Celebrity gaze

 Locations aren’t just backdrops; they’re characters in my stories: Ashwini Iyer Tiwari  Ashwiny immerses herself in the cultural essence of her chosen locations, allowing them to shape her narratives  By Rajesh Ahuja  She has established a niche for herself in Bollywood as a director with films like Bareilly Ki Barfi, Nil Batte Sannatta and Panga .  Ashwini Iyer Tiwari,  who rose to fame with the film Bareilly Ki Barfi , starring Kriti Sanon,  Rajkummar Rao and Ayushmann Khurana,  says that she chooses the essence of the chosen locations of her films to shape her narratives.  Speaking at the India International Film Tourism Conclave (IIFTC) , Ashwini Iyer Tiwari said that every place has a soul—a fragrance, a rhythm, a story waiting to be told.  Whether it’s the bustling streets of Agra, the vibrant alleys of Bareilly, or the serene coastline of Konkan, Ashwiny immerses herself in the cultural essence of her chosen locations, allowing t...

 Special screening of The Sabarmati Report held in Delhi  Ekta Kapoor, Ridhi Dogra, Anurag Thakur & Union Mins Suresh Gopi & Hardeep Puri attend screening at PVR Chanakyapuri  By Rajesh Ahuja   Amid the huge buzz around The Sabarmati Report ,  based on the Godhra train burning incident of 27 February 2002, involving Sabarmati Express train, Union Minister Hardeep Puri arranged a special screening of the movie  in the capital which was attended by the cast and crew of the film along with several political dignitaries.  Among the political dignitaries who attended the special screening of the film,  at PVR Chanakyapuri,  were Union minister Suresh Gopi, Hardeep Puri,  BJP leaders Anurag Thakur,  Ramesh Bidhuri, Neelkant Bakshi and Harish Khurana.  Members of street vendor association, senior officials  watched the movie  in the presence of the producer Ekta Kapoor,  the film's lead actress Ridhi Dogra and A...

When Rishi Kapoor rejected a role offered by Salim Javed in Trishul  Rishi Kapoor was offered the role of Sachin in the Yash Chopra directorial venture  By Rajesh Ahuja  Bollywood's favourite lover boy Rishi Kapoor,  who was a part of many successful Yash Chopra films like Kabhi Kabhie, Doosra Aadmi and Vijay ,  rejected a role offered by legendary screenplay writers Salim Javed in Yash Chopra's Trishul .  Legendary screenplay writers Salim Javed, who were at their peak of glory in the 1970s , offered to Rishi Kapoor the role eventually played by Sachin in Trishul .  Writing in his autobiography Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor uncensored ,  the late Bollywood actor said that Salim Javed wanted him to work in Trishul but he said 'no' to the  offer .  Rishi Kapoor refused a role offered by Salim Javed in Trishul  'A few years after the release of Zanzeer ,(which brought Amitabh Bachchan in limelight as the new 'angry young man' of Bol...

 Amrish Puri was offered villain's role in Raj Kapoor's Ram Teri Ganga Maili  Amrish Puri could not do Ram Teri Ganga Maili due to his other commitments, Rishi Kapoor said in his autobiography  By Rajesh Ahuja  Amish Puri, among the legendary villains of Indian cinema,  missed an opportunity to work in Raj Kapoor's Ram Teri Ganga Maili due to his other commitments.  According to the autobiography of Raj Kapoor's son and Bollywood's favourite lover boy Rishi Kapoor,  Amrish Puri was offered the role of a villain in Ram Teri Ganga Maili  (which eventually  went to Raza Murad) but he could not do the film since his dates were already committed to Steven Spielberg's Indiana Jones: Temple of Doom.  Amrish Puri was offered villain role in Raj Kapoor's Ram Teri Ganga Maili  Writing in his autobiography Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor uncensored ,  Rishi Kapoor said, '' Amrish Puri wanted to work with my father  but never got to wor...

 Historical web series Freedom at Midnight streaming on Sony Liv from November 15  Freedom at Midnight delves into untold aspects of India's partition  By Rajesh Ahuja  Historical drama web series Freedom at Midnight ,  that delves into untold aspects of partition of India and Pakistan,  will stream on Sony Liv OTT platform from November 15.  Being presented by Nikhil Advani, Freedom at Midnight ,  adapted from the book of the same name, authored by Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins,delves into the partition of India and Pakistan.  Historical drama web series Freedom at Midnight streams on Sony Liv from November 15 The web series recounts the partition of India and Pakistan, and the religious and socio-political dynamics of the era.  The makers of the show unveiled its trailer on Tuesday.  Freedom at Midnight features an ensemble cast comprising Sidhant Gupta , Chirag Vohra, Rajendra Chawla, Luke McGibney , Cordelia Bugeja, Mali...

 Rishi Kapoor had some reservations about doing Ramesh Sippy's Saagar  In his autobiography,  Rishi Kapoor said that he was hesitant to do a film with Dimple after ten years  By Rajesh Ahuja   It was a much talked about on screen reunion in Bollywood in the mid 1980s.  Ramesh Sippy's Saagar , released in 1985, created a lot of buzz for the film bringing back on the big screen the popular pair of Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia,  nearly ten years after they sizzled the cinema screen in Raj Kapoor's Bobby(1973) .  However,  Rishi Kapoor was initially hesitant to do Saagar .  Writing in his autobiography Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor uncensored ,  Rishi Kapoor said that he had some reservations about doing Saagar .  Rishi Kapoor had some initial reservations about doing Ramesh Sippy's Saagar  'I did have some initial reservations about doing Saagar , 'the late Rishi Kapoor said in his autobiography.  Rishi Kapoor said tha...

 Crime thriller The Buckingham Murders now streaming on Netflix  The film, which stars Kareena Kapoor Khan in the lead, released in cinemas on Sept 13  By Rajesh Ahuja  Nearly two months after it's release in theatres,  Crime thriller The Buckingham Murders is now streaming on Netflix.  The Buckingham Murders ,  which stars Kareena Kapoor Khan in the lead,  is streaming on Netflix from November 8.  Directed by Hansal Mehta and produced by Kareena Kapoor Khan, Shobha Kapoor and Ekta Kapoor,  The Buckingham Murders is the story of a British Indian detective who is assigned the task of investigation in the murder of a 10 year old child in Buckinghamshire.  The Buckingham Murders is now streaming on Netflix  Jasmeet Bhamra is a British Indian detective who has recently lost her child.  She is assigned the task of investigation into murder of a ten-year-old child in Buckinghamshire.  The film had its world premiere at the...

 When Jeetendra refused the offer to do Tinnu Anand's Shahenshah  Jeetendra was offered the film after Amitabh's accident on sets of Coolie  By Rajesh Ahuja  Shahenshah ,  a film which marked the comeback of megastar Amitabh Bachchan after a brief gap due to his foray in politics,  was also offered to Bollywood actor Jeetendra.  In his autobiography Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor uncensored , Rishi Kapoor revealed that after Amitabh's accident on the sets of Coolie ,  Tinnu Anand and his brother Bittu Anand had approached Jeetendra, who was then a  top ranking star, for Coolie.  Writing in his autobiography, Rishi Kapoor said, 'many years ago, I remember, when my closest buddy Bittu Anand fell on hard times and needed to be bailed out,  I did a couple of films for him but they were all flops.  Jeetendra was a very big star at the start of the 1980s, getting second billing after Amitabh Bachchan.  Jeetendra was offered the l...