Priyanka is one-take artist: Ranveer Singh

Actors Priyanka Chopra (L) and Ranveer Singh pose for a photograph during a promotional event for the film 'Gunday’. PHOTO: AFP

MUMBAI: Actor Ranveer Singh lauds his Gunday co-star Priyanka Chopra for being professional and efficient on the set. 

“What I love about Priyanka is that she makes everyone’s job easy,” Ranveer told reporters here Tuesday during the promotion of the film at a college.

“She is actor-friendly, director-friendly, and producer-friendly. She makes everyone’s task easier by tapping-in her experience. She is a one-take artist,” he added.

Gunday is Ranveer’s first film with Priyanka.

The actor, who bagged best actor Filmfare award for his work in Goliyon Ki Raasleela-Ram-leela, worked with Priyanka’s cousin Parineeti Chopra in Ladies vs Ricky Bahl.

On being asked the difference between them, he said: “The major difference between the two is the experience.”

Gunday also features Arjun Kapoor and it will hit the theatres Friday

Did you know?: Ali Zafar is looking to add ‘writer’ to his impressive resume

The dashing Ali Zafar.

Actor-singer-songwriter-music director-painter Ali Zafar is now tapping into a new territory — scriptwriting!

The all-rounder, who has earned his spurs on both sides of the border, stated at a media interaction for his upcoming film Total Siyapaa that he has “now started writing for a film,” according to the Indian Express.

He added that the script will “be for [his] own production [house that he is thinking about launching].” The dazzling star affirmed that he will also be acting in the film he’s writing. “I like to keep challenging myself with something I have never done before,” said Ali.

Ali’s film Total Siyapaa is slated to release on March 7. He is also thrilled about shooting for Shaad Ali’s action film Kill Dil, for which he will be toughening up for the first time in his film career. He hopes that this role will break his romcom-leading man image.

He has grown a French goatee and moustache for the film, which also stars Bollywood stars Govinda, Ranveer Singh and Parineeti Chopra.

We hope that your upcoming ventures set the box office ablaze, Ali!

Age is just a number

5 unconventional Bollywood couples.

Hollywood has had its fair share of couples, where the Mrs has been around much longer than the Mr — note Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore.

It’s refreshing to see Bollywood jumping on the bandwagon, and breaking the stereotype that the male counterpart in a relationship has to be older than the female. Here are five couples who have done just that, according to Times of India.

Abhishekh and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Age difference: Two years

Aishwarya Rai had quite the dating history before tying the knot with Abhishek, but here’s something you might not have known, Bollywood’s reigning couple has a little secret! It’s not common knowledge that Aishwarya is older than Abhishek, but the two have clearly made it work.

Arjun and Mehr Rampal

Age difference: Two years

This A-list couple has been together for more than a decade, and needs to introduction. Their love story blossomed while they were both modeling. The couple has two daughters and is still going strong.

Farhan and Adhuna Akhtar

Age difference: Six years

Farhan Akhtar is not only a multi-talented singer, actor, director and producer, he’s also a loving husband and father. The Bollywood heavyweight married Adhuna before his foray into Bollywood and everything has been uphill since.

Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty

Age difference: Three months

Business met pleasure when Raj and Shilpa got hitched! The British-Indian businessman had always been a fan of Bollywood beauty Shetty, and it was a fairytale come to life when the pair got married.

Shirish Kunder and Farah Khan

Age difference: Eight years

Dancing queen meets editor, and the rest is history. Such is the story of Shirish and Farah, who not only have flourishing careers in their respective fields but also three beautiful children to boot!

DiCaprio chose Gilbert Grape over Hocus Pocus

Leonardo DiCaprio as Arnie Grape in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape. PHOTO: FILE

It’s common knowledge that Leonardo DiCaprio turned down the role of Max Dennison in Disney’s beloved comedy Hocus Pocus. However, what we weren’t aware of is that, in deciding against the role, DiCaprio dismissed more money than he had ever dreamed of, the actor revealed in an interview with Variety magazine.

It turns out he declined the gig because he was holding out for a part in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, a small indie that he hadn’t even auditioned for yet. After the actor, who was 18 at that time, turned down the offer of a role in Hocus Pocus it went to Dallas star Omri Katz instead, reported E! Online.

“I don’t know where the hell I got the nerve. You live in an environment where you’re influenced by people telling you to make a lot of money and strike while the iron’s hot. But if there’s one thing I’m very proud of, it’s being a young man who was sticking to my guns,” says DiCaprio, reported the Huffington Post.

Stick to his guns he did. DiCaprio reveals he obsessed over a video of a child with similar mental disabilities as his potential Gilbert Grape character. Lasse Hallström, who’d received a Best Director Oscar nomination for 1985’s film My Life as a Dog, thought DiCaprio was too attractive for the role, but he cast the actor anyway. DiCaprio spent time doing research for the role in special-needs facility before production began. “There were a hundred things I noticed and picked up on, and came to Lasse with a checklist of attributes for the character, he just said, ‘Okay, kid, go for it.’,” adds DiCaprio.

How starring as in a Disney cult classic that opened at No. 4 at the box office would have impacted DiCaprio’s acting legacy is just a speculation. The actor earned his first Oscar nomination for his breakout role in Gilbert Grape, and even though his acting in Hocus Pocusmay have been equally brilliant, it is likely that it wouldn’t have garnered the same recognition

A woman should have an identity beyond her looks: Katrina Kaif

There is constant pressure to look perfect, which is difficult, according to Kaif. PHOTO: FILE

NEW DELHI: 

Be it her flawless skin or toned body, Katrina Kaif has always been known for her beauty, but the actor feels there is more to being beautiful than just physical appearance.

“I feel it is important not to get overly obsessed and overly carried away with just the physical aspect. There is more to beauty than just the physical appearance. You are also a complete person and a woman should have an identity beyond just the way she looks,” said Kaif, in an interview with IANS

Media appearances and film shoots are regular in the actor’s life, and require her to look perfect at all times. “It is tough in a way. You are a human being at the end of the day and everyone has his or her good days and bad days,” she said.

Hair and make-up can be challenging, but the people she works with often make the time consuming job fun. “I think the hardest thing is the hours spent in hair and make-up every day. It is time-consuming, but it can be fun when you are working with a new team,” said the 30-year-old.

She also says keeping her skin healthy and hair shiny is a tough job. You have to “keep at it”, says the actor, even doling out tips for this purpose. “Start with a good diet and healthy food. This is important for the body. You need to make sure that the products you use are of the best quality…you have to make sure you are protecting your skin with sunscreen, and using good shampoo and conditioner, because that is something that we don’t take seriously,” said Katrina, who recently launched the hair care range 6 Oil Nourish Hair care by beauty brand L’Oréal Paris.

The five must-haves in her daily routine are also equally practical and easy to follow.

“Sun block, lip balm, a good shampoo and conditioner and a leave-in serum after you wash your hair,” she said.

For someone, who is often seen in formal gowns and extravagant saris at public events, Katrina’s personal style statement is simple. “It is very casual, simple… basic jeans and t-shirt, maybe summer dresses…I am very simple outside work,” she said and added that her public appearance is an extension of how she really is.

“I think that is an extension of me. I don’t think I go overboard when I go out or dress up,” she said.

On the movie front, the actor was last seen in Dhoom 3, which did extremely well at the box office. Katrina played a gymnast in the action drama. “For me every film is special. In Dhoom, whether it was the acrobats or songs, they interested me at that time,” she said.

On a final note, the actor added, “ I am happy with the kind of roles I am currently doing…you go through different phases where you are looking for different things.

Syrian Electronic Army hacks Forbes, steals user data

The Syrian Electronic Army has attacked Forbes, stealing user data and posting fake stories to its Web site.

The hacking group announced the exploit on Friday, showing several screenshots of the Wordpress-based backend of the Forbes.com Web site. The organization said in a tweet that more than 1 million user e-mails and passwords were successfully stolen and will be published at some point.

Forbes acknowledged that its Web site and publishing platform were the targets of a hack in a Facebook post on Friday. The company said e-mail addresses may have been exposed but passwords are encrypted. Still, Forbes cautioned readers and contributors to change their passwords as a precaution:

Security message: Forbes.com was targeted in a digital attack and our publishing platform was compromised. Users' email addresses may have been exposed. The passwords were encrypted, but as a precaution, we strongly encourage Forbes readers and contributors to change their passwords on our system, and encourage them to change them on other websites if they use the same password elsewhere. We have notified law enforcement. We take this matter very seriously and apologize to the members of our community for this breach.

In addition to stealing usernames, the Syrian Electronic Army posted an article on the site entitled "Hacked by the Syrian Electronic Army." That article has since been taken down, and there don't appear to be any other posts on the site that have come from the Syrian Electronic Army.IBTimes, which earlier reported on the story, talked to a spokesperson for the SEA, who said the attacks are based in its belief that Forbes' "hate for Syria is very clear and flagrant in their articles."

The Syrian Electronic Army is one of the more active hacking groups. Last year, the organization hacked into Viber's database, hijacked a Thomson Reuters Twitter feed, and took aim at both the Onion and BBC Twitter accounts. Earlier this year, the group also broke into several Microsoft Twitter accounts

Accepting the dubbed film culture

The film's poster. PHOTO: PUBLICITY

LAHORE: 

The premiere of Mohabbat Eik Ittefaq, on February 13, marked the release of the first Turkish film in Pakistan. Initially, people were apprehensive, however, the film proved to be an interesting experiment for the local market.

Earlier this year, The Hindu did a feature written by Muralidhara Khajane, on the impending crisis surrounding the move to dub Bollywood films, being faced by the Kannada film industry. The issue was also faced by Tamil, Punjabi and other film industries who protested the influx of dubbed films.

In his opening paragraph, Khajane asks: “The dubbing row has a divided house. While the anti-dubbing lobby fails to give answers to practical questions, the pro-dubbing group cites only have economic reasons. Are languages and culture no longer important questions?”

The reality is that the shift towards multiplexes has changed the context in which cinema is approached. This is the advent of cinema-going culture, bred on a certain commercial ethos that looks at films as form of retail —­ something you can experience as part of the economic liberalisation.

The move towards dubbing in smaller markets is about economics and the drive for high-quality films, which, at times, the local industry fails to provide with consistency. Therefore, over the long-term, the local industry will have to ultimately accept dubbed-film culture.

The dubbing trend has been used all-over the Middle East, Europe, Russia and even South America. It’s a trend that has faced considerable opposition from local industries and will continue do so. In places such as Germany, voice-over artistes of A-listers such as Tom Hanks, Jack Nicholson and others, can establish themselves as stars in their own right.

One insider of Bahria Town’s Cinegold operation said that there is political dimension to this phenomenon — an agreement has been made to have more Turkish films dubbed in Urdu for the local market. The officials specified that the experiment was based on the success of Turkish dramas in the country. Interestingly, it also coincides with government’s initiative to promote a shared heritage with Turkey.

“We think to explore Turkish film industry will be a very good opportunity, because it’s close to our country and its culture. The common religion also plays a role. I think a wave has taken over because of the dramas; it’s a great prospect,” said a senior official.Mohabbat Eik Ittefaq has been dubbed over by local radio jockeys who have attempted to make the film more accessible to the local market. Before the premiere, RJ Dr Ejaz Waris admitted he had done several shows condemning the dubbed television dramas and was wary of the impacts of this ‘new trend’.

“I have spoken out against Turkish dramas on my show, but now my gut feeling is that a film has come along and we should try to experiment with it. My only concern is that it should not be at the expense of Pakistani films,” says Waris. His radio channel’s radio jockeys, such as Fatimah Khan and Muaz Raja, have done the voiceover for the film. Others include Tariq Rao, Mazhar, Areeba Sohail, Denials Sohail, Shazia Shahid, Shama, Naghnama Tahir, Umer Saud, Usama Bin Hijazy, Habiba etc. Waris adds that the challenge of dubbing was to ensure that the films integrity is maintained.

“It’s interesting because you want to see how they are able to maintain the emotions or integrity of the characters — it will be fun to see that,” adds Waris.

Overall, the laws of the market suggest that if more dubbed films are introduced in the market, provided that high quality is maintained, people will certainly be watching.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 15^th, 2014.