~~SILVER JUBILEE POST~~

WHEN TERROR STRIKES!

Last week’s terrorist attack in Mumbai gave a heavy blow to our film industry. The attacks started on Wednesday and all night shows in all theatres of South Mumbai were cancelled. On Thursday, all theatres throughout the city were closed. On Friday too, many theatres preferred to remain closed. However, single-screens and multiplexes in the suburbs of Mumbai resumed their business. And as expected, the new releases of the week, ‘OyeLucky! Lucky Oye!’ and ‘Sorry Bhai! suffered huge losses.

Both these films released in very few theatres of Mumbai on the first day. They got a proper release in the city only on Saturday. But, still it had released throughout the country but that didn’t help much. The attack occurred in Mumbai but it left the entire country shaken! In such time, the last thing a person would like to do is venture into a theatre and watch a film! A similar scenewas seen two years ago during the Mumbai Local Train Blasts on July 11, 2006.The next day, July 12, all theatres were nearly empty. People who had booked tickets in advance didn’t even turn up! Similarly, when bombs exploded in Delhi on September 13 this year in the evening, all night shows throughout the city were deserted!

Coming back to the present, another film was about to release last Friday (Nov 28)-The President Is Coming. The film’s premiere was held last Wednesday and it was cancelled midway when news came of terrorist attacks in South Mumbai. The producer of this film, Rohan Sippy, then realized that it’s not wise to release the film in this week and therefore, postponed the release indefinitely. Two days ago, he announced that The President Is Coming will now release directly in Jan 2009!

Such foolish terror attacks result in financial losses to producers and ultimately, to Bollywood as well. ‘Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye’ would have had a great weekend had these terrorists not caused destruction. And it would have been a Hit too! But unfortunately, the film had a miserable weekend. Most probably, it would be verdicted as Flop. Very unfortunate.
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It’s generally seen that a week or two before a biggie is about to release, many small and medium budget films hit the screens. It’s a right time for such filmsto do a decent profit at the BO as they don’t have to face any competition with a biggie in their week of release. And that’s why, a week before Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi releases, a lot of medium budget films are ready to hit the screens (i.e.tomorrow, Dec 5)-Maharathi, Dil Kabaddi, Meerabai Not Out, ‘Oh My God!!’ andGumnaam-The Mystery. Maharathi should score better than the rest. The promos are interesting and promise a thrilling ride!



DilKabaddi…well what to say! It’s amusing that a masala film like this has a starcast who are generally associated with art films (Rahul Bose, Konkona SenSharma, Soha Ali Khan, Irrfan Khan, Rahul Khanna)! The promotion could have been better. Meerabai Not Out’s shooting got over 18 months back and it wasn’t able to get a release. Finally, it releases tomorrow but will have a tough time since it has such a competition! ‘Oh My God!!’ looks good but the lack of proper promotion coupled with so much competition will result in huge losses.And Gumnaam (*ing Dino Morea and Mahima Chaudhary) will sink without a trace!Hardly anyone knows about this film!

It would havebeen better if only three films would have released. It’s unfortunate that atleast three or four of these films are going to be flops. Somebody please instill some sense in the producers!

It’s a pleasure to announce that Fenil’s Bollywood Talk completes 25 golden weeks! 25 Thursdays ago, on June 19, 2008, I posted my first Bollywood post and was amazed to see that so many members have posted their comments! Though the number of comments started reducing after some time, I was still happy to see that people enjoyed reading my posts on Bollywood!

In these 25 weeks, I discussed about the goings-on in Bollywood. I criticized producers/directors who made shoody films and appreciated and applauded the winners! I also made predictions on the films about to release and I am glad that 75% of the predictions were true!! In short, I shared my vast Bollywood knowledge with you guys and loved each and every moment of it!

Of course, I committed some errors too! This usually happened due to non-availability of info on the net on certain topics. For instance, no website on the internet provides information regarding the budget of films. Indiafm.com had posted a news wherein it was written that the film Fashion has a budget ofaround 17-18 crores. Thinking it to be true, I wrote this piece of info in one of my talks. Few weeks later, I was shocked reading Madhur Bhandarkar’s interview in which he said that the budget of Fashion was 40 crores! It was too late by then to correct the mistake!

I made the other stupid mistake in Talk # 21, in which he I wrote by mistake that Aap Ka Surroor was a flop! I had just returned from my trip and wrote that post in a very bad condition and that’s why made this foolish error! I realized my folly when some members brought it to my notice. In the next post, I posted an apology!

I usually decide about my topic for the talk a week or two before. Sometimes, I plan about a topic a month in advance! And there are times when it’s Thursday and I am still thinking “What to write?”!! But by God’s grace, I am able to think ofa nice topic and even able to write a good write-up on it!

For the silver jubilee post (Talk # 25), I had some grand plans! I had planned to interview some celebs and producers/directors and posting their views in the post! But the last week’s terror attacks by those stupid terrorists ruined al lmy plans! Nevertheless, Talk # 25 will be published but would not be grand and unique.

Through this post, I would like to thank the entire MS staff for giving me the platform to share my views on Bollywood! And also a big Thank You to all those members who supported me. Without them, Fenil’s Bollywood Talk would never have completed 25 weeks! And therefore, all those who gave me their full support are going to receive prizes today! And the bigger prize will go to Debs C (Kweldebs)! She was the most supportive and would always wait for my Bollywood Talks! Thanks a ton! You get a luxury car! Enjoy!

Others who also get a prize-Sweety (sweetsdesire), Nidhi (nidhi1), Rohit (rohitshiva), Paul (Paulsb02), Shalu (S_Dhyani), Mr Umesh (derebail2008) and Sajit (sajiths). Thanks so much guys!

And I request each and every MSian to keep reading my posts and commenting on them!And I promise to provide with the most interesting posts each week! And of course, if you wanna give any appreciation, criticism, suggestion, advices etc, you are most welcome! Plzz do the needful in the comments section!


Click on this link to read the Silver Jubilee Post: http://www.mouthshut.com/diar
y/edgimsqqm/Fenils-Bollywood-Ta
lk25

HOW TRUE IS NUMEROLOGY?

Even though its recession time, the big numerologists may not be facing tough times since they are always approached by the biggest of stars. The stars have so much faith in numerologist’s advice that they are ready to change even the spellings of their names, hoping that it would change their fortunes.

One such numerologist who’s quite well known and respected in Bollywood circles is Niraj Manchhanda. He has adviced many of the actors, who gave a sting of flops, to do a spell-change. Isha Koppikar changed her spelling to Eesha Koppikhar as per his advice and soon got two films, Hello and Ek Vivaah Aisa Bhi. Rakesh Roshan appreciates him too. On his advice, he added extra ‘r’ and ‘z’ to his film’s title Krrish and Krazzy4 respectively and both did a good job at the Box office. Sajid Nadiadwala also added extra ‘y’ in his film’s title to make it Heyy Babyy and it became one of the super-hits of 2007! Nadiadwala is now hopeful that his forthcoming film Kambakkth Ishq will be a success too.

However, it should be noted that some of his predictions have failed too. He advised Vivek Oberoi to alter the spelling to Viveick Aanannd Oberoi. However, that didn’t bring him much luck. Also Hrithik Roshan was adviced to alter his name to Hrithick. Hrithik rejected the advice and yet, he’s one of the biggest superstars!

Also, the predictions made by Niraj Manchhanda for some films were wrong too. He predicted last year that Chak De! India (CDI) would be below the expectations! No need to mention what was the ultimate fate of the film! And there’s no question of films performing below the expectations since the producers of the film, Yash Chopra and Aditya Chopra, didn’t kept any expectation from CDI after the debacle of their film, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom! Niraj’s prediction on Tashan was even more funny! In his words, “Next year’s Tashan will be a hit because of its lead actor, Akshay Kumar”! Hahahahahaha!

Numerlogy has worked in certain situations and for certain people but still, I don’t believe in it (so guys dont expect that I'll change my spelling to Fennil/Feniil/Fenill in future!!). In order for a film to be successful, one needs to make a good film with good script, performances, promotion etc. If one makes a disastrous film, no numerologist can save it from becoming the ultimate flop. For instance, if Ram Gopal Verma had changed the spelling of his film ‘Ram Gopal Verma Ki Aag’ according to a numerologist’s advice, then do you think the film would have been a super-hit?!

Niraj Manchhanda has also made some startling predictions for the upcoming films. “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi will have a blast at the BO”, predicts Niraj. And what about Aamir’s Ghajini? He says, “Ghajini will last as long as Aamir’s craze does”!! Let’s see if these predictions turn out to be true. Till then, the bollywood bigwigs will continue to hail numerology. Sigh…!

NO CREATIVE FREEDOM IN INDIA

When I learnt last Thursday that the Maharashtra State Government has banned the film Deshdrohi in the state, I was hugely disappointed-not because I wanted to see this film but because the ban was not at all justified. It proved that there’s no creative freedom for filmmakers. They are just expected to make same type of movies. And when someone tries to make a little controversial film on a social or current topic, it gets banned!

The problems for Deshdrohi’s producer Kamaal Rashid Khan (KRK) started 20 days before. The Censor Board found the movie too objectionable and gave it an ‘A’ certificate with 10 many cuts. KRK, naturally, was unhappy with this decision. He, therefore, approached the Tribunal in New Delhi which then passed the film with a ‘U/A’ certificate with only 5 cuts. Later, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena asked for a special screening of Deshdrohi. Surprisingly, they said that the film was fit for release as it has nothing objectionable! Yet, the State Government banned it.

The film is controversial since it is inspired from the MNS violence on north Indians in Feb 2008. The promos of the film show Kamaal Rashid Khan, who’s also the main lead in the film, speaking about the injustice inflicted on Bhaiyyas. “Agar garib aur bhaiyya hona apradh hai, to mein apradhi hoon!” is one of the dialogues shown in the promo!

The State’s decision to ban it on moral grounds is totally stupid one. The Times Of India rightly said, “A film which may otherwise have gone unnoticed has attracted undue attention because of the Maharashtra government’s knee-jerk reaction to ban it on grounds of law and order”. The Government and the Police feel that the film may cause greater divide between Marathis and north Indians. However, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, the party which is responsible for violence across the state in this year, does not endorse this viewpoint at all and are completely in favour of the film’s release. So how is this ban justified, in any case?

Earlier in this year, Jodhaa Akbar was similarly banned in Rajasthan, UP, Haryana and Uttarakhand. Certain Rajput groups and several historians claimed that Akbar’s wife was never known as Jodhaa. Some even say that Jodhaa was actually the name of Akbar’s son, Jehangir’s wife! This, again, wasn’t fully justified, since for years, Akbar’s wife was known as Jodhaa to almost every Indian. Even in the classic film, Mughal-E-Azam, the name of Akbar’s wife was Jodha. And Jodhaa Akbar was in the news right since it was launched in early 2007. But none of these groups and historians protested at that time. They woke up only when the film was nearing its release date!

Under such circumstances, a producer/director in a country like India would have to think thousand times before attempting such films. Hollywood made a film like Death Of A President, in which George Bush was shown being assassinated (using CGI effects). Do you think anything like this is possible in our country? Just imagine how much violence will erupt in our country if some brave producer even announces such a film!

It’s high time our beloved film industry should get together during times when films get banned on unjustified grounds. Also, banning a film gives an added boost to piracy. Meanwhile, Deshdrohi has got an electrifying 80-100% opening at single screens of UP and Bihar on its 1st day of release! The film would have surely got 45-55% opening had it released in Maharashtra because the film’s promotion was fantastic! None of the B-grade film has got such nice promotion in recent times. KRK’s acting looks funny and laughable, but yet, the film created hype. In fact, I have come across many people, who belong to the ‘multiplex audience’ and who claim that they are curious to watch Deshdrohi! Let’s hope the ban on the film in Maharashtra is lifted and that creativity wins hands down.

This Week’s Topic: YOUTHFUL FILMS-THE CROWD PULLERS!

Youngsters, between the ages of 18-35, constitute at least 60% of the total moviegoing audience. And therefore, youth-oriented films easily get its fans and supporters. A classic example is this year’s Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Na (JTYJN). When 2008 commenced, the trade pundits of Bollywood got busy churning out a list of expected hits of the year. And none of these guys would have mentioned JTYJN’s name in the list since no one expected this film with a debutant in the lead to become a huge grosser. The film worked for three reasons-Aamir Khan, Imran Khan and thirdly and the most important, the film appealed highly to the youth. The promos suggested that the film would be youthful, energetic one. The songs with catchy lyrics like ‘Kabhi Kabhi Aditi’ and ‘Pappu Cant Dance’ created craze among the youngsters. All this attracted the young to the theatres in high numbers for JTYJN.

Another recent instance is ‘Rock On!!’. The film had a cool, urban look which created a lot of hype amongst the youngsters. The result: ‘Rock On!!’ has turned out to be one of the hits of the year.

In the past too, there has been numerous instances when youth-oriented films have worked inspite of not having big names associated with it. Style, released in 2001, had newcomers starring in it (Sharman Joshi, Sahil Khan, Riya Sen, Shilpi Mudgal). But the title of the film and the promos led the film to take a great start at the BO.

However, if one talks of youth-oriented films, one can’t help but discuss about Dil Chahta Hai (DCH). Released in 2001, DCH marked the directorial debut of Farhan Akhtar. The film had an impressive star cast. But what clicked with the audience were its excellent execution and its youth quotient which worked big time. The film turned out to be one of the finest films of Indian cinema. In fact, DCH is termed as a trendsetter.

And tomorrow, one more such film is all set to hit the screens-Dostana! The film has made waves ever since its first promo was out in August! The promos look fresh and youthful, Abhi-John-Priyanka look hot and the music is just excellent! However, what has kept Dostana in the news is the chemistry between….Abhishek and John! The promo, showing the lead actors dancing together have impressed the viewers and have also made them curious about the film! Also, Dostana, deals with the gay issue in a light manner, which again, has worked in its favour.

With so many factors going in favour of the film, it’ll surely take an electrifying start at the BO. But the film has to be nice and impressive in order to have a long run at the ticket window. Or else, the film will fall like a pack of cards as soon as the opening weekend is over. Let’s just hope Dostana rocks and gives us the much needed entertainment!

P.S.: In my last week, I wrongly mentioned that Aap Ka Surroor had flopped at the BO. While doing research for the post, I misread some of the info available on the net and came to the conclusion that AKS was a flop. AKS, in reality, was a hit. The error is highly regretted.

This Week’s Topic: WHY IS OUR INDUSTRY WORKING WITHOUT ANY LOGIC?

It all started with Om Shanti Om last year. Eros International bought the rights of this film for around 40-45 crores. OSO was the first film to sell its rights for such a high amount. And with the success of OSO, a number of corporate houses decided to buy the rights of upcoming biggies for astronomical amounts. Singh Is Kinng went one step ahead-Studio 18 reportedly bought the film for 70 crores!

Om Shanti Om and Singh Is Kinng managed to recover the cost. However, other films bought at an inflated price were not so lucky. The ambitious Studio 18 bought Sanju-Imran Khan starrer Kidnap for 40 crores. Unfortunately for them, the film took a great start but failed to survive at the BO. The film collected a whopping 23 crores but still it was not enough to recover its full cost and the film was declared a flop.

It’s highly amusing that Studio 18 invested so much money on a film like Kidnap. They must have felt that the film has Imran Khan, who has become a superstar with the success of Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Na and therefore audiences would surely flock to the theatres and watch no matter how bad it is. All big trade analysts feel that buying the film at 40 crores was foolhardy. Kidnap’s cost should not have been more than 15-20 crores. If that had been the case, Kidnap would have been a hit today.

Big Pictures then joined Studio 18 in the foolhardy act. They bought the rights of Karzzzzz at 40 crores! I wonder what was going on in their mind when they pumped in so much money. Himesh may be a crowd puller but he’s not a star like Khans and Bachchans. Not to forget Himesh’s previous film, Aap Ka Surrooor, was a flop. Then why did Big invested such an amount? The film failed to impress the audience and it’s a disaster at the BO. It has failed to recover even half of its amount.

It’s unfortunate that our industry, which has talented and experienced people, are signing deals without any logic or sense. The big honchos maybe creating news when they buy a particular film for an xx amount, but in the long run, they suffer huge losses. Studio 18 even committed the mother of all foolish acts. In the beginning of the year, they bought the rights of Salman-Ajay Devgan starrer upcoming film London Dreams for 120 crores! Salman is a superstar but does not always give a hit. Same with Ajay Devgan. Then can you find any sense in buying the film for such an unheard amount? Fortunately, the debacle of Kidnap gave Studio 18 some sense and they have now backed off from buying the rights of London Dreams!

With so many flops, it’s high time these corporate houses and production companies should start functioning in a better manner. This may take some time but there surely would be a change. In the meantime, don’t be surprised if you hear that a certain biggie starring a superstar is bought for 1000 crores!!

This Week’s Topic: NOT A SINGLE HIT IN OCTOBER SO FAR!

The verdict is out-Roadside Romeo, inspite of being an excellent entertainer, is a flop at the BO. This is most unfortunate since the film is a well-made entertainer and deserves to be watched by kids and teens. However, the film’s fate was already known even before its release since it has huge competition in the form of three biggies (Heroes, Golmaal Returns and Fashion). Also, the film’s promotion was not upto the mark. The other release last Friday, Heroes, is an excellent film in most respects. In spite of being a multi-starrer, the film didn’t take an earth shattering opening throughout the country. Also, the film has a high cost due to which it would be difficult to achieve the ‘Hit’ status. As of now, its verdict is awaited.

It is highly surprising that five biggies released in this month till now-Kidnap, Drona, Karzzzzz, Roadside Romeo and Heroes and none of these films manage to become a Hit! Although some of them are bad products, these films could had been a Hit had the producers and distributors used a little more sense in promoting their films and selling/buying it at reasonable prices (I’ll discuss about this in detail next week). But after these disasters, the big honchos have finally woken up and are trying to avoid such possible damages in future!

Tomorrow, two biggies will hit the screens-Golmaal Returns and Fashion. A lot of expectations and hopes are riding on these two films. Since all the other biggies of this month have bombed, industry is expecting a lot from these two films since both of them have created hype and looks like good interesting films.

I had discussed in my Talk # 17 (http://www.mouthshut.com/diar
y/hfejsnumm/Fenils-Bollywood-Ta
lk17) that EMI will also release on 29th. I had predicted that releasing three films in a day will result in a chaotic situation. But fortunately, EMI was postponed to November 7 last week. One of its producers, Ekta Kapoor, said EMI is postponed since they don’t want to release it with Golmaal Returns, which has her brother Tushaar Kapoor and she doesn’t want to compete with him! However, the real reason for the postponement is the shortage of theatres, since Golmaal Returns and Fashion have already blocked most of the theatres and screens!

Golmaal Returns surely will take an excellent opening. It’s a sequel to Golmaal, and looks like a hilarious film and funnier than Golmaal. It’s released at the right time, when the mood is upbeat due to the festival time. The other flick, Fashion, also has a great chance since it has only one film now as a competitor. Also, this Madhur Bhandarkar flick, which is budgeted at 17 crores, has already recovered 7 crores through sponsors. So it won’t be difficult for the film to get 10 crores from the BO. But though, I still feel the producers (Ronnie Screwvala and Madhur Bhandarkar) took a great risk by releasing such a film during Diwali!

Two films-Golmaal Returns and Fashion-both of them of diverse genres. Which one will you choose? Do let me know!!

AND WISHING MSIANS AND THE ENTIRE MS STAFF A HAPPY DIWALI AND A PROSPEROUS NEW YEAR!

This Week’s Topic: AB ROMEO DUUR NAHI!!

My loooooong wait is about to get over! Roadside Romeo, India’s first animated film with the most superior 3D animation, will finally release tomorrow! The movie has generated a lot of buzz in the industry circles as well as with the moviegoers due to various reasons:
1. This is the first time that Yash Raj Films (YRF) has come up with an animated product
2. Walt Disney, the biggest animation studio of the world, is also involved in it as a co-producer.
3. The quality of animation used is highly superior and much better than the shoody animation used in films like Krishna, Bal Ganesh, Ghatotkatch etc.
4. Popular actors like Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Jaaved Jaaferi are roped-in for voicing the animated characters.
5. Unlike other Indian animated films, Roadside Romeo is not a mythological film but a present-day saga of the lives of stray dogs in a city like Mumbai.

Post the success of India’s full feature animated film Hanuman (2005), a lot of production houses announced that they too will come up with an animated flick. However, most of these projects were mythological films-later, some of them got shelved while the others which were completed failed at the BO. But YRF were one of the very few who were keen on making non-mythological film, very much like Hollywood. Jugal Hansraj, who’s an avid lover of animation movies, came up with an idea of film on dogs and that’s where was born the idea of Roadside Romeo!

The first promotional video of Roadside Romeo was out last year with Laaga Chunari Mein Daag and Aaja Nachle. This single promo played a major role in creating hype for this film (see below). However, these promotional videos also created some sort of misunderstanding among the moviegoers. Many felt the film is live-action one and not animated since the promo and poster reads ‘Saif Ali Khan in and as Roadside Romeo’, ‘Kareena Kapoor as Laila’ etc.!

It has been YRF tradition not to aggressively promote their films. And that’s why Roadside Romeo’s promotion, like other YRF films, has been low. And this, I feel, can go against them since Roadside Romeo is a film which needs promotion so that it can create enough hype among the kids and teenagers. The songs of this film are below expectations, but nonetheless are cool and funky. However, the Chopras aren’t promoting these songs too. Its high time YRF revise their promotional strategy. They should understand that the film is releasing with a biggie, Heroes, and 5 days later, it will face two more biggies-Golmaal Returns and Fashion, which are releasing on October 29. Even if the film picks up by the word of mouth, its prospects of becoming a super-hit are dim.

The other film releasing tomorrow, Heroes, has a huge star cast. However, the film hasn’t managed to build enough hype. So, there are high chances that this multi-star cast film will not get even a 75% opening. The film has to be a well made product in order to survive at the BO.

It would be interesting to see which film works and picks up with the people. Roadside Romeo, naturally, is my first choice and I just hope the film meets all the expectations and works. And if the film turns out to be good, make sure you go for it with your entire family (esp. kids) and have a good time!

P.S.: The best film of the year so far, ‘A Wednesday!’, completes 50 days tomorrow! The film had a slow start but this masterpiece, picked up wonderfully by word of mouth and now is proudly completing glorious 50 days! Kudos to the entire team of ‘A Wednesday!

P.P.S.: NEXT BOLLYWOOD TALK WILL BE ON TUESDAY (OCTOBER 28).

This Week’s Topic: All eyes on KARZZZZ!

Love him or hate him, but you can’t ignore him! This phase suits perfectly for Himesh Reshammiya whose film Karzzzz is all set to release tomorrow. No matter how much we hate him for his irritating voice and join ‘I hate Himesh Reshammiya’ communties on Orkut, we cant deny the fact that this guy has certainly made a mark in Bollywood-as a music director, as a singer and now as an actor. There is so much faith in his acting talents that after Karzzzz, Himesh will be seen in four more films-Kajraare, Mudh Mudh Ke Na Dekkh Mudh Mudh Ke, A Love Issshtory and Hhey Gujju! And all these films’ budget is above 25 cr!

4 years back, the existence of Himesh Reshammiya was known only to the film fraternity, movie buffs and Hindi music lovers. Today, Himesh has become a household name; everyone in India from a 3 year old child to a 90 year old people has heard about him and his songs. The nasal singer is a big hit among the autorickshaw wallas of the entire country, and that’s why Himesh’s debut film Aap Ka Surroor had one (absurd) scene dedicated to them!

Himesh Reshammiya started his career as a music director with Salman’s flick Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya (1998). In fact, Salman was responsible for giving him his first break. He composed music for many films and the memorable of these (before Aashiq Banaya Aapne) were Dulhan Hum Le Jaayenge, Humraaz, Tere Naam, Zameen, Run, Aitraaz and Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya. But his decision to song for Aashiq Banaya Aapne made him one of the biggest popular singers of this country! His unusual nasal voice was well appreciated and he even won the Filmfare Award that year for the best male playback singer! From 1998 till 2005, he composed music for around 39 films out of which more than half of them were flops and their music failed to interest people. And post-Aashiq Banaya Aapne’s success till this day, i.e. in just 3 years, the number of his composed films was around 25! Of course, he sang in each of them. And out of the 25, 20 of them topped the chartbusters! But due to overdose of Himesh’s voice, many gradually began to hate him and today, you’ll find many anti-Himesh guys and girls almost everywhere!

After his successful stint as a singer, he decided to act. His debut film, Aap Ka Surroor, released worldwide on June 29, 2007. The film was certainly not upto the mark and even Himesh as an actor failed to give a dynamic performance. The producers hailed the film as a ‘Big Blockbuster’ and tried to fool people. The film actually had just managed to get the ‘Hit’ status and that too because of a great opening that it got.

And now arrives Himesh’s second film! Karzzzz is expected to be a disaster by many. Even I felt the same when the first promo was unveiled that Himesh who wasn’t able to act in Aap Ka Surroor will be equally bad in this remake of a super hit film and the film will bomb at the BO for sure. But after seeing the dialogue promo, I am getting second thoughts! The way Himesh delivers the dialogue “Dhoka maine nahi, tumne mujhe diya hai Kamini” is worth appreciating and applauding! The music-cum-singer-cum actor has definitely improved his acting and dialogue delivery and it seems he would give a powerful performance in Karzzzz! He has also shed his cap and the songs are also being loved. The fact that Subash Ghai happily allowed that his film Karzzzz be remade with Himesh as its lead maybe an indicator that Karzzzz may rock big time!

Karzzzz is rumoured to be sold to Big Pictures for a whopping 40 crores. The film’s hype is increasing by each passing day. Will it work or will it wont? All questions regarding Karzzzz will be answered tomorrow when it hits the screens!

Source: THE TIMES OF INDIA (Mumbai; October 8, 2008)

The joy of the Nano driving into Gujarat is even more pronounced in small town Navsari, birthplace of Jamsetji Tata. Elated Parsis here feel this shifting of gears from Singur, is a perfect goodwill gesture for the Gujarati hospitality shown to them a century ago.

However, they have one heartfelt wish—that the first world’s smallest car rolls out of Navsari! “Tata bringing his dream project here is a proud moment for all of us. But, we hope that the first Nano will be delivered from here, where his ancestor Jamsetji Tata was born on March 3, 1839,” said Kersi Deboo, a Parsi and historian, on Tuesday, when Nanomania had the entire state in its grip.

Navsari and the Tata connection is even more special as their original house still exists there, preserved by the Parsi community. The town is even home to Bai Hirabai Navsari Charitable Trust, a trust named after Jamsetji’s mother and managed by their family in a sprawling estate called Tata Baug.

“Tata’s bond with Navsari is very strong and the family is also involved in many social activities here,” said Rohington Awari, manager of Tata Baug, which houses a bungalow of JRD Tata, who gifted it to his son Naval.

SK Vajifdar, who stays next to Tata’s house in Dastur Waad, said, “No one dreamt that a boy here would become the torchbearer of India’s industrial revolution. He was born just beside my home and his father Nusserwanji was involved in a small business of textile products. Jamsetji then made it to the country’s largest steel plant. Now Tata is coming with the Nano which will leave our footprint on the global map.”

By Yagnesh Mehta | TNN

Pic: The house where Jamsetji Tata was born on March 4, 1839, in Dastur Waad

And read my DRONA review: http://www.mouthshut.com/revie
w/Drona-152747-1.html