Bollywood Instyle

For all practical purposes the John and hot-babe Bips hot jodi is history. What is it that’s still keeping them together? Before we answer that one, let’s see what went wrong between them allowing the Kareena-Shahid jodi to claim top spot as the hot and happening Bollywood couple.  John, they say, started acting indifferent after the success of his movie Taxi No. 9211. The grapevine has it that he is now very close to Mallika after they were together on the Rockstars tour. If John and Bips are still together, you could thank the ‘Clinic All Clear’ contract for $1 million they signed as a couple, which says that they are bound to promote the brand as a couple. Grin and bear they may together, the underlying current of dissent does show. On behalf of the John-Bips fans, we do hope that the ‘Clinic All Clear’ yearlong campaign is long enough to clear all the lafdas between them.

One of Bollywood’s finest directors of the last millennium, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, is no more. He breathed his last on August 27, 2006 at 1630 hours after battling a prolonged illness. He was 84. Hrishida, as he was fondly called, won the Dadasaheb Phalke award and the Padma Vibhushan. In his illustrious career Hrishida directed 40 movies, which to name a few included some great hits such as Anand starring Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, and Jaya Bhaduri, Chupke Chupke with Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore, Amitabh Bachchan, and Jaya Bhaduri, Golmaal starring old friend Utpal Dutt and Amol Palekar, and Khubsoorat with the effervescent Rekha. The first movie Hrishida directed was Musafir (1957) with Dilip Kumar in the lead, and his last Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate in 1998. The Bollywood fraternity and movie fans will miss you Hrishida!

Bollywood stars are going places. On the heels of the news that Sushmita Sen will be starring against Richard Gere comes the news that Irrfan Khan is shooting for Hollywood movie A Mighty Heart with Angelina Jolie in the lead. The movie, based on the book on Daniel Pearl’s life, has Irrfan in a meaty role as head of the investigation team investigating into Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl’s death in Pakistan. Angelina Jolie plays the role of Mariane Pearl, Daniel Pearl’s widow. Because Irrfan Khan was denied visa to Pakistan for the shoot, the movie will now be shot in India. India is all set to welcome Angelina Jolie with an ‘open heart’.

Some girls do have it all. Bollywood ‘Sen’sation Sushmita Sen has bagged the role of a lifetime against Hollywood star Richard Gere in The Expat. Produced by Miramax Films and directed by Sutapa Ghosh, Sush plays the role of the expat and is expected to fly to Argentina for the shoot. The only cause for worry is her sprained neck, which is still troubling her and may hold her back for sometime. So bad is the neck-twist that she is dubbing for Zindagi Rocks from her bed. Knowing Sush, we are sure she will wriggle out of this ‘twisty’ situation soon.

After the success story of his last project Swades, Ashutosh Gowariker is indulging in a love story involving the romantic life of Emperor Akbar and his queen Jodha Bai. The idea was there during the making of his super hit Lagaan, but it took a long time coming pending extensive research on the subject. Haider Ali is assisting the director with the research work. The movie, Jodha Akbar, will be Ashutosh’s maiden attempt at making a love story. Ashutosh clarifies that it is a modern film set in historical times and not a period movie. He is keen on maintaining the authenticity of Akbar’s character, hence the need for careful research. Ashutosh had Hrithik in mind who will fit in the bill as a warrior with his superb physique, and the beautiful Ashwarya Rai as Jodha Bai. Having seen Hrithik’s performance with the sword as a martial artist in Krrish, we are sure that he will do justice to his sword swinging talent in Jodha Akbar too.

London-based teenager Jiah Khan is in love. She has expressed her love for none other than Amitabh Bachchan. Working in her first movie Nishabd with the greatest Bollywood icon, she just fell head over heels in love with the sexagenarian. The movie Nishabd, based on the English novel Lolita, is a story about an older man (Amitabh) falling in love with a teenager (Jiah Khan). It is a rare honor for a debutante to be working as the superstar’s leading lady. Any young girl would have given her right hand to be in Jiah’s shoes. So smitten is the girl that she plans to write to Big B, expressing her love for him. Now, is it love, schoolgirl crush, or a plain ploy to extract some publicity? Well, let’s see how things develop.

Alas! The Mauritius show with Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Zayed Khan, Celina Jaitley, and Malaika Arora slated for August 19, has been postponed. Echoing the disappointment of Bollywood movie fans, Amy said, “Me and my friends were so eagerly waiting to see Shah Rukh Khan and the other stars. It is a h-u-g-e disappointment. After watching Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna three times already, we were looking forward to seeing SRK in flesh.” (Incidentally, SRK’s Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna is doing roaring business in the beautiful island.) Yes Amy, we can understand how deprived you must be feeling at the moment. The reason for the postponement of the show, according to the organizers Entertainment Quotient and Pro Global Concept, is the delay in receipt of equipment and fireworks from London before the show. This is the consequence of the recently unearthed terrorist plot in UK. A longer wait may turn out to be sweeter! Who knows!

Bollywood star Bipasha Basu, who was to attend the India Day parade at Edison Township, New Jersey, has accused two of its organizers of physical and mental harassment. According to the organizers Indian Business Association, Bipasha Basu was to lead the parade on August 13 (Sunday). It was a disappointment for the large crowd, as she did not appear as per schedule. Bips finally turned up nearing the end of the parade. She made a public announcement that she could not attend the parade as she was harassed both mentally and physically by two persons escorting her to the parade. The organizers tried to gag her, but the public wanted her to speak. She said, “I am coming from a profession that deserves respect. I also deserve respect.” She objected to the organizers not allowing her to speak further. The organizers on the other hand pointed out that she came 2 hours late for the Saturday program too. The persons concerned could not be held guilty until proved, they maintained

Farah Khan is one heck of a busy woman these days. Apart from judging dance competitions on the idiot box, she is busy with her latest Bollywood venture Om Shanti Om. Insiders say that she is cutting down on choreography assignments to focus her energies on film direction. Among her last assignments may be the big opportunity to make Shakira dance to her steps in a concert in the US of A. Shakira will be performing her latest hit Hips Don’t Lie in complete Bollywood style. Shakira will perform her hip gyrations in typical filmy style in Indian clothes, accompanied by chorus dancers in ghagra cholis and Indian jewelry. What a sight it will be for fans who love both Shakira and Bollywood films! The show is expected to be televised live in 32 countries.

Vidya Balan is all set to learn Kathak what with a role of a Bengali dancer in the Priyadarshan Bollywood movie coming her way. The remake of the 1993 Malayalam hit Manichthrathazu has a psychiatrist madly in love with a dancer. Malayalam actress Shobhana won the National award in Manichthrathazu. Priyadarshan was very keen to work with Vidya Balan for he finds her a special talent. He had two options to work with - either Ash or Balan. The scale tilted in favor of Balan, as she would better suit Akshay Kumar as the lead actress. It is a period film that dates back a hundred years; and Balan had run away with every possible award on her debut performance in the period film Parineeta. To make her role more convincing, Vidya Balan is taking up Kathak classes.