BLAST FROM Tl-IE PAST

0n the first death anniversary of her father Ashok Chopra, actress Priyanka Chopra announced that a street on Yari Road close to her home, has been renamed 'Lieutenant Colonel Dr. Ashok Chopra Marg '.

Her father lost his battle with cancer last year. She was extremely close to him, even sporting a tattoo with the words, 'Da ddy's Li'I Girl' on her forearm.

No doubt she is wishing her father was there beside her currently, given the trouble she is facing from her former boyfriend Aseem Merchant and former secretary Prakash Jaju.

Apparently, Merchant is all set to launch his new project 67 Days, a biopic of Jaju. Priyanka had an infamous fallout with her former secretary over finances. And though she may have sent a legal notice to Aseem against the venture, he is hell bent on going ahead.

Aseem, whose production company Limelight Motion Pictures Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. will produce the film, says he has no intention of backing out under legal duress. "We don't succumb to such pressure tactics. We are going ahead with the project. We've replied to her legal notice;'he said.

Prakash Jaju, whose account will be the crux of the film, said, "I' ve sold the rights of my biopic to Limelight, a company that's represented by Aseem Merchant and filmmaker Vikram Razdan. They say they're going ahead with the project''. Beyond that, Jaju is tight-lipped.

Hmm, wonder what little known secrets about PeeCee will be revealed in the film

Abhay Deol

Abhay Deol is not one to give up. He has just announced his latest venture Bounty Hunters, which he is producing as well as acting in.

This follows closel y the debacle that was the producer-actor's last venture One By Two, starring real life love Preeti Desai.

The Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara actor says one failed venture can't deter him from trying out new things in future

"Nothing is a mistake in life," he says. "I believe that people learn more from their'misses'than from their'hits'. It's all a learning experience. One By Two has not put me off the process of production You can't quit. Why wouldn't you want to produce other films especially after learning so much from your first production venture? You're better equipped now for your second project''.

If reports are to be believed, he has joined hands with a Britain-based production house to co-produce the film.

Active in Hindi filmdom since his debut in 2005 with Socha Na Tha, the 38-year-old has faced the camera to play various kinds of roles i n fi l ms like Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd., Ek Cha/is Ki Last Local, Manorama Six Feet Under, Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!, Dev.D, Raanjhana and Chakravyuh.

Let's see if the Deol magic rubs off on the nerdy cousin this time round

The stage glittered as Hindi cinema icons like Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra and Aamir Khan, along with veteran actress Saira Banu and author Udaya Tara Nayar, l aunched thespian Dilip Kumar's longawaited autobiography The Substance and The Shadow at Mumbai in early June.

Held at Grand Hyatt in Santa Cruz the red carpet of the event saw celebrities from the old and gold age as well as new generation walk in for the momentous night.

From Zeenat Aman, Danny Denzongpa, Farida Jalal, and Vyjayanthimala to Subhash Ghai, Ayan Mukerji, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Rajkumar Hirani, Madhuri Dixit and Priyanka Chopra attended the gal a.

Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar, who was slated to sing at the event, couldn't make it.

Dilip Kumar's wife Saira Banu, who looked resplendent in green, was overwhelmed to see the fraternity's participation in the event, which saw Karan Johar as a host. She hoped the book is appreciated. "You wil l read something that you have not read before about Dili p Saab;' she claimed.

Born Muhammad Yusuf Khan, the actor entered filmdom with the 1944 release Jwar Bhata, and thereafter dedicated six decades of his life working in much appreciated films like Mela, Naya Daur, Devdas, Madhumati and Mughal-E-Azam. His autobiography chronicles the 91-year-old's life from his days as a child to present - the ups and downs in his life, his family, career, wife and more, as told by him to Nayar, who is a close family friend.

Kapil 's dilemma:

His comedy show must go on Kapil Sharma is a man caught in a conflict. On the one hand, he is gearing up for his big screen debut in Yash Raj Films' Bank Chor and on the other, his plans to reduce his workload by half on television have reportedly fa ll en through.

According to a source, channel Col ors, which is behind Kapil's hugely successful Comedy Nights With Kapil has refused to turn the show into a once-a-week affair

The source said:"lt was Kapil's plan to do the show once a week instead of twice during the shooting schedule of Bank Chor. But considering Kapil's and the show's popularity, the channel has decided not to reduce the show's weekly frequency''.

The channel's decision has put Kapil in a quandary. How does he take time off to shoot for the film?

"Initially, I had planned to do the show once a week during the shooting of my film. But the channel has rejected the idea. They are not rea dy to li sten to my rona-dhona (emotional drama):'

The idea of shooting surplus episodes has also fallen through.

Kapil says he is looking for a way out.

"Luckily for me, my film's shooting is delayed by a few months because the rest of the casting is not complete But sooner or later, I'll have to face this problem. Maybe get a clone created and cal l the show Hum Aapke Hain Clone," he quipped.

And now, a documentary

Actor- producer Aamir Khan released a documentary titled Chafe Cha lo on the journey of his film Lagaan recently "For me, this film is now l ike a family album;' Aamir said at the launch "I can even watch it 20 years down the line and enjoy it. I am so glad even the nation can watch it w ith us now''. The doco has already won a national award for best documentary.

Directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar, Lagaan featured Aamir Khan and Gracy Singh in the lead and was India's official entry to the Oscars in 2001. In 2010, the film was ranked No. 55 in Empire magazine's "100 Best Films of World Cinema''. In 2011, it was listed in

Time magazine's special "The All-TIME 25 Best Sports Movies''.

Now who in Australia will bring this documentary film to our shores Kai hai??

Gowarike r

Ashutosh Gowariker is a history freak, for sure. He brought us some substantial history lessons in Lagaan, Jodha Akbar, Khele Hum Jee Jaan Se Now he is ready to roll the cameras for Mohenjo Daro, set way way back in time, in the Indus Valley civilisation He says he's loving the challenge of goi n g "further back in time" with each project.

Ashutosh said he was motivated to take on the project sim pl y because so little is known about the period."The challenge of recreating lives about which little is known appeals to me. There is very little knowledge on how people lived, what they ate, how they felt Whatever information is available on the era is minor and superficial. That lack of information about the period troubled

me on a subconscious level. I decided whenever I get a story to tell that can be located in those times, I'd grab the opportunity".

The story featuring Hrithik Roshan is fictional. But the period is real.

"I find it fascinating to rec reate another period It is challenging to visit different cultures and eras in the past. Luckily, I have actors and technicians who believe in my vision. The journey starts with me But I need many others to accompany me to get to the chosen destination''.

The film goes on the floors in three months

Indian cinema's largest icon is going sma l l. By that we mean, he's getting back to TV. If you've seen pies of h im looking old and grey and haggard, it's him in costume for his latest venture Yudh. Yudh is set to go on air in July on Sony Enterta inment Channel. The show is based on a man's struggle with his collapsing health, as he battles business rivals and complicated family equations. The series marks Big B's entry into a fiction space on TV, after having p reviously hosted the quiz show Kaun Banega Crorepti for umpteen seasons The show, which also stars Kay Kay Menon, is directed by Anurag Kashyap

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So Hrithik Roshan is trying hard to keep the fami l y feel continu i ng even as wife Susanne upped and l eft. He's taken the kiddies Hrehaan and Hri dhan to Disneyland And whi l e we may have had Punjabi rap for sometime now, Haryanvi rap is coming up too! Look out for it in upcoming Arshad Warsi starrer Guddu Rangee/a It may be a smallbudget fringe film, but Nitin Kakkar's National Award winning Filmistaan seems to be going rock steady at the box office Apart from winning the best feature film i n Hindi title at the 60th National Film Awards 2012, it also got a special jury mention at the 2012 Busan International Fil m Festival and The Silver Crow Pheasant Award for best debut film at the International Film Festival of Kerala. Definitely worth a watch, especially as mainstream figures like Big Band Vidhu Vi nod Chopra have given it the thumbs up