News/Articles Related To Star One.. - Page 8

'Peace March' activists demand a better civic amenities
(Tuesday, Aug 16, 2005 - 10:00 am)
Televisionpoint.com Team
August 15 apart from Independence day celebration, also saw a great beginning by the Entertainment and Media Industry. Bollywood and Television stars at Juhu on August 15 were to the streets on August 15, for a 'Peace March', who all were seriously demanding for a better civic amenities, as earlier reported by Televisionpoint.com.

"We are making great forays internationally but what about basic infrastructure in our own city? We pay over RS 58,000 crore in taxes so all we are asking for is an account into where the money is going. We want a deadline by which the authorities plan to resolve these issues.", Television hostess Pooja Bedi was quoted as saying in Times of India, the National Daily which is also helping to take the agenda to the government in order to resolve the issues.

"For a long time, we have only been discussing the pathetic condition of roads and localities, We were almost being taken for granted by the powers that-be. This march was essential because it is a great platform to reach out to the government." Said Anu Ranjan, president of ITA.

Actors Karan Wahi and Shweta Gulati participated in the march along with the entire star cast of Remix for a very personal reason. "Our friend and co-actor Habib (who plays Nakul in the show) was stuck inside a car for over 18 hours during the deluge and is now in a critical condition. We believe that the flooding would not have had such dangerous effects had our infrastructure been in place," says Gulati.

TV's Veejay Ruby Bhatia, says "I believe that there are two kinds of problems, one where we are helpless and the other which is avoidable. The aftermath of the deluge falls in the second category. The lack of infrastructure left us paralysed."

Other participants included fashion choreographer Achala Sachdev, singers Vasundhara Das and Talat Aziz, chef Sanjeev Kapoor, actor Yukta Mookhey besides television star Kulraj of Kareena Kareena and Sulbha Arya of Kantaben fame.

Preity Zinta and Shah Rukh Khan were also busy in clearing litter during the 'Clean Mumbai' drive in Bandra on Monday to protest the government's 'apathy and lack of civic amenities'. The stars criticised The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, BMC, for its management of the situation.

Malaika's special appearance in Remix
Tia and Anvesha of Remix (STAR one)will be celebrating their 18th birthday with a bang. They will be greeted by none other than sexy Malaika Arora Khan who will be giving them tips on grooming and growing up

Sajid is back

Chaya Unnikrishnan
Posted online: Friday, August 19, 2005 at 0000 hours IST

He's back on television with a show Super Sale that promises to sell you everything from a mobile to a Mercedes at rock-bottom prices. What's more, Sajid Khan, who's hosting the show, assures that it has high entertainment value along with all the elements that have made KBC a huge success ...

Tell us how did you land up anchoring this show?
I have a long association with STAR. Five years ago when STAR Plus was still to become the numero uno channel, I had anchored a self-titled show Sajid No.1, a stand-up comedy. It was pretty successful. But once KBC turned the tide for the channel and Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi became popular, STAR Plus got dominated by family soaps. Recently, I hosted a few episodes of Great Indian Comedy Show on STAR One. I also anchored the STAR-Screen Awards which has got the highest TRPs so far amongst the award shows. As for Super Sale, actually it's an interesting story. I, alongwith Ravi Behl, had approached the channel for another show which we were co-producing. We were told that they will launch our show in December but in the meanwhile, they had a show which they wanted me to anchor. When I heard the concept, I was bowled. It is a very popular show in Australia and New Zealand and I am sure it will be a rage in India too.

What makes you so confident?
Well, it is a family show and it's got that addicitive quality. It has all the elements of KBC, high entertainment, quality and bumper prizes. Where else can you get a mobile costing Rs 4000 for Rs.10? Watch it once and I promise you will be hooked.

Have you watched KBC2?
Yes, and I liked it. I think in the second innings, Amitabh Bachchan is more relaxed, more casual. He is having more fun with the participants.

We heard that you are making a comeback to acting ...
Yes. I am playing an important role along with Boman Irani in Inder Kumar's Pyare Mohan. It is a fun film.

What stopped you from taking up offers after Jhoot Bole Kauwa Kaate?
Frankly, even if Hrishikesh Mukherjee had given me just one scene, I would have gladly done it. But he gave me a longer role. Though the film didn't do very well, I did get offers to play a hero ka dost, brother or side roles in which I was not interested. In Pyare Mohan I am doing what I am best at, raising laughter.



Aren't you also entering direction ...
Yes, I am directing one story of Ram Gopal Varma's Darna Zaroori Hai. It is about a guy Manoj Pahwa crossing a graveyard on a moonless (amavasya) night. It is quite spooky.

Were you influenced by your sister Farah to take up direction?
No. I always knew that eventually I would end up making films. I am a complete movie buff. I love movies like nobody's business. My room is a mini home theatre. I have neon-lit posters and own all kinds of filmi outfits from Batman, Spiderman to Superman. So, even though I don't have any formal training, I understand films better. Manmohan Desai didn't have any formal training, but look at the films he made. Most of them were superhits. I think you have to be crazy about cinema to be a filmmaker. In fact, I saw to it that my entire team of assistants had cinema as their first love ... (laughs).

Besides Darna ..., are you directing any other film?
Soon, I will be directing my own film starring Fardeen Khan, Ritiesh Deshmukh, two newcomers and a big heroine who are yet to be finalised. It will be a comedy in the genre of Munnabhai MBBS and Kal Ho Naa Ho.

What does Farah think of your directorial debut?
Before I took to direction, I wrote several drafts of the film. It was after I finished the fourth draft that I showed it to Farah. She liked it. In fact, my brother-in-law Shirish Kunder will be editing my film.

Har sale ka baap Super Sale
Imaging buying a brand new washing machine worth Rs 20,000/- for just Rs 20. This is possible on Super Sale, a new game show on STAR One. Hosted by Sajid Khan, Super Sale airs every Monday to Friday at 7.30 pm. Each episode features three contestants who will challenge each other over different rounds of the game and go all-out to collect 'Super Sale Rupees' (SSR) to buy attractive items at special 'Super Sale Prices' (SSP).

Sajid's co-host is Neeti Mohan, the popstar from pop band Aasma. The game begins with 20 SSR being handed over to each of the three contestants. In a succession of heated rounds, Sajid will put forward a series of questions and the first contestant to hit the buzzer and provide the correct answer wins further 5 SSR. Any contestant who gives an incorrect answer automatically loses 5 SSR from that same amount of SSR.

As the rounds progress, Sajid and Neeti will tempt the contestants to spend their winnings at the Super Sale Gift Shop (SSGS), which offers a host of exciting items at Super Sale Prices.

The contestants need to brush up not only on their general knowledge but also on their entertainment knowledge quotient to enable themselves to tackle the queries posed by Sajid. Super Sale will feature entertaining rounds together with two visits to the Super Sale Gift Shop. 'Instant offers' add to the excitement, as furniture, holidays and household goods are offered to the contestants at ridiculously low prices!

At the end of the final round, the contestant with the most Super Sale Rupees gets the chance to go shopping. There are eight levels of items available and depending on the SSR amassed by the winner, they can choose between the prize at their level of the chance to return as carry-over champion for another edition of the show!!

All prizes are 'sold' to the contestant with the highest points in the round at throwaway prices, making it the 'Super Sale'.

Siddhanth to go in for major changes

Crime busting was never easy. Ask tellydom's favourite lawyer --- Siddhanth. The Star Star One goes desi) Pawan Shankar finally gets to play a man in love! One weekly court room drama is now looking towards major innovations to make this idealistic lawyer more human. "Siddhanth has been appreciated a lot and we thought that people would like to know more about his personal life. It will be interesting to know what Siddhanth does out of the courtroom," says the creative director of the show, Shabia. Siddhanth, a show that started off with a linear track, then moved on to being an episodic, will now again revert back to the linear track mode from 30 August --- that is there will be a single track running through the show, as Siddhanth solves a variety of cases in the process. This change in format will see a case being solved in three to four days, with the lawyer's personal life running in the background. One thing that could well be a cause for concern for the makers of the show, will be the audiences, who might not be very happy with one case being dragged on for too long. Again, expecting the audience to remember the intricacies of a case that was dealt with a week ago is perhaps asking for too much. But the creative director feels that 'loyal audiences' will stick to the show, no matter what. As an individual, Siddhanth, till date has been quite a recluse, with no friends and love interest, but with the new format coming into effect from next week, there will be ample time to explore his relationships with his secretary, Navya and housekeeper Mrs Deshpande. To top this, Siddhanth's love life will also come to the fore with Pooja Ghai playing his love interest. And if this is not all for a recluse on the move, a love triangle will keep the man busy (with Navya completing the triangle of confusion). Wonder where he will have the time to go on a crime solving spree? Siddhanth in court: fighting for the downtrodden But the man now will have a whole team of lawyers with him. In the next episode, the one man crusader will join a law firm that will be headed by a big television star. "Yes, in our efforts to show a complete man, we needed to incorporate other characters in the show, and then we can show the politics that are involved in a law firm. We are looking at a few options as far as the actors are concerned, and this will be revealed in two to three weeks," says Shabia. Another interesting twist in this tale will be the fact that the lawyer will soon start losing some of his cases - specially with the efficient Anamika in the fray, who will be seen as a tough no nonsense lawyer. It is interesting to note that the 9:30 pm slot on Star One is reserved for one hour weeklies -- Special Squad, Siddhanth and Hotel Kingston.They were initially aired at 10:30 pm and were eventually moved to the earlier slot. These were shows that started off targetting a niche narrow audience, but widened as they moved forward. One common thing that was introduced in all three was the introduction of the love track. Thus, these changes in Siddhanth seem to be part of the experiments that the channel is doing in order to give it a mass appeal. (Also read Star One goes desi) Even shows like The Great Indian Comedy Show seems to be in the scheme of things. It's surprising that only the late night viewers are being subjected to such changes...perhaps they are mature enough to accept them?

30 August on Siddhanth will be special!

Next week's episode will be a special one. It will not only introduce the lawyers love interest, but will also see Ponds Femina Miss India Universe 2004, Tanushree Dutta, in a special appearance to promote her new movie, Aashiq Banaya Apne. The model turned actress will be seen sharing screen space with Pawan Shankar. The story will unfold at a party that will be held to launch the music of her movie and a murder will occur at the venue. Watch Siddhanth match wits with the best as the drama catches momentum. Tune in every Tuesday at 9:30 pm on Star One.

The skeleton in Shweta Gulati's cupboard is out



Reena Thapar Kapoor



Acamera is capable of altering the look of a person. The best example of the fact has got to be Shweta Gulati aka Tia of Remix. Shweta who looks convincing as an 18-year-old in the show and is a huge hit with the youth. But there is something about this petite actress that many are not aware of. Firstly that Gulati is actually a 29-year-old who plays a college kid on the show.

Secondly that Gulati has been in a bad marriage. In fact she got out of it around three years ago. After divorcing her husband, she worked in a call centre for a brief period till she bagged a pivotal role in Neena Gupta's Kyun Hota Hai Pyar. "I'm still remembered as the bubbly Tara in that show. That is a huge compliment for me as it was my first ever show," she chirps. But talk about her past and she screams, "How and where did you manage to get that information?"

However the woman doesn't deny that she was married once upon a time. "I've never spoken about my personal life ever. And I do not want to talk about it. For me, my marriage is a closed chapter."
Insisting that the news about her marriage and subsequent divorce might have an adverse effect on her screen image, she talks shop, "Remix is a show that rocks! People have started relating to our characters only recently. Now if this information is leaked, it will affect my image as our characters cater to the college kids."

We probe further about the man she was married to but she answers back with a rather curt "I'm not giving you any details bout him," she says sternly. The lady assures that she is very much single but as of now it's only Remix that tops the chart of her priority list.

* I've never spoken about my personal life ever. I do not want to talk about it. For me, my marriage is a closed chapter — Shweta

Moulli checks into Hotel Kingston
   By: Shaheen Parkar
   August 27, 2005

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Moulli Ganguly There will be a new woman in Vish's (Amit Varma) life in the Star One weekly Hotel Kingston. Moulli Ganguly (Kruttika of the Zee daily Sarrkaar) will enter the show to play Urvashi, his former flame. Blast from the past Moulli began shooting for the serial on Thursday at a Madh Island hotel where the serial is shot. "My character runs an event management company. The track has me organising a spectacular television bash to be held at Hotel Kingston. The event's success is important to me as my rival, who was formerly my assistant, is also angling for the show," explains Ganguly. At the hotel she bumps into Vish who is shocked to find her after all these years! "So there are two things on my mind — the presence of Vish which comes as a big surprise and my assistant trying to outdo me." You Vish! The weekly saga is unique as it has a hotel as its backdrop. The story revolves around the relationship between Shelly Sahai (Sonal Sehgal) and Vishwamitra Kelkar (Amit Verma). Shelly is forced to take up the challenge of running her father's hotel, Hotel Kingston and Vishwamitra, fondly called Vish is the general manager of the hotel. Vishwamitra, is a sensitive man who is deeply in love with Shelly but their relationship is fraught with one difficulty after the other. Their relationship initially begins with contempt, but blossoms into love. He is the one person whom Shelly and the hotel's staff turn to in times of trouble. . Oodles of noodles Ganguly has a Mandira Bedi-ish look on the show. "I am shown in noodle straps and chiffon saris. It is a very chic look. The persona is that of a strong and sophisticated woman." As part of the television function in Hotel Kingston, the serial will have an elaborate set-up. It is learnt that Rakshanda Khan and Mihir Misra among others are also slated to be part of the show. Ganguly's track will remain in the show for a couple of episodes. Election time On the other hand, Ganguly's character Kritikka in the Zee daily Sarrkaar, will be seen standing for the elections. "I will be caught in a tight situation with the opposition party gunning for me," says the actress who was seen as Vidhi in Kkusum (Sony) earlier this year.

Har Sale Ka Baap, Sajid Khan says, "I am a bad comedian"
Vashi2Panvel.com: Navi Mumbai: Aug 28: The best thing about Sajid Khan is that it is difficult to believe him when he is at his best giving statements left and right that he does not think that he is a good comedian at all. With a poker face he says. "I am single but not at all ready to mingle. I do not have a biwi at home to nag me all the time. Hence I have all the time to take up offers to do shows for television."

Sajid's latest show is Har Sale Ka Baap Super Sale on Star One from Monday to Friday at 7 .30 pm. "It is not a funny show", Sajid declares at the outset when I meet him for this interview. "It is ironical that I had actually started my career with a similar game show like Tol Mol Ke Bol for Zee TV way back a decade ago."

Sajid asserts that his show is completely different from Kaun Banega Karodpati. "First of all I am not Amitabh Bachchan. I am just plain old Sajid Khan. Secondly if you participate in my show, you could end up as the face of the month, unlike in KBC where you are there only for one or at the most two episodes. In my show the winner can continue till the time he wants to quit. Mine is an exciting fun show. The contestants for Super Sale need to brush up not only on their general knowledge but also on their entertainment (read films) knowledge quotient to enable themselves to tackle the queries posed on the spot by Sajid impromptu. "I have been an ardent fan of Sridevi. I make it a point to ask some thing or the other about Sridevi every time I have to anchor a quiz show."

Sajid adds. "My show is not at all like Tol Mol Ke Bol. It is more of a Q&A related show, which will set out to test your general knowledge. By and large every show has a same format. We have followed the ground rules of the Australian show. To put it simple, all I'd say is that it is a super hit show in the days of TRPs. Star One has finally got a high entertainment quality show in its stable."

Talking about Super Sale, Sajid quips. "Imagine buying a brand new washing machine worth Rs 20,000 for just Rs 20/-. This is possible on my show Super Sale. Each episode of Super Sale will feature three contestants who will challenge each other over different rounds of the game and go all out to collect Super Sale Rupees (SSR) to buy attractive items at special Super Sale Prices (SSP). Neeti Mohan, the multi faceted young star of the pop band Aasma will provide the glamour quotient for my show."

Sajid adds. "The game begins with 20 SSR being handed over to each of the three contestants. Ina succession of heated rounds, I will put forward a series of questions and the first one to hit the buzzer and provide the correct answer wins further 5 SSR. Any contestant who gives an incorrect answer automatically loses 5 SSR from that same amount of SSR. As the rounds progress, Neeti and I will tempt the contestants to spend their winnings at the Super Sale Gift Shop (SSGS) which offers a host of exciting items at Super Sale Prices."

Sajid has just completed directing one out of the six stores of Ramgopal Varma's Darna Zaroori Hai "It was a one-man show like Yaadein of Sunil Dutt. Manoj Pahwa is the only actor in my film." Sajid adds that he did not take any tips from sister Farah Khan, as far as direction is concerned. "I am a very lazy person. I do concede that Farah is brilliant as a director but I am strongly influenced by Hollywood. I feel that if you are not a good audience, you can never be a good filmmaker. I think as a filmmaker, half my battle has been won for the simple reason that I am the greatest movie buff in the entire world. You can take away the success but not the truth away from me. It was hilarious on the first day on the sets when I forgot to tell Start Sound, Lights, Action and my assistant had to remind me when I didn't utter a word. When you love movies, it is very difficult to direct them"

Sajid who had never assisted any director all his life is now all set to launch his first full-fledged youthful film as a director soon. The film has been tentatively titled Hey Baby. Hey Baby will be out and out a hilarious film, according to Sajid Khan. Hey Baby will star Fardeen Khan and Ritesish Deshmukh with two new girls who are now being finalized. It will also have, besides Fardeen and Ritesih, another big hero and a big heroine."My brand of comedy may be over the top but then I know when to draw the line when it comes to make people laugh. I do not believe in going overboard or being vicious. I do not believe at all in the Dada Kondke brand of double entendre though as a teenager I did have voyeuristic pleasure by watching his films like Andheri Raat Mein Diya Tere Haath Mein or Pandu Hawaldar.

In the same breath Sajid Khan also adds. "I do not think that I am a good comedian. Main sirf logonke phasatha hoon. I am of the opinion that he who makes the public laugh is a good comedian"

Sajid had made his debut as an actor with Hrishida's Jhoot Bole Kawwa Kante. His next film as an actor is Indra Kumar's Pyare Mohan in which he has been cast along with Boman Irani."We play father and son who are after Fardeen Khan who is one of the leading men besides Vivek Oberoi. No one has had the guts to cast me in a film after Hrishida till now, besides Inder Kumar and Ashok Thakaria who are making Pyare Mohan. People ask me why I am only anchoring film-based comedy on television instead of acting in serials. I tell them that the last time I had acted in a serial called Acting Acting for Sab TV, thank God it flopped."

Said reiterates the fact that universally the top ten hit pictures have always been family socials, whether it was Titanic or Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge or for that matter Hum Aapke Hain Kaun. Sajid adds. "Name me just one sexual film which has clicked at the box office in a big way? My writer Mushtaq and I have stayed away from sex as far as Hey baby is concerned though the comedy will be of a high level. My film will instantly remind you of Hrishida's film Golmaal. I have actually four different endings and four different second halves for my film. My target audiences are the ones who go and watch films like Munnabhai MBBS, Kal Ho Na Ho and Main Hoon Na. I guarantee you that if you watch my film just once, you will be tempted to watch it again and again. I plan to revive the concept of the repeat audience, which we have lost due to the satellite television."

Says Sajid, "I do not at all believe in a written script for any of my shows on television. My script is here on my head. Of course you need a script when you do a film or a serial or a double role, not otherwise."

In the offing is yet another chat show called Mardowali Baat to be produced by Sajid in collaboration with Ravi Behl which will be aired on Star One shortly. "Right now I think it is too early for me to divulge more details about the show", Sajid concludes.

Jyothi Venkatesh

Gags to riches!

They are the funniest men on Indian television. They have made it their business to make us shed tears of laughter. Meet Sunil Pal, Raju Srivastav and Navin Prabhakar, the laughter brigade of Star One's The Great Indian Laughter Challenge. Sunil Pal Originally from Nagpur, Sunil has performed along with some of the biggest names in Indian film industry. Sunil has been an integral part of The Lagaan tour with Aamir Khan, the tour with Sonu Nigam across USA, UK and Canada. Sunil's TV shows include Dhamaal No.1 on DD Metro, where he played the lead. Despite being in the big leaugue, the man comes across as simple and down to earth -- perhaps, this is what make him so likeable. "It's a great platform that Star One has given us. My humour is derived from real life. People I meet everyday, situations that I encounter as an individual are my source of humour -- I just spice them up a bit! You know, it's a great feeling when people travelling in Mercs stop their cars and congratulate me on my achievements," says Sunil, who has been entertaining people right from his school days. Navin Prabhakar Navin Prabhakar got interested in comedy as he believes that comedy itself and the concept of making people laugh, bringing a smile on their face is something of a challenge. "Performing in front of personalities like Shekhar Suman and Sidhu an exhilarating experience, the fact that both are amazing individuals, both have a great knack for comedy. They also happen to be my idols", quips this talented young man who has done a host of comedy shows abroad. Navin can imitate almost 125 voices and enjoys imitating Sanjay Dutt, Pran and Sanjeev Kumar the most. His most memorable experience has been the first world tour that he was part of, titled Heartthrob World Tour in the United States of America, where he performed in front of a packed stadium filled with a 35000 strong audience. After his performance, the crowd roared for an encore. Apparently, Bollywood actors Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor were also part of the same tour. Raju Srivastav The third finalist Raju Srivastava is a stand up comedian and mimicry professional. He came to Mumbai from Kanpur in 1982. Raju has been part of films like Maine Pyaar Kiya and Baazigar. He has also recorded Haso Hasao, a collection of his mimicry jokes. Raju, a veteran of 3000 shows, feels that for newcomers, this a great platform to prove their mettle, but for him this is just another challenge. "My friends tell me that I should have been judging the show, rather than participating in it," laughs Raju, who is happy to be just part of the show. One thing that doesn't surprise us is the fact that these three have high regard for each other's capabilities -- they are each other's greatest fans! Perhaps this is what humour is all about -- an unadulterated heart and lots of blah! May the best gag win!