Tag: Bollywood

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.

Kim Kardashian might quit ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ show as her husband, Kanye West, is fed up with her life being exposed on television, it has been revealed. According to a source, the 37-year-old rapper wanted the reality star not to appear on the show, the Mirror reported.

The insider continued that the ‘Heartless’ singer’s spouse, whose most of her family rely on her being there selling her life to the cameras, might bow out shortly, despite the series being a massive hit.

Cast: Rani Mukerji, Tahir Raj Bhasin
Direction: Pradeep Sarkar
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 2 hours 33 minutes

Story: A braveheart lady inspector from the crime branch stumbles on a sex-trafficking racket. Does she succeed in bringing the culprits to book?

Review: It’s raining fearless cops on the Bollywood marquee. Last week, it was Singham, who, in his khakis, returned to take the pants off corrupt politicians and god-men. And this week, it is Lady Singham or Shivani Shivaji Roy (Rani Mukerji), looking dapper, albeit briefly, in a police inspector’s uniform, who wreaks havoc in Pradeep Sarkar’s Mardaani.

The film claims to be inspired by true events. However, for cinema-buffs, it’s easier to trace the inspiration to several Hollywood thrillers, including the Liam Neeson one, Taken (2008). Like Neeson, a former CIA operative hunting down his daughter who is kidnapped by human traffickers for sexual slavery, Rani is a current-day crime branch inspector searching for a teenager who goes missing from a local Mumbai shelter. The young girl Pyaari (Priyanka Sharma) is someone whom Shivani treats like her own niece. Her sole objective in the film is to track down the men who have kidnapped the orphan and blow the lid off their sex racket. As she engages in a thrilling encounter with the baddie Karan Rastogi (Tahir Raj Bhasin) in Mumbai and later in Delhi, you can sit back and enjoy the action.

While there is nothing in the plot that you haven’t seen before, it is still watchable for the superb performance of Rani, whose amber-coloured eyes breathe fire when she is packing those punches! And her unabashed use of Hindi expletives like `chut**’, `madar*****’ should work with the lowest common denominator. The frequent *MCBCs* is the obvious reason for the adults-only tag. This movie could have continuous recall had the pace been racier. And if you could also buy into the emotional tracks between Shivani and her husband, her niece or her ward. Also, Rani is the only member of the cast with star value. The rest of the actors, including the English-speaking young goon, are inconsequential.

Actress Nargis Fakhri has denied reports of dating her ‘Main Tera Hero’ co-star Varun Dhawan, saying she is romantically linked with herself and not anyone else. “What? No way dude. Oh, really it’s been written? I haven’t read that. I don’t have any idea about that. People just right stuff, right. That’s hilarious,” Nargis told in an interview on the sidelines of the unveiling of Myntra’s style helpline here. Indirectly blaming the media, the 34-year-old model-turned-actress said such stuff is written out of blues, without any truth in it.

“There was a rumour that I was dancing with another actor all night long in a party when I hadn’t even seen that person. No offence, but people just write stuff,” she said. Asked what was her idea of a good date, she said Indian boys should not be fanciful but creative while dating girls. “Indian boys should learn to date properly. You needn’t have to be fancy but creative.

Ask the girl for a date. Do something nice. Don’t expect anything – that is the main thing. Never expect anything. Have a nice time. Have conversation,” she said. It goes same with her also, Nargis said, adding, she keeps that standard and does not go any lower than that. “I had one good date in New York. The person picked me up on my doorstep. Took me to hotels and nightclub and dropped me at my home. Can you imagine? That was the most memorable date I ever had and to me I keep that standard. you can’t go any lower than that,” she said.

Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma’s representative has rubbished reports that she is planning to tie the knot with Indian cricketer Virat Kohli. There were reports that BCCI had allowed the 26- year-old actress to stay in the same hotel as Kohli, the vice-captain of Indian Cricket Team, during the tour of England as they were going to tie the knot soon. But, now the ‘Band Baaja Baaraat’ actress’s representative has released a statement saying there is no truth to the story.

“There are several stories online about Anushka Sharma’s impending wedding. However I would like to set the record straight that there is absolutely no truth to these rumours and I would like to request you to refrain from conjecturing about the same,” her representative said. Kohli and Anushka have been grabbing headlines ever since they were first spotted together during the tour of New Zealand.

Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Harrison Ford,
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Mel Gibson, Wesley Snipes,
Dolph Lundgren, Randy Couture, Terry Crews,
Kelsey Grammer, Antonio Banderas, Jet Li, Kellan Lutz,
Ronda Rousey
Direction: Patrick Hughes
Genre: Action
Duration: 2 hours 6 minutes

Story: Barney Ross (Stallone) and his battle-hardened warriors are back, this time augmented by the addition of new recruits. After springing their buddy out of prison, the Expendables are thwarted by arms dealer Conrad Stonebanks (Gibson) while on an intercept mission. Stonebanks is also wanted by the US government. What’s worse, Conrad used to be Barney’s old friend.

Review: Expendables 3 brings together almost every Hollywood action star you’ve seen on screen from the 1980s and 1990s and gathers them together in a movie that has all the finesse of a tank and a helicopter in a glorious head-on collision. The barely-there plot seems like an afterthought, almost like a token concession given to the main thrust of this movie, which is really all about dishing out some good ol’ school mayhem. What is complex, however, is the cast list (evidenced by the over-crowded movie poster).

Ross is the leader, Lee Christmas (Statham) has a way with knives, Yin Yang (Li) is the obligatory martial arts expert, Trench (Schwarzenegger) still has an appetite for large caliber weapons and fat cigars, Doc (Snipes) is a former medic who is liberated from prison (and thereafter almost forgotten) and Gunnar Jensen (Lundgren) is a loose cannon with a volatile temperament. Drummer (Ford’s debut in the franchise) is the mission organizer. Among the new entrants, Galgo (Banderas), a sharpshooter with a motor-mouth and Gibson, who adds a snarky sort of finesse to his character, are impressive.

On the receiving end of a hail of bullets this time aren’t Chinese or Russians, but random bad guys, including some former Communist bloc baddies. While an ensemble cast is indeed impressive, you might feel that so much more could have been done with the story in terms of excitement. Stallone and Arnie fans might also feel a bit shortchanged regarding how much screen time their two favourite characters have got. While the action is indeed high gear, the gore (evidenced in the previous film) is turned down a notch. Nonetheless, it does serve up a decent chunk of oldschool action.

Jennifer Aniston is reportedly planning to shed some extra weight before her wedding to fiance Justin Theroux. Aniston, 45, had earlier confessed that like any bride-tobe she would lose some weight before her marriage. reported Ok! magazine. “She doesn’t think she’s overweight by any means. But she’s always said that she feels most confident when she looks a certain way.

And there’s no doubt she’ll want to have that same feeling on her wedding day,” a source said. After meeting Theroux, the ‘Friends’ star has allegedly put on some weight as the couple are often involved in dinning. “His idea of fun is going out to great restaurants and trying out amazing food with her. And if that leads to her gaining a little weight, he’s not going to complain.. Justin thinks Jen looks absolutely perfect the way she is. He likes her curvier, with a little meat on her,” the source added. The longtime couple are planning to tie the knot in the end of the year.

Cast: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, Amol Gupte,
Anupam Kher
Direction: Rohit Shetty
Genre: Action
Duration: 2 hours 22 minutes

Story: Singham is on the prowl again. To rip the guts of untamed beasts in the civilized jungle of Mumbai

Review: Shiver me timbers. The Singham is back. This time louder, wilder and more a man-eater. With his lioness in tow. For a roar in stereo. Yes, the ‘hard-hitting’ combo of Devgn-Shetty is back with more purr for the puss. With sculpted muscles and sinews that scream ‘studly’.

And the man with ultimate dum, fakth Bajirao Singham. The plot rumbles with action of seismic proportions, shot grandly in signature Shetty style – high-voltage stunts, death-defying combats, men and machines bursting into flames – served bloody, gritty and unadulterated. Guruji (Kher) is a righteous political leader who wants to bring about social change with youth development, women’s safety, et al.

Opposing his noble intentions are corrupt politicians and a sleazy, malicious godman, Swamiji (Gupte), who hypnotizes and loots the aam aadmi with blind faith. Enter DCP Bajirao Singham (Devgn), with a satka dimaag and a solid mission. His dutiful police officer gets killed and falsely accused of corruption. Singham returns with more garam khoon than before. With all his claw-power to pound the baddies, even as his dynamite dialogues (Sajid-Farhad) dare them to resurrect their evil (aai shapath!). Shetty’s cracked the pulse of the masses as he brazenly plays to the galleries.

While the story itself plays it safe (too basic and predictable), the action is risky and rousing (Rohit Shetty, Jai Singh Nijjar and Suniel Rodrigues). Also packing a social message and feeding action lovers with raw ‘meat and bones’. It’s riddled with cliches and the length needs a good edit. But overall, it provides entertainment for enthusiasts of ‘Singham’ brand of cinema. Amol Gupte is perfectly cast, leaving an impact with a superb, killer performance. Kareena Kapoor (as Avni) playfully romances her sher, slipping in some laughs and clicking ‘selfies’ as Lady Singham.

Kher is good even in a brief role. Devgn digs his claws into this part with more vengeance and power, delivering a knockout act. The jungle can be tamed. If we all become ringmasters of the circus of civilization – and lions of what is right. Then the unlawful will get – well, fakth.