SIIDI-IARTI-I SET TO SI-IINE AGAIN

Relative newcomer Siidharth Ma lhotra made his Bollywood debut with Student of the Year, and d id a commendab le job Now, geari ng up for his second release Hasee Toh Phasee, the 29 -year -old feels that he has improved as an actor.

But he did feel a l ot of pressure when doing the new film, foll owing the success of his first movie

"There is definitely pressure from the bus iness point of view. After Student of the Year I have become more responsible, more aware about what is happening around I guess I have improved as an actor, both in terms of quality and quantity, i n terms of performance'; said Siidharth recent l y

The actor revealed a bit more about his latest movie saying,"Hasee Toh Phasee is completely different from a typical Karan Johar film. We had a restricted budget, there was nothing l ike luxurious cars or anything. We used to pack up early, there were restrictions I realised how spoilt I was in Student of the Year, but it was quite exciting!"

Talking about his character in the movie, Siidharth said, "He is lost, not successful and sentimental. He is not a typical hero kind of character. He is under pressure and is the most stressed out character of the m ovie''.

Filmmaker Anurag Kahsyap is i mpressed with Siidharth's acting ski ll s.

"Siidharth is fabulous in the film and the kind of restraint and focus he has shown is impressive," Kashyap said in a statement

According to a sour ce, the Gangs ofWasseypur director is actuall y writing a film keeping Siidharth in mind.

It looks like Hasee toh Phasee will be the platform that will establish Sidharth as an actor And with Vi nil Mathew directing the film and Parineeti Chopra in the lead ro l e, the actor is sure to enjoy success Good luck, Siid!

Ekta's into passionate love

Perh aps i n k eepin g wit h t h e mood lead ing to Valentine's Day, prod u cer Ekta Kapoor plans to hit the sma ll screen with a new TV show ca l led Kumkum Bhagya

Ekta, whose TV soaps l ike Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii, were highly popular, revealed that the new show, a "passionate story of love'; wi ll replace the current one, Pqvitra Rishta

Kumkum Bhagya is loosely based on the novel Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen The show wi ll be an Indian interpretation of the novel, following the l ife of a mother w h o runs a marriage hall and l ives with the hope of seeing her two daughters wed.

Chitchat on the Chopras

These days, Bollywood 's buzzing about Priyanka and Parineeti, the Chopra cous i ns. While Pri yanka gets ready for the release of Gunday, Parineeti's perked up abo u t forthcoming flick Hasee Toh Phasee.

Parineeti, who is seen grooving to the beats of Drama queen in the movie, says that she ta kes the word very positively.

"The word 'drama queen' is very positive for me, because I am l ike that. I am very outspoken, I tal k l oudly, I am always happy and smil ing I do a l ot of dramas and I don't think it's a bad thing'; Parin eeti said recently

She didn't seem to m ind that the film was a medium budget one either.

"For me, to p l ay the character was a challenge, but com i ng to the sets of Hasee Toh Phasee was not new because I have al ways done medium budget films You know, I have always done movies with restricted budgets, so shooting was fine with me but the character was a challenge;' she sa i d.

Parineeti, who made her Bollywood debut with Ladies vs Ricky Bahl, says she had a l ot of personal pressure while filming

"I wanted to do something different. The role is not like /shaqzaade or Shuddh Desi Romance because in those two I played very Indian characters. Th is was completel y different, I am off (mentally) in the movie and beca u se of that I really had to do a lot of work'; sh e said, admitting that she would be essaying the ro l e of a mad scientist. "The character that I am playing is very quirky It is different from the ones I have played before. Usually in movies, either an actress p l ays a normal girl or a mentally challenged one, but my cha r acter in the movie is between the two It was physically very exhausting for me to play it'; she said

The young actress al so admitted that she was waiting to watch Priyanka's Gunday, but also i nsisted, as we' ve heard before, that"there is no competition with Priyanka''. Both films release within the gap of a week.

Priyanka, on the other hand, is her usual assured se lf when it comes to Gunday And everything else! She had to sl i p into several outfits l ike corsets, fishnet stockings, and train with French cabaret dancers for the song Asalaam e lshqum from the film, and admits that it was difficult to do the track

"It was a really tough song for me to do and I'm glad it's being appreci ated '; Priyanka said in a statement

The video is inspired by the chic burlesque acts of the famo u s Moul in Rouge cabaret of Paris Priyanka also had a tough time shooting for the song as her father (Ashok Chopra) passed away a few days before the shoot, i n the summer of 2013

The costumes too, had to be created overn i ght

"I rea ll y admire Priyanka for the courage and determi nation that she displayed during the shooting of the song She put i n all her pain and converted it into an intense energy, which has reflected i n Asa/aam e /shqum '; said director A li Abbas Zafar

The talented actresses will give us a treat of a performance, but which film succeeds is anyone's guess right now. At least there's 'no competition'!

Selling via Sunny

In what purists wil l v iew as a radical marketing ploy, the theatri ca l trai ler of lndo - Canadian adult film star-turnedactress Sunny Leone's l atest offering Ragini MMS 2 can also be accessed worldwide across adult websites

"Sunny enjoys a huge v i ewership on adult websites, so yes, we are launchi ng the trailer on these websites;' sai d Tanuj Garg, CEO of Balaji fi l ms, in a statement. The fi l m, directed by Bhushan Patel, is a mix of horror and sex

"Noth ing spells super sexy and super scary as well as the RMMS 2 promo does," said Sunny "This is something my fans and lovers haven't seen before! It's a treat that I don't want them to miss"

Parineeti Chopra

Does anyone really care about the scare when they can see sexy Sunny? What do you think?

Ahana Deol weds businessman

Veteran actors Hema Malini and Dharmendra's younger daughter Ahana

Deol married Delhi-based businessman VaibhavVora in Mumbai recently, with big names from the fraternity like Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan and politicians like Narendra Modi and Raj Thackeray on the privileged guest list.

The wedding, a mix of Punjabi and traditional south Indian customs, were similar to that of elder sister Eisha's wedding in 2012 Ahana's wedding clothes were created by Jodha Akbar fame fashion designer Neeta Lulla.

The pheras and reception were hosted at the ITC Maratha, with another reception at the groom's farmhouse in

New Delhi at a later date

Ahana met Vaibhav at her sister Esha Deol's wedding to Mumbai-based businessman Bharat Takhtani in 2012 They were engaged in June 2013. Ahana's half-brothers, Sunny and Bobby, reportedly did not attend the wedding, but a source said that they would bless the couple at the reception in the capital.

"Neither Dharamji nor Hemaji wou l d want to hurt Prakashji (Sunny and Bobby's mother) The family has decided it's better if Sunny and Bobby stay away'; a source said.

"Sorry to disappoint the gossipmongers, but there is no ill - wi ll or bitterness about the Deol brothers' absence from Ahana's wedding'; added the source unnecessarily. "Sunny and Bobby love both Esha and Ahana like

WI-IO WORE IT BETTER?

S Unny Leone

they l ove their own sisters''. Well, as long as they add their best wis h es to ours for the newly married couple!

Mixed genre films coming soon

With both Jai Ho and One By Two having received a m i xed response at the box- office, the upcoming potpourri of films i n different genres may fare better or worse, say industry watchdogs Fi lms soon to re lease include romantic comedy Hasee Toh Phasee, medical thriller Heartless, youthful love story Babloo Happy Hai and Ya Rab, a fi l m on terrorism

Hasee Toh Phasee promises to be much more than a regular rom-com, with Siddharth Malhotra and Parineeti Chopra in the lead roles The fi l m revolves around a stressed out guy who meets a comp l etely different girl, so it may take up t h e fancy of the audience It's a medium budget film, made with approximately Rs.25-28 crore.

Actor Shekhar Suman's directorial debut Heartless is another interesting option The medica l thriller features Shekhar's son Adhyayan Suman along with Deepti Nava l and Om Puri in lead roles Shekhar has gone al l out to make the fi l m a success, spendi n g Rs 1 crore for the movie's title track that has been sung by Sonu Nigam Made at an approximate budget of Rs. 12-13 crore, the fi l m is about an emotional journey of a young man from fa l ling i l l to healing It will be shown in approximately 600-800 screens pan India

Bab /oo Happy Hai has been directed by Nila Madhab Panda, who won a national award for his film/ Am Ka/am The film features Sahil Anand, Erica Fernandes, Sumit Suri, Amol Parashar and Preet Kamal.

Ya Rab is a film revolvi ng around the concept of terrorism Directed by Hasnain Hyderabadwa l a, it features Ajaz Khan, who was last seen in Bigg Boss Saath- 7, along with Arjumman Mug ha I, Raju Kher, Vikram Singh and lmran Hasnee.

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Both Babloo Happy Hai as well as Ya Rab have been made on budgets of Rs 10 crore each and wil I be shown in about 200-300 screens across India So there you go, pay yo u r money and take your pick!