Salman Khan speaks against SRK’S detention in US

Bollywood star Salman Khan has criticized US airport authorities for detaining and questioning fellow Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan. Shah Rukh, one of India’s best known actors, was enroute to Chicago for a parade to mark the Indian Independence Day on Saturday when he was pulled aside at Newark airport on Friday for questioning.

What do you think SRK was questioned for ?? Drop your comments below ..

Schwarzenegger invites Shah Rukh Khan to dinner

The actor turned politician has offered to meet Shah Rukh Khan on September 20 in Washington in a bid to diffuse what has become a slight diplomatic row.

Khan, 43, who is considered to be one of the icons of Indian cinema, was held up for almost two hours after falling foul of US border officials in a New York airport at the weekend.

Officials from the US Embassy in Delhi were asked by the Indian government to explain why the film-star was held for so long.

The actor, who has featured on Time Magazine’s ‘50 Most Influential People’ list, was said to have found his experience at Newark Airport ‘embarrassing’.

However, it is not clear whether the actor will accept the invitation.

Shah Rukh Khan has recently signed a £125 million deal with Fox-Searchlight in the US to distribute his latest movie.

Ironically named ‘My Name is Khan’, the film charts racial tensions in the US following the 9/11 terror attacks.

Arriving back home to his Mumbai home, the star explained how the experience four days earlier had affected him.

“I am scared of authorities and rules, so I try to follow the rules of the country I travel to,” he said.

“Whenever I am in America, I have to report at least two hours in advance while travelling within the country for security reasons – they ask me to take off my clothes and shoes, and I do that. “But I never experienced this kind of treatment.”

Shah Rukh Khan denied that the detention drama was a publicity stunt for his forthcoming movie: “I don’t think that I need publicity.”

“If you want to give a tit-for-tat policy to American actors, then call me to frisk Angelina Jolie and Megan Fox whenever they are visiting India,” he added.

Priyanka Chopra creates History

Every one is talking about how priyanka is playing twelve role in director Ashutosh Gowariker’s ‘What’s Your Raashee?‘
However, what we have discovered is that by accomplishing this feat, Ms. Chopra has created history not just in Hindi films but in world cinema of any language, including Hollywood.
Priyanka Chopra has created cinematic history by being the first female actor in world cinema to play twelve different characters in a single film!

Never before has any female actor ever played so many characters in a single film, in cinema of any language. This is in fact a world record for any female actor and we applaud Priyanka for her efforts and the results, which the media caught a glimpse of recently at the music launch event which screened all the songs of the film. We must say that Priyanka Chopra has made each character unique just through her hair, make up, body language, style and dialogue delivery as she has not used prosthetic for any of the characters.So while everyone has been chasing their Hollywood dream role, Priyanka Chopra has created history in Hollywood, through a Hindi film.

Its a SPECIAL Day in the History of Bollywood Cinema. Indian music maestro A.R. Rahman became the first Indian to bag two Oscars for his work in British filmmaker Danny Boyle’s much acclaimed “Slumdog Millionaire”, which tells the rags-to-riches story of a Mumbai slum dweller.


He got his first Oscar on the night of the 81st Academy Awards here for best original score for the Mumbai-based drama.

The composer was overwhelmed and interspersed his speech with Hindi as well as Tamil on receiving the coveted trophy here Sunday.

“There is a dialogue from an old Hindi film - “Mere paas ma hai” - which means I have nothing but a mother. My mother is here, I have her blessings. I am glad she could be here,” said Rahman.

He ended the acceptance speech by saying “God is great” in Tamil, something he says after winning every award.

He shared the second Oscar for best original song for the film’s theme number “Jai Ho” with noted Indian lyricist Gulzar.

“All my life I had a choice between hate and love. I chose love and I am here,” said Rahman after receiving his second golden statuette.

Indian music maestro A.R. Rahman’s wife used to wake up in the middle of the night and say “I want you to win an Oscar”. Now he has won two. It’s not only her dream that has turned into reality at the 81st annual Academy Awards, it’s a milestone for Bollywood too.

Bollywood celebrated as Rahman bagged the Oscars for best original score in “Slumdog Millionaire” and its theme song “Jai Ho”.

Bollywood director Anurag Kashyap is all praises for the singer-composer. He said: “This is a happy moment for all of us. We all should celebrate because he (Rahman) has made us proud. Finally we did it!

Filmmaker Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, who has worked with Rahman for his films “Rang De Basanti” and “Delhi-6″, says the singer-composer truly deserved the award.

“I am proud and so happy that it’s A.R. He brought north and south India together when he started composing music and now he has successfully bridged the gap between the east and the west. It’s incredible! There are more people in the west who know him now than they know about his work,” Mehra told.

Rahman, the first Indian musician to win the annual Academy Award, was listed for three of the film’s ten Oscar nominations - one for his original score and two others for songs composed by him, “O Saya” and “Jai Ho”.

According to singer Mohit Chauhan who has sung in Rahman’s latest hit composition “Masakalli” from “Delhi-6″, this Oscar win is an inspiration for the Indian music industry.

“It is very encouraging. Rahman is a great inspiration for all the musicians in the country. And it’s a great honour also. Our films are going places and so is our music. We can look ahead to good times,” said Chauhan.

Veteran filmmaker and critic Aziz Mirza says: “The international recognition that Rahman has earned for himself makes every Indian proud. He deserves it more than anybody else for his wholehearted dedication to music. It’s a rare honour. I congratulate Rahman.”

Southern actor R. Madhavan feels Rahman should have won an Oscar the very first time he composed music because he truly deserves it.

Actress Divya Dutta hails the composer and says she is extremely proud of his win.

“Like every Indian, I am very happy about the win. I was sure Rahman will come back with the award. The film was amazing,” said Dutta.

Before this, only two Indians have won the Oscar in its 80 year history - Satyajit Ray was given the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award in 1992 and Bhanu Athaiya won the best costume design Oscar along with John Mollo for the 1982 film “Gandhi.”

Priyanka Chopra, queen of Bollywood

According to the latest Adex India Study, the queen of Bollywood is Priyanka Chopra, who is ranked 2nd on the list of celebrity endorsers of 2008 only after Shahrukh Khan. She leads the youth brigade as a brand ambassador for various esteemed brands. Apart from these high profile endorsements, Priyanka has enhanced her position as Bollywood’s leading lady in 2008 with back-to-back box-office super-hits Fashion and Dostana.

Priyanka began 2009 on another high. She was awarded the ‘Best Female Actor’ at the Star Screen Award 2008 for her role in Madhur Bhandarkar’s Fashion and also adjudged the ‘Best Actress’ at 15th Lion’s Club Awards.

In 2009 also promises to be as luminous for Priyanka with 2 big films set for releases namely, Kaminay (directed by Vishal Bharadwaj) and What’s Your Rashee? (directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar) along with her other commitments.

Abhishek Bachchan set to Guiness Book World Record

It’s a Guinness world record that not many actors would think of. But there you have it. Abhishek Bachchan has been thinking the unthinkable in the roles he plays and in the way he projects his passion for cinema.
On Friday Abhishek is all set to break a unique world record.

That of a film star attending the most public appearances in 12 hours.

Starting on Friday morning when Delhi 6 releases Abhishek will travel to as many events in as many cities as possible within 12 hours.

Speaking from Dubai on Wednesday where he was attending the film’s premiere Abhishek excitedly said, “It’s an idea that has been with me for a while ever since I heard about some German actors who set a world record by attending five public in twelve hours. I want to beat their record.I’d do at least 6-7 apearances in 12 hours in six cities. It could go up to seven cities.”

Starting at around noon on Friday afternoon the cities that Abhishek would cover would be honouring the city that the film Delhi 6 celebrates.

“By the look of it, we could do Gurgaon, Delhi, Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Chandigarh, Baroda and Mumbai and break this record on the 20th itself or on 21st…..starting time could be 10 am or 12 noon doing a 12 to 12.

We could do seven cities instead of the current record of 5 cities, ” says the Sabbas Joseph, director of Wizcraft International who would be manoeuvring the record-breaking endeavour for Abhishek.

The current record record-holder in the category of the greatest number of public appearances by a film star at different cities in 12 hours promoting the same film is five by Jürgen Vogel and Daniel Brühl (Germany), They walked the red carpet, signed autographs and introduced the film Ein Freund von mir (Germany 2006) at cinemas in Munich, Berlin, Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Cologne, Germany, on 22 October 2006.

They were accompanied by the director of Ein Freund von mir Sebastian Schipper.

Would Abhishek be able to break that record? “I hope so. And I think I will. Actually I’m quite excited by the idea, more so because I’m implementing it for a film that’s so close to my heart.”

Guinness book officials are expected be present to watch Abhishek make history.

SRK's IPL Bangla shocker

Englishmen Kevin Pietersen and Andy Flintoff may have won the highest bids at the IPL auction on Friday, but the real jawdropper came from Shah Rukh Khan.

King Khan picked up Bangladeshi fast bowler Mashrafe Mortaza for about Rs 3 crore., 12 times his base price of Rs 25 lakh.Why would SRK do that? The answer is that he thinks neighbouring Bangladesh's TV audience will add value to his team. Brilliant. Fellow Bollywood stars Preity Zinta and Shilpa Shetty were also busy shopping for men.

Kareena, Amrita, Priyanka are my favourite co-stars: Shahid Kapur

Credit goes to Bollywood’s chocolate boy Shahid Kapur for still considering ex-girlfriend Kareena Kapoor as one of his favourite co-stars. Although, Kareena dumped him unceremoniously and declared Saif Ali Khan as her latest arm-candy, Shahid maintained his dignity and a low profile. In a recent celebrity interview, Shahid said, “Kareena, Priyanka and Amrita are my favourite co-stars.” He also added that he would not mind working with Kareena again.

Shahid Kapur in an interview on Zee News` celebrity chat show ‘Kahiye Janab’ said, “I would like to work with Kareena again. I feel that as an actor if my producer wants me to romance with a cow or a buffalo also, I`ll do it because that`s my job.”

Earlier, Shahid and Kareena teamed up for three films. While ‘Fida’ and ‘Chup Chup Ke’ bombed at the box office, "Jab We Met" went out to be a blockbuster. Sadly, their relationship soured while shooting for the film.

Now, Shahid is linked with India`s tennis star Sania Mirza as well as his ‘Kaminey’ co-star Priyanka Chopra.

Asked about Sania, he said: “She is a very good friend of mine, but I don`t want to discuss my personal life.”

James Bond Goes Bollywood

Guess who’s going Desi now? None other than American screen icon James Bond; played in four movies by “Pierce Brosnan”. The actor will be sharing screen space with none other than the Big B of Bollywood, Amitabh Bachchan. Amitabh Bachchan, well known for movies such as ‘Anand’ and ‘Coolie’ will join Pierce Brosnan while Brosnan will be doing a cameo in the upcoming ‘Teen Patti.’ The film, which also stars R. Madhaven, Raima Sen and Shraddha Kapoor, will be released in 2009. The movie is about a professor who tutors five of his pupils on the gambling card game of the same name.

The game (’Three Cards’ in English) originated in India and became popular around the globe, particularly in South East Asia. It is very similar to 3-card poker. Appearing in the movie then is a smart gamble for Pierce Brosnan. The actor, who holds both Irish and American citizenship, has already blown up on the shores of America. Perhaps a quest to become just as well known in Bollywood is next. If anyone can complete the mission, it’s 007.

Whatever happens, it certainly appears like Hollywood’s romance with Bollywood will be lasting a while longer. What do you think about James Bond going Bollywood? Will Pierce Brosnan have the chance to become as big in Bollywood as he is in Hollywood? How will he be accepted and what do you think about his upcoming role? Let us know your thoughts.

Aishwarya Rai at The Pink Panther 2 premiere

Bollywood Actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s much awaited Hollywood movie, ‘Pink Panther 2’ premiered in the US on Tuesday and the Bachchan family was in full attendance to support their ‘Bahu’ as looking gorgeous in black, she walked the PINK carpet with husband Abhishek.

Aishwarya Rai at The Pink Panther 2 premiere

Imran Khan and Ranbir Kapoor To Start A Production House

Imran Khan and Ranbir Kapoor

The young actors of Bollywood Imran Khan and Ranbir Kapoor are willing to start a production house together and want Imtiaz Ali to make a first film for their production house. One source reveals that both the actors have also asked Imtiaz to give them a good subject. The film will also star both of them together.

A source revealed, “Ranbir and Imran are great friends and they hang out together quite often. Both of them have planned to make films together and are looking for a subject. They want their first film to be made by Imtiaz Ali and have already spoken to him. And Imtiaz is looking for an appropriate subject to make a film with them. Both the actors plan to make films which they believe in and they have made it very clear that it’s not necessary that the films will have them as lead heroes. However, they want to do the Imtiaz Ali film to kick off their production house. They have also approached Shimit Amin to make a film for them.”

However, director Imtiaz is partially agreed with the fact as he said, “I know both of them and have met them on several occasions. We have discussed many things with each other. They have told me that if I have anything good then I should let them know. But they have never said anything about production, nor have they asked me to direct a film for them. I can’t conjecture about whether I would work with them when I haven’t even been asked.”

Aamir Khan swaps ‘titles’ with his ace rival SRK...!!!

It’s true there is a swap in titles for the Two Khans of the Industry. Aamir Khan has taken over Shah Rukh Khan’s title of (prolific), while Shah Rukh takes over Aamir’s title of (perfectionist).

Shah Rukh indeed has mellowed down after giving back to back blockbuster hits for a decade. Now he is slowed down his pace. After the thunderous success of ‘OSO’ a year ago, Shah Rukh is yet to deliver another flick. But he will only be seen in a cameo-bit role in ‘Billo Barber’, and then there will be ‘Rab ne…’ not hitting the market before 2009.

Meanwhile Aamir Khan’s fans will be generously happy to know that they will get to se a lot more of Aamir in the near future. ‘Ghajini’ is slated for a Christmas release. Soon after, ‘3 Idiots’ will hit the market, followed by a sequel of comedy ‘Andaz Apna Apna’ and a home production thriller to top it all. Aamir’s fan will get to see him more than ever before in the months to come.
This swapping by the two superstars will surely shock both the sides’ fans across the world. One really wonders if Shah Rukh’s words will stand the test of time when he said: “Aamir will always be a better actor than me, and I will always earn more than him.

Ajay Devgan, Bipasha Basu and Rohit Shetty team up again

The Bold and the Beautiful….quite literally we say.

We all remember this handsome jodi in the very serious ‘Apharan’ but well, this time over the pair is going to team up for Ajay Devgan’s Home Production. The film also stars Sanjay Dutt and Fardeen Khan and is going to be directed by Rohit Shetty. The lovely Bipasha Basu had earlier worked in Rohit Shetty’s debut film Zameen.

The film is not titled yet but we hear that it is a comedy and will start rolling in March in picturesque Goa.

Well, we’re sure looking forward for the two to rock the screen again.

Winters mark the Celebs ‘stole’ mantra

Our celebrities have always been trendy and always come up with new fashion trends and hi-fi mantras. A new year, 2009 has begun; the month of February marks the end of the winter season. Still some of our celebrities haven’t got over their winter wears.

We noticed in the last few events, some celebs have still been wearing their ‘stole’ over their neck. So is it that wearing a ‘stole’ around your neck has become a new fashion trend which these celebs are following off late or have they just not got out of their winter wears? The question seems unanswered.

1. Shah Rukh Khan: We saw Shah Rukh Khan wearing a reddish ‘stole’ at the conference of his television show, ‘Ghar Ki Baat Hai’ at Taj Lands End, Bandra on 27th January, 2009.

We again saw Shah Rukh wearing a maroonish ‘stole’ on the sets of Nach Baliye grand Finale on 1st February, 2009.

2. Adhyayan Suman: Adhyayan Suman at the special screening of his film Raaz 2 at Fame Adlabs on 29th January, 2009. Adhyayan was wearing a smart reddish ‘stole’ in this event and was smiling all day as Kangana was with him there.

3. Mithun Chakraborty: Mithun Chakraborty showed at his best at the press conference of Zee’s Dance India Dance at The Leela on 29th January, 2009. Mithun was wearing a black and white colored ‘stole’.

4. Arya Babbar: At Shah Rukh’s ‘Ghar Ki Baat Hai’ on 27th January, 2009, we caught Arya wearing a ‘stole’ too. The ‘stole’ was blueish in color.

So it seems that our Bollywood celebrities have been flaunting their ‘stole’ on quite a number of events. It should be noted that all the events were in January and February which are the months which almost state the end of winters in India.

So is it a new fashion trend which is not likely to get affected by the Indian winters or is it still winter fever.

We are leaving it on our dear celebrities to decide.

ShahRukh Khan 2009 New Year Calender

Bollywood films screened at Contact

TO complement the current Bollywood Stills exhibition at Contact Theatre in Manchester, two days of Bollywood-inspired workshops, talks and the showing of two blockbuster films have been announced.

Dr.Rajinder Dudrah from The University of Manchester and curator of the Bollywood Stills exhibition, will be providing an insight into the world of Bollywood films for beginners between 12 - 13 February.

The two films screening will be Shah Rukg Khan starrer Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and all time bollywood favourite, curry western, Sholay starring Amitabh Bachchan.

The exhibition itself continues until Saturday 28 March 2009 and is free.

Drawing on the large action stills archives from Kamat Foto Flash in Mumbai, India, the exhibition charts the history of the action stills production process from its heyday in the seventies and eighties to their transformation into digital photography in the contemporary moment.

It comprises 40 photographic images on Perspex panels of images with curatorial text written by the University of Manchester’s Dr Rajinder Dudrah, providing both contemporary popular focus as well as historical documentation to the project and its importance to the growing Bollywood scene in the U.K. and internationally.

INFO:

* Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998)
Rahul and Anjali are students in a college in India, while Anjali is attracted to him, he only treats her as a close friend. Unable to tell him about her feelings, Rahul meets and gets married to another Indian girl by the name of Tina. Anjali decides not to get married. Rahul and his wife lead a blissful life, and soon Tina gets pregnant. She gives birth to a baby girl, they name her Anjali, but shortly after that Tina dies, leaving Rahul alone to look after Tina. He does a fairly good job at this, and Anjali grows up in his care. Then Anjali comes to know about the older Anjali, and her love for her dad, and sets forth on the task of bringing them together, unsure if her dad will even accept any other woman to take his late wife’s place
* Sholay (1975)
Sholay means fire. A Police Officer, who family was killed by a bandit named Gabbar Singh, decides to fight fire with fire and recruits two convicts, Jai and Veeru. He approaches them in jail, puts the proposal in front of them, and they agree to bring in Gabbar Singh alive - for a hefty price. After their discharge from jail, they travel by train to the village where the Police Officer lives - now with only his widowed daughter-in-law. The three band together to fight one of the most elusive and dreaded bandits of all time. Will the two ex-cons be able to bring Gabbar alive to the Police Officer?

Love Aaj Kal

Love Aaj Kal will be the name of mtiaz Ali's much awaited Saif Ali Khan- Deepika Padukone. The title Love Aaj Kal has a mix of both Hindi and English words just like it was with Imtiaz's last release Jab We Met.

Dinesh Vijan, producer of the film and Saif's business partner, who confirmed the same, "Yes our film is called Love Aaj Kal. It is 95% complete and should be out some time mid-year"

Dinesh also confirmed that besides Saif and Deepika, the film also stars Rishi Kapoor, Vir Das and two other newcomers. He however denied that rumors doing the rounds about Neetu Singh Kapoor starring in the film.

Emraan Hashmi ready for Raaz 3 and fatherhood

Emraan Hashmi's " Raaz 2 " has got an encouraging opening and actor Emraan Hashmi is all set to work in the third instalment of the spooky thriller. He also feels secure enough to start a family now.

"We're trying for a baby and we should be parents by next year. One is never prepared for fatherhood. And if I wait to be fully prepared, it will never happen. But I'm getting into the mindset now," told Emraan Hashmi, who is married to Parveen Shahani.

Talking about "Raaz 3", he said: "Yes we're on," said Emraan Hashmi. "The third part will also be directed by Mohit Suri and I'll play the lead. The rest of the details are yet to be decided. The cast of the second 'Raaz' film was totally new. And I think I'm going to be the only actor common to 'Raaz 2' and '3'."

Emraan feels vindicated by the audiences' response to "Raaz 2", which also starred Kangana Ranaut and newcomer Adhyayan Suman.

"My wife kept telling me I should try the genre. I had never done horror before. It's believed in the trade that horror films open well and then soon fizzle out. But then it was also believed that a film looking at the seamier side of cricket ('Jannat') would never do well.

"I like to walk the lonely path. That's why you don't see me at parties and functions. Maybe that's why I play the part of the loner and watch another guy take away the girl I love," Emran said, drawing attention to his loser-lover's role in "Awarapan" and now "Raaz 2".

Emraan Hashmi, who has been lying low during the publicity of "Raaz 2" thanks to all the focus on real-life pair Kangana Ranaut -Adhyayan, says he didn't feel left out.

"Kangana Ranaut and Adhyayan were a real-life couple. I can't concoct an affair just to be noticed. I was confident my work would speak for itself. Sure enough I believe people clap when I come on screen the first time. I do have fan base, though it might be small," he said.

Katrina Kaif in Ajay Devgan's next production

Recently, Bollywood Actors Ajay Devgan and Salman Khan have been getting along like a house on fire while shooting together for Vipul Shah's London Dreams. While the two actors had earlier starred together in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, it was only after they signed their latest film that they started bonding on the film's sets.

But more than Salman and Ajay, it is the former's girlfriend Katrina who is benefitting the most from this newfound friendship. Consequently, Katrina has now signed Ajay Devgan's home production to be directed by Rohit Shetty.

Our source from the unit of London Dreams said, "Earlier, Ajay and Salman had worked with Bhansali but they were not close friends. However, they got along famously during the London and Chandigarh schedule of London Dreams. After discovering that they quite enjoy each other's company, they started hanging out together after pack up every day. Often, they were spotted smoking together in between shots"


According to our source, Ajay and Salman Khan often played pranks on the film's sets too. During the London schedule, they would also drink together in the evenings after pack up. Interestingly, when Salman Khan stopped drinking during the Chandigarh schedule, he was often overheard telling Ajay about the ill-effects of drinking. What further impressed Ajay was that Salman Khan completely abstained from alcohol even though it was bitterly cold in Chandigarh.

"In a way, signing Katrina for his next home production to be directed by Rohit Shetty seems like Ajay's gift to his new friend Salman. This will be the first time that Katrina will be doing a film opposite Ajay," added the source.

Ajay's home production also stars Sanjay Dutt and Fardeen Khan in lead roles. Katrina, Ajay and Rohit Shetty were unavailable for comment.

Hrithik Roshan injuired,in hospital

Bollywood Star Hritik Roshan met an accident on the sets of his forthcoming film Kites. He has cuts on his writsts normally associated with attempted suicide cases. Thats why he avoided going to the a big celebrity hospital in Bandra and got admitted in Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital.

The Roshans wanted to avoid unncessary paperwork so they called up Tina Ambani and requested her to admit Hrithik Roshan.

A source close to Hrithik’s family says, “Duggu (Hrithik’s pet name) was the first patient at the Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital. He hurt himself on the sets of Anurag Basu’s Kites at Filmistan Studios on Wednesday night. He was shooting for an action scene in which he had to smash a windowpane with a rod and enter the room. The shot didn’t work well two times; the third time Hrithik hit the glass so hard that glass shards flew everywhere. One sliced through his wrist and blood gushed everywhere. The cut was so deep that Hrithik could see his bone.”

Though Papa Roshan wasn’t present on the sets executive producer and Hrithik’s sister Sunaina was. She took charge. “Initially, Sunaina didn’t realise how serious Hrithik’s wound was but when he cried out to her asking for help and to stop the blood gushing out, she realised he needed to be taken to a hospital for stitches. The source adds that Sunaina decided to take him to Lilavati Hospital in Bandra but they were advised that it might become a police case. She spoke to her dad, who in turn called Tina Ambani in Delhi who made the necessary arrangements for Hrithik’s admission.”

Rakesh Roshan confirms, “The deep cut required 12 stitches. He won’t be shooting for the next three days till the doctor sees his wound.”

Rakesh Roshan “We took Hrithik to the Ambani Hospital as it was close to Filmistan Studios in Goregaon. I wanted him to reach the hospital as soon as possible. I spoke to Tina. She spoke to the doctors and made all the required arrangements. Fortunately, they had opened the hospital just a day before and Hrithik was their first patient. It’s a fantastic hospital like a 7-star hotel very well thought out with 700 beds. The doctors are very efficient.”

With regard to the police case he says, “The police came for a routine enquiry and I showed them Hrithik’s report it was an accident on the sets. They were fine with that.”

Kajol and Shahrukh Khan Return?

We've all been waiting with baited breath and now we can finally confirm Kajol and Shahrukh will be appearing in the lead romantic roles in Karan Johar's next film, 'My Name is Khan'! Kajol had already refused a bunch of films with SRK after their last movie, 'Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham,' due to travel, but this time around Kajol's okay with it since her daughter is a little older now.

The flick will be partly shot in California and the first half is based on a true story, but not the second half... after all this is B-Town we're talking about, they have to throw in some drama! We'll keep you posted on the details!

Shah Rukh gives Priyanka more screen space in 'Billu Barber'

Mumbai, If Priyanka Chopra declares from the rooftops that she is Shah Rukh Khan's biggest fan then it is with reason. The superstar, who has been taking more than a passing interest in the music of the films he produces, decided to give away a large portion of his duet in "Billu Barber" to her.

"Shah Rukh took very close interest in each one of the songs. He isn't a musician, but he has an instinctive ear for music. It takes him just a few seconds to approve or cut down a track," composer Pritam Chakraborty told IANS.

With the songs meant for Kareena Kapoor and Deepika Padukone, Pritam faced no problems.

"Shah Rukh loved his songs with Kareena ('Marjani') and Deepika ('Love mera hit hit'). They were straightforward dance songs with shared grooves between Shah Rukh and Kareena and Deepika," said Pritam.

The song with Priyanka needed special treatment and Shah Rukh made Pritam re-work and re-record the song.

"Shah Rukh's song with Priyanka 'Khuda-ae-kher' is not an item song. It's a love ballad that the pair playing Bollywood superstars emote to in front of the camera. Being a love song Shah Rukh felt there wasn't enough of the female presence in the vocals. He made me re-record the song with more for the female vocalist (Dominique) to do since he wanted Priyanka to have an equal number of lines," the composer said.

"It was entirely Shah Rukh's idea to give Priyanka more lines in the song. He's a very generous entertainer. If you see him on screen he never tries to steal the limelight from his heroines. Even 'Khai ke paan banaras wala' in 'Don' had a lot of Priyanka in it although it was entirely Shah Rukh's song," Pritam added.

Asked about Shah Rukh's generosity, Priyanka sighed and said: "What do I say? Now do you know why he's my favourite?"

Irrfan Khan and Lara Dutta, who play a rustic couple in "Billu Barber", will later be seen enacting the same Shah Rukh-Priyanka ballad.

Will Aishwarya Rai contest on Samajwadi Party ticket from Bihar?

Patna, After 'Munnabhai' Sanjay Dutt, it could be the turn of Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls as a Samajwadi Party candidate.

Samajwadi Party workers and leaders in Bihar have decided to offer Aishwarya the party ticket for the Madhepura seat against Janata Dal-United (JD-U) national president Sharad Yadav, a party official said.

In view of the overwhelming demand of the party workers, the Samajwadi Party Bihar parliamentary board has recommended Aishwarya's name to party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.

Senior party leader Tulsi Singh told IANS that a large number of party workers and people had requested him to convince Mulayam Singh to give the party ticket to Aishwarya from Madhepura. Singh is chairman of the party's state parliamentary board.

The Madhepura seat is held by the Rashtriya Janata Dal's Pappu Yadav, who is serving life imprisonment in Tihar Jail in Delhi for his involvement in the murder of Left leader Ajit Sarkar. His wife Ranjita Ranjan is a Lok Janshakti Party MP from Saharsa.

JD-U leader Sharad Yadav is likely to contest from Madhepura, his old seat.

In the last Lok Sabha polls in 2004, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, the RJD chief, won from Madhepura by defeating Sharad Yadav. Lalu Prasad later resigned the Madhepura seat and opted to retain the Chapra seat.

Madhepura, a rural seat, is dominated by the backward Yadav caste. Last year, Madhepura was hit by devastating floods when the Kosi river changed its course after a breach upstream in Nepal.

I'm jealous of Harman Baweja: Amrita Rao

New Delhi, Bollywood actress Amrita Rao says she is jealous of her “Victory” co-star Harman Baweja because he has several scenes with national and international cricketers while she didn't have even one in the movie.

“Don't sprinkle salt on the wound,” whined Amrita when she was asked if she got to share screen space with any of the cricketers in "Victory". “I didn't get a single chance to shoot with any cricketer. It has all been Harman's privilege and I am very jealous of him,” Amrita told IANS.

Releasing Firday, “Victory” is directed by debutant Ajitpal Mangat and is the story of a father's dream that his son, who is from a small village in Rajasthan, will become a national cricketer. How the young man becomes an acclaimed cricketer forms the remaining plot.

The film has cameos by cricketers including Michael Hussey, Brett Lee, Stuart Clark, Allan Border, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, R.P. Singh, Ishant Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Sanath Jayasurya and Dilhara Fernando.

About her role, Amrita said: “I play Nandini, a medical student from Jaisalmer. The character is very strong and inspiring. Nandini's character is basically very vocal about her mind.”

Amrita was here Tuesday to promote a new range of watches by the Gitanjali Group at the Rajouri Garden market.

The actress, last seen in Shyam Benegal's “Welcome To Sajjanpur”, says she had "a nice time working with Harman”.

“Not even once it come across that he was acting like a cricketer. He used to give such subtle expressions while shooting with the professional cricketers and facing bowls from legendary players,” said Amrita.

Amrita is confident that the film will do well even though it is pitched against the much-hyped Farhan Akhtar-starrer “Luck By Chance”, releasing on the same day.

“It wasn't easy to convince so many legendary cricketers to star in a Bollywood film,” she said.

After “Victory”, Amrita is looking forward to her next film ““Shortcut - The Con Is On!” that stars Akshay Khanna and Arshad Warsi. It is produced by Anil Kapoor.

What luck! Aamir Khan &Shah rukh khan in a film

The long wait for cinema audiences everywhere is now over with Zoya’s Luck By Chance (produced by Excel Entertainment and Reliance Big Pictures) hitting the screens on January 30.

Interestingly, the Khans play themselves in the film, but regretfully don’t share screen space and appear at different times individually. Shahrukh Khan interacts with Farhan and Aamir with Konkona. Both superstars have excellent relationships with Farhan and Zoya and both wanted to support this film.

Even though Aamir doesn’t do cameos, he readily agreed because he is familiar with the set-up having worked with producer Ritesh Sidhwani and director-actor Farhan in Dil Chahta Hai. Also, Aamir who works on bound scripts only, had already read Luck By Chance’s script when Zoya took it to him for feedback some years ago. So that was also okay.

“Initially, we were in a fix wondering how to talk to him, knowing his stance on cameos, till dad called me up to say he had spoken to Aamir,” explained the petite Zoya. Once dad Javed Akhtar succeeded with Aamir, Shahrukh Khan was easy to approach. “I personally spoke to Shahrukh Khan. But I won’t like to take the credit alone, because both actors did it out of friendship for Farhan and Ritesh. There is a lot of respect between all of us,” she added.

The film has Bollywood as its backdrop with Farhan playing a struggling actor opposite Koknona. “This is the first original story that gives you an insider’s journey of the film industry. A struggler’s experience,” said Ritesh. And here’s another little secret: Aamir shot for the film when he was in the midst of Ghajini and had the tonsured look; so, the consummate actor agreed to wear a wig for Zoya!

Bollywood Actor Aamir Khan receives a gold statuette worth Rs. 8 million

The perfectionist Aamir Khan has been truly an exceptional figure during the year 2008 as his two films ‘Taare Zameen Par’ and ‘Ghajini’ were super hit films especially ‘Ghajini’ has broken all the previous records of advance booking in Bollywood Film Industry and became the first film of 200 crores.

As everyone knows there is always uniqueness in Aamir Khan’s each performance and especially youngsters immediately catch his style. The producers of the film ‘Ghajini’ Madhu Mantena and Allu Arvind impressed a lot by Aamir Khan and they decided to give him a gold statuette worth Rs. 8 million.

According to Mantena, “Aamir really deserves for it. It is specially designed to remember Aamir’s look in ‘Ghajini’ and this statuette also includes eight pack abs.”

He further added, “This statuette has other metal to make it more beautiful. My idea was to develop an Oscar-sized statue mainly for ‘Ghajini’. Aamir Khan knew about it but he did not get to know that it would be made with gold.”

Bollywood Superstar Shahrukh Khan doesn’t regret turning down Slumdog

Slumdog Millionaire has finally put India on the global map, as it swept away four Golden Globes, however our Bollywood Superstar Shahrukh Khan was supposed to be an important part of the flick, he was the original choice of director Danny Boyle to play the host of Who Wants to be the Millionaire show, which was later played by Anil Kapoor.

However Shahrukh Khan does not regret missing out on the movie, he says, ” No. I know Danny felt bad about it. But he is such a good human being. And his love for India is something very special. After I saw the film, I thought Anil had done a fabulous job and deserves every bit of the success.”

Shahrukh Khan even refused some biggies like Lagaan, Munnabhai and more recent 3 Idiots, ask him about it and he says, “There shouldn’t be any afterthought once a decision is made. Nobody could have done a better job than Sanjay Dutt in Munnabhai… Yes, I was keen to do Lagaan, but Ashutosh and I didn’t get a producer at that time. I wasn’t into production then. And I didn’t do 3 Idiots which Aamir is doing now. Looks like Aamir was destined to do both the roles. He is brilliant, no doubt. Everything isn’t made for me alone. God has given me enough, I’d better be happy and contented. “

Do you think Shahrukh Khan would have been better than Anil Kapoor in Slumdog Millionaire?

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Salman’s turn to take a leaf out of Aamir’s book

It was Aamir Khan first to follow Salman ’s footsteps and get that beefed-up look for Ghajini . Now it’s Salman’s turn to take a leaf out of Aamir’s book.

The way ‘Ghajini’ was marketed started a different trend in Bollywood. Aamir’s marketing strategy for the film received plaudits from Bollywood fraternity. And the one who was and is full of admiration for perfectionist Aamir’s promotion stunts, is his friend Salman Khan , who wants to follow the example set by Aamir to promote his upcoming film Wanted Dead And Alive .

It’s been reported Salman has been highly impressed with publicity gimmick of Aamir’s movie, when the multiplex staffers sported the Ghajini hair-cut. And the way Aamir, being a media shy person, interacted with media, and even went to the length of chopping hairs and shaving people’s heads.

Salman has, in fact, told producer Boney Kapoor to promote ‘Wanted Dead And Alive’ in a similarly unique way. A photo session has already been planned and a huge set is erected for it.

‘Wanted Dead And Alive’ is a Hindi remake of hit Tamil film Pokkiri that starred Vijay and Asin . The Hindi version stars Salman and Ayesha Takia as lead pair and is directed by Prabhu Deva .

‘Pokkiri’ rocked the Tamil box office. So the makers don’t want to leave any stone unturned to make it as successful in Hindi as its Tamil counterpart.

While Slumdog Millionaire is the toast of the media all over the world, Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan has made headlines by publicly slamming it. The superstar was upset with the way India’s poverty had been highlighted in the picture. This has upset the film’s actor Irrfan Khan who plays a cop in the movie.


“I don’t know why some Indians feel shy to accept that India is a poor country. We are still a developing country. More than half of population is still poor. Everyone is not a superstar or rich. In India kids still die because of malnutrition. So what if one movie shows poverty in India? The film doesn’t show that Indians are bad…it only shows the life in the slums" says Irrfan Khan.

The actor goes on to add that the film is based on a book written by an Indian and that the film has only put on reel what is mentioned in the book.

"I guess Mr. Bachchan has not read the book which is actually written by an Indian writer called Vikas Swaroop. And it is not that the book talks about children who are staying at Taj Hotel, Oberoi Hotel, Bandra’s Pali Hill. In the book only it was about slum children. It’s not like the book has something different and he (Danny Boyle) has shown something else. He has not done any imaginary thing with this film…it’s the book which he put into his film,” argues Irrfan, “It is not possible for him to show children from a rich family becoming millionaire. And I guess Danny has done a wonderful job in the film. Inspite of arguing or saying that he has shown only poverty we should be proud that he has brought a Golden Globe Award for India. It is because of him only that Indian movies have reached those doors which earlier were not possible."

Even Anil Kapoor who bagged the role of the quiz master after Boyle was unable to reach Shah Rukh Khan or get Amitabh’s dates is upset with the comments made.“India is a democratic country and we all had a right to say what we think and even you can show your review about the film after watching it. So what Mr. Bachchan has done is that he has just presented his views about the film,” says Anil diplomatically.

Royal battle between Deepika, Kareena and Priyanka

Now that Shahrukh Khan has roped in three screen sizzlers for three different item songs in Billu Barber, a battle royale seems to be brewing among them as to who jives and sizzles the best with Shahrukh Khan. At the moment Kareena has the edge. Or so she seems to think. “My song with Shahrukh is awesome. That’s why it’s the first song to go on air on television. Shahrukh and I have done an item song before. So we share the required vibes,” says Kareena whose ‘Yeh Mera Dil’ track with SRK in Don was talked-about for months.

Kareena has a point to prove. In ‘Yeh Mera Dil’ she was criticized for her dress, weight and even the remixed song which many (including the singer Sunidhi Chauhan) thought lacked verve. This time says Kareena, she wanted every component in the item song to be perfect. Farah Khan who had choreographed the ‘Yeh Mera Dil’ number in Don was this time assigned Deepika Padukone’s item song in Billu Barber.

Kareena got herself a brand new choreographer. “He’s Prasanna a choreographer from the South. And what innovative movements he has given to Pritam’s song which just rocks. I think I’ve always been lucky with my item songs .Whether it was ‘Yeh Mera Dil’ or ‘It’s Rocking’, they’ve always rocked. The fact that mine is the first song to be in the promos does say something.” Though Kareena won’t talk about the money she says, “Saif and I both love Shahrukh and his wife Gauri. They’re like family.”

Priyanka, on the other hand, describes herself as an unabashed fan of Shahrukh Khan. “I’m his biggest fan. There’s no way I’d say no to him for anything. All he had to do was ask and I was on. In fact people ask me why I wasn’t there in the song featuring all the heroines with Shahrukh in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. Actually, I wasn’t asked. If I was, do you think I wouldn’t be in the song?”

Since Deepika, the third item queen in Billu Barber has bagged Farah Khan as her choreographer, it puts an end to the talks of a fall-out between the director-choreographer during the making of Om Shanti Om. “I don’t know why there’s all this talk of fall-out. I’m very fond of Farah and she of me. We can never fall out”, says Deepika. With all three Bollywood hotties vying to be in Shahrukh’s good books, the item songs in Billu Barber are bound to be the film’s USP.

Comment on this news that who in your opinion is best with Shahrukh khan...

Aditiya Chopra May Re-shoot Rani Mukerji and Shahid Kapur Starrer

After Yash Raj Films’ Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi did not live up to expectations, the YRF banner is being doubly sure and leaving no stone unturned to get a quality product. It now seems that the YRF’s untitled Rani Mukerji and Shahid Kapur starrer directed by debutant Anuraag Singh, is jinxed. Everyone involved with the film is unhappy and now the film will have to be reshot.

After reports that Rani Mukerji was ghost-directing the film, there are reports that Aditya Chopra and Yash Chopra are unhappy with the 60 percent of the film, which has been shot.

An insider told this reporter, “Anuraag Singh has been associated with Aditya Chopra for a long time and Adi was very keen to give him a film to direct. However, there have been constant reports about Adi being unhappy with the way the film was being shot. First, his lady love (Rani) objected to the ways of Singh so she was ghost-directing the film. Later, Adi and Yashji saw the film and did not approve of it. They felt that the film was not up to the YRF standards. Now that Rab Ne… has released, Adi saw the shot portions once again and feels that the film should be reshot.” Our source assured that there was no bitterness or animosity between Adi and Anuraag. He added, “Anuraag holds Adi in high esteem and has understood his point of view. Majority of the portions will be reshot now.”

Denying the reports, Aashish Singh, VP Productions YRF, said, “Not true. There is no re-shooting. The shootings are happening on schedule.”

According to reports, Rani plays the character of a cricket enthusiast, who is obsessed with the sport, so much so that she will go to any level to play it. Her obsession with the game pushes her to disguise herself as a sardar and enter an all-male cricket squad.

Sunil Shetty is the brand ambassador for Ford

Ford India has signed actor Suniel Shetty as the brand ambassador for its SUV - the Endeavor. Ford India will roll out a new leadership Endeavor print campaign will start 23 January 2009 in newspapers across India, with Suniel Shetty. Ad campaign that will strengthen the brand positioning for the Endeavor, is reflected in its new slogan.
"Cars have always ranked high on the priority list, and Ford Endeavor is a dream for every car Buff looking for a true blue SUV," said chief executive Shetty.Ford marketing sales and service Nigel Wark added: "Endeavor has been the highest selling SUV in 2008. This premium SUV is synonymous with style, power, success, results and adventurous, qualities that formed the basis for an appropriate brand association. Suniel Shetty is not only a proud Ford customer, but is an expression of these key attributes Endeavor perfect.

Sunil Shetty & SUV - the Endeavor with Ford car.


Sunil Shetty & SUV - the Endeavor with Ford car.


Actor Suniel Shetty is brand ambassador for Ford.


Actor Suniel Shetty is brand ambassador for Ford.

Sunil Shetty & SUV - the Endeavor with Ford car.


Actor Suniel Shetty is brand ambassador for Ford.


Sunil Shetty & SUV - the Endeavor with Ford car.


Actor Suniel Shetty is brand ambassador for Ford.