A part Malayali / part Tamil Iyer from the town of Palakkad (Palghat) in Kerala, Vidya Balan grew up in Mumbai, attended St. Xavier's College, Bombay and later the University of Mumbai. She graduated from college with a Sociology degree. She speaks several languages including Tamil, English, Hindi, Malayalam, and Bengali.
Vidya Balan started work as an actress in the Malayalam film Chakram, paired against Mohanlal. However, the film was abandoned mid-way through production. After making her debut in television advertising as a model for a Surf Excel advertisement in 1998, she proceeded to do over twenty-five television ads, mostly directed by Pradeep Sarkar.
This was then followed with a variety of acting stints in music videos for singers and bands such as Euphoria, Shubha Mudgal and Pankaj Udhas. Vidya also acted in Hindi soap operas like Hum Paanch and also made her cinematic debut in a Bengali movie, Bhaalo Theko, for which she won the Best Actress Anand Lok Puraskar award in Kolkata. She was also in a Raza.com commercial played all over the world, featuring Shaan's song "Tanha Dil".
In 2005, Balan debuted in her first feature film Parineeta, a Vidhu Vinod Chopra production in Hindi, directed by Pradeep Sarkar. The film met with widespread critical and commercial success. The film also led to a spate of movies being offered to the actress, most notably movies by leading directors including Mani Ratnam.
In 2006 she teamed up once again with Chopra and Sanjay Dutt for the film Lage Raho Munna Bhai. The movie was a major hit within India and was ranked #1 on the box office for eight weeks after its release.

Tanushree Dutta was born and raised in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand state (then Bihar), and did her graduation in communications in Pune, Maharashtra.She won the Femina Miss India title in 2004, and placed among the top ten in the Miss Universe 2004 pageant held in Quito, Ecuador.
She debuted in Bollywood in 2005. She worked on two films simultaneously - Chocolate and Aashiq Banaya Apne. Chocolate was intended to be her debut film, however its release was preceded by Aashiq Banaya Apne.
Tanushree loves children, but says that she does not want any of her own.
Tanushree is a voracious cook, as per the recent issue of Filmfare

Khan is the eldest son of screen writer Salim Khan and his wife Salma Khan. He has two brothers, Sohail Khan and Arbaaz Khan. Both of them are actors; Sohail is also a film director and a producer. They have two sisters, Arpita (the youngest of the siblings), and Alvira Agnihotri. Khan's stepmother is actress Helen. Khan has been romantically linked to actresses Sangeeta Bijlani, Somy Ali and Aishwarya Rai in the past. He is currently dating fellow actress and model Katrina Kaif.
Salman Khan is one of the most popular actors of Indian film industry Bollywood. He is one of the three Khans, who dominated the Indian movies for almost 2 decades; the other two are Shahrukh Khan and Aamir Khan. Salman made his acting debut in the 1988 film Biwi Ho To Aisi where he had a supporting role. His first leading role in a Bollywood movie, was in Rajshri Productions' romantic film Maine Pyar Kiya (1989). The film went on to become one of India's top-grossing movies. He became the heartthrob of millions of fans, especially young girls after his sensational role as "Prem" in that movie. It also won him a Filmfare Best Debut Award, (1990) and a nomination for the Filmfare Best Actor Award. The film also marked the debut of Rajshri director Sooraj Barjatya. After the success of Maine Pyar Kiya, he had a string of movies released. However, only some of them were successful in the box office. Some of the hit movies in Salman's early career are- Saajan, Love, Baaghi, Qurbani,etc.
His second venture with director Sooraj Barjatya, Hum Aapke Hain Koun (1994) remains one of Indian cinema's highest grossing films ever. The movie can be also considered as his comeback. It was after this movie that he started becoming selective about the roles and movies. His role as "Karan" in the movie Karan Arjun (1995) garnered him the nomination for Best Actor category in the Filmfare Awards, the Oscars of Bollywood.
In 1996, he got the nomination for Best Supporting Actor in the Filmfare Awards for the movie Jeet. The same year he collaborated with the new director Sanjaya Leela Bhansali for the movie Khamoshi. Sanjay Leela Bhansali later became one of the most influencial directors of his generation and casted Salman Khan in his second venture- Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam in 1999. Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam collected Filmafre Awards in all major categories including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress except for the Best Actor, for which Salman was nominated.

Reema Sen was born in Kolkata, into a middle class family. She completed high school from Calcutta, after which her family moved to Mumbai. In Mumbai, she began her modelling career, appearing in a number of advertising campaigns.
Reema moved from modelling to acting soon after. Her first film was a low budget film, Chitram, in Telugu, in which she acted opposite Uday Kiran. Later she appeared in the Tamil film, Minnale, which was very successful. She tried to enter Bollywood but her first Hindi film Hum Ho Gaye Aap Ke flopped, and she decided to continue working in Tamil cinema. Her latest movie Rendu was also a successful movie in the Tamil cinema. Her facial expressions in the film Thimiru earned her the name "cute" and her horrific role in Vallavan gave her the name "extremely talented".
In April 2006, a Madurai court issued non-bailable warrants against Sen and Shilpa Shetty for "posing in an obscene manner" in photographs published by a Tamil newspaper. The report stated that the two actresses had failed to comply with earlier summonses for the same reason, hence the issuance of the warrants. The petitioner submitted that the paper had published "very sexy blow-ups and medium blow-ups" in its issues December 2005 and January 2006 issues, and which allegedly violated the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act 1986, Young Persons (Harmful Publications) Act 1956, and the Indian Penal Code Section 292 (Sale of Obscene Books). The petitioner further demanded that the images should be confiscated under the terms of the Press and Registration of Book Act 1867.
Sen responded that she had not received any court summons and also discounted the charges. She further claimed that the pictures were freeze-frame shots from a recent movie that only exposed her navel. "As far as my photographs go, what is obscene about it? If navel-showing is obscenity, then our traditional Indian outfit - the traditional sari - should be banned in the first place."

She comes from a film-clan family of Bengali origin: Her father, Ram Mukherjee is a retired director. Her mother Krishna used to be a playback singer, while her brother Raja Mukherjee is a film producer. Her maternal aunt is Debashree Roy, a popular Bengali cinema actress. The popular Bollywood actress, Kajol, is her second cousin, along with Sharbani Mukherjee (Kajol's paternal cousin). Soon after graduating from Maneckjee Cooper High School in Juhu, she received a few film offers and moved to Mumbai to pursue a career in acting.
She began her film career with the Bengali film Biyer Phool. Her first Hindi film was Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat (1996), which did not do well at the box office. However, her next two releases - Ghulam and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) - were hits.[3] For the latter she received her first Filmfare Award in the Best Supporting Actress category.
Mukerji was in great demand after these successes and signed contracts to appear in many new films. Unfortunately, most of the resulting movies were only average to poor performers at the box office. Her career seemed to be stalled. Then the critical and commercial success of the 2002 film Saathiya again made her a hot commodity in the Bollywood marketplace.
Saathiya was only the first of a string of successful films. In 2004, her performances in Yuva and the commercially successful Hum Tum earned her more awards - the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for the former, and the Filmfare Best Actress Award for the latter, the next year. Her performance as a Pakistani female activist lawyer in Veer-Zaara was also praised, and earned her many award nominations. In 2005, she starred in four high-profile films. Bunty Aur Babli and The Rising were among the biggest grossers of the year. Critics also commented favorably on her work, in particular her performance in Black. These successes established Mukerji as one of the industry's most bankable stars.

Lara Dutta (born April 16, 1978) is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. She was crowned Miss Universe in 2000. Dutta was born in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh to father Wing Commander L.K. Dutta (retired) and mother Jennifer Dutta. Her family moved to Bangalore in 1981 where she completed high school. Her sister serves in the Indian Airforce. Lara graduated in economics with a minor in communications from Bombay University. In 2001, she gained some attention in the United States for dating New York Yankees shortstop, Derek Jeter. Their relationship lasted for approximately one year.
Dutta won the annual Gladsrags modelling competition in her native India, thus winning the right to be the first Indian representative at the 1997 Miss Intercontinental pageant, in which she took first place. Later, she was crowned Femina Miss India Universe and Miss Universe in 2000.
At Miss Universe 2000 in Cyprus, Dutta was the clear favourite ahead of fierce competition from Venezuela, Spain, USA and Canada. Her finalist interview score, in the last year that such marks were televised, was the highest individual score in any category in the history of the Miss Universe contest, as her perfect interview saw a majority of the judges giving her the maximum 9.99 mark. After her final question, in which Dutta delivered a passionate defense of the Miss Universe contest (and other beauty pageants), she became the second Indian Miss Universe. Dutta clinched the Oscar dela Renta swimsuit competition, winning the Best in Swimsuit Award.
She made her film debut in 2003 with the film Andaaz which was a box office success and won her a Filmfare Best Female Debut Award. She then appeared in a number of films some of which flopped and some were successful. Her box office hits include Masti (2004), Kaal (2005), No Entry (2005) and Dosti: Friends Forever (2005).

Born in Mumbai, India, Hansika is currently completing her +1 at the Podar International School. Hansika is the daughter of Pradeep Motwani and Mona Motwani. She has a brother by the name of Prashant Motwani. Although Hansika knows a number of languages, she mainly speaks Hindi and broken Tulu.
Hansika was supposed to make her cinematic debut as a child artiste in a film entitled Yahoo which also starred Juhi Chawla and Govinda, an offer she received from Chawla who recommended her to the director after noticing her acting capabilities. Unfortunately, the film was severely delayed and was shelved, permanently. Thanks again to Juhi, Hansika went on to do a Hyundai Santro ad with Shahrukh Khan. Soon after this, Hansika was bagged with offers, notedly from prominent Indian filmmaker Rakesh Roshan for a brief role in Koi... Mil Gaya, which also starred Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta. She has also done several ad films for brands like Samsung Electronics, Bournvita and Pepsi and has said that she "loves doing ad films".
Prior to this, Hansika also acted in many Hindi soap operas like Ekta Kapoor's Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, a popular kids show of star plus namely Shakalaka Boom Boom, Sony TV's Hum 2 Hain Na, Des Mein Nikla Hoga Chand and Zee TV's Tum Bin, to name a few. She got her first big break after acting in Mehul Kumar's Jaago. The film, based on true events, told the story of a 10-year-old mentally challenged girl, who was raped on a local train on August 14, 2002. Though the film did not do so well at the box-office, it gained Hansika good reviews from all centres. She has also done films like Hawa and Escape from Taliban, which unfortunately, bombed at the box office.
Hansika later went on to do seeeethe Amitabh Bachchan starrer, Hum Kaun Hai?, a remake of the Hollywood film, The Others. She played Sara, the daughter of Dimple Kapadia character in the film who suffers from extreme photosensitivity. She also played a role in Dheeraj Kumar's Aabra Ka Dabra.
She also took part in Celebrity Fame Gurukul, a singing competition among some other celebrities for charity. Though she was not a very good singer, Hansika noted that she accepted to be a part of the show because she wanted to do something for the children of Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Hansika made her debut as a heroine in Puri Jagannadh's Telugu film, Desamuduru opposite Allu Arjun. The film is about a crime reporter who falls in love with a sannyasi, played by Hansika. She also has a Hindi film entitled He: The Only One in where she will be essaying the role of a killer, hell bent on taking revenge for her family. She has also signed a Tamil film, Sarvam, directed by Vishnuvardhan which will be a youthful love story.

Bipasha is the second of three daughters in her family. She was born in New Delhi. Later her family moved to Kolkata where she studied for a business degree. In an interview, she said that she had come into modelling and acting "quite by accident". She had planned to learn chartered accountancy or study medicine. She said that she dropped the idea of doing medical studies because she fainted when attempting to dissect rats.
Bipasha won the Ford Supermodel of the World (contest) at the age of seventeen; she was also named Tulips Miss Super Vivacious. She worked as a model before she was signed for her first film.
Of late, many Indian models have turned from modeling to acting; Bipasha has been one of the most successful models turned actresses.
Bipasha's debut film Ajnabee (2001) was fairly successful and she was soon signed for other movies. She attracted attention with her roles in Raaz (2002) and Jism (2003). Jism featured more sex and bare skin than had previously been customary in Bollywood; it was a success and Bipasha was afterwards marketed as a sex symbol. In 2005, she had a boundary-pushing role in the successful film No Entry. She later appeared in the 2006 film Phir Hera Pheri, which did well at the box office.

Aishwarya Rai was born in Mangalore, in the South Indian state of Karnataka, to Krishnaraj Rai, a marine engineer, and Vrinda Rai, a writer. Her ancestors are from the Bunt community of Mangalore. Her family later relocated to Mumbai. Rai has one brother, Aditya Rai, who is three years older than she is. Aditya is in the merchant navy, and has also co-produced a film with Rai in the lead. Her native language is Tulu; she also speaks English, Hindi, Marathi, Kannada , and Tamil.
Attended the Arya Vidya Mandir at Santacruz, Mumbai, then entered Ruparel College, Matunga, Mumbai. She was an A student and was on track to become an architect. Rai began modeling on the side while studying architecture. She was a contestant in the Miss India 1994 pageant, which she lost to Sushmita Sen but later went on to win the Miss World title that same year.
Aishwarya Rai debuted in Mani Ratnam's critically acclaimed Tamil language film, Iruvar with Mohanlal and Tabu. She played a dual role in the film. She was introduced to Bollywood by Rahul Rawail in the film, Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya; the film was a poor performer at the box office. However, her third project, a Tamil-language film, Jeans by S. Shankar was a popular success. She then appeared in the extremely popular films Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999) and Mohabbatein (2000). In 2002, Rai appeared with Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit in the lavishly produced Devdas, which was a major box-office success. The film attracted overseas attention as well, receiving a special screening at the Cannes Film Festival and garnering international attention for Rai.
In 2003, Rai was a member of the jury at Cannes. In 2004, she was chosen by TIME Magazine's Asian Edition as one of Asia's "100 Most Influential People." She was the subject of a 60 Minutes profile on January 2, 2005 - "The Most Beautiful Face in the World." A month later she appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman, and on April 25, 2005, she was featured on Oprah's "Women Across the Globe" segment. A wax figure of Rai is on display in London's Madame Tussaud's wax museum.
In the past, Indian actors and actresses were celebrities in South Asia, Central Asia, and the Middle East, but mostly unknown to the rest of the world. Aishwarya is one of the few Indian actresses to have become a Western celebrity. Although frequently the subject of gossip column speculation about an imminent Hollywood career, it was only in 2004 that Rai finally acted in a foreign film, when British director Gurinder Chadha hired her to play the heroine in Bride and Prejudice, a Hollywood-funded but Bollywood influenced version of Jane Austen's classic novel, Pride and Prejudice. The movie came just shy of breaking even at the US box office but earned over 400% return on investment

Abhishek Bachchan born 5 February 1976, is an Indian actor who made his Bollywood debut in 2000. Abhishek is the son of Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan and his wife, renowned actress Jaya Bachchan (she is also a Samajwadi Party MP in Rajya Sabha). Abhishek did his schooling at Bombay Scottish School, Modern School (New Delhi) and also went to Aiglon College in Switzerland. He then went to the United States to complete his education at Boston University. He did not finish his business degree as he chose to pursue an acting career.
His grandfather, Harivansh Rai Bachchan, was a well-known poet of Urdu and Hindi. The original last name of the family is "Srivastava"; "Bachchan" was in fact a pen name used by his grandfather. However, when his father Amitabh Bachchan entered films, he did so under his father's pen name. Now he is never known as anything but Abhishek Bachchan.
Although he made a strong debut in J.P.Dutta's Refugee along with Kareena Kapoor in 2000, the movie was not considered a success. In a span of four years, Bachchan went on to do many more movies, without any major box-office successes. However, with his performance in Mani Ratnam's Yuva, he proved his mettle as an actor. He portrayed the character of Lallan which earned him the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award and every other supporting actor award at the major film award functions.
In 2004 he starred in Dhoom, produced by Yashraj Films, the film was the first hit of his career. In 2005 he shot to fame with four consecutive hits which were Bunty Aur Babli, Sarkar, Dus and Bluffmaster. He recently won his second Filmfare Award in the Best Supporting Actor category for Sarkar. His recent release Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006) is also doing extremely well at the box office. He was also a part of Mani Ratnam's stage show, Netru, Indru, Naalai alongside many other co-stars.

Amitabh Bachchan, born October 11, 1942, (also known as BIG B), is a very popular Indian film actor who appears in Bollywood movies. His acting career began in 1969 and has spanned four decades. He has legions of devoted fans, a resume featuring dozens of hit movies, and is considered one of the top actors in India. Bachchan was also a member of Indian Parliament (MP), being elected in 1984 from Allahabad. He resigned from this post after serving three years.
Bachchan was born in the city of Allahabad, India. His father, Harivansh Rai Bachchan, was a well-known poet of Urdu and Hindi. The original last name of the family is "Srivastava"; "Bachchan" was in fact a pen name used by his father. However, when Bachchan entered films he did so under his father's pen name. Now he is never known as anything but Amitabh Bachchan. His immediate family has also adopted the Bachchan surname. His mother is Teji Bachchan, who is a Sikh born in Punjab, India. Bachchan attended Allahabad's Boys' High School, followed by Nainital's Sherwood College, where he gained a degree in art. He later went on to study at Kirori Mal College in Delhi University earning a degree in science. When he was in his twenties, Bachchan gave up a job as freight broker for the shipping firm, Bird and Co., based in Kolkata, to pursue a career in acting.
He is married to actress Jaya Bhaduri (now Bachchan). The couple have two children: daughter Shweta and son Abhishek. Abhishek Bachchan has also entered the Bollywood film industry. Bachchan is said to have met Jaya Bhaduri at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) at Pune though there is no evidence to confirm that he was ever enrolled there as a student.
In 1984, Bachchan briefly entered politics in support of long-time family friend Rajiv Gandhi. He contested Allahabad's Parliament seat against H. N. Bahuguna, a well-known politician, and won by a large margin (68.2% of the vote). His political career, however, was short-lived: he resigned after only three years, not finishing his term. At the time of his resignation, it was rumoured that he might have been involved in the Bofors Scandal. Bachchan was not implicated in the case, and has since distanced himself from the Gandhi family. He denies that the two events were connected, commenting that he "should have never got into

BAABUL tackles the issue of widow re-marriage, an issue the late Raj Kapoor successfully raised in PREM ROG [Rishi Kapoor, Padmini Kolhapure]. But comparisons between PREM ROG and BAABUL wouldn't be right, except that both talk about the rehabilitation of a young widow.
Balraj Kapoor (Amitabh Bachchan) is a rich buisnessman, happy and content with his world. He and his wife Shobhana (Hema Malini) have a son Avinash (Salman Khan). After many years of studying abroad, Avinash announces that he is returning home. Soon Malvika "Milli" Talwar (Rani Mukerji) enters his life. Love blossoms between them and they get married and are soon blessed with a son, Ansh. However tradegy strikes the family when Avinash is killed in an accident. The loss is too much for Milli and she slowly falls into depression.
Balraj seeks to bring happiness back into Milli's life and he gets into contact with Rajat (John Abraham). Rajat was Milli's friend and he secretly loved her but never told her. Balraj asks Rajat to marry Milli but he faces opposition from his traditional elder brother Balwant (Om Puri).
soundtrack of 'Baabul' can be defined as HIGH QUALITY. There is not a single moment in the album when one feels cheated or thinks that high claims about the album being distinct are untrue. Instead one just feels the urge of appreciating Aadesh Srivastava for the sheer range he brings in the music of the album. Though 'Come On' is a chartbuster all the way, the songs which are most impressive in the album are those that are soft numbers/situational tracks. These may not turn out to be the tracks that would be played down the street but in a remote corner of your house, they are bound to bring in a tear/smile or two!
Rani and Amitabh are good together throughout but their bonding leading to the final act does not show. It's more of Amitabh doing a noble act for his young daughter-in-law than his doing it because he feels fatherly towards her. Hema Malini looks gorgeous and acts her part with amazing grace. Salman is natural and provides ample light moments. He's cute when courting Rani. John is perfect, although the dashing guy is looking pale and tired at times. Sarika [tremendous], Sharat Saxena [very good] and Smita Jaykar [competent]. Rajpal Yadav doesn't get much scope. Aman Verma and Parmeet Sethi are forced characters.
On the whole, Baabul works, primarily because of Amitabh and Rani -- his resilience and her restraint. The film, undoubtedly, belongs to them..

Jai and Suhel, TV journalists from India in search of the ultimate news scoop: meeting the Taliban. Imran Khan Afridi ? a soldier of the hated Taliban who needs to escape the wrath of the Afghans and run to his country, Pakistan. Khyber, a proud Afghan who has seen the destruction of his country over the decades. Jessica Beckham, An American photojournalist ready to risk her life to photograph the Taliban. Five people from different worlds, their paths are destined to cross in a ruthless country devastated by war, Afghanistan.
This is a story, spanning 48 hours, of five individuals linked by hate and fear, but brought together by fate to finally recognize each other. Against this turbulent backdrop, Jai and Suhel, two Indian Television reporters have entered Afghanistan and their aim is to somehow get a rare interview with a Talibani. Helping them in their pursuit of a Talibani is their Afghan guide, translator and driver, Khyber in his Toyota Jeep called Kabul Express. As the film unfolds, a special relationship develops between an Afghan, a Pakistani, two Indians and an American.
Kabul Express works in parts. Each visual depicts the tragedy of a spectacle called Afghanistan. Each scene is also accompanied by a killer line by Arshad. Kabir also gets ample help from the locations and the cinematographer, Anshuman Mahaley, takes full advantage of it. Not only are the locales of Afghanistan breath-taking, the lensman also captures them with dexterity. John Abraham doesn’t really get a chance to exhibit histrionics, but gets two major scenes -- one, when he talks to the Pakistani about his daughter and the other, when the Pakistani is offering prayers. John handles them with supreme confidence. Hanif, the Afghani, is first-rate, while Linda, the American journalist, does an okay job.
On the whole, KABUL EXPRESS is a good-looking film but it refuses to get

Champak Chaturved (Paresh Rawal) has a theatre group in India and he performs shows all over the country. Bunty (Akshay) and Babla (Govinda) along with others are actors in the group. Both are very naughty natured guys who never miss any chance to flirt with girls, even the girls in the group. At the completion of one show, an organizer offers Champak's group to perform 30 shows in England. They all get very excited but as per the contract they need to leave for England on the same day. Unfortunately the heroine of the play opts out due to Bunty's misbehavior.
They reach London and through Rajpal Yadav, a taxi driver, Babla and Bunty try to find out a girl for their play but it leads to many misunderstandings and a series of funny sequences. In this process, Babla and Bunty fall into trouble involving a drug baron and other mishaps.
Thereafter, the trio discovers a girl Lara Dutta, who suffers from amnesia to act in their drama and just as Bunty and Lara fall in love, her memory returns and it brings chaos into their lives, including a murdered husband!
There is nothing to keep the laughter flowing. Not even Akshay Kumar and Paresh Rawal who end up repeating their Hera-Pheri antics, minus the fun quotient. So you have Akshay rehashing the role of the streetsmart prankster and Paresh Rawal donning the garb of the avuncular godfather — here, he is a theatre director — while Govinda pitches in as the simpleton in this familiar trio. Govinda doesn't get it right in his comeback vehicle. Paresh Rawal is competent, while Rajpal Yadav is superb, but is sidelined in the second hour. Lara Dutta lacks the talent to carry off a challenging role. ackie Shroff is mechanical. Arbaaz Khan doesn't get much scope. Shakti Kapoor is in true form. Asrani, Sharat Saxena, Manoj Joshi, Razzaq Khan and Amita Nangia are okay. Tanushree Dutta looks glamorous in the 'Signal' track.
Priyadarshan's silly comedy does not end here. The three actors --Akshay, Govinda and Paresh -- are wanted by the London police for a murder and their pictures are flashed all over the local newspapers. Yet, they roam all over the city without a care.
On the whole, BHAGAM BHAG will be loved for its comedy in the first hour

Silsila (Kunal Khemu) a young orphan, who was born and who took his first tiny step at the signal is now its manager. For him the Signal is his workplace and a home where he lived. He's a sensitive soul with a heart of gold who considers the people like his family. He loves all those working at the signal, which in a way is his family but would spare nobody when it comes to business. He has a mentor, named Jaffar, who also is the collector of his region. Both he and Jaffar work for the local Mafioso, Haji and would even lay down their lives for him. Inherent in the social structure, lies a nexus between the local Mafia and Politicians, though at that level Silsila is almost nonexistent. Yet by a force of circumstance Silsila gets drawn into the bigger game and finds himself to be responsible for the annihilation of his own world, something to which he's dedicated his life.
Silsila is in love with a young girl (Neetu Chandra) who owns a small embroidery business in the city. An engineer with honest values arrives to prevent a flyover from being constructed. Silsila is then asked by Haji to eliminate him. Silsila agrees and finishes him off only to realize that the builder and politician plan to displace the street children. Now with the help of the children, Silsila takes on the corrupt system. His deeds are irreversible and he would most certainly not be able to get things back to normal.
Director Madhur Bhandarkar's choice of the subject is laudable, although one wishes that there were ample dramatic moments in the narrative. Besides, the subject material will have its share of admirers and adversaries. Yet, there's no denying that the film has some brilliant moments. The Ranveer-Konkona track [including Ranveer's sad demise], the entire track of Manoj Joshi [right till his assassination] and the track of a beggar and the rich Gujarati businessman [with a turning point in a multiplex] are superb. From the writing point of view [writers: Sachin Yardi and Madhur Bhandarkar], the penultimate 25 minutes are captivating, but the film ends on an abrupt note. Ideally, there should've been a strong culmination to the tale.
Kunal Khemu looks the character and emotes his part with admirable precision. Konkona Sen Sharma breathes life in her role. Ranveer Shorey steals the show with a superb portrayal. Upendra Limaye is first-rate. Neetu Chandra does reasonably well. D. Santosh is able. Well-known director Sudhir Mishra leaves a mark as an actor. Manoj Joshi is perfect.
On the whole, TRAFFIC SIGNAL to observe that his films have gone progressively below par.

Eklavya is one more movie coming from the stables of Vidhu Vinod Chopra and it really deserves to be called one of the finest crafted movies in recent times. Having roped in a heavy starcast with the VC Banner regulars like Sanjay Dutt, Saif Ali Khan and Vidya Balan, et. al. as well as getting Amitabh Bachchan to work with him for the first time, he does bring out the best of all of them to narrate a story which took 5 years to write and was equally difficult to portray.
The story essentially portrays one of the Royal families in Rajasthan with no more dynasty and the secret behind how the lady of the family takes the help of their guard (Eklavya) to give birth to the next generation of the family. The revealing of this secret just before her death brings about a feeling of being cheated to her husband and sows the seeds of taking revenge for it. The director has shown great detail of creativity to create a scene as to how the secret is revealed to her son by the way of a painting by his twin sister (Raima Sen) who is mentally retarded by birth. And then starts the entire plot of how Eklavya keeps up the fight to keep up his duty of protecting the Royal family which otherwise would have resulted in ill-effects for the next few generations in his family.
Chopra’s direction is exemplary. He handles the material with maturity and also keeps the length in check, which is so vital these days. The visuals [cinematography: S. Natarajan Subramaniam] are superb. In fact, every frame looks like a painting on celluloid. Dialogues [Swanand Kirkire] accentuate the impact of several scenes. Stunts [Tinu Verma] are tremendous and expertly executed. The interiors of the palace [art: Nitin Desai] give the film an opulent look. The background score as well as the sole song ‘Chanda Re’ [Shantanu Moitra] are appropriate.
That Saif has evolved into a fine actor is known to all and sundry by now, we don’t need proof of it, especially after KAL HO NAA HO, EK HASINA THI, PARINEETA and OMKARA. Sanjay Dutt has a brief role, but he’s fantastic all through. Vidya Balan is superb yet again. There’s no stopping this actress! Boman Irani is first-rate in a negative role. Watch him interact with Sharmila Tagore in the very first scene and with Jackie subsequently to know the range of this gifted actor. Jimmy Shergill introduces you to a hitherto unknown facet of his talent. He excels in a negative role. Jackie Shroff gets a meaty role yet again in a Vidhu Vinod Chopra film. Raima Sen leaves a mark in a significant role. Sharmila Tagore exudes class in a cameo. Parikshit Sahni is efficient.
Vidhu, of course, is a master filmmaker, audaciously plunging the theatre into darkness for over three minutes. This is insanely awesome stuff, the kind of thing Hindi cinema will reel from. Audiences might even yell at confused projectionists, but who cares. Bring on the applause.
All up where does that leave Eklavya – The Royal Guard is still a

Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. romantic comedy revolves around six couples, a guide, a driver and a handyman, all riding in a bus from Bombay to Goa. It is produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani through Excel Films and directed by debutant director Reema Kagti.
The film opens with six couples, a guide, a driver and a handyman riding in a bus from Mumbai to Goa. The narrative humorously unfolds different stories that explore the nature of love and human relationships. Woven into the hectic four-day honeymoon schedule is a radio show. The jockey plays the role of an omniscient narrator and discusses individual characters, revealing secrets about them and their past.
Oscar Fernandez (Boman Irani) and his wife Nahid (Shabana Azmi) who have just recently married. They are middle-aged and the target of constant mock from everyone else. However, they intent to have a great journey and not be bothered by their difficult pasts.
Partho Sen (Kay Kay Menon) and Milly Sen (Raima Sen), a couple from small town Bengal.pPinky (Amisha Patel) and Vicky (Karan Khanna), hailing from Dehli. They couldn't be more different, as Pinky is very extroverted and Vicky is the opposite.
Madhu (Sandhya Mridul) and Bunty (Vikram Chatwal) have most recently married. They differences draw from the fact that he is a NRI, a non-resident India, while she has lived in Mumbai, India, for her entire life.Hitesh (Ranvir Shorey) and Shilpa (Dia Mirza) are both from Gujarat and both of them question the nature of their affiliation, as they wonder if love or marriage is more important in life.
Aspi (Abhay Deol) and Zara (Minissha Lamba) seemlingly the most perfect couple of them all ...As the bus continues it's journey, it is followed by a mysterious man, dressed in black clothes, wearing a helmet - someone who has still an open business with one of the passengers.
Debutante director Reema Kagti (who has assisted on films like Lagaan and Dil Chahta Hai) adopts a fascinating storytelling technique. Despite six separate stories the film isn't episodic which gives more scope of chemistry between the characters that forms the major highlight of the screenplay. The flashback fable of each couple unravels in an interesting black-n-white frame with a retro song to support each. The use of a radio show to narrate the flashback episodes is a unique idea but might not connect with those accustomed to conventional narrative techniques. Each flashback installment is kept crisply short.
Boman Irani never goes wrong with his character, then be it any role in the world. So even as Oscar Fernandes, he perfects the accent for a Goan Christian. Raima Sen gets a meaty role and impresses both with her looks (despite being sari-clad throughout the film) and performance. Karan Khanna doesn't have much to speak but emotes well. Dia Mirza looks damn cute when she cries in the opening scene of the film. Minissha has a charming aura and indulges in an impeccable salsa with Abhay Deol. And when it comes to Shabana Azmi, the flawless actress doesn't need an approval for her act. Amisha Patel is supposed to play an irritating bimbo character and she succeeds in irritating you to the core. Neither Deol nor Lamba come off as Parsi, Patel does not feel Punjabi, neither Shorey nor Mirza are convincing as Gujaratis and the less said about Irani's senior Catholic citizen the better
On the whole, HONEYMOON TRAVELS PVT. LTD. is decent one.

Vijay [Amitabh Bachchan], a photographer, lives with his wife [Revathy] at a picturesque hill station. Their daughter Ritu [Shraddha Arya] and her friend Jiah [Jiah Khan] visit them during holidays. It isn’t love at first sight for either Vijay or Jiah. But Vijay and Jiah are drawn towards each other.
It’s a love story between the two and how his family reacts to it. The writing is not crisp as it shows on screen throughout the bold flick. Jiah is attracted to her best friend’s father and falls in love with him. Her behavior is defiant and aggressive. She woos him openly, even though she’s sharing the roof with the man’s wife and daughter. Now that’s a bit difficult to absorb. Also, Jiah walks around in the skimpiest of outfits, making you wonder what her true intentions are. Does she need him to fulfill her physical needs? A vision that might not be approved or acknowledged by many! But then Varma doesn’t show any regards for a particular target audience in this film.
The filmmaker known for his hard-hitting realistic antics, ventures into Bhansali’s sublime romantic territory with his not so conventional pairing. In fact Ramu who usually uses a lot of brains in his films, puts in a lot of heart this time. Nishabd makes it apparent that Ramu hasn’t made this film with any pre-defined box office considerations but just out of his desire to narrate a story through his fervent vision. A vision that might not be approved or acknowledged by many! But then Varma doesn’t show any regards for a particular target audience in this film.
The debutante girl Jiah Khan commands a towering screen presence even in front of Amitabh Bachchan and exudes some razor sharp attitude. Her body language is impeccable and charm is endearingly natural. Cinematography [Amit Roy] is excellent. The lush green locales of Munnar lend the film a stunning look. Amitabh Bachchan is in top form, essaying the role with complete understanding. Newcomer Jiah Khan is supremely confident. Loaded with attitude and sex appeal, the newcomer carries off her part with flourish.
Even though there are just two tracks in the album, Nishabd makes a worthy hear. Both 'Rozana' and 'Take Lite' are extremely worthy hears and actually end up defining the character graphs of the two lead protagonists in the film. The numbers are bound to go down very well with the narrative and if RGV too has put his heart and soul in this project just as his music team has, Nishabd as a film could well turn out to be a surprise success of the season! Ram Gopal Varma has done it again. He's surprised us with a touching, deep and visibly personal effort, and if you were waiting with brickbats in hand.
Overall, Nishabd is a powerful film

Ta Ra Rum Pum is a forthcoming film starring Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherjee in the lead roles. The film is directed by Siddharth Anand who earlier directed the 2005 hit Salaam Namaste. Shooting began in May 2006 and the film will release on 27 April 2007.
The film was mostly shot in the United States of America, with a few scenes shot in a studio in Mumbai.
The film is a modern love story set in the US. It deals with a family, consisting of father, mother and two children, Priya and Ranveer. When their father (Saif Ali Khan), a famous racer, has an accident, the perfect life of the family gets turned up-side-down.
Cast:
Saif Ali Khan as ...Adi
Rani Mukherjee as ...Shona
Victor Banerjee
Shruti Seth as ... Sasha
Harris Masood as... Jignesh
Trivia:
The working title of the film was originally Don't Worry Be Happy.
The title was originally Ta Ra Rum Pum Pum.
The film re-unites Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherjee after the success of their last film Hum Tum (2004).
Victor Banerjee will play Rani Mukherjee's father in movie.
Abhishek Bachchan is rumoured to make a special appearance in the movie. This will be one of numerous cameos he's made for Yash Raj Films in the recent past

Urmila Matondkar is performing 'Mehbooba mehbooba' number in the new version of Sholay, 'Ram Gopal Verma Ke Sholay'. Big B and Abhishek will groove along with her in the number. She was thrilled when heard that Abhi was also a part of this song. An excited Urmila says, "He is so much fun on the sets. It has been a marvelous experience; the chemistry we shared was fantastic." She also adds, "The choreography of this song is completely different. Ganesh Hegde has made me dance to a mix of different styles. It is fast becoming my favourite performance."

Madhuri Dixit Nene is making comeback after long 7 years. She is little worried about the BO reports. At 39, age is not a binding factor for her. "It all depends on the kind of roles. Age is not a binding factor! I will not be prancing around the trees or try to look 16," laughs she. According to her on the rumors of the trouble in her and Nene's married life she reveals, "I don't wanna dignify these atrocious rumors by commenting on them! We have enrolled them in a play school, so that they interact with other kids and adapt with others!" Sriram Nene is coming to pick them. And they will be back in US soon.

Currently, Akshaye Khanna is shooting for Abbas-Mustan's next flick 'Race' in Dubai. Despite of the desert's sweltering hear, he wasn't complaining at all. He is very chilled person. After the shoot he went for desert safaris and play some desert sports.

Ahana Deol is all set to make her directorial debut soon. She says, "I never aspired to become an actor. It's not my scene. I don't like the thought of wearing make-up. As it is I don't like to doll-up." She will be directing her actor sis Esha Deol in the film. It's not a big Bollywood masala film. It's about a man, how he faces hardships and emerges triumphant. She didn't finalize the male lead yet, but Kunal Kapoor is in her mind. Proud father Dharmendra reveals, "She should strive to be a good human being first and success will automatically follow. That's my advice to her. I am so glad for her."