Category: Hindi

MUMBAI: Mallika Sherawat has bagged her third Hollywood film. She has been signed to play the lead role in a film called the Politics of Love with Brian White, an African-American actor, dancer, football player, lacrosse player, stock broker and youth activist.

SeT during the 2008 US Presidential election in which Obama made history by becoming the country’s first black President, the film is about a romance between a black Republican (White) and an idealistic, Obama-worshipping Democrat (Mallika).

In 2009, Sherawat finished shooting for her first Hollywood film, Hissss, also starring Irrfan Khan and directed by Jennifer Lynch. The film, based on the legend of Naga, is an independent co-production between the United States and India.

Sherawat also finished shooting for another Hollywood film, Love, Barack in which she plays Aretha Gupta, a devoted local Obama volunteer coordinator. The film is a romantic comedy set during Barack Obama‘s campaign for the US Presidency.

The actress won the 2008 Renaissance Artist Award at the 16th Annual Diversity Awards held in California while on 14 August 2009, Sherawat received a career recognition Honorary Citizenship of Los Angeles for her career achievements and charitable efforts.

MUMBAI: Aamir Khan‘s Dhobi Ghat will have its world premiere at this year‘s Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).

Set in Mumbai, Dhobi Ghat revolves around four people who are separated by class and language but drawn together in compelling relationships. Directed by wife Kiran Rao, the film will have Khan playing the lead role of a painter.

Shai, an affluent investment banker on holiday, strikes up an unusual friendship with Munna, a young and beautiful laundry boy with ambitions of being a Bollywood actor, and also has a brief dalliance with Arun. As they come closer together, their complicated relationship no more remains a secret.

 The 35th TIFF that runs from 9 to 19 September will have 15 galas and 35 special presentations this year.

Apart from Dhobi Ghat, films by Robert Redford, Michael Winterbottom, Guillaume Canet, John Cameron Mitchell, Mike Mills and Andrucha Waddington will have their world premiere at the festival.

Top filmmakers like Woody Allen, Sylvain Chomet, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, Tran Anh Hung, Mike Leigh, Julian Schnabel and Im Sang-Soo will also their presence felt this year.
 

MUMBAI: China and Singapore have signed a film co-production agreement on the sidelines of the 7th China-Singapore Joint Council for Bilateral Co-operation (CSJCBC) in Beijing, China.

The agreement was signed by Singapore’s Parliamentary Secretary for Trade and Industry and Information, Communications and the Arts, Sam Tan, and Vice Minister Zhang Pimin, from China’s State Administration of Radio, Film and Television (Sarft).

The co-chairs of CSJCBC, Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Wong Kan Seng and China’s Vice Premier Wang Qishan, witnessed the signing.

The China-Singapore Film Co-production Agreement covers theatrical feature films and telemovies, across live-action, animation and documentaries. It is expected to pave the way for more film tie-ups between the two countries as co-productions will enjoy the same access to government funding and incentives as do national productions in each country.

Official co-productions are also treated as national productions in each country for the purposes of content regulation.

Sarft Vice Minister of China’s State Administration of Radio, Film and Television Zhang Pimin says, “In recent years, both countries have embarked on film-related exchanges such as importing each other’s films and co-organising film festivals, which set the foundation for closer collaboration in the future. The signing of the China-Singapore Film Co-production Agreement provides direction and guidance for filmmakers from both countries to pursue co-productions, and creates favourable conditions for partnerships in content and technology development.”

Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts Sam Tan says, “With a rising global interest in Asian media content, this Film Co-Production Agreement presents immense opportunities for filmmakers in China and Singapore to collaborate, as well as share experiences and resources to showcase the rich heritage and culture in our two countries internationally through films. There is also potential for filmmakers from both countries to collaborate in new growth areas, such as stereoscopic 3D productions”.

The negotiations for the Agreement started in late 2008 and took about one-and-a-half years to conclude, a relatively short time for such agreements, and a testament of the longstanding and special relations between Singapore and China.

The Film Co-production Agreement will be administered by Sarft Film Bureau and Media Development Authority (MDA), on behalf of China and Singapore, respectively.

To facilitate greater exchanges between filmmakers from both countries, the Sarft Film Bureau and MDA plan to embark on a regular China-Singapore Film Festival Exchange. This follows a successful pilot that saw the inaugural Singapore Film Festival in Beijing and Shanghai in 2007, and the first China Film Festival in Singapore in 2008. In addition to reaching out to the movie-going public, these film festivals will serve as platforms for filmmakers from both sides to meet and exchange ideas.

Sarft Film Bureau deputy DG La Peikang says, “In line with our common goal of promoting cultures and mutual development, Sarft and MDA co-hosted film festivals in 2007 and 2008. The first Singapore Film Festival held at Beijing and Shanghai in 2007 was well-received by Chinese audiences; similarly, the China Film Festival in Singapore in 2008 was equally a success. We hope the China-Singapore Film Festival Exchange would promote the development of the two countries’ film industries, and contribute toward enhancing the friendship between the peoples of the two nations”.

MDA CEO Dr Christopher Chia says, “The China-Singapore Film Co-production Agreement is a landmark agreement that will spur greater industry collaborations between the two countries. It facilitates filmmakers from China and Singapore to pool resources and create a larger distribution network for the international market. China and Singapore share deep historical and cultural connections. This affinity in language and culture, warmed by many decades of friendly collaboration, will allow filmmakers from both countries to pursue common themes and unearth uniquely Asian storylines that can resonate with global audiences”.

MUMBAI: Walkwater Media‘s Tere Bin Laden is being readied to have a wide US release.

The spoof on the Osama Bin Laden tapes that appeared intermittently on TV channels and bagged attention after the 9/11 US terrorist attacks, hasn‘t faced any opposition from the US censors. Besides, going by the inquisitiveness among viewers there, the producers have decided to prepone the film‘s release.

States producer Aarti Shetty, “We wanted to give the film a mainstream release in the US after two months, but our international distributors advised us to release it right away since the buzz in the US markets was very strong.”

Tere Bin Laden has pocketed more than Rs 56 million in its first week from across 344 screens in India. The film that was released earlier in the UK, UAE and Australian markets has fetched over Rs 14 million overseas.
 

MUMBAI: Not cowed down by his age, Dev Anand, 86, is going to remake his 1971 hit, Hare Rama Hare Krishna, soon.

“I will shoot a new version of Hare Rama Hare Krishna in Nepal very soon. The script is ready. People want another ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna‘ I know that,” Anand told reporters who were there to have a first look of his upcoming directorial venture Chargesheet.

“If people can make remakes and biopics, why can‘t there be a remake of this film, Anand asked. The film will be made keeping in perspective the present generation,”‘ the actor said, adding that his film was about drugs and hippies.
Anand‘s last few directorial ventures, Censor (2001), Love at Times Square (2003) and Mr Prime Minister (2005), sank at the box office. But the legendary filmmaker is not disheartened.

Produced by Navketan films,‘Chargsheet is a suspense thriller where the evergreen star plays a pivotal role. The film also features ex-Samajwadi party leader Amar Singh as a home minister in the film.

Anand also spoke of his classic Hum Dono that would be soon released in a colour version. “Hum Dono has been coloured and it will be out very soon. It looks fantastic, as if it has been shot in colour,” Anand remarked.
 

MUMBAI: Out at Shimla on location hunting for his directorial debut film, acclaimed actor Ravi Baswani passed away yesterday afternoon following a heart attack.

Baswani was best known for his roles as photographer Sudhir Mishra in the cult film Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron and the carefree Lakhan in Chashme Badoor.
 
He was recently seen in films like Lucky-No Time For Love, Bunty Aur Babli and Pyar Tune Kya Kiya. Baswani was also quiet liked by the small screen audience and was very often seen on television.

Filmmaker Sai Paranjpe, who directed Chasme Badoor, remembers Baswani as a fantastic actor who had a great career ahead of him but couldn‘t adjust to the industry.

“I am shocked. He was immensely talented. His comic timing was perfect,” Paranjpe said.

MUMBAI: Looks like Indian movie production houses are planning to shift shelter from the Alternative Investment Market (AIM).

After raising capital to fund their movie projects and build initial scale, the production houses are finding liquidity, additional pools of investment and scrip movement of their stocks an issue at AIM. UTV Motion Pictures delisted while the promoters of the Indian Film Company intend to entirely buyback the shares.

The latest to express this intent is Eros International. The AIM-listed movie production company said Tuesday it plans to shift to London‘s main bourse after completing its Indian listing.

“It is our intention that following the completion of the Indian listing, we will begin the process to move from AIM to the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange,” Eros stated.

Eros has filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) and is awaiting approval. It plans to raise Rs 3.5 billion via an initial public offering (IPO) in a parallel listing that would help fund its ambitious expansion plans.

“For Indian media companies like UTV and Network18 Group who were looking at diversifications into movies, London‘s junior market provided an easy platform to raise capital. Eros also jumped into the bandwagon as it sought to move primarily from a movie rights distribution company to a business model that included film production. But shares of these companies lacked substantial liquidity and market cap couldn‘t scale up,” says a media analyst who tracks movie stocks.

Eros feels after three years of listing on AIM, the main market will help fuel its next phase of growth.

“We now have over three years of track record of successful growth on AIM and believe that the Main Market represents a natural progression for us given our size and maturity as a business. We also hope to access additional pools of investment capital and liquidity as a result of the planned move,” it said.

Eros, which today announced its preliminary results for fiscal ended 31 March, has posted a profit before tax (pretax profit) of $49.5 million, up 2 per cent from $48.4 million a year ago.

Revenue fell four per cent to $149.7 million, accounted for by a 17 per cent slip in television syndication income to $52.9 million. Cash flow from operations was up 59 per cent to $108.3 million, from $68.2 million in the year-ago period.

Net debt reduced by 19 per cent to $104.3 million, while administrative costs fell 21 per cent to $16.2 million.

Theatrical business

Theatrical revenues grew by eight per cent to $50.2 million (from $46.3 million). The company released 83 films in the year, (as compared to 94 films it released in 2009) of which 13 (2009: 22) were released globally including Tamil and other regional films.

Television business

Revenues fell by 17 per cent to $52.9 million, as against $64 million in the earlier year. Eros said that the fall was in line with expectations as television revenues had grown by 94 per cent in 2009 from just $33 million in 2008.

Eros said that revenues came from new and existing deals with Star, Zee TV, Sony, Sun TV, B4U, Kalaignar TV and other television broadcasters in India as well as dubbed and subtitled markets internationally.

Revenues include subscription revenues from the Ayngaran Tamil television network in Europe.

Digital and Home Entertainment

Revenues from the digital and home entertainment segment were up marginally to $46.6 million (from $46.2 million). The company said that several films were exploited on the major DTH platforms such as Dish TV, Tata Sky, Airtel digital TV and Reliance Big TV in India on pay-per-view basis, marking the beginning of a new revenue stream.

MUMBAI: A popular franchise just cannot be disbanded, may it be Superman, Batman or our very own Munnabhai.

After almost drawing the curtains on his next Munnabhai venture Munnabhai Chale Amrika, Rajkumar Hirani has once again revived the idea of making the film for Vidhu Vinod Chopra.

He is now scripting the next Munnabhai with his co-writer Abhijat Joshi. Once it‘s done, production work will start.

Initially, it was planned that in Mumnnabhai Chale Amrika, Munna and Circuit would go to America to meet its president. But Hirani lost interest after Karan Johar used the same idea of his protagonist meeting the US President in My Name is Khan.

Under tremendous pressure from distributors and also from the masses to bring back Munna, Hirani has planned to revive the film. “Wherever I go, people walk up to me and ask, ‘Where is that Munnabhai film, the trailer of which was shown with Eklavya in 2007? Some slightly aggressive people remarked, “Aap ne trailer dikhaya, film kahan hai?,” Hirani avers.

“Munna and Circuit are very interesting characters we have created and we can relate many socially relevant subjects using them,” Hirani adds.

The new film will see an aged Munnabhai to suit Sanjay‘s current age and personality.
 

MUMBAI: Angelina Jolie‘s latest film Salt that opened in India with 464 prints in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu simultaneously on 23 July became the star‘s biggest opening film in India when it garnered Rs 78 million in its opening weekend.

The success of the espionage thriller that released on 23 July has cemented Jolie‘s position as an action star comparable to James Bond and Bourne. It opened with a solid $36m at the US box office.

Said Sony Pictures India MD Kercy Daruwala, “The film has done great business thanks to Angelina Jolie‘s appeal with both men and women. Moreover, the spy genre has always appealed to Indian audiences. In fact this looks like it could be the highest grossing female-led Hollywood film in India.” 

Salt follows the tremendous success of Sony Pictures‘ The Karate Kid which is still continuing a long run at the box-office in its seventh week.

Sony Pictures‘ next releases are the $150m plus Adam Sandler comedy Grown Ups on 13 August as well as the studio‘s next four-language release, Resident Evil: Afterlife, in 3D that will release on 10 September. This will be followed shortly by the much-awaited Julia Roberts starrer Eat Pray Love in October.
 

MUMBAI: After having distributed over 60 Hollywood films in India, PVR Pictures will start distributing Indian films abroad in the next six months.

PVR has already tied up with an independent company for overseas distribution and sale of Indian films abroad.

Says PVR president Kamal Gianchandani, “Initially, we will make our presence felt in the UK and US and are looking for alliances in other countries too.”

On the home front, PVR recently released Rahul Dholakia‘s Lamhaa and Priyadarshan‘s Khatta Meetha in certain Indian territories.

In 2010, PVR will also distribute Hollywood films like The Twilight saga: Eclipse, The Expendables, Agora, Piranha 3D, Step Up 3D, The Eagle of the Ninth, Fair Game, The Hole, The Rum Diary, London Boulevard and Biutiful.

PVR Pictures will release about six to eight Hindi films. In the regional films market too, PVR is looking to distribute seven to eight films, says Gianchandani.