‘Don 2′ grosses Rs 15 crore on first day

‘Don 2′ grosses Rs 15 crore on first day
Sunday, Dec 25, 2011

Shahrukh Khan’s “Don 2 – The King is Back” has earned Rs.15.3 crore on the opening day, which is the highest first day collection on a non-holiday Friday.

The film is a sequel to Farhan Akhtar’s 2006 “Don”, which was a remake of the 1978 Amitabh Bachchan starrer of the same name.

In overseas markets, “Don-2..” broke the record for the highest single day gross for a Hindi film in Australia with estimated earnings of US$82,000 Friday. The earlier record was Reliance Entertainment’s “Bodyguard” at US$74,000.

“Don 2″, also starring Priyanka Chopra, Boman Irani, Kunal Kapoor and Lara Dutta earned $550,000 in North America, beating “My Name is Khan” opening day gross of $445,000

“Don 2″ released with 3,000 movie prints in the domestic market and a 3D release on another 550 screens. – IANS

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Mysterious Veena Malik materialises in Mumbai

Mysterious Veena Malik materialises in Mumbai
FHM India's 'naked' cover girl reappers after going mysteriously missing amid death threats
Published Monday, December 19, 2011

The mystery surrounding missing Veena Malik seems to be solved for now - Veena Malik found in Mumbai.

The Pakistani model at the center of the FHM India naked cover girl row, who was reported missing on Friday has turned up safe in a hotel in Mumbai, India.

Veena Malik, who posed nude for the Indian version of FHM magazine, apparently vanished last week, causing her manager, Pratiek Mehta, to report her missing.

The actress was supposed to be in Hyderabad on Sunday for a fashion show for designer Riyaz Gangji. But India's Central Bureau of Investigation did not allow her to leave Mumbai.

A citizen from Pakistan needs to have a visa to visit another city. In Veena's case, Riyaz did manage to get her a visa to come to Hyderabad for the show but was not allowed to leave Mumbai.

Her manager also got worried when the actress did not turn up for her shoot. The actor has been untraceable since December 16 and hasn't been in touch with family and friends ever since.

The model-turned-actor was shooting for a Bollywood horror film, “Mumbai 125 km”, at Film City in Goregaon. Mehta said that Malik left in a car after pack-up on Friday and has not been reachable since.

She was supposed to report at Film City (Mumbai) on Saturday morning but did not turn up. Her mobile phone is also switched off and no one has been able to reach her for over two days.

Pakistani media have been reporting that Veena Malik has gone back home through Wagha border. She returned home clad in burqa to avoid fuelling further controversy. According to Pakistani TV Network Geo TV, the actress secretly returned to her home country to renew her visa.

Despite all such reports designer Riyaz confirmed to the Indian daily The Times of India that the actor is in India.

He spoke to the actress who seemed very depressed about the entire nude shoot scandal. She also apologised for her absence from his show. Riyaz also disclosed that she has been getting threatening calls, emails and someone has filed a case of indecency against her.

Veena checked into a hotel in Mumbai and hasn't been in touch with anyone. She wanted to be left alone for some time.

The actress completed all her formalities at the hotel desk by submitting her Pakistani Passport and filing up an information form, which is handed over to the (SB) 2 Side Branch of Mumbai Crime Branch, a must for foreign nationals.

Reportedly, officers stationed at Juhu police station discovered Veena.

It won't be long when we will see the controversial Veena Malik resurface again.

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10 Most Notorious Bollywood Scandals

10 most notorious Bollywood scandals
2011: Photo shoots and photoshops, bimbos and bombshells, casting couches and court cases...
By
Bindu Rai
Published Monday, December 26, 2011

Bollywood has grown a year older, but we are still on the fence if anyone has grown any wiser in tinseltown since the start of 2011.

The stars simply don’t learn from their past mistakes, with almost the same set of celebs producing the same set of gasps, shocks and horrors from all those who dished the dirt on the scandals that rocked the Indian film industry in the past year.

The warring Khans, Salman and Shah Rukh (who else), kicked off the new year with a wham bham war of words; while Priyanka Chopra rounded off 2011 with allegations of being a homewrecker once again, this time allegedly frolicking with the latter Khan with whom she works with in the upcoming “Don 2”.

Smoke and mirrors were indeed aplenty, but if you are looking for a recap of all that fodder, 'Emirates 24|7' has it by the bucket in yet another scandalous year for Bollywood.

Khan vs Khan: The saga continues…

While Shah Rukh Khan was ringing in the New Year at his mansion, Mannat, on The Palm, Jumeirah, his one-time friend was frothing at the mouth when news reached Salman Khan’s ears that SRK had tendered a public apology on Karan Johar’s talk show, “Koffee With Karan”.

For those who can’t recall, the brawl between the two superstars erupted nearly two years ago at Katrina Kaif’s birthday bash, where the verbal sparring almost headed towards fisticuffs before Aamir Khan intervened and broke them apart.

Nearly a year later, the media savvy Shah Rukh shot up the TRPs when he spoke about his fight with Salman on his director-producer friends chat show, which was aired first week of January this year.

As soon as Salman got wind of it, the actor refused to take this laying down. He took to the press with his own version of the state of their affairs, saying: “He (SRK) did that on the show so that I’m hounded by this question throughout the year. I’ll not accept such drama.

“If he really was sorry and wanted to apologise, he could’ve called me or dropped by at my place. Expressing regret on a chat show makes no difference to me or anyone.”

Salman was clearly in a chatty mood or simply to angry to what he said next: “Since he chose the media to communicate, he should also divulge the entire conversation that caused the trouble that day.

“I don’t think he’ll do that. Forget about me pardoning him, should anyone hear that conversation even they’ll not pardon him.”

Scandal has never been more delicious. And before you ask, the war still continues.

Bipasha Basu: Single and scandalous

The bong bombshell made it to the news in 2011 for all the wrong reasons.

The first shocker (well, for some maybe) was her split with long-time beau and actor, John Abraham, shook tinseltown. After eight years together, the nasty break-up saw quite a few snidey comments flung at each other from both parties.

But what really kicked up a ruckus was not her single status but rather a seemingly innocent picture that was anything, which she posted on microblogging site Twitter that cause outrage amongst child activists.

The photo in question featured her legs encased in boots with a girl on either side tying her laces. The accompanied tweet read: “I need to learn to tie shoelaces asap. Embarrassed that I can’t. No patience grr. Promise I am not spoilt. Will learn soon [sic].”

Minutes into that tweet, the actress was bombarded with criticism for promoting child labour. Basu immediately claimed that those two girls are her sister and friend but by then, the damage was done.

Vidya Balan: Morphed into a victim

The world sat up and took notice when a morphed bikini-clad picture emerged on the web, featuring actress Vidya Balan on the magazine cover of “Maxim”.

‘The dirty picture’ shocked the actress so much so that she was prepared to file lawsuits against those who would dare to circulate this image in cyperspace.

Her spokesperson immediately denied that it was indeed Balan on the cover, adding: “The concerned magazine has been contacted and they have clarified that they have nothing to do with it.

“She is not going to sit tight if such a thing happens again. We are exploring legal options to stop this malice against actresses of Bollywood.”

While almost a year on, not much have emerged on this front, Balan is sure to get support and sympathy from actresses Katrina Kaif and Sonakshi Sinha who have both been victimised earlier in such a way.

Poonam Pandey: Dares to bare

A handful of industry folks had ever heard the name: Poonam Pandey. But all that changed when the Cricket World Cup rolled around this spring season.

The things people do for five minutes of fame, and this aspiring model milked it for all its worth by promising to strip down to her birthday suit if Team Blue won the World Cup. She even wrote to the sport’s governing body, BCCI, requesting permission to treat the boys in the locker room, but naturally, she was denied the honour.

But the notoriety was enough to secure her a spot on the hit reality TV show, “Big Boss 5”, along with garner a larger fan following with some scandalous images on her Facebook and Twitter accounts.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan: Drop it like it’s hot

Come summer and India’s cricketing World Cup victory was all but forgotten when grandpa B, aka Amitabh Bachchan, took to Twitter (where else) to announce to the world that his darling daughter-in-law, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, was pregnant.

It almost seemed as the world and its aunt were basking with glee with the news, but all clearly wasn’t fine with a certain film director and a production house that had announced their magnum opus, “Heroine”, with the star in question in May at the Cannes Film Festival.

Director Madhur Bhandarkar and UTV Motion Pictures were in a tizzy it seems when they heard over the news that their star, Aishwarya was being paid a visit by the story, mere days after she had commenced shooting more the highly expensive film.

A war or words ensued, with Bhandarkar saying that she hid the news of her pregnancy when signing for “Heroine”, while the Bachchans maintained a stoic silence for the most part.

After a month of rumours and stories in the press, the distressed director finally dropped Aishwarya from the film and took to his blog to say: “Today I am sitting alone in my office after the plugs being pulled off from my film “Heroine”...

“My conscience stands clear as I have been honest to my craft irrespective of the repercussions...

“My inherent belief is that motherhood is pious and I am humbled by it. I must also add that I salute every woman who chooses to work in this extremely delicate state.

“To put things in perspective, I am a man who is surrounded by women in my family. My wife, my sister, my mother and my daughter.... These are the people that make my life!

“In fact my wife when she was carrying my daughter worked through her pregnancy.... but in the same breath I would like to say that I will never knowingly put a woman in harm’s way knowing the delicate nature of her health.”

Today, Kareena Kapoor is Bhandarkar’s new “Heroine” and the Bachchans, well, we do wonder if they will ever work with him or UTV again.

The Bachchans and IVF?

Once the dust settled on the “Heroine” saga, speculation over the baby’s sex soon followed, with husband Abhishek Bachchan saying on record that he hoped it was baby girl.

With the media frenzy surrounding the pregnancy, a certain Bhairavi Goswami – the actress from “Bheja Fry” in case you were wondering – decided she needed her share of the limelight.

So, in a blink of an eye, Goswami also took to social media to say: “Nauseating to read superstars giving interviews about wanting a girl baby when she has gone to Bangkok to an IVF clinic which specialises in boy babies.

“Height of hypocrisy. They know damn well it’s a boy; after all she has to produce a male heir at any cost. Typical UP mentality, no wonder that state has such high female foeticide. [sic]”

However, the egg was smack in Goswami’s face when November 16 saw Aishwarya give birth to baby girl.

Oh well, better luck next time we guess.

Minissha Lamba: Yes she Cannes

While the small-time Minissha Lamba was all excited over her trip to the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, the playground for international celebrities proved to be an expensive trip in the end when her return to Mumbai saw the actress hauled in by the airports customs department.

The “Bheja Fry 2” actress was detained for a tiresome 16 hours courtesy her undeclared jewellery, worth well over Rs500,000.

When news broke, the drama continued over Twitter between Lamba and Indian author and columnist, Shobhaa De, who drew out her claws to slash the poor actress’ image to smithereens.

De’s tweet went something like this: “Poor Minissha: Lamba race ki ghodi (someone in for the long haul) or lame duck? Warning to other Bollywood wannabes to leave those borrowed rocks at home. Dazzle with your talent. [sic]”

However, Lamba is not one who ever takes things laying down. The actress got her own back, responding: “Ms De, real writers write books. Slandering on #Twitter is a job of the less gifted. ‘Dazzle with your talent’ Ms De, not your slander.”

The drama died down between the two shortly after, but it seems Lamba’s bad luck didn’t, with the actress being detained at Dubai airport a few months later over a passport issue.

Priyanka Chopra: Aspiring homewrecker, again?

We love a good old love triangle. And we love it more when there's a fourth person involved.

Tinseltown's been buzzing overtime with rumours of King Khan secretly dating Priyanka Chopra. The question in everyone's mind when SRK openly planted a kiss on Piggy Chops at the Just Dance finale was, 'is it true?'

What adds fuel to this fire is a report on what allegedly took place at a party in Mannat, King Khan's home.

Apparently, Mehr Jessia, wife of SRK's best bud Arjun Rampal, took it upon herself to admonish the Badhsah of Bollywood for his 'inappropriate' behaviour. At this party that was also attended by Priyanka Chopra, Mehr took SRK aside and told him that it wasn't fair to the Missus as he's invited his leading lady home.

And that was that! King Khan unleashed his temper and told Mehr to mind her business. She also received a mouthful from hubby dearest for playing nosey parker.

It's all just hearsay. But it's definitely beeped into vision on our scandal radar.

Veena Malik: In the mood for nude

Five minutes of fame have stretched to 15 and still going strong as controversy queen Veena Malik continues to hog the limelight weeks after her nude photoshoot appeared in FHM magazine, with the initials of the ISI, Pakistan’s spy agency etched on her arm.

Film stories are made of the intrigue that followed with Malik accusing the magazine of photoshopping her bikini off to make her seem nude, while the
magazine has denied such accusations.

She was quoted in the media as saying: “The things I have done in life, I have the guts to stand by.

"This is my body, and I will take advantage of it if I want to. And it’s a very beautiful body. But I will not allow any man out there to morph my pictures and put it on the cover, just to sell their magazine. They are gaining. I’m losing.”

The magazine and Malik are reportedly suing each other for £3m in a bitter exchange of lawsuits.

Rina Golan and the Bollywood casting couch

A small-time model and struggler created a sensation when she dared to expose the Bollywood infamous casting couch in her new book, naming a few names that shook up the film industry.

Rina Golan and her book, “Dear Mr Bollywood: How I Fell In Love With India, Bollywood And Shah Rukh Khan” ruffled quite a few feathers when she mentioned celebrity filmmakers such as Subhash Ghai and Anees Bazmi, along with singer Anoop Jalota, all propositioned her.

In an interview with Mail Today, the lady said: “I wonder why people get shocked at the mention of casting couch. I have witnessed numerous young girls and boys getting exploited.

Golan talks about how Ghai tried to take her to his bedroom and then it was Bazmee at a later stage who asked her out to dinner when she approached him for a role in his movie “Thank You.”

“We would have some fun,” she said was what he had told her.

Bazmee and Jalota have both denied the allegations.

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Bollywood conquers the world: Globalisation according to Don II

Bollywood conquers the world: Globalisation according to Don II

Dec 26, 2011
by Shiv Visvanathan

Don II is a startlingly impressive film. Superbly edited, it is slick, quick and audience-friendly with a wonderful cast of actors and a simple, almost bare, plot.

An Indian don, based in Thailand, wishes to extend his activities to Berlin. He is being hunted by European mobsters who are desperate to eliminate him as he is underselling them — and by his old and lovely nemesis, Roma. The wily Don weaves a plot of his own, anticipating their every move, to justify the oft repeated slogan: Don ko pakadna thoda namumkin hai (It is a little impossible to catch the Don).

There are no memorable characters in Don II. The actors play types. Shah Rukh, Priyanka, Lara, Boman are no more than masks, script roles mouthing dialogue. The movie is a genre film, utterly professional, and underlines Bollywood’s mastery of the global crime thriller. Move over Tom Cruise, Don II is here.

It is therefore not the plot that intrigues, but the film’s underlying messages about globalisation.

Don II shows that globalisation first began with crime, and is viewed best through its annals. Criminal organisations relocate as rationally and easily as corporate firms and their decisions are just as eventful and consequential.

Raju Shelar/Firstpost

More critically, the criminal mind knows that its real mirror is the corporate brain. Nothing is more corrupt and corruptible than the banking system. Don realises that all he has to do is subvert a few banking officials; skeletons in their cupboard are metaphorical keys that can open any vault. Inevitably, the vice-president of Deutsche Bank is an Indian.

The globalisation game played out in Don reveals that it is crime that benefits from speed, technology and the information revolution. Investigative justice is like a Stegosaurus, a dinosaur with two brains with messages moving slowly between the brain and the tail. By the time the police take a decision, the plot has raced past them. Oddly this comic vulnerability provides a sense of a lag, of twentieth-century minds desperately trying to adapt to a twenty-first century rule game.

Globalisation is also writ large in the more usual ways. In Don II, Bollywood signals its ability to absorb and mimic the best of Hollywood. Here Farhan Akhtar combines a collage of scenes from Die Hard, Mission Impossible, Thomas Crown Affair, and The Transporter to produces a fast paced film with original Indian touches.

If crime is global, so now is the female body. Desire has no nationality and woman’s bodies circulate faster than currency. The feminine body is now acquiring a global chic, a style which is common to all metropolitan centers of the world.

Bollywood is cheeky in signaling its mastery of the international thriller genre. In one scene, James Bond appears as a silhouette, evoking Russia With Love or Gold Finger. Bond is deeply embedded in the global psyche and the intelligence agent of yesterday has evolved into the present-day criminal hero. But Bond is also passe, an ultra nationalist creature, held captive to a high-ranking bureaucrat like M, a man who cannot sustain relationships and substitutes brash sexuality for love.

Our criminals are more nuanced, more global, shrugging Bond off as an ancestral back drop.

Don II also attempts to establish continuity with the original Don starring Amitabh Bachchan. When Shah Rukh Khan acted in part I, critics waxed nostalgic, slamming his efforts and the film. Nothing rose to the level of the evergreen Amitabh Bachchan classic, not even Kareena Kapoor in the Helen-inspired item number, Yeh Mera Dil. This newer and slicker sequel includes quotes from its distant ancestor but moves light years ahead, reducing Amitabh and Helen to anachronisms. The effect is achieved through speed: razor-sharp editing and a script that races as fast as a Ferrari.

There is no better symbol of Bollywood’s global coming of age than the car chase. The legendary plots where the horse (Basanti) chases a car or jeep are now passé. Now honour and horsepower belong to the Porsche, Jaguar and the Maserati. To drive anything less is to be reduced to the parochial.

Speed is now the index of civilisation.

Shiv Visvanathan is a social science nomad.

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The BIG Bollywood releases in 2012

The BIG Bollywood releases in 2012
2011- a mixed bag for Indian cinema
By
Ajanta Paul

Published Friday, December 23, 2011

Hrithik Roshan opens 2012 with the much awaited ‘Agneepath’ (AFP)

The jam-packed international cricket calendar kept movie goers away from cinema halls in the first half of the year 2011. But like a true champion, Bollywood made a comeback in the second half.

Salman Khan hit the jackpot with his record-breaking 'Bodyguard' and 'Ready', followed by Aamir Khan’s home production 'Delhi Belly'.

Small budget movies like 'Tanu Weds Manu', ‘Dou Dunni Char’,'Ragini MMS', 'Murder 2' again proved to be fruitful for the producers.  But leading the band wagon was Vidya Balan's unconventional, 'The Dirty Picture'.

It was an action packed year with 'Ready', 'Bodyguard','Force' and 'Singham'.  However Hindi cinema’s superhero Shah Rukh Khan with his $20 million science-fiction didn’t quite live up to the expectations.

Bollywood coming-of-age film directed by Zoya Akhtar's 'Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara' was "a beautifully scripted journey of catharsis" as film critic Pratim D. Gupta puts it. She hits the nail on its head with a perfect combination of irresistible Hrithik Roshan, carefree and fun-filled Farhan Akhtar and the easy going Abhay Deol.

Young turk Ranbir Kapoor garnered many accolades through his soulfully musical 'Rockstar' but the movie received harsh reviews from several critics.

With more than 100 releases, for the first time in Indian cinematic history three films crossed the Rs 100 crore mark.

But it’s time now to see what 2012 holds for the viewers.

The opening innings is led by Hrithik Roshan. Dharma Production’s much-awaited ‘Agneepath’ will be Hrithik Roshan’s baptism by fire. A remake of Amitabh Bachchan starrer that took the audience by storm in 1990s will hope for an encore at the box-office. Meanwhile the father-son duo of Rakesh Roshan and Hrithik will come together again with ‘Krish 2’.

The Khans have become the figure head of Hindi cinema in India and Salman Khan will roar in with 'Ek Tha Tiger'. Meanwhile Aamir Khan will play a baddie in 'Dhoom 3'- the third part of the successful 'Dhoom' franchise from the Yash Raj Films bouquet.  Aamir's 'Talaash' along with leading lady Kareena Kapoor and Rani Mukherji, has raised expectations from a powerful script by Reema Kagti.

Bollywood’s own Kungfu Panda - Akshay Kumar will enter the frame with his action flick 'Rowdy Rathore', 'Khiladi 786' and Sci-fi flick 'Joker'.

While the big boys will give you your action does Imran Khan and Kareena Kapoor will bring some romantic relief with 'Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu'. Junior Khan will finally get to showcase his work with his favourite actress in this Karan Johar production.

Next year's draw looks pretty strong with Abbas Mustan's multi-starrer thriller 'Players',  Anurag Basu's 'Barfee' with Ranbir Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra and 'Kahaani' with the bold and beautiful Vidya Balan.

Kareena Kapoor vows to give her best performance in Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Heroine', starring opposite Arjun Rampal, while Abhay Deol with his 'boy-next-door' image prepares for another hit with 'Shanghai'.

Other line-up includes, ‘Student Of The Year’, ‘Bol Bachchan’, ‘Agent Vinod’ and ‘Son Of ‘Sardar',

The sequels too are coming back with a vengeance- 'Once Upon A Time In Mumbai 2' , 'Race 2', 'Raaz 3', 'Dabangg 2', 'Dostana 2', 'Housefull 2' and 'Jannat 2'.

So for all the movie lovers there's plenty to look forward to in 2012.

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Bollywood Banks On South Indian Showbiz

Bollywood banks on south indian showbiz

It's only fitting that 2011 should see a song from the Tamil film factory ending up as the pop anthem of the year. If Dhanush's Kolaveri Di has broken all records on the Internet, the trend only defines showbiz fads of our times. Popular culture in India, particularly Bollywood, is increasingly banking on south Indian showbiz for inspiration when it comes to raking in big moolah.

Take a stock of Bollywood's 2011 box-office roster, and you know what we mean. The year's three biggest hits so far - Bodyguard , Ready and Singham - are all remakes of south Indian blockbusters.

Interestingly, the only film that looks like a close contender for top honours this year is The Dirty Picture. Though the Vidya Balan-starrer is an original film, its script is based on the story of Tamil sex bomb Silk Smitha and set amid the backdrop of the south Indian film industry.

Look closely, and you realise the fad of remaking south Indian hits has also directly affected the Bollywood rat race. If Salman Khan is at the forefront of buying the rights of southern hits and then Bollywoodising them to north Indian taste, he is also Hindi cinema's most popular hero right now, having recorded the top two hits of the year.

Salman's Bodyguard, which opened on Eid and went onto create a new opening day and first-week record in Bollywood, is the remake of a Malayalam hit by the same name.

The Rs.60-crore film netted Rs.102.86 crore in its first week - an all-time record - and went on to gross Rs.229 crore worldwide. The film has turned out to be Bollywood's second-highest grosser of all time after 3 Idiots.

Salman's other release this year is Ready, incidentally, the second highest Bollywood grosser of 2011. The film, which cost Rs.40 crore, is a remake of Telugu blockbuster of the same name. Ready is 2011' s second highest opening-day grosser and has grossed Rs.179 crore worldwide.

Salman's super success is almost matched by Ajay Devgn's 2011 biggie Singham, a remake of the 2010 Tamil blockbuster, Singam , dubbed in Telugu as Yamudu. The Rs.20-crore Singham has grossed over Rs.150 crore worldwide and re- affirmed Ajay's status among Bollywood's most saleable stars.

That apart, John Abraham managed to garner an elusive hit with Force this year. The action thriller was a remake of a Tamil hit, Kaakha Kaakha, released in 2003.

"These films have good subjects and great potential. Only a few people down south have seen these films so we can take them to a larger audience by making them in Hindi," Salman summarised the trend recently.

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Meet Bollywood's 'bravest Star'

Meet Bollywood's 'bravest hero'
Bollywood has joined Vidya Balan's legion of fans after The Dirty Picture released last weekend. Filmi folks are going gagag over her acting prowess. Shruti Seth even named her the 'bravest hero' of the film industry.

Here's what stars had to say about the film:

Minissha Lamba was impressed. 'Standing ovation 2 VIDYA BALAN! History is made by those who dare 2b different.. Congrats Tusshar, Emraan, Milan Luthria n Ekta Kapoor!!!' she wrote.

Shabana Azmi tweeted: 'Its difficult to believe that d actor who played in NKJ is d same as d 1 in TDP.What a brave unabashed performance.more power 2 Vidya Balan.'

Shruti Seth tweeted: 'Just saw Dirty Picture. Kudos to Vidya Balan for being the bravest hero of the film industry. Great performance. Must watch.'

Sameera Reddy thanked Vidya for bringing back the oomph factor in films. 'so glad Vidya Balan had bought the OOOmph factor back! was so sick of this Size Zero bullshit! im sure the boys dont like skinny chicks!' she updated.

Payal Rohtagi tweeted: 'Vidya vidya vidya. Omg. I love her in the dirty picture. There were whistles and whistles even with multiplex crowd. I could see the pain. Love u vidya. U have guts and hats off to you. Mwah. Vidya balan rocks. Period. And I cried when silk died. Yes our industry is so lonely. I have felt it. And that's why I begged my nani to with me. Here there are no friends. Its just success and money that matters. Only u can trust your blood with your emotions.'

Gul Panag also went all gaga about her. 'And it is fantastic!! Vidya Balan ROCKS! What a performance and what a film! Kudos to Milan Luthria. And Vidya is outstanding- head and shoulders above her contemporaries,' she wrote.

Neetu Chandra tweeted: 'Saw Dirty Picture yesterday... Vidya Balan is fab. An Inspiration for all the actors.. Great going Ekta..'

Arjun Rampal was speechless. 'Dirty Picture super film, everyone is fab,congrats Ekta,Milan,Emraan,Tushar,Naseer Sir,but OMG Vidya Balan just makes u speechless. Bravo,' he updated

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Emma Watson Latest Bikini Photos

Emma Watson latest bikini photos for her fans. Emma Watson a charming, hot and sexy actress of hollywood novel based series harry potter. she is so beautifull. in these pics Emma Watson showing herself in hot cloths and latest bikini photos. 

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What is eid | A Day of Celebration | when is eid

Muslims around the world celebrate two Eids a year: Eid Al-Fitr and Eid Al-Adha.
According to muslim calendar...........

Eid Al-Fitr

The first Eid of the year is known as Eid Al-Fitr. It marks the end of the month of Ramadan, which is the month in which Muslims fast every day from sunrise to sunset. Fasting in Ramadan is...

Eid Al-Adha 

eid adha jewelry

The second and final Eid adha celebration of the year is called Eid Al-Adha. It commemorates the completion of the Hajj pilgrimage. Although only pilgrims in Mecca participate in the Hajj fully, Muslims around the world join them in celebrating Eid Al-Adha. Hajj is one of the five...

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Bollywood actress helps domestic violence victims

Bollywood actress helps domestic violence victims

Years after Somy Ali left her glamorous life as a Bollywood actress, she heard a knock on her door from a Bangladeshi neighbor, asking for help.

The woman said she'd been sexually and physically abused for a decade by her husband, his father and his brother. Ali paid for the woman's apartment and divorce.

"I said 'There have to be more women like this,'" Ali said.

So she founded a not-for-profit organization called No More Tears Inc. in 2006. So far it has helped 48 women. Ali funds her organization in part by giving 10 percent of the revenue from her clothing company, So-Me Designs.

"These people have become part of my family," she said. "There is nothing more gratifying than rescuing a woman."

Ali's own life reads like a Bollywood script. She grew up in an opulent 26-room mansion in Karachi, the daughter of a Pakistani movie producer father and an Iraqi mother. When Ali was 9, she moved to Florida with her mother and brother.

At 15, she decided that she wanted to marry actor Salman Khan, whom she calls "the equivalent of Brad Pitt in India," and that she wanted to move to India.

Eventually, she got her way. While in a Mumbai hotel lobby, a producer's assistant spotted her and launched her career in film. Soon after, Khan saw her at an agency by chance and cast her in a movie.

Her Bollywood romance lasted a few years, but Ali soon broke up with Khan and came to back to Florida at age 24.

Now, at 34, she is trying to get the message out to victims of abuse. She puts her brochures in mosques, churches, and ethnic grocery stores, and even in Indian and Pakistani restaurants.

"If you want to help someone, it comes naturally," she said.

She meets the women in public places because she is afraid of being followed home, and usually helps the women financially for three to six months. Some women have been helped for a year. She also makes sure they get counseling.

Currently, she said, she has only $50 in the bank, so in October she is expanding her So-Me Designs that help fund No More Tears. So far, she has designed T-shirts (for $24.99 each), baby shirts ($26) and hoodies ($45). The new collection includes dresses (starting at $150) and formal tops (starting at $60).

Each T-shirt has a design Ali created with the help of her graphic artist, who is also a woman she has helped. The most popular design is a clipboard with boxes to tick off either White, Black, Hispanic or Human.

Ali says as a child she would cross out the "other" in such questionnaires and write the word human instead.

"I consider myself a Muslim," she said. "I pray every night the Muslim way. It's important for me, for my sanity."

She says she would like to go back to Pakistan and help women, but she fears she would be killed or kidnapped.

"I just feel like I have a lot of work to do," she said.

Edith McEacheron, 35, originally from Venezuela, was put into contact with Ali in March after she says her husband left her and their toddler son with no money and no way of getting any. She is now in the final stages of trying to get a work permit and is looking for a job. No More Tears pays for her room and her attorney.

McEacheron says that without the organization, her life would be different.

"I guarantee you one thing, I probably would be in the street," she said.

Saman Movassaghi, an attorney who also helped McEacheron, gives Ali's clients the discounted rate of $500 per case.

"I really enjoy helping them in the respect that they know that there is somebody out there who listens to their case and fights for them," she said. "I didn't go to law school to do traffic tickets ... I went to law school to help people."

Laura Finley, a professor of sociology and criminology at Barry University and a No More Tears board member, donated her purple station wagon to one woman.

"It feels really good to see somebody be safe," Finley said.

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‘Dabangg’ dominates Bollywood awards with 6 prizes

‘Dabangg’ dominates Bollywood awards with 6 prizes

TORONTO — "Dabangg," a tale about a corrupt police officer, dominated the 12th International Indian Film Academy awards, snagging six prizes including best picture at the star-studded event in Toronto — held on North American soil for the first time.

"My Name is Khan" also scooped up top honors at the five-hour award bash that started Saturday night and rolled over into early Sunday. Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan took the prize for leading male role for the film, about the treatment of Muslims in a world of heightened suspicions following the Sept. 11 attacks.

Khan played the family’s Muslim patriarch who suffers from Asperger’s syndrome. The film, nominated in seven categories, also took home the prize for best direction and best story. Khan was handed his award by Bollywood superstar Anil Kapoor and two-time Academy Award winner Hilary Swank, who congratulated Bollywood for helping to unite the world through film.

"Hollywood and Indian cinema must bring the world closer together," said Swank, draped in a glittering sleeveless deep red gown. "I believe in IIFA’s vision — one people, one world."

Cuba Gooding Jr. presented the best director award to Karan Johar for "My Name is Khan," declaring that he was impressed by the power of Indian films around the world.

"I think it’s absolutely wonderful how India has traveled the world of entertainment and I would love to play and be a part of a Bollywood movie myself," said Gooding, who broke out into a few dance moves.

"Dabangg" led the awards tally sweeping trophies in the music category in Toronto’s packed Rogers Centre, filled with more than 22,000 Bollywood fans and stars. The hit took the prize for best playback singer female, best playback singer male and best music director. A playback singer pre-records songs so Bollywood actors can lip sync to them in their films. "Dabangg" star Sonu Sood won for best performance in a negative role. The film also garnered the awards for best screenplay and best female debut went to Sonakshi Sinha for her role in the film as Sood’s love interest.

Anushka Sharma won the best female lead for her role as an assistant to a wedding planner in "Band Baaja Baaraat," a film about the world of wedding planning. Arjun Rampal took home the best male supporting prize for political thriller "Raajneeti," and best supporting female role went to Prachi Desai for "Once Upon a Time in Mumbai."

Kangana Ranaut, the model turned actress, gave the night’s first performance with her fellow "Double Dhamaal" actors Arshad Warsi, Javeed Jaffrey and Ashish Chaudry. The film was one of several that premiered during the IIFA weekend.

A lifetime achievement award to was given to Dharmendra Deol, patriarch of the Deol dynasty, who received the special award for his 55-year-long career. Dharmendra’s sons, Sunny and Bobby Deol, Bollywood stars in their own right, performed with their father for the first time on stage to a song from their film "Yamla, Pagla, Deewane."

Outstanding achievement in Indian cinema went to Sharmila Tagore, who has starred in such films as "Mera Sapnon Ki Rani," ”Namkeen," and "Chingari," and has spent 52 years in the industry. Tagore’s son is the popular Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan. She said her son wanted to attend the weekend festivities, but couldn’t because they are both finishing films.

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty gave a speech at the ceremony, which also saw a number of energy-packed Bollywood dance numbers and tributes, capping the three days of festivities. McGuinty lured the IIFA to the city by pledging $12.25 million.

Roughly 16,000 of the 22,000 tickets to the awards ceremony available to the public sold out in minutes. Those lucky enough to get seats were charged between $49 and $126, while resellers offered last-minute tickets online for more than $1,500 each.

Launched in 2000 at the Millennium Dome in London, the annual IIFA awards have traveled around the world in the hopes of exposing the genre to various audiences and opening trade markets.

Holding the event in Toronto was a strategic move as India’s cinematic royalty makes a bid for a piece of the North American box office. Held previously in Amsterdam, Sri Lanka, Macau, London, Malaysia, Dubai, Singapore, Bangkok and Johannesburg, IIFA is capitalizing on the already huge Bollywood following in Toronto, which has an estimated population of nearly 700,000 South Asians.

"For the first time in its 12-year history, IIFA makes its North American debut, and its biggest stars are you," Kapoor said in a mix of English, Hindi and Punjabi while pointing to the audience. "Thank you Ontario. Thank you so much for making us feel the warmth in Canada."

Organizers say more than 200 filmmakers and actors came from overseas in the bid to gain inroads into the North American market and build production partnerships.

The awards gala is considered India’s biggest media event and one of world’s most-watched televised spectacles, with hundreds of millions of viewers tuning in.

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Warner makes Bollywood debut with kung fu comedy

Warner makes Bollywood debut with kung fu comedy

(Reuters) - Director Danny Boyle's Indian foray paid off with the award-winning film "Slumdog Millionaire," and now Warner Bros. Pictures hopes its debut Bollywood film will reap some U.S. box office success.

Billed as the first ever Bollywood kung fu comedy, "Chandni Chowk to China" opens on Friday in India and on more than 125 screens in the United States and Canada -- the largest Bollywood release in North America, says Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros.

"Chandni Chowk to China," starring veteran Bollywood star Akshay Kumar who has made more than 120 films, tells the tale of a poor cook who travels to China to become a kung fu hero. The film, whose title refers to the bustling Chandni Chowk market of Delhi, is the studio's first Indian production.

"There have been lots of Bollywood films in the past which had have the potential of crossing over, but could not cross over mainly because they did not have a studio backing it with a strong distribution network," said director Nikhil Advani.

"If this one succeeds, even if it marginally succeeds ... I think there will be a wave of more Bollywood films," he told Reuters in a recent interview.

Bollywood, as the Indian film industry centred in Mumbai is called, churns out about 1,000 movies a year and is known for its colourful sets, extravagant costumes and elaborate song-and-dance sequences.

The new film, which Kumar said cost about $8 million (5.5 million pounds), is also being released in 30 other countries, but Richard Fox, executive vice president Warner Bros international, said the studio doesn't have grand expectations.

"This one, we think, will play broadly, but to the Indian diaspora. We're not fooling ourselves," Fox told Reuters.

"Our film is totally in Hindi, so we're going in especially in a market like this (in the United States), in the U.K., in Australia. Our audiences here don't like subtitled movies so we're going in with a handicap right away," he said.

NO 'SLUMDOG' BOOST

Advani and Fox said Fox Searchlight's Golden Globe Award winning "Slumdog Millionaire" -- the story of a boy searching for love on a quiz show which pays tribute to Bollywood with a dance number -- is not expected to boost to their film.

"It's great that they're both in the marketplace because one is a pure Bollywood film and the other one is a really brilliant film that takes place in India, in Mumbai. They complement each other," Fox said.

Advani, who met Boyle when they were filming their movies on sound stages next to each other in Mumbai, said that while Bollywood is attracting more international directors it would be difficult for foreign directors to make a Bollywood film.

"It's very important for you to be able to understand the Indian culture for you to be able to make a Bollywood film," he said. "People will be a little shocked when they see the film for the first time ... by the kind of in-your-face emotions, whether its comedy or heroes crying. You have to get used to watching a Bollywood film."

The Bollywood industry has, in recent years, been moving from a notoriously inefficient family-based business to a more corporate structure in finance, production and distribution, modelling itself after Hollywood.

That has brought more investors, including Hollywood studios, such as Warner Bros, Walt Disney, Fox Searchlight, NBC Universal, Viacom and Sony Pictures.

While Hollywood is easily the No. 1 film industry in the world, Bollywood is one of the fastest growing with some experts forecasting it could double in size by 2012.

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Boxer Arturo Gatti's death: Suicide or murder?

Boxer Arturo Gatti's death: Suicide or murder?

To look at them together it's clear: Amanda Gatti lives for her 3-year-old boy, Arturo Jr.

"He's everything I asked God for," Amanda told "48 Hours Mystery" correspondent Erin Moriarty in her first American television interview. "Junior makes me complete."

In no small part, she says, because he's the spitting image of his father... a man they're both learning to live without.

"The smile is the same...just like his daddy," she said. "I miss my husband very much. I miss him when I go to sleep...I miss him when I wake up..."

It's a loss made all the more difficult by the shadow of suspicion that surrounds Amanda.

In July 2009, Amanda was arrested for murder and held before investigators shocked the world with their findings: Arturo Gatti, world class fighter who never gave up in the ring, had committed suicide.

"I knew. I knew. I knew," Amanda said in broken English. "My husband kill himself. Oh my God, my husband killed himself."

But even today, more than two years after Arturo's death, many of his friends, family and fans refuse to believe he took his own life.

By late 2006, Arturo Gatti had been crowned welterweight champion and amassed a multimillion-dollar fortune when, Amanda Rodrigues, then a struggling Brazilian immigrant, says they met walking dogs near his home in New Jersey.

She says she had no idea who he was. "I remember when I find out he was a fighter, I told him ... 'Oh... I thought you was even a movie star...but not a fighter...because he was so cute...'"

"Arturo was special. ...There was nobody like him," according to Tom Casino, a boxing photographer who had met Arturo years earlier -- soon after the fighter moved down from Montreal. "He looked like this little peanut."

But Arturo, then just 19, already had his eye on the prize.

"Did you have any idea the kind of fighter he'd become? Moriarty asked Casino.

"No, not a clue," he said. "Not, until I saw him fight."

That happened a few months later in an amateur fight where 19-year-old Arturo took on a much older, more seasoned fighter.

"The guy couldn't hit him... he's pot-shotting the guy and then hitting him like BANG," Casino explained. "He won and I was like 'Wow.' ...I've never seen anything like it. ...I knew this guy was gonna be a champ."

And Arturo Gatti became just that -- bobbing, weaving and punching his way to three world titles.

He won 40 fights - 31 by knockout. His relentlessness in the ring made Arturo a crowd favorite. And he partied outside the ring as hard as he fought in it.

"I would get calls that Arturo did something crazy," Casino told Moriarty. "Everybody that I met in the tri-state area had a party story with Arturo Gatti."

But it was his rivalry with one man that really made him a legend. "Irish" Micky Ward became a household name when actor Mark Wahlberg made a movie, "The Fighter," about Ward's life.

"I had three amazing fights with Arturo Gatti and in doing that became a very good friend..." he said.

The Ward-Gatti trilogy would become the stuff of boxing lore. Ward won the first fight; Gatti took the second.

"He caught me in the ear and I stumbled into the corner like this," Ward demonstrated in the ring for Moriarty, "and I went boom!"

And in their final bout, Gatti stunned the crowd by winning - with a broken hand.

"Gatti...it's just the poster boy of courage and heart," said Casino.

The battles Gatti fought with Ward brought out the best in both of them.

"It showed that two guys, we can actually try to fight, win and that we respected each other," said Ward.

Video: Micky Ward on his relationship with Gatti
Photos: Gatti's life and career

Gatti showed that respect after the third fight when a battered Ward was being examined by an emergency room doctor.

"And he opens up the curtain and says, 'We got someone here who wants to say hi to ya.' The next bed over is Arturo...he's laying there, he was getting stitched up also I believe," recalled Ward.

"Well you put him there," noted Moriarty.

"Right, and he put me there. And the first thing outta his mouth, he says, 'Micky, you OK?' And that showed me...what a kid! What a guy."

It would be the start of an extraordinary friendship.

Which is why, to this day, Micky Ward can't believe Arturo could have killed himself. "I just can't see him taking his own life," he told Moriarty. "That's just not him! ...Everything in life was going good for him."

In 2006, after almost two decades in the ring, Arturo met Amanda. In less than a year, he sat her down, popped a bottle of champagne... "And then he just asked me if I would marry him. ...I think it was one of the most beautiful moments in my life," she said.

Moriarty asked Amanda, "Did you ever see him fight?"

"I only saw his last fight," she replied.

In July 2007, Gatti, now 35 and plagued by injuries, faces a much younger Alfonso Gomez. It would be Arturo's last professional fight.

"And I remember that...he was so sad...And he says, 'Baby, I wanted you to be the champion's wife." And I said, 'Baby, you're always gonna be my champion.'"

Despite his newfound love, retirement from boxing would hit Arturo Gatti hard.

According to Casino, "He partied like he fought... hard and heavy."

"48 Hours Mystery" reveals the truth about a man boxing the darkest shadows... and headed for a fall.

"I knew if he continued drinking something bad was gonna happen," Casino said. "...it was inevitable."

Arturo Gatti's Last Fight from 48 Hours Mystery 
(Full Episode Video)

For those who missed it last night on CBS, Arturo Gatti's controversial death was the subject of 48 Hours Mystery. Here's the full episode. I will warn you that there are photos of the crime scene, so if that sort of thing upsets you, you might want to avoid watching.

The episode has interviews and comments with Gatti's widow Amanda Rodrigues, former foe and trainer Micky Ward, and more, including experts on the case and family.

I don't have any idea what happened with Arturo Gatti. I know Brazilian authorities ruled a suicide. I know investigators believe he was murdered. I know it's a tragedy either way that he's gone.

I will say this one time: Keep the comments civil and clean. If you don't, you'll be banned. You can discuss this, but don't go overboard with inflammatory comments and things of that nature.

I do highly recommend watching the show. Personally, I just don't feel qualified to make some "decision" on what happened to Arturo Gatti. I miss him as a fighter and a personality in boxing. He was a fighter who will never, ever be forgotten.

Here's a bit extra from Ward, too:

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Herman Cain Upsets Gov. Rick Perry to Win Florida GOP Straw Poll

Herman Cain Upsets Gov. Rick Perry to Win Florida GOP Straw Poll

ORLANDO, Fla. — Herman Cain, the former chief executive of Godfather’s Pizza, won the Florida straw poll today, defeating second-place Rick Perry after the Texas governor worked the crowd of activists with a breakfast speech Saturday morning.

Mr. Cain won nearly 40 percent of the 2,657 people who voted, more than doubling Mr. Perry’s total and that of Mitt Romney, who came in a close third.

All of the candidates spoke to the crowd of Florida Republicans who gathered here for the Faith and Freedom Coalition and Conservative Political Action Conference meetings.

But Mr. Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, left the state early Friday for events in Indiana and Michigan, effectively telegraphing that his campaign did not place that much importance on the result.

Mr. Perry stayed in Florida through Saturday morning and hosted the breakfast for conference delegates. A win for Mr. Perry at the straw poll might have helped blunt criticism that has been building of his performance in Thursday night’s debate.

Instead, the victory went to Mr. Cain, who had whipped up the attendees with a fiery speech on Friday afternoon that had the crowd on their feet for an extended standing ovation.

In a statement, Mr. Perry congratulated Mr. Cain but took a swipe at Mr. Romney.

“Floridians and voters nationally want a candidate who is clear on the issues and talks honestly about the future, not someone who takes multiple sides of an issue and changes views every election season,” Mr. Perry said. “Today’s vote demonstrates that Floridians are energized and ready to help get America working again.”

Representative Michele Bachmann, who has been struggling to recover from a series of disappointing performances since her win at the Iowa straw poll this summer, came in dead last, with only 1.5 percent of the votes.

That result is certain to add to her difficulties raising money. The Minnesota congresswoman has had some success raising small donations, but she has not convinced many high-dollar donors to help bankroll her campaign, according to recent reports.

The straw poll was also a disappointment for Jon Huntsman, the former governor of Utah, who made an argument to the gathering on Friday that those in attendance should choose the person who is most electable against President Obama.

Instead, the crowd chose Mr. Cain, who is trailing Mr. Romney and Mr. Perry in the national polls and in surveys of the early voting states like Iowa and New Hampshire.

Mr. Cain’s best hope may be in Iowa, where his message may resonate with conservative and religious voters. If he can beat Mrs. Bachmann and Mr. Perry there, it might give his campaign a boost, as winning Iowa did for Mike Huckabee in 2008.

Rick Santorum, the former senator from Pennsylvania, came in fourth in the voting, just ahead of Representative Ron Paul of Texas. Newt Gingrich, the former speaker of the House, came in sixth.

Here is the statement of the official results from the Republican Party of Florida:

Today at the Republican Party of Florida’s Presidency 5, 2,657 delegates cast their votes in the Party’s straw poll. The results of that straw poll are in and are as follows:

1. Herman Cain, 37.1%
2. Rick Perry, 15.4%
3. Mitt Romney, 14%
4. Rick Santorum, 10.9%
5. Ron Paul, 10.4%
6. Newt Gingrich, 8.4%
7. Jon Huntsman, 2.3%
8. Michele Bachmann, 1.5%

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IPL 2010 Pictures | Hot Bollywood IPL Owners 2010 Wallpapers

The IPL is a professional Twenty20 cricket league created and promoted by the BCCI and backed by the ICC. The IPL works on a franchise-system based on the American style of hiring players and transfers. Many Bollywood stars were spotted at IPL 2010 including Katrina kaif, Deepika Padukone, Juhi Chawla, Kareena kapoor apart from team owners Shahrukh khan, Gauri Khan, Vijay Mallyam, Mukesh Ambani, Shilpa Shetty and her husband Raj and Preity Zinta: photos and wallpapers. Also Indian popular actresses seen in IPL (Indian premier league). Here is the latest Wallpapers of Bollywood Actresses at IPL 2010, Bollywood Stars IPL 2010 Photos, Bollywood Actress IPL 2010 Pictures, Bollywood Celebrities IPL 2010 Photos, and Bollywood IPL Owner 2010 Wallpapers.

 

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