Laila Khan disappearance case: Stepfather Parvez Tak remanded to police custody till July 19

Mumbai: A court in Mumbai has remanded Parvez Ahmed Tak, stepfather of Bollywood actor Laila Khan and a suspect in her disappearance case, to police custody till July 19. Tak was brought to the city from Jammu on Sunday night by the Crime Branch of the Mumbai Police for questioning in connection with the case.

Tak has reportedly told the Jammu Police that Laila, who had been missing for 11 months, was murdered along with her mother, Celina, and other members of her family. During interrogation, he revealed that they were shot dead near Mumbai by three men who included Celina's second husband, a man named Asif Sheikh, and a man named Afghan Khan who was reportedly Laila lover. Tak was the third and current husband of Celina.

The Crime Branch, which is probing the disappearance of Laila and her family, had on Saturday secured permission from the Kishtwar court in Jammu to bring Tak to Mumbai. They have already arrested Sheikh who has confessed to having murdered Laila but want to question Tak to confirm the sequence of events in the case.
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Laila biological father, Nadir Patel, has already filed a case of kidnapping at the Oshiwara police station against Tak and Shaikh. Patel was divorced from Laila mother, Celina.

Laila lived in a suburban Mumbai flat with her mother, three siblings, and another relative. They disappeared from their flat on February 7, 2011.  The Mumbai police says they were taken by her stepfather, Parvez Tak, to a farmhouse in the Nashik district. This was the last location traced through Laila cellphone records. A few days later, the farmhouse was set on fire.

The motive for the murder was allegedly the property owned by Laila and her mother. They owned two flats in Mumbai, and Celina's second husband and Laila boyfriend wanted to stop her from selling these apartments.

The Mumbai police says no body parts of Laila or her relatives have been found; they don't buy Parvez's account.

Laila co-starred with actor Rajesh Khanna in the movie "Wafa" which released in 2008.

The film's producer, Rakesh Sawant, was questioned by the Maharashtra Anti-Terror Squad, about his funding and alleged links to terrorists

 Madhuri Dixit visits the Taj Mahal, in disguise!

  

The actor paid a visit to the monument in Agra with her husband and two sons
Bollywood diva Madhuri Dixit has confessed she hid her face during her recent trip to the Taj Mahal. “Here is me in disguise with the family at the Taj,” the 45-year-old tweeted. The actor who went to see the iconic structure with husband Dr Shriram Nene and their two sons Arin and Ryan, was dressed in blue jeans and a purple top. She covered her face with white scarf and sunglasses to hide her identity.

In 1999, Madhuri married Nene, a cardiovascular surgeon and moved to Denver, USA. After staying there for almost a decade, she has shifted back to Mumbai.

Post-marriage, she worked in Aaja Nachle, which didn’t do so well. But her stint as the judge on dance reality show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 4 gave her a chance to reconnect with her fans in a big way. She is now hosting the fifth season of the reality show and has also signed two movies – Gulab Gang and Ishqiya 2. She is also getting into film production.

 Will 'Bol Bachchan' enter the Rs 100 crore club

  

 Mumbai: Ajay Devgn and Rohit Shetty have done it again. While their latest film rakes in the moolah at the box office, sources say that the numbers could well make it yet another Rs 100 crore earner.

And now Devgn is gearing up for his next big release, co-starring Sanjay Dutt, this Diwali. Arch-rival Shah Rukh Khan too will make his appearance at the marquee with his Yash Chopra's production on the same day. The actor however remains unfazed by the development and says he wishes to stay focused on his film.

Devgn says, "I am not taking on any Khan. My film is an entertainer and Diwali is the right time to release it. It is a complete masala film and I am least concerned about taking on anybody. I don’t wish to take on any one and I don’t think I am big enough to take on anyone. I am just concentrating on my film."

After working on eight films with Rohit Shetty, Rohit is working on his next with SRK. However, Devgn says he is happy about the development and says, "I wish his film does well. Rohit is not a director for me but he is like my younger brother and more than anything else I am happy that we are growing with each film. Rohit and I are planning something else, which we will announce soon."

On whether big numbers at the box office are not dependent on the Khans alone, the actor points out, "The numbers have increased as the business has increased. I don’t think that films with the Khans have always worked. Sab ki films pehle bhi chalti thi and ab bhi chalti hai. Earlier the silver jubilee was the barometer for a big film and now Rs 100 crore is the benchmark."

Finally, ask him how he feels on having his biggest opening ever with his latest film, and pat comes the reply, "I can only say that my chest has become blouse! After two Rs 100 crore films behind me, there was pressure but we used it to inspire us to work harder and deliver to the best of our ability."

                                     Diana Penty quits ramp for Bollywood

 In 2009, Diana Penty achieved a major milestone in her modelling career when she was made an official rampwalker at the New York Fashion Week. Besides the Big Apple, the Indian model has also walked the ramp in Paris. But now, as she readies for a Bollywood debut with Cocktail, she has decided to bid farewell to the ramp.

“I want to concentrate completely on films. And now that I am into it (Bollywood) in a big way, it makes sense to focus on it fully,” says Diana, who has also been the face of high-fashion website Bluefly, luxury store Neiman Marcus and brands such as Forever 21 and Nordstrom.

“I’d rather do one or the other (films or modelling), and do it well, by giving it my best shot. That’s the way to go about it. Also, if films are my focus and, hopefully things work out, then it will keep me really busy,” she adds with a smile. But what if an enticing offer comes along, to walk at New York Fashion Week for a big designer? “It really depends on the situation and offer, but honestly I haven’t thought of it,” says Diana with a laugh.

The Mumbai girl had also replaced her Cocktail co-star Deepika Padukone as the brand ambassador of Maybelline. We wonder if the two talked about it on the sets? “Not at all. It didn’t even come up. We share a great rapport,” she says.

Shah Rukh Khan and other celebs to share makeover tips on a new TV show!

 Shah Rukh Khan and other celebs to share makeover tips on a new TV show!

New Delhi: Guess on whom our Bollywood celebs depend on when they need to tame their unruly hair or get a unique look for their new film! It is the makeover guru of filmdom – celebrity hairstylist Adhuna Akhtar, spouse of actor Farmhand Akhtar.

Owner of Mumbai’s posh B:Blunt salon, Adhuna is gearing up to launch her own makeover TV show that will bestow its contestants with glamorous looks. But the fun won’t end just there because the show will also give a chance to the participants to meet some well-known stars. For that matter, Adhuna has already roped in her friend King Khan Shah Rukh to make a presence on the show to hand out some easy grooming tips

Also, to make every episode of the show worth a watch, there will be a new face from Showbiz to make the contestants feel special. Speculated names that might show up on the TV series include Abhay Deol, Chitrangda Singh, Preity Zinta and Arjun Rampal among many others..

Why do I need an item song, quips Asin

 Why do I need an item song, quips Asin

Actor Asin is one of the few actors in Bollywood, who is yet to  do an item number. Ask the actor about it and she says that though not averse to doing such songs, she just doesn’t feel the need to succumb to the pressure of doing it. “First of all, I just don’t like that word. ‘Item’ is so derogatory, as if the actor is some commodity. And secondly, I don’t understand why an actor has to do any such song to add to the popularity. Will I be any less of an actor or more if I dance on any special song? I am not saying that I am averse to doing any such song, but I don’t see why I need to do one either?” quips Asin.

The actor, who was last seen opting for a rather hot western avatar in Housefull 2, has now donned a desi avatar in her recent release Bol Bachchan. Point it out and Asin reveals that it’s not just the outfits, it’s even fun doing roles that are so varied from each other. “That’s the best part of our jobs I think, you get to be so many different people,” she says. But ask her what she thinks is sexier and
 Asin is quick to reply, “Both!” Elaborating further, she adds, “Even eyes can make you look sexy, so I don’t think that being sexy has anything to do with clothes at all. They may up the sexy quotient or reduce it, but they alone can’t make a person sexy. Skin show doesn’t always add to a person’s sex appeal, so I think Indian or western outfits, it all depends on how confidently you wear them and the attitude.”

While the actor’s quite clear about her own sexy attitude, we ask Asin about her attitude towards competition in films. “Yes, there’s immense competition if you look at it like a race and none at all, if you are looking at your own growth as an actor alone. But frankly, I’ve never let these numbers affect me. I didn’t let the success of my three 100 crore films get to my head and I’m not going to let any of the failures get to my heart. That’s how I’ve always lived and that’s how it will always be,” smiles Asin. 

Bol Bachchan

Bol Bachchan

This week’s major Bollywood release “Bol Bachchan,” Hindi for “Talk Bachchan,” is a remake of 1979 Bollywood classic “Gol Maal,” widely regarded as one of the best comedies in Indian cinema.

Starring Abhishek Bachchan and Ajay Devgan, this comedy of errors traces the journey of meek orphan Abbas (Mr. Bachchan) who, in an attempt to hide his Muslim lineage, fools his new employer into believing he’s a Hindu named Abhishek Bachchan.

Chaos and confusion ensue when Abbas is spotted at a Muslim prayer meeting.

There were high expectations for the movie, given the reputation of “Gol Maal,” but it failed to live up to them in the eyes of most critics.

Here’s a roundup of what they had to say about “Bol Bachchan”:

“This one’s strictly for Bollywood junkies whose funny bones are easy to tickle,” NDTV’s film critic Saibal Chatterjee wrote, adding that it was devoid of any “genuine comic highs.” He also labeled it as a complete “rip off” of the 1979 classic.

The performances of the star cast didn’t impress him either: “The acting is generally so unabashedly hammy that you might be forgiven for wondering whether you have wandered into a pigsty,” Mr. Chatterjee noted.

“Be warned…Bol Bachchan is a comedy so absurd that it could reduce you to tears of despair,” opined Mr. Chatterjee, who gave the movie  a paltry one-and-a-half stars out of five.

Rediff.com’s Sukanya Verma largely agreed, adding that classics like “Gol Maal” are “revered realizations that need to be preserved not tampered with.”

Director Rohit Shetty, she noted, “picks up all the major plot points of the original only to alter it with his boisterous, cheesy, slapstick and visually flashy sensibilities.”

Disappointed with the comedy’s “lackluster” dialogue and “silly” execution, the critic went on to highlight that the film is marred with offensive language, “numerous innuendoes, crude gestures and frequent suggestions of homophobia.”

The A-list star cast also failed to impress. With the exception of Archana Puran Singh and Mr. Bachchan, Ms. Verma was highly critical of the others, singling out Mr. Devgan for being “suitably gruff,” “goofy” and unbearable.

“Bol Bachchan is dispensable cinema, forgotten almost immediately after it’s over,” Ms. Verma wrote, giving the film two-and-a-half stars out of five.

“All talk, no substance,” is how critic Shilpa Jamkhandikar described the film on Reuters’ Bollywood blog India Masala.

“Unlike Gol Maal, which was intelligent comedy, free from slapstick and crass humour, Bol Bachchan caters to the lowest common denominator,” she wrote, adding that the film was botched by “a liberal dose of item songs, inane dialogue, and of course, exploding vehicles.”

While the critic was seemingly impressed by Mr. Bachchan “earnest” role, she dismissed Mr. Devgan “expressionless” performance.