RANI MUKERJI MAKES TV DEBUT

She will be called 'Queen of DPL' on the show

After a string of big ticket celebrities who have taken to reality shows on the small screen, it's now actress Rani Mukerji's turn. She is set to judge Sony TV's "Rin Dance Premier League" (DPL) along with actor Arshad Warsi and dance guru Shiamak Davar.

According to the channel, Rani will add to the scale, glamour and credibility of the show that premiered on Friday (Oct 9). She will be called "Queen of DPL" on the show and will decide the fortunes of the competing teams.

While Shiamak Davar will be evaluating performances and setting the difficulty level as the competition progresses as an 'umpire' on the show, Arshad will be a ‘guest judge' for the auditions.

The show will have teams from different zones from across the country as well as abroad competing with each other. It is expected to highlight India's rich and diverse culture as each regional team will bring its own unique flavour to the performances.

Every zone will comprise of eight dancers and will be guided by their coach. Choreographers like Pappu Malu, Nagendra Prasad, Uma-Gaiti, Harshall-Vitthal, Mini Johny and Howard Rosemeyer will be donning the role of mentors.

Popular TV celebrities Eijaz Khan and Sara Khan will host the weekend show.

Produced by Cineyug, the show has already been backed by actors like Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Sohail Khan, Bipasha Basu and other celebrities like Kapil Dev, Anil Kumble, Sanjay Banger, Baichung Bhutia and rapper Hard Kaur.

KAREENA HAS A PROBLEM WITH KAJOL

In the hindi version of Stepmom, Kareena will have to prove her guts against Kajol.

It’s not the first time they are working together, but it’s always been like this. Ever since Kareena worked with her favourite co-star Kajol in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham, she has always held her acting skill a notch less to the experienced senior.

For her next project with Kajol, Stepmom, Kareena has been taking acting classes with the help of film director Siddharth Malhotra to brush up on her skills before she faces her idol.

‘Vishal Bharadwaj's Omkara is the only other time I have rehearsed my scenes. It was an unusual film and my role where I had to get into a certain milieu and simple character I knew nothing about needed that sort of rehearsing. In Stepmom, which is urban and very modern, I play a very normal metro-centric working girl,’ said Kareena at a press conference recently. It is a well known fact that Malhotra's film is inspired by the 1998 hit drama Stepmom, in which Susan Sarandon and Julia Roberts share the same man- in an unusual love triangle. In the hindi version, Arjun Rampal is the lucky man to be romancing both these stunning ladies - Kajol and Kareena.

Reportedly Kareena has been buying time out of the rehearsals for a song she began shooting with Aamir Khan for 3 Idiots. Kareena is glad that she is playing a normal girl, away from all the glam associated with her name. ‘I walk, talk, dress like an ordinary working girl. I'll be using no makeup,’ she exclaims.

About her look in the film, she says, ‘I couldn't cut my hair as planned because of continuity clashes. And I didn't want to cut my long hair. But I'm going for a new hairstyle.’ Ace designer Manish Malhotra is giving her warm earth tones to bring out a simple personality in her character. She will be seen wearing a lot of muted tones.

The shooting of Stepmom is to begin this month end. Kareena cannot stop gushing about her favourite co-star ‘She's always been one of my favourite actresses. We worked together in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. We were sisters then, now we have a lot of friction in this film and it will be something else.’

We can’t wait to see them back together, they do have a crackling chemistry.

HRITHIK IS THE NEW KAMINA!

Buzz is Vishal Bhardwaj has lastly signed on Hrithik Roshan for his next film.

News is making the rounds that Hrithik Roshan has finally signed on the dotted line for Vishal Bhardwaj’s next determined project. Right after Kaminey, Vishal began work on his next project and zeroed down on Hrithik for the lead. But Hrithik who had signed Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Guzarish was too busy preparing himself for the part and had put Vishal’s film on the backburner. Sanjay’s film is said to be based on Hollywood film The Prestige starring Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale and Hrithik plays a paraplegic in the film. Hrithik has by now begun preparing himself for the role and was accurately moving around in a wheelchair for a month to get into character.

While Sanjay’s film is based on The Prestige, a source close to Vishal discloses details about his next, “Vishal has been waiting for Hrithik to give the go ahead for the film for quite a while now. Hrithik was anxious whether he’d be able to work for Vishal and Sanjay’s film at the same time as both the films would be physically and mentally draining for him. Vishal’s film is loosely based on The Departed which was directed by Martin Scorsese and starred Leonardo Dicaprio and Matt Damon. Departed was in itself a remake of the Hollywood flick Infernal Affairs about how the mob and the cops face a similar situation, unable to comprehend the terrible consequences that await them. Vishal known for his gritty, dark cinema instantly connected with the storyline and is only going to get down and dirty with the script. He is still to finalise on the mob boss and the third lead and a few of the other pre-production details.”

The Departed received innumerable number of Awards and is held as one of Scorsese's best. Whether Hrithik would play the part of mob iformant Matt Damon or the cop informant Leonardo Dicaprio is yet to be known. Still Hrithik has already proved that no one can play the smooth criminal as better as him and we can only wait and watch whether the genius Bhardwaj plans on making Hrithik the next most wanted kamina or not!

ASIN REFUSES FARAH’S FILM

Generally, Farah Khan gets what she wants. From shooting Chale Jaise Hawaein in Main Hoon Na in only one constant sequence to uniting the who’s who of Bollywood in Deewangi Deewangi in Om Shanti Om. Now, Asin has wrecked her track record.

Farah Khan and Asin got friendly when she appeared on Farah’s chat show, Tere Mere Beach Mein, and have been in touch ever since. Asin has proved her courage as an actress in Ghajini and her South Indian films and has a big release coming up in the form of London Dreams. She has an Indo-international martial arts film and her endorsement contracts.

A source tells us, ‘Farah thought Asin was a appropriate choice for the female lead in Happy New Year and approached her for the role, but Asin courteously turned her down citing date issues. Asin’s behaviour is quite odd considering she was keen on working with SRK, and when the opportunity knocked on her door, she turned it down. It’s not that she didn’t have good role because in Farah’s films, the actresses have as much of a role as the heroes. Deepika had a double role in OSOand Main Hoon Na redefined Amrita Rao and Sushmita Sen’s careers and is the most memorable film of their careers. There is a huge market for Farah Khan’s masala films as OSO is one of the biggest hits of all time and Main Hoon Na did really well too.’

He further adds, ‘Happy New Year will go on the floors by the end of this year and doing the film would have helped Asin gain entry into SRK’s powerful camp. She isn’t even friends with Salman Khan any more. When established actresses are keen on working with Farah Khan, it is bizarre why she turned down the film when she was the first choice for it. In India there isn’t really a market for martial arts films. Look at how Drona, CC2C and Asoka have fared. Rubbing Farah Khan the wrong way is specialized hara-kiri, especially for a newcomer.’

Let us hope Asin realizes that she will lose out on a very important opportunity if she turns down the film and it would be wise to cancel her other assignments to make time for Farah’s film. If she doesn’t do Happy New Year, it will be another feather in the hat of Kareena, Deepika or Priyanka.

WHY KATRINA LOVES RANBIR

Katrina Kaif’s New York re-energized the box office. She will be seen in full-blown roles in two films this year, Ajab Prem Ki Ghajab Kahani and De Dana Dan and a special appearance in Blue. The beautiful actress tells us about her latest film, director Rajkumar Santoshi and working with Ranbir Kapoor who is the next big thing.

“It’s been a great honour to work with Rajji. I have done most of my films with Akshay and Salman. I asked them who is the best director for an actor to work with and both of them answered that it was Rajkumar Santoshi. I had an amazing time working with him. I had a great time shooting the songs in Turkey and am grateful to Ahmed Khan for the unbelievable choreography and Pritam for the superb music, as always,’ smiled Katrina.

Katrina has usually played the glam doll in most of her films except New York and, in APKGK her character seems to be more than just a pretty face. How does she feel about that? ‘I think I am very privileged that I keep getting fresh new chances with every film to better myself as an actress. In my opinion, Rajji has s reputation of not being just a fantastic director but also a fantastic director for actors and their performances. He has taught me a lot about improvisation. He has given my character and persona a new angle. It’s not anything like you have seen in New York or Singh is Kinng. It’s a completely different interpretation of Jenny, my character. Ranbir and I followed his guidance. We were always on the sets because being around Rajji, because you get to understand how he envisions the scene. Before every shot, he would enact my part and then enact my part. And we both would just stare at him in amazement. Then the two of us would have a competition as to who can copy him best. We just needed to follow his direction,’ she replied.

She and Ranbir are being touted as the best-looking on-screen pair of the year. About working with Ranbir Kapoor, she said, ‘He is a very talented actor and a very sweet guy. He is always lively and he fills the set with energy and interest. He makes sure everybody is having a good time. He is a positive force to be around. He is unbelievable actor and dancer.’

WHAT IS SANJAY DUTT DOING IN ALADIN?

Sanjay Dutt didn't require much believable or cajoling to come on board for Aladin.

The moment he heard the film's concept, genre and they way it was imagined to be brought on screen, he agreed to do the film pronto. He was annoyed about the film going on floors. His character is like that of evil magician Jafar in the Disney version of Aladin.

Says a source associated to the film, "Sanju baba actually became quite childlike when he was narrated the concept of Aladin. He hasn't worked in a film belonging to this genre before, the kind that involves fairytale elements embellished in a narrative that is set in today's times. The legend of Aladin and Genie is known global and Sanju baba didn't require much thinking to be a part of the project. As a fun loving villain, who was capable of showing the mean side of his at any given moment, the character was tailor-made for him and he connected to that instantly when the part was explained to him."

By the way, it was Amitabh Bachchan himself who first had a word with Sanjay Dutt about his role of Ringmaster in Aladin.

Confirms Sujoy Ghosh, "Yes, after I had an elaborate narration of Aladin with Mr. Bachchan, we were discussing who could play the role of Ringmaster. We agreed that it had to be Dutt saab and I was supposed to contact him the next day. Though, to my surprise, before I could speak to Dutt saab, Mr. Bachchan had already spoken to him. When I met him, he mockingly pulled me for not speaking to him directly. I explained that I had all the right intentions to do so but didn't have any clue that Mr. Bachchan would himself take the first step."

Kicked about the entire idea, "I still remember it was year 2006," Sujoy gets nostalgic here, "Dutt saab was so excited about donning the hat of Ringmaster. Pun anticipated."

Sanjay Dutt had a condition though before saying yes. "Yes, he didn't want anyone to fiddle around with his look," laughs Sujoy, "His only condition was that he wanted the moustache of Ringmaster to be kept intact. Of course, we had no reason not to agree."

Aladin releases on October 30.

IS ACID FACTORY A REMAKE?

Like most of his films that are lifted off foreign films, Sanjay Gupta’s Acid Factory (he has produced the film with Mumbai Mantra) is a remake of an American film.

The film in question is Simon Brand’s Unknown which released in 2006. The film stars Bridget Moynahan (of I, Robot and The Recruit fame) as the only female among six guys, which included Greg Kinnear (As Good as It Gets) and James Caviezel (The Passion of the Christ ). The story of the film is that five men wake up inured in a storehouse. They are tied to a chair and suffering from amnesia. They don’t know something about each other. The film is full of twists and turns that keep you gripped from start to finish. The film went overlooked.

Acid Factory also has a similar premise of five men who wake up in an acid factory. They don’t know each other and can’t remember anything. They somehow get out of the factory and start putting their lives together. Dia Mirza is the only girl among five guys.

When contacted, director Suparn Verma said, “I have heard that it is a remake of Ocean’s 11, Saw, Hostel and even Star Wars (!), so I have no idea. Dilip Garetkar, who wrote Phoonk came to me with the idea and I loved it. We evolved the screenplay and had fun writing it and shooting the film. I hope it’s a hit. I have a gut feeling that it will be. Like every other film’s cast and crew, we have worked really hard on our film.”

It is up to you to decide whether Acid Factory is a remake or not.

Here is a list of Sanjay Gupta films that have been remakes

Musafir: Oliver Stone’s U-Turn

Kaante: Quentin Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs, Bryan Singer’s The Usual Suspects,Michael Mann’s Heat and Ringo Lam’s City on Fire.

Zinda: Korean film called Old Boy