AND Tl-IE KELA GOES TO...

It was an unmagical m o ment for stars Aamir Khan, Ajay Devgn and Sonakshi

Sinha as they were winners of the Golden Kela Awards (Indian Razzies) held recently The sixth annual Awar d s honoured the wo rst actors of 20 13. Aamir won an award for his performance in Dhoom 3, while Ajay carried away accolades for Himmatwala which was also named the worst film, and Sonakshi was cited for R. Rajkumar An impr essive l ist indeed!

"In Bollywood today, the box office figures have no correlation to the quality ofthe film Our sincerest hope is that 10 years down the line, the figures wi ll be forgotten, whi le the'Kelas'they got are remembered," said Anant Singh, creative head, Go lden Kela Award s

The honour for the worst actor in supporting role went to Aditya Roy Kapoor for Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and Deepika Padukone, Jacqueline Fernandes and Amisha Patel jointly won the worst supporting actor (female) for Race 2

As part of the special awards, Deepika also won the Dara Singh award for the worst accent for Chennai Express

The Kel a for the worst director went to Sanjay Leela Bhansali for Goliyon Ki Raas Lee/a Ram Leela

The Baawra Ho Gaya Hai Ke award went to Aam i rfor Dhoom 3

"Aamir Khan once said that he loves the Kela Awards, because all other awards are rigged Wonder what he has to say about us now," quipped Singh Dhoom 3 also shared the Ra One Award for Worst Premise with Krrish 3. Voters chose Party all night from Boss as most irritating song. But a ll was not lost. The Anti- Kela awards honoured some ofBoll ywood's good efforts like Saheb Biwi aur Gangster Returns, Go Goa Gone, The Lunchbox and Shahid

Nice to see a touch of creative reality in Bollywood!

It pains veteran actr ess Waheeda Rehman to talk about her 'soul sister' Nanda in the past tense She says she will always remember her friend of 55 years as a 'thoughtful, caring and loyal ' person, who loved to cook and never l et'an iota of professional insecur ity' come in the way of their unique friendship

Nanda died on March 25 in Mumbai aged 75, fo ll ow ing a heart attack The vete r an actress led a reclus i ve life except for meeting her close friends

Waheeda recalled her last meeting with Nanda, when they had lunch and coffee together.

"We were friends for 55 years, from the time when we worked together in Vijay Anand's Kala Bazaar After marriage, friends, specially women friends, tend to drift away as they've their husband and chi l d r en to look after But Nanda and I remained close fri ends even after my marri age;' she added.

Waheeda shared that she and Nanda were very different individual s.

"Quite a study in contrasts, and yet we were very close friends. Or maybe we were close friends because we were so different so we found t h ose personality traits lacking in ourselves within each other': explained Waheeda

Waheeda , 77, says people used to wonder how two leading actresses could be so friendly

"There was not an iota of professiona l insecurity between us Both of us believed in destiny and that whatever wo rk was meant to come o ur way, wou ld come. We were both very secure about our careers': expl ained Waheeda

"Nanda and I never discussed work. Our work never came into our friendship We were b oth down-toearth and very Indian We didn't quite fit into the glamorous image on screen We both attempted glamorous roles, but we realised it's better to do roles close to our personalities': she added.

"She was an introvert Basi cally she was a loner. She was ner vous of crowds I am a l ittle more outgoing But l i ke I said, we were like-minded peop l e We shared the same va l ues She went suddenly She deserved a l ot more than she got': said Waheeda

RIP, Nanda , may you live forever in the anna l s of Bollywood!

She's a newcomer to Tinseltown and speaks with an accent, but Evelyn Sharma's half-Indian and half- German l ineage has given her an edge in the Hindi film industry which has warmed up to foreigners over the past few years She says being a 'foreigner'in Boll ywood has been a boon for her

Over the years, the g l obally popu l ar Indian film industry has opened up

to ta lented fo reign beauties w ith open arms Cases in point are Katrina Kaif (Br itain), Jacquel ine Fernandez (Sri Lanka), Nargis Fakhri (US), Elena Kazan (Russia -born German), Elli Avram (Sweden), Lauren Gottl ieb (US), Hazel Keech (Br it ain) and Kristina Akheeva (Russia)

"It's been a positive (to be a foreigner in Bollywood). It is up to the directors - ifthey dress me up i n western, I can carry off the look well, and I can also carry the tradit i ona l look in Indian wear for an Indian character'; said Evelyn enthusiastically

In fact, this flexibi li ty has opened more doors for the 23 -year-old , who turned to acting after a stint in modelling for Britain-based brands. She was born to a Punjabi father and German mother, but her dad died earl y Coming to India three years ago helped Evelyn discover a l ove for chat, parantha, biryani and 'drama'. Evelyn hasn't been in the industry that long, her first bit role being in From Sydney With Love in 2012, but she has p l ayed a mix of desi and videshi parts since Her role as a sexy, glamorous beauty without brains in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani led to a role in the forthcoming Main Tera Hero

And in the pipeline i s Bhaiyyaji Superhit, in which Evelyn says she p l ays a cute, traditiona l, very desi girl -w ith an accent! She is brushing up on her Hindi as well , and has discovered yoga

Well Evel yn, here's wish i ng you success in Bollywood, accent and al l!

He has been wearing grease paint for over three decades and actor- producer Sunny Deal describes his journey as an actor as 'satisfying'. The 57 - year- old began his journey with Betaab in 1983 and over the past 3 1 years, he has worked i n about 90 films Sharing his experience, Sunny acknowledges that "acting is a very satisfyi ng profession ''.

"As an actor you get an opportunity to portray different characters and experience d ifferent things Acting is the best thing that happened to me As far as a producer's job is concerned, it i s to

keep the team happy;' said the actor, who recently featured in Dishkiyaoon, a gangster drama.

The film is actress Shilpa Shetty's maiden producti on venture and Sunny clarifies that he did the film because of its story. And although the actor is best recognised as the 'action hero' with the 'dhai kilo ka haath; Sunny says these are merely tags, which he can do nothing about.

"My persona has become such because of the films, but I am not like that in rea l life;' said the soft-spoken hero. "I don't like tags like action hero and 'dhai kilo ka haath: but we (actors) can't do anything. The characters that I had portrayed were strong, so maybe because of that (I have been given these tags)': he added.

But regardless of whether he's in a gangster or action-packed flick, Sunny sure lends his presence and personality to the big screen. Here's wishing him box office success with Dishkiyaoon!

Salman snippets

Salman Khan has covered almost the entire genre of Bollywood films, from drama to action to comedy. But what

his impressive repertoire seems to be lacking is a movie inspired by sport. And now the actor is keen to rectify this situation.

"I wou l d like to produce a film based on sports,"Salman said recently, at the music launch of sports-based film Khwaabb. "I have played almost all kinds of sports. I have done swimming, have played football. I even used to play cri cket;' he said, adding that "sports should be encouraged " in the nation. Salman, 48, lamented how due to lack of encouragement and facilities, sportspersons in the country are sometimes unable to deliver their best, and then face the wrath of their countrymen.

"Khwaabb showcases the life of two athletes their struggles, ambitions and aspirations, and stars Navdip Si ngh, Simer Motiani, Rishi Miglani and Nafisa Ali. When you watch such films, you realise that there are no facilities for training and without these, how will our sportspersons perform better?"he asked rhetorically.

"And when they (sportspersons) do not perform in the Olympics, then we cr iticise them and say ' You didn't

win even a single medal'. There i s no encouragement," he lamented.

Salman i s also keen that small films should be given fair release. His own movies often mint over Rs.100 crore at the Bollywood box office, but the actor feels that small-budget films deserve as much fair visibility in theatres as big budget entertainers, as they too involve money and passion. "People make small films with a lot of passion, they put their own money in it and ifthese films are not supported, then they would never see the day of light and hence, lot of money is lost'; Salman added.

The actor has earlier supported fi l ms like Chillar Party and National Award winning film Filmistaan. Well, Salman's certainly making dreams come true by supporting small quality films like Khwaabb. Good on him!

Buzz about the Bhatts

Actress Alia Bhatt, who has filmed some intimate scenes with Arjun Kapoor for her new movie 2 States, says she is an actor on screen and not anybody's daughter. Asked how her pa r ents reacted to her intimate scenes, Alia said, "Have you seen my father 's films? I am an actor on screen and not anybody's daughter. And anyway, I don't think my dad has any problem with it''.

As daughter of film-maker Mahesh Bhatt, Alia certainly knows her dad! The talented young actress plays a Tamil girl in the film, and says her character is very mature

"Ananya is much more mature She is very intell i gent after all, she is an MBA. I relate to the character. She can do anything for the people she l oves '; explains Al ia volley itself, but here I am dishing out another low speed second serve straight to her strong forehand.

Meanwhile Daddy, a film by her father Mahesh Bhatt is being adapted to a play by theatre and television actor lmran Zahid. The highly-acclaimed Daddy saw big sis Pooja debut on the big screen in 1989. Zahid has already created a play from Bhatt's compelling film Arth, but Daddy will be a tougher proposition to adapt.

" lmran Zahid is on a high after tast ing the success of Arth The Play. Daddy is a tough screenplay to adapt as a stage play. But lmran has the resolve to h it the bull's eye'; says Mahesh.

Let's hope the play is as successful as the film.

It's an unequal contest when one opponent has the stronger serve, and rightly so!

"So you took out the garbage b ins and men checked your Facebook updates! Flicked through tl1e TV cl1annel s while seated on the sofa! Cursed and uttered opinions about the political chaos in lnd.ia!" was her account of my evening And an accurate o n e coo! A voice in my head urged me to shm up and keep a check on my stupid utterances She was making sense and I was fast numi.ng out of responses, bang on, 'excuses'.

Score: 15-40. Gome Point.

By mis stage l am well aware of my deficiencies. I am no match to tl1e skill , commitment and workload of my opponent. And rightfully sol So I plan to retreat. Withdraw myself from the bou t mat I shouldn't have initiated in me first place Bur the game point was yet to be scored

After a hectic day at work, running after our little boy and his dad as well occasionally, and getting thin gs organised in the kitchen in the evening, my w ife u sually tries to s neak in a few quiet moments. Jl.iloments of peace, on her own. Fiddling with he r phone, watchin g something on TV of her own choic e, reading a book, or sirring silently by herself and catching h e r breath. She caUs it her 'me time' for tl1e day. Her space to regain her 'sanity' as she sometimes puts it to me, when I try and be a 'typical man' crying to in trude on tliose moments. r often p rotest tint I 'deserve' some 'me tin1e' too. Caution, be mindful of the liberal use of the word 'deserve' wi th your wife, iL can lead to a very complicated argument of its own, if m ishandled. A cliscussion that you can not win, ever!

So yes, I often stake my claim to 'me rune' as well. After all, Thad worked ha.rd all day. 1n my office, rbat is. "I have worked hard too Same hours, same effo r t!" she says, as she serves a strong forehand volley tight pa.st my backhand.

Sco1·e: 15-AII

I scamper fo r a quick response in indignant defence. "I came home before you and bad tea ready fo r us," I say, valiantly stating my case. Here's tl1e response I am rightfully served "l picked up our boy from school. Did the gro ceries on my way home (wirb the kid hanging off one knee), filled up the car ta nk," she retorts. Now mat.is a 250kmph ace right through me centre of rhe court. I do not even a ttempt to return serve.

Score: 15-30.

''1 took o u t the garbage b ins," l respond yet again, a bit sheepishly this rune. I know I s h ould have conceded me gam e at th e previous

As I tried co rush out of the door having conced ed my shortcomings, I heard a final power- packed volley launcl1ed at me. I deserved i tl "\'v'h.i.le you were b u sy po n dering o ver world matters on me TV and if you failed to n otice, I did me dishes, m ade sure the kid was fed, made the beds for the night, o rganised m yself for the next day, sorted out the lam1dry, and put up ,,;, ith the ta n trums of the b oy," were her parting words. 1 did nor have a response as l hu r ried towards the door, making for a quick exit. I would n ot have attempted to respond even if I had half a response ro that She had been the better player and deserved her ' me tin1e\

Gc1111e. S et lv[atch