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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Move over 'Sheila', 'Chikni chameli' is here

Move over 'Sheila', 'Chikni chameli' is here

Katrina Kaif can move, and how! The Britain-born actress might have taken time in perfecting her Hindi accent, but Bollywood's latka-jhatkas is something she has mastered, and proves with her latest item song "Chikni chameli".

Industry members are smitten with the song. They feel it will definitely be a USP of Karan Johar's remake of his father's classic "Agneepath", and overshadow "Munni", "Sheila", "Shalu" and "Jalebi bai" item numbers.

Composed by national award-winning duo Ajay-Atul, the spicy song, sung by Shreya Ghoshal, is the Hindi version of their own Marathi hit "Kombadi palali".

The lyrics of the number, penned by Amitabh Bhattacharya, are as cheesy as they could get, but the rhythm is extremely peppy and catchy. And Katrina's vigourous moves and sensual expressions, choreographed by Ganesh Acharya, go in total sync.

The 26-year-old had set a benchmark with "Sheila ki jawaani" last year, but with this song, she has surpassed it with her killer desi look.

"Agneepath" director Karan Malhotra is all smiles and believes Katrina has done full justice to the song.

"I think the way the song was made, it was so wonderful, that only a topmost actress could have done justice to the song. And as far as Katrina is concerned, her USP is that she has never been seen in any film in that kind of zone that 'Chikni chameli' is in...which is why she also stands out in that atmosphere and that is why the song is catching a lot of eyeballs," Malhotra said at the music premiere of "Agneepath".

As much as he avoids talking in media about Katrina, even Salman Khan, her former beau, couldn't stop raving about the song.

"I love the song! I saw it a few days back and I am completely smitten by it. A lot of hard work has gone behind it and it is visible on the screen. Hats off to Katrina. She has come a long way," Salman said at a recent event in Mumbai.

A 30-second promo of the song was first launched, followed by an over two minutes-long video on YouTube. The video has registered over 3 million hits so far, and producer Karan Johar is ecstatic.

"The nation is singing and dancing to 'Chikni chameli', so I am really excited about it. It is already an established big hit song," Johar said.

According to Atul Gogavale, "Katrina spent eight days in rehearsal before starting to shoot the song. It took nine days to finish the shoot, and her energy levels never saw a dip."

"This song has a very high tempo and requires speed in steps. Even if I or someone else wants to dance to it, you cannot match up to the tempo for more than two minutes. But Katrina just took it to another level. She has left us speechless," he said.

Celebrities from the film fraternity feel Katrina has raised the bar of item numbers with her energetic dance steps.

Writer Milap Zaveri tweeted: "Katrina's dance steps in 'Chikni Chameli' are too brilliant and energetic! But there should be a disclaimer saying 'Don't try this at home!'"

"'Chikni chameli' from 'Agneepath' is just outstanding. I have never seen an actress dance like Katrina does - she raises the bar to another level," tweeted Ritesh Deshmukh, who recommended Ajay-Atul as composers for the film.

Even choreographer Vaibhavi Merchant, who has choreographed item numbers like "Kajra re" says she is in awe of Katrina's effort.

"Katrina is looking very good in 'Chikni Chameli' and I told Karan (Johar) about it. I really loved it and whenever Katrina comes and does a song like this, you know what the effect is," she said.

The action-drama slated for a Jan 26, 2012 release, features Hrithik Roshan as Vijay Dinanath Chauhan, originally played by megastar Amitabh Bachchan in Chandan Barot's directorial venture of the same name.

Priyanka Chopra, Sanjay Dutt and Rishi Kapoor will also be seen in key roles in the movie.

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Bollywood woman power: Vidya, Ekta carry the baton

Head-turners, showpieces and glamour girls are some of the common descriptions used for actresses in male-dominated Hindi filmdom. But feisty producer Ekta Kapoor and her discovery, the bold and talented Vidya Balan, have proved to be game changers with The Dirty Picture.

"The Dirty
Picture had a shocking opening of Rs.32.62 crore. This has put the film in the enviable list of top 10 first three days ever," Girish Johar, head of distribution of Balaji Motion Pictures, which has produced the film, told IANS.

Even a filmmaker like Ram Gopal Varma, who has so far made only male-centric movies, can't stop raving about the film by Ekta, who seems to have a knack for picking real stories and turning them into box office wonders.

"I want to give 2 million 15 lakh 17 thousand 3 hundred and 26 and a half kisses to Ekta for proving that Dirty is Clean and Clean is Dirty," he tweeted.

Ekta has always been a trailblazer - when she entered the TV business, she was crowned television czarina following her long-running successful soaps like Kyunki...Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii and Kasautii Zindagii Kay and made saas-bahu sagas the staple diet on TV.

When she forayed into the moviemaking business, she left the small screen melodrama far behind and carved a niche by doing real life stories with films like Shootout At Lokhandwala, Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, Ragini MMS and now The Dirty Picture.

And she has also brought forth Vidya. In a way, Vidya is Ekta's prodigy as she brought the actress into the limelight with her comedy show Hum Paanch as Radhika,  a geek, in 2000.

After featuring in song videos, the actress enjoyed a dream debut in Bollywood with Parineeta, but she was jolted back to reality by mishaps like Kismet Konnection and Heyy Babyy.

But just like her mentor, Vidya bounced back as a single mother in Paa and took her boldness a step further with her sensuous avatar in Ishqiya.

The Dirty Picture is her boldest performance so far - she sheds clothes and inhibitions to play a sex symbol.

Though critics are not so happy with director Milan Luthria's treatment of the subject and too much focus on Vidya's skin show, the 32-year-old actress has no regrets.


"I am not coy or 'chui mui' type," said the actress in an interview and persisted that she is "unapologetic" about her dare bare act and that "she loves the limelight and enjoys the attention she gets."

An unofficial biopic of southern sex symbol Silk Smitha, The Dirty Picture, which released with an A-certificate, may not fit the bill of a family watch, but critics are raving about her performance.

It won't be an exaggeration to say that just like her dialogue in the film "itihaas awah hai ki mardon ki duniya rahi hai, aurton ne aa kar hungama macha diya", she has created a furore in the male-dominated arena as Silk.

Usually male actors are seen in the commanding position during film promotions, but here Vidya singlehandedly marketed the film and played the 'hero'.

In fact, Vidya's co-star Emraan Hashmi too feels that the film has broken stereotypes about actresses.

"Can't thank all of you enough for the overwhelming response to The Dirty Picture. The film's emerged a real game changer," he tweeted.

Echoing the same, writer-director Saurabh Shukla told IANS: "Vidya Balan is no doubt a marvellous actress and she has proved it once with The Dirty Picture. Bollywood is indeed a male-dominated industry, and even society is; hence fewer woman-centric films are made. But with The Dirty Picture, Vidya is likely to turn the tables."

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Bollywood heroines who bared all uninhibited

WITH more than a hint of cleavage and more than a suggestion of sex, Vidya Balan turns it on in The Dirty Picture like few other Bollywood heroines have ever managed to do. A t2 list of power women on the Bolly screen who have used their bodies as weapons of mass attraction. can you add to the list? Tell t2@abp.in

VIDYA BALAN IN THE DIRTY PICTURE

Vidya’s Silk knows the power that her body wields and she uses it uninhibitedly and unerringly. She lays herself bare (Vidya shows more cleavage in an hour than most leading ladies have shown in their whole careers) on the ogle buffet, manipulating men with a wink or a glance. Silk is willing to do all it takes — from writhing in front of the camera to indulging in a quickie in the backseat of a car. She taunts and she tit-illates, she rules the box office and causes bed-lam in the world of men.

BIPASHA BASU IN JISM

The dusky Ballygunge bombshell dropped a bomb with her bare-back seductress act in her debut film. Bipasha’s Sonia was an irresistible cold-hearted schemer who used her killer curves to lure men. Playing with her eyes as much as her body, Bipasha and John Abraham’s lovemaking scene in Jism finds a place in Channel 4’s list of the top 100 sexy scenes of all time.

REKHA IN UTSAV

Playing the sensual courtesan Vasantasena, Rekha took screen eroticism to a new high in the Girish Karnad-directed Utsav. Using her body as a totem of sensuality, Vasantasena lures a string of men, with the young Charudutt — Shekhar Suman in his first film — falling prey to her charms. Two erotic sequences, er, stand out: he slowly stripping her of her jewellery; he, she and soap suds in the bathing scene.

konkona sensharma & Raima Sen IN MIRCH

This 2010 film looked at what women want — in bed. Themed on a woman’s right to have sex — and refuse it — this Vinay Shukla film comprised four shorts starring Bong belles Konkona Sensharma and Raima Sen. If the first was about how a wife convinces her husband that she needs to have sex with another man for her husband’s long life, the second dealt with a queen making love to another man even while the king watched. The third focused on a wife having an affair to teach her philandering husband a lesson, while the fourth was about a wife fooling the husband into believing that she was at a seedy hotel to catch him in the act! Woman power, Bong-style!

PAOLI DAM IN CHATRAK

She may have gone under the sheets and bared a bit for previous films, but Tolly trendsetter Paoli Dam truly shed her inhibitions for the yet-to-release Chatrak. Directed by Sri Lankan filmmaker Vimukthi Jayasundara, the dusky actress engaged in an oral sex scene in the nude with co-star Anubrata doing all the hard work. This is what Paoli had told t2 about taking it lying down: “In the scene, the girl is getting all the pleasure.” The downside? You may never get to see the scene and the film.

SHABANA AZMI & NANDITA DAS IN FIRE

Director Deepa Mehta made her central protagonists — neglected by their respective husbands — turn to each other, mentally and physically. Playing sisters-in-law, Shabana Azmi and Nandita Das turned it on — under the mosquito net. Condemned at the time of release, Fire is today widely regarded as a breakthrough film on female empowerment. With basic instincts playing a vital role

ZEENAT AMAN IN SATYAM SHIVAM SUNDARAM

Wet, wet, wet.... Zeenat Aman — easily the boldest actress of her generation — in an itsy-bitsy choli and a navel-flaunting sari in this Raj Kapoor flesh fest. Suffering from a facial disfigurement, Zeenat’s Roopa seduced Shashi Kapoor — and the audience — with those curves. As the camera caressed every inch of her body, Zeenat scored with that dare-bare cleavage in the Bhor bhaye song. And the steamy kiss with Shashi remains one of Bollywood’s boldest yet.

MANDAKINI IN RAM TERI GANGA MAILI

Yet another Raj Kapoor film. Yet anotherwell-endowed leading lady on a titillation trip. Mandakini in nothing but a flimsy white sari under a raging waterfall, baring more of herself than any heroine in mainstream Bollywood had (or since has), is the enduring image of this watershed 1985 romp. She followed it up within an hour with a breastfeeding scene.

INDIRA VARMA & SARITA CHOUDHURY IN KAMASUTRA

As the saying goes, Mira Nair caused ripples by showing nipples. This visually compelling tale of female empowerment through sex and lesbian love saw Indira Varma and Sarita Choudhury play childhood friends wrestling for the same man. Lovemaking was central to this film that celebrated female sexuality as a healing and liberating force.

NANDANA SEN IN RANG RASIYA

Ketan Mehta’s historical piece focusing on the life of painter Raja Ravi Varma has Nandana playing Sugandha, a sensuous devdasi who is, at heart, a child-woman. Trained to be irresistible to men, Nandana’s Sugandha goes topless in the film, taking a brave stand to bare her body for the sake of art. Rang Rasiya has been languishing in the cans owing to distribution problems, but it remains a significant film on woman power.

MALLIKA SHERAWAT IN MURDER

If her 17 kisses in her debut film Khawahish set the boldness ball rolling, Mallika Sherawat in Murder went where no Bollywood heroine had gone before. Cheating on her husband and neglecting her son as she hooked up with a former lover, Mallika got down and dirty everywhere — bed to couch, backseat of car to building ledge. The sexually liberated Bolly heroine was born with this one.

KIMI KATKAR IN TARZAN

The sex symbol of the ’80s bared it all in her debut film playing Jane to Hemant Birje’s Tarzan. Prancing around in bare essentials, Kimi Katkar gave Tarzan — and the men in the audience — sleepless nights. Who can forget a wide-eyed Birje exploring her body with his fingers and the erotic bathing scene in the pond?

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Bollywood Protests Against Censorship Of Internet

Union telecom minister Kapil Sibal has received a lot criticism from Bollywood celebrities following his actions on the censorship of social-networking websites.

Minissha Lamba tweeted: 'On 1 hand India is prepping 2b a superpower.On d other myopic 'leaders' parade their state-run-censorship stance.China or USA. Be 1 nt both'

Shekhar Kapur wrote: 'In a democracy Govt has 2 publicly define wht is offensive, n prove it libelous in court before it can b taken off. Technolgy fr google facebook n twitter is so simple now tht thousand sites will replace 1 thats taken down.'

Kunal Kohli didn't sound too happy either. 'India is the greatest democracy. Kapil Sibal wants to curb this freedom of speech/expression.it won't & can't happen.wake up know your people. Instead of attacking rising prices, inflation, corruption, terrorism, unemployment, why is Kapil Sibal attacking Facebook, twitter & google ?! Wasn't content 'screened' in the late 70's too ? What was that dark period called ? Oh ya ... Emergency ! History we don't want to repeat!' he updated.

Sandhya Mridul tweeted: 'Hahhaha Idiot Kapil Sibal trending I just love Twitter at times like this.'

R Madhavan feels he is doing for attention. 'Okey-Mr. Kapil Sibal is seriously trying to get some silly attention by trying to curtail and regulate the net. Seriously. What is the intent? Do we really want to be like China or North Korea. Look at the personality of these govt. They are ruthless and rule with a iron hand.'

Shobhaa De tweeted: 'Sibalsaab,such outrage 2 protect privacy of one 'Madam' in a country of 100million internet users?We like our freedom and we shall have it!'

Vishal Dadlani thinks it will end democracy. 'How long before they make the short hop from censorship to fascism? If we allow this, say goodbye to democracy, + all that India stands for,' he wrote.

Ranvir Shorey tweeted: 'Anyone who would riot over anonymous content on the web is someone who would riot anyway. I think Freedom is without Conditions, but with Consequences.'

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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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