Actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan in all likelihood may have three releases this year. He is currently busy wrapping up Tamil comedy "Uttama Villain" and is soon to start working on Tamil remake of Malayalam blockbuster "Drishyam". The sequel to "Vishwaroopam" is also gearing up for release soon.

While "Vishwaroopam 2" is ready for release, Ramesh Arvind-directed "Uttama Villain" is nearing completion.

"We had completed "Vishwaroopam 2" long back except for some patch work. It's in post-production now and should release anytime soon," Kamal had told IANS earlier.

"Uttama Villain" is slated to release in September.

"The film is expected to be completed in few weeks. The post-production work is already underway and if everything goes as planned, the movie should be released during September," a source from the film's unit told IANS.

Meanwhile, Kamal will start shooting for "Drishyam" yet-untitled remake from July.

"We plan to start shooting by July 15. We're in the process of finalizing the cast and once we're done, we will shoot at a brisk and complete the film as quickly as possible," the film's director Jeetu Joseph told IANS.

Actress Huma Qureshi has been romantically linked to celebrities like Anurag Kashyap and Shahid Kapoor in the past and continues to say she’s yet to be committed to someone. But if one goes by a palm reader, she will get married in 2018.

The “Dedh Ishqiya” star was recently in Italy, where she met a palm reader who predicted her marriage.

“On Love n Link ups -Found this palm reader near Piazza Navona who told me I'm getting married 2018.. I told him errr No Thanks .. That's my response to all the alleged engagements I'm supposed to be having #NoBoyInLifeYet,” the 27-year-old tweeted Saturday.

On the work front, she will be soon seen in Sriram Raghavan’s directorial titled “Badlapur”, which also features Varun Dhawan.

Actor Boman Irani recently teamed up with his son Kayoze Irani for a TV commercial and the father says that he will work with the latter again if he is the right person for the job.

Directed by Kayoze Irani, who made his acting debut with "Student Of The Year", Boman featured in a TV commercial of 'P' Mark mustard oil manufactured by Puri Oil Mills Limited.

Asked if the father-son duo will work together in the future, he told IANS in a telephonic interview from Mumbai: “If I am the right person for the job, my son should hire me for that, and if I do not fit the bill, then he should look for other options or whatever he wants to do in the best interest of his movie.”

He also says that if everyone starts working according to his or her comfort zone then it won't be “honourable to our profession”.

“I think if everybody starts to work because there is nice comfort zone then I don't think that we are being honourable to our profession. But if there is something and my son wants me to work in it and if I fit the bill then I would be happy to work,” said the 54-year-old.

Boman became popular when he acted as J.C. Asthana in Rajkumar Hirani's 2003 hit comedy "Munnabhai M.B.B.S".

Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, who is known for embracing new technology in his projects, has introduced a flow camera aka flowcam in his upcoming Telugu thriller "Ice Cream". He says besides augmenting audience's experience, a flowcam also elevates the emotions of a scene.

"You want to change the way a scene has been captured all these years, flowcam is what you need. The purpose of any film equipment is to enhance the experience of audiences and flowcam achieves that and also elevates the emotions of a scene," Ram Gopal Varma told IANS.

"The emotion of a scene heavily depends on the type of camera you use to shoot it. If you were to use a flowcam to shoot a chase scene, you can film it without any jerk or interruption. It elevates the emotions of a scene to a large extent," he said.

"Ice Cream", which is slated for release July 4, features Navdeep and Tejaswi Madivada in lead roles.

Ramu has toyed with new camera for several of his films. He was first to use steady camera in his directorial debut "Siva" and he's happy to introduce flowcam to Telugu filmdom.

"I introduced steady camera in aSiva' many years ago. Now, I'm introducing flowcam to Telugu cinema. I haven't made this film to promote flowcam, I just used the camera to make the film," he added.

Critically acclaimed Sri Lankan film "With You, Without You" by filmmaker Prasanna Vithanage was pulled out from screens here Saturday following protests and threats from Tamil fringe groups.

The film released in select cities in the country via PVR Director's Rare Friday.

"We will have to discontinue #WithYouWithoutYou with immediate effect in Chennai due to protests/threats from local Tamil associations. Sorry (sic)," posted Shiladitya Bora, who manages PVR Director's Rare, on his Twitter page Saturday.

"With You, Without You", about two characters who accidentally collide in the post-war Sri Lanka, features Shyam Fernando and National Award winning Indian actress Anjali Patil in the lead roles.

The story of "With You, Without You" is based on the short story "The Meek One" by Russian author Fyodor Dostoyevsky.

Newcomer Abhinay Vaddi, grandson of legendary actors Savitri and Gemini Ganesan, agreed to play mathematics genius Srinivasa Ramanujan in the upcoming Tamil-English biopic "Ramanujan" because he felt it's "the best debut" he could get as an actor.

"When I decided to act, I wanted to only work in art-based films. After my first film in Telugu, I waited for two years to get an art-based project but I couldn't even find one script. When I finally got 'Ramanujan', I felt it's the best debut I could get as an actor," Abhinay told IANS in an interview here.

"I'm not against commercial cinema because you can't have much of a choice in our industry. If you want to be versatile as an actor, you need to do different films. 'Ramanujan' came to me when I was least expecting it and I realised I need to be open to all kinds of cinema," he added.

Many would not call "Ramanujan" a dream debut for a newcomer from a star family, but Abhinay thinks otherwise.

"Everybody wants a star-studded launch with a successful director and popular cast. I feel all that's there in this film as well. It's being directed by a National Award-winning filmmaker, features a host of very popular and experienced actors and above all I get to play Ramanujan, for which top Tamil actors vied," he said.

Directed by Gnana Rajasekaran, "Ramanujan" is the story of the mathematician from his early days in Kumbakonam to Cambridge University, London.

Abhinay didn't sign the movie because he got an opportunity to play Ramanujan, but because he also got to work with a celebrated filmmaker, who has carved a niche with his biopics such as "Bharathi" and "Periyar".

"I agreed because I got an opportunity to work with an acclaimed director as well. 'Bharatia' interested me a lot because it had its commercial elements such as songs and romance even though it was a biopic. I liked the way he handled the story," he said.

A biopic usually involves a lot of research, but Abhinay was asked to blindly follow his director's instructions.

"After I was narrated the story, I researched and came across so many things about Ramanujan that was not part of the story I heard. I went back and told my director about it but he asked me to stop reading from other sources as he feared it would confuse me," Abhinay said.

Abhinay, who comes from a Telugu speaking family, had problems with the "diction of the Tamil language".

"As a newcomer, it would be easier for me to concentrate on one aspect of acting, which involves dialogue delivery, expression, body language but this movie had to have 100 percent of everything. Since I come from a Telugu family, I struggled to get my Tamil diction right," he said.

"I got comfortable with the acting part because my director after first two days of shooting asked me to continue what I was doing. He didn't want Ramanujan's character to be overly expressive and dramatic. He wanted me to be docile and act subtly," he added.

A national level table tennis champion, Abhinay was never nurtured or forced into acting.

"From the age of five, my parents put me on to sports. They wanted me to be a professional sportsman and so they enrolled me into badminton and table tennis. I was never pushed into acting because I come from a lineage of actors," he said.

"Later on, when I was 27, it dawned upon me that I had tried everything in life. I worked in a 9 (a.m) to 5 (p.m.) job, worked with my brother in advertising and played sports. I realised since I come from a family of actors, I may as well try it," Abhinay added.

Ukranian ballroom dance expert Maksim Chmerkovskiy is on his maiden visit to India as the first international judge of reality TV show "Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa". And there are reports about him being unhappy as a judge on the dance show. But he says he is having a "blast".

Excerpts:

Q: Maksim, it's being reported that you are upset with the set-up at 'Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’ because you cannot speak or follow the Hindi language?

A: That's not true. I am having a blast. It's all good, don't worry. It's going really great. And that report is bull****. I am a very adaptable person. I am open to all kinds of experience. I came to India and to ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’ to embrace a new language and culture. I want to understand Bollywood dancing. This is a brilliant once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to get acquainted with a new culture. And I am enjoying every moment of it.

Q: But the language is a barrier. Your statements are ticker-translated on screen while you can't understand any of what the contestants and your fellow-judges have to say?

A: Of course. But I was prepared to face all of this. I had hoped that the production team would understand there would be difficulties. And everyone is helping out. The judges are constantly helping me out. I sit between Madhuri Dixit and Karan Johar. They're constantly telling me what's going on. The hosts are also helping me out all the time. It helps that the show is taped and doesn't go on air live. So, they stop the shooting and explain what's going on. The experience that I am getting here is not something you get in a classroom.

Q: You are from a non-Western culture, to begin with. So grappling with alien cultures is not new to you?

A: Exactly. I was quite young when we immigrated from the Ukraine to America. So, I am not new to the experience of learning about a new culture. Also, I live in New York which is a cultural melting pot. I've friends from all over the world...India, China, Africa, Germany, the Ukraine. I've travelled all over the world and accumulated a vast amount of experiences from everywhere. I lived in Italy for a year. I learnt Italian. I am used to learning about cultures from the scratch.

Q: How different is ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’ from ‘Dancing With The Stars’?

A: Very different. To begin with, our show ‘Dancing With The Stars’ was live and shot in two hours. ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’ is shot over the entire day and not live. When I came here first, I didn’t know how to react. It was all so new to me. But now I am having a blast. Five hours of shooting swishes by as though it is 30 minutes. I've spent nine years being a contemporary dancer in the United States. Bollywood dancing is a completely different experience.

But what I’ve noticed is that the contestants have a lot more respect for the judges. I've just begun to realise that Madhuri is a legendary figure. And Karan Johar has a track-record of successful films. I had come here for a new experience. I thought I'd be a good judge on the show. But now I've to be even better than just a good judge in order to live up to the standards on the show.

Q: Your journey from the Ukraine to the United States reads like the script of a film. Have you ever thought of a film on your life?

A: Contrary to how I come across on television, I come from a very humble background. I've been through a lot. I've been approached to write a book. It makes commercial sense. But I still feel I am too young and not accomplished enough to tell my story. My brother and I are still learning, trying to understand various cultures, trying to understand what's going on in the world. I will write my story one day. And I'll do it only if I feel that my story and those experiences that I persevered through though they were not all pleasant, will help of some people to make something of their lives.It has to be done not just for commercial purposes.I do have a fascinating life. But more than my own life I'd love to write about my parents. They gave me and my brother a life we could never even dream of.

Q: You've been linked with some of the most beautiful women in America. How do you reconcile the two very different worlds where you come from and where success has taken you?

A: It's the kind of upbringing my brother and I got. Our dad taught me there are are no irreplaceable people in this world. So, you've to earn, cherish and value the place that you are in. The place you get in life you have to make your own and try to make it better. We migrated 20 years ago. But we went through 10 to 12 years of acute struggle. We survived because our family was headstrong about its values. We never allowed ourselves to be swayed by circumstances. I wish I've inherited some of my parents' values. That's all that matters.

Q: What do you return to after your stint in ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’?

A: I've got a bunch of projects lined up. There are many offers on the table. I am welcoming all the experiences with open arms.I count myself blessed. There's political unrest everywhere. I never thought I'd hear people cry on CNN for help in my country and language (Ukrainian). That makes me feel very humble about the opportunities that I've received in life. I feel very blessed.

Q: Hopefully one day you'll be able to help others like you from your homeland?

A: Yes, that's my goal.

The makers of upcoming Telugu thriller "Drishyam", remake of Malayalam blockbuster of the same name, have launched a jigsaw puzzle on the social networking site Facebook. The game has already generated a lot of buzz as it allows users to win prizes every day.

The puzzle features several interesting scenes related to the film, which stars Daggubati Venkatesh and Meena in the lead roles.

To participate and win exciting prizes, one can log on to http:// bit.ly/DrishyamPuzzle. The idea behind the jigsaw puzzle is to escalate the drama and the suspense of the film, which is directed by Sripriya Rajkumar.

"Drishyam", produced by Suresh Productions, is gearing up for July release.

Filmmaker Vijay, who is amazed by the potential of newcomer Twaraa, says she reminds him of actress Sridevi from her early days. She has played an important role in his forthcoming Tamil directorial "Saivam".

"Twaraa is a bundle of talent and a bag of immense potentiality. She reminds me the earlier days of Sridevi. Her knowledge on films and framing position amazes me. She doesn't require any prompting; for once I felt that talent cannot be bounded by linguistic limitations," Vijay said in a statement.

Twaraa, who has starred in several advertisements over the years, makes her debut in a lead role opposite debutant Luthfudeen Baashaa in "Saivam".

"I strongly feel she holds lot of promise and a special status awaits her here in tinsel town," he added.

"Saivam", which is slated for June 27 release, also features Nassar, Sara Arjun, Kausalya and Ravi in important roles.

Armaan Jain will soon make his acting debut with newcomer Deeksha Seth with first-time director Arif Ali's "Lekar Hum Deewana Dil". As the number of fresh faces in Bollywood continue to rise, he wishes them all luck.

"There are a lot of youngsters... around 10 to 15 of my age group and doing same genre of films. I believe in healthy competition. I hope we all work hard and have healthy competition. Hopefully, people accept my first film first and we all grow together," the 23-year-old told IANS in a telephonic interview from Mumbai.

He has in fact, worked with two former assistant directors Sidharth Malhotra and Varun Dhawan, who are now successful actors, and says that he bonded with them too while assisting filmmaker Karan Johar on "My Name Is Khan".

"I was an intern. I was the younger one. Sidharth and Varun had done the whole film. I had joined towards the end of the schedule which was in Mumbai. I got to spend a little bit of time with them during shooting schedule. It was great bonding with them," said Armaan.

While he feels he is too young to explore the filmmaking part of the industry, he is not against it.

"When I started assisting, I wasn't aware of how films are made, what happens. Once I got involved with technicals, I started making short films. I used to try and get my hands into editing. I directed short film to understand the craft practically also. My main concentration is to get this film right and act for now. Definitely at some point of time, I would love to direct a film. I love editing as well," he said.

The cousin of actor Ranbir Kapoor has also shown interest in RK Films, the banner established by his late grandfather and actor-filmmaker Raj Kapoor.

"I haven’t thought of so much. My first film has not even released. But at some point, if my uncles or Ranbir do (revive the banner) and if they want to involve me in some way, I would be honoured to do so. If something comes up, then definitely,” said Armaan.

"Lekar Hum Deewana Dil" will release July 4.

Malayalam hit "London Bridge", will soon be released in Telugu. The Telugu version, which is currently in the dubbing phase, is slated for release in July and the makers are confident of its success.

"We are currently finishing the dubbing work of the film. We are planning for July 11 release. Since the film was predominantly shot in London, I strongly feel it will be a visual wonder for Telugu audiences. I'm confident it will be accepted well," S. Rajababu, who acquired the Telugu dubbing rights of the film, told IANS.

Over 90 percent of "London Bridge", featuring Prithvi Raj, Andrea Jeremiah and directed by Anil C. Menon, was shot in London.

Salman Khan starrer "Kick" is set for Eid release and Sajid Nadiadwala is racing against time to ready his directorial debut as he still has about a weeks' shooting to complete.

Nadiadwala is shooting the film like a madman.

"I've no time to sit back and enjoy any of the good things that are happening to my film. We are shooting and running to the monitor," said Nadiadwala.

The film's song "Jumme ki raat" featuring Salman and Jacqueline Fernandez has gone viral since its release on YouTube Friday. So far, it has been viewed by 1,367,376 viewers.

Also, the film's trailer touched an 7.8 million hits by Saturday morning.

"My ADs (assistant directors) and my team tells me that the response to the first look and the first song of 'Kick' has been unprecedented. I can breathe a little easily now. I wish I had more time to enjoy what I am doing. But we have set an Eid deadline for our film's release. And we will fulfil that," he said.

If fact, Amitabh Bachchan tweeted about the trailer of "Kick", comparing it with the best action films of Hollywood.

"What more can I want? It's like getting the best award possible even before my film is released. To have someone of Amitji's stature saying something like this is a dream come true. I feel I've already got my biggest reward," said Nadiadwala.

The year has been fruitful for the filmmaker whose three production ventures have hit the jackpot at the box office.

"This year has been extraordinary for my production house. We released three films - 'Highway', '2 States' and 'Heropanti'. By god's grace, they all succeeded. Insha Allah, 'Kick', with which I've turned director for the first time, will be a big success," said the filmmaker.

Expectations from Salman and "Kick" are huge, specially since Salman's last release "Jai Ho" under-performed at the box office.

Also, "Kick" releases ahead of the two other Khan superstars' new projects - Shah Rukh Khan's "Happy New Year" and Aamir Khan's "PK".

But Nadiadwala is unfazed.

"I am looking neither backward nor ahead. I am not thinking of what Salman has done earlier and what is the competition for my film. I am only focusing on getting it right in 'Kick'," he said.

Akshay Kumar starrer "Holiday: A Soldier Is Never Off Duty", which focuses on terrorism and sleeper cells, has earned over Rs.100 crore in three weeks at the domestic box office.

The A.R. Murugadoss directorial hit the screens June 6.

“#Holiday [Week 3] Fri 1.02 cr, Sat 1.87 cr. Grand total: (Rs.) 102.62 cr nett. India biz. HIT,” trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted Sunday.

Akshay's action sequences were promoted as real along with the shoot locations. Sonakshi Sinha also got a chance to display her sporty side in the film even if it was for a short time.

The movie has been presented by Reliance Entertainment and produced by Vipul Shah, with whom Akshay has given hit films like “Namastey London" and "Waqt: The Race Against Time".

“Holiday - A Soldier Is Never Off Duty” has minted Rs.102.62 crore in three weeks at the domestic box office and producer Vipul Shah feels ecstatic as his alliance with Hindi movie star Akshay Kumar has once again struck the gold.

Shah-Akshay's team has delivered four hits - “Aankhen”, “Waqt - Race Against Time”, “Namastey London” and “Singh Is Kinng”. Their only fiasco so far has been “Action Replayy”.

Talking about his partnership with Akshay, Shah said: “It has been a fantastic journey with Akshay. 'Holiday' is our sixth film together and four out of five films were successful. What is very important is that all films got a lot of credibility from the audience.”

Their “Holdiay”, about terrorism, in which director A.R. Murugadoss focussed on sleeper cells and how quietly they merge into their target society before unleashing havoc, came out June 6.

The thrilling drama had new style of action directed by renowned British stuntman Greg Powell, known for his work in Hollywood's super hit franchises such as "Harry Potter" and "James Bond".

The filmmaker said the successes have helped them in winning a “good reputation”.

“My relationship with Akshay has reached that stage where we constantly want to do better work together. It has become stronger by the day,” Shah told IANS.

Film director A.R. Murugadoss, known for making high octane action thrillers, says that Indian films can compete with Hollywood in the content department but do not have the same kind of market.

“Indian films can compete with Hollywood films in terms of content. But considering the scale of Hollywood films, we can't compete with them in terms of market and it's quite difficult to take on war films or high budget action movies,” Murugadoss, famous for delivering Tamil actioners “Dheena” and “Ramana”, told IANS.

“But we can definitely deliver a product in terms of intelligence and content in a sensible action film and compete with a Hollywood film,” he said.

The well-known director made his Bollywood foray with Aamir Khan-starrer “Ghajini”, a remake of his Tamil hit of the same name, which started the Rs.100-crore-club trend in the Hindi film industry.

Now his second movie, “Holiday - A Soldier Is Never Off Duty”, also a remake of his Tamil film "Thuppakki", has hit the jackpot at the box office. It stars Akshay Kumar in the lead role.

Tagged as “the comedy of ghastly errors” and “a two-and-a-half-hour show reel of plotless, witless, joyless offensiveness”, director Sajid Khan’s latest offering “Humshakals” has collected over Rs.25 crore in two days.

The total collection now stands at Rs.25.09 crore in just two days (Friday and Saturday), said a statement.

Writer Milap Zaveri, whose adult comedy “Grand Masti” was panned by critics last year, is also happy with the film’s performance.

“#Humshakals is super steady on Saturday! No drop Despite the unprecedented negativity against it! Brilliant! Audiences chose to go for it!,” he tweeted.

The entertainer starring Saif Ali Khan, Riteish Deshmukh, Ram Kapoor, Tammannaah Bhatia, Esha Gupta and Bipasha Basu is made at a cost of Rs.75 crore.

The Fox Star Studios and Vashu Bhagnani's co-production has already sold its satellite and music rights for Rs.45 crore.

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan launched a book titled “Quantum Siege”, penned by Brijesh Singh, additional commissioner of police North Mumbai, here.

“Released a book written by a Police officer of the rank of Asst Commissioner, Brijesh Singh ... from minding to binding !!” tweeted Amitabh Saturday.

Prior to that, he was busy shooting for his cameo role in “Ghoomketu”, which is directed by Pushpendra Mishra and features Nawazuddin Siddiqui as the protagonist.

"That done it is a quick drive of an hour, a change of dress, a hurried drive across to the Marriott and the book release of ‘Quantum Siege’ written by a police officer, here in Mumbai," he posted on his blog http://srbachchan.tumblr.com.

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan will be seen in a special appearance in Nawazuddin Siddiqui-starrer "Ghoomketu".

Amitabh posted a few photographs from the shoot on his official blog http://srbachchan.tumblr.com Sunday and shared the news about his presence in the comedy directed by Pushpendra Mishra.

“Those images from the Blog are an entire day’s work professionally. They belong to a cameo that I am doing for film titled ‘Ghoomketu’, being produced by Vikramaditya Motwane and his Company, which also includes Anurag Kashyap.

He also praised Motwane for his 2010 film “Udaan”.

“Vikram did that wonderful film ‘Udaan’ and he and other like-minded makers involve themselves in films that are now beginning to find space and honour and visibility and acclaim among the more discerning audiences of the country and the world,” he posted.

He even mentioned the “different avatars in the shoot”.

“I play myself of course in the leathered look, in my make-up room and discussing my dialogues for the coming shot in a film that is being made - a film within a film - which then moves to my make up shot, where further discussion on the origins of the dialogue, that I happen to accidentally find on a wrapping is wondered with my secretary, coincidentally called Rosy... leading on to the actual shot of the film in a court room scene in the film in film, which ends in a conviction of the person in the dock,” he shared.

Actress-producer Preity Zinta, who returned to India from the US Sunday, declined to speak to the media and appealed to them to not seek any comment from her or her staff and friends on the case she has filed against her ex-boyfriend Ness Wadia.

"Exhausted but happy to finally be back home in Mumbai. I'd like to apologize to the media but it will not be possible for me to make any comments or statements as this investigation is still on.

"Pls co operate & PLEASE don't call my staff or friends non stop as they have requested me to make this appeal to you all on their behalf. Thank you," she tweeted and posted on her Facebook page.

Preity did not speak to the media persons who were waiting for her at Mumbai airport.

The actress left for the US soon after filing a complaint against Wadia of using foul language towards her during an IPL match at Wankhede stadium and also accusing him of harassing and abusing her.

Police had called her to return as her statement needs to be recorded on the FIR against Wadia filed June 13 at the Marine Drive police station here.

Indian theatre is faring poorly in comparison with theatre across the world primarily due to the mediocrity of state-sponsored regional theatre, says acclaimed playwright Mahesh Dattani.

"It's faring very badly... because the kind of state subsidised or state sponsored theatre that we have is very mediocre, because of the bureaucracy involved and a lot going on that is very unhealthy for artistic growth," Dattani told IANS in an interview.
An out-of-the-box-thinker, the Mumbai-based Gujarati has also donned the director's hat for movie ventures such as the Shabana Azmi-starrer "Morning Raga" and "Mango Souffle" (2002), tagged as the country's first gay male film. He was in the city to conduct an intensive acting workshop organised by art and culture magazine Kindle in association with the iLEAD educational institution and The Corner Courtyard, a newly-opened boutique hotel.
He is the first Indian playwright in English to receive a Sahitya Akademi award.

And to pump fresh life into regional theatre, there's a need for more money, more collaborations and at the heart of it, artistic integrity, says he.

"Collaborations are good...one can learn from marketing techniques...how they (international theatre) can sustain themselves in stiff competition.

Acknowledging that films are "our bloodline", he conceded that while Bollywood can be meaningful, its shallowness has influenced commercial Indian theatre.

"Bollywood is inspired by shallow Hollywood and commercial Indian theatre is inspired by shallow Bollywood, " he said pointing out the vicious circle.

Moreover, the ace playwright highlighted the flip side of blindly aping western concepts in theatre, that is, adopting a text-based approach while traditionally it is a rich blend of text, dance, music and drama.

International influences, he said, "are not necessary at all".

"In fact, sometimes I feel they are detrimental. I am not against cultural collaborations but what I am talking about is blind following of western concepts and systems - which is what modern Indian theatre does.

Noting some encouraging trends in Indian theatre, such as its becoming more visually rich - in terms of intelligent use of space and spontaneity - and shifting away from verbosity, Dattani said the surge in numbers of international collaborations and experiments hasn't yielded anything original.

Known for exploring sensitive issues, he dubs recent instances of curbing creative freedom in India as an "unhealthy trend" but also a "backhanded compliment" to the might of art forms in bringing about change.

"I think it is a very unhealthy trend and in a way it's a backhanded compliment to theatre because people are saying that theatre is powerful enough to make a difference and that is why you are bringing in all these restrictions," Dattani added.

"With these restrictions the first freedom that goes is the freedom of expression and the rest follows," said the man behind thought-provoking works like "Dance Like a Man", "Thirty Days in September" and "Final Solutions".

In his tryst with theatre and films, the 55-year-old has delved deep into topics of gender bias, communal tensions and homosexuality among others.

A staunch believer in theatre's power to "reflect society", Dattani said the medium should be channeled to showcase the current scenario of increasing violence against women as well as bring out the "much-ignored" lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender (LGBT) community.