Bollywood

Arjun Kapoor says children were scared of him after his first two releases – “Ishaqzaade” and “Gunday” – but he is now glad that “2 States” has changed things for him.

The actor played raw, rustic and action-oriented avatars in his first two movies, but in “2 States”, Arjun plays a smart, suave, cultured and lovable young man.

“The best thing is that kids are not scared of me any more. After my previous films, kids got scared upon seeing me,” the 28-year-old said here Sunday at Cinemax theatre.

Actor Ranveer Singh is all set to present his vocal skills for the first time in an upcoming TV commercial.

The 28-year-old ‘Gunday’ star, who is appointed as the brand ambassador of Durex, will don the hat of a rapper in the commercial, which will be launched on April 23.

“As an actor and as an individual, I have a propensity for pushing the envelope, breaking the mould and taking the road less travelled.

Debutant actor Luthfudeen Baashaa, son of popular Tamil actor Nasser, says sharing screen space with his father in upcoming Tamil drama “Saivam”, was intimidating in the beginning, but it boosted his confidence and gave him the opportunity to observe the actor in him from close quarters.

“At home you’ll just see a father, but not a genius actor. However, on the sets, he was like a senior actor to me and I couldn’t see my father in him. Scenes with him were at first intimidating but he made me feel confident,” Luthfudeen told IANS.

It wasn’t long ago when melody queen Lata Mangeshkar confessed her love for comedian Kapil Sharma’s popular show “Comedy Nights with Kapil”. And now, it’s actor Vivek Oberoi who has joined the fans’ list.

The “Grand Masti” star recently visited the sets of the comedy show and had a good time.

“Guess who stole Spider-Man’s costume? Lol. Watch out for spiderdadi (played by Ali Asgar)… going crazy! I love ‘Comedy Nights With Kapil’,” Vivek tweeted.

“Had a super rocking time with Kapil Sharma, Navjot Singh Sidhu and spiderdadi!,” he posted on Twitter.

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She ventured on the filmmaking journey with “Sultan”, but it got shelved. Unfazed, Soundarya Rajinikanth says that it didn’t affect her animation dream and she fulfilled it with “Kochadaiiyaan”.

Starring her superstar father Rajinikanth, “Kochadaiiyaan” is Soundarya’s directorial debut, which is set to deliver ground breaking technology — the Rs.125-crore project is said to be the country’s first motion capture photo-realistic 3D animated movie.

Since its inception, “Mastram” has created a lot of buzz, and now the makers are making every effort to promote it. From designing 35 different looks to distributing one lakh free audio CD, producer Sunil Bohra is using innovative tools to take his film to a wider audience.

Any why not!

Writer-director Akhilesh Jaiswal has translated real life mystery into reel story with “Mastram”, a fictional biography of the well-known Hindi erotica writer whose identity is unknown till date.

Actress Tanushree Dutta is all set to host thriller show ‘Best of Fear Files’.

The show is ready to send shivers down the spines of audience yet again as Tanushree will revisit the eerie, mysterious world of the supernatural and unexplained.

“It feels fantastic to be a part of ‘Fear Files’. I am having a great time shooting for the show as it is not just another horror or crime show.

City police have arrested a retired Merchant Navy officer from Manipal in Karnataka for allegedly posting a defamatory message on social media about Bollywood actor Aamir Khan and his television show ‘Satyameva Jayate’.

The accused, identified as 58-year-old Ajit Vadakayil, a retired captain of Merchant Navy, was arrested on Thursday, police said.

According to them, the actor had complained that “false messages” being circulated through electronic media, which claimed donations sought in his TV show were going to a trust working for a particular religion.

Popular TV actress Shikha Singh is likely to participate in the dance reality show ‘Jhalak Dikhla Jaa’.

Shikha is best known for her negative roles in ‘Na Aana Is Desh Laado’, ‘Phulwa’ and ‘Sasural Simar Ka’, which are aired on Colors channel. There is a buzz that she has been approached for ‘Jhalak Dikhla Jaa’ which is aired on the same channel.

Shikha is a trained dancer. “I always love dancing and I am in for it whenever I get time,” Shikha said, without confirming or denying her presence on the dance show.

Arjun Kapoor and Alia Bhatt-starrer “2 States”, which released
Friday, raked in around Rs.12 crore on its opening day in the country. The movie, based on a bestseller by author Chetan Bhagat, is poised to draw in more viewers over the weekend, say industry experts.

According to sources, the first day collection for the entertainer, directed by first-timer Abhishek Varman, is Rs. 12.42 cr net.

Four of Chetan Bhagat’s five novels have been adapted for the big screen – the latest being “2 States”, based on his book “2 States: The Story Of My Marriage”. The author says movies help him expand his reach among Indians.

In an interview, he shares his experience with “2 States”, its team, his association with Bollywood and literature.

Excerpts:

Q. Another movie adaptation of your novel, this one very close to home. How much of your true-life love story has the film managed to capture?

If you wish to share the same frame as Shah Rukh Khan, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity awaits you thanks to daily deals website Groupon India.

Groupon India has joined hands with SRK’s Red Chillies Entertainment to give fans a chance to feature with the superstar in his upcoming film “Happy New Year”.

The unique initiative has been designed keeping in mind the Bollywood frenzy and a desire among millions to act with the best of Bollywood stars and to give a chance to aspirants to showcase their talent on the silver screen.

Yash Raj films’ Nicole Kidman starrer ‘Grace of Monaco’ will be opening the Cannes festival while directed ‘Titli’ is in the running for the prestigious Camera D’Or award.

‘Titli’ coming from the stables of Dibakar Bannerjee’s Dibakar Banerjee Productions will be screened at the Un Certain Regard section, The Hollywood Reporter reported.

The film is the only Indian movie selected for competition at Cannes this year. (ANI)

The very versatile and committed Amole Gupte is a reluctant actor. Proof of this lies in the fact that he he has just edited himself out of his own directorial venture “Hawaa Hawaai”.

“I took it off. I thought, what was I doing? It looked too gimmicky. Subhash Ghai can make an appearance in his films because he makes larger-than-life films. My film is too true to life for gimmicks,” he said.

“Hawaa Hawaai” is set for release May 9. He had a cameo in the film but decided to delete it.

After playing the action hero in “Ishaqzaade” and “Gunday”, Arjun Kapoor essays a loverboy in his latest release “2 States”, and he can only be thankful that it has given him a chance to explore a different look and genre.

He hopes the audience slowly becomes more confident about his work.

Actress and popular TV host Mandira Bedi, who is geared up to judge new comedy show “Gangs of Haseepur”, says the “topical” progamme has something for everyone.

“Gangs of Haseepur”, set to go on air April 26 on Zee TV, will reflect various issues affecting common lives in a comic way and Mandira will judge the show along with actress and former “Bigg Boss” contestant Tanishaa Mukerji.

“I have hosted many shows so far and now I am enjoying being the judge of this show because it is very current and topical,” Mandira said here Thursday at the launch of the show.

Routinely, we love to sweep the truth about Hindu-Muslim relations under the carpet. Or simply sugar-coat it to make the actual volume of mutual distrust and animosity palatable to a nation steeped in escapism and self-delusion.

`Dekh Tamasha Dekh` (DTD), directed by theatre legend Feroz Abbas Khan (of `Tumhari Amrita` fame) is a jolting wake-up call for a nation swept into a slumberous silence by the status quo. Put simply, we don`t want to face the reality about the friction that simmers just under the surface among the two communities.

Husband and wife often fulfil complimentary roles. Actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar says that his wife Adhuna supports him and gives him strength and confidence to finish his work with ease.

In an interview on TV show `Yeh Hai Meri Kahani`, the `Shaadi Ke Side Effects` star talked about his wife`s role in his life, said a statement.

Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut today visited Noida to promote her upcoming movie ‘Revolver Rani’.
‘Revolver Rani’, an upcoming Hindi comedy drama starring Kangana Ranaut and Vir Das in leading roles, is directed by Sai Kabir. The film is presented by Wave Cinemas.
During her visit to Wave Cinemas at The Wave Mall here, Kangana Ranaut said ‘Revolver Rani’ is a satirical and unusual love story set against the backdrop of politics with her character having politically inclinations and whimsical dreams.

The makers of Ajay Devgn-starrer ‘Singham’ have come up with a video which shows police personnel acknowledging positive change in public perception about them due to the 2011 action film.

Devgn is all set to reprise the role of Bajirao Singham in Rohit Shetty’s second installment of ‘Singham’. The first one received immense appreciation and box office success and led Shetty and his team to make a sequel to the film.

Apparently, post ‘Singham’ the people’s perception about personnel in police uniform changed to quite an extent.

Indo-Canadian adult film actress Sunny Leone is back to where she started her career in Hindi showbiz – the small screen. She has signed up as the host of popular dating reality show “MTV Splitsvilla”, and she is excited.

Sunny, who recently hosted MTV’s “Haunted Weekends” made inroads into the Mumbai entertainment industry following her 2011 appearance on “Bigg Boss 5”.

Rajeev Khandelwal says the team of “Samrat & Co” has already thought of a possibility of a sequel to the film, and the actor has expressed a keen interest to be part of it.

“When we were working on this film, we thought there can be a sequel to this film. I am keen on doing the sequel of ‘Samrat & Co’ which is certainly on cards, but let’s see how this film works at the box office,” Rajeev told IANS.

There were also reports that a sequel of his 2013 film “Table No. 21” is in the works. But Rajeev says if at all it is being made, he would not be part of it.

Sanjay Dutt has courted trouble once again. The actor, who was out on a parole for three months recently, had reportedly hosted a party for his friends from the film industry and that was when a video of his in a drunken state was recorded and eventually leaked.

In the video that has now reportedly been leaked shows Dutt playing an imaginary guitar and talking about his colleagues from the industry.

Controversy’s favourite child, Dutt, has often made headlines for all wrong reasons and the aforementioned video is bound to embarrass him more.

Film: “2 States”; Cast: Arjun Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Ronit Roy, Amrita Singh, Revathi, Shiv Subramaniam; Directed by Abhishek Varman; Rating: ****

Magically, “2 States” ends with a beautifully staged wedding where the film’s culture-crossed couple finally get their wish.

Actor Vivek Oberoi, who has been campaigning for the BJP, feels the party’s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi will bring in a change in the political system.

“I am hopeful that BJP will win as everybody wants change. I have been campaigning for them….I can see there is a Modi wave everywhere,” Vivek told PTI.

“It seems everyone is excited about this election and are taking it seriously as they are expecting change…They want commitment,” he said.

Vivek thinks people are disappointed and fed up.