"Shanghai" takes Scarlett Wilson in Bollywood

Mumbai: English girl Scarlet Mellish Wilson is the latest item girl to hit Bollywood with Dibakar Bannerjee’s ‘Shanghai’ and the director says she is one of the best dancers in the Bollywood form. "Someone recommended Scarlet for our item song.

I couldn`t believe how well she danced! Scarlet is by far one of the best dancers in the Bollywood form I`ve seen. Usually when foreigners do Bollywood dancing, there`s a certain amount of stiffness in their movements. Not Scarlet.

She takes to the rhythms as though she was born to the desi beat," said Bannerjee. Vishal-Shekhar were assigned the task to compose the song. "They’ve come up with this rocking number ‘Imported Kamariya,’ which we`ll be shooting with Scarlet shortly. Trust me, she will take Bollywood by storm," Banerjee said.Meanwhile Scarlet is being kept under wraps, far away from the prying eyes of item-fixated producers in Bollywoood. It seems ‘Imported Kamariya’ will be her launch-pad in the Hindi cinema.

Cannes pays midnight tribute to Bollywood

A documentary celebrating one hundred years of Indian film has been screened at Cannes.

Shekhar Kapur project Bollywood: The World's Greatest Love Story was given a midnight screening at the film festival, AFP reports.

"The audience should see why over a billion people are having a love affair with this kind of cinema," said the Elizabeth filmmaker.

"It's been quite a delicate process to do this, including clips from almost 100 films from black-and-white to today's cinema," added Kapur, who appeared as a jury member at last year's festival.

Festival director Thierry Frémaux advised the audience: "You can dance during the film if you want."

The 81-minute documentary traced the history of Bollywood from the first feature film Raja Harishchandra to the industry's current position as a globally-watched product.

Indian actors including Minissha Lamba, Mallika Sherawat, Sonam Kapoor and Freida Pinto are attending the 2011 festival.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan made her tenth appearance at the festival on its opening night.

Cricket causes $11.1mln loss to Bollywood

MUMBAI: A packed cricket schedule that peaked with an Indian win in the World Cup final has hit the country's other grand passion -- film -- emptying cinemas and forcing studios to postpone big movie releases.

Analysts said business at multiplex cinemas had been weak so far in 2011, with the six-week World Cup that finished earlier this month keeping people glued to their television screens in the evenings.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament, which began immediately afterwards is also expected to keep many cinema-goers away until the end of May.

The short-format Twenty20 competition has all the glitz of Bollywood, with many film stars owning team franchises and big name players from around the world, cheered on by a bevy of scantily clad dancing girls.

The financial newspaper Mint said during the week that multiplex chains may have lost up to 500 million rupees ($11.1 million) in the three months to the end of March. Earnings data is expected in coming weeks.

"It was a weak quarter, with average occupancy rates at theatres declining to between 10 to 12 percent," said Chitrangda Kapur, media analyst with Mumbai-based Angel Broking.

"Due to the World Cup and IPL, fewer films were released from February up to May" said Rajesh Jain, head of media and entertainment at global consultants KPMG.

In the absence of the usual number of weekend movie releases, some multiplex chains even resorted to screening cricket matches to attract audiences.

Alok Tandon, chief executive of Inox Leisure Ltd, said they had no option.

"As we know, February-March is traditionally a period when kids are busy with their exams and families prefer not to go out to watch movies," he said.

"Apart from the movies, cricket is the other religion of our country and hence during this period, very few big banner movies were released.... We screened the semi-final and final, which ran to nearly house-full shows."

The back-to-back cricket tournaments could not have come at a worse time, with the Indian film industry struggling to recover from a prolonged slump.

Overall revenues have fallen 20 percent in the past three years from $2.3 billion in 2008 to $1.85 billion in 2010, according to KPMG research.

Domestic box office revenues still contribute 75 percent of an Indian film's earnings.

Poor quality content, rising overheads, the global economic crisis and an increase in other ways for people to spend their spare time have also been blamed for the downturn.

"The industry just needs one strong story to change the trend," said Devang Sampat, chief India strategist with Cinepolis, the world's fourth-largest multiplex operator globally.

Sampat cited the example of Aamir Khan's "3 Idiots" which broke box office records in 2009, but few releases in 2011 have enjoyed even a fraction of that success.

Hopes are again being pinned on Khan, and his ageing superstar namesakes Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan, to boost box-office sales.

Salman's comedy "Ready" hits theatres in June, while Shah Rukh Khan stars in a sci-fi superhero movie "Ra.One" (Random Access - Version 1.0) and Aamir in "Delhi Belly" later this year.

KPMG's Jain predicted a better second half of the year for the industry.

"We have a good line-up of releases in the forthcoming quarters, including a good list of 3D and regional movies," said Inox's Tandon. "We are quite positive that these movies will do well."

Bollywood celebs pray for disaster-hit Japan

A host of Bollywood personalities, including Amitabh Bachchan, Shekhar Kapur and Madhuri Dixit have expressed grief at the devastation in Japan, which was hit Friday by a massive earthquake followed by a tsunami.

The celebrities are shocked at the images of the country after the disaster and, in postings on their blogs and social networking site Twitter, they hope that the pain and suffering will subside soon.

Here's what they had to say:
Amitabh Bachchan: The horrible visuals of the earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Japan are just unbearable to watch! The fury of the devastation and the helplessness of those that suffer is petrifying. In this hour of grief our heads bow down in prayer and hope, for those that face this trauma and wish that we can through our thoughts give them solace and comfort.

Shekhar Kapur: Watching videos from Japan was like watching an apocalypse. Heart and prayers go out to people of Japan.

Madhuri Dixit: Can you believe another quake and tsunami? My heart goes out to them.

Gul Panag: My heart goes out to all those affected by nature's fury in Japan. Gut-wrenching images on TV.

Vivek Oberoi: Just got back and saw the heartbreaking images of the tragedy in Japan... brings back memories of the destruction and devastation I saw during the tsunami in India. The images we see on television are nothing compared to the real pain and anguish of the people going through it... my thoughts and prayers are with them.

Shahana Goswami: Feel really helpless and upset with the tsunami and what its done to Japan. All the support and love to the survivors.

Aftab Shivdasani: Shocking visuals of the earthquake in Japan... Dreading the loss of life there. It's nature's way of saying do not spoil the planet... Must respect nature before it gets too late. My condolences and deep compassion to all those who lost their loved ones in this unforeseen fury of nature. May the divine bless the souls.

Arshad Warsi: God be with the ppl of Japan...

Siddharth: The visuals of yesterday (Friday) still haven't sunk in. It's all so very tragic. 2012 does seem like just another doomsday prophecy anymore!

Shahid Kapoor: Spread the love people... Life is just too short... Japan could have been us... Live with no regrets... May god bless us all!

R. Madhavan: My heart goes out to Japan. Having lived through one in Chennai I can't even imagine how this must be.

Lisa Ray: Deeply saddened by news of natural disaster in Japan.

Sanjay Suri: Heart and prayers for all suffering in Japan. Life is so very fragile.

Divya Dutta: EverythIng that we run around for is so frivolous in front of nature's fury. Let's make every day magical as if there's no tomorrow... prayers for Japan.

Sophie Choudry: As I lay me down to sleep, can't help but think of today's (Friday's) tragedy. My heartfelt thoughts and prayers go out to all the people of Japan. Lord have mercy.

Shreya Ghosal: The Japan Earthquake, Tsunami is MASSIVE!! I am just praying... Dear God, have mercy..

Pakistan artistes told not to sign Indian films

In the wake of Shiv Sena threatening Bollywood against giving assignments to Pakistani artists, the Lollywood bigwigs in Pakistan have advised their colleagues to stop signing Indian films and television shows.

Lollywood’s top director Syed Noor said it was shameful for the Pakistani artists, who visited India for fame and money, to work in the Indian industry after such insult. It is now clear that Indian fanatics leave no stone unturned to slander Pakistani artists but regretfully some of our artists like Verena Malik still wish to work in India, he said.

Senior actor and the president of Pakistan film artists association Mustafa Qureshi said the Shiv Sena has threatened and insulted our artists several times but despite such incidents, artists frequently visit India, to mint money. “They should at least keep in mind the respect of the country if they have not their own”, he said.

Chinese film industry races close to Bollywood

BEIJING: Box office earnings of the Chinese film industry have jumped a massive 64% in 2010, which is being regarded as a bad year for Bollywood. In fact, China's media regulators have predicted the local industry, regarded as a backward territory until recently, will surpass India and Japan by 2015.

The year 2010 saw a massive growth in the film industry with China 's State Administration of Radio, Film and Television reporting that a total of 500 films were made during the period. China ranked third behind Bollywood and Hollywood in terms of annual film output. It put the box office earnings of the local movie industry at $1.5 billion.

The Indian media has quoted film industry sources to say that the earnings in 2010 will be around Rs 10,000 crores ($2.2 billion) after rising 10-12 per cent over the 2009 revenue. The Indian industry has been caught in the 10-12% growth trend since 2008.
At present, the United States is ahead of all other markets as it notched box office revenue of $11 billion in 2010. Japan came second with $2.5 billion in earnings followed by India. China's media regulators expect China to overtake Japan by 2015.

The highest grosser in the Chinese market was a Hollywood film, Avatar, which earned $200 million accounting for over 13% of total sales. Next came a Chinese film, "Aftershock", that earned $100 million by telling the story of a earthquake. Another Chinese movie, "Let bullets fly" has made $75 million since its release in mid-December and its producers believe the total earnings will be much higher.

China's Film Bureau said in a statement that the country added 313 movie theatres. A total of 1,533 new screens were added resulting in a 25% growth in the country, which now has 6,200 screens.

Read more: Chinese film industry races close to Bollywood - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Chinese-film-industry-races-close-to-Bollywood/articleshow/7254578.cms#ixzz1AfYSC7Vl

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.

Bollywood 2010 Review

So what if 'Dabangg' managed to scorch the box office with a rich haul of Rs 145 crore. The bitter truth is that it hasn't been a 'Dabangg' year for Bollywood in terms of revenue receipts. With nearly 180 films released this year, trade analysts are finding it hard to pick out the top ten blockbusters from an industry which is struggling with gargantuan loss figures averaging at Rs 300 crores. Technically there are just a handful of films that have managed to make sizeable profits this year. These include films like 'Dabangg', 'Golmaal 3', 'Once Upon A Time In Mumbai', 'Rajneeti', 'Housefull' and 'Peepli Live'.

But the biggest eye-opener of the year has been a small budgeted, completely experimental film. Dibakar Bannerjee's innovative take on modern love in a messed up age not only walked away with critical acclaim for its brave new idiom and its bold new theme, it also managed to teach Bollywood its most important lesson. With a production cost of just Rs 1 crore and a revenue of Rs 8 crore, the film has enunciated the new business model for the film industry.

Think big, but keep it small: that's the new survival mantra for a busted Bollywood that is battling the blues with biggies like 'Veer' and 'Kites' biting the dust. And it isn't LSD alone which is boasting about economies of scale. Films like 'Atithi Tum Kab Jaoge', 'Peepli Live', 'Tere Bin Laden' and 'Phas Gaye Re Obama' which had rational budgets and reasonable profits also prove that bloat is definitely a bad word in film business today. Even a film like 'My Name is Khan' which managed to gross a Rs 80 crore plus isn't being viewed as a big hit by trade analysts, simply because it cost Fox studios much more than that (Rs 100 crore) to buy and distribute the film.

Looking back, 2010 definitely stands out as the year of the small yet startling pack. Think of the films that stand out at curtain call...'Udaan', 'Tere Bin Laden', 'Well Done Abba', 'Peepli Live', 'Lahore', 'Do Dooni Char', 'Ishqiya' and LSD are some of the films that made the industry proud despite the absence of larger-than-life stars and shock-and-awe budgets. All they had was a sensible story told sensibly and sensitively. The films credited their viewers with both IQ and EQ (emotional quotient) and won instant applause for doggedly steering clear of the formula.

The year has seen an efflorescence of new directors and scriptwriters — Vikramaditya Motwane (Udaan), Habib Faisal (Do Dooni Char), Danish Aslam (Break Ke Baad), Abhishek Chaubey (Ishqiya), Anusha Rizvi ( Peepli Live), Abhishek Sharma ( Tere Bin Laden), Subhash Kapoor (Phas Gaye Re Obama), Punit Malhotra (I Hate Luv Stories), Vijay Lalwani (Karthik Calling Karthik), Maneesh Sharma (Break Ke Baad), Farrukh Kabir (Allah Ke Bandey), Abhinav Kashyap ( Dabangg), Sanjay Puran Singh Chauhan (Lahore), Parmeet Sethi (Badmash Company) — who are willing to take risks and tell a different story. Contrast this with the unsavoury fate of the films by stalwarts — 'Veer', 'Raavan', 'Action Replayy', 'Kites', 'Rakth Charitra' — and the picture is clear. Old is no longer gold in an industry where the viewer profile has changed drastically and has been taken over by the digi-kids who like their drama current, contemporary and completely fresh.

In terms of entertainers, the year belonged to Salman for reinventing the superhero in 'Dabangg', Ranbir Kapoor for his riveting rendition of a desi Michael Corleone in Rajneeti, Ajay Devgan for rock steady roles in 'Once Upon a Time in Mumbai', 'Aakrosh' and 'Golmaal 3' and Vidya Balan for getting slutty in style in 'Ishqiya'. Of course, India still waits for Shiela ki Jawani to explode on screen this week.

Russian leader set for date with Bollywood

It won't be just fighter jets and nuclear reactors. Reviving Russia's romance with iconic actor Raj Kapoor, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev will find time for Bollywood and go to a film studio in Mumbai during his visit next week.

"India is a superpower in films. Raj Kapoor was a hero in Russia," Russia's Ambassador Alexander Kadakin told reporters here Friday while briefing them on Medvedev's two-day visit that begins Tuesday.

The envoy said Medvedev will visit a film studio in Mumbai Wednesday and meet some Bollywood stars.

Bollywood films enjoy huge popularity in Russia. Raj Kapoor and Nargis were icons in Russia and their films "Awara" and "Shri 420" were big hits in the country.

Bollywood Kajol, Ajay Devgn: Couple In First Animation Film

Kajol and Ajay Devgn, the Bollywood couple who are loved by one and all are soon to come in the first ever animation film together.

The movie titled Toonpur Ka Superhero is a mixture of real actors and animated characters, which is something quite new on Indian shores as this combo has never ever been tried in Hindi films before.

The movie Toonpur Ka Superhero will also have Kajol's mom Tanuja playing the role of her reel life mom as well.

This film is estimated to be quite an expensive one and is Ajay Devgn's home production. All hopes are pinned on this project owing to the different take on its basic subject line and idea.

Some years back the couple had come in the film which had Ajay Devgn and Kajol co starring in Ajay's home production was titled Raju Chacha and was largely a very expensive film, but it had slumped at the box office without much ado, which did not leave Ajay and Kajol very happy.

However this time with this movie Toonpur Ka Superhero having animated characters coming besides human actors is going to create quite a furore in the Hindi film market.

Even though Kunal Kohli did attempt to get comic characters in his films like Hum- Tum but it was nothing like this Toonpur Ka Superhero where the interactions of humans and animated characters are going to be the main protagonists - something like that was seen in Hollywood's Who framed Roger Rabbit in the 80's.

So if you love cartoons talking to humans or love to fantasize, this one's for you!

Pakistani singer Ali Zafar serious about Bollywood

Ali Zafar plays Imran Khan's brother in Yash Raj Films' Mere Brother Ki Dulhan. And that's not all. The Pakistani actor-singer who became popular with Tere Bin Laden, has got himself a business manager in Mumbai. He will spend some time in the city. His wife and baby will join him soon and stay on till November.

"After that, I return to Pakistan for a charity concert in aid of flood victims with performances by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Ali Azmat and (Azmat's band) Junoon along side me. But I am very serious about pursuing an acting career in Mumbai, " he admits.

Zafar began shooting last week for Mere Brother Ki Dulhan at Pataudi. Apparently, he agreed to be part of the project only because his role was modified to suit his pop icon stature.

According to sources, when the part was to be played by Riteish Deshmukh, it wasn't as pivotal as the leads played by Khan and Katrina Kaif. When Zafar flew down to Mumbai to discuss his role he "suggested" that the character be modified, thereby turning the film into a full-fledged love triangle.

Apparently, he has also made it clear that he should be as prominently featured in the hoardings, posters and trailers, as his co-stars.

Speaking from Delhi, he says, "An actor always brings his own sensibilities into a project. So yes, the role has been fine-tuned to suit my personality. And there's an understanding between the producers and me about the way I'll be presented. It's all been amicable."

Zafar is clearly determined to not repeat the mistakes of other Pakistani actors who fizzled out after their Bollywood debuts.

Fail to impress box-office

Last Friday was a crowded week with as many as 16 films jostling for eyeballs at the box-office windows. These included five Hindi films - Aashayein, Hello Darling, Antardwand, Soch Lo, Madholal Keep Walking and Gumshuda- and two English re-releases James Cameron’s 3D Avatar with nine minutes of never-seen footage and Vertigo and its dubbed Hindi version, Khoon Ka Khel.

Add to the list one English sequel, Crank 2 (dubbed in Hindi as Kaminey, Company), an English flick Bitch Slap - and a Malaysian animated flick, Geng. Followed by a bouquet of regional films - the Bengali Aarohan, three Marathi films, Navra Ali Bayko Lovely, Sa.. Sasucha and Pardh, one Gujarati film Preet Piyu Ne Parnetar and even a rare Sindhi film, Tappad Tension Tey. And what we had was a veritable potpourri that, with the exception of Avatar, which grossed Rs 1.60 crore over the weekend in India, was largely unpalatable.

Aashayein“Isn’t it ridiculous!’ says an aggrieved trade analyst Taran Adarsh. “Even during Eid or Diwali, the market cannot take more than two-three films. And this is the lean Ramzan and Shraddh period. Every producer believes that his film is Sholay and samnewale cholay and releases his film to 5-10 per cent collections. Some of the films even had to cancel shows because there were no takers.”

Distributor Ramesh Sippy doesn’t find anything shocking about this annual flop parade. “It’s the only time small films can get an opening at multiplexes. If they wait till mid-September and October, they will be bulldozed by the biggies. So they brave the numbers and come out in the hope that they will strike a chord,” he points out.

Sushil Rajpal, producer-director of the National Award-winning Antardwand, echoes his view. “September 27 was the only Friday I was getting theatres, so my
distributors, PVR, decided to go ahead with the release,” he sighs.

Antardwand got decent reviews, but couldn’t make an impact commercially. “You need a strong film to work at this time. Last year, I released Wanted in the Bombay territory three days before Eid. It was a crowdpuller from the first show. This year, even though it’s not as big a hit, Lafangey Parindey has been holding on,” reasons Sippy.

Trade analyst Amod Mehra pegs last week’s loss at between Rs 20-40 crore for the industry and believes that it’s time our filmmakers learnt from others’ fall and do not go down the same path. “Of course, in some cases, the producers have no choices. I hadn’t even heard of films like Gumshuda and Soch Lo before,” he says.

Malplix Films Hello Darling was just one of the many films that didn’t get a release overseas, while Percept’s 18-month delayed Aashayein, was a washout abroad. “No NRI would pay in dollars and pounds to watch a comedian (Javed Jaffrey) play hero to three non-happening actresses or watch another hero (John Abraham) die,” Mehra argues.

This week, the industry’s hopes are pinned on Dharma Productions’ We Are Family that Mehra describes as a “decent family film”. But the one everyone is looking forward to is Salman Khan’s Eid release Dabangg.

“It’s got the Wanted feel, Salman’s looking hot and the music too has caught on. It will be a plus film for the producer from day one,” predicts Mehra. “Even after paying fancy terms, distributors have managed to woo the exhibitors with the promise of houseful shows and recover their costs. And that is a rarity today.”

Swine flu scare - Bollywood sneezes!

The movie shoots have been getting cancelled and there is a chance that the upcoming new releases from Bollywood could witness fewer footfalls in theatres because of the growing scare of the Swine Flu pandemic. As many as 935 people across India were tested positive for the H1N1 virus till Monday night and the number is on the rise.

Given this panicky situation, the Bollywood folks are playing safe. Firstly, Karan Johar cancelled the shoot of his production Qurbaan in Pune, the city worst hit by Swine Flu in India. Then Salman Khan, who was scheduled to shoot for important sequences of his upcoming period drama Veer at Pune’s Agricultural College, too has cancelled the shoot. Now, the scenes will be canned inside a studio in Mumbai despite it costing much more for producer Vijay Galani.

However, such preventive measures to check the spread of the flu and to ensure the safety of the crew isn’t likely to affect Bollywood as much as the fear that the increasing pandemic could claim casualties in the new Bollywood releases.

Up for release this Friday is Vishal Bharadwaj’s Kaminey and Rumi Jaffrey’s Life Partner. There is a fear in the industry that the seat bums in theatres could be substantially reduced if the highly infectious flu keeps spreading and creating panic among general public. Less and less people would opt to go to theatres in such a case.

Besides, there is a buzz that the government is thinking of issuing an order for the closing down of multiplexes and malls in Pune to contain the spread of flu. If true, this could affect the performance of the new releases.

However, trade experts believe that ‘Kaminey’ will anyhow get a good opening at the box-office because of all the hype surrounding the movie, not to forget the scintillating chemistry between Shahid Kapur and Priyanka Chopra.

Still, we might see the movie buffs sitting in theatres with face-masks on!