In exactly 55 days, superstar Shah Rukh Khan returns to the big screen with Pathaan. The much awaited comeback of the superstar is all set. The actor, who was last seen in Aanand L Rai’s Zero, will essay the role of a spy in the upcoming action entertainer. Pathaan is a part of Yash Raj Films’ 50th anniversary. Directed by Siddharth Anand, the makers have continued to enthrall the audience with posters. The first teaser was unveiled on the 57th birthday of SRK on November 2, 2022. As December approached, Shah Rukh Khan unveiled the group poster in various languages.
Shah Rukh Khan took to social media on Thursday to unveil poster in four languages – English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. It features him pointing a gun whereas Deepika and John are in the backdrop holding guns as well. SRK is sporting long hair in the movie and it is featured on the poster too. He captioned the post as, “Peti baandh li hai..? Toh chalein!!! 55DaysToPathaan. Celebrate #Pathaan with #YRF50 only at a big screen near you on 25th January, 2023. Releasing in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu. @deepikapadukone | @thejohnabraham | #SiddharthAnand | @yrf.”
Back in June 2022, Shah Rukh Khan had hosted a live session on his Instagram after completing 30 years in the film industry. While speaking to the fans, he said, “When we started shooting Pathaan, it was a lot of fun. It is an action film with wonderful co-actors Deepika Padukone, John Abraham and Ashutosh Rana among others. It is the kind of film I wanted to do for 30 years. I always thought of myself as somebody who can do some cool action stuff. So, I think my impression about Pathaan is that what I really wanted to do when I first came to Mumbai, hopefully I have achieved that in Pathaan as an actor.”
He admitted that he wanted to be an action hero in his 20s but is enjoying the process at 56 too. “I enjoyed it. It is fun having to do action. It is a little late (referring to his age). At the age of 56, I am being macho and solid, trying to make it work. Siddharth and the whole action team has put in a lot of hard work. Hopefully, it will work,” he smiled.
“I remember Siddharth narrating a lot of films to me. Unfortunately, we could not find the right time to collaborate for years. He had this title called Pathaan with him. And he would tell me that, ‘Sir, maine film ready kar li hai.’ One fine day, when we could not work on the two scripts he narrated, he sent me a sweet message, which read, ‘I have this title. I have not been able to get a film with you. Now, please take the title and make a film whenever you want,'” Shah Rukh Khan said revealing that Siddharth Anand came back to him with a new script. “The film has had a long journey. And soon, you all will be able to see it,” he said.
Pathaan is set to release on January 25, 2023, in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu!
What happened to the remake of Mahesh Bhatt’s Arth that Revathi was supposed to direct? Announced in 2019 with much fanfare, the project had the blessings of Bhatt. It was to feature Swara Bhaskar in Shabana Azmi’s role.
Of all the iconic roles, that the formidable Shabana Azmi has played the one that stands out as super-iconic is the deserted wife in Mahesh Bhatt’s Arth. That role, admits Shabana to a large extent, defined the shape of her career.
However, it seems the idea of a trying to redo Arth has been dropped. Says Revathi, “That project did not fall into place with the right actors. I have postponed it for now. We are actually doing a take on the subject, an idea that remained unexplored in the original. I didn’t want to do a faithful remake. I wanted to take the characters into a different direction.”
Incidentally, Revathi played Shabana’s role in Balu Mahendra’s Marapudiyam, the Tamil version of Arth.
Bollywood actress Nora Fatehi always sends the internet into a frenzy. Not only is she known for her dancing skills, but she is also always rising the charts when it comes to her fashion statements. The actress is currently in Qatar and performed at the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2022.
Dressed up in a shimmery set, Nora gave an electrifying performance on several of her songs including ‘O Saki Saki’ and others. She also performed on one of the official FIFA World Cup songs, ‘Light The Sky’. She also hoisted the flag of India proudly as the audience cheered for her.
Nora joined the ranks of artists like Shakira and Jennifer Lopez as she performed at the FIFA World Cup 2022. She was also featured in the music video for FIFA. The FIFA 2022 anthem ‘Light the Sky’ dropped on October 7, 2022. The anthem has been produced by RedOne, who has previously worked with Shakira on ‘Waka Waka’ and and ‘La La La’.
Meanwhile, Nora Fatehi was most recently seen as a judge of Jhalak Dhikhhla Ja 10 which is aired on Colors TV. She was recently seen in the special music video for ‘Manike’ with Sidharth Malhotra. The song is featured in the upcoming film Thank God starring Ajay Devgn and Rakul Preet Singh. She also starred in the song ‘Jeda Nasha’ with Ayushmann Khurrana for the film An Action Hero.
The release date of SamBahadur has been announced. Produced by Ronnie Screwvala, the much anticipated Meghna Gulzar directorial, starring Vicky Kaushal in the titular role, is set to release in cinemas on 1st December 2023. The film also stars Sanya Malhotra as Manekshaw's wife Silloo and Fatima Sana Shaikh as former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
The makers dropped the first unit of the film today, announcing the date exactly a year before release next year— soaring the excitement for a long-awaited project among the audience. The video showcases a battalion of army officers paving way for Sam Bahadur. The film has been a topic of conversation with Vicky’s uncanny resemblance and realistic portrayal of Sam since the time it was announced and now, with makers dropping its release date, it is set to create more excitement.
Sam Manekshaw’s Army career spanned over four decades and five wars. He was the first Indian Army officer to be promoted to the rank of Field Marshal and his military victory in the 1971 Indo-Pak war led to the creation of Bangladesh.
Directed by Meghna Gulzar, starring Vicky Kaushal, Sanya Malhotra and Fatima Sana Shaikh and produced by Ronnie Screwvala, the film will release in theatres on December 1, 2023.
Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda, who made his Hindi film debut with Liger in August, was grilled for 12 hours by Enforcement Directorate. He left the ED office at 8:30 am on Thursday and briefly commented on the controversy surrounding the investment and alleged illegal funding in making the movie.
"By getting popularity, there will be few troubles and side effects. It is an experience, it's life. I did my duty when I was called, I came and answered the questions. They did not call me again," said Vijay Deverakonda to the media after the questioning, as per NDTV.
The film was reportedly made on an Rs. 120 crore budget. It flopped at the box office and director Puri Jagannadh has been in a tiff with the distributors down South.
Apart from Vijay, the report stated that Liger producer Charmme Kaur was also summoned in for questioning by the Enforcement Directorate on November 17. It was alleged that there has been a "violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, or FEMA" which looks at the cross-border transaction.
Known for his power packed roles, action hero Tiger Shroff was brought on board by filmmaker Jagan Shakti for his next, which is expected to be an action thriller. Recent reports suggest that actress Sara Ali Khan has been roped in as the leading lady for this venture and she will be joining the team soon to kick off work on it. Produced by Jackky Bhagnani, the film is expected to be a quintessential commercial potboiler as Tiger becomes the man fighting all odds to ensure that the good wins over evil.
As per reports in Pinkvilla, with Sara Ali Khan joining the cast, the makers are thrilled because they were keen on bringing a new onscreen pairing on board. While Sara has acted with heroes like the late Sushant Singh Rajput, Kartik Aaryan, Varun Dhawan, Ranveer Singh, in the past, the actress will be paired opposite Tiger for the first time in a film. Furthermore, reports also have it that the film is expected to go on floors on December 10 and will be shot across India as well as Europe.
The mission-based film is said to be currently in the pre-production stage. These reports stated that producer Jackky Bhagnani and Jagan Shakti are working towards making a big budget action thriller with some powerful adrenaline pumping stunts in the film and never-seen-before sequences. While the makers are in search for the actor who will essay the role of antagonist, an official announcement of the casting is expected to be made in next few days. Produced under the banner Pooja Entertainment, the film is said to be having a theatrical release.
Coming to other projects, Tiger Shroff has Ganapath with Kriti Sanon, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan with Akshay Kumar in the pipeline whereas Sara Ali Khan has Gaslight with Vikrant Massey and Laxman Utekar’s next with Vicky Kaushal in her kitty.
Anushka Sen needs no introduction as she has already carved a special space in the hearts of the audiences with her impeccable acting prowess. She has wowed the crowd with her superb performance in a number of performances during her career and has found success at a very young age. Anushka has been in several programmes and found popularity at a young age. She became well-known for playing Meher in the well-liked fantasy series Balveer. In Devon Ke Dev... Mahadev, she portrayed a young Parvati. The actress later appeared as a stunt performer in season 11 of the reality series Khatron Ke Khiladi. She has also gained popularity as a fashion icon, and each of her outfits is undeniably admirable.
Along with her successful career, Anushka is well-known for her stylish choices. Anushka frequently stunned the fashion police with her sense of style and shown that she is in fact one of the current industry's leading fashionista queens. Anushka can wear any clothing, whether it be traditional or western, flawlessly, as seen by her gorgeous Instagram images. Fans are often enamoured by her attractive appearance in social media pictures, and they frequently overflow her comment section with incredible praises. Instagram users can see Anushka sporting a red dress with ruched details. She wore a black leather jacket over her red dress. Anushka opted for delicate jewellery, let her flawlessly groomed hair open, and showed off her flawless makeup, which comprised red lipstick and a nude eye shadow. The Prada purse completed her ensemble. If you're in the same situation as us and can't stop obsessing about Anushka's bag, we conducted some research for you.
Anushka’s small square tote with a sleek silhouette and contemporary design comes in a luxurious satin version entirely studded with crystals that create plays of light and iridescent glimmers on the surface.
We found out that Prada small sating tote bag can burn a deep hole in your pocket. On the official website of the luxury brand, it is priced at EUR 2700. When converted, this amount comes up to Rs.2,28,235 approx.
Meanwhile, on the work front, Anushka is set to debut in Korean industry. She has bagged a web series and film in Korean industry.
Milap Zaveri, who completed 20 years this year in the industry, started his career as a writer. In 2010, his directorial debut, Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai (2010), starring Riteish Deshmukh and Jacqueline Fernandez, was released. The film bombed and in an exclusive interview with Bollywood Hungama, Milap Zaveri explains why he feels that Warner Bros, which backed Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai, meted out unfair treatment to his first directorial venture.
Milap Zaveri told Bollywood Hungama, “A lot of people over the years have told me that Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai is a very sweet and cute film. But in those days, Riteish was a very big comic star. Apna Sapna Money Money (2006), Masti, Kya Kool Hain Hum (2005), Heyy Babyy (2007) etc were hits. So, I feel the experiment to do a sweet romcom with him didn’t really get viewers excited.”
He added, “Secondly, Warner Bros’ was the producer and Chandni ChowkTo China (2009) had not done well for them. So, Warner wasn’t very gung-ho on marketing the film well. Thirdly, we clashed with Vivek Oberoi’s Prince (2010). I was absolutely not happy with it as Prince was a very big film. Hence, Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai never got a chance. Even today, very few people know about it. When they talk about Riteish Deshmukh and Jacqueline Fernandez together, the first film that comes to their mind is Aladin (2009). It had released a few months before our film and sadly, it failed. So in every press interview, Riteish and Jacqueline were constantly asked about it.”
Milap Zaveri continued, “Nevertheless, Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai was one of the best experiences of my life. I had so much fun with Riteish, Jacqueline, Vishal Malhotra, Ruslaan, Sonal Chauhan, Satish Shah sir and Supriya Pilgaonkar ma’am. It was like a picnic making that film. Hats off to co-producer Nikkhil Advani. He gave me everything I wanted. Sadly, we didn’t have the power to push Warner Bros to market the film correctly.”
Milap Zaveri explained why the promotional plans didn’t help the film, “It was a love story between an alien and a guy from Earth. The original poster was really cool. It featured Riteish hanging from a spaceship while Jacqueline lying on the same ship. Warner rejected the poster as they felt we should not show the spacecraft or that she’s an alien in the film. They recommended having more youthful posters, a la Ishq Vishk (2003). Such a kind of marketing didn’t work.”
What saddens Milap Zaveri is that movie buffs don’t have access to Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai today, “I was quite heartbroken since Warner never released it on VCD or DVD. It’s not on any streaming platform. It’s literally not there anywhere. The only place where you might find the film is on torrent websites. I have one copy of it on my phone or laptop. Riteish and I often discuss that we wish that the film was out there so that people can watch it. But the Warner Bros’ Indian division just didn’t care about the film at all. Last year, I even put a tweet wherein I tagged Warner Bros. I requested them to put out the film but nothing happened.”
When asked if Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai was released on television ever, Milap replied, “Yes. In those days, it aired on television.”
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Abhishek Bachchan was recently seen in the OTT show Breathe season 3. While the actor has been making great strides in the web space, he has not totally ignored the big screen. In fact, though he has been absent for a while from theatres, we hear that Abhishek will soon be making a comeback of sorts. As per reports on Peepingmoon, Abhishek Bachchan will be teaming up with filmmaker Nikkhil Advani for his remake of the Tamil film KD.
As per the report, the said venture will be a comedy-drama developed under Nikkhil’s banner Emmay Entertainment. A remake of the 2019 Tamil film, KD, the venture will see the original film’s director Madhumita Sundararaman, coming on board to direct the remake as well. In fact, the report further adds that Madhumita has already commenced the pre-production work on the film and is looking to kick-start shooting in January 2023 in Bhopal.
As for the film itself, the story of KD is based on the unusual bond that an elderly man develops with a kid. Apparently, Abhishek Bachchan was quite taken up with the premise of the story and agreed to feature in it. In the remake, Abhishek will be seen stepping into the role that was originally played by Mu Ramaswamy. The film revolves around an elderly man who suddenly wakes up from a coma to hear his family plotting to kill him and the character runs away, eventually meeting an eight-year-old orphan.
Talking about the shoot, the makers are planning a two-month schedule to shoot the venture with a tentative release somewhere in mid-2023.
The only male visitor, who was allowed inside Babita’s home with Kareena and Karisma when the two girls were unmarried, was Karan Johar. That’s because the two sisters treated Karan as the brother they never had.
Then came Kal Ho Na Ha, a love triangle to be shot in New York, the most expensive city in the world to shoot in. Karan wanted to cast Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Kareena Kapoor. Salman refused the offer, as he did not want to play a supporting role to Shah Rukh.
Kareena, Karan was sure would not hesitate in saying yes. However he got the shock of his life when she refused to do Kal Ho Na Ho at the fee that was being offered to her. What made Kareena’s snub even worse was that it happened during the time when Karan’s father producer Yash Chopra was critically ill.
To demand more money from your moohbola bhai when he was going through a personal crisis was unacceptable. Karan stopped speaking to Kareena. Their cold war lasted for a year after which Karisma brought about a patch up.
The Kal Ho Na Ha female lead went to Preity Zinta. The film did her career a world of good.
A few days back, the Bhediya actors Varun Dhawan and Kriti Sanon were seen on a popular television show promoting the film. In the heat of the moment, Varun made a comment which has since led to rumours of Kriti dating her Adipurush co-star Prabhas. Interestingly, Kriti has been the target of many dating rumours and speculations although there has been nothing concrete about them. While this was brushed off as a bad marketing stunt, the speculations got stronger when Varun, teased her.
Now, clarifying the rumours that started off post this episode, a source close to the development told a leading portal, “Varun and Kriti share an amicable bond and they often pull each other’s leg. That tease by Varun was just a way of him taking Kriti’s case as he knew these rumours were baseless. Kriti and Prabhas are not seeing each other. They share a close bond as co-stars and really respect each other, but that’s just it.”
If that wasn’t enough, Kriti Sanon as well, who usually stays away from such topics, decided to break her silence. Taking to her Instagram stories, Kriti put out a post clarifying her relationship status while terming Varun’s comments as ‘fun banter’. Sharing the story she wrote, “Its neither Pyaar, nor PR... our Bhediya just went a little too wide on a reality show. And his fun banter lead to sime Howl-arious rumours. Before some portal announces my wedding date let me burst your bubble. The rumours are ABSOLUTELY baseless!”
While, the rumours have finally been put to rest, on the work front, Kriti was recently seen in the film Bhediya which has been performing well at the box office. Besides this, the actress also recently unveiled the teaser of her upcoming next Shehzada alongside Kartik Aaryan. Apart from this, Kriti boasts of a strong line-up of films including, Adipurush, Ganapath, and The Crew.
The jovial and everyone’s favourite, Milap Zaveri, completed 20 years this year in Bollywood. Two weeks back, he celebrated his birthday and on this joyous occasion, Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to him about his journey. For the first time, the writer-director opened up about his fascinating journey in Bollywood and a lot more.
Could you tell us about your family and how you got interested in movies? Also, were you born and brought up in Mumbai?
Yes, I am from Mumbai. My grandmother’s father was Tribhuvandas Bhimji Zaveri. My father is also in the jewellery business. I grew up in Bandra for most of my life, at Perry Cross Road. It was always understood that I’ll eventually enter my family business. But I was crazily obsessed with movies. My grandmother, whom I called Ba, also loved movies, especially the ones starring Amitabh Bachchan. She would keep showing me his movies. We had video cassettes of 5 movies which we owned while growing up. These movies were Sholay (1975), Jai Santoshi Maa (1975), Vidhaata (1982), Daku Hasina (1987) and Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958). As far as I remember, Subhash Ghai’s Vidhaata was the first film I ever saw. Then later, my dad bought video cassettes of films like He-Man And Masters Of The Universe, Herbie Goes To Monte Carlo (1977), Laurel &Hardy etc. I grew up watching these films again and again while growing up. Besides Amit ji, I was also a huge fan of Jeetendra sir and Mithun Chakraborty sir. I would hope somebody would get a Stardust or Filmfare magazine home so that I can read film-related news and interviews!
My parents, during the holidays, would allow us to rent movies and watch. It was decided that me and my younger brother Meet would choose our favourite films in turn while renting. He would always want to choose a Hollywood film. I had a setting with the video library guy. Whichever film my brother would ask for, the guy would tell him ‘Yeh film nahin hai’. So, eventually, he’d be forced to watch a Hindi film that I wanted to watch (laughs)!
In school, I was very fond of dramatics. I acted in plays. Both my Hindi and English teachers felt I was very good at writing essays. Once when I acted in a play, my English teacher told me, ‘You’d be a better writer than an actor’!
After 10th, I joined Jai Hind College and during Classes 11 and 12, I used to go to my father’s office after attending lectures to learn about the jewellery business. I was terrible at it and I hated it. Then in FYBCom, I joined the Social And Dramatic Union (SDU). This was a time when Jai Hind couldn’t come up with a Hindi play for Malhar Festival. They were toying with the idea of translating Tennessee Williams' play, Steps Must Be Gentle. I was sitting with them. I took the play and started translating it for time pass. My senior, Dhiraj Mirchandani, who was directing the play, read my translation and told me that it was damn good. He asked me to translate the whole play and Jai Hind finally could stage a Hindi play in Malhar.
This episode gave me confidence. Jai Hind College also had an inter-class dramatics competition every year. There, I wrote two original plays for the first time and that year, I won Best Writer and Best Actor. One play won the award of Best Play and the other won Best Director. Nishikant Kamat and Naseeruddin Shah’s nephew, Salim Shah, were the judges. Nishikant had just started working in the industry and he was also an ex-Jai Hindite. I got encouraged by it.
How did your family react to the fact that you wanted to pursue a career in films and not enter the family business?
My father was totally against it. He was worried. And I am talking about 22 years ago. I was 18 then and the image of a film writer was such that my father felt that yeh jhola leke ghoomega! He threatened to throw me out of the house. He stopped my pocket money. I used to walk to Bandra station to take a local train. I won’t call this time like a proper struggling period. After all, I still had a home and a lot of things were taken care of.
It was only after the release of Kaante (2002) that I finally saw my father was so proud and relieved. He’s now my biggest fan. He goes to watch my film at Gaiety-Galaxy. He sees all shows of the day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday! Even my grandfather was proud when Kaante was released. He passed away sometime later.
So nobody from your family had anything to do with films?
My grandfather, Mohanlal Zaveri, was also from my jeweller family. He was interested in acting. In fact, he acted in two movies. He had done a cameo in Raj Kapoor’s Awaara (1951). There’s a scene where Raj Kapoor sir goes to a jewellery shop. My grandfather played the role of the salesman in this scene! Then he worked in V Shantaram's Teen Batti Char Raasta (1953), in which he had a proper role. He was one of the brothers in the film. Screen magazine had that time put him on the cover with the headline ‘V Shantaram’s new discovery’. V Shantaram was very upset because my grandfather was not the lead hero! That was the only connection we had with films.
Did your grandfather shoot for more films?
No. Those were the only two films. It was more of a hobby or passion that didn’t materialize.
You said you had acted in plays. Also, recently, you tweeted your pictures from your portfolio. Did you get any film offers?
As a child, I was very fat. Once, Mr B R Chopra offered me the role of young Bheem in Mahabharat! My grandfather knew the screenplay writer of the TV show, Satish Bhatnagar. The Chopras saw me somewhere and felt that I was perfect for the part. However, my father didn’t let me do it.
Last year, in September 2021, it was announced that Fardeen Khan is all set to make a grand comeback with Visfot. Co-starring Riteish Deshmukh, it is directed by Kookie Gulati and is produced by Sanjay Gupta. The film was expected to be released in cinemas but recently, Sanjay Gupta revealed that Fardeen Khan’s comeback movie will directly arrive on a streaming site.
In an interaction with mid-day, Sanjay Gupta confirmed that Visfot will skip a theatrical release and premiere directly on OTT in 2023 due to unfavourable box office conditions. It is an official remake of the 2012 Venezuelan film, Rock, Paper, Scissors.
Reportedly, Riteish plays a pilot in the film whose son gets kidnapped by Fardeen’s character. In an interview earlier this year, Fardeen Khan revealed that he plays a guy from Dongri in the film. In fact, the film was even shot in the South Mumbai locality. Besides Fardeen Khan and Riteish Deshmukh, Visfot also stars Priya Bapat, Krystle D'Souza, Seema Bapat and Sheeba Chadha. Along with Sanjay Gupta, Bhushan Kumar has also backed this film.
Sanjay Gupta also revealed to mid-day that he’ll also release his directorial venture, starring Harshvardhan Rane and Meezaan Jafri, on a digital platform directly. When asked the reason to avoid a theatrical run for his films, he said, “We have no illusion of taking these movies to theatres and making big numbers. I was clear that it would take a minimum of two years for [Bollywood to recover after the pandemic].”
Sanjay Gupta’s directorial venture was tentatively titled The Miranda Brothers. It is set in Goa and is a story of two brothers. Sahher Bambba also features in this film, whose dialogues are penned by Milap Zaveri.
And that’s not all. Sanjay Gupta revealed that his production house will come up with three more films, all meant for digital releases. Out of these three, he’ll direct one film, which is a black comedy. As for the other two films, one is set in Chandni Chowk while the other is a comedy thriller.
Sanjay Gupta’s last release was Mumbai Saga, starring John Abraham and Emraan Hashmi. It was released on March 19, 2021, when the Delta wave of Covid-19 had reared its ugly head.
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan took to his blog post and paid a heartfelt tribute to late veteran actor Vikram Gokhale and TV personality Tabassum. For the unversed, Vikram Gokhale passed away on November 26 while Tabassum breathed her last on November 18 this year. In his note to them, Bachchan stated that the stage is desolated by the absence of artists of huge merit like them.
“The days are lined with sadness, friends and colleagues, artists of huge merit, leave us day by day and we listen, see and pray, Tabassum, Vikram Gokhle and some dear ones that are close and known. They came to us in our lives, they played their parts and left the stage empty forlorn and desolate by their absence(sic),” wrote Big B in his blog post.
Days after the news of Tabassum’s demise, Amitabh Bachchan had dedicated a blog to her. Speaking his mind on it, he penned, “they all leave us one by one... and it is beyond comprehension... you only recollect the times of their presence and life before the eyes and the mind... and they ever remain an image of the time... unchanged, unfettered and in the freedom of free... and then they leave, and it cannot be fathomed.”
Talking about Vikram Gokhale, he was known for several Marathi and Hindi films. He died at a Pune hospital, where he was undergoing treatment. He was 77. Amitabh and Vikram worked together for Agneepath and Khuda Gawah. They were last seen together for a Marathi film titled AB Ani CD, in which Amitabh played himself. They played childhood friends in the film.
Meanwhile, Tabassum died of cardiac arrest earlier in the month of November. She was a host of the popular Doordarshan talk show Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan.
The event of the 53rd International Film Festival Of India this year was quite happening, given that it premiered some of the most noteworthy Bollywood films released in 2022. And, when it comes to noteworthy films of 2022, the Vivek Agnihotri directorial The Kashmir Files is nearly impossible to miss out on. However, Israeli filmmaker Nadav Lapid, who was also one of the jury heads of IFFI, and him calling the film “propaganda and vulgar” have created a buzz on the internet. Hours after a video of him from the event went viral, The Kashmir Files actors Anupam Kher and Darshan Kumaar reacted to it.
Taking a sly dig at Naved Lapid’s remark on TKF, Anupam Kher shared a post on his verified social media handle. The multiple-picture post included his still from the film as well as the official cover of The Schindler's List. In Hindi, the actor wrote, “No matter how high the height of the lie is... It is always smaller in front of the truth.” As soon as Kher shared the post on his handles, a section of netizens extended their support in the comments section.
The Schindler’s List, which was released in 1993, revolves around a German industrialist who saved more than a thousand mostly Polish-Jewish refugees from the Holocaust.
As mentioned above, Darshan Kumaar also expressed his disappointment over the IFFI jury member’s comment. In an interview with TOI, Kumar said, “Everyone has their own individual opinions on anything they see and perceive. But one can’t deny the fact that The Kashmir Files is a film which has depicted the actual plight of the Kashmiri pandit community, who are still fighting for justice against the brutal acts of terrorism. So this film is not based on vulgarity but on reality.”
For the unversed, Nadav Lapid condemned The Kashmir Files during his speech at the event. In a video, he can be heard saying, “All of us were disturbed and shocked by the movie The Kashmir Files. It felt to us like a propaganda, vulgar movie that's inappropriate for an artistic, competitive section of such a prestigious film festival.”
Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut and a section of her fans are excited about her upcoming release, Emergency, ever since she dropped its teaser. Thus, the actress keeps her fans updated with the development through her verified social media handle. In her latest post on Instagram, Ranaut announced the Assam schedule wrap of the upcoming film along with a few BTS.
In the behind-the-scenes photos, the actress-turned-director can be seen busy shooting and scouting at different locations in the Indian state. In a few shots, she can be seen sharing a hearty laugh with the crew while in others, she can be seen discussing the frames. Instagramming the multiple-picture post, Kangana wrote, “Some BTS stills from Emergency Assam schedule.” It is worth mentioning here that a couple of hours before sharing the below post on her media feed, the Queen actress had announced the wrap through an Instagram story.
Within a few hours, many from her Insta fam, especially from Assam, took to the comments section and showered love on the Bollywood diva. “Thankyou for coming to Assam,” wrote a user, while another commented, “Nice you had visited my place.” On the other hand, her co-star Mahima Chaudhry also reacted to the post with a heart-eye emoticon.
For the unversed, earlier this month, that is November, the Tanu Weds Manu actress started shooting for Emergency in Assam. Before starting the shoot, she had met the Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma. “Such a delight to meet Honourable Chief Minister Assam, Shri Himanta Biswa Sarma ji….
He extended his support for our team as we begin our outdoor schedule very soon in various locations across Assam …
Such an honour and privilege to get his support and encouragement,” the actress wrote in the caption of her post giving a peek into her meeting with the politician.
It’s a new onscreen pair alert! If sources are to be believed, Angad Bedi and Barkha Singh would be working together where they would be paired opposite each other. The duo are shooting for an untitled film which is being produced by Jio Studios. The duo have commenced the shoot in Delhi and the film is being directed by Karan Darra. Angad will be seen playing the role of a lawyer in the film.
A source close to the prosecution said, “Angad and Barkha have started shooting for an untitled movie, under the banner of Jio Studios. They are already shooting in Delhi and it is going to be a romantic drama. This is the first time that both actors are working together and it will be interesting to see their onscreen chemistry. The movie is currently in a very early stage.”
Angad will soon be seen in R Balki’sGhoomerand has been roped in forLust Stories 2as well. Meanwhile, Barkha’s last release was Madhuri Dixit starrer Maja Ma, which was released on Amazon Prime Video.
The much awaited and hyped teaser of Rohit Shetty’s Cirkus throws a surprise. Instead of showing a glimpse of the movie, which teasers normally do, this one has its long list of cast speaking about what one can expect from the movie.
So we have two Ranveer Singhs and Varun Sharmas, along with Pooja Hegde, Jacqueline Fernandez, Johnny Lever, Sanjay Mishra, Manoj Tiwari, Tiku Talsania, Brijendra Kala, Siddharth Jadhav and Ashwini Kalsekar highlighting that the film is based in the 1960s when there was no internet and social media.
However, despite providing info about the film, the teaser of Cirkus, as expected from a Shetty comedy, is also filled with humour. The joke on Panvel and Johnny Lever being called Malinga are noteworthy moments.
Cirkus is adapted from William Shakespeare’s classic story The Comedy Of Errors. It’s the story of two set of twins who get interchanged during childhood and how this leads to chaos when they grow up.
Cirkus is Ranveer’s second full-fledged role in a movie directed by Shetty after Simmba. He played a cameo, along with Ajay Devgn, in the filmmaker’s last outing Sooryavanshi.
Produced by Bhushan Kumar’s T-Series and Rohit Shetty Productionz, the keenly awaited trailer of Cirkus will drop on December 2, while the film will be released during the Christmas period on December 23.
Sharad Kelkar: “A big loss for us. We’ve lost one of our greatest actors. He was the superstar of Marathi cinema. He was, and will remain an inspiration for all of us actor who came after him. He was like an acting school and watching him was like attending classes.”
Sameer Sanjay Vidwans(director of the Marathi hits Double Seat and Anandi Gopal): “The work that Vikram Gokhale has done is exemplary. We’ve seen him in some Hindi films. But it’s Marathi cinema and theatre where his contribution is unmatched. He was a university of acting. Any aspiring actor can look at his performances for guidance. I shared a close relationship with him. The first Marathi screenplay that I ever wrote Aaghat was directed by Vikram Kaka. What to say? In my opinion, the Hindi film industry could not avail of his acting skills as much as the Marathi film industry. In Hindi, we remember him in Agneepath and Hum…Dil De Chuke Sanam, that’s it. The magic of his performances was not tapped sufficiently in Hindi cinema. Nonetheless his death is a grave loss to not only Marathi and Hindi cinema, but to cinema the world over.”
Abhijeet Deshpande (director Har Har Mahadev): “There was Marlon Brando, Prithviraj Kapoor and Vikram Gokhale. Without doubt the top three actors in the world who mastered both mediums, theatre and cinema with such power and excellence. I knew him personally and had the good fortune to interact with him during Natsamrat. Oddly, true, but he is probably the only actor who eclipsed the great Nana Patekar on screen. Will always be tragic that I never got to direct him. Truly a thespian and a legend. I have no words for his acting prowess.”
Ananth Mahadevan: “A doyen of Marathi theatre and films and Hindi cinema, Vikram Gokhale emerged as an icon of the performing arts. I had the good fortune of working with him in the Sony series Sambhav Asambhav where I first directed him. The chief minister in Gour Hari Dastaan as played by Vikram Gokhale was a memorable character. In Avrodh he played the PM while I played his State secretary. Only last month he had called me to say how much he wanted us to team up for another film. It was a learning experience every time I interacted with him. He had a bout of illness last year but he recovered and bounced back to the sets. How I wish he could have carried on to give us some more moments to cherish on screen! I still remember being humbled receiving my first Best Actor trophy from him for The Sword of Tipu Sultan and Nupoor.”
Earlier this month, Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman (1992) completed 30 years, on November 12. The sweet romcom, which marked the film directorial debut of Aziz Mirza, was one of the initial films by superstar Shah Rukh Khan and has a strong recall value even today due to its relatable plot, simplicity, songs and performances.
On Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman’s 30th anniversary, Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to Manoj Lalwani, the writer of the film and also a part of the direction team, revealed some unknown trivia about the film and its lead actor.
You were an assistant director on TV shows like ‘Circus’ and ‘Nukkad’. How did you get involved in Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman?
So, Shah Rukh Khan began working on ‘Fauji’. This was the time when we were supposed to do a series for the government of India. It was based on the banking system and was called ‘Umeed’. It had two episodes and a director named Vikas Desai was supposed to direct it. They needed a new guy to play the lead role of the banker. We were young and were aware of Shah Rukh and his popularity after ‘Fauji’. I and our associate, Pushkar Singh, told Aziz and his brother Saeed Mirza about him. However, Shah Rukh was in Delhi. Aziz and Saeed didn’t like the idea of calling an actor from a different city for a two-episode series. We reasoned that he’s a very popular actor and that he’s apt for the part. They agreed.
The production team called up Shah Rukh. He informed them that he’ll fly down to Mumbai by air. Those were the times when a return flight to Mumbai would cost Rs. 5000, a very huge amount then. Aziz immediately rejected him on hearing this request. He argued, ‘Bombay mein actors nahin hai kya?’! But somehow, we all convinced them. Even Kundan Shah recommended him.
Shah Rukh came to Mumbai and everyone became his fan. He also did ‘Circus’ with us. He used to stay in our office. One boy used to take care of him and provide him with meals and cigarettes. He used to ask for Campa Cola. We would tell him, ‘Yahan nahin milti. Yeh Delhi nahinhai. Yeh Bombay hai. Yahaan Thums Up milti hai’! Soon, he became like family.
After completing ‘Circus’, he came in touch with Viveck Vaswani, who in turn, introduced him to G P Sippy who offered him a film. Shah Rukh recommended that Aziz Mirza should direct the film.
One day, Aziz bhai took me to Carter Road in his car and asked me if I have any story. I told him of a plot of a man who comes from a small town. It was inspired a bit by my life since I hail from Bhopal. When someone comes to a metropolis from a small town, he has dreams in his eyes and wants to conquer the world. But then reality strikes. This was the idea I had and as we discussed, we kept developing it. We then narrated it to G P Sippy saab and even Ramesh Sippy saab.
Also, Aziz bhai had a struggle of his own. He was an actor and then he became a transporter for a few years. But he was an artist first. He later became a production person and at the age of 50, he got a chance to direct a TV series. So, he had a long struggle and experience which he incorporated into the film.
The dialogues of the film were quite witty…
There were a couple of people for the dialogues. Nana Patekar’s dialogues were written by Hriday Lani. He had also written Salaam Bombay (1988). Both Nana and Hriday had a great bond. And Nana was like a sutradhar of sorts. Those dialogues were written by him. On the set, we also tweaked some dialogues. Charandas Shokh had also penned the dialogues. He died by the film was released. He was quite ill. So, I was told to take over. I was from Bhopal; my language was better. I had also done some rewriting on Nukkad.
The scene where Nana Patekar predicts how Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Patekar would react is hilarious and very memorable…
That scene is inspired by my real-life love story! Opposite my office, there used to be this girl and we used to interact that way. There was no other way as social media didn’t exist then. Toh hum ishaaro mein baat karte the. The scene in Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman was an extension of it. We thought of this idea that Nana Patekar would predict their next move since his character has had a vast experience of life.
There was this scene where Juhi injures her leg while Shah Rukh’s shoe is torn. Juhi assumes that Shah Rukh is imitating her. That scene was thought on the spot. We had a cobbler on the set. Aziz bhai had this thing. He would always cast have-nots in his film or have those kinds of characters. Like in Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman, there was a band wallah, a small restaurant owner and a vagabond character, played by Nana Patekar. This is because Aziz bhai has led that life. And the names – Kundu, Dagdu – were also real-life names.
The climax shot of Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman was very similar to the famous ‘Palat’ scene of Yash Raj Films’ (YRF) Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. Many have noticed the similarities and call the Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge scene a copy…
They (YRF) were 100% inspired. This was a time when Shah Rukh was in talks to do Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. Its director Aditya Chopra used to come on the sets although he was not present when we shot the ‘Palat’ scene. Also, Aziz bhai gave the idea from the scene. As I said, he has lived the life and he has seen people in Mumbai saying, ‘Ab yeh paltega ya paltegi’. Interestingly, again, we had spontaneously thought of adding this scene. We started shooting the scene in actual rain. But it stopped raining after sometime. We got a rain machine and we had to complete the scene and show something interesting. And we only had that one day to finish the portion. This is how Aziz bhai got the idea.
Such improvisations help a lot, especially when there are competent people on the set. Aaj kal boundscript ki baat karte hai log lekin usme kahan utna scope hota hai improvisation ka? Lekinyeh purane log scene ko acche se jamaa dete the.
What was the budget of the film? And how much were you and Shah Rukh Khan paid?
The budget of the film was just Rs. 80 lakhs. Shah Rukh, I think, was paid Rs. 50,000. I was paid Rs. 25,000 to write the film. An additional Rs. 15,000 I was paid as I was an associate director. I don’t remember the exact figure.
How was it working with Nana Patekar?
Nana Patekar used to not talk to anyone. But somehow, we got along very well. I have green eyes and according to him, my face was similar to those who are from the Chitpavan Brahmin community in Pune. He would tell me, “Tu Pune ka Brahmin lagta hai”. I would reply, “Lekinmain toh kabhi Pune gaya hi nahin!” He used to pick me up and take me to the sets. Our shoot used to majorly take place in Mukesh Mills, Colaba. I stayed close by, in Andheri Lokhandwala. Aziz bhai had told me, “Tu hi iske saath rehna”. Aziz bhai used to make me sit with him in the room and tell me to go through the scene with him. This is because Nana was very particular about his dialogue, punctuation etc. He would have many questions about what is his character saying, why is he saying this dialogue etc. He would memorize not just his but also the dialogues of the other characters in the scene.
It is said that Manisha Koirala was the first choice for the female lead and not Juhi Chawla. Is that true?
No. Juhi was always the first choice. I remember I had gone to her house with Aziz bhai and Viveck Vaswani. She was shooting for Bol Radha Bol (1992). She had come straight from the shoot and was in her costume. Shah Rukh was Juhi’s fan. In Delhi, he had put up her posters in his room! It was a dream come true for him to work with him. Juhi meanwhile was like ‘Yeh kaisa hero hai. Iske baal kaise hai, iske naak kaisi hai. Isko kaise main hero karke le rahe ho’! Shah Rukh didn’t have conventional looks but he had a very attractive personality. He drew people towards him. I remember during ‘Circus’, we shot in an actual circus tent. Outside the circus gate, youngsters ki bheed hoti thi, khaas kar ladkiyon ki! They all wanted Shah Rukh Khan’s autograph. Shah Rukh ko Mumbai aaye 4 din bhi nahin hue the and this was his popularity. Some of the biggest stars used to look at the crowd and wonder, ‘Yeh aadmi ka aisakya jadoo hai’. Toh Shah Rukh likha ke hi laaya tha!
Shah Rukh Khan once said in an event that the first time he ever saw himself on screen was when he checked the rushes of Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman. He said, “I found myself so ugly. I had such bad hair. I was doing such bad acting in front of Nana Patekar, Amrita Singh and Juhi Chawla”. Were you there when this happened?
I wasn’t there but we all liked him. I felt he looked like Rajendra Kumar.
It is reported that Shah Rukh Khan got married during the shoot of the film and borrowed suits from the film's costume department for the wedding…
Yes. He got married in Delhi. Then, he had his honeymoon in Darjeeling. We also accompanied Shah Rukh and Gauri as we had to shoot his intro scene in the film. I still remember the whole crew had travelled in train in second class. It was a difficult, 36-hour journey. I was lucky as Aziz bhai asked me to join him, Shah Rukh and Gauri on the flight.
So yeah, Shah Rukh ka honeymoon Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman ke production ke khaate pe hua! It was quite cold in Darjeeling. There was no heater in Shah Rukh’s room. Aziz bhai and I were in the same room. We had a heater and we gave it to Shah Rukh and Gauri.
Did you visit cinema halls to check the audience's reaction?
Yes. We had gone to Gaiety-Galaxy. Viewers used to clap at Nana Patekar’s scenes and laugh. We were confident that the film will be a hit. Sadly, the communal riots took place 3 weeks later and hence, our film didn’t have a long run as curfew was in place in several centres. It was our bad luck. Thankfully, the film was well-made and hence, people still remember it and talk about it.
It seemed you formed a bond with Shah Rukh Khan as you wrote two more films for him, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani (2000) and One 2 Ka 4 (2001)…
Yes. I had begun working with Sanjay Chhel. He wrote Aziz bhai’s Yes Boss (1997) and I couldn’t be a part of it as I was busy with my productions. Then, when Aziz bhai’s Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani’s scripting was going on, I had the time and came on board and worked with Shah Rukh, Sanjay Chhel and Aziz bhai.
Can you tell us about the projects you are working on right now?
I have written a show and have submitted it to a production house. I am also writing a feature film. It’s on the verge of completion. I am in talks for it. I also made a Gujarati film and TV shows. Besides, I wrote Salman Khan’s Kahin Pyaar Na Ho Jaaye (2000) and Akshaye Khanna’s Shortkut - The Con Is On (2009).
Are you still in touch with Shah Rukh Khan and Aziz Mirza?
I am in touch with Aziz bhai. With Shah Rukh, I am not much in touch. He got busy with his work while I was involved with my films and shows.
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