By: Faizan Rizwan & Shaheen Raaj

It was indeed a festive ambience in Forum Mall, Kormangla when Kollywood & Bollywood Actress Kiara Advani launched the new mobile namely Samsung Galaxy Note 9 in association with Sangeetha Mobiles.

Just last week Samsung India announced its latest launch Galaxy Note9 in association with Sangeetha Mobiles. Popular Kollywood & Bollywood actress, Kiara Advani attended the launch event held at Sangeetha’s store at The Forum Mall, Koramangala, Bangalore, in the presence of Sasi Kiran, South Head, Samsung India & Subhash Chandra L, Managing Director, Sangeetha Mobiles.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is priced at Rs. 67,900 & Rs. 84,900 for 128 GB & 512 GB variants, respectively & is now available in 3 unique color variants namely Midnight Black, Metallic Copper & Ocean Blue.

On this auspicious occasion Subhash Chandra L, MD – Sangeetha Mobiles averred, “Sangeetha Mobiles works on the principle that creating customer delight & gaining customer loyalty is paramount. This is the reason why Sangeetha Mobiles is the most popular brand in the mobile retail segment till date and the launching of Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is another step towards providing the latest smartphone experience to our customers.”

The Samsung Galaxy Note series is recognized for introducing Samsung’s latest ground-breaking innovations. The all-new Galaxy Note 9 builds on this legacy; a premium smartphone that delivers the ultimate in performance with a new S Pen with remote control to easily drive presentation & take selfies, Samsung’s most intelligent camera yet, and an all-new PC-like experience with Samsung DeX & an HDMI cable.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is a super powerful device built for people who expect more. It combines the power of a laptop, media streaming device, power bank, external hard drive, gaming console, DSLR camera & a selfie stick. And this is what it will deliver to every consumer who chooses to move up to the new Note.

Sangeetha Mobiles Pvt Ltd. is one of the leading multi-brand retailers of mobile handsets in India. Over the years, Sangeetha Mobiles has carved a niche for itself, with a distinguished reputation for providing quality products & innovative retail solutions. From a modest beginning in 1974, when it was established by LP Narayana Reddy & friends as a single shop selling gramophones, the brand has evolved constantly. It was the 1st ever to retail televisions in 1980’s, pagers in 1990’s & mobile phones in 2000’s.

Sangeetha Mobiles has 500 stores across 9 states & employs more than 3000 people. All the stores are in high footfall areas which attracts customers not just during weekends but witnesses regular inflow of walk-in all the week long.

Malayalam Actor Mohanlal Transforms Into An Animal For Odiyan!

mohanlal odiyan new look images photos

Mohanlal’s upcoming Malyalam film Odiyan is one of the most anticipated films of all times. The movie is based on an interesting subject of shape shifting which means that men can transform themselves into a different being or a creature. The Odiyan community existed in Kerala before the existence of electricity. In the film, Mohanlal transforms into varied animal’s shapes and has been shown ageing from the age of 30 to 65. Hollywood stunt master Peter Hein has been hired to choreograph the stunts. What’s interesting is that the VFX of the film will be done by Ajay Devgn’s VFX Company, NY VFXwaala. The film is directed by VA Shrikumar who has also signed Mohanlal for another film which will be made on a budget of Rs.1000 Crores. Odiyan also stars Manju Warrier & Prakash Raj. The movie is slated to release on 11th Oct, 2018 and will also be dubbed in Hindi.

Sobhita Has Immense Respect For Mahesh Babu!

Sobhita Dhulipala, who made her presence felt in Abhinav Kashyap’s Raman Ragfhav 2 and also the Saif Ali Khan starrer Kaalakandi, made her Telugu debut recently with a spy thriller, Goodachari. The talented actress has been getting rave reviews for her stupendous performance in Goodachari and from the accolades coming her way she was surprised to receive one from Telugu superstar Mahesh Babu. While she responded with a ‘thank you’ to his tweet, her comment faced backlash from the superstar’s fans. Sobhita informs, “I was confused that a “thank you” was seen as disrespectful purely because I hadn’t attached salutations like Sir/ superstar/The great etc., to it. Of course, I have immense respect for him (Mahesh Babu) and find it rather saddening that social media is not a place of safety. Anonymity shouldn’t be misused.

Pataakha Poster & Trailer Released

The poster & the trailer of Pataakha was released recently. Pataakha is a comedy-drama about 2, Badki & Chhutki and is based on an acclaimed short story by renowned writer Charan Singh Pathik. It is being directed by Vishal Bhardwaj & produced by Vishal Bhardwaj Films LLP & Kyta Productions. It stars Sanya Malhotra, Radhika Madan, Sunil Grover & Vijay Raaz. The film will release on 28th Sept, 2018.

Dr. Anil Kashi MurarkaPresents Shoorveer Awards 2018

Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka, through his foundation Ample Missiion, presents Shoorveer Awards 2018 which is being organized for the 4th consecutive year. Shoorveer Awards is a unique initiative that honors common men & women who have achieved uncommon goals, from across the country. The event held at the Bombay Stock Exchange, was attended by a bevy of celebrities from the corporate world, film & television industry, and even social field. Besides, hosts Dr. Aneel Kashi Murarka and his son Siddhant Murarka, mention may can also be made of Roop Kumar Rathod & Sunali Rathod, Padmini Kolhapure, Kashi Murarka, Mickey Mehta, Ashish Shelar, Vinod Shelar, Shaina NC, designer Sangeeta Murarka, Vastu & Numerologist Basannt R Rasiwasia, Sooraj Thapar, Akashdeep Saigal, Audiologist-Speech Therapist Devangi Dalal, Gurpreet Kaur Chadha, Yogesh Lakhani, Ashok Lokhande, Krishna Bharadwaj, VIP, Writer-Director Anusha Srinivasan Iyer, Aarti Nagpal, Jiten Lalwani et al. The award ceremony was also marked by live performances by singers Meghna Mishra (of Secret Superstar fame) & Aaman Trikha amongst others. Some of the awardees included Anoop Khanna, Rekha Mishra, Insia Dariwala, Aarefa Johari, Saumya Chandra & Nagesh Ahir, Major P Singh, Aaman Trikha, Rajan Kumar, Dr. Habib Z Shaikh, Salma Memon, Aanasaheb Jadhav, Subarna Ghosh, Dr. Satendra Singh, Aakruti Nagpal et al.

Big B To Do A Cameo In Kajol’s Movie, ‘Helicopter Eela’!

Helicopter Eela, directed by Pradeep Sarkar, will feature Big B in a cameo and he will be seen playing himself. The film also features Riddhi Sen, Neha Dhupia & Tota Roy Chowdhury and is produced by Ajay Devgn & Jayantilal Gada of Pen.

Director Anil Sharma’s Tryst With “Desh Bhakti”

Anil Sharma’s tryst with “desh bhakti” films goes back a long time. He is known for his patriotic drama films in the action genre. He has constantly been churning out patriotic content that instills us with pride about our very own motherland called India. With films like Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, The Hero: Love Story of A Spy, Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan, Saathiyo, Veer and others to his credit, the filmmaker is undoubtedly a master story-teller and strikes the right chord with the audiences. After helming his last venture Singh Saab The Great starring Sunny Deol, Urvashi Rautela, Prakash Raj, Amrita Rao in the year 2013, the ace director will next be seen donning the director’s cap for his upcoming ambitious project Genius which marks the debut of his son Utkarsh Sharma. Genius, following his trademark, boasts of a brilliant script, action, great locales & patriotism. Genius starring his son Utkarsh, Ishita with Mithun Chakraborty & Nawazuddin Siddiqui is a gripping tale woven with elements of romance, music, patriotism & high octane action where Vasudev must choose between the love for his country or for his girl. What will this genius decide?

Prachi Tehlan Joins Anupam Kher

Prachi Tehlan participated in the 14th Annual India Day Parade, which was held on 12th Aug, 2018. Organised by India Business Association, A non-Profit organization, the parade started from Edison Square to Iselin, on the Oak Tree road. The well-known sports person turned actress was invited to grace the occasion as the special guest. Overwhelmed with gratitude to be called along with other prestigious people like Anupam Kher, the veteran actor who was the grand Marshall there, along with Richa Anirudh & Niharica Raizada,

John’s Humanitarian Gesture

On the occasion of Independence Day, Bai Jerbai Wadia Hospital had taken an initiative to make children independent from cardiac aliments by organising Free Paediatric Cardiac Camp at hospital premises. On the 2nd day of the camp actor John Abraham visited the hospital to support the cause. He was overwhelmed with the response for the cardiac screening at the same time he spent time meeting patients. His Movie Satyameva Jayate was released on 15th Aug, 2015. Ness Wadia, MD Wadia Group, Omprakash Shete, Chief Minister’s Medical Assistance Cell, Mantralaya & Dr Minnie Bodhanwala, CEO Wadia Hospital and more than 100 parents with their kids were present during the inauguration ceremony on 13th Aug, 2018.

‘Pakhi’ Facing Trouble For Censor Certification

There is a menace over Pakhi as censor board has refused to give the certificate. Censor’s comment on certification of Pakhi is that it revolves around child trafficking & sexual assault depicting this in a crude manner. Therefore the examining committee has refused the certification. Pakhi is a social crime drama movie which had made headlines in the media in the recent days and was nationally promoted but got struck in censor certification. Earlier it was scheduled to release on 10th Aug, 2018 but now it is postponed. Under the banner of Chilsag Pictures the social crime drama Pakhi unfold the miseries of the web of child trafficking. Pakhi is based on the true event of a life of a 10 year old girl. In the name of marriage even after 70 years of independence the girls are not safe and are traded for money. At the age of going to school and relishing the childhood innocence, the web of child trafficking is trapping the younger girls in the den of prostitution. Pakhi also got trapped in the sexual trafficking and finds herself in the den of prostitution. This is the story of a girl who unfolds the realities of the world of flesh trade and decodes the enigma of existence. A story of struggle & survival of a girl who is strangled in the webs of the dark. With the twist of fates, will this be a story of survival or a battle of defeat? This is the story of those girls who are still captive in the brothel. The social crime drama Pakhi is written by writer cum producer cum director Sachin Gupta. Sumeet Kaul, Anamika Shukla, Pihu, Shikandar Khan & Anmol Goswami are in the leads. Pakhi has music by Shivang Mathur, lyrics by Shayra Apoorva, cinematography by Navin Kumar, editing & choreography by Ajay Shivan & background score by Nikkhil Koparde.

Jassie Gill Turns Turbanator

Popular singer Jassie Gill, who is eagerly anticipating the release of his big Bollywood debut, Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi, produced by Eros International & Aanand L Rai’s Colour Yellow Productions & directed by Mudassar Aziz, had a whale of a time shooting for the laughter riot. Besides sharing the screen space with Sonakshi Sinha for the 1st time ever and working with Aanand L Rai & his costars including Diana Penty, Jimmy Shergill, Piyush Mishra & Ali Fazal, the film is quite special to Jassie Gill for quite a few reasons, including the fact that he had to sport several pagdis in the movie! Since he belongs to a Sardar family, he was always fond of wearing a pagdi, Jassi Gill recollects, “I used to have pictures of popular Punjabi singers on the wall of my room and I used to look at them and wear pagdis. When I started my singing career and was in college, I wore a pagdi for one of the scenes in a music video.” Then i wore a Pagdi in my video Bapu Zimidar & Att Karti, with the grace of Almightly, both became sensational hits. While most of his costars only changed into their next costume” Jassie Gill would take relatively more time to change since he had to wear a Pagdi as well! Interestingly, Mudassar Aziz along with the cast would often playfully pull his leg over this by blaming him for delaying a shot! “I didn’t anticipate that I’ll get the opportunity to wear a pagdi in just my debut film. People all over Punjab have really appreciated my pagdi look in Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi. It gives me a feeling of pride to wear a pagdi,” Jassie adds. Presented by Eros International & Aanand L Rai, A Colour Yellow Production, Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi, will hit the theatres on 24th Aug, 2018.

Vicky Kaushal Makes His Singing Debut

After Dev D, Anurag Kashyap is back with a musical love story Manmarziyaan. Promising to be the album of the year, the film’s music composed by Amit Trivedi is already a subject of heated discussion .In a unique promotional strategy, the makers are releasing one song each day and audiences were in for a treat as the 1st ever song “F for Fyaar” marked actor Vicky Kaushal’s singing debut. Such was the reception that the song went on to cross 7 million views in less than 8 hours. Talking about the idea says music director Amit Trivedi, “Since Vicky plays a DJ in the movie, we felt it would be great if he could sing a few lines in the song to give a real feel to it. It has come out well. When Vicky heard the song, he was pleasantly surprised to hear his voice. He enjoyed the singing process.” Excited to be teaming up with his mentor again says Vicky Kaushal, “I am very excited and I have said this to Anurag as well, but I feel like I should collaborate with him once in every two-three years because he really makes you reinvent yourself as an actor, which I feel is very important for me. Each time I work with him, I see something new in myself and that’s what happened in Manmarziyaan as well.”

Kriti Kharbanda Lives Her Dream

Kriti Kharbanda is eagerly anticipating the release of her forthcoming successful franchise, Yamla Pagla Deewana Phir Se, and the laughter riot is special to her for varied reasons. The talented actress who plays Bobby Deol’s love interest in the film was quite excited to share the screen space with the veteran actor & her co-star Dharmendra. Kriti had a whale of a time shooting with the legendary actor of the sets also, as she taught him how to use boomerang video and post pictures on the social networking site. It turned out to be a double whammy for Kriti after she learned that the makers have roped in another veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha in the film for an extended cameo. For Kriti, it was a surreal experience to work with the two legendary actors as she is a huge fan of their yesteryear hit, Dost (1974). Kriti also features in Sajid Nadiadwala’s successful & popular franchise, Housefull 4 and recently wrapped up the 1stever schedule of the crazy comedy.

An Ode To The Original “Chin Chin Chu” Helen!

Colour Yellow Productions & Eros International are back with the 2nd installment of their much loved Run Com franchise, Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi. With a distinctly oriental flavour attached to the adventures of its madly happy characters, Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi features many Chinese elements such as its language, culture & characters. China being such a strong plot-point of Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi, the makers was moved to look back at one of the most unforgettable Bollywood landmarks inspired by China. The iconic dance number “Chin Chin Chu”, sung by the lilting Geeta Dutt and danced to, with extraordinary flair by the incomparable Helen Ji. A magical moment on celluloid that remains close to all our hearts. Team Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi pays homage to “Chin Chin Chu”, with a fun & colorful performance featuring Chinese fans, oriental dancers and lots of drama along with Sonakshi Sinha & Jassie Gill lending their voice to this song. The song is out now,. Says Sonakshi Sinha, ‘It is indeed a privilege to dance on a song featuring Helen Aunty, she is a class apart. So, I cannot even think of copying her, all I did was enjoy myself to the peppiest song of the golden era. I love how Mudassar Aziz & Sohail Sen have added Punjabi tadka to the song and making it a very happy go lucky track’

Happy Reaches Chandigarh!

After launching the highly-anticipated trailer of Eros International & Aanand L Rai’s Colour Yellow Productions, Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi, the cast & the crew of the laughter riot have started the promotional city tours. Sonakshi Sinha who plays the role of Harpreet aka Happy was recently spotted in the city for the press conference of the comedy of errors along with her co-star Jassie Gill and director Mudassar Aziz. The happy crew who arrived in a happy car will be traveling to different cities promoting the movie. Punjab da munda Jassie enthralled the gathered media by singing a few lines of the movie song, “Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu” while Sonakshi Sinha posed for the shutterbugs and happy’ly interacted with the press. With 2 characters named Happy, played by Diana Penty & Sonakshi, Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi offers a double madness & confusion. The comedy of errors is a complete fun package, even more, interesting than its 1st ever part, promising double the trouble this time which will surely take the audiences on an insane laughter ride. Presented by Eros International & Aanand L Rai, A Colour Yellow Production, Happy Phirr Bhag Jayegi, hits the theatres on 24th Aug, 2018.

Manish & Siddhant Along With Sunil Gavaskar & Subhash Ghai Inaugurated Preschool

Veteran Producer Manish Goswami & his son, writer-director, Siddhant Goswami ventured into the education sector by opening their Preschool & Daycare center named, Joy in the western suburbs of Mumbai. The legendary Sunil Gavaskar inaugurated the preschool & gave his blessings with best wishes to Siddhant & family for this new journey. The inauguration attracted a lot of celebrities like, veteran producer-director Subhash Ghai, Sidhanshu Pandey & his wife Mona Pandey, Prabal Panjabi, Jiten Lalwani, Ayub Khan, Chetanya Adib to name a few.

Manoj Bajpayee Bags “Best Actor” Award

The film Gali Guleiyan won accolades in 2 out the 4 categories that it was nominated in (“Best actor”: Manoj Bajpayee, “Best Director”: Dipesh Jain, “Best Supporting Actor”: Ranvir Shorey, “Best Indie Film”). Manoj Bajpayee bagged the “Best Actor” award for his heart wrenching portrayal of a man trapped within the walls & alleys of Old Delhi and his own mind, who attempts to break free to find a human connection. Gali Guleiyan also earned a Special Jury Mention in the “Best Indie Film” category. Manoj said, “It is a fantastic feeling to win the award for the “Best Actor” at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. It is even more satisfying when you know that so many other films across genres and so many actors who have all done such a great job, were in competition. My character in Gali Guleiyan is a very complex one with many layers and the film itself is a difficult one to make. Hats off to our director Dipesh, who despite being a newcomer, came up with such a great idea, made this challenging film and has taken it to festivals across the world. The adulation that the film has received has been overwhelming and we are very excited to now take it to our audience as the film sets up for its release in theatres worldwide on 7th Sept, 2018.”

Bhushan Kumar & Anurag Basu Join Hands

Bhushan Kumar has become one of the most sought after producers in recent times. The music baron has made a huge mark in the industry, contributing some of the most successful Bollywood releases in the past few years. The producer has been collaborating with the biggest names of Bollywood for interesting cinematic experiences. The producer has now join hands with Anurag Basu for an ambitious project. The duo will be making a multi-starrer slice of life, relationship drama. Bhushan Kumar is really looking forward to this project, he shares, “Anurag is a master storyteller and brings magic to celluloid in the way his stories pan out and the trajectories his characters follow. Both of us are super thrilled to be working together on a very special project with some very talented actors which we will be announced soon.” Anurag Basu, who will be directing the film is currently working on finalizing the actors for the film. The director shares, “I have had a great association with Bhushan. When I shared the idea of this project with him, he instantly decided to come on board. I have been working on the project for some time now and really looking forward to directing it. It’s again going to be a ride of emotions on the silver screen.”

Urvashi Rautela Says She Is Proud To Be An Indian

Urvashi Rautela has every year shown tremendous love & patriotism towards our country. Urvashi has also provided a helping hand to her own state Uttarakhand via Urvashi Rautela Foundation. Urvashi says, “We have just celebrated 72ndIndependence Day this year. Today we have reached a level where we can speak up, where social media is voice of every common man and more over we now stand tall for women empowerment, education for all & many other social issues. For women, the price of participating in a healthy debate might often be a rape threat online. While men get verbal abuses, women receive rape threats and comments about their looks & make-up. Today we don’t need society who feels that woman is superior; we just need society where men & women are equal. Choosing a career is very important in today’s world, as your marriage, your standard of living, your profile and even getting your soul mate revolves around this one thing (in most cases). Women’s freedom, women’s independence is to prove to herself not the world, to make herself strong to face this world. Independence doesn’t just bring freedom; it is that zen level where we are creator & destroyer of limitation. “If no one in world values you, then value yourself more, you will become precious!” Make yourself proud, understand the meaning of independence!”

The Reason Behind Shraddha Kapoor’s Crystal Pendent In Stree

Dinesh Vijan’s horror comedy has created huge wave of excitement and at the same time curiosity on who exactly is Shraddha Kapoor in the film. Since the film is set in Chanderi, Shraddha Kapoor was supposed to be dressed in the Indian attire. While everyone has been talking about the actress’ look in the film, little does anyone know that the crystal pendent which she is wearing in the film is not part of her look but something which was given to her by the locals. During the shoot of the film, Shraddha was going through a lot of sleepless nights & disturbing dreams. When she discussed it with the team she was suggested to keep a blessed object with her at all times. When the locals heard of this, they bought a chanted crystal pendent and gave it to Shraddha Kapoor to help her with a peaceful stay. While the crystal did help Shraddha relaxed a little bit, director Amar Kaushik liked how the crystal pendent was merging with her look and made it part of Shraddha’s character. Dinesh Vijan presents Stree, a Maddock Films production in association with D2r films & Jio Studios. The horror comedy has been directed by Amar Kaushik and is all set to release on 31st Aug, 2018.

Varun & Anushka Is The Coolest, Freshest & Most Awaited Jodi Of 2018

National Award winning producer-director duo of Maneesh Sharma & Sharath Kataria, the team that won hearts with their first collaboration Dum Laga Ke Haisha are all set to present their next, a big ticket YRF entertainer Sui Dhaaga, Made in India. The film has done a casting coup as it brings together 2 of the most exciting superstars of today Varun Dhawan & Anushka Sharma to pair up for the 1st time ever! Their pairing is already being hailed as the most awaited & the freshest Jodi to hit the screen this year.
‘India’s Most Wanted’! Starring Arjun Kapoor Goes On The Floors!

Fox Star Studios & Raj Kumar Gupta’s next offering is an espionage thriller, namely India’s Most Wanted, inspired from true events; it unfolds the story of the mission that captured India’s most wanted terrorist, without firing a single bullet. Arjun Kapoor will be seen playing the role of an intelligence officer for the 1st time ever on celluloid. Director Raj Kumar Gupta who recently delivered a hit with Raid and is also known for writing & directing taut narratives like Aamir & No One Killed Jessica.

Rani Mukerji Bags “Best Actress” Award & The “Excellence In Cinema” Award

Rani Mukerji won hearts everywhere with her outstanding performance in Yash Raj Films’ superhit film Hichki. As Naina Mathur, a passionate teacher who deals with Tourette Syndrome, Rani delivered a powerful performance, also communicating a key message about equal treatment for people with physical challenges in India. Indian Film Festival of Melbourne has awarded Rani with the “Best Actress” award for the year. Rani expressed her gratitude saying, “Indian Film Festival of Melbourne has always welcomed the best of Indian cinema and celebrated our form of storytelling. It’s a story with universal resonance, and its’ spirit of positivity has won over Indians & locals here. I am also grateful for winning the “Best Actress” Award and sincerely thank everyone for applauding my performance. I have found this film festival a vibrant & progressive setting for cinema and its impact beyond languages & cultures. I thoroughly enjoyed being in Melbourne and hope to travel with my films here in the near future.”The theme of the IFFM.IFFM had an eminent panel of jury (Andrew Anastasios, Jill Bilcock, Geoffrey Wright, Nikkhil Advani, Rajeev Masand, Simi Garewal, Sue Maslin) who unanimously decided upon Rani Mukerji’s win as the “Best Actress”.

Sachiin Joshi Is Going Places As An Actor!

Hungry for expansion & blessed with a vision for future, Sachiin Joshi is the man behind Viiking Ventures. A 33 year old young & dynamic Entrepreneur, Businessman, Actor, Sports & Fitness Enthusiast, Franchise & Team Owner, Movie Producer & a Humanitarian, it is safe to say that Sachin wears many hats. Not satisfied with just creating brands that lead their respective categories in India, Sachiin Joshi has successfully brought leading lifestyle brands such as Playboy & Planet Hollywood to India. He has also actively worked with PETA to promote a vegetarian lifestyle and runs a nonprofit organization by the name of Big Brother Foundation with a motto of liberating rural women & children from the shackles of malnutrition, illiteracy & unemployment. A true sports buff at heart & an accomplished sports person, Sachiin Joshi is the co-owner of Telugu Warriors, the Celebrity Cricket League team captioned by Venkatesh, the superstar of Telugu cinema. Sachiin Joshi has conceptualized & executed the JMJ Sports Academy, which provides an opportunity for promoting well-being through sports. Debuted in Films in 2002 with Telugu film Mounamelanoyi followed with Azaan he made his debut in Bollywood. Later many films like Mumbai Mirror, Jackpot & Nee Jathaga Nenundali showed his versatility as an actor. Sachiin Joshi will be soon seen in Ram Gopal Varma’s erotic thriller Secret. Previously, the duo had worked together on Veerappan.

The 26th annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards will take place on January 26, 2020, a date thats two ahead of the Academy Awards.

The SAG Awards made the announcement Monday afternoon after news broke that the Producers Guild of America will claim January 18, 2020, as the date for its 31st annual Producers Guild Awards, reports variety.com.

The guild awards announcements came less than three weeks after leaders of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences moved the 2020 Oscars forward two weeks to February 9.

Variety reported on August 8 that the AMPAS announcement – which included the creation of a controversial best popular film category and limiting the telecast to three hours – came in response to declining ratings and concerns that viewers had become fatigued by the ever-increasing number of televised awards shows.

The SAG Awards took place on January 21 this year. It announced in February that it had staked out January 27, 2019, for its next show. Nominations will be announced on December 12.

The awards are selected by members of SAG-AFTRA, which numbered 121,544 eligible voters this year. This year’s ceremony featured its first-ever host, Kristen Bell.

(Ians)

Actor Harshvardhan Kapoor has his goals set when it comes to choosing films — a script that reads new to him. He says that he is not here to revamp movies that others have been doing for long.

“I feel like doing films basis whatever inspires me on the page. I am not here to do movies that others have been doing for a long time and repackage, revamp the same and present it to the audience.

“I am here to do new films, and if I read something on the page that I have never read before… that gets me going to ‘want’ to do it. I want to do new things,” Harshvardhan told IANS in an e-mail interview.

The actor unveiled the Fall Winter 2018 collection of the brand Reebok in Mumbai last week. He and actress Esha Gupta were the muses of stylist Tanya Ghavri who conducted a “Fashionably Fit” Masterclass where she picked the top looks and styles from the collection giving attendees “must haves” for their wardrobe this season.

The 27-year-old actor, who made his Bollywood debut with Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s 2016 film “Mirzya”, was last seen in “Bhavesh Joshi Superhero” on the big screen.

Asked how much does the box office success matter to him, he said: “I have always worn my heart on my sleeve and jumped head-first into ideas that excite me. When I’m choosing films to work on, the first question I ask myself is, does this story stir my passion?

“And the next question is, can I do justice to the character and his contribution to the story? If the answer to these questions is a yes! I’m all in.

“If the the genre of the film or the story itself makes it a blockbuster, that’s a bonus that I don’t always account for. In such cases, I would count my blessings and continue to choose films that I truly believed in, hoping that my work speaks for itself.”

He also said that a low budget well scripted film will be his first choice.

“I think it is always about the sincerity and honesty with which you do something. You should never attempt to do something average, it can be bad or good, but at least you know you tried to do something different,” said the son of actor Anil Kapoor.

So how often does he take his father’s advice while selecting roles?

“I always take his advice and talk to him about film choices on a daily basis. However, when you say yes to a film, you have to be on set and believe it in yourself. The belief is very important and eventually my choices are always mine,” he said.

Nowadays, the industry is seeing a great experimentation in the roles taken on by female actors. Does he see something similar happening with the male actors?

“I would like to see the big, mainstream actors experiment with their roles. I feel I have done that being a newcomer and of course, have seen Alia (Bhatt) and Sonam (Kapoor) doing it all the time in their choice of roles.

“Once you are a movie star, there is a certain pressure because of a loyal fan base and they want to see you in a certain way. Luckily, I am a newcomer and don’t have those kind of expectations right now and can experiment with my roles.

“However, if the big stars do this, it exposes new films to the audience and we need to take new genres to a wider audience so, I would like to see it more,” he said.

How “fashionably fit” is he in day-to-day life?

“Have you met my dad? If that man doesn’t give you serious fitness goals, no-one ever will. Living with him has been a constant source of inspiration for me. I’ve come to understand, appreciate and respect the importance of a healthy lifestyle.

“If we expect our bodies to perform miracles, we need to nourish them with the right fuel and maintenance. Not only is this crucial to our performance, but it’s key to our peace of mind and general sense of well-being,” said Harshavardhan.

Priyanka Chopra Shooting Again For A Bollywood’a Untitled Film

Yes! Priyanka Chopra is back in Bollywood after finishing her Hollywood Assignments. The untitled film starring Priyanka Chopra, Farhan Akhtar & Zaira Wasim in the lead roles has begun its 1st ever schedule in Mumbai. The film, based on an incredibly moving true life story, is to be helmed by National Award winning filmmaker Shonali Bose and will be filmed across Mumbai, Delhi, London & Andamans. The dialogues are by National Award winning writer Juhi Chaturvedi & music will be scored by Pritam. For Ronnie & Sid, this is their 6th time working with Priyanka Chopra after collaborating on landmark films including Fashion, Kaminey & Barfi. Priyanka will be back on screen with Farhan, 3 years after they were seen together in Dil Dhadakne Do.

Late Om Puri Slashed Fees For His Last Film, ‘Lashtam Pashtam’

The Late Om Puri will always be remembered as one of the finest actors we ever had. His prolific body of work crossed borders and appealed to audiences not just in India but also internationally. Before his untimely death, in a fateful coincidence, he was working on Lashtam Pashtam, a film that celebrates the warmth of brotherhood & friendship beyond borders. Director Manav Bhalla said, “I wanted to make Lashtam Pashtam in the true spirit of freedom of human relationships, and a bond of brotherhood against all odds. There were budgetary concerns. But since I had written the film keeping the Late Om Puri ji in mind, I wanted him to hear it. When he did, he loved the script so much that he immediately decided to cut his fees. Lashtam Pashtam highlights the values that Om ji held very dear, as a human being & as an actor, universal peace & harmony. I will forever cherish having worked with Om ji on (probably) his last film & my 1st ever.”

Singer Ankit Tiwari Lend His Voice For Shiivam Tiwari In ‘22days’

Ankit Tiwari was the voice behind the ever popular romantic number “Sun raha na tu” from Aashiqui 2. Apart from being a singer, Ankit Tiwari is also a composer and has scored the music for his songs. Some of his other notable hit songs also include “Teri galiyan” from Ek Villain which he composed too. This year, he will be crooning again for Shiivam Tiwari in 22 Days. Ankit Tiwari lent his beautiful voice for Shiivam Tiwari & a song penned by Sagar Lahori music by Parivesh Singh. 22 days starring Rahul Dev & Shiivam Tiwari is a Romantic suspense drama. The film produced by Mauritius based business man Adhir Gunness, the 1st ever Mauritian Producer to produce a Bollywood Movie, under the banner of Quatre Bornes Films Producton. Actor – Director Shivam Tiwari said he is very thankful to producer Adhir, who kept faith in him, to make such a beautiful romantic suspense drama movie, Shivam also thanked his actors specially Rahul Dev, Hemant Pandey, Kritika Mishra, Sophia Singh, Kirti Chaudhary, Rajkumar Kanojia & and Rashmi Ray etc, who cooperated. The film is a story of business man Vishal who faces competition with Omtino Industry, while in race where Vishal is leading, Jenny enters in his married life. How Vishal faces all situation is to be seen on screen.

Rajkummar Rao’s Fear Of Bats!

Dinesh Vijan’s horror comedy, Stree, has explored the simple, yet beautiful city of Chanderi which has never been seen before in Bollywood. The film encapsulates the raw beauty of the city. As the concept of the film goes, the makers also identified a few places less visited even by the locals of Chanderi which roused fear in some of the cast members! During an intense sequence in the film, the makers had to take Rajkummar into a real cave. During its’ shoot, Rajkummar had to walk in with a fire torch into the cave. The actor, all set to give another good shot walked in as his character, however, he stood shocked in his track when he heard loud chirps and a colony of bats flew out from around him. The actor came out of the cave with very high heart beats and made sure that the next time he had to go inside a few team members entered before him in the cave and stay there till he arrives. While it was a scary experience for Rajkummar Rao, the team had a great laugh seeing the expression on the actor’s face. The horror comedy has been directed by Amar Kaushik and is all set to release on 31st Aug, 2018.

Dharmendra & Shatrughan Sinha Reunite For ‘Yamla Pagla Deewana Phir Se’!

Earlier seen sharing the screen space in movies like Dost, Blackmail & Teesri Aankh, amongst others will now be seen together after 2 decades in Yamla Pagla Deewana Phir Se! Last week the 2 veteran actors shot their scenes and the duo admitted that this made them feel nostalgic. The 2 of them are like family & Dharmendra considers Shatrughan as his younger brother. Even though Dharmendra is staying hush about the details of the scenes that they shot together, he revealed that Shatrughan Sinha will be seen essaying the role of a judge while Dharmendra plays a lawyer. Yamla Pagla Deewana Phir Se is produced by Sunny Deol, Kamayani Punia Sharma, Aarushi Malhotra, Jayantilal Gada & Navaniat brought his own vibe, making the characters more real. The film is all set to release on 31st Aug, 2018.

Shahid Kapoor & Kiara Advani Recreated Yo Yo Honey Singh’s Song

Shahid Kapoor, who is gearing up for the release of his next film Batti Gul Meter Chalu, is also busy burning the dance floor in Mumbai studios to feature in the video of a Shingle, being produced by T-Series’ Bhushan Kumar. A recreated version of Urvashi, the chartbuster from the Prabhudheva-Nagma starrer 1994’s Tamil film Kadhalan, the Bhushan Kumar-produced song also features Kiara Advani. Recreated, written & sung by Yo Yo Honey Singh, the video is currently being shot by director Gifty in Mumbai. “We’ve changed the lyrics, but the hook line remains the same. We are shooting on a club set in Film City. We also filmed in a parking lot to give the video an underground kind of a feel,” informs choreographer Sanjay Shetty. Even Kiara is a fab dancer.” “I know the pressure one goes through when a classic song is recreated. There will be comparisons. This could be my ode to Prabhu sir,” says the actress, adding that she has grown up listening to the original “Urvashi” number. Says Bhushan Kumar, “Yo Yo Honey Singh has recreated this version and we are rekindling the onscreen magic with Shahid Kapoor & Kiara Advani as per the tastes of today’s young generation who will have a have blast dancing to this song when it releases.”

Sushant Singh Rajput “Loves His Dreams”

Sushant Singh Rajput is all set to live his dreams. He has recently been seen focusing on accomplishing his wish list which he refers to as ‘Loving your Dream” list. One out of the 150 dreams, which he has his mind set on is Cricket, the passion which he further developed while shooting the blockbuster MS Dhoni: The Untold Story. Sushant, in the latest video posted on his Instagram account, is seen playing cricket with his left hand. While Sushant can already pull a spectacular “helicopter” shot with his right hand, he is now training himself physically to play with his left hand. Sushant, a polymath, has taken extra efforts to physically train himself to become ambidextrous, the ability to use both the hands equally well. The interesting session had Kushal Zaveri, Sushant’s old friend & former co-star of the hit show Pavitra Rishta, playing the “bowler”. While Kushal seemed to have accompanied Sushant to Jamshedpur where he is currently shooting for Kizie Aur Manny, we are yet to find out whether this is just a friendly evening ball-play or is there a possibility of the 2 of them coming together for some new project?

Sameer Kochar All For Sachin Tendulkar!

His name is synonymous with Indian Premier League (IPL) for almost a decade. Having hosted varied shows during the popular cricket league, Samir Kochhar has certainly carved a niche for himself as one of the most talented & entertaining hosts of the small screen arena. With a rich baritone & a suave personality, Samir has become a household name and he is highly recognized & admired by television audiences. Samir, who is a great admirer of Sachin Tendulkar, was surprised to learn that the shoot of his upcoming Tamil film, Adho Andha Paravai Pola with Amala Paul in Chennai was clashing with a brand launch event of the cricket legend in Goa. A source says, “Samir had already committed to host an event for Sachin in Goa but since the date of his Tamil movie clashed with it, he requested the makers if they could allow him a day off & shoot the action sequence a day later. Much to his surprise, the makers fulfilled Samir’s request for the shift in the shoot schedule.” Having hosted several cricket-based shows and worked closely with the cricket icon, Samir is well aware of his numerous achievements and didn’t want to miss out on the event.

Nawazuddin Siddiqui Encourages Farming!

Nawazuddin Siddiqui may have reached exponential heights as one of the finest actors in the country today, however, the star continues to remain grounded to his roots. Nawaz who hails from a small town (Budhana) and has a background in agriculture is scouting for a plot in Kasara. The actor in his small way hopes to pursue farming and also educate local farmers about the advancements in agricultural technology and other methods for a better harvest. Nawazuddin’s brother Shamas Siddiqui says, “Of late, it has become difficult for Nawaz bhai to travel all the way to our village, owing to his hectic schedule. We wanted to buy a plot close to Mumbai so that he can drive down to Kasara whenever he has the time. We have finalized a few plots that are close to the river, and will seal the deal by this week.” Adding that, “Last year, we had implemented new irrigation techniques in Budhana, which helped the farmers there tremendously. Similarly, Nawaz bhai & I want to create awareness here too.”

Namah Pictures To Collaborate With Pa. Ranjith For A Mega Period Film!

Post the worldwide critical acclaim of their movie, Beyond The Clouds, directed by Iranian filmmaker Majid Majidi, the new-age producer duo Shareen Mantri Kedia & Kishor Arora of Namah Pictures is all set to collaborate with yet another popular filmmaker, Pa. Ranjith for his Hindi directorial debut. Having given 2 back to back blockbuster hits Kabali in the year 2016 & Kaala in the year 2018 with superstar Rajinikanth, Pa. Ranjith is one of the most sought after & talented directors of the Tamil cinema. “Shareen & Kishor of Namah Pictures liked Pa. Ranjith’s work and are excited to collaborate with him for their upcoming project. The subject that they are working on is a period film based on a true story which will go on the floors next year.” Namah Pictures has recently produced Karenjit Kaur, a biopic on the life of Sunny Leone. Besides Kabali & Kaala, Pa. Ranjith has also directed popular films including Attakathi in the 2012 & Madras in the year 2014.

Kritika Kamra Shoots For 18 Hours For A Garba Number!

Having played memorable characters in popular television shows including Kitni Mohabbat Hai & Kuch Toh Log Kahenge amongst others, Kritika Kamra is certainly a household name. The talented actress is now all set to spring a huge surprise on the audiences, especially her fans with her debut Bollywood film, an untitled romantic comedy, helmed by Nitin Kakkar (of Filmistaan fame). The gorgeous actress has recently shot an energetic dance number for the movie in Gujarat. “The movie features a high-on-energy dance number which Kritika had recently shot in Gujarat. It’s a traditional folk dance of Gujarat – garba & since the song is a lavish dance number involving authentic garba movements, Kritika shot for 18 hours constantly at a stretch.” “Before Kritika shot for the actual song, she rehearsed almost a week to get the dance steps right so that it appears convincing & relatable. Kritika nailed the dance number much to the satisfaction of the makers,” the source adds.

Kajol Launches The Trailer Of ‘Helicopter Eela’ On Her Birthday!

The much awaited trailer of Pradeep Sarkar’s next – Helicopter Eela is out and has created immense anticipation amongst the audience. The film stars Kajol in the lead role, along with the National award winning actor – Riddhi Sen who plays Kajol’s son. The film is a beautiful story of the relationship shared between a mother & a son. The film also stars Neha Dhupia & Tota Roy Chowdhary. Present at the event were Kajol, Riddhi Sen, Neha Dhupia, Director Pradeep Sarkar & Producers Ajay Devgn, Jayantilal Gada (Pen) & Aksshay Jayantilal Gada. Riddhi Sen, who plays Kajol’s son in the film surprised her with a birthday cake at the event! Ajay Devgn & Jayantilal Gada (Pen) presents, co-produced by Kumar Mangat Pathak, Vikrant Sharma, Reshmaa Kadakia, Kushal Kantilal Gada, Neeraj Gala & produced by Ajay Devgn, Dhaval Jayantilal Gada, Aksshay Jayantilal Gada, Helicopter Eela is all set to release on 7th Sept, 2018.

Vkaao Breaks Theatrical Release Stereotypes In Indian Film Industry With Theatre On Demand

With the evolution of the Indian cinema, the industry has also seen the rise of many stories & storytellers. And many times not all these stories reach the audiences through a traditional theatrical release. This is what BookMyShow & PVR Pictures backed Vkaao is now changing. Vkaao’s model allows film-makers to create a specific film release plan that ensures focused marketing efforts & better planning of marketing budgets. The platform also allows a long tail theatrical revenue model through which a film stays in the Vkaao library so that one can keep creating incremental shows. This is in sheer contrast with a traditional theatrical release where the shows are made available before any guarantee of box office turnstiles collection is established. VKAAO allows film-makers to be very precise in planning their shows depending on probability of meeting advance thresholds. The reason to ditch the traditional Friday release & choosing a Mon is to control the minimum guarantee required for the movie to be screened. The whole idea is to ensure that the movie is screened in the theatres in the 1st ever week, and if the movie has enough potential, it can be continued traditionally throughout the week from the 2nd week onwards.

Yash Raj Film’s Blockbuster ‘Sultan’ All Set To Release In China On 31st Aug 2018

Salman Khan-Anushka Sharma starrer Sultan, the homegrown story of an underdog that wins against all odds, broke box office turnstiles records and won over audiences in India. Now the powerful wrestling drama is all set to get a wide release across China on 31st Aug, 2018. Yash Raj Films collaborates with leading distribution company E Stars China to screen Sultan in over 11,000 screens, targeting around 40,000 shows a day. The film will release with the same title, Sultan. Produced by Yash Raj Films & directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, Sultan’s story resonates universally. It will get a Chinese subtitled release. Ali Abbas Zafar says, “Every time a film releases and newer set of audiences see it, you get a different perspective altogether. China is a fast growing market for Indian Cinema. I’m really excited and looking forward to people’s reaction to Sultan in China.”

Deepshikha Nagpal Turns Singer Under Music Batonship Of Dj Sheizwood

The launch of Deepshikha Nagpal’s debut song “Kya Hua Tera Wada” saw the presence of Niki Aneja, Rashmi Desai, Meets Bros, Mukul Dev, Aakriti Nagpal, Lizaa Malik, Prashant Virendra Sharma, Dr. Sharmila Nayak, Mohamed Morani, Saru Maini, Payal Goga Kapoor, Kanchan Adhikari, Candy Brar, Captain Avinash Singh (owner of HOP), Smita Gondkar, Sameer, Anup Jalota, Manmeet Singh (Meet Bros), Shivrani Somaia, Simran Ahuja, Kawaljeet Singh, Sheeba, Mishti Mukherjee etc. In an industry that doesn’t promise a long sojourn, Deepshikha Nagpal has reigned both big & small screen for many years. Deepshikha Nagpal is now all set to add another dimension to her career with her singing debut with the song “Kya Hua Tera Wada” by DJ Sheizwood

Producer Irshad Khan Found ‘Jaako Raakhe Saaiyan’ Funny & Interesting

The trend of cinema changes with the time and now the films based on true events are in trend progressively. Blackk Stone Entertainment is proud enough to present their upcoming Hindi movie, Jaako Raakhe Saaiyan in Mumbai. The movie is a comedy encounter drama inspired by a true event. The founder of Gulabi Gang, Sampat Pal was the special guest for the launch. Director Rajiv S Ruia, producer Irshad Khan, Reshma Khan, Zakir Husain, Pradeep K. Sharma, Dinesh Kumar, Sakshi Pradhan, Agni Pawar, Subrat Dutta, Shakil Azami, Rajnish Duggal, Hemant Pandey, Swati Sharma Rashid Khan, Rahul Mishra were present at the event. With the launch of the film, director Rajiv S Ruia’s birthday was also celebrated. Jaako Raakhe Saaiyan stars Rajpal Yadav, Mangesh Desai, Sakshi Pradhan, Agni Pawar, Sampat Pal, Zakir Hussain & Vikram Singh. With this movie, Gulabi Gang founder, Sampat Pal is making a debut in Bollywood. The movie has an intriguing title Jaako Raakhe Saaiyan. Producer Irshad Khan says “as soon as he got the script, I found it quite funny & interesting as inspired by true events”.

Yashpal Sharma Wore The Same Costume For 20 Days For ‘Kareem Mohammad’

Yashpal Sharma works hard to get into the skin of his roles with effortless ease. For the sake of attaining perfection in his role in the latest film Kareem Mohammad, Yashpal did something unbelievable. For 20 days, he wore the same costume even when he used to sleep at nights after the shooting was over and did not even bother to wash his costume till the film was complete. Director Pawan Kumar Sharma’s Kareem Mohammad is slated for release on 24th Aug, 2016. The film which drives home the message that terrorism is deplorable has already made the rounds of varied international film fest and won many awards besides garnering a lot of appreciation. The film produced by Ravindra Rajawat is being presented by Anhad Studios. Jeetendra Gupta has edited the film, while Balkrishna Sharma has composed the music & Prakash Jha has edited it. Besides Yashpal Sharma & Harshit Rajawat, the film also has Alka Ameen, Rajesh Rais, Ravi Jandhu, Sunil Jogi essaying key roles.

Suniel Shetty & His Sena Went On A Live Interaction About Fitness Across 43 Cities

Mission Fit India, India’s 120 day fitness fest, organized the country’s biggest live interaction session on fitness, Jio Fitness Hour. Veteran Bollywood actor & face of the campaign, Suniel Shetty, along with his team of experts were a part of the session. Mission Fit India was conceptualized by Fever FM & FTC in partnership with Patanjali & MY FM is the programme partners. “I am enthralled to be a part of #MissionFitIndia and their mission to spread fitness across a nation as big as ours. The Jio Fitness Hour session was truly an amazing experience for my team & I. To be able to connect with so many people & motivate them to become fitter & healthier was a great experience. This monumental session was the 1st time ever anyone did such a thing in the fitness industry.” Suniel Shetty said. The Mission Fit India team selected 20-25 people from each city through a competition conducted via digital, radio & print media which includes a few buddies as well for Mission Fit India’s next phase.

Satish Kaushik & Amar Upadhyay Release The Music & Trailer Of ‘Bhaagte Raho’

Producer Sunil Tiwari of Sakshi Creations along with Co-Producer Rikhab Jain invited the cast & the guest at the launch of the music & the trailer of their comedy movie Bhaagte Raho at Sunny Super Sound, Juhu. Satish Kaushik, Amar Upadhyay, Manish Chirawala & well-known Astrologer Pandit Pawan Kaushik came for the event. TV actress Riya Deepsi of Porus serial & Abhay Raichand of Savdhan India are debuting with Bhaagte Raho. Sunil Pal, Gopi Bhalla enjoyed the media response of the trailer & the music. Other cast of the film are Rajpal Yadav, Dinesh Hingoo, Shekhar Shukla, Nitish Chaubay, Sanjiv Soni, Ali, Sunny, Aadesh, Badrish Chhabra, Bhupendra and others. The film is written & directed by Praful D. S. Tiwari.

Veteran Filmmaker Yeshant Pethkar’s Grandson Sumeet Kant Kaul Makes His Debut

Sumeet Kant Kaul, an accomplished theatre artiste from Delhi; also the maternal grandson of Yeshwant Pethkar, the pioneer Producer-Director of Indian cinema who gave break to legendary actors, Dev Anand & Pran in Aghe Bado & Apradh and also directed Madhubala, Geeta Bali etc, makes his debut as the antagonist in a film called Pakhi, based on child trafficking. “Every 8 minutes a child is being kidnapped. Every one hour, a child is being trafficked in our country. The child could be yours or mine. This issue disturbed my mind & heart,” says Sumeet Kant Kaul. The film sees Sumeet play a negative character of a Don of the flesh trade who snatches children to drown them in the quicksand of prostitution & child marriage. It has been a challenging role for the young man. “I began to live the character of Bali and as a method actor I used to imagine this character being equivalent to 100 Ravans. Bali believed that Dark Forces were protecting him and he used to think that he was invisible.” Sumeet Kant Kaul seeks his inspiration from Amitabh Bachchan, Anthony Hopkins & Ranveer Singh and attributes his histrionics to the fact that he began his career as an Assistant Director, learning the ropes of filmmaking as much as facing the camera.

Mulk

By: Husna Rizwan & Shaheen Raaj

Mulk Is A Well – Made Movie – A Must Watch For Every Indian

Banner: Soham Rockstar Entertainment & Benaras Media Works
Producer: Deepak Mukut & Anubhav Sinha
Director: Anubhav Sinha
Star Cast: Rishi Kapoor, Tapsee Pannu, Ashotosh Rana, Pateik Smit Babbar, Rajat Kapoor, Manoj Pahwa, Neena Gupta, Prachi Shah – Pandya, Vartika Singh, Indraneil Sen Gupta, Ashrut Jain Kumud Mishra, Sumit Kaul Atul Tiwari, Anil Rastogi, Vinay Ghoshal, Ehsaan Khan, Ehsannur Rehman Khan, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Udayveer Singh Yadav, Manoj Dutt, Paromita Chatterjee & Abdul Quadir
Music: Prasad Sashta & Mangesh Dhakda

Soham Rockstar Entertainment & Benaras Mediaworks’ Mulk also produced & directed by Anubhav Sinha is the story of a Muslim family living in Lucknow and, through that family, the story of how prejudices can make life hell for Muslims in India is showcased.

The scripted scenario of Mulk opens with Murad Ali Mohammed (Rishi Kapoor), a respected lawyer who lives in Lucknow with his wife, Tabassum (Neena Gupta), younger brother, Bilal Mohammed (Manoj Pahwa), sister – in – law, ‘Chhoti’ Tabassum (Prachee Shah – Paandya), nephew, Shahid Mohammed (Prateik Smit Babbar) & niece, Aayat Mohammed (Vartika Singh). Murad Ali Mohammed’s son, Aftab Mohammed (Indraneil Sengupta) & his Hindu lawyer – wife, Aarti Mohammed (Taapsee Pannu), lives abroad. Aarti Mohammed has now come visiting the family, deciding to stay away from her husband Aftab Mohammed, who wants their child, as yet unborn and not even conceived, to follow the religion of Islam, something which the progressive Aarti Mohammed feels, does not even merit discussion. The level-headed Aarti Mohammed continues to give her in-laws the same respect & love despite the tension with her husband. Ditto for the in-laws. And then to the shock of the entire family, Shahid Mohammed is named as one amongst the 3 terrorists who’ve caused bomb blasts in Allahabad, resulting in deaths of innocent people. Nobody in the family even had the inkling that Shahid Mohammed had, right under their nose, become a jihadi, having been initiated into terrorism by Mehfooz Alam (Sumit Kaul). Anti-terrorist squad inspector Danish Javed (Rajat Kapoor) shoots Shahid Mohammed on sight and the dead body is brought to Lucknow. Shahid Mohammed’s respectable family is so distraught at the thought that one amongst them had become a terrorist that it refuses to accept the corpse. Soon enough, Shahid Mohammed’s father, Bilal Mohammed (Manoj Pahwa), is taken by the police for interrogation. After a grueling session of questioning, the police arrest him. In court, the public prosecutor Santosh Anand (Ashutosh Rana) tries to prove that Bilal Mohammed was aware of his son Shahid Mohammed’s terrorist activities and was himself involved in them. Murad Ali Mohammed defends his brother Bilal Mohammed in court but before he knows it, he too is accused by the public prosecutor of terrorism. Shaken & dejected at the prejudice against Muslims, the old Murad Ali Mohammed asks his daughter – in – law Aarti Mohammed to become Bilal Mohammed’s lawyer in court.
Anubhav Sinha has written a nice & thought-provoking story about a Muslim family which is looked down upon as a family of terrorists because of one black sheep in the family. While being relevant & topical, the story also tackles the larger issue of prejudice against members of the minority community in India. His screenplay is very engaging in the 1st ever half. The 2nd half is mostly devoted to the courtroom drama. In the courtroom drama, while trying to extrapolate the story of the Mohammed family to the story of Muslims in India in general, Anubhav Sinha does lose his grip in parts but he gets in control in the climax again. Had the courtroom drama far more fire & many claptrap moments, the impact would’ve been greater. In trying to take the macro view, the screenplay somewhere is unable to do justice to the pain & the sufferings of the Mohammed family. Nevertheless, the drama does keep the viewers engaged. However, it would appeal mainly to the class audience because it becomes a drama of a macro issue after some time. Had Anubhav Sinha not left his grip on the state of the Mohammed family & milked the emotions in that space, the film would have become a fare for the masses & family audiences too. Also, the courtroom drama looks a bit simplistic and often one-sided, when public prosecutor Santosh Anand argues, it’s just his viewpoint and, likewise, when Aarti Mohammed argues, it’s just her version. The audience would’ve enjoyed the courtroom drama far more had there been at least 7 to 10 clap worthy scenes of one-upmanship in the court arguments. The judgment pronounced by the judge (Kumud Mishra) is superbly worded, entertaining, yet so weighty. Anubhav Sinha’s dialogues are excellent.
Anubhav Sinha’s direction is good. He has handled the subject with sen­sitivity. Prasad Sashta & Anurag Saikia’s music & Shakeel Azmi’s lyrics are appealing. Mangesh Dhakde’s background music is very impactful. Ewan Mulligan’s cinematography captures the sombre mood of the drama with elan. Nikhil Kovale’s sets are realistic. Riyaz – Habib’s action & stunt scenes are good, but Ballu Saluja’s editing is certainly not up to to the mark sharp. The editing could have been crisper to keep the viewers engaged.
Performance wise Rishi Kapoor is extraordinaire, as always. He lives the character of Murad Ali Mohammed who feels so helpless & marginalized because of his religion. His nuanced performance is worthy of high praise. Taapsee Pannu delivers a mature act and superbly understated performance as Aarti Mohammed. Ashutosh Rana is splendid as a public prosecutor Santosh Anand. His antics in the court are enjoyable. Rajat Kapoor delivers a decent performance as Danish Javed. Kumud Mishra is absolutely delightful as the judge. Manoj Pahwa delivers a fantastic performance as Bilal. His scene in the jail with his elder brother Murad Ali Mohammed will make the weak – hearted cry. Prateik Smit Babbar is good as Shahid Mohammed. Neena Gupta shines in the role of Murad Ali Mohammed’s wife, Tabassum. Prach­ee Shah Paandya is effective as Bilal Mohammed’s wife, ‘Chhoti’ Tabassum. Vartika Singh makes her presence felt in the role of Aayat. Sumit Kaul leaves a mark as Mehfooz Alam. Ashrut Jain is good as Rashid. Indraneil Sengupta is alright in a “brief” role as Aftab Mohammed. Atul Tiwari, as Murad Ali Mohammed’s close Hindu friend, is very effective. Anil Rastogi, Vinay Ghoshal, Ehsaan Khan, Ehsannur Rehman Khan, Shriya Pilgaonkar, Udayveer Singh Yadav, Manoj Dutt, Paromita Chatterjee and the rest lend good support.
Tail Piece: On the whole, Mulk is a purposeful entertainer and has the potential to do fair business but its dull start & the dual oppositions of Fanney Khan & Karwaan this week will tell on its business. The critical acclaim it wins will be far more rewarding than the box – office turnstiles revenues.

At the box – office turnstiles collections should definitely pick up by positive word of mouth publicity.

Dulquer Salmaan Gets Candid Talking About Irrfan Khan & His Film ‘Karwaan’

Malayalam superstar Dulquer Samaan made his Bollywood debut with Karwaan released last Fri. The actor essays the role of Avinash who lands up in a most uncomfortable situation surrounded by 2 eccentric characters; Irrfan Khan & Mithila Palkar. Talking about his chemistry with Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan averred, “Irrfan sir is unbelievably versatile. He adapts & lives the character completely. The way to think, perceive & react at any scene gets adjusted in a flick of time flawlessly. There was so much to learn from him that everyday Mithila Parker & I used to rehearse our scenes rigorously thinking of how Irrfan sir would do.” Talking at length, Dulquer opened up stating, “I remember when Akarsh Khurana approached me for the film and told me that I was to share screen space with Irrfan sir, I couldn’t believe my ears. I literally took the script to re-check & validate his words.” Produced by Ronnie Screwvala, Directed by Akarsh Khurana starring Irrfan Khan, Dulquer Salmaan & Mithila Palkar, Kaarwaan was released on Fri, 3rd Aug, 2018.

Shahid Kapoor Starrer ‘Arjun Reddy’ Telugu Remake To Launched

The remake of Telugu hit movie Arjun Reddy starring Shahid Kapoor was launched recently and will go on the floors soon and is all set to be released on 21st Jun, 2019. The movie is directed by Sandeep Vanga & produced by Bhushan Kumar, Murad Khetani, Krishan Kumar & Ashwin Varde.

‘Stree’ All Set To Take Your Breath Away On 31st Aug 2018

Dinesh Vijan is all set to give a rarely made genre of Horror Comedy with his next film Stree. The film which is made on a true phenomenon had its grand trailer launch recently along with the entire star cast of the film which includes Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana & Abhishek Banerjee. Also, present at the event were director Amar Kaushik, producers Dinesh Vijan, Raj & DK & music composer Sachin-Jigar. The trailer received an outstanding response for the funny yet horror elements which were showcased. Shraddha Kapoor & Rajkummar Rao also taught a few journalists ways of being safe from Stree & draping special Chanderi saree on them. The day was special for Dinesh Vijan who also celebrated his birthday along with the cast & the crew. Stree, a horror comedy has been directed by Amar Kaushik & is all set to release on 31stAug, 2018.

Kangana Ranaut Is The Brand Ambassador For Platinum Corp

Platinum Corp an established award-winning realty brand from the city, known for delivering contemporary & yet affordable high tech homes, announced the exclusive launch of its premium lifestyle housing project named “Platinum Vogue”. Kangana Ranaut who has been named a brand ambassador of the project, unveiled the project at a glittering function followed by a fashion show held at the city’s prominent hotel. Self-made, independent &, strong Kangana Ranaut also represents the perfect lifestyle of a fashionista & the enjoyment of all the benefits “Platinum Vogue” has to offer. Kangana Ranaut averred, “It is my pleasure to be associated with Platinum Corp. as their Brand Ambassador! They have been pioneers in smart & affordable housing projects. I understand the importance of owning a house in Mumbai and I am happy that “Platinum Corp’ is fulfilling the dreams for many. “Platinum Vogue” is a very promising project with all the modern amenities & high design anyone could ask for. The launch event was anchored by actor emcee Mona Singh, while the performances of stand-up comic Nitin Mirani & choreographer Sandeep Soparkar enthralled the audiences. The star attraction of the launch event “Vogue fashion show” by ace designer Asif Merchant was followed by the appearance of Kangana Ranaut.

Evelyn Sharma Unveils “Millionaires Club”

Country Club is known to build everlasting family clubbing, holiday, fitness & leisure entertainment industry benchmarks. At the launch of the new the Millionaire Membership with actress Evelyn Sharma along with CMD Country Club Y Rajeev Reddy. It’s a historic milestone for Country Club. With this new launch they look forward to extend their reach & help grow the country club family. Y. Rajeev Reddy averred, “The Millionaire Membership comes as a boon to many people who want to spend quality time with their families & enjoy all the varied facilities offered by Country club”. Y Rajeev Reddy also said that starting from one club in Hyderabad with 400 members in 1989 to 4 Lacs Members today, Country Club today is spread over 50 locales spanning across India, Asia & Middle East, putting Country Club in the global map. Evelyn Sharma speaking on the occasion averred, “I was always astonished about the brand Country Club, one brand more than 50 properties across India & Middle East & over 4 lakh families is something unheard of. This is my 1st association with them & looking forward to be a part of their success stories in future too.”

MS Dhonil Bats For Road Safety

MS Dhoni, walks onto a new field, as Brand ambassador of “Gulf Oil” to create awareness about road safety which today causes major fatalities due to basic flouting of regulations. In day-to-day life, the major reason people break traffic rules is to reach their destination faster. The campaign showcases how Gulf Pride 4T Plus resolves this tension of reaching the destination faster by providing instant pick-up that helps one stay always ahead. This campaign with M S Dhoni is all set to be aired on multidisciplinary channels including online, all the GEC, news, music channels & extending to movie halls activations.The narrative of the campaign is simple, yet tasteful. It’s light-hearted, yet highly engaging. It’s conversational, yet potent in messaging. The ad highlights the quirky yet annoying road habits that riders often indulge in to reach their destinations faster. MS Dhoni plays the role of the “ideal rider” who is calm & composed on the road, much like his persona on the pitch. With his road etiquette, he is bound to influence young & passionate riders. The campaign is aimed at enhancing brand familiarity leading to strong brand affinity for Gulf Pride 4T plus amongst bikers, and to educate the prospective buyers on the benefits.

Vikram Bhatt Turns Brand Ambassador

Vikram Bhatt who is synonymous with making thrillers & horror movies, is all set to add one more feather to his cap! He recently became the brand ambassador for an astrology app, Astrobuddy, which is founded by Bhupesh Sharma with a vision to make genuine astrology available to every household on the globe in its truest & most logical form. Astrobuddy is a brand of Nyassa AstroCorp and is a content & service provider for Astrology powering digital & voice astrology products globally. With over 30 million customers they understand diverse audiences sets & content consumption preferences. The app is world’s 1st ever Astrology application that facilitates live text chat for the users to seek advice from AstroBuddies. AstroBuddy is a unique service where focus is more on counseling & scientific analysis of birth charts. No religious overtures or age old superstitions are involved in this service. Very soon the live voice service will also be launched for customers in USA, Canada & UK. The objective of setting up AstroBuddy is to dispel the way astrology has been misinterpreted & showcased over & over again. “We work on people’s strengths & potential, with the objective of turning their fears into smiles,” says Bhupesh Sharma.

Vinay Anand Bags The “Most Versatile Actor” Award

Dishum International Bhojpuri Film Awards (IBFA) 2017 created history last year by being the 1st ever regional entertainment show held in London on 30th Jul, 2017. This year, it spread the power of Bhojpuri culture in Malaysia at the 2nd Dishum IBFA Awards 2018. Adding a touch of Bollywood charm & to grace the occasion present were Kumar Sanu, Dino Morea. Krishna Abhishek, Ragini Khanna, Payal Rohatgi. Apart from them, the Dishum channel owner Vishal Gurnani, producer Abhay Sinha, Durga Prasad, Ramesh Nayyar, Partha Dey, COO, Dishum Broadcasting Pvt Ltd & Aparna Shah, Founder Director, Dishum Broadcasting Pvt Ltd. Vinay Anand got the “most versatile actor award’. The prestigious awards were given away in front of a packed audiences consisting of Manoj Tiwari, Pawan Singh, Nirahua, Ravi Kishan, Krushna Abhishek as well as popular Bhojpuri celebrities including Amprapali Dubey, Madhu Sharma, Akanksha Awasthi, Sambhavna Seth, Rashmi Desai, Payal Rohatgi, who rocked the stage in a glitzy event held in Kuala Lumpur on 21st Jul, 2018.

Mrunal Thakur On Working With Tabrez Noorani & More In ’Love Sonia’

Mrunal Thakur turned a year older on 1st Aug, 2018 and on this wonderful occasion, she got talking about Love Sonia and more. She is playing a phenomenal role in Love Sonia, directed by Tabrez Noorani. The film that is based on child trafficking reunited Tabrez Noorani who is also the Indian producer of Slumdog Millionaire with reel life Latika, Freida Pinto, while simultaneously featuring Hollywood actress, Demi Moore. Mrunal Thakur took the role of Sonia, a young girl from a small Indian village, after a year-long search of a good film that really connected to her. Mrunal Thakur recollects, “Demi Moore shared stories of working with an organization called Thorn (that works towards curbing circulation of child sexual abuse material and stands up to traffickers. I went to Sonagachi, the red light area in Kolkata, and lived there for a couple of days, studying the body language of the girls there.” Inspired by true events, Love Sonia is the shocking story of a young Indian village girl whose life is tumultuously & irrevocably changed when she gets entrapped in the global sex trade while trying to save the one person she is closest to, her sister. The film has been shot in Jaipur, Mumbai, Hong Kong & Los Angeles, and will be released in India this Sept. The film has a cast comprising of Hollywood as well as Bollywood actors, including Freida Pinto, Manoj Bajpayee, Rajkummar Rao, Richa Chadha, Anupam Kher, Adil Hussain, Sai Tamhankar, Sunny Parwar, Demi Moore, Mark Duplass & Riya Sisodiya.

Vidyut Jammwal Brings Global Recognition To “Kalaripayattu”

Looper, a highly coveted platform in US has recently released a list of top martial artists across the globe and Vidyut Jammwal is the only Indian to have made it to this prestigious list. Speaking on the achievement, Vidyut Jammwal averred, “This is indeed an honor. Recognition like this inspires me to work harder and this moment makes me feel like a proud Indian”. Vidyuit Jammwal whose dream has been to bring “Kalaripayattu” to the world seems to be succeeding and has given Indians another reason to celebrate. Vidyut Jammwal has recently finished shooting for his upcoming family adventure film, Junglee, with renowned film maker Chuck Russell (director of The Mask, Scorpion King & The Eraser). Chuck Russell appreciated Vidyut Jammwal saying, “It’s great to see Vidyut Jammwal being noted as the rising star in action films across the world. He has a rare combination of cinematic charm & killer moves that will make him unstoppable after this film. What really distinguishes Vidyut Jammwal is his deep knowledge of the martial art “Kalaripayattu” and his understanding of its philosophy to not only protect & fight, but also use it to heal. I had the pleasure of creating his role in Junglee to play his style of action supporting a positive message. I can’t wait for audiences to see it on the big screen.” Speaking about the appreciation he received from Chuck Russell, Vidyut Jammwal adds, “Chuck Russel’s kind words are like an icing on the cake. Working with him on Junglee was like a dream come true. He pushed me to extract one of my best performances so far.” Other martial artists in the list include Ilram Choi, Scott Adkins, Marko Zaror, Lateef Crowder, Wu Jing & Johnny Nguyen.

Akshay Kumar Launches “Peeping Moon”

Akshay Kumar launched Clapping Hands Private Limited’s new website in Marathi namely Peeping Moon.com. With actor-writer Swanand Kirkire, Akshay Kumar visited the Mumbai office of Marathi Website. Peeping Moon.com. Over a traditional Maharashtrian breakfast of Poha, Batata Vada, Sheera, Missal Pav & Piyush drink, Akshay Kumar did his 1stever Marathi web interview with Swanand. Marathi. Peeping Moon.com, a subsidiary of Bollywood’s popular & fast growing digital platform Marathi. Peeping Moon.com, will exclusively cover content of Marathi cinema, TV & theatre including film reviews, stories, gossip, interviews, previews, on-the-sets & behind-the-scenes news, film awards shows, et al. in video & written format. Peeping Moon.com was started in Sept, 2017 by Mark Manuel & Nishant A Bhuse. “After the start of our Bollywood website in English & Hindi a year ago at the back of our minds we always intended to start a Marathi entertainment website seeing how Marathi cinema was growing and leading Bollywood actors were getting involved in it.” Akshay Kumar added, “For Bollywood news, there are several online entertainment sites, but for a person like me who admires Marathi cinema, drama & TV, there is now also Marathi. Peeping Moon.com. I congratulate the team.”

Nandita Das Heads The Jury For The 2018 Edition Of Unesco-Madanjeet Singh Prize

Nandita Das – actor, director & social advocate, along with Professor Nadia Bernoussi, celebrated academic & legal expert from Morocco, and Abdoulaye Konaté, prominent artist & cultural voice in Mali, comprised the Jury for the 2018 edition of UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize. This prize awards a hundred thousand US dollars to individuals, institutions, other entities & non-Governmental organizations that have made exceptional contributions & demonstrated leadership in the promotion of tolerance & non-violence. Nandita Das was unanimously elected President of the jury by her fellow jurors. Says Nandita Das, “As I am in the midst of a gruelling schedule, working towards the India release of Manto and its participation in international film festivals, to suddenly get this invite to participate in a meaningful initiative was truly rejuvenating. I have always enjoyed the deliberation process. The last time was in 2016 for BBC World in London. They had asked me to be on a similar jury for a programme called Outlook Inspirations. Having been caught up with Manto, it was actually refreshing and brought back a certain sense of hope. Having said that, it was not an easy process. To take out time from a hectic schedule, to review profiles of the candidates from all over the world that were nominated, and then deliberate extensively in order to arrive at a consensus during the meeting in Paris”.

Hollywood Actress Tammy Barataia Was Saved From Drowning In The Ganges

Recently, Hollywood actress Tammy Bartaia survived a fatal accident in Varanasi. The team of The Legend Of Peacock had come to shoot for the film under the direction of Atul Garg. One of the important scenes of the movie was to be shot in the Ganges River. The Director & the cameraman were shooting well for this scene, but then suddenly Atul Garg saw Tammy Barataia drowning in the river. Atul avers, “My assistant immediately jumped into the river to save her from this life threatening incident.” Atul Garg has confirmed the incident related to Tammy Barataia. The Legend Of Peacock is Atul Garg’s 1st ever Hollywood movie. The movie, being made in Hinglish, is to be shot in many countries including India. In Varanasi, 45% of the shooting has been done. Besides India, the film will also be shot in US & Turkey. The shooting of The Legend Of Peacock in Varanasi has been done on ghats like Asshi Ghat, Manikarnika Ghat. Apart from Hollywood actors like Tammy Bartaia, Tim Bruce, Brent, Bollywood actors like Asima Sharma, Manish Wadhwa, Abbas Khan will also be seen in the movie.

Bhushan Kumar To Join Hands With Ajay Devgn

Bhushan Kumar the music baron turned film producer of T-Series is all set to now produce a much-awaited costume drama, Taanaji along with Ajay Devgn. Both Bhushan Kumar & Ajay Devgn have had a very successful association in the past, Raid being their recent blockbuster. Bhushan Kumar had recently flown to London to meet Ajay Devgn for a discussion over Taanaji, which will mark Bhushan Kumar’s 1st ever venture into costume drama. The film is all set to go on the floors by the end of Sept, 2018, after Ajay Devgn finishes the shoot of Akiv Ali’s next which is being produced by Bhushan Kumar & Luv Ranjan & Indra Kumar’s Total Dhamaal. The movie Taanaji will showcase the life of this unsung warrior of glorious Indian history, who fought for his People, his soil & his King Chhatrapati Shivaji. The film will be directed by Om Raut, who has to his credit Lokmanya Ek Yugpurush (2015), the Marathi biopic on Bal Gangadhar Tilak.

‘Girl In The City’ Will Give People A Lot Of Courage

Bindass Originals Channel’s Girl In The City – Chapter 3, has been receiving all the love & the accolades from the fans. The show has already crossed the esteemed 10 million views mark on social media, within just a couple of weeks into the show. The lead actress Mithila Palkar is extremely happy that the show has entered its 3rd season as she has been associated with the show since its inception. Says Mithila Parkar, who is also seen in the film Kaarwaan with Dulqar Salmaan & Irrfan Khan, “Girl In The City is a very relatable show and we all are relatable characters. Meera, represents all of those who have moved from the smallest towns to a bigger city to achieve their dreams and the struggle is real. The show will give people a lot of courage and they will feel there are more people like Meera and like themselves. It will give them hope.” While her on-screen character is fashion designer, Mithila Parkar wishes if she adopted her traits, she would have a better sense of fashion as she prefers to wear pajamas’ always. Girl In the City – Chapter 3 also features Rajat Barmecha & Swati Vatssa in pivotal roles.

Sonu Sood Champions The Cause Of Drug Free Punjab

Besides being a talented actor, Sonu Sood is well-known for his philanthropic work & his association with several charitable causes over the years. Not many know that the large-hearted actor has been tirelessly working for the serious cause of drug abuse since more than a year now in his hometown, Punjab. In fact, Sonu Sood recently met Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh and appreciated the state Government’s efforts towards eradicating drugs from the state. A source informs, “Sonu Sood has been effortlessly working for the anti-drug campaign in Punjab with the help of several top Government officials & cops. During his free time, the actor visits Punjab to assist the people working on the campaign thereby helping them to create awareness around the drug abuse. Sonu Sood will be personally meeting drug addicts and make them realize the hazardous effects of drug consumption & advocate them to maintain a disciplined & a healthy lifestyle.”

Annup Sonii Opts Out Of ‘Son Chiriya’

Annup Sonii has for long been anchoring the reality-based television show, Crime Patrol on television, and because of his busy schedule, he couldn’t take up any other project because of the hectic shooting schedule, including Abhishek Chaubey’s Son Chiriya featuring Sushant Singh Rajput & Bhumi Pednekar. “Yes I lost out on it as they wanted a certain look from me, but my show, which required me to be clean-shaven, They needed me to grow a beard of 30 days, which wasn’t possible,” informs Annup Soni. So, after his contract with the show ended, Annup Soni decided to get back to cinema. “I want to send across this message to everyone in the industry, that I am available for films! 8 years is a long gap, and I lost touch with many filmmakers. I couldn’t forge relationships with the new ones. My last film was in 2008 named Yeh Hausla, directed by Nagesh Kukunoor, and it never released. I did 2-3 films after that, but then I got this show,” he says. Annup will soon start shooting for Prasthaanam, starring Sanjay Dutt. “The film is about relationships. Me, Sanjay and more characters are part of one family, and my character goes through some kind of incident, which changes the whole story,” he adds.

‘Manto’ To Be Screened At The Toronto International Film Festival 2018

Saadat Hasan Manto (1912-1955) is considered one of the greatest writers born, with his literature being well ahead of its time. Bringing alive the legacy of the man and his turbulent yet inspirational story on the silver screen is Nandita Das’ directorial venture, Manto. The film has now been selected for a screening at the prestigious Toronto Film Festival 2018 (TIFF) scheduled from 6th Sept, 2018 to 16th Sept, 2018. Ajit Andhare – COO, Viacom18 Motion Pictures averred, “Saadat Hasan Manto’s life & work on celluloid is a dream we have nurtured with Nandita Das for a while now. Nandita Das shares, “I have been to TIFF as an actor many a time, right from my 1st ever film, Fire, in 1996. The last time I was there for the world premiere of Firaaq in 2008. So, it has been 10 long years! I am so looking forward to being back, and that too with Manto. TIFF attracts a very engaged & enthusiastic audience, both international & diaspora of the Subcontinent. Portraying the fearless writer Manto is the versatile actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui while Rasika Dugal plays his ever-supportive wife; Safia. The film also features Rishi Kapoor, Javed Akhtar, Ranvir Shorey, Paresh Rawal, Gurdas Mann, Divya Dutta et al. Manto is produced by Filmstoc & co-produced by Shamas Nawab Siddiqui & Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s Magic If Films.

Sonal Chauhan Gears Up To Prepare For Mahesh Manjrekar’s Next

Sonal Chauhan, who is eagerly awaiting the release of her forthcoming war drama, Paltan, has been officially signed by director Mahesh Manjrekar for his next untitled movie, also featuring Vidyut Jamwal & Shruti Haasan. Interestingly, Sonal Chauhan who plays the role of Chandramukhi in the underworld gangster drama will be seen performing several scenes which will be high on drama. Accordingly, preparing for the same, the talented actress has started rehearsing with a theatre group featuring senior artists to prep for her intense scenes that she would be shooting soon. It’s learnt that Sonal Chauhan has to perform several intense, high-on drama scenes in the film and she has been rehearsing with several theatre actors to get the right expressions & nuances for her character.

Nupur Sanon – A Brand’s Favorite!

Nupur Sanon recently collaborated with her sister Kriti Sanon to shoot for their 1st ever commercial of a popular hair oil brand. Interestingly, Nupur Sanon has been hugely appreciated for her vivacious look & cute chemistry with sister Kriti Sanon in the commercial. She looks bubbly & very confident for her 1st ever acting debut and has a great screen presence too. Such has been the craze & the popularity of the commercial that Nupur Sanon has been recently approached for not 1 but 4 major brand shoots to endorse their products along with Kriti Sanon. Yes, you read it right! A source says, “Nupur Sanon, who is gearing up to make her mark as an actor in Bollywood, is known for beautiful looks & a major social media following is becoming quite popular amongst the fashion critics with her recent appearances.”

Rajat Barmecha Identifies With His On-Screen Character Of Kartik

Rajat Barmecha who rose to fame with Anurag Kashyap’s movie Udaan is also popular for playing Kartik in Bindass Originals’ series Girl In The City. While most of the actors don’t identify with their fiction characters Rajat has a different version altogether. The actor shares, “There are many similarities between Rajat & Kartik. Over the period of time the writer of our show has understood Rajat so well that she has merged both the real & the reel together and there is hardly any difference. Except, Kartik cooks and I don’t. The best thing about my character Kartik is that – he lives in the moment and does not take life seriously. He is always having fun and that’s how exactly I am in real life. The way we rehearse and do a scene together is very organic. I have always been an organic actor but with them I have learnt to have fun while working.” The 2 episodes of the 3rd season of Girl In The City series is released on all Bindass platforms and has been receiving a lot of love from the audience.

Rajkumar Hirani Praises Marathi Film ‘Chumbak’

Noted director Rajkumar Hirani lauded the Marathi film Chumbak by saying it is a heartwarming film with great acting talent showcased by Swanand Kirkire and matured direction by Sandeep Modi. After watching a special show of the film organized specially for Hirani on Tues, he said, “Saw the heartwarming Marathi film Chumbak. Swanand Kirkire is not only a great lyricist but has also proved to be a great actor in this film. Saurabh Bhave has penned a sweet story with matured direction by Sandeep Modi. Newcomers Sahil Jadhav & Sangram Desai have done commendable job as actors. I also salute to Naren Kumar & Akshay Kumar for the production & presentation of the film.” Hirani latter tweeted in the praises of the film. Marathi film industry has been abuzz ever since Akshay Kumar had resorted to social media to announce in pure Marathi about his decision to present his 1st ever film, Chumbak, produced by Aruna Bhatia, Naren Kumar & Cape Of Good films and directed by Sandeep Modi, which will hit the screens across Maharashtra on 27th Jul, 2018. Noted lyricist, singer & actor Swanand Kirkire, who is acting in a Marathi film for the 1st time ever is also seen in a lead role for the 1st time ever. Sangram Desai & Sahil Jadhav are the youngsters in significant roles in the film along with Kirkire. The film has been directed by National Award winner Sandeep Modi. Swanand says “I had assumed that the team wanted to meet me for its music, but I was taken aback once I realized they wanted me to act, that too in a leading role, that too in one of the toughest ones I have ever heard! But listening to the script and the faith the team had, we dived into it all including me, Sandeep, Saurabh & Naren”.”Building on the part of a mentally slow naive man with our own personal observations of people around us and extensive research with doctors & counsels working in this area, we all built this part together brick by brick, with the love & dignity we wanted to bring to it”, says director Sandeep Modi.

Gulshan Kumar Biopic To Release On Christmas

T-Series & Aamir Khan Productions join hands for the most awaited biopic on India’s Music Mogul, Gulshan Kumar. Bhushan Kumar & his family are quite excited for the film based on his dad and is thrilled to be working with Aamir Khan. The film is slated to release on Christmas 2019. Written & directed by Subhash Kapoor, the shooting of the biographical film will start early 2019. Being close to his father, Bhushan Kumar always wanted an opportunity to tell his story. They hope it would be able to do justice to the legacy which has been an inspiration to the family.
Urvashi Rautela Goes To New York
Urvashi Rautela has always graced films with her personality like Hate Story 4 which can be seen in her dance numbers like “Saara Zamana” from Kaabil as well. She has mastered 13 dance forms and is currently working on polishing her acting skills. The actress says, “Having a glamorous personality or having good dancing skills is not enough in this field. I don’t have good acting abilities. I am an actor first, rest will find its way and in order to do so, I think joining an institute to enhance my acting persona will do no harm.” Looks like the wise girl has realised that if you have to survive in films as an actress too, you have got to learn acting too!

Rajkummar Rao Learns Tailoring For Stree!

Rajkummar Rao is known to be a method actor and always goes out of his way to get into the nuances of his character. For his upcoming film Stree, the actor learnt a brand new skill and have aced it. The actor underwent a month long training for becoming a tailor. He learnt stitching of varied kind of woman outfits from a blouse to a shirt. For Rajkummar’s character in the film, being a tailor was an important connect to the story line. Talking about his new learning the actor points out that the job seems easy but required a lot of prep. Rajkummar shares “Once you sit on that chair, the coordination & reflexes are something else. You can cheat with a body double but I wanted to do everything and bought myself a sewing machine and hired a tailor in Mumbai to teach me how to sew. I also had a tailor guiding me on the sets in Chanderi.” Rajkummar Rao was very keen to adapt to the Chanderi dialect. He underwent continuous training for about a month and also had a dialect coach on the sets who made sure that Rajkummar Rao sounded like a resident of Chanderi. He even made sure to have a chat with the locals there to understand how they communicate on a daily basis. The actor further adds, “I took a couple of weeks off from other projects to prep for Stree. We finished the shoot in one go. The horror-comedy genre while unexplored in our country has a huge audience.” Dinesh Vijan presents Stree, a Maddock Films production in association with D2r films & Jio Studios. The horror comedy has been directed by Amar Kaushik and is all set to release on 31st Aug, 2018.

Pakhi Brings A New Take On Child Trafficking

After the massive success of the short film, Pihu, National Award winning writer-director Sachin Gupta is back with a feature film, Pakhi which is all set to release this Aug. The film’s music was launched recently and received great reviews from all across the world. On the occasion, Sumit Kant Kaul, Anamika Shukla, the lead actors in the film with director Sachin Gupta, singer Prateeksha Srivastava & Music Composer Shivang Mathur were present in the presence of the media fraternity. The film Pakhi is the story of a 10 year old girl who is about to get married and is trapped in the world of web trafficking. While the subject of prostitution & child trafficking stays a matter of concern, the film aims to address what goes on behind the cruel business which sees the highest violations of agency, freedom & esteem. For instance, the pre-puberty treatments that the women are subjected to for the flesh trade to flourish. Pakhi is based on true events and is all set to rejig the cinematic perspectives with a plot which explores the depth of societal distress and the value of human lives. Pakhi, a social crime drama discusses the dark world of child trafficking which is plaguing our society at large with a completely fresh perspective. Set in the times of a natural conflict for existence, it explores & exposes the dark realities behind the world of human trafficking. With estimated 27 million adults & 13 million children around the world who are victims of human trafficking, Pakhi becomes a subject that records the highest violations and yet a subject, so obviously talked about. With the refreshing plot of conflict, survival & triumph over the circumstances, Pakhi is all set to bring the society close to a mirror they cannot escape without introspecting. Sachin Gupta, a National award “Natya Bhushan” winning Indian film-maker & writer has directed Pakhi with his vision of meaningful & societal retrospective cinema. Sachin is known for his work in the field of theatre, having 14 original plays & 4 screenplays to his credit. He made his directorial debut with the critically acclaimed Paranthe Wali Gali in the year 2014 which he produced under his production banner, Chilsag Pictures, a production house he established in 2012.

Kartik Aaryan Is Mufti’s 1st Ever Brand Ambassador

On completing 2 decades, men’s fashion brand Mufti appoints rising star Kartik Aaryan as its 1st ever brand ambassador. Kartik has gained worldwide popularity through his recent artistic & commercial successes Pyaar Ka Panchnama 2 & Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety. The brand Mufti was launched in 1998 by Kamal Khushlani with one driving ambition, to provide an alternative dressing solution that didn’t conform to the uniform codes of mainstream fashion.

Deepika Padukone To Join Madame Tussauds Delhi
Deepika Padukone will be joining the world’s biggest superstars at Madame Tussauds with a wax Figure set for attractions in London & Delhi. The actress who is known as much for her beauty as she is known for her performing talent has stunned the nation ever since her inception in showbiz. The 1st ever figure will launch in London early 2019, while the Delhi figure will follow a few months later to draw more attention to the tourists & the fans of the actress. Her striking figures, which will be created by world renowned artists, will allow fans to pose, interact &experience glamour like never before. The team of Madame Tussauds expert artists met Deepika Padukone in London for the all-important sitting for her figures, where they took over 200 specific measurements, photographs to create an authentic likeness. Deepika Padukone said, “I am so delighted. The sitting with the team of experts was a special experience and I look forward to the
incredible figure at the attraction.”

Chitrangada Singh Shares The Most Sensational Chemistry With Sanjay Dutt

The 3rd instalment of Sahib Biwi Aur Gangster franchise brings a very fresh chemistry on-screen this time. The gorgeous Chitrangada Singh is shown playing the role of Sanjay Dutt’s love interest in the film. The intimate scenes between them are shot very aesthetically and very well display their complicated love story. With anticipations running high, all eyes are eager to watch director Tigmanshu Dhulia’s & Producer Rahul Mittra’s famous action-drama-thriller once again. In an exclusive interview, Chitrangada Singh, opened up about her on-screen chemistry with Sanjay Dutt saying that, “Our chemistry in the film is unusual, there’s a lot of innocence in the love which my character carries for Sanjay in the entire film. There is a lot of pain that flows along in our journey. But that is how unrequited love really is.” Producer Rahul Mittra says, “What Sanju & Chitrangda share between them on screen is extremely appalling. The love interest goes to a new level in certain scenes and is very intimate.” The true essence of unrequited love is what has been tried to deliver through the characters of Chitraganda Singh & Sanjay Dutt and what makes it all the more special is the pairing of both of them for the very 1st time on-screen. Most stories depict a very beautiful & a happy love story but this one is going to take the audience on a ride to pain & love at a whole new scale. Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 3 directed presented by Raju Chadha, directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia & produced by Rahul Mittra & Tigmanshu Dhulia was released on 27th Jul, 2018.

Dhadak Is A Simple Tale Told In A Beautiful Way

Banner: Dharma Productions & Zee Studios
Producer: Karan Johar, Hiroo Yash Johar & Apoorva Mehta
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Star Cast: Ishaan Khattar, Janhvi Kapoor, Ashutosh Rana, Ankit Bisht, Shridhar Watsar, Kshitij Kumar, Aishwarya Narkar, Aditya Kumar, Kharaj Mukherjee, Godaan Kumar, Shalini Kapoor, Vishwanath Chatterjee, Hempushpak Arora, Jahnavi Dave, Ishika Gagneja, Balaji Gauri, Manish Singh & Mustakeem
Music: John Stewart Eduri & Ajay – Atul

When Marathi film’s director Nagraj Manjule had presented his 2016 Marathi film Sairat to the audiences, it had left them deeply impacted. But at the same time, they were thoroughly entertained too! The film became a craze in Maharashtra State and also got noticed pan-India. Shashank Khaitan, who has proved his worth with films like Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania in the year 2014 & Badrinath Ki Dulhania in the year 2017 decided to take up the task of remaking this flick in Hindi. titled Dhadak, the film is also significant as it marks the long-awaited debut of the late Sridevi’s elder daughter Janhvi Kapoor. Falling in love in India comes with its share of major problems. This is especially true when the lovers belong to diverse castes or religions or regions. Honor killing is still prevalent in many parts of India and so many cases have been reported and talked about so openly in media that it doesn’t even shock us anymore. Dhadak manages to turn out as entertaining as or even better than the Marathi original Sairat.

Dhadak is the story of 2 young souls who fall in love against the restrictions of caste hierarchy. Madhukar Bagla (Ishaan Khatter) belongs to a lower caste in Udaipur, Rajasthan. He’s smitten by Parthvi Singh (Janhvi Kapoor), the daughter of the high-caste politician Ratan Singh (Ashutosh Rana). Parthvi has an intimidating personality but that doesn’t stop Madhukar from making her known that he has feelings for her. Parthvi gets impressed by Madhukar’s bravado and love blossoms between them. Trouble arises when at the birthday celebration of Parthvi’s brother Godaan Kumar (Roop Kumar), Ratan Singh catches Parthvi & Madhukar together. Madhukar & his friends Shridhar Watsar (Purshottam) & Gokul (Ankit Bisht) are taken into police custody while Parthvi is grounded at home. Parthvi however reaches the police station and manages to free Madhukar & his friends. Madhukar & Parthvi escape to Kolkata where they try to start their life afresh.

Dhadak is adapted from Sairat written & directed by Nagraj Popatrao Manjule. Shashank Khaitan’s story is on the same lines as the Marathi blockbuster Sairat with minor tweaks. Shashank Khaitan’s screenplay is very effective. One of the best things about the screenplay is that it’s shorter than Sairat. However the impact is more or less the same. In the 2nd half, the film gets a bit slow but then it was necessary to show the hardships. Shashank Khaitan’s direction complements the script well. He keeps the film very rooted and also tells a very relatable story. In some sequences, he takes the film on another level. For instance, the scene where Madhukar & Parthvi have a showdown on the streets of Kolkata is very well handled. Also he shines in the climax. Shashank Khaitan’s dialogues are simple & funny and even acidic as required.

Though Dhadak is an official remake of Sairat, one should not expect the former to be a scene by scene reworked version of the latter. As a result, there are quite a few changes. Hence even those who have seen Sairat will be in for a surprise. The film begins on a nice note with the food eating competition sequence turning out to be quite interesting. The manner in which Madhukar & Parthvi’s love story develops will surely put a smile on the faces of the viewers. 2 of the sequences stand out here, Madhukar meeting Parthvi at her mansion at night and Madhukar singing an English song for Parthvi. The film goes on a high as soon as Ratan Singh learns about their romance.

Post interval, the film switches tracks as the lovers realize that love is not a bed of roses. But the best is reserved for the finale. It’s a shocker to say the least!

Ajay-Atul’s music is melodious. The title song has a soothing feeling. “Zingaat” is already a rage. “Pehli Baar” is soulful and well shot. “Vaara Re’’ is neatly relegated to the background. John Stewart Eduri’s background score is brilliant and enhances the impact. Vishnu Rao’s cinematography is one of the best things about the film. The locales of Udaipur have been captured like never before. Shashank Tere’s production design is convincing as well as appealing. Monisha R Baldawa’s editing is slick. Manish Malhotra, Natascha Charak & Nikita Mohanty’s costumes are impressive.

Performance wise Ishaan Khatter had already proved his worth with the English Beyond The Clouds directed by Majid Majidi, in which Ishaan khatter had made his debut, and with Dhadak, he proves that he’s definitely here to stay. He’s very confident & looks so endearing in scenes where he’s head over heels in love, especially in the song “‘Pehli Baar”. In the emotional & dramatic scenes, he’s equally efficient. Janhvi Kapoor also does extremely well & exudes a lot of confidence. She handles this difficult role with so much ease and that’s a feat for a newcomer. Definitely, a star is born! Ashutosh Rana is a natural when it comes to negative roles and this one is no different. Shridhar Watsar is extremely hilarious & contributes a lot to the humor quotient. He’s going to be loved by the youth & even single screen audiences. Ankit Bisht is fair but gets overshadowed by the presence of Ishaan Khatter & Shridhar Wtsar. Godaan Kumar is good in the villainous role and leaves a mark in the scene when he’s asked to apologize to the college professor. Aditya Kumar as Devilal gets a limited scope. Ishika Ganeja as Ambika looks lovely and gets noticed. Govind Pandey as Bhagwandas is decent as Madhukar’s father. Shalini Kapoor as Ashadevi & Aishwariya Avinash as Gayatri are fair as the mothers of Parthvi & Madhukar respectively. Manish Verma as Arvind Mama is passable while Kharaj Mukherjee as Sachin Bhowmick is very adorable and would be loved. Shubhadevi Harshal Choksey as Promila Bhowmick looks beautiful and is confident. Balaji Gauri as Sulekhaji Goenka makes a mark in a cameo. Vishwanath Chatterjee as Inspector Shekhawat looks convincing.

Tail Piece: On the whole, Dhadak is a simple tale told in a beautiful way. Despite being a remake of an iconic film, it manages to stand up on its own feet and entertain the audiences thoroughly.

At the box office, the youth is going to savor this flick big time which will ensure its commercial success.