Actors Jacqueline Fernandez and Arjun Rampal were in the capital to promote their forthcoming release "Roy", and they launched Shreem Jewelers' new collection of bridal jewellery and men’s accessories here Tuesday.

“We are pleased to unveil our new bridal jewellery collection and men’s accessories by Jacqueline Fernandez and Arjun Rampal,” the managing director of Shreem Jeweler Ashutosh Sharma said in a statement about the stars, who were present to promote their forthcoming film “Roy”.

The men’s accessories includes Indo US Cufflinks which have been specially designed keeping in mind the January visit of US President Barack Obama to India. The men’s range also consists of diamond rings, diamond studded Mont Blanc pen and more.

Jacqueline was also seen trying out the collection of diamond bridal jewellery.

Bollywood actresses Esha Gupta, Kalki Koechlin and Neha Dhupia, apart from actor Kay Kay Menon and supermodel Carol Gracias, will add star power to the preview of the second season of Jabong Online Fashion Week (JOFW) here Wednesday.

The exclusive preview will take place at The Grand here.

Kay Kay will walk the ramp for Rahul Singh, Carol will catwalk for Flirtatious by Aakriti Grover, Esha will showcase a Jaya Misra creation, Kalki will walk for Niharika Pandey, and former beauty queen Neha will be a showstopper for Poonam Bhagat.

The JOFW Season II preview will showcase works of upcoming designers Jaya Misra, Aesthetical Cubes, Sougat Paul, Nitya Bajaj, Preeti S Kapoor, Niket Mishra, Kanika Goyal and Rahul Singh during Show 1 and Aakriti Grover, Sonia Jetleey, Abhi Singh, Jayati Goenka, Niharika Pandey, Lalit Sengar as well as established names such as Siddartha Tytler and Poonam Bhagat.

Also, Britain-based high street brand Dorothy Perkins' spring-summer 2015 collection, which will be sold exclusively on Jabong.com, will be showcased at the event.

JOFW Season II will also host a Market Square Area at the venue, which will showcase around 40 exclusive pop-stalls by designers such as Pitaraah featuring Prerto, Ridhi Mehra, Raw Mango, Namrata Kumar, House of Sko amongst others, ensuring a 12-hour shopping, styling and fun-filled carnival open to the public.

Jury members of JOFW season II, an online shop-able fashion week, include Nandini Bhalla, Varun Bahl, Colston Julian and Vidya Tikari.

The online gala is scheduled from Feb 12-17 on www.Jabongofw.com.

Veteran actress Saira Banu’s niece Sayesha Saigal is set to make her Telugu debut in a yet-untitled film with actor Akkineni Nagarjuna’s younger son Akhil, who is also being launched through this project.

Sayesha is the daughter of yesteryear actors Shaheen and Sumeet Saigal.

“Finally v found our heroine opp Akhil. Sayesha Saigal. Wishing both my actors all the good luck. Shoot starting soon (Sic), the film’s producer Nithiin Reddy posted on his Twitter page Tuesday.

To be directed by V.V Vinayak, the lead actors of the film will be launched at an event here Saturday.

“Excited to see all the fans on 14th. Having a big launch and we are all set to shoot from 16th. Vinayak garu is very confident and so am I (sic),” tweeted Akhil.

Sayesha has already been signed for Ajay Devgn’s upcoming home production “Shivaay”.

"Unfreedom", a new Indian film banned in filmmaker Raj Amit Kumar's native India, will be released in North American theatres and simultaneously on digital channels via Film Buff on May 29.

"Unfreedom" will be the first release of Dark Frames, a new distribution company dedicated to bringing high-quality, non-Bollywood Indian films to North American and international audiences through theatrical and digital channels.

"Unfreedom" represents the type of challenging socio-political film that Dark Frames will be bringing to theatres in the future," said Dark Frames' founder Kumar, who also wrote and directed the feature.

"Too many wonderful Indian independent films have gone unseen and I'm very proud to finally bring the best of these to audiences," he said.

Veteran film marketer and distributor Mark Urman of Paladin is partnering with Dark Frames to lead the marketing and distribution of its release slate.

Dark Frames will also partner with Film Buff to distribute "Unfreedom" at the same time on Cable VOD and other digital platforms.

According to a media release "Unfreedom" juxtaposes two powerful and unflinching contemporary stories about religious fundamentalism and intolerance.

Shifting between New York and New Delhi, one tale follows a Muslim terrorist who kidnaps a liberal Muslim scholar in order to silence him, while the other charts the travails of a young woman whose devout father tries to force her into an arranged marriage, which she resists because she is secretly in love with another woman.

The four characters come face to face with gruesome acts of violence in battles of identity, sexuality, religion, love, and family.

Recently, "Unfreedom" was banned in India, where homosexuality was criminalised in 2013, by the Censor Board of Film Certification (CBFC), rendering much of its content too controversial for general audiences.

Kumar is mounting an appeal at the same time that he is launching a crowd-funding campaign to finance a release in India via alternative methods.

Based in Mumbai and Florida, Dark Frames will distribute Indian cinema to a US and global audience theatrically and via digital channels.

"Issaq" fame Amyra Dastur, who is making her Tamil debut in forthcoming romantic-drama "Anegan", says her co-star Dhanush helped her overcome the fear of the language, which was alien to her.

"When I started shooting, I didn't know a word of Tamil. I'd fumble with my lines. Dhanush came to my rescue and helped me with my lines. He'd patiently mouth the words for me to grasp the pronunciation right," Amyra told IANS.

"He'd tell me it's perfectly alright if I fumble with my lines because he reminded me that he faced a similar fate in Bollywood. His word motivated me so much," she said.

She admits the Bollywood connect between them helped in "bonding" to great extent.

Directed by K.V. Anand, "Anegan" releases in cinemas Friday and Amyra plays a triple role in the film.

Actor Sharib Hashmi, who will share screen space with critically acclaimed actor Manoj Bajpayee in his next film "Adaab Dawood Ibrahim Bol Raha Hoon", says he is thrilled to be working with him.

"My next film is with Manoj Bajpayee which is titled 'Adaab Dawood Ibrahim Bol Raha Hoon'. It's an out-and-out comedy film. I'm thrilled to work with Manoj and I'm so thankful I got an opportunity to work with him. I'm sure it's going to be a learning experience for me to work with him," Sharib told IANS.

Directed by Samir Karnik, "Adaab Dawood Ibrahim Bol Raha Hoon" will go on floors in March 2015. The film will be widely shot in Gujarat.

Meanwhile, Sharib will also be seen in "Badmashiyaan".

Talking about the film, he said: "In 'Badmashiyaan', I'm playing a Haryanvi don. It's a very unusual role. It was not easy to play a Haryanvi character, but I worked really hard for it," he said.

Comedy is about telling the truth in a funny way, says world-famous stand-up comedian Russell Peters, ahead of his multi-city tour in India, where a group of humorists are currently facing criticism for showcasing an insult comedy show.

Peters, whose Almost Famous World Tour, will be staged in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai, as part of the Stage42 Festival organised by Only Much Louder, says he's aware of the "growing comedy scene" in India.

"It's great that that's happening. Unfortunately, I'm not really familiar with all the guys that are doing it," Peters told IANS in an email interaction.

Born in Toronto to Eric and Maureen Peters, the funnyman is of Anglo-Indian descent. His late father lived in Mumbai and later migrated to Canada.

Peters often features personal incidents and stories in his comic acts, and says: "I don't think there's anything that I do that would 'hurt' someone's feelings".

"Comedy is about telling the truth and people can tell if you're just trying to be mean. They can sense your intent. My intent is just to be funny.

"Everything I talk about is real and based on things that have happened to me or my friends. The audience always knows when you're lying, so never lie to them," added the 44-year-old entertainer, who has regaled comedy lovers across the globe.

When he started performing stage shows back in 1989, Peters was just 18 years old and says he started doing stand-up comedy because he had always wanted to it. And he does it well -- considering the record-setting attendance he draws with his shows.

But he says he didn't choose to be a comedian "to set records".

"I started doing stand-up because I had to. It was a calling. If you're doing stand-up for fame or to get rich, you're doing it for the wrong reasons. I've been doing this for 26 years now," he said.

For now, he's upbeat about enthralling the "energetic" Indian audience.

"I love India. I'm not just saying that. It makes me happy just to be there. There's no other place in the world that has the energy that India has. I live in Malibu but would be very happy living in Bombay (Mumbai)," Peters said.

He feels his Indian fans "are very smart and aware of the world".

"They have a good understanding of not just India but the rest of the world as well."

Peters is due to perform in the Delhi-NCR on Valentine's Day Feb 14 at Expocentre Noida, and then proceed to Hyderabad Feb 17, followed by Chennai Feb 19, Bengaluru Feb 21, and in Mumbai Feb 22 and 23.

When he's not travelling and performing, the humorist loves to spend time with his Crystianna, his four-year-old daughter with his former wife Monica Diaz, thanks to whom he has seen Oscar-winning Hollywood animation film "Frozen" about "two thousand times".

Otherwise, he has no time for films -- whether Hollywood or Bollywood.

"I don't have time to watch Hollywood films, let alone Bollywood films...I never grew up watching Bollywood movies; it just wasn't a thing in our house," he said.

Filmmaker Sriram Raghavan believes that the presence of stars in a movie help in widening its reach.

"Big stars are definitely beneficial for the film because the reach is more. More people come and watch your film, but (ultimately) it (the footfalls) depends on the film," Raghavan told IANS.

Talking about his forthcoming movie, which stars Varun Dhawan, Yami Gautam and Huma Qureshi, he said: "For this film, we didn't need a big star. When I signed Varun for 'Badlapur', he was just one film old and now he has become a star."

In the past, Raghavan has directed movies like "Ek Hasina Thi", "Johnny Gaddaar" and "Agent Vinod". His last movie as a director, "Agent Vinod", came out in 2012.

Why take such a long gap between his films?

He said: "I don't get scripts easily, and I take time to write it. 'Badlapur' is actually my fastest film."

Model-actress Gauahar Khan, who hogged limelight with her dance performance in the song "Jhalla walla" from "Ishaqzaade", now wants to do selective work. Besides, she is open to doing more dance numbers.

"Right now I am doing selective work. I don't want to do just a song. People love me for my dance and I hope that something great comes up," Gauahar said here Tuesday at an event.

"If I will get a really interesting dance number, I will definitely want to do it," added the successful model, who had first showcased her dancing prowess in reality show "Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa".

Meanwhile, the former "Bigg Boss" winner is also set to make her acting debut with Rajeev Jhaveri's film "Fever".

Emmy and Golden Globe-winning stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld is set to tickle the Indian audiences' funny bone for the first time with a performance as part of Stage42 festival. He says it's an "honour".

"I have always been fascinated by India and its culture. I have great respect for its people and their way of life. It is a great honour for me to be invited," Seinfeld said in a statement.

Indian fans of the entertainer will have a long-awaited opportunity to experience his comedy live at the Sardar Vallabhai Patel Stadium here March 14 and March 15. The show's tickets, which have a starting price tag of a grand Rs.7,500, will go on sale Friday, and will be available for purchase on www.insider.in.

Seinfeld, whose comedy career took off after his first appearance on "The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" in 1981 and who is the man behind comedy series "Seinfeld", is joining the line-up of the already underway festival.

Organisers of the fest are happy to have Seinfeld on board.

"For many of us, our introduction to comedy was Seinfeld. He's a comedian whose influence is impossible to understate, and it's a matter of immense pride that we will be bringing this global icon to India for the first time," Arjun Ravi, co-founder, NH7.in, said in a statement.

The Stage42 festival will take place in seven cities -- Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune -- between February and March. It aims at showcasing some of India's and the world's most celebrated artists and experiences in comedy, music, theatre and food. Another star performer who's due to perform is Russell Peters.

Arjun Mathur and Sugandha Ram-starrer romance drama "Coffee Bloom", debut directed by Manu Warrier, will release across cities in India, US and Canada simultaneously March 6.

In India, "Coffee Bloom" will be releasing across theatres in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Kochi and Ahmedabad. In the US, it will release in Los Angeles, San Francisco Bay Area, Chicago, Seattle and New Jersey - Bergen County, and in Canada, it will hit theatres in Toronto.

The director is "highly excited" about the movie's release.

"Coffee Bloom" premiered at the Mumbai Film Festival, organised by Mumbai Academy of the Moving Image (MAMI), last year under the 'New Faces of Indian Cinema' category. It received a warm response.

"The initial good response gave us the push to release it in wider format and it's going to happen this March. It is a universal story of love to which everyone can relate, since at some point of time in life, everyone's been through struggle, rough patches and pained by love," Warrier said in a statement.

A story of unrequited love and a journey of self-discovery, "Coffee Bloom" narrates how Dev Anand (Arjun), a self-proclaimed wise man, who has given up on life as a result of a love gone wrong, goes through a life-changing event which takes him on a journey to a coffee plantation.

There he meets Anika, his long lost love, currently his boss.

Love blooms in an idyllic setting, bringing Dev out of his self-imposed funk and Dev finds a new reason to live. "Coffee Bloom" also stars veteran actor Mohan Kapoor and Bengali actress Ishwari Bose in supporting roles.

The film is produced by Speaking Tree Pictures Pvt Ltd, spearheaded by veteran film professional Harish Amin, who has, in the past worked with directors such as Mira Nair, Fabio Carpi, Roland Joffe, Wes Anderson, Farhan Aktar and Homi Adajania.

Amin said: "'Coffee Bloom' is a very special film for me. Manu is a very talented director and I am very pleased with how his vision looks on screen. All the actors have given stellar performances that are sure to shine through."

Jewellery designer Sumit Sawhney's Zen Fusion Collection under his brand Apala by Sumit, incorporates Buddhist motifs and scriptures in eclectic forms. He says the collection serves Indian and Western sensibilities.

"The beauty of the pieces is that it can be combined on a western or an Indian outfit. The jewellery can be combined with skirts, jumpsuits, evening gowns, saris and even anarkali suits. That's the versatility of this line," Sawhney said in a statement.

The designer suggests that an ideal way to flaunt the pieces of the collection is to wear them as standalone statement pieces.

An example is in the way Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor flaunted one of the line's jewellery piece. She chose to wear a pair of earrings, which has Goddess Tara in carved turquoise gemstone, combined with pink tourmaline and quartz polki. The piece is in silver with 22 karat gold layering.

While designing the Zen Fusion collection, Sawhney has taken care in using colours like red coral, turquoise and white.

The line includes earrings, necklaces, pendants, rings and bangles, and they are priced upwards of Rs.25,000.

Hours after going on an indefinite strike over a conflict between the recognised labour unions in Bollywood and their rival group, the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) called it off Wednesday evening.

The strike call was reportedly given after officers from the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) police station arrested five FWICE members on charges of assaulting the Registrar of Trade Unions Tuesday but released them on bail in the evening.

FWICE is a film industry workers union.

The registrar was said to have colluded with a rival trade union faction, headed by Gangeshwar Shrivastav, to lodge a false police complaint.

Prem Singh Thakur, chairman, Film Studios Setting and Allied Mazdoor Union, earlier in the day told IANS: "Gangeshwar Shrivastav has been giving a tough time to all of us. Yesterday, when we went to the trade union office to present our case, Gangeshwar was already sitting there and he started abusing us, which ended up in a fight."

"He then filed a false complaint against us. Now it's enough. We are not going to tolerate this anymore." The strike was thus called to ensure that the matter was taken seriously and reached a conclusion, he added.

Thakur reiterated that Shrivastav and his associates were expelled from FWICE on charges of corruption and criminal intimidation. Shrivastav was a former general secretary of the Allied Mazdoor Union.

In the evening, the decision to call off the strike was taken following a meeting of FWICE with the union members. Shooting of films and TV shows had come to a standstill as FWICE called for the strike earlier in the day.

"Yes, we have decided to call off the strike and the shoots have been started from today evening," Khalid Khan, advisory chairman of Allied Mazdoor Union told IANS.

"We have put forth our demands and we hope the government will take care of it and take Gangeshwarlal Shrivastava's case seriously."

"It was a mutual decision of all of us. We don't want the producers and directors to suffer because of the strike," he added.

The FWICE, along with the support of the producers bodies, wants an independent inquiry into the incident from the chief minister.

A delegation, comprising members from across sections of the industry, will meet Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the home ministry portfolio, and the police commissioner and apprise them of the events and their expectations from the government.

Though the FWICE called off the strike following requests from the producers' bodies, it warned that it would not hesitate to strike again if the culprits were not exposed and brought to book.

Multi-faceted Bollywood talent Farhan Akhtar hopes that forthcoming movie “Roy” turns out to be a “joy” for his "Rock On!!" co-actor Arjun Rampal.

Farhan took to micro-blogging site Twitter to wish Arjun for his movie.

“@rampalarjun All the best for the 13th release of #Roy ... May it bring you all weekends of #Joy,” Farhan tweeted.

Vikramjit Singh's directorial "Roy", a suspense drama, also features Jacqueline Fernandez and Ranbir Kapoor in key roles.

Actress Nimrat Kaur says she's "blushing like a school girl" thanks to a certificate -- appreciating her work in American TV series “Homeland” -- given to her by Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards.

“Blushing like a school girl ! A certificate for keeps ?? thank you ever so much @SAGawards @SHO_Homeland for this,” the actress tweeted.

Nimrat, who was roped in to play a Pakistani ISI agent in the international series, was ennobled with a nomination along with the cast of the show in the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series category for the Screen Actors Guild Awards 2015.

While the show lost out to “Downton Abbey”, Nimrat made her mark at the event's red carpet ceremony.

Veteran actress Shabana Azmi congratulated Nimrat on the feat.

“@NimratOfficial congratulations Nimrat. U do us proud,” she wrote.

Nimrat shot to fame globally after her role in internationally acclaimed Indian movie "The Lunchbox". The movie also got a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) Awards nomination this year, but lost out to "Ida".

His comic timing is working like a magnet for offers of comedy films for him, but actor Sharib Hashmi says he's trying to avoid being caught in one image in the Hindi film industry.

"Most of the films being offered to me are so far comedies. Surprisingly, I have also got some out-of-the-box offers. I try my best to do different films," Sharib, who will next be seen in "Badmashiyaan", told IANS.

He reiterated that he's getting different kinds of roles, but "maximum are comedy".

"I'm trying to run away from being typecast, but let's see. Having said that, I really enjoy doing comedy," added the actor, who has featured in movies like "Slumdog Millionaire", "Filmistaan" and "Jab Tak Hai Jaan".

He says life changed for him after "Filmistaan".

"Life took a 360 degree turn. A lot of good things happened in my life and I got many awards. This is the best phase of my career, and I hope this is just the beginning," he said.

Actress Surveen Chawla is very excited about her collaboration with Meet Bros for a song in one of her upcoming films.

The "Hate Story 2" actress will lend her voice to the song, which will be recorded next month.

"I am very excited. It is another facet of mine which people are not really aware of," Surveen said here Wednesday at the red carpet of Femina Beauty Awards.

"I'm excited to collaborate with Meet Bros. They are my favourite. They have been churning out some fantastic tunes for all of us," she added about the duo, credited with chartbusters like "Baby doll" and "Chittiyan kalaiyyan".

The 30-year-old is now looking forward to the song and says "it will be something to watch out".

Actresses Neha Dhupia, Kalki Koechlin and Esha Gupta along with actor Kay Kay Menon and supermodel Carol Gracias spruced up the Bollywood quotient at the preview of the second season of Jabong Online Fashion Week (JOFW), aimed at providing a platform to budding talent.

The exclusive preview, which took place here at The Grand Wednesday evening, witnessed the actors walking the ramp for various designers.

Kay Kay, who flaunted a creation by designer Rahul Singh, looked dapper in a cream coloured traditional kurta-pyjama. He completed his look with a golden jacket and a jooti, and lauded the "wonderful effort" of providing a platform to young talent.

Former Femina Miss India title holder Neha looked ravishing in a quirky colourful Poonam Bhagat dress, and she too was appreciative of JOFW, "which encourages new talent".

Another big screen diva on the ramp was Esha, who came into limelight with 2012 film “Jannat 2”. She was seen flaunting a pink coloured gown by designer Jaya Misra.

The Delhi-born beauty, who donned a simple yet effective look for the event, told IANS that the fact that JOFW is an online event, "gives talents a larger scale to reach out to people".

"With this effort, every designer will get a chance to open his own store (literally)," she added.

There was also Kalki Koechlin, who sashayed down the ramp in an ensemble by Niharika Pandey.

Apart from them, the second season also featured young designs including Aesthetical Cubes, Sougat Paul, Nitya Bajaj, Preeti S Kapoor, Niket Mishra, Kanika Goel, Sonia Jetleey and Siddartha Tytler.

The apparel designers, models, hairstylists, photographers, makeup artists and accessory designers who showcased their work at the preview event, were finalised via the online shopping portal by jury members Nandini Bhalla, Varun Bahl, Colston Julian, Vidya Tikari, Lubna Adams and Noyonika Chatterjee.

During the event, the spring-summer 2015 collection of Britain-based high street brand, Dorothy Perkins was also showcased.

The idea behind JOFW is to provide a platform to the country's youngsters, who are looking forward to make a career in the fashion industry.

“Our brand stands for fashion. It was an effort to bring the fashion property online, where it can be showcased to the whole Indian market at a single place. Starting from Feb 12, people will see the new trend and ideas of these young designers, who we have been chosen,” Praveen Sinha, managing director and founder, Jabong.com said.

The creations of the chosen talents will be displayed on the website of the e-commerce portal from Feb 12-17.

Online shopping destination Amazon India will now be the title sponsor of India Fashion Week, which has ben sponsored by fashion brand Wills Lifestyle for almost a decade.

India Fashion Week is organised by the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), whose president Sunil Sethi is happy about moving on from "bricks to clicks".

"I'm looking forward to this association with India's largest online player. It will be our 25th edition... our silver jubilee, so what better way to celebrate. We are planning to do more experiments with quality designers,” Sethi said at the partnership announcement here Thursday.

The event was also attended by ace designers like JJ Valaya, Rohit Bal, Varun Bahl and Rina Dhaka.

Vikas Purohit, head, fashion, Amazon India, which started a proper fashion segment from March 2014 by launching bags, shoes and more, is looking forward to taking the work of Indian designers to a “large part of India through the partnership with FDCI”.

“This is the most prestigious platform,” he said.

The 2015 autumn-winter edition of the fashion week will start here March 25.

The venue of the five-day fashion event remains the same -- the capital's Pragati Maidan.

Imam Siddique, best remembered for his appearance in reality show "Bigg Boss 6", will be seen as an animal lover in his debut Bollywood film "Hotel Beautifool".

The film's director Sameer Iqbal Patel told IANS: "Imam's character is quite interesting -- he loves animals, protects them, he is loud and very colourful. I chose Imam carefully as not only can he act, but he adds a certain punch to this character. I gave him full liberty to experiment with his role."

The movie has a dash of humour, says Imam.

"Humour is ethnocentric, so keeping that in mind, we have created humour for the Indian audience. I'm an animal lover, who is funny and little emotional. I was impressed with Hollywood movie 'Zoolander', so I took some of it, mixed it with an Indian tadka and the outcome is amazing," he said.

To be jointly produced by Madhire Ravinder Reddy and Mohammed Aslam Shaikh under the banner of Madhire Film Corporation and Umbrella Film Corporation, ""Hotel Beautifool" is tentatively set to release in April 2015.