Bollywood’s search for the first mega success of 2003 continues with Jism (Body) thus far being the only release which has performed well this year. The Hero which opened this past weekend and stars Sunny Deol, Preity Zinta, Priyanka Chopra, Amrish Puri and Kabir Bedi has had the best initial opening of 2003. But it remains to be seen whether it can sustain its opening success. The only other major release, Ek Aur Ek Gyaarah (One and One Makes Eleven), starring Sunjay Dutt and Govinda has had an average response. This comedy produced by Subhash Ghai, one of Bollywoods’ top directors looks set to cover its cost only.
Ghai might be teaming up once again with Akshaye Khanna, his hero from the blockbuster Taal. This is the latest addition to his next directorial venture "Homeland" which also stars the Bollywood legend Dilip Kumar and Shahrukh Khan. The movie, said to be about the life of soldiers, has music by A.R.Rahman, responsible for the excellent soundtrack of Taal and currently making waves in London’s West End with the production Bombay Dreams.
Adding to the film industry’s woes is the battle between producers and distributors over sattelite and DVD/VCD rights. The release of two high profile films, Andaaz and Armaan, have been posponed due to theatres in India being closed as a result of this situation. Andaaz stars Akshay Kumar and was shot partly on location in Cape Town. Armaan, the more eagerly waited of the two, features a fine cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor and Gracy Singh. The film marks the directorial debut of one of Bollywoods’ top screenwriters, Honey Irani.
One of Bachchans’ next ventures is to be directed by Raj Sippy. One of the top directors’ of the 80’s, Sippy’s last movie with Bachchan was the mega hit Satte Pe Satta. Their latest collaboration will also star heartthrob Salman Khan who has been in the news recently mostly due to his off screen activities. He has allegedly threatened to kill actor Viveck Oberoi because of Oberoi’s friendship with actress Aishwarya Rai. Khan and Rai had a troubled relationship which she broke off recently. Bachchan is known as an actor who takes his craft very seriously and it will be interesting to see whether he will put up with his co-stars antics.
Rai has been in the spotlight very often of late. This talented beauty was involved in a freak accident on the sets of one of her latest films. An out of control jeep ploughed into her and she suffered a hairline foot fracture. As a result of the injury quite a few of her productions have had to be postponed including her negotiations with the producers of the latest James Bond film. They were on the set at the time of her accident and were waiting in line to discuss Rai’s possible role as the latest Bond babe. She’s still top of their list and are waiting for her to recover from her ordeal before meeting with her again.
Another production which is affected by her injury is Pathe UK's Bollywood musical Bride and Prejudice. Bend it Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha has cast rising New Zealand star Martin Henderson, who played opposite Naomi Watts in The Ring, to appear alongside Rai in the role of Darcy.
Rai has also been confirmed as a member of the main jury at the Cannes Film Festival. She joins other luminaries from the film world including American actress Meg Ryan, French actress Karin Viard and French actor and elder-statesman Jean Rochefort. Also on the panel are American director Steven Soderbergh, Bosnian director Danis Tanovic and Chinese director Jiang Wen. Rounding out the group is Italian writer Erri De Luca. Patrice Chereau will preside over the jury.
The future certainly looks very rosy for the talented ex-Ms. World and these happenings will certainly take her mind off the dismal failure of her maiden effort as a producer, Dil Ka Rishta ( Relationships of the Heart).
Bollywood star couple Ajay Devgan and Kajol have also had some colour added to their lives with the birth of their baby girl. Kajol gave birth to her daughter in the Breach Candy hospital in south Mumbai about a week ago. Both Kajol and Ajay hail from families with film backgrounds. Kajol is the daughter of well-known actress Tanuja and Ajay is the son of fight master Veeru Devgan. They were married in 1998 and were a very popular on screen couple. Their hit films included Pyar To Hona Hi Tha, Raju Chacha, Ishq and Dil Kya Kare.
Ghai might be teaming up once again with Akshaye Khanna, his hero from the blockbuster Taal. This is the latest addition to his next directorial venture "Homeland" which also stars the Bollywood legend Dilip Kumar and Shahrukh Khan. The movie, said to be about the life of soldiers, has music by A.R.Rahman, responsible for the excellent soundtrack of Taal and currently making waves in London’s West End with the production Bombay Dreams.
Adding to the film industry’s woes is the battle between producers and distributors over sattelite and DVD/VCD rights. The release of two high profile films, Andaaz and Armaan, have been posponed due to theatres in India being closed as a result of this situation. Andaaz stars Akshay Kumar and was shot partly on location in Cape Town. Armaan, the more eagerly waited of the two, features a fine cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor and Gracy Singh. The film marks the directorial debut of one of Bollywoods’ top screenwriters, Honey Irani.
One of Bachchans’ next ventures is to be directed by Raj Sippy. One of the top directors’ of the 80’s, Sippy’s last movie with Bachchan was the mega hit Satte Pe Satta. Their latest collaboration will also star heartthrob Salman Khan who has been in the news recently mostly due to his off screen activities. He has allegedly threatened to kill actor Viveck Oberoi because of Oberoi’s friendship with actress Aishwarya Rai. Khan and Rai had a troubled relationship which she broke off recently. Bachchan is known as an actor who takes his craft very seriously and it will be interesting to see whether he will put up with his co-stars antics.
Rai has been in the spotlight very often of late. This talented beauty was involved in a freak accident on the sets of one of her latest films. An out of control jeep ploughed into her and she suffered a hairline foot fracture. As a result of the injury quite a few of her productions have had to be postponed including her negotiations with the producers of the latest James Bond film. They were on the set at the time of her accident and were waiting in line to discuss Rai’s possible role as the latest Bond babe. She’s still top of their list and are waiting for her to recover from her ordeal before meeting with her again.
Another production which is affected by her injury is Pathe UK's Bollywood musical Bride and Prejudice. Bend it Like Beckham director Gurinder Chadha has cast rising New Zealand star Martin Henderson, who played opposite Naomi Watts in The Ring, to appear alongside Rai in the role of Darcy.
Rai has also been confirmed as a member of the main jury at the Cannes Film Festival. She joins other luminaries from the film world including American actress Meg Ryan, French actress Karin Viard and French actor and elder-statesman Jean Rochefort. Also on the panel are American director Steven Soderbergh, Bosnian director Danis Tanovic and Chinese director Jiang Wen. Rounding out the group is Italian writer Erri De Luca. Patrice Chereau will preside over the jury.
The future certainly looks very rosy for the talented ex-Ms. World and these happenings will certainly take her mind off the dismal failure of her maiden effort as a producer, Dil Ka Rishta ( Relationships of the Heart).
Bollywood star couple Ajay Devgan and Kajol have also had some colour added to their lives with the birth of their baby girl. Kajol gave birth to her daughter in the Breach Candy hospital in south Mumbai about a week ago. Both Kajol and Ajay hail from families with film backgrounds. Kajol is the daughter of well-known actress Tanuja and Ajay is the son of fight master Veeru Devgan. They were married in 1998 and were a very popular on screen couple. Their hit films included Pyar To Hona Hi Tha, Raju Chacha, Ishq and Dil Kya Kare.
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