Category: Interviews with Bollywood Stars

Saif Ali Khan who is now getting into as many relationships as films was seen at Delhi, promoting the Abbas Mustaan thriller, RACE. Race also  features Akshaye Khanna, Katrina Kaif and Bipasha Basu in important roles.
CNN IBN journalist caught up with Saif Ali Khan and quizzed him about his future films, his role in the Abbas Mustaan thriller RACE and also about his much talked about relationship with Kareena Kapoor.

Iram Mirza: How was it walking the ramp?

Saif Ali Khan: It’s great. Good fun actually. There was nice music. It’s just walking and I’ve been doing that all my life.

Iram Mirza: You’re also here to promote your film called Race. So what is Saif Ali Khan racing after these days?

Saif Ali Khan: Well good work and pursuit of happiness.

 Iram Mirza: When you talk of Race, what is it about?

Saif Ali Khan: It’s an official launch of the Abbas-Mastan thriller.

Iram Mirza: If it’s an Abbas-Mastan thriller, you get do a lot of macho things – drive snazzy cars…

Pic : Saif In Abbas Mustaan’s Race 

The former Miss India who jumped into the world of Bollywood hasn’t found much success with her films in tinsel town. Life hasn’t been so easy for Tanushree as far as her career goes. Apart from her debut film, Aashiq Banaya Aapn, no other film of the sultry beauty has managed to make it big at the box office. Her this year’s two releases Dhol and Raqeeb have been washouts at the box office. Tanushree has seriously got to do something about getting out of the sex girl image and give acting a serious shot.

Here is an exclusive interview with Tanushree Dutta, in which she reveals about her future plans, about her love life too and whether she has any marriage plans.

Rumours suggest that you are back with your old lover Aditya Dutta. Tell us the truth?
I am really tired of hearing this trash. There is no substance in all these false allegations. I just have friendly relations with him and that’s it. Next question please…

But isn’t your reunion with Aditya gives enough fodder to this rumour?
There is no bar on speculations. If someone misunderstands our friendship for love affair, I just can’t do anything about it. So the best thing is to keep mum.

So what’s your take on love now?
I don’t have time for love at this moment. I am single and definitely not ready to mingle with anyone. Falling in love again and again is not my cup of tea. I want to concentrate on my work assignments at this point of time.

Chak De India has become this year’s biggest hit. Not only is it running to packed theatres, it has also won the critics over completely. The Chak De song has become an anthem of sorts for all sport events.

One man though who will be ruing the success of Chak De India, will be Salman Khan. The actor was initally offered to play Kabir Khan’s role in the film, but he refused it as he wasn’t pleased with the climax. Shah Rukh Khan grabbed the role and the rest as they say is history.

Salman Khan rues his decision and candidly explains what prompted him to commit the gaffe.

“I had an issue with the climax of the film. Adi in fact told me that he would make this [the film] into the biggest hit and you don’t know what you are missing out on,” he says

“I was fortunate that ‘Partner’ did as well.

Shahid Kapoor is a dejected man. Having lost his love Kareena Kapoor while he was off in Toronto shooting for Lucky Charm, Saif stole his love from him. Shaihd could do nothing but accept this harsh fact.

Shahid who had been quite until now opened up in an interview with a national daily, days after his former love Kapoor confirmed that their four-year relationship had ended and she was seeing someone else.

He said it upsets him to see photographs of Kareena with her new flame, actor Saif Ali Khan.

“It will be dishonest to say that this doesn’t affect me. I am human, it hurts to see and read this all the time,” he said.

“I guess I have no choice but to live and deal with it,” Shahid added.

He also said he wishes Kareena happiness and is trying to move on.

Pic : Happy Days With Shahid and Kareena Kapoor  

The bold Kareena Kapoor who was shying from the media regarding rumors of her affair with Saif Ali Khan is now taking it in her stride. Here is an interesting interview of Kareena Kapoor with Khalid Muhammed in which she talks about her past love Shahid Kapoor, her upcoming movie Jab We Met with Shahid Kapoor and about the new man in her life : Saif Ali Khan.

Define your relationship with Saif Ali Khan.
There’s great chemistry between us.

Yes?
What yes? He’s a great co star, a friend.. I’ve known him for a while of course.. but I got to know him really well only when we were shooting for Tashan in Ladakh..we hung out together.. today we hang out at coffee shops and restaurants. Is that a crime? So much noise was made about us being together at a Delhi discotheque. With my brother-in-law (Sanjay Kapur) there, what do you think we were doing? Eating dinner, laughing and hanging out..

Didn’t you delete photos of Saif and you at this restaurant?
Sanjay was upset because we weren’t being allowed our privacy.. so he and I.. and the others asked the photographer.. to please allow us our evening out.

Is Saif Ali Khan boyfriend material?
What? (Pause) Ha, ha, ha.

What does that mean?
It means I just went ha ha ha.. give me a break.. Khaled.

It’s Khalid. What about Shahid Kapur and you now?
(Silence)

What about Shahid Kapur and you now?
We’ve been together for four and a half years.. and things between us are just not the way they are being reported. I will not say anything to anyone.. I am all set to promote our film Jab We Met .. it’s really a lovely romantic film.. but I’ll be making it very clear, “No personal questions please.”

Farah’s one busy mom, what with Om Shanti Om releasing in a month’s time and with the fact that she is expecting not one, not two but three kids . Yes, if you hadn’t known then Farah Khan is expecting triplets.

So with one film and three kids to deliver, Farah has a big task at hand. And what does she want, boys or girls? Two boys and one girl, that’s what Farah wants. With the kind of luck, she has, do not be surprised if Farah’s wish becomes true.

Here’s Farah Khan’s interview with Mumbai Mirror where she talks about her married life, Om Shanti Om and her expected triplets.

• Did the news of triplets come as a pleasant surprise?
Yes. At 40, I didn’t know whether I’d have even one kid. At 43, I’m going to have three. It’s not something that I was dying for, but now that I’m expecting, I like the idea. For Shirish (Kunder, her husband, maker of Jaan-E-Man), who’s an introvert, the idea of having a big family is even more important.

• Was it Shirish who wanted kids, then?
Yeah, he told me right at the outset that I should see him only if I were ready to get married and have kids. He asked me not to do ‘time-pass’ with him. Left to myself, I’d have happily settled for just such a time-pass relationship.

• How does he handle a high profile wife, who always speaks her mind and has Shah Rukh Khan for her best friend?
He doesn’t care. He doesn’t talk much because he doesn’t feel the need to express his opinions, that’s all. Also, being eight years younger to me, he comes from a more irreverent generation. I’m the conservative, sometimes I get shocked at the amount of money he asks for his work. But he goes ahead and gets these huge amounts.

• Have you both thought of working together, as in making a film together?
No thanks. Shirish would kill me if we worked together. His vision is completely different from mine, and he’s so dominating. We almost killed each other when I choreographed for him for Jaan-E-Man.

• Are you shopping for the kids?
I’m not allowed to go shopping. Kids apart, I need maternity clothes for myself too. Karan (Johar) is doing that for me. He travels a lot, and travels with my list. Recently he called me from London, saying that he couldn’t believe he was standing in the lingerie department of Marks & Spencer, buying maternity bras for me!

• Isn’t Shirish shopping?
I’ve told Shirish to hang on, otherwise he’ll go berserk, shopping. And he hasn’t the faintest idea of what to get. He’s buying things like computers, etc - for the kids.

• That’s an exaggeration.
It isn’t! The other day, he actually bought a keyboard for the kids. I’m trying to tell him that the kids are going to be very small for a while!

• How excited is your brother Sajid?
Sajid is now too excited about the success of his film, Heyy Babyy, to think or talk of anything else.

Ranjan Negi’s real life story may have been Shimit’s and Jaideep Sahni’s inspiration to make Chak De India. But post Chak De India, Ranjan Negi’s story was just known in the hockey circuit. The movie made it sure that Ranjan Negi’s feats be acknowledged my the country.
Disappointed time and again by a game he so passionately lives for, Negi’s home went from light to dusk to stark black within no time.

That day in 2005, once again, his home was engulfed in the darkest darkness, oblivious to the dawn that was about to slip through a crack in the door — an offer from Yash Raj Films to coach the all-girl squad in hockey for Chak De! India

Today, two years hence, Negi has not only redeemed himself in hockey, he has also achieved what few 50-year-olds have been able to — fame, and some fabulous dance moves.

The ways of Negi’s life were strange from the very beginning. He’d be catapulted to success and almost immediately be unapologetically thrown back on the ground.

The defeat of the men’s hockey team in 1982, the charges of treachery, the victory lap as coach of the men’s hockey team that after 32 years won the Asian Games gold in 1998 and the women’s team that won the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games gold, the offer to coach the men’s Olympic squad, the dismissal soon after and the death of his son at the same time.

Hardened by fate and unable to pull away from his family that needed him the most at that time, Negi tried to duck the offer. But as usual, fate demanded more.

“I was emotionally blackmailed into taking up the offer from Yash Raj Films,” he remembers with a hint of smile in his voice, “One day when I visited the studio, Jaideep Sahni talked to me of his desire to revive women’s hockey through this film. Despite his contacts in the industry he hadn’t been able to generate even Rs 10,000 for the team.”

A few days before he was to meet Aditya Chopra, Negi woke up one night to find his wife missing. “I searched and found her in our son’s room, playing his instruments.”

This was a time of emotional turmoil, a time when the family needed to face harsh reality together. And so, Negi put forward a condition to Chopra — he would work with them only if his wife would be allowed at every shoot. It was shot down instantly. Family members were not allowed on the sets. Negi offered to quit and the condition was met.

Pic : Chak De India 

The starlet who was given the thumbs up for her debut performance in Parineeta, Vidya Balan was touted as the industry’s next Madhuri Dixit. She might have got criticised for being older than the current breed of heroines or for gaining on weight and looking unpleasant in Heyy Babyy. But with hits and critical appreciation in her favor, there is no stopping for Vidya Balan. Here is an exclusive interview with Rajeev Masand of CNN IBN.

Vidya Balan talks about her pathetic wardrobe in Heyy Babyy, her latest film with Aziz Mirza : “Lucky Charm“, the contorversy surrounding, Eklavya and the directors she wants to work with.

Rajeev Masand: You are just back from a long two-month outdoor in Toronto shooting for Aziz Mirza’s Lucky Charm . What was the experience like, being away for so long?

Vidya Balan: Yes, this has been my longest outdoor. Toronto is a beautiful place and it was my first trip there. We were at a very pretty location downtown. We were actually on Lake Ontario so it was beautiful. I love Aziz Mirza. He spreads so much positivity and cheer that rubs off on everyone. Otherwise what can happen on such a long shoot is that you just get on each other’s nerves. But I don’t think any of that happened. We really had a nice time.

Rajeev Masand: With you being away for two months, you didn’t really get to savour the success of you film Heyy Babyy.

Vidya Balan: Yes, I have just come in though I know it has done really well because I have been in touch with Sajid (Khan) and a couple of other people from the team. I have not been here to enjoy the success but that has also saved me a lot of flak. So maybe there’s a reason for everything.

Rajeev Masand: The flak was not really directed towards your performance as much as it was directed towards your wardrobe.

Vidya Balan: That’s some respite at least. For the wardrobe, I would like to take as much responsibility as Manish (Malhotra) because I think I was a little blasé about the clothes and the look. I tried to be different but I have learnt that you don’t have to look different for the sake of being different. Manish and I should have been more careful because it is the first time I have sported a western look. It would unfair to say that Manish gave me bad clothes because I can also look into the mirror and see what works and what doesn’t. But I didn’t bother too much so both of us should be splitting the flak.

Rajeev Masand: Your film Bhool Bhulaiyya is releasing on the same day as Laaga Chunari Mein Daag. You were offered a role in Laaga … first but you could not do it for whatever reasons. So do you that find it ironic or poetic?

Vidya Balan: Poetic, yes. Like I have said before, I never imagined not being part of Dada’s (Pradeep Sarkar) film. I just got to know a week ago that it’s releasing on the same day. I was amazed. It’s great.

Rajeev Masand: You must feel tricky because you can’t want the other film to not do well.

Vidya Balan: I don’t want anyone’s film to not do well. I’m not trying to sound holier-than-thou but I know what goes into making a film and I think there are enough people to be watching all kinds of films.

Pic : The Beautiful Vidya Balan 

Sanjay Bhansali’s Saawariya surely has been the talk of the town. Why not? It marks the debut of Ranbir Kapoor ( Rishi Kapoor’s son) and Sonam Kapoor ( Anil Kapoor’s daughter) . Also Salman and Rani Mukherjee will be seen in the film. Surely expetations are great from Saawariya.

Here is an interview of Sanjay Bhansali as he talks about his film Saawariya, his relationship  with Ranbir and Sonam Kapoor.

How did Saawariya originate?
After Black, I was restless. I was wondering what should I do now. I had worked with Amitji, Salman, SRK. I kept asking myself what I could do to challenge myself.

Then, I thought of doing a fresh, simple love story with newcomers- so that I would once again be on the toes. I decided to do something that would suit the legacy of Raj Kapoor and Nargis. I didn’t want a family drama.

I wanted people who weren’t bigger than the film. I wanted the sound of dialogue and colours to be different. It took me about a year to put the whole picture in mind of what I wanted.

Why Ranbir and Sonam?
When he was assisting me on Black, I told Ranbir that he was an actor. But somebody told me that he came to me with a design; he wanted me to notice him. Sonam was also assisting me in Black. One day, I told her that she is actress material.

She looked at herself and replied ‘I am so huge and big. How can I become an actress?’ That was an interesting acceptance from a person, and it impressed me. She was 90 kg then. Later, she went on a weight loss reduction mission. Both underwent vigorous training and then they were ready.

You are a hard task-master and you often lost your cool with them…
With Bachchan, SRK, Nana Patekar, Seema Biswas, one can’t lose his cool because they deliver at that level. Add this to Madhuri Dixit, Rani Mukerji and Salman Khan, and you’ll get the line up of actors I have worked with. I am used to that level of excellence.

Its’ said Sonam broke down into tears when you reprimanded her?
It has been blown out of proportion. Sonam is like a child to me. That part of her life which she should have spent in college, she has spent with me. I wanted her to be the best.

Yes, she would cry if she was going through a certain moment where she wasn’t getting it right. But then, we weren’t in a school.

We had worked for one-and-half year before we got in the thick of things- so that was school time. But when so much money is involved, you have to be quick at times and deliver.

Did you treat Ranbir badly? Its’ said that you threw food on the ground and ordered him to lick it (during the shooting of Black)?
Rot. How can I ask Prithiviraj Kapoor’s grandson to do that? I am a civilized person. I wouldn’t do that to my worst enemy. Ranbir is like my son. I want to meet this someone who is fabricating and spreading these stories.

Buzz is, you tend to become abusive on the sets if and when you lose your cool?
Listen, I want to ask you a question…

Ask!
Why would Rishi, Neetu, Anil, Sunita allow their children to be treated badly by anybody? If it was happening, would they keep their hand on hand and keep silent about it? These parents are fit enough to give their kids as big as a launch as anybody else.

But so much has been written about you…
(Interrupts) The law of the press is simple. Favour the underdog and if he succeeds, then rip him apart. I think that I have answered your question.

Okay, but did you forbid Ranbir from occupying centrestage at Riddhima’s wedding and attending parties, etc?
When you are doing your first film, I believe that you need to focus and be there completely for your film. Aap bahar jayenge, adulation mehsoos karenge, woh sab aapke dimaag ko asar karega.

Better agar aap time be spyenge aur apni script padenge. Discipline is true for any job. Agar maine aapko bola ki ek code of conduct operate karo, toh isme bura kya hai?

Pic : Sanjay Bhansali, Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor In Saawariya

Model turned actor and daughter of badminton star Prakash Padukone, Deepika Padukone makes her dream debut on the big screen with Farah Khan’s Om Shanti Om, where she plays a ’70s lead actress. Here is an exclusive interview of Deepika Padukone with Mid Day, where she talks about Om Shanti Om, the experience of working with top names in Bollywood, like Shahrukh Khan ad Farah Khan, and on her various rumored link ups.

How did OSO happen?
When Farah was casting for Happy New Year, she saw my commercials on TV and called my agent. I met her when she was rehearsing at a dance hall in Juhu. When that film didn’t happen, she offered me OSO. Farah took care of me right from the first meeting, introducing me to Shah Rukh Khan and ensuring that I was comfortable with him. Six months prior to shooting, we frequently met up for lunches and dinners.

Lets talk about your role.
In the first half, I play Shantipriya, an actress in the 1970s. What really excited me about the character was that it’s based in the ’70s so I got to experiment with different looks. Combined with Farah Khan’s sensibilities of making bright, colourful, fun films, it was irresistible. I also got to play two characters, which are in great contrast to each other. Manish Malhotra (designer), Bharat and Doris (make-up artistes) and I got to experiment a lot.

Working with SRK…
He makes everyone feel comfortable. He was non-starry and very down-to-earth. There were days when we would sit down and rehearse for important scenes. If there were difficult scenes for me, he would take time out and practise my lines with me even when he wasn’t required on the sets. He would stay till I finished the shot and leave only after it was okayed.

How was the first day’s first shot?
It went off nicely. Farah shot no-dialogue scenes for the first couple of days as she knew I was nervous. Gradually, she built up bigger dialogues as I eased myself into the routine. My first dialogue was, ‘Kutte, kameene! Bhagwan ke liye mujhe chhod de!’ As it was a funny sequence, I didn’t fumble (laughs).

How is Farah as a director?
What I like about her is that she tells you what she wants but also gives you space to do what you want. Farah is very honest and asks for your opinion. I had heard stories about her being rude, but that’s so not true. I can’t think of a single day when she lost her cool with anyone.