Hansika Motwani – This the magic of brush and not steroids

With Hansika Motwani looking much mature than her age in Himesh Reshammiyan’s ‘‘Aap Ka Suroor’, the word doing rounds was that the gal had taken steroids and supplements to match her looks with the older looking Himesh. However, the actress strictly opposes the charge.

Manzoor Khan, her make-up artiste in the film, supports her saying that Hansika and he had worked together on her looks. “I am responsible for the mature look that Hansika has in the film. It was the magic of my brush and the make up technique that helped Hansika look older than her age.” says Khan. Is everything clear now??

Pic of the day

Ajay Devgan’s World Cup Mania

Shooting commitments have detered Ajay from winging his way to West Indies, so the B-Town actor has booked his seat for the World Cup cricket series starting today in his vanity van which has been fine-tuned to include a dish antenna and a Plasma TV to catch all the action.

Even though the Plasma TV was installed to catch up on the latest flicks some time ago, the cricket bug recently made him install a dish antenna atop his van to tune in to all the matches wherever he is on a break between shots.

The actor is presently shooting for Ram Gopal Varma’s Sholay and Rajkumar Santoshi’s Halla Bol in Mumbai.

March 20th onwards, Ajay will be off for a month-long schedule to Delhi for Kumar Mangat’s Sunday, directed by Rohit Shetty.

The van will now travel with him so that Devgan does not miss any of the matches.

Those in the know confirm that the actor is a true follower of the game — the sort who will stay awake throughout the night to catch a match, and can rattle off scores and run rates from memory.

So which team is Devgan rooting for in the World Cup? “I really hope India wins the World Cup,” says Devgan

He prefers not to espouse about his favourite team or player though. “Ultimately, may the best team win,” adds the reticient actor.

US Air Force band to sing Kajra re

The Bollywood hit ‘Kajra re’ will take on an American flavour when a US Air Force belts it out here later this week at a military tattoo being conducted as part of the ongoing platinum jubilee celebrations of the Indian Air Force (IAF).

The tattoo Saturday, open to the public, will also feature air force bands from Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand, as also of the IAF, the Indian Army and the Indian Navy. The bands will perform indoors the next day for an invited audience that will include Defence Minister A.K. Antony.

“The US Air Force band was fascinated when it heard ‘Kajra re’ and asked us for the score. They have promised to stick to the original but they are bound to give their own distinctive touch,” an IAF officer told on Tuesday.

“Kajra re”, a popular number from the 2005 hit “Bunty Aur Babli”, featured superstar Amitabh Bachchan, his son Abhishek and the latter’s fiancée Aishwarya Rai.

A tattoo is essentially a stylised open-air concert that militaries stage worldwide and at which equal emphasis is given to music, choreography and ceremonial uniforms. By far the best known of these is the Edinburgh Military Tattoo that is now in its 57th year.

India has its own version of the tattoo – the Beating Retreat ceremony here Jan 29 that concludes the annual Republic Day celebrations.

The term military tattoo dates from the 17th century when the British Army was fighting in the Low Countries (Belgium and The Netherlands). Drummers from the garrison were sent out into the towns each evening with a cry for innkeepers: “Doe den tap toe (Turn off the taps)”.

“The programme (for Saturday) has been stylised as per the international format and will be performed in two segments,” Air Marshal J.N. Burma, the IAF’s air officer-in-charge administration, told reporters.

The first segment will begin at 4 p.m. at the Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial to the Unknown Soldier at India Gate. The bands will perform martial tunes and march around the memorial for 12 minutes each.

They will reassemble at the same venue at 6 p.m. and each band will perform popular tunes, as also some jazz and rock numbers, for 15 minutes each.

The Sunday performance will feature a medley of tunes by each foreign band, while the Indian military bands will stage a combined performance. Each band will perform for 15-20 minutes.

Eyes makes us sexy:Priyanka

Skimpy clothes and raunchy dances may titillate audiences, but the true art of sensuality lies in a woman’s eyes, says actress and former Miss World Priyanka Chopra.

“Sensuality is in a woman’s eyes rather than the clothes she wears,” the 24-year-old actress said in an interview.

“Sensuality will have a degree of exposure but one should look attractive and beautiful and not vulgar,” she added.

“Sensuality should be in the body language of a woman and not by being cheap,” said Priyanka, who has acted in about 30 films and has seven set for release this year.

As a young girl, Priyanka did not nurse any acting dreams, but said the Miss World title pitchforked her into films. She signed her first film in 2002.

“I got offers for films and I thought there was nothing wrong in giving it a shot,” she said, who received death threats from conservative vigilantes after winning a beauty pageant. “Thankfully everything fell in place.”

I will definitely marry Shahid: Kareena Kapoor

Subhash K Jha Catches Kareena Kapoor In An Ebullient Mood.

You turned 17 this year…
Ha ha. Why not Sweet 16? Seriously, I’m 26. I think I’ve done well for myself. I don’t know what more I want from my life and career. I’ve got love and I now I look forward to doing some great films.

Both professionally and personally I’m at peace with myself. Now I want to go with the flow. Things are going great. In December I start preparing for Mani Rathnam’s Lajjo.

What preparations?
There will be Urdu classes and lots of dance rehearsals. I’ve to change my hair. I’m restructuring my body because Indian clothes require a different physicality.

You’re slim enough.
I know. But I constantly feel the need to grow thinner. I’ve always been healthy, touch wood. I’m a foodie. But I burn it up. If I eat I work-out vigorously. I’ll be working out intensely from the next month for Lajjo. I’m really looking forward to working with Aamir Khan. I don’t know how I’ll give my shots.

I’ll never fall for a guy who’s gay: Aarti Chabaria

Q: Tell us about your kind of a man?
A: First of all, I don’t dig for a man. I prefer a self-made man, who’s down to earth. One who’s loving and caring. It must be someone who understands me and pampers me a great deal. He should have respect for my parents. He should also have a killer smile.

Q: Your favourite romantic getaway would be…
A: Gold coast. It’s a beautiful beach in Australia. In India, it would be Goa.

Q: Do you believe that men are from Mars and women from Venus?
A: No. I don’t.

Q: Which man inspires you the most?
A: My dad for the person he is. He is head strong, focused in life, very intelligent and educated. He has taught me that money isn’t all that matters in life. He believes in good will. He has proved to be a great husband and the greatest father.

Q: If given a chance to date a historical character who would he be and why?
A: Hitler. Maybe I would have brought out the romantic angle in him and prevented Second World War from taking place.

Q: You believe in one night stand or commitment?
A: Definitely, commitment.

Q: Can a man and a woman have a platonic relationship?
A: People say that a man and a woman can’t be friends, but I believe that they can take care of each other without any sexual feelings attached to it.

Q: Your first crush?
A: There was a cute boy residing in my society. I used to go and stand for my school bus half an hour before to take a glimpse of this boy.

Q: What do you think about the institution of marriage?
A: Indian culture and ‘rasams’ are very rich and meaningful. Our traditions and culture should definitely be followed. I feel marriage is a very important part of anyone’s life.

Q: What would you do if your man turns out to be a gay?
A: First of all, I can never fall for a guy who’s a gay. His body language and behaviour would easily suggest his state.

Q: Is a sense of humour a must?
A: It’s not the most important. The most important thing is that the guy should love me. There should be an argument between us on who loves whom

My real name is Shoumitra Sen. Rimii is my nick. I’m not using ‘Sen’ anymore. I am fed up of my surname!

Remember the gorgeous Sweety Dixit in Dhoom? The simple, unassuming girl behind all the glam is Rimii, who has been known for doing comical roles. And now, she is back with what she does best in Milan Luthria’s cricket-based flick Hattrick.

You play a Dhoni fan in the film?
I’m playing Kunal’s wife in the film and we two are in love with each other. We get married and after marriage I fall in love with the cricketer Dhoni. So it becomes an extra marital affair for me!

So are you a Dhoni fan also in real life?
No, I don’t like to watch cricket. I’m not a cricket fan at all; I don’t like any cricketer as such. But I like Sachin Tendulkar right from the beginning.
So Kunal Kapoor plays a jealous husband! How’s he off-screen?
Kunal is a very sweet person to work with. Very young, very talented, very professional, very hardworking. It was a wonderful experience working with him because I’m very comfortable with him. He is also very young so if we are doing a particular shot then I can tell him that let’s do it this way, let’s do it that way. And he also can tell me the same. So we are very comfortable working with each other.

How about the eccentric Nana Patekar?
I don’t have any scene with Nana Patekar but we have shot one music video together. It called Wicket Bacha. And we shot that music video basically to promote our film Hattrick which is on right now. We had great fun while shooting for the music video.

Tell us about the World Cup anthem “Wicket Bacha”
Wicket Bacha is a video which we shot basically to promote our film. Everybody has got a different look in that video. Like I’m wearing a transparent kurta with shorts and I’ve got a very nice look in that video. Falghuni designed my look for it. And Nana sir has also got a very different look. Nana sir, Pareshji, Danny sir, everybody is looking very different in the music video. Everybody was supposed to dance. So I think that was hilarious because everybody has got a unique style of dancing!

Perhaps you will get to work with Nana in Yahan Ke Hum Sikander…
No, I’ve not yet signed that film.

How was it working with Milan Luthria for the first time?
I always wanted to work with Milan. I was dying to work with Milan Luthria since I saw Deewaar. I told him that please do let me know if you have got a nice character for me. And after one year he approached me for Hattrick. So when he narrated the script out, I was like very excited, oh baba, cricket today is the hot subject! I have got a very nice character in it. So I was very excited. And I told him “let’s do it”. So, then that’s how Hattrick happened.

You have done a lot of comic flicks. Do you aspire to do any serious roles?
If I get an opportunity to work with directors like Abbas Mustan or Anees Bazmee and Milan Luthria then definitely I’ll go for it otherwise I prefer doing comedy films because I’m very comfortable doing comedy films.

You are the lucky mascot for Priyadarshan
Priyadarshan is a very confident director and he is such a person that he knows that he can make anybody act. So that’s the best thing about him. When Ratanji called me for Hungama he just looked at me and said that I don’t need to do any screen test because I think I can make anybody act. So I’ve learned a lot from Mr. Priyadarshan, he is a very confident person and he is a brilliant director to work with, a nice human being and his comic timing is brilliant. So I think it was a pleasure working with him.

Are you doing any films with him?
No, not yet.

You’ve got a chance to work with big names like Akshay Kumar and Salman Khan at the beginning of your career. How does it feel?
I was very excited when I was working with Salman because I love Salman Khan. I think I did Deewane Hue Paagal, Garam Masala and Phir Hera Pheri with Akshay Kumar, and he is a very professional actor and it was a nice, it was a wonderful experience working him.

Are you there in the third part of Hera Pheri?
No I don’t think I’ll be able to do.

Which projects are you doing in the future?
I’m doing two films right now. But I don’t want to say anything about those two projects. But after Hattrick I haven’t signed any other film so I’ll be doing these two projects and then I’ll be waiting for the right opportunity again.

Finally is Rimii Sen your real name?
No my real name is Shoumitra Sen. I think Shoumitra Sen is a very long name S-H-O-U-M-I-T-R-A, very long and very old fashioned. I thought it won’t look good below a photograph. Actually my nick name is Rimii. So I like this name and I decided to keep it. But yes, there is a huge confusion between Rimii Sen, Raima Sen and Rima Sen. That’s why I’m not using ‘Sen’ anymore. I’m just using Rimii, I am fed up of my surname!

Mallika leaves her Bikinis for Burqa!

First, it was Jackie Chan in Myth, and now it is Bill Bannerman, Hollywood stalwart Clint Eastwood’s right-hand man. What’s with Mallika Sherawat impressing foreign directors? Our very own oomph girl Mallika Sherawat now has signed for a woman-centric Hollywood film “Unveiled” to be directed by Bannerman.

“It’s a fantastic story – part thriller, part psychological drama, part film noir… It was so fast paced and exciting and so well written, I couldn’t put it down for a second,” said Mallika.

“And the icing on the cake was that it’s a story from the point of view of a woman — a woman who has relationships with three men from different continents, and she goes from an ultra-traditional Muslim environment to an ultra-liberal Western one. This is a script I could never say no to,” she added.

Bannerman is Clint Eastwood’s assistant director and has been honoured by the Director’s Guild of America as the best assistant director for “Unforgiven”, the film, which went on to win Oscar awards for best director and best film.

About casting the Indian actress, Bannerman said: “I was impressed by Mallika’s acting prowess in ‘Murder’ and knew by instinct that she will be able to do justice to the role perfectly.”

Praising the actress further Bannerman said he was taken aback by her level of professionalism and was surprised to find out that she doesn’t have a larger body of work and that Bollywood had not tapped the talent as yet.

Bannerman has a phenomenal resume, which includes four films with Clint Eastwood — “Unforgiven”, “Bridges of Madison County”, “A Perfect World” and “Absolute Power”.

He has also worked as the development executive for “Payback”, “Mission Impossible”, and “Star Trek: First Contact” and was the executive producer for “The Grudge 2″ and “Walking Tall”.

Bannerman is directing the feature film with his mentor Eastwood’s blessing.

Talking about the film, Bannerman said: “‘Unveiled’ is a film about a Muslim woman who has two husbands and a lover. It is a twisted film noir, sexy thriller and dark drama. It is the first Hollywood film to feature a female Muslim protagonist.

Describing the character, to be played by Mallika, he said: “Behind the dark burqa (veil), there lies a sexy, manipulative victim, who’s dangerous as well as in grave danger.”

Many actresses were considered for the role, before zeroing in on Mallika, that is.

Sources reveal, “Hillary Swank and Penelope Cruz had shown interest, but they wanted the actress to be a South Asian or from the Middle East so that she could portray the character of a Muslim woman from the Middle East, and lend a degree of authenticity in terms of accent, body language, knowledge of customs, etc.”

Mallika managed to beat actresses Aishwarya Rai and Shilpa Shetty to it.

“Aishwarya Rai and Shilpa Shetty were strong contenders. But speculations are rife that Aishwarya Rai had date problems and her impending marriage plans would have been a possible hindrance.

As for Shilpa Shetty, she only has a big name. In reality, she still hasn’t signed anything worthwhile so far,” says our source.

‘Ash & I will meet the sex workers!’

By Subhash K Jha

Sushmita’s impending appointment with Hollywood actress Ashley Judd has her excited like seldom before.

“What makes Ashley’s trip to India so special is not only the fact that she cares so deeply for the AIDS cause. It’s also because she’s coming all the way to our country to raise funds for this cause. And as far as I’m concerned that’s enough reason for India to play host to Ashley.

I feel she’s my guest and I’m going to do my best to make her feel at home,” says Sushmita before Ashley Judd comes to Mumbai to join hands with Sush.

Ashley has gone on record to say she’s keen on to meet Sush.

“Has she?” Sush is delighted. “I read up a whole lot on her on the net. And I must say I’m very very impressed by her work. It’s not just what she’s done on screen, but what she has done off screen that makes her so important. It’s the kind of career model I’m trying to follow. “

On 14 April Sush and Ashley leave early in the morning for the Kamathipura red-light area of Mumbai to spend the whole day with sex workers.

Says Sush, “I’ll be speaking to the sex workers in the language that’s prevalent among them, Bengali. I’m really looking forward to my day with Ashley and with these brave women who perhaps need just that bit of information to make their lives healthier and safer.”

The day with the sex workers will be followed by a 90-minute interview for the National Geographic. “Then on the 17 March Ashley and I will be attending a very exclusive dinner to raise charity funds for the cause,” says Sushmita who says she loves public events.

“Even the dance performances at functions. Because I dance basically for myself. If the audiences enjoy it, good for them.”