E-Paper
No more kisses on screen: Emraan
Actor Emraan Hashmi is wary of being labelled as a smooch hero and has decided to say no to smooching on screen.
Actor Emraan Hashmi, best remembered for his kissing scenes, is wary of being labelled as a smooch hero and has decided to say a strict no when it comes to smooching on screen.
Emraan will play a clean, no-nonsense character in Aditya Datt's forthcoming film "Aashique Banaya Apne", reports Bollywood Trade. The film co-stars Tanushree Datta, who has also been cast opposite Emraan in "Chocolate".
One will have to wait and watch whether Aditya indeed agrees to Emraan's request.
Aditya, the grandson of lyricist Anand Bakshi, is also Emraan's close friend, which probably makes it easier for the star not to pucker up.
Shakti thanks his stars
Shakti Kapoor, whose son Siddhanth had a narrow escape during the London blasts July 7, is thanking his lucky stars, reports Bollywood Trade.
Siddhant, who is studying film direction in London, travels by the tube every day. However, on the fateful day, he happened to be late by a few minutes and got a call from the institute asking him not to venture out.
But it was poor Shakti who paced up and down the floor and almost broke down on the sets of Sudhakar Bokade's film, which was being shot at the other end of London.
"For the next two hours, the lines were jammed and I was in total panic as all kinds of possibilities came to my mind. The whole city of London was in turmoil and I couldn't control my tears.
"It was only later that I learnt that Siddhant was safe and I heaved a sigh of relief. Now I know that luck is really on my side," Shakti smiles.
Raja Bundela makes crossover film
Actor-producer-director Raja Bundela, who produced several TV serials and directed the film "Pratha", has made a crossover English film "That Game Of Chess".
The film, shot with an India-born-US-settled actor and an all-American crew, was shot in the US in just 20 days, reports Bollywood Trade. Raja and his American partners are now hoping for an August release.
The film tells the story of an Indian boy who migrates to the US on a work assignment and promises his father that he will stay away from wine, women and drugs until one wrong move changes his whole life.
"That one move leads him to a series of other moves, which leads him to an eventual path of self-destruction," says Raja.
However, he insists it is not a typical crossover film that preaches Indian values.
"On the contrary, it maintains that if you want to live in the west, you should learn to embrace the values there, else you are lost," he says.
The film has four English songs rendered by an American-African singer, Leena.
