Bollywood set to take on Hollywood

Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester in London's tony Park Lane is the kind of pricey restaurant dealmakers go to when they want to shake hands on a really big one.

That's where Fox Filmed Entertainment Co-Chairman Jim Gianopulos, Fox STAR Studios India CEO Vijay Singh, and producer-director Vipul Shah met earlier this month before announcing to the media Fox Star Studio's first of a series of co-production and acquisition partnerships in Bollywood.

At about $25 million for two films over the next 18 months, it's small change for a Hollywood studio whose parent company made $28.7 billion in revenue last year.

But a small step for Rupert Murdoch's News Corp is a giant leap in the ongoing love affair between an embattled Hollywood where revenues are plateauing and a cash-rich Bollywood with a growing domestic market.

Part of the increased interest from Hollywood is because despite efforts to dub their films in Hindi, running a blitzkrieg marketing them, and even going big with the release (for instance Sony is releasing over 600 prints of the new Bond film, Quantum of Solace), foreign movie revenues have not grown.

As Siddharth Roy Kapur, CEO of UTV Motion Pictures, puts it, "They've realised they need to be a long-term player here and build relationships." So though Murdoch may have been the prime mover in the West's chalo India strategy, having bought Star TV in 1993 from Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-Shing, he is not the only media mogul to look east.

Akshay Kumar (left) and Deepika Padukone in Chandni Chowk To China

American majors are not new to Indian television but Hollywood is just waking up to Bollywood's potential, having put down $100 million in it cumulatively so far.

Walt Disney, after several false starts, including one bitter fallout with Indian Premier League's current hero, Lalit Modi, back in the days when he was chairman of Modi Entertainment Network, is a strategic investor in UTV with a 32 per cent stake bought for $200 million.

Apart from that, it has a three-animation movie deal with Yash Raj Films, the first of which, Roadside Romeo, releases this month. Viacom, apart from its interests in television, has a joint venture with TV18 in the Indian Film Company (IFC), which last year raised $112 million at London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market.

IFC is also in negotiations with CIT, a middle market lender that has done substantial deals in Hollywood, for a $150-million line of credit. That's not all. Warner Bros is waiting for the release of its first coproduction in India with Ramesh Sippy Entertainment and Orion Pictures, the extravagant Chandni Chowk to China, even as Sony Pictures Entertainment is recovering from the tanking of its first Hindi film, the $8-million Saawariya, and has announced a co-investment deal with Eros International.

Walt Disney has signed a three-animation movie deal with Yash Raj Films

And, oh yes, big shots from talent agencies such as the powerful CAA and the pedigreed William Morris have made several rounds of movie producer offices in Bandra and Andheri.

Add to that interest from a whole range of banks and hedge funds which are in the market for co-production deals, though less so after the global meltdown, and clearly everyone seems to want a piece of the India action.

Not because of Hollywood movie revenues in India certainly, which even in the best of times are not more than 3 per cent to 5 per cent of the total annual box-office revenue, compared to 88 per cent in a nation like Britain, but also because of the domestic market, which sells 3.7 billion tickets, compared to just 1.4 billion in the US.

The revenues currently from India may seem puny, but the studios and film funds are betting on an India of the future where ticket prices will be more than the current average of 20 cents (the US average is $6), where there will be more than 12,000 screens, and where there is huge potential of growth of the home video market (which currently contributes 8 per cent to the market, compared to over 40 per cent of the total revenue in the US).

As Sanford Panitch, president of the newly established Fox International Productions, puts it, "Hollywood studios will become the force for transparency in India." They will also, he believes, be able to raise the bar on scriptwriting and visual effects. Or as an agent at William Morris puts it, "Bollywood will make more westernised movies but in the Indian genre, culture and language."

Chris Rock (centre) in I Think I Love My Wife

Is it any wonder then that News Corp chairman Murdoch, Walt Disney chairman Bob Iger and Time Warner Chairman and CEO Richard Parsons have officially declared India to be the winner in the India vs China debate for Hollywood?

In 2005, Parsons, while speaking at a lunch with the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, called China "a very tough market for a media and entertainment company. It's hard to make long-term investments if you don't exactly know what the playing field is going to look like."

Globalisation is the order of the day in Hollywood. Disney, whose businesses range from movies to theme parks and resorts, made almost a quarter of its $35.5 billion revenues outside North America last year.

And only last month, Iger said, "the best way for Disney to grow in markets such as India, China and Russia is for those markets to have a sense of ownership". As for Murdoch, he has repeatedly pointed out the advantages of India's rule of law, despite it being an "imperfect democracy".

Source: http://indiatoday.digitaltoday.in

Karan Johar’s ‘Dostana’ lands into fresh trouble in Pakistan!

Spicezee Bureau

Mumbai, Nov 17: Looks like, Karan Johar’s ‘Dostana’ is running into fresh trouble in Pakistan. The movie that is fashioning tremendously well at the Box Office has apparently met rejection in Pakistan for its highly objectionable gay content.

The much entertaining multi-starrer flick has won praises primarily for it’s storyline and the entertainment box’ up for an assured fun filled experience.

The Lahore High Court has issued notices to the Chairman of the Film Censor Board of Pakistan to justify the screening of the Bollywood movie ‘Dostana’ in Pakistan due to the Gay content in the movie.

‘Homosexuality’ is till-date illegal in Pakistan and a seriously punishable offence. Well, that’s a good enough reason for rejection!
Source: http://www.zeenews.com/Entertainment/Movies-Theatre

Team Golmaal plans on returning third time

Golmaal Returns hits theatres on Wednesday, and after the first part being quite a success at the box office, all eyes are now on the sequel. CNN-IBN's Entertainment Editor Rajeev Masand caught up with the four main stars of the film.

Rajeev Masand: After Golmaal in 2006, there was scope for a sequel, but my question is, after the first film it is easy to make the second one bigger but it's also important to make it better. Isn't it?

Ajay Devgan: It's most important to make it better and that is the reason we took so long to make the sequel as we needed the right kind of script and the right angle.

Arshad Warsi: And honestly speaking the storyline of the sequel is funnier than the first film.

Rajeev Masand: But are the characters still the same? Tusshar, do you still play the mute funny guy?

Tusshar Kapoor: Yes, my character is the same along with everyone's name which is also the same.

Ajay Devgan: The characters are the same.

Arshad Warsi: We're still paying idiots like in the first one.

Tusshar Kapoor: Also the film doesn't start from where it left off, as it's a whole new episode.

Rajeev Masand: But give us some idea about the film?

Ajay Devgan Well, in the first film, we all play friends. But in this one, Kareena plays my wife and Tusshar plays Kareena's brother. Arshad plays a cop and we don't like eachother and it's tussle between the both of us.

Arshad Warsi: What I'm doing is trying to find out what Ajay is upto in the film.

Rajeev Masand: In Golmaal, all four characters were after one girl, but in the sequel the bar has been raised has there are also four girls in the film?

Ajay Devgan: Yes, we insisted we all want a heroine each.

Arshad Warsi: And there was more money, so we could afford it.

Rajeev Masand: Assuming all goes well with Golmaal Returns, is there going to be a part three?

Ajay Devgan: There is no assuming, it will go well and there going to be a part three as we're working on it.

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/

'Hari Puttar' gets green signal from Delhi HC :

Lucky Kohli, the director of Hari Puttar-The Comedy of Terrors was a worried man. Although he is of Punjabi origin he's been born and brought up in the UK. And his first film ran into major controversies with Warner Brothers having taken Mirchi Movies to court. But Lucky Kohli is not a man to be easily deterred. He went ahead and now finally four days before the release of the film the court has ruled in his favour.

Tell us something about yourself. This is your first film in Bollywood…

My family settled in the UK. But I am originally a Sikh. My name is Harinder but my pet name was Lucky and the name just sort of stuck over the years. I am very fluent in Hindi though. I would say I'm more fluent in Hindi even as compared to Punjabi.

How is that?

When my sister and me were really young my mother could not afford a baby sitter for us. And minors below a certain age cannot be left unattended at home. So she used to buy a cinema ticket and leave us in the theatre for about five hours while she went off to work. And my sister and me saw many Hindi films over and over again.

Which ones do you remember?

Ask me which ones I don't remember. Seeta Aur Geeta for one, Mr Natwarlal... they are all my favourite films.

Any particular film, which you would call your favourite?

It would have to be Sholay. I remember every scene, every line almost verbatim.

But your first film belongs to a completely different genre.

There's a reason for that. When my daughter was younger I saw a lot of kiddie films (Shrek, Monsters Inc,) with her. Initially I thought I was being a good parent. But later I found at the end of the film that I had enjoyed myself as much as she had. So I had this dream of making a film, which would be a complete 'family' entertainer.

Have you succeeded?

Yes, but of course the final verdict is yours. But I sincerely feel from the bottom of my heart that I have succeeded.

Why Hari Puttar as a title? Didn't you anticipate the backlash? Or was it a calculated decision to cash in on a highly popular series.

As I told you earlier my full name was Harinder. But I was often called Harry. Our protagonist in the film is Hari Prasad. So he is called Hari. And puttar is a suffix every Punjabi boy is familiar with. So it is nothing but an unfortunate co-incidence.
Source: http://www.buzz18.com

Taare Zameen Par is India's Oscar entry

Spicezee Bureau Mumbai, Sept 22: Aamir Khan’s directional debut ‘Taare Zameen Par’, which has been officially nominated at the Oscars seems to have a strong chance of winning the award as it has a mass appeal and has already touched the emotional chords of the audience. The film has secured an entry into the Oscars beating exceptional films like ‘Jodhaa Akbar’, ‘A Wednesday’, ‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’, ‘Rock On’, ‘Black And White’ and two Marathi films and a Telugu movie. Expressing happiness on the nomination, Aamir said, “I’m very happy that my film has been selected as we have got a chance to represent India internationally at a level where best films from all over the world are nominated for the honour.” The actor, however, expressed the desire to have ‘TZP’ reach the top 5 of the nominations, like his previous film ‘Lagaan’. Rejecting the charge of lobbying for his films, Aamir said, “I feel there is nothing wrong if I say that I have a PR in Los Angeles, because I believe it is important to have one so that people get to know about the films we make in India through the media over there. My responsibility is and has been just to create awareness about the films that we make.” Speaking about the importance of an Oscar to him, the actor said, “I don’t target Oscars when I make a film. My films are mainly for the audience. I think it is my responsibility to make good films which are entertaining and worth watching for the audience and their money and time is what matters to me the most.” “For the Oscar nomination I would say that the competition is tough, so I’m not sure if TZP would win the award, but I’m sure the film is going to leave a strong impact,” he added. Source: http://www.zeenews.com

Motorola launches Motojewel for fashion conscious segment

World mobile phone leader Motorola is coming out with a phone they call “fashion forward”. The Motorola MOTOJEWEL they claim is tailor-made for young and trendy women from across the globe.

Motorola’s MOTOJEWEL has a unique diamond cut design with a large purple jewel on the front. The new mobile handset from Motorola is equipped with a 2 megapixel camera, MP3 player and Bluetooth capabilities.

The MOTO Jewel will be available through Carphone Warehouse starting in November. I’m sure we’ll see plenty of them on eBay also. Let’s wait and see how many people deem this phone “fashion forward”. Here’s a quote from Motorola:

A Motorola press release said, “The alluring, jewel-like design in sophisticated Midnight Quartz and the dazzling purple keypad inside can’t help but draw admiring glances. It’s a phone so sassy that users will wish they could wear it! Ensuring a perfect finish to any outfit, the MOTOJEWEL comes complete with a must-have mini clutch designed to hold all the essentials for the perfect girls’ night out: a MOTOJEWEL, credit card and lipstick.”

The new music phone from Motorola will feature touch-sensitive keys on its outside control panel, which also displays basic phone information and animated screen savers. The specs are nothing to write home about, as the phone is largely meant to be a fashion accessory. Motorola even includes a small clutch purse with it meant to house the phone and a couple of accessories, ID and or credit cards.

Source: http://www.khabrein.info

Ram Gopal Varma to make Phoonk 2 :

Director Ram Gopal Varma says the idea of making his recently released horror film Phoonk came from one of the news channel.

"The idea to make a film on black magic came from a news channel. It keeps on showing various programmes on black magic. I watched various programmes on black magic and supernatural powers on the channel and approached Azam Khan with the concept. He liked it and the whole script was written," Varma told reporters.

Azam Khan's One More Thought Entertainment has produced the film.

Critics have panned the film, but Phoonk reportedly saw a good opening with 70 per cent collections. Thanks to pre-release publicity, it has been successful in drawing a considerable chunk of audience in the multiplexes. Varma celebrated the success of the film.

source: http://movies.ndtv.com/

Box Office: Phoonk in success wave:

Ram Gopal Varma's Phoonk surprisingly fared the best amongst all the four releases of this week. Despite a no-star value Cast, Phoonk worked for its horror genre that isn't much attempted in Bollywood. Though Ramu resorted to his same old thrill-inducing tactics that didn't gain him good reviews, Phoonk had a much decent audience as compared to the other releases of the week.

Mumbai Meri Jaan received only 20-30% collections in its opening weekend. But with the extremely encouraging reviews that the Film gained, it might show some rise in business with a strong positive word of mouth. Maan Gaye Mughal-e-Azam opened to as low as 15-20% collections, which proves that Mallika Sherawat can't overshadow a senseless script.
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com

Sri Lankan cricketers land Bollywood roles:

COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's top cricketers had a shot at Bollywood stardom when they were filmed for an upcoming movie that features some of the best players in the world.

Scenes for "Victory," a story of a small town boy who dreams of playing cricket for India, were shot in Colombo last week, with actor Harman Baweja playing against Sri Lanka's national team.

Sri Lankan stars Kumar Sangakkara, Muttiah Muralitharan and Sanath Jayasuriya were among those filmed at one of Colombo's oldest cricket venues, the Oval.

Also starring in the 10-million-dollar movie will be the Indian team, plus Australian paceman Brett Lee, England bowlers Sajid Mahmood and Simon Jones, and New Zealander Craig McMillan.

"The film combines what Indians love best - cricket, music and Bollywood movies," Sri Lankan producer Chandran Rutnam, who handled the Colombo leg of the shooting said.

source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/

Mallika Sherawat plays the wife of Paresh Rawal in Maan Gaye Mughall E Azam:

Paresh Rawal is shown as the owner of the theatre group. Mallika’s character, Shabnam which hails from a small town, gets married to Paresh, so that she can fulfill her dreams of making it big in Bollywood. She plays a delusional actress who feel that she will fill the gap, left by Jaya Bachchan, since there were no actress better than her. Whilst shooting for the film,

When Maliika was asked how it felt to be chased by three men in the film. She was heard saying that it was a great feeling. In fact, it was very funny to see Paresh trying to protect his ‘Angan ki Tulsi’. To Which Paresh Rawal laughed and said, “Its good to have a young beautiful wife, but Mallika was a ‘Kantewali Tulsi’.”
Source: http://www.realbollywood.com