Housefull 2 is full of heroism

In a return to the herogiri of the 1970s and the ’80s, Sajid Khan’s Housefull 2 will have four actors —Akshay Kumar, John Abraham, Riteish Deshmukh and Shreyas Talpade — taking on 40 goons in an action sequences that the director promises is one of the USPs of the much-anticipated sequel.

“The actors I grew up watching—Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra and Vinod Khanna—were heroes in the true sense and you didn’t question the irrationality of them taking on an army of villains. Since retro is in, I thought why not rewind to those glory days when heroism wasn’t simply about fighting but fighting the odds,” reasons Sajid.

He insists he has designed every kick and punch himself and roped in the action director of Rambo, Kawee Sirikhanaerut better known as Seng Kawee, as his associate action director to execute his vision.

“The action in my film has no shades of Rambo. Why should it? It’s not a boxer’s story. But you will get to see some amazing hand-to-hand combats, Akshay picking up and throwing John bodily and he responding with a counter-punch that broke my camera,” Sajid laughs. “And all this without cables and CGI (Computer Generated Imagery).”

He has an ally in Akshay whom he rates as one of the best action stars in Bollywood today, always ready for any kind of daredevilry. “Akshay has done so many fights in the last two decades that he knows where to place the camera, what safety norms to practise and how to cheat the viewer if the need arises. He’d make a superb action director. When Akshay is on the set you can happily take the backseat,” smiles Sajid who shot one action sequence over four days and four locations in Thailand, from a dense forest to the top of a mountain and under a waterfall.

“I’ve always had a passion for action and now when I’ve got the chance, I’m going ballstic”, he added.

By Hindustantime

Kate Middleton given labrador puppy for her 30th birthday by Prince William

Prince William is believed to have bought his wife a puppy for her 30th birthday last week.

The Duchess of Cambridge has been spotted out and about with a black Labrador near the Anglesey cottage she shares with the RAF rescue pilot.

“The dog is ever so cute,” said a source. “The Duke and Duchess have been seen with it several times and he runs along at their heels.

“They are constantly in fits of laughter as it tries to catch them up.”

It is thought that the puppy will travel with them between their homes in North Wales and London.

Both the Duke and Duchess are well known lovers of animals. Prince William had a black Labrador called Widgeon when he was a youngster.

A spokesman for the Duke and Duchess declined to comment yesterday.

Earlier this week. an official list of gifts given the royal couple on their first foreign trip to Canada and the US last summer was released.

A sleeping bag, snow goggles, a papier-mâché doll and a jar of Vegemite were just some of the unusual gifts given to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge last year.

The newlyweds also returned home with mosquito traps, cowboy hats, hockey jerseys, stuffed toys, wine coasters and bread board among the hoard of gifts.

Kate seemed to win in the popularity stakes, receiving more gifts from members of the public than her husband.

Angelina Jolie as singing nun

A series of home videos have emerged on the Internet which show a pre-teen Angelina Jolie belting out tunes while dressed in bizarre fancy dresses. In one of the videos, posted on celebrity web site snakkle.com, Jolie sings Frank Sinatra’s New York, New York, while wearing a nun’s habit.

She is then seen wearing some giant ears to sing along to Ben E King’s Stand By Me with some of her friends.

The Mr And Mrs Smith actor was also filmed singing along to Purple Rain by Prince, the Daily Mail reported.

The home videos were shot when Jolie attended a friend’s birthday party in 1987.

And while singing may not be her forte, Angelina has recently proved she has more talents than acting alone.

The Mr & Mrs Smith star has just written and directed her first movie, a love story set in the Bosnian war. The film, In the Land of Blood and Honey, has been nominated for a Golden Globe.

Daniel Radcliffe to play a literary hero in next

Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has confirmed he is set to play another literary hero on the big screen. Contactmusic.com reports that Radcliffe will portray beat writer Allen Ginsberg, in a new murder mystery.

"I'm thrilled to actually finally be able to talk about it. It's a project that I've kind of been attached to for a long time. It's called Kill Your Darlings and it's a story about a murder that was kind of the catalyst to forming the Beat Generation, so it's a film about Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac, William Burroughs and Lucien Carr... who was a really instrumental figure in all of their lives," he said. 

"Potentially, I think, it could be a really great film and it's already got a really great cast," he added.

IANS

Talaash teaser with Agneepath

Filmmaker Farhan Akhtar reveals that his next production Talaash, which stars Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Rani Mukherji and is directed by Reema Kagti, is in its post-production stage. The first trailer of the film will be out with Karan Johar’s remake of Agneepath. “Talaash has shaped up very well. It’s in post-production right now.

The teaser will be out with Agneepath,” he says. Farhan who is reportedly developing the screenplay of the sequel of his 2008 hit Rock On!!, however, doesn’t feel the need to take forward the story of his directorial debut, Dil Chahta Hai (DCH), which created a rage in 2001.

“The kind of story DCH was, I feel I get a very similar kind of satisfaction when I do a film like Rock On!! or Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. It takes me back to the same genre and has the same emotional pay off, so that void doesn’t really exist,” he explains.

The health-conscious actor was recently announced as the new brand ambassador of Omran, a Japanese company that makes digital blood pressure monitors. And he is now concentrating on getting in shape to play legendary athlete Milkha Singh in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s biopic, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. “I’ve been into fitness for quite some time now, but this film has given me an additional excuse to get even fitter.”

By HIndustantimes

Poorna Jagannathan eager to work with Aamir Khan

Actor Poorna Jagannathan seems to be smitten by Aamir Khan. The actress says she would love to work with the Delhi Belly producer again, even if it means being a part of his new talk show's audience. "Hundred percent! I even will be an audience member on his new TV show," the 39-year-old actress said at the Filmfare Awards nomination party Friday night, when asked if she would like to team up with Aamir again.

Aamir will soon make his TV debut with a new talk show on social issues. It is to be aired on Star Plus.

Meanwhile, Poorna is waiting for some good Bollywood scripts to come her way. However, for the moment she is busy with her international projects. "One is a sex-comedy...it's really what I do. It has Gwyneth Paltrow and Mark Ruffalo and is hilarious... a very funny script. The other is Peace, Love And Misunderstanding with Jane Fonda," said Poorna, who is currently seen on American TV show Royal Pains.

Peace, Love And Misunderstanding is being directed by Oscar winner Bruce Beresford, and also features Catherine Keener.

IANS

SRK planning to make ‘Mahabharata’ in 3D?

 After the ambitious ‘RA.One’, actor-producer Shah Rukh Khan has shown keenness to make a film on the great Indian epic ‘Mahabharata.’ 

The actor apparently is in talks with a foreign production house to market the film in places where Bollywood has never been. Buzz has it that SRK wants to make the film a la ‘Avatar’ style and in 3D. Needless to say, the budget of the film will be bigger than ‘RA.One’.

Since the epic saga needs the right treatment, the film will be made in three parts; sort of trilogy.

Industry insiders claim that King Khan is in talks with Hollywood studios in India, like 20th Century Fox and Warner Brothers for the same.

Well, Shah Rukh’s earlier tryst with history (‘Asoka’) did not go down well with the audience, let just hope he gets it right this time round.

Salman Khan’s team in a nail-biting finish at debut match

CCL-II match between Mumbai Heroes and Telugu Warriors end in a draw

What a cracker of a start for Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) season two. The first match played between Mumbai Heroes and Telugu Warriors ended in a draw.

Top celebrities from Bollywood and Tollywood film industries from India displayed some breathtaking cricketing skills.

The opening ceremony started off with performances by singers Devi Sri Prasad and Atif Aslam. Then it was time for all the teams to take the centerstage along with their owners, captains and brand ambassadors.

Telugu Warriors won the toss and decided to bat first. In the very first over fans could witness a resurgent Mumbai Heroes.

Opening bowler bowled an in-swinger which sent one of the opening Telugu batsmen back to the pavilion.
Sharjah Cricket stadium, which is the home ground of the Mumbai Heroes, came alive with fans screaming and loudspeakers billowing Salman's Bollywood numbers.

In season one, Mumbai Heroes were battered on the field. It was a disaster every time they were on field. But Salman 'Dabangg' Khan promised a revived Mumbai Heroes in season two. "We had taken the game too lightly last time but this time we are all prepared. The boys have practised well and hope to do well," said Salman Khan.

Indeed this first match for the team was not as bad as last season. They were off colour on field with dismal fielding performance but the batsman held their nerves. They took their team closer to victory.

"It was an off day in the field today but we hope to improve," said Sohail Khan owner of Mumbai Heroes.
The Mumbai Heroes also lost an early wicket when they came down to bat. But a solid 104 partnership between Varun Badola and Raja Bherwani saw them sailing through.

At the end of 20 overs, Mumbai Heroes needed to make 168 runs but could only manage 167. The game ultimately ended in a tie. The points were shared 1-1 by both teams.  The crowd couldn’t have asked for more.

A nailing biting Salman Khan was also visibly tensed. The crowd was also at the edge of their seats throughout the match.

The second match to be played in Sharjah is between Chennai Rhinos and Mumbai Heroes on 14th January.

EARLIER STORY: Salman Khan on a revenge series in Sharjah after whitewash

The Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) with the promise to be bigger and better kick-starts its season 2 from the Sharjah cricket stadium this Friday.

For the first time the CCL teams will battle it out on an international venue.

The event will see a grand opening ceremony where there will be performances by Atif Aslam and Devi Prasad, followed by a display of cricketing skills between the Mumbai Heroes and the Telugu Warriors. On January 14th the Mumbai Heroes will again take on the Chennai Rhinos at the same venue.

The Mumbai Heroes backed by Salman Khan announced Sharjah Cricket Stadium as their home ground.
After a whitewash season one, Salman Khan promises Mumbai Heroes will not go through the humiliation again. The Mumbai Heroes team line up saw some of the well-known Bollywood stars but they were bulldozed in first season by the other film industries in India.

Speaking to Emirates 24|7 Salman Khan said, "We had a bad season last time but our boys are better prepared this time and we hope to do well".

Team owner Sohail Khan said, "The boys have been practicing well, we have a good team, a good coach and hope to perform better this time".

With six teams, 18 matches and six different venues Celebrity Cricket League comes to the UAE.
The League designed after the IPL (Indian Premier League) brings together six film industries of India on one stage to showcase their cricket prowess.

The six teams represent the six different regional film industries in India. Mumbai Heroes owned by Sohail Khan and captained by Suniel Shetty, Chennai Rhinos lead by South superstar Surya, Karnataka Bulldozers by Kiccha Sudeep and skipper Venkates leads Telugu Warriors.

Season 2 will introduce two new teams- Kerala Strikers and Bengal Tigers owned by Boney Kapoor. With the inclusion of two more teams there’s a slight change in the format as well. There will be fifteen league matches, two semifinals and one final matches played. The other venues include Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Kochi.

CCL features over 100 stars from India's diverse film industry, including the Star Power of Bollywood with Salman Khan, Telugu Star Venkatesh, Malayalam Superstar Mohanlal, Tamil Star Surya, Kannada Hero Sudeep and Bengali star Indreneil are going to mix glamour with cricketing instincts to fight for the Celebrity Cricket League Champions Trophy.

Suniel Shetty leads the Mumbai Heroes and Ritesh Deshmukh acts as the Vice Captain. The Mumbai Heroes’ team leads all the way when it comes to the glam brigade too; seen cheering the team will be the brand ambassador Sonakshi Sinha, Genelia Dsouza and Kangana Ranaut.

The Telugu Warriors is led by Venkatesh as the Captain and Vishnu Manchu as the Vice Captain and has Charmee and Richa as its brand ambassadors.

The Chennai Rhinos is led by captain Abbas and has stars like Surya and cheering them will be Sameera Reddy and Amla Paul.

Katrina Kaif to make Chikni Chameli stage debut?

Katrina Kaif begins her innings of performing the 'Chikni Chameli' number on stage will begin with an award function.

 The buzz doing the rounds is that Katrina was not too keen on performing on the hit item number from the film Agneepath.

Several offers fell on Kat's lap to perform 'Chikni Chameli' on New Year's Eve. But, she turned them down the offers because she wanted to celebrate the occasion with her family.

But according to sources, she will now be performing at an awards function on Saturday.

She has asked the organisers to arrange for special costumes for her maiden performance on the number.
She will be performing on a medley consisting several of her hit songs including 'Sheila Ki Jawani'.

Read more at: http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/katrina-kaif-to-make-chikni-chameli-stage-debut/1/168751.html

Nude Pics : Olivia Munn strips for PETA

Washington: Olivia Munn has become the latest celebrity to bare all for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).

In her first nude photo shoot, the 31-year-old actress poses au naturel next to a fluffy bunny for the animal activists’ latest ‘I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur’ billboard. Munn has also filmed a video exposing the Chinese fur industry.

“As a proud person of Chinese descent, it broke my heart to learn just how terribly animals suffer and die on Chinese fur farms and that there are no penalties for this abuse,” a website quoted her as saying.

Munn is the latest in a long line of beauties who have stripped for PETA’s anti-fur campaign, including George Clooney’s ex-girlfriend Elisabetta Canalis and Taraji P. Henson.

ANI

Amanda Seyfried plans to flash her assets

Amanda Seyfried says he is keen to flash her assets for an upcoming movie.

The 26-year-old is currently shooting a biopic of 70s porn actress turned women`s rights activist Linda Lovelace and she`s not hesitant to flaunt her assets for the movie.

"There is a lot of nudity in the movie as it is but at certain points Amanda has actually insisted on showing more," showbizspy.com quoted a source as saying.

"She`s actually quite a shy girl but she`s so passionate about Linda`s story and what this movie has to say about women`s rights that she`s going beyond the call of duty to make her portrayal as real as possible," the source added.

IANS

Longoria to steal souvenirs from ‘Desperate Housewives’ set

Eva Longoria says she is planning to steal souvenirs from the set of her hit TV serial `Desperate Housewives` as she wants a memento from her time on the show.

The 36-year-old, who is filming her final scenes as Gabrielle Solis after eight years in the role, said she is determined to pick up a piece of memorabilia despite executives at US network ABC advising against taking any items, reported Daily Express.

"We got a call from ABC putting the kybosh on anybody taking anything from set, so now I`m not naming things in interviews that I`m going to steal because it`s not allowed.

But we`re stealing some stuff later... but I`m not going to name what I`m stealing!," Longoria said. 

PTI