Archives for April 2018

Not only will we hear the majestic baritone of Amitabh Bachchan as he sings for “Badumbaaa” in Umesh Shukla’s 102 Not Out, but his co – star Rishi Kapoor too will be heard crooning for the 1st time in his career. Kapoor along with Amitabh Bachchan will be singing the song “Badumbaaa” which is a fun & lively foot tapping number that has even been composed by Bachchan. During the last day of the shoot, the team was having a discussion about how 102 Not Out should also have a song featuring both the actors. Bachchan instantly gave a nod to the idea and even said that he would compose the song himself. When Umesh Shukla, the director approached Rishiji to sing the song, though the actor was apprehensive he said that he would like to do rehearsals first and then sing. Umesh says, “When Rishiji came to the recording studio, after the 1st ever rehearsal itself he was himself surprised to discover his singing talent & his 1st one time was perfect.” Not only will we see the 2 superstars back after 27 years but also singing together! Umesh Shukla’s film releases worldwide on 4th May 2018.

Shriya Pilgaonkar In Anubhav Sinha’s Next.

Shriya Pilgaonkar who made her Bollywood debut as Shahrukh Khan’s love interest in Fan, has now joined the cast of Anubhav Sinha’s next film, Abhi Toh Party Shuru Hui Hai. The film also stars Richa Chadha, Pankaj Tripathi, Saurabh Shukla, Vinay Pathak, Manoj Pahwa & Kumud Mishra. With such an incredible ensemble, this film is already generating a lot of excitement. The pretty actress says, “Yes, We’ve begun filming in Lucknow. It’s an outstanding script written by Anubhav Sir and I am super excited to work with these powerhouse performers who have been on my wish list of actors to work with. It’s a dream team for sure.” Shriya will also be seen in Mirzapur, a web show produced by Excel Entertainment starring Ali Fazal, Vikrant Massey, Shweta Tripathi etc.

Pankaj Tripathi & Taapsee Pannu Win National Awards

Pankaj Tripathi, has been acknowledged for his spectacular role as a CRPF Officer in Netwon. The 65th National Awards has just been announced that the Gangs of Wasseypur & Masaan actor has won a Special Mention Award for his role in Newton. Says Pankaj,” I am absolutely delighted. I had no idea I was even in the running. It feels amazing to know that the whole country thought my role in Newton was one of my best and to win the Special Mention Award at the highest film award in India is just exhilarating. My director and co-actors made it so easy for me to act in this film.” Says Taapsee Pannu, “I am elated with the news about Ghazi winning the Best Telugu film. This is the 3rd time that I have had the opportunity to be a part of a National Award Winning film. Even though I had a special appearance in the film, it was personally a very satisfying part for me as an actor. I’m ecstatic with the news about the film winning the National Award Honor.”

Ronnie Screwvala Backs Sushant & Sara’s Love Story

Abhishek Kapoor’s Kedarnath has been the talk of the town lately owing to the differences between Abhishek & producer Prernaa Arora of KriArj Entertainment which led to a halt in the shooting of the film. Ronnie Screwvala has taken over the reins of the movie by compensating the former producers Bhushan Kumar, Prernaa Arora & Ekta Kapoor. He will now be producing the project, the 2nd schedule of which will start by the month end in Mumbai. Abhishek Kapoor says, “I feel invigorated that he has stepped in & reinforced his faith in me. Just being in the same room with Ronnie is a privilege, making a movie with him is an honor”. Coincidentally, the film marks the 2nd time collaboration for Abhishek & Ronnie after the 2013 buddy drama Kai Po Che that had also featured Sushant Singh Rajput, Rajkummar Rao & Amit Sadh. Kedarnath, which marks the acting debut of Amrita Singh & Saif Ali Khan’s daughter, Sara, opposite Sushant Singh Rajput, is a love story set against the backdrop of the flash floods that wrecked the temple town in Jun, 2013 and claimed over a hundred thousand lives. The actor is also a part of Abhishek Chaubey’s dacoit drama Sonchiriya, which is also produced by Ronnie Screwvala and features Bhumi Pednekar & Manoj Bajpayee.

Virat Kohli Loves His Luxury Cars

Indian Cricket team captain Virat Kohli took out some time from his busy IPL schedule to unveil the 2nd generation Audi RS 5 Coupé at Bengaluru, the hometown of his IPL team recently. Priced at INR 1,10,65,000, the all new Audi RS 5 Coupé is now available at all Audi dealerships across India.Virat Kohli fell in love with the Audi RS5 as he unveiled the car. Virat who already owns a fleet of Audi cars said, “I am a big fan of luxury cars, both sedan & SUVs, and depends on really where I am going & what occasion I am attending. Usually for everyday travel, I prefer to be sitting behind in a SUV but on other occasions, I prefer sedans more, I definitely do like luxury cars. My association has been really good since the time it began. Audi has made me feel like I am involved in all the innovations that come through which I think is the most important thing. I am launching all the new cars, Can’t ask for anything more. Sometimes they let me drive it back home as well without doing anything apart from that. So it’s been really cool.” he added.

London School Of Economics Invites Anupam Kher For A Keynote Speech

Anupam Kher’s incredible body of work includes over 500 feature films worldwide. The actor who is also a highly sought after motivational speaker, has spoken in London at the India Forum (LIF) 2018, hosted by the prestigious London School of Economics (LSE). Previously known as the Economic Forum for India at LSE (EFIL), which is a 1st ever of its kind conference in UK involving keynote speeches & panel discussions on major issues facing contemporary India across a variety of fields. Kher flew to London to address the students at the Old Theatre at LSE in London. Says Anupam Kher, “It was a pleasure to speak to the students at the London School of Economics. By sharing my life experiences, I motivated them to achieve their dreams, become successful individuals and most importantly responsible human beings. The youth are the future of the country and live in times of tough competition where certain failure is inevitable. The Power of Failure gave me the strength to succeed and it is our responsibility to help our youth realize this to be able to live life to its fullest”.

‘Rsvp’s Shoot In Sri Lanka Delayed

Anshuman Jha’s RSVP opposite Tannishtha Chatterjee has hit an unusual roadblock. The film was slated to kick – off in Sri Lanka on 27th Mar, 2018. However, given that the country declared a state of emergency last month after witnessing a spate of communal violence, the director of the film Chandan Roy Sanyal finds himself staring at a delay as far as his labor of love is concerned. The line producers in Sri Lanka suggested that they delay the shoot by at least a month to avoid running into trouble there. It affected all their individual schedules. Now, they are looking at rolling the project by Jul, 2018 end as the cast & the crew will be available then. Chandan Roy Sanyal says “We will most probably shoot in Assam, if not Sri Lanka. It’s a road trip film with love story and Assam is a kind of place which has an unexplored landscape. The delay has thrown all our individual schedules off as Anshuman, Tannishtha & me have other commitments lined up.” Anshuman adds “There is a silver lining that we both, Tannistha & me, have been nursing injuries (my ankle & Tannishtha’s shoulder) and we are using this uncalled break to recuperate”.

Bold & Controversial Film ‘Unfreedom’ Starring Adil Hussain Is Out Now On Netflix

Raj Amit Kumar’s provocative directorial debut, Unfreedom, starring Adil Hussain and Victor Banerjee, has been recently released internationally by Netflix making it one of the boldest & the most controversial Indian films to release on the platform. Unfreedom is a contemporary thriller based in a society torn apart by political, religious & sexual turmoil. Alternating between New York & New Delhi, the film combines 2 powerful stories about religious fundamentalism & intolerance. One of which follows a Muslim terrorist Husain (Bhanu Uday), attempting to silence a liberal Muslim scholar Fareed (Victor Banerjee). The other story is about a young woman Leela (Preeti Gupta), who defies her devout father Devraj (Adil Hussain) and escapes an arranged marriage because she is secretly involved in a taboo lesbian romance with Sakhi (Bhavani Lee). Through these stories, the film creates a powerful portrait of the troubled times we live in and depicts the lengths to which the protagonists go in order to hold on to their strong & conflicting viewpoints on freedom, faith, family & love. Raj Amit Kumar says, “I am glad that Unfreedom finds such a popular platform like Netflix after the ban in India and the efforts of censorship guardians in India to stop the film”.

Celebs At Bengali New Year Bash

It was a night of revelry at Tipsy Gypsy, Fun Republic, Andheri, as celebs walked the red carpet looking stunning & stylish in IWM Buzz & Assorted Motion Pictures’ Celeb Nababarsho Bash 2018. In a unique initiative, celebrities enjoyed the Bengali New Year flavor with dance, masti and of course, rasogollas. Some names who attended the gala evening are Gurmeet Choudhary & Debina Bonerjee, Gautam Rode & Pankhuri Awasthi, Onir, Chandan Roy Sanyal, Arjan Bajwa, Tina Datta, Shweta Basu Prasad, Siddharth Kannan, Ssumier Pasricha, Sreejita De, Bidita Bag, Kamalika Guha Thakurta, Gunjan Utreja, Ishita Ganguly, Jaya Bhattacharya etc.

Bhavesh Shah of Matoshri Jayaben Himmatlal Shah Charitable Trust & Yogesh Lakhani of Bright Outdoor Media Pvt Ltd organized the 37th free grocery distribution to 350 needy families from Mumbai at Chikuwadi Borivali West. MJHS has been organizing free distribution of grocery every month on the 1st of Sun. Basic items usually get distributed to poor people of any cast and the trust has managed to help as many as 350 families with items like wheat, rice, pulses, edible oil, ghee, tea. The main moto of this distribution is nobody should feel the pain of hunger. The trust also gives “Ann Ahaar” every Sat to more than 700 poor people at Shatabdi Hospital & Chikuwadi office, Borivali West. Yogesh Lakhani says, “It’s my way of giving back to the society & to the nation that’s given me so much. Not only are we trying to feed the hungry but also educate the illiterates to help them stand on their feet.”MJHS not only has been supporting students by having given as many as 50,000 notebooks to 12,000 children but has also been helping with medical aid to the by giving free wheel chair, stool table, fouler bed, walkers on rent etc for the old age homes, senior citizens and cancer patients.

Manisha Koirala Is Back With A Bang In Ronnie Screwvala’s ‘Lust Stories’

The 1st ever look of Manisha Koirala from her new project Lust Stories was launched on 9th Apr, 2018 Lust Stories is a combination of 4 short stories directed by Zoya Akhtar, Karan Johar, Anurag Kashyap & Dibaker Banerjee. It will be released by Ronnie Screwvala’s RSVP on Netflix. The talented actress has been directed by Dibakar in one of the short stories in which she features in the lead role along with Jaideep Ahlawat. The plot of the short story starring Manisha is quite intriguing as it’s a story of 3 people, a couple & the husband’s best friend. The triangle unravels subsequently into an autopsy of relationships, lies, secrets & truths that are used to deceive each other.

Kumar Sanu Croons A Romantic Number For Mukesh Malhotra’s ‘Rehemdil Kaatil’

Silver 9 Movies recorded a romantic song for their romantic social thriller Rehemdil Kaatil at Sana Studios, in the voice of Kumar Sanu. The film is produced by Mukesh Malhotra & directed by Sandeep Kumar. The film has actors like Mugdha Godse, Zuber K. Khan, Shahbaaz Khan, Rajdeep, Vaibhav Mathur, Sikander Khan, Anu Priya, Shweta Bhandari, Smita Dubey, Milind Joshi, Anjana Nathan, Satish Sharma, Ashish Bhai, Johnny Nirmal & Asrani etc. Arjun Vyas, Akhilesh Pandey & Adil Khan have lent adequate support in the making of this film. Raja Ali, Pradeep Kumar is the music director in it & lyricist is Saani Aslam. The film is now 80% complete and is being readied for an early release.

Richa Chadha Plays A Woman Politician In ‘Daas Dev’

It would be compelling to watch her portray the role of Paro’ in Sudhir Mishra’s Daas Dev which is modern day adaption of legendary Devdas set against the turbulent political backdrop of Uttar Pradesh. Richa’s character Paro is said to be brave, audacious and has an intellect of her own. She does not shy away but flags her individual take on situations. Her transition from a girl in love to a powerful & dynamic self is noteworthy. Richa did an extensive research to get into the skin of the character and followed many female politicians closely while preparing for the role. To make it look relevant & to understand the essence of politics, she even attended several rallies & debates absorbing the poise & the body language of the women leaders of our time. Talking about her on-screen avatar, Richa said, “An interesting challenge was learning & absorbing how to play a woman politician and to this end I did a fair amount of research. The look however is always crucial and so part of my research was on how to comprehensively look like a young woman politician who would be taken seriously. Along with the costume design team we decided on incorporating Indian weaves, Khadi, Cotton & elegant sari’s after researching the look extensively. ”

‘Hum Dono Honge Kaamyaab’ Shows Us The Quirk & The Essence Of Kanpur

After Tanu Weds Manu, Dum Laga Ke Haisha, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan & Bareilly Ki Barfi have successfully showcased some of the most amusing love stories set in the backdrop of the North state of Uttar Pradesh, director Vishal Mishra is all set to present a romantic roller coaster of emotions set in Kanpur titled Hum Dono Honge Kaamyaab. The romantic comedy will see the new pairing of Kunal Roy Kapoor & Tara Alisha Berry. It’s a story about a happy couple who comes under the pressure of child birth right after they are wedded. Written & directed by Vishal, the film is loaded with comedy, emotions and the reality of certain struggles faced after marriage. Interestingly the director also hails from Kanpur and is all set to show the audiences the beauty & the culture of North India through his lens. The state of Uttar Pradesh has been very well captured and has played an essential role as a backdrop in some of the most successful romantic comedies of recent times. Produced by Raj Kushwaha, the shooting of Vishal Mishra’s next directorial has wrapped up in Kanpur & the film is slated to release in Jun, 2018.

Lodha Group Ropes In Akshay Kumar As Brand Ambassador

Lodha Group has appointed Akshay Kumar as the corporate brand ambassador promoting various Lodha projects. The company released a global advertising campaign “Come home to the best, Come Home to Lodha”, which was shot at actual locations of Lodha projects featuring the Bollywood superstar. With the help of Akshay Kumar, the company aims to reinforce its commitment & promise of delivering high quality homes & lifestyles to its customers. The star will be seen in a series of ad films under the umbrella campaign “‘Come home to the best, Come Home to Lodha” which will run for 2 months in India & international markets. The film has been entirely shot at actual locations of Lodha Group projects in Mumbai & Pune, giving a glimpse of the real, holistic lifestyle being lived & enjoyed by the customers today across price points from premium luxury to affordable housing. Akshay Kumar said, “It gives me great pleasure to partner with Lodha Group, which is changing the way people are living in India today. The brand has worked relentlessly since the last 3 decades to bring luxury & highest quality gives people a chance to weave sweet memories with their loved ones.”
John Abraham Files 3 Criminal Complaints Against Prernaa Arora

John Abraham has filed 3 criminal complaints against Prernaa Arora & her company, KriArj Entertainment for cheating, breach of trust, defamation & offences committed under the Information Technology Act. These complaints have been filed at the Khar Police Station, Mumbai. John Abraham, through his production house JA Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. had signed a co-production agreement with Prernaa Arora’s company Kriarj Entertaiment Pvt. Ltd. wherein Kriarj had agreed to pay Rs 35 crores to John’s company to cover the cost of production, fees of all actors and other production related expenses and had also agreed to additionally bear the Print & the Advertisement expenses (P&A) for the film Parmanu-The Story Of Pokhran against which John had agreed to assign the exploitation rights & 50% IPR to Prernaa’s company. However, after Prernaa’s repeated delays in making payments by stopping cheque payments & giving wrong bank transfer details (UTR numbers) at every stage and refusal to pay the last tranches of payment, which were critical for completing the post production work of the film, John first gave a legal notice to cure the breach & after Prernaa’s failure to cure the breaches, and terminated the agreement with Prernaa. After this termination, which is a purely Civil Dispute, Prernaa filed a false criminal complaint against John and started making defamatory statements against him in the media.

Sony Pictures Networks Productions Announces ‘T For Taj Mahal’

Sony Pictures Networks Productions (SPN Productions), the film production arm of Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN), has announced its next release for the year namely T For Taj Mahal. Directed by 6 time president’s national award winner Kireet Khurana, the feature film also produced by Abis Rizvi portrays a fascinating journey of social entrepreneurship through a thought provoking narrative. The cast includes Subrat Dutta, Ali Faulkner, Bidita Bag, Manoj Pahwa & Pitobash in pivotal roles. Rooted in the heartland of India, the film is a relevant & timely story exploring a subject that is a big challenge in the country, the lack of education. SPNP is all set to release Soorma & T for Taj Mahal this year. Says Sneha Rajani, Deputy President & Head, Sony Pictures Networks Productions, “We have always been committed to go beyond the ordinary and back unique stories and Kireet’s film is yet another step in that direction.” Says Kireet Khurana, “T for Taj Mahal is an idea that is built on the fact that education is a basic right and that a simple idea could spark a revolution.”

Sunny Deol Is Back With A Rib Tickling Comedy ‘Bhayyaji Superhitt’

Bhayyaji Superhitt starring Sunny Deol, Preity Zinta, Arshad Warsi, Shreyas Talpade, Ameesha Patel, Sanjay Mishra, Brijendra Kala, Jaydeep Alahwat, Pankaj Tripathi Mukul Dev will be releasing on 14th Sept, 2018. The action comedy directed by Neeraj Pathak will see Sunny Deol playing a double role for the 1st time ever. Deol plays a gangster who wants to become a film actor, and Preity plays the role of his wife. Bhayyaji Superhitt is a very funny, hilarious, colourful & larger than life yet emotional film. It showcases the coming together of 2 vastly different worlds of Bollywood & UP underworld.

‘Gali Guleiyan’ To Release By May End

Manoj Bajpayee’s Hindi psychological drama Gali Guleiyan is about a man trapped within the walls & alleys of Old Delhi and his own mind, who attempts to break free to find a human connection. The main protagonist is played by Manoj Bajpayee ably supported by Ranvir Shorey, Neeraj Kabi & Shahana Goswami along with debutante child actor Om Singh. Shot entirely on locations, the film is directed by Los Angeles based debutante filmmaker & winner of Director Guild of America Award, Dipesh Jain. Manoj Bajpayee said: “ Gali Guleiyan is a film that I am reluctant to let go of. For long, I have held it close to my heart…and now, seeing the audience response has made it more special not just for me but for everyone involved in the film”. Dipesh Jain adds, “When Shuchi (my sister & producer) and I started this journey of making Gali Guleiyan, we felt that it was a bold & risky story especially for a debut film. Currently in a successful Festival run, we are now looking forward to its theatrical release worldwide in May, 2018.”