STAR-STUDDED TRIBUTE TOYASI-IJI

Yash Chopra, the late doyen of the Hindi film industry would have been impressed by the turnout for the tribute marking what would have been his 81 st birthday. At an event organised by the respected filmmaker 's wife Pamela Chopra, n ine actresses and his protege Shah Rukh Khan took to the stage to showcase his contribution to Bollywood.

Rekha, Sridevi, Madhuri Dixit, Juhi Chawla, Rani Mukherjee, Preity Zinta, Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma and Parineeti Chopra, along with superstar SRK, to make the event a reminiscent and memorable one.

The event kick started off with Anushka Sharma walking the ramp as she paid tribute to late Nargis Dutt. Anushka donned a b lack sari with red bindi, whi l e Parineeti Chopra, dressed in a heavy red ghagra choli, paid tribute to Madhubala.

Evergreen beauty Rekha came next draped in an elegant sari, while Sridevi, who is always remembered as the Chandni girl, donned a white semi ghagra sari with silver work all over and heavy jewellery.

Juhi Chawla wore a white and red semi chiffon ghagra, while Madhuri wore a transparent black sari with sleeveless blouse. The outfits were an eclectic blend of vibrant colours, sequenced handwork, dhakai arts, Kashmiri work among others.

Rani was resplendent in a pink ghagra choli with golden nathni (nose ring) minus other jewelry, while Preity wore a white lehenga choli with typical Kashmiri jewellery. The last actress to walk the ramp was Katrina who looked stunning in a brownish and cream ghagra choli Shah Rukh, the only actor amidst this bevy of beauties, wore a black suit. Each participant remembered Yash Chopra through a small speech at the end of the show.

Rani Mukerjee was moved to tears as she recalled her association with the veteran film-maker. "Yash uncle I miss you a lot... please forgive me for not making cake for you last year as I was busy with my commitments I miss you and we all love you;' she said.

However, veteran actress Rekha took to the stage with aplomb, grooving and delivering a dialogue from her film Silsila. Rekha, who is usually known as a very private person, displayed a different persona as she danced to the tune of Yeh Kaha Aa Gaye Hum from Silsila. Making the most of the moment, she also rendered the famous dialogue "Main aur meri tan ha ii aksar yeh bateen karte hai," as she walked the ramp.

It was a tribute worthy of the filmmaker, Yash Chopra would have been proud! RIP!

Lata Mangeshkar is 84!

India's very own singing nightingale who has dominated Bollywood 's music scene for decades turned 84 recently. Known as the 'Nightingale of India: Lata Mangeshkar started her singing career aged 13 in 1942. In a career spanning over seven decades, the singer has sung several numbers in Hindi as well as in regional l anguages. Celebrities across Bollywood wished the singing sensation congratulations on her landmark birthday. "I think there would not be even a single person across the world who would not want to wish Lataji;' said Megastar Amitabh Bachchan. "I wish her a long life. I wish she always lives among us. There have come moments in my life when I have been inspired by her''.

"Many wishes to Lataji on her birthday. I wish she continues to sing more and more. I am really blessed that I got to perform on her songs. I am glad that I have perfo r med on her beautiful songs;' said veteran actress Hema Malini.

In addition to Vidya Balan and Mika Singh, even West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Bannerjee wished Lataji birthday wishes on her Facebook page saying, " I join her countless fans across the country captivated by her golden voice to wish her the very best on this auspicious occasion''. However, the iconic singer is currently i n mourning and in no mood to celebrate the day. The death of her close family members has cast a gloomy spell on the singer.

Happy Birthday, Lataji, may the coming year be a good one for you!

R Madhavan rues Indian actors lack of international exposure

R Madhavan has taken a step into Hollywood with Night OfThe Living Dead: Origins. He joins the league of Bellwood's select who have made it to international screens.

Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor and lrrfan have tasted the Hollywood flavour, but they 're clearly a few and far between. Madhavan says this is because Indian actors lack the capacity to establish themselves in an international set-up.

"We have a long way to go before actors in India can establish themselves (internationally) in a big way," said Madhavan, who has delivered noteworthy performances in Hindi films like Rang De Basanti, 3 Idiots and Tanu Weds Manu. The multilingual star will be seen as a US marine officer in Simon West's Hollywood film Night of the Living Dead: Origins.

Of Hollywood, the actor said:"Their market and technology is completely different from ours. I don't think Indian stars have the bandwidth to go struggle and give screen tests there, leaving everything behind here''.

Nevertheless, there's something about Hollywood actors that makes Maddy jealous! "I think the only thing which I am jealous about is that if I was an actor in Hollywood, with all the hit films which I have, I won 't have to work for another day in my life. Even if an actor has two hits in his l ife i n Hol lywood, he will never be poor," he said.

" Technology-wise we are almost there. But the budgets over there are high (higher). It is very tough for us to make those kinds of films in our kind of economy. But even now we do make international level films ;' said the 43-yearold actor.

He has just finished shooting Night of the Living Dead: Origins, a zombie film

" It has been a huge learni ng experience and it was very exciting. I was very nervous as I had never shot li ke that before;' he said.

Madhavan is g l ad that the Indian film industry and the public have "been very nice with me" "I am just keeping my fingers crossed for the future;' he said.

" For actors like me, nothing is enough. I want a lot more than what I get," he admits

Wel l, let's hope Hollywood recognises your talent and offers you whatever you expect. Good luck, Madhavan!

John's for wi ldlife

News around hunky actor John Abraham is always interesting, and he certainly has been enjoying his share of Bollywood s buzz The latest on John is that he has been chosen as the face of National

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Geograp h ic Channel, and somewhat pred ictabl y, the actor says he is keen to mak e a film on wildlife.

"Wildlife is something that we have not attempted before I would like to explore it I would like to make a film on wildlife, but we have to work a lot on it. If we get a responsible producer who can produce such films then why not;' John said recently. The actor, who is also passionate about his bikes, says he is developing a script based on motorcycling.

"We are developing a script on motorcycling. It wil l take a year to complete it. It's a very intense and serious film on motorcycling, for motor cycling fans It will be a commercial film;' said John, who has produced films like Vicky Donor and Madras Cafe, which did surprisingly well at the box office

But the actor says that he is not interested in being a part of any television show yet, as smal l screen formats don' t excite him. "I would not want to be a part of the small screen today. Look at the formatting on the

Lata Manges Hkar

small screen it doesn't excite me at all:' John said. However, he is in complete support of Bollywood actor Ani l Kapoor's endeavour to bring about a change on TV through his desi adaptation of American thriller series 24 "The small screen is growing and I must compliment Anil Kapoor on changing the quality of programming on the small screen I must say he i s trying to make a difference The quality of programming should change with ' 24;" he said

Who knows, perhaps one day John may grace the small screen with as much charm as he c;loes on the large screen Let's wait and see what comes his way!

Make the most of technology, says Rahman

Twin Grammy and Academy Awards w i nner A.R. Rahman is a firm believer in the ama lgamation of techno logy and talent The maestro asserted that the Indian music industry is reaping the

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benefits of digitisation, contrary to the notion that technology has negative effects

Rahman, who was in Kolkata, the first city on his month-long Rahmanishq tour, claimed that he was in favour of digitisation sweeping the music industry He stated that it has not only made music of all forms accessib l e to l isteners, but has also simpl ified the process of making music for composers

"Hordes of music purists love to spend endless hours going on and on about h ow the age of digital music has completely ru i ned the art form, and that rea l music on ly exists in sma ll underground scenes," Rahman stated "However, the reality stands that thanks to these techno l ogica l breakthroughs, for both the music fan and the music maker, the creative process and the act of l isteni ng to music are now eas i er, less constrained and more accessib l e than ever before;· Rahman noted.

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"We are living in a society that is dominatec;I by the digital age So it is a natural progression that al most every element bea utifu ll y syncs together We need to move beyond album covers;' he observed. On his tour that will also cover Visakhapatnam, Jaipur and Ahmedabad, Rahman hopes to g ive fans a chance to experience his music at its best, musicall y and technologically. "The concert capitalises on innovative neverseen -before technology, so that t h e au dience can be overwhelmed with such knowhow at every stage of the concert;' said Rahman Rahman reckons fi l m music"is going to be one of the biggest industries in the wor ld. In India, we have a poo l of talent which requires professional channelisation to make this industry as colossal and independent as the film i ndustr y Wh i le India has si ngers in every street, many of them performing Carnatic, or classical Indian music variety, the future l ies in Indian cinema;' he claimed Loved by audiences for juxtaposi ng different musical styl es, Rahman, who became the first Indian to win the Golden Globe Award in 2009 for best original musical score in Danny Boyle's movie Slumdog Millionaire.