Prakash Jha forgives Nana Patekar
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 8, 2009
SUBHASH K JHA (Mid-Day; November 6, 2009)
Prakash Jha has finally relented to Nana Patekar’s pleas begging forgiveness and has decided to forgive, if not forget Nana’s behaviour.
“It’s impossible to forget what he did. But Nana has been constantly trying to reach out since the ugly incident.
I’ve told him I’ll have a cup of tea with him when I return to Mumbai tomorrow. Today is my last day of Rajneeti.” Prakash said from Bhopal on Wednesday afternoon.
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Will dub, won’t shoot
In fact, Prakash had decided to not allow Nana to dub his lines. “Now I’ll let him dub. But there’s no question of shooting the scenes that he lost out on.”
Earlier Prakash was unrelenting. “I know I said there was no question of a rapprochement. Nana Patekar was a closed chapter for me. My entire crew tolerated him because of me. But he’s lonely and he accepts his mistake.
I can’t sit in judgment on him.”
The director has already changed the script to make do without Nana and has added a voiceover, ” I had to shoot six to seven scenes of Nana as a young man. I changed the scene and shot it without him. When I had worked with Nana in Apaharan, I hadn’t seen this tantrum-throwing side of him on the sets.”
Had no choice
After his initial outburst, Nana tried to make amends. Recalls Prakash, “Later that day, he calmed down and tried to return to the sets. I told him he wasn’t welcome ever on my sets. As far as shooting goes, we had to compromise. We had to complete all his scenes without him. We introduced a voiceover to explain his absence.
Jha concludes, “I had no choice but to forgive him. You don’t know how much I’ve looked after him. I’ve stood by him through all his temper tantrums and bad moods. But I can’t allow him to walk all over me. He needs to do something about his temper. “
Lekin, hua kya tha?
On October 27, during the shooting of Rajneeti, Prakash and Nana had a huge showdown in Bhopal over the way the actor was supposed to do a scene. The actor left in a huff after showering abuses on Prakash. Though used to Nana’s abusive ways, Prakash wasn’t willing to take the barrage of insults lying down. He took up Nana’s offer of letting the actor go and also vowed never to be friends with Nana again. But the actor kept pleading.
Dhamaal 2 denied remake rights for Cool Runnings
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 8, 2009
SHAHEEN PARKAR (Mid-Day; November 6, 2009)
Dhamaal 2 has hit a roadblock. Though the bound script of the comedy is ready, the film can’t go on the floors.
Producers Ashok Thakeria and Indra Kumar (also the director) have been denied remake rights of Disney’s 1993 Hollywood flick Cool Runnings on which Dhamaal 2 is based.
The duo was confident of obtaining the rights to make an Indian version of the comic caper. As a result, they had their team of writers in place before the necessary remake green signal.
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| A still from Dhamaal |
Familiar procedure
Says a source, “They were sure of the go-ahead from Walt Disney. For their earlier film Daddy Cool, Thakeria had managed to secure the rights for Boney M’s popular song of the ’80s Daddy Cool. As they had gone through the paperwork and technicalities involved, they thought it was a familiar procedure.”
But much to their chagrin, Disney turned down their request. Adds the source, “This has now put Dhamaal 2 off track. For the past several months, a team of writers would be in their Maruti Internatioanl production office at Andheri working on the script. And just when it was complete and ready, they were shown a red signal which came as a jolt to them.”
The makers are in a fix because they can’t go ahead with the same plot as it would lead to copyright issues. As the source puts it, “Now that they have openly declared that they wanted to make an Indian version of it and have been denied, there is no way they can make anything similar to it. All the past months of efforts of the writers are wasted.”
Indra Kumar however maintains, “The scripting of Dhamaal 2 is still on. The sequel has not gone on the floors because the script is not ready. Our film is a comedy but not based on any Hollywood film nor did we seek any remake rights. These are just stories that people are floating.”
Dhamaal, which released in 2007 stars Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, Ritiesh Deshmukh, Aashish Chaudhry and Jaaved Jaffrey. Most of the cast had agreed to star in the sequel as well.
Cool Runnings
Cool Runnings is a 1993 comedy flick loosely based on the Jamaica national bobsled team’s debut at the 1988 Winter Olympics. Directed by Jon Turteltaub, it stars Leon Robinson, Doug E Dour, Maik Yoba, Rawle D’ Lewis and John Candy. When the team fails to acquire the points necessary to get to the summer games, there’s still a way for them to make it to the Winter Olympics. A wacky coach trains the the squad to make for the weirdest team but no one’s more fun at the Winter Games!
People have tried to pull me down-Emraan Hashmi
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 8, 2009
IANS (Mid-Day; November 7, 2009)
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One of Bollywood’s most bankable stars, Emraan Hashmi, says people have contantly tried to pull him down. He also believes the new film “Tum Mile” will present him in a new avatar, having mostly essayed roles with shades of grey.
“In the kind of industry I am, every creative person has a judgement to make about someone else’s performance. After doing a movie, I may think that I have come up with my best act, but others may think otherwise. You can’t help it,” shrugs Emraan, 30. “This is something that has happened ever since I made my debut with ‘Footpath’. I went on to deliver successful films practically every year with ‘Murder’, ‘Zeher’ and ‘Aashiq Banaya Aapne’ followed by ‘Aksar’ and ‘Gangster’. Still people have tried to pull me down,” Emraan said in an interview. He is sitting pretty on the back to back success of “Raaz – The Mystery Continues” and “Jannat”. A year earlier, he came up with one of the best ever acts of his career in “Awarapan”. And now he is about to be seen in “Tum Mile”, his most expensive film till date that will release Nov 13. It co-stars Soha Ali Khan. “It’s a welcome change to have absolutely no grey shades in my character,” says Emraan. He is positive that after the release of the film, he would be looked upon as someone who can also show a sensitive side. “For that opportunity, I am thankful to my director Kunal Deshmukh. If not for him, I would have continued playing the kind of roles I have been successful in. In fact, when Kunal spoke to me about the role, I was sceptical because I have never played a full-on romantic guy before.”
He isn’t overtly bothered about certain negative statements about him. “Honestly, I don’t even look aside to see who is around for competition. There is nothing wrong if people choose to reserve certain remarks for me. “To each his own since I have to basically live up to my own judgement and fulfil the expectations of those who matter,” he says. He has his fair share of admirers and supporters though. “Yes, there are some out there who have been quite supportive throughout my career,” he agrees. “My goal is to keep delivering successful solo hero films and also do an occasional multi-hero film if I have an equal part. This is why I agreed to do Milan Luthria’s ‘Once Upon a Time in Mumbai’.” While he has been doing well as an actor after spending more than half a decade in the industry, does he have any plans to turn producer? “I don’t want to be in the hot seat,” shoots Emraan in a tone of mock horror. “Mukeshji (Bhatt) tells me that being a producer is the toughest job in the world. I agree with him since he has decades of filmmaking experience. “Today I am happy being an actor. Any aspirations to be producer are best kept on hold for a later stage.” |
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Bhattsaab edits some flood scenes from Tum Mile
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 8, 2009
By Kunal M Shah (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 07, 2009)
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Mahesh Bhatt, who saw Tum Mile earlier this week, was unhappy that it focused more on the disaster than the love story. So, he chopped off 10 minutes of flood scenes. The film is based on July 2005 Mumbai deluge. Bhatt says, “The film did not turn out the way Kunal had visualised it. The film is not about the disaster, but the love story. I just toned down the disaster scenes to make it more viewer-friendly.”Commenting on the editing that Bhatt did, director Kunal Deshmukh says, “I was dead against cutting some portions of the flood scenes because I thought that they really stood out. Bhattsaab wanted to play up the love angle and I understood his point of view when I saw the film after 10 minutes had been chopped off. I loved the flow.” |
Sohail’s comic strip!
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 8, 2009
| The Khan brothers have a penchant for roaming around bare-chested. After his bhaijaan Salman Khan’s love for removing his shirts publicly, it’s now Sohail Khan who is taking the legacy forward. Recently, during Ajay Devgan and Kajol’s party for All the Best, Sohail took off his T-shirt and handed it over to directors Abbas Mustan, much to their surprise.
A witness from the party said, “For the party, Sohail was sporting a blue T-shirt that read ‘Player’. When Abbas Mustan saw him, they casually told him that they have recently registered the title Player under their banner and will soon make a film by the same name. They joked that with Sohail wearing the T-shirt, someone might get inspired and steal their title. Suddenly, Sohail removed his T-shirt and gave it to them. Then, the bare-chested Sohail summoned a waiter passing by and asked him to remove his shirt.
The flummoxed waiter did as he was told and Sohail was seen wearing the waiter’s shirt till the party ended.” Mustan confirmed the incident and said, “You know, it was really surprising. We casually mentioned that we intend to make a film titled ‘Player’. Sohail instantly removed his shirt, gave it to us, and wore a waiter’s shirt.” |
Who said Dad’s paying me 12 crores?-Shahid Kapoor
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 8, 2009
MEENA IYER Times News Network (BOMBAY TIMES; November 8, 2009)
meena.iyer@timesgroup.com
Movie Review: AJAB PREM KI GHAZAB KAHANI by FENIL SETA
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 7, 2009
I am out of the theatre and still thinking, “Is this the same Rajkumar Santoshi who gave some hard-hitting and intense films for a long time?”. Yup, he directed Andaz Apna Apna but that was like some 15-16 years ago. Post-AAA, he came up with close to dozen intense and almost realistic films. A certain image of Santoshi was carved out thanks to his kind of films. But with Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani, he breaks that image and proves that he STILL can come up with solid youthful entertainers! Sweet, witty, little absurd… Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani succeeds completely in making you laugh!
The story of the movie: Prem (Ranbir Kapoor) lives in a town called Mount Valley and runs ‘Happy Club’ in the coffin shop of one of his friends’ father! He is carefree, happy and wants to make others happy. A case of mistaken identity leads him to meeting Jenny (Katrina Kaif). He soon falls in love with her but doesn’t profess even though both he and Jenny become thick pals. The reason-both are as different as chalk and cheese. To begin with, Prem is the son of a staunch Hindu while Jenny is Catholic. Jenny wants her dream man to be literate and who works hard for his family. But Prem is 9th standard pass and doesn’t work at all. And lastly, Prem is a vegetarian and Jenny is not (or is she?)! And does Jenny feel the same for Prem? Or does she love someone else?
Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani is a different entertainer, esp in terms of storytelling and execution. Every director in Bollywood attempting a comic film takes a usual stereotypical route. But RS doesn’t show any such signs. He treats the plot in his own way. Either he knew it would work or maybe, he himself was little confused and misfit for the film! But whatever maybe the reason, the end product rocks!
If one is looking forward to some sense, logic and intelligent comedy, then Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani is not for them! The film abounds in complete loud entertainment and also in absurdity at times. However, it gives equal importance to romance and scores here too. In fact, it maintains a fine balance between romance and comedy and delivers a fab rom-com to the viewers!
Some scenes rock in the film and make you laugh loudly! Ranbir’s entry in the beginning itself is hilarious! The following kidnapping sequence and the weird misunderstanding that crops up in Katrina’s mind was damn funny! Note how a sad song is incorporated in the beginning itself when the prem kahani has just begun, unlike in other films where tragic kind of tracks are mostly towards the end. It’s a novel film as I said!
The film gets a bit slow in the 2nd half and the song ‘Tu Jaane Na’ in this hour stops the flow of narrative. That’s one glitch in the film besides the title of the film. It sounds cool but doesn’t suit the film completely. The explanation for the title was done towards but still it didn’t justify. But fortunately, no one’s complaining nowadays about incorrect titles. Films like All The Best and Wanted were also so named although there was no connection between the title and the content!
The film belongs to Ranbir Kapoor, without a shred of doubt! He was extremely lovable and does an extraordinary job. He was funny during comic scenes without going overboard even in a single place. At the same time, he scores in emotional scenes as well. Watch out for him when he keeps on regretting about Jenny but at the same time, tells his pals to change the topic. And how can I forget-the club scene where he dances flawlessly and comically a la Shammi Kapoor! That sequence would have been just another funny scene if it was not for Ranbir. With such great job in all his 4 films that has released till now, Ranbir proves that he’s soon gonna be the next superstar! Fortunately, we’ll get to see him soon in Rocket Singh and Rajneeti. Ranbir is supposed to have strong roles in both the films. This Kapoor boy is definitely on a roll!
Katrina Kaif was equally good as Ranbir and surprises one and all with such a fab performance. Earlier, she used to face the criticism that she is famous only because of her looks. But all this will stop now for sure. With Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani, she has proved that she can act well and can maintain an important position in the film even in front of a powerhouse performer like Ranbir Kapoor! Way to go, Katz!
If you hated Darshan Jariwala in Life Partner, you’ll love him in this film as Ranbir’s dad. His scenes with Ranbir were excellent! Even Smita Jaykar, who played Ranbir’s mom was great and is a perfect actor for the role of actor’s moms! Upen Patel disappointed. He was a miscast-with his Western accent, he didn’t suit at all as the son of a politican (Govind Namdeo) seeking Hindu votes. Also look out for the scene where he laughs in a stupid manner! I liked Upen in 36 China Town and Shakalaka Boom Boom but here, he was simply not impressive at all!
Govind Namdeo’s performance was nothing special. Zakir Hussain convincingly played the over the top villain. The actor who played Tony did a great job. All actors playing Ranbir’s pals were good. Salman Khan rocked in a special appearance and the person who played Jesus delivered a ‘divine’ performance!
Pritam’s music is rocking. So were the songs. ‘Tera Hone Laga’ and ‘Main Tera Dhadkan Teri’ has already topped the chartbusters. ‘Prem Ki Naiyaa’ is a cool number too. S. Thiru’s cinematography was flawless. Nitesh Roy’s art direction was impressive, as it reminded of the sets used in the comedies of 90s.
There’s nothing much to speak about the story as it was plain ordinary. However, the screenplay by R D Tailang and Rajkumar Santoshi was fantastic. The one-liners, the gags and the funny hilarious situations that arise in the film are praiseworthy. So kudos to the duo!
And finally, hats off to Rajkumar Santoshi for coming up with such a wonderful entertaining film even though he has been making some serious intense films since 15 years. Many directors have failed in the past after attempting a genre which isn’t their cup of tea. But Rajkumar Santoshi survives, all thanks to his great execution. He’s also there in one of the scenes (did anyone notice?). Note how scenes unintentionally remind of Andaz Apna Apna. The humour in some scenes and also the kind of misunderstandings faced by some characters as also the climax fight-all give a sense of déjà vu!
Some of the best scenes of the film:
1. The first scene
2. The ‘yellow outfit’ sequence
3. Jenny slaps Prem
4. The scene involving Salman Khan
5. Prem turning into non veg
6. Dancing Prem at the club
7. The intermission point
8. The chase
9. Prem regretting that he didn’t profess to Jenny
10. Prem meeting Rahul for the first time
11. Jenny hiding in Prem’s house
12. The scene at the police station
13. Prem at the Church
14. The songs ‘Tera Hone Laga’, ‘Mein Tera Dhadkan’
15. The last 25 minutes
On the whole, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani is an out and out entertainer. It has some really wonderful comic moments that are novel and will make you laugh for sure. At the same time, the romantic moments are well handled. Ranbir rocks and his chemistry with Katrina is electrifying! A must watch for people of all ages!
My rating-**** out of 5!
This review first appeared on MouthShut.com: http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Ajab_Prem_Ki_Ghajab_Kahani-179060-1.html
Hrithik as Jungle Boy?
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 7, 2009
| Hrithik Roshan is set to get under the skin of the character for his forthcoming film, Welcome to the Jungle, produced by Sanjay Khan. After the actor finishes shooting for Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Guzaarish early next year for which he will put on oodles of weight, he will lose it all to sport a muscular look.
A source says, “Welcome to the Jungle is an adventure film which will see Hrithik in a never-seen-before avatar. The actor will undergo tremendous physical transformation for his role. Hrithik, who plays a paraplegic in Guzaarish, was asked to put on weight as his role didn’t require him to be physically fit. Now, after the shoot ends, Hrithik will work out extensively to sport a muscular look for Welcome to the Jungle.”
Commenting on the project, Sanjay Khan says, “Welcome To The Jungle is my property and will be directed by Farukh Kabir. It is still in the scripting process and things have yet to be finalised. We haven’t finalised the cast yet, but Zayed Khan is one of the actors being considered for the role. Hrithik is also being considered. If he has the time and likes the script, he will be part of the film.” When quizzed about the physical transformation that Hrithik will undergo for the film, he says, “Yes, there will be a major transformation as you say. But I haven’t finalised or signed anyone. The actors signed will have to undergo a drastic change as compared to their current look. It is a good family adventure story for the masses and all age groups.” |
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Drunk Aqeel damages DC’s car?
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 7, 2009
Yesterday morning, all the residents of Sanjay Plaza woke up with a start thanks to Sanjay Khan’s son-in-law Aqeel breaking his neighbour’s car in his drunken stupor. He refused to stop and after breaking renowned automobile designer Dilip Chhabria’s new car, he went to his house at Sanjay Plaza where he continued creating a ruckus.
A source said, “It was around 5am in the morning. Aqeel was dead drunk when he reached his Juhu residence, Sanjay Plaza. No one knows why he was in a bad mood and he took the stick from the watchman and broke the windscreen of Dilip Chhabria’s car, a BMW X6, which he had bought just a month ago. After that Aqeel started kicking Dilip’s car and made a huge dent on the door of the swanky car and also broke its fender.” Done with his hullaballoo, he then stormed into Sanjay Khan’s residence and went to sleep on the floor of one of the bathrooms. Some policemen came in and took control of the situation. Dilip Chhabria did not file a police complaint as Sanjay Khan requested the automobile designer to forgive his errant son-in-law. After coming to his senses Aqeel too requested Chhabria not to file a complaint. Aqeel profusely apologised to Chhabria saying that he himself was unaware of what he had done because of his drunken state. Fortunately for him, Chhabria did not make a big issue out of the unpleasant incident. While DJ Aqeel denied the incident and said that he is in Hyderabad, Dilip Chhabria remained unavailable for comment.
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3 Idiots’ first half shown to 100 people for feedback
Posted by: fenilseta on: November 7, 2009
In a first in Bollywood, hundred people were invited to watch the first half of 3 Idiots to give critical feedback. Their lips are sealed though, as they are bound by a Non Disclosure Agreement
By Meena Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 07, 2009)
| It’s a first for Bollywood. At least 100 people from various age-groups have been shown the first half of Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s 3 Idiots as an exercise in gauging public reaction to his most ambitious venture to date.The chosen ones have been – lead actor Aamir Khan’s teenage son Junaid’s classmates, a group of middle-aged women, and some big trade names.
But wait before you envy this lot of ‘privileged’ people… here’s the catch.
Those who had seen 3 Idiots were given a Non Disclosure Agreement or an NDA to sign before they entered Vinod Chopra’s editing studio where the sneak previews were held. So what does this NDA say? It apparently is a proper legal document which prevents the people who have seen 3 Idiots from discussing it publicly or passing any opinion or judgment on it. “If they do, then they are liable for legal action,” says a trade insider. Anyway, the point is that this exercise was going great guns. Random people who were selected to watch 3 Idiots were actually thrilled. Many of them even partook in a film-discussion with the lead actor Aamir Khan after watching it, where Aamir encouraged them to speak their minds. “Junaid’s friends were surprised that Aamir wanted a no-holds barred critical view,” says an insider. And as said earlier, this exercise was paying dividends for the most part. Except when one leading exhibitor threw a fit and refused to sign the NDA. Other members of his family, who were present for the viewing exercise, signed the legal document thrust under their noses; but this gentleman categorically refused. He apparently even volunteered to walk out of the trial show, but said he would not sign the NDA simply because he felt the document was questioning his integrity. Now it so happens that the practice of signing an NDA is commonplace in Hollywood Studios who hold ‘screenings for a discerning public across the board’ nearly six months before a movie makes it to the screens because they truly value the feedback.
However, as far as Bollywood goes, this is a first and hence, it is still considered offensive by a certain segment. The official spokesperson from Vinod Chopra Productions confirmed the NDA story. He said, “3 Idiots is an extremely guarded and prestigious project. So, yes, we got everyone to sign an NDA.” |
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