Tuesday Gossip!

ETA: One more thing I just realized I forgot to mention - I would very much like to see Shirish apologize for calling Shahrukh a faggot. It was completely uncalled for and that kind of language is not harmless.


In fact, one of the nastiest undercurrents of this whole business is the flood of jokes and slurs about how the participants don't fit our stereotypical gender roles. I won't repeat them here but I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. 


Anyways, that's my two cents. And now let's move on.


Today in gossip - we all just chill karo and get back to the business of being excited about things - like upcoming Talaash and Lolo's comeback.

How (Not) To Do Crisis Management in Four Simple Lessons

As soon as the news of what would soon be tagged “Slapgate” broke this morning, the Bollywood-tinged corners of the Internet exploded in a mass of journalistic speculation, full-on hate, passive-aggressive hate, and jokes (both snarky and mean-spirited).


The accepted facts, as confirmed by both Shirish Kunder and Sanjay Dutt, are as follows: 1) Shirish Kunder was at Sanjay Dutt’s Agneepath success party; 2) Shahrukh arrived post-Filmfare Awards at Sanjay Dutt’s Agneepath party; 3) Shahrukh Khan gave Shirish a smack; and 4) Sanjay Dutt separated them.

Shahrukh Khan has denied this has happened.

Now, leaving aside the actual slapping here is what I think we can take away from the reaction to this incident.

Monday Gossip - SRK SLAPFEST EDITION!

The big story today... SHAHRUKH KHAN SLAPS SHIRISH KUNDER at Sanjay Dutt's party.

Okay, so like any good piece of gossip, there are multiple versions of the story floating around. Farah Khan and Shirish Kunder say the attack came from nowhere - though Shirish was probably talking shit about Ra.One at the time - but Shahrukh is denying it happened and pro-Shahrukh sources say that Shahrukh was merely standing up for Sanjay Dutt's wife, to whom Shirish had been sending nasty SMSes.

Now, here is what I think: Shirish was almost certainly trash talking Ra.One and on purpose within Shahrukh's hearing and Shahrukh snapped and hit him. If Shirish had been misbehaving with Sanjay Dutt's wife, there is no way on Earth that Sanjay Dutt wouldn't have been the one to hit him. None. So I think that part of the story is all bullshit. And they were probably ALL inebriated on alcohol or... "other" substances popular in filmi circles.

What this shows is how much Shahrukh has lost the plot. I wonder how much of his poor temper had to do with the fact that he didn't win anything at the Filmfare Awards and that Agneepath easily beat Ra.One at the box office - without a full year of media saturation and WITH positive word of mouth. (Or maybe he was mad that Manoj Kumar snubbed him earlier in the evening.)

And now for the rest of the news....

Filmfare Awards 2012!

Thanks to everybody who sent in their guesses! I'll be contacting the winner.

Before we get down to business, Filmi Girl has gone on record before as saying that she thinks it is a real shame that the Best Villain and Best Comedian categories have been eliminated. If she had her way, they would be inserted back and the pointless "Critics" choice would be struck from the record instead.

Alas, Filmi Girl does not run the Filmfare Awards. If she did, these would be her choices this year:

Best Villain: Vidyut Jamwal for Force

Best Comedian: Pitobash for Shor in the City

Now, on with the show!

The Dirty Picture: Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment

Better late than never, right? I finally saw The Dirty Picture.
As the tsunami of awards will testify, the most popular film of 2011 was not a masala flick nor an overhyped on-par-with-Hollywood action film but a little movie called The Dirty Picture, allegedly - but not officially - based on the life of notorious Southern item girl Silk Smitha. As expected of an Ekta Kapoor production, the film cannily hits on every popular meme making the rounds of Bollywood production offices these days.

Sunday Gossip

I realized after I wrote up my review of Agneepath that I never mentioned the violence. Well... it's because I didn't find it all that violent but then I am a grown-up who reads gory manga before bedtime. It takes a lot of violence to shock me. Is Agneepath violent? If you're only used to fluffy Yash Raj romances, definitely. If you are like me and enjoy films like Oldboy, then not really.

I could have done with more violence and even less "romance," actually. I'd love to see a director's cut of Agneepath that sticks in the scenes the Censor Board made them take out and those Rishi Kapoor scenes left on the cutting room floor. Karan Malhotra, please give us a nice DVD release!!! Okay? I promise to buy it if you do that...

Now, today in gossip - some longer pieces on things like male models, an entertaining jaunt with Sanjay Dutt, and a handful of song promos for Siddharth's tired looking Love Failure. How long is he going to keep playing the chocolate boy card? Aren't audiences getting tired of this yet?

Agneepath: This ain't your Father's movie..

"Bachchan ke fan ho kya? Angry young man. ‘Aaj khush to bahut hoge aaj tum, haan. Agneepath. Agneepath.’"

-- Geet (Kareena Kapoor) to Aditya (Shahid Kapoor) in Jab We Met
Why remake anything? Producers are wary of staking large amounts of money on untested ideas. If a film worked before, why wouldn’t it work again?

But of the many films out there, why specifically remake Agneepath, a film deeply tied to the screen persona of Amitabh Bachchan? The Vijay of Agneepath was a man crushed by society and cowed by his fate. Though it won Amitabh the National Award, the film couldn’t connect with audiences. Of all the successful films - crowd pleasing, punch line filled, trendily Chennai-based films - why would this film be considered ripe for remake?

Saturday Gossip!

Above the cut news! Read about the Razzies of Bollywood!

Organizers of the Golden Kela awards, which last year awarded the Worst Actor award to Shah Rukh Khan, say no Bollywood star or film maker shows up to claim their prizes.

This week, film maker Anurag Kashyap tweeted he would collect his Ghanta award in person if his film "That Girl in Yellow Boots" wins in the "holier-than-thou" category.

Vote for the Golden Kelas here! Vote for the Ghanta Awards here!

Vidya Balan for Vogue India

Posted for no other reason than I thought these were gorgeous... some of you may have seen them already.

Happy Friday!

If you haven't already, check out Asim's interview with Amy Jackson! She seems live a very sweet girl and, yes, he does ask her about being white in Bollywood.

I'll be going to see Agneepath tonight and I'm excited! I'm also very happy that almost every review has said two things I'm feeling good about: 1) the film maintains the 1990s-style revenge and 2) Priyanka's role is small enough that she makes no impression. I'm assuming that PC shows up for two songs and then vanishes.

Thursday Gossip!

Are you in Vancouver? Bollywood films are going to screen at Denman Cinemas!

Or in Las Vegas? The CineArts screen gets an article. 

Today in gossip - Talaash TRAILER! And MAXIMUM trailer!! That's the important part!

Wednesday Gossip!

For anybody in Dubai, the Vishal-Shekhar concert has been postponed.

And for anybody in DC, Atlanta, or Texas - Salim-Sulaiman are coming in concert! In March! Tour dates and tickets are here. Also touring with them are Benny Dayal and Shradda Pandit. I'm not going to miss this! It should be a good show!

Today in gossip - SRK, Q, NNM, and a whole host of other initials! Don't you want to know...

Tuesday Gossip!

Don't forget it's GAY PRIDE WEEK in Mumbai!!

I stayed up way too late finishing that interview so you'll have to forgive my brevity this morning!

Pitobash: Outsider in Bollywood (The Award Winning Edition!)

For previous entries in this series, please check the index.

I want to thank Pitobash for taking the time to speak with me and for showing me his Screen Awards trophy for Best Comic Performance! We had our conversation between the time the show was filmed and when it aired and before we discovered, unfortunately, that the Screen Awards had edited out Pito’s thank you speech. Since I had yet to put the finishing touches on this piece, I offered to add in the names of everybody he wanted to thank here. You will understand why after you read the interview.

Now, for the record, direct from the man himself:

“I told: Thank you so much to my parents, my brothers, my sisters, my friends and my film institute, my teachers, my uncle, and my dear friend Swabha who was always there with me to energize me, to keep telling me to stay focused, to boost my morale and to give me the confidence that I will make it when I was trying to make it into films. Thank you, Swabha! And thank you so much Raj & DK who believed in me.”

I also want to state up front that English is not Pitobash’s first language and I really appreciate him meeting me on my own turf, so to speak, because my Hindi is atrocious and I have no Oriya or Bengali at all. I tried to keep as much of his own phrasing as possible so you could get the full impact of Pitobash but I did edit for clarity in some places.





(The Award Winner! Image courtesy of Screen India)
Previous entries in this series have featured actors and actresses who came from outside of India but today I bring you an interview with an actor who comes from Orissa, which is an Indian state that is about as far away from Bollywood as you can get while still remaining inside Indian borders.

Monday Gossip!

Good morning, all! Another Monday, another week starting fresh and new!

So... I finally watched The Dirty Picture last night and I liked it okay. I'll try to get up a review for you today or tomorrow but my quick takeaway is that 1) Vidya Balan was phenomenal and it makes memore upset that Zee Cine Awards would mock her by sticking Piggy Chops in a fat suit, 2) the film suffers from the chronic Milan Luthria problem of not having any narrative drive, and 3) Emraan Hashmi and Tusshar are really kind of terrible actors.

Today in gossip - Agneepath, butthurt autobiographies, Screen Awards performances, and MORE!

Zee Cine Awards 2012

Oops! I had actually written this list of nominees up and forgotten to post it but now the winners have been announced, I'll just notate who won on the list!

And before you check out the winners - I think the ZEE CINE AWARDS owe Vidya Balan an apology for sticking Priyanka Chopra in a fat suit to make fun of Vidya's figure in The Dirty Picture. It was a shameful display and all parties involved should have known better.


Zee Cine Awards 2012
BEST FILM

Singham
Bodyguard
Don 2
Rockstar
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara
*The Dirty Picture

[No surprises here; I think The Dirty Picture is going to sweep the awards shows!]

Sunday Gossip!

Today in gossip - Priyanka Chopra in a fat suit, Waar, and some other stuff!

Saturday Gossip!

There isn't much gossip today, so let's take a look at one of the stories floating through the Bolly Blogosphere: Good Night, Good Morning by Sudhish Kamath aka the guy who once used a rape metaphor to describe remakes. (As in, authorized remakes were like date rape; unauthorized remakes are violent assault. Yes, that's right because violent sexual assault has so much in common with a Sanjay Gupta movie.)

(News and more snarking under the cut!)

Where to LEGALLY STREAM Indian films online!

I'm going to try and keep this updated. I'll put a sticky post on the side bar of the blog so you can easily find this list again. And if you have any sites to add, please let me know! I would like to help people watch Indian films legally and easily!

Zee Cine Awards Nominations 2012

Time for another round of nominations!! What will the fates dredge up for us this time?!


Zee Cine Awards Nominations
BEST FILM

Friday Gossip!

HAPPY FRIDAY! No new releases this week so I'll be using the time to catch up on a few things... or maybe going to see Vettai again. Hee!

I got an e-mail yesterday from a reader who had taken offense at my comments on Amy Jackson. First of all, I want to encourage anybody who feels strongly about something I write to please e-mail me or leave a comment. This blog isn't just me dictating my opinion but an invitation to dialogue and if you disagree (or agree) I do want to hear it!!

In case there were a few more people who felt like she did, I thought I should say something about it here.

We all know there is a fairness bias in Bollywood. And added to that, recently, there has also been a bias towards very slim figures. Most (as in 99.9%) of desi women are not very fair and very thin and yet this is what we see in films - when Bipasha Basu is at the far end of the dusky and curvy spectrum, you know something is out of whack with the scale because while gorgeous, she is not really all that dusky or curvy. At least not compared to some of the normal women I have met over the years.

So, where does Amy Jackson fit in? She is a very young woman from the UK who initially came over to India to play an Englishwoman in Madrassapattinam. It seems she had many additional film offers after the success of that film and has decided to try to make a go of it as an actress in India. Do you blame her?

The article I linked to yesterday, had a comedian saying that he was offended by her presence in the industry because it implied "our" actresses weren't good enough.

What I felt was disingenuous about that comment was 1) he was himself American with no stake in the Hindi film industry and 2) his main complaint with Amy seems to have been that she wasn't desi. That's it. He didn't seem concerned with the fairness bias or with all the producers falling over themselves to offer her roles while ignoring actresses like Shahana Goswami but more that she wasn't part of his special club.

Is it right for Amy to be playing an Indian girl in upcoming Ekk Deewana Tha? Maybe. Maybe not. Is it right for Kalki Koechlin to be playing Indian girls? What about the extremely fair-skinned half white girls like Nargis Fakhri or Katrina Kaif or Dia Mirza? Should we hold them accountable, too? I think we aren't going to get anywhere by blaming these women. It's not their fault what their skin color is any more than my soon-to-be sister-in-law (who is desi) has a skin tone that's close to dark cocoa.

Instead of pointing the finger at them, how about taking men like Imtiaz Ali to task for casting these very fair-skinned women as normal Indian girls?

Instead of blaming Amy Jackson for something she can't control, how about we send messages of protest to celebrities who promote products like Fair & Lovely?

And as to the question of whether a white woman should be in Bollywood - I think the answer lies in what you want Bollywood to be. Is it an exclusive club only for South Asian people? Or is it an entertainment industry with global reach and accessible to anybody who wants to watch it?

The Bollywood I love has space for both non desi Helen and very desi Jaya Bhadhuri; for Tom Alter and Naseeruddin Shah; and for an actress like Amy Jackson.

Will she make it? I don't know. Maybe. Maybe not. But it doesn't seem fair to blame her for trying.

Save your anger for the producers who perpetuate the fairness bias.

And that's my paanch rupaiyya, barah aana on the topic.

ON TO NEWS!

Thursday Gossip!

Good morning, world! There isn't too much exciting happening today but I tried to pull some stuff for you.

There is one public relations written story floating around about how Sanjay Dutt is bringing old school villains back that was kind of annoying me. Really, PR people? There were no villains between Mr. India and Agneepath?

And then this guy from Seattle who is now doing stand-up in India is offended that Amy Jackson is making movies in India. *testing testing* Is this thing on?

And, dude, you know she was initially hired to play an English woman in Madrassapattinam, right? Who did you want playing that role?

Wednesday Gossip!

Sujoy Ghosh has started a blog for Kahaani! Go check it out!

Today in gossip - assorted nonsense! Salman Khan fans fight back; House Full 2 song leaked; and Filmi Girl must head back into work...

Tuesday Gossip!

Good morning, everybody!! Welcome to post number 1501! Thanks for all your kind comments and wishes on my 1500 post. I'll keep trying to do my best for you every day!

Something for you to look forward to... I did an interview yesterday with the pistol-sharp Pitobash for Outsider in Bollywood! I've interviewed Americans, Australians, and British-Asians but this will be my first interview with an actor who came to Bombay all the way from Orissa. I think that's about as outside Bollywood as you can get and still be in India.

1500 POSTS!

Just for you - an incredibly stupid video!!!!! Enjoy!

Monday Gossip!

Good morning! Today is Martin Luther King Day in the United States and although it's mostly an excuse for a three-day weekend and sales, it's important to remember a man who fought so bravely for the civil rights of African Americans.

The world will never be fair but at least we can hope that one day it will be more just.

Anyways, onto silly things!

ETA: Like Veena Malik in a light-bulb bra. *nods*

Vettai (subtitle: What's Tamil for Paisa Vasool?)

“Enakke shutter-aa?” - Madhavan in Vettai, to resounding cheers in the audience
Thank you Siddharth Roy Kapur and UTV motion pictures for making the wise decision to bring Vettai to overseas markets - with subtitles. It is the rare film that lives up to it’s trailer but Vettai packs just as much punch as the trailer promises and then some! It’s films like this that bring back all the reasons I fell in love with masala films in the first place. There are already talks to remake Vettai in Hindi but, honestly, I don’t know who could possibly top the jodi of Madhavan and Arya, as brothers in crime-busting and general awesomeness.

Colors Screen Awards Winners 2012

I had put the list of nominations up here if you want to check it out.

(Images courtesy of Screenindia.com. Click the link for more!)


[Two of the all time greats... together on stage. I think I'm going to melt.]



THE TOP AWARDS

Sunday Gossip post! (Pssst... #1496)

So... I saw Vettai last night! My first film of the year and it was AWESOME! Last year it was UTV's No One Killed Jessica that rang in 2011 and 2012 has UTV's Vettai. A lucky omen if I ever saw one... I should add that the Agneepath trailer looks REALLY BOSS on the big screen. Despite Nose Job Chopra, I'll be going to see it. Her part looks pretty small, anyways. I can just use her songs as snack/bathroom break.

The Colors Screen Awards were held last night and here is a lengthy write-up! I'll post the winners separately with commentary. You know I always have commentary.

Also, it's Ranbir and Shahrukh to host the Filmfare Awards. O.M.G. This will be interesting.

Does SRK even have time to take a dump in between hosting all these awards shows and filming like ten South Indian remakes and a Yash Chopra film and bitching about Bebo in the press while simultaneously promoting the sequel to Ra.One?

Saturday Gossip!

Okay, two announcements! 1) YES I know that wasn't really Saif Ali Khan but didn't SRK look like he was channeling Saif in Race? In my defense, I wrote that up at about 5am so... yeah... possibly not my greatest zing ever. NOW! 2) I'm almost at 1500 posts and I will have a treat up for that big number! This post is 1495.

Right! On to gossip... which includes some juicy bits, some thinky bits, some snark, some Bebo being adorbs, and ALI ZAFAR DOING STUFF in the London Paris New York trailer. Don't you want to know!

Sargam: Bang a Drum for Rishi Kapoor!

The melodrama is a style of filmmaking that has really fallen out of favor these days in Bollywood (see also: the ridiculously overblown backlash against Mausam) but it’s one I find very soothing. I love getting to know a set of characters and feel all the emotions of joy and sadness as they travel through their story. Whether the ending is happy or sad, a good melodrama will leave you feeling emotionally sated but it takes time and patience to reach that ending. You can’t just pop in a melodrama while you eat dinner on a Wednesday night or stream it in 10 minute chunks via youtube while simultaneously checking e-mail and playing Farmville, which is how a lot of us end up watching films these days.

Daboo Ratnani Calendar 2012!

Along with the new year comes the annual exercise that is Daboo Ratnani's ultra-fugly calendar! I have no idea how he has bewitched the media into breathlessly reporting on his images but every year there is an orgy of praise and every year I like to fully investigate what is inspiring all the praise.

(For added enjoyment, revisit the 2010 Calendar and the 2011 Calendar.)

All images courtesy of Daboo Ratnani (TM).

HERE WE GO! These have been culled from various Bollywood sites since Daboo's official website appears to be down at the moment.

Shall I alternate men and women?

Who? Vidya Balan
Theme? Cover of a Jackie Collins romance novel
Success? Meh. There should really be a half-finished martini and a cigarette half-burning on the side of the tub to really sell this.

Thank God It's FRIDAY News Edition!

First things first - reports on Ghost are saying so bad it's good. That is EXACTLY the kind of thing that makes for excellent Box Office Poison material. I'm keeping an eye on this situation as it develops.

AND! Don't forget to submit your guesses for my Filmfare Award contest!

And... um... I think I had something else but I forgot. Okay! If I remember I'll just tweet it later! GOSSIP!

Thursday Update!

Good news for Filmi Girl! My local theater is getting both Vettai AND Nanbaan! I'M SO EXCITED, Y'ALL! I just need to call and check that they have subtitles because unlike something like Rajapattai, I'm pretty sure I'll need them.

Okay... time for your daily dose of NEWS!

57th Filmfare Awards Nominees

The nominations are out! Just like last year, let's play a game and see if we can guess the winners. Send me your list of predicted winners and the person who gets the closest will receive a special prize!

Remember - pick who you think WILL win; not who you think SHOULD win and send it to filmi (dot) girl (at) gmail (dot) com!

Here we go!




57th Filmfare Nominations
BEST FILM
Delhi Belly
Don 2 [Are you kidding me with this?]
No One Killed Jessica
Rockstar
The Dirty Picture
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

Wednesday Gossip!

Raj Kapoor in London at the British Film Institute and in New York at the Museum of Modern Art.

Are you in Dubai? Go and see Arshad Warsi on Saturday! (No, really - go and squee at him on my behalf.)

Today in gossip... Shahrukh admits Ra.One could have been better and other tidbits!

Tuesday Gossip Post!

First things first - is anybody in Louisiana? There is a Bollywood Film Festival taking place in Shreveport!

Although I do have to take issue with this: Menon said the films are typically romantic love stories with happy endings.

No. I hate that stereotype. That is ONLY true if your definition of Bollywood is "output of Yash Raj studios from 1995 to present."

And thank you, everybody, for the great response to my Omi Vaidya interview!! He was really fun to talk with - very candid, which I appreciate. I try my best to get great interviews for you guys but I think sometimes people may not trust me. Hopefully the more I do, the more people will be willing to talk with me. I love doing interviews and I'm really fascinated with different personalities...

Anyways, onto your gossip round-up!

Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011 #2

Counting down to 2012, I thought it would be fun to do my Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011!

(Although, yes, I realize that it's NOW 2012... just work with me here.)

List 11 - Top 11 Indian Film Songs According to Filmi Girl's iTunes

List 10 - Top 11 Scene Stealers of 2011

List 9 - Top 11 Films Filmi Girl Never Got To See

List 8 - Top 11 Things Filmi Girl Wants To Go Away in 2012

List 7 - Top 11 Bollywood Losers of 2011

List 6 - Top 11 Bossest Women in Bollywood

List 5 - Top 11 Filmi Moments of 2011

List 4- Top 11 FILM Moments of 2011

List 3 - Top 11 Leading Performances of 2011

List #2...!!!

Yes! It’s the last list wrapping up 2011! Are you excited?! I’m going to run down my Top 11 movies of 2011 but in a little different format than you might be used to. You can get my unadulterated TOP 5 MOVIES IN NUMERICAL ORDER OF BESTNESS on the 2011 wrap up episode of upodcast, which I will post a link to as soon as Asim edits and posts it.

OKAY! So, here are my Top 11 Movies of 2011, in no particular order, organized by their outstanding quality!



Top 11 Indian Movies of 2011
The Movie That Was The Best Time You Can (Legally) Have In A Movie Theater: Osthe (Tamil)


The link to my review.

Yes, this is the one that was the remake of Dabangg and, yes, this is the one that was (allegedly) delayed so that Simbu could work on his six-pack but do you know what? This movie fucking owned. It was a non-stop masala fest of action, comedy, morality, romance, dancing, singing, and Simbu waggling his butt for the camera and I loved every second.

I knew this was the movie for me when after the opening fight, Simbu gets into a police jeep and shoots his pistol at the ground, making the jeep fly into the air and land in the middle of the opening song picturization, which involved (approximately) a billion dancers and people doing backflips and whatnot.

I repeat: This movie fucking owned.

Also, Sonu Sood was fantastic and Richa had a midriff that wouldn’t quit.

Whatever the equivalent phrase of paisa vasool is in Tamil, this was it.

HAPPY MONDAY! Time for some NEWS!

So, here is the advantage to having acquaintances working in Indian film... some of my fangirl praise of Vikram found it's way to Vikram!! Who (as reported to me) was amused and said that it "made his decade."

Okay, I can die happy now! VIKRAM! What a great guy!

NOW!! Today in gossip - all sorts of odds and ends including clueless director interviews, Uday Chopra, an amazing story featuring Akshay Kumar, some boss film promos from down South, and MORE! Also, Raveena Tandon and Akshaye Khanna and Tusshar Kapoor and... and... what the hell happened last night?! There is some crazy stuff out there today!

Omi Vaidya: Outsider in Bollywood (The Silencer Special)

For previous entries in this series, please check the index.



No matter how many times I hear Omi Vaidya’s story, it never gets old. An American guy, in Mumbai for a visit, decides almost on a whim to try out for a Bollywood film. The director loves him and signs him on for a large role despite the fact that the guy speaks no Hindi and his biggest acting roles to date have been on American television. That movie turned out to be one of the biggest blockbusters of all time - 3 Idiots - and the role of Chatur Ramalingam (aka The Silencer) turned out to be life changing for Omi Vaidya.

Omi very kindly took the time during his visit home to California to speak with me about his past films, upcoming films, and, well, just films in general.

Sunday Gossip!

Yes, it's awards season... and our first results are from the ETC Business Awards, which will air on Monday.

Here are the interesting results:

Top Grosser of the Year: Body Guard
Most Profitable Actor (India): Salman Khan
Most Profitable Actor (Overseas): Shahrukh Khan

Most Profitable Actress: Kareena Kapoor

Most Profitable Director: Siddique for Bodyguard

Best Marketed Film: Ra.One

Biggest Single Day Collection: Ra.One

Notice how they don't separate out India/Overseas for the actress category - presumably because Bebo was in both Bodyguard and in Ra.One. Interesting how Shahrukh has really made his target audience the global diaspora... specifically the diaspora in North America, UK, and Western Europe.

(Also, I think they meant MOST marketed film for Ra.One.)

On to gossip!

Bonus Gossip Post! NEIL NITIN MUKESH EDITION!

Thanks to Bombay Talkies for pointing this out!!

NeilNMukesh Neil Nitin Mukesh

Guys just for the record. I am single ! A lot of speculation happening. Wouldn't mind betting into a relation !

18 minutes ago Favorite Undo Retweet Reply

He's single, okay?! SINGLE! Everybody drop everything to think up some link ups! Chalti!

And then place some wagers on those link ups - he wants to bet into a relationship ASAP!

What about Shazahn Padamsee? She seems willing to link up with anyone... in the press.

Saturday Gossip!

GOOD MORNING!!! The big story this weekend is the first big film of the year... Players!

I had been waffling back and forth on whether or not to see it. Word has it that the film is not terrible but also extremely inessential. Judging by Get Filmy's review I don't think I'll be missing much by skipping it.

If you go in with low expectations on a day when you’ve got literally nothing else to do you might enjoy it.

Yeah. I have A LOT OF STUFF to do this weekend. Although, this might be a perfect target for Box Office Poison in a few months.

Is Players part of the new genre of Bollywood films presumably made to be seen on cable TV, playing in the background, while everybody sits around hungover on Sunday morning half-heartedly eating leftover pizza?

Bobby, Neil, and Sikander certainly have nothing better to do but what is Abhishek's excuse for doing this?

Check out the Wall Street Journal's review round-up for the full critical drubbing.

And onto gossip!

Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011 #3

Counting down to 2012, I thought it would be fun to do my Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011!

(Although, yes, I realize that it's NOW 2012... just work with me here.)

List 11 - Top 11 Indian Film Songs According to Filmi Girl's iTunes

List 10 - Top 11 Scene Stealers of 2011

List 9 - Top 11 Films Filmi Girl Never Got To See

List 8 - Top 11 Things Filmi Girl Wants To Go Away in 2012

List 7 - Top 11 Bollywood Losers of 2011

List 6 - Top 11 Bossest Women in Bollywood

List 5 - Top 11 Filmi Moments of 2011

List 4- Top 11 FILM Moments of 2011

List #3...!

Because I’m quickly growing tired of rehashing 2011 and I’m sure you are, too, I’m combining what I had planned for lists three and two (Best Leading Performances, Female and Male) and making just one list out of them!

That leaves room for two more lists - Best Films of 2011 and What I’m most looking forward to in 2012.

(And, really, do we need to segregate awesomeness by gender? No.)

Now, this is Leading Performances - I’ve already listed my favorite scene-stealers.

Also, keep in mind I haven’t seen Rockstar or Saheb Biwi aur Gangster because I’m 99% positive I would have made room for both Ranbir and Jimmy on my lists if I had. Those two can act with a capital A.C.T.


TOP 11 LEADING PERFORMANCES OF 2011
Bonus pick for Best Debut Hero/ine: Saqib Saleem in Mujhse Fraaandship Karoge

Take note of the name Saqib Saleem because you will be hearing from him again. He took the role of role of Vishal Bhatt, kind of dickish everyman rom-com hero, and turned him into a living, breathing human being with a heart.

In the hands of lesser hero, Vishal could have been either extremely bland (think Imran Khan) or just a massive douchebag (think Uday Chopra) but Saqib put enough charm into Vishal to smooth the rough edges and just enough social awkwardness to make it believable that such a handsome guy would have trouble getting ladies.

Colors Screen Awards Nominations 2012

Yes, it's that time of year again... AWARDS SEASON! Let's take a look at who made the cut for the Colors Screen Awards and possibly get a taste of who we'll be seeing parading around stage this winter.


BEST FILM

DELHI BELLY
NO ONE KILLED JESSICA
SHAITAN
SHOR IN THE CITY
THE DIRTY PICTURE
ZINDAGI NA MILEGI DOBARA

[Delhi Belly? Really? And no Dhobi Ghat or Rockstar... interesting.]

Friday Gossip!

Remember last year around this time when we were all really blown away by Vidya and Rani in the socially aware No One Killed Jessica?

This year... Players!

Speaking of performances, Neil Neitin Mukesh leads a pack of hammers who frequently use the word ‘predictable’, oh the irony! The predictability spreads like a virus and the only character untouched by the predictable obsession of predictability is the one portrayed by Deol and that's only because he doesn't talk! Neil, tries his best to act and play dirty but somehow he seems to manage to look like a loser. Bachchan looks like he will break into a romantic song any moment even when he is delivering a fierce action scene. Sonam’s stylist should have worked harder, for sure.

HA HA HA! Did you see the part I bolded? I kind of can't wait to see Players now.

Today in gossip... casting rumors; Bittoo Boss; song promos; new trailers; and all sorts of good stuff!

Ranveer Singh pimps his new "smooth" image for Maxim!

What think you, gentle readers?

I'm not a fan of this "cool" Ranveer... I like when his natural enthusiasm bubbles over.

Still, eye candy is eye candy... ammirite? Ammirite? *elbow elbow*

Thursday Gossip!

"Somebody" (i.e. me) is a little tired from drinking all night so there are only three things I feel you need to know today...

1. Life imitates art. Prem Chopra booked for fraud.

2. Tezz trailer.



I was a little skeptical when I saw Zayed Khan but then I saw Anil Kapoor with a gun and was like... okay!

3. Kahaani trailer.



Noooo! SEPTEMBER?! How are we supposed to wait that long?

Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011 #4

Counting down to 2012, I thought it would be fun to do my Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011!

(Although, yes, I realize that it's NOW 2012... just work with me here.)

List 11 - Top 11 Indian Film Songs According to Filmi Girl's iTunes

List 10 - Top 11 Scene Stealers of 2011

List 9 - Top 11 Films Filmi Girl Never Got To See

List 8 - Top 11 Things Filmi Girl Wants To Go Away in 2012

List 7 - Top 11 Bollywood Losers of 2011

List 6 - Top 11 Bossest Women in Bollywood

List 5 - Top 11 Filmi Moments of 2011

Top FILM Moments of 2011 (from movies I’ve seen)

#11 In which Rajapattai almost goes to a song but then doesn’t.

I didn’t need subtitles to know that this was hilarious.

Rajapattai already had a meta-aware feel to it, considering that Vikram’s character was supposed to be an (aspiring?) stunt man and was introduced to us in an elaborate fantasy sequence but this bit really got me guffawing. If you’ve seen enough masala films, you will be familiar with two things - 1) the tension that builds waiting for that first song and 2) the mechanics of the heroine introduction song. Rajapattai cleverly plays with both with a delicious fake-out to a heroine introduction song early on in the film.

As Vikram spots Deeksha Seth (and falls in love at first sight) in “real life” we flip to a beach filled with white tourists and Deeksha mincing along in the sand with her hair blowing in the wind. Music swells. As the audience settles in for a picturization, the camera pans behind Vikram (who has gone from tapori to cool dude) and we see... his four hulking comic relief friends (if I remember correctly) decked up in pastel suits, ready to dance.

Vikram calls a halt to the picturization immediately.

Like I said, it was hilarious; I’ll be waiting to see this gag in one or another Bollywood films next year.

Wednesday Gossip!

Today in gossip... Komal Nahta tries to explain why producers don't care if audiences are indifferent to their films; Abhishek's bad box office record gets him dropped from a film; Saif's daughter makes her magazine cover debut; and MORE!

Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011 #5

Counting down to 2012, I thought it would be fun to do my Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011!

(Although, yes, I realize that it's NOW 2012... just work with me here.)

List 11 - Top 11 Indian Film Songs According to Filmi Girl's iTunes

List 10 - Top 11 Scene Stealers of 2011

List 9 - Top 11 Films Filmi Girl Never Got To See

List 8 - Top 11 Things Filmi Girl Wants To Go Away in 2012

List 7 - Top 11 Bollywood Losers of 2011

List 6 - Top 11 Bossest Women in Bollywood

List 5...!

Top 11 Filmi Moments of 2011

#11 Karan Johar is getting married… APRIL FOOL’S!


Everybody’s favorite glass-closeted director gave us something to talk about when Masala magazine announced that he was getting married. To a woman. The collective gasp of disbelief amongst industry watchers (including myself) followed by a whole lot of fun speculating of what it all means.

Karan eventually dismissed the rumors, saying he was happy living with in his glass closet his mother, but we all certainly enjoyed the entertainment the rumor provided.

Tuesday Gossip!

Today in gossip - PLAYERS! Also, some snarky end of the year lists; release date announced; and yet more Players!

Are you ready for this?

Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011 #6

Counting down to 2012, I thought it would be fun to do my Top 11 Top 11 Lists of 2011!

List 11 - Top 11 Indian Film Songs According to Filmi Girl's iTunes

List 10 - Top 11 Scene Stealers of 2011

List 9 - Top 11 Films Filmi Girl Never Got To See

List 8 - Top 11 Things Filmi Girl Wants To Go Away in 2012

List 7 - Top 11 Bollywood Losers of 2011

I’m officially dubbing 2011 the Year of the Woman and I’m hoping this trend continues into 2012 and forever.

In celebration of all these amazing women TCB (Taking Care of Business) and just being awesome in general, here is List Number 6...!

Filmi Girl’s Top 11 Bossest Women OVER 30 in Bollywood.

[Alternate title: Women rule the world.]

#11 Malaika Arora Khan (38)
The Item Bomb


[Quote from this article.]

What makes a good item girl? As we found out in the last couple years, it takes more than the vaunted “bikini body” to create a sensation among people not paid by production companies. Remember Deepika in "Mit Jaaye Gham”? Me neither.

The hottest, most desirable, most sizzling item girl in Bollywood is not some attention-whoring clothes-dropping twenty-something but a classy, almost 40 year old with a saucy smile and some killer dance chops.

Where we'll see her next? An item song in Housefull 2. Titled "Anarkali Chali Disco" this is the song to look out for in 2012.

Monday Gossip... HAPPY NEW YEAR!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

I hope everybody had a fun night!

It's a new year and you know what that means... AWARDS SHOWS! Don't forget to vote for THE FILMFARE AWARDS! Should I do my contest again to see if we can guess all the winners?