BIGGER AND BETTER
Khan’s next dream project, Happy New Year, seems to be getting bigger and better. Shahrukh Khan and Abhishek Bachchan will head the cast and the director has confirmed that Naseerudin Shah’s son, Vivaan, and Sonu Sood will also feature. There are rumours that Deepika Padukone has landed the female lead, although no announcement has been made. Jackie Shroff has been signed as the villain. NEW FILM
their brilliant debuts in Student of the Year, Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt have been signed for another movie to be produced by Karan Johar. Described as a warm and crazy love story, the movie has been titled Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania. There are rumours that Dhawan and Bhatt are dating. DEBUT MOVIE
Kapoor is a proud father. Daughter Sonam Kapoor has been receiving rave reviews for Raanjhanna and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag and his son, Harsh, is gearing up for his debut as an actor. Harsh has been working as an assistant director and has now been cast as the male lead in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s forthcoming romance, Mirza Sahiba. RISING STAR debut movie, Luv U Soniyo, may have tanked at the box office, but rising star Tanuj Virwani is gearing up for his next release, titled Purani Jeans. The son of ace actress Rati Agnihotri said he had been appreciated in his debut performance — and the delays in the movie were responsible for the poor reaction at the box office.
HOT AND SPICY
are getting hot and spicy for the eagerly awaited South Africa India Film & Television Awards as some of Bollywood’s biggest names confirm their attendance. Saif Ali Khan and Karan Johar are set to host the event and big guns such as Madhuri Dixit, John Abraham and Priyanka Chopra have been confirmed on the prestigious guest list. The glitzy event will take place on September 6 at the International Convention Centre in Durban. Celebrity Locker Management director Kedhar Gawde said: “For the first time, Durban will witness a full galaxy of stars and entertainers — not only from India but also South Africa — who come together on one platform to celebrate each other and collaborate on their expertise.” QUESTIONS
Thalaivaa was eventually released in Tamil Nadu last Tuesday, but many questions remain unanswered:
What happened to the alleged threat against cinemas screening the film, as nothing has been heard of those threats again?
Is it significant that the producer of Thalaivaa recently left Tamil Nadu’s ruling party to form his own?
How did a single tweet by opposition party politician J Anbazhagan change the situation almost overnight? Anbazhagan offered to release the film in the 300 cinema theatres “under his control”.
Why did Vijay not meet the media in the 10 days before the film was eventually released? Is it significant that he had continued to shoot his next film, Jilla?
Why was there no intervention from the actors’ union, producers’ guild, directors’ association or the press association? and
Why were all posters and advertising material replaced with designs that excluded the film’s tagline “Time to Lead”? PIRACY destructive power of piracy was revealed last week when