Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Bhumika, Bharat deny divorce rumours

Tere Naam gal Bhumika Chawla is extremely upset. Ditto for her husband, the power yoga instructor Bharat Thakur.

Talking to Mumbai Mirror, Bhumika thundered, "It started from an event where I was spotted without Bharat. I have been traveling between Mumbai, Dubai and Hyderabad and wherever I go, does it mean that Bharat has to travel with me all the time? First, it was said that he's sleeping with a socialite, then it was said that he has taken my money.

And now the latest rumour is that I am a victim of domestic violence. I have just come back from Dubai and we had a whale of time. Right now, I am in Mumbai, in Juhu with my mother. She has had an angioplasty. My family met with a massive car accident last year. Is coming back to see your parents filing for a divorce?"

Adds Bhumika, "It was also said that I have filed a police complaint in Bihar. Which police station did I file the complaint in?"

Bhumika and Bharat are considered as disparate as the proverbial chalk and cheese; hubby dearest is considered showy and extravagant, while Chawla keeps a rather low profile. "That's right.

But does that imply that we are separating from each other? Yes, he loves to show off. He has arrogance and attitude. Tell me, why do you like Salman bhai, why do people love him? Look at his charisma.That's why he's running for so many years. If Bharat is showing off, good enough, he is showing off his money, na? Let him do it. And yes, I am a simple, quiet person. If in a relationship two people think alike all the time, then one of them is not required."

On Bharat's insistence, Bhumika started a production house, green lighting the firm with a flick called Thakita Thakita which bombed leading to losses worth crores. Argues Bhumika, "Around that time two other big films had also released and they too bombed.

Why don't people talk about that? If I leave my hubby because a film bombs, isn't that the most ridiculous reason?" Rumour has it that Bharat also got her to invest in a Dubai business venture that also bit the dust. "Absolutely untrue," Bhumika retorted. "He chooses to let go.

But a point came when one of us had to speak. I am simple alright but if you push me beyond a point, I'll hit you the hardest. How long can I take it?" Babies? "Yes, hopefully soon. If and when I get pregnant, I hope there are no stories that they are now producing a baby to strengthen their bond. I will have baby because I want to.

Why would you want to bring a baby into this world and then make him/her live in hell? Buzz is that Satish Kaushik and Vikram Bhatt are planning to make a film with her. "I have no idea.

But as for this, I am genuinely happy. If it's a good script I'll do it and rock."

Wave of women centric Bollywood movies a welcome trend

New Delhi, March 7 – “No One Killed Jessica”, “Mirch”, “Turning 30″ and “7 Khoon Maaf” – all women-centric films in the last few months show the female leads in strong and powerful roles. Filmmakers and actors hope this trend continues in future.
 
On the silver screen women are usually seen as a helpless mother, submissive wife, devoted girlfriend, overcaring sister, daughter or a vamp, but directors like Vishal Bharadwaj and Alankrita Shrivastava are trying to break the mould and present women in a more realistic, vibrant and unconventional way.

One-film-old Rajkumar Gupta’s “No One Killed Jessica” was an attempt to bring alive the struggle of Sabrina Lall’s fight with the Indian judiciary for years to get justice for her murdered sister.

Starring Vidya Balan and Rani Mukerji, the movie created a buzz as it was inspired by the 1999 murder of model Jessica Lall and the director was never apprehensive that his film won’t do well without a strong male character.

“The protagonists in my movie were two leading ladies who were very powerful in whatever they did. It’s not easy to make a film on such a theme, but times are changing and people are accepting it with open arms,” Gupta told IANS.

Director Vinay Shukla, best known for his 1999, multiple National Award-winning project “Godmother”, is confident there will be more successful women-centric films in the years to come.

“At the moment, the number of women-centric movies is less, but it will grow with time because actresses nowadays have got huge potential to run a movie on their shoulders much like their male counterparts,” said Shukla, whose latest film “Mirch” dealt with four stories of women’s emancipation.

Other movies that gave importance to women character is Bharadwaj’s “7 Khoon Maaf”, inspired by Ruskin Bond’s short story “Susanna’s Seven Husbands”, which saw Priyanka Chopra bumping off her seven husbands, while debutant Alankrita Shrivastava’s “Turning 30″ was a take on the dilemma of women at the milestone age.

Talking about her experience of working as the leading lady in “Turning 30″, actress Gul Panag said: “‘Turning 30′ was all about a woman’s perspective and being a woman, I loved shooting every part of the movie as it was an honest attempt. We gave it our best and I am proud of the movie.”

Earlier too, films like “Dor” (2006), “Silsilay” (2005), “Tehzeeb” (2003), “Pinjar” (2003), “Chameli” (2003), “Satta” (2003), “Filhaal” (2002), “Zubeidaa” (2001) “Lajja” (2001), “Chandni Bar” (2001) and “Fiza” (2000) brought the woman into the spotlight – all these films got critical acclaim, but they didn’t turn out to be a commercial hit.

Shukla pointed out: “It’s not that the trend of women playing the main character has come into practice now. It has been happening for quite long. From Meena Kumari in ‘Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam’, Nargis in ‘Mother India’, Nutan in ‘Bandini’ to Hema Malini in ‘Seeta aur Geeta’ and Meenakshi Seshadri in ‘Damini’, these ladies always managed to make an impression on the audience.”

“The number of such movies has in fact decreased in today’s time but the reason could be that women-centric movies are distinctive and appeals only to a specific audience,” he added.
Veteran actress and censor board chief Sharmila Tagore said: “I feel more women-centric films will come with time. But we shouldn’t complain because it’s the same the world over – it is indeed, the male characters that are in prominence even in Hollywood. So we shouldn’t fuss.”

The 64-year-old, who has been in the industry for over five decades, feels “No One Killed Jessica” is the only woman-centric movie to have worked at the box office.

“Only one women-centric film has sort of worked – ‘No One Killed Jessica’; so one shouldn’t get too excited about the phenomenon. ‘No One Killed Jessica’ was a hugely publicised film because of the actual happening, which had affected so many people. The news about Jessica (Lall) was in the front page of dailies for very long, people were so involved, so the film had a lot of publicity value in a commercial way. So, it was one success,” Sharmila explained.

Meanwhile acclaimed actress Rani Mukerji says she is looking forward to more projects where women are projected as strong and powerful.

“Whatever films I have been a part of so far, most of them have been women-centric films. I wish to do more such films where women are shown stronger because it is a fact that women are stronger,” she said.

By Nivedita Sharma

Kate Winslet finds single status ‘empowering’

London, March 8 – Actress Kate Winslet has spoken for the first time about her split from Sam Mendes, calling her single status ‘empowering’ and insisting she is not ‘lonely’. 

‘It’s an empowering thing… Experiencing those moments of being alone… is a very, very weird flooring and exposing position to be in when you’re just not used to it. And it’s not just being in a relationship. It’s also the fact that I grew up in a family full of people. I’ve never been lonely. And with (kids) Mia and Joe that remains the case,’ contactmusic.com quoted her as saying.

‘But to be in this place now where I can say I really like this space. I really need to not have anyone around. It’s a surprise to discover that I like being on my own,’ she added.

The ‘Titanic’ star announced the end of her relationship with the filmmaker, her second husband, last year after nearly seven years of wedlock.

Winslet was previously married to Jim Threapleton, her daughter Mia’s dad, but they divorced in 2001. 

IANS

Salman’s Being Human to help create bone marrow registry

being humanMumbai, March 6 – Bollywood star Salman Khan’s charitable organisation Being Human has teamed up with Marrow Donor Registry India (MDRI) to create a world-class registry of marrow donors in India.

However, for the registry to be functional, more than one lakh donors need to be registered. People from the age group of 18-50 years are eligible for donor recruitment.

Both the organisations are reaching out to younger generation by working with colleges to create awareness of the need for a world-class registry in India for patients who have blood-related illnesses like leukemia, thalessemia, aplastic anemia and congenital immunodeficiency states.

One of the first colleges to participate in this initiative is K.J. Somaiya Institute of Engineering and IT, Sion, who conducted a marrow donation drive on their college premises along with ‘Marrowthon’ – a 6 k.m. run showing support for the cause.

‘We are glad K.J. Somaiya has come forward. We hope that this will pave the way for more colleges and their students to come forth and register with MDRI and thus make their contribution towards saving many more lives,’ said MDRI spokesperson.

-*-

Sunidhi Chauhan loves photography

Sunidhi Chauhan’s love for music is well known, but not many are aware that the singer has another passion – photography.

The 27-year-old is completely crazy about taking pictures wherever she goes. She is so dedicated and serious about photography that on a recent trip to Dubai for a concert, she even spent around Rs.2 lakhs on a high end SLR camera.

If sources are to be believed, the singer is in talks for a book deal to publish her photographs.

IANS

Amitabh Bachchan shoots for Bbuddah – Hoga terra baap!

Mumbai, March 7 – Megastar Amitabh Bachchan Monday started the shoot for his next home production, which has been finally titled “Bbuddah – Hoga Terra Baap”, being helmed by southern director Puri Jagannath.
 
“It’s official now. The title of the next AB Corp production will be spelt “BBUDDAH”, with the tag line…’hoga terra baap!’ (sic),” Amitabh posted on his blog www.bigb.bigadda.com.

The actor was busy shooting for Prakash Jha’s “Aarakshan” in Bhopal before he came to Mumbai for the first day shoot of his new film.

At one point, it was believed the subject of the film was Buddhist saint Gautam Buddha, as it was earlier titled just “Buddha”. So, the film has a special tagline now.

“Just making sure it does not mingle with Gautam Buddha, the saint… Will have more details on it once I join them… but a few thoughts in prayer and wish for the film would be most appreciated,” Big B posted Sunday night.

The funky title is already grabbing eyeballs.

“‘Bbuddah – Hoga Tera Baap!’! How cool is that title! 1st day of AB Corps new film… BBUDDAH – hoga Tera baap!!! Starring THE MAN @SrBachchan. He’s back and he’s angry!!!,” posted Abhishek Bachchan.

Shekhar Ravijani of music composer duo Vishal-Shekhar tweeted: “One of the coolest titles ever. Bbuddah- hoga Tera baap starring @SrBachchan.” 

AB Corp’s last Hindi outing was “Paa”, which won many awards and critical acclaim for its unique theme and the performances by Big B as a progeria patient, Viday Balan as his mother and Abhishek as his politician father. 

IANS

Preity Zinta hits back at Media

Mumbai, March 7 -  Preity Zinta, is one such bold and daring film stars of Bollywood, who never loses courage, to voice her honest opinions on issues. Even if her opinions, breed controversies, Preity never dreads about such situation and manages it well. A few days back, when Preity went to visit Shirdi, she had to come back hurriedly, instead of peacefully praying due to media’s interference. Obviously, she did not expect so much rush and “commercialisation” of the pilgrim town, where celebs who visit the shrine to pray, are bothered by media.
 
She was very upset with media, and even tweeted about it. We hear about cat fights between Bollywood actresses, but Preity seems to opt out for a different kind of tiff. She is disturbed by media, who makes big fuss. But, being an actress herself, and working in front of the camera for several years, why Preity does not enjoy media attention, is a question.

On that particular day, after returning from Shirdi, Preity tweeted that she cannot understand why is media entertained in the pilgrim town, where people go to pray, and get blessings from God! A temple trustee wanted to take a photograph with her, and all this resulted in a ruckus. Instead of praying in front of Sai Baba, Preity had to deal with media.

She added that, not all celebs go to shrines to seek media attention, some really go for praying. And to disturb anyone while they pray, even if he or she is a film star, is what Preity calls ‘Bad Karma’.

Jackky Bhagnani, Pooja Gupta romance not a publicity gimmick!

Pooja GuptaMumbai, March 7 – Jackky Bhagnani has a soft corner for his “F.A.L.T.U” co-star Pooja Gupta and says it is not a publicity gimmick to promote their forthcoming film, but refuses to talk about their future plans.

“Let’s just say Pooja and I are very close friends. Beyond that I leave it you to draw your own conclusions,” said the young actor who debuted with 2009 movie “Kal Kissne Dekha”.

When probed further, he said: “At first Pooja and I were at loggerheads. She thought I had an attitude because I was the producer’s spoilt son. I thought she had an attitude because she was Miss India and all that. As shooting progressed in Mauritius we came close… We partied really hard together. We realised we were not the persons we thought each other to be.

Releasing April 1, “F.A.L.T.U” is choreographer Remo D’Souza’s first Hindi directorial venture. Jackky’s father Vashu Bhagnani has produced it under the banner Puja Entertainment (India) Ltd.
When asked if his friendship with the former Miss India is a gimmick to promote their new film, Jackky replied: “Not at all. I don’t even want to discuss Pooja. When have you last seen a film do well just because the lead pair is linked together?”

Asked about the future of their relationship, he said: “We are both young and starting out in our careers. Who can predict what will happen tomorrow?”

A friend of Jackky said that the two are definitely seeing one another. “It started as a hate-hate relationship, like in those corny movies and then grew into a very tender relationship when they were shooting in Mauritius. Initially, all the four youngsters who were shooting in Mauritus were a wild group. Then it came to a stage where the two of them would steal away from the group for stolen moments of togetherness.”

The friend added that there was a sequence where the four youngsters had to jump off this massive waterfall in Mauritius and Jackky put his foot down. “He wouldn’t let Pooja do that steep plunge. He even had a heated argument with his director Remo Fernandez about the scene. It was the only time they ever argued. That’s when we got to know for sure that Jackky and Pooja are a twosome,” said the friend.

“F.A.L.T.U” is about a group of friends who are considered a total waste. However, a turn in their life leads them to such a situation where fates of many more like them come in their hands.

Talking about the waterfall scene, Jackky said: “About the waterfall scene, it’s one of the steepest waterfalls in the world. Mr (Amitabh) Bachchan and others have jumped down from it, but with a harness. We boys decided to take the plunge without harnesses. How could Pooja do that?”

Bollywood has massive audience in world: Apache Indian

Apache IndianMumbai, March 8 – Indian origin reggae artist Steven Kapur, popularly known as Apache Indian, says Bollywood has massive popularity in Britain and the rest of the world which is why he wants to learn Hindi and work in movies.

He says he has collaborated with many Indian artists on music, but his ultimate aim is to act in a Bollywood film.

‘I have collaborated with A.R. Rahman, Harbhajan Mann and Pritam in the past, but what I would really like to do is to learn Hindi and act in movies. I have done a movie with Bappi Lahiri called ‘Love Story’, which has not been released yet. India has a great culture, but you have to spend time here and cannot do things from the UK,’ the 43-year-old told IANS in an interview.

‘Bollywood has become very popular around the world. There is a massive audience in the UK, not just Indians who love to listen to Bollywood music. The growth and change have been absolutely phenomenal over the years. The maximum change has been noticed in the past seven years where Bollywood has reached out to a global audience beyond just Indians,’ he added.

The singer is here to promote his new album ‘Musical Freedom’ and had a sneak preview of the new album on Radio City 91.1 FM.

‘I am in India for my tour. I will be touring around four cities in India. This is a warm-up tour for the new album coming out later in the year and getting together my live band. I am here to promote the same,’ said the singer who gave albums like ‘No Reservations’, ‘Make Way For The Indian’ and ‘Real People/ Wild East’.

He believes this is the right time for him to return to India.

‘I have been busy with different territories, travelling in different parts of the world. It’s not true that I haven’t been to India, but I have been to India in bits and pieces. Everything comes at a right time and this is the right time, I believe,’ said Apache whose last album titled ‘Sadhu – The Movement’ came in 2007.

After witnessing unexpected success, Apache slowed down and toured the world to enrich himself.

‘I believe in my career everything happened too suddenly. I had way too many hits in a span of three years and I have been able to draw massive crowds for my performances. Sometimes you have to take one step backward to take two steps forward.

‘I always thought that I got success too soon and no experience with it. Hence I wanted to go around the world and get some experience, play with my band, get into the industry and know the industry better. Now that I have done all that, I am coming back with new albums and new songs for the audience,’ he added.

His new album will hit the shelves in October this year.

Talking about Indian music, he said: ‘The music industry in India has gone through a massive change. In the 1990s, a lot of international music was played across channels. The next phase comprised only Bollywood.

‘Again now a whole new culture has come in with rock, hip hop, reggae becoming popular. A lot of experimentation is happening with fusion, etc., as well. It is really good for India and I am extremely excited about it.’

(Ruchika Kher can be contacted at ruchika.k@ians.in)

IANS

‘Transformer 2′ was crap: Michael Bay

London, March 8 – Filmmaker Michael Bay has accepted his ‘Transformers’ sequel was ‘crap’. 

‘We made some mistakes… When I look back at it, that was c**p. The writers’ strike was coming hard and fast. It was just terrible to do a movie where you’ve got to have a story in three weeks,’ dailystar.co.uk quoted him as saying.

The film’s star Shia LaBeouf has agreed with his director’s comments and said, ‘We got lost. We tried to get bigger. It’s what happens to sequels. It’s like, how do you top the first one? You’ve got to go bigger.’

‘Mike went so big that it became too big, and I think you lost the anchor of the movie… You lost a bit of the relationships. Unless you have those relationships, then the movie doesn’t matter. Then it’s just a bunch of robots fighting each other.’

Bay is back in the director’s chair with the third ‘Transformers’ film, ‘Dark of the Moon’ and insists that this would be a must watch film.

One night stand offered to Mink Singh with a pay of few lakhs

Mink SinghPune, March 7 - The term ‘Casting couch’ is linked with the film industry for a long time, which means the young aspirants especially female, who aspires to be a heroine, are sexually exploited in lieu of roles in movies. But its existence has been denied by many directors and producers. Also, the film Industry is heard to have connections with flesh trade, and several South Indian film heroines are alleged to be involved in prostitution. 

Mink Singh has affirmed the news that in fact many heroines are involved in one night stands and prostitutions, which offers them more money in a single night, than they can earn by doing a film. A pimp contacted Mink few days back, and at first he said that she will be given 10 lakhs for a saree advertisement if she agrees to model for the saree brand. Later, he called her again on March 1st, when he revealed that she needs to spend time with a customer for few hours in a five star hotel. On being cross questioned by Mink, he even revealed that many other heroines are involved in this racket, and business men, politicians pay them large amount of money, to spend the night together. And this offer, could let Mink get even up to 15 lakhs, per night. 

Mink turned the offer down, but still the man keeps on calling her several times.

I can bring more professionalism to Bollywood: Sofia Hayat

Sofia HayatMumbai, March 8 – Sofia Hayat, a Britain-based singer-actor of Pakistani origin, rues the lack of professionalism in the Indian film industry, alleging some producers were unpleasant to her. India can churn out many hits like ‘Slumdog Millionaire’, says she, provided directors up the quality of their work.

‘I can bring more professionalism to the table. You need to be the character and can’t pretend to be one. When I act, I am not pretending, I have the tool. You can’t say I am an actor when you don’t have any tool. 

You can learn. I learnt for six years through different courses in universities in England. We can bring more professionalism, more colour,’ Sofia, 26, told IANS in an exclusive interview.

She says Bollywood producers wanted to get personal before signing her up for any project, unlike in Britain or the US.

‘I find sex is like a commodity you just trade here. If you need it, why don’t you hire a prostitute?’ asked Sofia who is here to shoot for ‘Diary Of A Butterfly’ directed by Vinod Mukhi.

Back home, Sofia worked in both television serials and movies. She featured in the BBC’s ‘Waterloo Road’ and ‘Jonathan Creek’ and had a role in the BAFTA winning series ‘Fur TV’ that came on MTV.

Her movie stint includes ‘The Unforgettable’, where she had a role opposite Raji James, ‘Exitz’ that also stars Malcolm Mcdowell and Stephen Billington, as well as ‘Cash and Curry’, which sees her as the gun-toting wife of a gangster.

Sofia, who was kidnapped by her parents at knife point when she was in university, has scripted a film called ‘Dishonoured’, about the trials and tribulations of Asians in Britain. She says it is inspired by her own life. The film will go on the floors by the end of this year and major parts of the movie will be filmed in India.

Though she came here to do some good movies, she believes the craft of acting is not important here.

‘I am not making films for money. I have made huge money in Britain. I am here to do some good films, but it is like a factory here. They ignore the craft of acting. If you pay heed to the craft, they would be appreciated in Britain and America,’ she said.

She feels if the filmmakers here won’t pull up their socks and show professionalism, foreign producers won’t engage them in their projects as directors.

‘I fear producers would come here and make films, using your lighting guys, your editors, but not your directors. Directors from Britain and the US would involve a high level of money, but they would bring some professionalism with them,’ said the actress.

‘People say ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ put India on the global map. Sorry, it’s Danny Boyle who put India on the global map. He is a British guy. You can have millions of films like ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ if producers and directors put that level of professionalism to the table,’ added the actress.
Another problem that Sofia complains about is that the entire script is not disclosed to an artist until one signs on the dotted line.
‘The problem in India is they don’t show you the whole script. Recently, I signed one film looking at my character, but when I read the whole script (I decided) to cancel it,’ she said.

‘I don’t want to do a film where people would exclaim ‘wow! She looks good’. Rather, would love to do films where people would say ‘wow! She can act’. That’s why I didn’t do the role though it was the lead role,’ she said.

(Dibyojyoti Baksi can be contacted at dibyojyoti.b@ians.in)

IANS

Emma Watson postpones studies for acting

London, March 8 – Actress Emma Watson has postponed her studies to focus on acting. 

Contactmusic.com reports that Watson had enrolled herself into prestigious Brown University to study literature, but has put this on hold to concentrate on acting projects.

‘As you know, I love Brown and I love studying pretty much more than anything but recently I’ve had so much to juggle that being a student AND fulfilling my other commitments has become a little impossible,’ Watson wrote on her website.

‘I’ve decided to take a bit of time off to completely finish my work on Harry Potter (the last one comes out this summer) and to focus on my other professional and acting projects,’ she added.

‘I will still be working towards my degree…it’s just going to take me a semester or two longer than I thought,’ she wrote.

Katrina Kaif not part of any other IPL team

Mumbai, March 7 – Shooting down rumours that she will join Kochi Indian Premier League (IPL) or Pune Warriors as its brand ambassador, Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif’s spokesperson revealed that she is not connected to IPL in any way this year around.
 
After the 26-year-old stepped down as the brand ambassador of IPL Royal Challengers Bangalore team, it was speculated that she might join Kochi IPL team or the Pune Warriors.
“These reports are untrue and Katrina is not part of any Indian Premier League (IPL) team this year,” said Katrina’s official spokesperson in a statement. 

“She is not a part of this 2011 IPL season nor were there any talks on her being Brand Ambassador for any team. The reports doing the rounds are absolutely baseless and untrue. 
She will be shooting for Yash Raj Film’s ‘Mere Brother Ki Dulhan’, which is why she opted out of the Bangalore team (Bangalore Royal Challengers),” added the spokesperson.

Bollywood’s ‘Baabul’ story comes alive in Nepal

Kathmandu, March 8 – As Nepal celebrated International Women’s Day Tuesday with colourful marches and public programmes, there were indications that the winds of change were indeed blowing through the conservative Himalayan nation and traditional glass ceilings were beginning to develop cracks. 

The news of a young woman’s remarriage 18 months after being widowed, made it to the front page of Nepal’s national dailies, showing how people’s attitude were changing towards widows, who were earlier regarded as ill-omened and barred from attending other people’s weddings.

The tale of Sanju Aryal’s marriage revived memories of ‘Baabul’, the path-breaking film made in 2006 by Bollywood director Ravi Chopra on the sensitive issue of remarriage of widows.

Just as in the film it was the young widow’s father-in-law who took the initiative to get her married again, it was Sanju’s in-laws who arranged a match for her after her husband, Prakash Wagle, died of blood cancer in 2009, only six months after the wedding.

‘It grieved us to see how sad and lonely she was,’ Maheshwar Wagle, uncle of Prakash, told the Nagarik daily. ‘We hope the marriage will bring her happiness.’

As both Prakash’s parents her dead, his uncle and aunt and the rest of the family sought a groom for Sanju and found him in Yadav Lamichhane, a young man from the same town as Sanju whom she knew from her childhood days.

On Monday, the wedding, conducted as per Hindu rituals, was held in Simra town on the Indo-Nepal border.

The bride wore red, a colour that was taboo for widows in Nepal in the past, along with ornaments.
Maheshwar, who gave her away, said he was giving her into marriage not as his daughter-in-law but as his daughter.

The daily said both Sanju and Lamichhane’s families had agreed to the marriage. Even the Hindu priest who officiated at the wedding said it was the first remarriage he had performed in 30 years and he was overjoyed.

(Sudeshna Sarkar can be contacted at sudeshna.s@ians.in) 

IANS

Kajol seen with her son Yug and her daughter Nysa

Mumbai, March 7 -  Real life jodi of Kajol and Ajay Devgan is one of the perfect couples of B-Town. They dated each other for a few years, and then got married. There were no controversies or rumours heard about their love life. After both of them got married, the industry predicted that Kajol won’t ever be seen onscreen again, because Bollywood is not warm towards married heroines, who generally can’t deliver a hit after marriage. Kajol’s unwillingness to face camera even for interviews after marriage, instigated the thought that she has ended her filmi careers and wont be seen again onscreen.
 
But, mother of two, knows to handle her career as well as her family together. She has delivered hits like “Fanaa”, “Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham”, “My Name Is Khan” after her marriage. In September 2010, Kajol gave birth to a baby boy Yug. She was shooting for Karan Johar’s film “We are family” when it was heard that she got pregnant for the second time.

Nysa, Kajol-Ajay’s first child is 9 years old. Recently, Devgan family was seen together with their newest member Yug, in Mumbai Airport on Wednesday night, after they returned from Bangkok trip. The little baby boy was in Kajol’s arms while Nysa walked holding her father’s hands.

The Devgans are perfectly happy family!

Rakhi Sawant ends enmity with Mika

I'm shifting base to LA: Udita Goswami

Actor Udita Goswami speaks to TOI about her Hollywood experience, moving bag and baggage to Los Angeles, Mohit Suri and much more. 

Now that you are back from Los Angels, tell us how was the experience?
It's been two days since I'm in India and trust me I already want to go back there. I had a wonderful time.

So was the trip productive in anyway?
Absolutely. I was supposed to be there for 21 days but I ended up staying for two months. I had a lot of work lined up for me in India. But when I was invited to the Oscar week festivities, which is a big deal there, I decided to stay on. Honestly, I thought it was once in a lifetime chance and I shouldn't miss it. Thanks to my stay there, I met a lot of people from Hollywood, hired a manager, publicist and lawyer. So it was extremely productive.

Buzz has it that you have become very pally with actor Gerard Butler, who was rumored to be dating Priyanka Chopra?
Why just Gerard? I've made friends with a lot of folks from Hollywood. I'm in touch with them constantly. I discovered that they are a lot sweeter and simpler than many of our B-Town people. Plus, I'm not into the name dropping game. You don't go to a private party and micro-blog your pictures from there — with Gerard or any other celeb. It's cheap and tacky.

So are you planning to shift base now?
Yes. I have plans of going back there in August or September. I have done my groundwork. I've looked at places I could shift to and plan to take driving lessons. My secretary here almost wanted to kill me when I was delaying my return to Mumbai because I was having so much fun there. The only reason that I'm back in India is to work on my American accent.

Considering most of our top actors have failed to make a splash in Hollywood films, why are you willing to take such a risk?
For someone like me, who hardly does any work here, I think it's a good idea to move to LA. The thing that works for me there is that I don't look Indian. Here, this was my biggest disadvantage because my looks didn't fall in the Vidya, Rani, and Konkona bracket. The kind of roles that I have been offered in Hollywood is of the exotic variety. I could pass off as a Spanish woman, according to them. Plus, there aren't many Indian roles happening in English movies. Since I don't have the typical 'Indian beauty' look and don't have much work here, I don't see the reason why I shouldn't move there.

Back home, reportedly your ex Mohit Suri and Vishal Mahadkar came to blows over you. Mohit has blamed Vishal for his split with you.
It's very strange. I just got back two days ago and here I am reading about this in the papers. It is interesting to know that two men are fighting over me. But let anyone fight, I don't care anymore.

Kat vs Ash: Battle of Sallu's exes

Marilyn Monroe very candidly said, "I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. 

But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best." Well, we wonder which of our Bollywood heroines Aishwarya Rai Bachchan or Katrina Kaif, Sallu's most talked about exes, will be able to epitomize the character of this controversial Hollywood star, who has inspired Madhur Bhandarkar's most ambitious directorial venture, Heroine.

Not so long ago, the industry was abuzz with rumours that UTV, which is co-producing the film with Bhandarkar, was keen on Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to play the lead role. However, for a dash of competition, the producers have decided to include Sallu's other ex, Katrina Kaif, as an option for the lead.

Our source tells us, "Heroine is now a toss-up between Aishwarya and Katrina. The film will go on floors as soon as either of them is finalized. The rest of the cast is not going to be too difficult to put together."

However, before Sallu's exes stood a chance for the role, Bhandarkar had decided to shelve the film altogether as his first choice, Kareena Kapoor, had backed out.

We broke the story on September 13, 2010 that Kapoor opted out of the film because she felt that certain portions of the film reflected her real life. Also, if sources are to be believed, she was apprehensive about doing the intimate scenes in the film.

Our source confirmed Bhandarkar's previous decision to shelve Heroine, saying, "Yes, he had put it off. In fact, he was very, very disappointed that Kareena could not come to terms with the role."

Now that Heroine is back on track, the source adds, "Everything is okay. Both Aishwarya and Katrina are fine actresses. Both can do ample justice to the role, which requires a lot of style and character as well.

Bhandarkar and UTV took a joint decision to  revive the project and short-list Aishwarya and Katrina as the options for the lead role. The decision was taken as the film's script is extremely hard-hitting and such a story is just waiting to be told."

A source close to Bhandarkar says, "After the moderate success of Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji, he is considering venturing into other genres like comedy and action as well. He is also keen to revive Heroine with UTV but he is yet to give them a green signal."

Kareena Kapoor reveals that Saif likes her in a bikini

Mar 7, Mumbai: Trendsetter of size zero in India, Kareena Kapoor, has got a figure to die for. In “Tashan” and “Kambakkht Ishq”, she donned bikini and flaunted her bikini-perfect body. Her vital stats, is a hot topic of discussion among the youngsters, after she whittled herself down to nearly a skeletal frame. But, now she is putting on weight (only at the right places), and has achieved a curvy voluptuous body.
 
When interviewed Bebo said, her beau Saif Ali Khan, loves to see her in bikini, and with makeup. He does not like to see her plain and simple. But, Bebo has decided that she wont be wearing bikini onscreen, because she flaunted her assets a lot in the previous movies, and now that she is getting curvy again, does not want to attain a size zero figure, which is difficult to maintain.

Even though, Saif does not mind her wearing bikinis onscreen, she has made up her mind to opt for less show off. However, she will be seen in a hot avatar, in the flick “Ra. One”; giving audience a glimpse of her cleavage and thighs.

Audience likes this curvy Bebo, and despite Bebo’s NO to bikinis, viewers won’t be less thrilled to see the sexy voluptuous lady onscreen.

Parineeti and Raghav Marriage: Pari and Raghav are about to tie the knot, wedding date revealed

Parineeti and Raghav Marriage: The relationship between Hindi cinema's cutie point Parineeti Chopra and politics' macho man Raghav ...