Grrr...
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Kajol. Click for bigger pic!
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Ajay Devgan does it again. In time-honoured, brash actor tradition, he's biffed up a journo. Though we'd be the first to censure one who'd descend to fisticuffs, so far as we've heard, the pen-pusher deserved a little more than he got away with.
The story goes that this scribe wangled an interview with Kajol who, as a special concession by her standards, gave it in her van.
A bit of an upstart, this denizen of the press delved into some very uncomfortable facts of her life. Kajol, never known to be excessively calm and equable, this time was apparently quite justified when she showed him where the door was.
The journo didn't know when he'd overstayed his welcome, and refused to leave. Worse, he started slandering the actress. Seeing things get so far out of hand, Kajol summoned boyfriend Ajay.
A little over-enthusiastic to oblige, perhaps, Ajay and another aide, decided to soften up the guy before waving him goodbye.
The battered scribe still didn't know better than to gather his tattered reputation and repair to a bar. No, instead he complained at the local police station. And that's where the matter currently rests.
Love conquers flops
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Ajay Devgun. Click for bigger pic!
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Other than friend poison pen, Kajol and Ajay have been having a good time after their Ishq clicked.
Things weren't looking too good for them after their first films together, Hulchul and Goondaraj floundered off the box office. That worried people a bit.
Raakesh Roshan even signed on Shah Rukh Khan and Ajay along with Kajol and Mamta Kulkarni. But he paired Kajol with SRK while Ajay stomped out in high dudgeon. Salman Khan got his job.
The other reason directors were worried was that Kajol and Ajay used to play truant from the Hulchul shoots together. The harried director, Anees Bazmee, had a tough time tracking them down each time to finish his shoot.
Eros seems to have given way to serene agape by the time the lovers worked together in Ishq. Liberal-minded director Indra Kumar gave them an hour to croon into each other's ears each time. At the risk of sounding trite, seems a big victory for their Ishq, wot?
A Taal nearly missed
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Subhash Ghai. Click for bigger pic!
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The event of the week was undoubtedly the launch of Subhash Ghai's Taal.
Since it's darned difficult to hold a party without invitees, the bash almost didn't happen. Most of the stars wandered around Goregaon, north west Bombay, seeking the entrance to the Royal Palm golf course where Ghai and Co were holding fort. Among those who has no reason to complain may have been the locals. It isn't often that they get to direct the likes of Dilip Kumar, right?
Pressmen also cooled their feet, waiting for some transport to the venue.
More vocal than them in expressing his displeasure was Yusufbhai. Quite naturally, perhaps, among those present were Mahima, Manisha Koirala and Aishwarya Rai. For those who think film-making is easy, this is a lesson. Subhash Ghai makes the job so hard, that even his launch party's inaccessible.
For some reason, Ghai has digressed from the norm this time, celebrating the launch of a new film and the silver jubilee of Pardes on his birthday; he usually launches films on his wedding anniversary.
So what's the film about? Search us. Ghai wouldn't tell. Just making it a little hard, perhaps.
Govinda pips SRK
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Shah Rukh Khan. Click for bigger pic!
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Still on Ghai's party, one of those who didn't turn up was one Shah Rukh Khan. Not even to collect his Pardes silver jubilee award. And, no, he hadn't lost his way too.
SRK was shooting with Manisha for Mani Rathnam'sDil Se in Delhi. Manisha flew down, Shah Rukh stayed put. Just by the by, the Khan's also decided not to work in Ghai's next big film,Ganga.
Anyway, this time Ghai has not launched Ganga, originally slated to star Shah Rukh and Manisha. Mahima only knows that she's been signed up for a film, but she doesn't know which one herself.
SRK's replacement may be Govinda, who, scuttlebutt has it, has been meeting the director very often. Might just be a coincidence that Govinda is also modelling for a soap called Ganga. Happens all the time, you know.
One desperate doll
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Sonali Bendre. Click for bigger pic!
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With the amount of skin Sonali Bendre has been revealing in those glossy photographs you could sheath most of the planet.
These desperate moves apparently have some relation to do with a paucity of work. But all that cheesecake doesn't help since film-makers think she's a jinx on their films. There was a time after Diljale that producers were beginning to change their view, but now they're back to thinking of her as Sonali the hex.
So now Sonali only has one decent film John Mathew's Sarfarosh with Aamir Khan.
Games people play
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Akshay Kumar. Click for bigger pic!
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Akshay Kumar and Keshu Ramsay must have sucked dry all the drawing power of the Khiladi films. But no, they are still at it.
They got onto the bandwagon after the success of the original Khiladi, produced by Venus and directed by Abbas-Mastan.
So the duo came up with Sabse Bada Khiladi with Mamta Kulkarni in the female lead. Then came Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi with Rekha and Raveena Tandon. Both were hits followed by Mr and Mrs Khiladi which did quite well, considering it opened on the same day as Deewana Mastana.
Meanwhile, Khel Khiladi Ka and Khiladi No 1failed despite sharing the same patronymic.
Have they wrung the trick dry? 'Course not. Keshu and Akki have another one up their sleeve -- International Khiladi!
Anil will return!
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Anil Kapoor. Click for bigger pic!
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Anil Kapoor was down. Yeah, yeah, but not out and all that guff.
Pardon the cliché, but Anil has regained respectability this year with Virasat, Deewana Mastana and Judaai. May be a far cry from the Bachchan successor he was touted to be after Tezaab, but then he did opt for some ill-chosen films in the euphoria. Remember Roop Ki Rani...?
This year Anil looks ahead to Raj Kumar Santoshi's Pukar and Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Jhoot Bole Kauva Kate.
In the latter he plays a simpleton, in the former a commando. The roles have played havoc with Anil's coiffure, with Pukar even bringing that black luxuriance down to heel.
If it brings Anil's career back to what it was, it's worth the sacrifice.
Virtual duality
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Shalini Govil-Pai. Click for bigger pic!
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You might not know Shalini Govil-Pai but you must have seen her creation, that Disney eye-popper,Toy Story. And we aren't discussing the characters who, putting it kindly, appeared to be suffering from hyperthyroidism.
The first complete 3-D animation film for kids made a name for Shalini and got her some welcome assignments.
The lady, with her husband who is in the same business, came over recently to India. And is coming over again. Part of some effort to get the Bollywood badshahs to think beyond two dimensions. Difficult, no doubt.
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