Fenil and Bollywood

MID-DAY (March 6, 2017)

Actor-producer Dhanush has come under the spotlight after a series of photographs, allegedly of him, along with other Kollywood stars, began surfacing online from South Indian singer and former RJ Suchitra’s Twitter account on Friday.

The images follow a series of allegations the singer made against the actor, including that his team had manhandled her in Coimbatore last month, with further reference to a “lousy game” being played on his behalf. Surprisingly, while Dhanush took to Twitter to promote his upcoming film, and also that of father-in-law Rajinikanth, he made no reference to the tweets.

While the singer claimed on the social networking platform, that her account had been hacked, fresh images and videos of actors, including Sanchita Shetty and Anuya, were leaked through the same account yesterday morning. There were also allegations that Dhanush and his music composer-friend Anirudh Ravichander had spiked Suchitra’s drink at a recent party.

This series follows a set of intimate photos of Dhanush, along with celebrities including Trisha Krishnan, Andrea Jeremiah, Anirudh, Hansika Motwani and Divyadarshini that were tweeted from Suchitra’s account on Friday. The singer later deleted them and claimed a private investigator had been appointed to find the hacker.

When asked why she wasn’t filing a complaint, she added that she was home-bound and her life was “under threat”. Soon after the photographs appeared on her timeline, her account was switched to the private mode, further fuelling speculation that the singer was indeed handling her account.

Mom Ayesha and sister Krishna Shroff are dismissive of RGV’s comments; he has since apologised
Upala KBR (DNA; March 6, 2017)

On Thursday night, Ram Gopal Varma wished Tiger Shroff on his 27th birthday by taunting him for posing for a photograph coming out of the sea wearing just a pair of jeans.

The filmmaker even suggested that the young actor learn machoism from his father, who is acting in Ramu’s upcoming film Sarkar 3. Jackie flatly refused to comment on Ramu’s tweets, while Tiger’s mother Ayesha and sister Krishna were initially reluctant to talk about Ramu’s rant. But they eventually opened up.

Says Ayesha, “I was taken aback at the nastiness of his (Ramu’s) rant. It didn’t upset Tiger one bit. I don’t understand what the whole rant was about in the first place. What triggered it off? We have nothing to say about Ramu. But I would like to add this — I don’t understand why we still loosely use these outdated terms like ‘gay’ for defining somebody’s style. The world has evolved so much and everybody has their own individual, personal and artistic expressions. To me, a real man is one who knows how to treat a woman with respect and I have two in my life — Jackie and Tiger.”

Krishna says, “I don’t want to waste my time on pointless negativity. It’s absolutely irrelevant in our lives. I know that Tiger’s beyond such things. I am extremely protective of him, but only when I need to be. Tiger’s birthday was such a positive and happy day, I honestly laughed when I read Ramu’s tweets. Sounded like a big joke to me and wasn’t worth my time or energy. Do I think mocking Tiger was fair? To each their own. Whatever floats his boat (smiles). A real man knows how to be respectful and is kind to all, so in that case, Tiger is the ultimate man!”

Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 6, 2017)

Alia Bhatt has shot for two films, back-to-back in the Lion city, the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Dear Zindagi, and the upcoming romcom, Badrinath Ki Dulhania, also featuring Varun Dhawan. After spending so much time in the country, the 23-year-old actress has formed a close bond with the world's only island city-state. Also known as the Little Red Dot, the sovereign city-state in Southeast Asia lies one degree (137 km) north of the equator, at the southern tip of Peninsular Malaysia, with Indonesia's Riau Islands to the south. It consists of one main island along with 62 islets spread over 719 kilometres covered with tropical flora and parks in plenty thanks to its greening policy. Here's what Alia likes about Singapore...

Walking the wave
I spent around 20 days in this clean, organised city for the Badrinath shoot last October. One of its popular tourist spots is the Henderson Waves Bridge. The bridge is shaped like a wave, all curvy and beautiful, and is the highest pedestrian bridge located in the mountains of southern Singapore.

The best way to explore the bridge is as part of the Southern Ridges Walk, a nine-kilometre hiking trail that takes you through three major parks: Kent Ridge Park, Telok Blangah Hill Park and Mount Faber Park, the bridge connecting the last two. We filmed on the bridge and the picturesque locations add so much the frames.

Another favourite is the Universal Studios, a theme park on Sentosa Island. It is the second Universal Studios theme park to open in Asia after Japan. It opened on April 18, 2010, and Universal Parks & Resorts has promised that this one-of-its-kind theme park with the only one in Southeast Asia for the next 30 years.

There are shows and rides there based on popular Hollywood films like Jurassic Park, Transformers and more. I tried the roller coaster ride and it was a thrilling experience. There's also a fire show and a parade that brings out popular movie characters on floats. It's a lot of fun and perfect for a day out with family and friends.

Game, set, match!
During our off day, Varun organised for the team to go watch India's tennis ace Sania Mirza play her WTA doubles finals at the Singapore Indoor stadium. Martina Hingis and she were taking on Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina. This was the first time I got to watch a tennis match live and I have to confess it was nerve-wrecking. It was an intensely competitive game which had us sitting at the edge of our seats. Sania is really sweet and a wonderful host.

Chicken soup for the soul
Every time I am in Singapore, I have to go eat at my favourite restaurant Din Tai Fung. It's open kitchen gives you a chance to see its chefs in action. Ranked one of the world's top 10 best restaurants, its famous for its signature steamed chicken soup. This authentic Taiwanese restaurant also has branches in Thailand, Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, and the US. I went there at least three-four times during the shoot.

Singapore's also rich in fruits. You get fresh and excellent quality fruits there. From lychees to pineapple, there's a lot to pick from. It's perfect for those looking for something healthy to much on.

Shop hopping
I went shopping on Orchard Road whenever I had any free time from the shoot. It is a 2.2 km one-way street which stretches from Tanglin Road to Dhoby Ghaut. Orchard Road holds five yearly events which includes the annual Christmas Light up event, the Singapore Fashion Festival and the Great Singapore Sale. I hopped across to the Takashimaya mall and the ION Orchard mall where I picked up some knick knacks. I didn't get too much time to shop at leisure.

For those looking to party, there are some cool nightclubs at Clarke Quay. We shot a song at the F club and the place was really cool. It's spread over 10,000 sq ft and has DJs and interesting theme parties. Another cool place to hang out is the Boat Quay, a water bridge close to Clarke Quay. The view is scenic.

Electric scooter ride
What I like best about the locals is that they are absolute professionals. They ensured that we got everything we needed well in time. During the Dear Zindagi shoot, we were on a tight deadline and it was raining. The local crew ensured we didn't waste a single minute and helped us complete our shoot in the little time we had between the showers. During the Badrinath Ki Dulhania schedule Varun and I took a ride on the electric scooter which is popular among locals. It was really exciting and loads of fun.

Father Karan Johar Introduces Twins Roohi and Yash To The World

Malathy Iyer & Sumitra Deb Roy (THE TIMES OF INDIA; March 6, 2017)

Karan Johar's month-old twins Roohi and Yash have been in a hospital since their premature birth on February 7. A family friend revealed that the twins, born to a surrogate mother in an Andheri nursing home, were immediately transferred to Surya Mother & Child Hospital in Santa Cruz (west). “They are in NICU and likely to be there for a couple of weeks or more,“ said Johar's friend. The babies were born around two months premature and weighed around 1.5kg each.

On Sunday, Johar issued a statement, saying, “I feel enormously blessed to be a parent to these pieces of my heart who were welcomed into this world with the help of the marvels of medical science.“ He said he would be “eternally grateful to the surrogate“ who fulfilled his lifelong dream, adding “a big thank you to Dr Jatin Shah for his guidance and support and for being like a family member through this wonderful and exciting journey.“

Sonil Dedhia and Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; March 6, 2017)

It must have been incredibly hard for Bollywood's most public figure to keep his life's biggest news under wraps. Just seven days into the birth of his twins, Roohi and Yash, Karan Johar had hosted a singles-only bash at his house on Valentine's Day. As the news broke yesterday, many of the filmmaker's pals, who had attended that party, were thrown off-guard.

An actor, who prefers to remain anonymous, says, "I knew he wanted to have children some day, but I had no idea he was bringing his babies home this soon. Now that I think of it, Karan was not his usual self. He kept excusing himself frequently. But for those who had no idea, they couldn't have guessed."

Even those at Karan's banner, Dharma Productions, were taken by surprise. A source at the production house says, "I don't think anyone in office was aware about it either. Even last month, Karan followed his usual schedule and would come to work every other day."

A unit member of his last film, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, says Karan had briefly mentioned about his desire to have children: "Over the last few years, he was getting increasingly lonely. He even brought home a pup, Nobu, last year. Though constantly surrounded by friends, who are no less than family, he craved kids of his own. I found out about the surrogacy last December. When I asked Karan, all he said was that I must keep it a secret. We all adore him and respect his wishes."

Friends Gauri Khan, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Manish Malhotra were, perhaps, the only ones clued in to the development, says a source at Dharma, adding, "Nothing about his schedule changed in February. He continued to work at the same pace, overseeing promotions of Badrinath Ki Dulhania, curating his chat show and other work commitments."

In his recently-released memoir, The Unsuitable Boy, Karan wrote, "I don't know what I am going to do about it, but I feel like I would like to be a parent. I don't know how it's going to happen, but I do feel the need because I have plenty of love to offer and I'd like to take it forward (sic)."

Johar spent the last week in London, the first few days with BFF Manish Malhotra, and then at an event at the London School of Economics on Saturday. He returned to Mumbai yesterday. "I can imagine him as a paranoid parent, spoiling his kids; I can't see him as a disciplinarian. But it's early to say what kind of a parent he will be. Let's just say, he will make a wonderful father," another close friend says.

'Work would have to take a backseat'
An excerpt of Karan Johar's statement read, "I am ecstatic to share with you all the two most wonderful additions to my life, my children and lifelines; Roohi and Yash. In order to arrive at this decision, I have prepared myself mentally, physically, emotionally and logistically to ensure that my children get all the unconditional love, care and attention from me and mine. My work, travels and social commitments would have to take a back seat. I have the most caring and supportive mother who will be an integral part in the up-bringing of her grandchildren and of course, friends who are family. I am eternally grateful to the surrogate who has fulfilled my lifelong dream and provided a loving and nurturing environment to my children before bringing them into this world. She will always remain in my prayers."

Box Office India Trade Network

COMMANDO 2 (Hindi) had a low first weekend of 13.25 crore nett as it could not grow over the weekend. These types do struggle for growth but if you want to go anywhere then from an opening of 4 crore plus you have no choice to grow as occupancy is low and potential to grow is there. If the opening is higher then you can get away with a drop on Saturday. Even today these sort of films can still work on the strength of single screens but not at 35-40% occupancy levels, they have to be liked there and record higher occupancy. The collections are just 2 crore more than the last Commando film in 2013 and the budget is much higher. The business of COMMANDO 2 (Hindi) till date is as follows.
Friday - 4,25,00,000
Saturday - 4,00,00,000
Sunday - 5,00,00,000
TOTAL - 13,25,00,000
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Hollywood release LOGAN managed to score over COMMANDO 2 over the weekend but the film could have trended better over the weekend. Still the weekend numbers are decent and and if the weekdays hold it become an AVERAGE earner. The business of LOGAN in its first weekend are as follows.
Friday - 4,25,00,000
Saturday - 5,00,00,000
Sunday - 6,00,00,000
TOTAL - 15,25,00,000

After crooning two Rabindra Sangeets live, the actress who is gearing up for a talk at the House of Lords, will have to take music lessons again to play Jaddanbai
Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 7, 2017)

Even though Shabana Azmi insists that she is not a singer and only has a ear for music she managed to impress the late Pandit Ravi Shankar and singer-composer Shankar Mahadevan with her renditions in Mahesh Dattani’s 2004 film, Morning Raga, with the sitar maestro calling to tell her he couldn’t believe she was not a trained Carnatic singer. She recently sang two Rabindra Sangeets, “Aaji jharer raate” and “Sokhi andhare” for Aparna Sen’s upcoming directorial, Sonata.

“First Aparna casts me as a whimsical, childish, highly volatile Bengali woman, then she bullies me into singing two Tagore songs, live, on the set. It was the most terrifying experience and I could only do it because my coach, Sharoni Sen, tutored me so patiently. Aparna kept up the charade that we’d be recording in a studio till we were three-four days into the shoot and then revealed her secret,” says Shabana, who has still to listen to the songs despite encouraging feedback from Bengalis.

Now, Nandita Das wants her to sing for the Manto biopic in which she plays Nargis’s mother, filmmaker-actress-composer-singer Jaddanbai. “I don’t know yet if it will be in a performance with musical accompaniments or if I’ll have to croon live again. I’m already terribly nervous,” she admits.

Shabana is equally nervous about speaking at the House of Lords in London, on March 9, on identity and integration. She points out that its a relevant topic in today’s times when there is an upsurge all over the world about what constitutes identity. “There’s a huge struggle against forces that seek to make us toe the line,” asserts Shabana, who believes that in any country that claims to be a democracy, the bottomline has to be about embracing dissension and plurality. “You may disagree with another person’s opinion and are free to debate it hotly, but with words, not violence. Identity and integration are crucial in the wake of Brexit, Donald Trump’s win in the US and in Narendra Modi’s government. There is an attempt to make a binary out of what constitutes national and anti-national. In George Bush’s words, ‘Either you are with us or you are against us.’ I’m a proud Indian but that doesn’t mean I’ll say everything is hunky dory. For me, its ‘separate’ but ‘equal’ because identity is not a melting pot in which individual identities can be submerged. It’s like a colourful mosaic in which each piece retains its individuality while contributing to a larger whole.”

She has been to the House of Lords before when she received the Gandhi International Peace Prize. “It seemed solemn, sombre and intimidating initially, not very different from the awe with which I stepped into the Indian Parliament for the first time. And it was unbelievable to be getting this award from Vanessa Redgrave whom one has admired for years. But once I started speaking, I was more relaxed,” she reminisces.

She has Kavi Raz’s The Black Prince, releasing worldwide on May 19 in which she plays Rani Jindan, wife of Ranjit Singh, a feisty historical figure who wrested her son, Duleep Singh, from Queen Victoria. “I just won the Best Actress Award at the Los Angeles Film Festival for it but have yet to see it. It was a struggle speaking Punjabi and ironically now, they want to make me dub my lines in Hindi,” she laughs.

There’s another American production, Jennifer Reeder’s Signature Move whose script was mentored by Robert De Niro at the Tribeca Film Institute. “I play a mother who obsessively looks through her binoculars for a prospective groom for her daughter,” she informs. She plays a different mother, an Earth Mother in Idgah, a story by Premchand. There’s also a children’s film, The Wishing Tree. “It’s a full platter of different dishes and thrilling,” she signs off.
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Meanwhile...

Nandita Das has confirmed that writer-lyricist Javed Akhtar is part of her next directorial, Manto. “Shabana Azmi is acting in it and Javed Akhtar is also a part of the movie,“ said Nandita.

Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 7, 2017)

On March 4, actress Hrishitaa Bhatt, who debuted opposite Shah Rukh Khan in the 2001 period drama Asoka, tied the knot in a quiet day-long ceremony in Delhi.

The 35-year-old-actress met husband Anand Tiwari, senior diplomat with the United Nations, and the couple struck a chord instantly, as did their families. Six months later, the couple got married.

The special menu included welcome drinks customised for every guest and the venue featured unique floral art by celebrity-designer Srishti Kapoor. For the guests, there was jewellery and tiaras made from floral work as well.

The actress, who looked stunning in two outfits by Preeti Singhal and Premal Badiani each, has a home in Mumbai, but will now move to Delhi postmarriage. She hopes to keep juggling her time between the two cities whenever work calls.

The actress is remembered for Tigmanshu Dhulia’s 2003 directorial, Haasil and Shimit Amin’s Ab Tak Chhappan. Her last release, 30 Minutes, was launched by Akshay Kumar in November 2016. She has not signed a single Bollywood film since.

Shilpi Sampad (MID-DAY; March 7, 2017)

Want Superwoman as your life coach? She will be right here next month. Lilly Singh, arguably the biggest YouTube sensation of Indian origin, is set to embark on her second visit to the country. Her debut India tour in May 2015 was a huge success.

The 28-year-old comic will be hosted by Event Speciale as she stops by in Mumbai, Hyderabad and Delhi on April 19, 20 and 21. The visit is part of Lilly’s How To Be A Bawse tour, which aims to imbibe the humour and motivation from her debut book, How To Be A Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life. The whirlwind tour also includes dates in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, South East Asia, Dubai, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago.

Francis Coelho, MD of Event Speciale, says, “The tour aspires to inspire the youth to be achievers. From the start to end, it will weave a personalised storyline.”

Lilly has 11 million subscribers on her YouTube channel, where she treats the audience to colourful parodies and incisive pieces-to-camera. Given her Punjabi roots, she draws inspiration from the Indian diaspora. She’s also a role model to women across the globe. Now, she wants to share the lessons she learned through her journey to stardom.

Lilly tells mid- day, “I am thrilled to write my first book and share, all in one place, what I have learned about achieving success and happiness. This journey has taught me to always pick myself up, not allow anything to stand in the way and that the only secret to achieving dreams is hard work.”

Lilly has earlier collaborated with Selena Gomez, Dwayne Johnson, Jimmy Fallon, Mila Kunis, Priyanka Chopra, James Franco and Seth Rogen.

Soumya Vajpayee Tiwari (MID-DAY; March 7, 2017)

While working on the soundtrack of Tiger Shroff-starrer Munna Michael, based on a die-hard fan of Michael Jackson, Tanishk Bagchi set himself a challenging target. The composer, who has hits like Banno (Tanu Weds Manu Returns), The Humma Song (OK Jaanu) and Tamma Tamma Again (Badrinath Ki Dulhania) to his credit, wanted to create songs with an undeniable connect to MJ’s music.

Bagchi researched on the late pop icon extensively and got in touch with over 200 MJ fans across India. This included face-to-face interactions and social media chats. “What emerged was that Michael Jackson’s Indian admirers, from the most unlikely places, idolise him and follow his music. It was imperative for me to reach out to them and gather a sense of what they expect from songs inspired by MJ. I connected with people via social media and my team helped send out e-mails to ardent fans. Then, I wrote compositions based on those findings,” says Bagchi.

MJ fans from Bhopal, Kolkata, Pune, Chennai, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Jaipur and Ahmedabad, helped him with his research, which spanned over two months. “I realised that the iconic musicians of the '90s still have hold on people in small towns,” he says.

MUMBAI MIRROR (March 7, 2017)

Kangana Ranaut who recently appeared on Karan Johar's talk show and called him the “flag-bearer of nepotism“ says that he's done with her playing the woman and the victim card. “You cannot be this victim at every given point of time, who has this sad story to tell about how she has been terrorised by 'bad Bollywood'. If it is that way then leave,“ he added. Kangana had previously said that Karan would be perfect to play the role of a “stereotypical Bollywood biggie who is snooty and completely intolerant to outsiders, the movie mafia“ in her biopic, if it is ever made. The filmmaker said he may not have agreed with her comments but let it air as he respected her point of view.

“She had a great perspective and point of view. Everyone lauded her for coming on my show and (how she) 'gave it off to Karan'. I was gracious enough to not cut anything and let it be that way. I could've edited it as it was my show but I cut none of it. I said, 'No, let the world listen to her opinion, she must voice it.' I gave her the platform,“ he added Previously, during a chat session on Twitter, someone asked him, “Was Kangana correct about nepotism?“ to which he replied, “Not entirely! She made an impact with her sweeping statements! That was fun...for her! And the show.“

Actor and now social media star, Rishi Kapoor says he’s ready to give it back to trolls on Twitter, in the language they understand best
Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; March 7, 2017)

If there’s one thing that social media-savvy celebrities have learnt through their tryst with the web world, it is that trolls can be ruthless. Among the many industry folk to have frequently had bumpy encounters with their online fans is Rishi Kapoor. The veteran actor recently lost his cool on Twitter, and lashed out at his followers with a string of abusive accusations, many of which have been shared across the social networking platform.

It all started with a humble post, one that the actor assumed could have been a playful game of sorts, as he posted a quiz, asking the Twitterati to guess the common underlying thread between him and filmmaker Karan Johar. While some responded with the correct answer (both have named their sons after their respective fathers), others poked fun at him. “Weight,” said one while another wrote, “[The] art of getting away with stupidity since you are celebrities”.

While this wasn’t Kapoor’s first brush with trolls, he decided to react to the unwarranted sarcasm this time. The actor not only slammed them with his tweets, but also sent abusive direct messages (DMs) to followers before blocking them.

When mid-day got in touch with Kapoor, he reasoned, “I respect my fans, but if someone tries to troll or abuse me, I won’t take it.” The actor responded to questions about his abusive language in a rather nonchalant manner. “If you don’t like me, don’t follow me, but don’t try to mess around and gain attention at my cost. It’s not that these trolls don’t abuse me. If they do, I will reciprocate.”

In a string of DMs, snapshots of which have been shared on Twitter, Kapoor is seen poking fun at one’s religion and also at a woman’s looks. He defends himself claiming that he decided against openly abusing them since it invites unwanted attention. “It’s better to abuse them via direct messages and block them,” he signs off.

BOMBAY TIMES (March 7, 2017)

Vidya Balan is back with yet another intriguing tale. As the madam of a brothel, she sports a fearlessly brazen look in the much-awaited Begum Jaan. A woman of conviction and indomitable courage, Begum's motto is to fight for her body, her house, her country and her rules. The film, helmed by National Award-winning director Srijit Mukherji, is a story of survivors who fight against nations to save their home, amid the volatile political scenario during Partition.

Mahesh Bhatt, who's co-producing the movie, says, “The soul-stirring premise of Rajkahini (Bengali film) made me adapt it into Hindi as Begum Jaan. This is one of Vidya's finest performances.“

The high-voltage drama, which has music composed by National Award-winner Anu Malik, comes with the tagline 'When Freedom fought Independence'. It also stars Naseeruddin Shah, Ila Arun, Gauahar Khan, Pallavi Sharda, Rajit Kapoor, Ashish Vidyarthi, Vivek Mushran, Chunky Pandey, Poonam Singh Rajput, Ridheema Tiwari, Flora Saini, Priyanka Setia, Mishti Chakraborty, Sumit Nijhawan, Pitobash and Rajesh Sharma.

Begum Jaan, produced by Mukesh Bhatt, Vishesh Bhatt and Play Entertainment, releases on April 14.

Months after the two had an online tiff over a Mohammed Rafi dialogue in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, the popular singer and filmmaker seemed to have buried the hatchet
Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; March 7, 2017)

A part from the controversy over starring Pakistani actor Fawad Khan, Karan Johar's 2016 release Ae Dil Hai Mushkil had also run into trouble because of a dialogue on Mohammed Rafi.The legendary singer's son Shahid and his diehard fans, including Sonu Nigam, took offence over a dialogue uttered by Anushka Sharma's character in the film, “Mohammed Rafi? Woh gaate kam rote zyada the na?“ Exasperated by the backlash, Johar had tweeted back then, “Filmmakers making irresponsible remarks at events. Singers revelling in self importance... Press releases sent to mask insecurities! Ufff.“ Sonu was quick to blog, “So it's all about loving your family, and disrespecting others'!! And this is not revelling in self importance. UFFFFFFF...“

However, the two seem to have let bygones be bygones now. A source revealed, “The dust has settled, there is no bad blood between the two anymore. Sonu even paid a tribute to KJo at the Mirchi Music Awards.“

When BT asked Sonu about his equation with Karan, he said, “Anyone who has achieved such immense success in life can't be a small person. Sometimes, the people around exaggerate and magnify matters. We never got a chance to meet each other after that (row). But recently, while I was hosting an awards show, I paid a tribute to him by singing three of my hits from his films. We hugged each other after that and both of us were on the verge of crying. I was happy he reciprocated my love and respect. Life is very small for all this. You never know when your time is over.“

He explained, “We never had an altercation on a personal level. Social media has a way of fanning the flames. I neither spoke ill of his film, nor uttered his name even once. I just expressed my love for Rafi saab. That doesn't make me anti-Karan Johar. I revere Rafi saab and I have a right to say so. I never spoke against Karan and he knows it.“

Instead of indulging in a public face-off, why didn't the two sort out the matter in private? “I didn't feel the need to call him. You do that when you either feel guilty or are in need of that person. So I didn't call him and neither did he,“ he signs off.

The actress ditched walking the ramp for a fashion show in London; organisers who suffered a loss of 7,800 pounds plan to fight her; ask authorities to debar her from future events
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 7, 2017)

On March 4, Bipasha Basu arrived with her husband Karan Singh Grover in London for the India Pakistan London Fashion Show. The 38-year-old actress was the showstopper for the grand finale curated by London-based designers Lubna and Uzma Rafiq and featured three distinct cultures — British, Indian and Pakistani. Walking the ramp for the same show at the prestigious Gibson Hall was Javed Shaikh, Pakistani actor best known in India for his performance in the TV show Zindagi Gulzar Hai. Javed and Bipasha were to interact with the media together after the curtains came down.

But four hours before the show kicked off at 6pm, Bipasha flatly refused to come out of her hotel room or speak to anybody. When her manager who was accompanying her, Sana Kapoor of Caa Kwan Talent Management Agency Pvt. Ltd., reportedly tried to cajole her to step out, she abused her and threw her out of the room, and also insulted London-based Gurbani Kaur, the founder and organiser of the show, slamming the door on her face.

Recalling her “horrific run-in” with the actress, Ronita Sharma Rekhi, who was the official talent scout of the show, responsible for bringing the Indian actress to London, told Mirror, “While still in India, Sana told us that Bipasha wanted her husband Karan to fly out to London with her and her stay be extended to five nights. We had already booked rooms at Mayfair but since there were no rooms available after she extended her stay, we shifted her to the Montcalm Hotel, another five-star property which cost us 600 pounds per night. All her requirements were taken care of and an advance fee was paid. Within minutes of landing in London, we handed her two local SIM cards which she literally threw back on my face because it only had a five pound recharge. There were around 20 people watching us, including the chauffeurs. The tantrums got worse once Bipasha reached the hotel.”

Ronita goes on to inform that an hour before the show began, the designers, hair-dresser and make-up artistes who were all on the pay-roll were waiting in the hotel lobby for Bipasha to arrive. But she absolutely refused to come down and the fashion show finally took place without its showstopper. The show was a hit with the BBC covering it live, reporting it as “one of the most exemplary portrays of Indian and Pakistani fashion”.

Five hours later, with Sana, and Ronita still waiting, Bipasha and Karan walked out of their room and without glancing at anyone walked out with a map of London in hand to explore the city.

Ronita adds that Bipasha refused to speak to her manager, who was left stranded and had to literally be rescued by London-based Sunny Surani, whose company Universal Entertainment is the one-stop shop for all Bollywood film shoots and Indian events taking place in London. Sunny also works in tandem with the UK Government to assist with visas for film projects.

“It was a pitiful situation when I was contacted. I had to organise accommodation and food for Bipasha’s manager Sana, and book her on the next flight to Mumbai,” says Sunny, adding, “The total loss suffered by the show organisers because of Bipasha amounts to 7800 pounds, apart from the travel expenses paid to her in cash at the airport. Bipasha used this as 'honeymoon money' but we will fight this till the end. We are going to apply to the visa and immigration centre to debar her from working in the UK in future.” The organisers confirmed that they have the hotel’s CCTV footage, travel and financial documents, phone and message conversations as evidence.

Ronita has given Caa Kwan and Bipasha 48 hours to reply to her emails, calls and messages to come to a solution. If not resolved, she plans to fight the actress for damages to herself and her client.

“The agency doesn’t want anything more to do with the affair. But I cannot forget how we, credible and respectable working professionals, cried and begged Bipasha to walk the ramp and how mercilessly she let not only us down but also India, and that too on a platform that was meant to portray the unity between two countries. As event organisers we are used to delays, complains and unreasonable demands but everybody always comes to an amicable agreement. Sometimes the organisers apologise, sometimes the celebrities and everybody goes home having earned some money and recognition. But this is unacceptable,” Ronita signs off.

We contacted Caa Kwan but they chose to not respond to our texts and calls.

Bipasha’s spokesperson told Mirror, “The organisers didn’t honour their commitment as promised, and Bipasha had to book her own hotel stay. It was completely unproffesional on their part.”

Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 7, 2017)

Alia Bhatt who had earlier crooned chart-toppers like “Samjhawan” for Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, Highway’s “Sooha Saha”, “Ik Kudi” for Udta Punjab and the club remix of Dear Zindagi’s title track, had surprised everyone by not getting into the recording studio for her upcoming romcom, Badrinath Ki Dulhania. Her disappointed fans started a hashtag #WewantHumsafarbyAlia to urge the 23-year-old actress to sing the female version of Akhil Sachdeva’s “Humsafar”. Their wishes have been fulfilled. Alia recently recorded “Humsafar” and is even shooting a special video with co-star Varun Dhawan.

A source close to the development says, “Alia and Varun were initially scheduled to shoot the video for the promotional number on Monday in Mumbai. The shoot is now happening today. It will be aired on music channels after the film’s release.”

Alia recently admitted to Mirror that she would love to sing in her upcoming films, Ayan Mukerji’s superhero fantasy adventure, Dragon, featuring Ranbir Kapoor, and Zoya Akhtar’s musical Gully Boys with Ranveer Singh too. “I enjoy singing although right now my schedule is crazy. It’s so hectic that I don’t even get to sleep at night. The idea is to reach out to everyone across the country, down to the remotest corner. Badrinath Ki Dulhania is a film that you can’t box down to one particular audience, it’s a universal entertainer,” she asserts.

After the film’s release, the actress will take a couple of months break during which she will not only travel to Los Angeles for a vacation and take cooking lessons but she will also learn to play the piano. Who knows, maybe the next time we hear her sing , she’ll play the keys too.

Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; March 7, 2017)

Govinda may have been the quintessential Bollywood hero in the '90s, but he is currently struggling to release his next, 'Aa Gaya Hero'. It is learnt the actor, who has been busy promoting his comeback movie, hasn't been able to find a distributor.

'Aa Gaya Hero' was initially scheduled to hit the screens on February 24, but the release date was pushed to March 3. Later, it was rescheduled to March 17. However, even that seems unlikely at the moment. A distributor-exhibitor, on condition on anonymity, reveals that the actor is willing to pay distributors to release the film.

"The movie is a repackaged version of Abhinay Chakra, which was supposed to release in 2015, but was postponed indefinitely. In today's day and age, when Bollywood films have high-octane action sequences and fine VFX, 'Aa Gaya Hero' looks dated. Apart from Govinda's dancing, there's no novelty factor. The promos and songs aren't doing well either. There's no buzz around the film in the trade circuit. With the movie set to run into Anushka Sharma's 'Phillauri' and Rajkummar Rao's 'Trapped', the decision to release it on March 17 is questionable," said the distributor-exhibitor.

Govinda remained unavailable for comment.

RGV gets candid about hits and misses; says Twitter’s an extension of his personality
Meena Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; March 7, 2017)
One has known Ram Gopal Varma for 28 years but that amounts to zilch. Nasty one second and disarming the next, RGV remains an enigma. He lives vicariously through the movies he views and makes. He deliberately courts the Bollywood “outcaste” image and will not pander to the egos of either his actors or the media.

Excerpts from a chat with the incorrigible filmmaker:

Amitabh Bachchan has trusted you despite the fact that besides the successful Sarkar franchise, you also made the disastrous RGV Ki Aag with him. Comment.
I have the highest regard for Amitabh Bachchan. Unlike others who only look at the end result, he sees the effort I put into both Sarkar and RGV Ki Aag. Most people don’t bother with the causes and just react to the effect. That’s understandable. I’m not complaining.

You have been around for 28 years. In the early years of your career you could do nothing wrong. In the second half, most of the films you did were wrong. Why?
To start with, it’s not true that I did not do anything wrong in the early phase. After the super successful debut, Shiva, in 1989, I gave five flops in a row. Then, there were three flops before Rangeela in 1995 which was followed by another flop, Daud, two years later. People remember only the hits after some years. The media too wasn’t so aggressive in those days.

Would you say that somewhere along the way you’ve become a little complacent?
I know that’s what people think and that I do too many things too fast and so do not focus on the job at hand. But the truth is that I spent the maximum time, effort and money on films like Daud, Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag and Department and they are my biggest flops while films like Satya, which was made without a ready script succeeded. There is no co-relation between working hard and making a hit film though I know nobody will believe me.

Sarkar is a franchise which has kept you on top of the game. What are your expectations from Part 3?
For me, Sarkar is the epitome of what great film characters meant from the days of an angry young Amitabh Bachchan to the Godfather trilogy. Sarkar 3 is the epitome of the franchise.

How close is Sarkar 3 to your heart and will we catch a glimpse of the genius that was there in Shiva, Company and Rangeela in it?
You will find the present RGV in Sarkar 3. Ridley Scott once said that when you see a film that you have made a long time ago, you almost feel as if someone else has made it. I agree. That is because we are continuously changing through our experiences. So today, when I see Company, I feel it’s a half-baked film because I know so much more about the complexities of the underworld now.

You are really aggressive on the social media like recently you got after Tamil Nadu’s CM-hopeful, Sasikala Natarajan.
For me, Twitter is an extension of my personality and I say whatever I feel strongly about at the moment. Also, it is not a public platform, it’s something between me and those who wish to follow me

But why are you always so offensive?
I am not offensive, I’m actually gentler than a lamb. But the truth I speak sometimes sounds offensive.

Is there a film in the offing on Sasikala?
Let’s see.

There is so much of you on the social media. Yet you continue to remain an enigma. What is the real RGV like?
You can meet the real RGV on Twitter. He is a mixture of one teaspoon of genius, two teaspoons of dumbness, a pinch of humour and half a cup of ‘mad’ common sense.

You once started your day watching a movie and went to bed watching one. Does this routine continue or has it given way to some other idiosyncrasy.
Earlier I used to watch only movies, now I watch a lot of documentaries and web series.

After Urmila Matondkar and Antara Mali you stopped giving Bollywood, heroines who could occupy mind space, stopped nurturing talent…
I would say I stopped ‘talenting’. Now, don’t ask me its meaning

Data obtained via Right to Information shows how leaders from across parties populate the film watchdog with know-nothings from their constituencies
Laxman Singh (MID-DAY; March 7, 2017)

Netas, it seems, want a stronger hold over your entertainment. Reply to an RTI query has revealed that politicians have been recommending party workers and loyalists for posts on various committees in the Information and Broadcast (I&B) Ministry, including the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). BJP MLA Ashish Shelar, BJP MPs Upendra Kushwaha and Udit Raj, former Congress MPs PL Punia and Oscar Fernandes, and even the Prime Minister’s Office during Manmohan Singh’s tenure have written letters stating that their loyalists be given posts on the I& B Ministry committees.

As per information received from the censor board office in Mumbai, it’s clear that party loyalists are calling the shots on censorship, instead of veteran filmmakers or people from an artistic background. “If political party workers are appointed to these posts, they are bound to force their political agenda on artists. Besides, no filmmaker ties a person to a chair and forces him to watch a film, it’s a matter of choice,” said activist Jeetendra Ghadge, who had filed the application. “The censor board should be scrapped altogether, and instead, an independent commission for certification should be established with constitutional authority, like the election commission.”

Putting in a word
According to the RTI documents, on May 13, 2016, BJP worker Amol Mahurkar from Ghatkopar had written to CBFC chief Pahlaj Nihalani to appoint him as a board member. MLA Ram Kadam and minister Prakash Mehta had also written to state party president Raosaheb Danve in 2015 to appoint Mahurkar as a member of mahamandal (state-run boards).

For requesting posts on censor board and mahamandal, Maharukar as well as party leaders, instead of education qualifications and expertise in the field, highlighted his dedication to the party and how he contributed in increasing the number of BJP members.

Bottom to top tier
In another case, a letter was written on July 4, 2016, by city BJP chief Shelar to Nihalani for appointing Pravin Kshirsagar on the board’s advisory committee. The letter states, “Kshirsagar lives in my constituency and I know him personally, so please consider his name for ‘censor board advisory committee’.”

Similarly, BJP MP from Allahabad Upendra Kushwaha had written a letter on May 5, 2016, to I&B minister Arun Jaitley for appointing Ajay Kumar as a member on the advisory committee of Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity.

Even the director of PMO, Dheeraj Gupta, wrote a letter on December 28, 2011, to the ministry to appoint J K Tiwari as deputy chairman of CBFC. PMO’s action came after BJP leader Jaswant Singh had written to it on December 12, 2011, to recommend Tiwari for the post.

Upala KBR (DNA; March 7, 2017)

Hrithik Roshan has given the nod to his next film after Kaabil. The actor will be seen in Kabir Khan’s untitled next, being produced by Sajid Nadiadwala.

Bigger in scale
This is the film Kabir will take up post Salman Khan-starrer Tubelight. “It will be a high-octane action-romance-drama and could well be one of the most expensive films made in Bollywood so far. Much of the film will be shot overseas, and will be bigger in scale and vision than Kabir’s other films. The film rolls this September, but the leading lady is yet to be finalised."

Sajid-Hrithik’s history
Incidentally, Sajid signed Hrithik for one of his productions seven years ago, helmed by Imtiaz Ali. “That film, however, never got made. However, Hrithik has said yes to the new project and loves its script and scale,” adds our source.

Prep for pre-production on
Currently busy in post-production of Tubelight (out on Eid this year), Kabir is already prepping for pre-production of the Hrithik film. “Kabir and Hrithik have been in touch over the last couple of months and both are excited to be working together for the first time. Once he completes Kabir’s film, Hrithik will be ready to shoot for his father Rakesh Roshan’s film Krrish 4,” concludes the source.

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