Rare Poster

It's now available on ebay, if you guys wanna buy it. I haven't seen it before, I don't think.

Happy Holidays

I don't know if I have embedded this video before but this is a great way to sink in the festive spirit. Happy Holidays!

Anil' Success

Did you expect the film to be such a resounding success?

Not in the least. In fact, the other night Danny Boyle and I were discussing how both of us were totally overwhelmed by how well the film’s done. The only person who knew this movie was a sure shot winner was my son. Now, he thinks he has the gift of prophecy. So, I’ve told him to pipe down! But Akshaye Khanna insists I gift my son a car for being so spot on.

They seem to be getting really close as friends, don't they?

Akshaye's hits

IndiaFm has a list showing the hits of various actors from Dharmendra to Shahid Kapur. It lists Akshaye having only two hits, Border and Race. I am scratching my head. What about Humraaz, Hungama and Hulchul? The last, at least, was obviously a hit.

Akshaye nominated for Star Dust awards

Akshayes snags his first nomination for Actor in a Negative Role nomination for Stardust Sony Max Awards. You can go here and vote.

Did you look at the competition? Katrina for Race? Urmila for Karzz? For God's sake, I saw Drona and thought that Kay Kay was the worst thing to happen to Hindi cinema, ever. And he got one too! Akshaye will clear the field, no doubt, unless the jury is hopelessly biased. I still say Race is not Akshaye's finest but he is a shining star when comapred to these other performances which belong in the mud.

No Problem

Anees Bazmee is all set to direct No Problem for Anil Kapoor Productions. But will UTV which owns the title be willing to part with it?

Explains Anees, "That's right. The title No Problem is with UTV. I was supposed to make another comedy of that title for UTV with Ajay Devgan, Nana Patekar and Riteish Deshmukh. That didn't happen. I'm committed to make another comedy with Akshay Kumar for UTV. But the title No Problem suits Anil Kapoor's film. I hope UTV will part with it."

Explaining his single-minded focus on directing comedies Anees says, "It's the need of the times. Who wants to go to a movie theatre and be lost in gloom for three hours? The times are awful. People need diversion from their everyday worries. Even my next film with Salman Khan for T Series will be a comedy."

Anees has decided to stick to his jovial genre. "No Problem will be an out and out comedy with Sanjay Dutt, Akshaye Khanna and Anil Kapoor. I've worked with the other two, but Sanjay Dutt will be a first time."

As a writer-turned-director, Anees has many compulsions. "I can't direct comedies with double meanings which are so much in vogue. So I've to write my own comedies to make sure there's no vulgarity. I've written 51 films so far. Writing the film I direct slows down the process. But No Problem must be made because it's a brand name, Look at Golmaal."

Anees claims he hasn't seen Golmaal or its sequel. "But Ajay Devgan is a dear friend. And I'm very proud of Rohit Shetty who was my assistant…just like I once assisted Raj Kapoor Saab. That's when I met Boney, Anil and Sanjay. And I'm happy to have directed films for all three brothers as producers (Anees' It's My Life with Harman Baweja is produced by Sanjay Kapoor)."

Getting nostalgic Anees says, "During those good old days Chimpu (Rajiv) Kapoor and Sanjay Kapoor used to act in the short films that I used to photograph."

(Indiainfo)


We know at least one movie AK will be doing after Shotkut.

Sona Sona Roop Hai

I think he is singing about himself.

Akshaye tribute

Here's the newly created fanclub if you wanna join.

Aisha by Outlandish

Thanks for the tip! He is on at 3.22. This is so cool. Made my day. Is he that popular in Morocco?

Tara on Akshaye

With so much going for her at the moment, remind Tara of the past when people linked her with Akshaye Khanna and without getting flustered, Tara says calmly, "See, both of us studied in the same school and that's one reason why we go back a long way. We were close friends then and even now we share a good rapport. So, I don't get bogged down by all this talk." Tell her that Akshaye has said that she's the only woman he's ever loved and she answers, "Well, I can only speak for myself. Akshaye is basically a quiet person, so when he spoke about me, people read too much into it. Akshaye knows Roopak very well and he is still a dear friend."

(Indiatimes)

The only one he ever loved? It caught my eye but I don't remember AK ever saying that. Do you?

A Film Magazine Speculates on Awards

Now let’s move out of the laughing zone and in to the terror zone. In this category we have,

Akshaye Khanna in Race - He played the negative character in this Abbas Mastaan thriller. He played the character of Saif’s brother in the film. He delivered an amazing performance and acted brilliantly throughout the movie. Stands a high possibility of winning the award.

Katrina Kaif in Race - Has given a different performance than usual. She played the character of Saif’s sweet secretary who transformed into a negative character by the end of the film. She had done her role very convincingly and the viewers just found it hard to believe the transformation of the sweet girl next door to the vamp.

Anil Kapoor in Tashan - played the role of bhaiyaji. He had given a different look by drawing tattoos all over himself. He managed to entertain at the start, but after a point, the Hindi-English bhasha got hard to tolerate. Also, it was very difficult to decipher what he’s speaking most of the time. Not a very strong contender this time.

Kay Kay Menon in Drona - A super hero kind of a film- Kay Kay Menon played the character of Ritz Raizada, the main villain. The buzz was that about 22 crores were spent solely on Kay Kay’s character in a film which was made at a budget of 90 crores. But unfortunately the characters are poorly written. Kay Kay’s character was more clownish than devilish. The extent of his evil powers and its repercussions if he succeeds is not clear and more so the film did not do well in the box-office. A great actor like him has been wasted.

Imraan Khan in Kidnap- The film was a revenge drama where Imraan had given his best performance. He carried the cold look effortlessly. As hot and cool as a cucumber, Imran walked through his role with intimidating ease. His immediate release after the blockbuster hit Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. the film dint do well in the box office but Imraan’s performance was worth an applaud.

Niketan Dheer in Jodhaa Akbar - A magnificent epic. This new comer looked promising. The climax had been handled with utmost sensitivity and maturity, and it was been executed with flair and tact. Ashutosh couldn’t have got a better villain; he’s taller and broader than Hrithik which added to the fight.


(Real Bollywood)

If that's the field spread, I guess Akshaye should have it easy in picking up an award or two in this category. Except that he is not popular with the film fraternity or the press, so they will look for an easy way out to give the award to someone else.

Anil's next with Akshaye and Sanjay

Anil Kapoor will soon be seen in his home production for the first time. The actor, who is currently busy promoting the Golden Globe nominated Slumdog Millionaire says that Anil Kapoor Productions’ next will be an Anees Bazmee film.

The yet-untitled film will star Sanjay Dutt and Akshaye Khanna too. “It’s an action comedy and a multi-starrer, with Sanjay paired opposite four heroines,” he said, adding that he can’t divulge details yet. “Akshaye and I are not as lucky though and are paired opposite one heroine each.” The veteran actor is also excited about the opportunity to do an action film again. “Race did well at the box office and now I am looking forward to this project.”

Anil Kapoor Productions current project, Shortcut - The Con is On, also starring Dutt and Khanna, releases in March next year. The new project will go on floors immediately after the release, confirmed the actor-producer.

(Indian Express)


Anil is such a cool guy!

Akshaye stays neutral

They seem to have formed mini-government-like-parties... All of a sudden we hear that Vivek Oberoi is part of Shah Rukh Khan’s camp, and that Shah Rukh and Salman aren’t a part of the same clique or then Sanjay Gupta is ousted from the Sanjay Dutt-Suniel Shetty gang, and has formed one of his own... and so on and so forth. Anyway, to cut a long story short, Akshaye Khanna prefers to be neutral in this tug-of-war.

Ask him about camps, and which one he belongs to and he quickly says, “The only camp I know and belong to is the Malabar Hill camp.” Looks like this townie boy prefers this residential hill to any of the other camping addas.

Even Times of India is feeling the pinch of not hvaing any Akshaye news, as it recycles this months old news item.

I like this re-write even more:

The highly talented and smart actor Akshaye Khanna who has been wowing the audience with his performance and looks was in the focus with so much happening at Bollywood due to the star wars. However, when he was asked about whose camp is he in, Akshaye flashed his thousand volt smile and said that the only camp he knows and belongs to is the Malabar Hill camp. Finally, there is someone who prefers to be neutral amidst the issues and fights.

More on Shortcut edits

Actress Amrita Rao has been stuck with a Miss Goody image for quite a while now. The actress is understandably quite desperate to shed that image and keep herself in the league for all kinds of roles.

Her role in Neeraj Vora’s Shortkut, is apparently an attempt to do just that. The actress was cast in the film opposite Akshaye Khanna and she supposedly had some romantic scenes opposite Akshaye, which it seems have been edited out. It seems that the actress had gone on a dare bare mode for the film, so when she discovered that her role had been chopped, she is believed to have retaliated by delaying the film’s dubbing. According to sources, after she voiced her opinion, a special scene was shot with her in it, reportedly to appease her.

To be a part of the race, Amrita needs to stay in the limelight, which was one of the reasons she signed this movie. She also hoped to prove her point with her dare bare strategy in this movie. But it seems that her efforts may have just gone in vain.

It seems that Akshaye has the chunkiest role in the film, which is produced by Anil Kapoor. The fact is not surprising, as Anil and Akshaye share a very good relationship. The other actor in the film is Arshad Warsi. But to come back to Amrita, the actress was last seen in Welcome To Sajjanpur in one of her usual roles.

(Bollywood Insider)

Please don't cut any hot scenes between Akshaye and Amrita. He's probably the most shy Bollywood hero ever and we need to see him lose some of his chaste behavior.

Still, I am very happy that he has the biggest role and I am very grateful to Anil.

Akshaye on eating with one's hands

Akshaye elaborates:
Akshay Khanna was on this eatery show on a news channel one Sunday, and the anchor was surprised to see him, eating by hand. He replied, “Eating is an experience, that should satisfy all the senses- you see the food, you smell it, you taste it, you can hear yourself eating it, and the sensory experience is complete only when you feel the food with your hands.”

Best Villain Nom in the works?

Will Akshaye win a Filmfare Nomination for Best Villain for Race?

I am sure he would definitely get a nom but will he win it? Humraaz was a much superior effort and he didn't win for that one. Many people on Indiafm forum are rooting for him, so I'd say he just might this time.

Which Akshay(e)?

OK, I'm now getting scared. Some reports are suggesting that it is Akshay Kumar and not our Akshaye. Somebody please clarify quickly that it's the one with the E!

Rate Akshaye!

Site here wants to rate Akshaye. Go and give him full marks in every department

Akshaye to do a guest role again in a YRF movie

Shah Rukh being lined up by Yash Raj Films for Shimit Amin’s second coming

The producers, directors and story writers of 2007 mega hit Chak De! India are to join up forces once more, it has been revealed.

Yash Raj Films have commissioned a script by Jaideep Sahni that will be shot on celluloid by Shimit Amin for a 2009 blockbuster. Speaking to Bollywood website, Sahni confirmed, “I am currently working on the script for Shimit’s movie that is being produced by Yash Raj Films. The scripting is in the final stages and pre-production will begin soon.”

It has also been reported that Shah Rukh Khan might be approached for a pivotal role in this film, which is expected to be a multi-starrer and include the likes of Shahid Kapur, Akshaye Khanna and Anil Kapoor in guest appearances. When contacted by the same website, Yash Raj Films’ spokesperson said, “We will announce Shimit’s film when we are ready to do so.”

(Radio Sargam)


When are they going to offer him a full-fledged movie? He could rescue them from their slump.

Akshaye's fab new roles

Chandbhai is Nikhil Advani second directorial venture with Warner Bros. after Chandni Chowk to China. Akshay Khanna & Vidya Balan star in this emotional heartrending story of how a struggling director transforms a rebel inmate of a remand home. It tells the story of how two characters change their life by facing their inner demons and embracing life and happiness in the process. Shankar, Ehsaan & Loy are the music directors of the film.

The third film is Basra starring Akshaye Khanna and directed by Navdeep Singh. It’s a story of a spy and a cop’s lives intertwine in a dangerous game of espionage, betrayal and revenge triggering off from the deserts of Iraq and moving through the underbelly of Mumbai’s drug and flesh trade and finally ending at the powerful corridor’s of politics in Delhi.

(Web Wire)

The first movie reminds me of Seema, one of my all time favorite romantic movies and the second looks like some gritty stuff. Both should have great dramatic potential for Akshaye to display his talent, could also help him to get out of the rut of formulaic movies. Cool stuff!

Akshaye to be paired with Vidya Balan

Warner Bros Pictures India has entered into a deal for the production and distribution of three films from Nikhil Advani and Mukesh Talreja's People Tree Films.

Advani directed Warner's first Hindi production, Chandni Chowk To China, which is scheduled for release on Jan 16, 2009.


The three-picture slate includes rom-com Jaane Kahaa Se Aayi Hai directed by newcomer Milap Zaveri and starring Riteish Deshmukh, Jacqueline Fernandez and Ruslaan Mumtaz. Under production, the film is scheduled for a summer 2009 release.

In addition, Advani will direct a second feature for Warner Bros India entitled Chandbhai, set to star Akshay Khanna and Vidya Balan.

The third film, entitled Basra , is a spy thriller, starring Akshaye Khanna, which will be directed by Navdeep Singh, whose credits include the indie noir film Manorama Six Feet Under.

Speaking on the deal, Richard Fox, executive vice president, Warner Bros International said: "Nikhil Advani and Mukesh Talreja are dynamic creative individuals whose vision we share. We hope to have a long and successful association with People Tree Films."

Blaise Fernandes, country head, Warner Bros Pictures India, added: "It's a pleasure to associate with People Tree Films after working with them on Chandni Chowk To China which has shaped up extremely well."

Talreja said of the deal: "We are proud to associate with Warner Bros for three more films after Chandni Chowk To China. We are looking at releasing Jaane Kahaa Se Aayi Hai in the summer of 2009, Chandbhai during Diwali 2009 and Basra at the end of 2009."

People Tree Films aims to introduce and nurture acting and technical talent.

(Screen)

Oh goody! Plus he gets to be seen in a noir. I am officially dead and am in heaven. Noir? If he killed us in the listless 36 Chinatown, imagine what he could do in a stylist gritty thriller!

BTW, the news is all in the foreign media, so this info could be reliable. Praying that it is. I love Nikhil Advani. Also, very glad that Akshaye finally found a smart production house to back him up with worthy projects.

Sunday Open Thread

I get nervous when nobody comments on my posts.

Akshaye building a new house

Actor Akshaye Khanna, who currently lives in one of the most beautiful apartment buildings in Mumbai, in the tony neighbourhood of Little Gibbs Road, has purchased land in Alibaug, a village outside Mumbai, and plans to make it his permanent residence. He has top architects Bijoy Jain and Pinakin Patel for neighbours, as well as model coordinator Rasna Behl. All of them have given up city life in favour of an idyllic landscape and an easier pace.

(Indian Express)

Akshaye at dead end?

Mirror says that Akshaye is at a dead end. It's painful to acknowledge but I think it's true. He doesn't have a single great movie except one lame comedy next year. It's an uneven but fair list which also includes Abhishek Bacchan and John Abraham, so it reduced my heartburn a bit.

Making of MBPA title song