Shahrukh impressed with Ramadoss but defends smoking scenes

New Delhi (PTI): Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan on Saturday made a U-turn from his earlier comments on Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss who had advised him not to smoke in public saying he was impressed with the latter's concerns about the public health.

"It is just a misinterpretation that I have snubbed the Health Minister. I am very impressed with the fact that he wants me not to smoke. Even, I too want to quit smoking in my real life (not reel life)," Khan told reporters here.

The Superstar had recently said in an interview that he did not like anyone telling him what to do and what not to.

"I do not endorse smoking and I do not like anyone telling me personally what to do and what not to do," Khan said in an interview to a private news channel.

Defending smoking scenes on the screen, the actor contended that the depiction of such habits are just a part of the characters.

"I want to tell on behalf of every actor, director and producer that anything negative in movies like, fighting, firing, smoking, drinking and rapes are not for their glorification, but they are a part of characters. Films can't be all about good things or god and goddess," he said.

The actor advocated, "There should not be a blanket ban on anything. But yes you have to be responsible about what you show in your films. And I can say with pride that with 17 years and 60 films I have been one of the most responsible actor as far as what kind of the entertainment I am giving to the country."

The Hindu

SRK at Balaji Awards Nite

Bollywood badshah Shah Rukh Khan was there and so was Kareena Kapoor, looking gorgeous in a slinky red sari and backless blouse, with current boyfriend Saif Ali Khan in tow at Balaji Telefilm's gala television awards function.

The Future Group Global Indian TV Honours event on Friday night at the Andheri Sports Complex, in northwest Mumbai, also had Lara Dutta, Suniel Shetty and Karan Johar adding to the Bollywood presence.

Shah Rukh came to the function not because he had begun his acting career on television. He came as a Bollywood superstar and proved it when he presented an inimitable act at the function.

Balaji honoured him for being the best anchor in the quiz show Kaun Banega Crorepati Season 3.

Siddharth Basu, who put together the show for Star Plus, announced at the function that Shah Rukh would again host the show that is to be telecast soon.

While Lara Dutta came to perform at the show, Suneil Shetty conferred the Global India TV Honour to Karan Johar, whose chat show Koffee With Karan (Season 2) was adjudged as the Best Talk Show of 2007.

Karan and Ekta Kapoor, the owner of Balaji Telefilms Ltd, broke into an impromptu jig on the stage together. Later, both did a short spoof on Koffee With Karan when Ekta interviewed him.

"What will be the title if he ever made a serial on Kabhie Khushi Kabhi Gham with Shah Rukh Khan heading the cast?" Ekta asked. Karan replied: Kabhi Saas, Kabhi Devdas.

The next question: "If you roped in all the Khans of Bollywood for a serial, what title will you give to it? "Khan-Dan", Karan quipped.

Bollywood's star turnout was also the biggest at Ekta's show. Most of them were called up on stage to confer the honours, unlike in other television award functions where TV artistes hand over awards to one another.

The Bollywood touch added glamour to her show and made it all the more alluring.

Perhaps, the head honcho of Balaji Telefilms planned it that way. Otherwise why would she choose to confer an honour on Kareena Kapoor at a television function.

Kareena's tantalising presence in red sari and backless blouse as she sashayed to the stage to accept the award from Jeetendra and Raakesh Roshan fetched loud cheers. Boyfriend Saif Ali Khan was there among the audience cheering lustily.

NDTV Movies

'Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi'

The wait is over. Eight years after he last directed a film, Aditya Chopra is back helming a Yash Raj Films production. Even as his directorial debut DILWALE DULHANIA LE JAYENGE continues its record breaking run in its 13th year, Aditya is ready to direct his third film.

After directing his second film, MOHABBATEIN, back in 2000, Aditya had taken a conscious break from direction to set up and develop India's first studio model making Yash Raj Films a name to reckon with. In the years that followed, YRF, under the keen eye of Aditya, produced such blockbusters as DHOOM, DHOOM 2, HUM TUM, BUNTY AUR BABLI, SALAAM NAMASTE, FANAA and CHAK DE INDIA. While Aditya was the creative producer in all these films, he also kept up with his creative juices by writing his father Yash Chopra's directorial venture VEER-ZAARA in 2004, as well as the stories of other films.

Aditya's third directorial venture will be titled RAB NE BANA DI JODI and will star the formidable Shah Rukh Khan... indeed the jodi of Adi and SRK will once again be a treat for film audiences the world over.

Aditya will introduce a new girl opposite King Khan in RAB NE BANA DI JODI. The hunt for a new girl is currently in progress.

The film, to be produced by Yash Chopra, will be written and directed by Aditya Chopra. Shooting for the film will commence in May and RAB NE BANA DI JODI will release by the end of 2008.

Taran Adarsh, Bollywood Hungama

King Khan learning French kissing!

Being a versatile actor Shah Rukh Khan has played a variety of characters, but has been most popular in romantic roles. Everyone, including the directors and the audience are aware of this and they know how effectively King Khan can express love through his telling eyes. What is, however, significant is that despite acting in numerous romantic films, Shah Rukh has never done a kissing scene!

It is not that King Khan was never offered a kissing scene, but the fact remains that our Bollywood icon cannot endure witnessing him kissing on screen. However, it seems that it is time that Shah Rukh will break the legacy as he has himself confessed recently that he is so influenced by French kiss, that he cannot express it in words. Believe it or not, Shah Rukh says that during his childhood days he used to secretly watch French films just to see those exciting and intimate French kisses! In those days itself, our Bollywood icon had decided to learn the art of French kissing some day or the other.

King Khan humbly says that while he has managed to master the art of acting to a certain extent, he is yet to learn the art of French kissing. Although it's entirely a personal affair to know on whom he has practiced the art of French kissing, we presume it must be his better half Gauri.

Shah Rukh is keen to experiment new roles each time and so, we are of the opinion that there is nothing to be surprised if someday we see him plant a French kiss on screen on any of his heroines. Now who can have any objection if King Khan breaks the rules he has set for himself? Now the question is whether King Khan will plant the French kiss on his heroine with the same passion that he expresses his love through his eyes for his leading ladies on screen.

Sampurn, Bollywood Trade News Network

SRK commands No. 1 position in Bollywood

A big question always hangs on Shah Rukh Khan’s head, whether his interest of watching cricket is linked to promoting his movie.

It happened when Bollywood Superstar hugged the Indian Cricket Players under the glare of TV camera when they had won the Twenty20 World Cup under Dhoni’s captaincy.

Does this question still persist when he talks of cricket, perhaps not. SRK vowed that he would not watch nay cricket match, his vow proved otherwise.

SRK has so much love the cricket that he decided to play a big game of his prestige and status. He won the bid and bought the Kolkata team franchisee rights of the Indian Premier League (IPL) promoted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

It is believed that Juhi Chawla and filmmaker Jay Mehta, lent their close cooperation to achieve this goal.

The BCCI’s first shot with the Twenty20 format in India is an uncharted territory for Shah Rukh, who has been dabbling with a few roles in the Bollywood space — from being a theatre artist to TV actor, filmstar to producer, TV host, and now the owner of an IPL cricket team.

Shah Rukh started his career with theatre and made his first broadcast appearance through a television soap Fauji, and later with Circus, both aired on Doordarshan.

Today SRK is undoubedly the top bollywood star, irrespective of what Rajnikant told him. Amitabh Bachchan is no doubt the best star of his time, but now his popularity has declined from the young generation and shifted to SRK.

International Reporter

Newsmaker: Shah Rukh Khan

Last year, the Bollywood badshah made headlines when he hugged the Men in Blue under the full glare of TV cameras after India had won the ICC Twenty20 World Cup.

There were murmurs that he was doing it for some free publicity for his mega-budget movie Om Shanti Om. The superstar had vowed then that he would no longer watch a cricket match.

But Shah Rukh Khan need not be apologetic any longer to go to a cricket match. For, he has, what some say, paid an obscene sum to buy the Kolkata team franchisee rights of the Indian Premier League (IPL) — promoted by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). His co-promoters in the $75.09-million deal were his long-time friends — actor Juhi Chawla and filmmaker Jay Mehta.

The BCCI’s first shot with the Twenty20 format in India is an uncharted territory for Shah Rukh, who has been dabbling with a few roles in the Bollywood space — from being a theatre artist to TV actor, filmstar to producer, TV host, and now the owner of an IPL cricket team.

King Khan started his career with theatre and made his first broadcast appearance through a television soap Fauji, and later with Circus, both aired on Doordarshan.

While he is often rated as the best actor in the Indian film industry, his stint as a producer has been disappointing with just three hits of the seven films he has produced.

In 2000, he produced his first Hindi movie Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani with Juhi Chawla under their production banner Dreamz Unlimited.

The film bombed at the box office, followed by another flop Asoka, a big-budget period film based on the emperor, in 2001. The only hit Dreamz Unlimited delivered was in 2003, Chalte Chalte, which featured Rani Mukherjee opposite Khan.

Shah Rukh formed yet another film production house — Red Chillies Entertainment —and the film company churned Main Hoon Na in 2004, which was an instant hit. However, the two films that followed — Kaal and Paheli — in 2005 weren’t crowd pullers.

Two years later, King Khan struck gold by being the first Bollywood producer to have recovered and made profit even before the release of his film Om Shanti Om.

The film, with a budget of Rs 35 crore, starred Khan and newcomer Deepika Padukone, and was sold to Eros International for a whopping Rs 74 crore, according to industry sources.

This apart, Shah Rukh earned another Rs 10 crore approximately from the sale of music rights to T-Series. If that wasn’t enough, Om Shanti Om was the first film to have released its entire music album digitally across platforms for full song downloads (mobile, online and digital media including i-Tunes) across 23 countries.

Business Standard

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan Revealed on CNN

Revealed meets the King of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, as he reveals his expectations from his latest home production Om Shanti Om along with his aspirations for himself and hopes from the Hindi movie industry.

This month's Revealed goes behind the scenes with King Khan, as he moves with the takes and re-takes of the final dance scenes for his latest smash hit, Om Shanti Om.

An achiever all the way, Shah Rukh Khan made his Indian TV debut in 1988 before graduating to the silver screen in 1991 with the film Dil Aashna Hai. A veteran of over 50 Bollywood films, he has been the winner of 13 prestigious Filmfare Awards, Bollywood's version of the Oscars. Khan's most successful film to date Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge has been running successfully for an incredible 12 years at the Mumbai cinema hall, with people still fighting to get a ticket to watch their hero.

With his own wax-work figure at London's famed Madame Tussauds, and the recipient of the prestigious Ordre des Arts et des Lettres awarded by the Government of France in recognition of his 'exceptional career', Khan today commands an international star status. He has a great fan club both in India and internationally.

Revealed goes behind the scenes of box office mega hit Om Shanti Om, on the movie set in Mumbai, allowing viewers a unique insight into the various aspects of its making from rehearsal sessions with choreographers to make-up secrets, from the technology complexities of lighting and the amazing sets to the painstaking process of filming Om Shanti Om's final dance number, everything is Revealed!

In a candid, free-flowing talk show, King Khan reveals all personal dreams and the goals for his production company.

Khan's Om Shanti Om, the second home production, was the first mainstream Bollywood movie to have its world premiere at The Odeon, the industry's iconic platform at Leicester Square, London.

Catch Shah Rukh Khan behind the scenes of his home production Om Shanti Om as he shares his nervous jitters and expectations on Revealed this February on CNN.

Indiantelevision.com

SRK and Ranbir in Cola Ad

Interestingly, this will be the first time that Shah Rukh and Ranbir appear on screen together. The duo, who were seen as rivals last year during the release of Om Shanti Om and Saawariya, are scheduled to shoot for the commercial in the coming weeks.

A source close to the project reveals, “Shah Rukh and Ranbir have bumped into each other at parties and award functions, but never really bonded. The commercial will be the first time that the actors not only share screen space but also get to know each other.”

Before Ranbir, it was John Abraham who appeared in a Pepsi commercial with Shah Rukh. Ranbir who was in Sydney shooting for a Yash Raj film returned home on Sunday night.

Mid-Day

What's keeping SRK busy ?

We have news that Shah Rukh Khan is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that his IPL team has the best of everything.

King Khan hasn’t yet got his players in place (bidding is yet to take place and we expect SRK to go all out when it does), but he is busy getting a theme song ready to represent his team and taking a personal interest in designing the team’s uniform.

Music composers Vishal-Shekhar, who composed the chartbuster music of SRK’s latest production Om Shanti Om, have been roped in to compose the song’s tune. Reportedly SRK’s favourite, Anahita Shroff, will design the uniform.

Our well-placed source from the industry tells us, “On Monday, Vishal-Shekhar met SRK at his office in Bandra. They had a long meeting and SRK briefed them about the kind of tune he wanted. The brief is that it should set the adrenaline flowing.”

Vishal confirms the news, saying, “Yes, Shekhar and I met Mr Khan on Monday. We have been given about a month’s time to get a tune ready for his IPL team. We’ve been told that the tune should be one that represents a winner. We all know that Mr Khan plays to win.”

So, which colour will SRK’s team sport? Our source says, “SRK’s favourite colour is black, but then cricket uniforms can’t be black. So, he’ll have to settle for a colour other than black.” SRK’s favourite designers are Anahita Shroff and Karan Johar. But currently, Karan is very busy with his show Shava Shava. So, Anahita it is. (Anahita is known for her work in Bluffmaster, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna and Dhoom. Anahita has also designed the look for John Abraham and Vivek Oberoi in Kaal, Sushmita Sen in Zindaggi Rocks.)

When asked whether SRK has asked her to start work on his IPL team’s uniforms, Ananhita simply said, “Please ask Shah Rukh Khan about this. I don’t want to say anything. Yes, I am sure that he is taking a personal interest in the uniforms. He is, after all, a perfectionist.”

Vickey Lalwani, TNN

King Khan to meet fans at Zee Carnival

KING of Bollywood – Shah Rukh Khan has been confirmed as the only Indian superstar headlining the Zee Carnival next month.

The three-day exhibition is being held at London Olympia between the 15th and 17th February and Shah Rukh is expected to attend all three days including the 'autograph stand'.

In the past year, Shah Rukh has had two huge box office successes including 'Om Shanti Om' and 'Chak De! India'.

STAR Plus' favourite and ZEE TV's recent addition to 'Teen Bahuraniyan' Smriti Irani is leading the woolpack of TV stars, along with regular Sanjeev Kapoor of 'Khana Khazana' fame, Roshni Chopra from 'Kasamh Se' and Twinkle Bajpai who plays 'Lakshmi' in 'Betiyann' have all been confirmed too.

Zee Carnival 2008 will also bring to London the best of pulsating music, lifestyle and fashion at its peak, a huge variety shopping and services, multi-cultural food to leave your taste buds tingling and much, much more - providing visitors with a complete entertainment experience for the entire family.

(Edited)

The Asian News - UK