All
Politics
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Celebrities
Good news for footwear enthusiasts in Chennai. The city will host the first Kickers store. Following a 30-year licensing deal with Royer Group of France, Kothari Industrial Corporation Ltd (KICL) is gearing up to set up its maiden Kickers store in Chennai tomorrow. The timing could not have been better for KICL, which has come under a new owner in Rafiq Ahmed and got relisted on the bourses. The opening of the Kickers store in Chennai comes within days of a significant development in the annals of KICL. A Qatar company belonging to the Royal family has just been cleared by the board of KICL to pick up a 10% stake in the Chennai company. Qatar-based F J Global Investment is owned by Falah Jassim J.M.AL-Thani, who is a director of Doha Bank and was also the founder of Qatar Airways. He was also a minister in the Qatar Government. This is a significant boost to KICL under Rafiq Ahmend, who has gone on a mission to revive the KICL and bring the iconic Kothari brand back to yester-year glory. The investment from a company owned by Qatar Royal family is seen positively by industry circles in Tamil Nadu, which is going the extra mile to woo foreign investment into the state. Significantly enough, KICL has also embarked on a consolidation move with the board approving a proposal to buy 30% stake held by Rafiq Ahmed in Phoenix Kothari Footwear Ltd, a joint venture that is setting up a non-leather footwear park in backward Perambalur district of Tamil Nadu. Well, things appear to fall in place for KICL as it seeks to make a strong comeback and regain its past glory.
It was something that the Congress couldn’t stomach easily. Perhaps the party was surprised that the Raj Kapoor family had chosen to interact with PM Modi. A day after the social media and TV channels were awash with PM Modi’s interaction with members of the Kapoor family, a very senior Congress leader ventured to put out a snarky social media post questioning the meeting. For some odd reason he completely chose to ignore the context of the meeting. “We have been asking PM Modi to visit Manipur. But he has instead found time to meet with Kareena Kapoor.” Soon good sense prevailed and he deleted his crude post. Guess he must have realised that his post was outright offensive. The Kapoor family had called on PM Modi on December 10 to invite him to the legendary actor-filmmaker’s Film Festival. The festival is to commemorate Raj Kapoor’s 100th birth anniversary, an iconic figure in Indian cinema who passed away in 1988. Ten Raj Kapoor films are going to be showcased across 40 cities in 135 cinemas .The Kapoor family, including actors Ranbir Kapoor, Riddhima Kapoor Sahni, Neetu Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Alia Bhat and Saif Ali Khan met the PM. “This is a special day for us. We enjoyed the conversation. He spoke to us in a friendly manner. He made all of us feel very comfortable,” said actor Ranbir Kapoor. His cousin actor Kareena Kapoor Khan said that it was her dream to sit next to PM Modi and talk to him. “His energy is so positive and he is truly a global leader.” PM Modi inquired about the third generation of Kapoors — and autographed for Kareena’s children Tim and Jeh. December 14 marks the 100th birth anniversary of Raj Kapoor.
It couldn’t have come at a more inappropriate time than this. The day when the entire national media was riveted on the Parliament debates commemorating 75 years of Constitution of India and newly-elected Wayanad MP Priyanka Vadra Gandhi was making her debut speech in the House. For some odd reason the Telangana Police chose to arrest Telugu star Allu Arjun, protagonist in the Rs 1000-crore plus grosser Pushpa 2: The Rule. He was arrested in connection with the stampede incident at Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre, which resulted in the death of a woman. On December 4, a massive crowd gathered at Sandhya Theatre to see Allu Arjun, resulting in a tragic stampede. Revathi, a 39-year-old woman, died due to asphyxiation, and her 8-year-old son was hospitalised. While granting interim bail to Allu Arjun, the Telangana High Court affirmed Arjun’s right to life and liberty, stating that he cannot be deprived of these fundamental rights. While leaders cutting across the political spectrum came out in support of the actor, Telangana BJP leader and Union Minister Bandi Sanjay described the arrest of a National Award-winning actor as having been done to steal the spotlight. “Drama over delivery, diversion over governance — that’s the Telangana Congress government for you!” Arjun’s uncle and Andhra deputy CM Pawan Kalyan rushed to rally support for him. In the meanwhile, it will be interesting to see how Priyanka Vadra herself responds to the ham-handed manner CM Revanth Reddy handled the situation. He had after all managed to divert attention from her debut performance in the Lok Sabha to an avoidable law & order incident in Hyderabad.
To ensure the social welfare schemes reach the intended target group, West Bengal chief West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has rolled out a robust mechanism to ensure the effective implementation of socio-welfare schemes. This initiative aims to hold government officials accountable for supervising these projects and addressing inefficiencies that have marred progress in recent years. The state finance ministry has issued a notification, followed by the establishment of a dedicated help desk at Navanna to oversee information flow from block and sub-division levels. This initiative, aimed at curbing inefficiency and fraud, will require officials to physically visit project sites instead of submitting progress reports from office desks. The app will feature automatic geo-tagging, ensuring accurate location tracking of officials during field visits. During multiple administrative meetings chaired by CM, officials repeatedly failed to provide accurate updates on the status of ongoing schemes. This incomplete information has not only slowed down critical projects but also caused dissatisfaction among citizens. Officials, from BDOs to District Magistrates, must register using their mobile numbers. Reports will require OTP authentication and must include photographs of on-ground work. The app mandates regular updates, such as reporting issues in road construction, cleanliness, drinking water, and electricity services, along with distinguishing between simple and complex problems. The model draws inspiration from private sector practices, where geo-tagging apps track employee performance. The state’s new app is expected to enforce accountability among officials, address bureaucratic delays, and improve public service delivery.
In a move that may have surprised the Opposition BJP, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee appointed Radharamn Das, vice president of ISKCON Kolkata,to a 13-member board of trustees for the upcoming Jagannath Dham project in Digha. The temple, set to be a cultural and religious landmark on the shores of the Bay of Bengal, will be inaugurated on Akshay Tritiya on April 30, 2025. The Jagannath Dham Sanskriti Kendra, spanning 20 acres, is being developed under the supervision of HIDCO, an urban planning body under the state government. With an investment of Rs 250 crore, the project aims to replicate the grandeur of the Puri Jagannath Temple and serve as a significant pilgrimage and tourist attraction. This development comes amid ongoing political friction between Didi and BJP’s Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari. It may be recalled that Nandigram where the temple is being built was the place where he had defeated Didi in the 2021 Assembly elections. Adhikari who is opposing the project on the ground that using public funds to construct religious structures is unconstitutional. He accused Mamata of attempting to win the Hindu vote bank as her minority appeasement has alienated Hindus. Mamata’s decision to include an ISKCON leader is seen as a strategic move, in light of recent attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh and the arrest of an ISKCON monk. Political analysts believe Didi is sending a message of solidarity to the Hindu community while subtly addressing concerns raised by the BJP over her government’s alleged minority appeasement policies.
Devajit Saikia is the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) representative in the International Cricket Council (ICC) as its Director. Saikia, who is the question that is being asked by those not acquainted with the BCCI’s governance structure, especially after the Justice Lodha Committee’s Reforms in Cricket report was accepted by the Supreme Court in 2016 and its Constitution was rewritten thereafter. The ICC Board is the all-powerful body in its Governance structure, and as a convention, the 12 full members of the ICC nominate its Presidents as Directors. Many stalwarts of the BCCI, like Jagmohan Dalmiya, Sharad Pawar, N Srinivasan and Shashank Manohar were on the ICC Board, and after the 2019 election, post the reforms, former India captain and BCCI President Sourav Ganguly was on the ICC Board. Ganguly was succeeded by the BCCI Secretary Jay Shah with the BCCI President Roger Binny as the alternate director in 2022, the same year when the former Assam Ranji Trophy cricketer and legal practitioner Saikia was elected as Jt. Secretary of the BCCI. People in the know attribute Saikia’s rise on the administration side of the game to his association and rapport with Assam’s BJP chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. Once it was announced that Jay Shah would take charge as Chair (Independent Director) of the ICC from December 1, 2024, quite a handful of names like Arun Singh Dhumal (former BCCI Treasurer and currently chairman, IPL) and Ashish Shelar (BJP President, Mumbai and BCCI Treasurer) emerged as a potential successor to Shah as BCCI Secretary. Saikia, will remain the BCCI Joint Secretary and perform the duties of the Secretary. But his nomination to the ICC Board has surprised many people.
Veteran leader Sharad Pawar has once again monopolised the centre stage following reports that a top leader of his party has held talks with a prominent BJP Union minister in Delhi. The political grapevine is buzzing with different versions since the meeting is believed to have occurred at industrialist Gautam Adani’s Delhi residence. In fact, Pawar started hitting the headlines on Thursday (Dec 12) morning as the news that his nephew Ajit Pawar and a couple of other NCP (Ajit) leaders had reached the patriarch’s residence. Ajit later said that being a family member, he had greeted his uncle on his birthday and nothing unusual should be read in the visit. Ajit was accompanied by Praful Patel and Sunil Tatkare, both very close to Sharad Pawar till the recent split in the NCP. The name of Adani added grist to the gossip since the industrialist had visited Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis just a couple of days ago in Mumbai. The Adani group continues to BE target of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Shiv Sena party chief Uddhav Thackeray. In the past too, Adani has been meeting Pawar off and on. The presence of Fadnavis in Delhi on Thursday proved to be another trigger to speculate that the political scene of Maharashtra was likely to undergo another overhaul. Pawar’s hot and cold relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi has always remained an intrigue. Hence, his followers are unable to predict which way he can turn.
The Raj Kapoor family has finally come out together to celebrate the centenary year — 1924-2024 — of the showman of the film industry. Forty two year old Ranbir Kapoor who has been in the film industry for nearly two decades has taken the lead along with his cousin Kunal Kapoor to celebrate Raj Kapoor through his cinema. But was it too late to celebrate RK? Is the newer generation enthusiastic to watch his films? Ranbir Kapoor said, like his wife Alia, the young generation needs to know about the cinema of Raj Kapoor and one hopes he is successful through his stardom and initiative to keep RK’s legacy alive. But, is the film industry or the government really care about saving our heritage or culture, considering the government is calling the film industry as soft power? The hard truth is: why are our studios and banners not surviving be it Filmalaya Studio, Kamalistan Studio and Raj Kamal Studio which has limited work space. Raj Kapoor’s RK Studio, a famous landmark in Chembur along with his bungalow has been sold to Godrej Properties for constructing residential properties. It may be recalled that RK Studio was working on the rentals till the fire destroyed the entire heritage. Luckily film lovers are lucky his films were in the safe custody of NFAI. It is learnt that Ranbir Kapoor who is already a producer wants to turn director. So will he revive the RK Banner? As a part of the centenary celebration the entire RK clan met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and conspicuous by his absence was Randhir Kapoor as he was not keeping well. In the end one only hopes that Ranbir Kapoor carries the great showman’s legacy forward.
This maverick and marauding scam tainted politician was once the acolyte of Lok Nayak Jayprakash Narayan. Former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav has burnt many bridges in his meteoric rise in politics. A stormy petrel, indicted for five scams, served jail term and is now out on a bail. He is once again in the news for his below-the-belt remark against his bete noire, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar who recently announced a Mahila Samvad Yatra to interact directly with women and evaluate the impact of his government’s programme targeted for women. When the media quizzed the RJD supremo Lalu about Nitish Kumar’s Mahila Yatra and his goal of winning all 225 seats in the forthcoming Assembly elections, the unstoppable motor mouth said, “Pahle unko aankh sekhne do” (let them get an eyeful of the women). Lalu is famous for double entendres and pithy talk. This chintzy, low end hit at both Nitish’s party and the women electorate set off a storm. Bihar deputy CM Vijay Kumar Sinha said, “It seems Lalu Prasad has lost his ability to comprehend, doesn’t know what he is saying “. JDU MP from Munger, Rajiv Ranjan Singh said, “Lalu is master of buffoonery”. Public discourse is an amalgam of many such talents. But certainly hitting below the belt and indulging in such loose talk shows the lack of grace and polish.
Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray’s plans to attend the Winter Session of the Maharashtra legislature beginning from December 16 at Nagpur will prove to be a game changer, his followers feel. Thackeray’s continued distance from the state legislative council proceedings over the past year are discussed by his party members in hushed tones since the aggressive direction needed to corner the BJP-led three-party government somehow lacks as far as his Sena is concerned. Council’s leader of the Opposition Ambadas Danve (of the Sena UBT) lacks the image and articulation which are vital for any LoP to humble the ruling side. Now that the new government led by Devendra Fadnavis has decided to appoint former CM Eknath Shinde as leader of the upper house, Danve’s limitations will be felt more vividly. Thackeray’s intermittent presence in the council ever since he resigned as chief minister in 2022 has been noted more due to his statements outside the house. He has hardly made any worthwhile speech on the floor. Therefore, his plans to remain present for the Winter Session have revived the hopes of his followers, who wish to witness his attacks against the BJP and the Sena led by Shinde. It is being recalled that Thackeray did not attend the recent three-day session of the legislature in Mumbai, held after the assembly elections. According to present indications, Thackeray will reach Nagpur well in time for the week-long session, which will be a stormy affair, focussing on settling political scores.
The Raj Kapoor family has finally come out together to celebrate the centenary year — 1924-2024 — of the showman of the film industry. Forty two year old Ranbir Kapoor who has been in the film industry for nearly two decades has taken the lead along with his cousin Kunal Kapoor to celebrate Raj Kapoor through his cinema. But was it too late to celebrate RK? Is the newer generation enthusiastic to watch his films? Ranbir Kapoor said, like his wife Alia, the young generation needs to know about the cinema of Raj Kapoor and one hopes he is successful through his stardom and initiative to keep RK’s legacy alive. But, is the film industry or the government really care about saving our heritage or culture, considering the government is calling the film industry as soft power? The hard truth is: why are our studios and banners not surviving be it Filmalaya Studio, Kamalistan Studio and Raj Kamal Studio which has limited work space. Raj Kapoor’s RK Studio, a famous landmark in Chembur along with his bungalow has been sold to Godrej Properties for constructing residential properties. It may be recalled that RK Studio was working on the rentals till the fire destroyed the entire heritage. Luckily film lovers are lucky his films were in the safe custody of NFAI. It is learnt that Ranbir Kapoor who is already a producer wants to turn director. So will he revive the RK Banner? As a part of the centenary celebration the entire RK clan met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and conspicuous by his absence was Randhir Kapoor as he was not keeping well. In the end one only hopes that Ranbir Kapoor carries the great showman’s legacy forward.
Reel heroes don’t care about the media. That’s what came to light at the recent episode where a phone of a senior journalist was snatched by security personnel of actor Allu Arjun and no apology was offered either by the actor or his PR team. One has to wait and watch whether the journalist Vibha Kaul Bhat of ABP News will take the fight forward. More. Recently at the trailer launch of Kanguva, the bouncers of Tamil film’s popular star Suriya pushed the media who were waiting for the actor for over two hours. But, here one must say the actor had decency to apologise. Ranbir Kapoor now enjoys a good equation with the paparazzi but it may be recalled that the same actor in the past had snatched the camera of a paparazzi. A few years back Kangana Ranaut sent a legal notice to the Entertainment Journalists Guild of India and the Press Club of India for supporting PTI journalist Justin Rao. There are stories and stories about Dharmendra, Anupam Kher and other stars how they got into fights with journalists. In recent times Shah Rukh Khan was mightily upset with paparazzi for staking out his house when his son Aryan was arrested in connection with a drug-on-cruise case. Their overdrive saw King Khan carrying a green umbrella to hide his face making it difficult for paps to shoot him. During Ambani’s wedding the film fraternity went that extra length to pose for the paparazzi. Ironically, while the entire fraternity including Big B has had problems with paparazzi, Sanjay Dutt and Jackie Shroff have been their darling since the time they entered Bollywood. Time for other stars to learn their mantras.
Making his appearance on a reality show Indian Idol the 50-year old Fardeen Khan, son of successful actor-producer Feroz Khan, looked boyish and subdued. Indeed, he has quietly made a comeback on the big screen and OTT after 14 years of self-imposed exile. Although he was signed by Sanjay Gupta for Visfot which took a really long time to release as there were no takers for Gupta’s films; Covid-19 was the main culprit. But it helped Fardeen who got a chance to work with one of the biggest OTT shows Heeramandi directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali which signalled his comeback in 2024. This was followed by Khel Khel Mein with Akshay Kumar which didn’t do well. But Fardeen who played the role of gay man certainly impressed the audiences and critics in a big way. Fardeen made his debut in 1998 with Prem Aggan. Post that he signed up for several films. Overall his career graph did not pick up. In 2010 after the release of Dulha Mil Gaya he took a break from acting. During this long hiatus he worked on his craft. Fardeen who was married to yesteryear actor Mumtaz’s daughter Natasha now separated has a daughter and son. He often brings his children to the sets. Currently, he is working with Akshay Kumar in Housefull 6 which is set for 2025 release. He may have missed out on No Entry Mein Entry. Will Feroz Khan’s son make a big impact in his second innings?
The 55th edition of the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) held in Goa every year was bigger in scale and ambition. There were more venues for screenings. Besides Panjim there were places like Porvorim including beach screenings at Anjuna and Miramar. The 9-day celebration showcased over 200 films from 75 countries. But, the glamour quotient was missing. Telugu superstar Allu Arjun whose name was sent out by the media cell of the festival did not turn up instead asked his Pushpa 2 co-star Rashmika Mandanna to stand in for him. Although IFFI is about the convergence of cinema from all over the world, the perception is always made by the big Bollywood and international names attending. And this was not impressive. The only big names from Hollywood were Hugo Weaving and Chuck Russell who are no longer part of the mainstream cinema. Every year there are huge delegate queues waiting to watch films but that was missing this year, an indication that cinephiles are losing interest in the festival. A few complained that the booking app showed it was houseful but the reality was just the opposite. The Film Bazaar, the biggest marketplaces,a big attraction for young filmmakers and storytellers seems to have attracted less number of buyers — both Indians and foreigners. The Indian Express in its editorial said that various institutions “over the years, pumped in funds and energy into making the IFFI as prestigious as the Cannes Film Festival — as envisioned when Goa was selected as the festival’s permanent home in 2004. Yet, 20 years on, unlike its model on the French Riviera — whose selections and winners go on to dominate the international festival circuit and awards season — the IFFI is far from shaping global cinematic imaginations and sensibilities.”
Will Telugu sensation Allu Arjun do an encore? Pushpa 2 releases and the film trade is saying it will rewrite the box office history. It may be recalled that Pushpa: The Rise became a sensation and his mannerisms became very popular. It emerged as the highest-grossing Indian film in 2021 and ranked among the highest-grossing Telugu films of all time. The film also earned Arjun his first National Film Award. A clued-in trade analyst says that after KGF Chapter2 Allu Arjun’s Pushpa 2 will create the same type of buzz. Unlike RRR, this is a contemporary movie and more people can relate to it. Common man can relate to the character Pushpa, who rises from the bottom. It’s a masala story that’s bound to click. It is learnt that Allu Arjun is travelling all over to promote his film. His event at Patna has increased the curiosity amongst the audience in the Northern belt. The music of the film is already a big rage and the 42-year old star who has connect with the audience is definitely going to create a bigger market for his films and himself. Exhibitors like Girish Wankhede feel that the Hindi collection of Pushpa 2 is expected to be a major surprise. It has the potential to surpass the post COVID-era benchmark of Rs 66 crore on its opening day, with projections indicating that it could reach between Rs70-75 crore for its Hindi version. The total collections may exceed Rs 250 crore worldwide.
Are the re-runs slowly becoming a revenue model both for producers and exhibitors who have been grappling to bring back the audiences to cinema halls? Diwali turned out to be decent but then again we are gone back to re-release of films. Shah Rukh Khan’s Veer Zara re-release has been appreciated. Rakesh Roshan plans a re-release of Karan Arjun with a huge number of screens after 30 years of its release. This again has Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan coming together for the first time on screen. SRK’s Kal Ho Naa Ho and Pardes too are re-releasing in cinemas. Those in the trade feel that re-release of Tumbbad, Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein and Laila Majnu have given courage to producers to cash on re-runs. The re-runs have stirred both excitement and curiosity. Traditionally, re-releases were reserved for timeless classics, but now more recent films are being revived, prompting questions: Is this trend purely nostalgic, or is there a deeper strategy at play? According to Trade Analyst Saurabh Varma, the re-release phenomenon is benefiting the cinema industry in multiple ways. For producers, re-releasing films is a cost-effective option. The marketing and distribution expenses are far lower than for new releases. Re-releases tap into the large fan bases of iconic films, giving long-time fans a chance to relive their favourite stories on the big screen. Furthermore, these revivals provide a unique opportunity for younger viewers who may have missed these films during their initial release. The combination of nostalgia and iconic music resonates deeply with audiences.
Will the ego clash destroy the fate of the two Big Diwali releases this year? So it seems. Singham Again, directed by Rohit Shetty, a multi-starrer starring Ajay Devgn, Ranveer Singh, Akshay Kumar has been dragged to the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for unfair business practice by the producers of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 alleging that they are not being allowed to take single screen as Singham Again producers have booked all screens. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 directed by Aneez Bazmee has also got a good star cast comprising Kartik Aaryan,Vidya Balan, Madhuri Dixit and Triptii Dimri. It may be recalled that Ajay Devgn had dragged Shah Rukh Khan to CCI for unfair business practices during the release of his movie Son of Sardar which coincided with SRK’s Jab Tak Hain Jaan. Even then it was a Diwali clash. Here one can’t help but talk about Om Shanti Om which was released on Diwali along with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Saawariya. The clash between two titans almost sacrificed the careers of two newcomers Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor; it had Salman Khan who wasn’t on good terms with SRK. Similarly, SRK and Rakesh Roshan were locked in a release battle during the release of Kaabil and Raees and both films suffered. Both Shah Rukh and Hrithik Roshan have a history as when the latter became a superstar with Kaho Na Pyar Hai and SRK’s Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani flopped. Critics were talking about Hrithik replacing SRK. At that point in time SRK cleverly used a Pepsi Ad to mock Hrithik’s super star status.
The Hema Committee Report, revealing tales of sexual exploitation and inhuman working conditions in the Malayalam film industry, has raked up the #MeToo movement in Mollywood leading to many prominent actors, directors named by their co-stars. In Hyderabad it has taken its first toll; choreographer Shaik Jani Basha, popularly known as Jani Master who works in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Hindi films saw the I&B ministry withdrawing its invitation to 70th National Film Awards in New Delhi but also suspending his National Award amid sexual assault allegations. Jani who is out on bail. And the person who complained against him is worried if she would lose both work and face in the film industry. Close on the heels of Hollywood, in India the MeTooMovement gathered steam in late 2018 when actress Tanushree Dutta accused actor Nana Patekar of sexual harassment. Then many more female stars and professionals from Bollywood came forward. Music director Anu Malik, director Sajid Khan paid the price; they were dropped from reality shows initially. But it seemed a temporary halt almost like lip-service. One could see singers Alisha Chinai and Sonal Mahapatra raising howls of protests via social media every time they saw Anu Malik judging reality shows. In the case of director Sajid Khan, he kept out of public glare initially and was almost out of work as several actresses accused him of exploitation. When things cooled down he was given an opportunity to participate in Bigg Boss reality show to clear his image. Some of the actresses seeing there is no harsh punishment for people in Bollywood who have exploited female stars, technical assistants, choreographers, makeup artists are wondering the cost of being outspoken.
Thirty-eight year old actor-director-politician Kangana Ranaut has been courting controversy on both political and professional front ever since she was elected BJP MP from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh. Her directorial venture Emergency where she plays the role of Indira Gandhi faces flak from both the Sikh community over depiction of Operation Blue Star and the Congress party over her portrayal of Indira Gandhi. The film, where she has a producer sunk a lot of money, is yet to get clearance from the Central Board of Film Certification as CBFC has received too many legal notices over the movie’s release. This delay is taking a toll on her finances. Apparently, she had mortgaged her properties to produce this film, and release delay has resulted in her selling one of her bungalows in the upscale Bandra suburb. The actress who does not have support from the fraternity needs a hit which has been eluding her for some time. Her last nine films have done well at the box office. People who have seen rushes of Emergency say the movie will do well. Meanwhile, politician Kangana seems to have irked her party leaders by speaking against the farmers twice in the last four months. So much so, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia commented, “Kangana Ranaut is not authorised to make such a statement on behalf of BJP and it doesn’t depict BJP’s view on the farm bills. We disapprove of this statement.” And falling in line, she too tweeted, “My views on farmer’s laws are personal and they don’t represent the party’s stand on those Bills.”
Controversy seems to be the middle name of this 38-year old Queen of Bollywood. Once again actor-director-politician Kangana Ranaut is making headlines over soon-to-be released movie, Emergency where she plays the role of Indira Gandhi. Even as she hops from news channel to news channel promoting her movie and giving her version of the story, the political parties like Congress, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) have sought a ban on the movie. Looks like she is a proxy for hitting the BJP. SAD, which has sent her a legal notice wants Kangana to delete a scene which shows Indira Gandhi being assassinated by Sikh security guard.. Surprisingly, even though her party BJP is backing her, the movie is yet to receive the go ahead from the Central Board of Film Certification. Most of her movies in the last few years have not done well. Nearly six of her movies like Katti Batti, Simran Panga and Tejas have not got big numbers at the box office. According to Trade Analyst, Girish Wankhede Emergency does not look strong enough to resurrect her career. Reportedly, she has decided to quit films after being elected from the Mandi Lok Sabha constituency. It is learnt that more than Rs 80-90 crore is riding on Emergency. A hardcore nationalist, Kangana who speaks her mind and not bothered of consequences has been told by her party to not to give comments on any issues.
This 37–year old Bollywood actress quietly made a big splash. Shraddha Kapoor’s latest film Stree 2 has drowned both John Abraham’s Vedaa (Rs 10.5 crore) and Akshay Kumar’s Khel Khel Mein (Rs 9.95 crore) in the box office. In three days Stree 2’s collection was Rs 100 crore… Rs 150 crore on the fourth day. Movie critic and trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweets “Indeed, #Stree2 is rewriting the rules of the game”. Bollywood watchers say she can well be called the franchise queen. Shraddha, daughter of Shakti Kapoor, who has acted in over 38 films entered Bollywood in 2010 with Teen Patti followed it with her first leading role in the teen drama Luv Ka The End (2011). She is considered Alia Bhatt’s rival in a way. She has acted with all the big heroes. She was in Aashiqui 2 produced by Mahesh Bhatt, Street Dancer with her childhood crush Varun Dhawan and Baaghi with Tiger Shroff. In the last three–four years Shradda –– the second most–followed Indian actor on Instagram –– has made a big impression with her fans. It started with Stree (2018), Chhichhore (2019) and Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar (2023) and the action thriller Saaho (2019). Besides acting, she, like Alia Bhatt has hummed quite a few numbers. One of India’s highest–paid actresses, she has been featured in Forbes India’s Celebrity 100 list since 2014. She endorses several brands and has her own line of clothing. Trade Analyst Girish Wankhede says Shraddha is at the top of the game with the stupendous success of Stree2. The franchise has rejuvenated her stardom after series of average hit films.
There has always been a love-hate relationship between the Bollywood stars and scribes. Not to forget the paparazzi. A seasoned journalist covering the industry for over three decades was shocked and surprised to see the way stars are snapping at journos and their menacing tone these days. This seems more pronounced in the past few months. At the press conference of John Abraham-Sharvari starrer Vedaa, John was visibly annoyed when a reporter asked him whether he was playing safe by doing the same kind of roles. In the case of Akshay Kumar, he is avoiding giving interviews …and he is very selective to which journalist he will speak to. Before journos ask for consecutive failure of his films, Akshay preempts them and says “only five films” have flopped. But, he forgets the crores of rupees producers have lost. One producer had to put his office on the block to pay his entire crew. And the new trend is all stars are asking reporters to give questions in advance. Inspite of that Sanjay Dutt at a press conference over UK denying him visa made a boo-boo in one of the answers to a question, why he was signing for villain’s role these days? And it seems Ajay Devgn avoids promoting films and his latest movie with Tabu Auron Mein Kahan Dum saw a meagre collection of Rs 10 crore in the first eight days. Most of the Bollywood stars need to understand that they need to connect with the media to connect with their ‘audiences’. It is clear banning or shunning the media does not work for stars or scribes. In the eighties Big B had banned media for nearly a decade but finally smoked a peace pipe.
They are no longer behind the scene players. The spotlight is on them too. A case in point is Shah Rukh Khan’s manager Pooja Dadlani, besides film dos she was seen with SRK in most IPL matches. In Bollywood, the role of secretary has metamorphosed into manager. The whole dynamics has changed with manager/professional agency handling stars. Film historian Dilip Thakur says, “Back then, the secretaries knew how the film industry functioned and worked in such a way that the entire industry benefited.” Today it seems a mercenary approach, the agencies are interested in seeing that stars fees are 40% of the budget of a film. This is one of the reasons many films are bombing. A few decades back, the star’s secretary played a different role. They ensured that their star bosses are projected well. They did not think of money. When Big B returned after quitting politics, his secretary Sheetal Jain managed to organise three muhurats in a day at Mehboob Studios. And the films were Hum, Agnipath and Luv Kush. For creating buzz around Amitabh all the credit goes to Sheetal. Rajesh Khanna’s secretary Gurnaam made sure he picked the right script; she had a role to play in his super stardom. After her death, Kaka’s career plunged. Rikku Rakesh Nath who made careers of Madhuri Dixit, Shilpa Shirodkar and Anil Kapoor also ensured that some of his star clients who had no films (read jobless) got one or two films. That speaks of his clout, commitment and dedication. Sridevi’s secretary Hari Singh went that extra mile to ensure she was presented well, bagged meaty roles, and managed to get her to the No 1 position at a time when Madhuri Dixit was ruling the roost. Today, many secretaries/managers have evolved further –turned producers albeit with the backing of the stars.
One remembers Rishabh Shetty reacting to a question, if Kantara should be remade in Hindi. “Why should it be made in Hindi when I have already made it,” came the pat reply. Today, the success record of remakes in Hindi is only going down. Sarfira, Selfiee and Shehzada have flopped miserably. Why does Bollywood opt for remakes when there is so much original content waiting to be made? Once upon a time dubbing was not entertained with the theatre flocking audiences. Then, audiences accepted remakes and it became a hit. For example, Vinod Khanna-Shatrughan Sinha starrer Mera Apne was a remake of Bengali hit Apanjan. Rajesh Khanna-Hema Malini starrer Prem Nagar was a remake of Telugu movie Prema Nagar. Cut to the digital era, all movies are dubbed globally…and audiences have no reservations watching Bhojpuri or Telugu or Korean movies. According to Trade Analyst Girish Wankhede, there are four reasons why remakes of regional films do not work today. First, the OTT platform comprises the original content which is pushed on in all languages and its reach is mind-boggling. There is no novelty left when remakes are made. Tamil film Soorarai Pottru starring Suriya was a big hit and popular on OTT platforms too. When Bollywood made Sarfira’ majority of people had already watched it on OTT. Second, dubbed versions of South Indian blockbusters are shown on TV whose reach is astronomical. Audiences in the North are aware of the popularity of Jr NTR, Suriya, Prithviraj, Vikram and others. Third, no marketing of remakes. Fourth, sometimes the essence is lost in remakes. Marathi hit Sairat was remade in Hindi but the Hindi movie Dhadak dropped certain crucial parts as a result it flopped.
Looks like the 56-year old Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar is losing his Midas touch going by total collections of Rs 17 crore for his latest movie Sarfira. The film, a remake of Tamil movie Soraru Puttru, was based on the life of Captain Gopinath of Air Deccan fame. In fact, its budget was much less than Akshay Kumar’s film. Post Covid-19 pandemic the first Hindi film to be released was Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi directed by Rohit Shetty with Ranveer Singh, Ajay Devgn in the star cast. It did well at the box office opening with Rs 25 crore. But after that Bachchan Pandey spelt disaster at the box office and opened with just Rs 13crore. From then on films like Samrat Prithviraj, Raksha Bandhan failed miserably. He bounced back with Ram Setu and OMG 2 which did decent business at the box office. OMG 2 which was a hit had Pankaj Tripathi in the main lead but the actor was appreciated for his role as Shiva. As a producer he had to battle with CBFC for release of the film as it had given it A certification.There were Selfie, Mission Raniganj which opened at Rs 2.80cr which was better than Sarfira. Mission Raniganj earned Rs 33 crore while Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’s failure almost shut Vashu Bhagnani’s office. Sources say Akshay has not signed any new films and has reduced his price by 50%. But, the actor has quite a few films in production. Khel Khel Mein is with Taapsee Pannu and Vani Kapoor and directed by Mudassar Aziz who does not have a great track record. The only hope for Akshay is Housefull 5. Maybe his South sojourn could salvage his career.
It was the wedding of the century. And as usual the entire Bollywood made sure they marked their attendance at the Ambani wedding. All were there with their families and they really let their hair down. There are a few observations that one saw at the wedding. For starters, the paparazzi, who are often not treated well by the top stars, were pleasantly surprised by the respect accorded to them by Bollywood folks. It looked as though the Ambanis had told them to cooperate with the paparazzi. Shah Rukh Khan who was again seen with his green umbrella covering his face to avoid being papped the next day after the wedding had posed not once but twice at the wedding with the proper salaam to the members of the media. Amitabh Bachchan was spotted waiting for his turn to pose in front of the media while cricketer MS Dhoni posed. Someone like Madhuri Dixit danced to Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai number. In fact, Salman who is very fond of Anant Ambani made sure even Shah Rukh Khan danced instead of standing and watching others dance. A photograph of Salman Khan and Arjun Kapoor together has gone viral as generally Sallu bhai prefers to stay away from Arjun. All said and done, almost all the top actors and actresses from the film industry participated in Ambani’s wedding whole-heartedly. In fact, all of them had blocked dates for the three Ambani events that took place in the last few months.
Whoever watched Kalki 2898AD is all praise for Amitabh Bachchan …for his role as Ashwathama. And interestingly, the box office numbers prove that Big B is a big draw. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted that Kalki2898AD is the third Telugu film, dubbed in Hindi, after Baahubali2 and RRR to cross the Rs 200-crore mark in 10 days. Big B who has worked in over 248 films — 12 waiting to be released – hasn’t really got this kind of response to his films in recent times. In the last few years he acted in a number of multi-starrers like Unnchai, Goodbye, Runway 24 and Jhund but none of them impressed the audience save for Brahmastra. Bachchan, at 81, seems to be a big draw as he is constantly reinventing himself. At the peak of his career in the 70s, 80s, he with his angry young man image was a phenomenon; a one-man industry whose name drew the audience to theatres. Then on the advice of an investment banker he set up ABCL which drove him to bankruptcy. He got a lifeline from the late Subrata Roy of Sahara Group and a break in small screen to host Kaun Banega Crorepati? On TV Salman Khan may be getting bigger money than Bachchan but the kind of respect Big B commands after hosting KBC is unbelievable and it continues for two decades now. According to an election affidavit, he and his wife Jaya Bachchan’s combined net worth is Rs 1,578 crore. Industry observer Girish Wankhede says, “Mr Bachchan rewrote the history with his performance and the enormous box office numbers consolidate his eternal domination. He has been the king of box office in the past and with Kalki 2898AD, he is again back with the bang.” Big B has proved that age is just a number.
Bollywood’s successful producer Vashu Bhagnani is cash-strapped and has put one of his properties on the block. Reportedly, he has not paid Rs 65 lakhs to his crew who worked in three of his films. Besides has also not paid the stars like Akshay Kumar who has agreed to wait. Incidentally, most of his films in recent times starring Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff have bombed at the box office. In the case of Akshay, all his four films with Vashu have done badly. Industry insiders say a film bombs because of poor script or high cost of stars or lavish production cost. It is an open secret that some of the popular stars take about 40% of the cost of production of the film. Vashu Bhagnani who entered Bollywood in 1995 has given a series of superhits, so it’s surprising he landed in a financial mess. He invested about Rs 1,000 crore in Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan Mission Raniganj, Ganpath and Cutputli. But earnings have been very poor. Also, signing big stars does not guarantee box office success. In the past Raj Kapoor landed in financial trouble after Mera Naam Joker flopped; Prakash Mehra after Bal Brahmachari and Zindagi Ek Jua and Manmohan Desai after Anmol and Toofan. But, these producers failed not because of the high cost of stars but because the audience did not like their stories. In the case of Bhagnani’s high cost of stars is also one of the reasons. There is surround sound that actors should cut their price. Will they?
In his career spanning over 40 years, the 67-year old Anil ‘Jhakas’ Kapoor has smartly kept out of controversy. But, in recent times found himself dragged into two controversies. He is being trolled for agreeing to host Bigg Boss OTT, a reality show which has become synonymous with Salman Khan. Bhai’s fans are mightily upset that Anil has replaced Sallu Bhai in one of the most controversial reality shows. Anil is not perturbed by criticisms and trolls. Meanwhile, he seems to be in the news for other reasons — fallout with his elder brother Boney Kapoor. Sources say that producer Boney has decided to cast his son Arjun Kapoor in the sequel No Entry Mein Entry without informing Anil and this has upset him. But when some reporters quizzed Anil, he quickly responded “Ghar Ki Baat Ghar mein hi rehne do”. Anil, one of the non-controversial actors in Bollywood, has acted in over 100 films and his career graph, like Dharmendra, Jeetendra, has been steady. The actor is constantly reinventing himself to keep in sync with changing times. He is identified for some of the interesting roles he essayed in Hindi films like Mr India, Mashaal, Tezaab, Ram Lakhan, Nayak, Welcome, English movie Slumdog Millionaire and English TV serial 24. As regards to his producer brother, he has worked with him in over nine films and has acted opposite Sridevi, his sister in law in eight films.
Thirty-seven year old popular Bollywood star Sonakshi Sinha is being trolled for getting married to her Muslim boyfriend. Reportedly, her family also does not seem very happy about her marriage to Zaheer Iqbal, an actor who was launched by Salman Khan but did not make it big in the tinsel world. Incidentally, Sonakshi was also launched by Salman Khan in Dabangg. Actually, her family’s reaction is surprising because the news she was dating Iqbal has been mentioned in the media off and on.. Be that as it may. But nothing will stop Sonakshi from marrying the man who she has been dating for seven years now. Media reports claim that her father Shatrughan Sinha and brothers were taken by surprise about the wedding date and they have blessed her through the media. But Sonakshi is not the first or the last actress to rebel against their parents. In the past too stars have rebelled or eloped and got married. The Maine Pyaar Kiya girl Bhagyashree married Himalaya Dasani as her parents did not approve of him. Bhagyashree comes from a royal family and the family felt the status did not match. Aamir Khan and Reena Dutta had a quiet marriage as their families did not approve of the relationship. Gurmeet Chaudhary and Debina only had friends who attended their wedding and kept it under wraps for many years. And not many know that Jennifer Kendall left her family to be with Shashi Kapoor and later had a traditional Hindu wedding.
Did you know that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was supposed to play Mastani in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bajirao Mastani but turned down the offer when she realised Salman Khan would play Bajirao. The reason she had turned the offer –the movie was a box office hit – was her real life romance had turned sour. Salman Khan and Aishwarya who had fallen in love on the sets of Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam split and the actress didn’t want to work with him anymore. Bhansali’s next choice was Kareen Kapoor instead he approached Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone. The rest is history. The duo who fell in love and got married became Bhansali’s favourite; they worked in three super hit films Ram Leela, Bajirao Mastani and Padmavat. Somebody’s loss is somebody’s gain. Likewise Shahid Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor started dating while working on Jab We Met and they broke up by the time the film was completed. Reason: Kareena fell in love with Saif Ali Khan while shooting with him for Tashan. The two did not work until Udta Punjab in which they were cast opposite different actors, not each other. Ranbir Kapoor who was dating Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif finally married Alia Bhatt. Both he and Deepika conducted themselves in a very dignified and professional manner and did not let their personal relationship come in the way of promotion of Tamasha. In the past Raveena Tandon and Shilpa Shetty were dating Akshay Kumar but post their split, they never worked in each other’s films. Likewise Sanjay Dutt and Madhuri Dixit never worked with each other after Dutt went to jail.
Aamir Khan’s son Junaid Khan makes his debut with Maharaja that will be released on OTT. Guess what, Junaid already has completed shooting for his second film even before his debut film releases. Clearly, those are the perks of being a star kid. Both the films that Junaid has worked in have been produced by outside banners — Yash Raj Films and Phantom Studio have a good equation with Aamir Khan. Junaid hasn’t really been trolled for being Aamir Khan’s son. Probably because he is well behaved on the sets and with Paps. Reportedly, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s niece Sharmin Segal got trolled for bagging the central part in Heeramandi series. Tongues were wagging that she landed the role because of being Bhansali’s niece. But, the truth is she did go for an audition and screen test. In politics, business or films nepotism is the uncomfortable truth — it happens openly or subtly. Yes, it makes easy entry possible but post that he/she has to prove their mettle. Suhana Khan is all set to make her debut with her father Shah Rukh Khan to be directed by Sujoy Ghosh. Sanjay Kapoor’s daughter, Shanaya Kapoor is a big social media influencer even though she signed her first film. Saif Ali Khan’s son Ibrahim Khan who has two films seems to be throwing his weight if one goes by what Paps have to say. In the case of Rajesh Roshan, niece Pashmina Roshan, a good dancer, makes her debut in Ishk Vishk Rebound. Producer Ramesh Taurani has clarified that he chose Pashmina purely on merit with three other fresh faces. He says Rajesh Roshan, the music composer with whom his relationship goes back in time, did not call to push his niece’s case. Sounds good.
Salman Khan has got Ranbir Kapoor’s Animal heroine for his next film Sikandar. Yes, Rashmika Mandanna is going to play his love interest in the film that goes on the floor next month. It came as a surprise for a lot of people in the trade as the names of other heroines were floating around before Animal heroine was signed for the role. Historically, Salman Khan has been choosy of signing up a heroine unless he is in a comfort zone with them. Katrina Kaif holds the record having worked with Salman in eight films. Well, earlier he and Madhuri Dixit worked in six films; it was because they were contemporaries…that’s all. But, stars like Jacqueline Fernandez got on like a house on fire. She has worked with Salman in about three films and reportedly during lockdown spent a long time at his farmhouse. Waluscha De Sousa who was also a kind of favourite of the actor; she worked in two films — Time to Dance and Antim: The Truth. With Sonakshi Sinha also twice. Interestingly, Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai whose romance is well known worked with each other only in one film Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Likewise Twinkle Khanna, Urmila Matondkar and Sonali Bendre. Salman Khan has worked with Katrina Kaif even if he didn’t like her brief involvement with Ranbir Kapoor. There has been a chemistry issue between him and Ranbir since then. But, looks like Alia Bhatt may just play a role to bring Kapoor and Khan together. If one recalls, Ranbir Kapoor had mentioned in the Kapil Sharma show that Salman Khan had chipped in during his sister Riddhima Kapoor’s wedding by taking care of the bar.
Just when we thought that the Aamir Khan episode saved The Great Indian Kapil Show comes the news that the team has wrapped up Season One of the show after six episodes. An avid show watcher was very critical and said, “I am not surprised. It was bound to wrap up…how can anyone eat a dhokla that has been served like pizza?” The show ever since it went to Netflix did not seem to have the same draw, stickiness and buzz like it was on Sony TV during weekends. The general feedback is that there is no novelty or freshness; even Sunil Grover who returned to show after a gap of seven years failed to regale the audience. His earlier avatar as Guthi was better than current one as Dafli. Even Krushna Abhishek and Kiku Sharda who have emotional bonding with the audiences and guests seemed to have lost their zing. Also, missing from the show are Chandan Prabhakar, Sunil Lahiri and Sumona Chakraborty. Essentially, the show failed to deliver the punch for which it was famous for. Is it because OTT caters to a different audience while TV channels are watched by the entire family? Kapil Sharma started his comedy show in 2016 and it was getting very good traction. But soon he had a fall out with his team mates like Sunil Grover. Post that he shifted the show to Sony TV and got Salman Khan to bank roll it. Now, the quick wrap of Season One has raised eyebrows but Netflix has quickly reacted saying that Season Two with seven episodes will feature celebrities like Ed Sheeran, Anil Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha and Sania Mirza. Only Ed Sheeran is a new catch, the rest of the guests are usual suspects. Season Two will effectively spell out which way Kapil Sharma and his show is going.
Thirty-eight year old Bollywood star Jacqueline Fernandez has gone below the radar ever since her link to the conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar hit national headlines. She religiously avoids media, ducks from paparazzi and avoids socialising too. The conman link has cost her dearly — personally and professionally. Though she is fighting Sukesh in the court but because of his obsession with her, she prefers to keep quiet and work hard. What has damaged her reputation and put her on the backfoot is the intimate pictures released by Sukesh. Not surprisingly, the film industry and friends have not openly supported her in terms of sympathy or contracts but there are well wishers like Sonu Sood who signed her for Fateh which is ready for release. She does not have many projects but has two big films, Welcome to the Jungle with Firoz Nadiadwala and Housefull 5 which is yet to go on floors. Jacqueline does manage to get court permission to go abroad for shoots. Akshay Kumar, Sajid Nadiadwala and Salman Khan are her friends who still support her but not in the public. From a rank outsider, Jacqueline’s rise in Bollywood was meteoric. The Sri Lankan model-turned actor, who entered Bollywood in 2006, has acted in over 25 films already. In 15 years she has starred opposite top heroes. Her northbound career graph was halted when news of her involvement with conman Sukesh who was arrested for extortion and money laundering came out in open. She claims Sukesh lured her with Bollywood offers even as he showered her with costly gifts, even a high end car.
Historically, the Hindi film industry has been dominated by north Indian heroes and south Indian heroines. Now, a new trend is emerging. In the last three-four years it seems to be the hegemony of south films. Witness this, in the first four months of 2024, the traditional north Indian heroes Akshay Kumar, Hrithik Roshan, Ajay Devgn seem to have come a cropper going by the box office collections. Reportedly, total collection is less than Rs 800 crore. To make matters worse, Khans are conspicuous by their absence. Salman Khan’s ritual — Eid release was missing this season. Given this scenario, one is seeing the south stars coming to the rescue of Bollywood big time. For instance, Allu Arjun’s film Pushpa 2 is learnt to have got a commitment of Rs 1,000 crore before its release on August 15. It is expected to break all kinds of records. Then there is multi-starrer Kalki showing Amitabh Bachchan in a teaser promo. This movie which is a perfect example of cross-pollination of stars is speculated to garner Rs 100 crore on Day One of its release. Trade Analyst Girish Wankhede says, “The line up of South Indian films is a mix of class and mass. It has its focus on larger than life entertainment which works for celluloid. They are not spoilt for OTT choices and are more inclined to make mass entertainment.” The momentum in this year was started with Hanuman which scored big on the box office followed by Manjummel Boys and The Goat Life winning great critical acclaim. The upcoming slate looks super impressive with Kamal Haasan’s Indian 2 and Rajnikanths’s Vettaiyan. Besides, Devara, the movies in the pipelines are: Kanguva, Thangalaan and Mr Bachchan.
Sixty-one year old yesteryear’s superstar Govinda is back in the news, well not for signing a big budget film but for re-entering politics by joining Shiv Sena led by the Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde. Govinda has made it clear that he will not be contesting any elections. It may be recalled that he won the 2004 Lok Sabha election on a Congress ticket. Then, what’s his compulsion to re-enter politics? Does he feel that if he is part of a political party, then movies will come his way? Not really. A seasoned insider says that Govinda has been trying to make a comeback to films since 2015 but strangely, this exceptionally talented and accomplished star has not been able to win the faith of the producers to bet on him, once again. His past seems to have caught up with him; not reporting to the set on time has got the goat of producers, directors and co-stars. Says another source, lack of work for Govinda is not because the industry has lost faith in him but he has developed a trust deficit with them. His superstitious nature has made filmmakers uncomfortable. Both David Dhawan and Salman Khan did give Govinda a second chance. But, Govinda has this feeling that the world is against him. Recently, he overreacted to a comment by Vashu Bhagnani on his late coming on the sets of his films. Govinda who has acted in more than 165 Hindi and language films can become the favourite of producers and directors once again only if he reinvents himself.
Akshay Kumar may be one of the few actors in Bollywood who completes his films in record time. Ironically, his record of flops seems to be beating that. The ‘Khiladi’ Kumar’s latest film Bade Miyan Chote Miyan has opened to lukewarm response at the box office despite the fact it was released on Eid. The Day 1 collection was Rs 16.07 crore. Movie critic Taran Adarsh commented on X: “With a dream cast + lavish making + holiday factor + aggressive promotions + terrific track record of its director, #BMCM should’ve opened anywhere between Rs 25 cr and Rs 30 cr [even higher] on Day 1.” Trade pundits feel that Akshay Kumar’s poor numbers at the Box Office both pre- and post-Covid has in a way dented his bankable star image. It is likely that filmmaker makers will definitely think twice before signing him. The films that have not worked for Akshay Kumar are Selfie, Mission Raniganj, Samrat Prithviraj, Ram Setu, Cutputli and Bachchan Pandey. Trade Analyst Girish Wankhede says, “This sixth flop in a row is a sorry state for Akshay kumar, who has been the favourite of producers. His over exposure or the choice of films, or his experimentation with various genre could be some of the reasons for his films not finding takers. He was always a bankable star, but with several flops, his filmography seems to be losing its sheen.” The trade will be closely watching how his films like Skyforce, Housefull 5, Welcome To The Jungle and JollyLLB 3 fare.
Once again Bollywood’s two big stars Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar are going to clash at the box office. And the film trade is not at all surprised as it is not the first time their films are releasing on the same day – it is the fourth time. When it comes to business they are strong rivals even though both have worked together in three films together. They worked in Suhaag, Insaan and Khakee. Insiders say it was after Khakee Ajay blamed Akshay Kumar for chopping his role. Post Ajay’s comment, Akshay Kumar in one of the award functions took a jibe at Ajay indirectly by saying that he is being called the “editor” of the film. Ajay almost got his film Golmaal 4 to be released the same day as Robot and Aamir Khan’s Secret Superstar; but Robot got postponed at the last minute due to VFX. Once again, both Ajay and Akshay were making a film on the same subject — Battle of Saragarhi. Ajay announced the film first but Akshay got Karan Johar to break the news about the movie. Salman Khan was co-producing the film with Karan but Ajay, it is learnt, convinced him to opt out of the project. If Akshay Kumar got Vipul Shah to screen Action Replay to coincide with Golmaal 3 release then Ajay got his Toonpur Ka Superman to coincide with Akshay Kumar’s Tees Maar Khan. Not many know that Ajay Devgn wanted the movie rights of Jaswant Gill on whose life the film Raniganj was made with Akshay Kumar as the lead. Now one needs to see what happens with Bade Miyan Chhote Miyan and Maidaan both releasing on Eid.
So the popular standup comedian Kapil Sharma has moved from TV to OTT. His comedy show with a new title The Great Indian Kapil Show is on Netflix. Will the gamble of moving to a new platform work for Kapil Sharma and his team? His entire gang is part of the new show save for his friends Chandan and Bharti Singh. But a big surprise was the return of Sunil Grover. Both friends had fallen apart. Sources say that Kapil Sharma has got a bigger budget but the script, going by the first episode featuring Ranbir Kapoor and his mother Neetu Kapoor, lacked the usual Kapil’s punch. Kapil, it is learnt, is wooing top stars like Aamir Khan to appear on his show. It will be the first time Aamir will be on a reality show. But trade experts say that Aamir may not have much impact as he is not known for one-liners or witty comments. It is a known fact that when his show was on Sony TV, he had a free hand but Netflix may have its own sets of rules and regulations as they are catering to a wider global audience. This may be one of the reasons that the first episode lacked the usual Kapil Sharma punch. Interestingly, the comedy space attracts high TRP and Kapil moving out, saw Sony TV launch a new show Madness Macheyenge: India Ko Hasayenge hosted by star Huma Qureshi. Now on air for over a month it seems like a dry laughter show; it lacks timing, punch and humour. The first week TRP was too low. Will this laughter show become a bitter medicine for the channel?
The news of Big B admitted to a city hospital went viral on WhatsApp and a news website of a TV channel and a news aggregator carried the story. In fact, Amitabh Bachchan called his health scare news, a fake. Nobody knows who started this rumour mongering but needless to say, it did worry people who are betting on Big B. If a star gets married or is hospitalised it does derail all the schedules leading to cost overruns. Mercifully everybody can relax. Eighty-one year old Bachchan is a complete workaholic and going by the IMDB report there are 14 films in the pipeline — some of them Aankhen 2 and Hasmukh Pighal Gaya are on hold. Meanwhile, he is busy shooting with south actors like Prabhas, Rajnikanth. With Deepika Padukone he is doing The Intern. It may be recalled that Amitabh Bachchan’s sign off note after the last season of KBC was looked at his exit from the show but then Sony Television quickly issued a statement that Bachchan is definitely going to be there in the next season—so to his millions fans and well-wishers Amitabh Bachchan is not going anywhere at least for now. You will see Big B on the small screen and on the big screen.
In this election year not one but several films with political themes will hit the screens. Yami Gautam starrer Article 370, a real life story on abrogation of Article 370 seems to have created enough ripples to keep the cash register ringing. Now, ready to be released is Randeep Hooda’s Swatantra Veer Savarkar which could well be driving the BJP’s agenda and work-in-progress is The Sabarmati Report. Do these patriotic themes help filmmakers and politicians? Actually, patriotic films have been made off and on – Manoj ‘Bharat’ Kumar was a pioneer. But in recent times Vivek Agnihotri’s The Kashmir File created controversy that saw him making big money –Rs 350 crore. So did The Kerala Story which did well at box office. With audiences craving for more such movies, filmmakers are going full blast. Most of these films generate controversies which helps these films to create curiosity and the much-needed publicity. In March 2024, one will see almost 3-4 films based on the political subject released. Accident Or Controversy? Godhra, which was to release on 15th March has been postponed by a week or two. Swatantra Veer Savarkar is releasing on 22nd March and is already in news owing to its innovative marketing strategies. Bastar: The Naxal Story, another political drama, is releasing soon. Most of them will be released before elections are over. According to Girish Wankhede, Film Trade Expert, “Anything pertaining to the film’s issue can feed the much-needed controversy for these films which in turn will help them to generate eyeballs and eventually footfalls.” For the filmmakers it is a pure business decision; they may be or may not be aligned with the ruling party.
There was a time in the eighties when South Indian stars like Kamal Haasan, Rajnikanth tried their luck in Bollywood – they bought a house in Mumbai and learnt Hindi too. But, sadly they could not survive because of Bollywood politics; they were bullied and finally went back to Chennai. Maybe the producers were not willing to take risks because of their south Indian accent, skin tone and average height. But not anymore. Today, South stars like Ram Charan, NTR Jr, Allu Arjun are bigger than the Khans; their fan base is bigger than all the three khans put together. Most stars from the south are money making machines. Reacting to the way Shah Rukh Khan said “Idli Ram Charan” at Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant pre-wedding celebration at Jamnagar, a Bollywood insider said, “Ram Charan does not dance to anybody’s tune and nobody dares address him the way Shah Rukh Khan did…” Ram’s associate Zeba found it insulting and expressed her displeasure by walking out. On the contrary, Ram Charan did not react negatively, he was cool. But the fans of Ram Charan have been trolling King Khan. Today, the tables have turned, south actors are not desperate to shift lock, stock and barrel to Mumbai. They are signing up films on their terms which is breaking records in the Hindi belt. Surely, SRK who is always politically right and measured in his talks must have said it in a lighter vein but this seems to have not gone well with South Indian audiences.
Action hero Vidyut Jammwal who has completed 13 years in the film industry with 24 films to his credit has turned a producer with his latest film Crakk. The 43-year old model turned actor, a rank outsider, has a loyal band of followers due to his own dedication and martial art skills. He is a keen practitioner of Kalaripayattu, a form of martial arts popular in Kerala. Vidyut made his debut with John Abraham in Force in 2011. The turning point of his life was Vipul Shah casting him in the successful franchisee Commando. One of the fittest actors Vidyut built his loyalty like south actors. As a trade expert said, “His films are a safe bet as he has a loyal audience that watches his films both in cinemas and TV. His IB 71 was a well appreciated film. His film Crakk with co-star Arjun Rampal is on the lines of Mission Impossible. The day is not far away where we will see Vidyut taking the crown of the best action hero of Bollywood.” Girish Wankhede, Movie Trade Analyst says, “With movies like Commando he carved a niche for himself as an action star and created his own fan following. I personally believe that he has got a great potential as a star but to achieve Stardom he needs to work on his diction and hone his acting skills further.” The actor who hasn’t worked in any multi-starrers turned producer to focus on the action genre. Vidyut who has managed to keep himself out of controversy was engaged to fashion designer Nandita Mahtani but things didn’t work out.
POWERED BY : ICICI LOMBARD
Janhvi Kapoor, daughter of Sridevi-Boney Kapoor, has in a short span of time matured as an actress. The new generation looks up to her for her choice of films, fashion sense and visibility quotient. She entered Bollywood in 2018 with Dhadak, a remake of a Marathi film Sairaat and then went on to be nominated for Filmfare Award for Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl and Mili. The 27-year old actress has been working on big screen as well as on OTT. Of the dozen films she has acted in, many like Roohi have bombed at the box office but that has not deterred her from trying even harder. That confidence perhaps is seeing her being signed by various brands and even big producers. The latest rumour is that she may replace south star Sai Pallavi to play Sita in Nitish Tiwari’s Ramayana featuring Ranbir Kapoor as Lord Ram. Her line-up is pretty impressive; she will be seen along with Rajkummar Rao in Dharma Production’s Mr and Mrs Mahi. Besides, she has signed three biggies in South out of which one is Devara with junior NT Rama Rao Jr which is releasing in April. Her energy, her willingness to challenge herself, keeping herself updated and being media friendly is standing her in good stead. She may be an insider but in the end it was her talent, hard work and adaptability that won her recognition in the Hindi film fraternity.
In the last few years, several star marriages have turned sour. Many of them opted for a divorce/separation. A few got remarried – Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor. And some like Karishma Kapoor, Pooja Bhatt and Sohail Khan prefer to remain single again. The latest separation announcement came from Esha Deol — Hema Malini-Dharmendra’s eldest daughter. She is the first person from Deol family to separate from her husband Bharat Takhtani after 12 years of marriage. Reason: she could not come to terms with various restrictions imposed by her hubby like wearing shorts at home. The first star marriage that turned rocky and hit national headlines was that of superstar Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia. The reason given was Kaka’s numerous affairs. But, most Bollywood marriages have not worked out primarily because of the ‘other’ girl/boy in their partner’s life. Arbaaz Khan and Malaika Arora separated after reports about her affair with Arjun Kapoor came out in the open. He recently married Raveena Tandon’s stylist Shura Khan. Some stars did not call off their marriages because of sheer societal pressure and kept it under wraps. A case in point is Sunny Deol inspite of his proximity with Dimple has managed to keep his married life intact. In some cases, it has been the substance abuse. Aamir Khan divorced twice is married for the third time. Model turned actor Arjun Rampal separated from super model Mehr Jessia after 21 years of marriage and is now living with Gabriellia Demetriades. Most marriages in Bollywood have turned sour largely because of “torrid affairs”.
After Dev Anand one can safely call the 67-year old Anil ‘Jhakas’ Kapoor, Bollywood’s Evergreen hero. He has constantly reinvented himself. The Woh Saat Din actor has come a long way. In a career spanning over 40 years, Anil who is recognised for playing all kinds of roles has acted in over 100 films. He is identified for some of the interesting roles he essayed in Hindi films like Mr India, Mashaal, Tezaab, Ram Lakhan, Nayak, Welcome, English movie Slumdog Millionaire and English TV serial 24. And in recent times, he has managed to give two consecutive superhits – Animal and Fighter. So be it TV, OTT or big screen, his works have always been noteworthy. The Night Manager on OTT has always been the talk of the town and his portrayal of a shrewd, cunning businessman was well received. With Fighter he has reached an altogether different zone. According to Trade Analyst Girish Wankhede, his energy and intensity are palpable, we can see Anil Kapoor 2.0 or 3.0 because of his versatility and his understanding of each medium. The fitness freak has consciously kept out of controversy or linked up with his female co-stars. Like Big B, Anil too is very disciplined and professional. He never went out of circulation like many stars of his time and who are desperately trying to make a comeback. His career graph, like Dharmendra, Jeetendra, has been steady. Clearly, Anil is a smart actor who can easily write a book, ‘How To Stay Relevant’ all the time.
Looks like the 41-year old actor Ranbir Kapoor is on a roll. He returns to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s camp after a gap of 23 years with his wife Alia Bhatt signed up as the leading lady for Love and War. Ranbir was launched by Bhansali in Saawariya. The subject of the new movie seems to be a love triangle and Vicky Kaushal too is part of the cast. Besides, Ranbir will start shooting for Nitesh Tiwari’s Ramayan in March with south heroine Sai Pallavi. Meanwhile, the actor is getting trolled for being a meat eater and criticized for playing Ram. To top it all his successful film like Animal has got extreme reactions from the feminist group. But that has not stopped filmmakers from casting him in their films. Film Trade Analyst Girish Wankhede says, “Ranbir Kapoor is on a roll because he has given one of the biggest hits of last year and the entire trade and filmgoers think that it was a long due from a Superstar like Ranbir.” He has been in the industry for more than a decade but was not able to deliver the blockbusters, but with Animal he has proved that he is a bankable star. Ranbir is slated to do the sequel of Animal. Ranbir who has acted in 38 films in the last 23 years charges around Rs 30 crore for a film. Today, he is one the most sought after actors. Going by this trend Ranbir could well emerge as the next Superstar.
The optics seemed to suggest that he had changed. Shah Rukh Khan who won the CNN-News18 Indian of the Year 2023 award was at his charming best, regaling the audience with his gig and humour. In his speech, Khan said that he is not just the Indian of the Year, but of all years. “I am the Indian of all ages.” His demeanour gave indications that from now all is going to be well between him, film scribes and paparazzi. But, it did not. Recently, the actor stepped out of a building in Bandra covering his face with a hoodie and seemed to be in a bad mood. When a paparazzi tried to click his photo, the Superstar for no reason snapped at him; he hit the phone of the pap and walked away, and surprisingly, even his long standing manager Pooja Dadlani did likewise. A pap said, “He behaves well with the media when he wants to or when he is at a big event like an award night, wedding or Eid function.” King Khan was one of most media friendly superstars. He set the trend of celebrating birthdays and festivals with scribes and paparazzi. What changed him? Some say, the media went overboard while reporting on his son Aryan Khan’s drug case. Plus many had written him off for not giving good hits. In 2023 he proved his detractors wrong with a series of hits like Pathaan, Jawan and Dunki.
One of Bollywood’s prettiest star Katrina Kaif seems to have transformed herself post her marriage to Vicky Kaushal. Katrina who has completed 20 years in the film industry is not the same standoffish, arrogant and introvert person, says trade people who are closely watching her career graph. She is now accessible, affable and exudes a certain sense of warmth when she meets paps and film journalists. The new Katrina was visible at the sneak peek of the Tamil version of the trailer of her upcoming film Merry Christmas in Mumbai. The star who was once dating the likes of Salman Khan and Ranbir Kapoor always had a shield around her. Was it because she was not comfortable with Hindi language? Katrina who started her odyssey in 2003 with Boom has acted opposite all top stars and is remembered for her item number chikni chameli in Agneepath. Salman Khan with whom she has done one too many films became a mentor and friend. He played a big role in her career. Salman Khan had an aversion with the media so maybe it was rub-off effect on his girlfriend. Even Ranbir Kapoor whom she dated always kept the media at arm’s length. But, to her credit insiders say she is a thorough professional who stays away from Bollywood politics. But when Vicky Kaushal came into her life he was quite open and he helped her to break the shield around her.
If 2023 belonged to Shah Rukh Khan whose three films grossed around Rs 3,000 crore then there are every chances that 2024 could see the return of Akshay Kumar. The 56-year old actor has three big releases including Bade Miyan Chote Miyan directed by Ali Abbas Zafar. The movie with Tiger Shroff is not a comedy but an action-packed film that could be a big draw. Kumar also has Skyforce and a multi-starrer Welcome to the Jungle to be released in December 2024. It may be recalled that Lady Luck had been eluding actor-producer Akshay Kumar for the last two-three years; he had series of flops. But, Trade Analyst Girish Wankhede says, “With nearly Rs 1,000 crore riding on Akshay Kumar …the total earnings of his four releases could cross the Rs 4000-crore mark.” The first to hit the big screen will be Bade Miyan Chote Miyan in Eid in April with an approximate landing cost of 300 crore. This will be followed by Singham Again’ in August wherein he has a cameo along with Ajay Devgn and Ranveer Singh. It is Rohit Shetty’s cop universe which is unlikely to fail with an estimated budget of 350 crore. His third release, Skyforce will be in October. Its cost is around Rs 150-200 crore. And Akshay’s big release of 2024 — Welcome to the Jungle, will happen during the Christmas season. This multi-starrer movie budgeted around Rs 300 crore is expected to do well.
Has the Ranbir Kapoor starrer Animal changed the palate of the audience? There are people in the trade who have blamed Animal for the lukewarm response to SRK’s Dunki at the box office. They say Dunki is a social film and does not have any high-octane violence voyeurism or blood and gore like Animal. In the same breath the trade people blame Shah Rukh Khan for changing audience taste with Pathaan which earned Rs 1000 crore. Dunki looks weak as it collected only Rs 30 crore on day one while SRK’s other two films Pathaan earned Rs 57 crore and Jawan Rs 75 crore on day one. Both the movies had a hero and an anti-hero in them but Animal has come and changed the idea of hero and today a complete anti-hero is being lauded by the audience in a big way. Sociologists feel that the subject is connected with youth and they have identified with the character of Ranbir Kapoor who speaks their language. It’s common knowledge that audience preference and taste keeps changing. In the late seventies romance themes worked with Rajesh Khanna becoming an icon; in the eighties it was an angry young man image portrayed by Amitabh Bachchan.
The social media, during the past few months, have been on an overdrive about Aishwarya and Abhishek’s marriage, and that she has moved out. For public consumption Aishwarya stays in Amu, which is in close vicinity to Jalsa where Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan stay. About Ash-Abhishek marriage, reliable sources say, Bachchan Jr has too many commitments and is doing one too many back-to-back shoots outside Mumbai. His long absence and Ash only being seen with her daughter Aaradhya in social gatherings has perhaps given wings to the rumours that their marriage is on the rocks. Reliable sources say that even if there is stress in the relationship, it happens in all marriages, there will never be a separation in the Bachchan house; Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is and will always be a Bachchan bahu. Another trigger point for the rumour of Ash moving out is the story about Big B gifting his landmark bungalow Prateeksha in Juhu, a tourist spot, to daughter Shweta Nanda. Perhaps to stop this tongue wagging the entire Bachchan clan did a photo op at The Archies premier in which their grandson Agastya Nanda plays the protagonist Archie Andrews. But, in a way, this move gave grist for the rumour mills as Aishwarya’s sis-in-law Shweta Nanda was missing from the frame.
A Hindi movie based on popular English comics pandering to the urban populace was a big risk. More risky was to take fresh faces – all insiders — SRK’s son, Big B’s grandson and Boney Kapoor’s daughter. But, then 51-year old Zoya Akhtar is known to make path breaking films like Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Dil Dhadakne Do, Gully Boy to name a few. But strangely people from her fraternity who saw The Archies confessed “There is nothing in this movie”. Were they being uncharitable? This Netflix original film, an Indian adaptation of the popular Archie comics, made at a cost of Rs 40 crore has no box office numbers to measure its success as it was released on OTT platform. But IMDb rating for India gives it 8.2/10 — a big jump from 1.2 initially. In other countries the user rating was an average of 4. Promoted aggressively in colleges and via events The Archies hasn’t touched the Gen Z and disappointed older generation (read Metros) who grew up reading Archie comics points out a knowledgeable source. The three star kids may have got a bad start but surely more work will come their way. It may be recalled that Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor started with a flop but today Ranbir is one of top stars. Agatsya Nanda has already been signed by Sriram Raghavan and Suhana apparently has a film with her father Shah Rukh Khan. Khushi Kapoor and Ibrahim Khan (Saif Ali Khan’s son) are being paired in a film.
Ranbir Kapoor’s Animal has hit the box office like a tsunami with the film crossing the Rs 100-crore mark in Day 2 in India and over Rs 200 crore worldwide. Movie critic Taran Adarsh took to X to say it’s a “box office monster”. And this is Ranbir’s biggest hit at the box office ever since he entered Bollywood in 2007 with Saawariya. This Sandeep Vanga Reddy film did face criticism on the portrayal of women — almost objectification of the heroine and a pronounced male alpha. But that has been the way Vanga Reddy has told his stories. Trade circle say this factor has worked in favour of director Vanga Reddy and actor Ranbir. Forty-one year old Ranbir, who has acted in over 21 films in the last 16 years, has taken pains to pick up scripts which are different for every movie as he did not want to be typecast. His life goal is to be recognised as an actor and is confident with that stardom will follow. Historically, Kapoor’s films have not been very extraordinary at the box office; his last film Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar was a semi hit and the only blockbuster was biopic Sanju. But Animal is leagues ahead. Animal is one film that has broken all the norms of a hero in Hindi cinema
Historically, audiences went to the theatres to see stars for their looks. Rewind to 60s, 70s, 80s and you will see all Bollywood actors were handsome, good looking, macho. Dharmendra, Rajesh Khanna, Shashi Kapoor, Vinod Khanna to name a few. In the case of actresses it was their ravishing beauty, the dream girl of every man. Sadhana, Saira Banu, Hema Malini, Rekha, Madhuri Dixit and Dimple Kapadia. Chocolate heroes and dream girls were synonymous with Bollywood. It was only in the art cinema that looks were secondary – Amol Palekar, Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah. The advent of hinterland cinema brought the ordinary looking boy and girl center stage. Says a Bollywood’s senior casting director, “Those days of having a conventionally good looking actor are gone. If you see most of the actors today who are doing well especially on the OTT are far from being that.” Today the audience is more open to looking at realistic characters whom they can connect, relate and identify with. Today being a good actor is far more important than good looks. “Acting and talents are the first two criteria of casting today, if the actor is good looking then it’s an added advantage,” says the casting director. Hrithik Roshan called the Greek God did not mind to wear brown make up for Super 30. If you look at OTT stars — Manoj Bajpayee, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Jitendra Kumar, Pankaj Mishra –then it is clear today acting matters not looks.
Powered by: IDFC First Bank
Every controversy that breaks always has a celebrity quotient to it. The drug cases came into the limelight because of Sushant Singh Rajput and Aryan Khan; the Narcotic Control Bureau (NCB) made an example of them. From Deepika Padukone to Shradda Kapoor, Rakul Preet Singh, Rhea Chakraborty, Sara Ali Khan were under NCB scanner. Some like comedian Bharati Singh and her husband were arrested. Besides, many actors and actresses were issued summons by the Enforcement Directorate. Says an insider, time and again Bollywood has been targeted and some of them have been called anti-national. Looks like we are an easy target for police and politicians. Take the case of conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar, the case was hyped because names of Jacqueline Fernandez and Nora Fatehi were linked to him. Now the latest case is that of the Mahadev App which again is more about the celebrities who danced at the wedding of the promoter Saurabh Chandrakar and endorsement of the app. Ranbir Kapoor has been summoned by ED for endorsing the app. So too many actresses and singers are being investigated by the ED for accepting cash for attending the event. Sources say, it was a pure professional and commercial deal. Mumbai police have registered FIR against 32 people including promoters for ‘fraud’ of Rs 15,000 crore. Be it the drug case or now Mahadev App scam the end result is that most of the allegations on the celebrities haven’t really yielded any results.
Is reel life influencing 36-year old Kangana Ranaut’s real life? At least that’s what seems on the face of it. A politically savvy and well informed actor, she has been consciously choosing characters that are political heroes or villains. And she has been vocal about it that she is interested in politics and that too Modi kind. Kangana has played the role of modern leaders like Indira Gandhi and J Jayalalithaa. Besides, she has also donned the role of legendary and religious characters in movies like Manikarnika 2, Sita: The Incarnation. In all these films she worked hard to make sure that the film got noticed by the audience. In the case of Thalaivii she chose to focus on how Jayalalithaa was shamed by her male counterpart in the Tamil Nadu assembly. Is she thinking of plunging into politics full time? Her various interviews clearly convey that she is keen on representing Himachal Pradesh but will BJP oblige? She arrived at the new Parliament building to attend the session as a woman invitee. In the film trade people say most of her movies do okay business and so producers are a little shy of signing her. Also, her cinema is becoming more about showcasing herself and her political leanings. For instance, there was no need for her to show Ayodhya being targeted by the terrorist in her latest film Tejas which incidentally did not do well at the box office. Is Kangana Ranaut like many south Indian stars using the movie platform to pursue her political dream?
Bollywood’s two popular stars Aditya Roy Kapur and Ananya Pandya have gone public about their romance. Will it end in marriage? Early days. Interestingly, Bollywood has had quite a few marriages in 2023 — Parineeti Chopra tying knots in Rajasthan with AAP leader Raghav Chadda being the biggest of them all. Then came her co-star Sidharth Malhotra and Kiara Advani’s marriage again in Rajasthan. Parineeti married Raghav, her colleague from the London School of Economics. She was earlier dating director Maneesh Sharma. Swara Bhasker, known for making controversial statements, married Samajwadi Party leader Fahad Ahmad. Now in motherhood, she was going steady with script writer Himanshu Sharma who dumped her for Kanika Dhillon. Unlike the earlier days when actors hid relationships, age as they were worried about their stardom getting affected today’s stars are quite open about it; walk hand-in-hand and pose for the paps. Recall Ranbir Kapoor had taken offense about paps following him and Katrina Kaif and the same man didn’t mind posing with Alia before marriage. Katrina was one oddball who didn’t let the paps get her and Vicky Kaushal together till the marriage was announced. In the end it shows those selling dreams to their fans actually want to lead a normal family life — have children, run their house, and don’t mind sacrificing their career. Neetu Singh did it. So did Madhuri Dixit, Meenakshi Seshadri. But, the younger lots like Karishma, Aliya, Anushka and Kiara are quite smart in managing both the worlds.
Undercurrent, chemistry or professional rivalry has existed in Bollywood from Day One. Is it ego or plain jealousy? Take the case of Salman Khan and singer Arijit Singh who have patched up nearly after 5-6 years and have sung songs for Tiger 3. The rivalry started rather innocuously when Arijit stepped onto the stage to receive an award, and Salman mockingly asked looking at his attire, “So gaye the (were you sleeping)?” To this the singer responded, “Aap logon ne sula diya (you all put me to sleep).” This answer seems to have angered Salman and he immediately removed Arijit’s song from his films, Sultan and Bajrangi Bhaijaan. It did affect his career. Bollywood has a history of star rivalry. For instance Khans are not comfortable working with each other. Similarly, Sunny Deol was angry with Shah Rukh for snipping his role in Darr. Recently, at the success party of Gadar 2 both patched up. Raaj Kumar and Dilip Kumar acted in Paigham and fell apart till Subhash Ghai brought them together in Saudagar. Similarly, Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand avoided working with each other. It is quite well known that Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan who worked together in Anand fell out after success of Namak Haram. Likewise Big B and Shatrughan Sinha did not get along well as the latter had a habit of making sarcastic comments. Well, it is not restricted to male stars. There has been a strong undercurrent between Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra, Rani Mukerji and Aishwaraya Rai, Katrina Kaif and Deepika Padukone.
It’s a regular affair in Bollywood. Big stars launching their kids with fanfare. In the last decade we saw Alia Bhatt, Tiger Shroff, Jahnvi Kapoor and Ananya Pandey being launched. This tradition continues with slight change. For instance everybody was expecting Shah Rukh Khan to launch his daughter Suhana Khan via his home production Red Chillies. Instead she along with Agastya Nanda and Khushi Kapoor are making their debut in a Netflix project produced by Zoya Akhtar. Hrithik Roshan’s cousin Pashmina is being launched by Ramesh Taurani in a love story. Hrithik was launched by his dad’s home production company Filmkraft. Likewise Salman Khan’s niece Alizeh Agnihotri is being launched in a very unconventional film directed by Somendra Padhi. But, some stars prefer the traditional route. Sunny Deol and Poonam Dhillon are launching their son and daughter through Rajshri Production run by Barjatyas. Interestingly, Rajveer Deol and Paloma will be directed by Sooraj Barjatya’s son Avnish. Industry insiders say that ever since the untimely death of Sushant Singh Rajput Bollywood has been stung by Insider Vs Outsider debate. With a view not to become an easy prey for the media, the new generation star kids prefer their skills to speak for them. Suhana Khan has already started making impressions with public and press appearances. Amitabh Bachchan’s grandson Agastya Nanda is already being talked about as he has replaced Varun Dhawan in Sriram Raghavan’s Ekkis.
TRENDS & VIEWS
Editor’s Note: Big Punch In Small Pack
It is the Third Anniversary of Short Post and as a news media startup launched during the Covid-19 pandemic it certainly feels better than good to find ourselves where we are today. Here, I must cite the unstinted support of our seasoned contributors, all senior editors in the country, who brought a great degree of maturity and sagacity to the Short Post newsroom. But for them, our tagline “Authentic Gossip”, an Oxymoron, would not have matured viably. Our user numbers may be small but our stories have created the desired impact among people who matter — decision makers and influencers. We offer a big punch in a small pack and Short Post with its 225-word stories has been punching above its weight category. Having posted close to 3,000 stories in the last 36 months, Short Post, I feel, is an idea whose time has come.
And this is vindicated by our two marquee advertisers – IDFC FIRST Bank and ICICI Lombard. Both believed in our story and have supported us from Day one. A big thank you to both.
If you look at the media landscape – print, TV and digital — it is a mixed bag. There are job losses as some outfits have closed down while a lucky few were bailed out by large corporate houses. Yes, there is a lot of action in the digital space. However, the entry of corporate houses has raised the question of independence of news media outfits. Sadly, there are just a handful of independent media outfits in the country that are highly respected for their neutrality. At Short Post, our credo is not to take sides, prejudge issues or be biased but, informing readers of behind-the-scenes happenings. In essence, Short Post strives to be a neutral editorial platform — neither anti-establishment nor pro-establishment.
As I said last year, disruptions in the media world are moving at a fast and furious pace. Technology is playing a very big role in how content is generated and consumed. But, we are neither alarmed nor perturbed as it is all a part of the evolution process. What gives us comfort is that AI is unable to create original gossipy content. And that is the news arena where we have achieved a distinction.