Where Bollywood Comes Alive
Posts tagged Imtiaz Ali
Bollywood follows Yash Chopra to Kashmir
04 days ago
by Fenil Seta
in Bollywood News
After the late filmmaker shot Jab Tak… in the valley, more and more filmmakers are following suit
Mehul S Thakkar (MUMBAI MIRROR; May 21, 2013)
After a yawning gap, late Yash Chopra ventured once again into the picturesque Kashmir Valley for the filming of his swan song, Jab Tak Hai Jaan. Ever since, several filmmakers are waking up to the possibilities of this beauteous destination.
While the valley has been Imtiaz Ali’s chosen locale for his next, Highway, starring Randeep Hooda and Alia Bhatt, Siddharth Anand is headed there later this year to shoot Bang Bang with Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif. The latest filmmaker drawn to Kashmir is Abhishek Kapoor aka Gattu, who will shoot his next, inspired by Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations in the valley. Said Abhishek: “The film is set in Kashmir. Naturally, the script lends itself to be shot there.” A source close to the project said Sushant Singh Rajput has been finalised for the lead while the hunt is on for the leading lady. Produced by Abhishek’s cousin Ekta Kapoor, the team will soon do a recee to identify suitable locations in and around the valley.
Check out Alia Bhatt shooting for Imtiaz Ali’s Highway in Kashmir
01 week ago
Garima Sharma (BOMBAY TIMES; May 18, 2013)
Kashmir is certainly making a steady comeback to Bollywood, and after Rockstar, director Imtiaz Ali is back again to shoot for his next film Highway there. But it’s not been easy for the cast and crew to capture the splendour of Kashmir for the film. They all, we hear, have been trekking 2-3 km everyday to shoot. Ali has already shot in the upper reaches of the Aru valley and at the snow-clad upper reaches of Chandanwadi. The director is all praise for Kashmir, saying that the police and civilians have helped them a lot. He says, “We trailed with the bakarwals, who are nomadic shepherds and saw the high slopes and streams of upper Himalayan mountains with them. We had to trek for hours each day. The entire unit lost weight despite gorging on splendid Kashmiri food.” Apart from Jammu and Kashmir, Imtiaz and his team have been shooting for the film in five other states, including Harayana and Punjab.
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Anil Raina (MUMBAI MIRROR; May 18, 2013)
“Why do you keep coming back to Kashmir?”
Sometimes, a seemingly innocent question can leave even the most seasoned orators fumbling for an answer. And this was aimed at Imtiaz Ali, who was addressing students at the University of Kashmir’s Media studies department. The filmmaker, who has been shooting his next in the valley, smiled and replied: “Because your valley looks beautiful on camera.”
But there could be more than beauty that draws the filmmaker to Kashmir over More >
Ranbir is a person who I can do anything for-Imtiaz Ali
01 week ago
by Fenil Seta
in Interviews
Priya Gupta (BOMBAY TIMES; May 13, 2013)
Imtiaz Ali, 41, knows that while he is perceived as a sorted and intelligent person, he is socially awkward and grapples with his complexities and immaturities. He is extremely proud of his upbringing and has no confusion in his mind that he would not be here today, if not for the kindness of Sunny Deol, who gave him his first break as a director. Bombay Times caught up with him while shooting Sajid Nadiadwala’s upcoming film Highway that, coincidentally, was the first film he had written in his life. He talks to us about his complexed childhood, his special relationship with Ranbir Kapoor and how he has been made due to accidents and failures. Excerpts:
Let’s talk about your childhood? I was born in Jamshedpur. My father did irrigation jobs and I would sometimes accompany him and that gave me a taste of what was going on in the innards of India. Since he was in a transferable job, we stayed in Patna for many years and that became an influential factor in my life. I was extremely introverted, nervous and largely an underachiever. I was good at neither studies nor sports and would lie a lot. I was complexed and awkward that I was good for nothing and was always lying. I would lie to my school friends that I was a stud in my colony and to my colony friends that I was a stud in school cricket and football teams, though I was in no team. I was trying to show myself as a bigger person than what I actually was. In class IX, I came back More >
How stars prepare for their crucial scenes before the camera
03 weeks ago
by Fenil Seta
in Bollywood News
Mehul S Thakkar (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 30, 2013)
People often lament that they don’t make them like that anymore. Well they do. The present breed of actors is showing the same kind of dedication to their craft, as the previous lot. How Aamir Khan went without a bath for two weeks to get that street-worn look for the climax of Ghulam is now part of filmlore. And Farhan Akhtar has set a new benchmark with his rigorous training sessions for Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. We look at how some of your favourite stars have their unique way of preparing for that crucial make or break scene.
SAD BUT TRUE One would not really associate the chirpy Sonam Kapoor battle with emotions that are not all bright and cheerful. But the actress, who has recently started shooting for a film with Ayushmann Khurrana, had to summon her unhappiest thoughts for a scene, and here’s how she went about it. The film opens with an intense tragic scene, and Sonam had to look her dejected worst. To get into the right frame of mind, she instructed the crew to spare her a few moments of solitude. She then put on her ear plugs, and switched on some music. The playlist, that ran for an hour or so, had melancholic tracks, and Sonam played them in a loop, till she was in command of the right emotions before the camera.
AT YOUR SERVICE Before shooting for the famous Kun Faya Kun song in Rockstar, Ranbir Kapoor and his director Imtiaz Ali stayed at the Nizamuddin Dargah in Delhi for three days. Ranbir perfomed all the daily More >
I don’t need a man in my life right now-Alia Bhatt
01 month ago
by Fenil Seta
in Interviews
Alia Bhatt offers us a window seat to her world as she wraps up a 42-day road trip
Shubha Shetty (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 22, 2013)
She is back from a gruelling 42-day road trip for Imtiaz Ali’s film, Highway. But for Alia Bhatt, the dust is yet to settle.
From the coccoon of the Bhatt household to the grind of travelling by public transport all over Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, it has been one helluva ride for the 20-year-old. But she insists it has been the adventure of a lifetime.
“I have gone to some of these locations on school trips, but this was something else,” she chirps. “We were actually travelling and exploring places I would have never dreamt of seeing otherwise. It was very, very tiring, but I am happy tired,” she insists, adding, “I am looking forward to more and more such travels.”
!! CHECK OUT THE VERY CUTE ALIA BHATT SHOOTING FOR MAYBELLINE INDIA !!
Like all little girls, Alia would insist on grabbing the window seat while travelling in buses. That is how she saw things that remain etched on her impressionable mind: “There were fields after fields and I was surprised to see that mostly women worked on there. This just shows how hard women work everywhere.”
Alia makes another observation: “Their faces were covered with colourful dupattas, but their clothes were all bold and not conservative at all. That is what made them so attractive.”
The window to a different world apart, there was another important ‘growing up’ lesson for More >
Alia Bhatt experiences culture shock on sets of Highway
01 month ago
by Fenil Seta
in Bollywood News
Shubha Shetty (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 6, 2013)
Alia Bhatt’s first film Student of the Year had her tread on familiar ground. The teen romance was tailor-made for the 20-year-old debutante, who looked at ease in her trendy togs. A far cry from Highway, in which director-writer Imtiaz Ali has literally plucked the hothouse bloom from her designer universe and flung her on the dirt track.
The film stars Alia with Randeep Hooda and the gruelling 42-day first schedule started on March 1. The team has been on the road since then, exploring the country from Delhi and Gurgaon to Faridabad, Jaipur, Bikaner, Faridkot and parts of Punjab, before heading to Himachal Pradesh, where they are stationed right now. Incidentally, the crew is predominantly male, and Alia has just two other girls for company as she takes public transport, shoots at real locations, and gets a taste of the ‘other India’. A source close to Alia told Mirror, “The crew has been extremely protective of the girls, especially Alia, who was in for a bit of a culture shock at the kind of things she witnessed first-hand.” Added her friend: “It has been a rough and exhausting schedule, but Alia is all wide-eyed at the world that has been opening up for her.” Time to grow up?
Katrina Kaif puts Ranbir Kapoor to the love test?
01 month ago
by Fenil Seta
in Rumour has it
Done with following him around the world, she decides to step back and let him do the hard work instead
Soumyadipta Banerjee (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 3, 2013)
She has never admitted to being in a relationship with Ranbir Kapoor. Chances are, Katrina Kaif will never talk about her ‘heartship’ either.
After months of dodging the medi and going for surreptitious dinner and movie dates, Ranbir and Katrina may have just hit an all-time low in their affair. This despite the fact that they were recently spotted stepping out of the Kapoor mansion in Bandra, looking pleased as punch.
Sources close to the actress say the relationship is going through considerable wear and tear. And their respective professional commitments are largely to blame. “Katrina has been busy with Dhoom 3, and will fly out again for Bang Bang. Ranbir has had his hands full initially with Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and now Besharm. It has been tough maintaining a long-distance relationship,” said a source privy to their lives.
The two did manage to spend some time together, whether in New York, or in Mumbai, but for Katrina, it was not enough. “She is a very oldfashioned girl when it comes to matters of the heart. She believes in commitment and with Ranbir, she had always been held back by the classic conflict between the head and the heart,” says the source.
Katrina, who was well aware of Ranbir’s charming ways with women, embraced the relationship against her better judgement. “She was aware of his legacy, but More >
Imtiaz Ali not an endorser of ‘sharing is caring’
01 month ago
by Fenil Seta
in Bollywood News
Jigar Shah (MID-DAY; March 28, 2013)
Imtiaz Ali doesn’t seem to be someone who believes that sharing is caring.
Sources say the filmmaker is very reluctant to share his bagful of fragrant lime during a recent shoot schedule.
According to sources the filmmaker has been shooting near the Jaipur Highway and loves to feast on the lime, flown in specially from Kolkata.
A unit member says, “Imtiaz has of late become very fond of limes. It adds fragrance and a special flavour to the food. He carries them in his pouch all day.”
And apparently the entire unit has been eying Imtiaz’s pouch to add a zing to their dhaba food. The source adds, “Everyone is lusting after the limes. Since the film is being shot at real locations, often the unit has to have dhaba meals. All eyes then turn towards the director.”
Imtiaz was apparently a good sport initially and didn’t mind sharing his treasure trove with the others but later turned annoyed at everyone looting his share.
Check out Alia Bhatt celebrating her birthday in Jaipur
12 months ago
Soni Razdan flies to Jaipur to wish happy birthday to daughter Alia Bhatt
Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; March 20, 2013)
Alia Bhatt, who was shooting for Imtiaz Ali’s Highway in Rajasthan, received a pleasant surprise last weekend. It was her birthday and mum Soni Razdan had flown all the way from Mumbai to Jaipur to spend the day with her.
A source says, “Soni straight went to the sets to surprise Alia. The young actress didn’t want to take a break on her special day. She was keen to complete the schedule on time. The unit had planed a small celebration for her on the sets. She wasn’t expecting her mother at all.” The actress, who turned 20, was apparently very excited to see her mother. “ Though she was very tired from the shoot schedule, all her exhaustion vanished the moment she set eyes on her mom. It was followed by the cake cutting ceremony and a small celebration,” adds the source.
Randeep Hooda to visit his folks in Haryana on Holi
02 months ago
by Fenil Seta
in Bollywood News
Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; March 19, 2013)
While several Bollywood folk celebrate Holi by attending parties and industry get together, Randeep Hooda has decided to go the family way.
The actor, who has nearly eight films in his kitty right now along with currently shooting for Imtiaz Ali’s next Highway with Alia Bhatt, will be bringing Holi in with his parents back home.
A friend of the actor says, “Randeep was very busy last year and this year too it looks like he has no time in hand. However, for Holi he is about to get a couple of days off and he has decided to make full use of it by spending time with his parents.”
And being a part of Bollywood definitely doesn’t leave him with too much of time to spend quality moments with his family.
The friend adds, “Randeep’s family is in Haryana and the actor has been shooting in Ludhiana and Faridabad. After many years, Randeep has got a chance to be with his parents on Holi.”