I'm Bhandarkar’s Heroine: Kareena Kapoor

Ending all the speculations, actor Kareena Kapoor has confirmed that she will be playing the lead in Madhur Bhandarkar’s much-talked about film, Heroine.

“I’ve said yes to Madhur and okayed the script. Now the dates and remunerations etc are being worked out,” says the 30-year-old, of the film that was ‘shelved’ after 10 days of shoot when its heroine, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, announced her pregnancy, sending Bhandarkar into a state of ‘depression’.

No other actor dared to step into Ash’s shoes for the fear of offending the Bachchan family, a fact that doesn’t seem to bother Kapoor in the least.

“I don’t base my decisions on whether someone will be pleased or offended. I say yes to the script,” she says.

Does that mean Bhandarkar has finally agreed to all the changes she wanted in the script?

“Of course. Madhur has been quite accommodating. But frankly, I don’t know what the fuss is all about. It’s not an explosive film anyway.”

The actor has just wrapped up Shah Rukh Khan’s Ra.One, and is looking forward to the 31 August release of her next, Bodyguard, with Salman Khan.

“I’m the only actor who has managed to work with both Shah Rukh and Salman without any discomfort, despite their so called rivalry. That’s only because I’ve never belonged to anyone’s camp. I’m not here to make friends,” she says.

“I don’t go around begging anyone for a role. Both Shah Rukh and Salman must have seen something in my talent and so took me in their films.”

Talking of camps, she’s also working with Imran Khan in Karan Johar’s Short Term Shaadi, while Imran is rumoured to be rival to her cousin Ranbir.

She laughs, “I don’t care about anyone’s rivalry . Imran and I look so good together. As for Ranbir, some girls are having a field day because I can’t be paired with my brother.”

Talking of beau Saif Ali Khan, who she was recently reported to be ‘not getting along with’, she says, “Saifu and I are in a place where no one dare touch us. I’ve stopped reacting to baseless reports about our so called ‘fights’.”

Finally, a revelation: Contrary to what was widely reported, her wax figure to be unveiled at Madame Tussauds won’t bear the Chameli look.

“Not at all! The look is still a big surprise!”

Padamsee too young for an item song

Shazahn Padamsee is back in India after shooting some portions of Sajid Khan's Housefull 2 in London.

After her cutesy portrayal of a working girl in Madhur Bhandarkar's Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji, ask the actress what we should expect in Housefull 2 and she says, "Well, Sajid sure knows to how to glam up the women in his films, so you'll just have to wait and watch!"

As she waits for this film to complete, ask Shazahn the kind of roles she'd like to do in future and she says, "The length of a role will never matter to me. It's what difference my character will make to a film that I'll be looking at with keen interest. Whatever film I choose to do, I'd like to stand out in the film."

Tell her that these days doing an item song is the best way to stand out and she says, "I'm way too young to do an item number!" Ask her to explain and she says, "I am at any age where I should be focusing my energies more on doing quality films, though I must admit some of the item songs are wonderfully choreographed! Right now, it's meaty roles that interest me."

As she speaks about interests, ask the pretty actress what interests her apart from acting and she says, "I love to work out, do my pilates work out, jump on the trampouline it's something that gives me a high. Also I am a big time foodie and love to check out any new restaurant in town."

Click here for some of her sizzling images !!

No similarity between Heroine and Kohli's film: PC

Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra has outrightly denied any similarities between Kunal Kohli's next film, in which she features opposite Shahid Kapoor, and Madhur Bhandarkar's much-in-the-news Heroine.

Following a news report that drew a comparison between the two movies, a furious Priyanka took to Twitter, and posted: "Woke up this morning to an amazing piece of fiction... a news story that says my role in Kunal's film is similar to that of Heroine. What a fertile imagination!!! There was no verification made with anyone before they made this resounding conclusion."

While Heroine, Bhandarkar's most ambitious project, takes a behind-the-scenes look at the life and times of a successful Bollywood actress, Kohli's untitled film will reportedly have Priyanka and Shahid play four sets of characters each.

One of those characters will be set in the 1960s, as suggested by an image where Priyanka was seen in a pink fish cut lehenga, a short blouse and Mumtaz-style draped dupatta, with a classic bouffant hairdo.

"Ours is a love story... where is the connect? What say @kunalkohli?" she added.

Kohli too gave his inputs to refute the news.

"Well said @priyankachopra, no one asked us anything,they just printed a baseless story. There's no similarity between the films," posted the filmmaker.

Priyanka, who was recently rumoured to be replacing Aishwarya Rai in Heroine, says she doesn't like being drawn into controversies.

"I don't appreciate being used to create unwarranted controversy with baseless information... unacceptable!" added the 29-year-old.

Bebo to revive Heroine ??

Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar has decided to revive his dream project Heroine, which he had shelved following the announcement of lead actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's pregnancy. Bhandarkar has approached Kareena Kapoor, 30, whom he had also tried to get on board before Ash, to play the main character — Mahi Khanna. On Monday, Madhur flew to Hyderabad to narrate the script to Bebo, who is there to spend time with beau Saif Ali Khan as he shoots for Cocktail.

A source close to the director says, “The production house, UTV, has a major hand in the move. They’ve spent Rs 50cr on the film’s publicity and aren’t willing to shelve it. Both Madhur and UTV spoke to Bebo and she agreed to a narration.”

When Kapoor was first offered the role last year, she and Bhandarkar reportedly fell out over creative differences. Bebo wasn’t in favour of her character's affair with a married actor as it bore resemblance to her real life affair with Saif, but the source says that things have now been “sorted out”. UTV however maintains, “there is nothing concrete to talk about, yet”.

A pregnant actor can not do justice to "Heroine"

Just a day after Madhur Bhandarkar wrote a detailed blog about the shelving of his ambitious project Heroine following Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's pregnancy, the writer of the film Anuraadha Tewari express her views on the matter which seems to have been blown out of proportion. Here is what she has posted on her social networking profiles.

I think this one has to be the non debate of the century. I mean I can't believe it's become about gender discrimination – my first reaction was huh??

This is the VISUAL medium. Unlike any other profession, this is work where writers and directors 'visualize' things and break their backs trying to make it all real or believable or both. Am not even harping on glamour, am just saying believable. The character in 'Heroine' (since I have written it) CANNOT be pulled off by someone pregnant. It is as SIMPLE as that. Forget the physical strain and emotional stress and all that jazz, we can keep debating that ad nauseum . . . it simply does NOT fit into THIS role. This is a strictly adult film with mature content (no it's not porn). It's just bold in the visual and mature in what it's depicting.

Of course, people have gone on about it without knowing ANYTHING about the script. But surely knowing the kind of cinema the Director is known for, I can assure you it is NOT nice, even for an informed audience member like me to see a pregnant woman drink and smoke and snort coke and sleep with various people. I would cringe, seriously I would! Much like if I knew Malaika Arora was pregnant while doing Munni Badnaam (not before and after), or Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct . Or Hema Malini in Sholay as Basanti or Kareena Kapoor in We Are Family while the other actress in both the Films (Jaya and Kajol) was pregnant – cause it didn't get in the way of their roles . . . simple.

It is about creative liberty and NOT about desirability in Motherhood that it's suddenly been turned into. OF COURSE Malaika is hot even now, post motherhood. Most Hollywood actresses are! What's sex appeal got to do with Motherhood anyways??? Rani isn't considered hot without being married or a mother, Malaika is hot with both . . . so??? Am just amazed that we have such short attention spans that anything that is said in a high pitch with authority becomes the truth . . . I mean really!!!

As for the contentious pregnancy clause... well, I am personally all for it. Because it's a CLAUSE not a LAW! No one is saying that there should be a law stating that no actress can ever be a Mother. It is a clause that may be needed in a certain Film. I think that should be left to the Producers as well as the actress. Actors include clauses of their own (some of them would really kill you!) so why not one from the makers' side. The actress can REFUSE if she doesn't find it important or applicable or offensive or whatever. She has a Choice. But here is what the clause protects – not just the Producers' money but the hard work of an ENTIRE unit. People seem to be forgetting that altogether! Like in the case of 'Heroine' where because of the actress not fitting into the role anymore, the Film gets plugged and at least a 100 technicians find themselves jobless. All of us employed for the next 6 months (not writers but the others) are suddenly without work and NO MONEY!!! (Even writers are only paid about 50% before shoot). So the situation is not just responsible for the Makers. It is so for the ENTIRE unit – the true victims of the case.

Having said all of this, and in no mood to mud sling and as the only woman on the team I must state that I am quite CONVINCED that the intention of the Actress was NOT to be unfair or dishonest. I personally think (and have said so earlier) she was genuinely warm and receptive and TRULY CARED for the script. However, my sense is that she was caught in a personal situation – a very tricky one at that and perhaps hoped that it would all work out in the end, especially, since I have no doubts on her dedication and sincerity to the Film. My feeling is that it sort of got baldy handled from the announcement onwards. Even after that things could have been sorted from both ends and, knowing the Director, if sorted amicably, there is no DOUBT in my head that he would have waited for her to return.

What saddened and intensely angered me were the planted stories thereafter (I must congratulate the PR though . . . it's a great job done, seriously!) to try and fudge and confuse the issue and getting gender into it. But am over that now... past the anger and past the frustration of watching 4 months of hard work, sleepless nights and missing life for a script DESIGNED for someone to go down the drain overnight. Knowing that my market value itself will suffer because of a shelved project . . . I am done with that and moved on and let go.

In this business, and otherwise, the only thing one can be is being true to one's craft and retain one's integrity and keep up the passion no matter what. Hopefully we have all done that and now let go knowing the Universe will do the right thing... do the needful. Like it always does :)

Madhur says Ash hid her pregnancy

Madhur Bhandakar ought to have been a busy man, directing his dream project Heroine. But nowadays he’s twiddling his thumbs in his office and coming to grips with the fact that his most ambitious project has been shelved within days of going on the floor.

Heroine was just a few days into the shooting when the news of its lead actress Aishwarya Rai’s pregnancy broke out. It’s unlikely that Aishwarya had no inkling of her impending maternity when the film went on the floors on June 7. After all, she’s believed to be four months pregnant now. Not just that, Madhur came to know about Aishwarya’s pregnancy not from her, but from the media.

Speaking to a tabloid, Madhur says he was shocked to learn of Aishwarya’s pregnancy, because she might have been injured during the days she shot for the film. Moreover, he says there was enough time between the announcing of the film at Cannes on May 13 and the commencing of the principal shoot in June that if Aishwarya had informed them of her pregnancy they would not have begun the shoot at all.

“The entire event would not have taken place if at the beginning the actress had informed of an impending maternity. The truth was hidden from us,” Bhandarkar is quoted to have told Mid-day.

Now that the film has been shelved, a loss has been suffered by not just the producer but also the crew who was associated with the film. Worst, Bhandarkar’s hard work of one-and-a-half years on Heroine has come to naught.

Aishwarya's look in "Heroine"

In director Madhur Bhandarkar’s film Heroine, Aishwarya Rai has taken up a role so bold and glam that even Kareena Kapoor backed off from playing it.

Now, going by the leaked look of Aishwarya Rai from the film’s set, it is clear that the actress plays a glam doll with stylish hairdos and layers of make-up. Ironically, Aishwarya’s look from the film has leaked despite Madhur Bhandarkar’s zeal to guard it. Madhur had banned mobile phones on the sets, lest some crewmember clicked Ash’s photos and leaked it out. However, that is precisely what seems to have happened.

‘Heroine’ has Aishwarya Rai playing a brutally ambitious actress who uses people to achieve fame. Yet, there is a vulnerable side to the character as well. Actor Arunoday Singh plays Aishwarya’s boy toy in the movie.

A source tells us that Aishwarya’s character in the film has the shades of gray, but from start to end it remains an ultra glamorous character.

However, there has been talks of Aishwarya Rai gaining some weight lately. She was spotted hiding her chubbiness in loose clothes at a derby event north of Paris recently.

We’re sure Aishwarya Rai knows how important it is for her to be in shape for Heroine. She won’t mind losing a stone for the role.

The Hero in "Heroine"

Till now Arunoday Singh has done only small films, but he got noticed in every one of them. So, it didn’t come as a surprise for us to know that he is the hunk who will romance Bollywood diva Aishwarya Rai in the much-hyped movie Heroine.

With this confirmation, the speculations have come to an end. Aishwarya gets her hero, and it’s not Abhishek Bachchan as many had expected. Apart from Arunoday Singh, Arjun Rampal is also a part of the film which will be directed by Madhur Bhandrakar.

So, what worked in Arunoday’s favour? He is good-looking, tall and incredibly handsome, someone who can match up with Aishwarya’s pristine beauty.

As per sources, Arunoday was confirmed after much deliberation. According to a source, “Madhur wanted to finish the casting of his film Heroine since the film was announced at Cannes sometime back. However, after much thought, Arunoday Singh has been roped in for the film…”

While talking to a daily, Arunoday himself confirmed the news and said that he is excited about the film and about working with Aishwarya, but can’t disclose much about the project. Sources further claim that Arunoday will play a cricketer who has an affair with a top actress.

Aishwarya in Madhur's "Heroine"

Madhur Bhandarkar didn’t let his dream wash away. His ambitious project "Heroine" will roll soon and that too with Aishwarya Rai in lead. Now, the director can’t stop counting his blessings.

Finally "Heroine" gets its actress. This much-awaited project was riding high on buzz courtesy Kareena Kapoor. Bebo first said yes to the film and later said no. The speculations were rife that the story of "Heroine" resembles her real love story with Saif Ali Khan and also her character required to do steamy scenes in the film, something that was not acceptable to the actress.

After Kareena walked out from the film, Madhur approached Aishwarya with the script. But Ash too had apprehensions about it. So, Madhur decided to work again on his script. The director confesses that he has now ‘structured’ the script keeping Ash in mind.

Madhur regrets not having Kareena, his original choice, in the film but has now moved on. The director reveals, “I feel it is jinxed for me to think of Kareena doing any of my films, as due to some or the other reason, it never materialises.” Kareena was also his first choice for Page 3 and Fashion.

The announcement of "Heroine" will be made in Cannes, says Aishwarya Rai, who will start shooting for it next month. The film will be shot in a single, two-month long shooting schedule.

Where there is controversy, there is Madhur

Bollywood director Madhur Bhandarkar Thursday met social activist Anna Hazare at Delhi's Jantar Mantar and said that the entire film industry supported his crusade against corruption.

"The whole film industry is with Annaji," Bhandarkar said after meeting the 72-year-old Gandhian who is on a fast-unto-death since Tuesday to press for the drafting of a stronger anti-graft Lokpal bill.

"This is the voice of every common man, I am here to support his struggle against corruption," said the director, who has given films like "Page 3", " Fashion" and " Chandni Bar".

His presence, however, created a minor ruckus at the site as the crowd went berserk to catch a glimpse of him. Police had to escort Bhandarkar out.