Vidya Balan

By Jilawatan

Bollywood’s A-list actresses, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Vidya Balan will be handing out backstage passes into the glitzy and glamourous world of the showbiz industry with their next releases titled; Heroine and The Dirty Picture.
However, Aish and director Madhur Bhandarkar are one step ahead with their film Heroine, which has already been launched at the Cannes Film Festival, and what better place to create awareness than at an international event? The film is said to be an entertaining, daring, emotional, shocking, glamorous, scandalous behind-the-scenes look at the reality of the showbiz world. The buzz is that the movie is based on the real life story of America’s pop and cultural icon, Marilyn Monroe, however the Heroine team begs to differ and says it’s a story of a Bollywood star.
Film marker Madhur Bhandarkar, who is known for his female orientated movies having previously worked with some of Bollywood’s top actresses, Tabu, Konkana Sen Sharama, Bipasha Basu and Priyanka Chopra, was asked why has he opted out for Aishwarya this time to be his lucky mascot? At the Cannes film festival he told the press, “Rai is a much-talked about actress internationally and I think she truly is a global star in every sense.”
On the other hand, director Milan Luthna has decided to cast the recent award winning actress, Vidya Balan in the movie, The Dirty Picture. Rumour has it that the movie will have elements of soft porn incorporated, however the director has reassured Vidya she will not be presented in a cheap manner, but shown in an aesthetically artistic and sensual manner with a touch of class.
In the meantime, Vidya has been asked to study the English films, Burlesque and Chicago – even the big stars in Bollywood have homework to do!
So which movie are you looking forward to watching?

By Jilawatan

There are two films being made on heroines and their lives. One is The Dirty Picture which has Vidya Balan in the lead and the other is Heroine that stars Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the lead role.

While Vidya essays a Silk Smitha-type character in Milan Luthria’s film, the second sees Ash playing the role of a superstar whose career is fading away in the Madhur Bhandarkar directed flick.

Now both directors have stepped up their pace to ensure that their project goes on the floor as soon as possible. Madhur wants to release the film after Ra.One while Milan is working with Sanjay Dutt and Ajay Devgn.

By Jilawatan

No, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is not getting competition with her husband! However, buzz is that the two actresses have been roped in to play wives to Junior Bachchan in two upcoming films.

Vidya Balan, who has been on a guest starring spree, has been roped in to play Abhishek’s better half in Dum Maaro Dum. Earlier, the actress had signed up for a cameo in ‘Thank You’, playing Akshay Kumar’s wife.

This is not the first time that the actress has been seen opposite Abhishek Bachchan. The duo were seen together in ‘Paa’, where they played parents to Amitabh Bachchan.

Kangna Ranaut, on the other hand has taken up a role opposite Bachchan Junior in RGV’s next, Department.

The film, which has just been announced, revolves around three cops and the extra-constitutional activities they engage in to maintain a civil society.

By Jilawatan

Vidya Balan refused to step into Hema Malini’s shoes in the remake of the 1982 blockbuster Satte Pe Satta. She will definitely not be the one to yet again reform the seven untamed brothers living on a ranch.

“Vidya didn’t want to do this film simply because she feels that Satte Pe Satta should not be tampered with. That film is too iconic to be copied or revised,” explains a source about the actress’s reason for turning down Sanjay Dutt’s offer.

While Dutt will essay the role that Amitabh Bachchan played in the original film, he is having difficulty casting the female lead. Balan has point-blank refused to take on this challenging project, which will be directed by Soham Shah.

When the filmmakers spoke to Vidya’s manager, she did not make them wait too long for a reply. We last heard that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan might do the film. Let’s wait and watch.

Both, Balan and Bachchan, remained unavailable for comment.

By Jilawatan

Bollywood is considered to be a superstitious lot, not willing to take risks especially when it comes to trying to ensure the success of their films at the box-office.

Apart from auspicious mahurat dates and naming of films, even casting of actors considered lucky mascots for the makers is increasingly the norm. So, what happens when both the leading actor, as well as, the film-maker have their own ‘lucky’ stars. Well, they simply cast both! And according to the buzz that’s what happened in Anees Bazmee’s Thank You. The film that stars Akshay Kumar, Sonam Kapoor and Bobby Deol also has a surprise cameo by actor Vidya Balan, apart from an item number by Mallika Sherawat.

Apparently, while Bazmee considered it was lucky to include Mallika as she she had made a cameo in his earlier hit Welcome, Vidya is considered to be lucky for Akki and reportedly that is what helped the director zero in on her for a vital role opposite Akshay. A source reveals, “Akshay and Vidya have had two superhits together Bhool Bhulaiya and Heyy Babyy and hopefully the combination will click again. So the makers agreed immediately and cast Vidya.” In fact according to another insider, the length of her character was considerably increased and even a song was thrown in after Vidya agreed to come on board. The source adds, “Vidya’s also of course a talented actor, so it was like a win-win situation for the film. So things fell into place, even though Anees already had his own lucky actor Mallika in the film.”

But Sherawat and Balan are not the only ones. Rani Mukerji and Kajol too have been considered film-maker Karan Johar’s lucky charms, although he has gone on record claiming Shah Rukh Khan to be the luckiest mascot. In fact, according to Bolly-lore, if Kajol tripped while shooting for a film, then the film was bound to be a super hit.

Actor Salman Khan is the lucky boy for the Barjatyas, while Katrina Kaif’s been proven lucky for Akshay. Anushka Sharma’s now being considered lucky for her film-makers too. Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali swears by his heroine Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, while actor Sridevi was apparently the lucky mascot for the Chopras. Actor Madhuri Dixit was considered to be lucky for Indra Kumar, but then so was a particular tree in Ooty that he featured in all his films, while Urmila Matondkar was both the muse and the mascot for Ram Gopal Varma.

By Jilawatan

Will Aishwarya Rai Bachchan topple Vidya Balan in the battle to bag the female lead opposite Sanjay Dutt in the remake of Satte Pe Satta? The two heroines were cast together in Guru, where Ash had a bigger role, but Vidya gave a better performance.

A lot of water has flown under the bridge since then. Ash has a disastrous record opposite Sanju. The 2002 film Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin, where the two costarred, was a big flop.

And then there was Leena Yadav’s Shabd, another box office disaster. Vidya, on the other hand, has had a good run with Sanju. The first film she did with him, Parineeta, was a critical as well as a commercial success.

Later, Lage Raho Munnabhai was also received extremely well at the box office. Will the makers of the film choose talent over glamour, or cast Ash in the hope of cashing in on her considerable box office clout?

By Jilawatan

Talented Bollywood actor Vidya Balan will play one of the three female leads opposite Rajinikanth in Rana.

Southern superstar Ranjinikanth will play a triple role in Rana, which will be directed by KS Ravi Kumar. Rekha and Deepika Padukone were confirmed earlier and now Vidya

“The makers wanted a girl with a distinctly Indian look and who would click with the South audience well. Rajni has a triple role in Rana. Two are full-fledged parts while the third is a cameo. Rekha will co-star opposite the older Rajnikanth, Vidya with the middle-aged one and Deepika opposite the youngest,” a source told Mid Day.

After casting Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Robot, he has roped in three more Bollywood heroines for Rana. Seems the southern actor can’t have enough of B-town beauties.

The movie will hit the floors in April. Get ready for Rajni’s triple avataar.

By Jilawatan

It was reported that Vidya Balan was offered to play the lead in ‘Satte Pe Satta’ remake and lapped up the role as soon as it was offered.

However, a source reveals that it’s Aishwarya Rai Bachchan who has been appoached to play Sanjay Dutt’s wife in the remake and it was never Vidya.

The film is being produced by Sanjay Dutt’s production house, and Sanju is very keen that Ash plays his better half in the movie. Soham Shah is all set to direct the remake of this classic, and it is heard that the writer and he will fly all the way to New Zealand to give Ash a narration.

Ash is keeping hubby Abhishek some company in New Zealand while he shoots for ‘Players’ there.

By Jilawatan

Actress Vidya Balan is being taken seriously, for sure. The girl has proved herself time and again in films like ‘Parineeta’ and ‘Paa’. Now, the talks doing the rounds are that the South Indian actress has been offered a movie opposite Rajinikanth.

According to sources, the film that was titled ‘Sultan’ will now be called ‘Hara’, and this movie that was to be a 3D animation film will now consist of part 3D and part live performance, and Vidya Balan is being considered for the role of female protagonist!

Directed by Soundarya Rajinikant, the film, we hear, is going through phenomenal creative changes, and the end product is being envisaged to be quite different from the initial ‘Sultan’. It is learnt that another director, KS Ravikumar, will be joining forces with Soundarya and will enjoy the designation of co-director.

We wonder what caused the change in perception of this mega-budget film, that has surely become much more expensive. It is possible that the format of the very successful ‘Robot’ (part sci-fi starring Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) is being applied here, too. However, with the returns that Rajni promises at the box office, no pocket seems too deep.

By Jilawatan

The Bachchans family has found a new fan in form of Bollywood actress Vidya Balan. Now a days Vidya Balan could be seen singing praises for superstar Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

Actually the actress is all set to share the silver screen with Amitabh Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan. She is doing a film ‘Pa’ with Big B and Junior B.

So, the praise comes naturally. The actress believes that duo might add a hit film in her kitty.

‘Pa’ is being directed by R Balki. However, Vidya worked with Amitabh in ‘Eklavya’