Tamanna to release on Pakistan Day

The official poster of the movie, Tamanna, has been unveiled, building anticipation. PHOTO: FILE

LAHORE: 

At Vogue Towers on Friday evening there was a sense of relief and joy as it was announced that the film Tamanna will be released on March 23rd, by Summit Entertainment. The film, produced by Sarah Tareen and directed by Steven Moore, starring Salman Shahid, Omar Rana, Mehreen Raheel and Feryal Gauhar, has taken just about three years to complete. The film is set to mark the first major Pakistani film release of 2014, and will follow-up the release of Waar, Zinda Bhaag and Mein Hoon Shahid Afridi, last year.

“My entire experience of making this film was exciting. They say all is well that ends well, but this is just the beginning, it has been a great experience making a film on my home ground, I have high hopes that this film will be successful,” said Mehreen Raheel.

For Raheel, this is her follow-up to her debut film Virsa. The cast of the film comprises of a close-knit group of actors who have strong grounds in theatre and television. The charismatic Salman Shahid, who is fresh-off the release, remarked that he had done some theatre with Omair Rana and has worked with Mehreen Raheel’s mother Seemi Raheel.

Regardless, the cast and production team of Tamanna was relatively new on many levels for old Lollywood film journalists from Lahore, who are now coming to terms with the new faces. One of them was so confused and flabbergasted by the development, he asked producer Sarah Tareen, “Why have you left our heritage and forgotten our old Lollywood personalities such as Noor.”

Tamanna has been a work in progress for a long time.  It is an initiative by two ambitious young filmmakers, Sarah Tareen and Steven Moore, who are attempting to make a film that would be different. Tareen explained that there were different commercial styles of filmmaking and her goal was to bring story-telling on the screen.

“People have asked why it took three years. It’s very simple. Some countries have a studio system, over here that does not exist, so you have independent filmmaking. All these films that have been made are being done independently, people are raising their own funds and making films,” says Tareen.

The film is about Rizwan Ahmed (Omair Rana) a struggling actor who meets Mian Tariq Ali played by Salman Shahid, a relic of the once thriving film industry. The struggling actor is there to convince Ali to divorce his wife, and in the process engages in an ordeal which leaves only one of the two men alive. The film incorporates elements of dark humour, melodrama, crime, passion and revenge and is based on Anthony Shaffer’s play, Sleuth. It is written for the screen by Steven Moore and Ijlal Khan.

The film has already received considerable acclaim due to its soundtrack. The track, Koi Dil Mein, which has been sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and composed by Sahir Ali Bagga, won the Best Music Talent in Film Award in the 14th London South Asian Film Festival 2012’s BAFTA ceremony. Come Pakistan Day, audiences will be able to determine if it deserves acclaim for the story and acting performances as well.

Did you know? : Robert Downey Jr is taking off the Iron Man suit and picking up a microphone instead!

Sting's collaboration with Junior is a hit!

Actor Robert Downey Jr clearly isn’t satisfied with being both Iron Man and Sherlock Holmes. The hunky actor is now taking a road less travelled, by Hollywood’s leading men, especially by those nearing their 50’s.

The 48-year-old is reportedly planning to release a pop album, and has already recorded a few songs for it, reports contactmusic.com.

“Some of the biggest names in the music industry are helping Robert put his album together. Robert has already recorded several songs and he sounds better than a lot of the performers out there,” said a source.

The Avengers star has been meeting music label executives, who showed interested in him after his duet with Sting, where they sang Driven to tears, a classic by Police. The song became a huge hit on the internet, and has reportedly fuelled Downey Jr’s desire to become more than just a brilliant detective, or a ‘genius-billionaire-playboy-philanthropist.’

“Those two [Robert and Sting] go way back, and you couldn’t ask for a better musical mentor than Sting. It’s clear Robert is talented, and he’s been writing music for as long as he can remember. Who knows, maybe he’ll win a Grammy before he wins an Oscar?” the source said.

We for one can’t wait to hear Tony Stark sing!

Drama queen' a positive word for me: Parineeti

I am always happy and smiling. I do a lot of drama and I don't think it's a bad thing. - Parineeti Chopra PHOTO: FILE

NEW DELHI: Actor Parineeti Chopra is seen grooving to the beats of Drama queen in her new movie Hasee Toh Phasee and she says that she takes the word very positively.

“The word ‘drama queen’ is very positive for me, because I am like that. I am very outspoken, I talk loudly, I am always happy and smiling…I do a lot of dramas and I don’t think it’s a bad thing,” Parineeti told reporters during a promotional conference of the film here.

The 25-year-old says coming to the sets of the movie, which also features Sidharth Malhotra, was not new to her because she has always done medium budget films.

“For me, to play the character was a challenge, but coming to the sets of Hasee Toh Phasee was not new because I have always done medium budget films. You know, I have always done movies with restricted budget, so shooting was fine with me but the character came to me as a challenge,” she said.

Parineeti, who made her Bollywood debut with Ladies vs Ricky Bahl, says she had a lot of personal pressure while shooting for the movie.

“I wanted to do something different and I got this movie. The role is not like Ishaqzaade orShuddh Desi Romance because in those two I played very Indian characters. This was completely different, I am off (mentally) in the movie and because of that I really had to do a lot of work” she said.

“I used to try and make the dialogues easy by continuously repeating it so that it’s there on my tongue and I get very depressed if I feel that I have not given my best in a shot, so that way I had a lot of personal pressure,” Parineeti added

Beckham to set up MLS franchise in Miami

The 38-year-old outlined his plans for the new squad, revealing that his ownership group will fund a new stadium themselves and attempt to attract "the best players" to the city

Ex-England captain David Beckham has confirmed his intention to set up an MLS franchise in Miami.

By doing so, the 38-year-old, who spent five years with LA Galaxy, will become the first former professional sportsman to take charge of one of the league's teams.

"This is an exciting time," Beckham enthused at a press conference on Wednesday. "It's something we are really looking forward to bringing to Miami.

"I wanted to create a team that we can start from scratch. I know there was a team 10 years ago who folded. I wanted to create a team that can be very personal.

"I want to make it my own team. We are very excited, Miami is a vibrant city with a lot of passion. I know this city is ready for soccer. I know this is going to be successful.

"I am looking forward to spending a lot more time and my family being here."


Flashback | Beckham's best MLS goals
Beckham must now finalise a plan for the construction of a stadium for his new venture but the former midfield ace does not envisage any potential problems in that regard, with his ownership group having already held talks with Miami Mayor Carlos Gimenez about potential sites.

"We will fund the stadium ourselves; we don't want public funding," he declared. "We can fund the stadium ourselves.

"We want to create a stadium, a soccer club that is the people's soccer club. I have worked with some of the biggest clubs and greatest players and this is a dream.

"I have lived the dream. This is what soccer can do for you."

Beckham added that he is confident of attracting some star names to Miami, while at the same time drawing from the deep pool of local talent.

"We will want to bring some of the best players to Miami to play for this team," he confirmed. "I have seen what happens when you bring great players in.

"Yes, we will bring great players in. The fortunate thing about my career is players are already interested in coming to Miami.

"The one thing I want to achieve, is to set up a kids academy. We want local talent, not just great players from abroad.

"The US team the way they have improved has been incredible and the only way that will continue is to have good academies."

Beckham's long-time business partner Simon Fuller was the only other person confirmed as a member of the ownership group.

However, it is still being rumoured that NBA star LeBron James and musicians Jay-Z and Beyonce may be involved.

Beckham represented Manchester United and Real Madrid during his stellar playing career before moving to LA Galaxy in 2007.

He enjoyed two loan spells at AC Milan while plying his trade in the US and then spent a short stint at PSG before quitting the game last summer

Did you know? : Kim’s identity thief sentenced to three-year-long prison term

Reality star Kim Kardashian can finally breathe a sigh of relief! Luis Flores Jr, who tried to illegally transfer money from Kim’s bank account, has been sentence to serve time in federal prison, reports E! Online.

The 19-year-old convict gained access to Kim’s finances and personal data, including her social security and credit card numbers. He ordered replacement credit cards and requested for them to be sent to his address in Florida, leading Secret Service agents directly to him.

Flores’ mother, Kyah Green, was also involved in the identity theft scheme. She was sentenced to three years probation on top of her jail sentence for lying to authorities in order to cover for her son’s fraud.

The mother-son duo was able to access and withdraw money from the bank accounts of some of the richest and most famous in the country, including Bill Gates, Paris Hilton and Beyoncé. United States Vice President Joe Biden and First Lady Michelle Obama were also named as victims in the court documents.

Both pleaded guilty in October to credit card fraud and aggravated identity theft.

We’re pleased to know that justice has been served, Kimmie!

Lovato pans Hollywood portrayal of drug use

Singer said that it’s time people start taking what they’re singing/rapping about seriously. PHOTO: MARVIN SCOTT JARRETT

Following the death of actor Philip Seymour Hoffman due to heroin overdose, actor-singer Demi Lovato took to Twitter to highlight that drug addiction should be considered as a “deadly and serious disease” and not be glamorised, reports the Daily Mail.

The star, who battled her own drug addiction to cocaine and for which she received treatment in rehab at the age of 18, said, “I wish more people would lose the stigma and treat addiction, as the deadly and serious DISEASE that it is.”

“Drugs are not something to glamorise in pop music or film to portray as harmless, recreational fun. It’s not cute, ‘cool’ or admirable,” added the 21 year old.

After admitting late last year that her own dependence on the illegal substance reached a point where she couldn’t do without it for even 30 minutes, and that she even turned to smuggling it onto airplanes, the star acknowledges that she could have ended up like Hoffman.

“It’s very rare when people can actually predict their addiction and even then, you never know when too much is going to take their life or take a bad batch of whatever it is their using.”

Emphasising that singers and actors have a responsibility towards their fans, Lovato said that it’s unfitting to see that many musicians today don’t think twice before singing about using drugs. In recent months, drugs like MDMA have been referred to by singers, such as Miley Cyrus and Rihanna.

“It’s time people start taking action on changing what they’re actually singing/rapping about these days because you never know if you could be glamorising a certain drug to a first time user or alcoholic who could possibly end up dead, ”she wrote.

“This stuff is not something to mess with. Why risk it? Addiction is a disease. Please spread the word, so we can take the taboo out of discussing this illness and raising awareness to people of all ages.”

The conscientious singer also expressed her condolences on Hoffman’s death. “RIP Philip Seymour Hoffman… an incredible artiste who lost his life to this horrible disease. May you rest peacefully and in complete serenity now that your pain is gone. God Bless,” she said.

Hear, hear Lovato. Hear, hear!

Raindance joins hands with Sindh Festival

The Raindance Film Festival (RFF) has collaborated with the first Sindh International Film Festival (SIFF) in Karachi, in an effort to screen some of the best films from the 21st RFF (September 25 t0 October 6, 2013) to a new audience in Pakistan.

RFF, which has now been running for more than 21 years, is one of the largest festivals of independent film-making in Europe. At last year’s annual event, it screened 127 features and 165 shorts by film-makers from 53 countries around the world. These films were selected from a total of 4,300 submissions from 71 countries.

The agreement has been put together by The Independent Film Trust (IFT), a United Kingdom-registered charity that works with Raindance on a number of projects.

The organisation was created to advance the cause of independent film-making, which supports initiatives that encourage interest in film production and help emerging film-makers to develop and express themselves. It works closely with groups such as Raindance to promote innovation and to celebrate the vitality and diversity of the sector.

The IFT each year offers a Raindance Training Scholarship (RTS), which is awarded each year to the production team behind the film that wins the Raindance Award at the British Independent Film Awards.

Similarly, the IFT supports a special RFF award whose winner gets the right to make the trailer for the following year’s festival, as well as a cash contribution towards the cost of production. IFT chairman Neil McCartney will be one of the judges at the SIFF.

Sited at Nueplex Cinemas, Karachi, the screening will comprise five documentary and three fiction features. These will be included in the running for the Best Documentary and Best Feature categories at the festival, each of which will contain about 20 selected candidates.

The SIFF will take place from February 10 till 11 as part of the ongoing Sindh Festival, which has been set up to celebrate Pakistan’s heritage and culture.

It is fitting to see such collaborative ventures, which encourage inter-cultural communication and harmony.

The Raindance documentary selection (in association with the IFT):

Body of God, Jouni Hokkanen (Finland/USA)

Everybody Street, Cheryl Dunn (USA/Serbia and Montenegro)

Fall and Winter, Matt Anderson (USA)

Finding Family, Chris Leslie and Oggi Tomic (UK/Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Katiyabaaz (Powerless), Deepti Kakkar and Fahad Mustafa (India/USA)

The Raindance Fiction selection (in association with the IFT):

Jail Caesar, Paul Schoolman (UK/South Africa/Canada)

Season of Mists, Anna Tchernakova (UK/Russia)

The Empty Home, Nurbek Egen (Russia/Kyrgyrstan/France/UK)