Bollywood News and Stories From India

Padmaavat recorded a huge extended weekend of 110 crore nett apprx which includes four days plus paid previews. This has been done with 25% of the total market missing over the four days. The real value of this business is around 145 crore nett if you apply the territory figures which would have come if it played all over. The business on Sunday is 30 crore nett apprx which again is huge if we consider Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh missing and some other parts of the country. The film is looking the biggest outright Hindi film South India has seen as the collections started at record levels and have held. Mumbai / Maharashtra has also seen record collections. The key belts of Delhi NCR and East Punjab are not huge but have trended very strong post Republic Day and look set for a good run. This area has never come on for a Bhansali film in a big way like this. Devdas did well enough but not great. The film has done exceptionally well to get this far considering the release a...

Asha Parekh on Padmaavat: I wonder what the Karni Sena is shouting and raging about Hema Malini, Asha Parekh and Waheeda Rehman cannot stop raving about Sanjay Leela Bhansali's magnum opus Padmaavat and say that this is a film that will be remembered forever. “The nation has gone mad,” said a furious Asha Parekh, the veteran actress who saw Padmaavat a few days back at a special screening organised by the director Sanjay Leela Bhansali. “Believe me, I haven’t been able to sleep. I am in a trance after watching the film,” said Asha, an unabashed fan of Bhansali’s work. “The work he extracts from his actors… I wish I could become 30 years younger to play a Bhansali heroine. But having said that, I would like to congratulate Deepika Padukone for her performance. “If today I had to make a film on Rani Padmavati, I would cast none other but Deepika,” she said. Asha watched the special screening on Thursday. “Her grace, when she dances or acts is simply commendable. R...

IIM-Ahmedabad to Study Blockbuster Success of Film 'Baahubali' The case study, to be completed in another four months, is part of a course that focusses on the business of the Indian film industry, starting from the selection of scripts to the films hitting the screens. The Indian Institute of Management-Ahmedabad (IIMA) is working on a case study on blockbuster "Baahubali" to highlight how art, business and technology combined to deliver a hugely successful film franchise. Being authored by IIMA alumnus and visiting faculty Bharathan Kandaswamy, the case study is part of an elective course on movie business offered to the second year students of the institute's flagship programme in management. "Baahubali is a path-breaking Indian movie that combines art, business, and technology in a brilliant way. Most of the time, films are creative and artistic but are not able to do good business. Sometimes the technology is not used effectively enou...

Sushmita Sen Ready To Return, Looking For 'Perfect Script' Sushmita, along with younger daughter Alisah, was present at the Rouble Nagi Art Foundation's Republic Day celebration with kids on Friday. Former Miss Universe Sushmita Sen, who was last seen in 2010 film No Problem, says that she has been looking at scripts for the past one and a half years. Sushmita, along with younger daughter Alisah, was present at the Rouble Nagi Art Foundation's Republic Day celebration with kids on Friday. Asked when could the fans expect her return, Sushmita said: "I have been looking at scripts again for the past one and a half year. "I think I am ready to commit six months of my life to a film. But, just because I am ready, doesn't mean the perfect script is ready for me." The 1994 Miss Universe also revealed that her greatest ambition was not to become a star but to remain connected with people. "Like I have always said, I will ...

Swara Bhaskar said she was hopeful that Bhansali would offer "some sort of a critique" of Sati and Jauhar in the film. Actor Swara Bhaskar, who is known for being outspoken about her thoughts and has constantly portrayed characters with great strength, has called out director Sanjay Leela Bhansali for glorifying Sati and Jauhar in his film Padmaavat, in an open letter published in The Wire on Saturday. Extremely disappointed by the film's climax, which features Padmavati (played by Deepika Padukone) walking in immense anger as other women follow her to commit self-immolation, Swara said after watching the particular scene "I felt reduced to a vagina–only" as it made her feel like all the "minor achievements that women and women’s movements have made over the years– like the right to vote, the right to education, equal pay for equal work, maternity leave... all of it was pointless; because we were back to basics." The actor said she unde...

Mira Nair Reveals Why She Turned Down The Offer To Direct Harry Potter 4.  Speaking at the Jaipur Literature Festival, the 60-year-old director said despite being a big budget and "completely hot button" film, she always wanted to make it. Critically-acclaimed filmmaker Mira Nair has said her 2012 movie The Reluctant Fundamentalist, a post-9/11 political thriller based on an eponymous novel, was the "hardest" film she has ever made. Speaking at the Jaipur Literature Festival, the 60-year-old director said despite being a big budget and "completely hot button" film, she always wanted to make it. Nair said she was moved by the narrative of the 2007 best-selling novel by Pakistani writer Mohsin Hamid. "The Reluctant Fundamentalist is the hardest film I ever made because it took five years to finance that film. I have never had trouble raising money but this was a big film. Many stars, global appetite and many countries, it cost mill...

Deepika On Padmaavat Threats: My Parents Were Confident I Could Handle It, Never Had Once Asked If They Should Come and Live With Me.  The film "Padmaavat" went through a lot of turmoil as Shri Rajput Karni Sena objected to its making and release over alleged misinterpretation of the Rajput community's history. Actor Deepika Padukone, who faced threats over Padmaavat, says she remained confident throughout the row due to the upbringing she got from her parents, who were full of pride after watching the movie. At a select media meet over a Marwari thali here on Saturday, Deepika looked calm, content and relaxed after the release of Padmaavat. She is counting her blessings. "My parents are immensely proud. I saw that pride on their face. Mom and dad made a video call after their screening finished late at night and I was in my pyjama and going to bed. So for them, they just saw the film and then me... So, their expression was like, 'Is she our daughte...