KA Articles Archive - Page 30

They shone bright on showbiz night


The Fairever Anandalok Puroshkar 2006 at the Science City auditorium on Saturday evening was a blend of spirited performance and starry presence. Here are a few glimpses of the Bolly brigade

Tollywood's hero no. 1 Prosenjit handed over the Best Actress (Hindi films) award to Bipasha Basu for Corporate. While Bipasha didn't go up on stage to accept John Abraham's award for Most Promising Star, she did seem delighted to be honoured in her home town. "Ekhane eshe khub bhalo lagchhe," smiled Bips. Prosenjit himself won the Best Actor (Bengali films) award for Dosar after his song-and-dance tribute to 75 years of playback in Tollywood


Shveta Salve and Eijaz Khan flew in from Mumbai to stage a homage to Bollywood music directors. Dancing to songs from Awara hoon to Raat baki to Kajra re, the duo came up with a spirited shake-a-leg.

The finalists of Fairever Nayikar Khonje, a talent hunt conducted by Anandalok to find a new face for Bengali films, gave a lively performance too, with winner Subhashree.


The petite beauty Amrita Rao spoke bits of Bengali as she received the Most Promising Actress trophy for Vivah. Rakesh Roshan became emotional as he accepted the Best Director (Hindi films) trophy for Krrish. "I received the same award in 2003 for Koi... Mil Gaya and here I am again. Hope this relationship continues," he said. Papa Roshan also collected the Best Actor (Hindi films) trophy on behalf of Hrithik, who won for his superheroic act in Krrish.


Upen Patel won his first ever acting award when he was crowned the Best Male Debutant for 36 China Town. "I don't know what to say," he admitted even as the crowd clapped loud and long. Kangana Ranaut, who won the Best Female Debutant award for Gangster, couldn't make it to Calcutta

It was K.K. who made Saturday a night to remember rendering his chartbusters back-to-back. Coming in at the start and then at the very end, the singer had the crowds dancing in the aisles as he belted out everything from Dus bahaane and Tuhi meri shab to It's the time to disco and Kya yeh pyar hai.
Pictures by Rashbehari Das


Source:http://www.telegraphindia.com/1061120/asp/calcutta/st ory_7024807.asp#top

Mumbai, Nov 25 (IANS) TV actors Aamna Sharif - "Kahin To Hoga" - and Ram Kapoor - "Kasamh Se..." - bagged the top acting awards at the annual Indian Telly Awards (ITA) held here.

While Aamna's performance as Kashish in "Kahin To Hoga" (Star Plus) fetched her the accolades, Ram's characterisation of Jai Walia in Zee TV's "Kasamh Se..." got him a big round of applause at the ITA's sixth edition at the Chitrakut Grounds here Friday.

TV actors were nominated in over 30 popular categories in what is labelled as the Oscars of the Indian television industry - the ITA. The glitzy evening witnessed star-studded performances and celebrities from the television and film fraternity.

The onscreen chemistry between Ram and his co-star Prachi Desai (Bani) established them 'the Couple of the Year'. Prachi also shared the 'Fresh New Face' of the year award with Zee TV's "Saat Phere" lead Rajashree Thakur.

For energising and developing the southern Indian cable and satellite television market, Kunal Dasgupta - Sony Entertainment Television CEO - conferred Sun Network chairman Kalanithi Maran with the 'Contribution to Television' award.

For the runaway success of Balaji Telefilms, Ekta Kapoor, who is the creative head of Balaji Telefilms, received the 'Hall of Fame' award, which is given to young professionals for their contribution to the television industry.

The evening was further electrified by performances by the "Left Right Left" cast - Arjun Bijlani (Alekh), Gazal Rai (Pooja), Vikas Manattala (Huda), Priyanka Bhassin (Naina), Harshad Chopra (Ali) and Kunal Kapoor (Yudi).

Sangeeta Ghosh, Eijaz Khan, Akashdeep Saigal and Mona Singh also rocked the audience with their dance performances.

http://www.teluguportal.net/modules/news/article.php?storyid =22757

Eijaz gets ready for new show
By: Tushar Joshi
November 25, 2006

These days, Eijaz Khan's treadmill is working overtime. The actor has been jogging furiously to get rid of the excess weight. "I want to look fit," says Eijaz. "I am playing an interesting character in a new Balaji show being shot in Dubai. I will be leaving for the shoot soon." Even though he is still to receive details about his role, Eijaz says that stepping into the skin of a new role is exciting. "It's always fun to play different characters. From the little I know, my character on the new show is that of an important family member." Free run Currently shooting for Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka, Eijaz performed at the Indian Telly Awards on Friday. "I love performing on stage. Besides the fact that I get to dance, it also lets me do something different from my usual scene." Recently, the actor watched Casino Royale and was particularly impressed by the opening chase scene where Bond chases the bad guys jumping from one rooftop to another. "This is actually a French physical discipline called Parkour or free running, where the participant (called a traceur) attempts to pass obstacles in the fastest and most direct manner, using jumping, vaulting and climbing. It's very popular in certain areas of the world," says Eijaz. Asked if he would love to do something similar, he says, "I would need to be immensely fit to do something like that! All I can so is sit and marvel at Daniel Craig for pulling it off!" Talking about his recent weight gain, Eijaz says, "I have a tendency to put on weight and it's a lot of hard work getting rid of it. At the moment, I am trying to get my diet back in place and doing cardio exercises to get into shape." About the new show Nivedita Basu, creative head for the new Indo-Pak show, says, "We start the shoot next month. The title is not yet decided though." When asked about the cast, she says, "It will have Eijaz Khan with a host of artistes from theatre and actors we've worked with."

I'll kiss anyone I want to'

One of the few good-looking actors on television, Eijaz Khan talks about his work and life


Back to Section Stories


Ranjib Mazumder

You are working only in Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka. Why?
For the moment I am concentrating only on Nimmo... Earlier I used to do several projects simultaneously, but now, I am content doing one project at a time. This way, I can also have time for myself.

But, Nimmo... is not getting good TRPs in the prime time slot. What is your take on it?
As far as I know, it has the highest TRPs after Nach Baliye 2. We are also trying to revamp our show in order to compete with Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki.

Are you tired of working in daily soaps?
I do get tired at times because of the hectic schedule. But, there are so many people who are dying to get into acting. That way, I consider myself lucky.

Being a Balaji prodigy, do you consider projects outside the camp too?
I don't think I will get an interesting role from any other production house, besides Balaji.

People consider Ekta a hard taskmaster. What is your equation with Ekta Kapoor?
Ekta has been in this industry for so many years now. She is good. You need to be tough, to be able to build such an empire. I really respect Ekta for her achievements. I never went to Ekta to asking for roles. If she thinks that I am fit for any role, she will consider me. I have full faith on her.

Is there any particular reason for shying away from the media?
I am not off-press. I prefer speaking to the media, only when there is something worth mentioning.

You were allegedly caught kissing Anita Hasnandani in public. Are you still seeing her now?
I will kiss anyone I want to. I don't want to share my personal details. I have been quite vocal in the past and had to bear the brunt of it.

When are you planning to get married?
If something happens, I will definitely talk to the media about it.

The Rediff Interview / Eijaz Khan

'All the girls wanted to kiss me'

November 30, 2006




From engineering to item songs, this man does it all. And, he just happens to be Ekta Kapoor's blue-eyed boy. Meet Eijaz Khan, formerly Kavya of Kkavyanjali, and currently Kunal of Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka.

A teenage heartthrob, Eijaz has major plans up his sleeve. Srabanti Chakrabarti met him for the details. Excerpts:

From an engineer to an actor -- how did the transformation happen?

Television was the last thing on my mind when I was studying. I come from a broken family (his parents were separated) and was very close to an Anglo-Indian family. I couldn't speak Hindi properly! Somehow, egged by my friends, I ventured into modelling and achieved some success. I started getting interested in the profession and moved on to act in ad films and music videos. And before I could realise, I got a chance in feature films! (Kuchh Na Kaho and Zameen). Both these films had two hit songs, where I had a major role to play. Specially Dilli Ki Sardi from Zameen (performed with Amrita Arora) rocked the nation. I started getting more and more offers and took up acting as a career.
During the shooting of Maine Dil Tujhko Diya, I broke my shoulder badly. Just when I was recuperating from my injury I fell down and again and hurt the same shoulder! I thought this was the end of my career because a bad shoulder would mean restricted movements -- the worst thing to happen to a dancer.

That must have been quite a shock. How did you recover?

From my childhood, I have been struggling, so I guess that helped. When I had my second injury, I was just 25, and weighed 73 kgs. Everything was perfect but for my shoulder. The doctor told me dancing was ruled out. People almost wrote me off. That is what made my grit stronger. The break I was forced to take helped me regain my confidence. I did a lot of reading on how to recover from shoulder injuries, and rediscovered a number of good movies.

How did you venture into television from there?

After my break, when I was almost ok, I decided to walk in to the Balaji Telefilms office one day and submitted my portfolio. Just when I was coming out, Ekta noticed me and immediately offered me an exclusive contract. There was no way I could say no. And thus began Eijaz Khan's tele-journey.
I started working in Kahin To Hoga first and slowly Kesar, Kusum, Koi Dil Mein Hai<> ... offers started pouring in one after the other. But I must give the real credit to Kkavyanjali. That was a dream role for me and it gave me a name, fame everything.

But you were not the first choice for Kkavyanjali...

Yes, and the whole nation knows it. When Kkavyanjali was launched, Rakshak Sawhney was playing the lead role. Unfortunately, he couldn't sustain it, he was too raw. The rest is history. My portrayal of Kavya became so popular that despite the serial getting over, people still call me Kavya.
Not sure whether you know this or not, but even for Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka, I was the second choice -- after Hiten Tejwani. For me, as long as I am doing a good role, this doesn't really matter.

You are a popular telestar now, how do you rate yourself as an actor?

While shooting Kahin To Hoga, I had no clue as to what was going on and had to do a number of retakes for a scene with a senior actor. He reprimanded me in front of the whole set -- I have still not been able to forget that.
Let me assure all of you that technically I will excel, and continue learning on the creative front; it is a continuous process. The day I am satisfied as an actor, I will die.

Who or what is your inspiration?

I get bored very fast, so every few months I want to do something new. Believe it or not that is the source for inspiration!

How has the experience with Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka been?

Fantastic! When the serial started, it was a romantic comedy and now it has transformed into a high-voltage drama. Earlier, I was on a contractual marriage with Nimmo (Sanjeeda) and now the track is about my new marriage with Natassha (Jeniffer). But I realise my real love is Nimmo.
The experience of working with so many veterans (Dolly Thakore, Dara Singh and Bharti Achrekar) has been fantastic and I have learned a lot from them. Since this was my first serial on Star One, I was a bit tense. But once I started getting good feedback from friends and well wishers, I knew I was on the right track.

There are rumours about a strained relationship between you and Sanjeeda

Hey, this is an old story now! We are good co-stars and nothing else. I guess we came from different backgrounds and Sanjeeda is a new kid on the block. Having worked in South Indian films before, she did not know how things happened in Mumbai. Sometimes I concentrate so deeply on my work that I end up hurting a lot of people. Now things are much better and Inshallah, our pair has been a big hit on-screen.

You are known to be a lady-killer. Any memorable incident with your innumerable female fans?
Good to know that, but we get so little time outside of shooting schedules that we can't realise or experience it. A few days ago, I went for a function and was surrounded by a group of young girls. They had a request -- all of them wanted to kiss me. I said, 'no problem, carry on! '
I have a crazy fan in the UK who knows almost everything about me. The other day she SMSed me the addresses of both my houses! I don't think even Balaji production executives know it!

There are rumours of you working in an Indo-Pak venture with Ekta?

I believe in speaking to the media once something starts and stabilises. In our industry projects get cancelled even at the 11th hour. And thus till the time something actually happens, I'm not going to tell you anything. I like to talk about my work whenever the show is on air and my character is popular. So you need to wait for some more time!

'Girls get pregnant looking at me onscreen!'
... says actor Eijaz Khan who believes being popular can also be scary



Eijaz Khan, the blueeyed boy of soap-queen Ekta Kapoor is much in news lately, for matters of the heart. But more about that later. Firstly, what does Eijaz think about being touted as Ekta's favourite? "Well, am I?" he counter-questions, adding, "I don't know but if that's true, I'm happy. I do share a great relationship with Ekta and will always be indebted to her for making a star out of me. There was a time when I was struggling to get a foothold in films. I did a host of two-bit roles in films like Maine Dil Tujhko Diya and also did item numbers like Dilli Ki Sardi. But a freak injury whilst performing at a stage show led to my shoulder getting dislocated, to the extent that, I was thrown off-track for almost two years. At that time, there were many detractors who said that I'll never come back. But thanks to the inspiration of someone very close (who I wouldn't wish to name) and Ekta, who showed faith in me, I made a comeback and how! I owe them a lot; even today, due to this injury, I cannot move my right-hand above a certain extent and have lost out on much work due to that but Ekta has never made an issue of this and has always supported me. I will continue working for them as long as they want me to" confesses Eijaz, though he prefers to remain tightlipped about an Indo-Pak venture that Ekta has offered him.
"I like to talk about something only when it materialises completely. I don't like to tomtom about myself unnecessarily" is all he has to offer by way of explanation.
Eijaz is always known to have proffered grounded views. No starry airs; no brash statements. What sets him apart from the rest of the pack? "Well, I might just be being diplomatic, for all you know! But seriously speaking, I come from a broken family and had to mature very early in life. I had to work very hard to carve a niche for myself, in the face of stiff competition, without any help. All this makes you take your success very seriously and teaches you to not let it go to your head." Fair enough. But doesn't it get difficult at times, to keep one's head on one's shoulders when you have thousands of beautiful girls eyeing you? "My upbringing doesn't allow me to get carried away. It's great to have so many girls going crazy for you. In fact, there are girls who have gotten pregnant just by looking at me onscreen! It's heady but at times, it's also scary. Like, when some fan from faraway UK, texts you your home address and private cellnumbers! But, all in all, it's a nice feeling to be so important for so many people." Well, Eijaz might be the centre of the universe for many damsels out there but right now, his universe is rumoured to be centered on one particular person. What is this hunk's' take on love and related matters? "Well, love makes the world go round! It inspires you to do so many good things." So, is it true that lately he's been inspired a bit too much by Anita Hassanandani? "I won't accept it nor deny it. I leave that open to public speculation. It's too personal a matter for me to comment upon."