Chef arrested for trespassing into A R Rahman's studio

Chennai city police on Friday night arrested a 30-year-old chef on charges of trespassing into music maestro A R Rahman's studio in Kodambakkam.

Afrose Rasel Khan (30), a native of Loria Bazaar in Bediya district of Bihar went to Rahman's studio on Fifth Street, Dr Subbarayan Nagar, Kodambakkam at 11.30pm on Friday, police said.

He knocked on the door and told the security guards that he wanted to meet Rahman immediately. The guards alerted Rahman's assistant H Faizuddin. Khan claimed he was the the original composer of the 'Jai Ho' song which won Rahman the Oscar award.

Police said Khan threatened to burn Faizuddin alive if he was not allowed to meet Rahman. Faizuddin said he was being threatened by the man for the last three days. He called the police who came and took Khan into custody. He was slapped with charges of verbal abuse, criminal intimidation and trespassing.

Police said Khan was employed as a chef in a private catering agency in Mahim, Mumbai. Khan was remanded in judicial custody after being produced before a magistrate court in Chennai.

Courtesy:indiatimes.com

Mani gave my career a boost: Rahman

AR Rahman’s mentor Mani Ratnam whom he fondly calls “Mani sir” will launch the music maestro’s first-ever official biography, written by Nasreen Munni Kabir, on April 6 in Mumbai, along with some high profile actors and directors. A source informs Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan and filmmaker Rak yesh Omprakash Mehra are some of the people likely to grace the occasion.

Nasreen reveals that in her book Rahman talks about working with Mani’s cousin Sharada and her husband Trilok on an ad and eventually meeting Mani through them. The director-composer duo went on to first work together in Roja(1992) and continue to work together even after their 20-year-long association. Rahman says, “I felt a kind of vacuum when the production of Roja ended and told Mani Ratnam, ‘I am not going to work on another movie or another director. Working with you has been so satisfying.’”

Rahman also says Mani prodded him to not limit his music to his films or him. “It should be for the whole world,” director had told him.

Nasreen says the success of Roja helped him gradually overcome doubts over his abilities. Mani Ratnam believed in him from day one and gave his ego and talent a huge boost till Rahman started believing that he could do something. Rahman also credits Roja’s success for giving him “a kind of status”.

Time Magazine listed his music for Roja among the ten best soundtracks of all time in 2005. He says, “People started to respect and take me seriously.”

However, Rahman disagrees when asked if he gives his best compositions to Mani. He says, “I don’t need to impress Mani sir with grand ensembles and elaborate arrangements. Sometimes, he likes simplest melody. He doesn’t think twice about experimenting. That’s a great quality.”

Published by Om Books International, AR Rahman The Spirit of Music offers foliomusic of The Bombay Theme and Cry of the Rose by Rahman and a CD containing unreleased sound recordings.

Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

‘Rahman is a genius’

She has been voted as one of the most beautiful people in New York and is currently on her toes across the globe promoting her latest flick The Lincoln Lawyer, but Russian-American actor Margarita Levieva is gaga over double Oscar-award winning Indian music composer AR Rahman.

“He is a genius. The other day, I was listening to the soundtrack of the Danny Boyle movie (Slumdog Millionaire) and I was spellbound with the sheer versatility in one movie’s soundtrack. He was brilliant in 127 Hours as well, but unlucky to miss out on an Oscar this time,” she says.

Levieva plays a prostitute, Reggie Campo, in the crime drama and talks about her role and what it was like working with Matthew McConaughey and Ryan Phillipe. “One of the things that drew me to this role is that I got to play twin sides of a female persona. She’s this very sexy, predatorial creature doing her job. Towards the end of the film, we see another side of her — a beaten down, open female who is fighting for her life,” says the 31-year-old, who thoroughly research for her role.

“The age of technology was very helpful. When I searched the web, I saw that there were tons of websites that have all of these girls, and it’s almost like going into an agency site that has actors,” she says.

Talking about her co-actors, Levieva says, “I’m super grateful that I got to work with them. They’re great actors and partners to act opposite to,” says Levieva, who is yet to read Michael Connelly’s novel, on which the movie is based.

More abou Levieva...
Name: Margarita Levieva
Age: 31
Place of Birth: Soviet Union
Debut: Billy’s Choice (2004)
Known for: The Invisible, Adventureland, Spread
Fututre projects: For Ellen, Knights of Badassdom, The Stand Up

Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

Is SRK trying to be Rajni?

As the trailers of Ra.One hit the screens, people are comparing SRK's superhero act to that of Rajni's...

Shah Rukh Khan seems to be treating his 'Ra.One' with much passion, so much so that he strategically released its promos during the semi-final match between India and Pakistan in the ICC World Cup.

Though the first rushes seem polished enough, this super hero flick is being compared to any Rajni film, and his super hero acts are being likened to that of Rajinikanth's especially in 'Robot'/'Endhiran'.

It can be remembered, that when 'Robot' released, Shah Rukh held a meeting with his creative team, and set 'Endhiran' as the standard. Wanting his 'Ra One' to be an even better product, SRK even suggested a few changes in the script.

However, a friend close to SRK, and a unit hand of Ra.One reveals, "It's silly of anyone to compare SRK and Rajni. The similarities end at the genre of cinema. Ra.One is a sci-fi superhero film, Robot was similar. However, the storylines are different, and Ra.One is as competent a film, and SRK is a good actor. A superhero will be stronger, faster and do the impossible. That's what SRK is doing in Ra.One, that's whatRajinikanth has done in Robot!"

Courtesy:indiatimes.com

Will Rajini retire after Endhiran Part II?

Rathinavelu who is fondly called by one and all as Randy has handled the camera for Endhiran and now he has been signed to handle the camera for the film Raana which has Rajnikanth and Deepika Padukone in the lead role.

When asked Randy that there was news that Rajni would retire after Endhiran and how come he has agreed to act in Raana, he said," What? Rajni to retire. There is no chance at all. In fact Rajni will be doing Part 2 of Endhiran.

Talks are going on with regard to this. Once we complete Raana and after Shankar completes Nanban the work connected with Endhiran Part 2 will commence. Rajni, Shankar, A R Rahman and I will be the part of this film. Sun Pictures which produced the Part 1 will produce the second part also.

The friendship among people will normally not be there till the end while working in such big projects. The friendship will break even before the audio launch. But Endhiran has kept us all together. This will continue in Part 2 of Endhiran also."

Courtesy:tamilomovie.com

Mani promises magic in Ponniyin Selvan

Mani Ratnam may have had a disappointing outing in Raavanan. The much-hyped movie failed to make an impression with the masses, though it was critically acclaimed. Now Mani Ratnam is keen to maned for it.

Sources close to the ace filmmaker says, ' he is ready and raring to go. Known to comemnce shooting only after compiling the script, Mani Ratnam is determined to ensure that he hits the bull's eye with Ponniyin Selvan'.

Since the movie is based on historical novel by eminent writer Kalki, the director doesn't want to take chances. he is keen to getting on board a talented crew and cast. Almost the entire selection process is over that includes the likes of Arya, Mahesh babu, Anushka and Sathyaraj forming part of the cast.

Rahman, Mani's lucky mascot would be scoring the movie and most likely P C Sreeram would crank the camera. The latest is that location hunting is on and most likely he would commence shooting in a couple of months.

Courtesy:supergoodmovies.com

Rahman fought suicidal thoughts

The world knows about the genius of Oscar-winner Allah Rakha Rahman but very little is known about the enigmatic musician’s private life. Now, his first-ever official biography, A R Rahman The Spirit of Music, published by Om Books International, promises to let fans the world over know what makes the reserved Rahman tick.

The biography, written by Nasreen Munni Kabir, will release on April 6. It talks about how he approaches work, and more importantly, how he understands his own life. The book also talks about how his spiritual leanings have helped him develop a balance and how his irrepressible spirit fought demons of suicidal thoughts. He says in the book, “I live from day to day now. I believe that everything will be taken care of. It gives me a sense of stability instead of me feeling that I need to act or react to everything around me.”

However, this sense of tranquility and faith didn’t come overnight. In the book, Rahman gives a detailed account of how at one time he didn’t want to live and how 1989 was the turning point in his life when his mother sold all the gold jewellery kept aside for the marriage of his younger sisters.

Rahman says, “With that money I bought my first Fostex 16-track mixer/recorder. In those days, film music in Chennai was recorded on single mono track and here I had 16 tracks. All those years of struggle, humiliation, being ordered around by other people, seeing worry on the faces of my family, remembering the feeling of being overwhelmed by an inferiority complex, the lack of self-esteem, and even at times, fighting suicidal thoughts – all that seemed to fade away. Sitting in the music studio that night, and staring at my new recorder, I felt like a king. The new me was born and the future seemed glorious.” Nasreen says she was shocked when Rahman spoke of suicidal tendencies and asked him if he really meant it, and he told her, “It felt so hopeless and I often wondered how I was going to get out of all that.”

It took several meetings and interactions on Skype over a period of three years before the book was compete. The biography also talks about Rahman’s mentor Mani Ratnam, how he met wife Saira, and going through a depressing phase, as he was disturbed by 9/11, and the Iraq war. Rahman reveals this is when he met his spiritual teacher who also wrote the song Khwaja mere khwaja...(Jodhaa Akbar) under a pen name, Kashif.

“My teacher made me think in my small and humble way, that I could be a bridge between the two divided worlds,” says Rahman. When asked if he still suffers from self-doubt, despite all the fame, Rahman says in the book, “I have tried to develop a balance over the years. Whether people praise my work or rip it apart, I trust the possibility that a few months later they may like it.”

Things you may not know about Rahman

* At age five, he was a loner and stayed at home most of the time. He would lock himself into a room and play the harmonium for hours.
* His father R K Shekhar was a composer, arranger and conductor and worked in over a hundred Malayalam films.
* His paternal grandfather was a bhajan singer in a temple in Mylapore, South Chennai.
* He met Saira, his wife on his 28th birthday. His mother and sister Fathima saw her at the shrine of Sufi saint Moti Baba in Chennai.
* Rahman hopes to release an album with all his family members who are into music.
* When alone, he likes to go for walks in The Regent’s Park, London. In India, he spends his alone time in a 5x7 meditation room at his music studio.
* Whenever he dreams of home, he sees his old house at Habibullah Road where he spent 20 years. The house had a leaking roof.
* Him being called the Mozart of Madras isn’t his favourite label and says, “Poor Mozart should be left alone.”

Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

Rahman`s biography in April

Music maestro AR Rahman's fans will get a treat on April 6, 2011. The award wining composer's biography 'AR Rahman: The Spirit of Music' written by renowned author Nasreen Munni Kabir will be launched by filmmaker Mani Ratnam, says a source. The book opens a window into Rahman's life and his rise in the trade as recorded for three years by Nasreen. It holds promise of inspiration to many artists, as they celebrate the journey of the Mozart of Madra. The first edition of the book comes with a free CD of Rahman`s composition, according to sources from publishing house Om Books International. Rahman is renowned for his work in 2008 blockbuster 'Slumdog Millionaire' for which he won two Academy Awards. The 45-year old's career started by composing commercials for cinema and television. He got his big break in Ratnam's 'Roja' in 1991.

Courtesy:smashits.com

Breaking news: Rajini to start ‘Enthiran-2’

Good news awaits Rajini fans even before the start of their Thalaivar’s next venture ‘Rana’. Yes, the Superstar is preparing himself for a sequel to ‘Enthiran’, his biggest blockbuster till date.

This has been revealed by none other than cinematographer Rathnavelu, who picturised ‘Enthiran’ and now getting ready to wield the camera for ‘Rana’ too. “Talks are currently on,” he says.

Shedding more light, he says, “Rajini sir, Sun Pictures, Shankar, Rahman and myself will come together for Enthiran-2 too. Most members of Enthiran team will be retained. Shankar is currently making the script ready.”

Saying that the movie would go on floors once Rajini completes ‘Rana’ and Shankar completes ‘Nanban’, a remake of ‘Three Idiots’, Randy says he would soon leave for Scotland to zero in on locations for ‘Rana’.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Mani Ratnam, Rahman, Sachin together

A R Rahman is the Sachin Tendulkar of music and Sachin is the Rahman of cricket. And ace director Mani Ratnam has brought these two legends together, for a short film.

The film shot for Shakthi Foundation, which works for the rights of the differently abled, has Sachin in front of the camera, with Mani Ratnam wielding the megaphone.

The Oscar-Grammy winner has taken care of the background score and he has provided soul-stirring music, we learn. "The short film is a shot in the arm for the physically challenged who successfully cross all hurdles in front of them," sources say.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Its All Rumors About Rana

No other actors other than Rajinikanth and Deepika Padukone have been confirmed for Ranaa, says KS Ravi Kumar. The media has been reporting frantically that Asin, Rekha, Madhuri Dixit, Vidya Balan etc., are playing important roles in the film and later that these actresses have pulled out of the film for various reasons. Declining all this as mere rumors, KS Ravi Kumar has said that the media should only rely on official confirmation and not write news based on their own assumptions.

He added that he has not discussed the script with anyone till now and the star cast will be finalized very soon.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Gautham’s Hindi Vtv To Roll On April 4th

All the speculation surrounding the remake of Vinnaithanndi Varuvaaya in Hindi can be put to rest as it has been confirmed that the shooting will commence on April 4^th. Prateik Babbar, son of Smita Patel and Raj Babbar, is to play the role played to perfection by Silambarasan in Tamil. Amy Jackson of Madrasapattinam fame will do Trisha’s role.

The project was delayed as Prateik was caught up with commitments to his Hindi film, Dhobi Ghat produced by Aamir Khan. But his dates are available now and he is also eager to begin shooting for VTV. Amy Jackson has spent the interim taking diction lessons in Hindi so that language will not be a barrier. AR Rahman has been roped in to do the music. The stage is all set for an encore of the phenomenal success of VTV.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Ponniyin Selvan To Make Magic

The Mani Ratnam-AR Rahman combination in the film industry has resulted in some magical music. The duo has come together once again for Ponniyin Selvan. The cast is yet to be finalized but AR Rahman, determined to do his best for Mani, has already completed five songs.

The tunes are said to be outstanding and Mani was moved by his gesture. He has approved the songs and is keen to begin shooting for them as he wants to make them memorable. This big-budget epic film also has Vijay, Mahesh Babu, Arya, and Sathyaraj in key roles. Santhosh Sivan will be wielding the camera.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Singapore Rocked By A.R. Rahman´s Marina Bay Concert!

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As is known to meet the huge demand of tickets to music maestro AR Rahman's sold out four-day Singapore concert, more seats had to be added to the Marina Bay Sands Grand Theater.

As per reports, just before the concert, The 45-year-old multiple award-winning Chennai-born musician said his youngest child is a big fan of 'Toy Story 3'. And naturally, eight-year-old Ameen wanted "We belong Together' from 'Toy Story 3' to clinch the Best Original Song award, although his father's composition for Danny Boyle's adventure film '127 Hours', "If I Rise", was also nominated in the same category.

"He is still singing "We Belong Together", but I sing along too," quipped Rahman, when he met the Singapore press at the Marina Bay Sands Grand Theatre.

Needless to add that the 'Jai Ho' concert was a grand success and ended with his signature phrase, "Ellaappugazhum Iraivanukke"! (All Praise to God) to a roaring applause!

"No matter how big the stage, I take pride in saying this. This is my identity," said Rahman.

Courtesy:planetbollywood.com

P.C. Sreeram roped in for ‘Ponniyin Selvan’

Guess who is the latest to join the Ponniyin Selvan crew? Ace camera man P.C. Sreeram! While director Mani Ratnam approached Sreeram for wielding the camera the director was struck by the in-depth knowledge the lens man had about the epic novel Ponniyin Selvan. Sreeram, who has read through the novel more than five or six times started categorizing each shot on how it can be filmed and which shots can be chromakeyed and so on.

Now Mani is really impressed with his team because he already has director Vasanth who has a good knowledge of the novel co-ordinating with him in the entire process of filming. Now with lens man P.C. Sreeram the team will only get better. Incidentally it was P.C. Sreeram’s mom, who is a great fan of the novel Ponniyin Selvan, who gifted the book to Sreeram.

There are also talks going on in some circles that since the novel is too huge to be completed as a single film, so the makers might be planning at least a couple of sequels with different heroes in each sequel, but the fact remains to be seen regarding this. Whatever might be the case ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ which will start the filming session soon will have Vijay as the hero. There are also talks that Sathyaraj might get to play the role of Buddha Bikku in the film. But nothing has been confirmed regarding this.

The director is taking much care in picking up artists for each character in the film. We will bring you more updates regarding the progress of ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ as and when it happens!

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

“Difference between Endhiran and Nanban”, Shankar says

“Endhiran filming was different from Nanban”, the talented director Shankar says. Presently he is busy canning the shots of Nanban in Dehradun with Vijay, Jiiva, Srikanth, Sathyaraj and Ileana. Shankar is happy about the way the film is shaping up and he says that he enjoys every minute of it especially shooting with Vijay and Sathyaraj. He adds that it is a rejuvenating experience for him working with these stars who have almost becomes the characters of the film. “It is certainly a different experience from Endhiran and I am enjoying every second of it”, Shankar furthers.

Courtesy:accesskollywood.com

AR Rahman 'to take action over Slumdog use'

AR Rahman has said that he will take legal action against a soft drinks company that used one of his tracks without permission.

The advert, which features leading star Katrina Kaif, uses the refrain from 'Latika's Theme' from the Oscar-winning Slumdog Millionaire, the Times of India claims.

Commenting on the situation, Bhushan Kumar from record company T-series explained: "In normal circumstances, we don't have to ask for permission from composers, but with Rahman it is on a royalty basis, so he was informed, but his office wasn't and they contacted us."

Kumar told the newspaper that the situation with the composer had now been resolved.

"All these misunderstandings have been sorted out as we have told them that in the near future when we are in talks with any company for any of Rahman's tracks we will keep them in the loop. Things are fine now."

AR Rahman followed up his success on Danny Boyle's film by collaborating with international music star Kylie Minogue.

Courtesy:digitalspy.co.uk

Puneeth Rajkumar film to have music by A.R. Rahman

The most exciting news that came on the eve of Power Star Puneeth Rajkumar's birthday on Tuesday? Actor-director Gurudatha, a good family friend of the Rajkumar family, will be producing a film to be directed by Gautham Menon with Puneeth as hero!

A few months ago, Puneeth Rajkumar had bared his intentions of working with some great technicians. "I don’t wish to go and work in other language films to work with top rated directors. I would rather try to get them work with me for Kannada films,” Puneeth Rajkumar had said. Now, with top director Gautham Menon making a Puneeth Rajkumar film, it looks that the actor has started to improve commercial Kannada films’ content by getting the best directors to make Kannada films.

But what makes this project more exciting? Gautham may rope in A.R. Rahman or Harris Jeyaraj to compose music for this project if everything goes as per his plans. Gautham is close to A.R. Rahman and both have mutual respect for each other. Getting Rahman to work in South Indian films has now become a tall order after he got two Oscar awards and got involved in international projects, but that may not be impossible, say sources in the Tamil film industry.

Courtesy:galatta.com

Mani Ratnam to launch Rahman`s biography April 6

A.R. Rahman's fans will soon be able to get an insight into the music maestro's life through his biography 'A.R. Rahman: The Spirit of Music' penned by renowned writer Nasreen Munni Kabir.

The book, which provides a fascinating window into the world of the Mozart of Madras, will be launched by filmmaker Mani Ratnam April 6.

'It is indeed a rare honour to publish this book. A.R. Rahman's journey, like that of most great artists, is one that moves and inspires. Nasreen Munni Kabir has recorded this journey, over the last three years. This book also has a CD with A.R. Rahman's compositions for free distribution with the first edition,' Ajay Mago, publisher, Om Books International said in a statement.

Rahman started his career by composing commercials for cinema and television until he got his big break in Ratnam's 1991 film 'Roja'. After that, there was no looking back for the composer.

The 45-year-old is the first Indian composer to win two Academy Awards for the 2008 blockbuster 'Slumdog Millionaire'. He also walked away with two Grammy awards for the same movie.

Courtesy:sify.com

Imtiaz Ali shoots ‘Rockstar’ in Kashmir

For his forthcoming venture ‘Rockstar’, Imtiaz Ali has chosen the Paradise Of India, Kashmir, as one of its shooting locales. A part of the film is being shot in Pahalgam, a famous tourist spot. The filmmaker was recently joined by the Mozart of Music AR Rahman, who was on a two-day visit to the Valley, to compose songs for the film.

Surprisingly Rahman replaced composer Pritam who usually had been in Ali’s team. Pritam had composed songs for the director’s earlier ventures - ‘Jab We Met’ and ‘Love Aaj Kal’.

As per common belief of the film industry, Kashmir is considered as an unsecured place for shooting, due to regular political and anti-social issues. However, Imtiaz felt that the beautiful state is just a victim of media hype and filmmakers should come to Kashmir and capture its beauty in their films. Said Imtiaz to sources, "I think the media is playing up the negative aspect of the situation in Kashmir more than the positive side of the valley. My experience is that Kashmir is the most beautiful and highly peaceful place."

The director further added that when the film’s team landed there the Police and people were quite co-operative and helped them. Whole film unit comprised of 150 people said to have moved at the hospitality of the Kashmiri people.

On the other hand, Rahman remarked, "Kashmir is a paradise and a boon to Bollywood."

‘Rockstar’ stars Ranbir Kapoor and Nargis Fakhri in the lead. The film is slated for release on 8th July 2011.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Amitabh Bachchan to do cameo in Rajinikanth's Rana

Superstars Rajnikanth and Amitabh Bachchan will be finally sharing the screen space after 20 years, as Amitabh will be appearing in Rajinikanth's Rana for a cameo role.

The latest buzz is that Amitabh will be seen in a few scenes in the second half of the film. But other details about his character have been kept under wraps.

Following the phenomenal success of Robot, Superstar Rajnikanth is slated to begin work on K S Ravikumar's Tamil action epic, Rana where he will be seen doing a triple role.

It is rumoured that the Deepika will be cast opposite a young Rajni, Vidya will be opposite a middle-aged Rajni and Rekha opposite an old Rajni.

Rajnikanth and Amitabh have been good friends for long time and in the past they have done Bollywood films like Andha Kanoonand Giraftar. The last time the two legends shared the screen space was in Late Director Mukul Anand's Hum in 1991.

Charles Darby will be the technical director of the film while Ratnavelu who had also worked on Robot will be the Director of Photography. Oscar award winner A R Rahman will render the music for the movie. Rajnikanth's daughter Soundarya is jointly producing the movie with Eros International

Courtesy:rediff.com

Why Mani Ratnam Wants Sathyaraj

Mani Ratnam is busy with the groundwork of Ponniyin Selvan as he wants to commence the shooting very soon. The ace director is finalizing the actors for important roles and there are rumors that he has Vijay on board already.

The latest about Ponniyin Selvan is that Mani is planning to rope in Sathyaraj for a very important role. Our enquiries in Kollywood revealed that the veteran actor is being considered to play the role of Buddha Bikku, the Sri Lankan ascetic. It is a very significant character in Ponniyin Selvan and Mani feels that only Sathyaraj can essay this role perfectly.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Rajini chooses Deepika over Himalayas

It is only on rare occasion that a superstar of such a global stature will make changes in their schedule. And Rajinikanth has proved yet again that he will be always well ahead in being humble. According to sources Rajini put aside his usual trip to Himalayas just for the sake of Bollywood’s tall dimpled beauty Deepika Padukone. It’s the regular practice of the superstar to visit the holy place once he completes every film. But this time he made an exception in his plan by postponing his trip because Deepika didn’t have enough dates for his next 3D live action animation adventure flick ‘Raana’. It is said that the actress has a tight schedule, shooting for Prakash Jha's ‘Aarakshan’ followed by next projects with Saif Ali Khan, Akshay Kumar and John Abraham. Owing to these various commitments, it was not possible for Deepika to include Raana’s shooting. As a result, ‘Raana’ which was planned to be shot in one continuous stretch has now modified its schedule and Rajini was most willing to change his plans. Also, heard that in fact Rajini was really looking forward to work with Deepika that he adjusted his dates with the actress. Besides, the star was quite understanding towards her earlier commitments. Wow, that was really wonderful from Rajini’s part… No wonder he’s rightly called The Superstar!

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Gautham Menon To Direct Parthipan

Yes, it is true! Director Gautham Menon and Parthipan are all set to work together and take the small screen by storm. The director is soon to make a serial with Parthepan as the protagonist. No, do not groan, for this is not going to be your regular cry fest mega serial. The serial will be a one of a kind detective series where Parthepan will play the lead and take the audience through the mysteries and adventures of a detective.

When contacted about it, Parthepan confirmed that it is true and that he and Gautham Menon spoke about this when they met at the Directors-40 event. The surprise doesn’t stop with this! The director has also managed to rope in Oscar winner AR Rahman to compose music for the title song! Gautham Menon, who will direct and produce the serial, has confirmed this news and said that an official announcement will be made soon. Look like three great personalities are making their small screen debut and we find this project exciting and hope we can review the series!

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

A R Rahman In Kashmir gallery

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

A R Rahman goes Kashmir

The Mozart of Music A R Rahman recently visited the Paradise Of India, Kashmir. He was there along with filmmaker Imtiaz Ali (‘Jab We Met’ and ‘Love Aaj Kal’ fame) to shoot for his forthcoming venture ‘Rockstar’. The film stars Ranbir Kapoor and Nargis Fakhri in the lead. Rahman was on a two-day visit to the Valley, to compose songs for the film.

Talking about the beautiful state, Rahman remarked to sources, "Kashmir is a paradise and a boon to Bollywood."

As per common belief of the film industry, Kashmir is considered as an unsecured place for shooting, due to regular political and anti-social issues. However, Imtiaz felt that the beautiful state is just a victim of media hype and filmmakers should come to Kashmir and capture its beauty in their films. Said Imtiaz to sources, "I think the media is playing up the negative aspect of the situation in Kashmir more than the positive side of the valley. My experience is that Kashmir is the most beautiful and highly peaceful place."

The director further added that when the film’s team landed there the Police and people were quite co-operative and helped them. Whole film unit comprised of 150 people said to have moved at the hospitality of the Kashmiri people.

A part of the film is being shot in Pahalgam, a famous tourist spot.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

A.r Rahman, Sure-shot In Ponniyin Selvan

There is a huge buzz surrounding Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan. Kalki’s epic classic has captivated generations of Tamilians and continues to do so. Fans of his work are anxious to find out who will play the characters that are deeply ingrained in their hearts. So far Vijay, Mahesh Babu, Arya, and Anushka have been confirmed for the project.

In recent times, Mani and A.R Rahman have teamed up together to create memorable music and so it was believed that they would come together again for this mammoth undertaking. But there were reports that Rahman is far too busy with international projects to be a part of Ponniyin Selvan.

However, sources within Mani’s camp insist that it will be Rahman who will be doing the music. It must be remembered that Mani had wished to make Ayutha Ezhuthu without music but Rahman would not hear of it. He came up with some magnificent tunes and convinced Mani to include the songs in his movie. This time also the two legends will work together and hopefully the results will do the Tamil film industry proud.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Jai Ho fever hits S'pore

He has gained an international audience with his smash hit "Jai Ho" from the movie Slumdog Millionaire.

And it looks like the "Jai Ho" fever for singer-composer A R Rahman has not died down. At least two of his four-nights-only concerts in Singapore are already sold out.

This will be A R Rahman's second performance in Singapore. His first show here was in 2005.

He said: "Last time, the show was exciting, but was all over the place. This is more theme-oriented. Because it's a journey home tour, it portrays the spirituality, the youth, romanticism and the freedom fighting kind of era and modern India.

"This world tour started after the Oscars, two years back, and I wanted to travel and give a show that is very universal - that every person, regardless of language or nationality, can relate to - the music - so we had a very international crew."

To be held at the Grand Theatre at Marina Bay Sands, his show here promises to be more intimate.

The singer-composer said: "We had to tone down the show, because it's a 2,000 seater, all the other shows were like 18,000. We had to make the stage a bit smaller, but it's going to be intimate and nice."

On his future plans, the composer revealed he is now working in an animation film with Dreamworks.

Working with other popular American singers is also a possibility.

He said: "Some of them are really good - Rihanna's good, and Lady Gaga is a good singer too. ... Anything can happen, you may be sitting somewhere in Los Angeles over lunch, some of the biggest decisions are made like that over the table."

The stage is set - the audience will be entertained by some 23 songs. Ticket prices range from S$95 to about S$600 per seat.

"Jai Ho : The Journey Home World Tour" will run from Thursday till Sunday.

Courtesy:channelnewsasia.com

Ar Rahman In Singapore

The double Oscar winner AR Rahman has been doing concerts at several countries as part of his world tour and the upcoming one is in Singapore. The maestro will be doing four shows in Singapore starting on 17th March and ending on the 20th. The event has been titled 'Rahman's Jai Ho Concert' and the tickets have sold out like hot cakes.

The concert will take place at The Marine Drive overlooking the Marina Bay Sands and the Mozart of Madras is very happy with the venue that he has clicked pictures and expressed his pleasure about the picturesque locale. AR Rahman whose upcoming projects include the Hindi Film Rockstar, Raana and Ponniyin Selvan. We cannot wait for Rahman to journey back home and do a concert for his Indian fans.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

A. R. Rahman Launches Kulla Nari Koottam

The music release of Kullanari Kootam was a low–key affair. A. R. Rahman, Academy award winner released the audio in his own studio. Director- Sri Balaji, hero-Vishnu, producer – Aashish Jain and Lakshmanan who is handling the camera were present.

The music is composed by Selva Ganesh, who made an impressive debut in Vennila Kabbadi Kuzhu. He said it was a great honor to have the great man release his album. The Mozart of Madras was very encouraging and the Kullanari Kootam team was thrilled to be with him.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Best Wishes To Ar Rahman!

The Mozart of Madras has always been in news for his accomplishments and has had congratulatory messages pouring in from all corners. But today, on his wedding anniversary, we send him our best wishes. AR Rahman is married to Saira Bhanu and has three children Khatija, Rahima and Ameen. His wife, clad in lovely Indian wear, had accompanied him to his Hollywood red carpet appearances notably the Academy Awards in 2009 where Rahman won two Oscars for his work in the film Slumdog Millionaire.

Rahman has managed to keep his family and personal life away from the limelight but that hasn't stopped us from noticing the talents his children possess. Ameen and Khatija have rendered a few lines for the film Couples Retreat and Endhiran respectively. On this special day, we take the opportunity to wish Rahman for a personal reason rather than the usual professional one and also wish him much more success.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Anushka and Mahesh Babu in Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan

Mahesh Babu and Anushka are pairing up again. After the disastrous Khaleja, Anushka and Mahesh are roped into play the lead roles in Mani Ratnam’s historical movie Ponniyin Selvan.

Mani Ratnam has been looking for suitable lady that has the queenly charm and glamour too. Anushka fits the bill perfectly and when the genius director called upon her she readily accepted to be a part of it.

Ponniyin Selvan is a high budget with the historical backdrop and will be made in Tamil and Telugu simultaneously. Tamil actors Vijay and Arya are zeroed in to play the other important roles. Stay tuned for further details about this film.

Courtesy:supergoodmovies.com

Shankar and Hariharan set to create fusion & fireworks

It was the year 1992. A R Rahmanwas looking for a singer for his number Thamizha Thamizha for the movie Roja. After considering a number of singers, he flew down to Mumbai to sign Hariharan, who was well-known for his album, Hariharan in Concert, a collection of ghazals.

Legend has it that it was the first and last time Rahman sought out a singer. That song as rendered by Hariharan also become the patriotic core of the movie and overnight he was thrown into the limelight.

From 6pm on March 15, Coimbatoreans can lose themselves to the music of Hariharan who will appear live along with composer-singer Shankar Mahadevan in concert, a first for the city. Crowds can expect to be delighted with Shankar Mahadevan's vocal range too. He will perhaps be looking for opportunities to complement his co-singer.

Hariharan and Shankar Mahadevan have a lot in common. Both hail from Tamil-speaking Iyer families. While Hariharan was the first Indian act on MTV with his album Colonial Cousins. Shankar Mahadevan has composed music at a time when most of his audience is already hooked on to music from across the world. And, both have transcended the south and established a reputation for themselves up north. Both are regulars at awards functions including the national awards.

But it will be the southern flavour in the artists that will come to the fore at the Coimbatore concert. The city, which is a happy combination of the spiritual, the materialistic, entrepreneurship and education, will rock to the music of two of the country's peppiest stars.

Both Hariharan and Shankar Mahadevan said they have performed in Coimbatore before and they knew the crowds and the city very well. "We share a good rapport and expect to gel well," they said. "The line-up of the songs is a secret. We have to keep the element of surprise going," Hariharan said.

However, as the audience is a Tamil crowd, most of the songs will be in Tamil peppered with only a few songs in Hindi. "We expect a robust turnout," Shankar Mahadevan told The Times of India. The event will happen at VOC Grounds in Coimbatore. Comfortable seating arrangements have been made for everyone. Hassle-free parking arrangements too have been made. You can collect free passes for the event at The Times of India offices in Puliyakulam Road and Race Course Road.

Courtesy:indiatimes.com

Vasanth to assist Mani Ratnam

Hot on the heels of Anushka joining the cast of 'Ponniyin Selvan' there is news of a reputed director joining the crew as an associate to Mani Ratnam.

Director Vasanth who was not heard after his last film 'Saththam Podathey' is joining Mani Ratnam to work in the upcoming historical film. Vasanth is known for memorable films like 'Keladi Kanmani' and 'Aasai'. He is the director who introduced Suriya on screen

The addition of Vasanth will only add strength to Mani Ratnam as both are voracious readers and have gone deep into the soul of the novel ‘Ponniyin Selvan’. Moreover a reputed independent director joining another director to assist in a film is not new nowadays. Director Shankar too had many independent directors to help him while he was doing ‘Sivaji’.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

More details on Mani’s film

Mani Ratnam’s yet-to-be-started ‘magnum opus’, which is said to be inspired by Tamil’s much celebrated novel Ponniyin Selvan by Kalki, is getting more additions each passing day.

A day after it was said that Arya would be part of this multicrore multistarrer, we have it now that Anushka, who is making waves in Kollywood and Tollywood simultaneously, has also been roped in for this project.

“Anushka has signed on the dotted lines. She is playing a very crucial role in this film. Others who had been finalised for the project so far are Vijay, Mahesh Babu and Arya,” say sources.

A bilingual, the film will be produced by Mani’s Madras Talkies. However, plans are on to join hands with other production houses at a later stage. “It is still a question that whether the movie would be in historic background or Mani would give the script a contemporary look,” sources add.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Arya adds one more

The stars are shining bright in the land of Arya. What else would you say when even as the news of Mani Ratnam signing him still hot, the hunky Arya has bagged another big film to be directed by Boopathy Pandian.

Boopathy Pandian who is known for high level entertaining films like ‘Thiruvilaiyadal Arambam’ and ‘Malaikottai’ has finalized Arya for his next. The yet to be titled film will be on the floors soon.

“The new film is going to be completely different experience for Arya with full of action and comedy” says the director.

Courtesy:indiaglitz.com

Anushka in Mani's next!

Sreedhar Pillai,TNN,Mar 12, 2011, 12.00am IST

Tags:

• Mani Ratnam

The wheel has come a full circle. India's best-known director Mani Ratnam is back to his roots, doing pre-production and casting work for his new period film in Tamil, Ponniyin Selvan. And, the big breaking news is that Anushka, currently south India's number one heroine, has signed up to play the all-important female lead in the film!

A source close to Anushka confirmed the news and said, "Yes, Sweety (as she is known) has signed Mani sir's epic classic and is thrilled to do it. She has allotted bulk dates for the project. She has to complete two Telugu projects in the next four to five months, and then join Ponniyin Selvan, where she will sport an all-new look."

The ace director wanted big Tamil superstars to do the three important male lead roles in the film.

Initially, there was talk that Vikram, Vijay and Suriya would do the project, but that fell through. A source close to the development said, "Even Mani sir found it difficult to bring them together for a joint narration to hear the script, leave alone doing a full-fledged film! As of now, Vijay, Arya and Telugu superstar Mahesh Babu have agreed to do the film." The grapevine has it that while Vijay will play the courageous warrior Vallavarayan Vandiyatheyan, Mahesh Babu is likely to play King Aditha Karikalan. The role of Arulmozhi Varman (who later becomes Raja Raja Chozha), which was initially slated to be done by Vikram, will now be played by Arya.

Mani sir, as he is affectionately called, is at last, back to doing what he does best — making Tamil movies inspired by real-life events and famous epics. His dream project, Ponniyin Selvan, which is based on the most popular novel of modern Tamil literature penned by celebrated writer Kalki Krishnamurthy, is a fictionalised account of the life of Chola King Raja Raja 1.

It is almost nine years since the filmmaker did a pure Tamil film. The last few years, he has been trying to enter Bollywood by doing films like Yuva, Guru and Raavan, which failed to evoke the kind of critical acclaim or box-office success that his earlier Tamil films like Nayagan, Roja and Bombay enjoyed.

Mani Ratnam, we understand, is writing the script in association with noted writer Jayamohan. There have also been reports that Kamal Haasan, who tried many years ago to make Ponniyin Selvan, recommended some writers to Mani to improve the script. The Ponniyin Selvan team will include Mani's favourites like A R Rahman, Santosh Sivan, Sabu Cyril and Sreekar Prasad.

CT understands that Mani Ratnam's production house will produce the film at the moment. Other production houses are likely to step in at a later date. The film's shoot will commence in October, after the director completes pre-production work. Ponniyin Selvan is expected to be a big-budget (` 75 to 100 crore) project and will be made in Tamil and Telugu.

Courtesy:indiatimes.com

Raavanan Still A Favorite

Mani Ratnam’s Raavanan is to be screened at the 29th San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival on 13^th March 2011 at 9:30 pm in Castro Theatre. The film, which stars Vikram, Aishwarya Rai and Prithviraj, has already been in screened in several international film festivals and this is just another feather in Mani’s glorious cap.

The Hindi version of this film, Raavan also made it to a number of international and national film fests and came back winning accolades and awards.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Rajini To Speak In Hindi!

Good news is that Rajini’s Raana unlike his previous films will not be dubbed into Hindi and Telugu but instead will be shot simultaneously in Tamil, Hindi and Telugu. The bigger surprise here comes as Rajini has accepted to dub his own voice in the Hindi version of the film too. It is notable that Rajini has dubbed only in Tamil has refused to dub when his movies are dubbed in to other languages and so different voices have been used.

Rajinikanth who is well versed in Tamil, Hindi, Kannada and English has acted in many Hindi films before. His last Hindi film that came 20 years ago was Bulanthi and he had dubbed his own voice in that film. Ever since, Rajini’s popularity in Bollywood soared as many of his hit Tamil films were dubbed to Hindi. Looks like Rajini is giving his 100% to Raana and we just cannot wait for it!

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Deepika Adjusts For Rajini’s Rana

The production team of Rana is set on having Deepika Padukone as Rajinikanth’s lead pair in Rana, sources say. The actress is also eager to be a part of this film more so because it stars one of the most bankable actors in the country. In fact the lady is said to be adjusting her dates so that she is available for the shooting.

Rana will be produced by Soundarya Rajinikanth and Rajini’s favorite director KS Ravi Kumar is to direct the film. The movie is said to be set partly in the historical era and this has increased the interest of the movie buffs.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Ar Rahman Loses To The Kings Speech

It is very unfortunate that AR Rahman had missed the BAFTA award for best music this year. He was nominated under the Best Original Movie Music category for 127 Hours and was a hot favorite among the Indians to win the coveted award. However, award went to Alexandre Desplat for The King’s Speech and he received the honor from Sir Paul McCartney.

The Outstanding British Film was bagged by The Kings Speech pushing behind 127 Hours, Another Year, Four Lions, and Made in Dagenham. Interestingly, the Best Film Award also went to The Kings Speech.

David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin won the Best Director Award and Best Adapted Screenplay Award respectively for The Social Network.

The Best Actor Award went to Colin Firth for starring in The Kings Speech and Best Actress Award to Natalie Portman for Black Swan.

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Rajini Discusses Endhiran 2

The climax of Endhiran was such that fans left the theatres in anticipation that Shankar, Rajini and Kalanidhi Maran will come together for a sequel. Looks like this might take shape, if not now, but in the near future.

According to sources, Rajinikanth and Kalanidhi Maran met recently to discuss the worldwide collections of Endhiran and during this meet Rajini had enquired Kalanidhi about the possibility of the sequel.

With the Superstar showing keen interest in the sequel, Kalanidhi’s interest in the project went several notches up, we hear.

We know that Shankar is busy directing Nanban, a multi-starrer, and Rajini will soon don the greasepaint for the KS Ravi Kumar directed Rana. Therefore, there is a speculation that Endhiran 2 may take off only after Shankar and Rajini are free from their respective commitments.

Meanwhile, Sun Pictures is also contemplating on financing the epic film that director Mani Ratnam is planning to direct.

Though an official announcement on Endhiran 2 may take several months from now, if it is done, then it is certainly going to be a big day for Tamil cinema!

Courtesy:behindwoods.com

Rahman regrets not meeting Bryan Adams

Grammy award-winning singer and songwriter Bryan Adams, who is slated to perform in the country next week, will not be meeting Oscar winner AR Rahman this time around. The Canadian artiste and Rahman were scheduled to meet this month to discuss the music industry and possible collaborations in a closed-door meeting.

However, Rahman has been nominated in two Oscar categories for Music (Original Score), Music (Original Song) for Danny Boyle’s 127 Hours featuring James Franco because of which he will be in Los Angeles on the day when he was scheduled to meet Adams. “It is in fact unfortunate that I won’t be able to meet the legend (Adams) in person. I was really looking forward to this meeting and had cancelled all my other commitments for the day,” says Rahman.

Adams too was equally keen on meeting Rahman, who had bagged an Oscar for Boyle’s film Slumdog Millionaire in 2009. In fact, sources say the two were even planning to jam live during Adams’s forthcoming India Tour.

Rahman adds, “I wanted to exchange notes on music and explore possible collaborations. However, I hope the next time I’m in Canada or the next time Bryan is in India, we will meet and take things forward.”

Courtesy:hindustantimes.com

Gautham Menon's VTV Hindi version to commence from April

Subsequent to a great deal of conjecture, it has been divulged that the champion director of South Indian films, Gautham Vasudev Menon, is geared up to start the Hindi remake of his Tamil blockbuster Vinnaithaadi Varuvaayaa (VTV) on April 4, 2011. The Hindi version will be equally produced by IN Entertainment, which is an entity of the Hinduja Group, and Gautham Menon's Photon Kathaas. AR Rahman will compose the music for the Hindi edition just like he had perpetrated for VTV.

Prateik Babbar as well as Amy Jackson will enact the central characters in the Hindi version. Prateik is the son of the North Indian politician and actor Raj Babbar.


The lyrics for the Hindi version of VTV as well as the screenplay will be constructed by the eminent Javed Akhtar, who has written innumerable wonderful songs for countless Hindi films from the 1970s. The fact that he has survived in the Hindi film society for so long is an indicator of his lyrical potency. MS Prabhu will head the cinematographic department of the Hindi version.

Gautham has remarked that he has glued himself to the original version. The Hindi version will have Amy enacting the character of Jessy, who is a Malayali of the Syrian Christian community. Gautham has verbalized that Rahman has already provided him three songs. For the time being, they are abiding by the original Tamil tunes. However, Akhtar and Rahman will decide, whether the songs and melody for the Hindi audience have to be dissimilar from the Tamil version. VTV’s Hindi edition is likely to penetrate the theatres by July 2011.

Gautham has largely operated as a director of Tamil films, some of which have been remade by him in the Telugu and Hindi languages. Several Tamil movies of his have been lauded critically such as his action thrillers, Kaakha Kaakha and Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu. His immensely victorious semi-autobiographical movie, Vaaranam Aayiram, garnered the National Film Award for the most superlative Tamil feature film. This motion picture also granted him a nomination from Filmfare for the ‘Best Tamil Director’ honor.

Courtesy:oneindia.in