MUMBAI: The weekend is here, and we bring you all the new and fresh happenings from the world of Bollywood.
Never stop questioning: Riteish tells Kriti Sanon
Actor Riteish Deshmukh, who will be seen sharing screen space with Kriti Sanon in the fourth instalment of the Housefull franchise, asked the actress to not lose her "never stop questioning" attitude.
Kriti had praised Riteish and said he is the nicest person she has ever come across.
"So glad that I got to know you. A fabulous actor and an even better human being! Stay the same and please keep in touch... Will miss our chats and word-links! Riteish," she tweeted.
To which, Riteish replied, "You are extremely kind with your words dear Kriti Sanon - the pleasure is all mine... Had a great time shooting with you. A great quality for an actor to have is to ‘Never stop questioning' -- don't ever lose that - see you soon! Big hug."
Housefull 4 also stars Akshay Kumar, Bobby Deol, Kriti Kharbanda, Rana Daggubati and Pooja Hegde.
Priyanka 'welcomes' Nick Jonas to India
Ahead of his wedding with actress Priyanka Chopra, American singer Nick Jonas has arrived in India on Thursday.
As Priyanka is currently shooting for her upcoming film The Sky is Pink in the capital, she personally welcomed Nick here and later posted a loved-up photograph with him on Instagram.
Along with the photograph, the actress wrote, "Welcome home baby."
As soon as Priyanka treated her fans with the couple's selfie, congratulatory wishes from fans and film fraternity members have begun pouring in for them.
Earlier, Nick had posted an Instagram story bidding goodbye to New York City.
It has been reported that Priyanka will tie the knot in December at Jodhpur's grand Umaid Bhawan Palace.
The details, including the official dates, of the wedding have been kept under close wraps so far, but according to those in the know of developments, it will be a close-knit family affair and a separate celebration for her film fraternity friends will take place later.
The actress came to India to resume shooting for The Sky Is Pink after enjoying a bridal shower in New York and then a bachelorette party in Amsterdam and Italy.
Priyanka and Nick had a traditional 'roka' ceremony in August at the actress' Mumbai residence.
Would like to work with Omung Kumar in a film: Tiger Shrof
Actor Tiger Shroff says he would like to work with the National-Award winning filmmaker Omung Kumar in a film.
He was interacting with media when he attended a charity event where Omung unveiled a hand painted animal calendar.
Tiger said, "I have had the opportunity to meet Omung (Kumar) sir at very few occasions actually. He has been the art director of Star Screen Awards as well and that's where first time, I met him.
"I also had the chance to go and meet him at his office or at my home discussing various scripts so, very soon hopefully we would like to work together in a film and I am looking forward to that day."
Talking about Omung's initiative where he unveiled a hand painted animal calendar and the revenues of which will be directed towards the betterment of animals, Tiger said, "I really salute Omung sir for doing this. For animals, I will do anything as per my capacity so, there isn't any better way to be associated with Omung sir's initiative."
The Baaghi actor also talked about human being's habit of trespassing forest land because of which forest animals are moving towards residential areas.
"It's really sad and it is something that has been happening from long time and it's very rampant all over the world so, we should do our part by planting trees wherever and whenever we can," he said.
Tiger will next be seen in Punit Malhotra's Student of The Year 2 along with Tara Sutaria and Ananya Pandey in lead roles.
The film is distributed by Fox Star Studios and produced by Karan Johar, Hiroo Yash Johar and Apoorva Mehta under the banner of Dharma Productions.
It is set to release on 10 May 2019.
Playing for India was more important than acting in films: Rahul Bose
Actor-filmmaker Rahul Bose says when he actively played rugby for India internationally, he chose films according to his sports calendar.
Rahul, known for films like English, August, Mr. and Mrs. Iyer, Chameli, Pyaar Ke Side Effects and 15 Park Avenue, was a part of aRedefining Stories panel at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) here on Thursday.
Asked about his transition from being an actor to a director, Rahul, who first helmed Everybody Says I'm Fine and then directed the 2017 film Poorna, said, "It was not calculative."
"I had a story about a hairdresser who reads mind, and everybody says I'm fine, but when he cuts their hair, he hears their real stories, and nobody's fine.
"I just wrote the story, loved the story, turned it into a scene breakdown and a screenplay and then I said I want make it. There was no proof that I would be a good director. Many actors are not good directors. So, that's how. There was no calculation."
He said the 16-year-gap between both his directorials testify that they were not calculative moves.
"I just do what I want to do when I want to do it," he said
Rugby is the only calculation, moderator and popular cinematographer Aseem Bajaj prodded Rahul.
He said, "When I was playing for India, I would look at the rugby calendar and see the two main tournaments, and took up films only if they didn't clash with both tournaments, because playing for India was more important for me than acting in films.
His work was met with an applause from the audience.
Rahul further said that as an artiste, who has primarily dabbled in independent cinema, he has never "struggled".
"I was doing theatre in Mumbai. I did four-six plays. Dev Benegal and Uma D'Cunha saw me in a play, and they cast me in English, August. And I got one film after another.
"I have played the lead in 36 films, and cameo and supporting roles in three films. So I have never had a 'I don't have a Godfather in the industry' story. I don't have a struggle story," he said.
Rahul further said he neither had to change his acting nor did he have to change his choices.
"I didn't have to compromise right from English, August right up to Poorna, barring one or two films," he said, adding that he has worked in Bengali, English, Kannada, Tamil and Hindi films.
Tahira Kashyap returns to work after mastectomy
Writer-director and Bollywood actor Ayushmann Khurrana's wife Tahira Kashyap has returned to work after being diagnosed with breast cancer and going through preventive mastectomy.
"Work starts...preproduction. Happy Thanksgiving. Gratitude," Tahira wrote on Twitter.
Along with the tweet, she also posted her photograph in which she can be seen sitting in a car and heading to her workplace.
Retweeting Tahira's post, Ayushmann said that he is "proud" of her.
The Badhaai Ho actor is a doting husband. He never lets go a chance to praise his wife.
In a previous interview with a leading publication the actor, who has two children with Tahira -- Virajveer and Varushka, said, "I am glad I have a partner like Tahira who is very brave, strong, who is an inspiration. I have started seeing life through a different prism."
On 22 September, Tahira revealed that she has been detected with pre-invasive breast cancer.
She posted on Instagram that she was detected with DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ) in her right breast with high grade malignant cells.
"Simply put stage 0 cancer/pre-cancerous stage, with cancer cells multiplying in a contained area."
Nandita Das to receive FIAPF award at APSA
Indian actress-filmmaker Nandita Das will be honoured with the FIAPF Award at the 12th Asia Pacific Screen Awards (APSA) here on 29 November.
Das will receive the FIAPF award for achievement in films in the Asia Pacific region, reports by media.
She is known for her acting in the controversial film Fire (1996) and Earth (1998) and later in Between the Lines, about gender inequality in middle class India. Her first film as director Firaaq appeared in 2008.
Her second feature, Manto premiered in UnCertain Regard in Cannes this year and has been picked up by festivals including Sydney, Toronto and Busan. Its leading actor Nawazuddin Siddiqi is also nominated for a performance prize at the APSAs.
"Nandita Das has made an extraordinary contribution to the cinema of Asia Pacific, both on-screen and off," said President of FIAPF, Luis Alberto Scalella.
"Her works as a director and as an actress met international recognition and her personal commitments in the public debate are reflected in the stories she chooses to bring to the screen," Scalella added.
Singaporean filmmaker Yeo Siew Hua is to receive the Young Cinema Award at the upcoming event.
Yeo's prize is awarded in recognition of his film A Land Imagined, which won the Golden Leopard prize at Locarno earlier this year. The prize is open to directors making their first or second narrative feature films, and is awarded by APSA, Network for the Promotion of Asia Pacific Cinema (NETPAC) and the Griffith Film School.
APSA described the film as a "well-scripted, deftly directed and beautifully-lensed thriller (that) vividly captures the dangers for and the loneliness of illegal workers against the background of Singapore's controversial land reclamation project.
The film's Japanese director of photography Hideho Urata is also nominated for an APSA cinematography prize. The APSA Academy previously sponsored Yeo through a year-long mentorship program.
Previous Young Cinema award winners were director-producer Ilgar Najaf for his film Pomegranate Orchard (Azerbaijan) in 2017, and director Mustafa Kara for Cold of Kalandar (Turkey, Hungary).
It's not a good environment in the film industry: Govinda
Actor Govinda says the environment in the film industry is not good.
The actor said he is disappointed about the Central Board of Film Certification's (CBFC) opposition to his forthcoming film Rangeela Raja. The censor board has suggested 20 cuts in Rangeela Raja for its theatrical release.
To oppose the CBFC's decision, producer Pahlaj Nihalani had filed a petition earlier this month saying the suggestions were unjustified and uncalled for as he firmly believed that the film was not vulgar in any manner. He also hit out at the present CBFC head Prasoon Joshi, accusing him of being "politically motivated".
When asked when the film will get released, Govinda said, "We will let media and audiences know about the release date of the film. It is unfortunate that CBFC has censored few scenes of our film and because of that, we had to take legal route to release the film."
Govinda said this kind of environment is not good for the film industry.
"I don't see any controversial scenes which are there in the film. I think it has been deliberately done to stop release of the film and it's not a good environment in the film industry to release the film. I have started my film career with Pahlaj Nihalani's film, so I hope this film releases without any difficulties," he added.
Earlier, at a press conference, Govinda said that since the last few years some people are deliberately opposing his films' release by not giving enough screen space and now CBFC has stopped the release of his upcoming film.
Do these things hurt him?
"It doesn't hurt me as a person because in the initial period of my career, I haven't seen such kind of treatment to my films but now people from politics are entering into film business and people from film industry are entering into politics, so that could be the reason that such kind of things are happening in the film industry.
"In the south film industry, we will never see such things because they co-operate with each other. So, we should learn something from them."
Rangeela Raja is a comedy film, written and produced by Nihalani, and directed by Sikander Bharti. The film also features Shakti Kapoor, Prem Chopra and Mishika Chourasia and Anupama Agnihotri in lead roles.
Dharmendra prays for success of Sunny's film
Veteran actor Dharmendra says he does not know anything about film promotion and asked his actor-son to pray for the success of his latest release Bhaiaji Superhit.
Dharmendra on Friday took to Twitter, where he shared a photograph of Sunny and tweeted, " Sunny, my darling son, we don't know the 'abc' of promotion, let us pray for the success of your new film Bhaiaji Superhit."
The father-son duo has together worked in films like Yamla Pagla Deewana, Apne and Sultanat.
Set in Varanasi, the story of the film revolves around 'bhaiaji' who wants to be an actor in Hindi cinema.
Bhaiaji Superhit, which also features Preity Zinta, Arshad Warsi, Shreyas Talpade and Ameesha Patel among others, released on Friday.
‘I Am Banni...' to release in January 2019
Director Nitin Chaudhary's upcoming film I Am Banni - Daughter of Kutch is slated to release on 4 January 2019.
"The film showcases the journey of a teenage girl who wants to get educated and stands up against gender oppression and cultural negativity. She, along with her friends from England and a small band of students, fight against the son of the village sarpanch to re-open a school and push every girl child to study," writer K. K. Makwana said in a statement.
Makwana added that the film is based in a village near Bhuj, Gujarat. The story is inspired by real incidents and shows how even in today's time education is still a gender privilege.
The film is produced by Anil Garg along with Rahul and Gaurav Garg of RG Movies. I Am Banni- Daughter of Kutch, promotes the social cause of Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao.
"With I Am Banni- Daughter of Kutch we wanted to show that girls are no less than boys. There are various education policies but no implementation. We wanted to change the mindset of people," Anil Garg, RG Movies, said.
Based on a combination of true stories and factual findings, the movie touches upon sensitive issues like child abuse and manipulation of education policy in small villages by government officers.
Shot in Bhuj and across the grandeur of the Rann of Kutch, the movie aims at educating the audience that even in 2018 there is an appalling amount of girls who are not allowed to study due to the archaic rules of our society.
I Am Banni- Daughter of Kutch marks the debut of actors Gaurav Garg and Roshni Walia. It will also see Amanda Rodario, Vikas Shrivastav and Harjinder Singh.
Alia named India brand ambassador of food delivery platform
Taking its presence in India a notch higher, food delivery platform Uber Eats announced the appointment of actress Alia Bhatt as its brand ambassador. India will be the first country for the brand globally to have appointed a brand ambassador.
"My work hours and plans keep changing, so the freedom/flexibility to get what I'm craving for whenever I want, right at the tap of a button, almost seems magical. I'm delighted to be associated with a young, innovative and energetic brand like Uber Eats," Alia said in a statement.
Bhavik Rathod, Head of Uber Eats India and South Asia, said that Alia is an inspiration to Indian millennials and they are thrilled to have her on board.
"The youth today relates to her easy-going, carefree and energetic personality. She is known for her unique style and agility as an actor - the same qualities are an integral part of the Uber Eats DNA, thus making her the perfect fit to represent our brand in India. We are excited to have Alia on board, as we stay focused on building and strengthening our presence in India," said Rathod.
Salman goes cycling with Kiren Rijiju in Arunachal Pradesh
Bollywood superstar Salman Khan went cycling with Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju in Arunachal Pradesh to promote an adventure festival here.
Rijiju on Friday posted a string of photographs and captioned it, "Hearty congratulations to the winners of Dalmia MTB Arunachal Hornbill's Flight 2018 Cycling Race. Hats off to the para-cyclists, women cyclists and the local participants who competed with some of the top cyclists of the world."
Salman was attending the concluding ceremony of Dalmia MTB Arunachal Hornbill's Flight 2018 and the beginning of Adventure at Mechuka in Arunchal's West Siang District.
The Dabangg star donated Rs 22 lakh for the event.
The 52-year-old star on Thursday promised to shoot for his upcoming film in the scenic state.
Mechuka is about 29 km from India-China border and around 500 km from Arunachal's capital Itanagar.
Amitabh Bachchan, Karan Johar, Aanand L Rai wish for peace, positivity and happiness
On the occasion of Gurpurab -- the birth anniversary of the founder of the Sikh religion Guru Nanak Dev -- Bollywood celebrities, including Amitabh Bachchan, Karan Johar, Shabana Azmi and Madhur Bhandarkar, on Friday sent out wishes for peace, positivity and happiness to their friends and fans.
Karan Johar: Happy Gurpurab to all... Love and light always.
Amitabh Bachchan: Guru Nanak Devji. Birth anniversary. Greetings and love and happiness.
Aanand L Rai: Happy Guru Nanak Jayanti! Heartiest wishes to everyone on this auspicious occasion. May this Gurpurab bring lots of joy and happiness to your life. Happy Gurpurab.
Akshay Kumar-Rajinikanth's 2.0 to release in 10000 screens worldwide?
Akshay Kumar and Rajinikanth starrer 2.0 is expected to shatter every possible record at the box office. It seems that the makers are leaving no stone unturned to make it happen. Now it has set one more benchmark to become the widest Indian release film with 10,000 screens globally. South trade expert Ramesh Bala tweeted that 2.0 will release in around 7,500 screens in India and 2,500 screens in the international markets, which makes the cumulative total of 10,000 screens, which is indeed a record-breaking number, though he later wrote that the exact numbers will be out on Wednesday.
Priyanka Chopra shoots for The Sky Is Pink in Delhi, beau Nick Jonas joins her
Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas are all set to get married in about 10 days, and the focus will soon be on them after Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone’s big ticket wedding! While Priyanka is shooting for The Sky Is Pink with Farhan Akhtar and Zaira Wasim, Nick is already in India after finishing his commitments in New York to be with his lady love who is shooting, workaholic that she is. Nick was snapped at NYC while leaving the city and later with an Indian cabin crew on board his flight to Delhi.
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