Nayyar was a composed for almosy 6 decades. One of his most popular favorites was "Mera Naam Chin Chin Choo" from Howrah Bridge. He did a lot of work with Geetta Dutt & Mohd. rafi. He had a relationship with playback singer Asha Bhosle which was filled with scandalized by the press. After that ended, he had some difficulties because neither Asha nor Lata would sing for him.

The song from Howrah Bridge was recently remixed in Hollywood/Bollywood.

of course, it's Shilpa Shetty! She won Big Brother by beating out Jermaine Jackson with 63 percent of the vote. After finding out she won, she exclaimed,  "I can't believe it."

I found this article today while browsing. It's all about Maryem Tollar who's the voice behind Guru's opening song Mayya Mayya. She's Egyptian-Canadian and resides in Toronto. The song has a middle eastern flare to it so her voice fit the bill as she sings mostly in Arabic.

I was able to make it to the 1:30PM show today at the ImaginAsian. It was packed! Well, not fully, but 85%. It's the biggest turn out I've seen there for a weekday, afternoon show.

This movie was really great!! I was really pleased with it and wasn't bored for a moment. It was nice that one couple didn't override the whole story. It was a nice mix and every relationship was fully explored.

Vidya Balan and John Abraham had the most compelling story I think. I really hope to see more of Vidya in the future. Even Salman Khan did a great job, maybe it's because it's the first movie I've seen of his in a long time where he isn't say "bro" or "buddy" in every line. Govinda did a great job as well. Looks like this was a great choice for him to continue with his "comeback". I also enjoyed the references to other films throughout the film. Usually, this can be annoying if overdone, but it was done with a lot of humor.

So yeah, overall I was really pleased. 2007 is off to a good start with Guru & Salaam-E-Ishq.

I swear, all this Shilpa mania is creating quite a snooze in the news world.
However, I did run across this "article" that reminds me of better times (just kidding).
It's a stupid article.

Salman Khan sends congratulatory SMS to Abhishek

Yeah, I'm sure.  Who comes up with these things? They are very creative.
Sorry, slow news day!

PS: Salaam-E-Ishq premieres Jan 26. I hope to go if I play my cards right.

Sort of...
Four top directors are creating short films about AIDS and AIDS education to be shown before blockbuster films. They hope to ride on the starpower of the feature films to get their message across.

Mira Nair (Salaam Bombay!, Monsoon Wedding, Vanity Fair) will be directing one of the flicks. She stated in a press conference that she was unable to get any big stars to appear in her short. That's unfortunate because I think that would boost the viewer's attention. 2 of the films will be in Hindi & the other two in Tamil.

Only two films have been made so far addressing the issue & neither were very 'commercial' - they were Phir Milenge & My Brother Nikhil.

According to UNAIDS there are 5.7 million people in India living with HIV/AIDS.

The February issue will be hitting newstands soon.
Rani's been reported to be the only woman who made the top 10 list.
The list is voted on by 200 people in the film industry and it can include anyone from actors to distributors. Congrats, Rani.

..it's been all over the news, Jane Goody has been evicted from the Big Brother house after an 82% vote. Wow, you can't argue with that. She's going to be placed in a safe house for a week, I'm assuming that the Chan 4 people are thinking this will all pass within a week. Goody has lost product endorsement deals and other contracts due to her behavior on the show.

In an odd turn, a British Newspaper is giving away copies of Shetty's hit Phir Milenge, perhaps to spread goodwill ands say "Goodbye" to Jane? In a recent poll, 55% of Britons stated that Goody's comments did not reflect their own.

Post eviction, Goody's comments from the show were read back at her and she replied, "Oh my God, maybe I am racist...I look like a complete and utter nasty small person - the sort of person I don't like myself," but continued: "I am not a racist and I sincerely, with my hand on my heart, apologise to anyone I have offended out there."

Phir Milenge, Jane!

Finally got a chance to check out Guru today. There were actually quite a lot of people in the theatre even tho it was the middle of the day! It was rather nasty out (slushy rain).

I really enjoyed this movie. Mani Ratnam really knows how to direct his actors which was apparent in their deliveries throughout the movie.  Aishwarya and Abhishek had a nice chemistry going in this movie which was a relief. They were very believable! Also the makeup artists did a great job. Abhishek looked very youthful in the beginning of the flick. Sometimes he looks too old to play a 20 something year old.

There were some funny moments that were reflected by the audience. They spawned from the post Abishek-Aishwarya engagement. There's a scene where Guru is sitting with his future brother in law & he joked with him about how his bride to be is older than him. There was a communal chuckle at that one. There were a few other instances, but that one really stuck out.

Great soundtrack, although I'm upset the songs weren't subtitled. Also, they subtitles left a lot of the dialogue out. I was a little confused with the whole Meenu subplot, but it definitely brought out the handkerchiefs in the theatre. It was a bit odd that Guru's brother in law was killed off the plot so early, never to really return. Must add that our man the Disco Dancer Mithun Chakraborty did a great job in the movie. And was that Naseeruddin Shah appear at the end of the movie Or am I imagining that? That was a nice surprise.

Anyway, go see it if you can. It's a little weak in places, but overall it's very entertaining.

wow, the press is really going to town now. Already a sponsor of the show has withdrawn and now Shulpa's mother is telling the media that she wishes her daughter would quit the show. The producers are saying she's not being subjected to racism, but rather a "culture and class clash".

Hrmm...interesting. I wonder where this will all end up?

SRK will be joining Amitabh Bachchan & Aishwarya Rai at London's Madame Tussaud's. He will be the third Bollywood star join their collection. I wonder what "era" they will use of SRK? Maybe some mid 90s clothing a la DDLJ?

Sometimes they get creative at Madame Tussaud's. For instance, they started posing Brangelina closer together to reflect what was going on in the tabloids. I wonder if they will have Amitabh and Shah Rukh Khan duke it out in wax?

Stay Tuned!

As mentioned yesterday, there's been some contraversy in the Big Brother UK house. Many are complaining that Shilpa Shetty is being subjected to racism on the show.

A Media "watchdog" group Ofcom has received over 7000 letters regarding the racism. The topic even came up in the House of Commons. I will refrain from repeating some of the comments that were made by the housemates because they're rather ignorant :/

In any case, I think Shilpa will come out on top from all the publicity as she's keeping her cool throughout the ordeal. She has many fans in the UK.

Good luck, Shilpa!

Sorry folks, slow news day. It's all Aish & Abhishek! Aish & Abhishek! Aish & Abhishek!
Hopefully there will be some more new soon.

Although, I did see some articles on some complaints of racism occurring in the Big Brother UK house towards Shilpa Shetty. I am curious to see some of these episodes, I wonder if anyone's YouTubing them?

Abhishek & Aishwarya are engaged.
The proposal supposedly happened last week here in The Big Apple.
OK so does that mean the two of you can stop being so BORING in the films you're in? I've heard mixed reviews of Guru so far.  I hope it's not as bad as Umrao Jaan. Don't get me wrong, I like them both seprately, but they have no chemistry on screen together.

Maybe now that they're no longer hiding this, they can actually be better actors.

PS: Why on earth are the US press referring to them as India's 'Brangelina"??? I don't see any similarities between the two couples.

What?!?!?! The Amitabh V SRK feud showed up on the Colbert Report? A friend FWD'd me a link to this hilarious video from the Colbert Report. I don't have cable, so I am clueless to these things, but it's too funny. He must know he's pronouncing the names wrong - it's very deadpan.
I really don't get how this topic turned up on his show, but man it's a must see. The clips from Mohabbatein are too good within the segment. Teehee.

Robbie Williams & Asha Bhosle duet!?

Apparently Robbie's going to appear on a track on Asha's new album Asha and Friends. What an interesting combo.

Bachchans Barefoot Trek

Little B and Big B made a 15k  barefoot trek from their home in Juhu to the Siddhivinayak temple. The walk took four and a half hours. There are speculations that they went to visit the temple to offer prayers for Amitabh's mother.

Hema Malini on role in Baabul

Finally, Hema is making some comments on her minimal role in the flick. As I stated previously, I was disappointed that she wasn't given a strong role in the film. Especially because she and Amitabh make a great on screen couple.

She also stated, "In fact, I've been photographed very badly...I don't think I've ever looked so bad." Awww...poor dear! You didn't look that bad. I think Hema looks great, but she really didn't get an opportunity to shine in Baabul. Read here for the full interview.

Minister of Culture adviser Najib Manalai stated that the movie was offensive towards the Hazara ( a Shi'ite Muslim minority). Therefore, it was to be banned in the country. Manalai also stated that Afghans in the movie who said any lines that were derogatory would be questioned by the government.

Wow, I didn't think such a smooshy attempt at Docu-drama would cause so much controversy.  The producers of the film have apologized. Really, I wouldn't be surprised if bootlegs get into Afghanistan anyway, those bootleg traders are rabid.

Bollywood starlet Shilpa Shetty is going to be living in the UK Big Brother house. Man, why are they even still making this show? It's so bad. It's going around that she was paid around 362,300 pounds for the "position". This should be interesting, because usually these shows turn into a skankfest. I can't see that going over well with Shilpa's fans.

Mani Ratham's Guru will be showing at the ImaginAsian on Jan 12, 2007. The movie is starring Abhishek Bachchan & Aishwarya Rai. I don't have the showtimes yet, I hope they do an afternoon show like they did for the opening of Kabul Express. Although, I think this movie is a bigger opening, so maybe they'll save it for the evening. I am looking forward to seeing this one. The reviews so far have been positive. I hope some of Aishwarya's iceyness has melted due to global warming.

The Film will be premiered in N. America on Jan 11 in Toronto. The cast, director & producers will be present for the opening. Anyone up for a trip to Toronto?

So Itunes must be reading their suggestion letters because all of a sudden there's been an onslaught of new  Soundtracks placed on their site. When I say "new" I don't necessarily mean all new releases, but New-To-Itunes.
Here are some of the new ones I've found while browsing recently:
Faana, Omkara, Yuva, Dhoom, Baabul, Salaam Namaste, Gangster, Krrish, Bhagam Bhag  etc.
Uhm, can you guys get the Salaam-E-Ishq soundtrack sometime? I have this thing against buying CDs - they take up too much room.

Came across this Head line while scanning the news today...

Bollywood songs are often distracting, says script guru

hahahah. This is coming from a writer named Syd Field. I don't think Mr Field 'gets' it. The interview says that Mr Field is  "baffled when Bollywood stars suddenly break into song and dance and says he often finds them distracting."

He's giving some script writing workshop in Mumbai. Hrm. maybe while he's there he can catch up on some films. At least he admits to not seeing many Hindi flix, so he better get cracking!

• Mani Ratnam's Guru starring Abhishek & Aishwarya. I really hope they have better chemistry in this flick than they did in Umrao Jaan. Their lack of chemistry really ruined that movie.

• Nikhil Advani's Salaam-E-Ishq is coming out. This one looks good in the previews at least, even though it has Salman Khan.

• Pradeep Sarkar's tentatively named Chudiyan is still in the works. Jaya Bachchan is starring in this flick. It will be nice to see her on screen again.

Let's hope for a 2007 that's not so saturated with more remakes. blah!