'The Imitation Game', 'Selma' falter at the Golden Globe awards; 'Boyhood' may change course of the Oscar race
Our Correspondent : 12 Jan. 2015

Coming of age tale "Boyhood" won the coveted Golden Globe for best drama on Sunday, while the quirky period caper "The Grand Budapest Hotel" was the surprise winner for best comedy or musical, in a big upset to awards season front-runner "Birdman."
The first major awards for the Hollywood film industry this year were scattered widely among many films, potentially setting up a complex race towards the industry's top honors, the Oscars, on Feb. 22.
The night took on a more somber tone from the beginning when stars like George Clooney and Helen Mirren showed their support for free expression and the victims of a deadly attack on a satirical French newspaper last week.
The president of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which organizes the Globes, brought the room to a standing ovation by saying: "Together we will stand united against anyone who would repress free speech anywhere from North Korea to Paris."
"Boyhood" took three Globes from five nominations, including the night's top drama film honor, a reward for the unprecedented cinematic venture of making a film over 12 years with the same actors. The man behind the low-budget experiment, Richard Linklater, won best director and Patricia Arquette won best supporting actress.
If "Boyhood" goes on to win the Academy Award for best picture, it will constitute an extraordinary run for a film from the small studio IFC Films. "When he came to us with this project 14 years ago, we said yes, the man has such humanity. He's so humble. He put so much of his own life into this movie," "Boyhood" producer
Jonathan Sehring said of Linklater.
"Birdman," a satire of show business that led all nominees with seven nods, picked up best screenplay and best actor in a comedy or musical for Michael Keaton, embodying a comeback in both the film and real life.
But losing best comedy or musical to "The Grand Budapest Hotel" from director Wes Anderson was a big blow to the awards momentum of "Birdman." The colorful tale of a hotel concierge caught up in a murder mystery and art heist won only that award.

Arjun, Sonakshi starrer ‘Tevar’ earns 14 crore in two days
Our Correspondent : 12 Jan. 2015

Arjun Kapoor and Sonakshi Sinha starrer, ‘Tevar’ opens with a lukewarm start and it earned 7.05 crore on its first day. Opened with a mixed review, the second day collection of the film is comparatively better.
The film managed to collect Rs 7.70 cr nett on Saturday in India, as per leading website Koimoi, totally to Rs 14 crore in two days. The film is expected to earn good numbers in the third day, Sunday but the exact figure is awaited.
Arjun Kapoor’s last outing ‘2 States’ was a box-office success with 38 crore while Sonakshi Sinha’s last offering 'Action Jackson' made on a budget of 80 crore was a box-office disaster.
‘Tevar’ is a well promoted film by the two leading protagonists. The film had to compete with Aamir Khan’s Christmas release, ‘PK’ which is still going strong.
The first release of the year is really disappointing. Hope, the film picks up in the coming days. Released on about 3000 screens on Friday, the film also stars Manoj Bajpai in the pivotal role.

Kareena Kapoor on mag cover: Why is Durga Vahini acting like alleged 'love jihadists'?
Our Correspondent : 9 Jan. 2015

Kareena Kapoor, a successful actor who continues to sign big budget Bollywood projects after marriage, might have no reason to think so, but the Durga Vahini insists that she is a victim of 'love jihad'. Given that most Indians don't endorse the insanity that's offered as the rationale behind the 'ghar wapsi' programme, VHP's women's wing decided to make their message visual and give it some star power.
So the look-book of Khoon Bhari Maang was duly Googled and the designers working on the cover of the Vahini's magazine came up with the most ridiculous image idea ever. They decided to put Kareena's face on the cover. Then they made a visual translation of what 'Khoon Bhari Maang' could mean and slathered the actor's middle parting with a lot of sindoor. But that was just one half of her face, the other half was painted over to resemble a face covered with a burqa - a burqa that resembles a gladiator's helmet though.
Now, 'Hindu' Kareena is smiling back at your from the cover while poor, wife of a Muslim man Kareena can't show off her lovely coral lip colour. The Durga Vahini faction which came up with the idea must have thought, "If that doesn't scare the daylights out of Hindu women and convince them that 'love jihad' is more real than the tooth fairy, nothing else will. After all, nothing says tyrannical repression as well as lipstick that cannot be shown off."
Rajni Thukral, the coordinator of the North India section, even waxed eloquent about how 'love jihad' was a 'serious issue' in the Himachal. And why did she put Kareena on the cover? "She is a celebrity. The youth try to emulate celebrities. They think if she can do so, why not us?”
We have noted on Firstpost, that the notion of love jihad is a shamefully misogynistic one where the woman's agency is completely overlooked and it is suggested that they are foolish to fall for any glib talk and convert to another religion. Mostly, the 'love jihad' propagandists argue that women are converted to Islam against their will and men coerce them under the garb of love. Now, the twisted logic might hold no relevance in a sane world, but the anti-'love jihad' protesters can claim they are arguing against forcing one's beliefs on some hapless person and duping them. It's another thing that they mistakenly assert that Muslim men all over India are perpetrating such crimes on Hindu women.
However, the Durga Vahini discredits Kapoor's intelligence and freedom of choice forcefully and seeks to speak on her behalf, using her as the poster girl for their love jihad conspiracies as if her life with Saif Ali Khan is the nightmare existence of their hypothetical "love jihad victims". For a couple, who has never commented on or criticised the politics of VHP or Durga Vahini in public, the latter had no reason to aim this diatribe at them, but they did. Basically, the Vahini did what they accuse the so-called love-jihadis of doing - forced their opinion on an unwilling party.
What is more terrifying perhaps is how they have decided to use their flawed understanding of Kareena Kapoor's life to brainwash others. In fact NDTV reports that Prakash Sharma of VHP, has shown no regret at the Durga Vahini's step. He has told ANI, "If actress Kareena Kapoor has a problem with this, the doors of Court are always open for her." That sounds like you have a trespasser in your house and instead of trying to flee when he/she is caught, you're instead told to meet the person in court. That's legitimate!

Manoj Bajpayee To Make Out With A Man In Hansal Mehta's Next!
Our Correspondent : 9 Jan. 2015

Big B says it was great to have Rekha in the film
We had earlier reported that actor Manoj Bajpayee will essay the role of a gay professor in Hansal Mehta's next titled Aligarh, which revolves around a sex scandal that had taken place at the Aligarh University and it has now been learned that the Tevar baddie will shoot for a homosexual love-making scene with another actor in the film!
Confirming the news, director Hansal Mehta, who is all praises for Manoj, said that Bajpayee will go by the requirement of the script whereas a source attached to the film revealed that Manoj had no qualms about agreeing to make out with a man for the scene.
The film revolves around the scandal that broke when Srinivas, a professor of the university was caught red-handed by some students while having sex with a rickshaw-driver, following which, his service was terminated weeks before his retirement.
Manoj will be seen playing the antagonist Gajendra Singh in Amit Sharma's Tevar, which releases today.

Ek Tha Alien: Stupidity-meets-irrationality was Aamir's Rs 300 crore-formula for PK
Our Correspondent : 7 Jan. 2015

An alien with the heart of Tulsi Virani, Aamir Khan's PK is actually more Bollywood than even the star cast of Border. You've met this fellow before. He is the thoughtful masterji-with-a-mohawk Ram Nikumbh from Taare Zameen Par whose lachrymal glands go into Nirupa Roy overdrive when they hear a sad, violin-heavy Hindi song written by Prasoon Joshi. Oh, that's the host of Satyamev Jayate, right? Now slap the Batman bust of Dhoom:3's Charlie on him, and there, you have PK.
Now how did PK manage to rake in Rs 300 crore and topple another Aamir Khan gem Dhoom:3 from of its perch as the highest ever domestic grosser in Bollywood? And it's not because the film's protagonist is a retrospective of Aamir Khan characters of yore. It's also not because Indians from far and wide wanted to marvel at Anushka Sharma not toppling from the weight of her lips. It's also not because they wanted to confirm that dialogues cheesier than those in Dil Toh Pagal Hain could be ever written in a big-budget Bollywood film again.
What does PK have that Happy New Year, Kick, all the editions of Dabangg and Singham did not?
Those films didn't do what PK did - give a sense of big-budget purpose to hundreds of people who have to painstakingly hunt for 'secular' people on the internet and then troll them with a potent combination of stupidity, bad grammar and irrationality. Vandalising a few theatres is so much more exciting than mere typing which can be quite a hassle, especially on a phone, and then you have to face the deep disappointment of failing to tag people who have blocked you. It's also much more thrilling to go after a megastar everyone knows instead of say a literary figure like U.R.Ananthamurthy. So out came the Aamir Khan is anti-my religion brigade.
While some, like the Hindutva brigade spent a weekend working on their biceps by swinging batons on theatres across the country, others worked on their triceps by furiously typing away on Facebook and Twitter, commenting on people's posts and bombarding others with 'tera khoon nahin khaulta hai' (your blood doesn't boil?) tweets. In fact, Sunny Deol should thank, erm, god, that Gadar was made in the pre-Twitter days. Otherwise, no doubt the makers would have found a dhai kilo ka haath on Twitter itself - the more disfigured the figures of speech in a tweet, the angrier your man is! Deol would have never made a cut then!
And then there were the conspiracy theorists, like the UP cleric who said that the film could lead to communal riots. You must marvel at the sheer intelligence of Azam Khan's buffaloes. They didn't want to flee the state for no reason.
Now what did all this anger lead to? It made a very mediocre film, which feels longer than an episode of CID, the biggest grosser of Bollywood ever! The more people circulated #BoycottPK hashtags, the more newspapers and TV channels reported how angry people are vandalising theatres, the more curious everyone else became. Of course, they had already had their curiosity piqued by those naked-but-for-transistor-radio posters. Ideally, the only people who should have felt offended by PK are the wig-makers of the country - what rested on Anushka Sharma's head and we were asked to consider as hair was actually semi-monkey cap. PK hardly dissed religion in a way that would really sting - it in fact it touched the subject with such trepidation it felt more like an aspiring engineer nervously looking at IIT test papers.
From the songs to the Bollywood alien, from the dialogues to the obtuse climax, PK was more an exercise in silliness, than in audacity. Yet, some people decided to get furious and fan outrage. So the rest, who either don't watch Hindi films or don't watch Bollywood all trooped into the theatres to find out what the deal was really about. Some - since religion is a greater unifier than language is a divider in India - came back frothing at their mouths and vowing never to watch a Khan film. Others came back, yawning and cursing themselves for having bitten the bait. In the end, PK showed what works better than a stupid film like Dhoom:3 in India - a stupid film which fans an epidemic of irrationality.

Amitabh Bachchan's Shamitabh Co-Stars Rekha, But They Have No Scenes
Our Correspondent : 7 Jan. 2015

Big B says it was great to have Rekha in the film
IT'S ALWAYS GREAT WELCOME TO HAVE SUCH GREAT LUMINARIES IN THE FILM," BIG B SAID DURING THE LAUNCH OF THE FILM'S TRAILER Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who stars with veteran actress Rekha in R Balki's Shamitabh, says they however don't share screen space in the film.
"We don't actually come together, it's part of the sequence and when you see the film, you will understand how it's portrayed. But, yes it's always great welcome to have such great luminaries in the film," he told reporters during the film's trailer launch.
"Balki keeps saying he wants to design a film with us (Big B and Rekha) but let's see if somebody comes with interesting script. Why not," he added.
Shamitabh also features Dhanush and Akshara Haasan among others.
Mr Bachchan says for this film, they have recorded the dialogues first before shooting for the film.
"The entire script of the film was recorded first, all the dialogues I recorded in my voice. When we used to shoot, we used to play the recordings and shoot. There was too much of work and we had worked hard for this film. Balki said do what I say and now after the film was ready, we again did the dubbing. It's a different film for me as I have never done like this before and the credit goes to Balki."

Aamir Khan’s ‘PK’ earns Rs 300 cr at domestic Box Office, creates history
Our Correspondent : 5 Jan. 2015

Aamir Khan’s ‘PK’ has finally touched the Rs 300 cr mark on Sunday (January 4). It is also all set to cross the Rs 600 Cr mark worldwide.
If it does so, it will be the first ever Bollywood movie to have this distinction. It’s official now that Aamir Khan holds the rare feat of starting the Rs 100, 200 and 300 Cr club.
Film critic Komal Nahta took to Twitter to share this piece of information.
This is Aamir Khan’s third movie, that has set benchmarks pretty difficult for others to even touch.
His earlier release with Rajkumar Hirani, ‘3 Idiots’ was the first to cross Rs 200 cr mark and ‘Ghajini’ with A Murugadoss the Rs 100 cr mark, both nationally.
Released on December 19, ‘PK’ ran into controversy when numerous Hindu religious groups accused the movie to be anti-Hindu and hence, demanded a ban on it; but seems the whole debate has only worked in its favour. Directed by Rajkumar Hirani, the movie features Anushka Sharma opposite Aamir Khan.

What's the deal between Kapil Sharma and Elli Avram?
Our Correspondent : 5 Jan. 2015

Co-stars Kapil Sharma and Elli Avram, who will soon be seen in Abbas Mustan's forthcoming comedy film, have a secret pact apparently.
While Kapil wants to improve his English, Elli wants to work on her Hindi.
So, the two have decided to speak to each other in the languages they are not comfortable speaking. A source on the set revealed,
"This understanding creates a lot of humour on the set. Once Elli ended up saying,
"Mujhe sansu aa rahe hai", when she actually meant aansu (tears).
The two couldn't stop laughing and this required repeated sessions of 'touch-up' from the makeup artists.

Anushka Sharma And Virat Kohli Snapped By Fans In Sydney
Our Correspondent : 2 Jan. 2015

Recently new lovebirds Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma were spotted hand in hand in Australia.
Days before New Year Anushka Sharma landed to Australia to attend the Test match between India and Australia.
During the match, cricketer Virat Kohli was seen blowing kiss at PK actress Anushka Sharma when he scored century during one of the matches during the test series.
Its not the end both the stars were spotted again taking a leisure walk in Sydney at the Darling Harbour on Thursday.
Although the couple managed to slip under paparazzi, Seems fans have been keeping eyes on the couple holidaying and posting their pictures on social websites.
Just after their official announcement of being in a relationship, the duo have been seen together having late night dinner dates and parties with their friends.
The Band Baaja Baaraat actress is currently in the mood to celebrate the success of a recently released film PK with her boyfriend Virat.

2015: Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan set for big bollywood releases, zilch from Aamir Khan
Our Correspondent : 2 Jan. 2015

From Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan’s ambitious film ‘Shamitabh’, Ranbir Kapoor’s first ever period drama ‘Bombay Velvet’ to Salman Khan’s Eid outing ‘Bajrangi Bhaijan’ and Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘Fan’, the upcoming year will see some major releases at the box-office – no release expected from Aamir Khan whose ‘PK’ movie is driving both box office collections and raging protests in equal measures.
If everything goes as per the plan, Bachchan will have three releases in 2015, starting from ‘Shamitabh’ in which the megastar has reteamed with ‘Paa’ director R Balki. The film, to be released on February 6, also stars ‘Raanjhanaa’ actor Dhanush and will see Kamal Haasan’s younger daughter Akshara, making her acting debut.
Veteran actress Rekha is slated to make a guest appearance in the film, however, it is not clear whether she will share the screen space with Bachchan after ‘Silsila’ in 1981.
Bachchan’s ‘Piku’ is another big release of the coming year. Directed by Shoojit Sircar, the film brings Bachchan and actress Deepika Padukone together as father-daughter for the second time on screen after ‘Aakarshan’. The movie, extensively shot in Kolkata, has Irrfan as the third lead.