ShowBiz

Los Angeles, Aug 31 (IANS) Actor Ewan McGregor thought he was too "urban grunge" to star in 'Star Wars'.

Playing Obi-Wan Kenobi in the prequel trilogy of the sci-fi franchise, the 51-year-old star revealed that he nearly turned down the part as he wanted more indie roles following his success in 'Trainspotting', reports aceshowbiz.com.

"I was like, 'I am Danny Boyle's actor'," the actor quipped. "I am f****** urban grunge. I am the Oasis of the British movie industry, and then when 'Star Wars' came around, I felt, 'I don't know if I want to do this. This isn't me'."

"I was so into being this sort of antihero. I felt like an indie British actor. I felt like that defined me."

McGregor said that it was a childhood love of the franchise that ultimately persuaded him to take the part.

The 'Moulin Rouge' star recalled: "In the end, it just got closer and closer. By that time, I was just so attached to the idea of it from where I was a kid. To get a chance to be that character and play the younger Alec Guinness was pretty awesome.

"I was almost grateful to be involved in something that big and to be part of the legend of it, because I loved it. When I was a kid, I loved those films. I was six or seven when the first one came out. It's in me somehow."

Ewan, who reprised his role as the Jedi for the Disney+ spin-off series 'Obi-Wan Kenobi', says that making the sci-fi films was hugely different from featuring in indie projects.

"It's a different process. Those prequels, it was very much the challenge of trying to be believable in front of a blue curtain for four months."

--IANS
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New Delhi, Aug 30 (IANS) A Delhi court has issued a fresh summon to filmmaker Leena Manimekalai in a suit filed against the depiction of Hindu goddess Kaali in the poster of her controversial film by the same name, video and tweet "in a very uncalled way".

Civil Judge Abhishek Kumar of Tis Hazari Courts, in an order dated August 29, noted the submissions of plaintiff Adv Raj Gaurav, in which it was stated that an application filed by him on the previous date is pending for adjudication.

He also sought to serve the notice to the defendants (Manimekalai and others) through e­-mail as well as WhatsApp.

"In view of the submissions, let summons be issued afresh through all modes including service through e-­mail as well as Whatsapp," the judge ordered.

The matter will be next heard on November 1.

Earlier in July, the court had issued summons to Manimekalai.

The plea moved by advocate Raj Gaurav contended that the poster of the film depicts the goddess smoking, which not only hurts the religious sentiments of common Hindus but is also against the basics of morality and decency.

Apart from the filmmaker, notices and summons were also issued to her company, Touring Talkies Media Private Limited.

The controversy had escalated after Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra had said that she had every right as an individual to imagine goddess Kaali as a meat-eating and alcohol-accepting deity, as each person has his or her unique way of offering prayers.

--IANS
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Chennai, Aug 30 (IANS) Noted South Indian actor Amala Paul has filed a case of cheating and threatening against her estranged friend, Bhavninder Singh Dhatt for allegedly cheating her. The actor in her complaint lodged with the Villupuram police said that she was cheated in a business deal and Dhatt was threatening her that he would upload their photographs on social media sites.

Police arrested Singh on the complaint of the actor. The Villupuram police told IANS that the actor and Dhatt had started a film production company in 2018 and had shifted to Periyamudaliyar Chavadi near Auroville in the district.

The actress had invested heavily in the production company and had produced her latest movie, "Cadaver".

Police officials said that Dhatt had manufactured forged documents and removed Amala Paul as a director of the production company. After the police received the complaint, they filed various cases against him including forgery, cheating, intimidation and harassment, and arrested him. Senior police officers said that they are questioning him.

--IANS
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Mumbai, Aug 30 (IANS) Bollywood actor Arjun Rampal, who was last seen as the antagonist in the Kangana Ranaut-starrer 'Dhaakad', will have a cameo appearance in the upcoming thriller film, 'Nikita Roy and Book of Darkness'. The film recently went on floors in London and will be shot in Britain's capital and other parts of the UK.

Talking about joining the cast, Arjun says, "It was a real pleasure to do a cameo in this film, as it reunited me with Paresh Rawal, who I adore, Nicky Vicky who I have seen as kids and now as producers. Also I am very fond of the Sinha family and so delighted to see Kush at work doing so well and Sonakshi in a totally different avatar."

"'Nikita Roy and Book of Darkness' will be a film to look out for and I wish the whole team my best wishes for it, as I had a blast working with them," the actor added.

The film also stars Paresh Rawal and Suhail Nayyar in pivotal roles and marks the directorial debut of Sonakshi Sinha's brother Kussh S Sinha.

'Nikita Roy and The Book of Darkness' is produced by Nicky Bhagnani, Vicky Bhagnani and Ankur Takrani of Nick Vicky Bhagnani Film, Kratos Entertainment, Kinjal Ghone of Nikita Pai Films and Dinesh Gupta. The film is expected to release in 2023.

--IANS
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By Narendra Puppala
Hyderabad, Aug 30 (IANS) 'It came, it saw, it conquered, and continues to conquer' is a phrase that aptly describes the box office journey of 'Kartikeya 2' the latest Tollywood offering to capture the country's imagination. Starring young actor Nikhil Siddhartha, the Chandoo Mondeti directorial has entered the Rs 100 crore club and shows no signs of flagging anytime soon.


The well-crafted socio-mythological thriller revolving around Lord Krishna and Krishna-tattva or philosophy, has been attracting people to theatres in droves without resorting to the high-blitz promotion campaigns that are the staple of most Bollywood releases.

From a low-key entry in about 50 theatres, 'Kartikeya 2' soon spread like wildfire across theatres in Hindi markets. At last count more than 3000 screens were showing the movie even on weekdays.

"It's the word of mouth that is taking the movie forward. There's nothing bigger than word of mouth and it went viral and was discussed a lot on social media. So I feel the conventional forms of promotion which I feel are definitely important but for this movie it was the guerrilla marketing that helped and the content took it over."

"Overseas too it is my first movie which crossed 1.5 million dollars," an ecstatic Nikhil Siddhartha told IANS.

Made on a modest budget of Rs 15-20 crore, 'Kartikeya 2' collections have crossed the 100 crore mark. "We have crossed the Rs 25 cr nett barrier in Hindi which is huge," Nikhil exclaims.

In contrast, it's predecessor 'Kartikeya' was made at a cost of Rs 5 crore and registered around Rs 20 crore at the box office. Nikhil says it was a conscious plan to make the sequel a pan-India project.

"We thought we'll have a Hindi release because it talks about our Indian culture as a whole and how we have to get back to our roots. We have some very important aspects of Lord Krishna, which many people do not know. So what happened after the Mahabharat, what happened after the end of Lord Sri Krishna's avatar. This was the point that we picked up and we thought this should reach maximum people."

Although dubbed in Tamil and Malayalam, the makers haven't gone for theatrical releases in those languages. They now plan for an OTT release in these languages, Nikhil said.

Meanwhile, Nikhil Siddhartha is busy criss-crossing the country to promote 'Kartikeya 2'.

While some quarters are describing 'Kartikeya 2' as the latest flag bearer of southern cinema in Bollywood, Nikhil Siddharth modestly attributes it all to the movie's content and Lord Sri Krishna. "There are no South-North barriers now," he signs off.

--IANS
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By Ajay Kumar
Patna, Aug 30 (IANS) Although a work of fiction, the recently released Season 2 of the OTT series 'Maharani 2' draws details of its riveting storyline from Bihar politics as it plays out on the ground.


One such instance of reality bleeding into fiction is a rape sequence in the first episode titled 'Jungle Raj', harking back to the term that was popularly used to describe the crumbling state of law and order in Bihar under Lalu Prasad Yadav.

The rape of Shilpa Agrawal, played by actress Anushka Kaushik, in the web series is clearly inspired by the 1999 Shilpi Gautam murder case, which is remembered for being botched up by both the Patna police and the CBI, and for the alleged involvement of a prominent ruling party (Rashtriya Janata Dal - RJD) MLA.

'Maharani 2', incidentally, takes into account the socio-political developments of the 1990s to tell the story of the fictional character of Rani Bharti, Bihar's Chief Minister, partly inspired by Rabri Devi, who served three terms as the state's chief minister from 1997 to 2005.

The show's creator Subhash Kapoor (who has also directed 'Phas Gaye Re Obama' and 'Jolly LLB'), being a former political journalist, helps the series weave the fabric of fiction that is soaked in the dye of reality.

The mysterious death of Shilpi-Gautam in 1999 had created a political storm in Bihar and then the Rabri Devi government came under huge criticism as one of its MLAs was allegedly involved in it.

That case was also known for the messy investigation by the Patna police and the CBI in an alleged bid to save a Baahubali MLA who was influential in the Rabri Devi government.

On July 3, 1999, two bodies of a young college-going woman and her boyfriend were found in a Maruti car at Bungalow No. 12 in Patna's Fraser Road. The woman was identified as Shilpi Jain and her boyfriend Gautam Singh. The body of Shilpi Jain was found in a semi-naked position (she was wearing the shirt of Gautam Singh) and the latter was completely naked.

The 'Maharani 2' episode presents the rape of Shilpa Agrawal by the MLA, Dulari Yadav, who goes on to murder her and then refuses to submit his semen samples to the cops to stop them establishing the rape.

Back in 1999, the political storm kicked-off after the supporters of the MLA reached the Bungalow before Patna police, opened the garage where the car was parked and the supporters destroyed the evidence by touching the dead bodies and the car.

During the investigations, the Patna police found multiple fingerprints from the car and the dead bodies. The Patna police, after seizing the car, drove it to the Gandhi Maidan police station without conducting any forensic investigation at the crime scene. In cases such as this one, police generally tow the car instead to keep fingerprints and forensic evidence intact.

Patna police was under huge pressure of ruling party, it declared the mysterious death as suicide. Moreover, they cremated the dead body of Gautam Singh without the arrival of his father B.N. Singh, who was a leader of the ruling RJD.

Patna police failed to give an appropriate answer to her family. There were several loopholes in the investigation including how they reached the garage of Bungalow No. 12, which belonged to an MLA of the ruling party.

Semen traces were also found on the shirts of Shilpi, but these were not matched with her vaginal swabs to establish rape. In its investigation, Patna police said that they died due to carbon monoxide generated inside the car as it was locked.

This conclusion was proven wrong when Shilpi's viscera report was presented. It clearly pointed out that the death happened due to a lethal poisonous substance.

Sources have said that the Shilpi Jain on July 2, 1999 was on the way to her coaching class in a cycle rickshaw. She was intercepted by a known person and then she went inside a car.

That car was taken to a circuit house in Phulwari Sharif locality in Patna where she was sexually assaulted. Gautam Singh, who had reportedly introduced Shilpi with that MLA, suspected something fishy and he also went to the circuit house. As this theory did not come into police investigation probably due to pressure applied by the then ruling party.

Since, the allegation levelled on the MLA of the ruling party and several loopholes in the investigation, Bihar government which was facing huge criticism, transferred the case to CBI in September 1999.

When CBI started the investigation, its officials demanded the semen and blood samples of that alleged MLA which he refused. Moreover, CBI also declared this case as suicide and the traces of semen found on the body and shirt of Shilpi was declared as swats.

Though the DNA and medical test of Shilpi Jain confirms that she was gang raped by more than one person.

When the government changed in 2005 and Nitish Kumar became the chief minister of Bihar, Shilpi's brother tried to open the case again but he was kidnapped by the unknown persons. Following that incident, no one raised this case and it became a mystery forever from a technical point of view.

This case recently came into the limelight again during the marriage of Bihar's Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav when his uncle Anirudh Prasad Yadav, alias Sadhu Yadav, said that Tejashwi had brought a bad name to his family by marrying outside his caste.

Following his statement, Tej Pratap Yadav, Lalu Prasad Yadav's elder son, alleged in a video statement that Sadhu Yadav was involved in the rape and murder of Shilpi and Gautam.

Because of Sadhu Yadav, Tej Pratap alleged, the then Rabri Devi government faced flak and the opposition parties accused it of unleashing a 'Jungle Raj'.

Sadhu Yadav, however, has vehemently denied Tej Pratap's charges and counter-alleged that the Deputy Chief Minister's brother was involved in a number of cases.

--IANS
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Chennai, Aug 30 (IANS) A crucial schedule of Telugu star Natasimha Nandamuri Balakrishna and director Gopichand Malineni's highly anticipated mass action entertainer, being tentatively referred to as #NBK107, has just begun in Turkey.

Sources say that the team landed in Istanbul City in Turkey for the new shooting schedule. They will shoot an important part of the movie with the prominent cast taking part in it.

Director Gopichand Malineni posted a selfie picture of himself alongside Balakrishna and Shruti Haasan from the shooting location.

Sources say that other than the talkie portions, action episodes will also be filmed in this schedule.

The makers provided two back-to-back treats on Balakrishna's birthday by releasing a 'First Hunt' video and then following it up with a poster.

The movie, apart from Balakrishna and Shruti Haasan, also features Duniya Vijay, and Varalaxmi Sarathkumar in important roles.

National Award winning music director Thaman is scoring the music for this film, which has cinematography by Rishi Punjabi.

Naveen Yerneni and Y Ravi Shankar of Mythri Movie Makers are producing the film on a massive scale.

Acclaimed writer Sai Madhav Burra has penned the dialogues, while National Award-Winning craftsman Navin Nooli is handling editing. Chandu Ravipati is the executive producer for the film that has fights by Ram-Lakshman duo.

--IANS
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Mumbai, Aug 30 (IANS) Actress Shefali Shah, who plays the headstrong police officer DCP Vartika Singh in 'Delhi Crime', is over-the-moon with the response the second season of the show is getting, and said that she wanted to be part of stories that are global in nature.

Shefali said: "The kind of response I have been receiving for Delhi Crime 2 is enormous. Yes, we have put a lot of effort to execute the show and we are truly grateful for the love that we are receiving from the audience. From the beginning of season 1, the audience has time and again showered love on the show and we couldn't have asked for more. Touchwood, this season is also getting the same response and even more."

The 49-year-old actress said that her character of 'Delhi Crime' is very personal to her.

She added: "Vartika is very dear and personal to me and I'm overwhelmed and grateful to know it has touched everyone as deeply. I always wanted to be a part of stories that travel places, that are global in nature, and with Delhi Crime 1 & 2, we have achieved that".

'Delhi Crime 2' revolves around a violent quadruple murder that stokes public fear and escalates Delhi's class divide. It's a fictionalised account of the brutal 'Kachcha Baniyan' gang that once struck terror in the national capital.

The show's main characters are played by Shefali, Rasika Dugal, Rajesh Tailang, Adil Hussain, Anurag Arora, Yashaswini Dayama, Sidharth Bhardwaj, Gopal Dutt, Denzil Smith, Tillotama Shome, Jatin Goswami, Vyom Yadav and Ankit Sharma.

Shefali will next be seen in 'Doctor G' along with Ayushmann Khurrana and Rakul Preet Singh.

--IANS
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Mumbai, Aug 30 (IANS) Megastar Amitabh Bachchan asks 40-year-old dermatologist Anu Anna Varghese about pimples and how to get rid of them.

He also got impressed with the way she motivates her patients to be proud of their skin colour and tells them that melanin, the pigment that makes it dark is good for protecting the skin also.

She says: "Many patients often visit me, who are perfectly fine otherwise but society targets them for their skin colour and they want to change it. This approach needs to be changed and we should feel proud of our skin colour."

In banter, Bachchan asks her if his skin is fine or it needs more care, to which she replies: "It is perfectly okay" and he says: "My make-up artists must be happy listening to this."

Hailing from Thrissur, Kerala, Anu will be seen taking the hotseat and answering the questions of the host. The latest promos shows her winning the amount of Rs 75 lakhs and moving forward for the question of Rs 1 crore.

She says: "There was so much happening at that moment when I won Rs 75 lakhs. I was happy but I was also shocked that I had crossed the threshold of 'Dhan Amrit' and was on my way to the Rs 1 crore question. I could not believe my luck, and it felt like I was in a very elaborate dream."

Varghese shares that with the amount she won, now she could repay her debt.

"We had a debt of Rs 40 lakhs and that would be repaid now. I want to roam around the world with my husband and my daughter and that dream seems to be in the palm of my hand as well. Meeting Mr Bachchan was a heavenly experience. I never thought that such a legend could be so humble and sweet," she adds.

'Kaun Banega Crorepati 14' airs on Sony Entertainment Television.

--IANS
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