has already gone to be included with the prints of Saat Khoon Maaf, which releases this week.

Post this, Sippy plans to fly down to Goa and show everything to the authorities."

When contacted, Rohan Sippy said, "We have shot our film extensively in Goa. Dum Maro Dum is about the underbelly of the state.

It depicts the nexus of life, sex and drugs. Goa administration has been very supportive and helpful while shooting there and I would not like to comment on anything further."

Asin steps out of 'Housefull 2' for Rajni?

Asin, like Deepika Padukone, may ditch Akshay Kumar for Rajinikanth...

It is common knowledge that Deepika Padukone opted out of the Akshay Kumar-starrer 'Housefull 2' to be a part of Rajinikanth's 'Rana'. Asin, was then cast as the lead heroine opposite Akshay Kumar, but it seems, she will soon follow in Deepika's footsteps. Talks have it that Asin, too, has been approached to be a part of the same film – 'Rana', which is to release in three versions – Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.

Rajinikanth plays a triple role in Rana', and while Deepika will romance one Rajini, Asin, it is being learnt, may romance another. Based on a mega-budget, and co-produced by daughter Soundarya, the makers are leaving no stone unturned to ensure that 'Rana' becomes a larger than life project.

On account of this, the makers of 'Housefull 2' (produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and directed by Sajid Khan) seem to be facing the brunt. Who will romance the third Rajni in 'Rana'? Are the filmmakers just waiting for the 'Housefull 2' crew to announce yet another lead heroine, whom they can approach? Every time Sajid tires to build this 'house', our dear Rajni seems to be bringing it down.

Kelly Brook’s mum defends daughter’s full frontal nudity in X-rated mag

London, Feb 17Kelly Brook’s mother Sandra Parsons has defended her daughter’s decision to undertake full frontal nudity for X-rated French magazine, insisting the pictures are ‘great’.

The model, who has built her career around topless modeling, took the decision to undertake full frontal nudity for Exhibition magazine.

Parsons, 56, says the photographs are great.

“They’ve got the wow factor. I think they are great. Kelly is not shy,” the Daily Mail quoted Parsons as saying.elly posed for 21 images that see her smeared in red lipstick as her naked body lies against a white backdrop. (ANI)

Lahore bans Bollywood for showing vulgarity

The performing arts council in Lahore has decided to ban all song and dance performances based on Indian films because of the presence of "vulgarity" in them and to promote only classical dances in Pakistani theatre.

The decision of the Lahore Arts Council (LAC) has, however, infuriated producers and artistes who believe the council was trying to damage their business, the Express Tribune reported.

The decision was made to facilitate quality theatre, a council spokesperson said.

Chaudhary Zulfiqar Ahmad, chairman of the Commercial Theatre Producers' Association, said: "How many films are made in Pakistan annually? From the handful that are made, how many have songs that we can use in our plays?"

"If we don't have performances on Indian songs, and cannot include any dance performances other than classical dance, then what are we left with," he said.

"Some artistes and producers don't follow certain moral standards when including dance performances in their plays, they should be banned - not the dances."

"Only a limited section of the audience appreciates classical dances, while large numbers of theatregoers have little or no interest in such performances. This ban will have major financial repercussions on commercial theatre," Ahmad said.

Suggesting a remedy to the "vulgarity" in commercial theatre, he said the council should strictly censor the scripts and not impose a ban.

"The script of a play is first approved by the LAC and the Punjab Arts Council and only then it is sent to the home department for clearance. Writers on the panel of the council approve the scripts," he said.

Each submitted script mentions the dance performances included in a play. If the council has objections to any performance, it should censor that, instead of banning all dances featuring Indian songs, he opined.

"As far as Indian songs are concerned, many of them are now sung by Pakistani singers and are popular here. If we can allow them in the form of CDs, DVDs and screen them in our cinemas, why can't we include them in our stage plays," asked another producer on the condition of anonymity.

On the other hand, popular Pakistani artistes like Samina Ahmad and Usman Peerzada are supporting the ban on Bollywood dance performances.

"Quite often, the dance performances in these commercial theatre productions are vulgar. The performances have no theme or relevance. It's better to ban such plays in their entirety instead of allowing them to have dances," Peerzada said.

Emraan ditched Imran signed?

Emraan Hashmi has been ditched by the makers of Once Upon A Time in Mumbai sequel. Akshay will now play the character reportedly inspired by Dawood Ibrahim.

There is also another hero who will be cast and speculation is rife that it could be Ranveer Singh or Imran Khan. Ranbir Kapoor's name is also being taken. But BT knows that Ranbir will not play second fiddle to any actor in the industry. Director Milan Luthria says "Yes, there is another hero to be cast. We have considered a few names but the casting is yet to happen."

Milan is also excited about working with Akshay. The duo had first worked together in Mahesh Bhatt's Angaarey where Milan was AD. Ask him whether there has been a fallout between the director and his earlier Dawood - Emraan Hashmi, and Milan says, "No such thing. Emraan played the young Shoaib. The story jumps forward in the sequel to a point where Shoaib in in his forties, and the character needed someone with Akshay's maturity."

Movie Review: Kaccha Limboo is blessed with pakka performances

Kaccha Limboo is a film where the first half and the second half seem to be two separate stories, almost unconnected with each other. While both the halves have interesting merits of their own, they fail to strike a cohesive chord as a combined whole. This is (literally) a film that works in parts.

The first half will surely spark off sublime school-time memories. From reviving the convent school setting to representing the student psyche, director Sagar Ballary gets the entire grammar of this child-protagonist film correct. From the shuddering thought of getting a remark by teacher in the calendar to the joy of getting an unexpected off from the school, from the standard school picnics to Aarey Milk Colony and Borivali National Park to the curious case of cross pollination (suggestive of procreation) in biology periods – every scene impeccably brings back picture-perfect memoirs of school days.

The first half just trails the life and times of the plump protagonist Shambhu (Taheer Sutarwala), his infatuation with a girl from the neighbouring school, his efforts to be part of a boy's group from his class and his indifferent attitude towards his step-father (Atul Kulkarni).

Things go awfully wrong in the second half as Shambhu gets expelled from school and his cycle is stolen, following which he runs away from home. Thereon the story goes on a tangent as Shambhu befriends a street-smart boy Vitthal (Chinmay Kambli) coming from a fishermen family. Witnessing a world diametrically opposite to his, Shambhu is both puzzled and fascinated. One fine day both Vitthal and Shambhu decide to move to Vitthal's native place which they believe has no restrictions of life. As they set out for a train journey towards their destination, it turns out to be a life-changing experience for Shambhu.

While the viewer can easily identify with the student life in the first half, the second half (which starts on a promising note) turns symbolic towards the end. Vitthal is supposed to be the alter-ego of Shambhu, something that he wants to be. While on one end both these characters are in contrast to each other, on the other end they both have common conflicts of running away from familial frustrations and social stress. The destination, which promises freedom from obligations of life, that both want to reach, is too ideal to exist or achieve. The train-trip symbolizes the journey of self-realization. And the understated moral of the story is not to run away from your problems but to face it.

Unlike Taare Zameen Par, Kaccha Limboo doesn't have an underlying moral tone or a specific social message to convey but is more of a self-realization journey like Nagesh Kukunoor's Rockford. Consequently the first half has an entertaining screenplay while the story initiates only in the second half. At instances, Ballary shows the sensitivity of Gulzar's Kitaab (1977) while getting into the psyche of the young protagonist and showing how the innocent mind comprehends the world around him. The filmmaker thankfully refrains from giving a saccharine-coated shade to the film, a usual tendency with films having child protagonists. The boy-bonding, inter-school rivalry and the temptation towards the next-door girl's school are ably portrayed.

On the downside the writing is marred by clichéd conflicts like parents having no time for their child. Also the film is too long and replete with redundant scenes like a coastal wedding song and those involving the half-baked fishermen-family. Several aspects, from Shambhu's love interest to the boy group he wants to be a part of, remain untouched in the second half implying in a way that aspirations can be trivial and temporary and one gets over them in due course.

Much of the humour in the film comes from the amusing dialogues and natural comic timing of the actors. The school lingo in the lines is brought out meticulously and the language and dialect in the fishermen setting is as much accurate. However, school kids singing verbose song appears too impractical.

Kaccha Limboo is blessed with pakka performances by the baccha company, all of whom are complete natural. Taheer Sutarwala is superb in everything from his comic timing, body language, expressions, informal dialogue delivery and overall act. Chinmay Kambli complements him with an equally confident and powerful performance. Armaan Malik is decent. Atul Kulkarni and Sarika are fine in their extended cameos.

Kaccha Limboo is fun and flavoursome as long as it's raw. But as the plot and the protagonist ripen in this coming-of-age cinema, the film somewhat loses its tangy charm.

Shilpa under threat!

Shilpa Shetty is under serious threat. Two scamsters posing to be associates of the cricket heiress and businesswoman have been going around town telling people that it is they who are running her spa business.

They have even approached people who can be probable clients and tried to dupe them off their money. It is said that these two are only conducting their business via telephone so that they remain unidentifiable.

"There are people who have got calls saying that they needed to pay a certain sum of money to enroll themselves into Shilpa's spa and they were also apparently offering them a discounted price," says an industry informer.

Interestingly, a couple of months back, a couple of people were pulled up for pretending to be Shilpa's associates. This is the second successive imposter alert on Shilpa in two months.

"Shilpa and her partner Kiran Bawa are taking the matter up with the spa association. They feel there is someone out there wanting to malign their reputation," says the B-town source.

When contacted, Shilpa who is in Venice celebrating her Valentine's week with her hubby Raj Kundra conveyed to us that she is very disturbed with this development.

'Munni' too vulgar for National Games

"Munni Badnaam Hui" might be the rage, but not in Jharkhand. Sameera Reddy realised when she reached to perform this song for the 34th National Games in Ranchi.

The organisers of the show found the song to be too bawdy for such a solemn moment. The actress had no option but to perform her own song 'Tere Ishq Se Meetha Kuch Bhi Nahi'.
It was deemed less vulgar by authorities. A source present there said, "Sameera was performing for the ceremony in Ranchi.

She had rehearsed for Munni Badnaam Hui, but when she reached the venue, the organisers did not want her to shake a leg to this particular song.

They told her that it is too not appropriate for this function." Sameera was sporting enough to comply.

Shruti talking of flying high

Shruti Haasan is now learning to fly an aircraft.While she was traveling from Hyderabad to Chennai, Shruti being the closet techno-geek that she is, walked over to the cockpit with due permission from the airline staff and was amazed by all the gadgetry present.

Being able to control such a huge craft hundreds of miles above the earth was quite a high for Shruti and she expressed a desire for learning to fly.

Ajay Devgn fights for Kangna

While it has already been reported that Anushka Shetty will not be doing Singam (allegedly because of non-availability of dates) and that South actress Kajal Aggarwal has stepped into her shoes, what is not known is the drama that transpired behind the scenes between the film's director, Rohit 'Golmaal' Shetty, and his favourite actor, Ajay Devgn, who plays the lead in Singam.

Shetty and Devgn almost had a spat based on the casting of the film. The bone of contention: Mahesh Bhatt's discovery Kangna Ranaut, who has of late become Devgn's favourite.

The success of Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, in which Devgn and Kangna played a couple, has made the actor recommend her to many filmmakers. So after Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, Kangna and Devgn signed Tez and Rascals.


Said a source close to the film, "Post Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, Kangna Ranaut and Devgn share a great rapport.

He has been insisting on Kangna for many of his projects, including David Dhawan's Rascals and Priyadarshan's Tez too."

However, while Dhawan was more understanding of Devgn's preference for Kangna, Shetty would not quite come around to this recommendation, since he had Kareena Kapoor in mind.

Our source said, "Shetty wanted to cast Kareena Kapoor, with whom he has scored two back-to-back hits via Golmaal Returns and Golmaal 3."

Kareena it turns out did not have the dates for the film. And Devgn, despite hectic lobbying, could not convince Shetty about the alternative that was laid out to him, i.e. Kangna.

He was quite clear that even though Devgn is the lead star of the film he cannot dictate casting terms to him, says sources.

The role, according to Shetty, required somebody else, not Devgn's muse. This created significant tension between director and actor.

Eventually Kajal Aggarwal turned out to be the winner in this tug of war, because somewhere along the line Devgn blinked.

Devgn did not revert. When contacted, Rohit said, "We were always looking for a new face, so top actors like Kangna were never in the picture."

Shoebite's a very unique love story: Sarika

Seasoned actress Sarika, who started her career as a child artist in the late 1960s, says in over four decades there has been no marked improvement in the condition of young ones on movie sets and it can still be called "child labour".

"Basic problems are still the same. It is said they have teachers coming on sets and proper time is given for homework, but nothing of that sort happens. It never used to happen then and things are still the same," the 48-year-old, who is a mother of two daughters, told in an interview.

"It's more glamourised now, but it can still be termed as child labour. Children are smarter now and that's why they are easier to work with," said the actress who was seen as a child actor in films like "Aashirwad", "Satyakam", "Jyoti" and "Haar Jeet".

After doing several films as a child artist, she moved on to do romantic roles with "Geet Gaata Chal" and did a variety of roles in "Shriman Shrimati", "Satte Pe Satta" and "Raaj Tilak".

In the late 1980s, she bid adieu to showbiz to start a family with Kamal Haasan, but returned to the silver screen again in the late 1990s. In her second innings she has mostly done offbeat movies like "Tahaan" (2008), "Manorama Six Feet Under" (2007), "Bheja Fry" (2007) and "Parzania (2005), which won her a National Award for the best actress.

Right now the actress is looking forward to the Shoojit Sircar-directed " Shoebite", in which she has teamed up with megastar Amitabh Bachchan.

" 'Shoebite' is a very sensitive love story. I'm really looking forward to that. Shoojit is a very good director. It's very difficult to explain what he is. Very simple, very quiet, yet there is something very different about him," she said.

She raves about Amitabh's dedication and energy levels, saying: "It was a great experience to work with someone who is so punctual. Plus, his dedication and interest level at this stage of his career is amazing and so inspiring."

A very unique love story, "Shoebite" traces the life of John Pereira, a man in his early 60s who sets out on a journey of self-discovery and penance that leads him to rediscover his love for his wife in the fag end of their marriage.

She enjoyed working on the film produced by UTV Motion Pictures.

"One is that you go and shoot and come back, the other thing is that when you feel nurtured while your shoot, this was the feeling this time."

Not just this, Sarika will also be seen in a film by "Bheja Fry" director Sagar Bellary, called "Kaccha Limboo", which will hit the screens Friday.

Also starring Atul Kulkarni and a host of child actors, the film addresses issues pertaining to adolescent children, who have just entered their teens.

"I liked the script very much. I thought I should be part of it because I felt that nobody has touched this space. It was very good for me as an actor to be a part of a film that was dealing with a subject not touched before," said Sarika.

When asked about her criteria for selecting roles, Sarika said: "The criteria are to get an absolutely fabulous role and, secondly, for me it is very interesting to do a film which has some grains of reality because I don't want to do anything that I don't relate to at all.

"I want to be very comfortable in what I'm doing, and such roles you don't get every day; so I'm seen less," she said.

Shahid had to attack a target with his F 16

Air Force Pilots never fly plane to practice, but always have a mission. Shahid too was given a target which he had to attack and a mission he had to achieve.

If it is a girl's eternal dream to live like a romantic movie, it is a boy's wish to live like an action hero! Well, Shahid got to live his dream recently in Bangalore when he flew the F 16 plane.

The F 16 is a sophisticated fighter plane, used in modern warfare, and just to get the opportunity to fly it was big enough. But what took the experience a notch higher was when Shahid was actually given a mission while flying the F 16.

A source associated with Air Force said "F 16 pilots train in a very precise manner. They never just fly the plane to practice, but always fly the plane on a mission." Well, Shahid was no exception to this and he too was given a target which he had to attack and a mission he had to achieve.

When Shahid flew in the F 16, another F 16 took off with him and they were buddy planes, who would assist each other in the mission. It was actually the pilot of this plane, who took aerial shots of Shahid flying the F 16. The mission was an adventurous one which involved a dog fight, ground attacks and even air to air engagement.

Shahid was thrilled to be part of such an elaborate and adrenaline pumping flying experience, which was definitely once in a lifetime opportunity. About this unforgettable experience Shahid says, "To fly an F 16 was an awesome experience. It was thrilling, and to be part of a mission was something I never imagined I would get to do. Bear (Pilot Paul Wendell) was an extremely cool teacher. He let me maneuver the plane and learn on my own."

Shahid is the first actor in the world to fly an F 16 for which he went through rigorous training sessions. He went through a simulator test and various stress tests and blood tests.

Incidentally Shahid plays a pilot in his father Pankaj Kapur's directorial debut Mausam. Sheetal Talwar, producer of Mausam, says, "The Lockheed Martin guys wanted Shahid to have a complete experience of flying a fighter jet. They were extremely co-operative and did their best to make Shahid's experience an invaluable one."

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