Yash Raj Films’ much-hyped “Tashan” was not released in major multiplexes across the country due to a tiff with cinema hall owners over sharing of revenues. And the stand-off is now affecting the film’s collections.

The share offered by Yash Raj Films to multiplex owners - 45 percent of the box-office collections in the first week - was not acceptable to the.

The first day’s collection of “Tashan”, which opened only in single-screen theatres Friday, stood at 70 percent to 80 percent in Mumbai. This is not a good sign for Yash Raj Films because collections are expected to slide hereafter as the film hasn’t got very encouraging reviews.

Moreover, the banner stands to lose as big money is generated from multiplexes with larger number of shows and costlier tickets.

The movie’s poor show at single-screen theatres would only further spoil its chances at the multiplexes.

With “Krazzy 4″ and “U Me Aur Hum” already limping at the box office in the third week of their run and “Tashan” turning out to be a non-starter, “Race” in its fifth week has a chance to further consolidate its position in the market.

“Sirf, The Life Looks Greener on the Other Side”, which also released this week, is no match to any of these movies. It made a bad start from day one itself.

“Khuda Ke Liye” is in a league of its own. It has already written its success story in India, though its collections have now dropped to 40 percent. But in some multiplexes here, the Pakistani film by Shoaib Mansoor is still running to packed houses.

While the entire country was shocked when a top Indian hockey official was caught on camera allegedly taking a bribe, actor and brand ambassador for hockey Suniel Shetty thinks it was the best thing to happen to the sport in years.

“This exposure of what lies beneath is the first step towards recuperation. If the sting operation is true it’s the best thing to happen to hockey,” Suniel told IANS in an interview.

“Today everyone has woken up to the changes required in hockey. Why blame the players only? It’s time now to make drastic changes.”

Even though the actor does not approve of sting operations as a rule, he says, “If it’s for the good of the nation like the Jyothikumaran operation, I’m all for it.” He was referring to the sting that allegedly caught Indian Hockey Federation general secretary K. Jyothikumaran taking a bribe to select a player. The official has since quit the post.

Suniel, a diehard sports fan, wants a professional body like the Board of Control for Cricket In India (BCCI) to look after the affairs of hockey in the country.

“We need energetic focused people like Rajiv Shukla (BCCI vice-president) and Sharad Pawar (BCCI chief) supporting our national sport. These are people for whom the money wouldn’t matter. They’d do it for the love of the sport.”

The actor is also all excited about the Indian Premier League (IPL) and wishes something on similar lines for hockey.

“The IPL is just the beginning. What happened to baseball and soccer in the US is happening to cricket in India. Why can’t we have a similar fate for hockey? Five years down the line I see the same happening to hockey.”

Excerpts from the interview:

Q: On one end you’ve been talking of taking the game forward. But this takes hockey 10 steps backwards?

A: I disagree. This exposure of what lies beneath is the first step towards recuperation. The worst was when India failed to qualify for hockey in the Olympics for the first time in 80 years. The team, coach, managers were all wrongly selected. I know we’ve a humongous amount of talent in our hockey team. If the sting operation is true it’s the best thing to happen to hockey. God has his own way of cleansing our conscience and our society. Today everyone has woken up to the changes required in hockey. Why blame the players when you suddenly choose someone who’s never been part of any team to play for the country? A game is about the team spirit. The guy who passes on the ball has to have the confidence in the next guy. It’s time now to make drastic changes.

Q: Like what?

A: We should have a body akin to cricket’s BCCI, a board to control hockey. And we need energetic focused people like Rajiv Shukla and Sharad Pawar supporting our national sport. These are people for whom the money wouldn’t matter. They’d do it for the love of the sport. Look at cricket and cricketers from India. They’re on the world map. The IPL is just the beginning. What happened to baseball and soccer in the US is happening to cricket in India. Why can’t we have a similar fate for hockey? Five years down the line I see the same happening to hockey. I’m happy that favouritism and corruption in the game are going to end.

Q: Do you approve of the sting operation?

A: Not as a rule, not if it’s to mess up someone’s personal life. But if it’s for the good of the nation like the Jyothikumaran operation I’m all for it.

Q: Don’t you think sport in our country is being over-commercialised?

A: Which aspect of our life is not? Everything is up for sale. Even if the IPL is for money it’s still a creative endeavour. What about the Football Premier League all over the world? It has made football the No.1 game worldwide. When someone has that uniform on it’s a different feeling altogether. The IPL has just 5-6 foreign players. The rest are all our own boys.

Q: But the loyalty factor gets mixed up for the spectator?

A: That’s true. Mumbai is my karam-bhoomi (work place) and Bangalore is my janam-bhoomi (birth place). When the two play against each other I wouldn’t know which way my loyalty would go. But we’ll settle that.

Q: So why aren’t you part of the IPL?

A: I lacked the vision and the monies. I’m happy to see Shah Rukh there, and doing so brilliantly.

Q: What are the concrete plans for hockey?

A: I wanted to spread awareness about the game, probably get the spirit going. Now what we need is a committee to make drastic changes. And that’s already happening. I’m there to support and promote hockey in every way possible. When they had made Dhanraj Pillai sit on the bench at the peak of his career, I protested on his behalf. Today, every sport needs a star to be promoted whether it’s Ronaldo or (David) Beckham. Dhanraj was our star. When they kicked him out I knew there was corruption.

Q: Will you be able to give time to hockey?

A: Of course I will. I believe every celebrity owes it to society to support worthy causes. And if the cause is for the country then nothing like it.

Q: You were one of the first actors to bring in a spirit of entrepreneurship to the industry?

A: Oh, absolutely. I think we need to learn a lesson from our senior actors who did so well for themselves and then died in poverty. It’s a very fickle industry. All it takes is a Friday and you’re forgotten. You’ve to secure your future. Don’t make movies the be-all and end-all of your life. That’s why I did what I had to do with my finances. I’m a very strong individual. And I value my self-respect. Even if I had five flops no one can claim to have signed me as a favour. I never had godfathers. But I’ve terrific friends like Ajay Devgan, Sanjay Dutt, Salman (Khan), Govinda and Shah Rukh Khan who’ve constantly supported me.

Kirron Kher may be supporting a campaign against eve teasing - an Indian euphemism for mild forms of sexual harassment on the streets - but the Bollywood actor feels films are only meant for entertainment and not for spreading social messages.

“Films are meant to entertain people, not preach social messages. Art films are best left to do that,” Kher, who is also a theatre personality, told IANS in her ever frank and vivacious manner.

In the capital to felicitate young women achievers in diverse fields, Kher said that it was however important that celebrities take up issues of social importance and talk about them because they have a great influence on the masses’ opinion.

“People look up to celebrities and public figures. Therefore it is their responsibility to take up social issues and talk about them because they have the capability to change people’s opinions and attitudes,” she said.

“For my part, I am already a part of the programme called ‘Ladli’ which campaigns for the girl child. And now, on an invitation by the ministry of women and child development, I have pledged my support to the campaign against eve teasing,” she said. Although at this age I would love to get eve teased!” Kher, who is middle aged, quickly added and laughed.

A brilliant actor, Kher made her debut in a Punjabi film, “Asra Pyar Da”, in 1983 and earned rave reviews for her performance. She was given a National Film Award for her role in the film “Sardari Begum” in 1997 and the National Film Award for best actress for the Bengali film “Bariwali” in 2000.

She was also awarded the IIFA best supporting actress award for her role in the film “Devdas” in 2003 and the Bronze Leopard award at the Locarno International Film festival for her role in “Khamosh Pani” in the same year.

Some of her recent endearing performances were in the films “Rang De Basanti” in which she played Aamir Khan’s mother Mitro, and in “Om Shanti Om” where she played the starry eyed mother of Shah Rukh Khan, Bela Makhija.

“When I was just starting out in my career, I took an eight-year hiatus to bring up my son, Sikandar, from 1988 to 1996. It was such a natural decision…he needed me the most at that time.

“Sometimes we tend to overdo the women thing…men can be more vulnerable than women,” she said.

Wearing her long mane loose and smoothening the pleats of her cream coloured silk sari, Kher said she is as aggressive as her husband, veteran actor Anupam Kher, is calm.

“But I am a survivor. And my son is just like me,” she smiled.

“Like most of today’s kids, Sikander didn’t really ask our permission to join films. It was his decision,” Kher said about Sikander, whose pipeline projects include “Woodstock Villa” and “Summer of 2007″.

Asked about her future plans, the ace actor said she was open to different roles, even on the small screen provided it interested her enough.

“But you will never see me in the serials!” she said.

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who owns the Kolkata Knight Riders, will not be performing at his team’s second home match Tuesday against Mumbai Indians at Eden Gardens here.

The performance has been postponed for unavoidable circumstances, co-owner Jay Mehta, on behalf of Shah Rukh, told reporters Saturday evening.

“But SRK will be present at the grounds Tuesday. And if every thing goes fine he may perform at the third home match on May 8,” he said.

Cricket Association Of Bengal (CAB) president Prasun Mukherjee told IANS: “Red Chillies wants the dais to be dismantled. But we have not been told why Shah Rukh has refused to perform here.”

The cancellation of the show will, however, result in more tickets for the public.

“Once we remove the 48ftx40ft stage from the ground 6,000 more seats will be made available to the people,” Mukherjee said.

CAB officials said once the dais is removed, tickets for 4,000 seats at J-block and 2,000 seats at H, I and K blocks in the gallery will be on sale.

Ticket sales for the match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians started Thursday morning at CAB ticket counters here.

And from the very first day, there was unrest among people over the scarcity of tickets.

CAB joint secretary Amitabha Bandopadyay told IANS: “Almost 70 percent of the tickets were sold out within a few hours Thursday itself - after all Kolkata is going to witness Sourav Ganguly batting against Sachin Tendulkar for the first time.”

Since Thursday, disappointed cricket-lovers have been staging demonstrations in front of the counters, accusing CAB and Red Chillies for black-marketing tickets.

After “Superstar”, which was received well by the more discerning section of movie-goers, director Rohit Jugraj has taken on the sensitive issue of child abuse.

“This is something I wanted to do for a long time. It’s not just about one child. My film explores various kinds of child abuse, some of which may not even seem like abuse to the offender,” Rohit told IANS.

Rohit has tried to delve deeper into the problem with the film “Chand Pe Baithi Dadimaa”. “I’ve gone into psychological and physical abuse, the psyche of the adult who abuses a child and the trauma and darkness that the child faces after being abused.”

Rohit goes beyond just portraying the issue and has attempted to find solutions too.

“I’ve also discussed ways to give the child strength and courage to cope with the trauma and to be healed and whole again without scars of the incident plaguing the child through his or her life.”

“My 30-minute film is basically about hope. It isn’t a commercial venture. It’s for an international NGO. I’d describe it as a docu-drama,” says the young director.

Interestingly, the sensitive subject has been handled in a unique way behind the camera also.

“The format is called ‘dogme’. I used nine cameras. You may ask me why so much effort in a film that will finally be seen by a restricted non-commercial audience. Well…it was for my own satisfaction.

“And I’ve given it a poetic fairytale name, ‘Chand Pe Baithi Dadimaa’, because I believe our children’s innocence and their innate belief in a magical healing world has to be preserved.”

Padmini Kolhapure, who entered films as a child actor and later went on to give quite a few hits, is all set for a comeback of sorts with “Daughter” and the actress says returning to movies was a natural choice.

“I have always been associated with acting from a very young age. I took a break because I wanted to have a family of my own. Now that my son has grown up, what else could I return to but acting?” Kolhapure told IANS in an interview.

The actress, who married producer Tutu Sharma at the peak of her career, did make a brief return to films with “Souten” in 2006, but it didn’t do too well.

Kolhapure says she chose Visu Mane’s small-budget film “Daughter” because the character really appealed to her.

“My character is …interesting. I play a married, working woman who doesn’t want to have children for the sake of her career. Upset with her decision, her father-in-law adopts a baby girl. She gradually develops motherly feelings towards the baby and then wants to start her own family,” the actress explained.

She said the story highlights the “necessity of adopting a girl child”.

“Being a woman, I know how much cheer a girl brings to a family.”

Excerpts from the interview:

Q. What lured you to accept this movie?

A. I liked the story. My character is not out of the world, but it is interesting. I play a married, working woman who doesn’t want to have children for the sake of her career. Upset with her decision, her father-in-law adopts a baby girl. She gradually develops motherly feelings towards the baby and then wants to start her own family.

Q. Can you relate to the character?

A. Well, I was a working woman myself till I got married. I left acting because I wanted to have a family of my own. So I have been able to empathise with the character.

Q. Will it inspire people to adopt a girl child?

A. You know, in India, a male child is still the first preference of a family. But times are changing. Today you don’t differentiate between boys and girls. It’s only a physical difference; otherwise they are equal in all respects.

Q. Given a chance, would you adopt a girl child?

A. I would have as I have only a son. But at this stage, it is not possible. My son has grown up.

Q. What is the highlight of “Daughter”?

A. The story essentially highlights the necessity of adopting a girl child. Being a woman, I know how much cheer a girl brings to a family. I am sure people will like the movie and the women especially will be able to identify with Rucha, the girl around which the movie revolves.

Rucha epitomises the typical Indian girl of today.

Q. The movie is not being promoted in a big way. Are you happy with the end product?

A. Well “Daughter” is not a star-studded, big budget movie to merit huge promotion. Its merit is its theme. It is a very contemporary movie. I appreciate that Medha Mehendale came forward to produce it. Visu Mane is the director and my co-stars Vikram Gokhale, Rema, Ayub Khan, Vinod Singh and Rucha have done their best to make it presentable to the audience.

Q. Madhuri Dixit made a comeback, but it turned out to be a damp squib. Are you confident your second innings will be as fruitful as the first one?

A. Oh, my God! You’ve got me scared. No, I haven’t made any deliberate move to make it big in movies this time around. I have always been associated with acting from a very young age. I took a break because I wanted to have a family of my own. Now that my son has grown up, what else could I return to but acting?

The boom time for the Mumbai film industry is not translating into windfalls for top Bollywood production house Yash Raj Films (YRF), with its first offering of 2008, “Tashan”, failing to live up to the hype.

While in 2007, YRF’s tally of flops outweighed that of hits, their first release this year has failed to charm critics and the audience response to “Tashan” has not been too heartening.

Though heavy on formula and style, the film starring the reigning star of the box-office, Akshay Kumar, and media’s favourite star couple, Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor, has no story to tell. Seems that writer-director Vijay Krishna Acharya was so busy packaging egos that he forgot what he wanted to say in “Tashan”.

The fact that “Tashan” did not release in several multiplexes due to a long-standing tiff with cinema hall owners over sharing of revenues has been a major dampener. The country’s top production house has been trying to get multiplex owners to agree on a new revenue sharing formula.

Their offer of keeping 55 percent of the box-office collections in the first week was rejected by exhibitors.

According to news reports, the first day’s collection of “Tashan”, which opened only in single-screen theatres on Friday, stood at 70 percent to 80 percent in Mumbai. Given that the film has not met expectations of both critics as well as audiences, the collections are likely to dip in the days ahead.

Its releasing in single-screen theatres is economically less profitable as fewer number of shows can be screened each day and the cost of tickets is much lower than in multiplexes.

Trade weekly said the film had a 70 percent start, but there were reports of business sliding downwards as day progressed. The reports are negative and the biggie is not likely to sustain in the days to come, according to trade analyst Taran Adarsh.

For YRF, the third highest spender in Bollywood at the moment after Reliance Entertainment and Indian Films, the fate of “Tashan” will serve as a cautioner.

The illustrious production house will be pumping in Rs.3.5 billion over the next 15 months into the industry and cannot afford to leave their audiences feeling unsatisfied.

Reliance Entertainment and Indian Films, which will be investing Rs.5 billion and Rs.4.4 billion in the industry over the next year-and-a-half respectively, are the biggest moneybags of the industry at the moment. But among the seasoned banners, it is YRF that leads the pack. They have both the talents as well as enjoy faith of the audiences.

The Rs.120 billion strong Mumbai-based Hindi film industry is inundated with public and private investment. Entry of corporate bigwigs has shaken up traditional production houses.

This year, YRF, is releasing as many as five films across genres - thriller, comedy, romance and animation, starring some of the top actors and directors. Though the number is small in comparison to other banners, the banner is not known to churn out so many in a single year.

Known as the czars of Bollywood, YRF have been going through a bad patch ever since the average performance of “Ta Ra Rum Pum” and debacle of mega-starrer “Jhoom Barabar Jhoom” last year.

Though they tried to do things differently by taking up women-oriented scripts, they could not make things work in other releases of last year — “Laaga Chunari Mein Daag” and “Aaja Nach Le”. The only saving grace was “Chak De! India”.

The lesson that content is king is still to get embedded in the core of filmmaking in India. But with production houses like UTV Motion Pictures planning to roll out 18-20 films this year and the Indian Film Company readying 12-13 films, it is a lesson that needs to be internalised at the earliest.

UTV, Indian Films and YRF will produce some of the most awaited releases of the year like Aditya Chopra’s “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi” starring Shah Rukh Khan, Rakesh Omprakash Mehra’s “Dilli 6″, Akshay Kumar starrer “Singh is Kinng”, which is being directed by Anees Bazmee, and “Ghajini”, which has Aamir Khan in the main lead.

“Julie” director Deepak Shivdasani returns to the marquee after four years with “Mr. White, Mr. Black”. While his last venture was a sleazy movie, this Suniel Shetty and Arshad Warsi starrer releasing Friday is a comedy.

Apart from the leading men, there aren’t too many known faces in the film. Shivdasani, who earned a lot of flak for making “Julie”, charts a new path.

The narrative of the film is like this:

Gopi (Suniel), a simpleton, arrives in Goa from Hoshiarpur in Punjab to fulfil the last wish of his childhood friend’s father - to hand over a piece of land to Kishen (Arshad).

Kishen, who is now a conman, is least interested in the land. When Gopi lands in Goa, Kishen avoids him. He doesn’t intend to give up his flourishing business or travel to Hoshiarpur just to take possession of the land.

Kishen swindles people with a little help from his accomplice, Babu (Atul Kale). He needs money to educate his sister Divya (Mahima Mehta), who is studying in London.

However, Gopi keeps chasing Kishen and Tanya (Anishka Khosla), the daughter of a resort owner, helps him.

Amidst all this, three girls steal diamonds worth millions and now they are holed up in Tanya’s KG Resorts. Kishen and Babu learn about this and they all make a mad rush for KG Resorts. Gopi finds himself a part of the gang.

Who gets the diamonds? Does Gopi manage to take Kishen to Hoshiarpur? And was the land just a meagre piece of land?

To know the answers watch “Mr. White, Mr. Black”.

“Nishabd” fame Jiah Khan, who has shot for two days for Ken Ghosh’s next, is shocked to hear rumours that she’s out of the project and Katrina Kaif is in.

“I’ve already shot for two days for the untitled film with Shahid Kapur. After that there were scheduling issues. My dates for Ken’s film were clashing with Aamir Khan’s ‘Ghajini’. I couldn’t possibly let the Aamir project suffer at any cost. It’s my chance to create the impact that I couldn’t, for some weird reasons, after Nishabd,” Jiah told IANS.

However, the date problem has been sorted out and Jiah is set to shoot for Ghosh’s film.

“I’ve already given my dates for Ken’s shooting. No one has so far informed me that I’m not in the film. So it’d be right for me to presume the project remains as it is.”

As for talk of her over-friendly messages to Shahid, Jiah protests: “I’ve just sent him a couple of formal messages saying how much I’m looking forward to working with him. Is that wrong?”

“I’m new to all this. I keep to myself and I’ve no idea what people do in this industry. I am here only to work.”

Meanwhile, director Ghosh confirmed that Jiah is still in the project.

“I wouldn’t like to say much on the matter. I’ll let my producers UTV clear all the misunderstanding. But Jiah is very much in the project. This isn’t to say that I don’t want to work with Katrina Kaif. Of course, I do. Look how hot she’s at the box office! We’ll work together some other time. It’s a small industry.”

But how could Katrina be eligible for a role earmarked for Jiah?

“Why not?” Ghosh shot back. “Didn’t Mr. Bachchan do ‘Zanjeer’ in place of Dev Anand? And didn’t Mr. Bachchan say yes to ‘Deewaar’ after Rajesh Khanna opted out? These things happen all the time. Like I said, it’s a small world.”

If the men are doing it so are the women. From opening restaurants to starting hotels, actresses are also blurring the lines between the worlds of Bollywood and business.

While actors like Mithun Chakraborty, Shah Rukh Khan and Suniel Shetty are thriving in the business world, their counterparts Sushmita Sen, Aishwarya Rai and Preity Zinta are also giving them tough competition.

Sushmita was probably the first to turn entrepreneur when she set up her company Sensazione in 2006. Through her company, she plans to open a chain of hotels, lounges and spas. Besides, she has acquired 12,000 sq ft of space in Kolkata for a ‘lifestyle zone’, which apart from a huge open space will house a nightclub, a restaurant and a cigar lounge.

She says frankly that she was tired of being an actor and business had always been a second career option.

“Had I not been an actor, I would have been an entrepreneur. The lounge bar in Kolkata and my dream project, the spa, are all part of my effort to touch people’s lives,” the actress has been quoted as saying.

Sushmita has other plans too.

Under the banner of her production house Tantra Entertainment Pvt. Ltd, the ex-Miss Universe also wants to make meaningful films. Her first venture is “Rani Lakshmi Bai - The Warrior Queen”. The actress, who is directing as well as acting in the film, is currently busy with the pre-production work of the historical epic.

Her colleague Preity Zinta has become co-owner of the Mohali cricket team of the Indian Premier League (IPL) with partner Ness Wadia and two others. She is determined to make a go of it and says: “When I do anything in life for the first time, I want to succeed.”

“It’s 2008! Women should get more active in business. It’s very different from working on a film where you’re on your own when ‘action’ is called on camera. In a boardroom, there’s constant conference and multi-tasking. The creative process is different in both the spheres.”

And Aishwarya Rai, according to reports, has stepped in to resurrect father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan’s company AB Corp and is negotiating with filmmakers to restart production work.

Then there is Ayesha Takia who with restaurateur boyfriend Farhan Azmi is set to launch their first boutique hotel in Goa.

“It’s a dream come true for Farhan and I. We have been planning to do something together for the past year,” Ayesha said in a press announcement.

The couple has acquired a 200-year-old Portuguese bungalow in Candolim, which is just 10 minutes away from the beach. They plan to build a luxurious swimming pool, a lounge area and are working out details on how to entertain guests with good music and superb cuisine.

“Each of our boutique hotels will have 20 rooms,” Ayesha has said.

Her appreciative boyfriend adds: “Ayesha is interested in doing other things rather than just acting which is so great.”

There are others too — for instance, Raveena Tandon is contributing significantly to the running of her husband Anil Thadani’s film distribution business.

Former actress Twinkle Khanna is a successful interior designer and won the Elle Décor International Design Award. She floated a company called Mock-Ups that specialises in interior decoration, designing and executing spaces. Besides designing homes and offices, she also owns an interior designing store - the White Window - in Mumbai.

In 1940, legendary actress Devika Rani tried her hand at business by taking the charge of Bombay Talkies after her husband’s death, but she had to face failure.

But the new brigade is set to rewrite the rules.

The life of murdered journalist Shivani Bhatnagar would soon be made into a movie “Judgement” starring Sunny Deol and Sameera Reddy, director K.S. Adhiyaman told reporters here Monday.

“I decided to make the film after sustained study of the subject and meeting family members of Shivani besides understanding the role of politicians in the tale,” Adhiyaman said.

Deol and Reddy play the investigating officer and lawyer respectively. Actress Nitisha Patel plays the victim Shivani, the director added.

After completion of the project, Adhiyaman is slated to remake his Tamil hit “Thoondil” (fishing hook) into Hindi.

Adhiyaman has directed the Shah Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit combination in “Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam,” Salman Khan, Shilpa Shetty starrer “Shaadi Karke Phaas Gaya Yaar”, and “Hot” featuring Neha Dupia and Bikram Saluja.

Delhi-based Bhatnagar was found murdered Jan 13 1999 in her home. A former top police official R.K. Sharma was recently found guilty of organising her murder. Bhatnagar was allegedly having an affair with the top cop. The case hogged media headlines as Bhatnagar was also allegedly involved with then senior minister Pramod Mahajan.

Tamil film stars are queuing up to become brand ambassador of the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) Chennai Super Kings (CSK) team, an official with the team said Monday.

The team’s brand ambassador actress Nayantara was sacked by the team owners for failing to appear for the shooting of a promotional video Tuesday.

Among those who have offered their services are upcoming actor Arya and superstar Rajnikanth’s daughter Saundarya, team’s spokesman Gurunath Meiyappan told reporters here.

“We are discussing deals with the other stars as well,” Meiyappan added.

While Arya will perform daredevil stunts during the forthcoming matches involving CSK, the offer by Saundarya has been kept secret.

During Wednesday’s match, film stars Vijay, ace drummer Shiva Mani, singers Hariharan, Naresh Iyer and radio-jockey Suchi regaled the sell-out crowd.

For Vijay, the IPL deal is a windfall since the cricket publicity would aid his forthcoming May 3 release “Kuruvi” produced by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi’s grandson Udayanidhi Stalin.

For R. Madhavan the opportunity to work with Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan in Leena Yadav’s “Teen Patti” is a dream come true.

“I’m finally going to work with Mr. Bachchan. It has been a long-cherished dream. When he did a guest appearance with me in ‘Ramji Londonwale’, I couldn’t stand straight, I was so nervous and excited. Now we’re finally working together. And all thanks to Arshad Warsi,” Madhavan told IANS.

Earlier Arsahd was signed for the role but he decided to opt out. Madhavan replaces him in the film.

Maddy will have to learn to play cards for his gambler’s role.

“I’ve never played cards before, so I’ll have to start from scratch. At the moment I’ve plenty of time to learn stationary skills . I’ve just had a painful molar extraction done. I can’t go out and can’t talk much either. In fact, I’m surprised the producers of ‘Teen Patti’ signed me with this swollen face,” said the actor.

Maddy goes into “Teen Patti” at the year end. Right now he starts work on the Tamil version of Aziz Mirza’s “Yes Boss” where he steps into reigning Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s shoes.

“Nishikant Kamat, who directed me in the Tamil version of ‘Dombivali Fast’ and in ‘Mumbai Meri Jaan’, put me in touch with the working class side of my personality. Now, I need to get back to playing super-heroic parts otherwise my audience in Tamil Nadu will think I’ve mellowed down incurably.”

Paris has a new tourist attraction: a lifesize wax statue of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has been unveiled at the the Grévin Wax Museum here, indicating the popularity of Indian cinema and the superstar in continental Europe.

As Khan, dressed in a pair of jeans and a black leather jacket, stepped out of a limousine in front of the museum, he was welcomed by African and Indian dancers outside the museum amid cheers from a crowd of fans Monday morning.

Accompanied by wife Gauri and close buddy Karan Johar, a filmmaker, Shah Rukh signed autographs for the fans but when some of them tried to embrace him, the matinee idol was whisked away by security guards.

A ceremony inside the premises was restricted to invitees and tickets to the museum were sold out at least for the day.

This would be the second wax statue of the star, after the one included in the Madame Tussauds’ museum in London.

Mahatma Gandhi is the only other Indian honoured with a statue in this museum established in 1922.

Elke Mader of the Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology, University of Vienna, a Bollywood researcher, told IANS she was part of a crowd of about 500 fans who waited outside the museum to catch a glimpse of Shah Rukh.

The Austrian professor heads Bollyglobal, a global research project that studies Indian popular cinema in transcultural contexts. Mader flew to Paris soon after wrapping up a presentation at an international workshop on Reflections on Visual Culture at the University.

In the presentation titled ‘Images of the Imaginary: Shah Rukh Khan Fanart and the Internet’, Mader talked about the growing love for Bollywood across the world and the birth of a range of other activities that go beyond simply viewing films. The professor’s research concentrates on Shah Rukh and the rise of the star and producer as an icon of audiences and fans of diverse cultural backgrounds.

Nasreen Munni Kabir, a British Indian filmmaker who made documentary “The Inner/ Outer World of Shah Rukh Khan” and introduced the star to the Grévin in 2007, is glad to see the French people taking to Indian cinema.

“As the popularity of films is based on the appeal of stars it is only natural for the Grévin to display (a wax statue of) Shah Rukh,” Kabir wrote to IANS in an email.

Kabir who studied films in France spoke about many immigrants in France who love Indian cinema.

“Think of the many people of Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria living in Paris who know Shah Rukh and love him. The gesture by Grévin is a recognition of the influence of non-white personalities around the world and their huge fan following. It is a positive sign in Europe to include acknowledge the contribution of non-white cultures,” Kabir said.

Shah Rukh’s frequent visits to Europe have resulted in a group of ardent fans on this continent that Mader compares to pilgrims who perform rituals similar to devotees of gods and goddesses like waiting for hours often even in discomfort in order to get a glimpse or a touch of their idol.

“Bollywood and more specifically Shah Rukh fan communities form part of the rapidly growing ‘digitally empowered active audiences’ that have become active and visible on the net during the past decade. Such internet activities are a typically global phenomenon. They are focused on Indian movies and Shah Rukh and are locally or regionally based at German, Japanese or Spanish speaking networks,” Mader said.

Giving the example of a forum called planet.srk, devoted to the Indian superstar, the professor counted 9,200 members, 9,717 threads, and 459,907 posts on April 20.

And this is only the beginning of Mader’s research on Shah Rukh.

The life of murdered journalist Shivani Bhatnagar would soon be made into a movie “Judgement” starring Sunny Deol and Sameera Reddy, director K.S. Adhiyaman told reporters here Monday.

“I decided to make the film after sustained study of the subject and meeting family members of Shivani besides understanding the role of politicians in the tale,” Adhiyaman said.

Deol and Reddy play the investigating officer and lawyer respectively. Actress Nitisha Patel plays the victim Shivani, the director added.

After completion of the project, Adhiyaman is slated to remake his Tamil hit “Thoondil” (fishing hook) into Hindi.

Adhiyaman has directed the Shah Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit combination in “Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam,” Salman Khan, Shilpa Shetty starrer “Shaadi Karke Phaas Gaya Yaar”, and “Hot” featuring Neha Dupia and Bikram Saluja.

Delhi-based Bhatnagar was found murdered Jan 13 1999 in her home. A former top police official R.K. Sharma was recently found guilty of organising her murder. Bhatnagar was allegedly having an affair with the top cop. The case hogged media headlines as Bhatnagar was also allegedly involved with then senior minister Pramod Mahajan.