Veena Malik in Jism 2 ?

Actress turned filmmaker Pooja Bhatt has delivered one of the most sexiest Bollywood movies in 2003, Jism, starring Bipasha Basu and John Abraham. A perfectly in shape model John debuted in Bollywood with this movie and became a craze among the youth. The sizzling chemistry between Basu and Abraham rocked the viewers and the film was a roaring hit. There were talks regarding a sequel of this movie earlier but nothing materialized. It is probably because they could not bring John and Bips together anymore for repeating their seductive act. Now again, the talks are rife about Jism 2 and Pooja Bhatt is seriously thinking about the lead cast, who can replace the hot couple. There was a buzz that Sri Lankan beauty Jacqueline Fernandez of Aladin fame has been approached to enact the leading lady. But this did not go well with the Jism and they openly expressed their displeasure over her name on a microblogging site. Pooja Bhatt also rubbished reports saying that they never thought of Jacqueline. However, fans have suggested a very good option for Jism 2. Most of them have suggested the name of Pakistani actress Veena Malik, who has been popular in Bigg Boss 4 for her sizzling acts with inmate Bollywood actor Ashmit Patel. Their proximity on camera has grabbed many eyeballs and is being considered as perfect couple to replace Bipasha and John. However, Veena is quite far from a perfect figure when it comes to play a seductress in a movie like Jism 2. If she is considered seriously then she will require losing some extra kilos that she keeps showing frequently. However, Ashmit is quite good in shape and has been seen working out with Hrishant Goswami earlier. But recently, he is behaving like a sick person and does not look to be in a very good shape. However, he can enact the role perfectly because Ashmit is often seen drooling over Veena and that is very much required for the role!

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Kangna isn't a poor little girl from the hills, she is Rich: Sources

Here's what Kangna left behind in her village to become an actress... a luxurious life, a 25-room haveli and an influential family While people assumed Kangna Ranaut to be a struggling wannabe actress from Himachal Pradesh when she entered B- Town, the truth is far different. The actress comes from one of the richest and politically most influential families in the state. Hers is not a rags to riches story. Which explains the lakhs of rupees she spends on clothes, shoes and bags every month, more than even the top actresses of B-Town and star wives. Have money, won't talk A source close to Kangna confirms her family affluence, "She doesn't like talking about her family wealth as she's struggled on her own to be in her position. Besides that, she believes it's in bad taste to talk about one's wealth." Her family is from the blue-blooded Rajputs from Bhambla village in Himachal Pradesh. Our village Kangna has a huge 25-room ancestral house or haveli in Bhambla (currently called Surajpur) belonging to her great- grandfather. "While it was originally called Bhambla, when Kangna's great-grandfather became the local MLA, the village was named Surajpur after him. " Kangna grew up in a joint family, with her brother, sister, parents, great- grandparents, grand- parents and chacha and chachi. The family owns several acres of land in Surajpur. Luxurious living Adds an insider, "Kangna's father Amardeep Ranaut is in the construction business and he supplies construction material for building roads etc for the Public Works Department (PWD) in Himachal Pradesh. She has been brought up in luxury and always had five cars parked in front of her home." But things suddenly took a turn for the worse when she decided to come to Mumbai to become an actress. Her grandfather was dead against any female from his family joining films as he felt it was demeaning. On your own, please! Kangna's father too supported his father, and when she insisted on acting, both of them stopped talking to her. Her father told her that he would give her no financial support and she would have to make it on her own. Hard times Kangna left home at 16 and initially stayed with a friend in Delhi before coming to Mumbai in 2005. She went through a lot of hardship but never asked her family for help. She lived in Aasha Chandra's hostel and shared a room with three other girls. It was a miserable time for her as she was cut off from her family and struggling in a strange city. It was only after Life In A... Metro that her family relented and welcomed her once again into their fold. Preity connection There was a family reunion when her parents, sister Rangoli and brother Akshat came to Mumbai. Today, her family is very proud of her. Kangna's friend insists, however, that the actress is not related to Preity Zinta. "Preity's maternal aunt is a resident of Surajpur and PZ often comes to meet her. Once during a family function of Preity's in the village Kangna and her siblings met Preity. Now they keep in touch. That's all. Kang's Grandpa Kangna's great-grandfather (and idol) Sarju Singh Ranaut left his job as a head clerk for the British government to become a freedom fighter with Mahatma Gandhi. Kangs still has the letters Gandhiji wrote to her great-grandfather. He was also the only man from his village who knew English at that time and got electricity to his village.

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Neha Uberoi is getting married on Dec 14

Sanjay Dutt's business manager Dharam Uberoi's daughter Neha gets married on December 14 to industrialist Vishal Shah. The wedding invite has Dutt's and his wife Maanayata's names along with Dharam and his family. The reason: Dutt and Maana are Neha's moohbole maama-maami and will be throwing a party for the happy couple soon.

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Sonam Kapoor and khandaan go Goa for New Year

Anil, Sunita, Sonam, Rhea and Harsh will spend New Year's in the land of feni Anil Kapoor will finally go on a long holiday with his entire family to Goa. Says a source close to the actor, "Anil and his family, including wife Sunita and children Sonam, Rhea and Harsh will be going to the Sunshine State on December 28 and will stay there for a week. They plan to bring in the New Year there and have already booked into one of the most expensive beach resorts in South Goa. Sonam, Rhea and Harsh's friends, along with other family members, will also accompany them. Harsh, who is studying in USA, is coming down for his Christmas holidays." Special holiday The source adds that for the Kapoor couple, this holiday is very special. "Anil has been extremely busy the last few years. After Slumdog Millionaire, he got busy in Hollywood with 24 and then returned to work on his home production, No Problem. While Sunita and he have been on trips to Paris and other parts of Europe and Anil and Sonam have holidayed in Canada on her shoots, it is one of those rare times that the entire family is together." Anil won't release No Problem on Christmas as a courtesy to close friend, director Farah Khan. The actor confirms, "Farah is a dear friend and even though my friends and distributors wanted No Problem to release on December 24 as it's a great period, I stuck to my guns and said we would release it on December 10 as I don't want to clash with Farah's big date. Both are big films and family entertainers and there's no point cutting into each other's business."

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Indian model Lakshmi Menon strips all for Pirelli Calendar 2011

Bangalore based Indian model Lakshmi Menon has created history in the international fashion world! The 28-year-old model has become the first Indian face for the renowned ‘The Pirelli Calendar 2011’ since last 38 years. However, Menon had to give a nude pose for getting this honor. It does not seem to be quite unusual for a model because many other Indian models have stripped for various magazines and photo shoots. Photographer Karl Lagerfeld has snapped the model when she flaunted her assets alongside models Erin Wasson and Bianca Balti. It has been shot at Lagerfeld’s Paris studio. The 2011 calendar is prepared based on the Greek and Roman Mythology themes. It also portrays the event of golden child Baptiste Giabiconi. With this, Lakshmi has entered the line of many other renowned international models like Jeneil Williams, Erin Wasson, Lara Stone, Freja Beha, Heidi Mount, Anja Rubik, Magdenlena Frackowiak, Iris Strubegger and many others. Lakshmi started her career in modeling only to earn to some extra money when she was studying at the Bangalore University. She continued her modeling career in India till 2006 and then entered the international arena.

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Filmmaker Manish Acharya passes away

People come and go but there are a few that make a mark on society that lasts a life time, and Manish Acharya was one such being. The young director, writer, actor par who has given us films like Loins Of Punjab, Sita Sings The Blues, Luck By Chance is no more.

The director who tweeted just yesterday about his impending trip to Matheran is said to have met with a fatal accident that eventually led to his demise. This will be the third filmmaker to have passed away at such a young age following Sourabh Usha Narang, then Pankaj Advani.

Bollywood Hungama mourns the loss of such talent and sends out its solemn condolences and prayers to Manish's family and friends.

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Raju Hirani starts his company Canvass Films to make commercials

Raju Hirani today is a household name thanks to his brilliant films such as 3 Idiots and the Munnabhai series. However not many people know that this talented filmmaker was actively involved with the ad world many years ago. Raju had in fact even starred in commercials for brands such as Fevicol and Luna. He has even directed few commercials in the recent past featuring stars such as Amitabh Bachchan and Kareena Kapoor.

Now it seems that Raju is keen on once again connecting with his roots in the ad world. HIrani, along with friend Sanjeev Kishinchandani, has now started a company called Canvass Films to mainly mad ad commercials. Raju, who has always loved making ad films, will be directing around 6 - 7 commercials each year for his company.

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Music Review Tees Maar Khan

EXPECTATIONS

2010 couldn't have ended on a better note. One expects nothing but the best to bring on the smiles as one moves on from one year to another. With the music of Tees Maar Khan arriving at the stands now and expected to make waves by the time the film releases on Christmas, it couldn't have been any better for a music lover. After all Farah Khan has been known for her keen music sense when it comes to masala soundtracks (Main Hoon Naa, Om Shanti Om are testimonies of that) while Vishal-Shekhar too have been enjoying a good year with Anjaana Anjaani & I Hate LUV Storys turning out to be successful and Break Ke Baad boasting of a different sound as well. With lyricist Anvita Dutt joining all the fun, one looks forward to check out what does Tees Maar Khan have to offer.

MUSIC

Write your own music review of Tees Maar Khan

It is a cracker of start with title song 'Tees Maar Khan' bringing with it the kind of hook that is totally addictive to begin with. A true blue theme track that can be expected to make an appearance at regular intervals right through the film's running length, 'Tees Maar Khan' is a guest composition by Shirish Kunder who has written it as well. One can confidently say that if at all a 'khiladi' film was to be made today, it would have proudly boasted of a song like this. What also impresses is the way Sonu Nigam contributes with male, female, child, chorus as well as other quirky voices to make it a unique affair. Not just that, the 'dhol' beats in the end make it a truly entertaining affair that ensures that 'Tees Maar Khan' would be heard for many more months to come. No wonder, there is a deserving 'remix version' that arrives later in the album as well, hence making it a complete 'paisa vasool' affair.

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Movie Preview Tees Maar Khan

Only once in a blue moon is such a great criminal born who is fearless as well as shameless! Now is the blue moon and the great criminal is TEES MAAR KHAN. He steals cons and cheats all with such alarming audacity that even shame shies away from him! He and his gang comprising of Dollar, Soda and Burger have managed to keep the police, world over, on their toes. Then one fine day international antique smugglers, the Johri Brothers, assign Tees Maar Khan the BIGGEST CON JOB OF HIS LIFE! He must rob antiques worth 500 crore rupees from a heavily guarded MOVING TRAIN! Will Khan and his merry gang, with some unwitting support from his wannabe-actress girlfriend, Anya, and a greedy Bollywood superstar be able to pull off the greatest heist in history?

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Movie Review Rakht Charitra - 2

Brutality has a new name and it's called RAKHT CHARITRA. The first part was gruesome. The second part, well, is not as violent, but is a bloodbath nonetheless. I don't think Hindi cinema has ever witnessed such gruesome murders, such manslaughter and such scenes of carnage ever. But beneath the blood and gore, slaughter and assassination lies the shocking story of enmity between two families.

RAKHT CHARITRA undertakes to enlighten the story of vengeance in two parts. RAKHT CHARITRA 1 depicted the rise of Pratap and how he became a demigod for the poor and the exploited. The Part 2 unfolds a new story, although it's linked with Part 1. The challenge lies in making it more attention-grabbing than its precursor.

Write your own movie review of Rakht Charitra - 2

Brutality, gore and violent behavior are indispensable attributes of RAKHT CHARITRA 2. The story in itself is nothing more than a customary vendetta drama, but what makes you connect compellingly with the narrative is the fact that Ramgopal Varma [RGV] has treated it like he was recounting a first-hand version of what really transpired between the adversaries.

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Movie Review Phas Gaye Re Obama

What's the recipe for a winning motion picture? A gigantic financial plan? Striking locales? A mammoth star cast? Strictly going by the number of low cost films that found tremendous appreciation, it reiterates and restates the fact that content always reigns supreme. 'Small' films like LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA, TERE BIN LADEN, UDAAN, PEEPLI [LIVE], KHICHDI and DO DOONI CHAAR have had a lot to say when compared to several mammoth ventures, which drove on star power while content took a complete backseat.

Subhash Kapoor's PHAS GAYE RE OBAMA banks on a taut screenplay and not a showy star cast to deliver the goods. Choosing an interesting plot is one thing and doing justice to it is another. But the assorted characters, the sequence of events in the narrative and the bunch of talented actors do the trick. At the same time, though the film has the right running time, it could've done with some sharper editing at places.

Write your own movie review of Phas Gaye Re Obama

Final word? PHAS GAYE RE OBAMA may not boast of stars to entice the viewers in hordes. It may not have a colossal canvas [on the contrary, the making is very basic]. It may not have a wonderful musical score to act as a hook [there are hardly any songs here]. But PHAS GAYE RE OBAMA succeeds, and succeeds largely, in its endeavour: Make the viewer laugh at the right places. A small little gem that deserves a watch.

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Movie Review Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey

Adapting a work of literature into a movie is an arduous task. Satyajit Ray's 'Apu Trilogy' [PATHER PANCHALI, APARAJITO and APUR SANSAR] was based on two Bengali novels written by Bibhuthibhushan Bandopadhyay. Ray's SHATRANJ KE KHILADI was based on Munshi Premchand's short story of the same name. In fact, film-makers have always been fascinated by best-selling books/novels for adapting into feature films. Mira Nair's THE NAMESAKE, P.C. Barua, Bimal Roy and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's DEVDAS, Pradeep Sarkar's PARINEETA, Rajkumar Hirani's 3 IDIOTS, Atul Agnihotri's HELLO and the recent AISHA have been adapted from literary works. Even in Hollywood, LORD OF THE RINGS, HARRY POTTER, NARNIA and many more have been successfully adapted from novels by reputed names.

However, if you analyze the past, you will realize that not all movies adapted from novels/short stories have set the cash registers jingling at the box-office. Films like PINJAR, PAHELI, RAINCOAT and international experiments like BRIDE AND PREJUDICE and THE MISTRESS OF SPICES have found very few takers in the past.

Write your own movie review of Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey

This is not the first time Ashutosh Gowariker has adapted a book into a film. KHELEIN HUM JEE JAAN SEY is yet another book-to-movie adaptation by this talented storyteller [this one is based on the book 'Do And Die: The Chittagong Uprising 1930-34' by Manini Chatterjee]. Again, this is not the first time Ashutosh Gowariker has revisited the bygone era. He did it successfully in LAGAAN [period], then JODHAA AKBAR [historical] and now KHELEIN HUM JEE JAAN SEY [period].

Recreating the bygone era is indeed demanding, laborious and strenuous. It's a challenge to present the era convincingly. Besides extensive detailing to lend authenticity, the director carries the responsibility of making the characters come alive to the present-day generation. Gowariker has successfully done that in the past and does it successfully yet again in KHELEIN HUM JEE JAAN SEY.

Once the film-maker takes on the task of depicting a chapter from history, it's imperative that he/she remains factual to the depiction of the revolution, giving an accurate account of what actually transpired in that period. But details alone won't help, it needs to be well dramatized for the big screen. There's a vast difference in the style novels are written, but one needs to take extra care to make it film friendly. While I may not be able to comment on whether Gowariker has been faithful to the book or tampered with it or implemented some changes, which may be necessary to suit the tastes of the present-day spectators and make it more palatable, I would definitely like to say that what comes across on screen is very absorbing, truly informative and exceptionally inspiring.

Final word? The expectations from KHELEIN HUM JEE JAAN SEY are minimal, but you can't overlook the fact that it's a genuinely honest effort that needs to be encouraged and appreciated. I would like to add here that the promotional posters/billboards/promos don't create any impact whatsoever. Wish the makers would've looked into this very important aspect as well!

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