Bollywood plans day long strike to protest over new tax proposal

02/02/2012 By Leave a Comment
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Bollywood will come to a standstill on February 23rd as the industry is planning a complete shutdown to protest over new government proposals to levy a new service tax on the film making industry. Those who oppose the proposal say the extra tax will have a negative effect on Indian film makers, squeezing film budgets even further.

The Bollywood strike will take place on February 23rd for the entire day, although the strike could be extended if there’s enough support for the cause. The Film Federation of India (FFI) declared the nationwide shut down, while the industry is waiting to see if the Film Producers Guild will join the strike, which would provide a big boost to the cause.

However not everyone supports the strike, filmmaker Retan Jain is one in particular who insists that the strike will only succeed in losing money for the Indian film industry. Jain believes that the best way to tackle the central government proposal to impose another tax on movies made in India is to call a meeting with the finance ministry to address the proposal head on.

Other well known faces in Bollywood support the strike whole heartedly, including Ramesh Sippy who is calling for indefinite strike to ensure the protest does not go unnoticed. Sippy believes the tax would mean an extra burden on the Indian film industry which is already the subject of heavy taxes.

Do you support the strike? Or do you think the Bollywood movie industry should pay more in tax? Let us know your thoughts in the comments box below.

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Shah Rukh Khan in alleged punch-up with Farah Khan’s husband

30/01/2012 By Leave a Comment
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Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan found himself in a spot of bother last night according to recent media reports as the actor is believed to have got into a scuffle Farah Khan’s husband, Shirish Kunder.

Shah Rukh Khan was seen arriving at the Aurus restaurant in Mumbai late last night accompanied by three bodyguards. Eyewitnesses described SRK as looking inebriated when he arrived at the party which was hosted by Sanjay Dutt to celebrate the success of his recent movie, Agneepath.

There is some confusion over how and why the argument broke out between Shah Rukh Khan and film maker Shirish Kunder. Some reports suggest Kunder had been following the actor around all night which had annoyed SRK, while other sources have reported seeing Bollywood superstar approaching Kunder and starting a fight, believed to have been caused by a derogatory comment he made on Twitter about Shah Rukh’s movie Ra. One.

The host of the party, Sanjay Dutt and also Baba Dewan who owns the restaurant, intervened after the scrap broke out between the pair, with the two men stepping in to break SRK and Kunder apart to prevent the fight getting out of hand.

The Bollywood actor and the film maker have a difficult history as Kunder’s wife, Farah Khan, was a close friend of Shah Rukh Khan and had directed him in a number of movies including Main Hoon Wa and others. However their friendship deteriorated after Farah cast Akshay Kumar in Tees Maar Khan, it’s believed the duo no longer speak as a result.

Farah wasn’t present at the party, however she had plenty to say on the matter this morning as she issued a statement which read,

“Shah Rukh has always told me that physical abuse is the worst way to sort out a problem, and that it means the person who’s hitting has either a personal or professional crisis going on. It saddens me to see him doing the same.”

There’s been no word from Shah Rukh Khan on the matter, although Farah Khan also said that she and her husband have no intention to charges against the actor.

 

 

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Bollywood movie Agent Vinod trailer introduced by Saif Ali Khan

27/01/2012 By Leave a Comment
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The trailer for the eagerly anticipated new Bollywood movie, Agent Vinod, was officially released this week by the star of the movie, Saif Ali Khan. The Bollywood actor, who also produced the Hindi spy movie, looked dapper in a sleek dinner jacket as he arrived at the screening for the Agent Vinod trailer.

Comparisons are already being drawn between Agent Vinod and the James Bond films, with Saif Ali Khan doing little to play down the comparison by arriving at the trailer screening wearing a smart dinner jacket suit, one of the looks typically seen on James Bond in the iconic movies.

While the Bollywood heart throb conceded that comparisons between James Bond are “inevitable”, the actor stressed that Agent Vinod is a true Indian hero and that audiences will see this from the very first scene of the movie.

Agent Vinod’s leading lady, actress Kareena Kapoor, and also Saif Ali Khan’s real life girlfriend, was not present at the first showing of the movie trailer however the actor revealed the Bollywood beauty would be involved in future promotions for the film. Talking about his partner in Agent Vinod, Khan described Kareena’s role as “strong” in the movie, adding that she did the part “justice” and the film also did her justice in return.

The spy movie starring Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor had been due for release in December, however Agent Vinod is now due to be finally released in cinemas on March 23rd.

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Raghav’s new single Top of the World gets its debut

18/01/2012 By Leave a Comment
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Urban Desi singer, Raghav, is back with a bang and hoping to blow away the January with an up-tempo and downright feel-good track, Top of the World.

The new single from Raghav is available to buy on iTunes and the official video has also just been released. The video starts with Raghav having an argument with a girl, however the singer switches the negative situation into a positive, turning his back on the argumentative lady and hitting the club with his friends.

The song’s message seems to be, don’t let petty things get you down, live and enjoy your life. As the title of the track suggests, if you’re on Top of the World, no one can touch you. This uplifting message is just the kind of inspiration many of us need at this time of the year, so Raghav may have another hit on his hands with this new track which cleverly taps into the mood of the nation as we look forward to what we hope to achieve in the coming 12 months.

Talking about what to expect in 2012, we wonder if Raghav will be looking to build on his Bollywood success in the next year? The vocalist broke into the world of Bollywood in 2011, releasing his first B-Town track, Hey Na Na Shabana, which proved very popular on dance floors in the run up to the New Year. Would you like to see Raghav produce another Bollywood track? Let us know your thoughts by dropping us a line below.

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Oprah Winfrey visits the Bachchan family during visit to India

17/01/2012 By Leave a Comment
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Oprah Winfrey was given a very warm welcome during her first visit to India this week by one of the most famous Bollywood families. Head of the Bachchan clan, Amitabh Bachchan, even turned into a personal chauffeur for the famous TV host, getting behind the wheel of his white Rolls Royce to drive Oprah Winfrey to a Mumbai party held in her honour.

The veteran TV presenter was photographed arriving at the star studded party in Mumbai in the back of the stunning Rolls Royce driven by Amitabh. Oprah Winfrey was wearing an orange sari with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan seated next to her in the luxury car for company. Actor and Aishwarya’s husband, Abhishek, was seated in the front seat alongside his father.

New parents Abhishek and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan also had a special visitor to their home this week as the US chat show host visited the couple’s home, spending more than an hour at the Bachchan residence where she is believed to have met the couple’s two-month-old daughter, nicknamed Beti B.

Bollywood star, Amitabh Bachchan, tweeted about Oprah Winfrey’s visit to all of his Twitter followers as he wrote, “The gracious Oprah Winfrey visits our home, to meet us and bless the baby..warm hearted, endearing .. drive her to party in her honor,”

Oprah Winfrey will be attending the Jaipur Literature Festival during her visit to India, and is also planning to carry out filming for her new TV show, Next Chapter, while in the country.

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Shilpa Shetty shows off her growing baby bump for first time

17/01/2012 By Leave a Comment
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Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty made her first public appearance last week since announcing her pregnancy. The businesswoman was accompanied by her husband, Raj Kundra, on Thursday night when the pair attended a pre- Lohri party hosted by Shilpa’s friend and business partner, Kiran Bawa.

The former Celebrity Big Brother winner has kept a low profile for the last four weeks since announcing she is expecting her first child with husband Raj this summer. Shilpa hasn’t let pregnancy get in the way of her style as the former actress looked as stylish as ever when she arrived at the party in Mumbai wearing a flowing anarkali set with her baby bump clearly visible under the floor length gown.

A source close to the couple revealed that Shilpa and Raj decided to delay announcing the pregnancy for as long as possible after the actress suffered a miscarriage early last year. Understandably, the couple wanted to wait until after the pregnancy had progressed significantly before revealing the news of their forthcoming arrival publically.

In the official announcement before Christmas, Shilpa revealed the exciting news writing; “YES’ an addition to our family is our confirmation to all queries :) We seek blessings from all in this very beautiful phase of our lives.”

According to friends of the 36-year-old actress, Shilpa Shetty is very much enjoying being pregnant and eating healthily to ensure the pregnancy progresses smoothly.

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Hollywood comes to Bollywood as Richard Gere linked to Indian film role

12/01/2012 By Leave a Comment
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Hollywood leading man, Richard Gere, is the latest big name from the US to be linked to an Indian film role.

According to recent reports, the Pretty Woman star is in line to appear in the as-yet-untitled new movie from the Bollywood movie director, Nila Madhab Panda. Richard Gere will play an American visiting India who gets involved in socio-political set up of a village where he meets the other star of the movie played by Harsh Mayar who performed in the lead role in the director’s previous and critically acclaimed movie, I AM KALAM.

Movie director, Nila Madhab Panda, reportedly got in touch with Richard Gere through a mutual friend who passed the script onto the Hollywood actor. The Chicago actor was said to be impressed by the script and agreed to appear in the film.

While the news that Richard Gere appearing in a Bollywood movie is exciting enough, another high profile American name has also been linked with the movie, fellow actor Will Smith, who has also been approached with a view to appearing in the new film.

The movie is being produced by a company from the Netherlands, with shooting locations scattered across three different countries in Amsterdam, India and Los Angeles. The movie is due to go into pre-production in January 2012, with filming due to start later in the year.

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Bollywood actress Madhuri Dixit Nene to get her own waxwork at Madame Tussauds

06/01/2012 By 1 Comment
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Bollywood actress Madhuri Dixit Nene has been confirmed as the next Indian film star to have a waxwork created in her image in a statement released by the world famous waxwork model attraction, Madame Tussauds.

The award winning actress will join the likes of Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Salman Khan, Hrithiki Roshan and Kareena Kapoor who already have waxwork lookalikes of themselves featured at Madame Tussauds in the Bollywood film star area.

The waxwork of the 44-year-old actress will take approximately 4 months to complete and is expected to be ready to be unveiled by March 2012. While a great deal of secrecy often surrounds the creation of the wax models by the renowned attraction, Madhuri confirmed the news herself this week on Twitter after Madame Tussauds made an official announcement.

The waxwork of the Tezaab actress will reportedly be draped with a sari created by the well known designer Manish Malhotra, although the designer would not confirm which sari had been chosen for the special purpose. The mother-of-two has already undergone initial sittings for the sculptors creating the waxwork, although it will be several weeks before the work is complete.

Are you excited at the prospect of a waxwork model of Bollywood and Hindi cinema star Madhuri Dixit? Which Bollywood star would you next like to see created as a waxwork? Let us know your opinions in the comment box below.

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Lady Gaga sets her sights on Bollywood

04/01/2012 By Leave a Comment
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Pop sensation Lady Gaga has professed her love for all things Indian and has even admitted that she’d love to take on a role in the a Bollywood movie should the right opportunity come along.

The Born this Way hitmaker performed in India for the very first time last year at a special event in New Delhi. Performing in the country obviously had a big affect on the superstar as she was quick to jump on her Twitter page after the gig to tweet, “Screw Hollywood – It’s all about Bollywood.”

Speaking in a recent interview with a UK tabloid newspaper, the New York born singer described how she’d become fascinated with Indian culture, dance and clothing since her visit and how she found the experience very inspiring. The pop star also revealed that she’d seen a Bollywood show during a recent visit to Paris and that this had fuelled her interest in Indian culture further.

It seems Gaga has even been approached by Bollywood producers with potential roles, however the singer revealed that none of the parts had been quite right for her so she is yet to take on a Bollywood movie role, however she admitted this is something she would like to achieve in the future.

Lady Gaga also unveiled plans to perform a free concert for her fans in India on her next visit to the country spelling further good news for Asian fans of the star.

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Jay Sean has penned three tracks for Priyanka Chopra’s debut album

20/12/2011 By Leave a Comment
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R&B star Jay Sean has revealed that he’s been in the studio with Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra in LA and has even penned three songs for the star as she prepares to launch her singing career.

The duo have been friends for some time and are often seen corresponding with each other on Twitter with Jay often remarking that PC should star in one of his music videos. While the actress is yet to take him up on this offer, she has however been collaborating with the Down singer in another form, enlisting his advice and help as she prepares her debut album.

According to a recent report, the actress and the hit maker have been in contact a lot in recent times as Priyanka Chopra looks to Jay for advice as she prepares to break into the singing world. The pair share an interest in their taste in music including R&B and hip hop.

Speaking in a recent interview the singer from Hounslow said he’d been in the studio with the Bollywood beauty in Los Angeles in the last few months and that he’d written three tracks for her, adding that PC has really good voice.

Priyanka Chopra is reportedly collaborating with a number of well known artists as she works on her debut album although no release date for the actress-turned-singer’s first record has been named yet.

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