Do you want Sherlyn Chopra in Bigg Boss?

August 19, 2008 16:03 IST

With Jade Goody leaving Bigg Boss 2 after being diagnosed with cancer, speculation is rife whether rising star Sherlyn Chopra [Images] will replace the Brit in the television show.

• Also Read: Shilpa is the Boss!

But for Sherlyn to give her nod, she needs an incentive, said her publicist Dale Bhagwagar. "Only if she gets what she deserves to be away for three months from the promotions of her latest musical success Dard-e-Sherlyn, will she agree to be on the show," he said.

• Review: Bigg Boss 2

What she deserves, the actress feels, is a fee of Rs 3 crore for her appearance in the Bigg Boss house.

Sherlyn also wants the makers to install cameras in the bathrooms of the house, so that she could flaunt her collection of bikinis and inner wear while bathing.

Now, Bigg Boss finds her demands outrageous. But do you think the starlet should be allowed inside Bigg Boss 2? Do you think the bold and beautiful actress she will add colour to the show?

Contract Movie Review

Ignorance. It seems that this is a popular theme that the non-mainstream filmmakers enjoy analysing nowadays. Earlier this year we saw Summer 2007, which was a story about the new generation and their ignorance toward issues in the world around them. Now Ram Gopal Verma (RGV) takes on that same theme but in a new light. No matter how many mistakes the director has made (we all try and pretend that Aag doesn’t exist) you cannot ignore the fact that he is a genius and Contract reminds you exactly that.

The movie opens with the following line: “You can ignore terrorism however terrorism won’t ignore you” and immediately you know that this film will not be wasting time because from the very beginning it gets to the point. Getting to the point quickly is a rarity in Indian cinema so you know that Contract is off to a good start.

Contract revolves around Aman (Adhvik Mahajan) who is an ex-army member now leading a normal life with his wife and daughter. He’s a man who just wants to lead a normal life and chooses to ignore the horrors that his country is facing day after day. Selfish almost or simply logical, that’s for you the audience to decide.

Soon the horrors that Aman had been ignoring catches up with him, a terrorist attack at the local temple causes the death of both his wife and daughter. At that point the glossy and normal life that Aman had designed for himself comes crashing to the ground leaving him feeling more empty and helpless than ever. In rage and to seek revenge Aman becomes Amaan and he is planted in the underworld by the local police to end the gang wars with the added goal of becoming a part of the ring of terrorists that the underworld is closely connected with. Contract is the story of how Amaan makes a reputation in the underworld and how he completes this contract.

RGV has crafted a very intelligent and unique script. The only thing that dampens the spirit is that the twists and turns aren’t as gripping and edge of the seat as you want them to be. This is possibly the only and biggest flaw and because of it the film fails to keep your attention or keep you entertained.

Performances wise the movie is a winner all the way. Adhvik Mahajan had a very big role to perform which gave him a lot of scope. The actor pulls of the huge responsibility placed upon him with style and perfection. Most importantly he is confident on screen, which really makes his portrayal of Aman/Amaan all the more believable. Hard to believe that this was his first time onscreen!

Sakshi Gulati makes an effective debut. She impresses in the scenes she has, however one cannot help wanting to have seen more of her onscreen or at least seen more of her talent.

Like every RGV movie Contract is also packed with extremely talented supporting cast that leaves an impression. The music is something that is not predominantly used in the movie, however all songs are very uniquely intertwined in needed scenes as effective background score.

The winning factor of Contract is its climax. As strange as it may sound it seems like déjà vu from the recent Hollywood blockbuster, The Dark Knight, and before you jump to conclusions we’d like to say that no its not inspired by it but coincidentally shares the same concluding thoughts. In the closing scene Aman explains that he prefers being the silent guardian of his country rather than being the publicised hero that everyone praises, in other words not the hero that his country wants but the hero that his country needs. These final words leave the most impact on you and even after walking out of the cinema you ponder on the thought and cannot help but agree very strongly with the final message.

All in all Contract is an impressive film that lacked energy. Indian audiences would say that it needed ‘tadka’ (spicing up) and we couldn’t agree more. However, the movie does have something unique to offer which will surely impress certain portions of the audience. A must see for all RGV admirers.

Unforgettable Bollywood goes global

India's top film stars have hit Hollywood as part of an epic global set of shows.

Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan heads up The Unforgettable Tour, which is set to play at the O2 Arena next month. The cast will be joined in the London leg by Shilpa Shetty.

Speaking at a press conference in LA, Amitabh's son Abhishek joked that so far on the tour "the airlines have been forgettable" after apparently losing half the cast's bags.

Actress Preity Zinta promised that by the time the show reaches England, fans should be in for a treat. "I think London is very lucky because by the time we come there we'll have done at least 10 shows so we're gonna be with it, there's gonna be no goof ups!" she said.

Ritiesh Deshmukh joked he was not quite ready to find out how big the audience will be at the London venue, saying: "I have no idea what the O2 looks like, so when I enter there I'll let my nerves take over then."

Madhuri Dixit, guest starring on the US shows only, said Shilpa's guest appearance in the UK should be exciting: "She's such a sweet person, I've known her for some time and she's wonderful, she's marvellous and she just knows what to do."

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan said the tour shows a much wider audience is embracing Indian cinema.

"The Western audiences are already very aware of our films and that's really a reflection of society as it is today, the world is smaller and the audience is a lot more international," she said.

Small is big in corporate Bollywood

By Shilpa Jamkhandikar

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Corporates are increasingly coming to the rescue of filmmakers trying to find a niche in India's film industry, one where big budgets and an array of film stars are beyond the reach of many.

A Bollywood film without elaborate song-and-dance sequences may not be the norm but some directors have taken the leap -- and survived.

"Ten years ago, it would have been difficult to make a small budget, no star film in Bollywood, but today people are realising that small can be big and big can be small," said Raj Kumar Gupta.

Gupta's debut film "Aamir" made its mark last month despite opening in cinemas the same day as the big-budget "Sarkar Raj".

While he was scouting around for producers, Gupta found many insisting he pick an established Bollywood star to play a Muslim doctor unwittingly trapped in a Mumbai terror plot.

But the director was adamant.

"I was convinced that if an established star essayed the role, the person would be bigger than the character, which is something I didn't want," Gupta said.

Production house UTV picked up the film, convinced the script was a winner but aware of its restrictions. And television actor Rajeev Khandelwal made his Bollywood debut.

"We knew that with a film like 'Aamir', (it) would be difficult to make unless we made it in a very tight budget. It had a first time director, first time actor," said Siddharth Roy Kapur, CEO of UTV Motion Pictures.

"So we knew that if we had to make this film work commercially, we had to make it within a very tight budget, without compromising on the look and feel of the film. We spent Rs 2 crore, and spent an equal amount on publicity," he added.

NEW TREND IN BOLLYWOOD

Making films sans stars in Bollywood may no longer be the riskier option.

Industry trade analyst Taran Adarsh cites the examples of films like "Tashan" which didn't live up to box-office expectations in 2008 despite featuring stars like Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Akshay Kumar.

But smaller films like "Aamir" have made money and producers now seem content to finance several low-budget films at a time.

Kapur says the success of "Aamir" and the 2006 hit "Khosla Ka Ghosla" will increasingly be the trend in Bollywood, where big stars charge exorbitant amounts along with a share in the film's profits.

"We will make films like 'Jodhaa Akbar' (which cost around Rs 40 crore), but we will also do films like 'Dev D' or 'Mahadev', which are all below Rs 6-crore films," he said.

Shailendra Singh of Percept Ltd, another company producing films across genres, believes filmmakers just need to focus on their audience.

"Nothing can go wrong when you focus on the consumer and create products that they will like," he said.

Kareena Inspires Ektaa

While Kareena’s massive weight loss is creating news everywhere, its also inspiring a lot of people. The television queen Ektaa Kapoor recently went on a crash diet to lose that extra flab. Ektaa says this weight loss would be her birthday gift to herself, besides, she also needs to fit in her new dresses for her birthday.