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With less than a week left for the opening in Doha, Qatar, of the Mira Nair-helmed musical, ‘Monsoon Wedding’, based on her iconic 2001 film, members of the cast and crew are taking to their Instagram handles to share pictures of themselves shot by Ishaan Nair (who also had a role in the film) and sharing their excitement to be a part of the FIFA World Cup fever.

The musical, its score written by acclaimed composer-director Vishal Bharadwaj, will open at the Abdul Aziz Nasser Theatre in Doha on November 15.

Namit Das, who was most recently seeing playing the shoe company executive Haresh Khanna in BBC television drama mini-series ‘The Suitable Boy’ (also directed by Mira Nair), shared the cast’s sense of anticipation when he wrote: “The countdown has begun for this ‘Monsoon Wedding’ to shower Doha, Qatar, with a dose of entertainment.”

Das plays the eccentric, marigold (‘genda’)-chewing wedding planner,...

Flix FlashbackKamal, who directed the film, besides overseeing most departments, inspires us with attention to detail.Nandhu SundaramI was doing a course in journalism and mass communication at the Madras Christian College in 1999-2000 when I saw Hey Ram at Chennai’s well-known Devi Theatres. Ever since, I have been torn between feelings of love and hate for this much-hyped movie. Hey Ram was released in Februrary 2000. My quarrels were mostly about sex and violence. For instance, the scene in which Aparna (Rani Mukerji) is sexually assaulted and left to die by Altaf, the Muslim tailor, was horrifying. The subsequent sequence through the streets of Kolkata as Saket Ram (Kamal Haasan) goes on a rampage of revenge is also harrowing to watch. The portrait of the Kolkata (then Calcutta) riots included scenes in which Muslims were slaughtered by Hindus and Sikhs. The central rape scene of the initial portion and...

CinemaIndrajit revealed that the story is about a woman and that an Oscar-nominated actor has accepted to play the protagonist.Digital NativeDigital NativeJournalist and film director Indrajit Lankesh is on his way to Hollywood! He is going to be the first director from the Kannada film industry to helm a Hollywood film. In an interview to the Hindu, he said, “I cannot share details as yet. But everything is finalised on paper. All I can say now is that I will be off the coming week to Morocco to select the locations. The film is again about a woman, and an Oscar-nominated actress has accepted to play the protagonist. Soon, we will announce everything...” Talking about how he was roped in for the project, Indrajit said, “The producer of the Hollywood film saw the rushes of Shakeela, was impressed and approached me. I can’t express how thrilled I am.

KollywoodKamal revealed in an interview that Shah Rukh only got a wristwatch for acting in the film.Digital NativeDigital NativeThe Hindi remake rights of the critically acclaimed political thriller Hey Ram are with Shah Rukh Khan, Kamal Haasan has said. He has confirmed this in a recent interview. Kamal told Mumbai Mirror, “Shah Rukh only got a wristwatch for acting in my film at the time because, by the end of it, I had nothing left in hand. Now, he is the brand ambassador for a watch brand. I am glad that he got the Hindi rights of Hey Ram from Bharat bhai (co-producer Bharat Shah). He should have some memory of the film as he gave his friendship and service for it.” Hey Ram, which was released in the year 2000, starred Kamal Haasan as Saket Ram Iyengar (Hindi) / Saketharaman Iyengar (Tamil) and Shah Rukh Khan as Amjad Ali Khan. The film also had a bevy of stars in the cast including Hema Malini, Rani Mukhrejee, Girish Karnad, Om Puri, Abbhas, Vasundhara Das, etc. Hassan's daughter, Shruti Hassan, was also a part of this film though that might come as a surprise to many. She essayed the role of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's daughter in the story. Set against the backdrop of Bengal's partition, the story revolves around the protagonist Saket Ram's journey from religious hatred to love. Apart from writing and directing the film, Kamal also produced it jointly with Bharat Shah, Charuhasan and Chandrahasan under the banners Raaj Kamal Films International and VIP Films. The film had an impressive technical crew, including maestro Ilaiyaraja for music, Tirru for cinematography and Renu Saluja for editing. Made on a budget of Rs. 6 crores, 18 years ago, Hey Ram went on to collect around Rs. 11 crores at the box-office. The film won several prestigious awards including the 2000 National Film Awards for Best Supporting Actor – Atul Kulkarni, Best Costume Design – Sarika and Best Special Effects – Manthra. Kamal Haasan won the Filmfare Awards – Tamil - Best Actor for his performance in the film. Hey Ram did have its share of controversies, with a section protesting against the depiction of Gandhi. (Content provided by Digital Native)...

Sachin Gupta released the music of his forthcoming film Paranthe Wali Gali in Mumbai in the presence of Vasundhara Das, Anuj Saxena, Neha, Prabhakar Srinet, Joi Barua and the students of Nm College. Students cheered Vasundhara & Joi Barua when they rendered two songs live for them. “I have been able to give this kind of music because after narrating the story Sachin gave me complete independence,” says Vasundhra who is making her debut as a music director with Paranthe Wali Gali.

Music Director of Paranthe Wali Gali is Vasundhara Das, while two songs are done by Vikram Khajuria. Singers are Kk, Joi Barua, Siddharth Basrur, Jasraj Joshi, Tejas Shankar and Vasundhara Das. “She has given music that is complimenting the story and characters of the film. It is one of the very important features of my film and takes the narration ahead,” says Sachin Gupta.

Hindi feature film Paranthe Wali Gali...

These days Udita Goswami is excited for a song in her upcoming Maverick Productions film Chase, being directed by Jag Mohan Mundhra, where she seduces her co-star Anuuj. Sung by Vasundhra Das, song has only female vocals. While filming the song Udita was comfortable with Anuuj. During shooting Udita was reminded of the famous dance number of Nanda 'Yeh Sama Sama Hhai Yeh Pyar ka, Kissi ke intezar Ka'.     "The situation of the song is so unique that I have never done such a song in my career where only I am singing on-screen and the focus is only on me. Songs of my most films like Zeher, Aksar and Paap have been bi...

Udita Goswami has a special song picturized on her in upcoming Maverick Productions film Chase, being directed by Jag Mohan Mundhra, where she seduces her co-star Anuuj. The specialty of this song is that there is only female vocals. The song is sung by Vasundhara Das. Udita was quite comfortable while filming this song with Anuuj. While shooting for it she was reminded of the famous dance number of Nanda 'Yeh Sama Sama Hhai Yeh Pyar ka, Kissi ke intezar Ka' with Shashi kapoor...

April 19, 2010:Shreya Narayan, who plays the leading lady opposite Sukhwinder Singh in Kuchh Kariye tells Jyothi Venkatesh that Ash isn’t her inspiration but actresses who have sustained themselves in the field of acting beyond their ages and beauty like Merryl Streep, who at the age of 63 is still playing the lead in Hollywood blockbusters.

Is Kuchh Kariye your first film as an actress? What is your role in it?

Kuchh Kariye is not my debut film as an actress. I had made my debut with Ek Dastak in the lead with Vasundhara Das and Narendra Jha three years ago but felt that I was yet another actress.

Colors are again coming up with a unique reality show called India Rocks. This show will bring out the talents, which will form the best band of India. Vasundhara Das and Shaan are the judges of the show.

“The show will be airing from 27 September at 8:00 pm and is going to be a weekly one hour show. Mansi Parekh and Karan Singh Grover are tipped to be the hosts of the show,” says the source.

Elaborating more on the format, our source add, “Definitely the audition are taken and the judges will select the best. The band which can turn the classical music into hip beats and other forms.