Working with Boyle was challenging: Rahman

AR Rahman More Pics

AR Rahman has been nominated for the Oscars again, much to the delight of his fans. His success in the West is an inspiring story, and his collaboration with Hollywood director Danny Boyle for "127 Hours" for the second time has worked out brilliantly once again.

Yet, while it's a euphoric time for the composer, the strain is also beginning to tell on him. He realises that it saps him out and hence, he has decided to cut back on his work and be kinder to himself.

The reticent composer confesses this and says, "Working with Danny Boyle was challenging as it required a different sensibility. He is known for the music of his films. It's a big thing to get accepted into another culture. But it hasn't been easy for me because of all the travelling. I've realised I have not been kind to myself." The hectic schedules and different time zones meant that he has spread himself too thin. "I'm going to do one movie at a time. I have realised that I need to cut back now to do justice to my work. Also, I want to spend more time with my family now."

Courtesy:indiatimes.com

Endhiran Does It Again!

Super Star Rajnikanth’s Endhiran, which had made heavy collections worldwide, was screened at the prestigious Thromso International Film Festival in the Arctic Region. So far no Indian film has been given this much of importance here.

Thromso, a city in Norway, is a snowy place situated at the North Pole of the world. This prestigious film festival is one of the important International Film Festivals and is held for six days every year.

Around 55000 people from around the world participated in this festival. This festival was started in the year 1995 and this year’s fest commenced on January 18^th 2011.

This year the only Indian film which participated in this festival was Endhiran which had Rajnikanth and Aishwarya Rai in the lead roles. This film, directed by Shankar, was screened for two days with English subtitles. The international audience who saw this film appreciated it very much. Though many Indian films were recommended for this festival it was Endhiran (Tamil version) that finally made it.

There was a good response for this film which was screened on 19th and 20th January.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Exclusive: Rajini's Next Film

Just when news about Endhiran is subsiding, brand Rajini is making news again: Not for his next (animated) movie Hara but for his next project with director KS Ravikumar. The news is official now that Rajini and KS Ravikumar have agreed to work on a project together which has been titled "Rana". The USP of the movie is that Rajinikanth will be acting in three roles in the movie. The last time we saw Rajinikanth in three roles was in Moondru Mugam.

Rana will be co-produced by Eros International and Ocher studios. The multi-lingual, which will be released in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi, will have music by AR Rahman who also scored music for Rajinikanht's last movie Endhiran. Editing will be done by Anthony and Ratnavelu, of Endhiran fame, will be the cinematographer. Art direction will be taken care by Rajeevan while The technical & special effects director will be Soundarya Rajnikanth and Charles Darby of Eyeqube Studios. The shooting is expected to commence in March this year and the film is expected to be released in 2012.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

A. R. Rahman: Best In The Biz | Synthesis

By Rachel Hwang

Under-appreciated artists must have their own patron saint somewhere.

This isn’t self-promotion for once. I’m thinking of men and women who do beautiful work in the public eye, and get shafted in favor of celebrity breakup gossip. So if you don’t know who A. R. Rahman is, listen up.

If you haven’t seen it, 127 Hours is Danny Boyle’s latest claim to fame, and it’s a worthy follow up to Slumdog Millionare. Boyle tells the true story of Aron Ralston, a colorful but reckless mountain climber who winds up trapped by a boulder alone for more than five days. It’s a remarkable story remarkably well executed. But just like with Slumdog, I went home singing praises about not just the direction, but also the soundtrack. It’s not just any film that makes a song as overplayed as M.I.A.’s Paper Planes sound fresh and somehow appropriate in rural India. Danny Boyle uses popular music brilliantly in his films, and the wizard-of-Oz-like (double Academy Award winner, I might add) mystery man behind the magic is A. R. Rahman.

If you’ve ever watched a silent film, you know how easy it is to overlook the effect a good soundtrack has on our experience. What would Darth Vader be without his foreboding theme music? How about Jaws? How about Mulan without “I’ll Make a Man Out of You”?!

The winning formula this time includes Bill Withers, Sigur Ros, Chopin and a slew of original songs from Rahman. Peeking at the tracklist, none of these should work together. There’s tremendous variety here: experimental pop, classical, soul… But oddly enough, this grab bag is anything but random. This Swiss Army knife of very diverse, yet solid stand-alone songs is surprisingly cohesive, even enjoyed sans-movie. I’m not sure how they’ve done it, but the spirit of the film is there somehow.

Highlights include the appropriately cheeky “Never Hear Surf Music Again” and an interesting mix of woodsy acoustic guitar and synth in Rahman’s original track “A Touch of Sun.” Also be sure to check out “If I Rise,” featuring Dido, which is making quite a splash amidst film awards organizations for best original score.

However much critical and popular attention this album gets, it won’t be as much as it deserves. Boyle and Rahman have created gestalts in their film, showing us once again how music and images can work together to strengthen each other. It’s incredible.

How do you film an adventure movie about a man who can’t move? How do you put the survival instinct to music? Quite in the spirit of the film, if there’s a will there’s a way.

Courtesy:synthesis.net

Rahman`s `Jai Ho` concert goes to Singapore

After performing in countries like the US and Canada, now Indian-music maestro A.R. Rahman is set to enthrall his fans in Singapore with his 'Jai Ho' concert.

Organised by Marina Bay Sands with Base Entertainment here, the four-night gala will be held at the 2,155-seater Marina Bay Sands Grand Theater March 17-20 for which Rahman has teamed up with creative director Amy Tinkham, best known for stage collaborations with Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys and Mariah Carey.

'A.R. Rahman has proved to the world that the Indian entertainment industry has come of age when he took home Academy and Grammy awards. We are proud to deliver what we promised the world, and that is that Marina Bay Sands will be a world-class entertainment destination bringing nothing but the best,' Thomas Arasi, Marina Bay Sands president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Ticket prices for the event are Singapore dollars 2,600 for 4 seats IN VIP Box; 375 for Jai Ho Seats; 265 for A Reserve; 195 for B Reserve; 145 for C Reserve and 95 for D Reserve.

Called the 'A.R. Rahman Jai Ho Concert: The Journey Home World Tour', it kicked off June 11 last year in New York and has since toured cities like Washington, Texas, Toronto, Johannesburg, Cape Town, London, Zurich and Paris.

The concert in Singapore will include songs from the multiple Oscar-award winning 'Slumdog Millionaire' as well as from his Indian blockbusters like 'Lagaan', 'Jaane Tu...Ya Jaane Na', 'Dil Se', 'Rang De Basanti' and 'Roja'.

Courtesy:sify.com

Not expecting more Oscars: AR Rahman

He lost out at the recent Golden Globe awards, but the country hopes that musician AR Rahman might repeat history by winning at the Oscars.

Ask him about this, and Rahman says in a telephonic interview from Los Angeles, “I think I’ve won enough of awards to feel the loss of one or hope for more. As for the Oscars, the fact that I won two in a go forSlumdog Millionnaire is enough for me. I am not expecting any more awards from anywhere. It’s time to concentrate more on my music now.”

Rahman recently unveiled the soundtrack of his second movie with film-maker Danny Boyle. “It’s always a pleasure to work with Danny.Composing the music for 127 Hours was greatly satisfying. I have seen the movie 40 times. It’s not just a film about somebody cutting off his hand, it is also a story of courage, grit and determination,” elaborates Rahman, who hints that he might team up with the film-maker again.

“I have not met Danny for ages now. We’ve been missing each other as we were in different locations,” informs the musician who’s been jet-setting ever since he won the Oscars and other international awards. He admits that it has its downside too. “It gets too stressful when you have to travel all the time and compose music for so many projects at the same time. I am drastically cutting down on my work and have decided to do only one movie a year,” he signs off.

Courtesy:dnaindia.com

You get success, then a movie gets ripped off: A.R. Rahman (Interview)

Indian maestro A.R. Rahman says that after the mega sweep of 'Slumdog Millionaire' at various awards, a solo win so far for the music of Danny Boyle's '127 Hours' has caused 'great suffering' to the entire team.

'It's so strange that when you get great success, the second movie gets really ripped off. It's been a great suffering for the whole team,' Rahman told IANS in a telephonic interview from Los Angeles.

This week he lost out at the 68th Annual Golden Globe Awards for '127 Hours' to 'The Social Network'. However, the Mozart of Madras, as he is fondly called, is happy with the people's response and nominations.

'But getting a nomination in itself is a great thing among all the extraordinary talent. It's got great reviews and people are loving the movie. I think it's been a good ride so far,' said the ace composer, who also has to his credit the background score of Vince Vaughn-starrer 'Couples Retreat'.

The shy musician has been nominated for the forthcoming British Academy of Films and Television Arts (BAFTA) award for original music in the biopic. This is the Chennai-based composer's second stint at Hollywood's prestigious annual movie prizes after 'Slumdog'.

'I don't think I'll get any award, but I'm grateful for the nominations. A lot of other movies are there and other very good talent, but I hope Danny Boyle gets the best director (award) and the film gets best film (trophy),' he said.

In 2009, the 45-year-old exploded on to the world stage with two gongs at the Oscars for the Danny Boyle-directed Mumbai-based underdog drama but is not sure he will repeat history with the British filmmaker's new film '127 Hours'.

'I'll be happy if I get nominations but I've got enough Oscars already for one lifetime. I don't think I'll get an Oscar. I'll enjoy the function and see it, but I don't think I'll be getting it,' he said, as the nominations for the 83rd Annual Academy Awards will be announced Jan 25.

But will he attend the ceremony?

'If I get a nomination, I'll definitely attend,' said Rahman, sounding exhausted considering it was already past-midnight in LA.

Apart from its score, the soundtrack of '127 Hours' is also being praised for the popular song, 'If I Rise', a collaboration between Rahman and pop star Dido, and won the Indian composer the best original song at the 16th Critics' Choice Movie awards. So far this is the only win for the music of the movie.

Speaking of the score in '127 Hours', he said: 'The music itself is like driving emotions not in a way that is over the top where you feel irritated or you feel drowned but meditative and pushing it forward. It is a balance between trippy and meditative and pushing it forward - all three together.'

Getting another opportunity to work with Boyle came as a surprise for the Padma Bhushan awardee.

'I was very excited that Danny came (to me) for this movie. I expected him to take a pure American composer for this one,' said the composer, who was described by Time magazine as India's most prominent movie song writer in 2005.

Starring 'Spider-Man' star James Franco, '127 Hours' is a biopic about mountaineer Aron Ralston, who was trapped in a canyon for five days by a boulder that fell on his arm and freed himself by amputating the limb.

'The movie is about courage. Most of the people think it is about arm cutting, but it is about courage that anyone could face in the world. It requires sometimes to get out from a real big problem and sacrifice something and you have to look at the bigger picture,' said Rahman.

'Metaphorically in this movie it's about the arm. He had to take a decision whether it's his life or his arm. It is a very inspiring movie to watch,' he added.

Rahman's future projects include Bollywood movie 'Rockstar' and international animated project 'Monkeys of Bollywood' with Gurinder Chadha.

Courtesy:sify.com

Ranbir Cancels World Tour For Rahman

Asia’s sexiest chap Ranbir Kapoor has dropped his plans of world tour for the moment as his family members insisted for the change. Ranbir Kapoor was supposed to take on his world tour that was supposed to have hotties Katrina, Bipasha Basu and Mallika Arora shaking legs for their glistering item songs – ‘Sheila Ki Jawaani’, ‘Beedi Jalalaile’ and ‘Munni Badnaam’. But later Ranbir and his family members desperately started looking out for his perfect identity that will make his stage performance more enchanting. Obviously with his upcoming movie Rockstar hitting the screens this year, Ranbir feels that performing these songs (musical score of A.R. Rahman) will gain more momentum.

Rockstar brings filmmaker Imtiaz Ali (Jab We Met and Love Aaj Kal) with academy award winner A.R. Rahman for the first time.

Rahman has now completed background score for the film and audio will be launched next month.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

A.r.rahman Nominated For Oscars Yet Again!

The Maestro of Madras has done us proud once again. He has got not one, but two Oscar nominations this year. Rahman has been nominated under the category of Best Original Score for the movie 127 hours and Best Song for ‘If I Rise’ from the same film. Rahman, who won the Critics Choice award, lost the Golden Globe to Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross who scored music for The Social Network. Rahman also has a BAFTA nomination in his kitty. To add to the excitement the film 127 hours has also been nominated for the Best Picture. Rahman won two Oscars for the 2008 film Slumdog Millionaire and the film itself swept 8 Oscars. We are keeping our fingers crossed for a BAFTA win and also a double whammy in the Oscars once again!

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Ar Rahman’s Crystal

The Mozart of Madras AR Rahman is to add yet another feather to his cap! He will be conferred with the Crystal Award at the World Economic Forum on January 26^th, 2011 at Davos in Switzerland.

This five-day meeting will be graced by the Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath and Heavy Industries Minister Praful Patel, the Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia and business tycoon Mukesh Ambani from India.

Rahman will be honored in this meet which is to be attended by 2500 delegates from across 11 nations.

Courtesy: behindwoods.com

AR Rahman’s ‘Changing Seasons’ – A Revival

Mesmerising tune blended with heart whelming lyrics… That’s what AR. Rahman’s ‘Changing Seasons’ is all about. If you are wondering what it is, then let us put it in simpler way – it’s the song which was used in ‘Raavan’ during the ending titles, after Beera (Abhishek Bachchan) is shot and he falls off from the cliff. The song “Uda Ja Re”, in which the Music Mozart had literally put his heart and soul, sadly didn’t feature in the movie nor people seldom remember it at as it was played when the end titles were rolling. Besides, the track wasn’t included in the film’s music album. With a view to bring this beautiful track to people’s notice, Y M Movies along with Prinz Productions and Ganashankar Balachandran has come up with this music video, titled ‘Changing Seasons’ - featuring AR Rahman and glimpses of Aishwarya Rai’s scenes from ‘Raavan’. The video, which has both Hindi and Tamil versions, is directed by John Warner and edited by Abdul Quadir along with Warner.

Courtesy:

Rahman gets BAFTA nomination

Oscar-winning Indian music composer AR Rahman has been nominated for the British Academy of Films and Television Arts (BAFTA) award for original music in Danny Boyle's 127 Hours. This is the second time he is nominated for the BAFTA.

The composer, who lost out on the Golden Globe award for the film this year to "The Social Network", has been nominated alongside Danny Elfman (Alice In Wonderland), John Powell (How To Train Your Dragon), Hans Zimmer ("Inception") and Alexandre Desplat (The King's Speech).

Last year, Rahman was in competition for his Oscar-winning music in Slumdog Millionaire, and he won the prestigious award.

Courtesy:ibnlive.in.com

A R Rahman loses out on Golden Globe - Rediff.com movies

Oscar winning musician A R Rahman lost out the Golden Globe in the Original Score category to Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, who won for their music in The Social Network.

The 45-year-old musician was up for his second Golden Globe for the Danny Boyle film 127 Hours and had just a day earlier bagged the best original song trophy at the 16th Critics' Choice Awards for his number If I Risefrom the film.

The musician, who had won his first Golden Globe in 2009 for Boyle's previous film Slumdog Millionaire, is in the running for his second Oscar with the song, which is a collaboration between him and British popstar Dido.

'A year ago I had no idea I'd have the opportunity to score a film. The idea of standing up here to accept this award is surreal,' said Reznor, who is the frontman of the rock group Nine Inch Nails, in his acceptance speech.

Rahman's music in 127 Hours, starring James Franco as real-life mountain climber Aron Ralston, who cut off his arm to escape from beneath a boulder after being trapped for more than five days, had received good reviews for it's 'haunting tracks' and 'wonderful crescendos.'

The musician, known as the 'Mozart of Madras' had won two Oscars for his score in Slumdog Millionaire at the 2009 Oscars, taking the film's total haul to eight.

His song Na Na from his Hollywood debut venture Couple's Retreat, was longlisted in the Best Original Songcategory at the 2010 Oscars but failed to win a nomination.

Rahman, who was honoured with a Padma Bhushan last year, had enjoyed a golden run at the 52nd Grammy Awards, where he had again bagged two gramophones for his music in the Slumdog Millionaire.

Courtesy:rediff.com

Endhiran Wins Two Awards At 17th Annual Star Screen Awards

Endhiran has bagged its first ever award in the 17th Annual Star Screen Awards. It received two awards at the event. One is for special effects and the other is a jury special award for offering cutting age technology in movies.

Endhiran has created a history in Indian cinema by using some amazing special effects and its budget was also a record figure. It has become one of the most remembered films of Indian cinema. So, the film definitely deserves this award and many more in near future.

Srinivas Mohan, the special effects coordinator of the movie received the award for Endhiran. This Tamil film has gone much ahead of its time and shocked the viewers with some wonderful stunts and special effects. No other Indian film has used such advanced technology in any movie and this is a big achievement for the Indian cinema as a whole.

It took a lot of effort by the makers of the film to finish the pre-production works, which took almost a decade before they started shooting in 2008. Endhiran also became first Indian film to get such a big worldwide opening. So, it deserves to get the awards in all aspects.

–Sampurn Wire

Courtesy:thaindian.com

Sultan to Hara to Rana

It was initially 'Sultan the Warrior'. The first animated movie starring Superstar Rajinikanth in the lead role was then buzzed to be renamed as 'Hara'.

And now, sources have it that the film directed by Soundarya Rajinikanth has been once again rechristened, and this time as 'Rana'. "But nothing is official till an announcement is made," they are quick to add.

"The film is currently in its final stages of shooting," they say, adding: "Some parts of the movie, where the real Rajini would appear, would be shot by K S Ravikumar, whose earlier ventures with the Superstar are blockbusters."

With Vijayalakshmi of 'Chennai 28' and 'Anjathey' fame playing the leading lady, the film was announced when the top actor's 'Sivaji' hit the screens. Music is by A R Rahman.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

‘Ponniyin Selvan' to come alive on celluloid

After making several films with contemporary themes but with elements of history or mythology, director Mani Ratnam is now set to embark on an ambitious venture of converting Kalki's epic novel ‘Ponniyin Selvan' into a film.

Sources involved in the project said it would be a big-budget film requiring over Rs. 200 crore and Kalanidhi Maran's Sun Pictures is likely to be the producer although the agreement is yet to be finalised.

Mr. Mani Ratnam is planning a full-fledged adaptation of the novel, instead of culling out a few episodes from the narrative. Industry sources say the director has roped in noted Tamil writer Jayamohan to pen the dialogues for the film.

Ponniyin Selvan, a fictionalised account of Chola King Raja Raja I, was serialised in the Tamil weekly ‘Kalki' by celebrated writer R. Krishnamurthy.

Later, the novel was published in five volumes.

A highly popular novel known for its colourful characters such as Vanthiyathevan, Alwarkadiyan, Pazhuvettaraiyar brothers and Nandini, the story has captivated generations of readers for the last six decades.

Though the title Ponniyin Selvan is a reference to the Chola prince Arulmozhi Varman who was later known as Raja Raja I, the novel depicts a cross-section of medieval Tamil society spread over Thondai Mandalam in the north, Chola Mandalam in the Cauvery delta region and Pandi Mandalam in the south, besides one impressive volume set in Sri Lanka.

Making the film has been the dream of many a director, even actor Kamal Haasan, as bringing to life the rich tapestry of characters, episodes and locales from 10{+t}{+h} century presents a huge challenge. The events dealt with in the story are set in the years 940-970 AD, just before the heyday of the later Cholas. Its characters included ambitious kings, brave warriors, enigmatic women, wily spies and committed political assassins.

Courtesy:hindu.com

DreamWorks swings with 'Monkeys of Bollywood'

DreamWorks Animation has gone ape for "Monkeys of Bollywood," roping in composer A.R. Rahman, Broadway lyricist Stephen Schwartz and husband-and-wife producing team Gurinder Chadha and Paul Berges to fast-track the studio's first animated feature musical.

Hindu epic poem "The Ramayana" inspired the Bollywood-style animated musical. Mumbai-set project revolves around two monkeys who try to stop an ancient demon from conquering the world.

"As soon as I heard that DreamWorks Animation envisioned making an animated Bollywood movie, I knew I wanted to be a part of it," said Schwartz in a statement. "The fact that A.R. Rahman got involved made it an even more exciting project."

DreamWorks chief creative officer Bill Damaschke and development exec Chris Kuser will oversee "Monkeys of Bollywood."

Chadha and Berges have teamed for films including "Bend It Like Beckham" and "Bride and Prejudice." Rahman scored Danny Boyle's "127 Hours" and "Slumdog Millionaire." Broadway vet and "Wicked" lyricist Schwartz scored DreamWorks' "Prince of Egypt" in 1998 and has worked on TV series including "Glee" and "Army Wives."

Courtesy:variety.com

Mani to make ‘Ponniyin Selvan’

IndiaGlitz carried a report in December last year itself that Mani Ratnam’s next would be a period film and the ace director, who last made ‘Raavanan’, was busy with the ground works of the project. It is almost official now, with sources suggesting that the film will be based on Ponniyin Selvan, one of the greatest works of Tamil literature, penned by arguably the most celebrated writer, Kalki. It is said that the movie would be made on a whopping Rs 200 crore budget and would be produced by Sun Pictures, breaking their earlier record ‘Enthiran’, which was reportedly made on Rs 150 crore. Sources have it that popular writer Jayamohan will pen dialogues for the film. ‘Ponniyin Selvan’, a fiction on Raja Raja Chola, was a highly popular novel known for its grand theme and colourful characters. It is also Superstar Rajinikanth’s favourite novel in Tamil.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Rajini To Dub For All 4 Versions

Rajinikanth and daughter Soundarya, who is directing him in Hara, are keen on completing the film as soon as possible. Though this started as a full-length 3D animation project, Soundarya decided to include a 30-minute feature film portion and director KS Ravi Kumar has been roped in to direct this part alone.

Hara is a multilingual film and will be released in four languages – Tamil, Telugu, English and Hindi. Interestingly, Rajini will dub for all the four versions. The film’s heroine Vijayalakshmi and Prakash Raj have also decided to render their own voices, we hear.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

‘Enthiran’ scores century

October 1, 2010. Even before the day was dawned, it was like a festival in front of cinema halls all over Tamil Nadu. Because, the box-office God took a new avatar on that day, in the name of ‘Enthiran’.

Today, the Superstar Rajinikanth starrer, produced by Sun Pictures on a ‘never before’ budget and directed by Shankar, has successfully completed 100 days, a rare mark in Kollywood these days.

Even more than three months of its release, the film is still running in 10 theatres in Chennai alone, without taking into account cinema halls in suburbs of the city and the rest of Tamil Nadu.

Says a trade pundit, “Enthiran has clearly rewritten the rules of Tamil cinema. Budget is no more a concern now provided if a team like Enthiran is formed. The main reason behind the film’s success is Rajini with other factors adding strength to it.”

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

First Awards for ‘Endhiran’

The spectacular film of the Super Star Rajinikanth ‘Endhiran’ has opened it account for the excellence awards in the New Year. When the film was released in last October, the whole of India was in awe and the film went on to become one of the most successful films ever in Indian cinema. The special effects and technology used for ‘Endhiran – The Robot’ were new to Indian cinema and considered a new beginning. In recognition of that ‘Robot’ has won two important technical awards at the ‘Star-Screen Awards’ held yesterday in Mumbai city. Srinivas Mohan won the Best Special Effects Award and a Special Jury Awards for Spectacular Cutting of Age Technology was also presented to ‘Robot’.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

AR Rahman to launch new music video, with Dido?

AR Rahman has announced on twitter that he is going to world premier a new music video. “Hey Guys, watch out for the world premiere of my new music video…coming soon..” he tweeted.

He has also linked a picture that shows hm near a helicopter.

Image: A R Rahman

AR Rahman, as we last heard was making a music video with international singing sensation Dido.

Rahman had earlier worked with Dido for the soundtrack of Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours for the song If I Rise. 127 Hours, which tells the real-life story of a climber who became trapped by a boulder.

On 18th Nov, Dido had posted “I was working with ar rahman on something else at his studio and he asked me if i’d like to collaborate on this (If I rise) song, for his soundtrack of the film.”

Let us wait and watch.

Courtesy:frontierindia.net

Ranbir Kapoor and Nargis Fakhri on the Set of 'Rockstar'

Ranbir Kapoor has completely changed looks for his new movie, Rockstar. He was dressed like a hippie on the set of the flick in Prague, he was spotted looking equally scruffy in Mumbai and now the actor is going for the nerdy look as he hangs out with his co-star Nargis Fakhri on the set in Delhi.

Rockstar is directed by Imtiaz Ali, who also did Love Aaj Kal and Jab We Met, and produced by Eros international and Shri Ashtavinayak Cine Vision - and the music is composed by none other than A.R.Rahman. Ranbir has been taking guitar lessons for his role so fans have something new to look forward to!

Cast and crew started shooting Rockstar in May and Ranbir's co-star is half Czech- half Pakistani model Nargis Fakhri from New York. Piyush Mishra and Shammi Kapoor are also set to appear in the movie. We hope the chemistry between Ranbir and Nargis will be all we expect and more - judging by the pic from the set, the two are getting along just fine!

Ranbir is currently working on the movie and has been seen wearing a pair of blue jeans and a plaid shirt. The actor's character is named Jordan and he is reportedly inspired by a real rockstar, Jim Morrison. The buzz is that the film tells the story of a small town boy who becomes - wait for it - a rockstar!

Do you think Ranbir Kapoor and Nargis Fakhri make a good couple in Rockstar?

Courtesy:desihits.com

Yuvan And Mani Rathnam For A Period Flick?

If reports are to be believed, Mani Ratnam may soon wield the megaphone for a period flick. Sources say that the talented director has already set the ball rolling for this venture and it may go on floors quite soon.

The next big question regarding this project is – who will score the music? AR Rahman and Mani Ratnam are the best combination who have produced some excellent chatrt busters together. But with the Oscar winning musician busy in the international sphere it seems doubtful if he would join Mani’s camp for this period film.

With Yuvan Shankar Raja expressing his long-pending desire to score music for a period film, will Mani sign him up?

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

AR Rahman`s calendar for a cause

Second time in a row AR Rahman has launched a calendar in collaboration with World Light. It is for a noble cause to support the education for less privileged children. The calendar has portrait pictures of singers like Chinmayi and Benny Dayal. The highlight is that out of 10 musicians featured in the calendar eight of them got their break through Rahman. Rahman says: "At the foundation we know that there is no better investment than that in the education of children." Rahman's foundation is providing free music education to 30 students from corporation schools in Chennai. The calendar pictures have been photographed by Selvakumar.

Courtesy:sify.com

Ram in Gautam Menon direction

Young hero Ram who earned huge youth fan following with his blockbusters like 'Devadasu' and 'Ready', got lucky this time. Successful director Gautam Menon is all set to direct Ram in a Telugu film. Being produced by Ashok Vallabhaneni on Manadesham Movie banner, Ram is likely to star with Samanta in this film. A R Rahman will compose music for it. Gautam Menon himself revealed this to the media on Monday."I just spoke to Ram and he agreed to do the film. It will be a wholesome family entertainer with young star cast" Menon said.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

2010: Rajnikant's 'Robot' pips Bollywood blockbusters

The year 2010 in Tamil cinema belongs to Rajnikant whose robot avatar in 'Endhiran' enjoyed a great run at the box office amid fan frenzy and celebrations. Film icon Kamal Haasan rounded off the year with his 'Manmadhan Ambu'.

The Tamil film industry also witnessed almost every other member of DMK's first family headed by M Karunanidhi make the 'Kollywood' splash, either in production or acting.

The year also saw actress Khushboo, who overcame a legal battle concerning her remarks on pre-marital sex, joining DMK.

The Shankar directed 'Endhiran' (Robot), three years in the making, was a box-office hit easily piping the Bollywood blockbusters of the year.

The trilingual film, starring Aishwarya Rai Bachchan as Rajnikant's love, received good opening as producer Kalanidhi Maran of the Sun TV Group ensured it went global.

The superstar of Tamil cinema, Rajnikant, enjoyed professional success with his movie going on to become a blockbuster. On the personal front, his younger daughter, Soundarya, got married to Chennai-based businessman Ashwin.

The actor stayed away from any political controversy unlike in the past when his comments on inter-state issues such as the Hogenakkal row had threatened his films' releases in Karnataka, his home state.

Kamal Haasan rounded off the year with 'Manmadhan Ambu' which saw actress Trisha paired opposite him. Trisha had earned accolades for her role as Jessy in 'Vinnaithaandi Varuvaya'.

Haasan courted controversy when some Hindu outfits reportedly expressed opposition to certain verses in a song penned by him in Manmadhan Ambu. The actor gave in to pressure and removed the verses for the film produced by Karunanidhi's grandson Udhayanidhi Stalin.

The producers of both these high-profile ventures chose to go overseas for their music launch. Endhiran's audio launch was by itself a gala event with the producers choosing Malaysia for the event while Kamal and crew went to Singapore.

The Sri Lankan Tamils issue had its repercussions on Indian film industry's unity when some leading star including brand ambassador Amitabh Bachchan and family stayed away from the IIFA event in Colombo even as Salman Khan chose to attend.

Courtesy:economictimes.indiatimes.com

Look who ruled Facebook this year

What was your favourite topic for Facebook statuses this year? For most Indians, it was the Commonwealth Games, followed by the football World Cup.

The online social network has announced the top status messages across the world in 2010, and while HMU, or “Hit me up” emerged the most commonly used phrase in status updates across the globe, it was the Commonwealth Games that topped the list of status trends in India.

The football World Cup was the second most talked about among Indian users, while the site’s IM service ‘Chit Chat’ came third and ‘cancer’, fourth. These were followed by the films Endhiran and Raajneeti in the fifth and sixth spot, and CWG supremo Suresh Kalmadi stood seventh for all the news he made. Chennai Super Kings took the eighth spot, followed by Endhiran star, Rajinikanth in the ninth position and the songTere Liye from the movie Prince, in the tenth.

“The results reflect the highs and lows of world events that started a global conversation, new uses of language online and the sharing of popular culture,” said a statement issued by the website.

Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

Rajinikanth's 'Robot' becomes part of IIM-A curriculum

It might sound as one of the hundreds of jokes doing rounds on south Indian superstar Rajinikanth, but his latest blockbuster Endhiran orRobot has made it to the curriculum of the country's best management school, Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A).

The sci-fi movie, made originally in Tamil, would be included as a part of an elective course called "Contemporary film industry" in IIM-A.

Robot would be part of the syllabus as a case study to analyse the business of cinema and its success story.

Another Tamil film starring Rajinikanth -- Muthu -- would also be added to the syllabus.

Indeed, nothing seems impossible for Rajinikanth!

Courtesy:intoday.in

Shekhar Kapur’s next is ‘English Mountaineer’

Shekhar Kapur

What is filmmaker Shekhar Kapur up to? While his Bollywood project 'Paani' is still floating around, the man is currently working on a script for an English film titled 'English Mountaineer'.

The movie, apparently, is based on mountaineer George Mallory, who was found dead a little way away from the peak of Mount Everest.

Life has its way of letting many things remain unanswered, and so the question is: Did George Mallory die on his way up to the peak or on his way down? If George did pass away on his way down from the peak, it would've been he and not Sir Edmund Hillary as the first man to climb Mount Everest.

Shekhar's epic drama 'Elizabeth' was commendable, and this storyline, too, proves that Kapur is out to achieve some mean feat!

Courtesy:indiatimes.com

AR Rahman 'worth a year-long wait'

Producers of Ada… A Way of Life delayed the release of the film for a year because they wanted AR Rahman to work on it, Ayaan Ahmad has revealed.

The actor said the film was kept on hold while Oscar-winning composer AR Rahman was busy.

"Our film was stalled once it got to the background score stage. We wanted AR Rahman to do the background score. This was around that time Slumdog Millionaire hit the screens. The Oscars happened, and then he got busy with work in LA," said Ahmed.

While the composer recommended other musicians for the job, the makers of the film said he was the only man for the job and claim it was worth the wait.

Ada… A Way of Life will be released on December 24.

Courtesy:digitalspy.co.uk

‘Its finally time to shoot Paani

Noted filmmaker Shekhar Kapur breaks the ice around his most-awaited futuristic film, Paani , which he intends to start shooting early next year, says Divya Kaushik

From voicing and giving his poetic works a public image to starting with his most-awaited and ambitious project based in India, this eclectic director surely has a lot on his mind right now. Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur back home and will be here till the time he starts his project, Paani, that has been in news for long now but hasn’t yet seen the light of the day.

“People have been talking about it but unfortunately, the project hasn’t taken off. I might begin shooting by February end or the first week of March. That’s the deadline I’ve set for myself,” says the director, taking a deep breath. And no, he hasn’t decided the locations so far nor is he ready to spill the beans on the star cast of the movie. However, rumour is that he has finalised Hrithik Roshan for the lead. “I can’t tell anything related with the cast of the movie but would like to correct some people who think Paani will be a science thriller. I would rather call it a futuristic movie that narrates the tale of the world without water. It deals with a serious subject and will put the picture of the future so any location can be ideal. It can be Mumbai, Bengaluru or any other place. There is also a love story weaved in it,” he smiles suspiciously.

After Paani, Kapur is planning to do a series of movies based on climate change. “I intend bringing renowned directors from across the world to work on this series. I won’t mind if these are of 10-15 minutes duration,” he adds.

The noted director, nominated for Oscars and who created ripples in Hollywood with his film Elizabeth: The Golden Age, was in the Capital after a long time and like most of the times, he surprised his fans. He narrated a few of his poems, the first time he was doing so while designer Manish Arora showcased his collection on the theme, Circus of Life. “I’ve been writing poetry since long but never got them published. I never thought it necessary. But I narrated a poem for this show where Manish and I worked together,” he says. It was the first time the director has collaborated with a fashion designer but denies on being a fashion-conscious person himself. Manish, who worked with Kapur, says, “I don’t believe it. When I first met him, I saw him wearing a shoe brand that no one knows in India. It is picked up by a select few fashionable men in West. I was surprised to find out that besides me there is another Indian who sports this brand.”

Says Kapur, “I don’t know anything about fashion but I believe in designs. It is something that constantly leads people towards change. I always wanted to do something with design so I and Manish decided to come together to do ‘something’ with design.” To which Arora adds, “But that ‘something’ we can’t reveal now though we’re even sure of the name.”

Even with so many things on his platter, the director says that another Hollywood project is in the making simultaneously. “I’m exploring the life of English explorer and mountain climber, George Marllory. Nobody knows where did he go or how he died? I just loved the subject and will make a film on it soon,” says Kapur, known for his love for sci-fi movies.

He had once said that he would love to make a sequel to Spiderman but there’s some time for that. “I said that may be I will be coming up with a Spiderman 6 or 7. I think it’ll take time. Let Spiderman 4 come first,” says the director who believes there lies a vast difference in the process of filmmaking and in the subjects in Hollywood and Bollywood.

“Both are wide faces. Whereas Hollywood picks up more vast subjects, Bollywood sticks to a few,” he says. Kapur was seen on small screen some time back with India’s Got Talent. The director says he’ll make a comeback only if something really creative comes his way. “The definition of creative is different for me and something that I feel would change some people’s lives and can move me, would make me return to TV,” he clarifies.

Kapur has always been open in speaking out his mind on spirituality and we might soon get to hear the director is working on a film based on it. “Why not? Spirituality to me is an expression that defines your relationship with your senses and entire universe. I would love to present my version of spirituality to people,” he sums up.

Courtesy:dailypioneer.com

Movie review: “127 Hours” - Royal Purple - Lifestyle

In 2003, rock climber Aron Ralston decided to take a trip to Blue John Canyon without telling anybody where he was going. While traversing the rugged terrain, he fell into a small, narrow canyon, at which point a small boulder became dislodged and pinned his forearm against the wall. After numerous futile efforts, he believed he was going to die. He spent the next five days sipping what little water he had left before finally amputating his arm off with a dull knife from part of a cheap multi-tool. He then had to rappel down a 65-foot wall, at which point a family saw him, gave him food, water, and called in rescue.

There is a question that has to be asked: how can this scenario be turned into a film? Well, it has been done, and the result is one of the best movies on 2010. Danny Boyle (Slumdog Millionaire) has brought to us one of the best portraits of survival out there, using his trademark kinetic directing style, and James Franco (Spider-Man) has given us his best performance to date, showing that he can go against the best of the best in the acting world. 127 Hours is destined to go down as one of the most harrowing tales ever brought to the silver screen, and everybody should experience it.

Boyle's directing style helps turn what could've been a very boring movie into a very exciting, yet excruciating, tale. The only reason I say that it could have been boring is for the fact that if an inexperienced director took the helm, what would they show? Ralston sitting at the bottom of a canyon, trapped? Boyle makes the pitfall engaging. He keeps it interesting. Boyle even has a way of making us feel some of Ralston's pain with visual and audio cues, which are very apparent and very effective. Franco definitely helps with that, showing off the numerous emotions needed to capture Ralston's situation perfectly. He goes from a happy-go-lucky mountaineer to a delirious man who has accepted his inevitable death. His performance is perfect, and I really won't be surprised if he wins for Best Actor this year.

There is one part of the movie, though, that doesn't exactly fit in with the rest of the movie. At one point, towards the end, Boyle decides to turn Ralston's experience into a talk show of sorts, complete with a laugh track in tow. It also shows a complete shift in Ralston's personality, showing him as an exuberant talk show personality interviewing himself, who is also in higher spirits than he previously was. It's not that big of a deal, in fact, I think it helps the movie pick up steam once more, right before the amputation.

And yes, you do get to see the amputation. And yes, it's very gruesome. But it was the anticipation of the scene more so than the actual scene itself that make me cringe. Every time it looked like he was going to go through with it but didn't, yikes. It had me on the edge of my seat the whole time.

127 Hours is one of the best movies I have seen this year. Thanks to the phenomenal performance by James Franco, Danny Boyle's fantastic direction, and a very engaging story, I cannot recommend this movie enough. Please, I implore you, try and find a theater that is playing this movie.

Courtesy:royalpurplenews.com

Fox Searchlight dares you to see "127 Hours"

James Franco plays rock climber Aron Ralston in "127 Hours."

Published on Dec 16, 2010 11:00AM 0 Comments

In marketing "127 Hours," Fox Searchlight initially tried to downplay stories of audience members fainting when they saw climber Aron Ralston (played by James Franco) cutting off his pinned right arm in Utah's Bluejohn Canyon.

Now, Fox Searchlight is making a virtue out of the shock factor.

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that the distributor is launching a website, with the logo "I Kept My Eyes Open for 127 Hours," and will be distributing pins at 200 theaters playing the film this weekend.

The L.A. Times notes that the box-office for "127 Hours" (which was filmed in Utah) has been solid, but not that spectacular, earning $8.5 million in six weeks in its rollout release.

Courtesy:sltrib.com

VTV Hindi is on, says Gautham Menon

The Kollywood grapevine is abuzz that Gautham Vasudev Menon's Hindi remake of his VTV has been shelved.

Remember the Vinnayithaandi Varuvaayain Tamil was a hit and featured Silambarasan and Trisha and had good music by AR Rahman.

As per the rumours making the rounds Prateik Babbar who was to do the film has walked out of the project and Amy Jackson has no clue about emoting the way required in Indian films.

When contacted Gautham told sify.com: "The film has not been shelved. We are taking a break as Prateik Babbar is busy with the promotions of his Aamir Khan produced Kiran Rao directed Dhobhi Ghat, which is releasing in January. Amy Jackson was in India for a month during which she attended special Hindi coaching classes and will come back once we firm up the shooting dates."

Courtesy:sify.com

Rahman in Oscar race too

A couple of days after bagging a Golden Globe nomination, A R Rahman is once again in Oscar race with his song 'If I Rise' from 127 Hours. The number has made it to the Academy shortlist for the Original Song category.

A total of 41 tunes, including the number that Rahman wrote for Danny Boyle's film, will be judged for Oscar considerations by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.

Clips featuring the songs will be viewed by the members of the music branch, who will vote to determine the final nominees on 6 January, Academy's official website said unveiling the list on Thursday.

The nominations for the 83rd Academy Awards will be unveiled January 25 while the award ceremony will take place on 27 February at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Prateik Babbar starrer project cancelled

Buzz is that the Hindi remake of Gautam Menon’s hit Tamil movie ‘Vinnai Thandi Varuvaya’ has been called off, owing to several reasons.

According to sources, the lead actor Prateik Babbar opted out of the project and things had been difficult to find an actor to replace him.

Besides, it is heard that things were not going smooth when British model Amy Jackson was roped on for the leading lady. The foreign actress was finding it hard to learn Indian mannerisms and emotions.

Thus one thing lead to another and finally the project was cancelled.

Directed by Gautam Menon ‘Vinnai Thandi Varuvaya’, the original movie had Trisha and Silambarasan in lead and the music was done by A. R. Rahman. The film had been one of the highest grossing movies in Tamil and the music had been top in chartbuster.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

Gautham Menon’s Latest Favorite Heroine

Samantha did a small role in Vinnaithaandi Varuvaya, which impressed its director Gautham Menon so much that he cast her as the female lead in its Telugu version Ye Maye Chesave opposite Naga Chaitanya.

She seems to have turned into Gautham’s favorite actress as he had roped her in for a bilingual. This film, which has not been named yet, will be made in Tamil and Telugu. Samantha is happy with the offer and is raring to prove her mettle as an actress in Kollywood. The shooting of this film is slated to begin next year, sources say.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Is Suriya The Replacement Mr. Idiot?

Vijay’s walkout from Shankar’s ‘3 Idiots’ has turned spotlights on Suriya. The hums heard on the airs convey that Shankar’s other option could be Suriya as the actor strikes more commonalities with Aamir Khan. The duo share certain attributes that started with the remake of ‘Ghajini’. Suriya openly confessed that his looks of ‘Sanjay Ramaswamy’ were inspired from Aamir Khan’s role in ‘Dil Chahta Hai’. Of late, Mr. Perfectionist expressed that Suriya was his inspiration to perform well in the Hindi remake of ‘Ghajini’.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Rahman in Oscar race for 127 Hours

After bagging a Golden Globe nomination, music maestro A R Rahman is once again in Oscar race with his song If I Rise from 127 Hours making it to the Academy shortlist for the Original Song category.

A total of 41 tunes, including the number that Rahman wrote for Danny Boyle's film, will be judged for Oscar considerations by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.

Clips featuring the songs will be viewed by the members of the music branch, who will vote to determine the final nominees on January 6, Academy's official website said unveiling the list today.

It is a happy coincident for Rahman, who had a similar golden run in the award circuits in 2009. The 44-year-old singer-composer won his first Golden Globe in 2009 in the Best Original Score category for Boyle'sSlumdog Millionaire, which also went on to fetch him two Oscar statuettes later.

The musician's song for Couples Retreat had also made it to the shortlist last year but failed to fetch a nomination for him.

Rahman has already received rave reviews for his music in 127 Hours, starring James Franco as real-life mountain climber Aron Ralston, who cut off his arm to escape from beneath a boulder after being trapped for more than five days.

If I Rise is a collaboration between Rahman and American popstar Dido.

Musical Burlesque with its three songs is leading the shortlist while two tunes each from Black Tulip,Country Strong and Despicable Me are in the race.

To be selected for the nominations, a song must score an 8.25 rating or higher and Academy members are known to be choosy when it comes to rounding up the nomination list, which could feature as few as two songs or none.

If only one song receives a 8.25 score, that song and the song with next highest score will be selected as nominees. A maximum of five nominees will be chosen.

This year's shortlist includes Randy Newman for his contribution to the Disney-Pixar toon Toy Story 3song We Belong Together, You Haven't Seen the Last of Me and Bound to You from Burlesque; I See the Light, Coming Home from Country Strong and There's a Place for Us from Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

The nominations for the 83rd Academy Awards will be unveiled January 25 while the award ceremony will take place on February 27 at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood.

Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

Shankar - Indian Of The Year

Accolades and honors never seem to stop for director Shankar ever since Endhiran’s release. The film is a runaway success and people cannot stop raving about it. Still running to packed houses, Endhiran/Robot has earned the producers much more than they have invested as we hear that it has broken all box office records thus far.

The latest honor that is being bestowed on this director is the Indian of the Year Award from CNN-IBN. Shankar will be in Delhi to receive this award on December 22^nd 2010.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Rahman at Golden Globe nominations again

A R Rahman is in the race to win his second Golden Globe after being nominated in the Best Original Score category for his music in the Danny Boyle directed film ‘127 Hours’ on Tuesday. Remember the Mozart of Madras won global acclaim with the same Danny Boyle’s ‘Slumdog Millionaire’. So expectations are high that Rahman would bring home the Golden Globe this time too. Rahman’s music in the film, starring James Franco as real-life mountain climber Aron Ralston, had received good reviews for its “haunting tracks” and “wonderful crescendos.” The soundtrack includes ‘If I Rise’, collaboration between Rahman and American pop star Dido. The nominations to the coveted award were announced in Los Angeles on Tuesday and Rahman’s competition includes Alexandre Desplat who was nominated for ‘The King’s Speech’, Danny Elfman who was nominated for ‘Alice in Wonderland’, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross who were jointly nominated for ‘The Social Network’ and Hans Zimmer who won a nod for his score in ‘Inception’. ‘127 Hours’ is a biopic about Aron Ralston, who was trapped in a canyon in Utah for five days by a boulder that fell on his right arm and he freed himself by amputating the limb.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com