Posts Tagged ‘cinema’
Written by Rahul on 17 August 2009
New York, Aug.17 (ANI): Bollywood actresses Shilpa Shetty wowed fans of Indian cinema at was touted as one of the largest India Day Parade’s and Festivals on Sunday here.
Shetty performed the role of Grand Marshal of the parade.
It was an event packed with jaw dropping performances, incredible food, and all that is famous about Indian culture.
The parade, which has showcased India’s culture on Manhattan’s Madison Avenue since 1981, saw the participation of industrialist Vijay Mallya as the chief guest.
The Federation of Indian Associations (FIA), an umbrella group of cultural, educational and community organisations in the New York tri-state region, organized the parade,
Its president Yash Paul Soi had earlier flagged off the event at the Indian consulate in New York on June 10.
The parade began on 41st Street, winded down Madison Avenue and culminated in a variety show on 23rd Street, drawing an estimated 50,000 people.
Last year, Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra was the grand marshal at the event, which celebrated India’s 61st anniversary of independence.
In past, actors and actresses Govinda, Madhuri Dixit, Dev Anand, astronaut Sunita Williams and music conductor Zubin Mehta have marched with the crowd.
This year’s guest list included New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, New Jersey governor John Corzine, New York Governor David Paterson, and President Bharrat Jagdeo of the Republic of Guyana.
The organisers also paid homage to the martyrs of the first struggle for the independence of India in 1857.
The FIA has already announced plans to campaign for two statutes of Mahatma Gandhi-one on Ellis Island and the second inside the campus of the United Nations.
The process for fund raising for these two projects has already begun. The FIA has also said that it campaign to get Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary (October 2) celebrated in public schools in the New York region.
he event, which is the 29th annual India Day Parade, also saw the particiupation of beautiful newcomer actress Reshma Shetty from USA’s Network new original series “Royal Pains” as well as the dance group Broad Street Baadshahz. (ANI)
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Written by Rahul on 03 May 2009
It indeed is ironic that Akshay Kumar who is one of the stars who has popularized Jeans as an attire and symbolizing youth is being tormented reportedly for an obscene gesture while promoting a new brand of Jeans. In fact Jeans as attire had a late debut in the Hindi films but after it got an endorsement from our film stars it became the attire symbolic of youth and energy.
It was the advent of Jeans that led to development of notion of health conscious and to have a toned body. It also had its rub-off effect on the female actors as well, and if a fault line were to be discerned that really swayed a nation in a big way and pushed it on to a journey of Jeans discovery, the campaign of Coke involving Aishwarya Rai could be one such fault line. Dressed simply in a white shirt and Jeans she apart from swaying Aamir Khan off his feet was able to literally swoon the whole country as well.
From the previous generation it was in SHOLAY that Jeans made its debut in a big way as attire that had element of rebel and exuberance of youth written on it, and it got manifest in the characters portrayed by Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra. As a matter of fact in SHOLAY for the first time probably in Hindi cinema, Big B had packaged a pair of Jeans with a Black shirt and it became a fashion statement.
As the generational shift acquired its mooring, Jeans slowly weeded out hose pipe pants and flaring bell bottoms, and it became the fabric which defined the chutzpah of the character. In ANDHA KANNON after a long time Amitabh Bachchan had returned to Jeans in a big way, and again the element of casual that he had brought to his character of Jaanisaar Khan got manifested in a big way through Jeans as well.
The generation of Big B probably did not patronize Jeans in a big way owing probably to the fact that this generation was at the cusp of nationalism, where Jeans still was considered as western attire.
But as the new generation made its debut in Hindi cinema, brought on the profuse dozes of Abba, BoneyM, Pink Floyd and Woodstock, Jeans came to make their presence felt in a big way in the world of Hindi cinema. The same kind of paradigm shift was noticed in case of the female actors as well, and experimentation with Jeans as an attire by the female actors also allowed them to experiment with their looks as well. If there was one film that can be considered as a film that promoted Jeans in a big way it was JAANBAAZ and it can always be a matter of debate whether Dimple Kapadia looked more beautiful in a Jeans in JAANBAAZ or in SAAGAR. Jury would go in favor of JAANBAAZ. Incidentally, Feroze Khan can be considered as the father figure of Jeans in Indian films, as right from the time when he made DHARMATAMA, followed by QUARBANI and YALGAAR, to JANBAAZ, his films are a living tribute to the humble Jeans in its most alluring manifestations.
It is a tribute to the fascination of Jeans that a film by name of JEANS was made in Hindi and the female character in this film was enacted by Aishwarya Rai sheer coincidence or fortuitousness, decision is left to sail in the wind. Even a song was written on Jeans epitomizing its association with youth, “Purani Jeans Aur Guitar”…
Jeans as it represents youth, the sense of aghast that is being experienced by the purists, may be condoned as an indulgence and exuberance of youth and nothing else.
Jeans represents youth and youth is allowed to err sometimes, but the magnanimity of the elders is to condone it and allow moving on.
Tags: aamir, Aamir Khan, abba, Advent, Aishwarya, Aishwarya Rai, Akshay, Akshay Kumar, Amitabh, Amitabh Bachchan, ANDHA, association, attire, aur, Bachchan, Bell, Bell Bottoms, Big, Black, body, BoneyM, brand, campaign, case, character, chutzpah, cinema, coincidence, coke, country, cusp, debate, debut, decision, development, DHARMATAMA, Dharmendra, Dimple, Discovery, Dressed, effect, element, endorsement, energy, experiment, experimentation, exuberance, fabric, fact, fascination, fashion, fashion statement, father, fault, Fault Line, favor, Female Actors, Feroze, figure, film, film stars, Floyd, generation, generational, Generational Shift, gesture, guitar, Health, hindi, hindi cinema, Hindi Films, history, History Of Jeans, hose, Hose Pipe, Incidentally, indulgence, jaanbaaz, Jaanisaar, JANBAAZ, jeans, journey, jury, KANNON, Kapadia, Khan, kind, Kumar, line, magnanimity, matter, name, nation, nationalism, nothing, notion, Obscene Gesture, pair, paradigm, Pink, pipe, presence, profuse, Purani, QUARBANI, Rai, rebel, right, SAAGAR, Sail, sense, shift, shirt, sholay, song, statement, swoon, time, toned body, tribute, way, Western Attire, wind, Woodstock, world, YALGAAR, youth
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Written by Rahul on 03 May 2009
Rupa and Co Ltd, India’s largest manufacturers of hosiery inner, casual and sportswear for men, women and kids today announced the launch of the new premium fashion line under ‘MacroMan M Series’. The premium fashion line of knitted inner wear and sportswear for men was unveiled at a dazzling event and gala evening with leading models fashion show and with one of the most stylish actors of Indian Cinema Hrithik Roshan, the brand ambassador for the premium range of MacroMan M Series.
Suave and stylish ambassador for the brand MacroMan, Hrithik Roshan expressed, “It is a pleasure to be a part of this celebration and Team MacroMan. ‘Live the moment, Live the action’ is something that transcends what one wears. It is about what one is and it is something that I have been trying to live by. So when I endorse MacroMan its appeal to me goes beyond just being an endorser of the brand it makes me feel like someone who is intimately involved with the brand. I am happy that over the two years of my association with it we have come such a long way. It has truly been a pleasant experience.”
Tags: action, actors, ambassador, appeal, association, brand, celebration, cinema, endorser, evening, event, experience, fashion, fashion line, fashion show, gala, Gala Evening, hosiery, Hrithik, Hrithik Roshan, india, INDIAN, Indian Cinema, launch, Launches, line, Live, ltd, M Series, MacroMan, Men Women, Models Fashion, moment, part, pleasure, premium, range, roshan, Rupa, show, someone, something, sportswear, Suave, Team, Today, way, wear
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Written by Rahul on 29 April 2009
It had to happen, and it has happened. When there are three famous Bollywood stars that are franchisee owners of three of the main teams in the IPL, i.e. Shah Rukh Khan, Shilpa Shetty and Preity Zinta, a convergence between the films and cricket had to be arrived. And it has arrived. These three super stars have decided that they would be on the hunt for a new Bollywood starlet from amongst the spectators who come to watch the matches of the IPL.
This decision would really send the camerapersons covering the IPL matches in South Africa into a tizzy, as there would be a load of glamour and oomph on display with loads of attitude and array of designer ware. After all, when would the pretty girls from South Africa be they of the Indian origin or the South African origin get a chance to act in a film in Bollywood. As it is South Africa is a venue, which has been quite popular with our Hindi film industry as a preferred locale, and Sanjay Dutt is a star that is the most popular of the Indian film stars in South Africa.
These three stars would have a lot of watching to do, and they have not retracted, but have decided to watch all the matches to find out that elusive face. After all, who does not want to unleash one’s own discovery into the world of Hindi cinema, a protege always warms the cockles of the heart. The person who would be finally selected would be entitled to a role in a Hindi film, 50000 Rands in cash, a business class trip to India and a whole truckload of other prizes. The whole idea behind going in for searches of these kinds is to get a fresh face without the trappings of grooming for a space in Bollywood.
The focus of the search of the face would be to find out if it has an attitude and appearance and the arena of the cricket ground has been chosen as it would indeed be difficult to maintain a demeanor through out a match and natural expression would come into play, and it is this natural expression that would even mesmerize a stranger is being aspired for, through this quest. The trio would select 50 winners from each one of the eight venues hosting IPL matches in South Africa. Those who emerge winner would be shown on the big screen during the second five-minute break.
Each venue would have one finalist, so in all there would be eight finalists from whom one lucky person would be selected and honored at the final match in the Wanderers in Johannesburg on 24 May 2009.
Wonder why services of Mandira Bedi are not being requisitioned for this endeavor, as she literally hangs out amongst the crowd with her mike in hand?
Tags: African Origin, appearance, arena, array, attitude, Bedi, Bollywood, bollywood stars, break, Business, Cash, chance, cinema, class, Class Trip, Cockles Of The Heart, convergence, Cricket, crowd, decision, demeanor, designer, Discovery, display, endeavor, expression, face, film, finalist, focus, franchisee, Franchisee Owners, glamour, ground, hand, heart, hindi, hindi film industry, hunt, idea, india, indian film stars, indian origin, industry, IPL, Johannesburg, Khan, load, locale, lot, Mandira, match, May, mesmerize, Mike, Natural Expression, oomph, origin, person, Preity, Preity Zinta, Pretty Girls, protégé, quest, Rands, role, Sanjay Dutt, screen, search, Shah Rukh, Shah Rukh Khan, Shetty, Shilpa, Shilpa Shetty, South Africa, space, star, starlet, stranger, Three Stars, tizzy, trio, trip, truckload, venue, Wanderers, ware, winner, Wonder, world, Zinta
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Written by Rahul on 12 April 2009
Mumbai, April 10 (IANS) The image of the coy beauty seated primly in a makeshift kotha singing ‘Raina beeti jaye’ in Lata Mangeshkar’s soulful voice pervades our senses as now. The gorgeous Sharmila Tagore, who played the prostitute in Shakti Samanta’s ‘Amar Prem’, is deeply grieved by the death of the maker of some of the most sensitive romantic cinema of the 1970s.
‘Shaktida was very straightforward, very honest. He’d tell me what he wanted to in my face. No mincing of words. And he chain-smoked in that special style with the cigarette clamped in his fist. We went back a long way. When his son Ashim called to tell me about Shaktida’s death, I remembered all the times we shared,’ Sharmila told IANS.
Sharmila remembers her beginnings in Hindi cinema with Samanta’s ‘Kashmir Ki Kali’.
‘It didn’t require much persuasion from Shaktida for me to agree to his film. There was that whole Bengali collection… the writer Sachin Bhaumick, the music director Sachindev Burman and his son Panchamda (Rahul Dev Burman). Shaktida was my mother’s friend and they remained friends till the end,’ she said.
After her debut in ‘Kashmir Ki Kali’, Sharmila went bold with a vengeance in ‘An Evening In Paris’.
‘You know I remember a funny incident. As you know I wore a one-piece bathing costume in ‘An Evening In Paris’ and not a bikini as is generally believed. But I wanted to wear a bikini. Shaktida put his foot down. He forced me to wear a one-piece.
‘I was very unconventional and self-willed during those early days. Shaktida would drill the dos and don’ts in my head. I remember at a party once I got up and started dancing with a man. Shaktida gently told me such behaviour is not allowed in our film industry,’ said the veteran actress.
Samanta also taught Sharmila to be wise with finances.
‘He gave me Rs 25,000 for ‘Kashmir Ki Kali’ and suggested I buy land in Vile Parle. I laughed it off saying what would I do with that marshland. Today, the same land is worth Rs.8 crores (Rs. 80 million). He finally persuaded me to buy a flat in Mumbai. I insisted on staying at the Taj hotel. If it wasn’t for him, I’d have continued to stay there,’ she said.
Sharmila met the man, who gave us some of the most memorable musicals in the 1960s and 70s, for the last time in January this year.
‘This was just before he suffered that stroke that finally took away his life. I was in Mumbai dubbing for a film. And it was wonderful catching up with him. He was still very much the patriarch in charge, scolding his son Ashim, getting the office to be faster with the work… I was part of most of his films in the 1960s and 70s except ‘Kati Patang’, which I didn’t do for some silly reason.
‘I loved even our unsuccessful films like ‘Charitraheen’. But if you ask me to choose my favourite film with Shaktida, it would have to be ‘Amar Prem’. What lovely songs, music and what an era that was! God, I will miss Shaktida so much!’
The veteran filmmaker died Thursday after month-long hospitalisation in the Nanavati Hospital. He is survived by his wife and two sons. He was 83.
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Written by Rahul on 10 April 2009
Steven Baker, Bollywood Trade News Network
Aishwarya Rai has done it, Frieda Pinto is doing it, and now Payal Rohatgi is set to become the latest Indian export to Hollywood. The former Big Boss contestant’s route from B-grade flicks to mainstream success has not been easy.
“I did not have anybody to guide me on what kind of films I should look at, and I goofed up in that big time,” says Payal. “The journey for me was very difficult but I worked on myself to be stronger as an actor and rejected many movies.”
This included turning down Yash Raj Productions offer of a part in TASHAN. Payal explains, “The role was not the kind I was willing to do, but I would definitely like to work with them in the future- and I know I will.”
The 36 CHINA TOWN and CORPORATE star recently wowed the crowd when she made a presence at this year’s Filmfare Awards. The actor, whose latest release DIL KABADDI saw her paired opposite Irrfan Khan, is buoyant about her career at home and abroad.
Hoping to follow her co-star’s overseas success, Payal says, “SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE has been a great achievement,” adding, “It has opened the doors of Hollywood for Indian cinema.” She reveals, “My fans will see me in a lot of different roles which I will start working on soon. There are a couple of big things lined up including a Hollywood project.”
(Steven Baker is a UK writer who divides his time between London, Delhi, and Mumbai. Best known for his writing on the Hindi film industry, his work regularly appears in a range of Indian, NRI, and international publications. Steven Baker is presently the Co-ordinator of the British Council’s Creative Writing course in New Delhi. He has also appeared in 15 Bollywood films).
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Written by Rahul on 09 April 2009
Enkayaar, Bollywood Trade News Network
8×10 TASVEER apart from the novelty of interpreting the narrative through the photographs is also characterized by some stunning visuals of locales of Canada that set the tone of the film in the beginning. It is altogether a different issue that the film after setting the tone through the locales meanders along. As a matter of fact the choice of locations play a very important role in setting the tone of the film and no wonder the producers and the directors are at their wits end to select the locations to mesmerize and entice the audience to come back repeatedly into the cinema halls. After all it is the grandeur of the locale that is the initiating factor in setting the tone and tenor of the film.
It has also been observed that if the locations are chosen from India the ability to identify with the location is stronger than if it is a foreign country. RANG DE BASANTI and JAB WE MET are prime examples of the choice of Indian locations that set the tone for the movie. If the producer is able to bring the spectacle of the unknown India within the reach of the audience in the cinema hall then he has won half the battle. But the problem is of searching the locations.
At a time when the industry is virtually shutdown as the films are not releasing, it presents an opportune moment to suggest some of the locations that the cinema fans may be introduced to. It indeed is amazing that even after such a long time the Taj Mahal Hotel of Mumbai has not figured prominently as a back drop in any film. Now that a massive rebuilding exercise is being undertaken to build the heritage block, may be the film fraternity could come forward and used the magnificent facade of Taj as a location. After all, Taj Mahal Hotel along with the Trident and the Oberoi has been conferred with the PRIDE OF INDIA, under the National Tourism Awards for 2007.
MahaParinirvan Express is the train that covers whole of the Buddhist circuit and it has been awarded the most innovative tourism project by the government of India. A film made on the live of Buddha can be shot through the train route covered by this train, or for that matter a love story can also be shot. It was in JOHNY MERA NAAM that the backdrop of Buddhist circuit was used by Dev Anand and it is height time it is revisited again as Buddhism as a religion has great popularity internationally, and if a film is shot covering these spots it sure is going to catch the eye of foreign viewers as well. May be a Richard Gere and a Shilpa Shetty love story to begin with…
While Goa has featured in score of films, how many of he producers are aware about the fact that Karmali Railway Station at Old Goa has been cited with the award of ‘ best tourist friendly railway station’ by the GOI, and should it not for this reason feature in one of the films that is on the drawing board stage. Orissa as a state has yet to be featured with prominence in a Hindi film and may be the time for it has come.
Locations for their sheer novelty dot the landscape of the country, and there is no need to venture outside India, but these locations should be used to market the potential of the country as a tourism destination of its own kind, and if the film industry initiates the process it would ad one more feather in its crown as an industry whose heart beats and vibrates for the betterment of the country.
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Written by Rahul on 07 April 2009
Thiruvananthapuram, April 7 (IANS) Malayalam superstar Suresh Gopi Tuesday said his passion is films and he doesn’t have any intention to join politics.
The actor was posed a number of questions on his views on politics and the coming elections at a press conference here, but he refrained from answering any of them.
‘See, my passion is films and I don’t believe in political parties. Instead, I look at candidates,’ said Gopi who was interacting with the media after his latest movie ‘IG’ has hit the jackpot.
He replied in the negative that he was camping at Congress leader K. Karunakaran’s house for a seat in the last assembly polls.
‘If you can prove that then I am prepared to shave off all my hair,’ said Gopi.
In reply to another question on why he campaigned for Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan in the 2006 assembly polls, he said: ‘As a political leader and the efforts he took as leader of opposition (2001-2006) impressed me hugely and I campaigned for him,’ said Gopi.
Asked to evaluate the three-year governance of Achuthanandan, he replied with ‘No comments’.
‘IG’ is running to packed houses and Gopi plays a police officer, a role he has excelled in the past.
‘I am not responsible for being cast as a police officer often. And till date, the audience has not said anything about my frequent appearances as a police officer. May be, I have some god-given gift to act as a policeman,’ said Gopi.
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Written by Rahul on 07 April 2009
New Delhi, April 7 (IANS) There were huge expectations from Akshay Kumar-starrer ‘8X10 Tasveer’, but the supernatural thriller has failed to impress audiences and fallen flat at the box office.
Releasing after a lean period of almost two months, the film was expected to be a box-office saviour — instead it turned out to be another A-list flop.
Despite being the first and only Bollywood film that opened in the second quarter year, it is Akshay’s second big-budget dud in the year after ‘Chandni Chowk To China’ that opened the first quarter for biggies this year.
It is also director Nagesh Kukunoor’s second endeavour gone wrong at the box office in terms of commercial cinema post ‘Bombay To Bangkok’ (2008).
‘The reaction to ‘Tasveer’ is not at all up to the mark. It is in fact very disappointing. Neither the public reaction nor the collections are good — considering the fact that it is an Akshay Kumar starrer and that it opened as a solo release over a long weekend due to Ram Navami,’ Sakshi Mehra, an exhibitor and president of the Motion Pictures Association of Delhi-Uttar Pradesh, told IANS.
‘The business for the film started falling Sunday onwards, when otherwise, it should have soared. And with the bad word of mouth now, there is no chance even for it to improve at the box office,’ he added.
Released April 3, ‘8X10 Tasveer’ also stars Ayesha Takia, Sharmila Tagore, Javed Jaffery, Girish Karnad, Anant Mahadevan and Benjamin Gilani in pivotal roles.
It is the story of a young man Jai (Akshay) who has a supernatural gift to look into the past of dead people by looking at their 8×10 photographs.
A PVR official said on the condition of anonymity that ‘the film has managed to collect 40 percent over the opening weekend despite holidays.’ He further added that the collections are slow.
Made on a budget of approximately Rs.600 million, ‘8X10 Tasveer’ released with around 1,500 prints worldwide and the least hype for any Akshay starrer since the last four years. The actor too was reported to be underplaying the promotion of the film.
Trade analysts are not even excepting more than the initial business for the movie.
‘The film is dull and shatters all hopes from a director like Nagesh Kukunoor. People had high expectations from the film, as it was after a long gap that a big-budget movie was hitting the screens but it all went wrong,’ said an industry source from Mumbai.
‘Whatever audiences it managed to draw over the weekend was courtesy Akshay and the supernatural element. However, due to its horrible packaging, it is going to suffer a bad word-of-mouth. It is not likely that the movie will survive more than a week or 10 days at the maximum,’ he added.
Utpal Acharya, vice-president (programming and distribution) of Inox Leisure, added: ‘It’s a different movie altogether and not an in and out masala commercial cinema but due to Akshay’s fan following, people have visited the theatres and it has been a good weekend with around 45 percent occupancy overall.’
‘The movie has done good and has been liked by the multiplex audience. However, it doesn’t have a life more than around two weeks,’ he added.
Meanwhile, with the ongoing confrontation between the producer and distributors on one side and the exhibitors on the other over revenue sharing for forthcoming projects, April is again in the dry mode with only low-budget films on the anvil.
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Written by Rahul on 06 April 2009
When 8×10 TASVEER would be releasing this Friday it would be one more addition in the vast repertoire of Hindi films, which have used photographs as the linking element for continuity of the film. Hindi films from quite a long time have reverted back to photographs and have used as a continuity of narrative, building up to an exciting climax.
In view of the interest that is being generated in using photographs as a base for construction of history photographs have indeed risen into eminence as a vital tool for construction of history, all over the world, and in India as well. It would not be out of context to inform that Asit Sen the comedian of yester years had a famous photography studio in Gorakhpur, in UP. Lets then rewind to the world of photographs.
COOLIE: Manmohan Desai was indeed one of the futurists who had the vision to understand its importance and he used it with panache in this film. The romance of Rishi Kapoor and Shoma Anand when it blossomed in the adulthood was on account of the pieces of a snap that both of them had from their childhood. The reference to it was in fact made in the song as well “Tasveer ka ek tukda tera paas hai aur ek mere pass”.
NASEEB: Manmohan Desai again returned back to the importance of photograph as the element to bring about a turn in the flow of the movie and he did it again in NASEEB. When Amjad Khan on the verge of death handed over the photograph of Pran’s innocence to Rishi Kapoor it culminated in the climax of the film.
JAANE BHI DO YAARON: One of the biggest laugh riots ever produced by the Hindi cinema, it brought out in distinct relief what important role a photographer can ply in the day-to-day life, more so if it is political life.
TRIDEV: Director Rajiv Rai had Shekhar Suman in the role of a photographer who was killed in the film as he had become privy through his camera to a discussion that had brought the existence of Amrish Puri into question
.
GARAM MASALA: John Abraham and Akshay Kumar starrer film tried to explore the world of fashion photography in a humorous manner, but in a subtle manner also commented on the nature of job that fashion photographers handle these days.
DELHI 6: The character of Cyrus Sahukar as a photographer in this film again went on to underline the dubious halo that photographers have come to associate with their image.
GHAJINI: Aamir Khan’s mega hit film again revolved around construction of the past based on the photographs that he used to click; it was a sort of reconstructing the history of self through the photographs.
AA DEKHEN ZARA: Neil Nitin Mukesh and Bipasha Basu starrer film took on its own after discovery of a camera by Neil in the movie.
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Written by Rahul on 06 April 2009
Film: ‘8×10 Tasveer’; Cast: Akshay Kumar, Ayesha Takia, Sharmila Tagore, Javed Jaffrey, Girish Karnad, Anant Mahadevan; Director: Nagesh Kuknoor; Rating: ***
No wonder the director sent off an e-mail before the film’s release requesting that the suspense not be revealed in the reviews.
The plot of ‘8X10 Tasveer’ unravels with such elegant dexterity that you are tempted to spill the beans. However, doing so would be a crime worse than the multiple murders attempted and achieved in this understated, gently violent and subtly tongue-in-cheek movie.
Normally Indian whodunits are so hysterical in tone you rue the day Dolby sound was invented. But Nagesh Kukunoor’s narrative uses sound to create a delectable and subtle distinction between crime and lyricism.
The characters move through a labyrinth of heightened luxury. Canada’s sun-kissed lakes and valleys open up a vista of narrative possibilities, some realised, many unexplored. Either way, the plot obtains its bridled energy from the director’s clear and present understanding of the danger that could underline the most beautiful and desirable surfaces. All you have to do is scratch.
Kukunoor definitely knows the finest suspense creators of celluloid – from Alfred Hithcock to Brian de Palma to Manoj Night Shyamalan. In these masters, Kukunoor discovers his magic and metier. He converts the history of the whodunit into a crackling currency of characters and plot-twists that make you in the audience touch the goings-on without really embracing them.
A perfunctory attitude underlines the storytelling, creating within the high level of aesthetics a murky interior where knives are used to cut the human body rather than succinct meat on the baroque dining table.
The supernatural element is used with a delicious and devilish delicacy. Believe what you will, says the director. But you have to admit that there are times when logic simply takes a backseat.
Providentially, Kukunoor keeps the supernatural element on a believable scale. Having Akshay Kumar to go into intermittent premonitory bouts helps. Akshay doesn’t fight the tides of improbability. He goes with the flow, riding the waves with a twinkle-eyed, ever-grin, sometimes grim graciousness that allows him to get real without forfeiting his heroic image.
When Akshay is not busy being self-righteous or cocky he is very likeable in this film. Without revealing the climax, it would be appropriate to say here, more than anywhere else, the gripping elements of noire cinema kiss the masala conventions of Hindi cinema in ‘8X10 Tasveer’. It’s a heady brew cooked at an even temperature that reaches the boiling point without bubbling over.
Kukunoor is unarguably an adept storyteller. His triumph with the whodunit is manifested in delicate details that draw inspiration from the masters of the murder mystery and yet re-define the culture of filmed crime in a language that is derived from the director’s own sensibilities.
The film could have made its end-game a little less wedded to Hindi cinema’s formulistic conventions. But the concession to commercialism doesn’t compromise the suspenseful equilibrium of a canvas where a family photograph speaks a thousand words.
The film’s quiet, restrained rhythm of expression is palpable.
You can’t miss the artery of understatement even when that gloved hand with the knife gleams on the polished exterior. That is when we begin to see what the film wants to do. It takes the whodunit into a land of murderous silences.
Greed underlines the crime. But the director is not greedy. He refrains from reaching out for all the armoury of the suspense genre. For telling us that less can be more even in a whodunit Kukunoor and his leading man must be applauded.
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Written by Rahul on 06 April 2009
Joginder Tuteja, Bollywood Trade News Network
Box office collections of the three films that had released a fortnight back have proven once again that just making a small film in a controlled budget with a decent star cast is not the readymade recipe for a box office success. One look at the horrific collections of FIRAAQ, STRAIGHT and BARAH AANA and you know for sure that the script has gone totally wrong when it comes to offbeat/middle of the road/new wave/multiplex cinema.
In fact what’s worse is that each of the three films struggled to complete first week at the box office and were hardly in the running in the second week. Now how bad it could be from here for Bollywood which is seeing disasters after disasters with every passing week.
Let’s look at FIRAAQ first. You can’t have a film of yours released with a couple of quotes from some big celebrities with their 4/5 star ratings shining bright on the posters. A trip to a couple of film festivals too can’t help much if you don’t promote your film enough to reach out to your target audience. Result is there to be seen with box office collections not even touching the 1 crore mark. Now you can’t expect things to improve from this point on!
Same holds good for BARAH AANA where Aamir Khan liking the film was considered to be good enough endorsement for the film. Come on; now makers can’t really be serious that a) this message will actually reach out to masses overnight and b) that would really impress them enough to shell out 1000 odd bucks for a visit of two to the theaters! Result? Another flop that will find it difficult to touch the 1 crore mark.
STRAIGHT – now this movie could have probably held on a little better had it been reasonably promoted at the least. However, for some stranger reasons, perhaps the makers felt that the name Vinay Pathak will be good enough to stare from the posters and get people excited on day one of the film’s release. Now BHEJA FRY doesn’t happen every Friday and by the way, the film has to be a good watch as well, something that STRAIGHT wasn’t, as reflected in near 1 crore that the film managed to make at the box office at the end of its first week run.
All small movies, all failures. But now, it will at least stop people from expressing their opinions that ’small is big’. Remember, it could happen sometimes, but not all the time!
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Written by Rahul on 07 March 2009
London, Mar 7 (ANI): The Palm Pre, dubbed the “iPhone killer”, has topped the list of the 100 hottest gadgets on the planet.
First unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, the smartphone boasts a slide-out keyboard, 8GB of storage capacity, and a multi-touch 3.1 inch colour screen.
The device runs on new software called Web OS, which lets users directly connect to information stored on the Internet, known as the cloud, rather than through a desktop PC.
The Sony X-Series Walkman is at the second spot in the annual list compiled by gadget magazine T3.
It was closely followed by Nokia N97 phone with a slide out keyboard at the third position, reports The Telegraph.
Rounding off at fourth and fifth position are Philips 21:9 Cinema LCD TV and the state of the art satellite navigation system TomTom Go 940 LIVE, respectively.
However, not a single Apple gadget made the top ten, with the iPhone 3G being 14th on the list.
The Top 10 hottest gadgets are:
1. Palm Pre
2. Sony X-Series Walkman
3. Nokia N97
4. Philips 21:9 Cinema
5. TomTom Go 940 LIVE
6. Sony Reader PRS-700BC Reader Digital Book Touchscreen
7. B and W Panorama
8. Toshiba TG01
9. Canon IXUS 980
10. Sony VAIO P-series (ANI)
Tags: ANI, apple, art, book, Canon, capacity, cinema, cloud, colour, CONSUMER, desktop, device, Digital, Earth, Electronics, gadget, inch, information, internet, iPhone, IXUS, January, keyboard, killer, Las Vegas, LCD, list, Live, London, magazine, mar, navigation, Nokia, palm, Philips, phone, planet, position, pre, PRS, Reader, Rounding, satellite, screen, series, show, slide, smartphone, software, Sony, spot, state, storage, system, Telegraph, TomTom, Toshiba, touchscreen, VAIO, W Panorama, Walkman, Web, X-Series
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Written by Rahul on 05 March 2009
New Delhi, Mar 4 (ANI): The 14th European Union Film Festival in India will be held from March 5 to April 22 in New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Kozihodhe, Chennai and Jamshedpur.
A selection of contemporary film productions of nineteen European countries will be presented.
The film festival will be inaugurated tomorrow at Siri Fort Auditorium II in Delhi.
The film festival is being organised by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, in collaboration with the delegation of the European Commission to India and the Czech Embassy along with other European Union Member State Embassies and local partners.
Besides promoting mutual respect and understanding, the aim of the European Union Film Festival in India is to encourage broad international cooperation programme of cultural and commercial relations between Europe’s film industry and filmmakers in India.
Through the eyes of film directors, the festival brings a spectrum of pictures of European society in dramas of everyday life along with complex human relations and in everlasting search for love and happiness. There are comedies, a thriller with underlying emotions and real portraits of courage to stand up for values of justice and dignity.
The film “Czech Dream” will be screened at the inaugural function, as the Czech Republic currently holds the Presidency of the European Union.
“Czech Dream” is a film about a hypermarket that never existed.
The directors Vit Klusak and Filip Remunda will be personally inaugurating the European Union Film Festival in Chennai.
In Mumbai, the Fun Cinema will host the event, in Pune festival will be presented in assistance with Indian National Film Archive.
Kerala State Chalachitra Academy and the Corporation of Kozhikode is co-organizer in Kozihodhe.
The partner of EU in Chennai is Indo Cine Appreciation Foundation and Kalamandir in Jamshedpur. (ANI)
Tags: Academy, aim, ANI, appreciation, April, archive, assistance, Auditorium, broadcasting, Chalachitra, Chennai, Cine, cinema, collaboration, Commission, cooperation, corporation, courage, Czech Republic, delegation, Delhi, dignity, Directorate, dramas, Dream, Embassies, Embassy, Europe, European, event, Festival, Festivals, Filip Remunda, film, foundation, fun, function, happiness, hypermarket, india, INDIAN, Indo, industry, information, Jamshedpur, justice, Kalamandir, Kerala, Klusak, Kozhikode, Kozihodhe, life, love, mar, March, Member, Ministry, Mumbai, national, New Delhi, nineteen, partner, presidency, programme, Pune, respect, search, selection, Siri Fort, society, spectrum, state, thriller, Thursday, tomorrow, understanding, union, vit
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Written by Rahul on 05 March 2009
London, Mar 4 (ANI): Traditional apple crumble and custard is Britain’s favourite school canteen pudding, says a new research.
According to the survey, carried out by online independent education guide www.tom-brown.com, the second most popular choice was chocolate sponge with chocolate custard and third most popular was jam roly-poly.
To reach the conclusion, experts asked volunteers about their memories of childhood dining.
As per the survey, two thirds said they would be disappointed to see traditional British puddings like chocolate sponge and jam roly poly disappear from school canteens.
In other findings, one in five adult women said they still eat their favourite school puddings for comfort.
Cary Cooper, professor of psychology at Lancaster University, reckons people carry on eating their favourite school foods because it reminds them of ‘a happier time’.
“We rely on foods that were our favourite in our school years because this was a time when, in general, we were happy and life was less complicated. It’s really for nostalgic reasons – the food is symbolic of a happier time so we eat it for comfort,” The Telegraph quoted him, as saying.
“Whenever I go to the cinema I still buy the same kind of sweets as I did when I was a child even though now I don’t even like them. But they remind me of my childhood,” he added.
Tom-Brown.com editor Gail Dixon said: “In a time when the focus lies so heavily on diet and nutrition, we were surprised to see that some nostalgic old favourites still have a place in our hearts.
“We are always talking to parents and teachers about how children can get the greatest benefit from their time at school.
“We think that health and happiness play an important part in this.
“Despite the ongoing food debate, it’s clear parents feel that there is still a place for the likes of jam roly poly on school menus. They want to see more children enjoying this element of school life without worrying too much about putting on weight.”
Favourite puddings:
1 Crumble with custard
2 Chocolate sponge with chocolate custard
3 Jam roly poly
4 Treacle Tart
5 Bread and Butter Pudding
6 Spotted Dick
7 Sticky Toffee pudding. (ANI)
Tags: adult, ANI, apple, benefit, bread, Britain, butter, canteen, Cary, child, childhood, chocolate, choice, cinema, com, comfort, conclusion, Cooper, Crumble, custard, debate, Dick, Diet, dining, Editor, Education, element, favourite, focus, Food, Gail Dixon, Guide, happiness, Health, jam, kind, Lancaster, life, London, mar, Nutrition, online, part, place, professor, psychology, pudding, Research, school, sponge, Sticky, survey, Tart, Telegraph, time, Toffee, Tom, Tom-Brown, traditional, Treacle, university, weight, www
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Written by Rahul on 01 March 2009
London, Feb 28 (ANI): Despite not getting encouraging reviews from critics, Hugh Jackman and Nicole Kidman’s World War II epic ‘Australia’ has become the second highest grosser of all time in their homeland.
The Baz Luhrmann-directed film was made in four years with a budget of 87.6 million dollars.
However, the high profile stars and the big production cost could not impress film experts, and the flick received a lukewarm response from them when it was released last November.
But still the negative reviews did not stop Australian movie buffs from flocking to cinema halls, where it went on to become the second biggest earning movie after ‘Crocodile Dundee’.
“The on-going box office success of Australia has been outstanding, and a unique testament to the way the film has been embraced by this country,” the Daily Express quoted Twentieth Century Fox representative Marc Wooldridge as saying.
To date, Australia has raked in approximately 142 million pounds worldwide. (ANI)
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Written by Rahul on 01 March 2009
Kolkata, Feb. 27 (ANI): Bollywood actor and former beauty queen Aishwarya Rai Bachchan said on Thursday that she has always been a fan of double-Oscar winner A. R. Rahman, and feels fortunate that maximum of her films featured maestro’s music.
“Working with Rahman has been an absolute pleasure. It’s not just from Taal to Guru, but it’s from ‘Iruvar’ till ‘Ravana’. In fact, maximum of my films have enjoyed the music of Rahman and as a music lover and fan, I have always admired his music and he is a gifted musician,” Rai said, while addressing a press conference in Kolkata.
The Bollywood actress, who was in Kolkata for the shooting of her upcoming flick ‘Ravana’, said she was elated at Rehman’s double win at the Oscars for ‘Slumdog Millionaire’.
Rai added, though Rahman was very much celebrated in India but winning Oscar meant the global recognition, which was special.
Talking about Hollywood flick ‘The Pink Panther 2′, Rai said the experience of working with actor Steve Martin has been enriching.
“Working with Steve Martin was a good experience since he is the institution of comedy. We grew up watching his movies. So when it came to working with him and since he had already worked in Pink Panther before, so you know the kind of film you are going to be a part of. I am very happy that I got a chance to work with all these great actors because I feel experience is the greatest teacher of all,” the Bollywood star said.
Comparing her character in ‘Ravana’ with the one in hardcore Hollywood flick, Pink Panther, the former Miss World said her characters in both the films were quite challenging.
“These are very different. One is Mani Ratnam and the other Pink Panther. So you can assume what the audience can expect. Those who watch English movie know about Pink Panther. Mani Ratnam is the kind of filmmaker we know he is, so he will present that kind of cinema only,” Rai opined. (ANI)
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Written by Rahul on 26 February 2009
Washington, Feb 26 (ANI): Clint Eastwood has received an honorary Palme d’Or from the organisers of Cannes film festival at a private ceremony in Paris.
A festival statement said that the privilege honoured was “the talent of a grand master at the summit of his craft.”
“When I made my first film 39 years ago, no one in the U.S.-except for Roger Ebert who was always very enthusiastic-believed in me as a filmmaker. But French cineastes have always been very supportive,” Variety quoted Eastwood, as telling guests at a Paris restaurant.
“France remains one of the rare countries that approaches cinema as an art form,” he added.
Festival toppers Gilles Jacob and Thierry Fremaux presented the 78-year-old with the honour.
Fremaux said of the honour, “In the U.S., they call this a lifetime achievement award, but in French the word achievement means ‘done’ and Clint Eastwood is far from being done. We’ll call it an ‘opening award.’”
Fremaux said the festival gave the Palme d’Or to Eastwood on Wednesday because he won’t be able to attend Cannes this year. (ANI)
Tags: achievement, ANI, art, Award, cannes, ceremony, cinema, clint eastwood, craft, Feb, Festival, film, filmmaker, form, France, Fremaux, Gilles, honour, jacob, lifetime, master, Palme, Paris, privilege, restaurant, Roger Ebert, statement, Summit, talent, Thierry, us, variety, Washington, Wednesday, word, year
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Written by admin on 23 February 2009
The Danny Boyle film Slumdog Millionaire has won both critical acclaim as well as the hearts of the audience.
The film won an astonishing 8 Oscar award winners at the 81st Annual Academy Awards. This film which was made with a budget of $ 15 Million has so far raked in $ 163 Million world-wide, which is more than 10 times its budget.
After sweeping the Oscars with eight awards, trade pundits expect increased revenue from theatres and the satellite rights in addition to dubbing rights.
Slumdog Millionaire is produced by England’s Film4 and Celador Films with a predominantly Indian cast and crew.
Tags: 8 oscar award, annual academy awards, Bollywood, Bollywood Films, b_news, cinema, c_international, Danny Boyle, England, hindhi films, hollywood films, Slumdog Millionaire, world-wide
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Written by admin on 23 February 2009
Priyadarshan, the director who experiments with different genres of films, is now planning to make film titled Grrr. He says that this film will have the swamps and jungles of Sunderbans and deals with man-eaters.
Priyadarshan says that he will touch many issues in the film and the film will be akin to Steven Spielberg’s Jaws. Amitabh Bachchan plays the role which is more like that of Jim Corbett, the hunter-naturalist who wrote The Man-eaters of Kumaon.
The shooting of the film is expected to start soon.
Tags: Amitabh Bachchan, Bollywood, bollywood cinema, Bollywood Movies, b_news, cinema, Featured, grrr, hindi cinema, hindi film, Jim Corbett, kumaon, Priyadarshan, sunderbans, the man-eaters
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