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Tag: Bombay talkies

  • Culinary comedy Jadoo to be Closing Night Gala Film at the 12th annual IFFLA

    Culinary comedy Jadoo to be Closing Night Gala Film at the 12th annual IFFLA

    MUMBAI: On Tuesday, 18 March, the Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) announced its 2014 lineup of narrative and documentary features and short films for this year’s festival. The impressive program reflects the rich diversity of Indian cinema, as well as the future of Indian filmmaking, with filmmakers bringing their acclaimed films to Los Angeles (LA).

     

    The festival, widely recognized as the premiere showcase of groundbreaking Indian cinema globally is celebrating its 12th year. The IFFLA will run from 8-13 April at ArcLight Hollywood in Los Angeles, the festival’s home since its inception.

     

    The culinary comedy, Jadoo has been chosen as the Closing Night Gala Film. Jadoo, a delightful and delicious exploration of family bonds amidst two feuding brothers’ restaurants in England, will screen as the festival’s Closing Night Gala. Jadoo is written and directed by IFFLA alum Amit Gupta, and first premiered at the 2013 Berlinale (Berlin Film Festival). It features a wonderful ensemble cast that includes Kulvinder Ghir, Amara Karan, Harish Patel, Tom Mison, and Madhur Jaffrey. The red-carpet screening will be followed by an exclusive after-party at Nirvana-Bombay Palace in Beverly Hills.

     

    As previously announced, IFFLA will open with Jeffrey D. Brown’s Sold, produced by Jane Charles, and executive produced by Emma Thompson.

     

     IFFLA’s Artistic Director Jasmine Jaisinghani expressed his excitement in a press release stating that he is proud of this year’s IFFLA line-up which includes an especially diverse range of cinematic experiences, covering many regions of India and the diaspora. Jaisinghani said, “We would like to thank our Programming Advisor in India, Uma Da Cunha, for helping our programming team source some of these exceptional films.”

     

    Program highlights also include the North American premiere of Anurag Kashyap’s latest, Ugly, an intense, masterfully directed psychological thriller that premiered in the 2013 Director’s Fortnight section of Cannes; Liar’s Dice, the remarkable directorial debut of South Indian actress Geetu Mohandas that premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival; Anup Singh’s latest feature Qissa: The Tale of a Lonely Ghost, starring Irrfan Khan (Life of Pi, Slumdog Millionaire), winner of NETPAC Award at the Toronto International Film Festival, and Dioraphte Award at the International Film Festival Rotterdam; the Audience Award winner at the 2013 Slamdance Film Festival Hank & Asha, an exploratory, romantic look at two people bonding in the digital age by newcomer James E. Duff; Nagraj Manjule’s Fandry, a highly praised debut feature for its multilayered emotion and realism on the subject of caste discrimination; Brahmin Bulls, starring Roshan Seth (Gandhi, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, Mississippi Masala) and Sendhil Ramamurthy (Beauty and the Beast, Heroes) as an estranged father and son unexpectedly brought together to confront the family’s past; and Siddharth, a nuanced look at a family whose son goes missing, by lauded Canadian director and IFFLA alum Richie Mehta (Amal).

     

    The festival’s feature documentary competition includes an eclectic mix of films from established and upcoming filmmakers that consider India’s unique traditions and dynamic future. The films include: the world premiere of The Auction House, an intimate and funny look at two brothers trying to keep their anachronistic family business going in the digital age; festival favorite Powerless, which depicts intense struggles over electricity in a mid-size Indian city; Faith Connections, IFFLA alum Pan Nalin’s beautiful and rare look at the Kumbh Mela; and the National Award-winning Shepherds of Paradise, about an arduous, mountainous trek through an animal drive in the Kashmiri winter.

     

    The popular Bollywood by Night series returns this year with Bombay Talkies and Monsoon Shoutout. Premiering at last year’s Cannes Film Festival, Bombay Talkies is a quartet of short films that celebrates 100 years of Indian cinema. The omnibus film features work by four of India’s most exciting contemporary directors: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, and Anurag Kashyap, as well as a stellar cast that includes Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukerji, and Katrina Kaif. Monsoon Shootout is a thrilling debut by IFFLA alum writer/director Amit Kumar, about how a split-second decision made by a rookie police officer has rippling effects in his life and the lives of those around him.

     

    The shorts competition showcases a diverse selection of 15 films that include narrative, documentary, experimental, and animated works. Highlights of this year’s program include Academy Award shortlisted Kush; Sundance award winner Love.Love.Love; and the world premiere of acclaimed director Umesh Kulkarni’s The Fly.

  • Amole Gupte casts Saqib Saleem in Hawaa Hawaai

    Amole Gupte casts Saqib Saleem in Hawaa Hawaai

    Writer-director Amole Gupte had promised to make another ‘heartwarming’ film after his masterpiece Stanley Ka Dabba. The details of the movie, to be produced by Fox Star Studios, are finally out.

     

    Titled Hawaa Hawaai, the film is about ‘dreamers’, according to Gupte. The filmmaker has roped in Bombay Talkies actor Saqib Saleem in the lead. His son Partho Gupte, who won the National Film Award for his role as Stanley, will also be seen in the film.

     

    Hawaa Hawaai is the story of how a dream can be achieved. Gupte elaborates, “Dreamers possess the might to move mountains. This dream flight is the triumph of human spirit in the wake of adversity… rooted so deep in our ethos that the identification with the protagonists of the tale is instant. I have been so lucky to have netted two magical performers ably supported by an ensemble cast that is equally talented and exciting.”

     

    Hawaa Hawaai is set to release on 18 April 2014. And considering Gupte’s contribution to films such as Taare Zameen Par and Stanley Ka Dabba, this new offering from the director would be highly anticipated.

  • TV18 results show upturn for Q1-2014

    TV18 results show upturn for Q1-2014

    BENGALURU: Indian media and entertainment company TV18 Broadcast Limited (TV18) turned in a profit of Rs 5.9 crore after tax for the quarter on the back of a significantly deleveraged balance sheet as compared to a loss of Rs 23.5 crore in the previous year.

     

    Income from operations for Q1-2014 stood at Rs107.37 crore, with other income contributing another Rs 2.25 crore to arrive at a net operating income of Rs109.62 crore, lower than the net operating income of Rs136.91 crore reported for Q1-2012 and significantly lower than the net operating income of Rs147.06 crore reported for Q4-2014. TV18’s net profit was Rs 8.91crore for Q1-2014 as against a net loss of Rs 7.79 crore for Q1-2013, but much lower than the net profit of Rs 20.95 crore for Q4-2013.

     

    Let us take a look at the unaudited Q1-2014 figures

     

    Q1-2014 revenues from its media operations stood at Rs 383.4 crore, while those from its motion picture business were Rs 18.8 crore. Reduction of inter-segmental revenues of Rs 6 crore resulted in reported revenues for the television and motion pictures business, including IndiaCast revenues of Rs 147.9 crore (75 per cent for the current year) at Rs 396.2 crore for the quarter.

     

    Reported operating profit for Q1-2014 stood at Rs 23.8 crore, up 57 per cent over the Rs 15.5 crore during the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

     

    Overall, the company’s motion picture business dragged operating profits down. The company says that the losses from the Motion Pictures business were primarily on account of the tepid audience response received by its movie Bombay Talkies.

     

    In the current quarter, its release Bhaag Milkha Bhaag has been a critically acclaimed, runaway hit.

     

    For Q1-2014, motion picture business with revenues of Rs 18.8 crore reported an operating loss of Rs 8.4 crore, bringing down the operating profit of Rs 14.7 crore from the News and Entertainment segment and the Rs 15.2 crore operating profit from the Entertainment – Television business and the Rs 2.3 crore (75 per cent current year) from Indiacast.

     

    Comparatively, losses from the Motion Picture business were much lower at Rs 2.4 crores during Q1-2013, while during Q4-2013, the Motion Picture business had actually returned a profit of Rs 3 crore during the previous quarter (Q4-2013).

     

    Advertising Revenues grew 5.5 per cent year for Q1-2015 at Rs 227.5 crore as compared to Rs 215.6 crore the company reported in Q1-2013, but were significantly lower by Rs 50 crore (18 per cent) than the Rs 277.5 crore the company reported for the pervious quarter (Q4-2013).

     

    Net Distribution Income grew 32 percent sequentially to Rs 34.9 crore for Q1-2014, swinging from a loss of Rs 16 crore during Q1-2013 and higher than the Rs 26.4 crore reported during the previous quarter Q4-2013.

     

    IndiaCast is a 50-50 joint venture between TV18 and Viacom18 and has been consolidated as such. IndiaCast came into operation on 1 July 2012 and as such, is consolidated only from Q2 FY13. Also for the previous year it was consolidated as a 100 per cent subsidiary. TV18 moved to the Net Distribution Income methodology of accounting for carriage and subscription from Q2FY13. Q1FY13 results have been regrouped to ensure comparability. For Q1FY13, gross subscription and carriage numbers are included in the audited results of FY13. From the current year; we have stopped reporting new operations separately given their vintage. Segmental numbers are based on management accounts and are not audited.

     

    Effective 1 July 2012, IndiaCast has been managing TV18’s and Viacom18’s distribution operations. operating profits Net Distribution Income may be understood as subscription revenues earned by the company minus carriage/placement fees or any promotions/commission paid.

     

    News and Infotainment Operations

    The summary for this segment shows three streams – General News, Business News and Infotainment (AETN18). For Q1-2014, operating profits from Business News of Rs 17.5 crore were eroded by the Rs 1.4 crore loss reported by General News and another Rs 1.4 crore loss by Infotainment to arrive at a net operating profit of Rs 14.7 crore.

     

    Overall revenues for this segment were lower at Rs 119 crore for Q1-2014 as compared to the Rs 127 crore for Q1-2013 and significantly lower (by 25 per cent) than the Rs158.3 crore during the last quarter (Q4-2013). Even the revenues from the Business News stream were significantly lower (by 38.6 per cent) at Rs 57.3 crore for Q1-2014 as compared to the Rs 93.3 crore for Q4-2013, but were about six per cent higher than the Rs 54.2 crore reported for the corresponding quarter of the previous years (Q1-2013).

     

    General News and Infotainment streams revenues were lower for Q1-2014 at Rs 55.2 crore (General News) and Rs 6.5 crore (Infotainment) as compared to the Rs 62.1 crore (General News) and Rs 10.7 crore (Infotainment) for Q1-2013. During Q4-2013, General News reported revenues of Rs 56.1 crore and Infotainment Rs 8.9 crore.

     

    Entertainment Business

     

    Q1-2014 revenues for Viacom 18 stood at Rs 408.3 crore as compared to the Rs 340.8 crore for Q1-2013 and Rs 404.8 crore for Q4-2013. Operating profits stood at Rs 15.2 crore as against Rs 2.4 crore in Q1-2013.

     

    Broadcasting revenues for Q1-2014 were Rs 303.6 crore. The company says that

     

    operating profits from its broadcasting business grew by 35 per cent over the previous year.

     

    ETV News and Entertainment (Non-Telugu)

     

    Figures reported on a 100 per cent basis for this stream are as follows:

     

    ETV News revenues for Q1-2014 were Rs 27.8 crore with EBITDA of Rs 8.9 crore while revenues from ETV Entertainment stood at Rs 57.5 crore and a negative EBITDA of Rs 42.5 crore.

     

    Said Network 18 managing director Raghav Bahl, “The macroeconomic environment continues to be challenging and growth prospects remain uncertain. Given this backdrop, our broadcasting operations turned in a steady performance aided by the roll out of digitisation in 42 cities. However, there were pockets of weakness and we are committed to improving segments that are not meeting expectations. We have a strong portfolio of channels and remain confident of unlocking their value for our stakeholders.”

     

    Added Group CEO B Saikumar, “We continue to turn in steady operating profits from our television businesses. Motion pictures have seen losses this quarter and the management is confident of stemming them in the immediate term. While our news and infotainment businesses have seen distinct softness in advertising, our entertainment businesses led by Colors have performed well on this front. Net Distribution Revenues from IndiaCast are on a strong growth trajectory and we continue to be enthused by its growth potential. The industry is going through several important changes on both the advertising and distribution fronts. We believe that these changes are positive and will lead to a stronger industry structure. We remain confident of delivering a strong year ahead.”

  • Monsoon Shootout, Bombay Talkies to bookend 4th London IFF

    Monsoon Shootout, Bombay Talkies to bookend 4th London IFF

    MUMBAI: Amit Kumar‘s trigger happy Monsoon Shootout will be the red carpet UK premiere opening night film of the 4th annual London Indian Film Festival (IFF) to be held between 18-25 July, Together with O2. This film is a version of Sliding Doors meets a hyper-real cop thriller, which will have you on the edge of your seats. Closing the festival will be a special UK premiere of Bombay Talkies with four stories by acclaimed directors Karan Johar, Zoya Akhtar, Dibakar Banerjee and Anurag Kashyap exploring 100 years of Indian cinema, studded with top independent and Bollywood stars. Both films had a triumphant reception at the recent Cannes Film Festival and special guests are expected for both screenings.

    Now Europe‘s largest platform for Indian cinema, the London IFF returns to the Capital, celebrating the movement of Indian independent cinema and bringing to UK audiences a rare selection of cutting-edge films from some of India‘s hottest independent talents. Going way beyond Bollywood, the festival presents a kaleidoscope of new films that challenge, shock, generate debate and present a more realistic view of India and the subcontinent, in all its diversity. For the first time, the festival is going on tour to Bradford and Glasgow.

    The centerpiece In conversation on Saturday 20 July at the BFI Southbank, will be with actor Irrfan Khan, one of the very few Indians to straddle Hollywood, British and Indian cinema, talking to award winning director of Senna, Asif Kapadia. Khan‘s memorable film roles include BAFTA winner, The Warrior and Oscar winners, Slumdog Millionaire and Life of Pi and Hollywood biggies like The Amazing Spider-Man, The Darjeeling Limited and The Namesake, and Bollywood hits Life In A Metro, Mumbai Meri Jaan, New York and Paan Singh Tomar.

    London IFF also has films and events for a wide range of audiences and includes industry events at BAFTA, exploring UK and Indian subcontinent co-productions. The winner of the annual Satyajit Ray short film competition will be announced at the end of the festival at The Nehru Centre in Mayfair.

    The Major sponsors this year will include O2 International Sim, and the festival is also grant funded for the first time, by the BFI Film Festival Fund.

    Festival director Cary Rajinder Sawhney comments, “We are delighted that the festival is growing from strength to strength. If you want to find out more about south Asian cinema come and soak yourself in a week of magnificent films in London, or catch the festival tour in Bradford and Glasgow.”

  • Standing ovation for ‘Bombay Talkies’ at Melbourne

    Standing ovation for ‘Bombay Talkies’ at Melbourne

    NEW DELHI: ‘Bombay Talkies‘, the closing film of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IIFM) received a rare honour by receiving a standing ovation by a 600 member strong audience.

    "We could not have wished for a better closing night movie than Bombay Talkies, making its Australian debut only three days after receiving a gala screening in Cannes. The response to the screening has been beyond expectation" said IFFM festival director Mitu Bhowmick Lange.

    An anthology of four short films by four of India‘s most exciting directors – Anurag Kashyap, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Karan Johar – Bombay Talkies was the icing on the cake for the festival‘s own celebrations of 100 years of Indian cinema, and the packed audience loved it.

    "That was incredible. We saw aspects of India we rarely see, and could identify with every story," said one fan. "It was a real eye-opener about India, and Indian cinema. The gay kiss was refreshing to see too! And the film extremely confronting, especially coming from a mainstream film maker like Karan Johar", said Leima Popal who is an avid Bollywood fan.

    Following a long standing ovation, Aussies could be heard singing the Bombay Talkies song on their way out.

  • Bombay Talkies : A montage of cinema

    Bombay Talkies : A montage of cinema

    MUMBAI: Bombay Talkies is a 128-minute film made to pay tribute to the Indian film industry on its completing 100 years. The film tells four stories directed by four filmmakers: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar and Anurag Kashyap. These are followed at the end by the use of a montage created with the participation by all the top artistes from past and present through a song.

    Producers:Viacom 18 Motion Pictures, Ashi Dua.
    Director: Karan Johar, Dibakar Banerjee, Zoya Akhtar, Anurag Basu.
    Cast: Rani Mukerji, Randeep Hooda, Saqib Saleem, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Vineet Kumar Singh, Sadashiv Amrapurkar, Ranvir Shorey, Naman Jain, Sudhir Pandey, Khushi Dubey, Amitabh Bachchan and Katrina Kaif incameo

    The first feature by Johar (27 minutes) is about a long-married couple, both professionals in the media, Rani Mukerji and Randeep Hoooda, and co-starring Saqib Saleem. Saleem is a fresh intern at the newspaper where Mukerji is the associate editor. She prefers to sit among her colleagues rather than boxed in a cabin and is an amiable kind. Saleem befriends her instantly and informs her that he is gay. He has a way with words and is full of wit. He is invited over for dinner at Mukerji‘s for his birthday where Hooda is first indifferent to him but later feels that there is more to Saleem than his wisecracks. The story of a happily married couple and their lives changes after that day.

    This is an interesting story thanks to its humour and with restrained performances by Mukerji and Hooda and a sparkling one by Saleem.

    The feature by Banerjee (26 minutes) is about a failed Marathi stage actor, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, whose only connection now with acting is telling his daughter film stories while enacting parts of them. This one is based on a short story, Patol Babu, Film Star, by Satyajit Ray. One day, Siddiqui is on his way for a job of a building security man. He is late and the job has been taken. On his way back, he

    watches a film being shot on the streets. As he penetrates the crowd of onlookers to come ahead for a better view, he is offered a passing shot in the film. He has to pass the star and bang into him and then react with ‘Aeeeeeeee‘. While imagining his dialogue to be all the powerful ones from past films he has mouthed a hundred times he has an encounter with the soul of his father, Sadashiv Amrapurkar, and gets into a debate. He comes out enlightened, suggests to the crew that it made no sense him walking straight and banging into the star. Instead, it would make more sense if he was reading a paper as he walked and banged. His suggestion is welcomed. Shot is okay in one go. Excited that finally he has a new story to tell his daughter that of his own success, he does not even wait to collect his remuneration for that one shot and rushes home.

    This one is a showcase of Nawazuddin‘s versatility as he shows his comfort with the Marathi language as well as character.

    In the feature directed by Akhtar (24 minutes), 12-year-old Naman Jain is out watching a movie with his parents and sister, Khushu Dubey. There comes a song performed by Katina Kaif, ‘Sheila ki jawaani‘, and the boy is absorbed as he watches all the moves made by Kaif. Back home, he gets into his sister‘s clothes and starts to mimic the steps only to be caught by his father, Ranvir Shorey. Shorey wants his son to play football and be athletic, not dance in girls‘ clothes. Then Kaif is on TV telling her viewers to be determined and keep one‘s desires to oneself. Shorey shows a clear gender bias as he would rather pay Rs 3000 for his son‘s football coaching which he hates than spend Rs 2000 on his daughter‘s school picnic. Since Jain has shared his passion for dancing with his sister, he decides to do something about her school trip. After opening piggy banks, they are still Rs 250 short. A show of Naman‘s dances is organised in the building backyard. ‘Shiela ki jawaani‘ saves the day.

    An eternal debate about parents forcing own aspirations on children and their bias towards boy child.

    The last feature, directed by Kashyap (30 minutes) stars Sudhir Pande and is about a dying man‘s last wish to have Amitabh Bachchan taste a piece of murabba from his jar and return the rest so that he may taste a bit everyday and have a longer life. The man‘s father had desired Dilip Kumar to do the same with a jar of honey which Pande was made to carry from Allahabad to Mumbai to meet Dilip Kumar and ask him to do the needful. Pande‘s emotional and obedient son, Vineet Kumar Singh, proceeds to Mumbai to meet Bachchan. After days of trying, he finally meets Bachchan who obliges, no questions asked.

    This purposeless story seems more about a tribute to Bachchan and his popularity.

    The montage tribute song that marks the end of the film is the most watchable.

     

    Shootout At Wadala: A gory encounter

    MUMBAI: Shootout At Wadala is a chapter chronicled in S Husain Zaidi‘s book on Mumbai underworld about the rise of Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar. However, the film is not really about Dawood Ibrahim as the book is. Not only did Dawood neutralise many reigning dons like Haji Mastan and Karim Lala on his way up, he also created some and met some on the way. Two such people were Manohar Surve aka Manya Surve. This film aspires to make a Deewaar out of Shootout At Wadala using Manya Surve‘s story. But Manya Surve is just a chapter in Dawood story and remains just that. Deewaar was a dramatised version of the rise of Haji Mastan, who was a living mystery for many at the time. He was linked to film stars as well as other city elite and hence had his own glamour. In comparison, to today‘s generation, Manya Surve comes out of the blue.

    Producers: Sanjay Gupta, Anuradha Gupta, Shobha Kapoor, Ekta Kapoor.
    Director: Sanjay Gupta.
    Cast: John Abraham, Anil Kapoor, Tusshar Kapoor, Kangna Ranaut, Manoj Bajpai, Sonu Sood, Ronit Roy, Mahesh Manjrekar, Ranjeet with cameos by Jackie Shroff, Akbar Khan and item numbers by Sunny Leone, Priyanka Chopra and Sophie Choudhary

    John Abraham (Manya Surve), a Mumbai youth and diligent student, is honest to the core and with only one aim: to graduate and bring his mother, Soni Razdan, out of the misery his stepfather has put her through all her life. He has a steady girlfriend, Kangna Ranaut, whom he refuses to help during exams as he does not want to get caught doing any wrong which may derail his plan. Abraham‘s step-brother, though debarred from the city, lands up at home. His enemies soon follow him and are about to kill him. Abraham, a simple, non-violent lad, intervenes on the goading of Ranaut and during that time his brother grabs the opportunity and stabs the last of his enemies attacking him.

    It is the day of the result and Abraham is on the way to check how he did via his mandatory visit to the temple when the police too reach his college. After being beaten in front of the entire college crowd, he is taken in custody for the murder his brother committed. That there is a conspiracy to frame Abraham is revealed only much later. Abraham‘s life does a cartwheel. His future plans of a secure job, marriage and happy life for his mother all end as he is sentenced to life imprisonment along with his brother. The brothers are attacked in jail and while his brother is killed, Abraham is saved by Tusshar Kapoor. Abraham knows there is no turning back now but to rise on the path he has been forced on, that of crime.

    A bond is formed between Abraham and Kapoor and both escape from jail. It has been nine years and that time has taught the duo all the tricks of the crime world and of survival. They need to join some group and decide on Kaskar brothers, Manoj Bajpai and Sonu Sood, though here they are referred to as different names instead of Sabir and Dawood. But instead of joining them, they come back as enemies of these brothers who lead the most dreaded gang in South Bombay at the time because of which no other gang will accept them anymore.

    Abraham decides to form his own gang with the ultimate aim of ruling Bombay, becoming ‘Bambai ka Baap‘. Soon a gang is formed, adding some expert criminals on its roster, like Siddhant Kapoor, a sharpshooter etc. Meanwhile, Ranaut has also returned to his life, duly widowed. As the Surve saga unfolds and meets its inevitable end, there is gore, violence, bullets flying, use of foul words, some sex and item numbers. There are also known faces for cameos like Akbar Khan playing Haji Mastan, Ranjeet as a dada whose conspiracy it was to frame Abraham and Jackie Shroff playing the commissioner of police. His gang members are either killed by the Kaskars or taken in by the police. Left alone, Abraham is holed up at a safe location. But he is bored and wants to break out and leave the city with Ranaut. Ranaut is deceived into believing that police wanted to save Abraham‘s life from the Kaskar gang. Anil Kapoor, the cop chasing Abraham learns about his plan to meet her at Wadala College the next day. A posse of policemen led by Anil Kapoor, Ronit Roy and Mahesh Manjrekar rains bullets on Abraham to carry out the first acknowledged encounter by Mumbai police.

    The narration of Shootout At Wadala is in flashbacks. Abraham is shot fatally and in the pretext of taking him to hospital, Anil Kapoor whiles away time as he dies while listening to the story of Manya Surve. Thus the story proceeds in a number of flashbacks, often confusing the viewer about the time factor. Also, though it may be the first encounter, it is not the first gang world film and hence no novelty including the deception of Ranaut which is similar to a recent film. This also makes the flow of the film suffer. Sanjay Gupta shows some enterprise in shot taking. While the Sunny Leone item number is good, the one on Priyanka Chopra has no appeal and Ala re ala…. is good for front bench masses. Attempts at creating claptrap dialogue have worked a few times but often the result is a blunt nothing. Photography is good. Despite a crowded screen, it is John Abraham‘s show all the way and he does justice to the character of Manya Surve. Tusshar Kapoor is an excellent foil to the protagonist. Ranaut is incidental to the story. Anil Kapoor, Manoj Bajpai, Sonu Sood, Ronit Roy, Mahesh Manjrekar are good in support.

    Shootout At Wadala has its best prospects in the Bombay circuit, especially the Maharashtra belt and its single screens are expected to do better than multiplexes.

  • Chhota Bheem to take on Bombay Talkies & Shootout at Wadala this Friday

    Chhota Bheem to take on Bombay Talkies & Shootout at Wadala this Friday

    MUMBAI: With the nationwide release of Chhota Bheem & The Throne of Bali popular animation character Chhota Bheem will be seen taking on real life stars from Bombay Talkies and Shootout at Wadala this Friday, 3 May. To be released in three languages – Hindi, Tamil and Telugu and in over five hundred theatres, this will be one of the largest ever-theatrical releases of an Indian animation film.

    "Children as an audience are more loyal. We are quite certain that Chhota Bheem & The Throne of Bali will emerge top release of the week and over time give one of the best box office returns," stated co producer Samir Jain.

    Allu Arvind‘s Geetha Film Distributors and Yash Raj Films will distribute the film in South and rest of India respectively. This is the second Chhota Bheem film to be released. The previous film, Chhota Bheem and the Curse of Damyaan was released in May 2012 and drew a collection of Rs 49.2 million, which is the highest ever collection for an Indian animation film.

    "Being our first release, the film was exhibited as a morning show in most theatres. But this time round the distribution, marketing and promotions are on a scale," added Jain.

    "This movie is based on the Bali islands and is an out-an-out adventure ride for kids with thrill, action, suspense and loads of fun. We did far-reaching research in Bali and ended up doing most recordings in Bali with its natural surroundings and have captured the sights and sounds. Shaan has sung the title song for the film," director Rajiv Chilaka commented.

  • ETC Music promotes Ravindra Acharya as VP programming

    ETC Music promotes Ravindra Acharya as VP programming

    MUMBAI: ETC Music has promoted its general manager programming and promos Ravindra Acharya to the position of creative head and VP programming with immediate affect.

    Acharya has been entrusted with the additional responsibility of production and post-production activities. He is now accountable for the look of the channel and the products that appear on it, according to an official release.

    A Bachelor of Fine Arts from Sir J.J. Institute Of Applied Art with specialization in photography, Acharya has worked with Sahara India, Sony Entertainment Television Max, Bombay Talkies and Nimbus at various positions in programming.