Resham Dankh cast meets Big B
By: Shaheen Parkar
August 14, 2006
| | | Amitabh Bachchan with the Resham Dankh cast, including Sumeet Raghavan, Rajiv Mehta, Dimple Shah and child actors Tanya and Ulka | With the Big B around, it's natural for everything else to come to a standstill.
And that's what happened with the cast and crew of Star One's Resham Dankh, when the shooting of the show had to be stopped on Thursday. The reason? Big B was shooting in the vicinity (Filmistan Studios) for Ravi Chopra's Babul.
Big surprise
As word of his presence spread, the Resham Dankh set was also abuzz with talks of Bachchan's presence.
All that the cast and crew had uppermost on their minds that day was an opportunity to meet the legend. This resulted in the stars and the crew trooping in on Babul's sets for an unscheduled meeting with Bachchan.
"It was a matter of honour for the cast. And it came as a big surprise to them. Initially, they knew that shooting for Babul was in progress. But they didn't know that it was Mr Bachchan who was shooting there," says producer Jamnadas 'JD' Majethia of Hats Off Production.
Picture perfect
The cast had an opportunity to meet Bachchan, who even enquired about the show. He was particularly interested when he realised that it was a Star TV show, thanks to his old association with the channel and Kaun Banega Crorepati. They even posed for photographs with him.
Resham Dankh, set in a business family, is based on a Gujarati novel penned by Aatish Kapadia along with Mahesh Yagnik.
The cast includes Moulli Ganguly, Raahil Azam, Apara Mehta, Sumeet Raghavan, Sulbha Deshpande, Dimple Shah and Rajiv Mehta among others. It replaces Siddharth Basu's show Heartbeat from 9.30 pm today.
And unlike most of JD and Aatish shows (which include Baa Bahoo aur Baby, Instant Khichdi, Kudkudiya House No 43 and Sarabhai vs Sarabhai that are Gujarati-centric), Resham Dankh has a contemporary family of industrialists as the main protagonists. | |
Aman, Rati approached for Jhalak Dikhla Ja
By: Vickey Lalwani
August 14, 2006
| | | Aman Varma and Rati Agnihotri | Aman Varma, Amarr Upadhyay, Akashdeep Saigal, Bhumika Chawla, Sanjeev Kapoor, Kapil Dev, Mahesh Manjrekar, Ajay Jadeja, Pooja Bedi and Rati Agnihotri are some of the names that have been approached to participate in Sony's forthcoming show, Jhalak Dikhla Ja. Eight of these will eventually be finalised.
Says Rati, "I haven't been dancing for years. Anil (her husband) doesn't dance, so I am left watching the fun on most occasions. But this is one occasion where I'm going to have a ball."
Aman says, "There is a slight issue of dates. I have to give them two days every week, so let's see how it goes."
It is rumoured that Akashdeep Saigal will step into Varma's shoes if he cannot do the show.
Bi-weekly show
Says a Sony official, "Yes, these names have been approached. The moment we finalise the list, we will start making the promos."
Jhalak Dikhla Ja is an adaptation of American TV network ABC's reality show, Dancing With the Stars. Dancing with the Stars is the American version of the BBC TV series Strictly Come Dancing.
Co-produced by Siddhartha Basu's Synergy Communications and Theatre Red, the show will be a bi-weekly and will involve a high level of audience participation and viewer interactivity. The show is scheduled to launch in the first week of September.
The concept of the show is to pair a celebrity with a professional dancer in an attempt to win a high score from a panel of judges. Then the couple has to secure a majority of votes from the viewers, who can call in or vote online. One pair will be eliminated every week. | |
Nine is just fine by me!
By: Shaheen Parkar
August 14, 2006
Neha Devi Singh (Bhoomi of Star's afternoon drama Saarthi) blew another candle on her birthday cake on August 9. It was a quiet birthday spent with her family at home.
A belated bash was held last night at a Bandra nightspot with select guests.
Karmic connection
"It's strange that the number 9 has so much significance in my life. I was born on August 9. I arrived in Mumbai in August 9. I auditioned for Saarthi on August 9. There has to be some connection with this date for me. Every new move in life for me inevitably occurs on this day."
This year, she spent her birthday at home in the company of her mother, sister and cousin. "It was an all-female affair. It was more significant as my sister, who was away in Delhi studying architecture for the last five years, has finally finished her course. She is back with us now."
Bookworm
Two years on, Neha has featured in only one show.
"I am shooting throughout the month for Saarthi, so there is no time to take on another offer. But I am making the most of it. It's not just camera and action for me. I am catching up on my reading. On the sets of Saarthi I have been nicknamed Harry Potter as during breaks I am always with a book. I can finish any book, however bulky, in two days."
The actress also says that she wants to be net savvy. "That is next on my agenda. Most of my friends have relocated abroad. I plan to get a laptop and then we can stay connected with each other via email."
Celebration time
Neha, who made her television debut as Bijli in the thriller Sshhh… Koi Hai, was studying in film school and wanted to be a director, but was told to take up acting instead. After a brief stint with modelling, she turned to the small screen.
"At the moment, we are celebrating Janmashtami in a big way on Saarthi. All the rituals and the birth of Lord Krishna have been lavishly performed by the Goenka family," explains Neha who is part Manipuri and part Punjabi.
Inspired by the Mahabharat, Asit Modi's show revolves around an industrial family with Lord Krishna himself guiding the characters in the daily.
Though the telly buzz is that Neha and her co-star Nawab Shah (Mansen
of Saarthi) share a special relationship, she prefers to be non-commital on that front. "People cam say what their want, I have nothing to say on that subject," she says. |
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Kuch bhi karega
Prem (Manoj Bohra) from Kasautii Zindagii Kay called us to chirp excitedly, "I launched my website manojbohra.com last week, and guess what? In seven days I've had 35 thousand hits! Isn't that unbelievable?"
Yes dahling, but what's even more unbelievable is how far you can go to seek phokat publicity.
Manoj and his fiance, Teejay Sidhu, have hired themselves a PR manager who is currently looking for media to splash their engagement pictures (last month both got engaged in Canada). Apparently, they will give the pictures to the paper that will give them "maximum exposure".
Erm, could you pose for us in the buff? Then we could probably use your pictures in our most read (actually, exposed) column – MiD DAY Mate!
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