Showing posts with label Brazil. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brazil. Show all posts
The men in my family are scared of having me in their movies because I’ll outshine them-Lakshmi Manchu
9:32 AM
Lakshmi, who recently holidayed in Alto Paraiso de Goias in Brazil, says experience has inspired her to make adventure movie a la Indiana Jones
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; May 15, 2024)
A holiday is often rejuvenating, sometimes even mentally stimulating as you return home with a new perspective. For actor-producer Lakshmi Manchu, her Brazil vacation was just that. The actor—who has featured in American television shows Las Vegas and Desperate Housewives, and many Telugu offerings, including Lakshmi Bomb (2017)—visited Alto Paraíso de Goias in Brazil last month and says the region’s beauty has inspired to make an adventure movie set in a jungle.
To Manchu, staying near the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park, replete with its lush greenery and stunning waterfalls, evoked multiple story ideas.
“I got a bunch of ideas sitting there. I’m back now and itching to call my writers for a jam session. The place has inspired me to make something like the Indiana Jones franchise. I find it incredibly rewarding to seek out new locations for shooting whenever I travel. I had mentioned to Manoj [Manchu, producer-brother] the abundance of incredible, unseen locations in Brazil. Travelling to such places often inspires new stories. During this trip, I immersed myself in the culture and lineage of the Umbanda [religion that is derived from Spiritism and combines elements of Afro-Brazilian religions], which has enriched my storytelling abilities with insight from my own culture. Right now, I’m pregnant with ideas and I’ll put this rich experience to use,” she says.
Her superstar-father Mohan Babu is producing Kannappa featuring Vishnu in the lead, with cameos by Akshay Kumar and Prabhas. Manchu quips, “I’m not a part of it. The men in my family are scared of having me in their movies because I’ll outshine them.”
She is instead focusing on a dark thriller for Disney+ Hotstar.
I’m kinda vicariously re-debuting with the cast of The Archies-Zoya Akhtar
11:42 AM
How director Zoya Akhtar travelled to Brazil with the youngling cast of The Archies, her first period film—that too with all debutants
Mayank Shekhar (MID-DAY; June 23, 2023)
Standing behind us at the check-in counter to the flight to Sao Paulo, from Mumbai, was young Navya Naveli, actor Amitabh Bachchan’s grandchild, and sister of Agastya Nanda, who was to make his onstage debut at Tudum, Netflix’s slate-launch event, in Brazil.
It would be the first time Nanda would make a public appearance. We notice that even on Google, the image that shows up for him is that of Zoya Akhtar, the director of his debut film, The Archies (that will drop on Netflix in November).
Not that we personally know Navya, so we didn’t say hi. But it’d be fair to assume she was travelling to Sao Paulo for her brother’s big night. Casual eavesdropping revealed she was off to Dresden instead (if we heard it right).
The seven-member, youngling, debutant cast of The Archies were on their own, without any minders, travelling on a regular flight. Which probably makes Akhtar, in a sense, the principal of Riverdale High, chaperoning these children on a school trip abroad?
Akhtar is clearly not pleased with this random analogy! “This is not the Von Trapp family. I am not their governess. I’m doing my own thing. They’re doing their own thing! I’m making a film about teenagers, so in that sense, they are teaching me. I’m too truant to be their principal,” she says.
We’d of course love to know all that she’s doing in Brazil. At the recent G20 convention in Srinagar, on films and tourism, what perhaps got discussed the most was how Indians travelling to Spain and Turkey had evidently shot up several times since the release of Akhtar’s Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (ZNMD, 2011), and Dil Dhadakne Do (DDD, 2015). It could be the same for Brazil, if Akhtar was to shoot her next film/series here! Has she been ‘recce-ing’?
She has been to Brazil as a tourist before, she says, “This time, it was for work, so it’s very different. I don’t think there is any filmmaker in the world, who wouldn’t want to shoot a film in Brazil. Everywhere you go, it’s just ‘character’ and ‘feel’.” Only half the globe apart from India, of course.
Akhtar was in Sao Paulo to represent The Archies, her next release, that she’s still working on. It was the only Asian content showcased on the Tudum stage. Her cast performed to the film’s dance number, This In My Story, Suno.
Couldn’t help but wonder, what if one of the newbies had slipped, or fumbled—it can happen, and there are no retakes on a live show. What a global embarrassment it’d be to live down! Of course, none of that happened.
The kids did fine. They had apparently rehearsed for two months for this live act, that lasted all of 40 seconds on stage.
Which is just as well. Netflix is a stickler for time. We got five-odd minutes for the interview with Akhtar as well!
Calling them kids, although Akhtar points out, “They’re young adults. But they’re adults!” They still look like such teenagers, even adorable mannequins, in fact—given that they walked down the Tudum red-carpet, as a group, in The Archies’ make-up and costume.
Hardly saying a word to the cameras. “It’s too early for them to meet the press,” Akhtar says, as she takes us through all that went into turning them into onscreen characters.
“They’ve worked really hard to do what they were meant to, and were born to. They went through a lot of screen tests to get here, firstly. What followed was a proper ‘boot camp’ over six months—acting workshops, with three-four different people, dance lessons with Bosco Caesar, [practicing] cycling, skating, for the girls…”
“They had to learn to sing. They’re lip syncing in the musical. But that too requires training. There’s an art to it. I just wanted them to feel free, so they’re not conscious on the set.”
In her decade-and-half long career, Akhtar has essentially worked with established actors, at least for the lead roles. She waited for years, searching for stars to headline her directorial debut, Luck By Chance (LBC, 2009). This is her first time with an entire bunch that’s never been on screen before.
She says, “I’m kinda vicariously re-debuting with them. Because there is nothing like the experience of your first movie—you tend to forget that, get jaded [thereon], and start worrying about different things.”
“I felt a little spoilt, with a cast that’s so enthusiastic. At the same time, they’re not coming with any star-fittings. They’re literally part of the crew, that happens to be in front of the camera. There’s no baggage; only hunger and joy.”
Also, she adds, “It’s my first period film [set in 1964]—a musical, in terms of form and format. And it’s capturing something iconic—an adaptation, that I haven’t done before. Something new is what you always wanna do.”
The Archies is based on the American comic series, pure, peak pop-culture: “It was our portal to the West. The only comic about teenagers—it wasn’t about super heroes, but regular kids. When this came to me, I thought—how often do you get paid to relive your childhood? And have fun with it! The concept of adapting a comic book, which means a mix of the real and fantasy, was enticing.”
Not in as many words, but Archie has already been adapted in various shapes in Bollywood. Think Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1993). Or consider Karan Johar’s Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998)—what else was it?
Shah Rukh Khan, 33 then, practically played Archie Andrews in the film’s first half. Khan’s daughter, Suhana, debuts as Veronica Lodge in The Archies, with Nanda as the protagonist, and Khushi Kapoor (Sridevi’s daughter), as Betty Cooper.
Akhtar says, “Thematically, yes [we have dealt with this before]. But this is the OG Archies! So you can’t stay away from the [love] triangle, or Jughead [Vedang Raina] liking food, and there is Midge [Dot], Dilton [Yuvraj Menda]…” Big Moose too? “Of course.”
There is also the obvious trolling online that the film has been through, because of its lead cast, that are essentially Bollywood’s homegrown next-gen, although the rest are from outside the film industry as well. The other kind of barbs the film has attracted is something that Akhtar also faced before the release of DDD—that it was too much about stinking rich people!
She says, “I don’t know if [the trolling] is about my films. It’s about all films now. Everyone gets trolled!” A funny tweet we came across about The Archies was about how Akhtar had finally shown Indians for what they always wanted to be—white people!
She’s understandably not pleased to hear that: “Well, they are all Indians [on the screen]. Are you saying fair [skinned] people aren’t Indians? How do we define what an Indian looks like? It could be Hrithik Roshan. It could be Mr Rajinikanth, Diljit Dosanjh, or Mary Kom. That’s the beauty of India.”
That the film’s first trailer premiered at Tudum, Akhtar asks us what we thought of it. It doesn’t matter. It’s a long way before release. Plus, we tell her, she’s the only Indian filmmaker we know, who hasn’t once laid an egg, yet—from LBC, ZNMD, DDD, Bombay Talkies, Lust Stories, Gully Boy, down to her last release, as writer, Dahaad (on Prime Video). Seriously. No pressure. Just saying!
Ahan Shetty excited to watch FIFA World Cup live at Qatar
8:42 AM
Sugandha Rawal (HINDUSTAN TIMES; November 20, 2022)
Actor Ahan Shetty is all set to jet off to Qatar for the FIFA World Cup. “I’m super excited about this,” an elated Shetty tells us. The 26-year-old continues, “I am supporting England. I hope they can bring the trophy home. The other team that I am supporting this time is Brazil. They have a really fantastic team this year. And if England or Brazil make it to the finals, then it will be a win-win for me.”
Talking more about his love for England, he says, “I have been supporting England ever since I became passionate about football and since I was a kid. David Beckham was my idol. It has always been England. They haven’t been able to lift anything for a very long time. So I’m hoping they make a splash in this World Cup tournament.”
When it comes to players, it is all about Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi for him: “I want to see Ronaldo and Messi have a good tournament. It’s going to be their last World Cup, so I definitely want to see the two of them have a great time.”
The actor is leaving for Qatar with his friends and plans to indulge in touristy things on his free days. “I began planning this trip last year, trying to figure out where and when all of the games would be held. And everything in Qatar is quite close by, so we will also be travelling around a little bit too. I am going there on November 24 and will be there till November 30, during which I will be watching as many matches as possible. Then I have some work in India, so I will come back. I will be going back on December 12 to catch both the semi-finals and finals,” Shetty ends.
Fast & Furious 9 kicks off in USA and United Kingdom
8:39 AM
Box Office India Trade Network
The ninth installment of the FAST & FURIOUS franchise (FAST & FURIOUS 9) will kick off in in US and UK this weekend and it is arguable the biggest film to release from Hollywood post the pandemic. The film is expected to be the biggest opener in US post the pandemic and its the same for UK though here it does not have much to beat as the market has never been in a good condition when a major film was releasing. Its cant be called in good condition now but its better than the last year or so.
Also known as F9: THE FAST SAGA, it will also release in some other major markets like Brazil and Mexico while major European countries outside UK will see a release on a later date. The film has already been released in markets like Australia (last week) and China (May) and has so far collected around the $300 million mark.
The best film of the franchise has been FAST & FURIOUS 7 which crossed the $1.5 billion mark worldwide and $350m in US/Canada; that was possibly the peak of the franchise. The franchise is more of an international driven one than the local US market but here there may well be some pent up demand for this type of summer blockbuster.
A good result for the film will be if it can top the opening weekend numbers of A QUIET PLACE PART II by around 40-50%. A QUIET PLACE PART II opened at around the $47 million mark. FAST & FURIOUS 9 will be also be expected to the driving the force in India also as cinemas start to reopen next month. But there is no date set for an India release yet and the wait will be for more clarity regarding the opening of cinemas across the country and this will come very soon.
Check out Juhi Chawla enjoying a Djokovic vs Khachanov Wimbledon match in London
8:15 AM
The actress recently caught a match between Djokovic and Khachanov; Kabir Khan can’t wait for FIFA finals
Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; July 12, 2018)
Juhi Chawla’s latest London vacation, which began last week, is all
about trying out new things. On Monday, the actress watched the
Wimbledon match between Novak Djokovic
and Karen Khachanov. “I have to thank my daughter Jhanvi for that. She
and my sister-in-law Radha are tennis fans and one of my daughter’s
favourite things to do on a vacation is to either play the sport or
read. Jay (Mehta, husband) arranged amazing passes for this match and I
was excited because I’ve watched a bit of it on TV and it looked so
glamorous,” Juhi beams.
She was fascinated by the rules to be followed while watching the
match. “You can’t enter the premises in distressed jeans or keds, unless
they are fashionable, oversized hats and so on. It took us some time to
dress for the event,” she informs, adding, “We had a four-course meal
at the Wimbledon club and joined thousands of fans to watch the match
after that.”
Speaking of filmi sports enthusiasts, Kabir Khan is in Russia with wife Mini Mathur and kids Vivaan and Sairah to catch the final leg of the FIFA World Cup. “The atmosphere here is great. Fans from all over the world are celebrating the game. It’s football madness everywhere and I can’t wait to see the finals. I have rooted for Brazil ever since I was a child. They aren’t in the final four so I’m waiting for the England-France final. It’s time to celebrate the new order in the football world,” Kabir told Mirror.
Aditya Roy Kapur-Ranbir Kapoor to watch FIFA together in Brazil?
9:05 AM
Asira Tarannum (MID-DAY; April 18, 2014)
Director Ayan Mukerji is known to be Ranbir Kapoor’s close friend, but it
has now emerged that Aditya Roy Kapur has also joined the Kapoor scion’s
friends’ circle. It seems that Kapur loves attending house parties;
Ranbir and Aditya have been catching up with each other at bashes thrown
by their common friends.
In fact, the duo, that worked together in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, has kept in touch all this while. A source says that since both Ranbir and Aditya love football — they often play the game as well — it should not be surprising that they are now planning to attend FIFA matches in Brazil. FIFA 2014 will be held in the South American country from June 12 to July 13 this year.
Says the source, “Ranbir Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur recently went to Spain for the Spanish football league. Now they plan to attend FIFA in June. Both are trying to work out common dates so that they can spend some time together after the matches as well.”
Both Ranbir Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur remained unavailable for comment.
Director Ayan Mukerji is known to be Ranbir Kapoor’s close friend, but it
has now emerged that Aditya Roy Kapur has also joined the Kapoor scion’s
friends’ circle. It seems that Kapur loves attending house parties;
Ranbir and Aditya have been catching up with each other at bashes thrown
by their common friends.In fact, the duo, that worked together in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, has kept in touch all this while. A source says that since both Ranbir and Aditya love football — they often play the game as well — it should not be surprising that they are now planning to attend FIFA matches in Brazil. FIFA 2014 will be held in the South American country from June 12 to July 13 this year.
Says the source, “Ranbir Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur recently went to Spain for the Spanish football league. Now they plan to attend FIFA in June. Both are trying to work out common dates so that they can spend some time together after the matches as well.”
Both Ranbir Kapoor and Aditya Roy Kapur remained unavailable for comment.
Farhan, Ranveer, Priyanka, Anushka to shoot for Zoya Akhtar's film on a cruise in May-June?
8:15 AM
Mehul S Thakkar (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 11, 2014)
Zoya Akhtar’s
next film, starring, Farhan Akhtar, Ranveer Singh, Anushka Shrama and
Priyanka Chopra, has been kept strictly under wraps because the
filmmaker likes to do her work quietly and let her films do the talking.
But Mirror has learnt that the director has made trips to South Africa
and Italy to check out and explore different kinds of cruises. 
According
to a source, “The first schedule will be shot abroad a cruise liner
with the lead star cast. The dates of the actors are being worked out
and most likely the shoot will be in May-June. Major portions of the
film will be shot on the ship and it is an important part of the film.”Ritesh Sidhwani, the head honcho of Excel Entertainment, has made a trip to Brazil to check out options as well. According to the source “Ritesh spent the last week in Brazil, they won’t settle for something that doesn’t match up to the magnitude of the project.” When contacted, Sidhwani confirmed the story and said, “Yes, we will be filming on a cruise liner but have not locked the ship or even the country. We will take the decision next week.”
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