Busy Bee Jacqueline
Many actors like Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma, Alia Bhatt, Parineeti Chopra and Shraddha Kapoor have become choosy about roles and have decided to do just one film at a time. On the other hand, there are other actresses, like Priyanka Chopra and Deepika Padukone, who are busy with Hollywood projects. All this has come as a blessing in disguise for Jacqueline Fernandez, who is on a roll.
Yes, the actress recently delivered a hit with Housefull 3 and will have two releases in the coming months - Dishoom with John Abraham and Varun Dhawan, and then A Flying Jatt with Tiger Shroff. Right now, the actress is shooting with Sidharth Malhotra for Krishna-DK's next film. She will also star in Salman Khan Productions and Dharma Productions' next film with Sushant Singh Rajput to be directed by Tarun Mansukhani. There's more. Fernandez will also be judging the upcoming season of Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa. Phew!
Jagga Jasoos Now Next Year?
Anurag Basu is busy shooting his longest in-the-making film Jagga Jasoos with Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif in the lead. The final schedule will probably wrap by June end. The film's release has been on hold since last year and, for a very long time, there were rumours of it being postponed. Now, it seems, the production house had asked the director to focus on completing the film and not think about the release date.
The film was to look for a release in September but the actor doesn't want back-to-back release as he has Ae Dil Hai Mushkil releasing this Diwali, and whose edit is under way. So, now, the actor and the producer have decided to postpone the release to 2017. In all probability, the film will release early next year.
Apte To Romance Kapoor
It seems everything has finally fallen in place for Vikramaditya Motwane's film Bhavesh Joshi. Initially, Imran Khan was to play the lead but when that didn't work out, there was buzz that Sidharth Malhotra would play the lead. After that, Dharma Productions' Unglireleased and we hear that Bhavesh Joshi was scrapped as the two films were strikingly similar.
But Motwane and his writer worked on the script once again and Harshvardhan Kapoor, who is making his debut with Mirzya, will be playing the lead in the film. Now we hear that the director has signed Radhika Apte to play the leading lady.
A source close to the film says, "Initially, Radhika liked the script but didn't sign on as she didn't have very much to do in the film. Her character was reworked and she now has a prominent role. The film starts rolling from July and will wrap by October."
Guess Who
This film was all over the news when it was announced, and why not? A successful director was launching his production house and he had roped in a talented director to helm films for him. This project was one of the few films that the director-turned-producer had announced. It had an unusual cast, prompting everyone to assume that the filmmaker had decided to make a hatke film, which would be a treat for the audience.
Once the film was ready, the director-turned-producer watched it and was not happy with it. He tried to salvage the film on the editing table but couldn't for want of footage. So, post the re-editing, everyone associated with this director-turned-producer is unhappy with the product.
But since the movie is ready, they have no choice but to release the film as they are answerable to the corporate house that has funded the film. Last heard, they have decided to release the film but will not spend too much on promotions. So it's going to be largely digital promotions for this film.
Isha Talwar To Debut
We all know that Akshat Verma, who wrote Delhi Belly, has turned director. And the first mahurat shot was recently taken in Mumbai with lead actor Saif Ali Khan, who plays the protagonist in the film. The film is a quirky comedy and has three different stories. It also shows the night life of Mumbai in a never-seen-before light. We also hear the film will mark the Hindi debut of Isha Talwar, who has done quite a few films in the South. Talwar will not be seen opposite Khan
but is the centre of one of the stories in the film.
The film is titled Kala Kaanti and Khan will wrap the shoot
by August.
Now Comedy For Karan Malhotra
Karan Malhotra made his debut with the Agneepath remake starring Hrithik Roshan, a masala entertainer that reeled in over '100 crore at the box office. Then he decided to make another action film but, this time, using something which was not oft-used in Hindi cinema back then. He used mixed martial arts in Brothers starring Akshay Kumar and Sidharth Malhotra but the film didn't do very well at the box office.
Sources close to him say that for his third directorial, Malhotra is attempting something new. We hear he's almost completed the first draft of his third film - and it's NOT an action film. Yes, the director has written a comedy, which he wants to make on a tight budget. He will soon be giving Karan Johar a narration, after which casting will begin.
Ronnie Screwvala Returns
Ronnie Screwvala, the man behind UTV Motion Pictures and who has inspired many to start their own businesses, is all set to bounce back. Screwvala, the man who took UTV to such heights a few years ago, quit the company which was taken over by Disney.
Ever since then, there's been talk of him making a comeback but that's all it was. Now there's a strong buzz making rounds in the film trade that he's all set to return to film production.
A source close to Screwvala tells us, "Ronnie is all set to start his own production house called RSVP (Ronnie Screw(V)ala Productions) and he has signed Anand Tiwari to direct the first feature film to be made under this banner. It's a unique rom-com, which goes on the floors at the end of this year. Soon, an official announcement will be made."
Well, it's not just the story but the title too is very hatke. It's calledLove Per Square Feet - A Great Love Story. Watch this space!
Ganesh Kartikeya
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