Photos: Yogen Shah

The Aiyyaa actor talks about working in his second Hindi film, YRF, sharing screen space with Rishi Kapoor and the difference between South cinema and Bollywood

Most actors, after they achieve a certain level of stardom, get confined to their comfort zones and remain there. It is somewhat like a paralysis for these superstars as they play similar characters over and over again, and venturing out to do a different film is not only difficult but impossible. But Prithviraj Sukumaran has made the transition seamlessly. And he’s not only picked up a differently themed film, but also in a language that’s not his native. His second Hindi venture is Yash Raj Films’ Aurangzeb. And the whole thing about stepping out of his comfort zone as a superstar down South to starting from scratch in Hindi cinema doesn’t bother the actor one bit. All he seems to be seeking is the next awesome script there is! So check out this live interaction with Prithviraj Sukumaran where he talks about movie, movies and more movies!

Doing films in different languages

As an actor what matters is what you get to enact. Cinema as such, I believe, is a medium that shouldn’t be categorised based on linguistic parameters. The best thing to happen to an actor is to grow beyond borders that languages construct. I was very lucky as I started with Malayalam movies, and later I did films in Telugu and Tamil as well. And now I’m doing my second Hindi movie too. I think somewhere down the line, people start accepting you immaterial of the region you are from. They won’t question your nativity. That is exactly why Aurangzeb is important for me. It’s not like Aiyyaa where I played a South Indian character. This is different.

Motivation as an actor

What motivates me as an actor is good cinema. So for example, if the next brilliant script I read is in Tulu, I will do it. For me it is always about the search for interesting scripts and films I believe will make for an interesting watch. So I keep hoping and with fingers crossed for the next best script!

Biggest challenge

The biggest challenge for me was to get my diction right. I spent six months getting my Hindi right with my tutor Vikas Kumar. Today, I have people from Yash Raj, who have seen the movie, saying how good my Hindi is. I give complete credit for it to my trainer.

Is Aurangzeb a remake of Trishul?

It isn’t a remake. People are drawing comparisons. But no, it is a very, very original story. The only thing common is the double role. The film is an intense emotional drama. The structure of the film is like a crime thriller. But that is the underline. What comes through is a story about relationship and what happens to the characters. So no, Aurangzeb has nothing to do with Trishul.

Difference between South and Hindi film industry

The language, that’s it. Lots of people have asked me if South cinema is professional and Bollywood isn’t. I’d love to say that that’s not the case. The two Hindi films I did were very professional. I spent the least amount of time shooting for them. South films go on for 80 days. So apart from the language, I can’t see a difference. But Indian cinema is getting more corporate, and yes, Bollywood is the largest stage in the country. So 10 times more people will see a Hindi film than a South one, and as an actor that matters to me. Acting in films where you know maximum number of people will get to see it is what excites me. The fact that my Hindi film will be seen by a far larger number of people than a South film is what makes the difference.

On ‘weight’ issues

When I said yes to Atul Sabharwal, I was very buffed and quite the bodybuilder types. But Aurangzeb is a very real film. The effort has been to make it very real. Nowhere in the film will you see cinematic cliches. So my brief from the director was simple; you need to look real. So obviously I wanted to slim down and look like a normal guy. So yes, Arya is a very fit police officer, but he isn’t the kind to drink a protein shake every three hours, which I did in Aiyyaa! The first connect with the audience is the look. It isn’t easy, but for the last two years I changed drastically physically. Before Aiyyaa I played a 55-year-old guy, then I put on muscles for Aiyyaa and then again I lost weight for Aurangzeb.

Working with Arjun Kapoor

I saw Arjun’s first film when we were doing a workshop together for Aurangzeb. These were my exact words for Ishaqzaade. I told him, “Arjun you make me ashamed of my debut.” I truly believe Ishaqzaade was a sensational debut. The easiest way for a good looking actor is to play the boy next door where a man only needs to wear designer clothes and look good. But Arjun did a tough thing. He looked dirty and gritty. I only wanted to know how much he would come up with in his second film. And if you see Aurangzeb, you will see that he has really evolved as an actor. As someone who has seen all the actors make their debut and move on, Arjun really has surprised me. Almost as if he did a dozen films between Ishaqzaade and Aurangzeb!

Sharing screen space with Rishi Kapoor

I have been talking about it a lot. From Rishi sir, whatever movie I saw of him, classical cardigan wearing lover boy, he is an anti-climax to that. He is the most intimidating guy. He can walk on the sets and steamroll you as an actor, but he is fun. The energy level is something to behold. Some of my best scenes are with him. More than anything else, it’s amazing to see an actor enjoy his work. It’s a performance he really enjoyed doing.

On being offered Aurangzeb

It was YRF. For someone like me, seeking people who are interested in an actor like me is an appreciation of the highest order. So the fact that YRF calls me and asks me to audition, that tells me that it is a very real possibility that I can be a part of Hindi films. Because YRF is as Bollywood as it can get. As much as it is modern and corporate, it is heritage Bollywood. So, for an actor like me to be in a film by Yash Raj tells me I have managed to transcend the South and North Indian thing. And I’m happy with the way Aurangzeb has shaped up!

Describe the movie in one word

Real. Because cop movies are not new to Bollywood, especially recently. But I must assure you that a lot of cop movies haven’t treated the theme as we have. It’s a very urban milieu. The characters are very believable. What’s also more interesting is that everyone has a gray shade. No good or bad. So, real is the word that comes to mind, and come in expecting to see a very real kind of drama.

Shedding 20 kilos for Blessy’s next film

Blessy and I are planning a movie on a man who is stuck in the middle of a desert in Saudi for two years. It can only be shot in two ways – one is me as normal, the next phase is I become thin and famished. That will happen by the end of next year. I don’t know how many kilos I will lose, but it needs drastic weight loss!

Working in Happy New Year

I just had a very informal meeting with Farah Khan. I have to yet make a commitment. So nothing is on paper as of now.

You have played a lot of cops

Aurangzeb is my 16th or 17th cop film. Not that I’ve got to do only those but in my career a lot of them have come my way. But again, just because two characters are cops doesn’t mean they are similar people. Not that I want to play only cop on screen, but when a script is good, as an actor I don’t say that I did one cop film, so I shouldn’t do another. Down South I have done a lot of action films ‘coz in my career one of my biggest hits happened to be an out and out action film and so the audience likes me in similar roles.

If not an actor I would be…

I belong to this group of people, who are a majority – after finishing high school, you have no clue what you want to become in life. I was one of those who didn’t know what to do in life. So I went abroad to study, not because I was interested, but I was very excited with the prospect of going abroad and living by myself. And I probably would have ended up in a boring 9-5 job. But luckily, as destiny would have it, I did cinema. And now, there’s nothing else I’d want to do. I want to direct. I have already produced. I would also like to write. But beyond cinema, I can’t think of a life.

The Kapoor kid is in seventh heaven as he reveals that superstar Salman Khan cheered for him after seeing the promos of Aurangzeb

“Salman bhai saw the trailer, then he saw it again and then he saw it again. There can be no bigger validation for me as an actor than the fact that he did not criticise me. The honest truth was that he loved it. He clapped and cheered and he did say that his reaction was as good as having tears in his eyes.”

- Arjun Kapoor 

Also read: Arjun Kapoor – I will never kiss and tell! 

Dhanush was seen doing some Bollywood style naach gaana during the promotion of his upcoming film Raanjhanaa. Looks like the South star is enjoying every bit of this moment! And why not! After all he is all set to make his Bollywood debut with this romantic comedy, alongside B-town actors Sonam Kapoor and Abhay Deol.

Photos: Yogen Shah

The Dev D actor thinks that women are a mystery and he wants to spy on his mother, sister and Sonia Gandhi! Read on to know why…

Abhay Deol is the thinking woman’s sex symbol. With path-breaking films like Dev D, Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!, Manorama Six Feet Under and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, the charming actor has proved his mettle time and again. And now he’s all set to make his television debut as the host of Zee TV’s forthcoming reality show, Connected Hum Tum. It is a one-of-its-kind programme in which six women will shoot themselves and bare their souls on camera. Abhay will regale the audiences with his sparkling wit, spot-on-observations and tongue in cheek commentary. Now that’s interesting, isn’t it?

But given a chance, who would he like to spy on with a live camera at his disposal, asked a curious journo. “Women are a mystery, good or bad. With that camera, I would like to observe how my sister, mother and Sonia Gandhi function. I will get to know them better – the things they discuss and the way they work. I am amazed to see how Sonia Gandhi manages to look after so many things. She is a hard working woman. She has a challenging job to do. I would definitely like to see how she functions,” replied Deol after much deliberation.

Well, Abhay has made his choice pretty clear. Now you tell us BollywoodLife peeps, who would you like to spy on if you get that ‘candid’ camera?

The court today turned down the plea of two producers to grant Dutt more time to complete their under production films

Looks like every possible attempt being made by Sanjay Dutt and his friends to set him free has come to an end, as the actor has no other option left but to surrender and go to jail by May 16, Thursday, as ordered by the Supreme Court.

The apex court today rejected the appeals filed by two producers who were seeking more time for Dutt to surrender so that he could complete two of their under-production films. A bench of justices – BS Chauhan and Dipak Mishra had already said that no application for extension of time will be entertained. And last week, the court had dismissed Dutt’s petition that his conviction in the case be reconsidered.

The 53-year-old actor has already spent 18 months in jail and has to serve another three and half years.

The multi-starrer action film plays up the age-old Indo-Pak rivalry

It seems Bollywood can’t find any other suitable foes to make movies on; so whenever there comes a theme of a spy-crime thriller, it either plays up the Dawood Ibrahim angle or the India-Pakistan rivalry, like in Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai, Ek Tha Tiger amongst others. This time it is Nikhil Advani with his movie based on cross-border terrorism who plays these well-used cards in D-Day.

As we rightly guessed, the movie features both Dawood Ibrahim AND Pakistan! The teaser shows how Dawood, played by Rishi Kapoor, is still at large in Pakistan as Indian intelligence agencies try their best to nail him. Through all the explosions and screams, we can see the moustached Rishi mouthing his lines like he is almost constipated, menacingly announcing his nefarious plans.

The starcast of the film include Arjun Rampal, Irrfan Khan, Huma Qureshi and Shruti Haasan. So check out the teaser of D-Day as we get you more dope on the action flick in the coming days!

Unlike the grand launch that was planned earlier, the music album was released in a low profile manner

The music of Dhanush’s next, Mariyaan, composed by AR Rahman, was launched in Chennai on Monday. “Producer V Ravichandran of Aascar Films originally planned a grand event. But he shelved it due to reasons undisclosed and opted for a soft launch,” sources said.

Meanwhile, the songs from the movie, especially the maestro’s Nenje ezhu, have been well received by fans the world over and they have been posting their approval on social networking and microblogging sites.

Directed by Bharat Bala, Mariyaan is about a fisherman, who does the impossible for his love. Parvathy of Poo fame plays the heroine.

B-town Badshah Shahrukh Khan was spotted beating the summer heat by the sea in Goa! The actor was captured on camera in between breaks shooting for his film with Deepika Padukone, Chennai Express. Wethinks SRK looked cool in a white tee, aviators and a hat, with his now-famous red reading glasses hanging from his chest. Neat! | Photo courtesy: ChennaiExp2013 | ALSO SEE: IPL 2013: Sonakshi Sinha turns the tables on Shahrukh Khan!

Shweta Tiwari, a successful mother both on and off screen, talks about her relationship with her twelve year old daughter and her own mother

Television actor Shweta Tiwari has been through a lot in her personal life, but says that her daughter was the one constant support and their bonding became stronger while battling problems together. “I think whatever has been happening in my life, after that the bonding between my daughter and me has become stronger. She was with me through all the troubles and difficulties,” told Shweta.

Shweta was just 18 when she married Raja Chaudhary but after seven years of marriage, the two separated. Their divorce was finalised last year. They have a 12-year-old daughter Palak. The 32-year-old’s hectic schedule and erratic working hours do not allow her to spend quality time with her daughter, who has found a solution in the form of letters to stay connected with her busy mom.

“We don’t have time for Mother’s Day. My daughter always tries to make me feel special. She writes letters and makes cards. She writes things, which I don’t even know she wants to say. Many a times if she has done something wrong, she confesses in these letters. She sticks them in the entire house and when I come back, I read them,” she said.

Talking about the understanding between them, Shweta says her daughter knows that “she is busy” and “by the time she comes back, she is asleep”. “She knows she will not get the time to tell me anything and the fact that I don’t get time on the phone as well,” she said.

The actor, currently seen as a hands on mother in Parvarrish – Kuchh Khatti Kuchh Meethi, is hard pressed for time in real life.

Do you fear missing important events in Palak’s life? “This is a reality of my life. I do miss most of her important events. There are times when I am not there with her. I feel bad and guilty for being so busy,” she said. Sometimes her daughter does complain. “But once she calms down, she comes to me and lies down next to me and says sorry. I am so happy that I have brought her up in a way that she understands and is sensible,” she says. But these small things do not affect their bonding and Shweta, not a strict mom, feels they are more like friends.

“I am very close to my daughter. I don’t try to be strict with her. I try to be friendly and find out things about her life from her. She tells me everything. She also tells me stuff, which she doesn’t even tell her friends. I think I am her best friend,” she the beaming Shweta.

Talking about her bond with her own mother, Shweta revealed that her mother was supportive too. Recalling an incident from her childhood, she says, “I was young and had to complete a project. I needed some shiny papers. It was a holiday and no shops were open. My mom went out looking for cigarette wrappers so that she could stick those together to help me out. This is something which only a mother can do.”

The two hotties appeared on the May covers of Hello! and Filmfare and raised temperatures with their super gorgeous avatars

Ali Zafar is not exactly the macho type. Watch him in Mere Brother Ki Dulhan and other films like Chashme Baddoor and London, Paris, New York and you will know what we are talking about. Very guy next door-ish, Zafar challenged people who so far believed that the cutie couldn’t get into the garb of a toughie. And guess what! He looks very rugged as he makes a perfect style choice for beating the scorching summer heat. How? He gives us the formula: simply go topless, pose in a way that presents a cool view of your muscles and sport those uber stylish aviators – isn’t Zafar looking sexy!

The two actors are not their usual selves on the covers of these glossies, and that makes the covers different from the rest….

Reports suggest that there are problems brewing between the couple and they might even head for a divorce

Leander Paes, who made his Bollywood debut with Rajdhani Express, and Rhea Pillai are going through a rough patch in their relationship. As rumours about their divorce started doing the media rounds, Leander’s spokesperson came out and revealed that the two are not married and have been in a live-in relationship. It seems the couple had a small marriage ceremony in 2006 but that is not legal. One of the many reasons of their separation seems to be Rhea’s extravagant lifestyle which didn’t go down too well with the tennis star.

Photos: Yogen Shah

The filmmaker will be releasing the award-winning movie in association with UTV

Going by the kind of films that Kiran Rao has made and worked on in the past, she seems like a person who would support independent cinema. So when we heard that the Dhobi Ghat director has selected the award-winning film Ship of Theseus to be the first one that her production house will release in India, we weren’t too surprised.

The movie, directed by Anand Gandhi, explores various human values through three characters – an experimental photographer, an ailing intellectual monk and a young stock broker. The film has been a favourite at festivals and it has won a bunch of honours including the Best Cinematography award at the Tokyo International Film Festival and the Jury Award for Technical Excellence at the Mumbai International Film Festival. UTV Motion Pictures will be partnering with Kiran Rao to release the film.

And we’d also hope to see some project by Kiran that she is involved in right from the start rather than buy out films after they’ve won numerous mentions at fests across. However, this is one movie we can’t wait to watch! The film hits the screens on June 19.

Also Read: Paradesi movie review

The actor accused in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case has urged the designated TADA court to let him surrender before the Yerawada jail in Pune instead of giving himself up before the special court

Soon after the Supreme Court refused to grant him additional time to surrender in the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts case, Sanjay Dutt has filed yet another plea! This time the actor has requested the TADA court that he be allowed to surrender before the Yerawada jail in Pune, and not the special court. Judge GA Sanap has now asked the CBI to file a reply and the plea will be heard tomorrow.

The Supreme Court earlier in the day rejected a petition filed by two film producers, who sought more time for Dutt so that he could complete their under-production films. Sanju, who’s convicted under the Arms Act and sentenced to five years jail term, is supposed to surrender on May 16 before the authorities.

Cineswami takes a dig at Shahrukh, Aamir, Salman and Saif Ali Khan and also Sanjay Dutt, while telling us about Gestures, a new silent film in Kannada and also actor Priya Anand’s entry in Aishwarya R Dhanush’s new film

Director Sairam Shanthakumar has rolled cameras on Gestures, ostensibly a Kannada film but in reality a silent film in 99 languages. Confused? Not to worry, Cineswami is at hand to explain all. The leads of the film are Dhruva Sharma and Spoorthi. Both actors are speech and hearing impaired and the film will therefore be played out in sign language with all the songs also being only in instrumental rather than vocal versions. Thought bubbles will pop up around the leads, reflecting what they are thinking at any given moment and these, being customisable, will be in 99 different languages.

As a nation, we are often cruel to the unfortunate souls who cannot hear or speak and we don’t pause to think the distress the many instances of casual cruelty can cause. Also, we feel the need to classify and pigeonhole. For example, look at how that that great shining example of a silent film, Pushpaka Vimana, was classified at the 1988 National Awards. It won the ‘award for the best film providing popular and wholesome entertainment’ and the citation in parentheses next to the film’s title had the word Kannada. Now, like Gestures, the film was shot entirely in Bangalore, but read slowly if you’re losing me here, it was a SILENT film. The director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao had directed films in all the south Indian languages, the male lead Kamal Haasan had acted in the same languages, besides Hindi and Bengali and ditto minus the Bengali for leading lady Amala. The villain Tinnu Anand was a successful director of Hindi films and had acted in Tamil and Hindi films. So there was no call to classify the film as Kannada.

Meanwhile, Priya Anand has joined the cast of Aishwarya R Dhanush’s Vai Raja Vai. Anand has tasted success and failure in equal measure. Her winning turn in English Vinglish was counterbalanced by the disastrous Rangrezz and in Tamil, the dire 180 was evened out by the delightful Ethir Neechal. Her hero in Vai Raja Vai is Gautham Karhik who is no stranger to failure having debuted with the flop Kadal, though he personally won favourable notices. With Kadal, Mani Ratnam proved again that just his name alone is not enough to open a film just as Aishwarya found out with 3 that just being Rajinikanth’s daughter does not guarantee success.

As we cannot end without taking potshots at the Khans, here goes.

Saif Ali Khan (yes, we are elevating him to senior level for the purposes of this discussion) + zombie = good and reflection of real life.

Salman Khan – why are you changing the title of Mental when it is so accurate and resonates with reality?

Shahrukh Khan – why don’t you take Yusuf Pathan’s place in KKR and send him to act in Chennai Express? Surely better for all concerned?

Aamir Khan – why do you regularly appear in drag? Is there something you want to tell us?

And though he is not a Khan we beseech the apex court to give Sanjay Dutt more time – in jail.

The rapper has been taken to task by the Punjab High Court for his obnoxious songs

It seems like there is some time before popular Punjabi rapper Honey Singh can breathe a sigh of relief. Only a few months ago, when the nation was in furor over the Delhi gang-rape incident, Honey Singh’s songs drew a lot of flak for their lyrics and the way the rapper demeaned women in his songs. While the issue was laid off then, it seems the Punjab and Chandigarh High Court has woken up from its slumber only now and criticised the Punjab government for not taking any action against the singer.

Today, a division bench of Justice RK Jain and Chief Justice Jasbir Singh ordered the Punjab government to take action against Honey Singh. The court also went on to say that he should be boycotted and observed that ‘heads hung in shame after hearing his songs.’

Well, too bad for Honey considering he is hugely famous in India, especially up North in Delhi and Chandigarh where his music swish clubs and discos! Plus, we’re still trying to get our heads around the fact about how music could inspire crimes! Anyway, what do you think BollywoodLifers? Should Honey Singh be boycotted?

Looks like all’s well between Big B and Wizcraft, and the Bollywood legend might return as the face of IIFA in its 14th edition

After a decade-long association with the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards, Amitabh Bachchan, then the brand ambassador of the annual event, had a tiff with organisers Wizcraft International Entertainment. This was because the Bachchan family had refused to go to Sri Lanka for the awards in 2010 owing to some opposition to Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s film Raavan in the neighbouring country.

And so, Salman Khan had famously taken over the mantle from Big B, and was seen everywhere at the Sri Lankan IIFA Weekend. But last year again, the big stars of Bollywood like Amitabh, Salman, Shahrukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor and Akshay Kumar (Aamir Khan doesn’t attend award ceremonies) missed the event. It was evident that the IIFA party was losing sheen.

It seems now Sabbas Joseph of Wizcraft has called a truce and Big B is likely to be the face of the international Bollywood awards ceremony again. And Bachchan will make his comeback at a familiar venue – The Venetian Macao hotel in Macau, where the 2009 IIFA Weekend was held.

Looks like Wizcraft preferred to go with Macau looking at its experience with The Venetian, and rejected Vancouver’s bid earlier this year. Let’s see if Shahrukh and Salman will turn up for the IIFA Awards 2013!

Is the Kahaani lady planning to do some delicious two-timing of husband Siddharth Roy Kapur with the Ocean’s Eleven heartthrob? Sigh….

Yes, well, we all know that Vidya Balan will be at the 66th Cannes International Film Festival this time – in fact, she must have settled in to her hotel room by now and, knowing Vids, she would have started her explorations of the marina, the sights and the films. All dressed in her gorgeous sarees tweaked by Sabyasachi Mukherjee, we betcha. And along the way, of course, she will be working on her job of jury member, and doing it most diligently for sure. But a sight we hope our lady Khan more than just looks at is George Clooney, the dishy dude who would make even the most iron of resolves do a little waltz, steam emanating from every pore. Why are we saying this, especially knowing that Vidya married her jaan Siddharth Roy Kapur only a few months ago in a lovey-dovey private family shaadi with very little band and baaja but a very large – in more ways than the metaphorical – baraat? Because the lovely lady herself said that she would be most excited to meet “George Clooney – only I’ll be meeting him too late in life, but at least I’ll meet him,” she told a newspaper reporter recently.

Tch tch, what happens to miyaan Sid, who will be joining his ever-loving biwi only towards the end of the film fest? Will he suffer the stabs of the little green monster as his wife does a happy lech at the ageing but still uber-sexy gent that Georgie is now? No, Vidya assures the world as it eagerly watches for a marital transgression. “Siddharth knows”. Sigh. And here we were just waiting for some behind the curtains coochie that would fuel our need for some teekha gossip for a couple of days at least….

The Aurangzeb babe goes de-glam for the shoot of a popular magazine, and she looks stunning even without a trace of makeup

Sasheh Agha – the adorable daughter of yesteryear singer-actor Salma Agha- is making a sparkling entry into Bollywood with debutante director Atul Sabharwal’s forthcoming movie, Aurangzeb.

The 19-year-old petite actor will be seen opposite Arjun Kapoor in this movie, and going by its promo and the way the gal is grooving in the Barbaadiyan number, one can say that Sasheh looks cute, charming and above all, promising.

The hazel-eyed beauty also posted her zero-makeup look on a popular social networking site, which was clicked recently when she was shooting for People magazine.

Sasheh is wearing only kajal, with her brown hair tied up in a bun and her beautiful eyes spelling calmness and innocence. Take a look at the picture and tell us if our B-town babe can look equally real without the mandatory pancakes and the paints…err makeup?

ALSO READ: Read our exclusive interview with Sasheh