Rakhi Sawant to exchange her mother | Video News

'Rang Barse' is my favourite Holi song: Amitabh

Actor Amitabh Bachchan enjoys life in all its splendour and colour....

It's no wonder then that he takes much joy in going 'click' as he crosses the 'Taesu'... He says, "It's a reminder that Holi is around the corner .. the purity of its color drenched in water..."

The Bachchans' Holi celebrations are widely talked about; However, this year, too, the family will refrain from hosting a colourful celebration. "There has been a demise of a loved one close to the family, thus we will not be celebrating," explains Amitabh.

So what are the first thoughts that come to the actor's mind when one utters the word 'Holi': "The beginning of the end of winter; the onset of summer. Then there are the colours, festivities with family and friends, delicacies, music, dance...." trails off Bachchan who has just finished shooting for 'Aarakshan', and embarked upon his next project 'Bbuddah'.

Ask him of his favourite Holi numbers, and he is quick to name 'Rang Barse' and 'Holi Khele Raghuveera'... But there's too much happening in the world: the most unfortunate Japan quake, the World Cup, film shootings... and just as another shot is readied, Amitabh gets up to contribute some colour to the scene.

John-Genelia almost married

John Abraham and Genelia D'souza will be seen together for the first time in Vipul Shah's Force. They almost got married to each other on the sets of this film as well.

The actors were in a wedding sequence and were stopped from completing the saat pheras at the last minute.

Sources say the ceremony conducted was so authentic that had they completed the last round they would have actually been man and wife!

A source said, "We were shooting in Malshej Ghat and there was this old temple where we had got a local maharaj for the wedding sequence.

Unfortunately the pandit has never witnessed a wedding and did not understand the concept of 'cut' and 'action' while shooting. It was a multi-camera set-up and so we needed to have minimum shots.

However whenever Nishikant Kamath would say cut, the pandit would not stop. Finally after the sixth phera someone from the unit realized that the mantras were real and if not stopped John and Genelia would be actually married. So, they were stopped before the final round."

When contacted Vipul Shah said, "Actually it was a funny thing. The local pandit could not understand the dynamics of the shoot and insisted on completing the pheras.

After the sixth phera, everyone burst out laughing as they realized that they would actually be married. John and Genelia then realized this too and burst out laughing.

However the maharaj kept insisting that they complete the pheras and it was difficult to explain to him that we cannot do this.

We also did not want to hurt his sentiments and did not want to be disrespectful towards him. The good part was that the scene came out beautifully as John and Genelia were laughing and smiling, all thanks to the pandit."

Who will give 5 crore to Madhuri?

Madhuri Dixit wants Rs 5 crore for a film... the price commanded by reigning divas Kareena Kapoor, Katrina Kaif and Priyanka Chopra

Antara Mali acted in a film called Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahati Hoon (2003). Now Madhuri seems to be saying Main Kat/Bebo/PC banna chahati hoon. Mads, on the wrong side of 40, has been demanding the same price as the current princesses of B-Town. Her last hit Devdas was eight years ago and let's not forget, it also starred Aishwarya Rai and Shah Rukh Khan.

No doubt Mrs Nene is a huge name even today, she has a huge fan following, also there is a great deal of nostalgia attached to her name, but no filmmaker in his right mind will pay her so much. Another deterrent is that her comeback film Aaja Nachle (2007) had bombed.

It is learnt that the Ek Do Teen girl has quoted the fancy sum to at least four filmmakers who approached her with scripts and is in no mood to negotiate. Her manager Rikku confirms, "Yes, Madhuri has asked for five crores. We feel she is definitely worth the price she is quoting. She is a superstar with an enviable fan following even today. So, why shouldn't she ask for what she deserves? We are sure the filmmakers will gain from the fact that Madhuri Dixit is making a film with them."

However, the industry isn't reacting too kindly. Asks a trade analyst, "Who will give Madhuri five crores now? Though she does have the fan base, she isn't a top actress anymore. She has been out of the industry and the kind of roles she can do are limited. The roles that she has been approached to play are either sister or mother characters, which she is not too keen to play. She should learn from Amitabh Bachchan. A superstar, who still has roles specially written for him, isn't demanding that his pay cheque match that of Aamir, Salman, Akshay or SRK. Madhuri needs a reality check. In case someone has a particular script in which only she fits, perhaps she will get the high price."

Farah’s kids turn Amar, Akbar, Anthony

The festival of colours is here again and this year Holi is extra special for Farah Khan.

The choreographer-turned-director is super happy and excited about Holi this year as her three little kids will be performing at their school.

As part of Holi celebrations, Farah's kids will be presenting a skit at their school's function where the theme is 'Unity In Diversity'. All day on Friday, Farah was busy hunting for the apt costumes for her little ones. We hear that the three kidos will be enacting roles of a Hindu, Muslim and Catholic ala Amar, Akbar, Anthony.

We are sure Farah will be a happy mom as her kids take to the stage to give out such a lovely message.

Speech delivery lessons for Prateik

Prateik Babbar has scope for improvement...

Actor Prateik Babbar has made a mark for himself with some great performance in his latest 'Dhobi Ghaat'. Now, 'Dum Maaro Dum' is around the corner, and we are all set to see if the talented young lad will stand his own in the multi-starrer.

However, Prateik as an actor has a thirst to improve, and ofen does the drill in order to get better and better. We recently learnt that the actor meets up with TV actor Sushil Bounthiyal (of 'Phulwa' fame) and takes speech delivery and voice modulation lessons.

When we called Sushil to confirm this, he hesitantly said, "It's not really formal tutorials. I help some actors out when they come to me. It's a practise for me, too. When Prateik is in Mumbai and I'm in Mumbai we often catch up and sometimes practise for even five hours at a stretch. So we co-ordinate and learn as much as we can as and when we find the time."

It is heard that they even practise different accents and dialects. Like the saying goes, education never stops, eh!

Sohail to direct Partner 2?

After Arbaaz Khan taking charge of Dabangg sequel as a director, now Sohail Khan might direct the Partner sequel.

Recently Salman's brother Arbaaz Khan confirmed that he will be directing the sequel of Dabangg , one of Salman's biggest hits in recent times. And now, if sources in the trade circuit are to be believed, Salman's other brother Sohail Khan might be directing the sequel of another of his biggest hits in recent times – Partner .

Partner 2 has been in news for quite some time. Sanjay Dutt was said to be added to the cast. But if sources are to be believed, the scripts that David Dhawan had got in for the sequel did not interest Salman much. So probably Sohail Khan, who was the producer of the first part (like Arbaaz Khan was for Dabangg ) might take the directorial reins. It seems like Salman Khan is going out of his way to resurrect his brother's careers.

Before turning actor, Sohail Khan was a successful director and had made four films including Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya, Hello Brother, Auzaar and Maine Dil Tujhko Diya .

Katrina won't dance with Salman

Katrina Kaif and Salman Khan were to do a song together in Shirish Kunder's 'Joker'...

'Joker' is being shot in Chandigarh for a while now, and the movie starring Akshay Kumar and Sonakshi Sinha has been in the news constantly. Being directed by Shirish Kunder, there were talks that Katrina Kaif and Salman Khan would be making a special appearance together in this flick. It was touted that they would do a special dance number for it.

With Katrina having been the main lead for Farah Khan's 'Tees Maar Khan' and with her 'Sheila Ki Jawani' number having become a craze, news spread like rapid fire that Shirish and wife Farah were keen that Kat make an appearance in 'Joker'. Also, Farah Khan's close proximity to Salman (they are good friends) is well known. And the potential of Salman being a part of this venture isn't too far-fetched either.

The world now believes that Salman and Katrina will groove to a song together in 'Joker'. However, sources close to the actress say that the above news is just speculation. We are told, "Since Farah is close to both Katrina and Salman, people are assuming that she'll approach the two for a song. Nothing has come forth yet. As of the moment, Katrina isn't dancing with Salman to any number in 'Joker'."

No Bollywood for Bubbles Sabharwal

Post " No One Killed Jessica", Bubbles Sabharwal – who played Mallika, owner of the pub where Jessica was shot dead – has become a known face in the film fraternity as well.

And as she was her usual exuberant self at one of the all-ladies brunches in the city, laughing and chatting away with friends, we asked her if the role has paved way for future Bollywood projects as well. "A few offers for different roles have been coming in, but I really can't take them up. Coz most of the films have outdoor shootings, for which I will have to keep travelling, and I neither want to do that nor shift base to Mumbai. A good portion of "NOKJ" was shot in Delhi, so it was easy. But after that, I am not so keen to work in films day and night," said Bubbles, who recently organized a play in Delhi  

Gul Panag plants smooch

Gul Panag may have shielded her boyfriend of many years from the public eye.

He was her best kept secret and they were never even clicked together in the many years they dated, but now that they are married, she has no qualms about being clicked with him, and even smooching hubby Rishi Attari in public.

Check out this picture. We liked her better when she wasn't indulging in PDA.

Agent Vinod 'Saif' is back in action

Agent Vinod is back on track. All the hiccups pertaining to this Saif Ali Khan Dinesh Vijan film are over.

Recently, it had been rumoured that large chunks of the film had been shot, but there were crucial links missing in the screenplay.

This was causing tension between Saif, who is also the producer of the film, and Sriram Raghavan, its director. The latest is that Sriram Raghavan is very much in charge of the film.

Saif and Kareena start shooting for this film by end of this week. The couple is flying down to Delhi. "We are shooting for the climax in Delhi. Then we have a schedule in London and Russia. Everything has been chalked out.

We had a few issues with Kareena and my dates. I, in particular, got very busy with Aarakshan. But now, we are full-on with Agent Vinod," said Saif.

Issues cropped up between the co-producers Saif Ali Khan and Dinesh Vijan last November and one schedule of the film was cancelled.

Director Raghavan had then told us, "The reason why we aren't shooting in November is because I wanted to concentrate on the exhaustive action sequences."

A source close to the film told Mumbai Mirror yesterday, "Agent Vinod is a hardcore action film and not an easy project to shoot.

A few delays were imminent." Let's hope mission impossible becomes mission incredible.

Ishqiya 2 announced

After the super success of Ishqiya, there have been speculations over a sequel from some time. However this proposed project had failed to take off despite the success of Ishqiya, for which its lead actress Vidya Balan won several awards.

However everything seems to be on track now ands last night at a party the producers of the film, Shemaroo and Vishal Bhardwaj, announced the sequel with the same cast and crew.


Our source said, "Ishqiya was a huge hit and was also critically acclaimed. The producers were very happy and were keen to make a sequel. However the film did not take off for a long time. Everything seems to be on track now and last night the film was announced at a private party at the producer Shemaroo's office.

Arshad and Vidya were present when the film was announced, while Vishal, his wife Rekha, and Abhishek Chaubey were also present. Abhishek has an idea and the script is currently under finalisation. The film will go on the floors in the middle of this year.

The last draft is being written and maybe one or two people might be added. Vidya and Arshad are equally thrilled to do the sequel."

Our source said, "Abhishek was being offered to direct a film from several production houses. He too was in talks and there was a strong buzz that he was going to make a film with John Abraham. But it seems nothing did materialise.

Abhishek took a long break to decide his next film script and what he wanted to direct. Finally after this break, he has decided to direct his debut movie Ishqiya's sequel."

When contacted, Ketan Maroo, the producer of the film, confirmed the news and said, "Yes, we have announced the film. However, I will be in a better position to give you details in a few days."

Kangna agrees to don a bikini!

Kangna finally relents to David Dhawan's demand that she don a bikini. But she too had a clause...

On March 1, we reported that Kangna Ranaut shied away from wearing a bikini for David Dhawan's Rascals.

And this was a volte-face because the actress had agreed to wear it initially and was in fact quite excited about it.

Later she developed cold feet. We also told you in the same story what a big tantrum she threw on a beach in Thailand and stopped the shoot for four hours when the time came to don a two-piece. Post that, she had come down to Mumbai to promote her film Tanu Weds Manu.

Well, now that Tanu Weds Manu has set the cash registers ringing we guess that Kangz doesn't quite mind getting wild. But she does mind getting wet.

So a few days ago, she went back to David Dhawan and agreed to don a bikini, albeit with a clause: Madame Ranaut will wear a two-piece but will not get drenched in the emerald green waters of Thailand. Rascals wanted Kangna to do an Ursula Andress-like entry in the film.

Three guys- Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgn and Arjun Rampal - would be ogling at her as she would step out from the waters.

Now this same routine has been enacted, but only with Kangna dredging herself through sands. Oh, the sands of time!

A close friend of the actress said, "All is well between David Dhawan and Kangna Ranaut now. Both reached a middle ground of sorts with their arguments. So while David got his bikini shot, Kangna too made it clear that she would do it her way."

Kangna and David Dhawan remained unavailable for comment.

Neha knows the art of staying friends with ex

If you need a shiny example on how to stay friends with your ex, after break-up, just look at former lovers Ritwik Bhattacharya and Neha Dhupia.

A friend of the couple tells us that Ritwik and Neha are constantly in touch. They are best friends first and are constantly there for each other for advice, support or company.

They regularly meet up for dinners, and also party together. Looks like this duo really has it down pat. Maybe they should write a book for the lesser mortals out there.

Gul Panag wanted a low key wedding

Gul Panag's wedding on Sunday to her childhood sweetheart Rishi Attari came as a surprise to everyone,except Gul.

"I've known him forever... almost! It was one part of my life that I wanted to keep completely away from public forum, including the internet, because he wanted it that way. He was and remains very uncomfortable with being written about. I have to respect that," she says.

Gul has known Rishi from the age of 14. "He was the headboy in my boarding school. Every girl in the school had a crush on him. I had decided then and there that this was the kind of guy I wanted to marry. At that time I didn't know I'd marry him one day. Besides the fact that he was so good-looking I also had other reasons to bond with him. We are both Sikhs and from army backgrounds."

She has known Rishi closely for 15 years. "It's just that people didn't know about it. We kept our relationship a secret for his sake. He has been my pillar of strength for 15 years now. He encouraged me to get into Bollywood.At one point I wanted to leave and join a business school, he persuaded me to stay back. He gives me unconditional support. He looks out for me, he tells me what to wear when I go out and whether I look good in it. He's the smarter one of us, even he'll agree to that."

A day after the whirlwind wedding Gul sighed, "I haven't had the chance to let it sink in. It has been one crazy chain of festivities. We wanted it to be a small intimate wedding in Ladakh. But heck,it turned to be this big fat Punjabi wedding with his family, my family friends and relatives. And you know what? I'm glad it became so large.We had a ball because I wasn't just the coy dulhan sitting in a corner watching the show. I really participated in my wedding."

Guests, 150 of them, rode to the wedding on motorbikes. "Even my 62-year old aunt rode a bike Both Rishi and I are passionate bike riders. I initiated him into bike-riding. Everyone in my family, including women, are into bikes." Laughs Gul, "We wanted to keep it a secret because Rishi is a very private person. He wanted it to be a totally low-key wedding, and I respected that. Unfortunately people did get to know about it. And we had cameras trailing us... In a way that was good because those mediapersons got such pictures of the wedding that we could have never got."

Gul sees no difference in her life after marriage. "There's no dramatic change in my life. Rishi's business is in Mumbai.So we shall continue to stay in Mumbai. At the moment it's all about pooja, celebrations, family and festivity. It's turned out to be an amazing wedding."

And now for the honeymoon. "Rishi is keeping it a surprise. But I know he knows me well enough to take me where I want to go."

Fans gift skirts to Deepika Padukone | Video News

SRK takes to doodling

The baadshah of Bollywood has been sketching the storyboard for RA.One himself

Shah Rukh Khan is leaving no stone unturned for his forthcoming film RA.One. So much so, that the star himself has started doodling the storyboard for the film along with artist Atul Chouthmal.

Khan insisted that Atul was called back after the director Anubhav Sinha got a new storyboard artist from Hollywood.

When contacted, Atul said, "I had already signed the contract with Red Chillies and had worked on the film.

However, they hired a Hollywood artist who had worked on films like Spiderman. He had a different vision and SRK sir was keen on me as he wanted someone from Mumbai.

He thought that someone from the city would know the roads well.

And all this happened even before I met SRK. I was called at Yash Raj Studios where he met me. He then took me to Filmcity in his car where we discussed the work. He had already doodled many sketches and he was very clear on how he wanted to go about the storyboard.

I used to have creative sessions with him before every schedule and then with Anubhav Sinha. The work has really turned out good."

"We used a Spiderman toy to make everyone understand the shot. More than 50 per cent of the crew were foreigners and the storyboard went a long way in explaining things to them. It was an amazing experience working with SRK.

I made a sketch of him and presented it to him. It is now a part of the wall in Mannat," added Atul who has earlier worked in over 20 Bollywood films including Veer, Krazzy 4, Kites, Love Story 2050, 1.40 Ki Last Local and Being Cyrus.