Leading Bengali matinee idol Dev and veteran actress Moushumi Chatterjee will receive the Mahanayak Uttam Kumar Samman instituted by the West Bengal government, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced Tuesday.

Dev alias Deepak Adhikari, also a Trinamool Congress Lok Sabha member, starred in Bengali film industry's most expensive movie till date, "Chaander Pahar".

Moushumi Chatterjee, who shot to fame in the 1967 Bengali hit "Balika Badhu", made her presence felt in Bollywood ventures like "Anuraag" and "Roti Kapada Aur Makaan". Her role in Indian-Canadian flick "Bollywood/Hollywood" also earned her rave reviews.

Both have been chosen for their "outstanding contribution to cinema". The award ceremony will be held July 24 at Nazrul Mancha.

"Dev and Moushumi Chatterjee will receive Mahanayak Uttam Kumar Samman 2014," Banerjee posted on her official Facebook page.

Mohan Nadkarni, a renowned Indian musicologist, died in Auckland, New Zealand, Tuesday following a brief illness, his son Dev said. He was 91.

"He (Mohan Nadkarni) suffered from a chest infection a fortnight back from which he did not recover. Past couple of years he was suffering from age-related problems which hampered his movements, otherwise he was mentally very fit," Dev told IANS over phone early Wednesday.

He is survived by his wife Suniti and only son Dev, a writer settled in New Zealand. The funeral was performed there Wednesday morning.

Mostly based in Pune and Mumbai, Nadkarni was the music critic of The Times of India for over five decades and had reviewed thousands of music concerts and singers between 1948-2000.

Though never formally trained in music, his passion for music, a deep sense of understanding of the ragas and dedicated hours of self-study transformed him into an authoritative writer, music columnist, and a respected music critic. He worked with AIR and DD and lectured on Hindustani music extensively around the country and abroad.

Over the years, he authored over 4,000 articles and critiques on Hindustani music, Marathi and Sanskrit drama and theatre and other cultural topics for Indian and foreign publications.

Nadkarni had the privilege of reviewing the earliest concerts and performances by artistes like Pandit Ravi Shankar, Ustad Ali Akbar Khan, Ustad Fazal Qureshi, Ustad Allah Rakha and Ustad Zakir Hussain, and many others -- who later went onto become legends in their respective fields of music.

He worked as a consultant with music companies like HMV to help produce the early LP records of several artistes and became great friends with many of them over the years.

Nadkarni has shared these experiences in over half a dozen important books on Hindustani music, including the best-selling biography of Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, who was later conferred Bharat Ratna.

Several state governments and organizations also recognized Nadkarni with honours, including Karnataka Government's "Kalashree Award" for lifetime contribution to music.

He was a permanent member of Sangeet Research Academy, Kolkata which is known to produce many talented artistes, like Ustad Rashid Khan.

Over the years, Nadkarni held music workshops and lectures on Hindustani music in Europe, US and other countries before shifting to New Zealand in 2006 to live with his son Dev.

At the time, he donated his entire music collection comprising thousands of articles, rare photographers, around 1,200 LPs and other records, thousands of music-cassettes, to the SNDT University's Department of Music, Pune, which set up a music library named after him.

Bollywood star Mithun Chakraborty, who is making his Tamil debut in upcoming thriller "Yagavarayinum Naa Kakka", was the first actor to be signed before all others for the movie, says its director Sathya Prabhas Pinisetty.

The film, based on a true incident, features Sathya's brother Aadhi Pinisetty in the lead and the former says he was part of the project since its scripting phase.

"My brother was part of the project right from the beginning. Besides him, Mithun da was the first actor I had met with my story and had eventually signed him. I approached him with the role because the script demanded someone from Mumbai," Sathya told IANS.

"The character that Mithun da plays is from Mumbai. But the character looks like a Tamilian. I wanted someone Tamil audiences have not seen before and with superstar status because I'm projecting the character as larger than life," he said.

Sathya says Mithun gave him 15 minutes to explain his character, but seemed reluctant with the offer.

"I somehow managed to get the appointment of Mithun da. He asked me to come meet him but told me that I have only 15 minutes to brief him about the character. When I finally met him, he asked me why did I come all the way from Chennai to try and convince him when he's least interested," he said.

"I started narrating the incident first and he slowly got involved and I could see that he was getting curious. By the time I finished my narration, it was half hour but he wasn't convinced and wanted to know more about the story. We discussed for two hours and he finally said he will do the film," he added.

"Yagavarayinum..." also features Nikki Galrani, Lakshmi Priyaa Chandramouli, Harish Uthaman, Pasupathy and Aadukalam Naren in important roles.

Lakmé Fashion Week (LFW) Winter-Festive 2014 will host four Pakistani designers Faiza Samee, Rizwan Beyg, Sania Maskatiya and Zara Shahjahan.

Presented by POPxo.com and Hello! Pakistan, the designers will mark their LFW debut with a grand show Aug 22 at the winter-festive edition of LFW.

“This season we are very excited to host four exceptional designers from our neighbouring country, Pakistan. Both countries have some extraordinary talent as well as fashion and cultural similarities and we are happy to bring them all together on one platform,” Saket Dhankar, Head-Fashion, IMGReliance, said in a statement.

Priyanka Gill, founder and editor in ehief, POPxo.com, says it is an “important collaboration”.

“We hope that it will be the beginning of a constructive, inspiring conversation between the Indian and Pakistani fashion fraternities which will benefit consumers in both nations,” she said.

Zahraa Saifullah, CEO Hello! Pakistan, also agrees. “We firmly believe this endeavour will be valuable in promoting the Pakistani fashion aesthetic and in enhancing future synergies between the fashion industries of India and Pakistan.”

LFW will take place Aug 20-24 at Palladium Hotel here.

Bollywood's "gorgeous" on screen pair Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif-starrer "Bang Bang" teaser was unveiled Wednesday and has blown away Bollywood celebrities. They have tagged it as "smouldering hot" and "smashing".

Directed by Siddharth Anand, "Bang Bang" is produced by Fox Star Studios and is being touted as the biggest action-romance of the year.

The highly anticipated teaser of the movie has been universally loved and is breaking all records previously held by any other Bollywood film.

The sixty second teaser that released this morning at 8 am has already got 1 million views in just 13 hours! The gorgeous duo has received tremendous support and appreciation from the industry and their fans and audiences. It has lived up to its anticipation as it dishes out some of the most breath-taking, death-defying action stunts, performed by both Hrithik and Katrina, that Bollywood has ever seen.

Shot in Prague, Phuket, Greece, US and Indian cities like Shimla, Manali, Delhi and Mumbai, the film with guns, explosions and death-defying action stunts will hit the screens on Gandhi Jayanti, which falls on Oct 2.

"As a film, 'Bang Bang’ has turned out amazing. Big canvas, great emotion and chemistry and outstanding action! The teaser gives a glimpse of the film and we are proud to present the biggest action-romance entertainer of the year," Vijay Singh, CEO, Fox Star Studios, said in a statement.

Anand says that Hrithik and Katrina are two of the “most gorgeous people in the film industry”.

“This is Hrithik's biggest action film that he has done to date and they simply look awesome with each other,” he said.

And friends from the film fraternity agree too.

Here’s what they tweeted:

Priyanka Chopra: Love the teaser of Bang Bang!! Katrina @iHrithik and Siddharth anand!! Killing it!!! (sic).

Neha Dhupia: #bangbangteaser lookin bangin hot ! @iHrithik #BangBang #Katrina

Arjun Kapoor: @iHrithik wish I cld list the words I have used in 60secs...F**K what a teaser #BangBang

Sujoy Ghosh: Just saw the BANG BANG teaser. so proud of siddharth anand .. aap bhi dekho if you haven't already..

Parineeti Chopra: What an amazinggggg teaser!!! Beacause you're Happyy tananananana @iHrithik

Tusshar ?Kapoor: Awesome trailer @iHrithik! All the pain, patience & perseverance behind the perfection seems to have paid off & it shows with a huge banggg!

Dia Mirza: Smouldering hot. These two can set anything afire. This TEASER is BANGING! #bangbangteaser @iHrithik jaw on the floor. No no. Leave it be;)

Karan Malhotra: @iHrithik WHAT A BLOODY TEASER!!!!! BANG BANG IS GOING TO ROCK!!!!!!!!

Karan Johar: No this is what you call a TEASE!!!! http://bit.ly/1ty9YWQ #BangBang The mind is blown!!!!!

Abhishek Bachchan: What a great teaser for #BangBang loved it! Well done bro braz @iHrithik , Katrina, Sid.

Abhishek Kapoor: Smashing trailer of #bangbang. Raised the bar once again @iHrithik http://

Sonam Kapoor: Why are they so good looking!! http://bit.ly/BangBangTeaser @iHrithik This is too hot!

Sanjay Gupta: Shot at a fraction of KNIGHT AND DAY's budget, BANG BANG looks even better than the original. Well done FOX India.

Riteish Deshmukh: Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang Bang OutBANGintastic - Mummy ki eye teaser @iHrithik.

Actress Priyanka Chopra Wednesday unveiled the trailer of her much awaited film "Mary Kom". She plays the Olympic bronze medallist boxer in the biopic and described it her "hardest" work so far.

Produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and helmed by Omung Kumar, "Mary Kom" will have its world premiere at the forthcoming edition of Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF).

"This is my hardest film so far. Mary was the inspiration herself for me for the film," Priyanka told reporters at the event here.

"We worked for 18 hours in cold, rains, and in very tough conditions. It was team effort and I am happy that Mary was overwhelmed and cried after watching the film," added the actress.

The film shaped well, thanks to the support of Mary Kom, five-time World champion. Priyanka spent a lot of time with the champ from Manipur to understand the nuances, stance and style of a boxer.

Just like last year, the Chopra cousins Parineeti and Priyanka are set to clash at the box office this year as well. But the former is unfazed and hopes both the films do well at the box office.

Parineeti's romantic drama "Daawat-E-Ishq" and "Mary Kom", based on the life of Olympic medallist Mary Kom, featuring Priyanka in the title role, are set to hit the theatres Sep 5.

"Last year also we said that it's a Chopra weekend and co-incidentally, this year also our films are releasing on the same day and we both laughed over it," Parineeti told reporters here Tuesday at the Vogue Beauty Awards red carpet.

"But I hope both the films are successful, both the films do well," she added.

In 2013, Parineeti starrer "Shuddh Desi Romance" and Priyanka starrer "Zanjeer" came out on the same day and none could rock the box office.

Meanwhile Parineeti is happy that today's audiences are not biased toward big names.

"Today audiences not only watch big stars' films, but also ours. So the credit for a film's success goes to them. They now have the appetite for newer people, newer faces and they are watching all kinds of films," said the four-film-old actress.

"Scenario has changed today. Stars are also doing well and newer people are also doing well," added the 25-year-old.

Parineeti made her acting debut in 2011 with "Ladies vs Ricky Bahl" and she is now looking forward to the release of "Daawat-E-Ishq", in which the spontaneous and natural actress will be seen romancing Aditya Roy Kapur.

If Priyanka Chopra let go off her diva image to play an autistic girl in "Barfi!", the former beauty queen has once again swapped her glamorous look with a masculine and low-maintained one for "Mary Kom". And as promised, the trailer of the biopic knocks you out.

Based on Olympic bronze medallist and five-time World Champion M.C. Mary Kom, Priyanka is mostly seen sporting braided hair and loose tee-shirts with track pants fighting off stereotypes apart from her opponents in the ring.

The power-packed trailer, unveiled Wednesday, shows Kom’s journey from a fighter to a boxer, opposition faced by her father to take up the sport as a profession, training with men, her fearless nature that made her willing to fight even men, her victory, marriage and so-called end of her boxing career, encouragement from her husband and how she gets back into the ring after becoming a mother.

“This film celebrates the never-say-die spirit of Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom. Portrayed by Priyanka as only she can, the screen will come alive with the fierce passion of this champion boxer,” Ajit Andhare, COO, Viacom18 Motion Pictures, said in a statement.

Directed by Omung Kumar and co-produced by Viacom18 Motion Pictures and Sanjay Leela Bhansali Productions, the movie will release Sep 5.

Filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali compares Priyanka Chopra with "Million Dollar Baby" star Hilary Swank insisting that only "Barfi" star could pull of the title role in "Mary Kom", a biopic on Olympic bronze medallist and five-time World Champion M.C. Mary Kom.

Sports drama "Million Dollar Baby" was the story of a waitress' determination to become a boxing champ and Swank played the protagonist in the film, which did so well that it took home four golden statuettes.

"'Mary Kom' is a very special film and no one other than Priyanka could have pulled off the role," Bhansali told reporters at the trailer launch of "Mary Kom".

"Priyanka is an atom bomb and power packed talent. Her dedication, passion, and commitment toward her work is commendable. If Hollywood has Hillary Swank, we have Priyanka Chopra."

Bhansali also compared Priyanka's talent with Nutan and Waheeda Rehman saying she is in the "same league".

Bhansali feels "Mary Kom" was destined to happen.

"If a film has to happen, it will happen. For this film, we had no meetings or readings. Omung was in the lift and told me he wants to make a film on Mary Kom and I said yes then and there. So, I feel the film was meant to happen," he said.

Directed by Omung Kumar and co-produced by Viacom18 Motion Pictures and Sanjay Leela Bhansali Productions, the movie will release Sep 5.

Bollywood's reigning Khans are in their late 40s and 21-year-old Alia Bhatt feels she needs to look more matured to look convincing with the superstars.

When asked if she thinks she is too young to be paired with the Khans, Alia said: "I am right now definitely (young) because I look small not age wise, age is just a number, but my face. I am just maturing right now - from 'Student Of The Year' till now you can see a difference.

"So, when I become a little more matured looking, then it can work. But having said that I have done a film with Randeep Hooda, in which I looked too young without make-up, which didn't look bad at all. So if there is a scope or a character and a role like that then it will work," she said in a group interview.

The actress, who has worked with new entrants like Varun Dhawan and Sidharth Malhotra, is yet to team up with the likes of Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan.

Alia's good fortune in filmdom started with her debut vehicle and the actress says success and accolades bring a lot of pressure.

After hitting a hat trick with her first three films - "Student of The Year", "Highway" and "2 States", she recently appeared in "Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania", which also got a favourable response at the box office.

Asked if she feels under pressure after doing so well in Bollywood, she said: "Yes, I am constantly under pressure because goodness becomes a burden on your shoulders so do the flops. So with every film, no matter how bad or good, there would be pressure."

Superstar Salman Khan's "Kick" is set to kick up a storm. The action thriller will hit over 5,000 screens in India Friday as well as 42 other countries including non-traditional markets like France, Germany, Morocco and Maldives.

"Yes, Kick is one of the films which will get the widest release. In India, the film has got around 4,400 screens and close to 700 screens abroad, which is outstanding," distributor Rajesh Thadani of Multimedia Combines told IANS.

If the film's high point is Salman, there is another highlight - "Kick" marks the directorial debut of Sajid Nadiadwala, known for producing the biggest potboilers like "Housefull" and "Heropanti" as well as "2 States" and "Highway".

The makers are hoping to cash in on the Eid celebrations by releasing it during the festive season.

"This time Salman Khan is back on Eid with Sajid Nadiadwala's 'Kick' and we are hoping to recreate the magic and success of his earlier movies during this period," said Amrita Pandey, VP and Head, Marketing & Distribution, Studios, Disney India.

"It will release in over 42 countries, which includes non-traditional markets like France, Germany, Morocco and Maldives.

"We are also exploring delayed releases in Egypt, Taiwan and China. Eid is a family occasion and we want to give people a reason to celebrate it with 'Kick'," added Pandey.

The advance bookings for "Kick" started Wednesday and Thadani says that the data promises a bumper opening for the movie which stars Sri Lankan actress Jacqueline Fernandez as the female lead.

"As far as the advance booking is concerned, the film is going on full swing be it single screens or multiplex. I am confident the film will have a bumper opening," he said.

Sanjay Ghai from Mukta Arts Delhi said: "The Friday shows have already been booked and we hope the film will be beyond a blockbuster."

According to reports, "Kick" is sold out in Dubai too.

Why not?

In the past, Salman's Eid releases "Wanted" and "Ek Tha Tiger" turned out to be gold spinners.

Actress Soha Ali Khan is over the moon after actor Kunal Kemmu, with whom she has been in a committed relationship for long, proposed to her.

Soha took to Twitter to share with her fans that Kunal proposed to her and she accepted.

“It gives me great happiness to share with you all that Kunal proposed to me in Paris with the most perfect ring in the world and I said yes,” tweeted the actress Wednesday.

Neha Dhupia - her friend from the film industry - also congratulated her soon after reading the post.

Neha tweeted: “@sakpataudi wow that the best news ever! Congratulations, now come back sooon u both ... Yes @kunalkemmu ur one hellluva lucky guy!”

It seems like the 35-year-old's mom Sharmila Tagore's wish of seeing her daughter as a married woman is soon going to materialise.

Soha is known for her roles in "Rang De Basanti", "Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns" and "Mumbai Meri Jaan".

Actress Mandira Bedi and her son Veer Wednesday launched Philips India's new range of children friendly lighting toys and they both loved it.

Mandira said the toys are amazing and added: "My kid loves cartoons and he is a great fan of Disney.”

She said that Philips added to the Disney magic and made it “even more attractive”.

“Most importantly it is children friendly. Veer loved the toys," added the actress who is married to filmmaker Raj Kaushal.

Cartoons are seen as children's best friend, so with that idea, Disney teamed up with Philips and innovated some amazing children friendly lighting toys, which can be bought through Amazon.com.

"The blend of Philips expertise in lighting and Disney's beloved characters will transform kids rooms to a more imaginative place for them to learn, play and sleep," said Nirupam Sahay, president of Philips Lighting India.

Abhishek Maheshwari, Vice President and Head, Disney consumer products, feels that the product range is a perfect example of how Disney story telling can extend into children's bedrooms through an innovative and compelling product offering.

National Award-winning filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar has started shooting his next project “Calendar Girls”. He will launch five fresh faces with the movie.

“Start shooting #CalendarGirls from today (Wednesday)! High on concept, this youthful film has 5 new faces to be shot in a 40 day start-to-finish schedule,” Bhandarkar tweeted.

Earlier there were reports that he had approached model-turned-actress Deepika Padukone for the film but the rumours were quashed.

Bhandarkar, who has helmed films like "Fashion", "Page 3" and "Corporate", last directed a project titled “Heroine” in 2012 featuring Kareena Kapoor.

Abhishek Sharma-directed remake of Basu Chatterjee's 1982 film "Shaukeen" will hit the screens in the first week of November.

Seasoned actors like Anupam Kher, Annu Kapoor and Paresh Rawal along with Bollywood action star Akshay Kumar and actress Lisa Haydon will be seen in the film, which revolves around three lecherous old men.

“Happy to announce the release date of #TheShaukeens. It is 7th Nov. Be ready for this fantasy ride. Jai Ho.:) @HaydonLisa @annukapoor_,” Anupam tweeted Wednesday.

Lisa also expressed her excitement on Twitter.

“Got the most FANTASTIC phone call! #TheShaukeens releases 7thNovember. Can't wait2share this film w/all of u cuz we had such fun making it!” Lisa tweeted.

In southern cinema, actor Vidyut Jammwal may have only played villainous roles so far, but he says after sharing screen space with some superstars such as Ajith, Suriya and Vijay, he feels like a star in the industry.

"Since I work in Bollywood as well as southern cinema, I feel I have been recognized in both the industries. I have my fan following. It's a double whammy I'm enjoying. But having worked with southern superstars, I feel like a star too when I go there. It's like I've found my own stardom," Vidyut told IANS.

"I also feel I'm getting the recognition in southern filmdom because a lot of Bollywood actors are recognized there. I may not be playing lead roles down south, but I'm happy with the success and recognition," he said.

After playing a baddie in southern films such as "Billa 2", "Shakti" and "Thuppakki", Vidyut is finally changing gears with upcoming Tamil actioner "Anjaan".

He doesn't appear in a typical "villain" role in the film.

"My role in 'Anjaan' has no similarities with the ones I've played before. It's something I haven't done before. It's not cold and menacing. I'm really excited to the see the result and the audiences response to it," he said.

"Audiences will also get to see me doing some action in this film. I've performed my own stunts and I'm sure it will be received well," he added.

"Anjaan" features Suriya in the lead and Vidyut is playing his "partner in crime".

The film, which was predominantly shot in Mumbai, also features several Hindi actors such as Manoj Bajpai, Dalip Tahil, Asif Basra and Rajpal Yadav.

Jamwal was "happy" to rub shoulders with several of his industry counterparts in "Anjaan".

"I was happy to work with so many of them in the same film. You don't get to work with all of them every day. Manoj has been a friend from before and we gelled well on the sets. There's so much to learn from him," he said.

Directed by N. Linguswamy, "Anjaan" is slated for release Aug 15. It is jointly produced by the director and UTV Motion Pictures.

Vidyut says "it's a Linguswamy film all the way".

"The reason I agreed to do the film is for Linguswamy. I've seen his 'Paiyya' and I fell in love with his work. So when he asked me to come to Chennai to audition for the film, I decided I'll do the film even without knowing my role," he said.

"He's a fabulous director and I always wished to work with him. We shared a wonderful bond on and off the sets and no wonder I didn't find working with him challenging," he added.

He heaps praise on his co-star Suriya as well.

"Suriya and I will be seen together in the film and that helped us grow closer as friends. He's called a superstar but there's nothing about him that makes you feel so. He's a committed actor and never leaves room for star status to overshadow his work," Vidyut said.

In Bollywood, Vidyut has started working on "Yaara" with Shruti Haasan. He also has "Commando 2" in the offing.

Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif’s forthcoming film “Bang Bang” seems to be on the right track. The movie’s action-packed teaser was viewed by over 2.3 million viewers within 24 hours of its release.

Unveiled Wednesday at 8 a.m., the teaser has so far received over 2,400,000 views on videosharing platform YouTube and the numbers are still on the rise.

Hrithik and Katrina, who shared a crackling chemistry in the hit film "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara", have also been appreciated for their looks in the movie by star friends like Priyanka Chopra, Karan Johar, Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor.

The teaser has a heavy dose of guns, explosions and death-defying action stunts.

Directed by Siddharth Anand, "Bang Bang" is produced by Fox Star Studios and is being touted as the biggest action-romance of the year.

It will hit the screens on Gandhi Jayanti, which falls on Oct 2.

After Farah Khan, "Chennai Express" director Rohit Shetty is the latest Bollywood director to shoot a cameo for actor Shreyas Talpade's Marathi production "Poshter Boyz". Shreyas says they're his "true friends".

“I didn’t think of it as a new trend, both Rohit and Farah are close to me and are very successful directors and I love watching their movies which are all out entertainers. When I decided to produce 'Poshter Boyz', being in the same entertainer space, I knew I had to have them in the film," Shreyas said in a statement.

“Both Rohit and Farah are so sweet that they immediately agreed to be a part of the film, no questions asked, true friends I can completely count on," he added.

The two directors made impromptu improvisations to their part in the movie, produced under Shreyas and Deepti Talpade’s own banner Affluence Movies Private Limited. The movie will release Aug 1.

Actress Anushka Sharma is over the moon as her followers on micro-blogging site Twitter have increased to over three million.

"Crossed 3 Million followers here! Thank you to all my 3 millions for the constant love and support. Love you all," Anushka tweeted Thursday.

After featuring in movies like "Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi", "Band Baaja Baaraat" and "Jab Tak Hai Jaan", the actress will soon be seen in "Bombay Velvet", "P.K." and "Dil Dhadakne Do".

Working on Homi Adajania's English language film "Finding Fanny", which was majorly shot in Goa, turned out to be like a holiday for him.

The experience of shooting with a team as wonderful as actors such as Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia and Deepika Padukone, was also enhanced because of the director's clarity of thought, said the "Gunday" actor.

"Homi was clear about what he wanted the film to be like. He wanted it to seem like a regular conversation, and to seem like it's out of real life. He wanted the quirkiness and humour to come out in a dead pan way. I enjoyed working on 'Finding Fanny'. It was like a holiday for me," Arjun told IANS.

The movie's first look has been appreciated for its quirkiness.