Be it Salman Khan’s physique, looks or acting prowess, Aamir Khan has said he and his wife Kiran Rao are the biggest admirers of the “Dabangg” star.

Aamir said whatever his “Andaz Apna Apna” co-star does it becomes a trend in the Hindi film industry.

Both the actors are portraying wrestlers in their upcoming films and have attained a certain body type to fit into their roles, but the 51-year-old “PK” star does not want to be compared with Salman.

“My wife and I have always been Salman’s fans. He has always had a very fit body and in fact he has been the inspiration for actors like me to have a body like him,” Aamir told reporters here.

“I have just tried to be like him in ‘Dangal’ but I don’t feel, my body is as good as him. He is the original body builder,” the actor said.

Earlier, Kiran had praised Salman’s ‘langot’ clad look in “Sultan”.

Quizzed about that, Aamir jokingly said, “Where was I?” The actor later added, “Salman is anyway a handsome actor. He looks more handsome when he is without clothes… He is a gifted human being and very charming.”

There are reports that Phantom Films is planning a sequel to filmmaker Rajkumar Santoshi’s 1994 comedy “Andaz Apna Apna”.

Aamir said though he did not have any idea about a proposed sequel but if it happens he would love to star with Salman in it.

“I don’t have any idea that whether Andaz Apna Apna sequel is happening or not and whether the makers are retaining the old cast. But if it is happening, then I would love to work with Salman again.”

Aamir Khan has stated that his upcoming biopic “Dangal” will release on its scheduled date of December 23 this year.

There were reports that the 51-year-old actor had preponed the release of the Nitesh Tiwari-directed wrestling drama by a week.

“We are coming on Christmas weekend. All the reports regarding the release date of the film are false. We are not releasing our film on December 16. It will release on December 23, which is a Friday just two days before Christmas,” he told reporters here.

Aamir is donning the role of popular Haryanvi wrestler and senior Olympics coach Mahavir Phogat, whose daughter became the first ever woman wrestler from India to win a gold medal in Commonwealth Games.

The actor feels the film will give a platform to the sports of wrestling.

“I believe, the film will promote wrestling. I learnt wrestling in the film from coach Kripa Shankar for a year. He is a wonderful coach and has put in a tremendous effort in popularising the game.”

In his popular social-issue based show “Satyamev Jayate”, Aamir featured an episode on the Phogat sisters — Geeta and Babita– and the actor said that he got the offer to be a part of the film on them after the show.

“I got the film offer during PK. When Nitesh approached me with the film, I already knew the story as I had done extensive research during the shooting of the episode.”

Besides Aamir, Salman Khan’s Eid release “Sultan” also narrates a wrestler’s journey.

Asked whether he is affected by it as both the films have similar backdrop of wrestling, Aamir said, “It’s just a coincidence. Both the film’s have different stories. Our film is a biopic. Even Salman’s film is nice. I liked the recently released song by Salman.”

The “PK” star also denied reports that he had asked Salman and Aditya Chopra (producer of Sultan) to delete a wrestling sequence from the film.

“Neither we have made any changes in the script nor we have asked others to do any. There are very few strokes in wrestling and it is inevitable to have different strokes,” he said.

Actress Sunny Leone says she is glad that she hasn’t got stereotyped in Bollywood.

“Initially I was perceived in a certain way. But now I can proudly say that people have accepted me and are approaching me for good work. I am glad that I am not stereotyped in the industry,” Sunny told IANS.

Sunny, who made her Bollywood debut with the erotic thriller “Jism 2” in 2012 and went on to do films like “Ragini MMS 2”, “Ek Paheli Leela” and many more, will be next seen doing an item number in her upcoming film “Luv U Alia”.

The film is based on divorce issues and Sunny feels that such problems are definitely on the rise these days.

“Divorce is definitely on the rise these days due to high levels of stress. Without patience and trust, it’s extremely difficult for a couple to cope with the pressures.

“My husband and I are very clear on the kind of relationship that we want and hence there’s a lot of love, respect and admiration for each other.”she said.

Directed by Indrajit Lankesh, the film is releasing on Friday.

“Dishoom” actor Varun Dhawan and producer Sajid Nadiadwala have denied that a kirpan — a Sikh ceremonial dagger — was used in the film’s song “Sau Tarah Ke”.

At an event here, Varun was asked to comment on a complaint regarding the use of a kirpan-like dagger as an accessory on actress Jacqueline Fernandez’s short outfit.

He explained: “It’s not a kirpan. It’s an Arabic sword which has been used and we must actually be having it, so we can show it. I am a Punjabi myself, and so is my brother (director Rohit Dhawan). So we would never do something like that. It’s a misunderstanding.”

Nadiadwala said he had read the news that the Sikh community had condemned how Jacqueline is seen shaking a leg wearing a short dress with a short sword, resembling the kirpan, around her waist.

“We shot the song in Morocco. So there’s no question (of using a kirpan). Once they see the song, they will know. They saw the clipping and they thought it is a kirpan,” the producer said.

An open letter is said to have been addressed to the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) demanding to remove the song from the film and from websites like YouTube. Not only that, also they asked for an apology from the makers of the film and posted the same on his Facebook wall terming Jacqueline as ‘semi-clad actress’.

Scheduled to release on July 29, the much-awaited action-comedy film is helmed by Rohit Dhawan and also features John Abraham in the lead role.

Actor Eijaz Khan, who is busy promoting his forthcoming film “Shorgul” with co-actors Jimmy Sheirgill and Hiten Tejwani, says that he sees his future in web series.

A lot of big screen actors are exploring small screen and delivering content driven TV shows and Eijaz, who has tasted success in both the mediums, believes that the trend is becoming even better with the “advent of web series”.

Eijaz has worked in film projects like “Tanu Weds Manu Returns”, “Zila Ghaziabad” and TV shows like “Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi” and “Diya Aur Baati Hum”.

“The trend is going to be even better now with the advent of web series. You will see a lot of film actors in web series. There is more good work for actors and filmmakers. I also see my future there more than television,” Eijaz told IANS.

The “Laut Aao Trisha” actor is planning to produce two web series and might even act in projects.

“I am on the verge of producing two web series. We have ideas and they will do it. There are people who are interested in making content for the medium. I might act in them as well,” he said.

Actors like Ali Fazal, Kalki Koechlin, Gulshan Grover and Alok Nath have already made it to their individual web series in the past addressing different social issues.

Bollywood actress Amy Jackson, who is in the news for a rumoured relationship with international singer Cheryl Cole’s former husband Jean-Bernard Fernandez-Versini, says there are “absolutely no men” in her life except her father and dog.

“I’d just like to clarify that there are absolutely no men in my life except my dad and my doggy Pablo. These link-ups are getting silly now,” Amy tweeted on Thursday.

I’d just like to clarify that there are absolutely no men in my life except my Dad and my doggy Pablo. These linkups are getting silly now 💤

— Amy Jackson (@iamAmyJackson) June 16, 2016

According to reports, Amy was seen with the French restaurateur in London. They were photographed together while they were leaving a luxury hotel in the English capital.

Actress Freida Pinto will join US First Lady Michelle Obama to promote global girls’ education initiative in Liberia, Morocco and Spain.

Pinto, the First Lady, her daughters Sasha and Malia, their grandmother Marian Robinson will travel to Liberia, Morocco and Spain from June 27-July 1 as part of the “Let Girls Learn” initiative.

The initiative is aimed at helping girls obtain quality education.

In Liberia, Pinto, 31, and Obama will take part in a discussion, which will cover the educational barriers girls face in the country. President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf will meet with the First Lady and Pinto.

In Morocco, Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep will join them to discuss the challenges women in the African country deal with on a regular basis, said a spokesperson for the actress.

Choreographer-director Remo D’Souza, who is returning to the small screen as the super-judge of the second season of “Dance +”, says TV is a bigger medium than films to connect with the audience.

“I think both (TV and films) are good, but I believe TV is a bigger medium because it is in every household. For films, they (audiences) have to come out and watch them in the theatre, but a TV is in the house. So, TV is a bigger medium,” D’Souza told IANS here on Thursday.

He says that the second season of “Dance +” is going to be better than the first.

“I was never confident about other seasons doing better than the first in any other show, but this one, because I have seen the talent, I know that this season is much better than the first one for sure,” he said.

Apart from D’Souza, the show will see dancers Dharmesh Yalande and Shakti Mohan as the captains. Punit Pathak is a new addition to the show. He will be seen as the third captain in the Star Plus show, which will air from July 2.

Talking about Punit, D’Souza said: “He is very talented… It’s a plus for us. There will be a tough competition for the other two (Dharmesh and Shakti) mentors. He brings a lot of new ideas in the show and he is very close to me also.”

To be hosted by dancer Raghav Juyal, popularly known for his stage name Crockroaz, the show is produced by Frames productions and will be aired every Saturday and Sunday.

Actor Charlie Sheen and Whoopi Goldberg have teamed up for a new 9/11 terror attack drama.

The “Wall Street” actor and the “Ghost” star will play two of five people caught in an elevator in the North Tower of the World Trace Center in New York the morning of the attacks in 2001, reported Contactmusic.

“We’re hoping to debut the movie at the Toronto Film Festival on 9/11, because the movie is about 9/11,” Sheen said.

“It’s based on true events about five people in an elevator in the North tower… Whoopi Goldberg, Luis Guzman, myself…”

Sheen is also planning a return to TV following his stints in “Two and a Half Men and Anger Management”.

He explains he is in talks to lead a major network show, stating, “I think the world is starting to realise I’m not this hellraising lunatic that brings chaos wherever I show up.”

Sheen was fired from “Two and a Half Men” because of his wild antics off set. He also lashed out at show producers and creator Chuck Lorre.

A gunman opened fire in a packed gay club on Sunday morning, killing 49 people and inuring 53 others, and now singer Martin has penned an open letter to Congress leaders urging them to get serious with America’s weapons issue.

In an essay titled ‘I will never cease to fight for love’, the openly gay star condemned the hate crime that took place at the Pulse nightclub during Latin Night, and insisted easy access to weapons make such atrocities possible, reported Entertainment Weekly.

“Although I am out of the country my heart is in Orlando. I still cannot believe that an individual filled with so much hate killed 49 people and injured 53 on June 12. People that unlike him were celebrating love, freedom and life.
“I try to find calmness within, so that I can properly express my current state of mind in this article and share with you how I feel during this important mourning process,” he wrote.

“The tragedy that occurred in Orlando hurts me in so many ways. It hurts me as a man, as a human being, and as a gay person, because so many of the victims were brothers and sisters of the LGBT community. I am in pain, I am sad, I am angry.”

The 44-year-old “She Bangs” singer went on to state the massacre proved that gun laws “Must change in this country”, adding, “I also believe we need to join together and end this hatred.”

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In his carefully-worded letter, Martin also questioned why 102 people were shot and what these people were doing “That was so awful that a man would drive to Orlando, Florida with an AR-15-style assault rifle and a handgun invigorated with the desire to kill as many from this community as his bullets and time would allow him”.

He concluded his letter with a plea to fans and the gay community as a whole, urging everyone to call “each and every one of your congressman… 10 times each day until they act” on gun control.

Ride your six string, For as long as you can/
Till the world is out of sight
Just feel the power of the crazy sound/
Feel it, jump deep inside

In the Fall of 1991, a gig at Delhi’s Fr Agnel School was a catharsis of sorts for the ones headbanging on the stage. The song was Xerox and special for six boys with a passion for classic rock, who bonded over Pink Floyd, Led Zepplin, Jim Morrison and Deep Purple. They played their hearts out on the stage and never looked back. Soon enough, they would set the stage alight every time they stepped on it. The boys who called themselves Parikrama, because they thought they would want to orbit the universe forever, were playing rock ‘n’ roll, with all its slickness and sweat in place.

After beginning as a classic rock cover band, Parikrama soon charted their own journey, making original music. “We just wanted to make music. No holds barred. And when we did, the audience and us became people we loved. We just didn’t know that it will all have such a long run,” says Subir Malik, the lead keys player of the band. The boys have now become men and complete their 25 years today.

On June 17, 1991, Parikrama started as a four-month project with four college students — Subir (keyboard), his brother Nitin (vocals), Chintan Kalra (bass), Sonam Sherpa (guitar), Prashant Bahadur (guitar) and Rahul Malhotra. Subir, a student of Kirorimal College in Delhi, roped in his younger brother Nitin for vocals, and other members from the gigs he used to attend those days.

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After four months of “trying to do music” and finding oneself, Subir was to join his family business of motor spare parts. Probably Nitin would have followed suit. Their first gig took place on September 15 in an emerging yet nascent rock scene. While Bahadur and Malhotra left to pursue higher studies, Saurabh Chaudhary (guitar) and Srijan Mahajan (drums) joined in some years later.

Over 3,000 gigs, numerous fans, lots of travel and brilliant music later, Parikrama has transformed into one of the better bands India has seen. But the core remains the same. Their next gig is on June 19 this year. “Frankly, it doesn’t feel like 25 years. By doing something that you love day and night, you just don’t feel that time has passed. This band and the last 25 years weren’t about survival. They were about kicking ass, kicking it well and doing what we love,” says Subir.

Another significant gamechanger was the fact that they never created a studio album, hardly recorded in studios and always gave away their music for free. “The idea was to get more gigs from a great one. No college student at that time had Rs 500 to buy a CD. We decided to give our music for free downloads the moment we found that there is something called internet,” says Subir.

At that time, every band craved a record deal. But Parikrama gave the finger to the A&R (artists and repertoire) managers who wanted to do things their way and didn’t care about what the band wanted.

The band delivered hits after hits, such as Open skies and Gonna get it and then in 1996 came But it rained. A song that followed the kidnappings in Kashmir, it spoke not about those who were taken away but those who they left behind. The members of the band can never forget the gigs where 40,000–50,000 people have sung along this piece with them, note for note, lyric for lyric.

“It’s overwhelming, to say the least,” says Sherpa. The song was also featured when the band opened for English metal legends Iron Maiden in 2007. “We were performing in Bangalore and we spotted Steve Harris, Janick Gers and Dave Murray in the wings, giving us thumbs up and telling us to go on far beyond our set time. It hit us in the right places,” says Subir about the band that has opened for the metal giants almost six times now, including once on their turf in the UK.

The journey has been a little different for the band’s current drummer Srijan Mahajan (also the drummer for Half Step Down and Fuzz Culture), who has spent a decade with the band. “I had never really seen a Parikrama gig before a call from Subir came in one day. It’s been a rollercoaster ride since then. I have travelled the world with them, learnt work ethic and so much more musically,” says Mahajan, who actually dozed off before his first gig with the band and couldn’t be found. The band was already on the stage, sans a drummer, the audiences screaming and waiting for a typical mayhem of a set to begin. “I was finally found and ran on stage. No one abused,” says Mahajan.

“What now” is a question that the band thinks is redundant. “You think of what now if you’ve finished what you started. We still like freaking out and creating music,” says Subir. A diamond jubilee is what the founder member is looking at.

Hindi movie Udta Punjab, which was locked in a bitter row with the censor board, will release as scheduled this Friday, after the country’s highest court Thursday declined to stall the release of the film, which highlights Punjab’s drug problem.

Refusing to stall the film’s release, a vacation bench of the Supreme Court asked the petitioner, an NGO from Punjab, to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court where similar petitions were pending.

WATCH VIDEO | If CBFC Has Leaked Udta Punjab, It’s A Big Shame: Aamir Khan

“We are not interfering in the matter. We are not going into the merit. Liberty (is) granted to the petitioner to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which is seized of the matter,” said the bench comprising Justice Adarsh K Goel and Justice L Nageswara Rao.

Later in the day, the Punjab and Haryana High Court dismissed similar petitions seeking a stay on the film’s release. “This (drugs) menace has reached all over the country. It has even reached Chennai schools… People have to realise… If there is a slight thing there (in movie), it is not going to affect,” said the vacation bench of the high court, while dismissing the pleas.

WATCH VIDEO | Udta Punjab to release on June 17: Film’s Team Reacts To Bombay HC’s Snub To CBFC
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EviJsdPSNV0&w=640&h=390]

Replying to the petitioners’ apprehension that the film’s release will have adverse repercussions across Punjab, the bench, headed by Justice M Jeyapaul, said, “If there is repercussion, police is there.”

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The court’s order came after amicus curiae Sanjay N Kantawala, who had watched the movie on the court’s direction, submitted his report. “The film does not in any manner portray a bad image of Punjab or Punjabis…I have not noticed anything objectionable in setting the film in Punjab, or indeed, titling as ‘Udta Punjab’,” the amicus curiae’s report stated. He said the film has to be seen as a whole by an adult audience who are capable of appreciating the issues conveyed by the film.

Responding to the argument of Punjab State Commission for Women which had also objected to the film’s release on the ground that Udta Punjab shows women of Punjab in poor light as being involved in drugs and parties, the amicus curiae, submitted, “Though the film script could have avoided the repeated use of extremely foul and abusive language, the film has no obscenity like scantly clad women exposing skin and body parts.”

The film highlights, in stark and unremitting detail, the perils and dangers of falling prey to drugs and other narcotic and psychotropic substances, but it does not glorify usage of drugs, added the amicus curiae.

On June 13, the Bombay High Court had cleared the release of Udta Punjab with the deletion of just one scene. The producers of the film had approached the Bombay High Court after the censor board had directed them to delete 89 scenes.

A number of film personalities Thursday urged viewers to go to theatres to watch Udta Punjab and refrain from downloading it after a copy of the Shahid Kapoor-starrer got leaked online.

The film’s producers had Wednesday lodged a complaint with the cyber crime police in Mumbai after a copy of the film with ‘for censor’ written on the top left was leaked on various torrent websites, thereby raising questions about role of the censor board — Central Board of Film Certification — in the leak.

WATCH VIDEO | If CBFC Has Leaked Udta Punjab, It’s A Big Shame: Aamir Khan

Actor-producer Aamir Khan appealed fans through Twitter to watch the movie in theatres, saying piracy is an issue which the film industry has been fighting for a long time.

WATCH VIDEO | Udta Punjab to release on June 17: Film’s Team Reacts To Bombay HC’s Snub To CBFC
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EviJsdPSNV0&w=640&h=390]

In Mumbai, filmmaker Karan Johar made a similar appeal. As the film was set to hit the theatres Friday, the online leak of the film prompted film producer Anurag Kashyap to say that he believed it was a case of vested interests “trying to demoralise” the filmmakers in their fight.

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CBFC chief Pahlaj Nahalani, on his part, said “rumours” about the online leak should not be believed. “Please understand the procedure rather than believing in rumours,” he said.

Punjab Cabinet minister Gulzar Singh Ranike Thursday targeted Punjab actor-and-singer Diljit Dosanjh for being a part of the controversial drug-themed Bollywood film, Udta Punjab.

Ranike, who was in Sangrur to chair a meeting of SAD’s Scheduled Caste (SC) cell, said, “Diljit Dosanjh is a Punjabi and he should not have been part of a movie which has been made to defame Punjab.

WATCH VIDEO | If CBFC Has Leaked Udta Punjab, It’s A Big Shame: Aamir Khan

He will be projecting a wrong image of Punjab through this movie and he should be ashamed of doing so.”

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Interestingly, actor Shahid Kapoor, who is also a part of the film, is a Punjabi. But Ranike focused his attack only on Dosanjh, who is at the moment a popular actor of Punjabi cinema and has a great fan following in the state.

WATCH VIDEO | Udta Punjab to release on June 17: Film’s Team Reacts To Bombay HC’s Snub To CBFC
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EviJsdPSNV0&w=640&h=390]

Meanwhile, defending Dosanjh, Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann, who himself is an actor, said, “What can a SAD minister understand about actors and their work. Now, will SAD ministers teach us what role we should play and what we should not?”

On Wednesday afternoon, a copy of Udta Punjab, a film that has been at the centre of controversy for a month now, was leaked on the Internet. While the makers struggled to take down the link at the earliest to minimise the damage to the film’s collections, word went out that it was the version that was submitted to the CBFC, and was allegedly leaked in order to get back at the film’s makers.

While investigations are on and the movie’s producers, Anurag Kashyap’s Phantom Films along with Balaji Motion Pictures, plan to take legal action against the culprit.

WATCH VIDEO | If CBFC Has Leaked Udta Punjab, It’s A Big Shame: Aamir Khan

CBFC chairperson Pahlaj Nihalani said, “The person responsible has already been identified and the leak will be tracked down. We will cooperate if we are approached as part of the investigation,” said Nihalani.

Nihalani also drew flak Wednesday for issuing the film a certificate that names high court judges who ruled in the case. The text, “Passed by Hon’ble High Court, Mumbai”, is also inscribed on the certificate.

WATCH VIDEO | Udta Punjab to release on June 17: Film’s Team Reacts To Bombay HC’s Snub To CBFC
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EviJsdPSNV0&w=640&h=390]

Commenting on the matter, Nihalani pointed out that as per norms, names of whoever clears the film is mentioned on the certificate.

Calling the controversy a publicity stunt, Nihalani said most members of the industry have no problems with him as CBFC head.

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“Only the Bhatt camp, the Anurag Kashyap camp and a few other art filmmakers do this. Anurag and the Bhatts have always faced trouble with their films, starting from their debuts, a time when I wasn’t heading the CBFC. They are habitual of taking on the censors and use it as a publicity stunt,” he said.

Nihalani further said that a “good film doesn’t need cuss words”, “like Sholay, which was a super-duper hit”.
“The film releases tomorrow, let’s see if the audience enjoys the film or rejects it. We will find out soon.”

FOR A decade, they were solo musicians, playing all over Mumbai, without a band to their name. “Till we met through a common friend four years ago and gave birth to Bombay Bassment,” says its drummer Levin Mendes.

Having given debut performance in Chandigarh on Wednesday night at the S Cafe in Sector 26, this high on drum and bass, hip hop, reggae and urban music band had Ruell Barretto on the bass, DJ Major C aka Chandu on production, and MC Bobkat from Kenya jam together on high-energy tracks from their self-titled album.

Interestingly, their debut album has now been reimagined and followed up with an equally energetic second album produced in collaboration with Pentagram and Shaa’ir + Func guitarist Randolph Correia aka FUNC. “It’s called Bombay Bassment x FUNC VIP, and it is the electronic avatar of our first self-titled album, Bombay Bassment that was released in 2014,” says Mendes.

Promoting their new album through a five-city tour, Mendes talks about how the ‘Bombay Bassment x FUNC VIP’ presents Bombay Bassment in a new light and sound.

“VIP is an album that might just shock you momentarily. It is nothing like you would have imagined Bombay Bassment to pull off. These songs have the same lyrics but tell a different story. Imagine JK Rowling writing her version of The Lord of The Rings,” say the band members, adding that working on this collaboration had been their long-standing wish.

A 10-track album, it presents Bombay’s understanding of reggae and hip-hop, and carries East Indian and Marathi vibes along with subtle local, urban vibes.

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While the group goes through an intensive and very entertaining sound check at the venue, Mendes talks about the theme and premise of his band. Formed in 2010, Bombay Bassment, as the name suggests, reflects the vibe, life and culture of the Mumbai city. It also infuses in it the musically varied backgrounds of its members — Mendes and Barretto’s Goan touch, Chandu’s south Indian sensibility and Bobkat’s African reggae hip hop roots.

“It impacts and influences our songwriting and production. For instance, Bobkat talks a lot about the origin of reggae and hip hop and how it is changing,” adds Mendes. They are also one of those few bands that has a deejay on board.

“Yes, and it is because he brings with him the electronica current, a different sound,” says Mendes. Although they are an established band now, Mendes admits that initial four-five years were a period of struggle. “We did everything ourselves, from production, marketing, managing, signing gigs… it takes time, more in our case because our music is in English. But one has to hang in there,” he says.

Mendes has an advice for upcoming indie musicians: keep playing and operate as a community that empowers and encourages each other.

One of the most controversial and debated films of 2016, Udta Punjab opens in cinema screens across India today. And all thanks to CBFC chief Pahlaj Nihalani, the interest in the movie is at an all time high.

The controversies surrounding the movie starting with the censor cuts, the court verdict and the subsequent online leak have managed to keep the film alive in public consciousness without the producers having spent a single paisa on promotions. Also helping its popularity has been the massive outpour of support from B-town.

WATCH VIDEO | If CBFC Has Leaked Udta Punjab, It’s A Big Shame: Aamir Khan

Starring Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Kareena Kapoor and Diljit Dosanjh in lead roles, Udta Punjab tracks the story of the prevailing drug menace in present day Punjab. The movie is unabashed in its presentation and promises to put forward a dark yet real picture of the drug problem plaguing youth in Punjab.

Now, the real question is, will the immense buzz generated for the movie in the last couple of weeks translate into ticket sales? One could hazard a guess and say ‘yes’, purely based on the plethora of screens the movie is opening at the box office, which stands at a staggering number of 2,000.

WATCH VIDEO | Udta Punjab to release on June 17: Film’s Team Reacts To Bombay HC’s Snub To CBFC
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EviJsdPSNV0&w=640&h=390]

Such is the nature of the movie that it looks set to appeal to both the masses and multiplex audiences. The only disadvantage – and a huge one at that – is the movie’s A certification that would keep kids and family audiences at bay.

The only other Hindi film releasing alongside happens to be Dhanak, which is not exactly competition to Udta Punjab. Finally, after the weekend collection what will make the movie fly high is its content. And to pass a judgement on that, one will have to wait and watch.

Actor Aamir Khan is currently in the second phase of shooting for his upcoming movie Dangal in Ludhiana’s Leel village.

As with all of Aamir’s projects, this one too has generated a lot of interest among his fans and cinephiles. Dangal is a biopic on wrestler Mahavir Phogat, in which the 50-year-old actor essays the protagonist’s role.

But just because the perfectionist actor is busy shooting, it doesn’t mean other projects are on hold. Take for instance his popular reality TV show, Satyamev Jayate, for which the actor’s team has already started work and research.

Indian Express recently caught up with him on the sets of Dangal, and when asked about the next season of ‘Satyamev Jayate’, he said, “Currently the entire team is working on a very crucial and ambitious project to deal with water crisis in Maharashtra. We are aiming to make Maharashtra drought free in coming years.”

In the light of the water crisis in the state, this is a season many will be eagerly waiting for.

First off, is Udta Punjab worth all the fuss? I’d say, absolutely.

Not because it is a perfect film. It has flaws. But this is the kind of film that has something to say, and it says it with both flair and conviction.

Flying is both a metaphor and reality of drugs. Anyone who’s done a line, or snorted some stuff, or shot up, knows what it feels like — you are untethered, you are afloat. It’s another matter that you come down with a thud, and it feels so awful that you are shooting up again, and that’s your vicious cycle.

Udta Punjab is a cracker of a title, and the way it opens tells us that it will go on the way it means to: with rolled-up sleeves ready for action, with characters who look as if they belong to Punjab, and speak the lingo right (mostly). Most importantly, it reveals a willingness to go over to the dark side and show what drugs can do. They can ruin. They can kill. They can wish you were not alive.

Tommy Singh (Shahid Kapoor) is an accidental rock star and a full-time user. He rhymes coke and cock, making a song out of it, and the high-on-the-white-stuff youngsters at his raves love it. He loves it too, till the one day all the jollies — the money, the endless supply of the ‘chitta’ powder, the adulation — curdle. And his eyes light upon a battered-yet-not-beaten Bihari labourer (Alia Bhatt), who has become an unwitting victim in this vicious game, and he stutters, stops and starts to see.

WATCH VIDEO | If CBFC Has Leaked Udta Punjab, It’s A Big Shame: Aamir Khan

Sartaj Singh (Diljit Dosanjh) is a corrupt cop, who is quite happy to turn a blind eye to the drug traffic, till one day it comes too close home. The feisty Dr Preet Sahni (Kareena Kapoor Khan), who runs a rehab clinic, becomes the other strong salutary influence on Sartaj, and the film takes an about-turn.

Anyone with half an eye open can see that this is not a film that glorifies drugs. The degradation of Alia’s character, both physical and mental, is horrifying. An addicted teenager’s spiralling down the primrose path is another of the plot’s see-see-this-is-what-drugs-can-do-to-you thread. It gets to the point where you want to say right, we get it, move on.

The problem is the plot contrivances. In order to put Kareena’s star power to some use, she is turned into a sleuth, and the scenes in which she and her cop companion career around in dark godown, tracking down the bad guys, are the film’s weakest. It’s also clear that despite the dirt on display, the film has its Don’t Do Drugs approach emblazoned right across. What was the CBFC objecting to, really?

WATCH VIDEO | Udta Punjab to release on June 17: Film’s Team Reacts To Bombay HC’s Snub To CBFC
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EviJsdPSNV0&w=640&h=390]

A bit of laxness comes from Shahid’s Tommy, who looks just perfect for his part — the strutting and the thrusting on stage, the tangled hair, the constant flashing of the V sign, the self-absorption are done just right. It’s what goes on inside of him that we don’t really see enough of, and what there is, is more tell than show — he should have been written better. He does have a few terrific scenes, though, and proves that he has a great line in swearing.

But the two actors who make this thing sing are Diljit and Alia. The former, a huge star in Punjab making his Bollywood debut here, is very good. He adds enormously to the authenticity and heft of the film. The latter falters a little with her Bihari accent, but the way she channels the pain and the incredible strength of a young woman stuck in a terrible place, is searing. She soars.

Director: Abhishek Chaubey

Udta Punjab star cast: Shahid Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Alia Bhatt, Diljit Dosnajh, Satish Kaushik

Indra Kumar, director of Great Grand Masti on Thursday (June 16) said that the lead actress of his film Urvashi Rautela got so scared of him that she ran away and tried to avoid him for three months, before finally agreeing to do the film.

“This poor girl (Urvashi). When she came to meet me for the first time I thought there would be no one better than her in the role of a ghost, but a sweet ghost. She looks very good so there could be no one better than her, but then she got scared and ran away. But for the next three months, I kept tracking her.”

Tushar Hiranandani (writer) was after her and finally we caught her and convinced her that it was not a vulgar film, just a little bit vulgar, not that vulgar as you think and it was a lot more funnier. And then I narrated the script to her and then she agreed to do the film,” Kumar said, at the trailer launch of the film.

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The third instalment of the Masti franchise is a sex comedy with a horror backdrop. The leading trio of Vivek Oberoi, Riteish Deshmukh and Aftab Shivdasani visits a haunted palace and encounters Urvashi’s character of a ghost, leading to strange situations.

About not looking like the usual ghosts and looking like a polite ghost, Kumar said, “Actually. But when she gets into the character that time you should see.”

Kumar has delivered hits like Dil, Beta, Ishq in the ’90s among others and worked with talented actresses like Madhuri Dixit, Juhi Chawla, Kajol, Kangana Ranaut, Rekha among others in his career.

He also praised Urvashi, “I am very proud to say that after a long time, I have worked with an outstanding actress. Fantastic. The three of them (Vivek, Riteish, Aftab) are mind-blowing but I have found the fourth one also as mind-blowing.”

Great Grand Masti releases on 22 July.