Friday, April 27, 2007

Salman cannot go bald now!

The personal work Salman Khan went for to Dubai was not to keep current girlfriend Katrina Kaif company but his long overdue session of hair weaving that needed to be done following his hair transplant procedure last year!

Salman left for Dubai last week to start the second phase of the hair transplant procedure. Certain steps are taken before and after a the procedure to ensure maximum growth.

Once the first step is over, hair grows naturally and continues to thicken for six to nine months. Hair loss after that will probably occur in untreated areas and one can either use medication to retard the loss or schedule a hair weaving.

Salman underwent hair weaving in Dubai with an American surgeon. Khan returned to Mumbai yesterday, after spending some time under observation in Dubai.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Salman backs off from auctioning his painting

It is no longer a secret that actor Salman Khan has a talent for painting.

Salman gave one of his paintings for auction at a fundraising event, Right To Education’, organised by Plan India Initiative on Saturday at Grand Hyatt. The money from the auction was for the welfare of deprived children.

Bollywood director Karan Johar played the auctioneer at the event.

When Salman’s painting came up for auction, the highest bid for the piece of art was Rs 20 lakhs.

The amount perhaps did not meet Salman’s expectations. The actor walked on the stage and announced that he was pulling his painting out of the auction as the amount bid was too low.

Salman took the mike and said that some day when he would perhaps be a famous artist, then he would think of selling that painting. The audience laughed at Salman’s jest.

The event was a star-studded affair with celebrities like Anil Kapoor , Rishi Kapoor , Malaika Arora , Arbaaz Khan and their son Ahaan, Sri Devi, Boney Kapoor, Soha Ali Khan , Sangeeta Bijlani, Mohammad Azharuddin adding glamour to the evening.

Although Salman has had passion for painting since childhood, he started taking it seriously only recently. He has also learned some fine points of painting techniques from artist Nilesh Vede.

Monday, April 02, 2007

Salman Khan doesn't want to work with John Abraham!

Though Salman Khan is a man of golden heart, once he strikes someone’s name off his good books, there seems to be no rethinking for him.

It is no secret that Salman Khan and John Abraham do not get along well with each other. The reports of animosity between them cropped after they returned from the Rockstars concert last year. Then there were also rumours that the vibes between Salman and John were quite cold while working in Ravi Chopra’s movie Baabul . Even filmmaker Nikhil Advani made sure not to touch the sensitive issue and kept no scenes featuring Salman and John together in his movie Salaam-e-Ishq .

The so-called rivalry between the two stars has so far remained somewhat subdued and has not come out in the open yet. But Salman seems to be having second thoughts about doing Rituparno Ghosh’s remake of the 1962 classic ‘Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam’ for which Ghosh has finalized Salman, John and Priyanka Chopra .

In the remake, Salman is supposed to play an alcoholic zamindar who prefers the company of courtesans than his beautiful wife, to be played by Priyanka Chopra. John is supposed to play the role of the servant who gets to know the inner suffering of the zamindar’s wife and share her loneliness.

The fact that Ghosh will be directing this timeless classic makes it a precious project. But reports have it that Salman is reluctant to work with John in Sahib Biwi Aur Ghulam .

The film’s producer Pritish Nandy is not willing to comment about any casting changes in the movie. However, he does assert that the movie will indeed be made.

Just a few weeks back, we had reported that Salman has opted out of Boney Kapoor’s movie Milenge Milenge because he did not want to work with its hero Shahid Kapur . Salman and Shahid, too, apparently had a spat during a concert.

Friday, March 30, 2007

Salman Khan invited to Abhishek-Ash wedding reception?

Rumour has it that Salman Khan has been invited to the wedding reception of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai .

While the Abhi-Ash wedding will strictly be a private affair (with relatives and close friends of the Bachchans and Rais), a large number of Bollywood celebrities are expected to attend the reception. And reports have it that Salman Khan, Aishwarya’s ex-flame, has also been invited.

According to the buzz, it was Amitabh Bachchan himself who called Salman’s father Salim Khan (who co-wrote scripts for many Bachchan films) and invited the entire Khan family to the reception.

Vivek Oberoi , another ex-boyfriend of Aishwarya, has reportedly not received invitation either from the Rais or the Bachchans.

It is also learnt that Salman Khan is planning to gift Abhishek a specially tailored Sherwani as the wedding gift.

Sunday, March 04, 2007

Salman Khan bails out Boney Kapoor again

True stories about Salman Khan's largesse continue to pour in. Not only does he continue to do films free of fee for friends and filmmakers, he also forgets and forgives very easily.

Two years ago, Salman pulled Boney's doddering production house out of the red by agreeing to do an extended cameo in No Entry. Just when Boney couldn't stop thanking Salman for his generosity things soured between the two when Salman backed out of his verbal commitment to put in yet another extended guest appearance in Boney's Milenge Milenge.

But now Salman is all set to once again play saviour to Boney's production company. Salman plays the lead in Boney Kapoor's remake of the Tamil-Telugu blockbuster Pokhri.

Says a source close to both Boney and Salman, "Salman couldn't keep his promise of doing Milenge Milenge because of differences with the film's lead pair Shahid Kapoor and Kareena. But it bothered him that Boney had to suffer for no fault of his. At the first given opportunity he made amends with Boney by agreeing to play the lead in the remake of Pokhri." Apparently no money has been discussed.

Continues the source, "This isn’t the first occasion when Salman has stood by a project on humanitarian grounds. After Nikhil Advani left Karan Johar Salman was the only hero who supported Nikhil's Salaam-e-Ishq. The other big stars rolled into the film only after Salman agreed….It's as easy to win Salman's faith as lose it."

Monday, October 30, 2006

Salman takes Miss Universe for a ride on bike!

Miss Universe Zuleyka Rivera rode pillion on Salman Khan’s bike a few days back.

Zuleyka is on an AIDS awareness tour of India. She is spearheading a campaign with the motto ‘Get Tested, It's in Fashion’.

Media reports say the Puerto Rican beauty was a special guest at Salman Khan ’s Eid party last week. After the party, the Bollywood star offered to drop her home on his motorbike.

The time was around 3 in the morning. Salman drove Zuleyka from his Bandra residence to Royal Palms in Goregaon, where she was staying.

A newspaper even quotes Zuleyka as saying that she finds Salman “hot”. She thinks Salman has “an amazing body and a great sense of humour.”

Zuleyka aspires to become an actress someday. Her favourite is Angelina Jolie, who by coincidence is also shooting in India nowadays.

Zuleyka was crowned Miss Universe 2006 in July this year.

Source: Apunkachoice

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Jaan-e-mann - Movie review

Let's clear a myth before we get into the analyzing mode…

JAAN-E-MANN is about two guys loving the same girl. Her first relationship doesn't work for certain reasons. Opportunity comes knocking again. The second guy rides into her heart. Sounds familiar?

From SANGAM to KABHI KABHIE to CHANDNI to SAAJAN, the concept of two men falling head over heals in love with the same woman has been done to death in Bollywood. Is there anything else left to explore? What novelty does JAAN-E-MANN offer then? Is it old wine packaged in a new bottle?

Sure, JAAN-E-MANN is a love story. But it explores new grounds, in terms of story as well as execution. It's an unconventional film. Yet, innovative at the same time. It doesn't follow the path most love stories charter. It's a fresh concept and the twists and turns in the screenplay only ensure that it doesn't stagnate.

To be brutally honest, it takes time to absorb a new format of storytelling. As moviegoers, we are used to following one particular format, which rarely changes. In JAAN-E-MANN, the story begins where most end. At the very outset, you're told that the first relationship has already fallen apart. Knowing that it's over between the two, the first guy encourages [and actually assists/trains/spoon-feeds] the second guy to get close to the woman both love. The second guy faithfully follows the instructions, till a twist in the tale brings about an awakening. Just when you think that it's going to be a conventional climax, there's a twist again…

Nope, JAAN-E-MANN isn't purani bottle par naya label. Definitely not!

It's said that [most] editors make fantastic directors. After all, the biggest of dreams take final shape on the editing table. Editor Shirish Kunder wears many hats in his first attempt: Director, story-screenplay-dialogues' writer, background music composer, TV and theatrical promo maker and of course, editor. And yes, he makes a terrific impact in his maiden attempt as a storyteller.

The marriage of realism with escapism as also form and content is evident in JAAN-E-MANN. There are moments that offer tremendous entertainment. There are times when Shirish borrows incidents straight from life; you've seen it happening to someone or perhaps, it's happened to you.

All the same, the execution of the film and the shot compositions are masterly. If you understand cinema or if you're an avid moviegoer, you'd notice that JAAN-E-MANN is shades apart from Yash Chopra or Mani Ratnam or Priyadarshan or RGV or Rakesh Roshan's movies. It stands out for its individuality. The technique leaves you wondering, is this Hindi cinema or are you watching a fairytale?

Most importantly, JAAN-E-MANN has its heart in the right place. Like this reviewer pointed out at the outset, it takes time to get used to Shirish's style of narrating a story. The initial reels may give you the feeling that it's all gloss, no soul and perhaps, the director has lost his marbles and experimented at the expense of an uncompromising producer [Sajid Nadiadwala], but JAAN-E-MANN catches you slowly, but firmly and doesn't leave you till the end.

Wait, this doesn't imply that JAAN-E-MANN is a flawless product. There are blemishes that stand out in the narrative. If Shirish deserves distinction marks as a storyteller, you need to deduct his points as an editor. Perhaps, Shirish fell in love with his product and didn't realize that this 19 reeler tends to get lengthy and at times, slow paced.

Also, Shirish's style of storytelling -- very novel and refreshingly different -- caters more to the multiplex crowd/elite/big city junta/Overseas audience rather than the aam public/hoi polloi/masses/frontbenchers. The generous usage of English will also restrict its appeal to urban centres. Yes, there are mass appealing moments, but JAAN-E-MANN is a big gamble. The first section of moviegoers would love the film and if it catches on with the masses [thanks to the strong emotional quotient in the second hour], there's no stopping the film then.

Now to the story:
JAAN-E-MANN begins with Suhan [Salman Khan] receiving a notice to pay the alimony. He has to shell out Rs. 50 lacs to his estranged wife Piya [Preity Zinta], now settled in the U.S. Suhan's 'Chachu' Boney [Anupam Kher], a lawyer, thinks of ways to wriggle out of the situation.

It's at this juncture that Champu aka Agastya [Akshay Kumar] walks in, looking for Piya. He was in love with her during the college days, he tells Suhan and Chachu, but she was in love with someone else [Agastya is unaware that Suhan is the guy]. Piya had ignored Agastya then, a nerd, and even broke his heart by courting another guy. A heartbroken Agastya had left the college for this reason.

Back to the present: Agastya is now at NASA. His outwardly appearance may've undergone a change, but he still doesn't know how to communicate with a girl, forget dating her. Suhan and Chachu hatch the plan to get Agastya and Piya together, so that Suhan is out of the mess.

Agastya flies to New York, so does Suhan. They hire an apartment right opposite Piya's residence and monitor each and every move of her through binoculars and telescope. Suhan helps Agastya to woo Piya. A reluctant Piya eventually gives in. But the story changes when Suhan gets to know of a certain reality and that changes his life completely. He feels responsible towards Piya.

Suhan realizes his folly and wants to make amends. But oblivious to Suhan's presence, Piya is now preparing for a life with Agastya. One wouldn't like to reveal the climax, since that would take the sheen away from the enterprise. We wouldn't be able to reveal the finale either, which is sure to bring a smile on your face.

JAAN-E-MANN balances humor and emotions beautifully. In fact, a film on relationships ought to rest on a solid emotional ground and JAAN-E-MANN has those scenes in abundance, especially in the second hour. Salman's journey from a mere spectator of Akshay-Preity's courtship to being a part of the love story is beautifully depicted. What prompts Salman to have a change of heart and feel more responsible [the reason is withheld by the reviewer] is again a brilliant stroke from the writing, execution and performance point of view.

All the same, the humor is just perfect. It's not the crass or mindless kind, but simple and at the same time, sure to bring a smile on your face or force you to break into laughter.

JAAN-E-MANN has more aces, starting with Farah Khan's choreography. Every song in immaculately choreographed and comes across as a remarkable piece of art. Anu Malik's music is soothing and soft, in sync with the mood of the film. 'Jaane Ke Jaane Na' is undoubtedly the best track of the enterprise. 'Ajnabee Shaher' and 'Humko Maloom Hai' are two compositions that also stand out for sheer melody. Sudeep Chatterjee's cinematography is remarkable. Right from Sabu Cyril's delightfully colorful sets to the skyline of New York, the D.O.P. captures every moment with dexterity and flourish on celluloid. Surily Goel's costumes are classy and well-synchronized with the upmarket feel.

Now to the performances! The one question that you want to ask Salman is, why had you hidden the sensitive performer in you all these years? Agreed, the actor has delivered fine performances in the past, right from Sooraj Barjatya's films to TERE NAAM to NO ENTRY [aimed at the masses]. But this is an altogether different Salman you see in JAAN-E-MANN. In fact, it wouldn't be erroneous to state that if asked to choose one performance from the three pivotal ones in JAAN-E-MANN, it has to be Salman without doubt. He wins hands down completely. The role is a reflection of what Salman can handle in real life: Loads of attitude, the mischievous dude with a naughty streak and most importantly, a sensitive and soft-hearted man who can weep, if affected. Simply remarkable!

Akshay is first-rate. The actor plays a simpleton, a far cry from the roles he's now famous for [DEEWANE HUYE PAAGAL, GARAM MASALA, PHIR HERA PHERI] and proves his versatility yet again. There's a marked growth in Akshay's performances and the one in JAAN-E-MANN only endorses the statement.

Preity is wonderful. Not only does she look like a woman who is the cynosure of two men, but also emotes her part with amazing grace. There's a surprise in store in the end and Preity's fans are sure to love her in that look as well.

Anupam Kher is fantastic as Chachu, but has an ill-defined role as the look-alike in New York. Jawed Sheikh and Soni Razdan [Preity's parents] are appropriate in brief roles. Nawaab [Preity's brother] and Aman Verma are decent.

On the whole, JAAN-E-MANN balances humor and emotions beautifully. In fact, it's a BIG film in all respects -- right from its cast to the extravagant sets to the lavish making, besides, of course, unadulterated entertainment it has to offer. At the box-office, the Diwali and Idd holidays will prove bountiful for the film and add to the big returns. Business-wise, JAAN-E-MANN should fare best at multiplexes and also at major centres, besides Overseas. But its business at comparatively smaller centres, where masala films dominate, is bound to be affected by DON's presence. However, if the strong word of mouth catches on, the business at smaller centres will add to its booty.

Source: Indiafm