FilmiKhabar

TIMES NEWS NETWORK — NIMISHA TIWARI (Bombay Times;  July  9,  2008)

Last year, the Big B joined hands with Hollywood star Sienna Miller to help spread awareness about global warming; this year, he is going to lend his voice for a film that talks about the same.

Zor Laga Ke Haiya, directed by Girish Joshi and produced by Kartikeya and Basant Talreja, is about a group of kids who make a treehouse as part of their school assignment which a corrupt builder tries to cut down. The kids then try to garner the support of the media and society to conserve the tree.

After Bhootnath, this is the second kiddie film that Big B is going to be a part of. Apparently, he was so moved by the script that he agreed to lend his voice to it without charge. Global warming is definitely big on Big B’s agenda.

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Ranbir Kapoor in a BT exclusive pays tribute to mother Neetu (Singh) Kapoor on her 50th birthday

RANBIR KAPOOR Times News Network (BOMBAY TIMES; July 8, 2008)

Mom turning 50 today is not a decisive moment for me… she remains eternally beautiful. I guess all sons believe their mothers are the best. But look at my mom at 50! Unlike many women who tend to stop caring about their appearance after a certain age, she really looks after herself to this day. She leads a strictly disciplined life. And it shows. I know nobody in or outside the industry who feels unkindly about her. She spreads such positive vibes. It’s her positivity that has nurtured me. And, she has never mollycoddled me. She always tells me what’s the right thing to do. But never imposes her views on me. I told her about my first sip of beer and my first girlfriend. Nothing has changed. She’s still the first person to know what’s going on in my life. I depend on mom for everything, from cutting my nails to ordering my deodorant and arranging my clothes for every occasion. She fills me with such happiness, comfort and security, I can never stop being a child when I’m with her. Mom loves me more than she loves anyone in the family. My sister Riddhima knows this. I love the excitement on mom’s face when she sees a promo of mine. She keeps all the articles on me in a folder. I’m trying to make my parents proud, but even if I didn’t try, mom would be proud of me anyway… Now I’ll tell you a secret. I don’t enjoy watching mom’s films at all. She has gone through three stages in her life: as the child actor Baby Sonia; then the popular star Neetu Singh; and, finally as Mrs Neetu Kapoor. That’s where I came in. But on screen, she’s not mom. That’s Neetu Singh, the actress whom millions loved. And I don’t want to share her with the world… (AS TOLD TO SUBHASH K JHA)

BOMBAY TIMES

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By Taran Adarsh, July 9, 2008 - 08:34 IST

The refreshingly different CHEENI KUM released more than a year ago, but even before the film could hit the screens, Balki had expressed a desire to work with Big B again. “He’s addictive. Once you work with him, it’s difficult to look elsewhere,” Balki had remarked then.

Balki had plans of bringing the father and son duo of Amitabh and Abhishek Bachchan in PA. Well, the dream has finally realized, for A.B. Corp has decided to produce the project. Also, besides the Bachchans, Balki has also confirmed Vidya Balan and Paresh Rawal for pivotal roles.

“We begin filming in February next year and hope to wrap up the shoot by May. PA deals with the father-son relationship,” Balki divulges. Sunil Manchanda and Balki will execute the project.

BollywoodHungama.com 

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Thankfully Yash Raj Films has decided to relook at the way they had been promoting (or shall we say under promoting) their films over the last one year.

Be it CHAK DE INDIA, LAAGA CHUNARI MEIN AAG, AAJA NACHLE, TASHAN and most recently THODA PYAAR THODA MAGIC the production house never believed in pumping in mega bucks for the promotion of their films. Not that an additional spent of moolah would have got big audience for most of their recent flops but it would have certainly helped these films walk an extra distance.

However, with their much anticipated TASHAN failing to deliver, YRF has now all its eyes set on BACHNA AE HASEENO which is carrying superb reports. As a result, the production house is going all out to make sure that the film is on everyone’s lips en route to its 15th August release.

Unlike majority of their films which see any kind of promotion beginning only 4-5 weeks in advance, the buzz for BACHNA AE HASEENO started catching up 2 months prior to the release. The songs have been bombarding the music channels all over while the publicity stills have been making the rounds too, hence added on to the hype for the film.

All of this has resulted in an all-around positive word of mouth for this film which could well be the real launch of Ranbir Kapoor in a hero ‘avtar’ per se. While he didn’t quite have a conventional launch with SAAWARIYA, BACHNA AE HASEENO is expected to change the fortunes for Ranbir who gets to romance ladies of different shapes, sizes and age groups in the form of Bipasha Basu, Deepika Padukone and Minissha Lamba.

Meanwhile songs by Vishal-Shekhar have already started creating frenzy with the fusion version of the Kishore Kumar sung title song already making a huge impression. The other track which is currently on air, ‘Khuda Jane’, has also created positive vibes about this album which has entered the Top-3 of the music charts within a couple of days of its arrival on the stands.

No wonder, Siddharth Anand must be smiling seeing an exception being made around the promotion of his film that is already being touted to be the next major success.

Glamsham.com 

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By Box Office Editor

COMING FRIDAY

The coming Friday will witness a clash between two delayed projects, Afzal Khan’s Sanjay Dutt and Ajay Devgan starrer MEHBOOBA and Mani Shankar’s Samir Dattani starrer MUKHBIR and also Rituparno Ghosh’s KHELA. None of the new releases are expected to create much of an impact, though MEHBOOBA may achieve a little at single screens and small centres and MUKHBIR some critical acclaim. The week will once again belong to last Friday’s JAANE TU… YA JAANE NA.

LAST WEEK

The much awaited, first major clash of the second half of 2008 between Harry Baweja’s LOVE STORY 2050 and Aamir Khan’s (production) JAANE TU… YA JAANE NA turned out to be by and large in favour of the latter, that is the Imran-Genelia starrer. Released at 70 cinemas of Bombay city and suburbs through PVR Pictures, JAANE TU.. YA JAANE NA had an excellent opening. In other circuits, the start was pretty good in multiplexes almost everywhere. On the other hand, the Priyanka Chopra and Harman Baweja starrer, LOVE STORY 2050 was released at 82 cinemas of Bombay city and suburbs through Big Pictures and had a fair start. In other circuits the opening was alright at some places and dull at others. Collections did pick up during the night show. Trade predicts that JTYJN will work big time. It will prove class A1, with chances of AA in Bombay and South. However, the picture is not so bright for LS 2050 and the gloss and richness may not be able to save the film at the box-office, due to lack of a good script and the heavy prices. In the UK, LOVE STORY 2050 has grossed $97,354 as compared to $59,843 by JAANE TU.. YA JAANE NA . In the US the Imran-Genelia starrer has grossed an impressive $214,360 (upto 6th July).

THODA PYAAR THODA MAGIC

The collections of Yash Raj’s Kunal Kohli directed THODA PYAAR THODA MAGIC began to slide from the fourth day onwards. During its first week, the film collected 3.45 crores from Bombay, 75 lakhs from Ahmedabad, 1.10 lakhs from Himmatnagar, 1 lakh from Patan, 2.40 lakhs from Jamnagar, 2.85 lakhs (gross) from Bhavnangar, 2.15 lakhs from Gandhidham, 1.20 lakhs from Adipur, 16.25 lakhs from Pune, 1.30 lakhs from Solapur, 1.60 lakhs from Sangli, 7.10 lakhs from Nasik, 2.20 crores from Delhi, 30.25 lakhs from Noida, 32.05 lakhs from Ghaziabad, 10.50 lakhs from Kanpur, 26.50 lakhs from Lucknow, 6.15 lakhs from Agra, 3.35 lakhs from Meerut, 1.70 lakhs from Bareilly, 4 lakhs from Aligarh, 42.10 lakhs from Gurgaon, 16 lakhs from Faridabad, 3.20 lakhs from Panipat, 66 lakhs from Calcutta, 3 lakhs from Guwahati, 22 lakhs from Nagpur, 1.10 lakhs from Akola, 1.35 lakhs from Raipur, 20.50 lakhs from Indore, 1.35 lakhs from Sehore, 27.40 lakhs from Jaipur, 3.10 lakhs (gross) from Ajmer, 2.05 lakhs from Bikaner, 41.35 lakhs from Hyderabad, 2.65 lakhs from Aurangabad, 1.40 lakhs from Nanded and 4 lakhs from Mangalore. In its opening week, THODA PYAAR THODA MAGIC has netted around 16.75 crores from India. It is now clear that the 20 crore, Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukerji starrer is all set to be another losing proposition for Yash Raj Films. The film has also been rejected in the Overseas, grossing $473,706 from UK and only $335,874 from the US.
Box Office Status: Flop in India & Overseas.

THODI LIFE THODA MAGIC

Fizz Entertainment’s THODI LIFE THODA MAGIC is very poor. It could not complete even a week’s run at many places. With less than 5 lakhs from India, it is one of the biggest disasters of the year.
Box Office Status: Washout.

VIA DARJEELING

NFDC’s VIA DARJEELING has quite dull collections to show. The film collected 8.25 lakhs from Bombay, 5 lakhs from Delhi city, 1.50 lakhs from Noida, 2.10 lakhs from Gurgaon and 1 lakh from Hyderabad. Netting barely 30 lakhs in its opening week from India, VIA DARJEELING will be lucky to even cover its low cost.
Box Office Status: Flop.

DE TAALI

E Niwas’s Aftab, Ritesh and Ayesha starrer, DE TAALI, is on its way out. The film crashed badly during the second week as it collected 30 lakhs from Bombay, 6.40 lakhs from Ahmedabad, 2 lakhs from Pune, 1 lakh (approx) from Rajkot and Solapur, 10.20 lakhs from Delhi, 2 lakhs from Noida. 3 lakhs from Ghaziabad, 1.05 lakh from Kanpur, 1.75 lakhs from Lucknow, 2.45 lakhs from Gurgaon, 1.15 lakhs from Faridabad, 2 lakhs from Nagpur, 1.50 lakhs from Amravati, 2.25 lakhs from Jaipur and 3.50 lakhs from Hyderabad. Adding another 1.45 crores in its second week, DE TAALI has netted nearly 9 crores in two weeks from India and has failed at the ticket window. The loss though will not be too heavy.
Box Office Status: Flop.

MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP

Priyadarshan’s Akshaye-Genelia starrer MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP is on its last lap. The film collected 9.20 lakhs from Bombay, 10 lakhs from Ahmedabad, 1 lakh (approx) from Himmatnagar, Gandhidham and Pune, 1.35 lakhs from Jamnagar, 18 lakhs from Delhi, 2.05 lakhs from Noida, 3.55 lakhs from Ghaziabad, 1.30 lakhs from Kanpur, 5 lakhs from Lucknow, 1.50 lakhs from Meerut, 3.50 lakhs from Gurgaon, 1.20 lakhs from Faridabad, 1.10 lakhs from Calcutta, 2 lakhs from Nagpur, 1 lakh (approx) from Amravati and Dhule, 1.25 lakh from Indore, 12.05 lakhs from Jaipur and 4.30 lakhs from Hyderabad. With an additional 1.50 crores, MERE BAAP PEHLE AAP has netted a surprisingly decent 23 crores in three weeks from India. The Shemaroo venture is now an above average fare, which has also impressed in the UK, grossing $500,757.
Box Office Status: Above Average in India & Average in Overseas.

SARKAR RAJ

During its fourth week, Ram Gopal Varma’s SARKAR RAJ collected, 14.15 lakhs from Bombay, 5 lakhs from Ahmedabad, 1.15 lakhs from Pune, 11 lakhs from Delhi, 2 lakhs from Noida, 1.30 lakhs from Ghaziabad, 2.30 lakhs from Lucknow, 1 lakh from Agra, 3.70 lakhs from Gurgaon, 1.50 lakhs from Nagpur and 5.10 lakhs from Hyderabad. Adding another 75 lakhs, the Amitabh, Abhishek and Aishwarya starrer, SARKAR RAJ, has netted 34 crores in four weeks from India and is now ending its run. The film has turned out to be a losing venture for most of its distributors, barring Bombay and has not impressed in the Overseas, despite a decent US gross, due to its heavy procurement price.

Box Office Status: Flop in India & Overseas.

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Source

Vaibhavi Merchant and Sanjay Leela Bhansali

A lot has been said, written and imagined about the relationship between Sanjay Leela Bhansali and choreographer Vaibhavi Merchant.

Both made veiled comments on the nature and status of the relationship, over the last few months. But now we hear that they are not a couple any more. Sanjay and Vaibhavi have realised that they are not meant for each other, after all.

According to industry insiders, Vaibhavi and Sanjay were attracted to each other during the making of Saawariya. Both of them decided to keep the relationship low profile, reportedly, because Sanjay wanted his mom Leela to give her consent before he took the relationship to the next level.

Our well-placed source from Bollywood tells us, “Vaibhavi and Sanjay were very fond of each other. Both respected each other a lot. Everything was fine and they wanted to take their relationship to a more meaningful level.

But then they both realised that a relationship between them was not meant to be. They both stepped back by mutual consent.” (more…)

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While the soundtrack of Singh is Kinng is topping the charts the world over, little has been written about the lyricist who has penned these successful numbers - Mayur Puri. From the emerging breed of young and talented dialogue writers-lyricists, Mayur Puri’s name strikes a chord when one talks about songs with distinct Punjabi flavour.
Also to his credit lies that fact that he has penned most of the chartbusters by Pritam, making them knock-out hits. Talking about his work for Singh is Kinng, Mayur fondly says, “I’ve done some of the most popular work of my career, be it for Dhoom or Pyaar Ke Side Effects with Pritam. So there’s an inherent understanding between us. Also Aneezji (Bazmee) and I had been talking about working together for a long time. Finally everything fell into place with Singh is Kinng. And I’m glad I did it; it’s a project close to my heart as I got to revisit my mother tongue in all the songs.”
When quizzed about his favourite track from the film, Mayur is quick to respond, “Actually I have two favourite songs. Jee Karda for its energy and synergy between the Punjabi and English lyrics, and Teri Ore for its softness.” (more…)

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Indiatimes

Shah Rukh is back in the city and in fact even started the shoot of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi yesterday itself at Yash Raj studio. He arrived on time thus putting all the rumours about his alleged unprofessionalism to rest.

To begin with, within few days of the king’s absence from his kingdom, we started to hear stories about Shah Rukh’s unprofessionalism as far as his commitments to his forthcoming films are concerned.

“The shoot of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi had already begun and the film was being shot in Film City and few other studios in Mumbai, however in the middle of it all, Shah Rukh left for Amsterdam to do a show for Temptations and after that took an extended vacation! His schedule delayed the shoot as he didn’t come back for good 15 days, which he had not informed in advance”, complained a unit hand. (more…)

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Ghajini Confirmed For November 28

Deepak Suri

Aamir Khan’s much awaited Ghajini will now release on 28th November. The date has been confirmed by the distributors Studio 18 putting an end to the speculation whether it will come on 3rd October or 12th December.

The same distributor will have Sanjay Ghadavi’s Kidnap as their October 3rd release.

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DNAINDIA

Aamir Khan ropes in Imran for his next production Delhi Belly; Imran plays the lead and Aamir might play a negative character

Looks like mamu Aamir Khan has been so impressed by bhanja Imran’s work that he has roped him in for his next production ‘Delhi Belly’ in which Imran will play the lead. The interesting thing, however, is that Aamir and Imran will be seen sharing screen space in the film.

Directed by Abhinay Deo, Aamir is expected to play a negative role in the movie. There are three main characters in the film for which currently Aamir is busy casting. The film, which is a sex comedy set in New Delhi, will also have Chitrangada Singh in it.
Imran will play the role which was initially offered to Ranbir Kapoor. However, Ranbir backed out of the Aamir Khan venture due to date problems. Delhi Belly is expected to have an ensemble cast and shooting for the film is set to begin this August-September. (more…)

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Thoda success Thoda magic!!! The coveted Yashraj banner might be hoping for some “success” and lots of “magic” this time when their youthful ambitious project BACHNA AE HASEENO hits the marquee. It’s the successful conglomerate of director Siddharth Anand and composer duo Vishal-Shekhar (V-S) this time and do they create the same magic as they did it in SALAAM NAMASTE? After a spate of mediocre musical releases, can BACHNA AE HASEENO revive the fortunes for the esteemed banner and put them in the race for top honors in the charts? Apparently it has everything going in their favor- peppy vocals, chirpy lyrics and a set of rollicking musical outburst that can really pulsate “haseeno” (Bipasha Basu, Deepika Padukone and Minnisha Lamba) to the beats of most eligible bachelor (Ranbir Kapoor). So without a moments delay, let us check it out!

Soft and delicate guitar strumming, in a stream of refreshingly balanced chorals creates the mood of romantic tranquility in the air as eclectically paced KK and Shilpa Rao makes mood mushier in “Khuda Jaane”. V-S are in great form as they imbibe lovable romantic hues of “My Dil Goes Mmmm” (SALAAM NAMASTE) with a pack of racy arrangements that gives it a ravishingly vigorous appeal. Anvita Dutt Guptan’s romantic wordings infuses substantial amount of emotional palpability that really makes this a beautifully ushered love song. KK delivers a sure-shot chartbusting hit number where peculiar sounding Shilpa Rao makes a remarka (more…)

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LINK 

New Delhi, July 8 (IANS) Bollywood star Aamir Khan had promised his fans that he will stop smoking after the release of his home production Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na. The movie has been released and is declared a hit, but he is not able to keep himself away from smoking. Aamir made a honest confession on his blog that he has begun smoking again and wrote: “Bear with me folks, I’ll give up once Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na releases.”

Aamir posted this on his blog site www.aamirkhan.com June 18.

Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na, debut vehicle of Amair’s nephew Imran Khan, hit the marquee on July 4 and got overwhelming response at the ticket window. But the star has failed to keep his promise. (more…)

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A lot of films have proved that sometimes it’s the execution which works, not the content. A classic example is Mel Gibson’s Apocalypto. Abbas Tyrewala’s Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Na is also somewhat similar-the story is not outstanding, it is the direction and screenplay which makes this movie a must-watch one! The funny and weird characters of this movie put on a smile on our faces and it remains even after the movie is ended!

The story of the movie: Jai (Imran Khan), Aditi (Genelia Dsouza), Rotlu (Karan Makhija), Bombs (Alishka Varde), Jiggy (Nirav Mehta) and Shaleen (Sugandha Garg) are the best buddies. Jai and Aditi are completely opposite of each other yet have the strongest bond between them. Aditi’s parents, Jai’s mom (Rachna Pathak Shah) and even their friends know that Jai and Aditi are made for each other. But Jai and Aditi that all this is rubbish and that they are just friends. And to prove this, Aditi decides to search a girlfriend for Jai and Jai will search the perfect man for Aditi!

Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Na is a wonderful entertainer and the reason why it works big time is because the characters are real and one can relate oneself with them easily. You may have surely heard of people having similar traits, or you may have encountered people like them. Or there is a possibility that you may be totally like one of the characters! So don’t be surprised when you go to see this flick and the person next to you says to his friend “When I was in college, I was totally like Jai!” (more…)

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TIMES It’s been a low phase for the Yash Chopra camp recently – both Tashan and Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic haven’t done well.

But Chopra takes it in his stride. “If my films aren’t doing well, there must be something wrong with them,” he says. “But we all learn from our mistakes, don’t we?” he smiles.

That’s quite a brave admission from a man who’s been in the business for decades – “49 years”, to be exact – and who was in town recently to receive the Officier de la Legion d’Honneur, France’s highest civilian honour, from the French ambassador.

Chopra admits that things have not been working in their favour, but also says that experiments like Chak De! India and Dhoom were well-received. “Like everyone else, we also like to experiment. Sometimes it works, like Chak De… India and Dhoom , and sometimes it doesn’t.”

That, however, is no reason to slow down. “We have to learn and then move on,” says Chopra, firmly. And so, after four years, he is going to direct his next movie. “The praise I got for Veer Zaara was overwhelming. I will start my next directorial venture in February or March next year,” he says, not wanting to reveal more.
(more…)

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Source

Mallika Sherawat will play an important role in Ram Gopal Verma’s Contract, a film based on the underworld.

However, everybody including Ramu is very hush-hush about the exact details of Mallika’s character.

A source from Ramu’s office said, “Mallika plays a significant role but we can’t reveal the length of her role. All I can say is that you will see Mallika as Mallika Sherawat in the film.

The film which is slated to release next week, has a lot of newcomers.

Ram Gopal Varma remained unavailable for comment .

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The critics’ cut 

Let down by critics’ response to Love Story…, Harry Baweja reduces the film’s length by 10 minutes

Though Harry feels that the critics have been too harsh with his film, as if taking a cue from the reviews, he has decided to have the film cut short by 10 minutes. “I agree that the film is long and we have already taken measures to cut it short. After a few screenings we realised that the audience was getting restless in the second-half, so we’ve cut about 10 minutes of the film. By Saturday morning, the new version was played across all 270 theatres where the film has been released. I haven’t lost the battle yet. Love Story 2050 was not just for the audiences to like, it was also to mark the launch of my son Harman. And everyone loved Harman! I have succeeded there.”

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Source Harry and Harman Baweja have been breathing fire for the last three days ever since Love Story 2050 released along with Aamir Khan’s Jaane Tu… starring his nephew Imran Khan.

Says a source close to Harman, “Harman has gone through a lot in the last few days but he is not shattered. He has got a thumbs up from B-Town folk who have said a star is born or that he is a lambi race ka ghoda. But Harman feels that there is a deliberate attempt to sabotage his film by running it down. Harman and Harry feel there is a gameplan at work to prove that their film is a flop.”

The source adds, “Some people are even spreading a buzz that Anees Bazmee, who is directing Harman in his untitled next, produced by Sanjay Kapoor, wants him out. When Anees heard it, he called up Harman and told him, ‘I have enquired with distributors  the audiences have loved you and so have my kids. There is no denying that next year you will be one of the big stars. Don’t worry, you have already won over the audience.”

Harry Baweja says, “Our collections are improving but it’s very disheartening that some people are trying to run the film down.

They are purposely trying to do so but I don’t know who is behind this. It’s sabotage, yes the film may be okay  but it’s not so bad. What others are doing to damage Love Story’s prospects is below the belt. the strategies they’re adopting are very unfair. (more…)

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Monday 7th July 2008 14.00 IST

Q. Do you think Yarshraj films are losing their touch, they have had all flops over the last year and Bachna Ae Haseeno and Rab De Bana Di Jodi have a feeling of been there done that.

Ans. Bachna Ae Haseeno will be a huge success while Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi is likely to set record totals for all revenues from Indian theatrical to Overseas theatrical to music to satellite. It is likely to be biggest grosser ever in India and Overseas so YRF are just going through a bad patch but with Bachna Ae Haseeno and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi that patch will be over.

S Iyer, India

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