promises KBC2

Big B takes House of Commons by storm, promises KBC2

Amitabh Bachchan

Fans of popular game show Kaun Banega Crorepati are in for a treat with its host superstar Amitabh Bachchan saying 24 more episodes are in line.

"Twenty-four episodes from the previous lot are pending. We are now talking to Star TV to see how we can complete these episodes. It will be done," Bachchan, in London as the brand ambassador for the International Indian Film Academy Awards, said in an interview on Wednesday. Asked how soon the serial would be resumed, the 64-year-old Bachchan said it was up to Star TV. "They are working it out."

He said Sarkar II was in the making and he, his wife Jaya and son Abhishek will feature in Pradeep Sarkar's next. About his role as Gabbar Singh in Ram Gopal Varma's proposed remake of Sholay, Bachchan said, "It is a challenging role. Let us see." With Bollywood planning a string of remakes and some eminent personalities criticising the trend, the superstar said, "We can't stop people from criticising. At the same time, we cannot say it should not be done. The remake of any film will add to creative enhancement. Whether it is good or bad is a different matter."

Asked whether he planned to set up a film academy, Bachchan quipped, "I don't have the acumen to start an academy. I am barely managing to be an actor and I would like just to keep it to that."

Amidst reports linking Abhishek Bachchan with his Umrao Jaan co-star Aishwarya Rai, Amitabh said he wanted his son to settle with a "good girl" of his choice. Asked about the prospect of Abhishek marrying Rai, the superstar quipped, "I have also heard about it. You should ask the people who spread the rumour."

He said all that mattered to him was that "it should be a good girl and it should be of his (Abhishek's) choice." On his experience of working with his son, Bachchan said it was quite good. "He is quite competent. At home we are father and son but when we are before the camera, we are two actors. On the sets I have never seen him as my son but as a friend," he said. Umrao Jaan, starring Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, released last week, while Dhoom 2 and Guru, both starring the couple, are awaiting release over the next few weeks.

Emphasising his role as brand ambassador of IIFA, Bachchan said, "I have come to talk about it, propagate the movement. It is good for the film industry and good for India. It is good for the host nation. It brings cooperation and brings communities together." He said he was happy that IIFA has been somewhat responsible for increasing interest in Indian cinema outside Indian shores. "I hope it continues, and we want IIFA to grow bigger and greater and bring about coordination and cooperation between the host countries and ours. Hopefully we will see it being quantified in the years to come." Asked about his company ABCL, he said it was "functional and operative."

Superstar Amitabh Bachchan took the British House of Commons by storm as he took centrestage with the announcement of IIFA Awards 2007. The eighth annual International Indian Film Academy Weekend and the IIFA Awards will be hosted in Yorkshire for four days from June 7, 2007, he announced. Before taking the centrestage of the dining hall of the House of Commons, Bachchan, who was recently conferred a doctorate by Leicester University, had a separate meeting with British Chancellor Gordon Brown who described the Indian actor as "one of the most famous men in the world."

NRI MP and former British minister for Foreign and Commonwealth Office Keith Vaz said he was proud that Leicester University honoured him even before Delhi University, and he was happy France decided to confer the Legion of Honour on him. British Prime Minister Tony Blair, in a message read out by Minister in charge of Culture Tessa Jowell, said he was happy the next IIFA Awards would be held in Yorkshire, and that the two countries were jointly working together to promote Indian films. Present at the gathering were NRI Industrialist and British Ambassador for Overseas Business, Lord Swraj Paul, Indian High Commissioner Kamalesh Sharma, and scores of members of both houses of Parliament.

The IIFA Awards 2007 will consist of an awards ceremony, blockbuster world premiere, film festival, charity fundraising events, film professionals workshop and global trade forum. Tessa Jowell said next year the British Academy of Films and Television Arts would celebrate Amitabh Bachchan's works.

Addressing the packed gathering, Bachchan said it had been a wonderful journey since the launch of IIFA in 2000. He noted that about 50-60 years ago acting in films was not considered an honourable profession and many families in fact disapproved of their children taking to acting. "But today it is a matter of pride that he was being showered with love and affection in this august house," mainly because of the eminence and appreciation Indian films have earned.

Bachchan said, "IIFA is committed to taking Indian cinema across the globe. Cinema brings together people from diverse cultures for a shared experience, bridging the cultural divide. Using cinema as a key to open minds, the International Indian Film Academy believes bridges should be built across cinemas, businesses, communities and nations."

Karan, Soham part ways

Karan Johar and Soham

Karan Johar has parted ways with Kaal director Soham. The young director was to direct his second film for Dharma Productions, starring Sanjay Dutt, Kareena Kapoor, John Abraham and Arjun Rampal. He has now taken that film to a rival camp.

Switching lanes

Tension between Karan and Soham had been simmering for a while. Soham was anxious to start his film for months, while Karan wanted to wait till Sanjay Dutt's verdict in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case was declared. On several occasions, Soham even suggested starting the film without Dutt but this was unacceptable to Johar. He considers Dutt part of his family and didn't want to upset him.

A source reveals, "On Sunday night, there was a fight between Karan and Soham after which they parted ways. The end result was that Soham took Karan's script to Ajay Devgan and his business manager Kumar Mangat, who is now producing the film."

Tit for tat?

What's obvious is that the tie-up with Devgan is not an overnight decision. Soham was already in discussions with him before the split with Karan occurred. But Ajay's camp didn't inform Johar about the meetings, even though it is common knowledge that Karan has worked on the script.

This might flag off a new chapter in the hostilities between Shah Rukh Khan-Karan Johar and Ajay Devgan. Earlier this year, when Ajay's Omkara and Karan's KANK released, there were reports from Devgan's camp that Johar was trying to sabotage Omkara. Is this payback, Devgan style?

Playing dumb

Kumar Mangat denies knowledge of the fight between Karan and Soham, but admits, "I've been in talks with Soham since Kaal, but he said he would do a film with me only after his project with Karan was through.

We've discussed several projects but nothing has been finalised yet. Then Soham called me yesterday and said he wanted to talk to me about something. I'm still waiting to hear more."

Soham remained unavailable for comment. As did Karan Johar, who's currently in America for his lecture at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.

No hard feelings

Apparently, more trouble brewed when Karan wanted to make certain changes in the script. But a source close to the KANK director scoffs, "That's not true. Karan had been working on the script for a long time.

By the time it was ready, he wanted to wait for Sanju and that's when problems happened. Karan considers Sanju his brother. In fact, Yash Johar (Karan's father) was a guarantor in Sanju's case. Karan is willing to wait no matter how much it costs him. He's emotional about people he cares about.

He has parted ways with Soham because he was frustrated with the delay. Karan doesn't hold it against him as he's very fond of Soham."

Kumar Mangat says that the cast of his film with Soham hasn't been finalised yet, but sources confirm that Ajay Devgan and John Abraham will be in the film.

Vidya upset with Mani

RUMOUR HAS IT...

Vidya Balan

Vidya Balan is apparently upset with Mani Ratnam about her role in Guru. When she first signed the film, Vidya was excited at the prospect of doing a Mani Ratnam project so early in her career. In fact, she had even gone to press saying that she was doing a "small but pivotal role" in the film.

But now, the actress feels that the small role has gotten even smaller. She apparently told a close aide that she was promised a meatier role than the one she actually ended up doing (Balan plays R Madhavan's wife in Guru).

Interestingly, even the promos currently on air show no signs of Balan's presence in the film, leaving speculation open about her slashed role. Apparently, she is more upset with the fact that a director like Mani could give her such a raw deal.

But darling, when you're "co-starring" in a film with Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, you're optimistic to think you're going to get anything more than fleeting attention, either from the director or the audience.