Two OTT platforms to stream ‘Bheemla Nayak’ from March 25

With Pawan Kalyan and Rana Daggubati in the lead roles, ‘Bheemla Nayak’ was released in theatres on February 25. Exactly a month later, the remake of the Malayalam movie, ‘Ayyappanum Koshiyum’, is to start streaming on Aha and Disney+ Hotstar from March 25.

“Next Friday ee time ki, power storm mee intake vachesthundhi. Dates mark cheskondi, calendar kaaliga unchukondi,” read the Aha announcement on social media, which, loosely translated, means, “Lock your dates for the powerful storm. ‘Bheemla Nayak’ is all set to lure you.”

Directed by Saagar K Chandra, ‘Bheemla Nayak’ is about its title character played by actor and political activist Pawan Kalyan, a gutsy sub-inspector who locks horns with Daniel Sekhar (Rana Daggubati), a rich brat forever on the wrong side of the law. The resultant clash of egos manages to draw the families of the two antagonists.

How Nayak and Daniel embark on their roller-coaster fight from this point is what the film is all about.

The film’s star cast also includes Murali Sharma, Nithya Menen, Samuktrakani, and Samyuktha Menon. Its music is by Thaman. Trivikram Srinivas has penned the dialogues and screenplay of the movie.

Modesty a la Alia Bhatt: ‘I don’t think I have mastered everything’

Bollywood star Alia Bhatt, who is currently riding high on the success of her latest release ‘Gangubai Kathiawadi’, has talked about how even though she has touched the high of highs the actress is still grounded.

In a conversation with an interview, Alia, who will next be seen in ‘Brahmastra’, said: “I have a very good support system of friends and family… You have to tell yourself and understand that what you are doing as an actor is not really who you are… I am still that young girl who started 10 years ago. I don’t think I have mastered everything.

“I don’t think I have every understanding. I don’t think I have all the information in the world and I will only continue to learn and grow only if I continue to doubt myself. Being grounded is all about not believing in one’s own success or failure. You don’t take success to your head and you don’t take failure to your heart…

“Done something successful, pat your back and move on, something bad has happened, pat your heart and move on. You just have to move on and I am more interested in creating relationships — my friends, family, my loved ones than thinking about ‘oh I am so great!’. That is a very lonely place to be. ”

‘Brahmastra’ is directed by Ayan Mukerji, produced by Fox Star Studios, Dharma Productions, Prime Focus, and Starlight Pictures, the magnum opus will release theatrically on September 9 in 5 Indian languages – Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada.

It has a stellar ensemble cast of Amitabh Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Mouni Roy, and Nagarjuna Akkineni.

Tamannaah talks about working with Badshah in ‘Tabahi’

Popular actress Tamannaah gets candid about her working experience with Badshah in the new song ‘Tabahi’.

She is coming to promote her latest track on ‘India’s Got Talent.

Sharing her experience of working with Badshah on the song ‘Tabahi’ she says: “I have been wanting to collaborate with Badshah for a really long time. Just like everyone else I’m his huge fan as well. I was happy that we finally did collaborate, and I like the song. I always wanted to do a song that is foot-tapping and super impactful which most of Badshah’s songs are. I feel happy that we finally collaborated.”

Talking about her experience on the show, Tamannaah candidly shares: “It’s very humbling to come to a show like ‘India’s Got Talent and watch diverse talents in different parts of our country. I feel that this platform generates great awareness and I feel like back in the day, there weren’t such opportunities as today.”

“So, for me, as an artist to come here and even watch these people perform, is extremely humbling. It reinstated for me that more than talent it’s always the temperament that shines through,” she concludes.

‘India’s Got Talent airs on Sony Entertainment Television.

Andhra Pradesh to allow higher ticket prices for ‘RRR’ for 10 days

With S. S. Rajamouli’s much-awaited movie “RRR” set for release on March 25, the Andhra Pradesh government on Thursday said it will soon fix special ticket prices for the film for the first 10 days after its release.

State Cinematography Minister Perni Venkatramaiah said the officials concerned were considering a request from Rajamouli to allow special prices for the cinema tickets for “RRR”.

He told reporters that while taking a decision, it will be ensured that cinema goers are not burdened.

Rajamouli, along with producer D.V.V. Danayya, had met Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on Monday with a request to provide the special benefit of increased ticket prices under a recent Government Order (GO).

The Chief Minister had reportedly responded positively to the request of the director of “Baahubali” fame.

“RRR”, starring Ram Charan, Jr NTR, and Alia Bhatt, is set to hit the screens on March 25 after missing its theatrical release multiple times due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The state government earlier this month issued a GO fixing new movie ticket rates to put an end to the controversy over the issue, which had angered some sections of the Telugu film industry.

Under the GO, the government will notify separate rates for a period of 10 days from the date of release of ‘super high budget films’. This category has been defined as films made with a lot of creative elements, visual effects involving uses of high-end technology, etc with production cost above Rs 100 crore, excluding remuneration of heroes, heroines, and directors.

The government, which will notify the special prices on a case-to-case basis, has also put a rider. These super high-budget films would need to shoot at least 20 percent of the film in Andhra Pradesh.

However, the minister made it clear on Thursday that this condition will not apply to “RRR” as the film completed the production much before the GO came into effect.

He said during the meeting with the Chief Minister, Rajamouli informed him that “RRR” has been made with a budget of Rs 336 crore excluding GST and remuneration of heroes, heroines, and directors.

Nani, as the minister is popularly known, said the state government would promote film shootings in the state.

He said permissions for film shootings will be given free through a single-window system. He pointed out that Telangana and other states were collecting fees for film shootings.

‘Penny’ poster from ‘Sarkaru Vaari Paata’ released, song out on March 20

The makers of the Telugu star Mahesh Babu’s highly anticipated film ‘Sarkaru Vaari Paata’, are set to release the second single ‘Penny’ from the film on March 20.

The announcement poster presenting Mahesh Babu in a dashing avatar was released on Thursday.

The soundtrack created by Thaman S.S. looks to charm the audience as the first single ‘Kalaavathi’ has set new benchmarks in terms of record views. The enchanting melody has already crossed 90 million views and it is set to cross the 100-million-mark soon.

The film, which is currently being shot in Hyderabad, has entered the final stage of production. It stars Keerthy Suresh as the female lead and is jointly produced by Naveen Yerneni, Y. Ravi Shankar, Ram Achanta, and Gopichand Achanta under Mythri Movie Makers, GMB Entertainment, and 14 Reels Plus banners.

The cinematography for the film is being handled by R Madhi, while Marthand K Venkatesh serves as the editor and AS Prakash takes care of the art department.

The film which also stars Vennela Kishore and Subbaraju is scheduled for release on May 12.

Karolina Bielawska is Miss World 2021

Karolina Bielawska of Poland has been crowned Miss World 2021, which was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The 70th edition of the event was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico at the Coca-Cola Music Hall. While Karolina is the winner, Indian-American Shree Saini of the US is the first runner-up, and Olivia Yace of Côte d’Ivoire is the second.

Introducing the winners, Miss World organization tweeted: “Our newly crowned Miss World Karolina Bielawska from Poland with 1st Runner Up Shree Saini from US 2nd Runner up Olivia Yace from Côte d’Ivoire.”

Toni-Ann Singh, Miss World 2020, also graced the event by performing a special number ‘The Prayer’ to show her support for Ukraine in the midst of its conflict with Russia.

“Our current Miss World Toni-Ann Singh performs ‘The Prayer’ as we light candles around the world to stand with Ukraine. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house #mwcandlesforukraine.” tweeted from Miss World’s handle.

Karolina is currently pursuing her Master’s in Management and hopes to get a Ph.D. too, according to the Miss World organization.

Shree Saini, on the other hand, is from Punjab’s Ludhiana, but moved to Washington, DC with her family when she was five. Despite being involved in a fatal accident that resulted in facial burns, Shree did not give up and returned stronger.

Director Mohit Suri: ‘Ek Villain Returns’ is my dream project

The shooting for the sequel of ‘Ek Villain’ has been wrapped up and its director Mohit Suri has called the film his dream project.

Mohit said, “‘Ek Villain Returns’ is my dream project. It has been an incredible journey since day one and all of us had a great time. As we wrap the shoot, I cannot wait to begin the next phase of the production and have the audience watch the final product. I had the best time working the entire cast, and the same has been reflected on screen.”

The film is set for an Eid release on July 8. Releasing 8 years after the first installment of the franchise, the multi-starrer film has some high octane action and features John Abraham, Arjun Kapoor, Disha Patani, and Tara Sutaria,

Sharing her excitement, producer Ekta Kapoor said, “‘Ek Villain’ is Balaji’s most special flagship franchise, and now Ek Villain �Returns’ to keep the audience on the edge of their seats. The idea is to make it bigger and wilder than its first installment. Given the nature of the genre, we’ve had to tide through the pandemic and ensure we present a visual and thrilling experience like never before!”

In a similar vein, producer Bhushan Kumar said, “‘Ek Villain’ franchise is one of the closest to our hearts. Unlike its prequel, the audience will witness a double thriller, double action, double drama in this one. Right from the cast to the director to the whole crew, everyone working on this project was full of zeal and the set was high on energy and creative synergy. I’m sure like it’s spiritual prequel Ek Villain Returns will break all records.”

The movie is directed by Mohit Suri and jointly produced by T-Series and Balaji Telefilms.

Parineeti Chopra in awe of Nora Fatehi’s dancing skills

Bollywood actress Parineeti Chopra is all praise for actress, dancer, and model Nora Fatehi, who is appearing as a special guest on ‘Hunarbaaz Desh Ki Shaan’.

She says: “There are no actors or choreographers in the industry who can dance as well as Nora does.”

Nora has appeared in Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, and Tamil films. She gained popularity by doing item numbers in films like ‘Temper’, ‘Baahubali: The Beginning’ and ‘Kick 2’.

Parineeti says that Nora’s dancing skills are unbeatable and her every move impresses the ‘Hasee Toh Phasee’ actress.

Parineeti adds: “There are many dancers who are amazing, but I am hooked to Nora’s songs, her athleticism, her grace, her moves, in my opinion, no one can match her.”

Meanwhile, both Parineeti and Nora are impressed by the act of the all-girl crew, ‘Yo Highness’, who performed to the medleys of her songs.

‘Hunarbaaz – Desh Ki Shaan’ which is judged by Mithun Chakraborty, Karan Johar, and Parineeti Chopra air on Colors.

Teaser of Vishnu Vishal, Aishwarya Rajesh-starrer ‘Mohandas’ released

Director Lokesh Kanakaraj and actor Karthi on Wednesday released a brilliant teaser of director Murali Karthick’s intense action-thriller ‘Mohandas’, featuring Vishnu Vishal and Aishwarya Rajesh in the lead.

The hard-hitting teaser, which looks interesting and promises an exciting action thriller, begins with a quote from Mahatma Gandhi, “The future depends on what you do today.”

It then has Vishnu Vishal narrating a very interesting story. He begins by saying, “Once upon a time there was a forest.” He corrects himself instantly and says, ” A forest used to exist in the place that this city now exists,” and then goes on to list the wild animals in the forest, all the while wondering what animal he should pick to best describe his character.

The indecision ends after a while and he settles for the lion.

He then goes on to say that this lion (referring to himself) is hungry and is about to hunt a deer (referring to Aishwarya Rajesh). “If you, at this point, think that the deer should escape even if it means the death of the lion due to hunger, then, to you, I am a villain. If you, on the other hand, think that the lion should kill the deer and live, then to you, I am a hero. My name is Mohandas.”

Produced by Shubhra, Aryan Ramesh, and Vishnu Vishal, the film will also feature Indrajith Sukumaran, Karunakaran, Lallu, Prakash Raghavan, and Shariq Hassan among others.

The film has music by Sundaramurthy KS and cinematography by Vignesh Rajagopalan.

Director Rathnakumar’s film with Santhanam titled ‘Gulu Gulu’

Director Rathna Kumar’s much-awaited next film, featuring actors Santhanam and Athulya Chandra in the lead, has been titled ‘Gulu Gulu’.

On Wednesday, five popular Tamil film directors — Gautham Vasudev Menon, Nelson Dilipkumar, Lokesh Kanakaraj, Venkat Prabhu, and Karthik Subbaraj– released the title motion poster of the film.

The motion poster goes on to disclose that Santhanam’s character’s name is actually ‘Google’ but he hears his name as ‘Gulu Gulu’.

The title motion poster also gives out a bit of the character’s background.

“Nobody knows him or where he’s from. He has traveled across countries and knows 13 languages. Yet he will never forget the broken English his mom taught him.

“He would get bashed up in the name of doing social service but ask him about anything and he’ll give you a clear-cut explanation. This is why people lovingly call him ‘Google’. But every time they call him that, all he will be able to hear is ‘Gulu Gulu’,” the title motion poster explains.

The film, which has music by Santhosh Narayanan, will also feature Namitha Krishnamurthy, Pradeep Rawat, Mariyam George, Sai Dheena, ‘Lollu Sabha’ Maaran, and ‘Lollu Sabha’ Seshu among others.

Produced by Raj Narayanan, the film will have cinematography by Vijay Kartik Kannan and editing by Philomin Raj.