Bollywood Bakwas

Uncle Aamir is so much so pleased with JTJYN's stupendous success that he decided to appreciate his nephew Imran in a different style. Recently Mamu Aamir gifted his oh-so cute Bhanja (nephew) Imran Khan a white BMW. The BMW, which Aamir gifted Imran is amongst the latest models in the market costing close to Rs. 50 lakh.

Imran is extremely fond of cars and Aamir was well aware of this. Therefore Aamir thought that this would be the best way to congratulate Imran on his spanking new success with his debut film JAANE TU...YA JAANE NA. Imran, who wasn't expecting anything like a BMW, was ecstatic with Mamu's wonderful gesture

No one could anticipate that a star-studded birthday party of Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif would turn into a battle of the two Indian super stars - Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan - dividing the industry into two camps.


The two superstars were caught in a war of words on the July 16 party that Salman threw for current girlfriend Katrina, which later turned ugly.

Salman was reportedly instigating Shah Rukh from the beginning of the party by speaking about their reality shows - "Dus Ka Dum" and "Kya aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?" respectively. Salman claimed that his show "Dus Ka Dum" had garnered more TRPs than Shah Rukh's, said sources.

Salman scoffed at Shah Rukh by saying that in spite of being a super star he could not make his show a hit.

Shah Rukh initially did not pay any heed to Salman's comments. The final blow came when Shah Rukh made a comment on Salman's ex-girlfriend Aishwarya Rai, inviting a furious retaliation from Salman.

The incident occurred late in the night, when many of the guests had left.

Though Aamir Khan tried his best to resolve the dispute that arose between Salman and Shah Rukh on Katrina's birthday party, the two are not in a mood for compromise as both have got the support from their well wishers in the industry.

Salman, who is known for his loyalty towards friends, got supportive calls from old time friends like Kareena Kapoor and Akshay Khanna, said sources.

Fardeen Khan and Zayed Khan also showed their concern for the actor by calling him.

Ranbir Kapoor, who worked with Salman in "Saawariya", was the only newcomer to jump into the camp fight by calling him to express his sympathy, sources added.

If Salman had his supporters, so did King Khan. Veterans like Yash Chopra and Javed Akhtar called Shah Rukh to enquire about the incident. Besides, Karan Johar, Sajid Khan and Farhan Akhtar once again proved their loyalty towards the actor by offering their support.

Kunal Kohli also called the actor to know about his well being.

"While Salman has the support of actors, Shah Rukh has the support of the directors. It's an advantage for Shah Rukh," remarked an industry watcher.

The star-studded birthday party of Katrina Kaif was attended by Bollywood bigwigs like Aamir, Kareena, Saif Ali Khan, Karan Johar, Rajkumar Santoshi, Kunal Kohli, Salim Khan, Sohail Khan, Arbaaz Khan, Nikhil Advani, Prakash Jha, David Dhawan, Anees Bazmee, and Manmohan Shetty, among others.

Get ready for fireworks this Diwali. With Salman's YUVRAAJ not arriving in the festive week and SRK's BILLO BARBER getting confirmed for Diwali, it seemed like a cakewalk for BILLO BARBER, since no other biggie was scheduled for release on October 24. But there's tough competition now.

Initially, the Akshay Kumar starrer CHANDNI CHOWK TO CHINA was supposed to arrive a week later, on a Wednesday to be precise [October 29], but Warner Bros., Rohan Sippy and Nikhil Advani have decided to bring the film in Diwali. Which means, BILLO BARBER and CHANDNI CHOWK TO CHINA will battle it out this Diwali.

It's a battle royale, what with the two superstars, SRK and Akki, coming face to face in the festive week. Expect fireworks, for sure.

Born in small town of Jamshedpur, the ambitious girl Priyanka Chopra or Piggy Chops as is rightly known holds an enviable position in Bollywood today.

With her charming smile, this rare combination of beauty & brains stunned the world by winning the coveted title of Miss World way back in 2000 at a tender age of 18. Like many other beauties, even this pretty lass stepped her foot in the film industry with big dreams. And today only because of her sheer dedication and hard work she stands out among the lot.

She made her Bollywood debut with THE HERO: LOVESTORY OF A SPY opposite Sunny Deol but had her first commercial success with ANDAAZ opposite Akshay Kumar in the same year. For that, she even won Filmfare for best debut. With her fantastic performance in AITRAAZ, she won many critical acclaims and she became the second woman to win the Filmfare for best villain in Indian Cinema. With the hit list of back-to-back hits like MUJSE SHAADI KAROGI, KRRISH, DON - THE CHASE BEGINS she soon established herself as one of the most sought after actresses in the industry. Today she is projected as the next big thing in B-town.

Though her recent release LOVESTORY 2050 could not dominate the Box-office, the pretty lady is in full swing with her awaiting projects FASHION & DRONA which are to release by the year end.

And she is quite happy with the way her career is progressing. So let's add some more zing to her happiness by wishing her a hearty birthday today as she turns 26.

Kollywood actress Asin will play the female lead opposite Bollywood icon Salman Khan in London Dreams confirmed publicists.

The venture will be directed by Vipul Shah, publicists added.

Asin has acted as the female lead opposite Aamir Khan in Ghajini, the remake of a Tamil film of the same name.

The actress is also tipped to play a major role in a Hollywood film, sources close to the actress added.

'Chaiyya Chaiyya', 'Kuch Kariye' and 'Dard-e-Disco'! So, why are we mentioning the hit numbers of King Khan, rendered by the matchless, Sukhwinder Singh? Well, there is a reason and a very good one too!

It is a well known fact that whenever Sukhwinder has lent his vocals for a song picturised on Shah Rukh Khan, it has turned out to be a blockbuster. Whether, it was the entertaining dance number atop a train, 'Chaiyya Chaiyya' (DIL SE) or the most recent 'Dard-e- Disco' (OM SHANTI OM), the Sukhwinder-SRK 'jodi' has always belted out chart-scorchers! And now the good news is that the same 'jodi' is back once again to enthrall us all and this time around the composers are the talented duo, Salim-Sulaiman. Yes, it is the same combination that gave us the (unofficial) National Sports anthem, 'Kuch Kariye' (CHAK DE! INDIA) which can be heard even now at almost every victory celebrations featuring Indian teams.

Well, Salim-Sulaiman has once again roped in Sukhwinder Singh to render two of their compositions, to be picturised on Shah Rukh Khan in Aditya Chopra's upcoming RAB NE BANA DI JODI. One hears that the songs were recorded recently and news is that they are both awesome tracks!

Talks about 'Chhote Nawab', Saif Ali Khan, playing a 'nawab' on screen have been in the air for a while. But it now appears that the project is taking definite shape as it is being talked about by the people concerned. Things are hotting up at filmmaker Sudhir Mishra's office.

Apparently Saif Ali Khan has liked and approved the project, set around 1857 and has the city of 'nawabs', Lucknow, as the backdrop. If things go according to plans, Saif will essay the role of a 'nawab', who goes by the name of 'Laffaz' (only talks no deeds!). This may well be Saif's second period film after PARINEETA. Sudhir also has in mind his HAZAARON KHWAISHEIN AISI heroine Chitrangada Singh for the role of a dancing girl, Saif's love interest in the movie.

An interesting aspect of the film is that Mishra, who is normally known for small and medium budget ventures, is going for a whopping 50 crore project this time around. He has an interesting title in mind - NAWAB, THE NAUTCH GIRL AND THE JOHN COMPANY!

Akshay Kumar & Snoop Dogg swapped Los Angeles for Chicago as they shot the keenly awaited video of the title song of Singh Is Kinng last week.

The king of Bollywood and the king of rap got on like a house on fire and even went on a major shopping spree for the shoot, running up a 'kingly' bill!

Akshay succeeded in convincing Snoop to don Indian clothes and accessories in the song! The rapper graciously went beyond his contract and agreed to don a sardar look, which promises to be an absolute delight for his fans the world over.

Remarks producer Vipul A. Shah, "Snoop wants to do a Hindi movie with Akshay, as he is really keen on wooing the Indian audiences. The most interesting aspect of the song is that one gets to see two very different styles - Hip Hop with Snoop and Bhangra with Akshay. Their chemistry was worth seeing as they're superstars from two different worlds. To say the least, the video is looking brilliant!"

Singh Is Kinng releases internationally on Thursday, August 7 by Studio 18.

Lyrics :

1. Let’s Party

2. Tumko dekha tha kabhi
   

3. Tujhe Aqsa Beach ghuma doon

4. God Tussi Great Ho

5. Lal Chunariya
   

First weekend performance of latest release

There weren't any expectations whatsoever from MEHBOOBA. Since the film's subject (a love triangle), treatment and music is the kind that worked only a decade back and has precious little to offer for the urban centers which are loving their dose of JAANE TU YA JAANE NAA, this Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgan and Manisha Koirala film primarily saw a single screen release and that too mainly in the interiors of North India.

Well, the strategy seems to have paid as the audience out there hasn't really shown it's back to the film, hence resulting in a satisfying weekend. Made on a lavish scale, this Afzal Khan film does boast of Sanju baba as the prime attraction which has managed to attract audience to theaters. Though it is still too early to call the film as safe, a decent opening has won at least half the battle for those who have invested in the film.

Last week's movies

Amongst all the films which released this year and went on to be major successes (RACE, JANNAT, JODHAA AKBAR), JAANE TU YA JAANE NAA has done the best business if one looks at the number of prints that it arrived at and the crores it went on to earn. The film is now the first ever to have crossed the 20 crores milestone in spite of being releases at less than 400 prints - a record! The film has been fantastic all over with blockbuster collections from Mumbai (5 crores) followed by Delhi (2.3 crores).

Those who have invested in the film have hit gold and icing on the cake comes from the fact that the film is progressing quite well in it's second week as well. Superhit! While 50 crores is a given for this film with mainly newcomers, it would also make Abbas Tyrewala as the second filmmaker ever (after Sajid Khan - HEYY BABYY) to achieve this feat in his debut film. The difference here is that while HEYY BABYY starred Akshay Kumar in the lead, JTYJN has newcomers Imran Khan at the helm of affairs!

LOVE STORY 2050 has flopped and if the second week crashes badly (which very much appears to be the case), it may well qualify as a box office disaster. Released at double the print count of JTYJN and earning half of it in the first week (10.5 crores), the film has only gone down on an inversely proportionate manner! The film never saw a rise at all, let aside any fall in collections as days passed by, which has led to the debate opening up again - Should the film have waited for a week or two and see a solo release instead of clashing with JTYJN?

Of course the ifs and buts would continue to haunt Harry and Harman Baweja for years to come but the fact remains that if released solo (or without a major competition), LOVE STORY 2050 may have done at least a little better than what it has done now. The film has been a looser all over with Mumbai falling short of even 2 crores mark (~1.75 crores) and Delhi too failing to touch 1 crore (~90 lakhs). The flak which the film has got is unparalleled and LOVE STORY 2050 unfortunately finds itself in the league of TASHAN and RAM GOPAL VARMA KI AAG which were universally panned!

From the past

THODA PYAAR THODA MAGIC is now fourth flop in a row for Yash Raj Films after LAAGA CHUNARI MEIN DAAG, AAJA NACHLE and TASHAN. Whatever chance that the film had after decent word of mouth in the first week was killed completely due to JTYJN euphoria. Suddenly people were just not interested in giving the film a chance since all eyes were on Imran-Genelia love story. Saif-Rani were ignored and the youngsters lapped, hence resulting in a massive 70% fall in collections!

With barely 4.5 crores coming in for this Kunal Kohli directed film, this one is second straight flop in a row for Saif and Rani after TASHAN and LAAGA CHUNARI MEIN DAAG. While Saif still has a RACE behind him and some exciting projects ahead of him, the picture is quite bleak for Rani who is now far away from her 'Queen' throne with Katrina Kaif and Kareena Kapoor being the hot contenders now!

With a 90% fall in it's third week, DE TAALI is now sighting a DVD release. Ending it's run at 8.5 crores, the film has been quickly forgotten with everyone associated with this 2 years-in-the-making film moving on with newer projects. MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP is also ending it's 'theek-thaak' run by collecting 35 lakhs more in it's 4th week. Seeing a big fall week after week after a reasonably fine opening week, this Priyadarshan-Akshaye Khanna starrer has been a forgettable affair though for it's makers Shemaroo, it has got them a decent success at last. At 23 crores, the film is now set for a DVD release.

As predicted last week, SARKAR RAJ has seen another major fall over the week gone by with 80% dip in collections. With only 15 lakhs more coming in, the film now stands at 34 crores. However, in a week's time from now, it should be running at a few centers (~10) and celebrate 50 days for itself.

In the future

It is going to be a battle of realism v/s candy floss as Ram Gopal Varma and Shahid Kapoor take on each other in KISMAT KONNECTION and CONTRACT. The two films are in complete contrast of each other. While Ramu's CONTRACT promises to be a massy thriller because of it's underworld/terrorism connection, it's a different kind of 'connection' in KISMAT KONNECTION which is a fun-n-cool outing.

Ramu's film is seemingly third in the trilogy of his underworld films after SATYA and COMPANY. Since the film stars newcomers, an opening better than 30%-40% isn't really expected. It is a word of mouth film and unlike SARKAR RAJ which did it's best business in the first week, this one would have to largely depend upon content to make an impression and sustain itself at theaters for far more weeks.

On the other hand Shahid Kapoor would be looking at taking his lover boy image forward after big hits like VIVAH and JAB WE MET in the last couple of years. With Aziz Mirza at the helm of direction, one can certainly expect a sensitive outing in KISMAT KONNECTION with ample feel good moments, especially so with Shahid-Vidya pairing looking quite unique. The film promises to take a good opening and ensure Shahid yet another success.

Thanks to the ever increasing sales of mobile phones in the rapidly developing Indian economy, Aamir Khan, Sharukh Khan and Abhishek Bachchan have been become part of a group of 10 celebrities from all over the world who have instrumental in increasing the sales of mobile phones using their star status and appeal.

The list of the 10 celebrities was released by the famous U.S. publication, Forbes which is known for the rankings given to the richest persons in the world.

Abhishek Bachchan appears in the advertisements of the Motorola mobile phones, Sharukh Khan is the brand ambassador for Nokia while Aamir Khan lends his charm for promoting the phones of Samsung.

The other famous international personalities who feature in the list are car racing driver Danica Patrick, football star David Beckham who promotes Motorola RAZR2 mobile phone, Tennis star Maria Sharpova who endorses Sony Ericsson Phones and world famous musicians Usher, Andy Lau, Rain and Fergie.

The actor had no other option but to face his fear of heights while shooting a song for Bachna Ae Haseeno .

Even though he is set to achieve new heights of fame, Ranbir Kapoor actually suffers from vertigo. But that did not deter director Siddharth Anand and choreographer Ahmed Khan on insisting the actor to stand atop a hill for a shot in the Yashraj Films production.

While shooting the song ‘Khuda Jaane’ in Italy, Ranbir was told to stand on the top of a 90 feet high hillock.

Though Ranbir was scared, he understood that the shot was important and therefore decided to overcome his fears. To help him out, Deepika Padukone – who apart from being the film’s leading lady is also Ranbir’s ladylove – decided to accompany the actor to the hill top.

So, with a little help from his girl and with nothing more than some water a few sandwiches, Ranbir spent about two hours on the top of the hill until the shot was canned.

‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’ chronicles the romantic adventures of a Casanova-like character played by Ranbir. The film has three heroines – Deepika, Minissha Lamba and Bipasha Basu .

Sanjay Gupta is the only producer who does not spare any expenses when it comes to his star cast. He is also known for his lavish tastes and style. Gupta sees to it that if his stars have slogged out working hard during the day, the producer makes it a point to arrange for some entertainment in the night as Danny Denzongpa witnessed while shooting for Acid Factory in Hyderabad recently.

Gupta threw a bash practically every night for his stars - Fardeen, Dino, Aftab, Irrfan, Manoj, Danny and Dia. While the rest of the stars were used to Gupta's mehmaan nawazi, the one who initially enjoyed but later got bored of it was Danny.

One day the actor suddenly told Gupta, "Sanjay never in future will I ever work with you! Tum itni parties jo manaate ho. I have never partied continuously like this ever in my life before! You have spoilt me."

Well, looks like someone out there is indeed getting flattered.

That Manoj Bajpai is an excellent actor is a well known fact. He has shown his serious as well as intense side in films like SATYA, SHOOL and VEER ZARA (despite a brief role). However not many will know that this versatile actor has now gone out and out comic too. The film in question is MONEY HAI TOH HONEY HAI, which is being directed by top choreographer turned director, Ganesh Acharya.

Genesh's directorial debut venture SWAMI had Manoj Bajpai essaying the lead role and it was but natural that Ganesh thought of him when he announced his next film, a comedy. Initially, Manoj was hesitant about working in a comedy but on Ganesh's insistence he read the script, and needless to add, he loved it. Manoj says that the film is not a nonsensical comedy. The cast and story of the film intermingles and moreover, despite the oft-repeated theme (too many people running after money); the film carries with it a very strong message, that must be seen on screen.

Here is looking forward to another excellent performance from the class actor when MONEY HAI TOH HONEY HAI releases on 25th July, along with MISSION ISTAANBUL.

The Jab We Met team is all set for another film, but Shahid Kapur is not there in it.

Finally, Kareena Kapoor has her way. She had expressed her disappointment when Imtiaz Ali chose Deepika Padukone over her for his next film starring Saif Ali Khan . The loss of the film was disheartening to Bebo since it also happens to be Saif’s first home production.

Rumours also spoke about a definite fallout between Bebo and Imtiaz – that the things had soured between them and the duo won’t ever work again.

These rumours can now bite the dust coz Bebo and Imtiaz are set to team up again for the director’s next film. The movie would be produced by Ashtavinayak. However, Imtiaz would begin this project only after finishing his film with Saif.

Contrary to what you might expect, Imtiaz’s next film won’t have Saif as Bebo’s love interest. It might rather have Akshay Kumar .

Incidentally, Kareena is presently in Los Angeles shooting Sajid Nadiadwala’s film Kambakht Ishq that has Akshay as her love interest.

Even as the JAANE TU YA JAANE NAA v/s LOVE STORY 2050 battle turned out to be a damp squib, another battle if fast raising up the storms. Though SINGH IS KINNG and BACHNA AE HASEENO are spaced out by a week as they release on 8th August and 15th August respectively, at the music stands it is a different story altogether with both the soundtracks being neck to neck to with each other.

Released around the same time 10 days back, music of both the films has been widely appreciated which has made it a three-way war zone for albums' supremacy at the top. While the super-success of JAANE TU YA JAANE NAA has ensured that it keeps its #1 position intact, it would be the first to admit that it isn't really that easy maintaining the top spot.

Both SINGH IS KINNG and BACHNA AE HASEENO have been accepted by the music lovers which are resulting in constant juggling between the two albums for the #2 position. However, the day is not far away when one of the two would be sitting pretty at the top.

Challenging A.R. Rahman, both Pritam (SIK) and Vishal-Shekhar (BAH) have turned out to be worthy competitors by delivering numerous chartbusters tracks in their respective albums. While Pritam already has 'Bas Ek King' and 'Jee Karda' as two more hits under his belt, Vishal-Shekhar too have made heads turn their way with the funky re-made title song of 'Bachna Ae Haseeno' followed by 'Khuda Jaane' that has set the temperature soaring.

So which of the two albums would race to the top spot first? Well, 'khuda jaane'! Till then music lovers get to enjoy a double whammy to keep them entertained on their music systems!

A dying old man hands over his business empire to six strangers in the comedy film 'Money Hai Toh Honey Hai'.

The movie stars a host of actors including Govinda, Celina Jaitley, Aftab Shivdasani, Hansika Motwani, Upen Patel, Manoj Bajpai, Ravi Kishan and Prem Chopra.

Character Sketches:

Govinda as Bobby

Govinda plays Bobby, a smooth-talking, fast-spending, good-for-nothing, utterly spoilt brat in the body of a man. The only son of his parents, he has no plan of ever working in life.

Aftab Shivdasani as Gaurav

Gaurav is straight and hardworking and works as a copywriter in an advertising company. Gaurav can speak nothing but the truth, but none of his clients want to hear it. Therefore, Gaurav mostly finds himself on a sticky wicket.

Upen Patel as Manik

Manik is a struggling model, making his ends meet by modeling for underwear and khaaj-khujli commercials. He hates what he does and dreams of big bucks.

Manoj Bajpai as Lalabhai

Lalabhai always thinks positive. He won a huge amount of money in a lottery but lost it all in various business disasters. Still, he smiles about it and says he never lost a crore but earned a crore’s worth of experience.

Hansika Motwani as Ashima

Ashima is a successful TV actress. She is loved by millions as Meera, her serial character. But she feels stifled and dreams of Bollywood – doing a film with Shahrukh Khan and also winning a Filmfare Award.

Celina Jaitley as Shruti

Shruti is an extremely talented designer struggling to find her foothold in the cut-throat world of fashion. Rather than getting into pricey haute couture, she wants to design stuff that can be worn by common man.

Ravi Kishan as Parag

He’s looked after his uncle and his business for years and believes he is the rightful heir. He’s shocked when his uncle nominates six strangers to take over the business empire. By hook or crook, he wants to win back what he’s lost.

Prem Chopra as KK Jaiswal

An eccentric but kind millionaire, Jaiswal has always believed in doing good for others. Almost on his deathbed, he decides to bequeath his entire fortune to six total strangers. Will his trust be misused?

Synopsis

The film is about an eventful and whirlwind journey of Bobby, a planner along with five losers – Lala Bhai, a failed businessman, Gaurav, an honest copywriter, Manik, a struggling model, Shruti, a struggling fashion designer, and Ashima, a successful TV actress.

This journey of the sextet begins after a call from a cranky old man, whom they ignore initially, but later somehow decide to give it a thought. They realize that they could be the owners of a luxury resort.

With loads of dreams in their eyes, they all reach the resort and realize that the old man had called not one but all six of them.

Will they be able to run the empire together, or fight among themselves?

Another hurdle in their way is a loyal manager who instigates them against each other, hoping to wipe them out from the scene so that he could be the new MD of this resort.

‘Money Hai Toh Honey Hai’ is directed by Ganesh Acharya, who recently made his directorial debut with Swami .

Kumar Mangat is the film’s producer while music is given by Nitin Arora and Sony Chandy.

The film is set to release on July 25.

It can't get bigger than this for Asin. The beauty from God's own Country, post 'Dasavatharam', is making waves in Bollywood.

The actress, who is already the ambassador of an impressive list of products, would now act with Jackie Chan for the commercial of an international brand.

According to sources, the advertisement, which has lot of stunt scenes, would be shot at Hong Kong. Asin, it is said, would leave for the foreign locale by the middle of this month to take part in the shoot.

Asin, who has been roped in to act in Ko Taisa to be directed by Priyadarshan and London Dreams by Vipul Amrutlal Shah, is on cloud nine as she would now share the screen with internationally acclaimed Jackie.

Bollywood stunner Katrina Kaif turns a year older today. And she is in no mood to throw any lavish party.

The gorgeous actress, who likes to keep a low profile, will be working during the day and join her friends for a party in the evening. Last year, Katrina had a memorable birthday celebration in London with her family. This year, her mom and sister are coming to Mumbai for her special day.

Initially, Kat was supposed to be in Ooty today for the shooting of Rajkumar Santoshi’s Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani with Ranbir Kapoor . Salman Khan was supposed to fly there to usher in her birthday. But the schedule got cancelled and Katrina is in Mumbai with her friends on her B’day.


Today, she plans to do the promotional work of her upcoming film Singh Is Kinng – co-starring Akshay Kumar – during the day. In the evening she will attend a party thrown by her friends for her.

It goes without saying that beau Salman will accompany Kat to the party. Though she is not expecting gifts, there will of course be many surprises reserved for Kat at the party.

Katrina has every reason to celebrate because she has had a super-successful year since her last birthday. She has been the most successful actress of the year gone by and this year too she has featured in the hit Race .

Katrina’s upcoming films include Subhash Ghai’s Yuvraaj with Salman, ‘Ajab Prem..’ with Ranbir and an untitled Yashraj film with John Abraham .

Happy Birthday, Katrina.