Katrina Kaif making waves
ROMANCE BREWING
IMRAN Khan seems to be on a roll. The talented 30-year-old, who has received rave reviews for Once Upon a Time in Mumbai Dobaara, has been signed for an adventure thriller along the lines of Indiana Jones. The movie will be made by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra, who recently directed the blockbuster Bhaag Mikha Bhaag. Producer Ekta Kapoor was so impressed with the sparkling chemistry between Khan and Sonakshi Sinha in the gangster film that she plans to sign them for a new romance. BOOM, HE’S BACK
SEEMS like supermodel turned actor Upen Patel is ready for a second strike in the industry. The hunky actor is shooting the eagerly awaited south-Indian film I, made by heavyweight director Shankar ( Jeans and Robot). Patel plays the archenemy of actor Vijay in this action thriller that also features Amy Jackson ( Ek Deewana Tha).
Speaking about the movie, Patel, who arrives in South Africa today for the Badtameez Aashiqui concert, said: “I am glad to be back and really excited about this new movie. I feel so privileged that I’ll be making my Tamil film debut under Shankar’s direction.” Patel is also excited about his return to South Africa after shooting Shakalaka Boom Boom here a few years ago. KHAN’T STOP HIM
AFTER the blockbuster Ek Tha Tiger last year, Kabir Khan is gearing up for his next project and yet again the filmmaker has Katrina Kaif for a leading role. Although there was talk that Salman Khan would head the cast, the director has announced that the movie with a terrorism background will have Saif Ali Khan as the hero. SA BOUND?
LAST seen together in Bol Bachchan, in which they played siblings, Abhishek Bachchan and Asin Tottumkaal have been signed for a new project titled Mere Apne. The movie will be directed by Umesh Shukla, who received rave reviews for Oh My God. There is talk that the movie may be shot in South Africa.
PIRACY CURSE
THE face of Tamil cinema in South Africa has been transformed with the release of Vijay’s Thalaivaa last weekend. The release of the film was delayed in India for political reasons. The opening weekend locally had capacity or close to capacity crowds for all shows — a sign that augurs well for the growth of this once neglected market. The delay in the release of the film in Tamil Nadu might have helped SRK’s Chennai Express , but it spelt disaster for distributors and theatre owners who were banking on huge takings at the box office. Within days of the release internationally, the Tamil Nadu markets were flooded with pirated DVDs of high-quality prints. This has huge ramifications for cinemas using the minimumguarantee system, because prices will have to be adjusted downward. TWEETING WOES
DHANUSH, who has recently announced his 25th film under his own production banner, Wunderbar Films, has found himself in a sticky situation following his tweet on the
Thalaivaa fiasco. Indian media have claimed that Dhanush was critical of the way Tamil Nadu’s ruling party was handling the delay. Dhanush hastily responded by tweeting that he was calling on the authorities to find a speedy solution to the problem and not criticising the state government. NEW RELEASES
AFTER months of waiting, the title of Ajithkumar’s 54th film was announced last weekend. Veeram is directed by Siruthai Siva and has music by Devi Sri Prasad. Thamanna and Santhaanam are in the supporting cast. Veeram is scheduled for release on January 14 2014 when it will go head-tohead with Vijay’s Jilla. Ajithkumar’s 53rd film, Aarambam , is scheduled for a Diwali release. LONDON CALLING
ILLAIYARAJA will perform in his first London concert on Saturday. Kamalhassan will be among the guests for the function and the singers include SP Balasubramaniam, Karthik, Shwetha Mohan, Chinmayi, Madhu Balakrishnan, Sadhana Sargam and Isai Nyaani’s children — Yuvanshankar Raja, Karthik Raja and Bhavadharani. MUSICAL MILESTONE
YUVANSHANKAR Raja’s 100th album, Biriyani, has some interesting milestones, including his first collaboration with lyricist Madhan Karky. It is also the first time that seven composers will lend their voices to tracks from the film of the same name. There had been speculation that AR Rahman would feature in one of the tracks, a rumour fuelled by the recent collaboration between the two composers when Yuvan sang a song for Rahman’s Mariyaan. However, Yuvan later confirmed that he had not asked Rahman to sing for his Biriyani album.