Pakistani band Raeth set for a Bollywood debut

NEW DELHI:Pakistani band Raeth, popular for songs like “Bhula Do” and “Waada”, is all set to foray into Bollywood with upcoming film Marksheet, based on education scams in India reports IANS.

Directed by Rakesh Ranjan Kumar of Gandhi to Hitler fame, the movie will feature Imran Zahid in the lead role while newbie Zoa Morani is being considered to pair opposite him.

The Sufi rock band, comprising Wajhi Farouqui, Hassan Farabi and Sunny Ghansham, released their first album in 2006. Their second album came four years later.

In 2006, Universal Music India introduced the band in India after hearing only three songs from their first project. The record label also featured a video for the band.

Right now, the band is upbeat about their Bollywood debut. “We are really excited about entering Bollywood through a project like Marksheet,” Ghansham, the band’s guitarist, said in a statement.

“We are a band and making music for us is a collective effort. Often you find that only playback is given importance even when a band is taken aboard. But the makers of the film are not limiting our capability and have given us a chance to perform together with our original sound which is a welcome step for musicians.”
“Also, we have a huge following in India but films increase your spectrum and take you to a much larger base,” he added.

While studying at Hindu College in Delhi University, I witnessed the roaring popularity of bands amongst the youth. Now since I’m making a movie which revolves around the campus, I would like to pay a tribute to my alma mater by roping in Raeth,” said Marksheet’s director Rakesh Ranjan Kumar.

The song by Raeth for the film will be shot in Delhi University. The makers of the film also plan to organise a series of concerts by bands in various colleges.

Marksheet will not just be an issue-based film but will also be a love story. It will mostly be shot around Delhi University. Parts will be filmed in Bangalore, Mumbai and Kolkata. Credit: http://tribune.com.pk

Bollywood bodyguards reveal life beside the stars

They are an essential part of any Bollywood star's entourage, silently shadowing their every move and keeping over-eager fans and a celebrity-obsessed media at a muscular arm's length.

Now several of the increasing number of bodyguards working for A-list Hindi-language film stars have stepped into the limelight to speak about their duties, as a new movie on the subject is released.

The focus of attention has been a well-built Sikh nicknamed Shera (Tiger), who has been at action hero Salman Khan's side for the last 15 years and is accompanying him on promotional tours for Khan's new movie "Bodyguard".

"If anyone fires a bullet at him, I will stand in front of it and sacrifice my life for him. I love him to that extent," broad-shouldered Shera, who is in his early 40s, told reporters this week.
"In the last 15 years, Salman-bhai has done so much for me," he added. "Bhai" is Hindi for "brother" and is often used between close friends.

The feeling is reciprocated by Khan, who plays a bodyguard for Kareena Kapoor in the movie, a remake of the 2010 Malayalam-language film of the same name.

Shera -- real name Gurmeet Singh Jolly -- has been with Khan through the best of times and the worst of times, including a drink-driving case in 2002 and when Khan was jailed for a week in 2006 for killing endangered animals.

In a sign of his loyalty, Khan opted to use the badge and uniform of Shera's own firm, Tiger Security, in the film despite lucrative offers from a number of leading private security companies.

"I trust Shera completely with everything in my life, be it my money or even my women," joked the 45-year-old actor recently.

"If he ever decides to write a biography on me, I'm finished. He is the man whom I fear the most because he knows everything about me."

Bollywood stars inspire a fanatical following in India, making security staff as much of a requirement as an agent or a personal stylist.

While most fans are well-behaved, Kashinath Karmatkar, who works for megastar Amitabh Bachchan, said some can overstep the mark.

"Many times fans go crazy when they see stars face-to-face and they try to approach them closely," he said at a publicity event for "Bodyguard".

"It's at that time we have to be very careful to prevent them from coming close to the actor and at the same time see that the fans don't get hurt by our behaviour."

Hearthrob actor John Abraham has said he is rarely mobbed in Mumbai and is left to get on with his daily routine. But it is a different story elsewhere in India.

"I once walked into a Jaipur ATM and couldn't come out," he wrote on his web site last year. "By the time I had finished, there was a very committed Rajput ATM guard, who was trying to protect me from a very noisy mob of followers."

Female fans have pinched and even scratched him on other occasions, he has said.
Bachchan, star of some of the biggest hits of the 1970s, has long used bodyguards, who work so closely with actors that they often feel part of the family.

"The Big B" still has a huge following, with hordes of fans regularly camping outside his north Mumbai home just to catch a glimpse of him.

But the trend only really took off in the 1990s, when underworld figures tried to establish a stranglehold on the industry, and actors, producers and directors frequently received threats.

Bollywood's unarmed bodyguards now largely work at crowd control, with the bonus of accompanying stars at home and abroad.

For men like Yuvraj Ghorpade, who left school with few qualifications at age 16, the job has provided him with undreamed-of opportunities.

"The future was dark for me as I was doing odd jobs for survival until I decided to join Ace Security nine years ago," said Ghorpade, who has been a keen bodybuilder since his teens and is now in his 30s.

"Today, I am the bodyguard for (the actor-producer-director) Aamir Khan and many of my friends are envious of the fact that I roam with such a big celebrity all the time." (AFP)

Bollywood condemns Mumbai terrorist blasts

Figures from the Bollywood film industry have spoken out in condemnation against the latest terror attacks to hit Mumbai.A wide number of Hindi film celebrities have taken to social network sites to condemn the series of three blasts which took place on Wednesday.

Amitabh Bachchan wrote on his blog: "Bomb blasts in Mumbai .. !! God ! I hope people are safe (sic)."

Priyanka Chopra posted to her 1.2 million Twitter followers: "Terrible news about the blasts. A request - please do not cause panic by tweeting/ spreading rumours / unconfirmed news."

Madhur Bhandarkar posted: "Resilience of Mumbai again put to test because of the blasts. Heart aches for the victims. Condemn such cowardly acts of terror."

Actor Tusshar Kapoor used Twitter to express his anger at the latest attack on India's entertainment capital: "Completely resent what has happened in our city, high time these cowards are hanged and don't just languish in our jails."

Ranvir Shorey, urging restraint to the people of Mumbai, wrote: "We've been here before, #Mumbai. Let not these murderers win, by reacting without any chaos. Let's get back with more calm and efficiency."

The blasts occurred in three areas of the city, in the Opera House district, at the Zaveri bazaar and in Dadar.

Actor Shah Rukh Khan was earlier caught up in a controversy surrounding the 26/11 attacks on Mumbai.

Uma Thurman 'wants Bollywood film role'

Uma Thurman has said that she would like to maintain her personal relationship with India by starring in a Bollywood film.

Speaking to Gulf News , the Kill Bill star explained that she had a deep connection to the country that stemmed beyond more than just her Indian name.

Thurman spent part of her childhood living in the Almora district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and was named 'Uma' by her father, who is a Sanskrit scholar and a Tibetologist.

The actress said: "I have friends there and I feel very connected to it... the smell, the sights, the people. It's familiar.

"I didn't realise how close we were to India (in the UAE). Had I known earlier, I would have gone by. I go there often, my last visit was about two years ago."

When asked about the possibility of starring in a Bollywood movie, Thurman commented: "That will be the best. I am good friends with Mira Nair. In fact, I heard she's filming a movie in India that's coming up soon and I'm very upset I'm not in it. I'm going to have a word with her about that."

Nair directed Thurman in the HBO film Hysterical Blindness.

Thurman stars alongside Robert Pattinson in her next release Bel Ami, a period film based on the 19th century French novel of the same name by Guy de Maupassant.

Bollywood sequels: a recipe for success?

MUMBAI: A glut of Bollywood sequels are due out in the coming months, prompting questions about whether the industry has run out of ideas or is just milking a successful formula in troubled times.

More than a dozen follow-ups are in the pipeline, including "Bheja Fry 2" (Brain Fry), a second "Dabangg" (Fearless), a third in the "Dhoom" franchise and another installment of the "Golmaal" series.

Shah Rukh Khan is also getting in on the act, with a sequel due out by the end of the year of his hit "Don". The action film, in which the actor reportedly does his own stunts, is currently in post-production.

Bollywood studios are increasingly desperate for a money-spinner, with box office takings in the Indian film industry as a whole down for the last two years and the lack of original, quality script-writing a common complaint.

But "Bheja Fry 2" director Sagar Ballary rejected the notion that follow-ups are an easy option -- and said success was not guaranteed.

"I didn't rush to make the sequel immediately after the first film came out in 2007. We waited for the right script to make this part two," he said.

"Every film stands on its own. Whether it's a sequel or not, the film has to be good to work."

"Bheja Fry,", starring comedian Vinay Pathak, is based on the popular 1998 French comedy "Le Diner de Cons" (The Dinner Game), which was also made into a Hollywood movie, "Dinner for Schmucks".

Follow-ups are an established part of Hollywood. Some films, like those in the "Godfather" trilogy, are arguably better than the original. Others, like the Star Wars prequels, fail to find favour with fans or critics.

Bollywood, which is increasingly following Hollywood trends in filmmaking and marketing, has not been averse to sequels in the past.

Notable franchises include the crime comedy "Munnabhai" series, starring Sanjay Dutt.

The "Golmaal" series, which came out in 2006, 2008 and 2010, were all popular.

Director Rohit Shetty will be hoping the fourth, starring Kareena Kapoor and Ajay Devgn, will be just as successful and has no qualms about doing another follow-up.

"If I have created a brand, why should I be apologetic about making money on it? You reap what you sow, right?" Shetty was quoted as saying in the Hindustan Times newspaper recently.

The "Dhoom" series has equally been a box office winner throughout the last decade.

Bollywood producer Arbaaz Khan, who will direct "Dabangg 2", said the film was at the scripting stage and hopes that it will live up to audiences' expectations.

"Dabangg", a corrupt cop romp starring Salman Khan, was one of the few hits last year, winning a host of awards including Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment at last week's National Film Awards.

Arbaaz Khan said a sequel is justified given the film's following.

"It was the biggest mass entertaining film of the last year that did extremely well at the box office. So, the sequel, too, will hopefully work like the first one," he said.

For all their insistence on artistic integrity, Khan, Ballary and other filmmakers admit that financial factors are important.

With the "brand" already known, less has to be spent on marketing and success is more likely, the argument goes.

"Producers are demanding because for them it's good business," said Ballary. "They know sequels will surely recover the cost of the box office because of the success of part one and there's not much to lose.

"There are many scripts and good story ideas in the market but producers don't want to risk new ideas and they feel it's safe to work with a sequel because audiences like it."

Khan added: "The pressure to deliver a hit is bigger because people will surely have greater expectations." (AFP)

Playboy covergirl makes Bollywood debut with 'Aazaan'

Playboy covergirl Candice Boucher will make her Bollywood debut as a sand artist in director Prashant Chadha's "Aazaan".

Acclaimed sand artist Alexandra Konofalskaya was flown down from Belarus to train Candice for her role.

"I never imagined myself in a Bollywood film but now I'm looking forward to its premiere. I love your country and I want to see a lot of India," she said in a press statement.

"Aazaan" is an international espionage film about an informant who has to go undercover beyond enemy lines to save the nation from destruction by biological warfare.

"While scripting the film, I felt that Candice would make the perfect mystery miss. Given that she's a Playboy covergirl, the instant connect is, 'She must be hot.' She is but there's also a certain vulnerability that makes her more appealing," said Chadha, who made his directorial debut with Himesh Reshammiyaa starrer "Aap Ka Surroor".


Onir's 'I AM' ready for April release

Director Onir's "I AM", co-produced by over 400 people from 35 cities across the world, is now ready to hit the screens April 22.

"I AM" is a tale of four stories woven together that take audiences through issues and dilemmas that bruise modern Indian society.

The film unfolds many a tale of individuals struggling to find their identity, and uphold their dignity in a world that is callous, cold and unsympathetic.

The film bagged NETPAC Award for the Best in Asian Cinema at the International Film Festival of Kerala and many more honours.

The ensemble cast includes Juhi Chawla, Rahul Bose, Nandita Das, Sanjay Suri, Purab Kohli, Arjun Mathur, Abhimanyu Singh and Manisha Koirala. The film also marks the acting debut of directors Anurag Kashyap and Anurag Basu.

"The industry is looking forward to the release of 'I AM' since it's a movie with a soul. We can expect stellar performances for the cast and it's got its heart in the right place," said a source.

"I AM" is being distributed by PVR across India

It's difficult to play a legend's role: Neha Dhupia

Neha Dhupia, who plays Eva Braun in "Dear Friend Hitler", says that it is difficult to play legends on screen.

"Playing the role of Hitler's companion Eva Brown was very challenging. She was a legend in a way and I feel it is diffifcult to play legandary characters on screen," said the 30-year-old at presentation on the City Of Dreams Macau resort adjacent to Hong Kong. She has been appointed the official celebrity guide of the project.

"It has been a task for me, but I took it very sportingly as I belive in extending and exploring my horizons. I am a firm believer of pushing one's envelope and experincing the unkown," she added.

The film is Amrapali Media Vision's first production and is directed by Rakesh Ranjan Kumar. The film also stars Nalin Singh and Raghuveer Yadav.

Source: Indo-Asian News Service

Candice Boucher plays a sand artist in upcoming spy flick

Candice Boucher, a South African Playboy hottie who features in Percept's untitled next, essays the role of a sand artist in the espionage drama.

Directed by Prashant Chaddha (Aap Ka Surror), the film stars Sachin Joshi (the Managing Director of an energy drink endorsed by Shah Rukh Khan) and Arya Babbar.

The beauty had to train from a professional artiste for the role. She says, "Learning from a sand artiste from Belarus was an amazing experience.

It's an intricate art more difficult than oils and watercolours on canvas as sand keeps shifting all the time. One's concentration has to be sharper and more focussed."

As reported 'Playmate on board' (Hitlist, June 11), Candice was the nude centrespread attraction of Playboy magazine for April 2010 and is also the brand ambassador for an international jeans brand.

She was signed for the film during the FIFA World Cup in June (it was held in her home country) to up the project's glam quotient.

The movie is about an informant who has to go undercover to save his brother and the nation from the effects of a biological war.