Author: #TIPEntertainment

Cast: Aditya Roy Kapur, Parineeti Chopra, Anupam Kher,
Karan Wahi
Direction: Habib Faisal
Duration: 2 hours

Story: Wafting flavours of love simmer via the bestknown route possible – stomach. The daawat looks good, but will it leave romantics with an unforgettable taste of love? Review: Statutory Warning: Do not watch this film on an empty stomach, lest the growling belly overpowers the sweet of this gastronomic love affair. Food is magical – it inspires love, lust, art, poetry, sex and of course, cinema. The master chef of this one, director Habib Faisal, whips up a story in the city of nawabs – over kitchen fires, kebabs, dough and the (socially relevant) dowry system. It’s a feast for the eyes, though there’s not as much for the heart to savour. Meet Hyderabad ki Gulrez (Parineeti), she’s feisty (a well-roasted temper), gutsy and likes propah angrezispeaking men. Sadly, her Booji (Kher) finds only dowryseeking spineless men who boast of shallow degrees from ‘IIM’ (International Institute of Mehboobnagar!). She works as a salesgirl in a shoe-store but dreams of being a shoe-designer. Along with Booji, she masterminds a con-plan to frame dowry-demanding dulhas and make big bucks to pursue her dream. But her plans get skewered when she meets Lucknow ka aashiq Tariq (Aditya), a chef and owner of the legendary restaurant ‘Haidari Kababs’. Gulrez gets drawn to the warm, inviting aromas of love while he woos her with botis, rotis and shahi tukdas of his heart. Habib Faisal’s offering is definitely fresher than a packaged, frozen meal; but when he’s not paying attention the story boils over and the flavour escapes quickly. The second half crumbles (guess some recipes got nixed here) and the climax is far from slurp-worthy. There are some ‘specials of the day’ like Booji’s goofiness during the con-act, and the line-up of dowryhungry men walking into the trap, but the characters are not as indulgent as the dishes. Parineeti displays ‘high-cal’ emotions once again, with her sweet Hyderabadi accent and superb confidence. Aditya charmingly shows flair with his Lucknowi style and ada. Their chemistry doesn’t simmer; it’s low-fat kulfi at best. Kher peppers it with a stand-out sorbet act. This one won’t fill your hungry hearts, but one serving (not too bland, not too spicy) isn’t too bad for your appetite.

Film production is the new thing on actress Neha Dhupia’s mind. She says it may happen in the future. “The one business that I always wanted to do is the filmmaking business. I am looking to get into production in future. I want to produce films,” said Neha. If her wish comes true, she’s join the list of Bollywood beauties who have entered the production domain. The list already includes the likes of Pooja Bhatt, Shilpa Shetty, Dia Mirza, Lara Dutta, Juhi and Preity Zinta. Meanwhile, Neha will next be seen on the big screen in Ekkees Toppon Ki Salaami. Her role is that of a struggling actress. Of struggle in real life, the former beauty queen said: “It’s an ongoing process. Everybody is struggling – be it people in the top league or the newcomers.” The film features Neha in a song via which she has paid a tribute to celebrated actresses like Helen, Madhuri Dixit, Zeenat Aman and Aishwarya Rai. She says she was especially conscious about imitating dancer par excellence Helen. “It was a very challenging song where I had to copy the steps of legendary actresses. I was conscious about imitating Helenji. She is a legend and a fabulous dancer. The song is part of the film and it’s very unusual,” she added

Cast: Dylan O’Brien, Aml Ameen, Thomas
Brodie-Sangster, Will Poulter, Kaya Scodelario, Blake
Cooper, Ki Hong Lee
Direction: Wes Ball
Genre: Mystery
Duration: 1 hour 54 minutes

Story: After erasing his memory, Thomas (Dylan O’Brien) is mysteriously deposited to the Glade – a grassy field, surrounded by high walls of a gigantic maze, where a few other boys have been trapped too. Can the group escape the deadly maze? Review: Horrified by the situation and plagued by flashes of an unsettling dream, Thomas seeks answers from fellow prisoners, who are equally clueless. All they know is how every morning, the door to the maze opens, giving the best runners of the group an opportunity to map the ever-shifting labyrinth to find a way out. However, they must return before the gate closes, as spending the night inside would mean battling dangerous creatures called the Grievers. In spite of multiple attempts, no one has ever escaped the maze so far. Could Thomas be the key? Based on James Dashner’s popular young adult novels, this dystopian, post-apocalyptic thriller has the ability to make you feel claustrophobic, every time the runners squeeze themselves through the narrow pathways of the maze. A few of these fast-paced sequences are bound to leave you breathless with anxiety. Tense, dark and atmospheric, constant fear of the unknown grips you, keeping you on the edge of your seat throughout. While its ‘battle for survival in a controlled environment’ theme reminds you of ‘The Hunger Games’, this has its own twists and turns. The teen actors perform with utmost conviction and are impressively understated. Also, what sets this film apart is how the story focuses on human emotions as much as it does on special effects. You feel for the characters and their trauma. Ultimately, the plot provokes you to think if ‘being safe to suffer’ is better than ‘risking your life to look beyond the obvious’. It also convinces you to move out of your comfort zone and face your fear. The climax might seem underwhelming for some but the build-up is a sure-shot winner. Deserves a sequel… SADIE FROST SPRINKLES SALT TO ABSORB NEGATIVE ENERGY

Actress Sadie Frost likes to sprinkle salt across the doorways of her house to absorb all the negative energy.

The 49-year-old, who divorced Jude Law in 2003 after six years of marriage, has turned to the unusual technique to rid her home of bad feeling and she also encourages people to break up blocked energy in their homes by walking around chanting and hitting a gong, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

Discussing the salt method in her upcoming wellbeing book, “Nourish”, she states: ”Leave for 24 hours, by which time it should have absorbed all the negativity.” In the book, Frost also gives tips on yoga, food, nutrition, exercise and meditation, which she does six times a week to rid herself of all the ”craziness” in her life. “It is kind of stepping back from the little things that are bothering you. When you’re thinking, ‘Oh I’ve got to go to the shop and buy some stamps.’ It’s getting rid of all that craziness,” she said.

“I might go to the park and just do a walking meditation, which is just walking the dogs,” she added.

Actress Katherine Heigl shared photographs of a beach party with her friends on photo-sharing website Instagram. The actress looked fit and happy in a bikini on the beach with friends in the picture posted Monday, reports usmagazine.com. With her hair in a messy bun, Heigl wore a purple two-piece alongside three friends who appeared to be drinking white wine. “Love love love! @cheyenneellis @tawnylehman @irritated_one,” she captioned the snap. In another picture, the four friends are seen dancing and singing together. “Could not have had more fun with these gals @cheyenneellis @tawnylehman @irritated_one. I love you guys…no I really really love you!!” Heigl wrote.

Bollywood’s style diva Sonam Kapoor says she is as clumsy as her character in her forthcoming film ‘Khoobsurat’. She has been tagged as a royal misfit in the posters and trailers of the film, a remake of Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s directorial venture that starred Rekha and Rakesh Roshan in the lead roles. While Sonam has replaced Rekha, Pakistani actor Fawad Khan has stepped into Roshan’s shoes in the remake.

Asked how much she relates to her character, Sonam said: “I am a bit clumsy in real life too, but I feel that it’s difficult being clumsy in reel life because you have to do all the wrong things on cue, and at the right time.” Sonam also feels that every girl will relate to her role in the film, when it comes out on Friday. “It’s the story of all those girls who don’t want to change themselves because of others. Every girl will relate to my character and my journey in the film,” she said. Khoobsurat has been directed by Shashanka Ghosh and produced by Sonam’s sister Rhea.

Travelling is perhaps one of the best parts of an actor’s life, and this time, actress Sonakshi Sinha is getting to go to Austria for her film ‘Action Jackson’. “Action Jackson in Austria. Taking off now,” Sonakshi tweeted in the early hours of Monday morning. Directed by Prabhu Dheva, the film stars Ajay Devgn, who recently gave a glimpse of his chiselled body frame.

Cast: Bruce Willis, John Cusack, Jason Patric, 50 Cent,
Gia Mantegna, Jessica Lowndes
Direction: Brian A Miller
Genre: Action
Duration: 1 hour 30 minutes

Story: Paul (Jason Patric) is a devoted dad who has left behind his life of crime. But he reprises his past combat experience as he, with some help from an old chum (Cusack), shoots his way through a trail of bad guys in the quest to locate and rescue his missing daughter Beth (Gia Mantegna). Along the way, Paul faces up his old gangster nemesis Omar (Bruce Willis).

Review: The Prince follows a fairly by-the-numbers plot of the angry dad (remember Liam Neeson in *Taken*?) who will break as many bones as necessary and let loose a hail of gunfire in order to bring his daughter to safety. Paul’s daughter seems a nice enough college-type girl, but as is always the case in movies like this, there’s more than meets the eye as regards her disappearance.

New Orleans forms the backdrop for this theatre of testosterone, where Paul and mob boss Omar are on a collision course. Paul used to be a mobster who is now on the mend. But he has to selectively bring to life some of his old skills in order to get the job done. The casting of this film would raise a few eyebrows. For starters, Willis just does not come across as convincing enough to be playing a bad guy; most of his memorable performances have him playing a good guy who isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty.

In fact, he looks bored in most scenes. We are made to believe that Paul is a ruthless, badass man-on-a-mission. And yet, his performance seems a bit forced, as if he is doing his best to convince you of his grit and determination. Whether this is part of his character sketch or not is uncertain, but Cusack just looks plain irritable for the most part. 50 Cent plays a drug lord aptly named The Pharmacist, presumably as a reference to the pills and powders his line of business involves. The greatest effort seems to have gone into getting the look of the fight scenes correctly in an otherwise bland film.

Kelly Brooks is desperate to have a child with David McIntosh, as soon as they get married later this year. The model-turned-actress, who suffered a miscarriage when she was expecting a baby with her former boyfriend Thom Evans in 2011, said that hopefully she will have a baby soon, the Daily Star reported. The 34-year-old TV star, who had originally planned to marry McIntosh in September, has postponed their wedding due to new filming commitments.

Actress Natalie Portman says it is an “honour” to front campaigns for Dior and is constantly excited about working on new projects with the Parisian label. The “Black Swan” star, who has worked with the Parisian fashion house since 2010, gushed over her collaboration with the luxury label and admitted she feels constantly excited to get to work on the brand’s latest projects, reports contactmusic.com. She told Hello! magazine: “I remember when I first met the team – the elegant simplicity of the environment, the grey and white Parisian dream.” “Dior is very chic and very modern – bold, elegant, Parisian. Being the face of Dior is a great honour. Every time the team asks me about a new project, I’m excited about it,” she added.

Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Sunil Thapa, Darshan Kumar
Direction: Omung Kumar
Genre: Biopic
Duration: 2 hours 3 minutes

Story: A Manipur rice farmer’s daughter charts her own success story as a five-time world amateur boxing champion. She also does India proud when she bags the bronze in the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Review: When adapted for the big screen, a biopic has to tread its own path. Debutant director Omung Kumar’s Mary Kom is based on the incidents in the life of MC Mary Kom (Priyanka Chopra), India’s most high-profile female pugilist between the years 1991-2007.

The film has been shot for the better part in Imphal, Manipur, where the sportswoman was bred. Born in a humble home in Kangathei, Mary was only a teenager when she decided to pursue boxing, despite inviting her father’s ire. Literally starting with street brawls, Magnificent Mary, as she is nicknamed, blazes her path from ignominy to fame under the tutelage of her coach M. Narjit Singh (Sunil Thapa).

But wait, she also chooses to make way for matters of the heart, marriage and kids before coming back to winning global recognition again in 2008, 2010 and 2012. The filmmaker has captured her indefatigable spirit beautifully. He has also thrown light on the administration’s apathy towards sports and every time a film mirrors the red-tapism involved in the arena, you want to pick up the baton! Mary Kom is Bollywood’s answer to the Oscar-winner Million Dollar Baby (2004), where Hilary Swank plays an amateur boxing champ trained by Clint Eastwood. But the similarities are only because the protagonists in both films are female boxers.

The intention is definitely not to ape. One star in the rating is definitely reserved for Priyanka. She may not have transcended the physical attributes of the diminutive Mary in the actual sense (except adding a few obvious freckles to her face and slightly drooping eyelids), but she has brought the boxer to life convincingly enough, leaving you rooting for her, long after the end credits roll. Omung has a tight check on the proceedings postintermission. The emotional tracks between the boxer and her father (Robin Das), and Mary and her husband Onler (Darshan Kumar), leave you misty-eyed. But the main reason why Mary Kom appeals is because it doesn’t just give you a ringside view of boxing; it leaves you rooting for our sportsmen who have put India on the world map.

Mrs Perfectionist of Bollywood Vidya Balan has played some outstanding unconventional roles in her career. But what people don’t know is that she was considered a jinx and was asked to get a nose job for Parineeta by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. This week on ‘Look Who’s Talking with Nirajan Iyengar’, Vidya Balan talks about trying times, her husband and who she is today. Incidentally, it was Niranjan’s mentor and friend Karan Johar who played cupid for the now married, Vidya and Siddharth Roy Kapoor. That was also the first time she met Niranjan. On being asked about her weight and fashion issues, she states, “For a very long time, I was constantly putting on/losing weight for movies until ‘The Dirty Picture’ happened. That was the moment I decided I didn’t care anymore and I was going

Sonam Kapoor, who has a phobia of elevators, tried to conquer it sometime back in Bangkok. On the insistence of sister Rhea, the actress made it a point to ride up and down the 55 storeys of the hotel she was staying in, in an elevator. “I got into the elevator and when I came out, I felt I was going to faint. But I was fine,” she recollected. Sonam admitted that she is still not fully comfortable with elevator rides. “If I have to go up several floors, then I go right into the corner of the lift and stand there. Of course, when I’m stressed out, then I avoid it altogether and take the stairs instead,” she said.

Actress Sunny Leone has commenced shooting of her next film ‘Mastizaade’, which is being directed by MilapZaveri. The 33-year-old ‘Ragini MMS 2’ star will be seen opposite Tushar Kapoor and Vir Das in the sex comedy. “Morning! First day of ‘Mastizaade’ and starting with one of the most hilarious scenes. Nothing like going all for it on day 1. I am so excited about the film,” the three-film-old actress posted on Twitter. ‘Mastizaade’ has been produced by Pritish Nandy. Sunny made her Bollywood debut with Pooja Bhatt’s ‘Jism 2’ and has also starred in ‘Jackpot’ and Ekta Kapoor’s ‘Ragini MMS2’, besides doing item songs in several

Actress Lindsay Lohan and her younger brother have been slapped with a lawsuit alleging they stole the idea for their fashion site from a former business associate. Lohan, 28 and brother Michael Jr reportedly struck a deal last year with tech entrepreneur Fima Potik to collaborate on his startup, Spotted Friend, a mobile application that allows users to access celebrities’ ‘virtual closets’ to identify the designers and buy items from them. Lindsay also tweeted about Spotted Friend in July 2013, and its website said, “A Fima Potik & Lindsay Lohan Production,”, reported the New York Post. Now it is reported that Michael has been raising money for Lohan’s new online application Vigme, a social shopping community that will let fans find out where to purchase other people’s clothes, similar to virtual closets application.

Cast: Chloë Grace Moretz, Stacy Keach, Mireille Enos,
Jamie Blackley, Joshua Leonard
Direction: R.J. Cutler
Genre: Drama
Duration: 1 hour 47 minutes

Story: Mia Hall (Moretz) is in a coma after meeting with a car accident. While her body lies in stasis, her spirit lingers over memories and her loved ones and a decision she will have to ultimately take – should she fight for her life or shrug off her mortal coil?

Review: Mia is a cellist who, one fateful day, falls victim to a tragic and deadly car accident. Along with her family, she’s on the way to visit some friends. En route, the car hits an icy patch on the road and skids out of control. The paramedics arrive on the scene and go about swiftly treating the victims. Meanwhile, the perspective shifts to a disoriented Mia who, dazed and confused, tries to figure out what is going on?

With no place else to go, we then see her in the ambulance that makes its way to the hospital, where she is transferred to the intensive care facility. While the battle for her life in the physical world continues, she faces up to – quite literally – life-altering decisions and choices that belie her young age. A large part of her thoughts and emotions dwell on the bond she shared with her classmate Adam (Blackley). It is this aspect of the movie that actually prevents it from becoming too heavy.

In fact, their equation shared in the form of flashbacks comprises a huge part of the emotional tug of the film. Moretz manages to convey some of the delicate and bittersweet shades of love and romance with a maturity that prevents the movie from becoming a sob-fest. Therefore, the story moves at a brisk pace. However, what seems a bit heavy-handed are the images of Mia’s spirit hovering all over hospital corridors, as if Cutler is trying to emphasize the point that she is indeed disembodied and yet, sharing space with the living.

Mireille Enos and Joshua Leonard perform their supporting roles with a deft touch. Stacy Keach, who plays Mia’s grandfather, also provides some of the more tender moments in this heartwarming film.

Oscar-winner Charlize Theron says she does not miss her “fat, plump face” of her 20s and loves getting older. The 39-year-old beauty, however, says she has her moments when she does not like looking in a mirror but has come to love her appearance now. “I’ve loved getting older; I really have,” the actress told Red magazine. “That doesn’t mean I don’t have moments when I look in the mirror and find myself going, ‘Oh my god,’ but I’m much more at ease looking at myself now than when I was 20 and I had gorgeous skin and a fat, plump face. I looked at myself then and I didn’t appreciate any of it. “Also, there was something about my beauty at that time that almost felt like it was waiting to be this age. I was so desperate to, like, have some kind of experience in my life, like not feeling that I came from the world of modeling. It was like I was waiting to look at

Actress Priyanka Chopra is excited about her younger brother Siddharth’s new venture in the hospitality industry and is trying her best to support it. He is coming up with The Mugshot Lounge in Pune. “My baby brother Siddharth’s new place in Pune! Can’t wait to kick start it. Polishing my bartending skills. Chk it out (sic),” the 32-year-old tweeted. She also shared a link of The Mugshot Lounge.

It leads to an invitation that gives a chance to her fans to meet and greet her on Sep 7 at the lounge. The same week is also important for Priyanka as her much-awaited film “Mary Kom”, on five-time World Champion boxer M.C. Mary Kom, will hit the screens on September 5. Recently she was touring Lucknow to promote “Mary Kom”, which will have its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF),

On day one of a new month Monday, actress Alia Bhatt began the shooting for her new film ‘Shaandaar’ with Shahid Kapoor. “Today is day 1 of #Shaandaar!!! Wish me luckkkkkk :D start of a new beautiful journey!!! Wohooooo @shahidkapoor @FuhSePhantom @karanjohar,” the 21-year-old actress tweeted. The film is being directed by Vikas Bahl of ‘Queen’ fame, and it’s a co-production between Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and Phantom Films. Alia was recently in news for taking a potshot at herself via an entertaining online video titled “Alia Bhatt – Genius of the Year”.

Parineeti will be seen driving an original Impala model from the year 1964, in her upcoming film Daawat-E-Ishq. The young actress had to practice how to drive the car for couple of hours before she actually started shooting for the scene. The original Impala has heavy mechanical settings unlike the normal power steering cars. This made it difficult for Parineeti to drive the car effortlessly. The entire sequence was very challenging for the actress. It required Parineeti to put in a lot of muscle and yet make it look natural. Parineeti loves to drive but an Impala was a tough one. Previously the actress was seen driving a jeep in her debut film Ishaqzaade. Parineeti got a chance to learn a lot of new things for Daawat-e-Ishq, from learning Urdu to driving an Impala.

Cast: Ryan Guzman, Brian Evigan, Stephen Boss,
Misha Gabriel, Isabella Miko, Alyson Stoner, Adam G
Sevani, Mari Koda
Direction: Trish Sie
Genre: Musical
Duration: 1 hour 52 minutes

STORY: The latest in the *Step Up* series brings together many of those in the previous versions for a ‘dance-off royale’, so to speak, in Las Vegas. Amidst the glitter and sequins, the fortunes of their futures hang in the balance.

REVIEW: First, the good. To be fair, the film’s strongest suit is the stellar dance and choreography that you will be treated with, should you decide to go see it. Apart from that, the elaborate sets where all the foot-tapping and hip-swaying takes place also look pretty slick with some fancy camera angles – just like you’d see on a topnotch international dance reality TV show.

The uninteresting? Pretty much everything else. Sean is a janitor at a dance studio and he happens to see an ad for a contest hosted by someone who looks like Lady Gaga’s second cousin, Alexxa Brava, played by Izabella Miko. He ditches the mop and pail for a trajectory that’ll be (he hopes) more glamorous. He is also without his dance troupe – the Mobsters – who have returned to Florida. Soon, Sean gets a new group together and including Moose (Sevani) and Jenny (Koda), they vie for the top spot at the finale. Sean’s love interest and dance partner is Andie (Evigan) and truth be told, their onscreen chemistry does sizzle.

The biggest lacuna is that there’s no Channing Tatum (he was in 2006’s *Step Up*) this time. Much of the script puts the cheddar in cheese. For example, the lead actor Sean (Guzman) has to mouth cringe-worthy lines like: “There’s a magic that happens when you dance. The world is in sync and, for one perfect moment, you feel alive.” It make you wish for them to just do a little less talking and more dancing. The film is like a bunch of music videos strung together with a romance angle.

And as mentioned earlier, you don’t go for this movie for scintillating dialogue, but to see them move it like experts on the dance floor.

Actress Keira Knightley says she never listens to music and chose to play a singersongwriter in her new movie “Begin Again” to get in tune with music. “I’m so not musical in any way. I don’t really listen to it, I don’t really remember it and part of the reason that I wanted to do this film was to try and get into that mindset,” she was quoted by contactmusic.com as saying. Though music doesn’t interest her, the 29-year-old is married to Klaxons vocalist James Righton.

Former ‘Melrose Place’ star Ashlee Simpson and her fiance Evan Ross tie the knot at the home of the groom’s mother, Diana Ross, in Connecticut. The couple’s wedding was planned and officiated by Diana, reported Us magazine. Ashlee, 29, wore a pearl-embellished wedding gown combined with USD 750,000-worth of Neil Lane jewelry and tiara. Her hair was styled in beachy waves.

Meanwhile, Evan wore a black velvet tuxedo with white silk trim. Ashlee’s son, Bronx, walked her down the aisle. Ashlee’s older sister, Jessica Simpson, served as the matron of honor. Jessica’s daughter Maxwell served as flower girl and her son Ace served as ring bearer.

Meanwhile, Evan’s half sister, Tracee Ellis Ross, served as the wedding MC. This is the second marriage for Ashlee, who was previously married to Pete Wentz. Ashlee filed for divorce from Pete in 2011. Before dating Evan, Ashlee was linked to actor Vincent Piazza.