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Alia Bhatt starrer biographical crime drama  Gangubai Kathiawadi  has been garnering positive responses from audience as well as critics. Within three days of its release, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s latest directorial had an impressive Sunday at the box office. According to trade analyst Taran Adarsh, the film that released in theatres on Friday (25 February), collected Rs 10.50 crore on its opening day. On the second day (26 February), it witnessed a rise in audience footfalls and earned Rs 13.32 crore. And, on Sunday (27 February) alone, the film gathered Rs 15.30 crore which took its total opening weekend collection to Rs 39.20 crore. “#GangubaiKathiawadi brings cheer, confidence and cinegoers back, solid total in Wknd 1… Day 3 sees big gains [most places]… #Mumbai, #Thane, #Pune, #Gujarat, #Delhi, #SouthIndia [parts] key contributors… Fri 10.50 cr, Sat 13.32 cr, Sun 15.30 cr. Total: ₹ 39.12 cr. #India biz,” Adarsh tweeted. Check out the tweet here: #GangubaiKathiawadi b...

Euphoria , the famed HBO series that often feels like the raunchier, unhinged cousin of Netflix’s Sex Education had been on hiatus for around two years. An unlikely cult hit, the first season became the stuff of legend for how casually it hyper-sexualised teenage life within the frameworks of a fantastical but ultimately explicit visual language. In between the first and second seasons, the show even released to standalone episodes to respond to near global clamour for biting into something that has always dripped with bloody, violent energy. The second season resumes where the first left off with Rue, Jules and the gang in Los Angeles navigating the aftermath of an explosive first season that established the show as simultaneously one of the bleakest and most beautiful things on television. We return in this new season with a New Year’s Eve party with a surprised deep-dive into the unlikely breakout star of the series, Fezco, Rue’s reluctant drug dealer played by an ethereal and ...

Ravindra Jain was a rare composer who wrote his lyrics. So he knew exactly what he wanted the tune to sing to the words. That explains the precise compositional vocabulary of    Tu jo mere sur mein sur milade(Chit Chor), Jab deep jale aana (Chit Chor), Ankhiyon ke jharonkon se(title song), Fakira chal chala chal (Fakira), Ley to aaye ho humein sapnon ki gaon mein(Dulhan Wohi Jo Piya Man Bhaye), Megha oh ri megha(Sunayana), Sajan mere main sajan ki(title song), Kya likhun kaise likhun(Maan Abhimaan ).  All these were sung by RJ’s muse Hemlata, a confessed Latabhakt with serious vocal limitations. Think of what these monumental compositions would have sounded like if the Goddess Of Melodious Things had sung them! The ‘Hem’ factor came in the way of RJ’s compositions, and this factor stopped them short of achieving the glory they were meant for. But whenever the dulcet composer collaborated with Lataji there was magic in the ‘ear’. At the beginning of his career RJ compose...

What a difference a month makes. In part one of my column about how the live music sector has changed for Indian independent acts since the onset of the pandemic, published in the last week of January, I wrote about how gigs were back at antiSOCIAL in Mumbai. I am typing out the second part on a weekend when over a dozen gigs are being staged in the city at more than half-a-dozen venues. Expectedly, most of them are electronic music events but they are followed closely by those featuring hip-hop acts. And the list includes the first legit live music festival to be staged since March 2020, Mahindra Open Drive, which was held at the outskirts. As promised, here is another set of my hypothesis that I tested by interviewing some of the country’s most prominent indie artist managers and promoters. Observation: Listeners’ tastes have expanded Consensus: True While rock and metal have lost a bit of ground, electronic and sub-genres such as house and techno have retained their status as t...

“It is going to be Entertainment, Entertainment, Entertainment,” says Poonam Pandey just before entering the  Lock Upp  House. Lock Upp: Badass Jail Atyaachaari Khel,  a collaboration between MXPlayer and Ekta Kapoor’s ALTBalaji, is touted to be the most fearless captive reality digital show, where 16 controversial celebrities are put together in a ‘lock-up’ for 72 days while they are stripped of their amenities.  Lock Upp  will challenge the contestants to survive in extreme conditions where they will have to win tasks to achieve basic necessities. They would even have to play the game, and fight for getting bail to survive on the show. Model-actress Pandey, who has often hogged the limelight for controversies, says she never thought twice before saying ‘yes’ to  Lock Upp , because she was 'craving work’. Hosted by Kangana Ranaut, the show went live on Sunday, 27 February, 10 PM on ALTBalaji and MXPlayer. "I had no option but to say ‘yes’ to the sh...

1.      Jhund  is a rarity in Mr. Bachchan’s career. For a change, he plays a real-life character. In most of his films barring Ram Gopal Varma’s  Sarkar  where he played a character modeled on Bal Thackeray, Mr. Bachchan has played seething simmering sometimes smirking larger-than-life fictional characters. I am not counting the umpteenth occasions when he has played himself in cameo roles in  Pet Pyaar Aur Paap, Kaun Jeeta Kaun Hara, Jalwa, Chashme Buddoor, Hero Hiralal, Biwi No.1, Ramji Londonwaley , the Marathi film  Akka , and the Kannada film  Amrithadhare . 2. In  Jhund  Mr. B plays Vijay Barse, a legendary figure among street children of Nagpur, Vijay Barse motivated underprivileged kids to play football. Interestingly, the name Vijay follows Mr. Bachchan even into his first TrueBlue-biopic. The megastar-actor par excellence spent a large part of his life playing the character of the Angry Young Man Vijay written by Salim-J...

In this, the golden age of geekdom, Sounds Geek To Me is a column that seeks to discuss and dissect the latest from the various fandom universes, new and old. From Marvel to Middle Earth to The Matrix, sci-fi sensations to superheroes, galaxies far far away to wizarding worlds, the column aims to inform, opine and take fantasy storytelling far too seriously. * “I am vengeance,” snarls the man behind the iconic mask with a quiet fury, in the trailer of Hollywood’s latest iteration of one the most iconic fictional figures of all time. We are days away from discovering what Matt Reeves and Robert Pattinson [Battinson?] do with the Dark Knight. What better time then, to revisit the various on-screen incarnations of the Caped Crusader, and how he has evolved over the years. While many may feel the understandable ‘oh god not another one’ sentiment, I maintain a new Batman movie remains an incredibly exciting prospect. Not just because he is one of my favourite characters, but also becaus...

How do Bollywood actors take care of their mental health? This area of their life is often a mystery because their physique tends to hog much of the limelight. Moreover, there is a cultural silence around mental health. People are reluctant to open up about their daily struggles because they worry about being laughed at, stigmatized, or rejected. The anxiety seems justified, given the lack of understanding about mental health in our society. Samir Soni, who has acted in films such as China Gate (1998), Lajja (2001), Baghban (2003), Fashion (2008), I Hate Luv Storys (2010), and Student of the Year 2 (2019), has written an eye-opening account of his mental health journey in a book titled My Experiments with Silence: The Diary of An Introvert . It has been published by Om Books International. This book is not about working with a therapist, life coach or spiritual guru. It is about placing faith in one’s capacity to introspect, watch thought patterns, work things out on one’s own,...

How do Bollywood actors take care of their mental health? This area of their life is often a mystery because their physique tends to hog much of the limelight. Moreover, there is a cultural silence around mental health. People are reluctant to open up about their daily struggles because they worry about being laughed at, stigmatized, or rejected. The anxiety seems justified, given the lack of understanding about mental health in our society. Samir Soni, who has acted in films such as China Gate (1998), Lajja (2001), Baghban (2003), Fashion (2008), I Hate Luv Storys (2010), and Student of the Year 2 (2019), has written an eye-opening account of his mental health journey in a book titled My Experiments with Silence: The Diary of An Introvert . It has been published by Om Books International. This book is not about working with a therapist, life coach or spiritual guru. It is about placing faith in one’s capacity to introspect, watch thought patterns, work things out on one’s own,...

Back in 2007, a school dropout from my batch became talk of the town after she appeared on the iconic and messy interview round of the cult TV show MTV Roadies . Because small towns essentially behave like joint families, her solitary appearance in an episode made her more popular in town than any other accomplishment, academic or otherwise, ever could have. Television still ruled the roost in terms of advertising and framing of culture back then, but the previous stronghold of Bollywood had begun to somewhat weaken with arrival of edgy content and channels like MTV and Channel V. As young teenagers, we gravitated to the global, more risqué sensibilities that suddenly began to feed into the idea of a counter-culture. Small-town kids have this pent up energy and restraint waiting to unspool into the open landscapes of freedom that the cities offer, and Roadies became this imprecise but significant moment in the country’s coming-of-age story that though toxic at times, also represente...

While every actor in the smallest of roles shines in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s  Gangubai Kathiawadi  there is one actor who appears on just one scene as a guest at a party hosted by Ajay Devgan, and you can’t miss him. He is none other than veteran actor Raza Murad who agreed to be part of the film for Bhansali’s sake. Says Raza Murad, “I am the only actor, who has worked with him in four consecutive movies. There was no suitable role for me in  Gangubai Kathiawadi . So Sanjay Sir told me that he wanted me in the movie because I am his lucky mascot, therefore I happily agreed to be a tiny part of Gangubai.” Raza Murad considers it his good fortune to have worked repeatedly with Raj Kapoor and Sanjay Bhansali. “I feel very lucky to have worked with two of the most passionate and perfectionist makers of all times, Raj Kapoor in his last two movies as the main villain in   Prem Rog  and  Ram Teri Ganga Maili  and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's last four mo...

Upcoming reality show Lock Upp hosted by Bollywood star Kangana Ranaut is all set to premiere on MX Player and ALT Balaji soon. While it is not clear if the show will premiere on 27 February, the makers have revealed the fifth contestant of the show – Karanvir Bohra. The actor shared the promo where he is seen behind bars. Alongside his post, he wrote, “Mujhe hai qubool, hamaari queen ka har ek rule!” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kaaranvir Bohra (@karanvirbohra) The actor can be seen garnering praises of his fans, and paparazzi clicking pictures in the video. The audience is then introduced to Karanvir Bohra, dressed in an orange jumpsuit. He is seen holding a clapboard that read, “Inmate No 5, Kaaranvir Bohra. Charge: Steals the limelight.” Controversy queen Poonam Pandey, actress Nisha Rawal, comedian Munawar Faruqui and wrestler Babita Phogat are also set to participate in the show.   by FP Staff

With a pulse-pounding criminal investigation and a complex hero living in the dark to discover the truth, Disney+ Hotstar is set to release its much-awaited series, Hotstar Specials’ Rudra - The Edge of Darkness, on 4 March. Helmed by ace director Rajesh Mapuskar, this riveting crime thriller is headlined by celebrated actor Ajay Devgn in an intense avatar of a cop for the first time in a series. Spanning across six episodes, the series has been shot across multiple unique locations in Mumbai and reimagines the city from the lens of the country’s most wanted. Produced by Applause Entertainment in association with BBC Studios India, the crime drama features a stellar cast including Raashi Khanna, Esha Deol, Atul Kulkarni, Ashwini Kalsekar, Tarun Gahlot, Ashish Vidyarthi, and Satyadeep Misra in pivotal roles. Ajay Devgn has been garnering a lot of appreciation for his power play as Rudra. When asked how he would describe his character, the actor shared, “The concept of Rudra was intrigu...

When I first watched Dum Laga Ke Haisha, starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Bhumi Pednekar, honestly, I was surprised. Did Bollywood actually make a film with a fat actor without shaming her or using her for comic relief? Does this mean chubby women like me will finally find representation in Bollywood films? In the film that released on this day seven years ago, 27 February, 2015, Sandhya [Pednekar] is an educated girl who gets married to Prem [Khurrana], who does not like her because she is fat and does not fit into his idea of a dream girl. Prem often fat-shames her. However, Sandhya does not take any of his bullsh*t. In fact, she calls him out saying that at least she is educated, and is capable enough to earn her own bread and butter. The film beautifully depicts how difficult it is for fat women to have a successful arranged marriage, and it normalises fat female characters. It shows that fat women can have a normal life too, can participate in races, build a career, and have a g...

If Manmohan Desai had lived he would have been a ripe young 84 on 26 February, still revved-up about movies and life, in that order. Still refusing to be still even for a minute. When I met him in 1986 he already had his chronic back problem, but the enthusiasm was undiminished. He would sit up, jump out of his chair, talk animatedly for a few minutes and then lie down when his back complained against the strain. “This back of mine, meri jaan le legi ,” he complained. Little did we know that his flippant words of protest would come true 8 years later when MKD (as everyone called him) climbed the water tank of his home’s rooftop, placed his chappals neatly in one corner, and then, apparently jumped to his death. This was the gruesome inglorious death of a man who brought smiles to millions with his outrageously over-the-top films, most of them based on the lost-and-found theme whereby siblings were separated during childhood and reunited at the end of the film. “People ask me how thi...