"I Am Not doing Any Film With Shahid": Parineeti

It was a hectic day. Did four looooooong interviews. One with Parineeti Chopra, Arjun Kapoor and then a joint interview with Parineeti and Arjun.

Parineeti is a live wire. She talks and loves each moment of it. We spoke about a lot of things. She clarified that she is not doing any film with Shahid Kapoor, nor is she doing a film with Pradeep Sarkar. She sang Pareshan.

Arjun spoke about the experience of being groomed by Salman Khan especially for getting him into shape. Arjun said that Salman made him do rigorous workouts on various shooting locations in Greece, Austria etc. He regularly accompanied Salman on cycle rides from his home to various film studios in Bombay. Arjun also disclosed that director Habib Faisal was a cameraman with NDTV and has covered war as well.

The joint interview with Arjun and Parineeti was fun. I asked them about many things. They liked the question on the techincal team of Ishaqzaade, people like the video editor Aarti Bajaj, choreographers Rekha and Chinni Prakash, DOP Hemant etc.

Later I interviewed Kamlesh Gill ji (Daadi ji), Dolly Ahluwalia (mom), Ayushman Khurana and Yami Gautam. All of them were together and it was a lot of fun. Kamlesh ji and Dolly ji indulged in the saas-bahu fun bantering in Punjabi, Ayushman sang 'Paani Da...'. Yaami has surely lost weight (from how she was in the movie) and looks gorgeous. In fact Yami, who has played a Bengali, is a Punjabi in real life. Dolly ji was with Annu Kapoor in NSD.

Official Statement from Mr. Amitabh Bachchan on the Bofors Gun Deal.

Statement given by Mr. Amitabh Bachchan with regard to the interview published in the newspapers where Chitra Subramanian –Duello spoke to former Swedish Police Head Mr. Sten Lindstrom who was investigating the Bofors – India Gun deal.

 

 "My family and I are happy to note the statement made by Former Swedish Police Head investigating the Bofors – India Gun deal. Mr Lindstorm has stated that we were innocent and that there was never ever any evidence to indicate our involvement. The interview indicates that it took Mr Lindstorm 25 years to come out with the truth. For us as a family that has borne the humiliation and insults for the past 25 years this comes as an vindication of our stand. What has been most disturbing for me has been the pain of insinuation that my ageing parents had to bear during their lifetime. What has also been most alarming has been the statement given by the Police Head that my name was "planted" deliberately when he had indeed, already through his investigation, not found us guilty. When the accusations were made my family and I moved the London courts and proved our innocence. We won our case and were delighted that the truth had eventually been justified. But, for the former Police Head to have not stated then what he always knew, is most surprising. The abuse, humiliation and the castigation that our family bore for 25 years has now been vindicated, finally"

Sent from my iPad

Big B Press Conference, Aamir And Ram-Lakhan

Mr Bachchan addressed a press conference a short while back to express his thoughts on the recent disclosure by an informant to journalist Chitra Subramanyam who blew the lid on the infamous Bofors Scandal 25 years back. The informant has stated that Mr Bachchan had no role in the Bofors scam and was wrongly implicated. Mr Bachchan expressed his relief at his honourable name getting cleared but he said that it would have been great if his father was alive to hear this.

Aamir Khan would be attending Ram Lakhan's son's marriage in Varanasi tonight.

A very hectic season of movies is about to start. Lots of big releases in the coming days. This will mean many interviews and a packed schedule of events. Should be fun.
Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

Karisma Kapoor On Salman, Aamir And Shahrukh

Interviewed Karisma Kapoor today. I waited for four hours but then this was my first interview with her and I was determined to do it anyhow. She wore a red trouser for our interview and boy she is a perfectionist for sure. During the course of the interview two people suddenly descended on us. Karisma's hair strands had to be put into place. The make up had to be perfect and the look had to be perfect. I had heard so many stories about her hard working ways but then now I experienced her perfectionist ways.

She spoke about Dangerous Ishq and how she is playing a modern girl. Why did she choose this film as her comeback vehicle? Will she be giving a tough competition to the present day heroines? Karisma answered queries from a few fans as well. So, what does she have to say about Shahrukh, Salman and Aamir? Her association with David Dhawan? What is she doing next?

I asked Vikram Bhatt if Dangerous Ishq is releasing in UK. He said, it is releasing there a week after the release in India (May 18). Karisma in my interview said its releasing in UK on May 11. I guess we should take Vikram's word. Another fan asked if its releasing in Indonesia. Vikram confirmed its releasing in Indonesia on May 11.

I met Mohit Suri later in the evening. He is busy going through the auditions for Talent Hunt for Aashiqui 2. He said that the shooting is slated to start in late May. Music, is one of the heroes of the film, according to him. And that's what they are currently working on.
Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

Send Questions For Karisma Kapoor

Guys send in your questions for Karisma Kapoor at faridoon@hungama.com, faridoonshahryar@gmail.com. Will try and take a few of them.

In other news, Karan Johar's Student of the year will be releasing on October 19, 2012. The film stars Mahesh Bhatt's daughter Alia, David Dhawan's son Varun and Siddharth Malhotra. The film also stars Rishi Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt. There are cameos of Shahrukh Khan and Boman Irani.

I am writing this blog awaiting boarding announcement at the Delhi Airport. We were here this morning for covering Ajay Devgn and Anil Kapoor's Lamborghini race at the F1 Circuit racing track at Greater Noida near Delhi (in fact 'near' will be an understatement since it took the same time via cab to reach from delhi airport to the race track as it took us for reaching from mumbai to delhi). I did a joint interview with Anil and Ajay. Both are tremendous actors.

We shall be featuring the first part of Aamir Khan's exclusive interview on Satyemev Jayate tomorrow. It is always a pleasure chatting with Aamir. We shall also be featuring interviews with lyricist Prasoon Joshi (who has written the anthem of Satyamev Jayate) and Ram Sampat (composer of all 14 tracks in Satyemev Jayate).

When I spoke to Prasoon about the experience of writing 'Maa' in Taare Zameen Par, I could see his eyes welling up. He told me that the emotions expressed in the song are the same that he experienced in his childhood. I have known Prasoon for a long time (much before he earned fame in Bollywood). He remembered one of the Nazms written by my mother Professor Najma Mahmood. In fact I had set that small Nazm to music and Prasoon had liked it a lot. I don't remember the tune now, but I shall reproduce that wonderful Nazm 'Gahraiyon Ka Khauf' written by my mom:

Bahut aasan nazar aaya
Hamein us roz
Apna paniyon
Par tairte rahna
Kisi ne jab kaha
Gahraiyon mein doob kar dekho
Ki andar kya hai
To hum darr kar
Samandar ke kinaare ki taraf lapke
Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

"Salman Is My Favourite Actor": Amrita Rao

Last few days have been super activity filled. Amrita Rao fans have been flooding me with a horde of emails and comments on my blog. It is always a hugely enriching experience to get a fan's perspective about their favourite stars. I may not be on twitter any more but it is heartening to know that so many people still remember me and follow my work. Thanks guys!

Amrita came to our office. She answered most of the questions that came her way. It was a long interview and I have tried to include as many questions as possible. She sang a song from Vivah and boy she does have a good voice. So, here are all the parts of Amrita's interview on Bollywood Hungama on the occasion of her first Twitter Anniversary. Enjoy!




1) "Aamir, Ranbir Have Been Two Of My Favourite Actors": Amrita Rao

2) "Salman Is My Favourite Actor...": Amrita Rao

3) "Kishore Da Ki Main Bahut Badi Fan Hoon": Amrita Rao

4) "Not Every Time You Get An Award": Amrita Rao

Amrita Rao's Message To Her Twitter Followers On Bollywood Hungama

Is Ajay Devgn Planning Singham Sequel?

I am in Chandigarh. Ajay Devgn has invested in a Solar Power Plant in Gujarat and there was a press conference with regards to the same. Ajay had been shotting for Son of Sardar in Patiala and he came from there. He will be back in Bombay in a couple of days time.

Before the press conference, I interviewed Ajay. He spoke on Tezz. He also spoke on Himmatwala remake, Bol Bachchan and Son of Sardar as well. Are Ajay and Rohit planning a sequel to Singham? Ajay is a shy guy who is extremely precise with his answers. It is a pleasure chatting with him as he is extremely grounded and simple.

We had a tough time sending the interview footage as we faced some technical error in our laptop. Finally we managed to send our footage through the laptop of a cameraman from a news agency. The guy was wonderfully patient and helpful.

It is well past mid night. Ajay's interview has been sent to my team in Bombay. It is being edited and inshallah will be live tomorrow morning. Hopefully you guys will enjoy. It was a hectic day but then I also combined it with a fantastic punjabi lunch doused by a sweaty stint in the gym, followed by a relaxing time in the hotel swimming pool. The hills could be seen at a close distance. Shimla is at a couple of hours from here. Wish I could escape to the whirlwind roads leading to Shimla and Kufri :(

Anyways, a day well spent. Satisfied. Smiling. Hope you guys are doing well. Good Night!
Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

Send Questions For An Interview With Amrita Rao

Talented Amrita Rao is completing one year on Twitter on April 21. I am doing an interview with Amrita in a couple of days. So, all you Amrita fans who've been requesting for an interview with her, now is your chance. Send in your questions and cards for her. Also send your questions on video as well. You can send all your mails to faridoon@hungama.com and faridoonshahryar@gmail.com. You can also post your questions in the comments section below. I shall choose the best questions and we will try and make it a memorable video. Enjoy!

DDLJ Game, Aamir To Stop Endorsing Products?

Yash Raj Films will be launching games based on a few of their films like Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Hum Tum etc.

According to a reliable source, Aamir Khan has stopped endorsing all products in the run up to his TV show 'Satyamev Jayate'. According to another source, Aamir will be travelling to various cities to promote the TV show.

Malayalam superstar Mohanlal will be speaking to the media at a press meet tomorrow evening April 16.

According to a new report in a newspaper today, the shooting for Krish 3 will be completed by August, September this year but the movie will release only in Diwali, 2013.

Priyadarshan, in an interview to me admitted that he did have differences with producer Ratan Jain. He says that, in his cut of the film (Tezz), Mallika's item song Laila is not there but producer's cut of the film may have it. I reminded Priyan how the same had happened during Hera Pheri when a song was added without his consent by producer Feroze Nadiadwala. Priyadarshan has completed shooting for Kamaal Dhamaal Maalamaal. He is all set to direct a film to be produced by Akshay Kumar. He is also making a film with a fresh starcast for producer Vashu Bhagnani.

A few days back, Abhay Deol in an interview with me, got irritated on the differences-with-Emraan question. Deol said that it was all a case of misreporting. He strongly hinted that a prolific print journalist was behind spreading the alleged 'fabricated' stories (because Abhay doesn't talk to him). On being told that Dibakar Banerji has said in print that he sensed 'tension' between Emraan and Abhay as their characters are in conflict with each other, Deol said that he had not read any such story.
Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

"Satyamev Jayate, The Most Ambitious Project Of My Life": Aamir Khan

Aamir Khan launched the anthem of his TV show Satyamev Jayate today. Also present were music composer Ram Sampath (who has also sung the song along with Keerti), lyricist Prasoon Joshi and Ram Madhvani who directed the music video. The music video is basically a combination of montages of Aamir interacting with Indians all across the country. Aamir's brief was that he wanted a romantic song, a love song for his country.

Aamir said that this TV show is the most ambitious project of his life. There will be 14 songs for this show. Each episode will have one song and then the anthem. Each song will be released as a single and once the show gets wrapped up, it will be coming out in the form of an album. The show starts on May 6 on Star Plus (a lot of the sister concerns of Star as well). The show will be simultaniously shown on DD 1 as well. Apart from that the show is also being dubbed in Tamiln Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam. Ram will be dubbing all the songs in all these languages as well with different singers of course. Apart from Prasoon, Munna, Swanand Kirkire and Swati have also contributed the lyrics.


Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

"Shahrukh And Me Will Work Together Soon": Vidhu Vinod Chopra

My friend Margaret from USA says that I should post my interviews on Blog as all the parts are combined together and it makes for easy viewing. So, I shall start posting a few of the interviews that I have really enjoyed in the recent times. Starting off with this four part interview with Vidhu Vinod Chopra. He is absolutely not politically correct and I love that as a journalist in a celebrity. He is one of the biggest producers in Bollywood and a director of some fine films. He says he wants to make "great movies" and that is one reason according to him that he has made 10 films in 30 years. He talks about his humble background, how his father ingrained in him the importance of spending wisely. Chopra talks about his best films, his favourite music score, his views on marketing of a movie, what's the update on Raju Hirani's next film tentatively titled Peekay, does he regret saying 'shut up' to a journalist at a press conference in Noida, the films that he is producing and directing, his reaction to gossip news reporting etc.

Chopra's answers are laced with honesty and the fact that he doesn't hold anything back makes for riveting viewing. I genuinely believe you guys will enjoy watching this four part interview. And it will also be a learning experience for anyone who wants to have anything to do with movies.

"Aamir Khan And Me Are Different"




"Shahrukh And Me Will Work Together Soon": Vidhu Vinod Chopra





"Ferrari Ki Sawari Is The Best Movie I Could Make..."






"I Really Loved R D Burman"

Housefull 2 Entertains, Ishaqzaade Preponed, Karisma's Comeback

Ribtickling chavanni chhaap dialogues by Sajid-Farhad, lots of laugh-out-worthy comic situations, fun song n dance routines (Pappa and Anarkali got whistles in the cinema hall where I watched the film) and a super ode to yester year baddie Ranjeet makes Housefull 2 an enjoyable watch. Akshay is in good form but its John Abraham who pulls up a pleasant comic surprise. Heroines are props with a limited scope (Only Asin makes her presence felt in this housefull of men). Johney Lever is a delight. Chunkey Pandey is good too. Rishi-Randhir are a treat. On the flip side, the duration is too long, the racist and botox jokes are out of place. Housefull 2 is a way better entertainer than Housefull. If you enjoy mindless, unpretentious entertainment then don't miss Housefull 2. Star Rating *** 1/2 stars.

Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra's Ishaqzaade has been preponed to May 11.

Amongst the new promos, Department looks interesting and so does Shanghai. In fact Shanghai seems to be passing a statement on the politics of the country in the last few years. Emraan is experimenting with his look. Dangerous Ishq promo was special for me only because of Karisma Kapoor. The reincarnation theme doesn't seem too interesting to me but Karisma seems to be back with a steely resolve. I have never interviewed her, but I guess it should happen soon. Looking forward for sure.

Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

Teri Meri Kahaani, Aamir Khan, A Few Couplets

I saw the promo of Kunal Kohli's Teri Meri Kahaani. Looks like a breezy love story, yet there seems to be something different about it since it is based in three eras. The clothes, the cars, the colour tones...all are varying according to the Time Context. The music seems catchy and Shahid-Priyanka chemistry is crackling. Priyanka is looking younger than usual and Shahid is enjoying the sher-o-shairi. You can watch Teri Meri Kahaani promo exclusively on Bollywood Hungama today at 7 pm (India Time).

Also check out the exclusive promos of Department at 8:30 PM (IST) and Shanghai at 12 Midnight. Only on Bollywood Hungama.

I have done a book review of Christina Daniels' book 'I'll Do It My Way....The Incredible Journey Of Aamir Khan'. The video review will be live tonight as well.

in the pipeline are exclusive interviews with Hate Story's controversial 'heroine' Paoli Dam, Saswata Chatterjee on his favourite villains and exploring Parambrata Chatterjee (Inspector Rana of Kahaani).

I will leave you with a few couplets by my father Professor Shahryar:

Ye jab hai ki ek khwaab se rishta hai hamara
Din dhalte hi dil doobne lagta hai hamaara

Chehron ke samandar mein dhoondte rahe phir bhi
Ek aks ko aaina tarasta hai hamaara

Har mod pe padta hai, hamein vaasta is se
Duniye se alag kahne ko rasta hai hamaara


Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

Shahid-Priyanka To Launch First Look Promo Of Teri Meri Kahani

Shahid Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra and Kunal Kohli will showcase the first look promo of their film Teri Meri Kahani on April 5 in the evening at a Mumbai multiplex.

Karisma Kapoor will showcase the first look promo of her film Dangerous Ishq at an event in Mumbai tomorrow April 4 evening.

The first look of Farhan Akhtar as Milkha Singh is a stunner. Akhtar has metamorphosed into the famed athlete. I have always admired Farhan's acting talent (maybe more than his directorial efforts). He has delivered superb performances in all his acting assignments so far be it Luck By Chance, Karthick Calling Karthick, Rock On and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara. My personal favourite has to be Karthick Calling Karthick. It is unfortunate that the film didn't do well commercially but Akhtar shone brilliantly in a complex role.

Gauri Khan and Sussanne Roshan have been featured on the cover of Vogue India's April cover.
Sent on my BlackBerry® from Vodafone

Priyanka Chopra Interview, Don 2 DVD Review, Bob Biswas

My good friend Margaret asked me to feature Priyanka Chopra's latest interview on blog. So, here it goes. Before you watch the videos, here are a few events for today April 2, 2012:

1) Salman Khan will be at the yatra.com press conference in the morning
2) Shahrukh Khan will be unveiling the campaign for IPL season 5 in the afternoon
3) Akshay Kumar and Sonakshi Sinha will launch the Rowdy Rathore promo at BDD Chawl Grounds in Worli. Sanjay Leela Bhansali will be present as well.

On Bollywood Hungama, we shall be featuring the Saswata Chatterjee interview. He is the guy who is becoming immensely popular for playing Bob Biswas in Kahaani. He may not be a Khan or a Kapoor or a Kumar, but personally I enjoy such interviews much more. Hopefully people will be watching it in huge numbers. Apart from that I've done the DVD review of Don 2. That video is coming up shortly as well.

"Shahrukh Khan Is A Veteran..."



Priyanka on Krrish 3, Chemistry with Shahid, Twitter competition with Big B, Zanjeer Remake