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Tag: Deepika Padukone

  • ‘Happy New Year’ to go digital

    ‘Happy New Year’ to go digital

    MUMBAI: It is rightly said that digital is the only way forward. Filmmakers too have understood that in today’s time the exchange of information is much faster, thanks to digital platforms.

     

    And so, Red Chillies Entertainments (RCE) has decided to take its film, Happy New Year (HNY) to the audiences internationally in a unique manner. After making a mark with the worldwide theatrical release, HNY will now be available for the international fans to view it online.

     

    The Direct-To-Fan model of release of any content has been so far used for the music industry internationally. Breaking the record and to be the first one, it is the first commercial film worldwide to release on DTF model.

     

    “We at Red Chillies have always taken pride in establishing new trends and delighting our fans. Along these lines we bring the biggest entertainer – Happy New Year, directly to our fans through online streaming for the first time ever!” shared RCE CEO Venky Mysore.

     

    This is the first time, any film after the theatrical release, will now release on the digital platform. While the traditional distribution markets like India and China enjoy a wide release of a Hindi film, DTF will release in other countries, barring these two traditional ones, to reach the most unconventional distribution markets.

     

    The film will be available on Happy New Year’s website to be viewed by the fans worldwide. All you need is three very basic things for the viewing – basic internet connection, a device to watch it on and a credit card. At a minimum price the film can be viewed and the best part is that it can be watched on ones computer, phone or any other digital device as long as you have a very basic internet connection.

  • Salman dethrones SRK in Forbes list

    Salman dethrones SRK in Forbes list

    MUMBAI: The Forbes 2014 India celebrity list is out. And this time, it has a new leader.

     

    After enjoying the top rank in the list for three consecutive years, Shah Rukh Khan has been replaced by Salman Khan. The reason behind SRK going down from the coveted spot to number 3 position is lack of any film release (except a cameo) between 1 October 2013 to 30 September 2014.

     

    Meanwhile, Salman topped the charts, both in terms of revenues and fame.

     

    At number two place, it’s Amitabh Bachchan, who has moved up by three positions in 2014. Big B’s charisma was enhanced by his nearly 12 million Twitter following.

     

    The top 10 celebs and the money made by them:

     

    1. Salman Khan: Rs 244.50 crore

    2. Amitabh Bachchan: Rs 196.75 crore

    3. Shah Rukh Khan: Rs 202.40 crore

    4. MS Dhoni: Rs 141.80 crore

    5. Akshay Kumar: Rs 172.00 crore

    6. Virat Kohli: Rs 58.43 crore

    7. Aamir Khan: Rs 80.47 crore

    8. Deepika Padukone: Rs 67.20 crore

    9. Hrithik Roshan: Rs 85.00 crore

    10. Sachin Tendulkar: Rs 59.54 crore

  • Tribute to Irrfan Khan to be the highlight of Florence Indian filmfest

    Tribute to Irrfan Khan to be the highlight of Florence Indian filmfest

    NEW DELHI: A tribute to actor Irrfan Khan, who will soon be seen in Colin Trevorrow’s Jurassic World (the new chapter in the Jurassic Park saga out in June 2015) will receive Europe’s first tribute, with the screening of three of his films at the 14th River to River Florence Indian Film Festival in Italy, later this week.

     

    The festival being held from 6 to 12 December will feature Qissa by Anup Singh (Italian premiere on 7 December) in the presence of director Anup Singh and Irrfan Khan), Paan Singh Tomar by Tigmanshu Dhulia (Italian premiere, on 8 December), and the cult movie The Namesake by Mira Nair (on 12 December).

     

    In addition, seven episodes of the third series of the US HBO episodes of In Treatment that the actor starred in will be screened from 9 to 11 December. Khan will receive ‘The Key to the City’ from the Lord Mayor of Florence Dario Nardella. 

     

    Apart from Florence, this festival will be held in Rome on 13 and 14 December and in Milan in February. All films will have English and Italian subtitles. Also, for the first time, the festival will be held in Mumbai in March next year.

     

    The festival will open with the Italian premiere of the on-the-road comedy Finding Fanny by Homi Adajana, with a stellar cast including Nasseruddin Shah, Arjun Kapoor, Pankaj Kapur, Dimple Kapadia and Deepika Padukone.  Deepika Padukone stars in the closing film too- Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela by Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

     

    The selected short films, all Italian premiers, are 6 Cup Chai by Laila Khan, Dreamworks by Vishal Vittal, Hechki by Kartik Singh, My Dear Americans by Arpita Kumar, The Frame by Samvida Nanda (directors Laila Khan and Kartik Singh will meet the audience); 8 to 8 by Pratim Dasupta, Bar Stools by filmmaking duo Varun Bajaj and Neale Hemrajani, Chypre by Anish Dedhia, Int Café night by Adhiraj Bose, and Stuff by Sofian Khan.

     

    There will also be a Student Film Section, a selection of non-competing premieres from India’s three film schools, the Film and TV Institute of Pune, the Whistling Woods of Mumbai, and the Prasad Film and TV Institute of Chennai.

  • “Women portrayal problematic in cinemas and papers”: Aamir Khan

    “Women portrayal problematic in cinemas and papers”: Aamir Khan

    NEW DELHI: Eminent stars Aamir Khan and Deepika Padukone were the highlights of the day at the final session for the first day at the 12th edition of the Hindustan Times Leadership Summit.

     
    However, Khan decided to do some plain speak at the session moderated by renowned director Karan Johar when he expressed his disappointment over the trend of buying editorial spaces to garner positive reviews for upcoming movies. He said that it would be better if the fraternity channelized its energies in making good films.

     
    The talk touched on several sensitive issues that emerged in the film fraternity in the current times including buying of editorial spaces and the rat race for soaring box office collections.

     
    Khan said he loved movies like Pyaasa and Mughal-e-Azam, the box-office collections of which remain unknown to the world.

     
    The session also touched upon more grave issues like the portrayal of women in Indian cinema.  Padukone with reference to her latest controversial posters said “it cannot be denied that men too are objectified in Indian cinema.” Khan said women portrayal are problematic in cinemas and papers.

     
    The actors also agreed that the audience has matured over time and it becomes important to cater to the evolving taste of the audience. They also touched upon the blurring lines between the mainstream and parallel cinema.

     
    Khan welcomed the competition in the industry. The veteran actor said that stiff competition would only help the industry rather than pulling it down. He said that the idea to reshape Indian cinema would require making movies which would infuse grace into the social fabric of the society.

     

  • Who is the most valuable celebrity brand in India?

    Who is the most valuable celebrity brand in India?

    MUMBAI: A flip through various channels and one can see film stars and cricketers selling chocolates to balms to the consumers.
    There is no doubt that celebrity brand endorsements have come a long way in the country over the past three decades. As television spread to the masses and Doordarshan found its way into several homes in the country, companies and advertisers were quick to tap the new medium, giving several memorable advertisements to consumers, that some would say did more for the stars than they did for the brands.

    Over the last decade, the celebrity endorsement space has evolved significantly. Not only have new mediums of advertising sprung up (internet, digital media and social networks), but also “celebritydom” is no longer limited to just Bollywood stars and cricketers. The Indian Premier League, Pro-Kabaddi League and Indian Badminton League have given several new sports stars in addition to our Olympians, Asian and Commonwealth Games medal winners and World Champions.

    American Appraisal, an independent global firm providing valuation and related advisory services for business, financial, legal and tax purposes, has  launched the first edition of ‘Waiting for the Encore’, a concise report on India’s most valuable celebrity brands.

    The report tries to answer a few questions. Who is the most valuable celebrity brand in India? More importantly, how can one assess the value of a particular celebrity’s brand?

    The baadshah of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, tops the brand chart and is valued at $164.9 million, leaving behind the legend, Amitabh Bachchan. The shenshah stands at number 13 with $28.4 million while Indian cricket team captain MS Dhoni ranks higher than other Khans at number 3 and valued at $71.9 million.

    “While the youth brigade of Indian celebritydom ranks high on the popularity scale, brand values remain highest for celebrities who have stood the test of time. Brand Shah Rukh, valued at over $160 million, is here to stay,” says American Appraisal vice president Kapil Bellubi.

    The report goes on to highlight that the top 15 celebrities generated over Rs 11 billion in endorsement fees in 2013-14 alone. Celebrities themselves are no longer just using brand endorsements as something to bridge an income gap between films and games. A significant proportion of a celebrity’s annual income, close to 50 per cent to 75 per cent, is generated through brand endorsements.

    It goes on to report that celebrities understand that being affiliated with brands like Coke or Pepsi means that their images and likenesses may be associated with Coke or Pepsi whose reach even to the remotest part of the country can be more valuable to the celebrity than the fee that they hope to receive. Similarly, youth-centric iconic brands like Levis, Guess and luxury brands like Rado, Tissot or Louis Vuitton command immense brand presence and celebrities are normally happy to be associated as brand ambassadors for even a fraction of their normal fees. Alcohol and tobacco brands provide the best compensation, though A-Listers tend to steer clear of promoting these brands mainly on account of the potential for negative publicity.

    The report states that viewers have higher recall for celebrity endorsed brands and associated credibility were the most compelling reasons for running a celebrity campaign.

     

  • Music adds stronger recall value to films says Imtiaz Ali

    Music adds stronger recall value to films says Imtiaz Ali

    MUMBAI:  “Music can make or break a movie,” said Jab We Met director Imtiaz Ali as he spoke about his love and passion for music at the MixRadio Music Connects (MRMC) today. He went on to disclose that the most fun part for him while directing a movie was when he was involved in making the music.

     

    Speaking specifically about his love for Bollywood music and songs, Ali reckons that in an Indian movie movies were incomplete without music as was energy here. “In Highway, I started with one song in mind and ended up having nine songs in the movie.” He revealed. His latest flick Tamasha also has eight songs tracks in the movie.

     

    He informed that in India, music recording started in 1902 and the music library today consists of around 1.2 million songs, which is more than in several countries of the world.

     

    According to Ali, the shelf life of music is more than that of movies. Providing an example, he said “Even today we listen to songs from the 1950s and 1960s, playing on radio at times, we may not remember the movie or the actors, directors, but we always remember songs.”

     

    He went on to speak about the phenomenon of movie directors and producers launching music titles before a movie. He felt that if the music was well received, half the battle was won as movies are remembered through their songs.

     

    Ali, known for his special connect with young audiences, said that the connect comes when the content flows from the heart. “Anything pure and true has more chances of success and therefore Rockstar connected with the youth. They youth doesn’t want to be spoon fed or told what to do and therefore, Sadda Haq, which was a tough song  to understand lyrically, but with a strong message stood out and was  the most popular songs in the movie.”

     

    Before joining movies Ali worked for two TV shows and worked on their respective music with Pritam and then ventured into producing films. His mantra for making movies was “Imagination going beyond the real vision” he said.

     

    Starting with Socha Naa Tha, the director rose to fame with Jab We Met. His movies Love Aaj Kal and Rockstar were both critically acclaimed as well as commercial hits at the box office. He is currently working on his latest project Tamasha starring Bollywood stars Deepika  Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor.

  • ‘Happy New Year’ continues its successful run

    ‘Happy New Year’ continues its successful run

    MUMBAI: Rekha on screen after a long gap does not quite manage to attract the audience in Super Nani. Her fans, old as well as those who grew up on her legend did not quite fancy her in the role of a suppressed grandmother. The film has had a very poor opening despite limited screenings. The film has collected Rs 1.4 crore for the opening weekend.

     

    Roar, with its curiosity value and effective promos, has opened fairly well despite a theme with appeal mainly limited to young audience and has managed to put together a face saving Rs 4.7 crore for its first weekend.

     

    Happy New Year collection figures vary from one media to another as in most cases they are guess estimates and according to loyalists since the figures are being released to media only by the producers with other sources having been blocked.

     

    However, according to numbers  put together with inputs from circuits, the first week total for the film is expected to be from Rs 128 – 130 crore. While the opening day collections were huge, the gap between the opening day and the days between days that followed started widening each day. The film faces poor opposition from two new releases, Super Nani and Roar which will help the film with decent figures in its second week.

     

    Haider has added Rs 45 lakh in its fourth week to take its four week tally to Rs 40.40 crore.

     

    Bang Bang has collected about Rs 1 crore in fourth week to take its four week total to Rs 145.65 crore.

  • ‘Piku’ first look: Big B dons a pot belly

    ‘Piku’ first look: Big B dons a pot belly

    MUMBAI: When the entire industry is moving in the direction of six-pack abs, Amitabh Bachchan dons a pot belly for his next project Piku.

     

    The first look of the movie shows a pot-bellied Big B dressed in a checked overshirt and wearing an angler’s hat with longish silver locks peeping out.

     

    Revealing the first look on twitter, the official twitter ID of the movie, PikuTheFilm tweeted “He’s at it again! @SrBachchan pulling off yet another character with ease.”

     

    Directed by Vicky Donor and Madras Cafe fame Shoojit Sircar, the movie is a quirky roller coaster ride of a crazy father-daughter relationship, essayed by Bachchan and Deepika Padukone. The supporting cast includes actors Irrfan Khan, Moushumi Chatterjee and Bengali star Jisshu Sengupta. Piku also marks coming together of Shoojit Sircar and Ronnie Lahiri with Juhi Chaturvedi, who has scripted the film and earlier won accolades and awards for Vicky Donor.   

     

     “Piku is a story that will warm your heart and make you smile! We have the best of the talent coming together for a refreshing tale of a father-daughter relationship. I am privileged to direct Mr. Bachchan along with Deepika and Irrfan. They are three powerhouse performers and it doesn’t get better than this for me,” said Sircar.

     

    Adding to that, Bachchan further stated, “What makes the process of filming Piku extremely enjoyable is that it is helmed by Shoojit Sircar and also stars the immensely talented Deepika Padukone and Irrfan Khan. The film has an interesting story and there is a lot of excitement on the sets.”

     

    The film is also ready to kick off its second schedule in Kolkata from November 2014 after having a successful Mumbai schedule in August and September 2014.

     

    “There are several projects that I undertake in a year but there’s always that one film that you look forward to and to me Piku is that film. I am really excited and look forward to begin work on this one,” reckoned Irrfan Khan.

     

    Produced by MSM Motion Pictures, in association with Saraswati Entertainment Creations and Rising Sun Films, the movie is slated to release on 30 April 2015.

  • ‘Happy New Year’ game is our biggest marketing tool: Shah Rukh Khan

    ‘Happy New Year’ game is our biggest marketing tool: Shah Rukh Khan

    MUMBAI: With Farah Khan’s Happy New Year already breaking records at the box office, the cast and crew has another reason to celebrate.

     

    Known for his marketing skills, the King of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan along with Vroovy (a joint venture between Hungama and game service company Gameshastra) launched the official Happy New Year game on iOS, Android and Facebook two days before the release of the film to enthrall the fans on the mobile devices.

     

    A week after its launch, the cast and crew on the movie along with Hungama Digital Media MD and CEO Neeraj Roy announced that the game witnessed more than 1.6 million game sessions in just a week and will soon cross the 50 million mark.

     

    Currently with eight levels in the game, it has six playable characters. The characters are meticulously modelled after the real life actors from the movie – SRK (Charlie), Deepika Padukone (Mohini), Sonu Sood (Jag), Boman Irani (Tammy), Abhishek Bachchan (Nandu) and Vivaan Shah (Rohan).

     

    The goal of the game is to complete a heist successfully by navigating through a barrage of obstacles in eight different environments such as the bank, the dockyard, the streets of Dubai etc. The obstacles come in the form of guards, mercenaries, flamethrowers, flaming barrels etc. The final level takes place in the Atlantis hotel where the heist will take place.

     

    The mobile game encapsulates the essence of the film, which allows gamers to play as Champion Charlie, Marvelous Mohini, Notorious Nandu, Juggernaut Jag, Terrific Tammy or Rowdy Rohan and gear up for an action-packed adventure where they have to unlock doors, break walls, hack alarm systems, and outmaneuver guards.

     

    According to Roy, the game employs a one of a kind tag team format in which the player can switch between characters within a level.

     

    “Besides the single player story mode, there is also a real time multiplayer mode in which you can invite your friend through Facebook and race against them or duel with a random opponent if you wish”, he added.

     

    Talking about the extent in which the game was helpful in marketing the movie, superstar Shah Rukh Khan said, “The game is making a huge effect. It is the biggest marketing tool for us currently in the country. People in India are a little more bent towards online video games. The attempt is to entice the younger generation which loves games.”

     

    “Social media’s reach is not as much as you would like it to be in India, but internationally social media helps a lot in the promotion and marketing of the films,” he added expressing his views on social media’s effect on movies’ reach.

     

    Adding to that, Roy opined, “In India, the gaming sector is growing significantly. There are over a 100 million smart phones in the country, even where people don’t have computers they use phones and hence, moves like giving a miss call for the trailer or launching the game will reach more audiences even in the most interior parts of the country increasing the reach of the film.”

     

    Commenting on expanding the game in future, Roy revealed that they will release a new version of the game in a couple of months. They are also planning to increase the number of levels.

     

    “The game is available for free download currently but add-ons and more levels will cost the user a bit extra,” he added.

     

    Happy and content with the game gaining popularity, the director of the movie said, “The game appeals to audiences of all age group like the movie. It is easy to play, user friendly and most of all, it is not bloody which makes it suitable for children to play.”

     

    From launching the trailer on Whatsapp to initiating the SLAM tour and a dance reality show, the team has also promoted the film on popular television shows like ‘Comedy Nights with Kapil’, ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ and ‘Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah’. King Khan certainly did not leave any stone unturned when it came to promotions and marketing of Happy New Year.

     

    Happy New Year, which released in the theatres on 24 October has already collected Rs 108.86 crore in the opening weekend. The movie stars Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Sonu Sood, Boman Irani, Vivaan Shah and Jackie Shroff. Directed by Farah Khan, the movie has been produced by Red Chillies. 

  • ‘Happy New Year’ collects Rs 95 crore at the opening weekend

    ‘Happy New Year’ collects Rs 95 crore at the opening weekend

    MUMBAI: Being a solo release with a festival weekend to back it up, Happy New Year took a bumper opening day as expected. The film was well promoted and a big hype was created around it before its release. Although the film did not enjoy positive public reports, such a big film would hardly be affected on its opening day, especially considering the release period.

     

    However, the film’s collections started dropping from day two. The collections given out to the media are controlled by the producers, Red Chillies, while distributors have been instructed not to reveal figures to media. The figures put together from sources come to around Rs 95 crore. The collections have shown a bigger drop as the new week begins and the long weekend of holidays is over. 

     

    Mumbai 125KM collects Rs 1.5 crore in its first week. Sonali Cable fails to cross even the crore mark in its first week collecting just Rs 85 lakh. Ekkees Topon Ki Salaami fared badly in the first week and totally sank in the second week managing to collect just Rs 10 lakh. Its two week total rounds up to Rs 1.65 crore. Tamanchey, another wasted effort, collects Rs 10 lakh in its second week and its two week collections total up to Rs 1.35 crore. Haider adds Rs 3.5 crore for its third week to take its three week tally to Rs 48.95 crore. Bang Bang has collected about Rs 8.05 crore for its third week taking its three week total to Rs 144.65 crore.