Kangana learnt Bharatanatyam for ‘Thalaivii’ song

The ‘Nain Bandhe Naino Se’ teaser from ‘Thalaivii’ was released on Friday. With 100 trained dancers, it showcases actress Kangana Ranaut’s classical dancing skills, learnt over a month of rigorous training for the film.

Opening up about the experience of performing Bharatanatyam for the first time, Kangana shared, “Every day working on ‘Thalaivii’ has been a learning experience for me. This song challenged me to learn a new art form – Bharatanatyam.”

“Jaya maa was an incredible powerhouse of talent, she was a trained dancer and playing her I had to look believable in my craft on screen. Taking up new challenges makes me stronger, so I took up the task to learn this traditional dance form Bharatanatyam.”

Depicting the Bharatnatyam skills for the first time that Kangana learned for the film, the song takes us to an interesting turn in the professional as well as the personal life of Jayalalithaa.

Kangana underwent hours of training to learn the classical dance for the particular song, “With innumerable hours of rehearsals, practice and finally the shoot, we have offered our sweat and blood with ‘Nain Bandhe Naino Se’ and I’m thrilled to present the song to the world.”

Shot across four days, ‘Nain Bandhe Naino Se ‘ required 15 days of set work and over a month of dance rehearsals before the shoot.

The superstar of Tamil cinema, Jayalalithaa was trained in Carnatic music, western classical piano, and various forms of classical dance, including Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Mohiniyattam, Manipuri, and Kathak.

After the release of ‘Teri Aankhon Mein’, the makers of ‘Thalaivii’ are set to unveil yet another facet of Jayalalithaa’s cinematic career with the upcoming song ‘Nain Bandhe Naino Se’.

Earlier, the trailer of ‘Thalaivii’ highlighted the varied phases of Jayalalithaa’s life, throwing light on her struggles in the early stages of her film career to her rise to stardom. The film also vividly depicts the battles of Jayalalithaa in her political career as the legendary leader who shaped Tamil Nadu politics.

Directed by Vijay, ‘Thalaivii’, presented by Vibri Motion pictures, Karma Media Entertainment, and Zee Studios in association with Gothic Entertainment and Sprint films, has been produced by Vishnu Vardhan Induri and Shailesh R. Singh and co-produced by Hitesh Thakkar and Thirumal Reddy with Brinda Prasad as the creative producer.

‘Thalaivii’ is set to be released in theatres worldwide in Hindi, Tamil and Telegu, by Zee Studios on September 10.

Lena Headey got to crush on ‘Gunpowder Milkshake’ co-star Angela Bassett

‘Game of Thrones’ star Lena Headey says she got a chance to crush on co-actor Angela Bassett on the sets of their forthcoming film ‘Gunpowder Milkshake’.

‘Gunpowder Milkshake’ is a female-driven thriller laced with exquisite action sequences. The Navot Papushado directorial contains a rich mythology of multi-generational narratives that gives a fresh, 21st century perspective to the age-old assassin flick.

Heady states that she was instantly glued to the screenplay.

She said: “The film has lots of brilliant women in it and it’s just fresh and fun and I get to fight, and I’ll take anything where that happens! To see women in traditional male roles and unafraid to be violent in terms of survival and righting wrongs is great.”

Even though she looks tough from the outside, her character has many layers, notes Headey, who played Cersei Lannister in ‘Game Of Thrones’.

“Scarlet is riddled with guilt but isn’t very good at being vulnerable and with sharing her feelings,” she said.

Talking about her fellow actors, Heady said: “The cast was amazing and I fell in love with each and every one of them! I got to crush on Angela Bassett. Who doesn’t dream of that? It was so fulfilling on many levels.”

‘Gunpowder Milkshake’ also features Karen Gillan, Carla Gugino, and Paul Giamatti among others.

PVR Pictures will release ‘Gunpowder Milkshake’ in Indian theatres on September 10.

Big B tells Sourav how he sang National Anthem before India-Pak WC Match

The ‘Shaandaar Shukravaar’ episode on ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati 13’ will see cricket legends Sourav Ganguly and Virender Sehwag as the special guests. Both the ex-cricketers take the hotseat and play the game with host Amitabh Bachchan.

During the show, Sourav Ganguly requested Amitabh to switch roles and sit on the hotseat and answer some of the questions. During the question-answer round based on pictures and while doing so they shared fun and interesting anecdotes making the segment interactive.

One of the pictures showcased was of Amitabh wearing a cricket outfit. The megastar then reveals the story behind the image that was clicked at Eden Garden during a match between the Bombay Film Industry and the Bengal Film Industry. He then mentions that he gets a lot of positivity from the people of Bengal and even requests his peers from the film industry to visit the state and interact with the people there.

Further in the show, Sourav Ganguly also thanked Amitabh for singing the national anthem during the India vs Pakistan World Cup match, to which Amitabh said that it was one of the most unbelievable moments for him in his career and he was overwhelmed to see the excitement of thousands present there who sang the anthem in one go.

‘KBC 13’s ‘Shaandaar Shukravaar’ will air on Friday on Sony Entertainment Television.

Deepika contributes to save acid attack survivor’s life

Struggling for life, acid attack survivor Bala has found a new hope as star actor Deepika Padukone has extended a helping hand to save her life.

The acid attack survivor, who is suffering from a life-threatening kidney ailment, urgently needs a kidney transplant to survive. After the word reached Deepika, she donated a generous amount of Rs 10,00,000 to the ‘Save Bala’ campaign.

Bala is a real-life star who was also featured in the Deepika Padukone-starrer movie ‘Chhapaak’, directed by Meghna Gulzar, besides appearing on ‘The Kapil Sharm Show’.

Her condition is deteriorating every day due to the failure of both her kidneys and she’s somehow surviving on dialysis. Being an acid attack survivor, her weakened immunity is already a threat to her life.

Bala still requires further monetary help to come out of this tragedy and hence the Chhanv Foundation is seeking as much support as possible.

The fundraising campaign called ‘Save Bala’ has been started on the crowdfunding platform ‘Milaap’.

Tamil director Atlee’s next film with SRK, Nayanthara all set to roll

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan has joined hands with the multi-award-winning Arun Kumar, who’s better-known professionally as Atlee, for the Tamil director’s next as-yet-unnamed film.

The news has been doing the rounds for quite some time, but now it is being reported that SRK, who was in Spain shooting for Siddharth Anand’s ‘Pathan’, has started work on the film in Pune.

SRK is said to be playing a double role — that of a father and a son. This, incidentally, won’t be Atlee’s first film featuring Bollywood stars. His 2019 Tamil sports action film, ‘Bigil’, a Vijay-Nayanthara star vehicle, had Jackie Shroff as one of the principal actors.

Atlee is famous for his 2017 action thriller, ‘Mersal’, with A.R. Rahman’s music and a star cast comprising Vijay, S.R. Suryan, Samantha Akkineni and Kajal Aggarwal.

The film’s cast also includes Nayanthara, popularly known as the ‘lady superstar’ of South Indian cinema, and Sanya Malhotra, who played Babita Kumari in ‘Dangal’ and later also essayed memorable roles in ‘Shakuntala Devi’ and ‘Ludo’.

Also cast in it is Sunil Grover, seen most recently in the web series ‘Tandav’, but who first came to the people’s notice as Gutthi in ‘Comedy Nights by Kapil’.

Indie film ‘Runt’, starring late Disney descendant, releases on Oct 19

Late actor Cameron Boyce’s ‘Runt’ is set to release on October 19.

1091 Pictures released the trailer on the Instagram page announcing the release date, “What happens when everything and everyone just seems to be against you? Do you let it ride or take a stand? See what happens in #RUNT 10/19.”
Runt
The indie drama stars Cameron Boyce, the star of Disney Channel’s ‘Descendants’ franchise, and HBO’s ‘Mrs Fletcher’, who died in July 2019 at the age of 20 following an epileptic seizure.

The film, directed and co-written by William Coakley, centers on a group of neglected and misguided high school seniors who are pulled into a downward cycle of violence when the adults in their lives fail them. Boyce portrays Cal, who after a troubling incident takes a stand, resulting in devastating consequences, according to Deadline.com.

1091 acquired the film in June. It will be released on VOD and digital platforms on October 19.

The features stars Nicole Elizabeth Berger, Aramis Knight, Brianna Hildebrand, Cyrus Arnold, Jason Patric, Charlie Gillespie and Tichina Arnold.

‘Runt’ was scripted by Coakley, Christian Van Gregg and Armand Constantine. Its producers were Carl Rumbaugh and Gregory Thomas. The film had its world premiere at the 2020 Mammoth Film Festival, where it received the Audience Award for Best Feature Film.

“This film is very important in the climate we live in today,” said Cameron Boyce’s parents, Victor and Libby Boyce. “Cameron was incredibly proud of this film, and we believe his powerful performance will resonate deeply with all his fans throughout the world.”

“We are grateful to be working with 1091 Pictures, which understands the relevance and power of this story,” added the producers. “We have also partnered with The Cameron Boyce Foundation and its Wielding Peace initiative to promote peace instead of violence and spread awareness of the consequences of gun violence. We are excited for audiences to see this powerful and thrilling picture.”

The Cameron Boyce Foundation was founded in July of 2019, to continue the philanthropic legacy of the late Cameron Boyce. Its mission is to raise awareness and research dollars for epilepsy and SUDEP (Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy) through digital campaigns and programmatic partnerships, according to Deadline.com.

Kichcha Sudeepa’s first look in ‘Vikrant Rona’ unveiled

The makers of the much-awaited multilingual film ‘Vikrant Rona’ released the first look of actor Kichcha Sudeepa on Thursday. The day also marks the actor’s birthday.

The glimpse follows the narration of a world that sees the entry of ‘Vikrant Rona’ striking fear into his enemies’ hearts. The narrator describes the actor’s character as ‘Lord of the Dark’.

Talking about the first look, director Anup Bhandari says: “I am very happy that we got to celebrate Sudeepa sir’s birthday with ‘Deadman’s Anthem’ first glimpse reveal of Vikrant Rona. Vikrant Rona is a mysterious character and the first glimpse captures that. While making the film, I was aware of its humongous scale, but Sudeepa sir’s embodiment of the titular hero has elevated it even further. Happy birthday to him.”

The film will also have a special part of Bollywood actress Jacqueline Fernandez.

Producer Jack Manjunath says: “We wish Sudeepa sir the warmest birthday wishes with the First Glimpse of Vikrant Rona. It’s incredible and we’re raring to go on such a positive note. His energy, passion and his will to make cinema that’s big enough to withstand the test of time is what makes Vikrant Rona special.”

‘Vikrant Rona’ is a multilingual action adventure that will see a 3-D release in 14 languages and 55 countries. Directed by Anup Bhandari, produced by Jack Manjunath and Shalini Manjunath, co-produced by Alankar Pandian, music by B Ajaneesh Loknath, the film features sets designed by award-winning art director Shivkumar and frames lit up by DOP William David.

It stars Kichcha Sudeepa, Nirup Bhandari and Jacqueline Fernandez.

Sidharth’s first director recalls his rise from ‘a non-actor to a TV star’

Ratna Sinha is the director who launched late actor Sidharth Shukla in the television series titled ‘Babul Ka Aangann Chootey Na’, released in 2008. And since then, there was no looking back for Sidharth.

After his sudden demise, Sinha recalled the upcoming model who had that spark that turned him into a successful actor. Here’s her first-person account, shared exclusively with IANS, of her first meeting with the late actor:

It was around 2007 onwards when I think I saw him in a shopping mall. Sidharth was a ramp model back then when me and my team was looking for a new face for a new show that I was working on.

One of my assistants walked towards him and approached him for acting and he was so skeptical about the idea of acting. He really was a non-actor and when we auditioned, even the channel rejected the audition.

He was actually quite happy with modelling. But we thought there is something in him that will work! We kept on working on his skill and eventually I cast him as the male protagonist for my show ‘Babul Ka Aangann Chootey Na’.

As the show received a good response, since then the world of acting opportunities grew for Sidharth. You know I really have seen Sidharth growing from a model, non-actor to a television star that he became. I had a mixed feeling of pride and happiness that this fellow is growing from strength to strength.

It is not easy at all to make it big here in the industry and staying relevant for 13 years! There were many youngsters back then started as a model and stepped into acting but maintaining success is a task that Sidharth was doing successfully. I think ‘Balika Vadhu’ was the breakthrough for him.

When I spoke to him last time, before lockdown, he was saying how keen is he to do more films. He was very keen on expanding his horizon in Bollywood. He did one film (‘Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania’) and he nurtured the hope of acting in more films.

In the morning, when I woke up to the message of his sudden demise, I was numb. Just numb.

In the past one year, we lost so many young talents really. This is hard to process … life is so unpredictable really. I knew how emotionally close Sidharth was to his mother … my heart goes out to her.

Pawan Kalyan’s ‘Hari Hara Veeramallu’ to release in April 2022

Telugu star Pawan Kalyan’s film ‘Hari Hara Veeramallu’ will release in theatres on April 29, 2022. The announcement was made on Thursday on the occasion of Pawan’s 50th birthday.

The official Twitter handle of the film’s production house, Mega Surya Production, made the big announcement.

“Happy Birthday to The MIGHTY POWER @PawanKalyan garu. The Legendary Heroic Outlaw #HariHaraVeeraMallu will arrive on 29 April, 2022.”

The film, which is directed by Krish Jagarlamudi, stars actress Nidhii Agerwal as the female lead.

The film is set in the 17th century and marks the first collaboration between Pawan and Krish.

‘Shershaah’ passes with flying colours in Allu Arjun’s review

Telugu star Allu Arjun is mighty impressed with actor Sidharth Malhotra after watching his recent Hindi film ‘Shershaah’. Arjun took to his social media to congratulate the actor and the entire team for making the film.

‘Shershaah’ is based on life of Kargil martyr Captain Vikram Batra.

Arjun tweeted to the actors and the team on Wednesday evening.

He wrote: “Congratulations to the entire team of #Shershaah. A very heart touching film. Career best performance by Mr. @SidMalhotra. Man who stole the show. Subtle & impactful performance by Ms @advani_kiara and all the other actors. My respect to all the technicians of the film.”

He also praised director Vishnuvaradhan for his work for the film, which released digitally on Amazon Prime Video.

“Wonderful Conviction by the director @vishnu_dir garu. Sir, you made us all proud. Congratulations to @karanjohar ji and producers. Bigggg Congratulations @PrimeVideoIN for this blockbuster hit. A must watch for every Indian,” Arjun tweeted.

Arjun is currently working on finishing the first part of his upcoming film ‘Pushpa’. The movie, which will also star Rashmika Mandanna will be released in two parts.