Nandamuri Balakrishna’s first look from ‘NBK107’ unveiled

Nandamuri Balakrishna and successful director Gopichand Malineni have come together for an upcoming movie, which is tentatively titled ‘NBK107’. The first look poster of Balakrishna from the movie was unveiled on Monday.

Dressed in mass attire wearing a traditional dhoti matched with a black shirt, Balakrishna looks dynamic. Flaunting his Rudraksha neck-wear, he is seen walking beside a black Land Rover Defender.

Though the makers didn’t reveal much, the poster hints at the mass action, which is to be witnessed in the movie.

Actress Shruti Haasan will be seen as the female lead opposite Balakrishna in this movie, while Kannada’s renowned actor Duniya Vijay will be seen as the villain. Varalaxmi Sarathkumar will play a powerful role as well.

S Thaman renders soundtracks, while Rishi Punjabi will handle the cinematography. Acclaimed writer Sai Madhav Burra provides dialogues, while Navin Nooli takes care of editing and AS Prakash is the production designer. Chandu Ravipati is the executive producer.

Naveen Yerneni and Y Ravi Shankar are the producers, while Ram-Laxman is the stunt-choreographers.

Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan light up producer Anbu Chezhian’s daughter’s wedding

The wedding of well-known Tamil film producer and financier G.N. Anbu Chezhian’s daughter, A. Sushmita with R. Sharan, the son of retired IAS officer C. Rajendran, was a star-studded affair with several top stars, including actors Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, and Prabhu turning up for the event.

Producers Boney Kapoor and Kalaipuli S. Thanu too were among those who graced the event that took place at the Sri Ramachandra Convention Centre in Thiruvanmiyur in Chennai on Monday.

Some of the other celebrities who turned up to wish and bless the couple included actors Vikram Prabhu, Vijay Antony, Nasser, Manobala, Vaibhav, Subbu Panchu, Mayilsamy, and directors Venkat Prabhu, Lingusamy, Susi Ganesan, and Elred Kumar.

The bride, Sushmita, who has a Masters’s degree in Business Administration, is the proprietrix of Gopuram Cinemas while the bridegroom R Sharan, who too has a Masters in Business Administration, is the co-founder and Managing Director of Sun IAS Academy.

While the wedding took place on Monday morning, the reception is to take place on Monday evening.

‘Bheemla Nayak’ pre-release deferred because of AP minister’s sudden death

As a mark of respect following the sudden demise of Andhra Pradesh Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy, the makers of Pawan Kalyan-starrer ‘Bheemla Nayak’ have postponed the pre-release event which was set for Monday.

“Our deepest condolences to the family & friends of AP Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy Garu on his sudden demise. As a mark of respect, the pre-release event of #BheemlaNayak won’t be happening today!”, Sithara Entertainments wrote on Twitter.

AP IT minister, Mekapati Gautam Reddy passed away due to a massive cardiac arrest earlier on Monday in Hyderabad.

The trailer was supposed to be out at 8.10 PM, during the pre-release event. But, the postponement of the pre-release event has disappointed Pawan’s fans who still have no clarity on the release of the theatrical trailer of the movie.

Samantha’s first look from ‘Shakuntalam’ shows her as an enchantress

Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s first look poster from her upcoming mythology-based love saga is out now. Dressed in white, fairy-like attire, Samantha’s first look from ‘Shakuntalam’ is no lesser than a beautiful painting.

Unveiling the poster, Samantha wrote, “Presenting. Nature’s beloved.. the Ethereal and Demure.. ‘Shakuntala’ from #Shaakuntalam.” What shows her as an enchantress, has Samantha sitting on a rock, as she is surrounded by peacocks, deers, swans, and butterflies.

The first look caters to one of Samantha’s best looks, giving a glimpse at the type of role she will play in the film.

Based on a popular Indian play Shakuntala by Kalidasa, the film is written and directed by Gunasekhar. Malayalam actor Dev Mohan will reprise King Dushyant, while Allu Arjun’s daughter Allu Arha will play Prince Bharata.

Actor Kabir Duhan Singh will appear as King Asura, while other prominent actors will play important roles in the mythological movie. Being it Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s first pan-India movie, all hopes are pinned on this visually creative mythological drama.

The filming of ‘Shaakuntalam’ was completed a long time ago, and now the post-production work is underway.

Neelima Guna is the producer, Mani Sharma is the composer, and ‘Dil’ Raju is the presenter.

Big B enjoys home-made delicacies by Prabhas on ‘Project K’ set

‘Baahubali’ fame Prabhas, who is currently working alongside Indian Megastar Amitabh Bachchan, treats him with delicious homemade food.

The ‘Sarkar’ actor, who was overwhelmed with this gesture, took to his Twitter to praise Prabhas.

Taking to his Twitter on Monday (February 21), Amitabh Bachchan wrote, “T 4198 – ‘Bahubali’ Prabhas .. your generosity is beyond measure”.A

“You bring me home-cooked food, beyond delicious .. you send me quantity beyond measure .. could have fed an Army .. the special cookies .. beyond scrumptious.”

Adding wit to his praises, Big B also wrote, “And your compliments beyond digestible.”

Well, most of the stars Prabhas have worked with, would have tasted his warm hospitality, as he treats them with regional delicacies.

On the work front, Prabhas and Amitabh Bachchan have come together for a homogenous project, tentatively titled ‘Project K’. Helmed by ‘Mahanati’ fame Nag Aswin, the movie will have Deepika Padukune as the female lead.

The shooting process for this heavy-budget movie has begun, as the stars have wrapped up a couple of schedules already.

Lokesh Kanakaraj’s ‘Kaithi’ to release in Russia on March 10

Director Lokesh Kanakaraj’s super hit Tamil film ‘Kaithi’, featuring actor Karthi in the lead, has now been dubbed in Russian and will hit screens in Russia on March 10 this year.

Kaithi featured Karthi and Narain in the lead roles.

The film’s massive success propelled Lokesh Kanakaraj to stardom, who went on to make the hit Thalapathy Vijay – Vijay Sethupathi starrer ‘Master’.

The director is currently directing ‘Vikram’, starring Kamal Haasan, Vijay Sethupathi, and Fahadh Faasil.

Interestingly, ‘Kaithi’ had also released in Japan last November.

The film’s producer SR Prabhu of Dream Warrior Pictures confirmed the news to IANS. The producer also said that the film’s release evoked a decent response in Japan.

‘Despicable Me 4’ release planned for 2024, spinoff to hit screens this July 1

The release date of the animated movie, ‘Despicable Me 4’, has been announced. The film, which will see Steve Carell, Kristen Wiig, Pierre Coffin, Miranda Cosgrove, and Steve Coogan returning to their parts, will arrive in cinemas on July 3, 2024, reports ‘Variety’.

The next chapter of the animated, family-friendly series about a reformed super-villain and his army of yellow Minions, will see Chris Renaud’s return as director along with Patrick Delage as co-director for the script penned by Mike White.

Renaud directed the first two ‘Despicable Me’ movies. The film will be produced jointly by Universal Pictures and Illumination. Before the release of ‘Despicable Me 4’, Illumination and Universal will release an original animated film about a family of ducks, titled ‘Migration’, on June 30, 2023.

Benjamin Renner will direct ‘Migration’, which is written by White and produced by Illumination founder Chris Meledandri. Apart from this, the second ‘Despicable Me’ spinoff, ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’, is set to hit theatres on July 1 after being delayed by two years because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The movie will trace Gru’s childhood exploits and his attempts to join a supervillain team called Vicious 6. In addition to Carell and Coffin, the voice cast includes Taraji P. Henson, Michelle Yeoh, RZA, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Lucy Lawless, Dolph Lundgren, Danny Trejo, Russell Brand, Julie Andrews, and Alan Arkin.

Kamal Haasan’s MNM demands repoll in booth in local body elections

Actor-politician Kamal Haasan’s Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) has demanded the cancellation of the urban local body elections at a booth in Keeranur Municipality as the poster pasted outside of it did not contain the party’s ‘torch light’ symbol.

According to MNM, the non-printing of its electoral symbol in the posters pasted outside the polling booth in Keeranur Municipality Ward No.5 is an act of denying the fundamental right of its candidate.

The State Election Commission has to ensure the existence of the electoral symbol in the posters as well as in the voting machines before the start of polling, MNM said.

If this is not done then the polling in that booth should be canceled and repoll should be held, the party demanded.

Polling has been peaceful for the urban local bodies in Tamil Nadu began at 7 a.m. on Saturday morning.

About 2.79 crote voters are expected to vote in over 30,000 booths to elect their representatives in the urban local bodies.

Except for minor glitches in the Electronic Voting Machines in some booths, polling is smooth in other centers.

While several parties are in the contest, the fight is largely between the ruling DMK and the opposition AIADMK.

The counting of votes will be on February 22.

Missing since Feb 13, ‘Chicago Justice’ actress Lindsey Pearlman found dead

TV actress Lindsey Pearlman, who is known for her work in shows such as ‘General Hospital and the legal drama series, ‘Chicago Justice’, was found dead on Friday (U.S. Pacific Standard Time) after being reported missing, reports ‘Variety’.

Details of her disappearance and death were not immediately available, according to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). An update posted on the LAPD website and quoted by ‘Variety’ reads: “Today around 8:30 a.m., Hollywood Area officers responded to a radio call for a death investigation at Franklin Avenue and North Sierra Bonita Avenue.”

The update further read: “The L.A. County Coroner’s Office has since confirmed the individual to be Lindsey Erin Pearlman. The cause of death will be determined by the coroner.”

According to the LAPD website, Pearlman was last seen on February 13 at 12 noon in the 1600 Block of N. Mariposa Ave. in Los Angeles. Her husband, Vance Smith, took to his Instagram to share the update.

Smith wrote: “The police found Lindsey. She’s gone. I’m broken. I will share more later, but I wanted to thank everyone for their love and efforts and ask you to respect the privacy of her family at this time.”

‘Akhanda’ director Boyapati Sreenu’s next film to be pan-Indian

After making waves with his last cinematic venture “Akhanda”, Telugu director Boyapati Sreenu is now teaming up with actor Ram Pothineni, and producer Srinivasaa Chhitturi, for a major project.

According to a formal announcement made on Friday, the trio is now embarking on a pan-Indian movie project.

After delivering two back-to-back hits including Samantha starrer “U-Turn”, Srinivasaa Chhitturi of Srinivasaa Silver Screen has just wrapped up production of “The Warrior” starring Ram Pothineni and directed by N. Lingusamy.

Boyapati Sreenu is fresh from the success of Nandamuri Balakrishna-starrer recent hit “Akhanda”, while Ram Pothineni is one of the most happening crazy heroes of the Telugu film industry.

The coming together of the three for this pan-Indian project is being viewed as a big combination. The yet-to-be-titled movie will be made on a lavish budget, the producers said.

About the collaboration, actor Ram Pothineni said: “I am happy to be collaborating with Boyapati Sreenu Sir and Srinivasaa of Silver Screen. Boyapti Sreenu is a huge mass director. Our forthcoming project is a dream project for me and together I am sure we will make a great film. The story of the film has a mass appeal and I am happy to be associated with this project.”

Boyapati Sreenu has come up with a story loaded with mass elements that have excited the producer and the actor. More details about the film, including its heroine and other members of the cast and crew are to be announced shortly.