Abhinav directs Salman Khan's Dabangg sequel?

Abhinav directs Salman Khan's Dabangg sequel?: Abhinav Kashyap may not have burnt his bridges with the Khan brothers after all. According to well-placed sources, the director behind 2010's monster hit is back in favour with Salman and is all set to direct the much-touted sequel to Dabangg.

A source close to Salman says, "Abhinav is a good director, but the success of the film may have gone to his head. However, the fallout is a thing of the past and it will only be fitting if Abhinav directs the sequel."

According to reports Kashyap rubbed a lot of people the wrong way post the success of his debut film. He demanded more than Rs 10 crore from Eros International while negotiating for a film which did not materialise for obvious reasons.

Kashyap next had a meeting with PVR Pictures. There too he demanded something between Rs 15 and 18 crore. Mumbai Mirror had reported this on Oct 28, 2010.

"When Salman learnt about Kashyap's pricey ways, he responded with putting him off his radar," adds the source. We broke the story of Kashyap's fallout with Salman on November 10, 2010.

While it is not clear what brought about the sudden change of heart, Salman seems more favourably inclined towards the director of one of his career-defining films.

"We have Kashyap's dates in place, which were finalised only last week," says the source, adding, "Both Salman and Arbaaz love Abhinav. Let's not get into what went wrong, but look forward to a killer sequel."

Ra.One in 3D: Shahrukh Khan's dream superhero project!

Ra.One in 3D: Shahrukh Khan's dream superhero project!: This year is going to be big for Shahrukh Khan. His dream superhero project Ra.One is reaching its post production stage and his Don 2 is also set for a year-end release. Now, we hear the actor is also planning to release his Ra.One in 3D.

Yes, some Hollywood studios have shown interest to convert Ra.One in 3D. Since the movie’s release date is apparently postponed to October because of the post-production work, the makers of Ra.One are also toying with the idea to release it in 3D.

“Even though we have shot in the standard live action format, we all think it would be cool to have the film in 3D,” a source close to the production house is quoted as saying by a daily.

Directed by Anubhav Sinha, the film has visual effects on par with the international standards. Shahrukh has invested a humungous amount to install the state-of-the-art machinery for the SFX in Ra.One. In the movie he himself plays a superhero, Kareena Kapoor gets to romance him, and Arjun Rampal is the evil man.

It’s heard that the movie’s VFX budget is of Rs 150 crore. Shahrukh will decide by April whether to come out with Ra.One in 3D or not.

What do you want from your favourite Khan?

Akshay Kumar lead with Sonakshi Sinha in Prabhu Deva’s next project

Akshay Kumar lead with Sonakshi Sinha in Prabhu Deva’s next project: This Valentine’s Day Prabhu Deva will not be with his ladylove down south. He’ll be in Mumbai to discuss with Akshay Kumar his new film to be produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

While talking to a daily the choreographer-turned-director reveals that he is a happy man. Not only has the turmoil in his personal life almost settled, he is waiting for the right time to marry Nayanthara. His Tamil film which is entirely shot in Paris with Jayam Ravi and Hansika Motwani, Engeyam Kadhal, is almost ready for release, and now work is only on his mind.

Prabhu Deva’s new Bollywood project has got a very interesting cast. The film has Akshay with Sonakshi Sinha and the maverick director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali will produce it. It’s going to be a full masala film, very much like Wanted.

Can we expect another with Salman Khan, Prabhu!

Shahrukh Khan impressed with Salman Khan 'Dabangg's director!

Shahrukh Khan impressed with Salman Khan 'Dabangg's director!: Shahrukh Khan seems impressed with the director of Salman Khan’s blockbuster Dabangg. For he wants Abhinav Kashyap to direct a full-on masala entertainer for him.

At a recent award show, Shahrukh was seen doing Salman’s signature Dabangg dance on stage with Sonakshi Sinha. The superstar has loved Dabangg and now wants Kashyap for his home production. But there’s a hitch.

Kashyap is also committed to directing the sequel of Dabangg, which Salman wants to start soon to capitalize on the popularity of Chulbul Pandey. On the other hand, SRK has been having talks with Kashyap and has reportedly asked him to pen a script.

Which means the much-in-demand Kashyap is going to be torn between the two Khans.

Reports even suggest that Kashyap is more eager to work with SRK because he had his differences with Sallu during the making of Dabangg. Moreover, his fallout with Arbaaz Khan (producer of Dabangg) after the film’s super success has also strained their relationship, though the two have made up now.

Guess Kashyap will have to work overtime to keep both Salman and SRK happy.

Aamir Khan in 'Dhoom 3': Freida Pinto to star opposite him?

Aamir Khan in 'Dhoom 3': Freida Pinto to star opposite him?: The buzz around the leading lady opposite Aamir Khan in Dhoom 3 is really building up.

Just days after the word about three possible contenders (Katrina Kaif, Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone) to bag the coveted role started doing the rounds, now another actress is rumoured to be under consideration. She’s no other than the Slumdog Millionaire starlet and Mumbai girl Freida Pinto who’s a hot property in Hollywood but hasn’t been lured to Bollywood yet.

The gossip is that producer Aditya Chopra is keen to make Dhoom 3 bigger and better than the previous two films in the franchise. And what would be better than to rope in the actress who’s made her mark worldwide.

Moreover, the pairing of Aamir and Freida would be unusually refreshing.

There’s also the buzz that Katrina Kaif is also a strong contender to clinch the role.

However, the production house Yash Raj Films is still in the process of finalizing the actresses.

Ranbir Kapoor with two girls in 'Rockstar'

Ranbir Kapoor with two girls in 'Rockstar': Director Imtiaz Ali wanted to keep the presence of Ranbir Kapoor’s second heroine in Rockstar under wraps, but the cat is prematurely out of the bag.

We all know of the sexy Nargis Fakhri, an American model of half Pakistani origin, playing the leading lady to Ranbir in Ali’s next film. But what none could suspect was that the film has another heroine. And that’s turned out to be Aditi Rao Hydari, who is currently the talk of the town for her steamy 22 kisses with co-star Arunoday Singh in the last week’s release Yeh Saali Zindagi.

In Rockstar, Aditi plays a journalist who narrates the story of the protagonist played by Ranbir. Her character is pivotal to the plot.

Aditi says she had auditioned for the leading lady’s part in the film but that was bagged by Nargis. However, she did clinch the second female lead and says she is happy with her role.

In the film, Ranbir’s character is reportedly modelled on the late singer, poet Jim Morrison of ‘The Doors’ from the 1960s and early 70s. The film has primarily been shot in Delhi and will release later this year.

John Abraham decides to boycott the promotion of '7 Khoon Maaf'?

John Abraham decides to boycott the promotion of '7 Khoon Maaf'?: It’s hard to stomach this gossip without a pinch of salt. The buzz is that John Abraham has decided to boycott the promotions of 7 Khoon Maaf because he was being treated on equal footing with other male actors of the film.

Someone not really known for throwing attitude or being professionally insecure, John, the buzz has it, had been expecting, if not unabashedly demanding, preferential treatment from director Vishal Bhardwaj.

Since John is the most saleable name among the seven male actors who play Priyanka Chopra’s husbands in the film, the star, reports claim, had been hoping to see himself on the movie’s posters along with Priyanka. But Bhardwaj has been focussing the most on Priyanka while relegating the male actors to the sidelines, something that hasn’t apparently gone down well with John.

So, it’s being reported that he’s decided to boycott the film’s promotions.

The movie stars a host of male actors including Neil Nitin Mukesh, Irrfan Khan, Anu Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah and a Russian actor. 7 Khoon Maaf is slated to release on February 18.

Akshay Kumar in action in ‘Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai’ sequel!

Akshay Kumar in action in ‘Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai’ sequel!: Though his last few films couldn’t do much wonder at the box office, Akshay Kumar still continues to be a hot favourite of the producers. The Khiladi Kumar has been approached by Ekta Kapoor to play Dawood in the sequel of Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai.

Wondering what will happen to Ajay Devgan and Emran Hashmi? Well, both the actors are not part of the sequel. Ajay couldn’t have been because his character was killed in the film. Emraan, however, has got the short end of the stick and replaced by Akshay who will play a matured don.

We hear that Akki has already spoken to Ekta about the role. Milan Luthria will again wield the megaphone for the project which will continue the story of Shoaib (Dawood) and how he makes his empire after Sultan (Haji) dies in the first part.

It’s heard that Akki is negotiating his remuneration for the film. The original was a major hit of the year 2010 and Ekta doesn’t want to take chances. She can even opt for a new storyline and there might be another actor who will act as the rival of Akki.

Since Akshay is there, expect the film to be high on action sequences.

Box Office Report: ‘Yeh Saali Zindagi’ vs ‘Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji’

Box Office Report: ‘Yeh Saali Zindagi’ vs ‘Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji’: Last Friday saw as many as five releases, but except Yeh Saali Zindagi no other movie could start off well at the box office. Hum Dono (Rangeen), Tum Hi Toh Ho, United Six and Utt Pataang -- all had very low collections over the weekend.

Sudhir Mishra’s dark romantic tale Yeh Saali Zindagi collected around Rs 1.10-1.20 crore approx on its first day. The movie picked up on Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, it collected Rs 1.60 crore and did a business of Rs 1.75 crore aprox on Sunday. The movie is expected to collect Rs 6.50 crore approx in its first week.

Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji continues its run at the box office. Though the movie had mixed response it fared well in its first week with the collection of Rs 21 crore. But the collections are down by around 70% which is not good for the film.

Coming to Aamir Khan’s production Dhobi Ghat, the movie did the business of Rs 1.25 crore approx in its second week. The two-week total now is of around Rs 13.75 crore. The movie is not a hit.

Get ready for Akshay Kumar’s film Patiala House which is releasing coming Friday.

Salman Khan plays a lead role in 'No Entry Mein Entry'

Salman Khan plays a lead role in 'No Entry Mein Entry': Producer Boney Kapoor and director Anees Bazmee have revamped the sequel to No Entry. The film will now have Salman Khan hogging the limelight.

Remember how in large chunks of No Entry, Salman disappeared from the screen and was seen intermittently throughout the film. Truth is, Salman’s role in the comedy was just an extended cameo that the actor did for free because Boney Kapoor was going through financial crunch those days.

And now that Salman has again cemented his position as the star who pulls crowds to theatres, Bazmee and Kapoor have scrapped the script of the No Entry sequel and are now coming up with No Entry Mein Entry that will have Salman in the lead role.

Does that mean that the other stars, namely Anil Kapoor and Fardeen Khan will be sidelined? Well, almost so.

Bazmee is penning the script keeping in mind Salman’s huge fan following that loves to see the star playing larger than life characters.

“His fans will be delighted with his role in the film,” Bazmee promises.

We’re sure of that.

Patiala House's premiere will be held at Patiala

Patiala House Wallpapers

Patiala House's premiere will be held at Patiala: Thanks to the efforts of Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, director Nikhil Advani’s film Patiala House, starring Akshay Kumar in lead role, will premiere in the Punjabi city from which it derives its title.

The film’s London and Mumbai premieres have reportedly been cancelled because Mr. Badal asked the film to be premiered in Patiala.

Confirming the development, Tinku Singh, Managing Director of SRS cinema in Patiala told a news agency that the producers have asked them to make arrangements for the premiere show of 'Patiala House' on February 10.

“We are honoured to be holding the premiere of Patiala House in one of our cinemas,” said Singh.

The film's cast Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia, Akshay, Anushka Sharma along with Nikhil Advani will be flying down to Patiala on Thursday, he said.

Releasing on February 11, the film is a family drama that revolves around a London-based second generation Sikh's dream to play cricket.

Sunny Deol's next film 'Mohalla 80' first look

Sunny Deol's next film 'Mohalla 80' first look:

Sunny Deol's next film 'Mohalla 80' first look

Penguin set to launch a book on ‘Saat Khoon Maaf’

Penguin set to launch a book on ‘Saat Khoon Maaf’: Penguin is set to launch a book on Ruskin Bond’s short story ‘Suzanna’s Seven Husbands’, which Bollywood filmmaker Vishal Bharadwaj has adapted into a movie and titled it ‘7 Khoon Maaf’.

‘Penguin will release the book Feb 19. This will help readers know our journey from the short story to the film,’ said Bharadwaj.

‘7 Khoon Maaf’ stars Priyanka Chopra as the protagonist, who kills her seven husbands.

Junior Akshay to act as Akshay's teenage version in Patiala House

Junior Akshay to act as Akshay's teenage version in Patiala House: There was no way director Nikhil Advani was going to compromise on casting for the boy who would play Bollywood star Akshay Kumar's teenage version in his upcoming film "Patiala House". He found the perfect junior Akshay in Usman Quereshi.

Advani was hunting for a boy to play 17-year-old Akshay, and Usman was on board on the first meeting itself because of his resemblance with the 43-year-old actor. In fact, the resemblance was so strong that the crew gave him the nickname Akki Junior, said a source.

"We were completely bowled over by the striking resemblance between the two - Akshay and Usman. And after the screen test, without a doubt we found our 17-year-old Akshay for 'Patiala House'. It is not easy to play a younger role of such a superstar but Usman has done a great job," said Bhushan Kumar of T-Series, the co-producer of the movie.

In fact, Akshay was quite surprised and excited to see Usman, and discovered that they shared a similar scar on their eyebrow. Akshay also said that Usman's body structure is quite similar to his own when he was 17.

"Patiala House" will release Feb 11, 2011.

Thank You Movie Stills - Photos

Thank You Movie Stills - Photos:

More about Thank You Movie

Utt Pataang Movie Review

Utt Pataang Movie Review: Everything’s topsy-turvy in director Srikanth Velagaleti’s first film Utt Patang, starring Vinay Pathak in a contrastingly double role: an honest, lovelorn simpleton Ram, and a sly, slick, French-spouting underworld don Lucky.

Ram is dumped by his foul-mouthed girlfriend (Mahi Gill) and she now wants to take back her belongings from his flat. Koyal (Mona Singh) is a heartbroken girl Ram meets at a bar and takes her home as she has nowhere to go. And then there’s Ram’s detective friend (Saurabh Shukla) pining for some piece of action. The picture is completed with Ram’s lookalike Lucky, who is a fashionable gangster.

What sets the cat among the pigeons is a lost bag full of Rs. 5 crore. Everyone runs pillar to post to get their hands on the moolah.

Utt Pataang starts off quite intriguingly in the first half, with assorted sequences tacked together inexplicably. It’s in the second half that the things begin to get clearer.

Alas, the variety of humour in the film is strictly mediocre. There’s a sequence where Vinay takes Mona to her apartment and switches on the TV and there’s a C-grade porn film running. More such juvenile gags unravel but fail to amuse you. Moreover, Vinay Pathak hams up his part as the gangster, though he’s pretty likeable as the simpleton Ram. Mahi Gill is given the most acerbic dialogues and she delivers them with a punch. Mona Singh as a brief role. The stocky Saurabh Shukla chips in some fun moments.

To sum it up, Utt Pataang is entertaining only in parts.

Movie Review - Yeh Saali Zindagi

Movie Review - Yeh Saali Zindagi: Getting your head around the maze of director Sudhir Mishra’s Yeh Saali Zindagi could be quite an ask and task. Taking a plot bursting at its seams, Sudhir Mishra plonks in it so many characters, with many a voice-over and flashbacks, that keeping the count after a while becomes an exercise in maths. But, given the reputation of the director, you are willing to sit back, play along, and let the movie grow on you. And it does.

Simply put, Yeh Saali Zindagi is a romantic thriller with too many sub-plots unspooling at a breathless pace. Arun (Irrfan Khan) is in love with the singer Priti (Chitrangada Singh) but she loves Shyam (Vipul Gupta) who is set to marry the daughter of a politician.

On the other hand Kuldeep (Arunoday Singh) is a criminal on his last assignment. Thanks to his feisty wife (Aditya Rao Hydari) who disapproves of his shady, deadly profession, he’s set to reform and start life afresh. But his last assignment embroils Shyam, Priti and Arun in a deadlock where each character’s love is tested against the grime and crime of Delhi’s underbelly.

A whole lot of oddballs are entangled in the ruck. There are gun-toting hardy criminals, corrupt cops and opportunistic politicians. At first the characters remain mostly isolated, like an assorted bunch in a puzzle that begins to make sense as each piece falls into its place. Yet, the overwrought and complex structure of the plot does challenge your grey cells.

The story-screen writing (Mishra and Manu Rishi) is one of the strengths of YSZ. The dialogues, liberally sprinkled with expletives of choicest variety, are witty gems that keep you amused throughout the frenetic pace of the story.

Another strength is the cast ensemble. Irrfan Khan comes up with the most winsome performance as the man who goes out of his way to help the woman he loves without his feelings being reciprocated. Chitrangada Singh is naturally glamorous and pitches in a fine performance. Arunoday Singh shines as the rowdy criminal trying to mend his ways for the sake of his wife and kid. His torrid, almost violent love story with Aditi Rao does prove a mild distraction in the plot but is quite finely etched. From the sidelines, Sushant Singh and Saurabh Shukla leave an impression.

More than anything, YSZ is a testimony of Mishra’s craftsmanship as a writer and director. With its many unpredictable twists and twirls and a climax that some might take with a pinch of salt, YSZ is a delightfully different film that attempts to break all set formulas and leave you with a smile on the face in the end.

Secret Tattoo of Kangna Ranaut in 'Tanu Weds Manu'

Secret Tattoo of Kangna Ranaut in 'Tanu Weds Manu': Kangana Ranaut shows off a secret tattoo that is inked on her chest in her next film Tanu Weds Manu.

The actress plays a carefree, bindaas girl in the film who is dead against an arranged marriage but her parents choose a NRI doctor for her, played by Madhavan. So Kangana gets a tattoo on her chest which goes with her bold gal nature. The tattoo says ‘Awasthi’, her boyfriend’s name in the film, and in one scene she lowers her kurta to flaunt the tattoo on her chest to shock the boy who has come to marry her.

It’s learnt that Kangana was not quite sure of the scene, but as she is a thorough professional, she gave it a try and got a temporary henna tattoo on the upper part of her breast especially for the scene. In fact, she used to get the tattoo daily for continuous three days till the scene was finally canned.

That’s the secret of tattoo!

Katrina Kaif's No for Dibakar Banerjee’s next project!

Katrina Kaif's No for Dibakar Banerjee’s next project!: She just lost a great chance! It could have been the role of a life time for Katrina Kaif. She was the one whom the talented director Dibakar Banerjee wanted to cast in his next film Shanghai.

Though the actress was keen on doing the project which has got Emraan Hashmi and Abhay Deol in the lead, par yeh ho na saka! For Dibakar, she was the right choice; the role requires a girl who looks half Indian and half Caucasian. Obviously, he had Kat in mind, but as this pretty lass is busy in a Yash Raj rom com she can’t squeeze out time for Dibakar.

“Katrina was ideal. But she had other career plans,” Dibakar is quoted as saying by a daily. Now the makers are searching frantically for the new Shanghai face. Casting agencies in Europe and North America are given the task to find the right girl as shooting starts in three months.

Can Kat suggest someone to the director? Any near or dear one who looks like her and can act!

Tanu Weds Manu Movie Wallpapers

Tanu Weds Manu Movie Wallpapers:

Tanu Weds Manu Movie Wallpapers