Two different stages are set for singer Mika Singh and item girl Rakhi Sawant to outdo each other.

While Mika is participating in Sony TV’s celebrity dance show Jhalak Dikhla Jaa, Rakhi Sawant, with whom he shares a love-hate relationship, features with beau Abhishek Awasthi in a similar programme, Nach Baliye, on STAR Plus.

“I don’t have any competition with Rakhi and I wish her luck, my blessings are with her and she can continue getting media attention,” Mika told IANS.

Rakhi had made headlines by accusing Mika of forcibly kissing her.

Mika, who is known for his nasal voice and recently churned out the musical chartbuster Ae Ganpath, also believes that composer-singer Himesh Reshammiya copies his singing style.

“I know Himesh copies my style of singing but I don’t mind as I know I sing so well that to gain fame and name he has to copy me.”

He is looking forward to Deepak Shivdasani’s Mr. White Mr. Black in which he has sung for the first time with legendary signer Asha Bhosle and brother Daler Mehndi. The film starring Suniel Shetty and Arshad Warsi is releasing Oct 5.

“I am really excited as for the first time I am singing with Ashaji and Daler bhai for the film Mr. White Mr. Black and I hope to get a positive response,” Mika expressed.

Though he would love to work in an album with his brother Daler and sister-in-law Pinky, he can’t do so as he is bound by a contract.

“Pinky bhabhi, Daler bhai and I have signed a contract with three different music companies and according to the contract we are not allowed to work together in an album. But if a film director wants, it can happen because we are allowed to sing together for films.”

The Punjabi boy is planning to launch his next album in December.

Mudh Mudh Ke Na Dekkh Mudh Mudh Ke.. that’s the title of Himesh Reshammiya’s next film, a love triangle featuring him and two newcomers, Jennifer Kotwal and Niharika Singh.

It was earlier titled Chemistry but then producer Aditya Singh had second thoughts.

Reason: “We felt that chemistry is too anglicised a word. The aam audience would not connect with it. Also, it would be difficult to come up with a hit-hop title track which has been Himesh’s forte, if the focus was the word chemistry,” Singh points out.

Hindi-centric
Directors Seema and Sudhir, Reshammiya and Singh met and the consensus was that the title should be more Hindi-centric and universally acceptable since the film will be shot in Punjab and Delhi.

“A major chunk will be filmed in Paris too. It’s going to be one of the most expensive films in Indian cinema,” says an excited Singh. After some brainstorming a line from the Shree 420 chartbuster was picked up.

Mudh Mudh Ke Na Dekh Mudh Mudh Ke.. does Singh want to set a world record for longest title?

He laughs, “If you find it too long you can call it M2KNDM2K like we do.But seriously, changing the title has proved to be a blessing. Himesh has come up with a title song that rocks.”

It was rumoured that Sonam Kapoor was going to play the female lead opposite Shah Rukh Khan in director Aditya Chopra’s Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, but the young actress says she was never offered the role.

In fact, she feels much relieved that Aditya Chopra has finalised Anushka Sharma for the female lead for his third directorial venture.

“Since the film was announced, speculation started about me being in the project. But I was never offered the film! I don’t know where this whole thing started, honestly,” Sonam, who debuted with Saawariya, told IANS.

“I did visit Adi a couple of times like any other actor, but not for any particular role. Maybe people saw me entering Yash Raj. Nowadays, even if an actress passes by Yash Raj she’s rumoured to have signed a film with them.”

But Anushka resembles Sonam.

“Does she? Is that a compliment to me or to her? I know it required someone very Punjabi and young. I’ve just played a full-on Punjabi girl in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s Dilli 6. Even in Saawariya, I was in full elaborate Indian clothes. Now I need a change of pace and grace.”

Maybe a hot sizzling chic-and-trendy babe?

“Yeah, maybe. I’m not signing anything in a hurry. I’ve all the time in the world and the best advisor any actress in Bollywood could have. My dad (Anil Kapoor).”

Wouldn’t Anurag Basu’s Kites with Hrithik Roshan with its sizzling international-looking heroine’s character have been the right vehicle to change Sonam’s demure desi image from her first two films?

Apparently, Sonam was offered the role that Latin actress Barbara Moriis is now doing. But she baulked at the amount of skin show it required.

Sonam is tight-lipped about Kites. “All I’ll say is I’d never do anything to compromise myself or my family, or any film where I’ve to cringe at the premiere.”

She was eye-catching in a black dress at the launch of Red Alert-The War Within which will flag off her return to the movies.

Nineteen years after Maine Pyar Kiya, Bhagyashree has been tempted to return to the big screen again.

“I was looking for a riveting script, a power-packed cast and people I would enjoy working with.. but one or the other would not meet up to my expectations,” she says.

Cause and effect
Now, Red Alert will also feature Naseeruddin Shah, Vinod Khanna, Suniel Shetty, Sameera Reddy, Seema Biswas and Ayesha Dharker. It is a 110- minute songless film about a man inadvertently trapped in the Gadchiroli movement and the efforts of his wife to draw him away from the Naxals.

“Unlike other hard-hitting films it doesn’t just stop at show ing the pain and anguish of the protagonists. It offers solutions by understanding the conditions which create such situations. That’s essential today.. given the fact that India is poised to be the next super power,” says the affable actress.

Bhagyashree will be playing Suniel Shetty’s wife.”You’ll see me dressed the way I was at the launch party. My dressing style has changed, I’m not prudish. As long as I’m comfortable with what I’m wearing, that’s fine.”

Himalaya and I
Is her husband Himalaya okay with her romancing men on screen? “I made one mistake when years ago, in answer to a journo’s question about whom I would like to work with, I said I was most comfortable with my husband as my co-star.

“That was wrongly interpreted.. it sounded as if I only wanted to work with Himalayaji. Since I didn’t clarify things then, I lost out on several good offers,” she states

Sarkar Raj starring Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, directed by Ramgopal Varma is produced by Praveen Nischol and Ramgopal Varma.

The film is an intense political drama and is essentially a study of power; it explores the politics of development and takes a fresh look at the tradition versus modernity debate.
 
When Anita Rajan (Aishwarya Rai - Bachchan), CEO of Sheppard power plant, an international Company, brings a power plant proposal to set up in rural Maharashtra, before the Nagre’s and insightful Shankar (Abhishek Bachchan) is quick to realize the benefits the power plant cant bring to the people.

After convincing Sarkar (Amitabh Bachchan) who is against it for various reasons, Shankar undertakes a journey along with Anita to the villages of Maharashtra to mobilize support of the masses.
 
However, things are not what they seem to be, Shankar’s dream project gradually becomes a political minefield, it is in this backdrop the evil forces mightier than ever, mushroom and gang up to bring down the regime of Sarkar and obliterate Shankar’s name from the political horizon.

The film hits theatres in June.

Bollywood diva Madhuri Dixit celebrated her 41st birthday quietly at her Mumbai home on Thursday.

There was no formal celebration to mark the day, said her secretary Rakesh Nath.

Madhuri, who now lives in Denver, came to India last week, accompanied by her husband, Sriram Nene, to receive the Padma Shri, an honour the government of India accords annually to distinguished personalities from different walks of life.

The actress, with more than a dozen hits in her kitty like Tezaab, Ram Lakhan, Khalnayak, Beta, Dil, Saajan, Dil To Pagal Hai and Devdas, was given the honour for her contributions to Indian cinema during her two-decade-long career in movies.

Although her comeback film Aaja Naachle failed to become a commercial success, Madhuri was nominated in the best actress category for the Filmfare Awards this year for her performance in the movie.

Trained in the Indian classical dance form Kathak, Madhuri plays the role of a dance teacher in the movie.

The actress, who has two sons, Arin and Ryan, has not taken up any fresh Bollywood assignment at present because she wants to spend time with her family.

After making a splash on TV with the soaps Saara Akash and Hotel Kingston, actress Sonal Sehgal is gung ho about her big screen debut. And why not? It’s opposite one of tinseltown’s hottest poster boys, John Abraham, in Nagesh Kukunoor’s Aashayein.

Ask about her working equation with John, and she doesn’t mind stating the obvious. “Oh! It was great working with him. He doesn’t have any starry tantrums… When we first met on the sets he said, ‘you look familiar’ and I laughed. I’m sure he’s got better things to do than watch TV.”

Kiss and tell
Ayesha Takia’s loss became her gain; Ayesha walked out of the movie because she was reluctant to do a kissing scene and Sonal stepped in. So, is the kissing scene still there?

She says, “Yeah. But why so much fuss about it? It may have been a big deal for her, but it wasn’t a big deal for me. In fact, we didn’t even have to do too many retakes. It is just part of your job — similar to doing dangerous stunts or crying on screen.”

Was working with John a big deal? “Why should it be? He’s a regular guy. Besides, I really don’t care about costars… that should be the last of your worries.”

She may have stayed away from television for two years, but the actress insists that it wasn’t intentional. “There wasn’t anything exciting so I got busy with theatre.”

But that doesn’t mean it’s goodbye to the small screen. “The biggest stars of cinema are on TV today. So how can one shy away from it. But I’m not planning anything — I take things as they come.”

The glam TV actress will be seen in a de-glam avatar in Aashayein, and Sonal is so nervous about her ‘new’ look that she hasn’t checked a single shot on screen!

“Nagesh asked me come without make-up, which my make-up artist confused with the ‘no-make-up’ look. So, he did a little touch up with base, nude lipstick, etc. The moment Nagesh saw it, he asked me to come back “without make-up”, so I went back and washed my face. And that’s not the only compromise she made for her role.

“I turned vegetarian a month before the shoot to avoid pimples, as make-up was a complete no-no. I hope there are no dark circles in any frame.”

Away from the glitz and glamour of big money and superstars, some of India’s independent filmmakers are making quiet but well planned moves to hard sell their movies on the sidelines of the prestigious 61st Cannes Film Festival.

Veteran director Ketan Mehta, who is spearheading the Independent Indian Filmmakers Worldwide (IIFW) initiative, is in Cannes to promote his latest film Rang Rasiya–a period drama about the relationship between legendary painter Raja Ravi Varma and his muse starring Randeep Hooda and Nandana Sen.

“There will be no market screening of Rang Rasiya,” says Mehta, “but I will unveil clips from the film at a special event on May 20.”

Members of the cast will be in attendance during the promotional bash. Rang Rasiya, which also has an English version titled Colours of Passion, is set for release across India by end-June.

“We will release only the Hindi version to begin with,” says the director. The global release of the English version will be done a little while later.”

Thanks to the sheer size and scope of their unfolding commercial plans, major media groups like Reliance Big Entertainment, Eros International and Sahara One Media and Entertainment are all likely to be the centre of attention.

But for small, independent films, Cannes is the gateway to a world of opportunities.

Nobody knows that better than Jagmohan Mundhra, a Cannes Film Market regular, who is back on the Croisette this year with Shoot on Sight, a film starring Naseeruddin Shah as a real-life Muslim Scotland yard officer.

It is believed that there is something eerie about a sprawling VIP bungalow in Tughlaq Lane, New Delhi.

Over the years, many of its high-profiled occupants have succumbed to cancer, according to numerous media reports.

Justice M Srinivasan was amongst those who had resisted the rumours and decided to move into the Tughlaq Lane house.

However, he died of cancer after shifting to the ill-fated house. The former Chief Justice of India, YK Sabharwal, who also had a stint at the same residence, lost his wife during their stay there. A media report also claims that Justice RV Ravindran’s in-laws passed away soon after shifting there.  Even his daughter developed a cancerous growth on her tongue.

Another resident, Justice Ashok Bhan had discovered that his wife contracted cancer soon after shifting there, prompting him to vacate it right away. A lot of people, who had been offered the house, declined to take possession because of the fear factor. 

Some occupants even tried making changes in their way own way. After consulting Vastu experts, they even resorted to closing a particular room, but in vain. However, the security attaché related to the current occupant Gen Nirmal Chander Vij, rubbished these stories, stressing that all the earlier deaths imputed to that house could be a mere coincidence. Gen Vij, who took over as the Chief of Army Staff from General S Padmanabhan on Dec 31,2002, is known as Indian Army’s most consummate strategist and a Kargil war hero.

On promotion to the rank of commander, Vij served as General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern Command. During that tenure, he had personally supervised the rescue and relief operations in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Gujarat.

As DGMO, Vij also conceived Operation Khukri to rescue trapped elements of the Indian peace keeping contingent, which was part of United Nations force in Sierra Leone. It was during his tenure as commander of India’s only Dimapur-based counter insurgency corp that the United Liberation Front of Assam militants started surrendering in big numbers, which rendered the movement virtually ineffective.

A valiant person like Gen Vij certainly has kept all the stories about the ‘infamous’ dwelling under wraps. But how the house could have such a large number of cancer victims could never really be explained.

An Indian student at the University of Leicester is making waves with his research on mobile signals that has implications for countries with long coastlines such as India.

Salil Gunashekar, who graduated in Physics from St Stephen’s College, New Delhi, has completed his doctoral study on mobile signals and will present key findings of his research at a public lecture on June 5.

His study discovered a particular window of time when mobile signals and radio waves become stronger, allowing them to be clearer and travel greater distances.

The research, examining the signal strength of radio waves travelling over the sea, identified late afternoons and early evenings in spring and summer as a time when enhanced signals occur.

The research has implications for the design of cellular telephone networks operating in marine and coastal regions.

“In today’s world, radio waves are an indispensable means of communicating information without wires from one place to another, be it for radio broadcasts or cell phones, television transmissions or airport radars,” Gunashekar, who is now a post-doctoral research associate in the Radio Systems Research Group of the university, said.

When radio waves travel for long distances over the sea, their strength can be affected by the weather. The constantly changing weather conditions over the sea mean that marine and coastal environments, in particular, are prone to unusual atmospheric phenomena that enable radio waves to travel longer distances and have higher strengths than expected, he said.

Mumbai, May 16: `Om Shanti Om` girl Deepika Padukone is annoyed with the press for publishing stories about her romantic link-ups, saying they will dent her reputation and cause future embarrassment.

`The media needs to be a little restrained. I am a simple girl and from a respectable family. And loose talk about me harms my reputation,`

Deepika, who will be seen in `Chandni Chowk to China`, told reporters in an interview. `One day, like any other girl, I intend to settle down and have children. How would those write-ups look at that time? I`m so glad I`ve found a man who comes from the same space and understands the pitfalls of sensational journalism.`

Deepika, who was apparently seeing cricketer Yuvraj Singh at one time, is now reportedly set to tie the knot with Ranbir Kapoor. Ask her why she and beau Ranbir went public about their relationship,

Deepika said: `Because this is the first time I`ve actually and truly fallen in love. Being in love is the loveliest feeling. When two people are getting close they need time to understand one another.`

Both of them will be seen together for the first time on screen in `Bachna Ae Haseeno`.

Excerpts from an interview:

Q: Post `Om Shanti Om` (OSO) how has your life changed?

A: All this is very new for me. My father (bandmintom champ Prakash Padukone) was also a celebrity, but we were never exposed to media coverage. Before I went into the modelling profession, I did go into my dad`s profession - it was the expected thing. I played badminton at the national level. But I realised my heart was set on modelling. Movies weren`t even in my range of vision. But after two years of modelling, I started getting film offers I was only 18 then. I didn`t want to jump into anything.

Q: What took you down south?

A: You mean my Kannada film `Aishwarya`? I am from Karnataka and it was directed by a young and talented man, Indrajit Lankesh. And I was paired with a huge Kannada star, Upendra. Q: Did you speak your own lines? A: Yes, I did. I learnt Kannada in school. Farah Khan had already offered me `OSO`. But we were to shoot a year later. So I did the Kannada film.

Q: You remind me of Aishwarya Rai.

A: I`d take that as a compliment. I grew up watching her. When I was in school I remember how thrilled I was when she won Miss World. Ash and Sushmita Sen are people I`ve admired.

Q: What do you and Ranbir talk about?

A: Well…we do know what`s going on in each other`s careers. But otherwise we try to keep cinema out of our conversation. We try not to get into one another`s workspace.

Q: It`s amazing but both of you started your careers in Hindi films as fierce rivals in `Saawariya` and `OSO`?

A: That rivalry was more media-created than anything else. Comparing me with Sonam Kapoor was so uncalled for. We come from two totally different spaces and we started differently. She assisted Sanjay Leela Bhansali. I come from the modelling world. And our debut vehicles are so different. Fortunately, we were too involved with our own projects and had no time to think of each other as competition.

Q: You started with Shah Rukh Khan as a co-star. Can it get any bigger?

A: I hope it does. Initially, I was very nervous about working with him. But Farah and Shah Rukh made it very comfortable for me. We did readings together, we met socially so that we were comfortable when we faced the camera. He`s again someone I grew up watching.

Q: He kept making those uncle jokes.

A: He was just being kind. I`m really glad I came in at a time when there`re so many co-stars to work with - from Shah Rukh and Akshay Kumar to Neil Nitin Mukesh and Ranbir and Harman Baweja, who`s coming into films this year.

Q: You have acquired the reputation of being extremely choosy?

A: Yes, every project takes up so much of your time. You`ve to be sure of what you`re doing. So often I say no because I don`t have the time. I meet every director who wants to meet me. I do consult my parents. It would be unfair to distance them from my career just because they aren`t part of the entertainment industry. But the final decision is mine.

Q: How do your parents react to your link-ups?

A: It used to affect them initially. Now they`re fed up reading new things every morning. We`ve decided to continue with our normal lives.

Q: Is the image of the boyfriend deserter hurtful?

A: The media needs to be a little restrained. I am a simple girl and from a respectable family. And loose talk about me harms my reputation. One day, like any other girl, I intend to settle down and have children. How would those write-ups look at that time? I`m so glad I`ve found a man who comes from the same space and understands the pitfalls of sensational journalism. I feel after a point no one will take these write-ups making a tamasha out of my life seriously.

Q: Why did you and Ranbir decide to go public about your mutual feelings?

A: Because this is the first time I`ve actually and truly fallen in love. Being in love is the loveliest feeling. When two people are getting close they need time to understand each other. I`ve reached an age when I can`t be in a frivolous relationship. Linking me to so many men at a time when I wasn`t sure about my feelings was unfair.

Q: Did the earlier link-ups collapse because of the excessive attention they got?

A: Quite possible. At the end of the day it was just destiny that I was meant to be with Ranbir and we`re very happy together.

Q: Do you get time to be with each other?

A: We try to be together as much as possible. We did a film together, `Bachna Ae Haseeno`. That`s when we got close. We had met and interacted earlier, but we didn`t get a chance to know each other well enough. He was busy with his film. I was busy with mine. We were under all kinds of pressure. Everything became very messy. In Australia, when we shot together we started afresh. We almost met like two new people. There was no baggage to be carried forward from the past because even in the past we didn`t part bitterly.

Bureau Report

Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan has said that he is not ruffled by Aamir Khan’s latest blog post that talks about the former’s pet dog named ”Shah Rukh”.

The superstar has said that he is taking it in spirit.

After Amitabh Bachchan’s blog created a controversy with his remarks against veteran actor and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Shatrughan Sinha, Aamir’s latest blogpost talks about his pet dog ”Shah Rukh” at his home in Panchgani.

Aamir, who is recuperating from a hamstring injury suffered on the sets of ”Ghajini”, said he has nothing to do with the naming of the dog.

”Shah Rukh is the dog of the caretakers of our house. When I bought this house it came with the caretakers,” he clarified in the blog.

When his reaction was sought to Aamir’s blog, Sharukh on Thursday said he is not bothered and that he was taking it in the spirit.

”I have never bothered about it because I also say a lot of things in fun and I think I am also may be stressing somebody else out. I don’t get stressed when friends pass comments like this. Actually I enjoyed it,” Shah Rukh said.

Aamir said apparently, Shah Rukh, the actor was shooting a commercial in the Panchgani house, a few years ago, and that very day, the caretakers bought a pup and named him after the then rising star.

”What are the chances of me buying a house which comes with a dog called Shah Rukh. Some of my friends claim that I bought the house because of the dog. I would have to be a serious fan of Shah Rukh to want to do that. All I can say is that I’m waiting for him to come over,” Aamir wrote on his blog.

This is not the first time that Aamir has taken a shot at Shah Rukh. A few months back he had said at an event ”I would like to ask Shah Rukh how it feels to be number two after Aamir.”

Aamir wrote in his blog, ”Shah Rukh is licking my feet and I am feeding him biscuits every now and then. What more I can ask for?”

He ends the entry saying, ”Shah Rukh is once again begging for my attention, so let me get back to him. He is smelling too much. I think he needs a bath. Heel Boy, heel.”

Though Aamir claims there is no motive in his latest blog post about his dog, it has evoked criticism from the blog readers.

Beyonce Knowles is pregnant, friends have confirmed. The Crazy In Love singer - who married rapper Jay-Z in a secret ceremony last month - has reportedly been indulging in all her favourite calorific goodies since discovering she is expecting her first child. A pal told the New York Post newspaper: “She has gained a lot of pregnancy weight. When she gains weight, she normally does the Def Jam detox, but not now.” Beyonce further fuelled speculation she is pregnant after she was spotted in New York this week sporting what appeared to be a baby bump. A source close to the couple said: “I’ve heard from at least two people that Beyonce is pregnant.” Following the couple’s April wedding ceremony, actress Vivica A. Fox revealed it wouldn’t be long before they started a family, saying: “I wish them many, many years of happiness and some babies. I think she will be really pretty pregnant, just like Jennifer Lopez and Halle Berry.” It was claimed the couple “rushed” forward their nuptials as Beyonce was determined to tie the knot before her baby bump started to show

Koena Mitra is fuming because Bhanwar Lal Sharma, the producer of her latest film, Anamika, dubbed her voice without her knowledge. “Why should my voice be dubbed when other actresses who can’t even speak Hindi have their own voices in their films?” she asks.

“Anamika was a difficult experience. No wonder stars shy away from independent producers,” she opines