'Simply' Kareena

The actress sports a completely de-glam look for her upcoming film

Kareena is donning a deglam look for Punit Malhotra's Gori Tere Pyaar Main, where she plays an NGO worker. The film is produced by Karan Johar and Hiroo Yash Johar under the Dharma banner.

Mirror spotted the actress shooting for a song at Filmistan (Goregoan) on Sunday afternoon.

 

A source from the set told the newspaper, "Kareena will be mostly seen in kurtis and salwar kameezes.
Manish Malhotra has carefully picked the colour palette. Make-up artist Ritesh Naik has been given specific instructions to make her look the part."

We then contacted Ritesh, who is working with Kareena for the last 14 years. He elaborated on the look in this film is very plain. She sports a bindi and very minimal make up. As for her hair, it is mostly tied into a simple ponytail. As she has light eyes, we have used kajal. The make up is done is keeping with the character she is playing."

Richa needs help

Allegedly allots same dates to Bhansali's Ram Leela and Pooja Bhatt's Bad

  On the other hand, Pooja maintains that she’s signed a contract with the Fukrey actress where the same days, the ones, which Bhansali supposedly has, have been allocated for her project.

Pooja told Mirror, “I have the contract which spells out the dates. I spoke to the General Secretary of FWICE (Federation of Western India Cine Employees) Dinesh Chaturvedi regarding this matter.

He told me if I have the dates in writing, I don’t have to worry. I will start shooting with Richa later this month,” she said rather emphatically, adding, “I was told by her managers that the producers of Ram Leela are pressurising her to give up the dates which I have.” Despite repeated attempts, Bhansali and Richa remained unavailable for comment.Richa Chadda is in a date dilemma. And she’s in no mood to keep this only to herself. The dates that she allotted for Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Ram Leela are clashing with Pooja Bhatt’s next film, Bad.

At a recently concluded award function in Maccau, she would go to anybody and everybody who would listen to her quandary. Buzz is that she spoke to Shah Rukh Khan about it as well.

A baffled SRK didn’t know how to react and merely nodded his head. From what a source present at the function told us, “Richa requested many bigwigs from the industry to intervene and explain Bhansali that he should allow her to go for a few days to kick-start Pooja's film.“

Mirror has learnt that Bhansali is in no mood to compromise with his schedule because of an overlap that happened on Richa’s part. In fact, he is very upset regarding the muddle created by Richa.

Priyanka’s beach indulgence

The actress has purchased a bungalow off the popular Baga Beach in Goa

 Priyanka Chopra has bought herself a bungalow in North Goa, just off Baga Beach, a popular tourist destination. While the purchase was made quite some time ago, Priyanka had kept it under wraps, till now.

The bungalow has a couple of rooms and a small lawn, among other amenities. The interiors have been done up nicely, under Priyanka’s supervision.



Apparently, this is where the Chopras would stay whenever they visited Goa. And Priyanka, who is quite a beach person and loves holidaying in places like Koh Samui and Phuket (Thailand), took a shine to the property, moreso for its proximity to Baga Beach.

A source told Mirror: "The bungalow has been the Chopras’ holiday home for a while now. Priyanka loves the idea of getting up in the morning and soaking in the sea breeze.”

Last month, Priyanka stayed at her bungalow for nearly 10 days, when she was in Goa with her team and trainer Samir Jaura to train for her role in the upcoming Mary Kom biopic. Jaura has helped train Farhan Akhtar as well for his role of Milkha Singh. Priyanka was unavailable for comment.

Hrithik’s brain surgery successful

The actor had to undergo an emergency operation yesterday after a clot was detected between his brain and the left side of his skull. He has been advised complete bed rest for a month
 
He was to fly to the US on Saturday, July 6, for the next schedule of Bang Bang. However, last afternoon, Hrithik Roshan, had to undergo a oneand- a-half hour brain surgery at Khar’s Hinduja Healthcare Surgical, after a blood clot was detected between his brain and the left side of his skull.

 
While the operation was successful, the actor will have to stay in hospital for one week, after which, he has been advised complete bed rest for at least three weeks. Neurosurgeon Dr BK Misra, who performed the surgery, told Mirror: “We took Hrithik into the operation theatre at 2.15pm. The surgery went extremely well, and he is now conscious and doing fine.”


Dr Misra explained that the actor had suffered subdural haematoma or subdural haemorrhage, which is caused due to a trauma to the brain. Put simply, a clot had formed between Hrithik’s brain and the left side of his skull.

“He had a fall about two months ago, after which, he started getting headache spells and experienced weakness in the right hand. We had done a scan on him a month ago but it was clear,” said Dr Misra, adding, that this clot was a new one, which had appeared only two weeks ago.

“It was compressing the left side of Hrithik’s brain. We carried out the surgery by making a small incision on the left side of his skull and then released the clot by cutting the membrane," Dr Misra said.

While the Roshan family is relieved the surgery has been successful, sources say the clot could be traced back to the month of May to the Bangkok schedule of his upcoming film Bang Bang, when Hrithik had to dive into water from a height of not less than 30 feet.

Apparently, the actor, who more often than not does his own stunts, did not time the dive correctly and landed with a loud thud. At the time, he never imagined the dive would be the cause of so much trouble. It was only much later when Hrithik was shooting a song for Bang Bang in Greece that he realised something was amiss.

He started complaining of recurrent headaches, and because they were accompanied by severe back pain, for a while, he thought it was because of his Agneepath shooting back in October 2011, when he had committed the mistake of lifting a wrestler who weighted no less than 110kg all by himself, without help from a stunt double.

Again recently, when Hrithik was in Hyderabad for an event, the back pain became unbearable. Ultimately, with the actor scheduled to fly to the US on July 6 for Bang Bang’s next schedule and his mom to join him there for a holiday, it was his father Rakesh Roshan, who insisted he get an MRI done before going abroad just to be on the safe side.

What the actor thought would be a routine procedure turned out to be an emergency, when the doctors warned that medicines wouldn’t help and that immediate surgery was needed.

Hrithik’s wife Sussanne and his kids were in London but they flew back to Mumbai before the surgery. Karan Johar and Karan Malhotra were there with the Roshans in the hospital for quite some time. The next schedule of Bang Bang has been postponed.

Kat out of the bag as Ranbir-Dippy get cozy

They have gone to town talking about the new mature phase in their relationship--Deepika Padukone has even spoken of how Ranbir Kapoor might one day be the godfather of her kids--and they have worked together in one of the year's biggest hits, Ayan Mukerji's Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.

But the chemistry between Ranbir and Deepika was not just good acting in the film. Bollywood is still abuzz with news of how the former lovers got all cozy at a party hosted by co-producer of Yeh Jawaani..., Ronnie Screwvala, to celebrate the film's success. News is still filtering in from last week's bash at Screwvala's sprawling Breach Candy home where Ranbir, happy and high, grabbed Dippy for a lingering kiss in front of all the guests.

In a recent interview, Deepika has also spoken of a gift that Ranbir sent her after the film's success. Perhaps the new-found closeness between the two is just a result of propinquity-they have been spending a lot of time together, first shooting for Yeh Jawaani and then promoting it around the country, but the development has not gone down well with Ranbir's current girlfriend Katrina Kaif. At Arjun Kapoor's birthday bash a few days later, they had a tiff, and Katrina has since gone into her shell, apparently nursing an injury sustained while gymming.

Film review: Lootera

An O Henry short story is the spark that ignites a cinematic interpretation that undoubtedly would leave even the celebrated writer dazzled, if unaffected. Director Vikramaditya Motawane has constructed an elaborate experiment of a film. A big-budget visual delight starring A-list actors, Lootera's story is simplistic; it's telling self-consciously un-Bollywood, and one that aspires for artistic glory.

Set in early post-independence Bengal and Himachal, Lootera is a elaborately dressed but subdued love story of an "archaeologist" and a zamindar's daughter whose father's highbred legacy is struggling to keep with the changing times. The story has much scope for drama but Motwane and co-writer Bhavani Iyer choose to shy away, holding back on the exuberance and elements of surprise (often allowing the audience to be ahead of the characters) and allowing tenderness to take over tautness. The humor is intrinsic, a lot of dialogue is distilled to whispers. While the first half is unhurried and replete with stolen glances, chases across snowy hill stations and some decisive action breathes some life into the the second.

Expectedly, the title itself foretells revelations. This subtle film instructs you in a not-so-subtle manner: watch it for its moments (of which there are several), not for what happens next (convenience looms large, cracks are duct-taped over). You are not to be bogged down by logic.

Motwane has taken more than a cue from Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the extravagant director he's assisted for over half a decade, and has drawn from his sense of aesthetic in Lootera. This is a purposive choice for a director who has now shown commendable range considering his excellent first film Udaan, as raw an indie can get. And yet similarities between the two films abound. Poignant moments are created by simply not thrusting Bollywood methodology in the filmmaking. Note for example how plot is secondary, it's the characters we're made to invest in. We're sympathetic to their effort to evince their internal battles in words in actions, both that are often knowingly repetitive and yet not jarring.

Ranvir Singh and Sonakshi Sinha are at their subtle best with every line of dialog, every expression acutely considered. And yet eventually the film overwhelms the performances. Because the craftsmanship, if anything, is even more impeccable.

The highlights of Lootera, the overwhelming reason you may choose to watch this film, lie in the technical departments. There is a sense of purity in Mahendra Shetty's cinematography, luscious with light, undaunted by grain in the dark. A timbre in Kunal Sharma's sound design, especially the way the dialog tracks have been treated, is reminiscent of watching older films in a time before 5.1 (I truly hope this is was intentional and not a result of a bad speaker in the theater I watched it). And finally, Aditya Kanwar's art direction. What startling recreation of period! What incredible attention to detail! Lootera superbly uses technique to immerse you in the period.

As much as I'd like to reward Lootera for it's craft I firmly believe that films can only win you over with the ability to tell a story. And this is where Lootera falters. It allows you to drift away. And this is why Udaan, despite struggling on the technical front with its 16 mm camera and stark walls, will always be an exceptional and better film.

Film review: Policegiri

Dabangg is now officially a genre. Here are some of the salient features of the category and how Policegiri fits perfectly in.
The film has to be about a cop. And he must be corrupt. Because you can't fight the system unless you're part of the system. I'm given to understand they're putting this in school textbooks next year.
An allusion to Robin Hood must be made. Policegiri does neatly by doing a song on it picturized in front of a giant Ganesh idol. Also a must.

In addition to taking bribes and generally breaking the law in every way, the policeman must binge drink (the one in Policegiri brushes his teeth with beer and substitutes chutney with it for his mashed idlis) and he must dance with item girls at farmhouses despite having a healthy love life (also one for the textbooks). Yet he should shut down illegal wine shops and punish rapists. 


The villain - and this is very important - must be Prakash Raj. And he must play a politician whose larger-than-life cutouts and postersadorn the Filmcity set the movie will be shot. There must be one sequence of him in his underwear. And he must double up as the comic relief in the climax.
No matter what the character's religion is; he must pray at an open temple with the heroine.
Casting the heroine is critical. Either a newcomer or an out-of-work girl who is willing to embarrass herself to get into the 100-cr club. They are to be paid next to nothing for this.
Catchphrases are critical. Prakash Raj must have one. In Policegiri it is, "Sur Mohammed Rafi ka hai, lekin power Muhammed Ali ka". After three-quarters of the movie is done, the policeman will finally come up with a response. In this case, "tera sur hai Osama ka. Mera power hai Obama ka!"
You must pay tribute to Salman Khan and other films of the ilk. A Salman cutout (yes cutouts are important) is present in Policegiri. As is a shot of a pirated DVD of Himmatwala. The irony must never be subtle.
Other details: The weapons of choice for the villain's minions are sickles. A stunt involving the policeman's sunglasses is a must. Only Mahindra cars - especially the Scorpio - may be used. They should have the ability to fly. One song should involving badly photoshopping leads against photo-studio type stock footage.
Overall the objective of the genre is to show a common, "honest" policeman as a superhero. This only makes it harder for that other genre called "superhero". This is to make films like Ra.One look average. If with one stomp of the boot, Baba can make cars fly, can Krrish do anything more impressive?

‘I’d love to remake Amar Prem’

Akshay Kumar talks about OUATIM Dobara, Chennai Express and Rajesh Khanna.

You've largely stayed away from negative roles. Did Ekta Kapoor convince you to play Shoaib Khan in OUATIM Dobara?

Nobody had to convince me. I agreed to do the part in ten minutes flat. For mainstream actors, villainous roles like these don't come too often.

Emraan Hashmi played Dawood Ibrahim with aplomb in the first part. Comparison is inevitable...

I am not worried about that. I focus on what I want to do, and it's my own interpretation of the character. The past performance has been great, but that really doesn't affect the way I approach my role.

OUATIM Dobara was supposed to clash with Chennai Express (Aug 8). What was your initial reaction when you heard this?

I didn't quite have a reaction. But much later, Ekta called me to say that at her father's insistence, she was pushing the release date of our film to the week after. I was alright with that.

Do you think it was a smart move to postpone your film to accommodate Chennai Express?

It's a strategic move that works commercially for both sides. In the end, it all boils down to business na?

From the position you are in, do you think film stars are an overpaid lot?

What did you say? I don't seem to get any of it. Are we underpaid? Of course, we are underpaid (laughs).

Have you ever thought about trying your hand at direction?

Directors suffer from stress disorders. Directors are people with grey hair, an abnormal paunch, and after a point, they also start losing their sight. I don't want to be one of them (laughs).

If you were to remake one film of your late father-in-law, which one would it be?

All of Rajesh Khanna's films are evergreen. But if I had to pick one, it would be Amar Prem.

Farah's next to finally go on floors

With Shah Rukh Khan having injured himself while shooting for Chennai Express and having undergone a shoulder surgery subsequently, it was rumoured Farah Khan's Happy New Year would get delayed by a few months. Putting an end to all speculation however, Mirror has reliably learnt that the film will go on floors in Dubai on September 1. Farah and her team will fly down to Dubai next week for a recce of one of the city's most lavish resorts where some of the pivotal scenes of Happy New Year will be shot.

In March this year, Mirror had reported how Shah Rukh had booked a lion's share of the beautiful property for over a month strictly for the film. Farah confirmed the news and said, "The entire team is excited to start shooting in September."

While Vishal-Shekhar are scoring the film's music, the leading lady is yet to be finalised. "A few names have been shortlisted, and Farah and Shah Rukh will soon make an announcement," the source added.

Amit Sadh to headline 10 Janpath

After essaying a pivotal role in Abhishek Kapoor's Kai Po Che!, Amit Sadh will play the lead in the political thriller titled 10 Janpath, coproduced by Vicky Rajani and Eros, and directed by Aditya Datt.
 

When contacted, Amit confirmed the news and said: "Twenty minutes into the narration and I knew I wanted to do this film. I have watched Aditya Datt's Table No 21, and really liked it. I know I am working with a good director."

Said Vicky: "There is no escaping the strong set up in 10 Janpath. Amit fits the bill. We signed him only a couple of days ago." A source close to the film said: "Both Aditya and Vicky were looking to introduce an element of surprise through the characterisation and that's when Amit's name popped up. Among a few other options, it was Amit who made the final cut."

Leaked picture irks Sallu

Salman grills staff about an old photo with Sohail, Arbaaz and him all bare-chested that went viral.
 

While he doesn't bother too much about what the gossip columns write, Salman Khan is known to be fiercely protective of his personal space. What happens inside, usually stays inside; be it his parties abroad or at his Panvel farmhouse or Galaxy Apartments.

So when the actor recently stumbled upon an old picture of himself with brothers Arbaaz and Sohail; all posing bare-chested at what looks like a private party, it irked him no end. So much so, he summoned his entire staff, including past employees, and grilled them about how the photograph found its way to the Internet.

The photo in question was taken two years ago in Malaysia, where the trio had gone with a group of friends to participate in a charity football match. Almost as soon as it was captured, someone went ahead and posted it online on a fan forum called Being Human Salman Fan Club. Just that Salman hadn't seen it, until recently.

Asource close to the actor told Mirror: "Salman doesn't bother about these things. What matters to him is his work and his family. But when he spotted this picture online, he got very upset. He called all his staff, including those who were working with him two years ago, and asked them who leaked out the picture. He made it clear to them he didn't want a repeat of the incident."