Back in the limelight
Last June, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan— who was shooting for the highly-hyped 'Heroine' at the time — decided to step away from the camera following the news of her pregnancy.
Now, more than a year later, it turns out that the former beauty queen has decided
to get back into the limelight.
There have been film-makers vying for her attention, but the script which is likely to get her nod of approval is probably Mani Ratnam's next project — and an ambitious one at that.
This movie will be an adaptation of Daphne Du Maurier's famous 1938 novel 'Rebecca'.
"Ash and Ratnam go back a long way. Her cinematic debut Iruvar was directed by him in 1997.
They worked again ten years later in Guru. The same year, she got married. They again worked together in 2010 in Raavan. Whenever Ratnam has offered Ash a role or a script, she has alwaysrespected it. This time too, it was the same," an insider says.
Maharaja Features
'Makkhi' goes the Salman way
Salman Khan's famous towel dance has been copied by people across the country and the latest to join the bandwagon is Makkhi — the housefly who is the main protagonist of S S Rajamouli's latest film.
Apparently, this scene was specially incorporated into the film in about seven days. When asked why he included this scene in the movie at the last moment, Rajamouli says, "For a film like Makkhi, it is very important that the audience leaves the theatre with warmth in their heart and a smile on their faces. So, we came up with the idea of making the Makkhi dance for the end credits. But Makkhi doing the towel dance is the cherry on top."
Eega was one of the biggest Telugu blockbusters of the year and was later released in Tamil and Malayalam as Naan Ee and Eecha respectively.
Time to stop comparisons
It isn't easy for many South Indian stars to carve a mark for himself or herself in Bollywood — but J D Chakravarti, fondly called Chakri, feels that this is not something that an actor should bother about too much. "I think it's about time that we stop drawing comparisons between Hindi and Southern film actors. The biggest actor in the South is aware that he can not beat Shah Rukh Khan or Salman Khan's popularity. In fact, one SMS or a 'hello' by Salman would send them into a frenzy. Trust me, a cordial meeting with Amitabh Bachchan or Hrithik Roshan is discussed so dramatically by them that it's embarrassing. Suddenly, their world revolves around the importance they got from them. Like the rest of the country, every Southern actor deep down is in awe of Hindi film actors of his generation," he says.
A voice to reckon with
Thanks to Salman Khan's recommendation after he was taken in by her crooning, Palak Mucchal made every one sit up as the voice behind the song Laapata in Ek Tha Tiger.
Originally from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, she shifted to Mumbai six years ago with the dream of becoming a playback singer.
Palak has also sung for several other movies, like 'BMW', Kab Se Sambhale Rakha Hai Dil and Damadam. The singer is all set to release 46 songs by this year. She has also sung title and promotional songs for serials like Honge Juda Na Hum, Bandini, Balika Vadhu,
Rahul Ka Swayamvar and Ratan Ka Rishta, among others.
Palak has performed in 1475 stage shows all over the country and received her initial training in Indian classical music from S N Mishra.
The end of an era
The film fraternity is eagerly awaiting Yash Chopra's next directorial venture, Jab Tak Hai Jaan — but what many didn't realise till recently is that this would be his last.
The actor surprised one and all on his 80th birthday celebrations, when he announced — in conversation with Shah Rukh Khan — that he'd be quitting the industry after the movie releases.
"I want to enjoy life now. Let me do it while I am still young," said Yash Chopra,
at the emotion-filled occasion.
The director's illustrious career includes 22 films spanning a whopping 53 years, over 40 years as the head of Yash Raj Films and a lifetime of service to the film fraternity.
He has always stood for the one principle he strongly believed in all his life, which was instilled in him by his mother — Apne dil ki suno (Listen to your heart).
Lucky charm on the sets
Apparently, Arshad Warsi is playing the lucky mascot for producer Vashu Bhagnani these days. Vashu Bhagnani's last venture 'F.A.L.T.U', starring Jackky Bhagnani, set cash registers ringing at the box office. Declared a hit just on the release of its music, the film gave Jackky his first super hit in Bollywood. The film also starred Arshad Warsi in a major role and Vashu firmly believes that Arshad's presence in the film was lucky for them. On account of this apparent lucky charm, Arshad was roped in to play a cameo in the upcoming 'com-rom' Ajab Gazab Love, starring Jackky Bhagnani and Nidhi Subbaiah.
Arshad — who shares a very good rapport with the producer, his team and Jackky — made it a point to visit the sets of the film from time to time, even after his bit of the film was shot. The whole team present on the sets would be thrilled to have Arshad visiting because that would call for a feast, coupled with a big dose of fun and entertainment for the day.
Ajab Gazabb Love releases on October 24.