‘Monica’ has nothing to do with Niira Radia: Producer Kush Bhargava

Politician-filmmaker Kush Bhargava says his film ‘Monica’, which is releasing Friday, has nothing to do with corporate lobbyist Niira Radia and that it was completed much before she came into the public eye.
‘This movie was made more than a year ago when her (Niira Radia) name was known to very few people and she was not a public figure. So from my side it is a categorical denial that ‘Monica’ has anything to do with Niira Radia,’ Bhargava told IANS on the phone from Mumbai.
‘In fact, it is not the story of anyone dead or alive. It is inspired by many stories like Shivani (Shivani Bhatnagar was an Indian Express journalist killed in 1999) and Madhumita Shukla (Lucknow based poetess who was also killed).
‘I have been asked this question at press meets before the release of the film whether it has anything to do with 2G or 3G scam? And I have categorically denied this. Plus, the protagonist Monica dies in the film,’ said the Lucknow-based Congress leader adding: ‘Of course, the film is releasing on Friday.’
Inspired by ambitious women, the film has Divya Dutta in the main lead. Yashpal Sharma and Kittu Gidwani will also be seen in it.
Niira Radia, linked to the spectrum scam, Thursday urged the Delhi High Court to stay the release of ‘Monica’ that she said depicted her life in a scandalous manner.
Justice V.K. Jain issued notice to Bhargava asking him to file a copy of the film script or a CD by March 30, the next date of hearing.
Asked about the notice, Bhargava said: ‘I have no knowledge whatsoever of any petition of this sort. I have not received any notice from the honourable court.’
He also clarified that the title of the film is ‘Monica’ adding: ‘The words ‘The politics of murder’ are just being used for publicity on posters.’
This is Bhargava’s first feature film. Earlier he made a telefilm ‘Kasak’ with Deepti Naval.
Source: in.movies.yahoo.com

The uniqueness of being Vidya Balan

She took people back to the black and white era with her role in the period film ‘Parineeta’. Then came her fashion faux pas and a dip in the career graph. But a careful and confident Vidya Balan is on the rise again in Bollywood.
Though at 33 she is just six years old in the Hindi movie industry, her oeuvre is so impressive that there was a Vidya Balan retrospective at the Indian film fest in two Australian cities.
From playing a foul mouthed, manipulative vengeful woman in ‘Ishqiya’ to the mother of a progeria patient to a grieving sister in ‘No One Killed Jessica’, Vidya has been proving her versatility with her nuanced handling of different characters.
Her much-talked-about forthcoming releases - director Milan Luthria’s ‘The Dirty Picture’, based on the life of Silk Smitha, south Indian cinema’s sex symbol, and Sujoy Ghosh’s thriller ‘Kahani’ in which she plays a six-month pregnant woman - are expected to take her creativity to another level.
Applauding her work and choice of roles, director Sudhir Mishra said: ‘She is very brave and very gutsy. Hats off to Vidya. She will last longer. It will pay her off very well. She will be remembered as another kind of actress and remembered more than a lot of people. She should continue doing this kind of roles. She should do what she can do well. She should retain that uniqueness.’
Director Anurag Kashyap feels what Vidya is doing is pathbreaking. ‘I think she is showing the way for everyone else. Vidya’s fan following has increased 50-fold after the kind of work she started doing. We need her,’ he added.
This Iyer girl from Palakkad in Kerala grew up in Mumbai. She did her graduation in sociology from St. Xavier’s College.
After award-winning debut with the period drama ‘Parineeta’ (2005), she charmed her fans in a modern avatar in ‘Lage Raho Munna Bhai’. Her small but impressive role in ‘Guru’ too earned her accolades.
But after a meteoric rise to fame, her career took a dip post ‘Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute To Love’ and it seemed as if lady luck had deserted her completely. She was in the news for all the wrong reasons—from her choice of roles to co-stars to her looks in movies like ‘Heyy Babyy’ and ‘Kismet Konnection’—she was criticised for everything.
But the rough patch ended and wagging tongues came to a halt when Vidya returned as Amitabh Bachchan’s mother in critically acclaimed ‘Paa’ (2009) after staying away for a year. Undoubtedly it was one of her best performances and Vidya walked away with the Filmfare Best Actress Award for portraying the dilemma of a woman living with her child’s illness.
There are reports that Vidya may work with southern superstar Rajnikanth as well.
‘She should start a legacy of such kind of acting. She is one of the top actresses in the industry because she does such kind of unique roles,’ said director Vikramaditya Motwane whose ‘Udaan’ amassed trophies at every award function this year.
Not only that, Vidya’s sartorial elegance has been at its peak ever since she appeared in ‘Paa’. Be it flaunting ethnic saris by her favourite designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee or her plain Jane look at public events to promote ‘No One Killed Jessica’, the talented actress floored everyone.
Mumbai-based designer Anand Bhushan, a regular face at Lakme Fashion Week, said: ‘Yes it’s true that designer Sabyasachhi Mukherjee did an awesome job with her Indian image, giving her all sorts of dresses which not only reflected her Indian face but also made her look glamorous.’
‘But who says we only want to see Vidya Balan in Indian dresses. It’s time to get some credible Western designer to celebrate her persona. Her dressing sense has always been a point of discussion for the media and film critics, especially whenever she is portrayed in Western wear.’
She made a late entry in films, but it hasn’t taken her long to carve a niche.
Source: in.movies.yahoo.com

‘Don’t Look Now’ sex scene was not real, says Donald Sutherland

Veteran actor Donald Sutherland has emphatically denied a claim of a new book that he and actress Julie Christie actually had sex during a graphic love scene in the 1973 film ‘Don’t Look Now’.
In the book called Famous Players: A Tale Of Movies, The Mob, (And Sex), former Variety editor Peter Bart claimed he was on the film’s set and saw the two stars engaging in real sex.
However, the 75-year-old Canadian actor totally rejected Bart’s claim, calling it “mendacious”.
“Not true. None of it. Not the sex. Not him witnessing it,” the Daily Mail quoted him as saying in an email sent to the New York Daily News.
“From beginning to end there were four people in that room. No one else. Wires under the locked door led out side and this was twenty years before video monitors,” he added.
The four people he was referring to were himself and Christie, director Nicolas Roeg and cinematographer Anthony Richmond.
Bart’s graphic account reveals how he visited the Venice set as a young Paramount Pictures executive on what he calls that “auspicious day”.
As he arrived, the director Nicolas Roeg reportedly told him: “Good day to come by”, Bart said.
At first he claims his mind drifted off for a few moments as he sat watching the filming but then he suddenly focused on the actors, who were both completely naked.
“It was clear to me they were no longer simply acting: they were ****ing on camera,’ wrote Bart, according to Hollywood Reporter which obtained an advance copy of his book.
Bart said he then whispered to Roeg: “Nic, don’t they expect you to say “cut”?”, to which Roeg replied: “I just want to be sure I have the coverage.”
Source: in.movies.yahoo.com
http://in.movies.yahoo.com/news-detail/117970/Dont-Look-Now-sex-scene-real-says-Donald-Sutherland.html

Shirish Kunder to cast newcomers in dance-based film

Film editor-turned-director Shirish Kunder is all set to give a chance to new and budding talent in his new film.
‘The dance film I am currently writing and will be directing soon, will completely have an all new cast,’ Kunder wrote on microblogging site Twitter.
Kunder, who is marrried to ace choreographer Farah Khan, further said he would be conducting auditions for his film all over the world.
‘This dance film will be a breakthrough in many ways. Super excited about this. The entire cast will be intensively auditioned all over the world and chosen,’ he posted.
Meanwhile, Kunder is busy with the shooting of ‘Joker’, which stars Akshay Kumar and Sonakshi Sinha in the lead along with Shreyas Talpade and Minissha Lamba.
Read the original story on in.movies.yahoo.com

Natha to act in Rashid S Khan’s film

Seems it is time for our real estate controversies to be turned into reel stories.
The famous scams under the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) scheme will now be turned into a film.
Rashid S Khan will direct the film and S Ramachandran will produce it.
A satirical take on the scam, the film will star Omkardas Manikpuri aka Natha of Peepli(Live), Vijay Raaz, Hiten Tejwani, Rajesh Vivek, Razzak Khan.
Read the original story on timesofindia.indiatimes.com