The fifth edition of SCRIPT, the international competitive short film festival that screens films with a social relevance, will see the screening of 62 movies.

SCRIPT stands for Social and Corporate Responsibility International Promotional Theatre. The film festival, organised by the Rotary Club of Cochin Metropolis, will be held here for two days, starting Friday.

A release issued here Wednesday by the organisers of the event, said that the film gala will focus on socially relevant short films and documentaries of a maximum of 30 minutes' duration.

SCRIPT 2015 is supported by the Indian Documentary Producer's Association (IDPA) and Public Service Broadcasting Trust (PSBT). The festival is also registered with the Universal Film and Festival Organisation.

The Kuala Lumpur International Short Film Festival and Curtas da Ribeira Grande Festival in Portugal have become partners for this event, which has attractive cash prizes.

The jury is headed by actress Gautami.

The student section showcases the talent of the next generation and films from Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) Mumbai, FTII, NID, Ahmedabad, besides an entry from Bangladesh are also there.

The international films are from Spain, Greece, Turkey, Iraq, Portugal and the US.

Actress Nargis Fakhri, who was last seen in Salman Khan's "Kick", has secretly undergone a 12-day martial arts boot camp in preparation for a role in one of her upcoming Bollywood projects.

"Nargis recently visited a Muay Thai boot camp for 12 days in Phuket to learn the core of the form. Known for her astute sense of fitness, this is something she absolutely wanted to do and since she found a little breather in her schedule amidst busy schedule," a source close to Nargis told IANS.

"Nargis disconnected completely from everyone for those 12 days to focus on getting the essence completely," the source said.

The source added that this preparation might be for one of her upcoming Bollywood projects, which will be announced soon.

In her international debut film "Spy", Nargis is said to have an action sequence.

Actress Raveena Tandon feels that the national capital is attracting the attention of a lot of filmmakers with its diverse culture and developing infrastructure.

"Delhi is appealing to more and more movie makers because of its diverse culture, lively people and better infrastructure," Raveena said in a statement.

"I hope the 7AJ World Entertainment will avail all these potential benefits and offers a quality cinema to billions of movie lovers across the world," she added.

Raveena was here Wednesday to launch the production house "7AJ World Entertainment" and its first Bollywood film "RAB NAA".

She was here alongwith actor Sumit Suri, actress Flora Saini and Sachin Khanna, owner and managing director of Dhhunki Productions, Mumbai at the event.

“RAB NAA” will be directed by debutant Ravi Sikander Anand.

The story of the musical thriller film will reflect the youth power and challenges, that the young generation faces today. The event also witnessed the first poster of the film.

“Delhi is close to my heart and I love to work here. It is a city of hope for young talent and new people by providing numerous opportunities to work," said the director.

"Auditions for parallel lead roles will start soon across the country & star cast will be announced soon," he added.

Fourteen films, exploring the unique circumstances and complex stories of South Asians, will be featured at the first South Asian Film Festival in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas Feb 27 to March 1.

The festival featuring the stories of South Asians living in America, India, Nepal, Australia and Singapore, will bring together directors, actors, producers, community organizations, corporate brands and South Asian cinephiles.

"Brahmin Bulls" will be the Opening Night Film at the Angelika Film Centre in Plano at the festival produced by JINGO Media, a Dallas and New York City-based PR and events management boutique firm.

Films to be showcased at the festival are:

Shorts & Documentaries: Katiyabaaz, Asian Pride Project, Fire in the Blood, Tomorrow We Disappear

Women's Programming: Blouse, Happy Raksha Bandhan, Sold (centerpiece feature)

Children's Programming: Ravi and Jane, The World of Goopi & Bagha

Youth Programming: Therapy, Just Friends, Acceptance

Closing Night Film: Rough Book

"We are so proud and humbled that 30 different community organizations and brands are coming together to support our first-time festival," said Festival Director and Principal/CEO of JINGO Media, Jitin Hingorani.

"We are certain that North Texas audiences will embrace this festival by giving all our international guests a warm Texas welcome and, hopefully, a few standing ovations."

Actor Zakir Hussain, who is known for his performance in "Johnny Gaddar", "Sarkar" among others, will now be seen as a psycho lover in the movie "Game Paisa Ladki".

The film is directed by Sachin Agarwal

"Zakir will be seen in a never before intense, dark and grey character in this movie, something which he hasn't attempted before. He is essaying the role of psycho lover who goes a bit out of control. He will surely leave the audience asking for more," Agarwal told IANS.

The director also thinks that his performance in "Game Paisa Ladki" is among his finest works.

"A surprise package in the film will be a song where the hero and the villain will together romance the heroine. And of course, Zakir will be one of them," he said.

"Game Paisa Ladki" also features Sezal Sharma, Ranjeet, Sitaram Panchal among others.

The film is produced by Atul Patel and Sajan Agarwal under the banner Modern Movie Pvt. Ltd. The film is slated to hit the screens in April 2015.

Stunt director Aejaz Gulab, who is making his debut as a director with "Ab Tak Chappan 2", says there is a lot of pressure on him while making the film as its predecessor was a huge success.

"Yes, there is a lot of pressure on me as a director as 'Ab Tak Chappan' was a huge success," Gulab told IANS.

"It was a major hit and had a good content so it was important for me to justify that. I have tried to make it better but let's see how audience like it," he added.

"Ab Tak Chhappan 2", that features Nana patekar and Gul Panag in lead roles, is a sequel to Shimit Amin directed 2004 release "Ab Tak Chhappan" that featured Nana and Mohan Agashe.

Gulab who was earlier a stunt director says he has not incorporated stunt scenes unnecessarily in this film.

"I didn't want the stunt man inside me to overshadow the director in me. So, I have kept stunt scenes in this film according to the flow of the film. The action scenes are only as much the script demanded," he said.

The director says he also spoke to Amin about the sequel and he has also liked the first trailer of the film.

"Yes, I did speak to Shimit (Amin) about the sequel and his concern was that a sequel should always be a continuation of the prequel. We are taking the story ahead of 10 years from where it was left. So it's a sequel in a true sense. I showed my first trailer to him and he liked it," he said.

Celebrities like Sridevi, Anupam Kher and Anil Kapoor took to micro-blogging site Twitter on Thursday to condole the demise of renowned Indian film producer D. Ramanaidu, noting that his “legacy will live on”.

Ramanaidu, who held the record of producing films in the maximum number of Indian languages, lost his battle to cancer Wednesday. He was 79.

In Hindi, he produced films such as “Prem Nagar”, “Dildaar”, “Maqsad”, “Insaaf”, “Tohfa”, “Anari” and “Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain”.

Here's B-town had to say on twitter:

Anupam Kher: Rama Naidu ji will always remain one of my favourite producers & person. Warm, compassionate, helpful & always smiling. Will miss you Sir.

Sridevi: Deeply saddened by the sudden demise of D Rama Naidu Garu. His legacy will live on for generations to come.

Anil Kapoor: Rama Naidu ji will always be my most favourite and beloved producer ever..will miss him dearly

Yami Gautam: Shocking to hear about D.Ramanaidu Sir' demise.A legendary name in the history of cinema. May his soul rest in peace. Strength to the family

Raveena Tandon: @TandonRaveena RIP Dr Ramanaidu, you'll be missed, condolences to #sureshbabu #venky @RanaDaggubati

Like many talented actors in Mumbai, he could never be recalled for his screen appearances by his name but now after death, he’s finally being identified as Ashraful Haque. Some of the directors who worked with him recall their experience working with the departed soul.

Ashraful, who died Tuesday night, has been best remembered for his small but striking appearances in Mrig Lamba's "Fukrey", Anurag Kashyap's "Gangs Of Wasseypur", Ananth Mahadevan's "Red Alert: The War Within", Abhinay Deo's "Delhi Belly" and Tigmanshu Dhulia's "Paan Singh Tomar".

Ananath Mahadevan: Ashraful played a key role of a Naxal in my film 'Red Alert...'. One look at him, and I knew he would blend perfectly with the rugged realistic feel of the true-life story. He was quite a trouper. He roughed it out in the tough jungle terrain. Ashraf was an actor first and till the last. He was unaffected by the posturings of Bollywood. A complete natural. It’s really sad to see a promising career cut short so rudely.”

Mrig Lamba: I had got him through the casting agent. Once I saw him I knew Ashraful was perfect to play the part of Smackiya. I tested numerous actors for the role but Ashraful just walked away with the role. I feel sad. It’s a loss for our cinema. Actors like him are absolutely rare but unfortunately like many talented actors in Mumbai he never got his dues in Bollywood.

Abhinay Deo: He was very professional and had a very realistic and natural approach to acting. He quickly understood what I required and adapted himself to the role and the kind of performance which he gave was perfect. I had no idea he was so unwell. It is very sad to lose someone from the film fraternity and that too someone I had so enjoyed working with. After 'Delhi Belly' I called him for a few ads. He was a thinking actor. He shall be missed.

Tigmanshu Dhulia: I am very very saddened to hear of Ashraful’s demise. He was from Assam. While shooting we constantly discussed Assam politics. He was a very good actor. I will always remember him as an actor who wanted it excel. Goodbye my friend, will miss you.

The romantic moments between actors Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, portrayal of a strict father, revelry around Indian wedding and a fun train journey in "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge" (DDLJ) will be missed by moviegoers as the iconic movie made its final curtain call Thursday at famous Maratha Mandir here - after two decades.

Manoj Desai, owner of G7 Multiples and Gaiety Galaxy and the managing director of Maratha Mandir told IANS: "Yes, it's true that we have pulled down the show. Today (Thursday) morning show was the last show of DDLJ at Maratha Mandir."

"The morning show which was the last show of DDLJ had an audience of 210," he added.

The film, which won 10 Filmfare Awards, including best film, best actor, best actress and best director at the 1996 edition of the ceremony, had been running uninterrupted at this single-theatre cinema hall at its usual playing time slot of 11:30 am.

The film, which was first screened at Maratha Mandir in October 1995, was undergoing its 20th year of uninterrupted run at the iconic cinema hall. It also holds the record of the longest running film in the history of Indian cinema.

When asked about the reason behind closing of the shows of the film, he said: "Earlier we had lots of audience to watch this film that included people from abroad. Now there is hardly any audience coming in.

"We have 1105 seats in one screen and out of which hardly 100 to 200 seats used to get occupied so it doesn't make sense to run it any longer."

The normal tickets cost of this film was Rs. 20, Rs. 17 and Rs. 15 at the hall, drastically lower than what the multiplexes charge.

However he says now the other fresh films will get extra screens.

"Earlier because of DDLJ the other films does not used to get all the screens now it will be a benefit for fresh films which now can occupy the shows which was earlier occupied by DDLJ," said Desai.

Produced by the late Yash Chopra, the film marked Aditya Chopra's debut as a director.

The film was termed as a refreshing change for cinema lovers with all ingredients of a Bollywood masala potboiler -- love, romance, comedy, action, melodrama, thrills, songs and dance -- put together cohesively to tell a story of the victory of true love.

DDLJ has a simple story -- a fun loving London-bred Punjabi boy Raj (Shah Rukh) meets an NRI simpleton Simran (Kajol) during an European holiday. Love blossoms between them, but winning over the girl's conservative family is not a cakewalk for the hero, who then makes every effort to take his 'dulhania' (bride) with him.

The film also featured Amrish Puri, Farida Jalal, Anupam Kher and Mandira Bedi.

Shah Rukh Khan has a packed schedule, but the Bollywood superstar has no qualms over this and believes in the “no pain no gain” theory.

“Hectic day on Fan & I hav to get back to Sabse Shaana Kaun 2. Eventful & packed days & nite but no pain no gain....so i go on relentlessly,” he tweeted.

After entertaining with “Happy New Year”, SRK has turned all his focus on Maneesh Sharma's directorial “Fan” and forthcoming TV show “India Poochega... Sabse Shana Kaun?”.

The superstar, often called as “King of romance”, will be seen interacting with common people on the reality TV show. In the film, Shah Rukh will be seen playing a fan.

Actor Saqib Saleem went gaga over dark, intense revenge drama “Badlapur”, which also stars his sister and actress Huma Qureshi. Her portrayal as a layered character has filled him up with pride.

Directed by Sriram Raghavan, "Badlapur", releasing Friday, also features Varun Dhawan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Yami Gautam.

“Varun n nawaz give stellar performances. @humasqureshi you make me proud.Jhimli was nuanced n layered..go watch it this friday.Thnk me later,” he tweeted.

Saqib, who was last seen in Amol Gupte's "Hawaa Hawaai", also noted that the film delivers what it promised through the trailer and sneak-peek.

“Badlapur has been consumed n its delicious to the say d least!!Sriram Raghavan delivers everything the trailer promises n evn more,” the actor shared.

Meanwhile, the star siblings may share screen space in the Hindi remake of Hollywood movie "Oculus".

Set aside the badla that beckons at the boxoffice this week. "Qissa" is a killer.

All our lives we try to be what we are not. Some of us lie about our sexual orientation to ourselves or to others. In one way or another every life is layered in lies.

"Qissa" is a film that strips through the layers of subterfuge that living on the edge entails. The partition of India ripped the country into two. In the film Irrfan, playing the Sardar Umber Singh with majestic believability, walks across the border with his family of a beautiful wife (Tisca Chopra) and three daughters.

The fourth progeny is where the plot thickens. Obsessed with the idea of a male heir, Umber invents a virtual life for his fourth born. She is no longer a daughter. She is Umber's son Kanwar Singh who won't play with dolls. But the dolls will continue to play with her, no matter how hard her delusional father tries to fortify the growing femininity of his daughter with aggressive clannish lies.

Anup Singh unfolds the bewildering and bizarre tale with an inevitability that simply dissolves all disbelief. In a society, culture and country that still favours the male child as the true inheritor of the family lineage, the message that "Qissa" conveys is both timely and timeless.

The drama created in the screenplay(co-written by the director Anup Singh and Madhuja Mukherjee) is so primeval,it threatens to collapse under the weight of its own drama. The director balances out the incongruities inherent in the theme with a great deal of compelling drama and primeval passion.

You can't help being swept away by the deceit drama and passion of "Qissa". Cinematographer Sebastin Edschmid shoots Punjab as a hotbed of political cultural and emotional turmoil.

Not surprisingly the last quarter of the narrative slips into a surreal mode, as Umber, now dead, returns to confront the son he never had. Finally the film is about the ghost of tormented guilt-ridden man trying to come to terms with the wrong done to a son' he never had and A daughter-in-law (Rasika Duggal) he should've never conned.

Irrfan's shared screen-time with his gender-challenged daughter are structured as a subverted tribute to the filial bond that ties all mankind.

Like destiny , "Qissa" moves in unexpected ways. The performances specially Irrfan's, lift the high drama to another level of articulation where the characters appear to be conversing with their destiny without Edschmid's camera peering into their souls. More than 70 percent of the film is shot in the night, as though the dark recesses in the characters' souls were seeking a way to express themselves outwardly.

Emphatically evocative are the sequences where Tillotma Shome as Kanwar is locked away in her father's crumbling ancestral home in Pakistan with his' bride Neeli. As they try to figure out a way from his gender imbroglio, a glowering state of doom and indignation gathers around the film.

You know as well as the characters do that there is escape from the patriarchal arrogance that Irrfan's character has unleashed on his family. In some endearing way, the theme of patriarchal tyranny in "Qissa" reminded me of Shoaib Mansoor's Pakistani film "Bol".

And though Tillotama Sharma's gender challenged character never acquires the resilient tragic contours of Hillary Swank in "Boys Don't Cry", she brings a very high dose of credibility and poignancy to her character, specially in her high dramatic sequence where her character stands naked in front of her father's ghost asking him her true identity.

Rasika Duggal as Shome's reluctant bride is deeply moving. And Tisca Chopra as Irrfan's devoted wife who can't give her husband the one thing that makes his life worthwhile, reminds us again of her staggering versatility.

But make no mistake. "Qissa" gets the largest measure of its strength and glory from Irrfan.

Like the ghost that follows the film's gender-challenged protagonist "Qissa" will haunt you forever. It takes the patriarchal obsession with the male heir to a level of lucid expression where geopolitical dislocation and gender ambivalence are locked in a visceral embrace.

Ace director Priyadarshan is all set to make his Bollywood return after a gap of two years.

The 58-year-old veteran opened his mind and spoke about what he intends to do from now on in a chat with IANS.

"I have lined up two projects in Bollywood ... one is with Akshay Kumar and the second one is for Arjun Kapoor," he said.

"Again this year, I have one film in Malayalam and it will be with Mohanlal," added the director, who was in the state capital to announce the launch of Janam TV, the latest Malayalam TV channel that will go on air April 19, in which he is the chairman.

The last film that he did in Bollywood was "Rangrezz" released in 2013.

Since then, he was often been in the state capital as he was also the chairman of the state-run Kerala Chalachitra Academy, a post that he laid down after his tenure ended last year.

Sharing the reason for staying away from Bollywood for so long, he said: "Yes, then came things in my personal life as my wife Lissy has filed a divorce case. All in all, I was disturbed. Moreover, my stars also were not that favourable."

"Now, I think, there has been a change in that and hence I decided to get back to full-time work," said the ace director.

In a career that began in 1978, he has by now done 88 films in various South Indian languages and also in Bollywood.

"I have now finalised a script for my Mohanlal film which will go on the floors shortly. Then I realised that this can be used for my next Bollywood project with Kumar. So if everything is fine, both these projects would be done side by side," said Priyadarshan.

He said the second project that he has in mind is in its infancy and would be a good one with Kapoor.

"So 2015 is going to be a hectic one for me and I am ready to get back to what I know best and Janam TV will also take a bit of my time," said the veteran director.

The upward spiral of swine flu cases in the country has left actress Kajol "disheartened". She says inculcating the basic habit of hand washing can prevent the spread of the disease.

"Disheartened to see many cases of #swineflu. Protection is always better than cure.#Handwashing w/soap regularly can help prevent infections," the actress tweeted.

The actress advocates Lifebuoy's "Help A Child Reach Five" movement and spreads awareness about hand washing habits around the world to save millions of lives.

The mother of two also attended the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in September last year as the hand washing brand ambassador.

Meanwhile, Kajol's film "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge", which gave new meaning to words like love and romance on the silver screen and touched many lives, ended its 20-year-run at the Maratha Mandir Thursday with the final show of the film.

The film, which was first screened at Maratha Mandir in October 1995, was in its 20th year of uninterrupted run at the iconic cinema hall. It also holds the record for the longest running film in the history of Indian cinema.

Actress Gul Panag, who will be seen in "Ab Tak Chappan 2", says she agreed to do the film because of her role and acclaimed actor Nana Patekar.

"Ab Tak Chappan 2" is a sequel to the Shimit Amin directed 2004 release "Ab Tak Chhappan" that featured Nana and Mohan Agashe. In the sequel, Gul Panag will be seen as a crime reporter who works with Nana's character in the film to investigate a case.

"When I came to know that I have been signed for "Ab Tak Chappan" sequel, my first question was "what will be my character in the film ?" Because the prequel was about encounter and squad which is a very male dominated system. To this they said that I will play an investigative journalist," the 36-year-old said here in an interview.

"Besides, I was told that Nana Patekar is there in the film. So I was thrilled at these two opportunities - working with Nana Patekar and playing a crime reporter," she added.

The former beauty queen feels fortunate to work with Nana Patekar and said: "it's been wonderful working with Nana and I feel an actor who gets a chance to work with Nana is very fortunate".

Directed by Aejaz Gulab, "Ab Tak Chappan 2" is slated to release Feb 27.

Actress Divya Dutta, though excited about her first dark and intense revenge drama "Badlapur", says she is not a revengeful person in real life.

"It (revenge) depends on who the person is. But my revenge will be harmless unlike my film (Badlapur)," Divya said at the film's screening here when asked whether she ever gets a chance to take revenge.

The 37-year-old is impressed with her "Badlapur" co-star Varun Dhawan and feels proud of him in his taking the risk of doing a dark and intense film so early in his career.

"It is an amazing step. Somebody who has just arrived with four films and has a different image and is a star to take this kind of a different role altogether. I love such people who take on variety and try to experiment," said the actress, who has been in the film industry for more than two decades.

"I am very proud of him and he has done a fantastic job," she added.

Directed by Sriram Raghavan, "Badlapur" also features Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Huma Qureshi and Yami Gautam.

It will hit the theatres Friday.

President Pranab Mukherjee Thursday condoled the death of film producer Daggubati Ramanaidu, saying the film industry has lost a creative personality who left an indelible mark on Indian cinema.

"I am saddened to learn about the passing away of Daggubati Ramanaidu," Mukherjee said in a condolence message to Daggubati's wife Rajeshwari.

"Ramanaidu was a parliamentarian and acclaimed film producer. His contribution to the Indian film industry, especially Telugu cinema, was recognised by the nation through the Dada Saheb Phalke Award in 2009 and the Padma Bhushan in 2012," he added.

All attention is on how actor Varun Dhawan has tried to come out of his comfort zone with dark, intense revenge drama “Badlapur”. But for him, the real heroes of the movie are its director Sriram Raghavan and producer Dinesh Vijan.

Varun, who has shed his guy next door image for the role of a vengeful husband, took to micro-blogging site Twitter to praise the team behind making the film into a reality.

“The entire team has worked very hard but sriram Raghvan and Dino are the real heroes who made this film...Jai sriram dino#badlapur,” he tweeted.

The actor added that the surprise element and thrill made him pick the project, which hit the theatres Friday.

“Today is the day. All I can say is I did #badlapur because I felt you guys would be shocked and entertained to watch a film like that,” he added.

"Badlapur" also features Yami Gautam, Huma Qureshi, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte in key roles.

Veteran actress-social activist Shabana Azmi heaped praise on Punjabi feature film "Qissa", which narrates the life of a Sikh family post-partition. She said the film depicted the turmoil after the partition in a true yet restrained form.

“Anup Singhs direction is masterful n restrained. He shows how suggested violence is far more chilling than graphic depictions of it #Qissa,” Shabana tweeted Friday.

Shabana also praised the performances of the cast of the film that included critically acclaimed actors like Irrfan Khan and Tisca Chopra.

“Irrfan Khan is a giant of an actor. Tisca Chopra Tillotama Shome, Rasika Duggal give outstanding performances.#Qissa,” she added.

In the film, Irrfan plays Sardar Umber Singh who walks across the border with his family including his wife (played by Tisca) and three daughters. The film released Friday.

Fashion designer Nitin Bal Chauhan will showcase his interpretation of Scotch whisky brand Cutty Sark's philosophy through a limited edition collection at the launch of the brand in India accompanied by Indian band BLOT, which will play electronic and house music for the attendees here.

With "Raise your brand" as their tag line, the brand is set for its launch here at the Lalit Hotel Feb 27. Featuring Chauhan and BLOT, the launch event is going to be "a great evening full of experimental art and music" for the attendees.

BLOT, an acronym for 'Basic Love Of Things', is a two-piece live audio-visual act from the national capital. They are known for creating an imaginative, experimental visual and sound experience for their audience. BLOT -- made of Gaurav Malaker and Avinash Kumar -- will personify attributes of the brand through their audio-visual performance.

Speaking about the launch event, Kumar told IANS: "The brand has had an interesting history in terms of its visuals and its art. It's a good focus on creative and experimental work and it's a good fit for us. This is exactly what we like to do, some cool and experimental interesting parties, and make sure people have a great time."

The designer, known to create quirky and edgy clothes, is one of the celebrated names in the Indian fashion industry. His work spans fashion, fine art and films and has received awards and acclaim from the fashion capitals of the world.

Chauhan's designs have taken ramps at London Fashion Week, Tokyo Fashion Week, Tranoi Fair Paris and the India Fashion Week by storm.

"I jumped on to the opportunity because here was a brand which was associating with me because of my madness and how I reinvent design... I've been working hard, creating dresses with 300 watches and making dresses using bottle caps from Cutty Sark for the launch event," Chauhan told IANS.

The brand is available in over 50 markets around the world. It is particularly successful in the US and Southern Europe especially Spain, Portugal and Greece.