Archive for: July 2007

Abhijeet Sawant, winner of the first season of the hit reality show Indian Idol is back. The man , who drove the nation crazy with a bumper hit Aapka Abhijeet has released his new album, Junoon. After his Aapka Abhijeet album, Abhijeet Sawant suddenly disappeared from the public eye. It seemed that the Indian Idol was now idle.

But after a rather long hiatus Abhijeet has made a comeback, and he definitely seems to have matured both in terms of his singing and his looks. It appears that Abhijeet was really working over the finer nuances of singing during his break.

The Junoon video that is now out on music circuits is creating quite a wave. The music of Junoon is quite a departure from Abhijeet’s earlier saccharine songs. The first time I heard Junoon, I couldn’t believe that it was Abhijeet who was rendering the vocals, with Junoon Abhijeet has proved that he is a versatile singer and he is surely a “lambhe race ka ghoda”. Guess Junoon marks the transformation of Abhijeet from the chocolate boy of Indian music to a rock-star.

The video of Junoon too is aesthetically shot and it’s beauty lies in the fact that it has been set up in Ladakh. The darkish color shades used and the picturesque mountains of Ladakh make up for a great video.

So check out Abhijeet’s Junoon in his latest music video…..

PETA has been geting top notch Bollywood celebrities and stars for doing hot photoshoots to create awareness and to help prevent the cruelty done to animals. The latest starlet to join the PETA bandwagon is Malaika Arora, one of Bollywood’s style icon. Here are some pictures of Malaika Arora at the PETA photoshoot. Malaika was all dressed up like a bird and carried a play card that denounced the caging of birds. Must say Malaika carried off herself gracefullly as she posed for the photos. Check out below for some real hot photos….

In Pics : Malaika Arora Khan at PETA photoshoot

Bipasha Basu, Bollywood’s sultry beauty represented India at the New Seven Wonders of The World Ceremony at Lisbon, Portugal.  Bipasha shared the international stage with none other than big stars Jennifer Lopez, Hilary Swank and Ben Kingsley to host the New Seven Wonder’s Show in Lisbon, Portugal.

Bipasha Basu is one of the ‘remarkable personalities of the world’ that Bernard Weber, Founder and President of New7Wonders had chosen to present the new treasures in a fantastic ceremony that also boasts of performances by greats like Jennifer Lopez, Dulce Pontes and with guests like the famous astronaut Neil Armstrong and football hero Ronaldo also touted to be present.

The icing on the cake was that Taj Mahal, India’s monument of love was voted as one of the Seven Wonders of the World supposedly with maximum share of the votes.

Hillary Swank, Sir Ben Kingsley and Bipasha Basu stand with the representatives of the seven countries with the New Seven Wonders of the World during the official declaration ceremony. 

Taj Mahal has done it. Or rather the people of India and Taj lovers all over the world have done it. Taj Mahal is now part of the elite list of New Seven Wonders of The World.

According to initial reports received, the Indian monument of love received one of the highest shares of votes in the poll, which was conducted through Internet, SMS and on the phone. And rightly deserved too.

About 100 million people had voted in the campaign through SMS and email. The campaign was begun in 1999 by Bernard Weber.

The official declaration ceremony began at Estadio da Luz in Lisbon minutes after midnight on Sunday. Bollywood actress Bipasha Basu is representing India and its pride Taj Mahal at the New Seven Wonders of the World event at the Benfica Stadium in Lisbon.

But I believe all this Seven Wonders of The World propaganda was nothing but a way to catch onto the emotional strings of people and make a lot of money. I believe Taj Mahal, is a monument of love that does not need any recognition from a foreign body, it is well above any recognition. Does your God need any recognition? Do you vote for which is the best God? Taj Mahal, similarly doesn’t need any voting to justify it’s position as the World’s Most Beautiful Marvel.

And for all those of you who beg to differ then watch A.R. Rehman’s video for the Taj Mahal, a beautiful song that captures the very essence of the Mughal marvel. What I can simply say is Wah Taj!

Do check out A.R. Rehman’s Ek Mohabbat, Taj Mahal anthem : it’s simply a wonderful compostion.

No I am not a Himesh fan, but me not suffering from Himeshophobia like many of my friends do. Some of his nasal songs are good but most of them pretty much suck. Ok, so if Himesh is absolutely inconsequential in my life then why am I saying that his not singing is bad news?

Himesh Reshammiya has decided to reduce his singing assignments and concentrate on his acting career and that is some real BAD NEWS . If you have watched Aap Ka Surroor and if you like Himesh’s acting in it, then please consider a mental check up. One of my friends who recommended the movie to me has gone under-ground fearing my wrath.

Aap Ka Surroor got a bumper opening, thanks to Himesh fans and the curiosity that was generated. The movie is on a way to become hit. And I guess , Himesh thinks he has become a star. Actually I always feared that Himesh would consider acting as a full time career, the way he did singing. Imagine if he starts acting in as many films as he is giving music to. I am already getting nightmares.

Chak De India, Yash Raj Films third film this year. Ta Ra Rum Pum did just manage to become a hit but Jhoom Barabar Jhoom couldn’t get the audience to Jhoom and bombed at the box office. But Chak De India has HIT written all over it . First of all it has  King Khan in it, then it is a Yash Raj Films production and lastly it is directed by the talented Ab Tak Chappan director Shimit Amin. What more do you need to deliver a hit at the box office.

Chak De India has women’s hockey as the core of the film. Shah Rukh plays the role of Kabir Khan who is the coach of the women’s hockey team. And who is determined to make his team win the Women’s Hockey World Cup. The obstacles he faces along wih his team form the crux of the film. Basically Chak DE India is an underdog’s triumph and is one tried and tested formula, that if done properly can never fail. Say Chak De India and salute to the spirit of sport….

The latest Chak De India dialogue promo enforces my faith in the film. If you would watch the trailer there is no way you can say it’s a Yash Raj Film,  it clearly looks like Shimit Amin’s film and that is what is making me confident about the sucess of Chak De India. Guess with the coming trailers the expectations are just going to escalate.

Watch the dialogue promo of Chak De India

Looks like Sajid Khan doesn’t want to leave any stone unturned when it comes to his directorial venture, Heyy Babyy. He has roped in a record number of beauties who gladly participated in the marathon song including Ameesha Patel, Diya Mirza, Koena Mitra, Shamita Shetty, Neha Dhupia, Malaika Arora, Amrita Arora, Amrita Rao, Tara Sharma, Minissha Lamba, Celina Jaitley, Riya Sen, Sophie, Masumi, Aarti Chabria and Hrishita Bhatt.

Now that’s one feat Sajid Khan has managed to achieve. The music of Heyy Babyy is surprisingly given by Shankar Ehsaan Loy and not by Farah Khan’s favorite Anu Malik. In terms of energy and peppiness the title track by Shankar Ehsaan Loy is nowhere close to their last hit Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. But with a great video and with a number of Bollywood beauties hovering on the screen, the Heyy Babyy song is sure to catch up with audiences. A special mention must be given to Farah Khan’s wondeful choreography too. So if you still haven’t seen the Heyy Babyy video trailer, then catch it out here. Must say with so many beauties on the screen, the song is a treat to the eyes.

Check out the Hey Baby video song promo .

Yes the above statement is true indeed. Subash Ghai’s Mukta Arts has announced an open offer of Rs. 1 crore to a screenwriter who can bring forth a complete, bound script and, on the first hearing by the Mukta Arts selection committee, is acquired by them.

Seems like finally the Indian film industry has realised the importance of script writers. With the kind of films that are being churned out by our Bollywood industry, it seems that films are just made for the sake of making. “Paise hai, chalo ab ek picture banate hain”, this is the attitude that today’s producers seem to have developed. Script Writer, what’s that? Shah Rukh Khan hain na, script kyun chahiye? Yup, that sems to the attitude of today’s film makers. Either make some crappy stuff with big stars and great music or rent a Hollywood DVD, give it a desi look and that’s a Bollywood film for you.

Take for example Subash Ghai’s very own last production, Good Boy Bad Boy. As ridiculous the title was, equally ridiculous was the film. And if Subash Ghai tells me that he had a script writer for the film, then I swear I would die of laughter.

So finally the man’s got sick of kissing. Ya, there is a limit to everything and Emraan Hashmi’s has finally got bored of the kissing overdose he has onscreen.

Emraan Hashmi, who has been tagged as a ’serial kisser’ by the media, says he is sick of kissing people on screen and is happy that his latest flick Awarapan does not have any such scenes.

‘I was sick of kissing on screen,’ the 28-year-old actor said during a news conference in New Delhi to promote ‘Awarapan’. ‘I was being typecast as a kisser. Thankfully, I’m not kissing anyone in this film.

‘When I used to see myself kissing on screen, I did not feel good myself and I can understand what the audience must have felt. There was a time when people came up to me and said that our kids love you but they cannot go to see your films.’

He added: ‘I wanted to break this stereotyping of myself and I took a risk in Awarapan by not doing all that I was previously related to. This film marks the second phase of Emraan Hashmi.’

Ohhhhhhh Huzzzzzooooooorrrrrr …. it’s time for Himesh to don the cap of an actor. With Aap Ka Surroor Himesh tries his hands at acting. The music director who brought nasal singing to the fore front will now play the lead role in Aap Ka Suroor. Mallika Sherawat and debutante Hansika Motwani form the beauty quotient of the film. So will Himesh be able to gain popularity as an actor as he has done as a music director?

Let’s see what the critics have to say about Aap Ka Surroor– The Movie. But whatever they say youmust appreciate the guts of Himesh Reshammiya to take on the big screen.

Rashmi Bansal : ” You have to applaud the guts of this guy. Who would ever let a guy with lips like used chappal rubber appear on screen, as a hero? Himesh does it.”

Movie Rating : 4/5 

Aparajita Ghosh : ” On the whole, ‘Aap Ka Surroor’ is worth a watch if you are a Reshammiya fan. The film’s story interweaves romance, mystery and thrills in a way that will appeal to the masses. ”

Movie Rating : 2.5/5 

Gautam Chintamani : ” The film seems disjointed and it’s evident that the people behind it just wanted to cash on the Himesh wave. Why else would nicely photographed songs be separated by an inanity trying to masquerade as a script? ”

Movie Rating : 2.5/5