Bollywood star Bachchan in first Hollywood film

MUMBAI — Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan will appear in his first Hollywood film alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in a new adaptation of classic novel "The Great Gatsby", according to Warner Bros. Pictures.
The 68-year-old star of 1970s hits "Sholay" (Sparks) and "Deewaar" (Wall) joins DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire and Carey Mulligan in Australian director Baz Luhrmann's version of the 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Warner Bros. said in a statement from California on Tuesday that shooting started this week and Bachchan will play Meyer Wolfsheim, a shadowy organised crime figure who helps the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby make his money.

Bachchan was in Australia last month, where most of the filming will take place, but he did not disclose on his daily blog whether the trip was to finalise his appearance.

Instead, he wrote cryptically on August 29 as he was about to return to India: "Time has been spent well and hopefully judiciously. Days ahead will tell us whether it was fruitful or not."

The "Big B", who has a fanatical following in India and among fans of Hindi-language cinema abroad, has starred in some 150 Bollywood films. In 2008, he released his first English-language film, "The Last Lear".
Maguire, star of the "Spider-Man" franchise, plays Nick Carraway, the would-be writer and narrator of the novel, who comes to New York from the US Midwest in 1922 to make his fortune.

DiCaprio plays the lead role of Jay Gatsby, while Britain's Mulligan plays his lover, Carraway's cousin, Daisy Buchanan.The film is being made on a $150 million budget and due for release next year, according to the imdb.com website.

"The Great Gatsby" has been adapted for cinema four times previously, including in 1974 with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow.

Luhrmann, a fan of Bachchan who has said that Bollywood's trademark song and dance routines influenced his Oscar-nominated "Moulin Rouge", described Fitzgerald as "a passionate believer in the power of cinema".
"The vision and the goal of our remarkable cast and creatives is to do justice to the deftness of Fitzgerald's telling, and illuminate its big ideas and humanity." Source AFP

Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan moves too Hollywood film

Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan will appear in his first Hollywood film alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in a new adaptation of classic novel "The Great Gatsby", according to Warner Bros. Pictures.

The 68-year-old star of 1970s hits "Sholay" (Sparks) and "Deewaar" (Wall) joins DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire and Carey Mulligan in Australian director Baz Luhrmann's version of the 1925 novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

Warner Bros. said in a statement from California on Tuesday that shooting started this week and Bachchan will play Meyer Wolfsheim, a shadowy organised crime figure who helps the mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby make his money.

Bachchan was in Australia last month, where most of the filming will take place, but he did not disclose on his daily blog whether the trip was to finalise his appearance.

Instead, he wrote cryptically on August 29 as he was about to return to India: "Time has been spent well and hopefully judiciously. Days ahead will tell us whether it was fruitful or not."

The "Big B", who has a fanatical following in India and among fans of Hindi-language cinema abroad, has starred in some 150 Bollywood films. In 2008, he released his first English-language film, "The Last Lear".

Maguire, star of the "Spider-Man" franchise, plays Nick Carraway, the would-be writer and narrator of the novel, who comes to New York from the US Midwest in 1922 to make his fortune.

DiCaprio plays the lead role of Jay Gatsby, while Britain's Mulligan plays his lover, Carraway's cousin, Daisy Buchanan.

The film is being made on a $150 million budget and due for release next year, according to the imdb.com website.

"The Great Gatsby" has been adapted for cinema four times previously, including in 1974 with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow.

Luhrmann, a fan of Bachchan who has said that Bollywood's trademark song and dance routines influenced his Oscar-nominated "Moulin Rouge", described Fitzgerald as "a passionate believer in the power of cinema".

"The vision and the goal of our remarkable cast and creatives is to do justice to the deftness of Fitzgerald's telling, and illuminate its big ideas and humanity."

Text source: Google hosted news

Amitabh Bachchan to open museum in father's honour

Amitabh Bachchan is reportedly planning to open a museum dedicated to the poetry of his father Harivansh Rai Bachchan.

The actor explained that he felt the speed of modern communication had diminished the importance of classic literature and language.

"I do believe that the richness of our language is getting lost. We used to spend a lot of thought and lot of energy behind what was written and spoken. Perhaps it was a lot richer in earlier times," Bachchan told IANS.

"I don't want to blame today's generation. The time has changed, communication has become very rapid and very quick."

The 68-year-old, who is an advocate of social networking site Twitter and has his own blog, said that he wants to preserve the richness of the Hindi language.

"I've been thinking for a long time about opening a museum where I could store my father's well-known works that can be used for research work. I hope we are able to fulfill our plans to open a museum soon and preserve his iconic works."

Harivansh Rai Bachchan, who died in 2003, is credited with works such as Madhushala and Agneepath, and is regarded as one of the greatest Hindi poets of the 20th century.

Amitabh Bachchan has been actively promoting his father's works internationally.

"I didn't know that my father's work is popular in not only India but also abroad," he said. "On the occasion of the 100th birth anniversary of my father, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan in New York had invited me for the recital of his works at the Lincoln Centre and there were at least 3,500-4,000 people who had come as an audience."

He is now planning to travel the world reciting his father's poems.

Priyanka prepares Barfee, No Agneepath shoot, so Priyanka prepares for Barfee

Priyanka Chopra was supposed to start shooting with Hrithik Roshan for "Agneepath", but at the last moment her shooting was cancelled. Rather than let her unused time go waste, she immediately got hold of her "Barfee" director Anurag Basu and began preparation for her part of the mentally challenged girl in the film.

"Yes, Priyanka's shooting for 'Agneepath' got cancelled. But it was only because the shooting with the other actors that was going on from earlier went on longer than expected. Priyanka immediately got in touch with Anurag Basu and took the time to prepare for her part," said Priyanka's business manager.

Being produced by Karan Johar, "Agneepath" is the remake of director Mukul Anand's 1990 film, which had Amitabh Bachchan in the lead role. Hrithik and Priyanka starrer is being directed by Karan Malhotra.

A source close to the actress said: "The last thing Priyanka's choc-a-block schedules can withstand are last-minute cancellations. Priyanka is very particular about her commitments and expects the same level of commitment from others. Any cancellation puts her off. And this was her first stint of 'Agneepath'. She was really looking forward to starting the shoot. But what to do? She took the cancellation in her stride."

But here's where Priyanka's enterprising spirit took over.

"Anurag was busy with other pre-production work. And tried to beg off. But Priyanka would hear none of it. She told Anurag this sudden space in her schedule was god-sent. She had not been able to prepare for 'Barfee' as much as she wanted to because of her tight schedules."

"Priyanka would hear none of Anurag's protestations. She just took over his time and insisted that they visit a couple of institutions for the mentally and physically challenged. She also got immersed in lengthy workshops and even convinced Ranbir Kapoor to join her. This week she and Anurag have been inseparable in giving authenticity to her character," said a source.

Like they say, one producer's loss is another filmmaker's gain.

Amitabh Bachchan not attending World Cup final, Big B not Attending World Cup Final, Big B tweets on Twitter that he not attended to World Cup Final

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan says he has no plans of witnessing the cricket World Cup final at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium April 2.

"Many media asking if I have booked tickets for the World Cup final...not true...news is false," Amitabh posted on his Twitter page.

It was reported that Amitabh and his son Abhishek, both sports enthusiasts, would be at the stadium during the final match.

SRK again active on Twitter

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan is back on Twitter! After staying away from the micro-blogging site for over two months, the actor has returned with a bang.

"Back home after outdoor stints. Nice to be back to familiarity...and also with my familiar twitter friends. As promised a big HELLO!" Shah Rukh posted.

The actor says he is excited at the thought of releasing the teasers of his home production "Ra.One".

"Excited with thought of 'Ra.One' teaser 10 seconds tomorrow and 30 seconds from 24th on ESPN Star. Had promised will show here first. Will try," he added.

Shah Rukh is quite gung-ho about getting back to Twitter.

"Yes, nice to be back...like bad habits even you all our difficult to quit...so here's to a new round of bad habiting between u and me. Welcome back to late night sessions my friends. Love to u all," he added.

Preity back with her permed locks!

Bollywood actress Preity Zinta is once again sporting the permed hair look that she popularised in her 2001 film "Dil Chahta Hai".

For a long time, the bubbly beauty had been flaunting straight hair. But when Preity took up the role as the host of Colors' "Guinness World Records - Ab India Todega", she opted for the permed look.

"Preity loves to experiment and can carry off almost everything with style and panache. She has now permed her hair and it won't be too long before the trend catches on since she is a trendsetter in her own right. She has been receiving compliments and everyone is raving about her new look," said a source.

Amitabh, Jaya team up after 10 years for jewellery ad, Amitabh-Jaya together on Screen Again,

Did you miss seeing Bollywood power couple Amitabh-Jaya together on screen? They have teamed up again after a decade, not for an film, but for a jewellery brand ad campaign.

"At Tanishq, the jewellery business of the Tata Group for their AV for endorsement. Jaya and I doing it together," Amitabh wrote on his blog bigb.bigadda.com.

The two will be seen together after Karan Johar's super successful family saga "Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham" in 2001 which also starred Hrithik Roshan, Shah Rukh Khan Kareena Kapoor and Kajol.

Amitabh and Jaya are latest to join the list of celebrity couples coming together for endorsement. Their son Abhishek and daughter-in-law Aishwarya teamed up for Lux soap comemrcials.

Other celebrity couple seen together are Ajay Devgn and Kajol in Whirlpool ads, Shah Rukh and Gauri Khan in D'decor and Saif Ali Khan and Kareena in Airtel ads.

Silk Smitha is easier than Indira Gandhi: Vidya Balan, Vidya Balan says silk smitha is easier than Indira Gandhi

These days when ever we hear of Silk Smitha, next moment we confirm it with film 'Dirty Picture' of Vidya Balan. The name of south seductress Silk is enough to generate the feeling of lust. Apparently many feel that it would be challenging for Vidya Balan to portray the character. When you ask Vidya Balan on same question, she has something different in mind.

"Never the less film is an ode to the life of sexy siren Vijaya Lakshmi better known later as Silk Smitha and her journey to stardom followed by mysterious death. What I feel is, playing the character of Indira Gandhi is hard than Silk Smitha. People know the mannerisms of Indira Gandhi and we can't go wrong. Same applies even for Amitabh Bachchan while Silk Smitha is going to be my personal interpretation than impersonation," says Vidya Balan on taking the sex symbol of South cinema.

Charmi's Big Break In Bollywood, Charmi kaur buddah, Amitabh Bachchan, Buddah, Puri Jagannath

Telugu actor Charmi Kaur will descend on Bollywood in none other than Amitabh Bachchan's company.

Not only is the veteran star playing lead in “Buddah: Hoga Tera Baap” (there's another story behind this name!), but his home banner AB Corp is also producing the film.

It is set to bring back AB in his most loved avatar, albeit with a tweak — as an angry ‘old' man.

As for Charmi, Amitabh says he's never met her, but trusts the judgment of his director Puri Jagannath.

Sanjay Dutt goes bald, Sanjay Dutt in Agneepath, Karan Malhotra's Agneepath, Sanjay Dutt gone Bald, Karan Johar, Amitabh Bachchan

It has been reported that Sanjay Dutt, who plays a baddie in Karan Malhotra's Agneepath (he plays the suave Kancha Cheena enacted by Danny Denzongpa in the original), will go bald for the role. But the reality is a little different.

A visitor to the set in Central Mumbai, where Sanju shot a two-day portion, told BT: "Sanju is bald in the film. He had a shining pate on March 2 and 3." However, those who met the 51-year old actor the very next day at his Pali Hill residence found his mop of hair intact. In other words, the actor hasn't actually gone bald like Aamir Khan did for Ghajini and Salman Khan for Tere Naam. He is cheating the 'bald' look.

Producer Karan Johar has called the international make-up artist Robin Slater to style Hrithik and also supervise Sanju's look. The make-up expert was seen fussing over the actor. There are a lot of things about this Agneepath that are different from the original Amitabh Bachchan-Mukul Anand cult classic of the 90s. There Danny had a nice mop of hair and was based out of Mauritius. Here, Dutt is bald and his headquarters are in the union territory of Diu. Sanjay remained unavailable for comment.

The hair scare
The Bollywood brigade, especially those who have done hair-weaving jobs (Salman Khan, Sanjay Dutt, Ranbir Kapoor and Sunny Deol) aren't keen on shaving their heads for a role because it can complicate issues as far as growing it back is concerned. Also there is the continuity factor involved in films. Says an expert, "In a nutshell, guys with hair implants should ideally not risk shaving their hair just for a role. The scalp in their case is not conditioned for too many experiments.''