Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 1, 2017)

Mirror (November 18) had earlier reported that Kajol’s next film has been written by Ship of Theseus director Anand Gandhi and is an adaptation of his Gujarati play, Beta Kaagdo. It revolves around a mother-son relationship with the actress playing a single parent. We have now learnt that National Award-winning filmmaker Pradeep Sarkar, whose last directorial was the Rani Mukerji starrer 2014 crime thriller, Mardaani, will be directing the film which is likely to roll in January.

“I was offered the script around four months ago. It took me a while to understand the Gujarati tone but eventually I fell in love with this extremely emotional story which boasts of some really strong characters and there’s a chance of people getting really close to them,” informs Sarkar, admitting that he has been interacting with a lot Gujaratis of late.

The 62-year-old filmmaker informs that he has already started on the prep and reading sessions with Kajol will begin soon. “She’s an awesome actress who picks up a role and owns it. She has her own style, charm and a particular way of talking that enhances the character,” he maintains, adding that they are scouting for the boy who will play her son.

Kajol’s husband, Ajay Devgn, is producing the film with Abhinav Shukla. Swanand Kirkire, who has earlier worked with Sarkar on Parineeta, Laaga Chunari Mein Daag and Lafangey Parindey, is writing the lyrics. Amit Trivedi will be scoring the music. The film will be shot on the outskirts of Mumbai.

“I am getting involved in the dialogue and character-building as there are a few insights that I want to incorporate to make the film more endearing. This is not like Parineeta, where everything was detailed, this is more free-flowing, a character and music-driven film,” Sarkar points out.

So what kept him away from directing more films after Mardaani? “Making commercials is my main business. If someone gives me enough money, I would only make films but we have to survive,” the filmmaker signs off with a chuckle.

Chaya Unnikrishnan (DNA; October 6, 2017)

After Aaj Zid and Jaana Ve, the makers of Aksar 2 are gearing up to release the third song from the film. Called Tanhaiyan, the song featuring Zareen Khan and Abhinav Shukla has been shot in Mauritius. “We have shot at some exotic places — a British kind of villa that has been converted into a museum of artefacts with beautiful furniture, pianos and grandfather clocks. We also shot a portion of the song at a beach and a fort, which had wonderful textures made of wood and bricks and has a huge galley, where we could finish the song with the shot of Zarine running,” shares the film’s director Ananth Mahadevan.

The song comes at an unexpected moment in the film, he adds. “It comes as a shock to both Zareen and the audience. Amit Mishra, who did a wonderful rendition of Bulleya in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil is singing this nostalgic number. I am so glad I got him because he has sung it with a lot of feeling. After the sensuous Aaj Zid and the romantic Jaana Ve, this will tug at your heartstrings,” he says.

Interestingly, the song is being launched today, the day the film was slated to release! But thanks to the Hollywood biggie, Blade Runner 2049, and Saif Ali Khan’s Chef, the movie has got postponed. “Yes, but that’s not the main reason. We wanted to release Tanhaiya first and our second trailer, which concentrates totally on the edge-of-the-seat content. That will be launched next Tuesday. We wanted to build this up and not hurry through, that’s the reason we took a call to push the film. Also, some post-production work is remaining,” reveals the filmmaker. As for when it will be releasing, he says the date will be announced in a day or two, but it is definitely releasing this month.

BOMBAY TIMES (October 27, 2014)

MID-DAY (June 25, 2014)

Sources say that the production crew of the TV show, Madhubala, is not being paid its dues. A crewmember from the show says, “The show is about to go off air but it recently got a few weeks’ extension as the new show that will replace it is not yet ready. Since the past few weeks, we have not got our money. We got our cheques only to realise that they have bounced. We are thinking of having a word with the senior members of the production team and it would be great if we could sort things out at the earliest.”

The crewmember says that currently, the team is keen to complete shooting for the show and move on to the next assignment. “But of course, we are quite disappointed with the state of affairs. We having been working on the show from the beginning and we were expecting to end it on a happy note. We are hoping that the production house will soon pay our dues.”

Abhinav Shukla, the producer of the show, denied the buzz. He said, “ If they haven’t really been paid, then they should come to me or report the matter to the workers’ union, why are saying this to the media. This is all hogwash.”

Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; April 24, 2014)

While a fair share of celebs has flown down to Florida, USA, to take part in International Indian Film Academy Awards (IIFA) this weekend, the rest of the fraternity is doing its bit in order to step out and cast its vote today.

For instance, Kangana Ranaut, who is promoting her film Revolver Rani, has managed to get a day’s break. A source says, “She was supposed to go to Ahmedabad and Jaipur, but now that trip has been cancelled. Now she may visit these cities after the film’s release.”

Suniel Shetty has already postponed the promotional tour for his film, Koyelaanchal, to vote. Meanwhile, Farhan Akhtar who will be attending the IIFA awards in Florida, has declared that he will cast his vote and then go to the US. In a recent interview, he even appealed to everyone to vote.

The team of Subhash Ghai’s film, Kaanchi, which is slated to release tomorrow, has also decided to halt its promotions for a day.

Sukhwinder Singh, who has lent his voice to a song in the film, says, “When the film’s promotional schedule was being planned, all of us informed the team that we wanted to keep everything aside on Election Day. Our marketing team has planned the promotions accordingly. I was also supposed to fly to Bangalore for a recording, but I have pushed that ahead now.”

Taking a stand
At a Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) meeting between film producers and other artistes, it was decided that producers would either cancel their shoots today or begin shooting only after 2pm. Dilip Pithwa, general secretary, FWICE, says that he has already written to all four producers’ bodies
requesting them to let their unit members ( artistes and technicians) go vote.

Accordingly, the unit of the Neha Dhupia-starrer, Ekees Topoon Ki Salaami, will start its shoot late. Says a source, “Neha requested the producer, Abhinav Shukla, to let the shoot start late. Now all unit members will have enough time to cast their vote and head to the sets for the shoot. The producer has also agreed to the same.” At recording studios too, work will start only post 2pm. BM Tiwari of Sound Engineers Association adds, “All technicians have been instructed to report to work later on account of elections. Only those who have to send in their episodes earlier on have been given some concession. Then again, they have been asked to vote before getting to work.”

Neha Maheshwri Bhagat (BOMBAY TIMES; January 8, 2014)

Abhinav Shukla is an adventure sports junkie. When not shooting, he likes to go trekking and explore new places. However, a recent outing turned into a nightmare for Abhinav and his friend, when they were stuck on the ledge of a hill in Matheran for over 12 hours.

Says the actor, “My friend and I wanted to trek to Chanderigad, a fort located at 1200 feet in Matheran forests. At 4 pm, it was a bit late to start, but since it was only a two-hour trek, we decided to go ahead. We had planned to camp overnight and so, I carried the tent, sleeping bag, stove, knives and camera. My friend was carrying food and water. When it got dark, we wanted to cut short the distance and so, left the trekking track and started climbing a steep dried out stream. The initial climb, though tough, was manageable. When it was almost dark, we reached a slope too steep to climb without a rope. My friend, who was ahead of me by 10 ft, refused to climb down as it was very difficult. Instead, he climbed up some 150 ft more and settled on the ledge of a hill. I too had to climb up as I had no water or food. However, I had to leave behind our tent, sleeping bags, stove and camera as they were too heavy. On the ledge, we realised that going down the slope without ropes and rock climbing equipment is impossible. We had only two options -- to either stay on the ledge, which was 3 ft by 5 ft, till someone finds us, or climbing down with only 10 per cent chances of survival. We decided to stay put. We spent the night without sleep, surviving on just two litres of water and one packet of instant noodles.”

So, how did he get saved? “Fortunately, I had some 14% battery left in my mobile phone and sent an SOS to my brother and friend Rajesh Khera. It was very cold and we also feared snakes and civet cats in the area. Fearing that we might have to survive for long, we even stored our urine - when dehydrated, it could keep us alive for a few more hours. Thanks to my ability to navigate and understand stars and constellations, I was able to message my location somehow.” Hope came at dawn when Rajesh, accompanied by a rescue team, appeared over the mountain pass. The rescue mission took five hours.