Ram Gopal courts controversy for publicity

Well, we all know that Ram Gopal Verma is willing to go to great lengths for publicity. The filmmaker just loves to court controversy and is generally happy when he has managed to stir a hornet’s nest. In recent times, one saw how the use of the national anthem in his forthcoming film ‘Rann’ got the censors and the courts in a tizzy. But his latest gimmick seems to have gone too far or has it? It was a normal morning for most residents and passersby till they spotted the posters of ‘Agyaat’, the adventure thriller which was passed by the censors with a U/A certificate and some minor cuts recently. It was what they saw on the poster which left people shocked and repulsed. In their bid to be innovative, Ramu and the distributors, UTV Motion Pictures decided to give people a taste of what lies in store for them when they watch the movie. A dummy corpse was suspended from the hoardings of ‘Agyaat’, a sight which definitely attracted a lot of attention. Since the intention was to attract eyeballs, Ramu seems to have succeeded in doing that for his film. Very predictably, the filmmaker cannot understand why the posters should be deemed as offensive. After all, he is trying to promote a film, where one by one, each of the members of the cast are bumped off by an unknown killer. He may have a point there, after all it is quite an innovative though shocking idea. But for Verma, it is generally about the end justifying the means. He hardly feels that he has gone too far.

Will Rakhi really marry Elesh??

Euphoria gripped the entire nation as item girl Rakhi Sawant created history when she made her decision on her Swayamvar. After weeks of speculation and amidst high drama she chose Toronto based Elesh Parujanwala as her life partner at her glittering swayamvar ceremony. True to the spirit and grandeur of a Swayamvar, the atmosphere around breathed an air of royalty from every aspect ranging from the ambience to the cuisine. Rakhi looked her best in a pink and gold Neeta Lulla creation, adorned herself with invaluable Jewellery set in gold designed especially for her by Farah Ali Khan. Rakhi made her decision amidst the presence of hundreds of people ranging from close friends to the who’s who of the television industry like Saroj Khan, Ravi Kissen, Apurva Agnihotri, Shilpa Sakhlani, Karan Patel, Sudha Shivpuri, Raju Shrivastav, Anjori Alagh, Sayantani Ghosh and likewise. An ecstatic Rakhi said, ”Elesh made an impact on me since day one of my Swayamvar. He came across as a genuine and caring person on and off camera. He is everything that I look for in an ideal life partner and I am glad to have found him on the Swayamvar. Swayamvar means finding a Jeevansaathi and I have found Elesh.” While all eyes were eagerly looking forward to see Rakhi tying the nuptial knot, the much touted Swayamvar took a turn when the drama queen Rakhi appeared to clarify, ”Today is my engagement though I am ready to get married now, but we need to understand each other better, off camera. I thank God for helping me take this crucial decision in my life.” Although delighted Elesh said, ”I am thrilled that Rakhi considered me worthy enough to be her life partner. I wish to honor her decision with a life-long commitment to her. I hope to live up to her expectations and give her all the love and happiness that she truly deserves. We have decided to get engaged today, but before we take this further we both need time to know each other better off camera, and I want her to understand my family and lifestyle back in Toronto.” Looking at all the hype and hoopla created about the marriage on TV and her new decision of ‘only getting engaged’ for time being, now we are all the more eager to know as to when our damsel Rakhi Sawant will tie the knot after selecting a groom from the Swayamvar held!

Imran cool despite “Luck” not doing good

His last film ‘Kidnap’ did not do very well at the box office and the story was kind of repeated with his recent release’Luck’. The film failed to get as talked about as the young actor would have wished. But that has not deterred the young Imran Khan from learning from his own mistakes and moving on. Yes, he does carry a big legacy of being Aamir Khan’s nephew. No matter what happens on the career front for him, Aamir’s name is instantly evoked. Even if it is hard to believe, the young actor says that he does not go consulting his maamu about every single film that he signs. In fact, he has his own funda for taking on a movie. He judges each offer on its own merit and prefers to learn by his own mistakes instead of turning to his illustrious uncle for help. As for comparisons, there is little that he can do to change the fact that his uncle is Aamir Khan. The actor currently has quite a few films on hand and is quite happy with his lot. Up next for release for Imran should be Aamir’s home production ‘Delhi Belly’. Among the interesting films that he has on hands is Dibakar Banerjee’s next opposite Abhay Deol. Unlike some of the older members of his fraternity, Imran is on good relations with all his contemporaries like Ranbir Kapoor and Abhay. He, in more ways than one, signifies the emergence of a new breed of young committed actors, willing to take their chance with different roles.

"I keep remaking my own films" - Ram Gopal Varma

Bhoot had it’s germ in Raat. Sarkar got inspired from Godfather. Aag tried to tell a modern day Sholay tale. And now after Jungle, he returns to the ‘jungle’ with Agyaat. Even before his detractors could utter ‘P’, Ram Gopal Varma chose to go offensive and announced loud and clear that not just did Agyaat have it’s roots in Predator, it has also seen ‘liberal inspiration’ from half a dozen odd other Bollywood, Hollywood and TV sources. Is he serious? “Absolutely”, says Ramu with a straight face, “There have been so many films like Friday - The 13th, Anaconda or for that matter Predator that have excelled when it comes to thrill and chill elements. At the end of the day, fear is a universal phenomenon.” As he has been maintaining over the years, Ramu states once again that he doesn’t shy away from inspirations or copying his own when a subject interests him. “I have always paid homage, whatever be the source, when there is something that interests me”, he says, “At the end of the day, I have always maintained that I have picked up from films. Whether it was my first film as a director or the Friday release Agyaat, I continue to pick things available around me. Raat became Bhoot, Godfather made me do Sarkar. Black magic gave birth to Phoonk - I keep remaking my own films. The point is to get hold of an idea and see how differently you can narrate it.” Going back the memory lane, he states that when he saw Godfather, it made him question whether a plot and a man like that could exist in Mumbai. Once the answer was yes, he went on to make Sarkar and its sequel. Similarly when it came to Predator and number of others films belonging to the same genre and plotline, he thought of a basic idea to get a bunch of people together and lock them up in a ‘jungle’ to fight the unknown and unseen. “If you look at the basic plotline, there would have been 1000 different versions of it already being made in Korea, Japan or other countries”, he elaborates, “In case of Agyaat, I have brought together a film unit which gets into a forest to shoot a film. There is this inter-relationship between all of them with their own desires and beliefs. In my own way, I have created a new experience, though it won’t have any semblance or similarity to what you may have seen in a movie belonging to the same genre.”

Nayantara as Mandodhari

Now, you will really pooh-pooh the actress to turn down such a delicious offer. But yes, the sizzling Nayantara has refused a role in Mani Ratnam's ‘Raavana'. It seems the actress was approached by the director's wife Suhas 1 Vote(s)

Salman Khan in Wanted with Ayesha Takia

The stunning macho man of the Bollywood Salman Khan is known for his anger and show off and the same he is going to do it in his forthcoming movie "Wanted". This time cute girl of Bollywood Ayesha Takia will be targeted by his anger. According to 2 Vote(s)

Rakhi finally gets engaged

While their were many rumors that Rakhi would not end up with any man contesting in her Swayamwar, Rakhi chose Canadian businessman Elesh Parujanwala as the best match for herself at the grand finale of her show Rakhi Ka Swayamwar. 1 Vote(s)

Pregnant, Amrita Arora cancels trip to Dublin for U2 concert

Hitlist was the first to break the news of actress Amrita Arora Ladak's pregnancy and a visit to a gynaecologist as reported. Now it is confirmed that Amu is in her fourth month of pregnancy. The actress was scheduled to travel to London and Eur 3 Vote(s)

Asin’s found new friends at Mumbai

It's a long journey that begins from Kollywood to Bollywood via Tollywood, for Gajni-girl Asin Almost all the glamour dolls from Kerala would like to take the same path of her as they all have the many untold ambitions in their minds. 3 Vote(s)

Katrina's shrinking attire

Katrina and Akshay Kumar are coming together in another film called De Dhana Dhan. This film would be directed by Priyadarshan and it is expected to be a laugh riot. Priyan decided to picture an erotic rain song on Katrina for this film. 2 Vote(s)