RE: September 2007 - News - 6

Super shortage

With apologies to Agatha Christie’s all-time great mystery thriller, And Then There Were None:

Six super duper stars dominated Bollywood,
One shot a black buck and then there were five,
Five super duper stars dominated Bollywood
One played with an AK-56 and then there were four
Four super duper stars dominated Bollywood,
One became too muscular and then there were three...

This is the plight of the Rs 5,000-crore Hindi movie industry whose fortunes depend on a handful of superstars. Let them sneeze, and the industry shakes. Today, the future of two of the superstars, Sanjay Dutt and Salman Khan, are clouded. Of course, Salman is out on bail in the black buck shooting case, but if the bail is cancelled and the judgment at the higher court goes against him, his career as a top hero would be jeopardised. He faces two more trials, one for the shooting of a ‘chinkara’ deer and the other for a hit-and-run case where he allegedly ran over a man sleeping on the pavement. If judgments in these cases went against him, Salman’s career would effectively be over.

Sanjay Dutt also is out on bail now but he could not report for shooting because his hair had to be cut short before his jail term began. His future is uncertain though the Supreme Court can rule in his favour in the AK-56 case and release him on probation. But Bollywood, which has invested heavily on these stars, cannot live with this uncertainty. Sanjay, after the spectacular successes of the Munnabhai series, is now one of the hottest properties in film industry.

The curse of our 75-year-old Hindi film industry is that all along it has depended on the fortunes of a handful of top male stars. From the 1950s to the 1960s it was the era of Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand. Then came Rajendra Kumar, Dharmendra, Rajesh Khanna and, later, Amitabh Bachchan. Today, besides the three Khans — Shah Rukh, Aamir and Salman, we have Sanjay, Hrithik Roshan and, by fits and starts, Sunny Deol and Saif Ali Khan. Ajay Devgan may be a good actor but not in the top draw; Abhishek Bachchan, despite some media backing, will not make it to the top. And with two of the six facing an uncertain future, Bollywood is shaky.

Of course, not all producers depend on superstars. Mahesh Bhatt and Subhash Ghai have shown they can make do with fresh blood and new faces. But the tried and trusted producers who aim at super box-office hits depend on the top six. They plan big, spend big money and rope in the big stars. The top three Khans and Sanjay Dutt have been around for nearly 20 years, but there are no new superstars on the horizon.

The making of a superstar is not so easy these days. Formerly only movie stars qualified for this title. But today, they are challenged by TV stars, Indian idols, sports stars, item number stars, quiz show stalwarts and so on. During the past seven years, there has been just one movie superstar, Hrithik Roshan. How long do we have to wait for another one? No one knows.

Quelle: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/life...92850030200.htm

Ajay Devgan's U, ME AUR HUM almost complete

Well it's great to see Ajay Devgan back in action once again. The man who had been busy past couple of months working on his directorial debut project U, ME AUR HUM seems to be taking it easy these days with the movie almost complete now. Ajay and Kajol keeping up to their old commitment recently shot for an ad film for Whirlpool at the Yash Raj Studio.

Shouldering double responsibility of acting and directing the movie, the perfectionist that he is, Ajay had cut off from the rest of the world, focusing his attention to only on the making of the film.

U, ME AUR HUM is now almost complete with only one song left to be shot, which will be picturised abroad early next month. Insiders who have seen rushes from the movie apparently seem to be very impressed with the hotshots.

Quelle: http://www.glamsham.com/movies/scoops/07...vgan_090707.asp

'MAAL'daar movies!!

Well, what do block buster hits GOLMAAL, MALAMAAL WEEKLY and DHAMAAL have in common?

Not too much to guess there, definitely the 'maal' factor and coincidentally, all these films have earned good 'maal' in the box office. Director of GOLMAAL, Rohit Shetty who's next film SUNDAY starring Arshad Warsi, Ayesha Takia, Ajay Devgan and Anjana Sukhanani, may not have the common link, but is almost ready with the movie now and all set to head to Dubai in November to make another film- the sequel to the hit laughathon 'Golmaal'- GOLMAAL RETURNS!!

"SUNDAY is almost finished. I am looking forward to its release. Maybe I should consider changing the title to Sundaymaal for a safe bet!" jokes Shetty.

Interestingly his other film GOLMAAL RETURNS will have four heroines also this time, for which Kareena Kapoor and Anjana Sukhnani are already confirmed. The man is busy looking out for his other two heroines for the movie.

Guess our Bollywood ladies, might just be in for a surprise soon!

Quelle: http://www.glamsham.com/movies/scoops/07...nday_090709.asp

Sunday will come soon

Director of Golmaal, Rohit Shetty who's next film is Sunday starring Arshad Warsi, Ayesha Takia, Ajay Devgan and Anjana Sukhanani, may not have the common link, but is almost ready with the movie now and all set to head to Dubai in November to make another film- the sequel to the hit laughathon Golmaal- Golmaal Returns!!

"Sunday is almost finished. I am looking forward to its release. Maybe I should consider changing the title to Sundaymaal for a safe bet!" jokes Shetty.

Interestingly his other film Golmaal Returns will have four heroines also this time, for which Kareena Kapoor and Anjana sukhnani are already confirmed. The man is busy looking out for his other two heroines for the movie.

Guess our Bollywood ladies, might just be in for a surprise soon!

Quelle: http://www.b4utv.com/showtime/gossip/070928rohit.shtml

Ajay-Kajol to act along with animated characters in Toonpur Ka Superhero - September 28

It seems real life married couple Ajay and Kajol are enjoying their experience of working with each other. So after Ajay’s home production U, Me Aur Hum, both the stars will be seen playing themselves and acting alongside 19 other animated characters in the film Toonpur Ka Superhero. The film will be a first of its kind in the Indian market where real and animated characters will be seen together in an entire film. The film will be jointly produced by Kumar Mangat’s production house and Eros International.

The film will also mark the directorial debut of ad filmmaker Kireet Khurana who has won the national award five times for his ad films. Obviously the film will have some of the best digital effects. In fact Khurana plans to give his animated characters in the film mannerisms which are like those of our popular bollywood stars. So audiences will be able to identify and link which stars the animated characters mannerisms are like. Khurana will have a whole load of animated characters in the film and he has already begun creating many of them. Ajay and Kajol will play their real selves in the film and will interact with the animated characters. An excited Ajay said “I have never done a film with animated characters, so when the script was narrated to me I said yes immediately. Kajol too liked the story and was keen to be a part of it.”

The film is naturally a big budget film due to the special digital effects and so many animated characters. It has an estimated budget of around Rs.40 crores. One would remember the song with Saif Ali Khan, Rani and the two kids along with the animated characters in a song in the Yash Raj film Ta Ra Rum Pum. Toonpur Ka Superhero though will be a film completely animated. It will no doubt be an instant attraction with children. The film will probably be ready next year around Diwali.

Quelle: http://www.bollywoodmantra.com/1736_ajay...-superhero.html

Shetty's Golmaal Returns ready to roll

Golmaal Returns is all set to hit the floors this November end. The film, a part two of last year's hit Golmaal, is being produced by Ashtavinayak and Studio 18 and will be shot in Dubai and Mumbai.

Says Rohit Shetty, director of the film, "We have planned two schedules in Dubai, which will be followed by one in Mumbai. Though it is too early to say when the film will touch its finishing line, we are looking at mid of next year." Golmaal was shot in Goa, Pune, Bangkok and Mauritius.

Regarding repetition of the starcast, except of Sharman Joshi who has been replaced by Shreyas Talpade, the rest remains the same. Adds Rohit, "Rimi won't be a part of Golmaal Returns because it's a new story altogether. We are not making a sequel, only the characters are the same. We will have four girls opposite four guys. Kareena Kapoor and Anjana Sukhani have been finalized as of now. We are in search for two more girls." Talks are on with Esha Deol, but nothing has been finalized as of now.

Shetty is thrilled about Kareena's character. He says, "She is playing a hilarious girl in the film. I am really looking forward to the shoot. Though she has been a part of Hulchul, which was a comedy flick, but this one is an out and out comic character."

Vishal-Shekhar will be composing the music for this film as well.

Quelle: http://www.businessofcinema.com/boc/?file=story&id=5304

Ajay is no longer the angry man

When I was younger, I might have been a little hot tempered but that's in the past. I think everyone matures over the years and it is the same with me," says Devgan.

He's considered the angry man of Hindi films. But ask Ajay Devgan if he is also the angry man in real life and he laughs.

"You can only know your reactions when you are in that situation .

When I was younger, I might have been a little hot tempered but that's in the past. I think everyone matures over the years and it is the same with me," says Devgan.

Looks like the years have mellowed this actor down. But his performances, we must say, have become that much more fiery!

Quelle: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India...how/2414143.cms

Übersetzung sRuthle:

Ajay ist nicht länger "Der Böse Mann"

Er gilt als Der Böse Mann im Hindi Film. Aber wenn man Ajay Devgan danach fragt, ob er auch der böse Mann im wahren Leben ist, dann lacht er.
"Deine Reaktionen erkennst Du nur, wenn Du in entsprechenden Situationen bist.
Als ich jünger war, war ich möglicherweise ein bißchen heißblütig, aber das ist Vergangenheit. Ich denke mal, jeder wird im Lauf der Jahre mal erwachsen und bei mir ist das genau so." sagt Devgan.
Es sieht so aus, als hätten die Jahre den Schauspieler reifer (weicher, samtiger, lieblicher... ) gemacht. Aber seine Darbietungen, das muß man sagen, sind ganz schön feurig geworden!

WIFW Has Double Standards: Manish Malhotra - September 30

Auszug:

...
His love affair with colours that began at that time is reflected in his every collection till date. Malhotra will continue to showcase his creative brilliance in Farah Khan's 'Om Shanti Om', Ajay Devgan's 'U, Me Aur Hum', Imtiaz Ali's 'Jab We Met' and a yet to be titled film starring Priyanka Chopra.
...

Quelle: http://newspostindia.com/report-17059

Waiter to star zen

Auszug:

...
Ajay Devgan was nothing more than the likeable Raju (Ajay's pet name), fight master Veeru Devgan's pampered son before Shetty chiselled him. "I had made a three-minute video of Ajay Devgan doing his moves with me. Veeru showed it to a group of producers at a private show just before his son's launch. Dinesh Patel signed Ajay for Phool Aur Kaante while Salim Aftab took him in Jigar. The two films clicked and Ajay became a star," recalls Shetty who teaches martial arts at many institutes in the city.
...

Quelle: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Revie...how/2415512.cms

“Irrfan Khan plays Shah Rukh Khan in Sunday” - Rohit Shetty - September 27

Rohit Shetty is the son of legendary action director and actor Action Shetty. But that is not his only claim to fame. The director, who is all of 33, is one of the youngest and most talented directors around. His journey as a filmmaker began from the age of 15, when he started assisting Kuku Kohli for Phool Aur Kaante. The director is only two films old with Zameen and Golmaal. Now he is all set to come up with his two new films, namely Golmaal 2 and Sunday. So we at Indiatimes Movies spoke to him regarding his upcoming films and more.

What do you have to offer in Sunday?
Sunday is a comedy-thriller which has dual amount of humour in it. It is a typical 70’s format film. Ayesha Takia plays a dubbing artist who dubs voices for cartoon characters. One fine day she wakes up in the morning and finds that people around her have changed and are behaving very differently. There’s lot of humor and mystery in the film. It has been shot in Delhi. It also stars Ajay Devgan, Arshad Warsi, Irrfan Khan and Anjana Sukahani.

That’s an interesting star cast. What about their characterizations?
Ajay Devgan plays a cop. Arshad Warsi is a cab-driver in the film. Irrfan Khan plays a struggling actor who is trying to make it big since a long time. And as I said, Ayesha Takia plays a dubbing artist who dubs voices for cartoon characters.

Why a title like Sunday?
We chose the name Sunday because the story revolves around an issue which happens on that particular day. It is not only about one Sunday’s story, but the flow of events that follow. While writing the script, we liked the name and found it interesting enough to be the title of the film. So, the title is as unusual as the film is going to be.

It has been reported that Irrfan Khan is going to have different getups in the film.
Yes, it is true. He is going to have different getups every time he comes on screen. He becomes Shah Rukh Khan or an advocate or any other personality. He gets into the skin of every character before going for an audition. Hence the several get ups. Irfan plays a very cute, different character. I wanted an unusual person for this role, not a regular comedian. Irfan has always done serious roles. So I wanted to take up the challenge of turning him into a funny man.

Is Sunday a male dominated film?
No, it is not. The film is about an incident in the girl’s life and how these different characters enter the scenario.

How much scope will the female characters Ayesha Takia and Anjana Sukhani have?
Everybody has scope according to the screenplay. All of them play important characters and everybody has a vital role to play in the scheme of events. Every character is different. Not only Ajay (the cop) suspects everybody, but even the audience finds every character suspicious as to who the culprit is. It is a kind of suspense drama.

Has the entire film been shot in Delhi?
Yes. We had a month-long schedule in March and June. And it was very beautiful. We have built a set of a police station where we have been shooting. We have shown India Gate and the exteriors of Rashtrapati Bhavan. We have also shot at Chandni Chowk with the crowds. In a way, we have covered the whole of Delhi.

Who’s doing the music for Sunday?
The music is very unusual. We have roped in different music directors for every other song. Daler Mehndi has done one song, Raghav Sachar (of Kabul Express fame) has done two songs, Shibani Kashyap and a Pakistani band- Suroor have done one song each.

Why did you go for such a varied range of music directors?
I just wanted to try this for a change. Because everybody chosen has not only composed the music, but also sung for their track. So somewhere down the line as everybody’s style is different, no song will have the same tone and soul.

What kind of songs are there in Sunday?
There are songs of every genre in Sunday . There is one typical Indian folk number which is like the kind of music played in Navratri and Bhangra . There is also one romantic number and disco song. In short, every kind of song can be expected from Sunday.

You have a great rapport with Ajay Devgan with him being in all your films. Tell us something about your association and bonding with him.
Ajay and I go back a long way as his and my fathers were assistant directors. We started working with each other from Phool Aur Kaante in which I assisted Kuku Kohli and Ajay was launched. Then I assisted Kuku for 7-8 films. My first movie Zamee n was with Ajay and Abhishek Bachchan, followed by Golmaal , and now Sunday . Ajay is like an elder brother to me. I started when I was 17 and we know each other since 16-17 years. The comfort level is great. Since we know and understand each other’s nature both professionally and personally, it becomes very easy for me to work with him as a director.

Ajay is coming up with his own film now. Will you be helping him in any way?
Though I would love to but I won’t be able to. Because I will be busy with my own shooting at the same time. Now I have been shooting Sunday and a week after its release I will start shooting for Golmaal Returns , which again stars Ajay Devgan.

Your last film Golmaal was very entertaining and highly appreciated. Do you think Sunday will get an encore?
We are trying our level best. In the end, it is for the audience to decide the film’s fate. Otherwise we all would have predicted which movie is going to work and which one is not going to work. As far as work is concerned, I am really working hard for this movie. There are times when I also get nervous because of people’s high expectations after Golmaal , because then people did not think that an action director would be able to pull off a comedy. So that was quite brave of me! To sum it up, I am putting 100% efforts along with which comes nervousness, but in the end the audience is God!

When are planning to release Sunday?
Sunday would be releasing in the month of November.

And when does Golmaal Returns go on floors?
In November, once Sunday is ready for release.

Let’s talk about Golmaal Returns
Rumi Jaffery and Yunus Sejawal are writing Golmaal Returns . Neeraj Vohra who wrote Golmaal won’t be writing the script for Golmaal Returns because he is busy directing his film. So Rumi came up with an idea which we thought was apt for Golmaal Returns. We worked on it and now the script is finalized.

Will Golmaal Return s begin where Golmaal ended or will it have an entirely different storyline?
Golmaal Returns ’s story is entirely different from Golmaal . The two have no connection whatsoever. It is completely a new story.

We know about the boys in Golmaal Returns. But will Rimmi be a part of the film?
Yes, she will very much remain a part of the film. We have added Kareena Kapoor and Anjana Sukhani as female leads.

What more can you reveal about the sequel?
All I can reveal now is that we have four girls for the four boys in this part. It will be a witty comedy similar to the pattern adopted in Golmaal .

Arshad Warsi said that his character in Golmaal Returns is of a cop with an Amitabh Bachchan hangover
Yes (laughs). Arshad plays a very sweet character. He plays a guy who thinks he is a cool dude but he actually isn’t. Nobody takes him seriously. In the film, he is continually telling something big to the rest of the boys, but nobody takes him seriously. Later that thing actually happens and he is like – “See, I told you.”

Do you expect the same success from Golmaal Returns?
I would obviously love to have the same success and will really work hard for it.

You are also planning a film with Ramesh Sippy.
We will start working on the film immediately after Golmaal Returns is released in mid-June. We have finalized Nana Patekar for one of the characters. Another lead actor and actress have to be finalized. We have yet not finalized the name of the film. It is a comedy film for the entire family.

Don’t you feel that you are concentrating too much on making comedy films after Golmaal?
Yes. People ask me to make comedy films only! When I made Zameen, people asked “Why action?” Today the phase of action is not there, so I have taken a break from it.

But don’t you miss the action genre?
Yes, I do. But Sunday has a lot of action too.

Quelle: http://movies.indiatimes.com/News__Gossi...944,curpg-1.cms