Is everyone, who has had some problem with Shah Rukh Khan, trying to prove a point to the Bollywood Badshah by becoming pally with his friend-turned-foe, Salman Khan?
Riteish Deshmukh used to be his good friend till SRK replaced him with Arjun Rampal in Ra One. The friendship turned sour and Riteish is now seen hanging around with Salman. Even Nikhil Dwivedi, who had solid backing from SRK in his first film My Name is Anthony Golsalves, is nowadays singing 
praises of Salman who gifted the struggling actor a watch. Mushtaq Sheikh, who had written a coffee-table book on SRK, and who was constantly seen in his company, now drops by on Salman’s sets just to say ‘Hello Brother’. And Farah Khan, who earlier was the mainstay of King Khan’s camp, has shifted her support to Akshay Kumar and Salman now. These are not the only ones from SRK’s coterie who seem to have found a friend in Sallu bhai. If sources are to be believed, then Sanjay Kapoor and Chunky Pandey, too, were recently spotted hanging around with Salman in Dubai and Colombo. Hope their wives, Maheep and Bhavna, won’t change loyalties and continue sticking to Gauri Khan like magnets.
After attempting a mujra a la ageless beauty Rekha in “Sadiyaan”, actress Neetu Chandra is yearning to set the dance floor on fire like international divas Jennifer Lopez and Shakira and prove that she can dance better than most other actresses in Bollywood.
“I am sure I can dance better than most other actresses in the film industry. But it’s just that they get the chance to show their moves,” Neetu told IANS on phone from her hometown Patna.
“Unfortunately, my choice of films has been such that they hardly have any scope for dancing numbers. But I have a long way to go and I am just waiting to get a spicy song.
“I would love to do a commercial dance number and move like Jennifer Lopez and Shakira. Their style is lovely. And any such change would be great fun for me,” she added.
The actress, who received rave reviews for her performances in National Award winning films like “Traffic Signal” and “Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!”, learnt Kathak in school and is currently taking lessons in western dancing.
Neetu is a huge Madhuri Dixit fan and says she would love to dance on songs like “Choli ke peechhe”.
“She was a class apart. The kind of music came in her days is no longer composed in the industry. Songs like ‘Choli ke peechhe’ and ‘Dhak dhak karne lagaa’ were amazing. I would have loved to perform on those numbers. I know I can never be Madhuri Dixit, but even if people say I’m 10 percent of her, I would feel my efforts have paid off,” she said.
Among the latest numbers, the 33-year-old says she she could have done a good job in songs like “Chhaliya Chhaliya” and “Happening”, originally performed by Kareena Kapoor and Preity Zinta respectively.
Nevertheless, she says both of them did a fabulous job.
Don’t you fear being tagged as an item girl after featuring in an item song?
“I can never be tagged as an item girl because I have lost that opportunity. I never got a chance to dance. I hope filmmakers cast me for a dance number soon. All seven films that I have done have been performance based. There was no space for me to do any dance in them,” she said.
But Neetu will do an item nunber only if the script will demand so.
“All actresses - Aishwarya, Preity Zinta, Rani Mukerji - have all done item numbers. They can dance, but they did it only when the script required it. So I would love to do it when a script requires me to do it. I am not afraid of being put into an image of an item girl - because I keep breaking my own image with every film.”
Her forthcoming projects are “Khusar Parsad Ke Bhoot”, Anees Bazmee’s “No Problem” and Barnali Shukla’s “Kuch Love Jaisa”. She also has a Tamil project in her kitty.
Ranbir Kapoor is taking it easy for the next two months. His film with Imtiaz Ali, Rockstar, has been delayed by a month, thanks to the unavailability of AR Rahman (he’s going on a world tour), who’s scoring the music of the film. And he’s only too happy about this accidental breather as it gives him more time to promote his all set for release film, Raajneeti.
Ranbir plays a member of a political family who gets sucked into politics “because of some dirty games”. His observations on Indian politics? “The youngsters in the country are definitely going to change things for the better. I have tremendous belief in the likes of Rahul Gandhi and Sachin Pilot. The little I know about politics is through the media. I have voted in the past two years. We have a great leader in Dr Manmohan Singh,” says Ranbir. While on a promotional tour recently, Ranbir engaged in a panel discussion on whether one needs to be a graduate to enter politics. “I think everyone should get a fair chance,” says Ranbir, whose character in the film has shades of grey.
He starts shooting for Rockstar by June-end. “I’m playing a Jat in it and hence, working on the diction. I also plan to wrap up my ad shoots in the next two months,” reveals Ranbir. Ask him why he declined Karan Johar’s film co-starring Shah Rukh Khan, and he says, “That’s actually incorrectly reported. I’d be happy to do a film Karan offers.”
At 27, he’s clearly a young achiever. “Only the young bit is true. I haven’t achieved anything yet. It’s just the beginning. I grew up loving movies. I hope to have a long career and continue doing good films. In order to be an achiever, you got to have a body of work. I don’t really consider myself that talented. I have been lucky to work with great directors and would want to work with them again,” maintains Ranbir. And while on the subject of directors, he admits that he has plans of directing a film one day. “It’s a bit of an immature dream. The day something inside me tells me to do it, or I have a story to tell, I will do it,” he smiles.
Does he regret making his personal life public? “Yes. I was really young when I started out. I didn’t really know what to say and what not to. Next time, I won’t hide anything personal from the world. But then, I wouldn’t talk much about it either as it affects the families and the girl in question,” he signs off.
Bollywood has some and then a few more. Yummy mummies, we mean. But we chose the lovely actress Kajol to be TOI’s guest editor for this special Mother’s Day issue.
Not because she’s acting in Karan Johar’s Stepmom that will release later this year. But because she’s the only actress who twice in her hugely successful career has unselfishly stepped back from the top to gladly accept motherhood.
The first time after daughter Nysa, Kajol returned in 2006 to win the Filmfare Best Actress Award for Fanaa opposite Aamir Khan. Then this year, just after another stunning performance in My Name Is Khan with her favourite co-star Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol completed Stepmom and settled down to her second baby. It must take some doing. The actress, however, dismissed the putting-career-on-hold and making-a-comeback theory with a toss of her auburn hair.
“Your career is part of your life, your family is part of your life, and your whole life — your personality — is made of every part put together. It’s upto you to strike the right balance,” she said. “I learned from example. My own mother (the actress Tanuja) always put her family first. Even when she was working, we were her top priority, she gave us quality time — when she was there, she was with us 120 per cent. I’m lucky to have had her. And I hope to be like her…”
She’s glowing with the early stages of pregnancy, and she’s comfortable with her condition, she made no fuss about the great commute from her home to our office in peak summertime to take the chair for this issue. Dressed casually in a loose white top and black trousers, feet encased in soft slippers, she slipped into the role emphatically… brown eyes flashing with expression, fists thumping the table to make a point. When coffee and sandwiches were placed before her, Kajol’s face lit up. “I’m so pregrant, aren’t I,” she giggled.
She was unhappy with Mother’s Day, per se. “Mothers are fab and kids bring out the best in women,” she said, “but you can’t relegate your relationship with your mother to just one day in a year. For a child, the mother is God… the mother has the same responsibility to her child as God has to the world. And just as you wake up each morning and worship God whether you’re 14 or 40, you should respect your mother… even when you are grown up, in complete control of your life and are probably looking after her.”
And she had a word of caution for troubled mothers in today’s society of suicidal children: “They should listen to their kids… a mother’s gift to her kid should be the power of speech. Don’t be impatient. Don’t close yourself to your child by expecting her/him to be what you want them to be. Your message to them should be, ‘I love you for what you are and will support you whether you pass or fail your exams.’ Mothers should also stop to consider what they would do if their kid was suddenly taken away from them today. I would die! Compared to that, you can make make every situation work…”
There were more tidbits from this mother and mother-to-be even while she discussed work (“I’m a nice boring person, you won’t get gossip on me!”), babies, motherhood, growing up, families (“they teach you and make you who you are”), the need to discipline kids (“spanking is not bad as a means to get attention… it’s not the punishment, that’s much worse, and devious”) and pregnancy itself (“don’t become a mother unless you’re ready, don’t let this decision be thrust on you, because then everybody will suffer… especially your child”).
Plus, a final word of advice to mothers: “Advice itself is bad, don’t be weighed down by what society says your kid ought to be doing, rely on your own instincts and decisions. As a mother, you know what’s best for your kid, by learning, by instinct, by habit… And, practise what you preach. Your kid learns by watching you. In future, your child takes reference from you.” We had just one question for Kajol, did she subscribe to the public opinion that she was Bollywood’s yummy mummy? “Absolutely,” she declared, giving the Kuch Kuch Hota Hai smile, “I was yummy even before I had my baby!”
May 8th, 2010 in
Kajol |
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In the absence of commercial flights to European countries following volcano eruption in Iceland, producer Sajid Nadiadwala has no option but to hire private jets to take the prints of his forthcoming comedy “Housefull” to Britain and other countries in the region. 
“This is most unforeseen. In all my years as a producer, I’ve never encountered such a a crisis. There’re about a 100 prints to be taken to Europe. Air traffic has come to a standstill,” Nadiadwala said.
Directed by Sajid Khan, “Housefull” that stars Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Arjun Rampal, Lara Dutta and Deepika Padukone, is set for April 30 release. As per the rules, delivery overseas has to be made a week in advance of the opening day.
Volcanic ash disrupted flights and most of air traffic to Europe was shut on Tuesday.
“I’m hiring private jets to carry the prints to the nearest city with an open air base. From there the prints will be taken to various European cities by train or road. I’m so desperate. I’m ready to employ any means of transportation - planes, trains, automobiles, whatever is available.”
The added expenditure incurred by the paralysing of air traffic is the least of Nadiadwala’s worries.
“It doesn’t really matter how much money it would cost. The important thing is to get the prints to the European centres on time. Or else the entire overseas release would be affected.”
The harassed producer won’t rest easy until a solution to the transportation deadlock is found. “It’s been one crisis after another for me. First, the underworld threats then this volcanic eruption.”
So stressed is Nadiadwala that he hasn’t been able to enjoy the completion of his next project “Anjaana Anjaani” that stars Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra.
“Ranbir Kapoor had a wrap-up party for ‘Anjaana Anjaani’. But I wasn’t able to attend because of these two back-to-back crises at my workplace. Now I’ll celebrate only when “Housefull” is released properly everywhere.”
I belong to semicommercial cinema says actress Rituparna Sengupta, who thinks she belongs to the league of Rani Mukerji, Kajol and Vidya Balan.She says that Bollywood happened by chance and she was happy doing Bengali cinema.
Why did you choose Main Meri Patni Aur Woh as your debut movie in Bollywood?
Bollywood never figured in my plans. I didn’t have that kind of aspiration, as I was very happy with the kind of work I was doing – and getting – in Bengali cinema. But when Chandan Arora came to me with the script, I simply loved the story. I was such a sweet and interesting role that I had to do it. I felt instinctively that I wanted to do it. That’s the way I am.
A few days ago, Preity Zinta vociferously denied the reports that Team Punjab owners were planning to sell their IPL team, because of its poor showing in the tournament. “How many times the news has 2 be WRONG about our stake sale!” she had tweeted.
However, the winds seem to have changed direction, or at least, no one’s outrightly denying it now. Ready to dispose off their stakes, the owners of team Punjab are looking for “genuine buyers.” Will IPL season 4 see a change in ownership? Is Venugopal Dhoot’s company in the race? We spoke to the owners to find out the latest …
Ness Wadia
Business is not emotional
I have been saying that I am open to the idea, but we need to find genuine buyers. The talks are on with some buyers, but so far, nothing has been decided. I have no issues in selling my stake. My journey with the Punjab team has been fruitful, but here, we are into business and there’s nothing emotional in it.
On Dhoot’s company in the race: Let me make it clear, we are not in talks with his company. The market is abuzz with the news, but I don’t know where it has come from. To the best of my knowledge, we haven’t talked with him, and once it happens, I’ll announce it myself.
IPL and the controversies: The IPL has generated good business and hype. And I think now, when it has become successful, people are trying to bring it down.
On owners losing interest: None of us has lost interest in the game and the team. Yes, I was unable to attend a couple of matches, as I was ill. We still love our team and will continue to do so.
Will IPL 4 see change in ownership? It’s not clear yet. Maybe, it will happen, but the situation will be clear only when the team is being sold. Right now, I can’t say anything.
On buzz that Preity isn’t letting others sell their stake : It’s not true. There’s no conflict within the management. We work like a team and whatever the decision is, will be of everyone.
Mohit Burman
We are ready to sell
On selling: Yes, we are ready for that. I’ve been saying for long that if I get a good deal, I’ll have no issues selling it. So, now I’m waiting for the final word from the others.
When will it happen? That, I can’t say. It might happen soon. So far, nothing has materialised, and I don’t like spreading rumours. On controversies involving his brother, Gaurav Burman: Things will be clear as the investigations are on. I have left everything on the future.
On experience of being team owner:
Fabulous. I loved my association with the team, and I think I learnt a lot in these three years.
Preity Zinta
Time will tell
On selling: I can’t say anything on it now . Let time tell everyone.
On the team’s bad showing : This season, we didn’t do well, but then, it’s a game and one has to win and another has to lose. I don’t get trapped in negativity, so I’m not taking the defeat to my heart.
Post IPL: I’ll get on with my regular work – movies . I have a lot many things pending.
Bollywood star couple Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai are set to ring in their third wedding anniversary (which is today, by the way) in the US, according to sources close to the actors.
Amitabh Bachchan revealed that the couple was taking a flight to New York. A source close to the couple said, “The two have gone to an undisclosed destination and will be back in time for the music release of Mani Ratnam’s Raavan.” Abhishek also posted on his Twitter page, “…It’s Houdini time again. Have managed to abduct the wife. See you all soon.”
According to another source, the duo have been planning this holiday so that they could spend some time together after keeping busy with their respective shooting schedules. Last year, the actors took out time for a week-long vacation while they were shooting for Raavan, which is among their most awaited films this year.
On their first anniversary, Abhishek was busy shooting in Miami for Dostana, but wife Aishwarya joined him there. The couple got married in 2007 in a grand wedding ceremony at Bachchan’s residence Prateeksha in Mumbai.
Mexican actress Barbara Mori, who is in India for the promotion of “Kites”, left for the Maldives to shoot an ad campaign for Provogue with co-star Hrithik Roshan.
The Roshans wish to keep her visit as low key as possible until she returns from the Maldives Thursday for a series of press interactions in Mumbai.Hrithik wrapped up the final few days of shooting with Sanjay Leela Bhansali for “Guzaarish” before Barbara’s arrival.
Hrithik and his wife Susanne gladly played Barbara’s host on her arrival in Mumbai Monday.About her current visit to India, Rakesh Roshan, the film’s producer, said: “We don’t want to create any unnecessary hype about her presence. But we do want to make it clear that we didn’t sign Barbara for ‘Kites’ because we needed any Caucasian girl.”
“Barbara is not just a pretty girl. She is an amazing actress. You have to see her in ‘Cosas Insignificantes’ where she had shaved off her hair. She is an outstanding dramatic actress,” he added.
Barbarba spent Monday in Mumbai with the Roshans and left early Tuesday morning for the Maldives.She leaves Mumbai May 2 and will join Hrithik for the US premiere of “Kites”.
Karan Johar seems to have mastered the art of spotting talent. Be it Tarun Mansukhani, Ayan Mukerji 
or Rensil D’Silva, Karan has not only found fresh talent, but has also tried to experiment with different genres of movies.
While Dostana was a great laugh riot, Wake Up Sid proved to be a coming-of-age kind of a film and his next release Kurbaan is a love story set against the backdrop of terrorism.
With all these movies making it big at the box office, Dharma Productions has proved to be a banner that’s keen to make movies of different genres. And Kurbaan seems to be the next step forward for the banner.
Besides providing the young directors with a great platform, Karan also believes in stepping back and not interfering with the project at all. “I greenlight the project and then I step back. I let the director do his job and that’s the way it should be,” he says.
So, what spurred him to launch new directors? “All those who have directed for me have their own thought process. Be it Rensil, Tarun or Ayan, they all had a vision for the film that they were making. I think it’s very difficult for a first time director to put together the kind of project that he would want to make. Also, I have worked with these directors previously and have complete confidence in them,” he says.
Karan is “proud” of his next offering — Kurbaan — and is also confident of Rensil’s work. “Rensil was so passionate about the movie that I knew he would do complete justice to it,” says Karan
praises of Salman who gifted the struggling actor a watch. Mushtaq Sheikh, who had written a coffee-table book on SRK, and who was constantly seen in his company, now drops by on Salman’s sets just to say ‘Hello Brother’. And Farah Khan, who earlier was the mainstay of King Khan’s camp, has shifted her support to Akshay Kumar and Salman now. These are not the only ones from SRK’s coterie who seem to have found a friend in Sallu bhai. If sources are to be believed, then Sanjay Kapoor and Chunky Pandey, too, were recently spotted hanging around with Salman in Dubai and Colombo. Hope their wives, Maheep and Bhavna, won’t change loyalties and continue sticking to Gauri Khan like magnets. 
