"Hasee Toh Phasee" girl Adah Sharma has been signed as the new ambassador of Godrej No.1 beauty soap.

She will feature in the Hindi, Tamil as well as Telugu version of the brand's advertisement.

"I have been signed as the brand ambassador of Godrej No.1 beauty soaps. I have already shot for the ad, which will be aired in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil languages," Adah told IANS.

Adah's popularity in the south with recent Telugu hit "Heart Attack" has allowed her to promote the brand in southern languages as well.

In Bollywood, she made her debut in 2008 with Vikram Bhatt's horror film "1920".

Actor Pitobash Tripathy is loving every bit of attention and adulation that his performance in Hollywood film "Million Dollar Arm" is receiving. He says he has sought Irrfan Khan's help for his career in the West.

"I met him for advice on how to go about my career in the West. Irrfan saab was very helpful. I've always looked up to him as a role model. Now I've more reason to do so," Pitobash said.

Irrfan is said to be Bollywood's most popular export to Hollywood, thanks to his appearances in films like "The Amazing Spider-Man" and "Life Of Pi".

Pitobash is in Los Angeles since April 30 for his big ticket to Hollywood - "Million Dollar Arm", which releases in the US Friday.

The Craig Gillespie directorial also features Indian actors Suraj Sharma and Madhur Mittal.

On the home turf, Pitobash has delivered scene-stealing performances in films like "Shor In The City", "Shanghai" and "I Am Kalam". He is excited about the response to "Million Dollar Arm".

"It has only been released in India, and the response is tremendous. The film opens on May 16 in the US," he said.

Discernibly excited, the young Odia actor, who started his Bollywood career with a brief role in Krishna DK and Raj Nidimoru's "99" in 2009, says he feels like a newcomer all over again.

"I can't tell you the excitement and nervousness I feel. It's like I am starting my career from scratch. I have the same butterflies in my stomach," he said.

The response in the US to a premiere screening of "Million Dollar Arm" has been overwhelming.

"We had a preview screening here in LA May 6. When I came out, there were people waiting to get a picture with me and to get me to sign an autograph. I was stunned. I want to know how they came to know about me and my performance when the film has not opened in the US," he said.

Pitobash feels the entire cast of "Million Dollar Arm" has been most helpful.

"Shooting the film was like a family affair. When we shot for 21 days in India we all became one united family. Then we moved to Atlanta and LA for shooting and the friendship grew even stronger. Everyone from John Hamm and Alan Arkin, to Suraj Sharma and Madhur Mittal, became friends."

"We all bonded so beautifully, and the bond continues even now during the film's release. All my colleagues from the cast are so helpful. They are helping me find my bearings in LA. I'd have been lost without them," he added.

Pitabosh says the whole journey from Bollywood to Hollywood has been like a dream.

"I can't believe I've come here. It took me two and a half months and 16 rounds of audition for me to get this role. I feel I am part of a dream. I will soon wake up and realize it never happened," he said.

Richa Chadha and Kalki Koechlin will soon be seen in a film based on travel and a coming-of-age story titled “Jiah aur Jiah”. But before the audiences get to see them on the big screen, the two actresses have joined hands for a play.

Richa and Kalki will play lead characters in a play directed by Atul Kumar.

The play rehearsals are reportedly already underway and the production will premiere in Mumbai in July, following which it will later tour six cities across the country.

“The involvement of the two in the shows apart from Mumbai isn't clear yet, but we hear if their schedules allow, they will be performing in Delhi and Bangalore,” said a source.

Both the actresses are no strangers to live stage performance as Richa started her career as a theater actress in Delhi, while Kalki has had a long-standing passion and relationship with the medium.

However, Richa was apprehensive about doing the play initially, says a source.

“She basically was apprehensive of doing the play, but while she was in New York and she spent time watching various plays, she got sort of tempted to go back on stage,” added the source.

Away from the arc lights, greasepaint and comfort, a slew of popular faces from Indian cinema such as Hema Malini, Moon Moon Sen and Chiranjeevi barnstormed either as contestants or campaigners for the national election, adding glamour and spicing up the 10-phased poll that concluded Monday.

They made up for an eclectic bunch: Smriti Irani (Amethi), Vinod Khanna (Gurdaspur), Shatrughan Sinha (Patna Sahib), Hema Malini (Mathura), Kirron Kher (Chandigarh), Paresh Rawal (Ahmedabad East), Manoj Tiwari (North East Delhi), Bappi Lahiri (Serampore) - all Bharatiya Janata Party - Raj Babbar (Ghaziabad), Nagma (Meerut), Ravi Kishen (Jaunpur), Kunal Singh (Patna Sahib) - all Congress - Moon Moon Sen (Bankura/Trinamool Congress), Prakash Jha (West Champaran/Janata Dal-United), Jaya Prada (Rampur/Lok Dal) and Gul Panag (Chandigarh/Aam Aadmi Party).

In India's financial and entertainment capital Mumbai, more than two dozen Hindi and Marathi celebrities came out to add a dash of glamour.

For instance, Rakhi Sawant, who contested from Mumbai North-West on the ticket of her Rashtriya Aam Party, attracted more attention for her colourful designer attire than her political issues, while filmmaker-actor Mahesh Manjrekar of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena for the same seat attracted a fair crowd, setting off alarms in other parties.

Renowned Marathi actor Nandu Madhav contested the Beed seat on the Aam Aadmi Party ticket against the Bharatiya Janata Party's Gopinath Munde, while the Nationalist Congress Party nominated former actress Navneet Kaur-Rana for Amravati.

Samajwadi Party candidate from Mumbai North Central Farhan Azmi got able support from his chic and charming wife, actress Ayesha Takia.

Punjab's capital Chandigarh witnessed a charged and glamourised contest between two actresses - Kirron Kher, the quintessential 'Mummyji' of several Bollywood films, as the BJP candidate, and her AAP challenger, the much younger Gul Panag.

Both seem to be a formidable challenge - and a possible threat - to the four-time Chandigarh MP Pawan Kumar Bansal, the incumbent.

Vinod Khanna contested the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat in Punjab for the fourth time. His campaign saw his actor son Akshaye and other stars joining in.

A three-time MP, Khanna lost to Pratap Singh Bajwa of the Congress in the 2009 elections. However, Bajwa, now the Punjab Congress president, faces a tough challenge from him.

In Sangrur, actor-comedian Bhagwant Mann (AAP) provided a worthy challenge to the Congress and Akali Dal candidates, while actor Sunny Deol too held a road show in the constituency.

In Haryana, actress Raveena Tandon added glamour by campaigning for industrialist-cum-politician Naveen Jindal (Congress).

The glamour quotient was no less in West Bengal.

The likes of Moon Moon Sen, reigning matinee idol Dev, yesteryear heroine Sandhya Roy, and incumbents Shatabdi Roy and Tapas Pal glamourised the Trinamool's nomination list, while eminent actors George Baker, Nimu Bhowmick and Joy Bandopadhyay did so for the BJP.

Then, there was CPI-M nominated Subhashini Ali, who designed the costumes for the 1981 classic "Umrao Jaan", besides dabbling in acting in "Asoka" and critically acclaimed "Amu".

National Award winning actor Mithun Chakraborty emerged as one of the star campaigners of the Trinamool, while Nagma and Padmini Kohlapure campaigned for the Congress.

Shatrughan Sinha addressed a meeting in support of the BJP.

Down south, in Tamil Nadu, where five of the state's chief ministers - C.N. Annadurai, M. Karunanidhi, M.G. Ramachandran, Janaki Ramachandran and J. Jayalalitha - had their roots in filmdom, several other actors showed an interest in politics.

The leader of opposition and DMDK founder A. Vijayakant was a leading action hero.

This time the two major parties - AIADMK and DMK - had fielded several movie stars as their star campaigners.

The AIADMK had on its side R. Ramarajan, Vennira Aadai Nirmala, S. Anantharaaj, Senthil, Gundu Kalyanam, Vindhya, Kuyili and others, while the most popular amongst DMK's star campaigners were Kushboo and Vagai Chandrasekhar.

Speaking to IANS, AIADMK's Anantharaaj said: "I was able to meet lots of people. I addressed around 50 meetings a day. Nice experience."

Fair complexioned Anantharaaj, 49, is now sun-tanned due to 40 days of electioneering.

"My focus was to highlight the achievements of the AIADMK government and our leader," said the actor who has done about 300 movies.

From the Kannada film industry, leading actress and outgoing Congress lawmaker Ramya re-contested from the Mandya Lok Sabha constituency, about 100 km from Bangalore. She is among the 21 women who contested in the April 17 general elections from across the state, which has 28 Lok Sabha seats.

She brought in star power in the form of Kannada actors Upendra, Ganesh, Bhavana and Umashree as her campaigners.

Geetha, wife of Kannada hero Shivrajkumar and daughter of former state chief minister S. Bangarappa, contested from Shimoga on the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) ticket against BJP candidate and former state chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa.

Besides Shivrajkumar, his brothers Raghavendra and Puneet Rajkumar and Kannada superstar Sudeep campaigned for Geetha.

Legendary Telugu actor and Union Tourism Minister Chiranjeevi campaigned for Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas M. Veerappa Moily, who re-contested from Chikkballapur; and another popular Telugu actor Pawan Kalyan, younger sibling of Chiranjeevi, campaigned for BJP candidates in Bangalore and Chikkaballapur.

Popular Kannada actress and BJP lawmaker Tara also campaigned for party candidates in Bangalore, Shimoga and Udupi-Chikmaglur from where BJP's former woman minister Shobha Karadlaje contested.

Kerala wasn't far behind. The biggest surprise came when the CPI-M led left opposition decided to field ace comedian Innocent from the Chalakudy constituency in Thrissur district, his home town.

Innocent, 69, president of the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA), turned out to be a crowd puller. The icing on the cake was that he roped in big names like Mammootty for campaigning.

Thespian Madhu and Kaviyoor Ponamma also campaigned, along with directors Kamal Sathyan Anthikadu.

A set of brave cancer survivors will set the ramp at a fashion show, Festival of Hope, on fire by doing the catwalk besides professional models and celebrities.

Conceptualized by entrepreneur Shalini Vig Wadhwa in 2011, the fund-raising event, being organised in association with Cancer Society of India (CSI), will be held in Gurgaon Saturday.

The idea behind the concept is to celebrate the courage and spirit of cancer survivors. Also, the collected funds will contribute to the research and development teams of CSI.

"It's been a wonderful three years' journey and I'm extremely pleased and satisfied with the outcome. We have successfully achieved to create cancer awareness in most of Delhi and NCR via Festival of Hope,” Wadhwa said in a statement.

“Every year we touch more than a thousand families who come together to celebrate the spirit of cancer survivors. They also learn to be alert for any early symptoms and are aware of various treatments available to cure cancer," she added.

Some participating designers for the event include Annaikka by Kanika Saluja, Pawan Sachdevaa, Ritu Pande, Nimirta by Nimirta Lalwani, Pernia Qureshi, Farheen Prabhakar, Varija Bajaj and Chhaya Mehrotra.

"It is a brilliant effort to create awareness for cancer through Festival of Hope and I am only proud to be a part of such noble cause,” said Bajaj.

The fashion show will be choreographed by Bollywood fashion director and choreographer Kaushik Ghosh. He will groom all the participants for the event with help of wellness destination VLCC.

Some celebrities who will take to the ramp along with the cancer survivors are cricketer Manoj Prabhakar, writer Alexandra Venus Bakshi, make-over expert Aashmeen Munjaal, actor- model and 1976 Miss India winner Naina Balsavar and author Ira Trivedi.

The Cannes Film Festival will feature five short films by the filmmakers from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as productions supported by the twofour54 creative lab continue to grow in international prominence.

The films will be shown in the 'Best of Arabic Short Films' section of the festival, being held May 14-25. The event gives young filmmakers the opportunity to showcase their talent in front of a worldwide audience.

Twofour54 is a tax-free media and entertainment zone in UAE capital Abu Dhabi.

"We are excited and proud to see talented Arab filmmakers participating in global events that highlight the development of the film industry in the Middle East and Abu Dhabi in particular; Cannes Film Festival is an excellent platform to showcase our productions to the world," Maryam Al Mheiri, chief operating officer of twofour54.

"This is a testament to twofour54's success nurturing this up-and-coming talent through training, guidance and the provision of financial support for projects and participation in events like this."

Participation at events like Cannes increases the chances of the films being selected by international festivals and reveals talent to potential partners. It is designed to build bridges between the worlds of short and feature films for talented moviemakers.

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who had directed the cult romantic musical drama "Aashiqui" in 1990 and then produced its super hit sequel "Aashiqui 2" last year, says Hansal Mehta's "Citylights" is not only at par with his movies, but "far more relevant to today's India".

Bhatt is presenting "Citylights" in association with Fox Star Studios. The film traces the love story of a Rajasthani couple who come to Mumbai to earn a living but is soon struck by misfortune.

"'Citylights' is an emotional love story which is in no way lesser than 'Aashiqui'," Bhatt said here Wednesday during the promotion of the film.

"It is a love story of a rural Indian and it has a heart, which is far more poignant and far more relevant to today's India," he added.

Slated to release May 30, "Citylights" is an adaptation of British film "Metro Manila" and features actor Rajkummar Rao in the lead role.

Film: "Children Of War"; Cast: Indraneil Sengupta, Raima Sen, Farouque Sheikh, Pavan Malhotra, Tilotama Shome, Victor Bannerjee, Riddhi Sen; Writer-Director: Mrityunjay Devvrat; Rating: **** 1/2

In one of the many mind-numbing images in this exceptionally vivid work on the ravages of war, the back of a truck is jolted open and out tumble a bunch of women one on top of another at a Pakistani prison camp for Bangladeshi women run by a despicable tyrant, who could be the Nazi mass murderer Ralph Fiennes in Steven Spielberg's "Schindler's List".

But no. It's Pavan Malhotra, brilliantly evil and slimy as the man who believes that if Pakistani soldiers rape and impregnate enough Bangladeshi women, the separatists and freedom fighters would stop dreaming of their own homeland.

This is the irrational, blood-soaked ravaged Pakistan of 1971 when Bangladesh was born out of the most horrific violence perpetrated against humanity.

Very often as I watched debutant director Mrityunjay Devvrat's stunning film, I was reminded of the great anti-Nazi films, like Alan Pakula's "Sophie's Choice", Richard Attenborough's "A Bridge Too Far", and Quentin Tarantino's "Inglorious Basterds".

I was also reminded of Nandita Das's "Firaaq" about Gujarat's 2002 genocide where a truckload of corpses had tumbled out. The difference is, the women who fall from the truck like trash from a garbage van in "Children Of War" are alive.

They might as well be dead.

As these Bangladeshi women, played by actresses of various ages - from 12 years to 40 years, who seem to live every second of the agony, are raped repeatedly you wonder how low human beings can fall when given unlimited power.

Rape as a tool of oppression has never served a more brutal purpose in any other film except Shekhar Kapur's "Bandit Queen". And you wonder why the man or woman, who sits in the boss' chair in the corporate organization, is no different from the leery neo-Nazi from the Pakistani concentration camp who supervises the mass rape of Bangladeshi women.

"Children Of War" shows how and why absolute power corrupts absolutely. Revisiting the Bangladesh war of liberation in 1971, it recreates with nerve wracking vividness the horrors of those times when suddenly a whole civilization was threatened with extinction.

The director spares us none of the agonizing details. Why should he? When humanity suffered, first world countries turned their faces away. It's time to face the music.

The unannounced midnight knock and the graphic rape that follows, the brutal slaying of refugees on the run as they are intercepted and shot point blank (in slow motion) on a river bridge as they try to escape, the leery Nazi-like army man urinating onto a prisoner's face....War never seemed more like a personal and political violation.

This is not a film for the squeamish. But then war was never meant for the civilised. The sheer incivility of a strife where one bully-section of a country decides to teach another section of the people a lesson, is captured in layer after layer of unstrapped brilliance portraying the complete collapse of compassion.

The film is littered with passages of unbearable pain and, yes, agonizing beauty. It is an indelible irony of all visual arts that human hurt makes for great visuals. The lush lyricism that the director supplants to the suffering never takes from the powerful statement on pain and suffering.

Cinematographer Fasahat Khan shoots the chilling nights with prowling predators and ravaged women captured together to emblematise the essential conflict between sexual aggression and vulnerable victims.

There is no manipulation here in the merger of the murky and the magnificent. They have co-existed from time immemorial. In this film, the ugly and the cherishable are so close together you can touch both and come away a changed film viewer. The plot moves across several epic conflicts simultaneously. There is a teenager Rafiq (played with heartrending vulnerability by Riddhi Sen) who loses his entire family and his home and is left with only a sister (Rucha Inamdar) to flee from the brutality of his homeland to the relative safety of India.

Rafiq's journey becomes a metaphor of Bangladesh's feral fight for freedom.

While the director has made extensive and telling use of documentary footage, including Indira Gandhi's rationale for Indian intervention in Bangladesh, there are many passages of unbounded symbolism leaping out of the screen. I was specially fascinated by a boat journey across a blood-soaked tell-tale river where a girl sees ghosts and other casualties of war violence as they jostle to tell her it is not over yet.

A true blue epic of mind-numbing intensity "Children Of War" is the kind of cinema that David Lean would have attempted were he a witness to the barbarism that went into the formation of Bangladesh. The film's brutal brilliance and spiralling structure of dread doom and devastation make you wonder how first time director Mriyunjay Devvrat could muster such a masterly vision of human oppression and resilience.

At heart this is a conventional lovely story of a couple (Indraneil Sengupta and Raima Sen) separated by sudden war. Standing forlorn, silhouetted by barbed wires in a concentration camp, Raima sometimes looks way too beautiful to be a victim. She can't help it.

Along with her every member of the cast rises above his or her personality to become part of the director's epic design. Special mention must be made of Pavan Malhotra, Tilotama Shome (playing a human bomb), Riddhi (so young and so much pain!) and Victor Bannerjee in a memorable cameo as a traveling refugee reminds us that humanism and barbarism are neighbours.

Aiding the actors to achieve the acme of authenticity is the film's mesmeric sound-design and music. In one harrowing graphic sequence, a rock anthem reverberates across the skyline as drains filled with blood tell sagas of the savagery that waits just outside our homes.

Genocide is not only history. It is what a country gets when intolerance is encouraged by political interests.

There are visuals and sounds of pain and anguish in this turbulent treatise on one of history's worst atrocities that will stay with me forever.

It is impossible to believe that this war epic has been directed by a first time filmmaker. How can a virgin artiste conceive such a vivid portrait of the rape of a civilization?

This isn't really a film. It's a work of art, tempestuous and terrific.

Yes, this is a masterpiece.

Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who is backing director Hansal Mehta's upcoming film "Citylights", says people should watch the film as it will connect them to their own emotions.

An official adaptation of British movie "Metro Manila", the film is about a Rajasthani couple who comes to the city of dreams, Mumbai, to earn a living, but are soon struck by misfortune.

"'Citylights' is for those people who know a lot, but don't feel at all. It's time for them to feel and this film will make those people, who know so much, feel because feeling is the life blood of human race, which is disappearing," Bhatt said here Wednesday while promoting the film at a radio station.

"The feeling that you should have for your fellow human being is disappearing," he added.

He further rued how people are much more concerned about their own growth and progress and don't feel for others.

"Having buildings, growth models, having great progress, flyovers and no human being is feeling for human being is a nightmare scenario,' the 64-year-old said.

"So here is the film 'Citylights' for those people to feel. So go and see 'Citylights' as it connects you to your greatest legacy, that is your treasures of feeling," he added.

Featuring National Award winning actor Rajkummar Rao in the lead, "Citylights" will hit the theatres May 30.

Independent or Indie films seem to be a hit among the movie buffs in the west with films like "Blue Ruin" and "Frank" and "Slumdog Millionaire" turning into box office favourites.

Here is a list of some of the most financially successful indie films, reports femalefirst.co.uk:

* "Passion of the Christ": It was back in 2004 when "Passion of the Christ" released. For the movie, actor Mel Gibson got back to the director's chair as he told the story of Jesus Christ's final twelve hours ending with his crucifixion.

Thanks to the subject, the movie was mired in controversy, but that only fuelled the box office success.

Made for $30 million, the movie went on to gross in excess of $611 million by the end of its theatrical run.

* "Slumdog Millionaire" - Released in 2009, "Slumdog Millionaire" was directed by Danny Boyle. The film was based on the book by Vikas Swarup. Simon Beaufoy adapted it into a screenplay. "Slumdog Millionaire" was the most praised movie of 2009, and seemed to win over critics and audiences wherever it played.

It minted $377 million and also won Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director.

* "My Big Fat Greek Wedding": It hit the big screen in 2002, and saw Joel Zwick in the director's chair. The movie follows a young Greek woman who falls in love with a non-Greek, and struggles to get her family to accept him. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding", made for $5 million, took a whopping $368 million.

* "Shakespeare in Love": Work on the film started in 1991, when Universal Pictures was behind the film and Julia Roberts was in the lead role. However, when Roberts pulled out, Universal also decided to leave the film. Miramax swooped in, in a bid to save the project. Gwyneth Paltrow, Joseph Fiennes, Colin Firth, Judi Dench, and Ben Affleck were all on board, and a $25 million budget was in place.

"Shakespeare In Love" was one of the most critically praised films of 1998 and went on to scoop Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress. It earned $289 million.

* "The Blair Witch Project": The 1999 release was made for a very modest $35,000. However, it was to be a movie that would change the way horror films were shot and movies marketed forever. It used viral marketing as a way to tell people about the film; never before had chat rooms and movie sites powered a film in such a way.

The film grossed $248 million at the global box office, making it one of the most successful independent movies.

* "Juno": Directed by Jason Reitman, the 2008 film was about a young girl who has an unplanned pregnancy and must decide what to do about her unborn baby. It took over $231 million at the box office - it was made for around $7 million.

Director-producer Dibaker Banerjee, known for films like "Khosla Ka Ghosla" and "Love Sex Aur Dhokha", says one thing that he wants to change in showbiz is film budgeting. For easy recovery, small budget movies should be prescribed, he says.

"Our films budgeting at times become so high that it gets difficult to recover the money. If we reduce that and spend the money on a film rather on other stuffs, then film can be made on smaller budgets and it will be a profitable deal," said Banerjee.

"It will be easier to recover the money. As an industry we are profitable, but we still have a long way to go. So as a director-producer, I feel this needs to be changed," he added.

Meanwhile the filmmaker is happy for small-budget "Ship Of Theseus" for winning a National Award but at the same time sad for "The Lunchbox" for not getting the same honour.

"I was happy 'Ship Of Theseus' got National Award, but I was a bit upset for 'The Lunchbox'. But it would be unfair to question the jury all the time," said Banerjee, who doesn't have a taste for Bollywood masala movies.

"I don't watch much masala films. 'Black Friday', 'Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi', 'Ship Of Theseus', 'The Lunchbox', 'Maqbool', etc are the films that I enjoy watching. This is my taste.

"There are filmmakers, who make 'Titli' kind of films, but they watch Bollywood masala films. I did not see masala films even in my childhood days. For me, my favourite childhood memory of Bollywood masala film is 'Parinda', 'Mirch Masala', and 'Bandit Queen'."

Pawan Sachdeva's latest menswear line titled “Andaaz-e-Nawab” takes its reference from remarkable craftsmanship of the Mughal era and the designer says that the line targets men who want to add a touch of royalty to their wardrobes.

From traditional attire like a jama paired with a flared skirt to a modern avtaar of a floral motif transparent cotton kurta teamed with pencil trousers and a cotton olive floral printed Nehru jacket, the collection has everything for everyone.

“Mughal artisans were famous for their creativity and experimentation. In my collection, I have tried to capture the elegance and flamboyance of the Mughal era," Sachdeva said in a statement.

"The collection has impressions of Mughal and Arabic clothing and has been twisted creatively to fit in the taste of a modern man,” he added.

The tops are usually paired with trousers, flared skirts and pajamas.

“Andaaz-e-Nawab is all about dressing today’s men in the royal attire. The collection has Jamas (tunic or coat), angharkas, chogas in the finest of cottons and muslins with hand embroidered floral motifs,” said the designer.

If you talk about getting into the skin of a film's character, you can't miss what Rajkummar Rao did for his forthcoming film "Citylights". He actually posed as a menial worker and went from door to door trying to look for a job for a scene in the movie.

For Hansal Mehta's film, Rajkummar posed as a commoner to witness the struggle of a commoner in the dream city of Mumbai.

A source says that when Rajkummar acted as a menial worker and looked around for work, the footage of the happenings was captured with cameras placed far away. These scenes add a touch of reality to the film too.

The source said: “Rajkummar went looking for a job near Santa Cruz station and asked if he could get some work there but everyone said no and later he landed up at a construction site nearby.

"The contractor offered him work at a wage of Rs. 100 a day and he agreed to work. Rajkummar actually slogged and worked hard to earn that Rs. 100 note, and this scene will be seen even in the film.

"Citylights" will release May 30.

The shooting of Priyanka Chopra-starrer film "Mary Kom", a biopic on Olympic bronze medallist M.C. Mary Kom, has been wrapped. The actress has thanked the team for their endurance.

Expressing gratitude to the film's director Omung Kumar and producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali, apart from other crew members, she tweeted: "It's a wrap on 'Mary Kom'! Thank you Omung, Sanjay sir, Sandy, Saiwyn, Keiko, Darshan and my whole crew who endlessly silently endured to create..."

The National award winning actress not just went through intense physical training for the role, but she also spent a considerable amount of time with the champion herself to understand the real life character closely so that she could bring it out on reel more effectively.

"Mary Kom" is due to release on Gandhi Jayanti Oct 2.

Producer Ritesh Sidhwani of Excel Entertainment, which was the banner behind "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara", heavily shot in Spain, says the team of their next film "Dil Dhadakne Do" is off to shoot in Barcelona now.

"Enroute to Barcelona for 'Dil Dhadakne Do', eating breakfast at my favourite place in Heathrow," tweeted Sidhwani, who co-owns Excel Entertainment with Farhan Akhtar.

Earlier this week, he had shared that the voyage of "Dil Dhadakne Do" was to begin Saturday, while the film will release June 5, 2015. It stars Farhan, Anil Kapoor, Anushka Sharma with Ranveer Singh and Priyanka Chopra.

Perez Brothers Liav, Ziv and Moshe -- who introduced Israel to one of the finest music creations -- are set to perform together in India.

On a mission to bring Israel to every club in the world, their performance is scheduled at Club Alibii in Colaba here on May 24, said a statement. DJ Clement will open their show.

After making their country proud, the trio have been globe trotting and carving a niche for themselves in the global music arena. Some of their popular tracks are "Head Rush", "Take me home", "Where you wanna go" and "Bazooki".

Film: "The Xpose"; Cast: Himesh Reshammiya, Yo Yo Honey Singh, Zoya Afroz, Sonali Raut, Ananth Mahadevan; Directed by Ananth Narayan Mahadevan; Rating: *** 1/2 (3 and a half stars)

When was the last time we saw an intelligent and entertaining whodunit? Normally, all they do is line up a slew of stiff cardboard suspects trying to look guiltily into the camera, and pick one of the gallery of eccentrics as the one whodunit and impute a silly motive on him.

Director Ananath Mahadevan is not known to err in his execution of the plot, no matter how trivial it may appear on paper. He goes at the whodunit with a relish that communicates itself to the audience. Set in the film industry during the late 1960s, there is a flouncy flair and glossy aura to the story telling.

Mahadevan recreates the impassive allure of the entertainment industry with his tongue lodged firmly in his chic. You can't miss the broad references to the gossip, scandal and rivalry of the film industry. Playing a Southern superstar with an arrogant self-regard that rivals the legendary haughtiness of 'Jaani' Raaj Kumar, Himesh Reshammiya is reborn as an actor. His piercing icy-cold eyes give away nothing, and everything. He is man in love... with himself, then with a woman whom he can't bear to see go astray.

Every actor from Nakul Vaid as a matinee idol grappling with suspicion to newcomer Zoya Afroz as a star on the rise struggling to remain virtuous in a world built on artifice, and Sonali Raut as the slutty ambitious star on the rise who sleeps around for a price, is cast well and given a chance to effectuate his or her playing-time with punctuation marks that may not be written in the plot.

Yo Yo Honey Singh makes his Bollywood acting debut. Playing a spoilt, pampered,deceitful music director who marries into money and undeserved inheritance, Yo Yo imparts a certain innocence to his character's duplicity and greed. He isn't the villain but a victim of his unquenchable appetites.

Normally films set in the entertainment industry end up taking themselves too seriously. "The Xpose" careens between a mood of gratuitous satire and earnest regret for a world where sham is the name of the scam.

The film is resplendently shot in gaudy shades. The songs by Himesh and Honey are entertaining even when Himesh goes melodiously moony over his co-star.

Oh, didn't I tell you? Himesh plays a superstar who falls in love with his latest heroine but is unable to confess all to the girl. The theme of unexpressed love provides a tantalizing subtext to the sizzling, boiling, simmering plot filled with characters who can't tell the difference between life in the studios and outside.

The murder happens in the second overture during a grand after-party where two rival actresses come to blows. The eventful colourful film never fails to take swipes the world of the make-believe. Intrigue, envy, jealousy, rivalry, suspense and murder...this is the masalaland of the 1960s as seen through the winking, glinting eyes of a director who understands the machinations of the entertainment industry.

Admittedly some of the razzle-dazzle in the film (for example, the heroine emerging from the sea in a bikini) doesn't belong to the 1960s.

So who said the world of the make-believe had to follow any rules? Yup, there is no business like show business. This whodunit means business. The suspense drama is bright, bouncy,believable and entertaining.

The launch of ETV Kannada Anubandha Awards 2014, aimed at celebrating the togetherness of the channel's family while felicitating the artists for their talent and dedication, was announced here Thursday.

The concept was launched by LIVE Viacom18, a division under Integrated Network Solutions (INS), in the presence of a slew of artists from the channel.

The main gala award show will take place at Koramangala here May 31, and it will be telecast June 14 and June 15.

By introducing an award ceremony such as this, the motive is not just to create an on-ground entertainment experience for viewers, but also to give them a chance to vote for their favourite shows and its talent, said Jaideep Singh, senior vice president and business head - INS, Viacom18 Pvt. Ltd.

"ETV Kannada with its innovative shows such as 'MTS Dancing Stars' and 'Bhima Bigg Boss', has brought in newer and younger audiences to the regional television medium," he added in a statement.

Each ETV family member will take time off their shoot and cast votes for each other. In a unique nomination process, ETV Kannada has chosen family members from all the serials of the year 2013 as nominees across various categories such as ‘Favourite son’ and ‘Favourite daughter-in-law’.

The entertainment quotient will be taken a notch higher with performances and appearances by ETV Kannada family members and film celebrities.

Writer-director and now author, Rensil D'Silva says his book "Kohinoor Express" has an "epic scope" and he may consider making either a film or a mini-TV series inspired by it. Work on his new film "Ungli" is also on his mind.

In an interview, the director of the Anil Kapoor-starrer Indian TV show "24" and Bollywood film "Kurbaan", D'Silva has spoken about his novel, "Ungli" and his future plans, which could include making a biopic.

Excerpts:

Q. When is your second feature film "Ungli" releasing?

A. It is being released Nov 7. Two of my songs were not ready. I also needed to shoot one of them. The "Ungli" anthem, as we're going to call it, is yet to be shot.

Q. What made you write a novel when you are so busy with so many other things?

A. I have always done many things at the same time. The idea for my novel "Kohinoor Express" was with me for some time. Initially, I thought it'd make a great screenplay. Then I realized it had all the makings of a novel, including an expansive classic format and a period thriller with many characters. So I decided, why not a novel? I thought, why should I force it into a particular format when it has life of its own.

Q. Will you make a film out of "Kohinoor Express"?

A. I would for sure. But right now I am very happy to have it as a novel. It has an epic scope. So maybe I could make a mini-series on television. Writing '24' gave me a good idea of how innovative television can be. Now I hear other American series like "The Killing" and "Homeland" are being adapted to Indian television.

Q. Your film "Ungli" looks like an interesting dark thriller?

A. No, in fact it's a fun film. A caper tonally akin to 'Catch Me If You Can'. It's about vigilantes who strike at night. It's actually about characters who pull pranks on the system.

Q. Some of your actors' destinies have changed while you were shooting "Ungli"!

A. Yes Neil Bhoopalam, who stars in "Ungli" found fame as a lead in "24". And it's one of Randeep Hooda's better performances. And my leading lady Kangna Ranaut is quite the 'Queen' right now. She has a fun role. But not playing it for laughs.

Q. And Sanjay Dutt's last release for a while?

A. Unless he is in Rajkumar Hirani's "Peekay". He is fabulous in my film. He plays a cop his own age. He completed his his entire work.

Q. What next?

A. I will decide only after "Ungli" is released. Maybe a biopic. Finally the nation is open to true stories. I loved "Bhaag Milkha Bhaag". What a performance from Farhan Akhtar. There are so many Hollywood adaptations, rom-coms and south Indian remakes happening.

I'd rather do television than one of this me-too things. That's far more exciting right now. I'm proud to say "Ungli" is absolutely original. Not too many vigilante films have been made in the country. It's an anti-corruption film that is not angry, bitter or violent. I'm confident about the film.

Tiger Shroff's debut film "Heropanti" has been produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and the actor has now signed a two-film deal with the producer even before the release of his debut vehicle.

"Heropanti" is slated to come out May 23.

"I have signed a two-film deal with Sajid sir, but as of now nothing is finalised about those projects. Right now everyone is focussing on 'Heropanti'," Tiger said here in an interview.

Meanwhile, Tiger is looking forward to "Heropanti", where he has not only performed some daredevil stunts, he has choreographed some of them as well.

Tiger, the son of Bollywood's once reigning star Jackie Shroff, knows that being a star kid, people's expectations are high from him, but he used it as his strength.

"As a star son, there are expectations from me but that is my strength and I have been able to work hard in this film because of that only," the actor said.

"We are happy with our film as the final product. It has turned out well. Now we have to just wait and watch how it works," he added.

Directed by Sabbir Khan, "Heropanti" features newcomer Kriti Sanon as the female lead.