Asian Lite News Archive

Category: Entertainment

  • INTERVIEW: Naseeruddin Shah

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    Uma Ramasubramanian talks to Naseeruddin Shah. The thespian says that he is not sure of penning second half of autobiography Seasoned actor Naseeruddin Shah, who quietly released his autobiography, says he hasn’t chronicled his entire life in the book and is unsure if he would pen the second half or not! One can read about his first…

  • INTERVIEW: Shabana Azmi

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    Subhash K. Jha talks to veteran actress Shabana Azmi who says for an actor, life must be the resource-base Known for her realistic portrayal of characters on the screen, seasoned actress Shabana Azmi says and actor can enrich the character they play by drawing upon all the depth of their own experience. When asked who…

  • FILM REVIEW: ‘Khubsoorat’

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    Subhash K. Jha says this one would make Hrishida smile  Film: “Khubsoorat”; Cast: Sonam Kapoor, Fawad Khan, Kirron Kher, Ratna Pathak Shah; Director: Shashanka Ghosh; Rating: **** Meet Mili Chakravarty, the doughty bindaas physiotherapist daughter of a Bengali father (played by an aptly nondescript actor) and a loudmouthed Punjabi mother (Kirron Kher), you know the…

  • INTERVIEW: King Khan

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    Can’t do more than one film at a time: Shah Rukh Khan reveals his latest style to Arpana  In his over two-decade career, Shah Rukh Khan has maintained his on-screen charisma, his craze and an average of two and a half films per year and he wants to keep it that way. The Bollywood Badshah says he…

  • GALLERY: Phantom of the Opera

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    Actors perform at a rehearsal of the musical “Phantom of the Opera” in Taipei, southeast China’s Taiwan, Sept. 11, 2014. The musical will be on stage in Taipei till Sept. 28.

  • ‘I’m crazy about Indian culture’

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    I’m crazy about Indian culture, says Mathias Duplessy, the French composer  of Finding Fanny Does Finding Fanny music sound different to your ears? It’s the result of the creativity of French composer and multi-instrumentalist Mathias Duplessy, who composed for the film sitting in Paris. “I love to work here (in India), the people here are great and…

  • Indian films @ Chicago festival

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    The Chicago South Asian Film Festival, which was started just over five years ago, by a dedicated group of Indian film aficionados, has grown to be a significant event in Chicago’s art and film landscape. The festival, the largest of its kind in the Midwest, will this year present over 25 films in downtown Chicago…

  • Destiny to hit cyderspace tuesday

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    Billed as the biggest video game of the year and also the most expensive one ever made, Destiny will be launched Tuesday to an expected 10 million players. Developed by US-based video game developer Bungie, the plot of the sci-fi game is set 700 years in the future, where players travel through space to prevent…

  • ‘Event cinema’ in India

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    Here’s a chance to experience global entertainment format, live performances and special acts at a cinema hall. Indian multiplex chain PVR Cinemas has launched PVR Live, an international concept of event cinema in the country. As part of its efforts to give a new cinematic experience, select PVR theatres across 17 cities will showcase live…

  • Karan pays tributes to Dad

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    Dad put relationships over films: KJo  On his father Yash Johar’s 85th birth anniversary, filmmaker Karan Johar reminisced how he used to always give precedence to relationships over movies. He says it’s a “tall order” to follow. “Dad’s birthday today…his stand was always to put relationships over films…a tall order to follow…I still try…miss him…

  • Sundar movie ready for release

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    Aranmanai is an upcoming Tamil horror comedy film directed by Sundar C. The film features an ensemble cast including Sundar C, Vinay Rai, Hansika Motwani, Santhanam, Andrea Jeremiah, Lakshmi Rai, Nithin Sathya, Kovai Sarala and Manobala

  • Kamal introduces Jayaram son

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    Oru Pakka Kathai’ will mark the debut of Kalidas, the son of veteran actor Jayaram. Thespian Kamal Hassan introduced theyoung actor at a Muhurt. The director had watched a mimicry performance of Kalidas in a recent award function has impressed Balaji and he has cast the young talent reportedly in the lead role.

  • REVIEW: Mary Kom

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    Subhash K. Jha says Mary Kom is a motivational masterpiece  Film: “Mary Kom”; Cast: Priyanka Chopra, Darshan Kumar, Zachary Coffin, Robin Das, Shakti Singh; Director: Omung Kumar; Rating: ***** It’s that life-defining moment when a character on screen transforms totally into a real life personality. We’ve seen Seema Biswas, Ben Kingsley and Farhan Akhtar metamorphose…

  • INTERVIEW: Parineeti Chopra

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    Not doing anything startlingly glamorous: Parineeti told  Subhash K. Jha  Bollywood’s favourite girl-next-door Parineeti Chopra says she will wear a bikini only when she is in the right shape, but not right now. Yash Raj Films is known for presenting their heroines in the most glamorous avatar on the screen. However, the 25-year-old, who has done…

  • REVIEW: Sin City

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    ‘Sin City: A Dame To Kill For’ – visually brilliant, but confusing says Troy Ribeiro  Film: “Sin City: A Dame To Kill For”; Cast: Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, Josh Brolin, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Rosario Dawson, Bruce Willis, Eva Green, Powers Boothe, Dennis Haysbert, Ray Liotta, Stacy Keach, Jaime King, Christopher Lloyd, Jamie Chung, Peremy Piven, Christopher Meloni, Juno…

  • REVIEW: Life of Crime

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    Troy Ribeiro says Life of Crime is  an oft-seen double-cross drama  Film: “Life of Crime”; Cast: John Hawkes, Yasiin Bey, Jennifer Aniston, Tim Robbins, Isla Fisher, Mark Boone Junior and Will Forte; Director: Daniel Schechter; Rating: **1/2 If you’re expecting a heavy duty, crime-laden, back alley action film, this is not it. Set in 1978 in…

  • INTERVIEW: Dimple Kapadia

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    Uma Ramasubramanian talks to Dimple, the star of Finding Fanny Veteran actor Dimple Kapadia, who will be soon seen on the big screen when the English-language film “Finding Fanny” hits the screens Sep 12, says she found the script of the film “brilliant” and her role “lovely” There are not too many filmmakers in Hindi…

  • REVIEW: Raja Natwarlal

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    Subhash K. Jha reviews Raja Natwarlal’ – dapper caper  Film: “Raja Natwarlal”; Actors: Emraan Hashmi, Paresh Rawal, Kay Kay Menon and Humaima Malick; Director: Kunal Deshmukh; Rating: *** “Tu apna kiss karta rahe,” Paresh Rawal sarcastically scoffs at the ‘serial kisser’ Emraan Hashmi after he catches him necking Pakistani actress Humaima in a lift in…

  • Attenborough plans another film in India

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    Raymond Kharmujai says the late British director had plans to make a documentary on Meghalaya’s matrilineal system Tribal Khasi philanthropist Honsen Lyngdoh, who was closely associated with Richard Attenborough’s Oscar-winning film ‘Gandhi’, said the late British director had plans to make a documentary on Meghalaya’s matrilineal system. The filmmaker died in London at the age of 90.…

  • SRK Joins Interpol

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    Internationally-renowned Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has been roped in as an ambassador for Interpol’s “Turn Back Crime” campaign to promote awareness on how everyone can play a role in preventing crime. SRK, said to be the first Indian to be made an ambassador for the global campaign, is lending his voice to help spread…

  • The Khan factor of blockbusters

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    Uma Ramasubramanian looks into the the Khan factor of 2014 Bollywood blockbusters Box office calculations indicate Bollywood made a decent start with the young kids on the block such as Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt. But the onus is on superstars Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan to turn an average year into a blockbuster in…

  • GALLERY: Kaaviya Thalaivan (Epic Ruler)

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    Kaaviya Thalaivan (Epic Ruler) is an upcoming Tamil historical fiction film written and directed by Vasanthabalan. Set in early 20th century, the film is about the lives of two theatre artistes played by Siddharth and Prithviraj and the competition that exists between them in a small drama troupe. The former is the main lead whereas…

  • Indian films go global

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    Director Homi Adajania is set to bring to the table “Finding Fanny”, an English language film with a cast of desi actors. The experiment is not new, but it stands a testimony to how the multiplex culture is allowing filmmakers to try new ways of attracting youth, say distributors. “Finding Fanny”, starring Arjun Kapoor, Deepika…

  • Indira assassin movie faces ban

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    The Punjab Youth Congress (PYC) Saturday strongly opposed the permission granted for the screening of the controversial Punjabi movie ‘Kaum de Heere’, saying it glorifies the assassins of former prime minister Indira Gandhi. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, PYC president Vikramjit Singh Chaudhary said it was unfortunate that a movie that glorifies and…

  • PICS: Haider ready for release

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    Shahid Kapoor says a lot of good things in his career have come his way courtesy filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj who has worked with the actor in “Kaminey” and now in “Haider”. “Haider” is an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” and hits theatres Oct 2. “One works with all kinds of directors. When he (Bhardwaj) wrote…

  • Review: Entertainment – Avoidable

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    Entertainment – Woof, Yeh Mohabbat!   Film: “Entertainment”; Cast: Junior, Akshay Kumar, Tamannah, Mithun Chakraborty, Krushna Abhishek; Director: Sajid-Farhad; Rating: *** The canine-hero’s name in the list of actors in the credit titles comes first because that’s how Akshay Kumar wants it. This film tells you to love animals. It’s a simple straightforward premise structured around…

  • REVIEW: Singham Returns

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    Troy Ribeiro reviews the action-packed new thriller – ‘Singham Returns’ Film: “Singham Returns”; Cast: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Amol Gupte, Zakir Hussain, Dayanand Shetty, Sharat Saxena, Mahesh Manjrekar; Director: Rohit Shetty; Rating: *** 1/2 Though he does not roar “Aata majhi satakli” with the same intensity that he did in the 2011 released “Singham”, in…

  • GALLERY: Rohit’s Vrindavan

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    India’s ace fashion designer Rohit Verma and actor Kavitta Verma during the preview his newest collection `Vrindavan` presented this Janmashtami, in Mumbai

  • BIG INTERVIEW: Soha Ali Khan

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    Soha Ali Khan tells Subhash K.Jha that there’s no perfect relationship Be it Bollywood or Hollywood – in the world of showbiz, several marriages are crumbling. Actress Soha Ali Khan, who recently got engaged to her beau Kunal Kemmu, says the key to a healthy relationship is to “work around the dissatisfactions” as nothing is…

  • Shahid meets his UK fans

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    Shahid Kapoor started his dance journey at Shiamak’s and sent his wishes through video bytes to the students of Shiamak London at the Summer Funk this year. The students were in surprise to know that the best dancers would get a chance to meet & interact with Shahid Kapoor on his recent visit to London.…

  • Big B’s Yudh fails to hit bulls eye

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    Amitabh Bachchan’s Yudh,  Directed by Anurag Kashyap, was one of the most highly anticipated TV shows this year. The series also features the likes of Kay Kay Menon and Nawazuddin Siddiqui. With a powerful star cast and an intriguing plotline, one would expect the show to have become a smash hit. The news however is different.…

  • Special Report: Asian Comedy Stars

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    Saumya Mathur looks into the new Asian comedy stars. YouTube is a boon for stand-up comedians, comedy clubs Lilly Singh, an Indian origin Canadian comedian, would never have been known as ‘Superwoman’ had she not taken to YouTube to showcase her talent. Her comic sense helped her earn over 200 million views and 3 million…

  • BIG INTERVIEW: Kareena Kapoor

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    Uma Ramasubramanian talks to Kareena who says biggest film or best script, no midway for me “Take the best, leave the rest” seems to be Kareena Kapoor’s mantra for choosing films. The actress, who is said to have refused six scripts lately, says she is keen to do a few but fantastic films as there’s never…

  • It’s action time in Bolly land

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    Radhika Bhirani looks in to the new trends in Indian cinema   After “Kick”, are you ready for some more jumping, boxing, punching and chasing? Bollywood lovers, brace yourself for a slew of action-packed high-on stunts movies slated for release in the remaining 2014 calendar. Salman Khan’s “Kick” has already set a high standard by zooming…

  • The Hundred-Foot Journey

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    Entertainment One’s new culinary drama starring Helen Mirren and Om Puri, The Hundred-Foot Journey, releasing in cinemas on 5th September. The Hundred-Foot Journey is an uplifting and feel-good cultural feast full of Indian spices, French sophistication and British wit.  Directed by Lasse Hallström and produced by Oprah Winfrey, Steven Spielberg and Juliet Blake, the film stars Academy Award winning actress Helen Mirren as the icy proprietress of a Michelin starred classical…

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    Superstars Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan were seen on the same platform in Mumbai to support Indian sport kabaddi. The Pro Kabaddi League tournament started on  Saturday and the duo, along with other celebrities like Farah Khan, Sachin Tendulkar, Tina Ambani and Kabir Bedi, attended the launch of the eight-city franchise.  Abhishek Bachchan owns Jaipur Pink…

  • Bang Bang’ teaser hits B-Town

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    Bollywood’s “gorgeous” on screen pair Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif-starrer “Bang Bang” teaser was unveiled Wednesday and has blown away Bollywood celebrities. They have tagged it as “smouldering hot” and “smashing”. Directed by Siddharth Anand, “Bang Bang” is produced by Fox Star Studios and is being touted as the biggest action-romance of the year. Shot…

  • ‘Mary Kom’ ready for release

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    If Priyanka Chopra let go off her diva image to play an autistic girl in “Barfi!”, the former beauty queen has once again swapped her glamorous look with a masculine and low-maintained one for “Mary Kom”. And as promised, the trailer of the biopic knocks you out. Directed by Omung Kumar and co-produced by Viacom18…

  • King Khan to tour in the US

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    Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan is ready to shake a leg with his fans in the US after a gap of 10 years. Along with his “Happy New Year” co-stars Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan and Boman Irani, he will thrill the audience with SLAM! THE TOUR starting Sep 19. He will also be joined by filmmaker…

  • ‘The Lunchbox opened the doors’

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    Nivedita talks to Nimrat Kaur, the lovelorn Ila in the super hit movie the Lunchbox   She was born and raised in a simple middle-class Indian family, but she got exposed to the world courtesy her internationally-acclaimed film “The Lunchbox”. Actress Nimrat Kaur says the movie “opened all doors” for her, allowing her to do…

  • SPB Honoured at British Parliament

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    Padma Bhushan Dr. SP Balasubramaniam was felicitated at the British Parliament . The event was hosted by  Senior Labour leader and MP from Southall Virendra Sharma MP. The Chief Guest on the occasion was High Commissioner of India Ranjan Mathai, Guests of Honour included Lord Loomba and Lord Dholakia, while Dr Nanda Kumara of Bharatiya…

  • Aa Gaye Munde U.K. De

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    Following the phenomenal Box Office success of the prequel, director Manmohan Singh presents the follow-up installment of one of Punjabi cinema’s most popular franchises, Aa Gaye Munde U.K. De, releasing in cinemas on 8th August, presented by Trehan Productions and being released by Yash Raj Films. A breezy rom-com that soars high on feelgood factor, Aa Gaye Munde U.K. De marks this summer’s must-watch – an…

  • BIG INTERVIEW: Arjun Kapoor

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    Radhika Bhirani talks to Arjun Kapoor. The young Kapoor arguing the Indian audiences ready for films like ‘Finding Fanny’ It’s an English language “offbeat” entertainer; made by an Indian director with three veteran and two young stars of Bollywood, and topped with one promotional Hindi song – that’s Homi Adajania’s “Finding Fanny”. Arjun Kapoor, who plays one…

  • BIG INTERVIEW: Varun Dhawan

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    Subhash K. Jha talks to Varun Dhawan, th rising star of Bollywood. ” Want everyone to feel happy after watching my films,” Varun said Young actor Varun Dhawan, whose latest Bollywood release “Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania” is entertaining movie-goers, says his aim as an actor is to leave viewers “happy” after they watch his films.…

  • BIG INTERVIEW: Shraddha Kapoor

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    Subhash K. Jha talks to Shraddha Kapoor for Big Interview. After flop films, I could’ve disappeared, she told Asian Lite  Shraddha Kapoor, who began her Bollywood journey with films like “Teen Patti” and “Luv Ka The End”, made it big only with “Aashiqui 2”. The actress, who is loving all the attention she’s getting with her…

  • SRK clocks 22 years in B -Town

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      It was 22 years ago on this date that Shah Rukh Khan’s debut movie “Deewana” hit the silver screen. The actor says he has not seen the movie yet – and he has his special reason. SRK tweeted Wednesday: “All notions, creations and experiences of decades will end on the day of truth. I tirelessly…

  • Indian TV serials get ugly

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    Arpana in her column Bollywood Country says wife-beating is new TRP mantra for TV soaps It seems TV content is getting regressive by the day. After saas-bahu sagas, now TV shows like second season of “Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon?…Ek Baar Phir” and “Doli Armaano Ki ” are capitalising on domestic violence to get eyeballs. “Iss…

  • Sting’s children not to inherit £180 mn

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    Musician Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner CBE, better known by his stage name Sting, says none of his 180 million pound fortune will be left to his children. The 62-year-old grew up in a working class family in Wallsend, North Tyneside, and it seems he wants his six kids to have an idea of what that…

  • The day the music didn’t die

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    Karishma Saurabh Kalita writes on the day the music didn’t die to mark World Music Day “Music doesn’t lie. If there is something to be changed in this world, then it can only happen through music.” This homily from the late psychedelic rock star Jimi Hendrix resonated on the 32nd World Music Day on June 21.…

  • BIG INTERVIEW: Armaan Jain

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    I believe in healthy competition, says the new star from the Kapoor Clan Armaan Jain will soon make his acting debut with newcomer Deeksha Seth with first-time director Arif Ali’s “Lekar Hum Deewana Dil”. As the number of fresh faces in Bollywood continue to rise, he wishes them all luck. “There are a lot of youngsters……