Tag: Bollywood

Superstar Salman Khan @BeingSalmanKhan has started intensive training for wrestling and mixed martial arts for his upcoming film “Sultan” with international action director Larnell Stovall. Salman with do a daily 4 hours workout for 2 months and separate martial arts workshops.

Director Ali Abbas Zafar took to Twitter, where he shared a photograph of the “Dabangg” actor training for the film (above).

Salman kicked off his daily four hour training for “Sultan” with action director Larnell Stovall and team who have been flown in from Los Angeles to train the actor in wrestling and mixed martial arts for the next two months, read a statement.

Sultan is an upcoming Indian action / thriller / romantic film and stars Salman Khan as 40-year-old wrestler Sultan Ali Khan from Haryana. Sultan will release on Eid 2016. Teaser (below) of the movie was released in June 2015 by Yash Raj Films making official announcement of its release date.

Produced by Aditya Chopra under his Yash Raj Films banner, the movie is reportedly based on the life of a wrestler and Salman will be seen in the lead role. His leading lady in the film is yet to be announced.

While the shooting of the film is scheduled to commence in November, its release date has been fixed for Eid in 2016.

The recent times have seen an array of biopics being made on the celluloid, like Mary Kom, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, Paan Singh Tomar, Shahid, The Dirty Picture etc…to name a few. If there’s one person whose biopic features on everyone’s wish list, then, it has to be on none other than Bollywood’s favourite ‘baba’ Sanjay Dutt.

A good news for Sanjay Dutt fans after long time. Rajkumar Hirani, the director of films like ‘Munnabhai’, ‘3 Idiots’ and ‘PK’ will begin shooting for his next film, tentatively titled ‘Dutt’, next year.

The film, produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Rajkumar Hirani and Sanjay Dutt, is said to be dealing with the positive side of Dutt’s life.

Hirani, who has earlier worked with Sanjay Dutt, said that it’s only a one tenth of Dutt’s life which the world knows. In the same breath he also added that, despite everything he has gone through, there is an honest child inside Sanjay Dutt.

“He (Sanjay Dutt) is co-producing the film. The decision was taken recently. The work on the script is still going on” a source close to the film said.

Ranbir Kapoor will play Sanjay Dutt on-screen. The film is expected to release in 2017.

In an industry where cat fights are considered common, actress Shraddha Kapoor has come forward to support her “childhood friend” and actress Zoa Morani for her forthcoming film Bhaag Johnny.

“My childhood friend’s film releases this Friday! All the best for #BhaagJohnny
@zoamorani! #25thSept,” Shraddha tweeted on Wednesday.

Zoa, who was last seen in the 2011 film Always Kabhi Kabhi, will be seen as the love interest of actor Kunal Kemmu in the film, which is based on the circle of karma. Directed by Shivam Nair, Bhaag Johnny, which also stars Mandana Karimi and Manasi Scott, will hit the screens on September 25.

Recently, Pakistani distributors reportedly refused filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar’s Calendar Girls fearing backlash from their Censor Board for an objectionable dialogue in the movie.

Now, their Ministry of Culture has sent a letter to the Censor Board stating that it won’t issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to the film. Consequently, the Censor Board officials, who were supposed to watch the movie on Wednesday (September 23), weren’t able to issue it a clearance certificate.

As a result of these developments, the film, which releases in India on September 25, won’t open in cinemas in the neighbouring country. According to the film’s overseas distributor Sajjan Damani, “We had applied for the censor certificate clearance through one of the Pakistani distributors but their Ministry of Culture refused to issue the NOC only on the basis of watching the trailer. They have taken objection to a dialogue in the film – ‘Pakistani ladkiyaan bhi utne hi bold kaam karti hain jitni baaki ladkiyaan karti hain, balki kabhi kabhi uss se zyada bhi’ -spoken by Avani Modi who plays Nazneen Mallik, a Pakistani aspiring to become a supermodel.

Nikhil Advani’s directorial ‘Katti Batti’ crashed on its first weekday. Kangana Ranaut and Irfan Khan starring movie didn’t start off with very good business in it’s first weekend and then movie witnessed consecutive falls on weekdays.

STORY: Maddy and Payal are in a live-in relationship. Suddenly, Payal leaves. But Maddy’s sure Payal still loves him – can Maddy and Payal patch up their katti love-life?

REVIEW: So, Katti Batti is sweet, funny, sassy – but inconsistent. Maddy (Imran) and Payal (Kangana) fall in love, moving into a New York-like Mumbai apartment, living together in yuppie style. But slowly, the romance of bedside candles and naughty home videos fades and life – feeding the pet, paying the bills, withstanding family tragedy – happens.

On the plus side, Katti Batti is one of the freshest-looking movies around, young, modern and hip. Its lead pair looks terrific – Imran simply rocks the nerdy glasses-and-stubble style while Kangana can clearly do boho-chic-chick asleep – and the movie’s a delicious mash of tattoos and linen shirts, wineglasses and vintage jars, spaghetti straps and stunningly tiled floors.

But herein lies the problem – Katti Batti can’t get over its own good looks. After a breezy first half, its story meanders, growing heavy while the bond between the leads feels too light. The movie is divided into dramatic cross-sections, moving from present to flashback, but the editing is too leisurely for powerful impact. Certain sequences – a contemporary Devdas, with ‘Chandramukhi on LoC’ – are hilarious but others – a ‘Fosla’ (Frustrated One-Sided Lovers’ Association) band -add extra weight to a storyline that should be lean.

With geeky charm, Imran’s competent but Kangana’s Payal feels like a remix of similar roles. Kangana lights up certain scenes with her unabashed panache but others, like those featuring Maddy’s supposedly South Indian boss, feel dated and dull.

In a sense, Katti Batti is vintage Nikhil ‘Salaam-e-Ishk’ Advani – pretty but so full of cute little somethings, the plot’s overall impact gets jumbled. Here, an emotional twist takes you by surprise but the lead pair’s bond doesn’t develop enough agony, enough ecstasy -perhaps because they seem to live their life with so many buddies, including the Fosla Band.

Somewhere between glossy ad, glassy music video, sitcom and masala movie, Katti Batti leaves you pouting. This could’ve had the lusty, gutsy power of a full-blown French kiss – it ends up a pleasant but passing peck on the cheek.

Alia Bhatt, who is rumoured to be dating Sidharth Malhotra, says marriage is not on the cards for her as of now as she feels she’s “too young”.

There is no thud or bump that can deter the spirit of Aditi Rao Hydari! The actress believes “the show must go on” — so what if she is injured.

“Mammaaaaaaaaaa!!! Thud…But! The show must go on you @SanamRatansi for being there!#InjuredSoldier #DramaQueen,” Aditi Rao tweeted on Wednesday. The actress, who ventured into Bollywood with “Delhi-6”, also shared an image in which it seems she has a bruise on her forehead. It seems she had bumped into a hard surface.

Aditi was last seen in Guddu Rangeela and is gearing up for Wazir starring Amitabh Bachchan and Farhan Akhtar.

Salman kept buzzing because of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, which was declared a runaway hit, his production Hero, news on Prem Ratan Dhan Payo and his three brand endorsements. Kareena kept buzzing because of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, news around her upcoming film Udta Punjab, as well as her 10 brand endorsements.

Launched in September 2012, Times Celebex is a monthly rating index based on several measurable parameters, including the stars’ Box-Office performance, their ability to stay in the news across print, TV and online, their brand endorsement, and their popularity among fans on the internet and social media. These are taken cumulatively to assign the actors a final rank called the ‘T Score’. Times Celebex is a scientific and robust ranking system based on data collected from 60+ publications and 250+ TV channels, making it the first ever ranking system for Bollywood. We have put together the stars’ ranking for the month of July 2015.

Salman Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan, the lead pair of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, take the top positions in Times Celebex powered by zoom for the month of July 2015

STORY: Top cop Mathur’s daughter, Radha (Athiya Shetty) is kidnapped by Sooraj (Sooraj Pancholi), the protege of her father’s arch-rival. Cupid plays his part in making them fall in love. But, this volatile love story can never end in happiness. Do they give up on each other?

REVIEW: Hero is a delectable synthesis of startling onscreen beauty, dazzling high octane action, melodious music and merry froth. Each frame of the film has been done up with care which is evident in its striking visuals. However, the same doesn’t stand true for the story, which is incoherent and often convoluted.

Cut out from the same fabric as Subhash Ghai’s 1983 hit of the same name, director Nikhil Advani creates a similar effervescent ambience as the original, bubbling with the energy of its young debutants. Nikhil makes the narrative contemporary without turning it into a ramshackle (an inevitable fate of classics, when remade). The film has so much going in its favour, that the screenplay glitches can be pardoned.

Hero is fuzzy and moving. It has a leading man whose charm will make your heart skip a beat, a defiant damsel who is lovable and a story laden with commercial trappings of naach-gaana and maar-dhaar. The thunderous power-packed action sequences, especially the one in its climax, is pitch perfect and makes you feel the giddiness synonymous with Salman Khan films.

It is cleverly set – in picturesque locales. The affable chemistry of Sooraj and Athiya has a dash of inventiveness. For two newbies, the duo has a strong screen presence. Athiya is a natural and Sooraj owns the titular role with an effortless swagger. His skillful action makes him score over most debutants of recent times.

Sculpted as a full throttle masala entertainer, Hero is plot-heavy. And while you are well acquainted with the story, Nikhil and Salman’s sensibility works as midas touch, giving the film a different texture. It is slick and never allows its viewers to feel restless. For its 132 minutes’ crisp runtime, Hero offers bucketful of entertainment and victoriously conveys that commercial movies needn’t be puerile to show people a good time.

In an interview with Bollywoodlife.com, Kangana revealed that she thinks the title of the film Katti Batti is too childish. She goes on to say that the film starts with a love story but the later part is very grey and dark she also informed that she wanted the film to have a darker title because according to her the title does not exactly convey the truth. the Katti Batti actress also asserted that the title is just supporting the marketing strategy of the film, which is of portraying the film as a bubbly love story. she further elaborated on her opinion saying that she also wanted a promo to be cut in which the darker part of the film would be shown, however the makers decided to go with this one and that she had to budge.

Imran Khan, who is gearing up for the release of his next, Katti Batti, has revealed that he initially did not like the script of the film, reports IANS.

“I troubled Nikhil a lot. When I first read the script, I did not get a hold of it. I called Nikhil straightaway and said I did not like it,” Imran said.

Talking about how Nikhil convinced him for the role when he did not like the script, Imran said, “Nikhil wanted me to let him narrate the story once more. As I was in a mood of not doing the movie, so I thought what difference would it make if he narrates. So I kept delaying it for one or two months. After so many ifs and buts and delaying, when Nikhil came to narrate the story, within 20 minutes I wondered if this is the same story I read before.”

Deepika Padukone feels the upcoming box office clash between her film Bajirao Mastani and Shah Rukh Khan’s Dilwale is exaggerated and the actress says both the movies have enough space to do well.

Dilwale and Deepika’s period drama are scheduled for release on December 18. “It is not as complicated as it is made to sound or written. It is very simple. The kind of film they are making and we are working on are very different from each other,” Deepika told reporters here at the launch of first song from Bajirao Mastani. “I think Bajirao Mastani is so consuming that we don’t have time to worry about who is doing what. We have our own deadlines. In the process, if some other films come I think there is enough space for both of them to come and do well.”

Bajirao Mastani, a love saga, also features Deepika’s Ram Leela co-star Ranveer Singh and actress Priyanka Chopra in lead roles. While Dilwale is a comedy-action film, directed by Rohit Shetty. It also stars Kajol, Varun Dhawan and Kriti Sanon. Deepika, 29, said she does not understand box office statistics and her only concern is that her movie and Dilwale belong to different genres. “I am not a producer, I don’t understand the number of screens… the numbers and all that. All I know is that movie is different from our film,” she added. Bajirao Mastani reunites Deepika and Ranveer with their Ram Leela helmer Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

Mumbai, Sep 10: Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur is impressed by Neeraj Ghaywan’s “Masaan” and says that the story and the performances were deeply heartfelt.

Kapur was spotted attending the screening of the film on Wednesday evening along with the movie’s leading actors Shweta Tripathi, Vicky Kaushal and director Ghaywan.

“A new wave in Indian cinema is back forcefully with films like #masaan. Deeply heartfelt story and performances,” the “Bandit Queen” director tweeted on Thursday morning.

“I wanted my characters to be like real life. Stars have their own baggage – it is not always easy to make them discard their mannerisms. “My shoots passed off uninterrupted without any actor being mobbed at any public place,” Neeraj, who had assisted Anurag Kashyap in Gangs of Wasseypur, told PTI.

“As a result, we could do away with any type of hierarchy on the sets and I wanted everyone to feel that all of us were equally behind the film’s making. It’s a team work,” he said.

The film follows a group of people living in Varanasi, which reserves a cruel punishment for those who play with moral traditions and bagged two awards at Cannes, including a debut director award for Ghaywan. (Bollywood Country Report)

Actress Sonakshi Sinha, who is currently shooting for her film “Akira”, says she has broken her own record by reaching the set very early.

The “Dabangg” actress, who is also judging the TV show “Indian Idol Junior” took to Twitter and seemed ecstatic as she reached the set 20 minutes early when nobody was present.

“Breaking my own records! Was up to reach shoot at 7:30 and here I am 20 minutes earlier. Not another soul on set. Reached Thane in 30 minutes,” Sonakshi tweeted on Tuesday.

Being produced by Fox Star Studios, “Akira” is a thriller directed by A.R. Murugadoss.

The film is the Hindi remake of 2011 Tamil hit “Mounaguru” and also stars Konkona Sen Sharma, Anurag Kashyap and Shatrughan Sinha.

Akira” marks Murugadoss’s third Hindi venture after back-to-back hits “Ghajini” and “Holiday: A Soldier Is Never Off Duty”

Bollywood star Kangana Ranaut says she is single and is in no mood to enter into a relationship as she is primarily committed to her work.

In the past, the national award winning actress was reportedly in a relationship with actor Aditya Pancholi and Adhayan Suman. There were rumours of link up with other actors too. “I don’t have anyone in my life as of now. I am single.. (but) I am not open to dating because I am committed to my films and roles. Relationship is a lot of work. I don’t want to be unfair to someone,” Kangana said in an interview.

When asked about the link-up rumors, Kangana chose to duck the question. She thinks it is essential to nurture and invest time in a relationship.

“Relationship is like a baby and you need to take care of it. I have been in a situations when one is busy and other person feels ignored and the relationship turns bitter. You feel the person is demanding and as a woman you feel you are not respected. If you are working round-the-clock what you are hoping to do with the relationship… it will die and you will regret,” she said. There are quite a few B-town celebrities who go for live-in relationships. But the 28-year-old actress thinks it is overrated.

“I think live-in relationships are overrated. There are marriages that are crumbling.. So I don’t have anything great to say about it. At some point, I would like to settle down,” Kangana said. The Queen star is busy with three projects — Vishal Bharadwaj’s Rangoon, Rani Laxmibai project with Ketan Mehta, and a film with Hansal Mehta. “Today, I am targeted ….People are targeting my project, my position… I don’t want to become a soft target after these two three films I can take things easily,” she said.

NEW YORK CITY (TIP): ZEE TV, along with 1947 media is bringing the biggest Ganesh celebration in America, spanning for 5 days, with over 150,000 people in attendance from all over North America.

For the second year in succession, ZEE is organizing this spectacular festival. In its first year, the event was a huge success, attracting nearly 97,000 people. Held on 10 acres of open ground in Edison New Jersey, also known as Little India, last year’s event attracted one of the most diverse crowds, with 25% Gujarati, 25% Telugu, 25% Punjabi, 10% Marathi, 5% Tamil, 5% Bengali, and 5%of various other backgrounds. Apart from New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut, attendees traveled all the way from Canada, Washington D.C., Virginia, Illinois, and even New England States.

The celebration this year will begin on September 17th, which is the day of Ganesh Chaturthi (Sthapana), and will take place until September 21st, which will be the visarjan. This is North America’s very first and biggest Sarvajanik (Community) Ganesh Utsav.

The idea is for people to experience the same celebrations, as they would in India. A few highlights in store for Ganesh Utsav will include; all day performances by contestants from DID North America, DID Super Moms, SRGMP winners, and appearances by some of the biggest TV stars.

To top it all, we are proud to welcome the lead star cast of one of the most anticipated Bollywood films, Jazbaa, with the one and only Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in attendance!Not only will she be present at the event to interact with fans, but to also seek blessings!

Sameer Targe, GM of Asia TV USA says, “When we decided to enter the events space, we saw an obvious need to fill gaps towards events that are fun, and have something in store for everyone. Ganesh Utsav is a celebration that connects our community. Most importantly, we want for all Indians, especially 2nd and 3rd generation Indian Americans to experience what a Lal Bagh ka Raja feels like. We want them to experience how the Ganpati festival is celebrated in India, which is what we are bringing here, right in America!”

Piraan Erachshaw, President of 1947 Production and Entertainment says, “In partnership with ZEE TV, we are proud to successfully bring one of India’s favorite festivals to life for the very first time in the USA. The entire South Asian community will be able to experience the event in person instead of just viewing it digitally or on TV”

About 1947

1947 Production and Entertainment, Inc is an event management and production company. Whether a dance show, music video production, an onstage spectacle or a complicated concert tour, they combine their ingenious flair, logistical precision and advanced technical skills to create an impressive result. Their attention to detail is legendary and evident in every element of each event. Ganesh Utsav 2014 (their home production) in Edison, New Jersey was nothing short of exceptional. Their massive global audiences were wowed by their concentrated efforts of bringing one of India’s favorites festivals to life in the USA for the very first time. Their clients have quoted, that they can transform the ordinary into the exceptional every time and that their strategic approach ensures there’s impact long before an event begin and long after it has ended.

About Jazbaa

Riding high on the unique casting of global celebrity icons Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Irrfan, Jazbaa is a high-octane entertaining action thriller revolving around the two lead protagonists race against time. The film also stars Shabana Azmi, Jackie Shroff, Chandan Roy Sanyal, Atul Kulkarni, Sidharth Kapoor in pivotal roles. Jazbaa directed by Sanjay Gupta and produced by ZEE’s Esselvision Studios, Viiking Venture and White Feather Films is set to hit the theaters on 9th October 2015 worldwide.

National Award Winning actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui is happy that the audience has finally accepted him in a lead role with the success of his latest film “Manjhi: The Mountain Man” and is all over the moon these days with all the praises from the audience.

The film was based on the life of Dashrath Manjhi, a poor labourer in Gehlaur village (Bihar), who carved a path through a mountain with only a hammer and chisel in his wife’s memory.

Though the film leaked online just days before the release, Nawaz said people still turned up to watch it in theatres. “It feels really nice to get a central character in a film. But in our industry, there is a belief that your solo lead films should register well at the box-office. The film leaked and CDs were sold and still the movie made good enough money at the box-office.”

In the upcoming releases for the actor; “Raees” will see the actor sharing screen space with Shah Rukh for the first time. Nawazuddin, who has earlier worked with both Aamir and Salman Khan, is all praise for the “Chennai Express” star. “First schedule is complete. I shot with Shah Rukh and I had an amazing experience working with him. I really enjoyed shooting with him.” When asked to comment on the reports that he is playing Pakistani actress Mahira Khan’s husband in the film and his character has grey shades, Nawazuddin said, “I haven’t heard of any such thing. I play a cop in the film. I can’t divulge much about the movie.”

Another movie in production “Haramkhor” tells a sensitive tale of a relationship between a teacher (Nawazuddin) and his student (Shweta) based on an incident from Shlok’s life. “The film is based on reality. Shlok has a great command over story, how teachers and students behave… because this incident happened in his life. He has witnessed something like this and I am very happy that I am bringing it on screen,” Nawazuddin said.

The actor who was all present yesterday, September 2, at a suburban hotel in Mumbai at the film’s success bash, was asked by media about his upcoming project with Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan.

The talented actor said, “We haven’t started the project yet. It is in its premature stage. But I will soon be working with Mr. Bachchan.”

Phantom, is a spy thriller, that is based on Hussain Zaidi’s book Mumbai Avengers. Picking up from the post-26/11 scenario, where the Indian Government’s diplomatic policy wasn’t in favour of retribution for the brutal attacks on Mumbai, the film narrates a fictionalised story of how a former army officer is sent off on a ghost mission to kill the prime masterminds of the attack.

STORY: A Phantom-like vigilante is surreptitiously chosen by RAW officers to bring the perpetrators of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks to book.

REVIEW: A shamed army officer, Daniyal Khan (Saif) is living a life of anonymity. Court-martialed because evidence points out that he was not with his team when the enemy attacked, he yearns to earn his stripes back. As it so happens, there is a covert intelligence group, who is seething that the Centre has not been able to avenge the 26/11 Mumbai carnage.

They know permissions from official quarters will not come. So, they just take it upon themselves to launch a `punish-those-terrorists’ movement. After all, like one young officer (Zeeshan Ayub) says, 10 audacious guys from across the border did bring Mumbai to her knees on that fateful night in 2008, killing 166 people.

So Daniyal is despatched across continents to find the fanatic four who plotted 26/11. They even whisper to him that, he can `accidentally’ kill .

Based on the book, Mumbai Avengers by Hussain Zaidi, Kabir Khan, fresh from the super-success of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, doesn’t extend a hand of friendship to our neighbouring country in this one. Instead, he is clear that if they house the Laskhar-e-Taiba or allow militants like Haris Saeed (the cinema-counterpart of Hafiz Saeed) then the blood-thirsty Indian will take revenge.

To add glamour, Daniyal is accompanied by Nawaz Mistry (Katrina) who works on special assignments for Indian intelligence from London.

As the prologue says, the Taj Mahal Hotel at Apollo Bunder, blown up that fateful night has a new facade now. But our hearts are still bleeding. Yet, we’re a passive country that lamely does things like refusing to play cricket with Pakistan, rather than go in for a frontal attack.

As cinema, this thriller is over-simplified, though the gloss adds to the large-screen appeal. Saif is adept; Kat is pretty appealing (pun on the pretty because her make-up is intact even in the battlefield). Zeeshan and his jingoism in the climax gives you that proud-India moment. And, if you’re still licking the wounds of that senseless Mumbai massacre, then  Phantom is the balm you should reach out for.

TIP September 3: According to media reports, in a controversial statement, senior CPI leader Atul Anjan has accused Sunny Leone’s condom advertisements for the rising number of rape cases in India.

The report further stated that in a video, the leader was quoted saying that a woman named Sunny Leone has worked in a number of porn films and was made an actress by director Mahesh Bhatt.

The leader further said how pathetic it was for him to see one of her porn films for the first time in his life and he further claimed that her condom campaigns were the main reason behind the rising rape cases in the country.

This is not the first time that Sunny Leone has been accused of something like this. Earlier too, leader of Sri Ram Sena, Pramod Muthalik said the actress should be deported back.

CPI leader Atul Anjan earlier today, said that “Sunny Leone’s condom advertisements are vulgar and he would continue to oppose them”.

The CPI leader added that he is not anti-condom, but the language used in the advertisement is not right.

Atul Anjan, however, apologized to the supporters of Sunny Leone for his controversial remark.

“I apologize but I don’t stand for such ads,” Anjan said.

He further stated that the NDA government should look into the matter and try to stop the broadcast of these advertisements.

Kangana Ranaut ‘s next film Rangoon is with Vishal Bhardwaj and it will go on floors in October. One hears that the actress will flaunt a pixie cut in the film.

The look test for the movie was done a few days back at a popular suburban film studio and a source from the set informed us that the actress will sport a short-hair look in the period drama, which also stars Shahid Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan in lead roles alongside her. The action-heavy movie will be set against the backdrop of the Second World War Burma.