Showing posts with label Croatia. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Croatia. Show all posts
Kartik Aaryan, Ananya Panday to wrap Europe schedule of Tu Meri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri by mid-June
10:33 AM
Mohar Basu (MID-DAU; June 2, 2025)
Kartik Aaryan and Ananya Panday are currently filming an extensive schedule of Tu Meri Main Tera, Main Tera Tu Meri in Croatia. Director Sameer Vidwans kicked off the romantic drama in the European country last month after Aaryan filmed a chunk of his yet-untitled next with Anurag Basu, and Panday wrapped up Chand Mera Dil. The unit will be in Croatia for the next two weeks, filming outdoor sequences and some songs.
“The team has been shooting across different parts of Croatia, including in Vis. The shoot on the island was a bit tricky as a group kept clicking Kartik and Ananya’s pictures despite being told not to. The production team has been told to ensure that bits from the shoot don’t make their way online,” says a source.
After the Croatia leg ends by mid-June, the team will shoot the remaining portions, primarily emotional scenes, in Mumbai. The unit hopes to wrap the romantic drama by July-end.
Salman Khan, Ajay Devgn, Karan Johar, Shah Rukh Khan... we’ve all had our fights and made up, too-Farah Khan
8:35 AM
Rachana Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; July 4, 2022)
Even after being in the business for 30 long years, some things about Farah Khan remain unchanged — her sense of humour and the compelling need to entertain people. The director, now-occasional choreographer, TV show anchor-judge and mother of three is in no mood to slow down. In fact, she’s raring to go, and if all goes as planned, she will roll out her next directorial venture by the end of this year. In a chat with BT, she spoke about her kal, aaj aur kal with her trademark wit and candour. Excerpts:
You recently hit the 30-year milestone in your career. What does that feel like?
When I started, I would have been happy to get work for just three years. Who would have thought I would hit 30 years and keep working past it! We are grateful for what we have. We were poor; my father had died with Rs. 30 in his pocket. At the outset, my dream was to get Rs. 10,000 a song and in a month, make Rs. 30,000. We have so much more than what one dreamed of. And crossing the three-decade mark is not a sign of retirement. Picture abhi baaki hai! When I was starting out, I used to be the only female crew member other than the hairdressers. I have a picture from the sets of Jo Jeeta Wahi Sikander where there were 60 guys and me. Today, the ratio is nearly 50-50. That speaks a lot about the transition in the last three decades.
What else do you think has changed? And is there something, according to you, that still remains the same?
A lot! Every time a new actor or actress emerges on the scene, they think they are it! Peeche dekhte hi nahi hain, ki tumse pehle kitne aaye aur gaye. The truth is that they are not ‘it’, no one is! They are not the ones who invented cinema, though every new person who comes on the scene, says things about changing the course of cinema and reinventing it. Whenever they say something of that sort, I am like, ‘I have seen this cycle so many times...’ I’m fortunate that I continue to be relevant and have credible work even now. I am still here and hope to be here for the next 30 years, too.
Why did you stop directing films after Happy New Year (2014)?
I’m in a comfort zone today. I’ve not made a film in a few years, but I’ve been busy, either doing shows, acting in ads or directing ad films. I’ve found my own zone to work where I am at ease and still as busy as I want to be. I wanted to spend time with my kids. And yet, despite slowing down a bit, the only time we actually chilled together was during the lockdown. Immediately as it got over, I was back at work. It’s a strange cycle. You want to be happy and content, and when you are, you also feel guilty about not working. I don’t take up 75 per cent of the work offered to me. I take up something when it excites me. Today, and even when I was struggling, money was never the sole criteria to take up work. I was selective right from my early days about the songs and the people I’d work with. I remember one of the key reasons I worked on Jalwa (1987) is that we were being flown to Goa and till then, I had never travelled in an aircraft. I was dancing behind Archana Puran Singh and being paid Rs 300 a day at that time.
As a woman in the film business, turning down offers, especially in that era, must have been difficult, right?
I don’t think anyone considered me a woman in the industry (laughs!) I think everyone thought of me as one of the guys. On a serious note, sometimes, I do wonder ki kyun mana kiya maine. But I was also very possessive of the work I did. I worked with many good directors and that just improved my craft with every song. I’m also someone who has worked with 40-50 first-time directors right from Aditya Chopra, Karan Johar, Farhan Akhtar, Sajid Khan and Sanjay Gupta to Nikkhil Advani and Mukesh Chhabra. There are so many to name. My equation with everyone has remained unchanged. In fact, I’ve become a character for them. On the set, they wait for me to say something and expect me to get angry or bugged at some point. The thing is they love me and that is what I have earned in big proportions. I have earned their friendships. There’s a value to the work I do for any movie. My sense of humour is a trope. These days I create some really crazy reels because I’ve to entertain; it’s in the DNA. And I have to do it differently. As for my equation, it has been good even with those that I have fought with for various reasons. At a certain age, you’re brash and you take everything seriously. But there cannot be permanent animosities. You bump into someone, hug and get it over with. Salman Khan, Ajay Devgn, Karan Johar, Shah Rukh Khan... we’ve all had our fights and made up, too.
Maintaining personal relationships in this business can be an arduous task. How have you managed to maintain your equation with everyone?
We all grew up together and worked together. We will always have that shared experience and those common memories of going through so much in our lives. Besides, I am young at heart and I get along with most people. Today, I have a younger friend circle also, which includes Rajkummar Rao, Patralekhaa and Huma Qureshi.
You have had a long career, and when that happens a sense of complacency can set in. How have you steered clear of that?
I just shot a song in Croatia. I went there days before the shoot, completed the recce, created a shot breakdown and worked with the stylist and the director. In 30 years, this has not changed. If you get complacent about your quality of work, that’s the end of the road for you. Also, I hate asking for favours; it’s a childhood trait. A lot of people owe me money because of that. I have done so many songs for free. But yes, I also feel that it all comes back to me in the form of blessings. I’ve never worked for money. I’ve done some music videos when I needed to buy a house, but you can ask my producers. In some cases, I even signed my contracts after the movie was released. So, the motivation to work has to be something other than money. You will always find an avenue to earn, but that can’t be the sole reason to work. Money will make you do all sorts of things, some of which you’ll not like.
My thinking stems from the experiences my brother Sajid and I had as kids. We always had to ask for things. I’d seen my dad, he hated to ask for udhar. My mother has sold her jewellery to pay for our school fees. Farhan and Zoya Akhtar, Honey and Daisy aunty had kept us in their home for about four-five years, and they were very nice to us, but we had to ask them for things. We were literally those poor cousins. Today, I owe them a great deal. I know the journey I’ve had, and I value it. And yet, I don’t like asking for money. Pamper me, treat me well and I will always be on your team. Anyone can take me for a ride. I have to be careful (laughs!).
While you have hits like Main Hoon Na, Om Shanti Om and Happy New Year, there have been lows, too. How did that phase of your career play out and how do you think it impacted you?
I still recall how Tees Maar Khan was ripped apart and though people said a lot of things about it, the film made money. I’ve been a fighter and a survivor. After Tees Maar Khan, I didn’t want to step out, even though I was winning an award for the choreography of Sheila Ki Jawani. My mother-in-law encouraged me to go for it. So, through time and the ups and downs, I grew older and wiser, and had kids. Everything changed with time. Today, I’ve realised that whatever is yours will come to you. I’m not insecure anymore. I used to be that person, and I hate that feeling today. Of course, as human nature would have it, a lot of times, people get happy when someone’s film doesn’t do well; it’s an industry trait and uska kya kar sakte hain. Today, I know that my movie will be made whenever and with whoever it’s destined to.
What do your next many years in the business look like?
I’ll be making movies. I had the best job. I got paid well for it. I enjoyed entertaining people. I am sure there were more talented people than me, but I feel fortunate I had so many opportunities and I worked hard. I have learned never to regret anything and I will hold on to that. And also the wish that when I was young, slim and hot, I should’ve also tried being wilder...
Farah Khan to choreograph Vicky Kaushal and Tripti Dimri's lavish song in Croatia
8:47 AM
Kaushal and Tripti to head to Dubrovnik next month to film a lavish song for Tiwari’s rom-com; Farah to choreograph the number
Upala KBR (MID-DAY; May 29, 2022)
Vicky Kaushal and Tripti Dimri kicked off their yet-untitled romantic comedy on Maha Shivratri in the last week of March, completing the schedule by April-end. Now, director Anand Tiwari will lead the cast and crew to Croatia for a two-week schedule that will see the lead actors shoot a song and a few dramatic scenes. The romantic track will be choreographed by Farah Khan, marking her first collaboration with Kaushal.
The team is expected to leave for Croatia in the first week of June. A trade source reveals, “After the spell in Mumbai, the cast shot a portion of the film in Delhi and Mussoorie in April. They celebrated the first schedule wrap by cutting a cake on the sets. Soon, they will be Croatia-bound. The production team has zeroed in on locations in Zagreb, Dubrovnik where some scenes of Game Of Thrones were shot, the Plitvice lakes, Adriatic islands and the famous lavender fields of Hvar. Farah is known for her lavish and colourful songs. The makers too want the Vicky-Tripti track to be a memorable one, especially as the film sees Vicky in a softer, romantic role and is a departure from his usual intense parts.”
Tiwari’s romantic comedy, co-produced by Karan Johar, also stars Ammy Virk and Neha Dhupia in pivotal roles. It also marks Kaushal and Tiwari’s reunion after Love Per Square Foot (2018).
Choreographer Khan is slated to host the IIFA Rocks event, a part of the three-day extravaganza that kicks off on June 3 at Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. “Farah will leave for Abu Dhabi on June 1 to host the show with Aparshakti Khurana. Following her hosting duties, she will leave for Croatia on June 4. Vicky is also expected to attend the international awards gala and will head to the shoot thereafter. After the song picturisation is complete, Farah will return to the bay, while the lead pair will continue to shoot some dramatic scenes together,” adds the source.
Khan and Tiwari remained unavailable for comment.
Image: Jacqueline Fernandez and Prabhas sizzle in Saaho’s Bad Boy
8:23 AM
Rachana Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; August 19, 2019)
Actress Jacqueline Fernandez recently shot a special song for Saaho with Prabhas in Austria. The number, titled Bad Boy, was shot over two-and-a-half days with virtually no time for rehearsals before the shoot. Sung by Badshah (who has also penned the track) and Neeti Mohan, the song comes close on the heels of a crucial fight sequence in the bilingual action-thriller. Talking about the song and working with Prabhas, Jacqueline said, “Prabhas works relentlessly till he gets things right. It was crazy and fun. Though there is action around the song and I love throwing in kicks and punches, I’m not part of any action sequences here. I was just very nervous as to how we’d do this because I had to get my Telugu lines right. I couldn’t do it without being fully ready, but I was pleasantly surprised that I could nail my lines in the first take.”
Jacqueline, who was in Europe for another professional commitment, met the team of Saaho in Croatia. “As much as I like rehearsing for all my songs in advance, there was no scope for that here. I was already shooting for something else when this opportunity came my way. I just wanted to team up with Prabhas in some capacity, and I was excited when this song was offered to me. So, we started shooting in the second half of the day and over the next two days wrapped it up,” said Jacqueline, adding, “We went into this song completely blindfolded, and yet, it’s turned out very well. It’s the first time that I worked with a team down South, and I was amazed that they work at such a fast pace. They’re so professional and well-prepared. Prabhas rehearsed all his moves with me on the set till he had nailed it.”
Check out the fun and excitement on the sets of Sacred Games in Mumbai
8:24 AM
Travelling across multiple Mumbai sets of the sequel to world’s most watched Indian web- series, Sacred Games
Mayank Shekhar (MID-DAY; August 11, 2019)
"I can give you the script [to read]," says director Anurag Kashyap, lounging after the day's gruelling shoot. He's of course not referring to the script of Sacred Games (SG) season two, the tightly guarded sets of which we are at, in Mumbai Film City's Reliance studio.
"We're bound by such contracts that there'll come a time when I may have to look into it, even before saying hi," says Kashyap, revealing precious little about a dark 'warehouse sequence' he's just shot. But the script he's willing to privately share is still SG, although a different version that was offered to him to direct in 2013, by the American Scott Reid Productions.
Kashyap had flatly said no to it then, primarily because that script, sticking completely to Vikram Chandra's novel of the same name (unlike the Netflix version), was to be shot entirely in English. And he could never do that. The authenticity would've been completely lost.
The fact that the 'universal is specific first' is a model that Netflix has followed to global success with subtitled super-hits like Narcos (Spanish), Fauda (Hebrew), and so many others. There is in fact an English-dub of SG available on the web-platform as well. Those who have seen it say it completely destroys the experience. Deeply rooted in the Mumbai milieu, characters in SG speak the city's language that, as writer Salman Rushdie once described it, is HUGME—Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati, Marathi, English.
Add to that Punjabi, since the lead, Cop Sartaj Singh, is Sikh, played by Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan, in blue turban, who we met earlier in the day in Malad—shooting an 'interior sequence' of an ashram, that he says "explores the 'sacred' part of Sacred Games, which wasn't so much there in the first season; but it comes in now."
Khan appears a much leaner Sartaj Singh (SS, on the set), from before. "The worn-out look, for someone less sedentary, mostly running around, is closer to how the character is described in the book. Also, with a clock ticking and all that, we're getting into more of an 'action series'," he says.
Khan's portions in the second season are being directed by Neeraj Ghaywan (Masaan), who took over from Vikramaditya Motwane from the first part, since Motwane was finding it hard to balance directorial duties with the job of the showrunner—who looks at the "macro-picture"; supervising for months, before and after production, with writers (led by Varun Grover), and editor (Aarti Bajaj); putting together 15-hour shoots, between multiple locations, time-lines, over 200 days, into seamless, eight episodes of a series. Phew!
Motwane doesn't normally visit the sets, he says. He doesn't need to since he implicitly trusts the two directors, Kashyap and Ghaywan, respectively filming parallel stories of Don Ganesh Gaitonde (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), and Sartaj, alongside. Both tracks, not just visually, even pace and performance-wise, play out, if you carefully observe SG season one, like two totally separate films.
Motwane agrees. And this isn't simply because the directors are different. So is the setting. "Gaitonde's world [a series of flashbacks], is a personality-led fable. Sartaj's is a more private space, of tension, and [building] mystery," he explains. From a technical/visual point of view, this is achieved through the use of different kinds of lenses—"anamorphic, with more saturation for Sartaj's [world]; and spherical, with less saturation, for Gaitonde's." While there is no "show-bible" as such, the template is more or less set.
Lay viewers are hardly going to notice these technicalities. What they will/have is, according to Khan, the reason he was instantly drawn to SG as the first Indian Netflix series going out to the world: "Besides an international sensibility in filmmaking, it [the subject] is very Indian. And by that I mean it's got mafia and cops, whose equations are unique. Then you've got religion, politics, God-men, and Bollywood, all thrown into the mix of what's a very psychological mind-game."
True. Can't wait! New season drops on August 15. Two-thirds of SG season one audience, Netflix reveals, has come in from outside India, making it truly a global show. Khan has been around as a Hindi film-star for over two and half decades, with 60-plus movies, and a strong audience-base among South Asians and other Bollywood fans abroad. One wonders if the demography eyeing/approaching him at international airports has broadened/changed a bit since SG. He gently shrugs, making little of that remark, "No... I don't know...Maybe they expect a Sardar with a beard!"
Couple of days after SG dropped, Siddiqui, on the other hand, felt a bunch of locals weirdly staring at him on the streets of Rome while he was there for a film with actor Tanishtha Chatterjee: "Saamne gora dekh raha hai. Matlab, Sacred Games dekha hai," he whispered. The filmmakers shooting the second season seem to have equally benefitted from the prequel's success.
Kashyap recalls, "We've shot the sequel all over—Croatia, South Africa, Kenya… We shot on the same boat from Free Willy. There was an incredible riverside bungalow in Kenya. The moment the owner got to know Gaitonde was going to be there, he just let us do whatever we wanted."
Which brings us to, well: Where is Ganesh Gaitonde? In his village, as we speak. Or a village, aptly created as a set, in Goregaon! Stepping into the refreshment-tent outside the makeshift mud-hut, after a late-night shift, you can tell, Siddiqui has clearly shed Gaitonde behind, to reveal his usual, painfully shy self. Chameleon-like transformations have pretty much defined Siddiqui's career.
But the longest he's ever been with a character is obviously the Marathi gangster's: "It's become too internalised, I can't switch on-off like a computer." And he's evidently developed some empathy for him as well: "For one, he [Gaitonde] loves Mumbai. Two, he's very trusting. And, he doesn't ever discriminate over religion."
For character-study, interestingly enough, Siddiqui points to his own brother as personal inspiration: "I have several [brothers], but only [a younger] one remained uneducated and stayed back in the village. People talk shit about him. I used to as well. It's only when I began to look deeper, I realised, he's essentially over-sensitive and over-reacts. If there's a galat baat (a wrong utterance), people might calm down. He can't. He became bad, because of the bad happening around him."
Extending that example, Siddiqui adds, "Take Dawood [Ibrahim]. People say he has a sharp mind. But it's twisted. If he'd applied his acumen in the right direction, he could've been a great businessman." Hmmm… Got it, Gaitonde.
Food in Croatia is reasonably priced even at sea side restaurants-Huma Qureshi
7:56 AM
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 14, 2016)
Situated on the Adriatic
Sea, Croatia is one of the most beautiful countries in Europe. With its
unique location, deep cultural roots and incredible history, it is the
18th most popular tourist destination in the world. The service industry
accounts for up to 20 per cent of the GDP with an estimated income of
7.4 billion Euros in 2014. About 15 per cent of these tourists amounting
to over one million every year are involved with naturism, an industry
Croatia is world famous for. It was the first European country to
develop commercial naturist holiday resorts with Opatija being the
first. Several other resorts along the Adriatic Sea coast offer services
ranging from nautical tourism and spas to agro tourism.Several Stone Age sites with caves throwing up centuries old excavated artefacts and historical centres boasting of the best of Croatian architecture also add to its appeal. Actress Huma Qureshi who has recently returned from a week-long stay in the exotic country tells us a lot more...
ISLAND-HOPPING
I visited Dubrovnik and the nearby island of Lopud off the coast of Dalmatia. It's an extremely developed island with villas and sandy beaches. I was shooting a commercial for an international cosmetic brand and one of the locations was the tiny island of Lokrum accessible only by ferry. Accompanying me was my director Vivek Das Chaudhary who is a childhood buddy. We reminisced over coffee and realised how grown up we'd become.
There's a Benedictine monastery on Lokrum. I was transported to another era as soon as I stepped into the Romanesque-Gothic basilica. With its view of the sea, it was the perfect picnic spot.
FOODIES PARADISE
During these seven days I had two memorable meals. The first was lunch at a popular fine-dining joint, best known for the traditional fresh fish specialities prepared using old recipes of Dubrovnik fishermen. This restaurant has played host to Edward VIII, the former King of England, and his wife, Wallis Simpson. The service is top of the line and it has a rich selection of local wines. It's in the heart of the Old Town, on the corner of Siroka Street and Vara. Besides the fish, I also enjoyed the meat dishes. Compared to neighbouring European countries, the food in Croatia is reasonably priced even at beautiful restaurants by the sea.
The second meal was at a watering hole offering a panoramic view of Dubrovnik from the top of a glass tower. The food was a delectable combination of classic Mediterranean and Italian flavours with a new-world twist. Scrumptious!
BIRD WATCHING
The beauty of Croatia is that you can experience the best of both worlds a fast-paced city life and the ambiance of a relaxed coastal town. The locals are modern, yet extremely warm and friendly. I chatted with a lot of locals and one of my fondest experiences was meeting an old lady while strolling down the main market street. The limestone pavements that crawl through the city are called stadiums and on one of them I ran into this lady with her exotic collection of birds. They were not caged but were as friendly and adorable as their owner. Some of them perched on my hands and head and I had to get clicked with them because they were beautiful.
CAVE-WOMAN
One afternoon, I went swimming in the Adriatic sea, which is picturesquely situated between the Italian Peninsula and the Balkan region. It is a pristine body of water overlooking the Apennine mountain range. The water is crystal clear and turquoise blue. I jumped off my boat this one time and went swimming inside the blue caves in the middle of the sea. I was lucky because this is rare phenomena and occurs only during some hours of the day when the sun directly shines on the caves, turning them a bright shade of blue. It was a true blue heaven.
Shah Rukh Khan continues shooting for Fan in Croatia despite injury?
8:00 AM
Sneha Mahadevan (DNA; March 25, 2015)
Injuries and Shah Rukh Khan go hand-in-hand. The actor has always met with some form of injury on most of his film sets and this time in Croatia too, SRK kept up the tradition. The actor who is currently in Dubrovnik shooting for his next film Fan, injured his leg while filming a chase sequence. Our source reveals that Shah Rukh pulled a muscle during the sequence that required him to dodge his way through the crowded street. He injured his leg when he was performing a stunt. But knowing his history with injuries, the actor now travels with his medical team. Also, though the makers had a body double ready, SRK chose to take a short break and continue filming. Despite being susceptible to injuries, Shah Rukh insists on performing his own stunts and was back on his feet, thanks to his team of physiotherapists.
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