Newbies and a veteran heading for Bolly screens
Amitabh and Sakshi among those signed up
Sircar bags Amitabh Shoojit Sircar, the director famous for Vicky Donor and
Madras Café, has secured an incredible cast for his next movie. Titled Piku , it will have superstar Amitabh Bachchan heading the cast with Deepika Padukone, Irrfan Khan and Bangla star Jisshu Sengupta, who will also soon be seen playing Rani Mukerjee’s husband in the cop flick, Mardaani. Playing Priyanka Newcomer Sakshi Chaudhary is an actress to watch out for. All set to make her debut opposite John Abraham in the third instalment of Hera Pheri, she has bagged the role of the real-life Priyanka Chopra. The movie traces Chopra’s legal battle with her former secretary, Prakash Jaju, who tried to cheat the actress financially. Although the movie is being produced by Aseem Merchant, Chopra’s ex-beau, she is miffed that it is going ahead without her approval. Eclipsing Endhiran Rajinikanth’s Kochadaiyaan has had a hugely successful opening, eclipsing previous records set by Endhiran. However, given the huge budget, the momentum needs to continue for it to be regarded as a financial success. With Chennai’s Mayajaal complex screening 100 shows a day, that target should be reached quite easily. Uthama hero The warmth of the Kodambakkam family came to the fore last week after Faizal, the elder son of actor Naaser, was seriously injured in a horrific accident that claimed the lives of three of his friends. Faizal suffered serious head injuries and has not regained consciousness following emergency surgery. He had been helping with the marketing of the film Saivam, which sees his father in the lead role and his brother, Basha, in a key role. Saivam was directed by AL Vijay ( Thaandavam and
Thalaivaa). Naaser has since impressed the cast and crew of Uthama Villain with his professionalism when he reported for shooting although his son was in a critical condition in hospital.
Uthama Villain is being directed by Ramesh Aravind. Ai-eesh! Shankar’s eagerly awaited film, Ai, has had another setback after its release was postponed yet again. Unconfirmed reports have revealed that producer Aascar Ravichandran is either unable or unwilling to continue financing the film and that Shankar is now on the lookout for another producer. Ai had earlier been scheduled for a release in June, but with one song and post-production work still to go, it seems unlikely that the film will be released before August. Vikram and Amy Jackson head the cast. Exciting teen International teen sensation Pragathi Guruprasad will be performing in South Africa next month. A finalist in Vijay TV’s Super Singer Junior 3, Pragathi has thus far performed in sold-out shows on all continents except Africa. The 16-yearold lass with an enchanting smile was born in Singapore and raised in California, US, where she currently resides. Last weekend, Pragathi won yet another award when she received the Vijay TV Most Exciting International Find award. —