Known for her daily soap outings, Shweta Tiwari has managed to strike a fine balance between fiction and non-fiction genres. She has participated in almost every reality show, including Bigg Boss and Nach Baliye. So, when she was offered Fear Factor: Khatron Ki Khiladi, she lapped it up. She says, “I have participated in every reality show possible. Khatron Ke Khiladi is a unique show in which you face your fears and attempt stunts that you don’t in your normal life. So, I decided to participate in it because of the element of adventure. Also, my daughter told me that if I didn’t take it up now, it would be too late for me to participate in this show in the future.”

The actress is shooting for the show in Cape Town, away from her children — Palak and Reyansh. She tells us that she misses them a lot and they are in constant touch with each other virtually. She shares, “At night, we sleep with our video calling app switched on so that we can see each other every time we wake up. We talk at every opportunity. I talk to my daughter before every stunt and after it to tell her how I have fared. My son wants me to get him a hippopotamus, which he calls ‘hippomonatus’ from South Africa to India for him. So, if in an episode I get to meet a hippopotamus, I am going to take him home, because my son wants it (laughs!).”

While many are struggling to find work, Shweta feels fortunate to be getting work during these challenging times. She says, “It has indeed been a difficult time for all of us. While I am grateful for the quality time spent with my children and family, I realised ki kaam karte rehna kitna important hai. Agar kaam ruk jaaye toh sab kuch ruk jaata hai. Your income may stop, but expenses don’t. You have to pay the EMIs and other expenses. So, it was very important to work. I thank my stars that today I have work and I can look after my kids.”

Post Khatron Ke Khiladi, she plans to get back to the fiction genre provided the concept is good and shows her in a never-seen-before avatar. “Whenever I am offered a show, I look at the graph of my character to ensure that it’s interesting so that I am not bored before the show has ended. If something interesting comes my way, I’ll take it up, be it a negative or a positive character, naagin ho ya daayan ho. I am a daily soap actress.”

On the personal front, Shweta has in recent times been in the news for her ugly public spat with her estranged husband, Abhinav Kohli. The latter has accused her of not allowing him to meet their son and leaving him alone amid the pandemic while she has gone abroad to shoot for the reality show.

Refusing to comment on her personal life, Shweta says, “Look, everyone faces some problem in their life. Ups and downs are a part of life. But if you keep your goals, priorities and responsibilities aside and run after those problems or those creating those problems, then you will feel lost in life. My priority is my kids. I will focus on them and keep working because only that’s going to help me in the long run. I don’t owe any justification or clarification to anyone because I know what’s good for my children. No one knows it better than me. I know how to keep my kids physically and mentally healthy, give them a better life and take care of them. Logon ke sahi ya galat se meri zindagi nahi chal rahi hai. Meri zindagi mere sahi, galat aur jisme mere bachhon ki bhalai hai, uss se chal rahi hai. I am fully dedicated to my kids and my work, which is why I keep working and forging ahead. If people want to forget their responsibilities and problems and make me the centre of their lives, they are most welcome. But meri zindagi mein aur kisi ke liye koi jagah nahi hai siwaai mere bachhon and meri family ke.”

As fans welcome his Sacred Games 2 look, Nawazuddin Siddiqui on how Anurag Kashyap has made Gaitonde 'bigger and better'
Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; July 15, 2019)

He may have traded his psychedelic print shirts for subdued suits, but Ganesh Gaitonde has retained his menacing streak, warns Nawazuddin Siddiqui at the onset of the chat. In the week since the trailer of the second season of Sacred Games dropped online, the Internet has been abuzz about Gaitonde's new look.

"Now, he is an international gangster who goes to Johannesburg, Cape Town, Mombasa and Nairobi. So we had to style the character accordingly. I didn't have any reference point, but the look is along the lines of international mafia that we see in movies," says Siddiqui of his new avatar.

While the first season of the Saif Ali Khan starrer ended on a cliffhanger, Siddiqui promises that the upcoming instalment of the Netflix series has been designed to shock and awe. He refuses to divulge details about the cat-and-mouse game that will ensue between Khan's and his characters, sticking to a pithy reply: "My character is complex because of his past, and there are many layers that will be unravelled in the second season. Ganesh Gaitonde is going to be bigger and better. I had read the book [Vikram Chandra's novel by the same name] at the start of the first season. It has helped me understand my character better."

If his part of a crime overlord in the thriller has quickly gained cult status, he says the credit rests with frequent collaborator and the show's co-director Anurag Kashyap. "When Anurag is around, I don't have to worry about anything. The biggest advantage is that he knows me personally, so the role was created in such a way that I would be able to relate to it. He is always able to bring out the best in me."

Having wrapped up Africa schedule, Nawazuddin says Gaitonde’s arc set for unexpected turn in Sacred Games 2
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; January 28, 2019)

“I have left no stone unturned to absorb the nuances of Ganesh Gaitonde,” begins Nawazuddin Siddiqui, aware that his crime lord character from Sacred Games has become an icon in its own right. With the first season of the homegrown Netflix original having won much applause, the onus is on the makers — directors Anurag Kashyap and Neeraj Ghaywan, and showrunner Vikramaditya Motwane — to present a worthy second instalment.

Fresh off the Africa schedule, Siddiqui says, “This season will be the baap of the first one. Even if people know Ganesh Gaitonde, they won’t know what to expect from him. We shot extensively across Mombasa [Kenya], Cape Town and Johannesburg.”

Point out how the new season — slated to drop online mid-2019 — comes with its set of expectations, and he says, “I realised the impact of the show when I was shooting in Rome, a week after its release. People came up to me to click pictures. My team would show me the memes that were doing the rounds on the Internet.”

Before starting their final week-long schedule in Mumbai tomorrow, Siddiqui says that like most collaborations with Kashyap, this too has been “worthwhile”. “When Anurag is working with me, he is constantly pushing me to break my own boundaries. It comes from familiarity and my ability to go on a rollercoaster with him. as an actor, I am someone who enjoys twirling myself up.”

DNA (December 10, 2017)

Akshay Kumar’s Christmas and New Year plans are in place. The Bollywood superstar, who will be away from December 22 to January 3, is expected to fly to Cape Town with his wife and kids for the holiday season.

Time and again, Akki has confessed that Cape Town is his favourite destination in the world and if he could, he would spend much more time in South Africa. He also owns an ocean-facing home in the city that stays fully functional around the year. The staff there is protective of his daughter Nitara. And it is often in this kitchen that the actor, along with his son Aarav, tries out new recipes. Watching Akshay jog around his sprawling mansion and also climbing the innumerable steps around the place, one can tell that he loves this paradise in the legislative capital of South Africa.

During the fortnight-long vacation, he will celebrate Christmas, wife Twinkle’s birthday on December 29 and also ring in the New Year with his family.

Lasyapriya Sundaram (BOMBAY TIMES; April 1, 2017)

Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; December 24, 2016)

Ajay Devgn left for London on Thursday to ring in Christmas and New Year with wife Kajol and his children Nysa and Yug. They will return to the Bay on January 3 and Ajay will resume shooting for Milan Luthria’s Baadshaho.

The actor had earlier said, “London is home for us. We are looking forward to a white Christmas but since the English weather is so unpredictable one never knows how it will turn out. Nevertheless, Christmas and New Year in London are regular fixtures on our holiday calendar. I love the cold and I want nothing more than to spend time with my family there,’’

The temperature in London on Friday was a bearable 11 degrees centigrade with no forecast of snow.

Akshay Kumar with wife Twinkle, and kids, Aarav and Nitara, also took off to South Africa. The family were in Cape Town for Diwali too. Back then, the actor had tweeted, “Away from the hustle bustle...in a place I never get tired of. Cape Town, thank you for always being a welcoming sight! #getaway #famjam.”

They are expected to back in Mumbai in the first week of January after celebrating Christmas, New Year and Twinkle’s birthday on December 29.

DNA (December 21, 2016)

Akshay Kumar and Twinkle Khanna love going off on holidays. Some with their kids and families, some with friends and even solo holidays on their birthdays and wedding anniversary. This year, for Mrs Funnybones’ birthday on December 29, the duo are taking off for Cape Town. The destination is a favourite with the Kumars and this year they also spent Diwali there.

The couple are leaving this week and celebrate Christmas and New Year in South Africa in a sea-facing villa with family and friends. They will only return in the first week of January.

MUMBAI MIRROR (November 5, 2016)

Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; October 24, 2016)

Shraddha Kapoor landed in Cape Town in early August for a 15-day schedule of Mohit Suri’s coming-of-age romance Half Girlfriend. The coastal city is the second most populous urban area in South Africa, after Johannesburg. Its geography is influenced by the contours of the Table Mountain, its surrounding peaks, the Durbanville Hills, and the expansive lowland region, the Cape Flats. Here’s Shraddha’s insider account of the city...

Second time lucky

This was my second visit to Cape Town, the first in 2012 for Aashiqui 2. I'd really liked the city back then, but this time I've fallen in love with it a little more. We were shooting for Half Girlfriend in August and the weather was lovely.

The sun was shining brightly most days, with the occasional light showers. The air was crisp, fresh and happy. I'd love to visit it during other times of the year too but this time it was perfect.

The hotel was great, the staff hospitable. I even got to work out a few times, but not as much as I'd have liked to even though I carried Namrata Purohit’s The Lazy Girls Guide To Being Fit with me and would skim through it whenever time permitted.

Hiking up Table Mountain

Along with my co-star Rhea Chakraborty, I went hiking up the Table Mountain. It forms part of the Table Mountain National Park. We were the only two up for it and we were really excited. It took us around two-and-a-half to three hours to climb up. We took the cable car down. It was tiring but fun. Rhea is an awesome partner to hike with. She's always charged up and game for adventure.

I recommend hiking to everyone, they should try it once, somewhere. You realise just how much you can push yourself and at the end, feel like you've truly achieved something. This was my second medium challenge hike. The first was at the Yosemite National Park in California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains.


In the Cape of Good hope

One day I had an off so a group of us bundled into this big van and drove off to the Cape Of Good Hope. One of the many capes in the South Atlantic Ocean, it has long been of special significance to sailors. John II of Portugal gave it its name because of the cheer the opening of a sea route to India and the East brought to the natives. We called our group the ‘Mad Lovers’. As we wound our way along the Chapmans Peak Drive the view was stunning as we had some awesome music and each other for company. It was one of my best rides ever.

We hung out at Camps Bay, an affluent suburb of Cape Town which is a popular tourist haunt. and ate at a local eatery. The food is great and after that we strolled down to the beach to watch the clouds descend on the water. It was magical!

I have earlier even zipped into The Victoria & Alfred Waterfront, the city's most popular shopping arcade when I was in Cape Town for Aashiqui 2. It’s a nice, bustling area but I didn’t do any shopping there. But I took tons of photographs that make for perfect memories.




Remembering Aashiqui 2

For Aashiqui 2 we shot at the Artscape Theatre Centre, which is the main performing arts venue in Cape Town. When I returned to the city this time, all those memories came flooding back. This time too I collected lots of memories as we filmed at several places around the city. We even went to a party which was super fun. And we gorged on lots of amazing food though I didn’t get a chance to try any of the local delicacies.

Some of the locals I’d met earlier and it was wonderful chatting and laughing with them again. Some of them had seen Aashiqui 2 and loved it. They conveyed this to me very sweetly. Some of the local technicians were the same from the earlier film, a disciplined lot who got along really well with our Indian techs.

We interacted with some Indian fans and well-wishers too. Their love and support means the world to me.

MUMBAI MIRROR (October 17, 2016)

Nayandeep Rakshit (DNA; March 27, 2015)


Rohit, in a recent interview, also confirmed the development. “There is a lot of action in this film and there are four big action sequences overseas. I want to do it in Cape Town because I am familiar with the team there due to the Khatron Ke Khiladi shoots. At present, everything is in the planning stage but we are likely to shoot in Cape Town.” Shah Rukh, in a previous interview with us, had also informed that Dilwale will have some never-seen-before action sequences, which is way beyond his own imagination. But the Cape Town schedule is not taking off immediately, the director is quoted to have said. “We are planning to shoot in Cape Town, Abu Dhabi and Mauritius, but only after I complete the Goa schedule. My whole team and my unit are very happy that we will be going abroad for a long schedule, not a small one. For me, it is a requirement of the script,” Rohit said.

Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; December 30, 2014)