Friday, December 16, 2011
Thursday, December 15, 2011
I am not gay: Jackie Shroff
Bollywood actor Jackie Shroff dismissed reports that he gave an interview to a Pakistani website about his sexual preference and clarified that he is not gay.
"Can you believe it? Bas ab yehi baqi reh gaya tha. Logon ko kaam-dhanda nahin hai. Bas, yehi sab... (people do not have anything else in life) For the record, I've never spoken to any journalist on this subject and certainly made no such declaration. Main pagal hoon kya (am I mad)," he said.
"In any case, what's the big deal about sexual preference? If one is gay, one is gay. If I was, I'd have no qualms in accepting it. But the fact is, I am most certainly not. And I'm surprised at the audacity of the journalist who cooked up this imaginary scandal," added the 54-year-old actor.
"My wife (Ayesha) and I had a good laugh over this. I just looked at her and she looked at me. We burst out laughing...."
The actor, who made his debut with Subhash Ghai's Hero, said instead of talking about this absurd nonsense about his sexuality, people should remember Bollywood legend Dev Anand, who died last week.
"It's so sad. The entertainment industry has just suffered a huge blow. We lost Dev saab. Instead of remembering him the news has now veered towards some absurd nonsense about my sexuality. Jeez! Man, we need to sober up," said the actor who worked with Dev Anand in Swami Dada.
Jackie is known for his roles in Yudh, Teri Meherbaniyan, Karma, Ram Lakhan, Aaina and Devdas.
Now he is gearing up to launch his son Tiger.
"Can you believe it? Bas ab yehi baqi reh gaya tha. Logon ko kaam-dhanda nahin hai. Bas, yehi sab... (people do not have anything else in life) For the record, I've never spoken to any journalist on this subject and certainly made no such declaration. Main pagal hoon kya (am I mad)," he said.
"In any case, what's the big deal about sexual preference? If one is gay, one is gay. If I was, I'd have no qualms in accepting it. But the fact is, I am most certainly not. And I'm surprised at the audacity of the journalist who cooked up this imaginary scandal," added the 54-year-old actor.
"My wife (Ayesha) and I had a good laugh over this. I just looked at her and she looked at me. We burst out laughing...."
The actor, who made his debut with Subhash Ghai's Hero, said instead of talking about this absurd nonsense about his sexuality, people should remember Bollywood legend Dev Anand, who died last week.
"It's so sad. The entertainment industry has just suffered a huge blow. We lost Dev saab. Instead of remembering him the news has now veered towards some absurd nonsense about my sexuality. Jeez! Man, we need to sober up," said the actor who worked with Dev Anand in Swami Dada.
Jackie is known for his roles in Yudh, Teri Meherbaniyan, Karma, Ram Lakhan, Aaina and Devdas.
Now he is gearing up to launch his son Tiger.
Dev Anand's ashes are immersed in Godavari river at Nashik
Bollywood's evergreen star Dev Anand's ashes were immersed in the Godavari river in Nashik on Wednesday evening by his son Suneil, a family friend said.
"Suniel just finished immersing the ashes of his father in the holy waters of the Godavari river. I accompanied him there," Mohan Churiwala, a close associate and family friend told IANS over the phone.
Dev Anand's son Suneil had come to India from London to immerse his late father's ashes in the holy river.
The last rites of Dev Anand, who passed away in London on December 3 following a heart attack, were performed on Saturday at the Putney Vale Crematorium in London. A memorial service was also held at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in London, the same day.
In Mumbai, a memorial service will be held on Friday. "A memorial service will be held at Mehboob Studios in suburban Bandra on Friday. It will be held there because a make-up room of Dev saab is still at the studio. Also, there is some emotional connect as he had shot a lot of films over there," Churiwala said.
"Suniel just finished immersing the ashes of his father in the holy waters of the Godavari river. I accompanied him there," Mohan Churiwala, a close associate and family friend told IANS over the phone.
Dev Anand's son Suneil had come to India from London to immerse his late father's ashes in the holy river.
The last rites of Dev Anand, who passed away in London on December 3 following a heart attack, were performed on Saturday at the Putney Vale Crematorium in London. A memorial service was also held at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in London, the same day.
In Mumbai, a memorial service will be held on Friday. "A memorial service will be held at Mehboob Studios in suburban Bandra on Friday. It will be held there because a make-up room of Dev saab is still at the studio. Also, there is some emotional connect as he had shot a lot of films over there," Churiwala said.
Review: Mission Impossible 4: The Ghost protocol
Luckily for Tom Cruise, 'Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol' is one of his finest action flicks, just what's needed to potentially restore some of this fallen star's box-office bankability.
For director Brad Bird, though, the fourth 'Mission Impossible', rock solid as it is, ranks only as his second-best action movie, after the animated smash 'The Incredibles'.
Cruise may be the star here, but Bird's the story, a director who's only making his fourth movie and, remarkably, just his first live-action feature. This is the best of the 'Mission Impossible' movies, far better than Brian De Palma's original, No. 2 by John Woo and even the franchise's previous high with No. 3 by J.J. Abrams, who stuck around as producer on this one.
Those three filmmakers had years and years of action stuff behind them with real, live actors. Yet along comes Bird to show that the enormous talent behind his Academy Award winners 'The Incredibles' and 'Ratatouille' and his acclaimed cartoon adventure 'The Iron Giant' transfers mighty nicely from animation to the real world.
Granted, this is the real world, 'Mission Impossible'-style, where Cruise's missions and stunts truly are impossible by the laws of physics and normal, plausible storytelling constraints. But Bird applies the anything-can-happen limitlessness of cartoons and just goes for it, creating some thrilling, dizzying, amazing action sequences.
If you have the slightest fear of heights, grip the arm rests tightly and press both feet flatly to the floor during Cruise's attempt to scale the world's tallest building; even safe in your seat, an unnerving feeling of vertigo is bound to result as you stare down from the 130th floor.
For all the complexity of the action and gimmicks, Bird and screenwriters Andre Nemec and Josh Appelbaum (executive producers on Abrams' 'Alias') wisely tell a simple, good-guys-against-bad-guys story. They keep Cruise surrounded by a tight, capable supporting cast in Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton and Simon Pegg, who co-starred in 'Mission: Impossible III'.
The movie starts with a clever jailbreak by Cruise's Ethan Hunt, stuck in a Moscow prison for reasons unexplained until late in the story, then serves up an opening-credit montage fondly reminiscent of the old 'Mission: Impossible' TV show.
Once free, Ethan is dispatched to infiltrate the Kremlin along with Impossible Missions Force agents Jane Carter (Patton) and Benji Dunn (Pegg). But it's all a setup by madman Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist), who sets off a devastating explosion at the Kremlin to cover his theft of a Russian nuclear launch device and manages to finger Ethan's team for the blast.
With US-Russian tension at its worst since the Cuban missile crisis, the threat that's always hung over the IMF team comes to pass: the secretary (Tom Wilkinson) disavows knowledge of their actions, leaving Hunt and his comrades on their own as they try to clear their names and stop Hendricks from instigating nuclear war.
Joining them is Wilkinson's aide, William Brandt (Renner), a guy who takes to field work a little too easily to be the desk-jockey analyst he claims he is.
Cruise looks shaggy, and sure, we could blame his bad haircut on the fact that Ethan's just out of prison. But it doesn't help an aging screen idol to look so unkempt; the 'Mission: Impossible' world routinely defies reality, so would it have been so far-fetched for Ethan to stop by a salon before heading back into action?
'Ghost Protocol' ends with a talky epilogue that feels tacked-on and trite, though it offers a couple of cameos from 'Mission' past.
Whatever the movie's shortcomings, director Bird more than compensates with a bullet train of action and an arsenal of cool gadgets. Maybe making cartoons has expanded his conception of what's possible in a live film.
Bird does it so well, you don't really care how impossible it all is.
Rating:
Indian Express: 3 and 1/2 star
NDTV India: 3 star (out of 4)
For director Brad Bird, though, the fourth 'Mission Impossible', rock solid as it is, ranks only as his second-best action movie, after the animated smash 'The Incredibles'.
Cruise may be the star here, but Bird's the story, a director who's only making his fourth movie and, remarkably, just his first live-action feature. This is the best of the 'Mission Impossible' movies, far better than Brian De Palma's original, No. 2 by John Woo and even the franchise's previous high with No. 3 by J.J. Abrams, who stuck around as producer on this one.
Those three filmmakers had years and years of action stuff behind them with real, live actors. Yet along comes Bird to show that the enormous talent behind his Academy Award winners 'The Incredibles' and 'Ratatouille' and his acclaimed cartoon adventure 'The Iron Giant' transfers mighty nicely from animation to the real world.
Granted, this is the real world, 'Mission Impossible'-style, where Cruise's missions and stunts truly are impossible by the laws of physics and normal, plausible storytelling constraints. But Bird applies the anything-can-happen limitlessness of cartoons and just goes for it, creating some thrilling, dizzying, amazing action sequences.
If you have the slightest fear of heights, grip the arm rests tightly and press both feet flatly to the floor during Cruise's attempt to scale the world's tallest building; even safe in your seat, an unnerving feeling of vertigo is bound to result as you stare down from the 130th floor.
For all the complexity of the action and gimmicks, Bird and screenwriters Andre Nemec and Josh Appelbaum (executive producers on Abrams' 'Alias') wisely tell a simple, good-guys-against-bad-guys story. They keep Cruise surrounded by a tight, capable supporting cast in Jeremy Renner, Paula Patton and Simon Pegg, who co-starred in 'Mission: Impossible III'.
The movie starts with a clever jailbreak by Cruise's Ethan Hunt, stuck in a Moscow prison for reasons unexplained until late in the story, then serves up an opening-credit montage fondly reminiscent of the old 'Mission: Impossible' TV show.
Once free, Ethan is dispatched to infiltrate the Kremlin along with Impossible Missions Force agents Jane Carter (Patton) and Benji Dunn (Pegg). But it's all a setup by madman Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist), who sets off a devastating explosion at the Kremlin to cover his theft of a Russian nuclear launch device and manages to finger Ethan's team for the blast.
With US-Russian tension at its worst since the Cuban missile crisis, the threat that's always hung over the IMF team comes to pass: the secretary (Tom Wilkinson) disavows knowledge of their actions, leaving Hunt and his comrades on their own as they try to clear their names and stop Hendricks from instigating nuclear war.
Joining them is Wilkinson's aide, William Brandt (Renner), a guy who takes to field work a little too easily to be the desk-jockey analyst he claims he is.
Cruise looks shaggy, and sure, we could blame his bad haircut on the fact that Ethan's just out of prison. But it doesn't help an aging screen idol to look so unkempt; the 'Mission: Impossible' world routinely defies reality, so would it have been so far-fetched for Ethan to stop by a salon before heading back into action?
'Ghost Protocol' ends with a talky epilogue that feels tacked-on and trite, though it offers a couple of cameos from 'Mission' past.
Whatever the movie's shortcomings, director Bird more than compensates with a bullet train of action and an arsenal of cool gadgets. Maybe making cartoons has expanded his conception of what's possible in a live film.
Bird does it so well, you don't really care how impossible it all is.
Rating:
Indian Express: 3 and 1/2 star
NDTV India: 3 star (out of 4)
Monday, December 12, 2011
Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl: Review
It's always tragic to see those who defy the cookie-cutter mould try and sanitise themselves in an attempt to fit in. Ranveer Singh, who was fantastic in last year's Band Baaja Baaraat, here has his rough edges blunted by the generic sheen of wannabe stardom, and the result is most unfortunate.
He struts through Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl mostly in slow-motion, often shirtless and constantly posing for the camera, but a mere workout does not a Hrithik Roshan make.
When I applauded Band Baaja Baaraat and rated him 2010's , I was struck most by how impressively Ranveer carved his own non-traditional path, eschewing vanity and sticking to character instead of concentrating on showing off his most flattering profile. A star was born and now, as he tries to fit into the industry definition of a star, the result is an excruciatingly slow-motion film that drags on as it exposes his every weakness.
There is a plot in Maneesh Sharma's latest, but essentially imagine a long and rather unfunny Khosla Ka Ghosla and you'll get the gist. Ricky Bahl swindles a bunch of interesting but gullible women, and they -- in Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less fashion -- scheme to get their own back, hiring a woman to con the conman. Yada yada yada, and so we have a template film you can essentially predict. It might still have worked if not for the inexplicably sluggish pace and forgettable songs thrown in every few scenes, killing any possibility of a narrative rhythm.
There's some quirky texture on display, particularly in the early sections. As Sunny Singh, a Delhi gym trainer (talking just like he did in BBB), Ranveer's amusing enough. There's a chain around his neck with a dumbbell hanging on it, looking like a bone dangling just within reach. Next, as an exhibitor of paintings with an effete walk and an aptly annoying proclivity to say the word 'art' roundedly, with a nearly silent 'r', he's fine as well. But soon the chameleonic routine becomes tiresome, episodic and purely superficial. There is detailing, but he isn't suave enough to make the character work -- and it's hard to care about a protagonist if he's constantly stretching credibility.
The girls, on the other hand, are mostly good. Anushka Sharma , ebullient enough to make me want to change my cellphone network by dint of a ten-seconder on TV, tries hard (and looks very fit in a gratuitous bikini shot) but, playing a salesgirl overflowing with vim who eventually turns oddly sheepish, has precious little to play with. Dipannita Sharma's efficient and very believable as a hard-nosed executive allergic to nonsense, and Aditi Sharma's pleasant enough. The only positive from this film, though, is the Dilli ki ladki.
Playing a Delhi character with dialogues written by Habib Faisal automatically guarantees some meat for an actor, and young Parineeti Chopra is both adorable and genuine enough to spark up some laughs, even when all she's doing is pronouncing LOL to rhyme with "doll." She's a smart-alecky girl utterly besotted with the man they hate, awestruck by how cannily he fooled her father, and the role is the film's nicest. (Clearly the thing to remember in Faisal's films is that whoever gets to say the word "kaand" walks away with the film.)
But while Faisal delivers a few good lines, he isn't to blame for Devika Bhagat's sluggish script. A very predictable con-versus-con film can be made enjoyable, but it needs to be breezy and engaging. We need to want to take sides and we need to care about the twists, and by the time Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl winds down in extremely simplistic fashion, we just don't care anymore. If this were a better-made film, we might have been justifiably outraged by the lame sexism meted out at the climax, but for now yawning seems reaction enough.
It's funny, really. With his first film we hoisted Ranveer Singh high above our shoulders because he scoffed at Shah Rukh Khanand very memorably told a bride how weddings didn't need superstars; now, in his second film, he has an SRK dialogue as his caller-tune, and all it forces us to notice is how far he is from the Shah Rukh standard of superstardom.
Ratings:
Rediff: 1.5 star
Times of India:2.5 stars
NDTV: 2.5 star
Yahoo!: 1.5 star
He struts through Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl mostly in slow-motion, often shirtless and constantly posing for the camera, but a mere workout does not a Hrithik Roshan make.
When I applauded Band Baaja Baaraat and rated him 2010's , I was struck most by how impressively Ranveer carved his own non-traditional path, eschewing vanity and sticking to character instead of concentrating on showing off his most flattering profile. A star was born and now, as he tries to fit into the industry definition of a star, the result is an excruciatingly slow-motion film that drags on as it exposes his every weakness.
There is a plot in Maneesh Sharma's latest, but essentially imagine a long and rather unfunny Khosla Ka Ghosla and you'll get the gist. Ricky Bahl swindles a bunch of interesting but gullible women, and they -- in Not A Penny More, Not A Penny Less fashion -- scheme to get their own back, hiring a woman to con the conman. Yada yada yada, and so we have a template film you can essentially predict. It might still have worked if not for the inexplicably sluggish pace and forgettable songs thrown in every few scenes, killing any possibility of a narrative rhythm.
There's some quirky texture on display, particularly in the early sections. As Sunny Singh, a Delhi gym trainer (talking just like he did in BBB), Ranveer's amusing enough. There's a chain around his neck with a dumbbell hanging on it, looking like a bone dangling just within reach. Next, as an exhibitor of paintings with an effete walk and an aptly annoying proclivity to say the word 'art' roundedly, with a nearly silent 'r', he's fine as well. But soon the chameleonic routine becomes tiresome, episodic and purely superficial. There is detailing, but he isn't suave enough to make the character work -- and it's hard to care about a protagonist if he's constantly stretching credibility.
The girls, on the other hand, are mostly good. Anushka Sharma , ebullient enough to make me want to change my cellphone network by dint of a ten-seconder on TV, tries hard (and looks very fit in a gratuitous bikini shot) but, playing a salesgirl overflowing with vim who eventually turns oddly sheepish, has precious little to play with. Dipannita Sharma's efficient and very believable as a hard-nosed executive allergic to nonsense, and Aditi Sharma's pleasant enough. The only positive from this film, though, is the Dilli ki ladki.
Playing a Delhi character with dialogues written by Habib Faisal automatically guarantees some meat for an actor, and young Parineeti Chopra is both adorable and genuine enough to spark up some laughs, even when all she's doing is pronouncing LOL to rhyme with "doll." She's a smart-alecky girl utterly besotted with the man they hate, awestruck by how cannily he fooled her father, and the role is the film's nicest. (Clearly the thing to remember in Faisal's films is that whoever gets to say the word "kaand" walks away with the film.)
But while Faisal delivers a few good lines, he isn't to blame for Devika Bhagat's sluggish script. A very predictable con-versus-con film can be made enjoyable, but it needs to be breezy and engaging. We need to want to take sides and we need to care about the twists, and by the time Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl winds down in extremely simplistic fashion, we just don't care anymore. If this were a better-made film, we might have been justifiably outraged by the lame sexism meted out at the climax, but for now yawning seems reaction enough.
It's funny, really. With his first film we hoisted Ranveer Singh high above our shoulders because he scoffed at Shah Rukh Khanand very memorably told a bride how weddings didn't need superstars; now, in his second film, he has an SRK dialogue as his caller-tune, and all it forces us to notice is how far he is from the Shah Rukh standard of superstardom.
Ratings:
Rediff: 1.5 star
Times of India:2.5 stars
NDTV: 2.5 star
Yahoo!: 1.5 star
Beware from fake posters of Talaash: Farhan Akhtar
Filmmaker Farhan Akhtar has warned his fans against a fake poster of his upcoming film Taalash that is being circulated online.
'Please beware of a fake 'Talaash' poster doing the rounds.... it is not the official first look. That is still to happen,' Farhan wrote on microblogging site Twitter.
Directed by Reema Kagti, the film stars Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Rani Mukerji. The suspense thriller is also being co-produced by Aamir along with Farhan and Ritesh Sidhwani.
Aamir plays a cop in the film.
'Please beware of a fake 'Talaash' poster doing the rounds.... it is not the official first look. That is still to happen,' Farhan wrote on microblogging site Twitter.
Directed by Reema Kagti, the film stars Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Rani Mukerji. The suspense thriller is also being co-produced by Aamir along with Farhan and Ritesh Sidhwani.
Aamir plays a cop in the film.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Symonds in Big Boss
Australian cricketer Andrew Symonds is the latest celebrity to enter the 'Bigg Boss' house and says he is looking forward to his stint on Indian television and is hoping to get an opportunity to understand Indian culture.
'I don't know much about Indian culture. I know about it in bits and pieces. Hope to learn about it more,' Symonds told IANS over phone from Mumbai.
The sportsman, who will enter the house Wednesday, is well-versed with the challenges on the field, but he is now looking forward to the challenges inside the house.
'There are different challenges on the field, but challenges would be different inside the house. Right now I am quite relaxed. I am going inside the house with an open mind and take on challenges as they come. I haven't planned anything,' he said.
'I have no expectations, I have come to make friends. It will be challenging but at the same time it will be a lot of fun also. I just want to enjoy the entire experience,' he added.
Symonds will be the second international celebrity to enter the Colors' show after Indo-Canadian porn star Sunny Leone. The 36-year-old cricketer will enter the show as a participant. Symonds was in the news when in 2008 he accused Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh of making racial comments against him.
In the show, the contestants have to stay inside the 'Bigg Boss' house without any connection with the outside world with 24X7 camera surveillance.
The fifth season started Oct 2 with 14 contestants. Right now seven are left - Sunny, Mahek Chahal, Juhi Parmar, Akashdeep Saigal, Siddharth Bharadwaj, Shonali Nagrani and Amar Upadhyay.
All the contestants inside the 'Bigg Boss' house have to do day-to-day chores on their own, whether it's cleaning or cooking. Symonds admits he doesn't cook much, but is ready to help his inmates.
'I would be more than happy to help the people inside the house in everyday work and cleaning, though I don't cook much. I know a little bit of barbeque,' he said.
The episode showing his entry in the house will be telecast Thursday.
'I don't know much about Indian culture. I know about it in bits and pieces. Hope to learn about it more,' Symonds told IANS over phone from Mumbai.
The sportsman, who will enter the house Wednesday, is well-versed with the challenges on the field, but he is now looking forward to the challenges inside the house.
'There are different challenges on the field, but challenges would be different inside the house. Right now I am quite relaxed. I am going inside the house with an open mind and take on challenges as they come. I haven't planned anything,' he said.
'I have no expectations, I have come to make friends. It will be challenging but at the same time it will be a lot of fun also. I just want to enjoy the entire experience,' he added.
Symonds will be the second international celebrity to enter the Colors' show after Indo-Canadian porn star Sunny Leone. The 36-year-old cricketer will enter the show as a participant. Symonds was in the news when in 2008 he accused Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh of making racial comments against him.
In the show, the contestants have to stay inside the 'Bigg Boss' house without any connection with the outside world with 24X7 camera surveillance.
The fifth season started Oct 2 with 14 contestants. Right now seven are left - Sunny, Mahek Chahal, Juhi Parmar, Akashdeep Saigal, Siddharth Bharadwaj, Shonali Nagrani and Amar Upadhyay.
All the contestants inside the 'Bigg Boss' house have to do day-to-day chores on their own, whether it's cleaning or cooking. Symonds admits he doesn't cook much, but is ready to help his inmates.
'I would be more than happy to help the people inside the house in everyday work and cleaning, though I don't cook much. I know a little bit of barbeque,' he said.
The episode showing his entry in the house will be telecast Thursday.
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