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Showing posts with label happy birthday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label happy birthday. Show all posts

Monday, September 26, 2011

TODAY EVERGREEN LEGEND "DEV ANAND" TURNS 88


TODAY, Dharam Dev Anand turns 88 who born on 26th September, 1923, better known as Dev Anand is an Indian Hindi Cinema actor, director and film producer. Dev is the second of three brothers who were active in Hindi Cinema. His brothers are Chetan Anand and Vijay Anand. Their sister, Sheel Kanta Kapur, is the mother of renowned Hindi and English film director Shekhar Kapur. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 2001 and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2002 for his contributions towards Indian cinema.

EARLY LIFE:-

Dev was born Dharam Dev Anand on 26 September, 1923 in Shakargarh Tehsil of Gurdaspur district (now in Narowal District, Pakistan) in undivided Punjab, British India to well-to-do advocate Kishorimal Anand. Dev is the second of three brothers born to Kishorimal Anand. Dev's younger sister is Sheela Kanta Kapur, who is mother of Shekhar Kapur. His older brother was Chetan Anand and younger one was Vijay Anand. Dev graduated in English literature from the Government College, Lahore,

CAREER:-

Dev Anand, after graduating in English Literature from the Government College, Lahore, British India left his hometown and came to Mumbai in the early 1940s. He began his career in the military censor office at Churchgate, Mumbai, for a salary of Rs.200. He joined his older brother Chetan as a member of the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA).

He was soon offered a debut as an actor by Prabhat Talkies to star in their film Hum Ek Hain(1946). While shooting for the film in Pune, Dev struck a friendship with another fellow legendary actor Guru Dutt. They had decided between themselves that if one of the two becomes successful first in film industry then they would help the other to be successful. It was a mutual understanding between them that when Dev Anand produced a film , Guru Dutt would direct it and when Guru Dutt directed a film, Dev Anand would act in it.

In the late forties Dev Anand got few offers to star opposite singer-actress Suraiya in woman oriented films, as the male lead. Dev Anand considered himself to be lucky to get a chance to star opposite such an established actress and accepted the offers. While shooting these films, he became romantically involved with Suraiya. The two of them were paired in six films together - Vidya (1948), Jeet (1949), Shair (1949), Afsar (1950), Nili (1950), Do Sitare (1951) and Sanam (1951), which were all successful at the box office and in these films Suraiya was always first billed in credits to imply she was a bigger star than Dev Anand. She fell in love with him during the shooting of the song Kinare Kinare Chale Jayenge from the film Vidya, where unfortunately during shooting, a boat capsized and Dev Anand saved Suraiya from drowning. The entire affair was conducted in a clandestine manner with friends like Durga Khote and Kamini Kaushal going out of their way to engineer secret rendezvous. On the sets of the film Jeet, Dev Anand finally proposed to Suraiya and gave her a diamond ring worth Rs 3,000. Her maternal grandmother opposed the relationship as they were Muslim and Dev Anand Hindu, and so, Suraiya remained unmarried all her life. They stopped acting together after her grandmother opposed and Do Sitare was the last film of the pair to release. Although Dev had tasted success in the films he starred in with Suraiya, the producers and directors attributed the success of these films to the acting prowess and screen presence of Suraiya. Dev was looking for opportunity to play the main male lead in a film where his acting skills could be displayed as people were skeptic about Dev's acting abilities, .

Dev was offered his first big break by Ashok Kumar. He spotted Dev hanging around in the studios and picked him as the hero for the Bombay Talkies production, Ziddi, costarring Kamini Kaushal (1948) which became an instant success. After Ziddi's success Dev had decided that he would start producing films. So in 1949, Dev turned producer and launched his own company Navketan (which mean newness), which till 2011 has produced 31 films and continues to produce movies even today.

Dev chose Guru Dutt as director for the crime thriller, Baazi (1951). The film starring Dev Anand, Geeta Bali and Kalpana Kartik was a trendsetter regarded as the forerunner of the spate of urban crime films that followed in Bollywood in the 1950s. The film Baazi saw debut of Kalpana Kartik aka Mona Singh as the lead female actress and Guru Dutt as a director. The collaboration was a success at the box office and the pair Dev Anand - Kalpana Kartik were offered many films to star in together. They signed all the film offers and subsequently the movies Aandhiyan, 1954 Film, House No. 44 and Nau Do Gyarah went on to become big hits too. During the making of film Taxi Driver, the couple fell in love and Dev proposed marriage to his heroine Kalpana. In 1954, Taxi Driver was declared a hit and the two decided to marry in a quiet ceremony. The couple had a son, Suneil Anand in 1956. After her marriage Kalpana decided not to pursue her acting career further.

A rapid-fire style of dialogue delivery and a penchant for nodding while speaking became Dev's style in films like House No. 44, Pocket Maar, Munimji, Funtoosh, C.I.D. and Paying Guest. In the fifties his films were based on mystery genre or light comedy love stories or were films with social relevance like ‘’Ek Ke Baad Ek’’ and Funtoosh. His style was lapped up by the audience and was widely imitated. He starred in a string of box office successes for the remainder of the 1950s opposite newcomer Waheeda Rehman in C.I.D. (1956), Solva Saal, Kala Pani, Kala Bazar and Baat Ek Raat Ki. Waheeda first became a star with C.I.D becoming a hit. In 1955 he also co-starred with Dilip Kumar in Insaniyat. With his acting in Kala Pani (1958), as the son who is willing to go to any lengths to clear his framed father's name, he won his first Filmfare award for Best Actor for the film. He attempted films of tragic genre occasionally like Pocketmaar(1956), Kala Pani (1958), Bombai Ka Babu(1960) and Sharabi (1964) and tasted success in them. Dev also played a few characters with a negative shade, like in Jaal(1952). Apart from his pair with Suraiya and Kalpana Kartik, his pair with Nutan and Waheeda Rehman was popular among the audiences in late 50’s and 60’s. His films Rahee and Aandhiyaan, were screened along with Raj Kapoor's Awaara. From the early fifties till mid sixties, the trio of Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand ruled the roost.

In the sixties, Dev Anand acquired romantic image with films like Manzil and Tere Ghar Ke Samne with Nutan, Kinaare Kinaare with Meena Kumari, Maya with Mala Sinha , Asli-Naqli with Sadhana Shivdasani, Jab Pyar Kisise Hota Hai and Mahal with Asha Parekh and Teen Deviyaan opposite three heroines Kalpana, Simi Garewal and Nanda. In the film Teen Deviyaan, Dev Anand played a playboy.Raj Kapoor though younger than Dev nand, started gaining weight and this affected his career and even Dilip Kumar's films started flopping in the late sixties. But Dev Anand,being slim and fit, continued to look much younger even in the late sixties and seventies. He gave many popular films till 1990 as the leading man.

His first colour film, Guide with Waheeda Rehman was based on the novel of the same name by R. K. Narayan. Dev Anand himself was the impetus for making the film version of the book. He met and persuaded Narayan to give his assent to the project. Dev Anand tapped his friends in Hollywood to launch an Indo-US co-production that was shot in Hindi and English simultaneously and was released in 1965. Guide, directed by younger brother Vijay Anand, was an acclaimed movie. Dev played Raju, a voluble guide, who supports Rosy (Waheeda) in her bid for freedom. He is not above thoughtlessly exploiting her for personal gains. Combining style with substance, he gave an affecting performance as a man grappling with his emotions in his passage through love, shame and salvation.

He reunited with Vijay Anand for the movie Jewel Thief, based on thriller genre which featured Vaijayantimala, Tanuja, Anju Mahendru, Faryal and Helen. Their next collaboration, Johny Mera Naam (1970), again a thriller, where Dev was paired opposite Hema Malini was a big hit. It was Johnny Mera Naam which made Hema Malini a big star.

His directorial debut, the espionage drama Prem Pujaari, was a flop but has developed a cult following over the years. He tasted success with his 1971 directorial effort, Hare Rama Hare Krishna which talked about the prevalent hippie culture. His find Zeenat Aman, who played the mini-skirt sporting, pot-smoking Janice, became an overnight sensation. Dev also became known as a filmmaker of trenchantly topical themes. This same year, he starred with Mumtaz in Tere Mere Sapne, an adaptation of A. J. Cronin's novel, The Citadel. The film was directed by Dev's brother, Vijay and was also successful.

In the 1970s, Raj Kapoor started playing roles of father in films like Kal Aaj Aur Kal in 1971 and Dharam Karam in 1974 and films with Dilip Kumar as lead hero were failures at box office. Some of the hurriedly made films with Dev Anand as the leading man – three each opposite Hema Malini and Zeenat Aman and Yeh Gulistaan Hamara with Sharmila Tagore became flops and posed a threat to his career as leading man. But he delivered hits again and romanced young heroines Yogita Bali and Rakhee in Banarasi Babu (1973), Hema Malini in Chhupa Rustam(1973) and Amir Ghareeb(1974), Zeenat Aman in Heera Panna(1973), Warrant(1975) and Darling Darling(1977). In 1976, his brother directed a mystery flick named Bullet which though critically acclaimed was not successful at box office.

The presence of his 'discoveries' in the 70’s— the Zeenat and later, the Tina Munim in films and his good chemistry with beautiful young stars like Rakhee, Parveen Babi, Hema Malini, Zeenat Aman in various films boosted Dev's image as the evergreen star even though he was well into his fifties.

Dev Anand has also been politically active. He led a group of film personalities who stood up against the Internal Emergency imposed by the then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi. He actively campaigned against her with his supporters in Indian parliamentary elections in 1977. He also formed a party called the National Party of India, which he later disbanded.

The 1978 hit Des Pardes, directed by Dev Anand was the debut was actress Tina Munim and this film’s success gave him the tag of evergreen hero. He was 55 but he shared very good chemistry with the 20 year old Tina Munim. Dev Anand was offered lead role in Man Pasand by director Basu Chatterjee. Dev Anand’s successful run at the box office continued in the 1980’s with Man Pasand, Lootmaar(both opposite Tina Munim), Swami Dada(1982) being both critically acclaimed and box office hits.

Though Dev Anand’s demand as the lead hero had not decreased even in the 1980s, he decided that it was the right time to introduce his son Suneil Anand in films as the hero. He launched his son in the Kramer vs. Kramer inspired Anand Aur Anand (1984), which was produced and directed by Dev Anand himself and had music by R.D.Burman. He expected the film to do well but the film was a box office disaster and Suneil Anand decided to not act in films any more.

But the of films with Dev Anand as the lead hero Hum Naujawan (1985), Lashkar (1989) and Awwal Number(1990) , where Dev Anand costarred with Aamir Khan were average grossers and appreciated by critics. He was already sixty year old in 1983 when he acted with Padmini Kolhapuri in Swami Dada but did not look old. In 1989, his directorial venture the critically acclaimed Sachché Ka Bolbala was released but it was a commercial failure.

Since the 1990s except for Awwal Number, rest of the eight films directed by him were box office failures. But Sau Crore (1991) and Censor (2000) were critically acclaimed.

Dev Anand has directed 19 films and produced 31 films of which 7 directorial ventures and 18 films respectively were commercially successful at the box office. He wrote the story for 13 of his films. Critics say his directorial ventures have always been ahead of its time. Dev Anand's films are well known for their hit songs. He is known to have been an active participant in the music sessions of a number of his films. His association with music composers Shankar-Jaikishen, O. P. Nayyar, Kalyanji-Anandji, Sachin Dev Burman and his son Rahul Dev Burman, lyricists Hasrat Jaipuri, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Neeraj, Shailendra, Anand Bakshi, and playback singers Mohammad Rafi and Kishore Kumar produced some very popular songs. S.D Burman, R.D Burman, Rafi and Kishore Kumar were his special friends.

In September 2007, Dev's own autobiography "Romancing with Life" was released at a birthday party with the Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh. In February 2011, his 1961 black and white film Hum Dono was digitised and colourised and released. Dev Anand is credited with giving actors like Jackie Shroff in Swami Dada, Tabu in Hum Naujawan and Richa Sharma a break into the film industry and encouraging music composer Rajesh Roshan. Amit Khanna started his career with Navketan as executive producer in 1971 and had been secretary to Dev Anand in 70's.

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

TODAY KAREENA KAPOOR TURNS 31



Where a many Bollywood beauties bid goodbye to their careers and plan to get settled as they reach their thirties, actress Kareena Kapoor is riding higher and higher, who turns 31 today.

EARLY BACKGROUND:-

Kareena Kapoor was born on 21st September 1980, often informally referred to as Bebo, is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. During her career, Kapoor has received six Filmfare Awards, among nine nominations,and has been noted for her performances in a range of film genres; these include her work from contemporary romantic dramas to comedies, period films to major Bollywood productions, as well as less publicised independent films.

Born into a family where her parents, Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and elder sister Karisma were actors, Kapoor faced the media spotlight from a very young age, but did not make her acting debut until the 2000 film Refugee. Her melodrama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... became India's highest-grossing film in the overseas market in 2001, and is one of her biggest commercial successes to date. After receiving negative reviews for a series of repetitive roles, Kapoor accepted more demanding parts in order to avoid being typecast, and was consequently recognized by critics for displaying greater versatility as an actress. Her portrayal of a sex worker in Chameli (2004) proved to be the turning point in her career and she was later noted for her performances in the critically acclaimed projects Dev (2004) and Omkara (2006).

In 2007, Kapoor received the Filmfare Award for Best Actress for her performance in Jab We Met, a romantic comedy directed by Imtiaz Ali. She went on to play the lead female role in the thriller Kurbaan (2009), for which she earned critical acclaim, and the drama 3 Idiots (2009), which became the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time. Having done so, Kapoor has established herself as a leading actress of the Hindi film industry. In addition to movie acting, Kapoor is a regular stage performer and has launched her own clothing line in association with being the brand ambassador for the retail chain Globus. Her off-screen life, including her relationship with actor Saif Ali Khan, is the subject of wide media coverage in India.

With biggest of hits and superhits films like JAB WE MET, 3 IDIOTS, GOLMAAL series, BODYGUARD, and some highly anticipated films under her belt (RA.ONE with Shahrukh Khan, Reema Kagti's untitled project with Aamir Khan, AGENT VINOD with Saif Ali Khan, EK MAIN AUR EKK TU with Imran Khan), Kareena has only proved that she is the original numero uno actress and here to stay.

So join us in wishing Chammak Challo Kareena Kapoor as she celebrates her birthday today.

Thursday, September 8, 2011

TODAY SINGER "ASHA BHOSLE" TURNS 78


TODAY, greatest legend, Asha Bhosle turns 78 who born on September 8, 1933, is an Indian singer. She is one of the best-known and highly regarded Hindi playback singers in India, although she has a much wider repertoire. Her career started in 1943 and has spanned over six decades. She has done playback singing for over 1000 Bollywood movies. She has recorded many private albums and has participated in numerous concerts in India and abroad. Bhosle is the sister of playback singer Lata Mangeshkar.

Renowned for her voice range and often credited for her versatility,Bhosle's work includes film music, pop, ghazals, bhajans, traditional Indian Classical music, folk songs, qawwalis, Rabindra Sangeets and Nazrul Geetis. She has sung Hindi, Assamese, Urdu, Telugu, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, Punjabi, Tamil, Kannada, English, Russian, Czech, Nepali, Malay, Sinhala and Malayalam.

In 2006, Asha Bhosle stated that she had sung over 12,000 songs, a figure repeated by several other sources.The World Records Academy, an international organization which certifies world records, recognized her as the "Most Recorded Artist" in the world, in September 2009.The Government of India honoured her with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2000 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2008.

BIOGRAPHY:-

Asha Bhosle was born in the small hamlet of Goar in Sangli, Bombay Presidency (now in Maharashtra), into the musical family of Master Deenanath Mangeshkar, who belongs to Gomantak Maratha Samaj. Her father was a theater actor and classical singer. When she was nine years old, her father died. The family moved from Pune to Kolhapur and then to Mumbai. She and her elder sister Lata Mangeshkar began singing and acting in films to support their family. She sang her first film song Chala Chala Nav Bala for the Marathi movie Majha Bal (1943). The music for the film was composed by Datta Dawjekar. She made her Hindi film debut when she sang the song Saawan Aaya for Hansraj Behl's Chunariya (1948). Her first solo Hindi film song was for the movie Raat Ki Raani (1949).

At the age of 16, she eloped with 31-year-old Ganpatrao Bhosle, marrying him against her family's wishes. Ganpatrao was Lata's personal secretary. The marriage failed miserably. Her husband and in-laws mistreated her. After a few years of marriage, Asha was turned out (around 1960) by a suspicious Ganpatrao and she went to her maternal home with two children and pregnant with her third child. She continued to sing in films to earn money.

At that time, prominent playback singers like Geeta Dutt, Shamshad Begum and Lata Mangeshkar monopolized the singing for the female lead and the big films, whilst Asha used to get the assignments they refused: singing for the bad girls and vamps, or songs in the second-grade movies. In the 1950s, she sang more songs than most playback singers in Bollywood (not counting Lata). Most of these were in low budget B or C-grade films. Her earliest songs were composed by A R Qureshi, Sajjad Hussain and Ghulam Mohammed, most of which failed to do well.Singing in Dilip Kumar-starrer Sangdil (1952), composed by Sajjad Hussain, she got reasonable recognition. Consequently, film director Bimal Roy gave her a chance to sing in Parineeta (1953). Raj Kapoor signed her to sing Nanhe Munne Bachche with Mohammed Rafi in Boot Polish (1954), which gained popularity.

O. P. Nayyar gave Asha a break in C.I.D. (1956). She first achieved success in B. R. Chopra's Naya Daur (1957), composed by him. Her duets with Rafi like Maang ke saath tumhara, Saathi haath badhana and Uden jab jab zulfein teri, penned by Sahir Ludhianvi earned her recognition. It was the first time that she had got to sing all the songs for the lead actress. B R Chopra recognized her talent and got her to sing in many of his later films including Waqt, Gumraah, Humraaz, Aadmi Aur Insaan and Dhund. Nayyar's collaboration with Bhosle also produced many hits. Gradually, she established herself and received patronage of composers such as Sachin Dev Burman and Ravi. Bhosle and Nayyar had a professional and personal parting of ways in the 1970s.

In 1966, Asha's performance in the duets from music director R D Burman's first successful movie, Teesri Manzil won popular acclaim. When Asha first listened to the tune of the song Aaja Aaja, she had felt that she would not be able to sing the Western dance number. R D Burman offered to change the music. She was offended a bit and took it as a challenge to sing the song. After rehearsing for 10 days, when she finally sang the song, an impressed R D Burman handed her a 100-rupee note. Aaja Aaja and other songs of the film, O Haseena Zulfonwali and O Mere Sona Re (all three duets with Rafi, another popular Bollywood singer), became rage of the day. Shammi Kapoor, the actor of the movie, once said – "If I did not have Mohammad Rafi to sing for me, I would have got Asha Bhosle to do the job". Asha's collaboration with R D Burman resulted in numerous hits and a marriage. In 1960s and 1970s, she became the voice of Bollywood's dancer, Helen. It is said that Helen would attend her recording sessions so that she could understand the song better and plan dance steps accordingly. Some of the most popular Asha Bhosle-Helen numbers are Piya Tu Ab To Aaja (Caravan), O Haseena Zulfon Wali (Teesri Manzil), and Yeh Mera Dil (Don).

By the 1980s, Asha Bhosle had been stereotyped as a "cabaret singer" and a "pop crooner". In Rekha-starrer Umrao Jaan, she proved her versatility by singing ghazals like Dil cheez kya hai, In aankhon ki masti ke, Ye kya jagah hai doston and Justju jiski thi. The film's music director Khayyam, had lowered her pitch by half a note. Asha herself was surprised that she could sing so differently. The ghazals won her the first National Award of her career. A few years later, she won another National Award for the song Mera Kuchh Saamaan from Ijaazat (1987).

In 1995, the 62-year-old sung for actress Urmila Matondkar in the movie Rangeela. The soundtrack featured songs like Tanha Tanha and Rangeela Re sung by her, and composed by music director A. R. Rahman, who went on to record many more songs with her.

In 2005, 72-year-old Asha's numbers for the Tamil film Chandramukhi and the pop song Lucky Lips for Salman Khan-starrer Lucky were chartbusters. Some of the other popular Tamil songs sung by her are Oh! Butterfly, September Maadham and Vennila Vennila.

In October 2004, The Very Best of Asha Bhosle, The Queen of Bollywood, a compilation album of songs recorded by Bhosle for albums and Bollywood films that were released between 1966 & 2003, was released.

It has been 70 years since Asha Bhosle began singing for movies, but in 2011, she will finally star in her first film "Maaee." The movie will begin filming in April and is scheduled to premiere in June.

PERSONAL LIFE:-

Asha's house is situated in Prabhukunj Apt on Peddar Road area of South Mumbai. She has three children and five grandchildren. The eldest of her three children, Hemant Bhosle (named after Hemant Kumar), spent most of his early years as a pilot and quit to have a brief career as a music director. Asha's daughter Varsha worked as a columnist for The Sunday Observer and Rediff. Asha's youngest child, Anand Bhosle, has studied business and film direction. He manages Asha's career. Her grandson, Chaitanya (Chintu) Bhosle (Hemant's son) is a part of the world of music. He is a member of India's first & only boy band, "A Band of Boys". Her sisters Lata and Usha Mangeshkar are playback singers. Her other, sister Meena Mangeshkar and brother Hridayanath Mangeshkar are music directors.

Asha is an excellent cook and cooking is her favorite hobby. She often gets flooded with requests by Bollywood celebrities for kadai ghosht and biryani dishes and has rarely turned down a request. In fact, her paya curry, Goan fish curry and dal are very popular with the Kapoor family of Bollywood. Once, when asked in a Times of India interview, what if her singing career had not taken off, she said "I would have become a cook. I'd have cooked in four houses and made money."

Asha is a successful restaurateur and runs restaurants in Dubai and Kuwait, called Asha's. Asha's offers traditional north-western Indian cuisine. It has a presence in the Wafi City development in Dubai, as well as three restaurants in Kuwait, at The Avenues Mall, the Marina Mall and a brand new third outlet at the Spoons Complex. Other restaurants can be found in Abu Dhabi's Khaldiya Mall, Doha's Villagio and Bahrain's City Center Mall, with future outposts planned for Dubai's Mall of the Emirates and Cairo, Egypt. Asha Bhosle has a 20% stake in the business. Asha is not involved in day-to-day running of the restaurant which is looked after by the Wafi Group. She takes care of the kitchen and the décor. She personally trained the chefs for almost six months. According to a December 2004 report in the Menu Magazine,Russell Scott, a former head of Harry Ramsden's (the fish and chips chain), secured the UK rights to the Asha's brand and planned to open up to 40 restaurants over the next five years. As part of her chain of restaurants, Asha has recently opened a new restaurant in Birmingham, UK.

Asha's fashion statement is white saree with sparkling embroidery, pearls around her neck and a touch of diamonds. Harrington said "The first time I met Ashaji she was dressed in the most beautiful sari with diamonds and looked very regal. Then I looked down and saw that she was wearing tennis shoes! I thought I love this woman."

Asha is a good mimicry artist as well. At a concert at World Trade Center in Dubai on April 22, 2004, she mimicked the song Kabhi To Nazar Milaao in the voices of Noor Jehan, Lata Mangeshkar and Ghulam Ali.

Nowadays, apart from singing and her restaurant, Asha is also working on her autobiography.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

TODAY, DEMI LOVATO TURNS 19


TODAY, The "Sonny with a Chance" stunner, Demi Lovato turns 19-years-old who played coy to the cameras as she exited the famed entertainment center wearing a low-cute orange top, long black button down, cut-off jean shorts and pair of sky-high black and brown platform sandals.

After hitting the lanes, Demi made her way to the local 7-Eleven store, where she proceeded to stock up on her drink of choice - Red Bull.

Earlier in the week, Miss Lovato kicked off her birthday celebration by teaming up with Sober Is Sexy clothing designer Hanna Beth for a joint glam rock-inspired party at Beacher's Madhouse in Hollywood.

Saturday, August 13, 2011

TODAY SRIDEVI TURNS 47


TODAY, Sridevi turns 47 who born on 13th August 1963, is an Indian actress who was a popular actress in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, and Malayalam films. Starting to act at the age of four, she made her debut as an adult in the late 1970s. After going on to establish herself as one of the most successful actresses of the 1980s and early 1990s, she left the industry in 1997 to raise her children. During her career, she has won four Filmfare Awards, two for Hindi films, and one each for Tamil and Telugu films.

FAMILY AND PERSONAL LIFE:-

Sridevi was born as Shree Amma Yanger to Ayyapan and Rajeswari on 13 August 1963 in Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu. Her father was a lawyer. She has a sister and two step brothers. Sridevi married Boney Kapoor, a film producer and the elder brother of actors Anil Kapoor and Sanjay Kapoor, in 1996. They have two daughters, Jhanvi and Khushi (Krishna). Her mother tongue is Tamil

HER FILM CAREER:-

Sridevi started her career as a child actor in the 1967 Tamil movie Kandan Karunai playing the role of young Muruga, and acted in many Tamil and Telugu movies from then on. During her early teens, she acted in a number of Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam movies as a lead actress.

In 1976, Sridevi got her first big break as heroine in K. Balachander's Moondru Mudichu, where she starred opposite rising stars, Rajinikanth and Kamal Hassan. She then followed with a succession of films with both Haasan and Rajnikanth. With the former, she was in movies such as Guru, Sankarlal, Sigappu Rojakkal, Thaayillamal Naan Illai, Meendum Kokila, Vazhvey Maayam, Varumayin Niram Sigappu, Neela Malargal, Moondram Pirai and 16 Vayathinile and with Rajnikanth, she appeared in movies such as Gayathri, Dharma Yuddham, Priya, Johnny, Ranuva Veeran, Pokkiri Raja, Thanikattu Raja, Adutha Varisu and Naan Adimai Illai.

At the same time, Sridevi started acting in Telugu movies, a number of which were made by K. Raghavendra Rao. With N. T. Rama Rao, she acted in movies such as Konda Veeti Simham, Vetagadu, Sardar Paparayudu and Bobbili Puli. With A. Nageswara Rao, she appeared in movies such as Mudulla Koduku, Premabhishekham, Bangaru Kanku and Premakanuka. With Krishna, she acted in movies such as Kanchu Kagada, Kalavari Samsaram, Krishnavatharam, Burripalem Bolludu, and Khaidi Rudrayya.

Towards the tail end of her Telugu film career, Sridevi started acting in Hindi movies. Many of these initial movies starred Jeetendra and were remakes of her Telugu movies, mostly directed by K. Raghavendra Rao and K. Bappaiah. In 1978, she starred in her first Hindi film, Solva Saawan. In her second movie, Himmatwala, she starred opposite Jeetendra. The film went on to be a blockbuster and established Sridevi as a star in Bollywood. The Jeetendra Sridevi pair also delivered more hits like Tohfa, Mawaali and Justice Chaudhury. In 1983, she starred opposite Kamal Hasan in the drama Sadma, remade from the Tamil hit Moondram Pirai starring the same lead actors. Her performance as an amnesiac patient won her much critical acclaim.

Her performances in the '80s included Justice Chowdhary, Jaani Dost, Mawaali, Maqsad, Tohfa, Karma, Aakhree Raasta, Jaanbaaz, Ghar Sansar, Nagina, Mr India, Suhagan and Aulad. In 1989's Chaalbaaz, she played a double role as twin sisters which won her the first Hindi Filmfare Best Actress Award. The same year, Sridevi also received a nomination for Yash Chopra's Chandni. The songs and dances of the film became a rage while Sridevi's white costumes started a trend called "The Chandni Look" in North India. In 1991, Sridevi played a double role in Chopra's inter-generational romance Lamhe opposite Anil Kapoor. Although the film failed commercially, critics applauded it and Sridevi won the second Filmfare Best Actress Award of her career. In 1992, she starred opposite Amitabh Bachchan in Khuda Gawah, where she had a double role as a pining Afghan wife and her spirited daughter. The Telugu film Kshana Kshanam was released in the same year and brought her a South Filmfare Award and a Nandi Award for Best Actress. The failure of Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja (1993) was a big setback to her career, but she continued to deliver fine performances. Gumrah (1993), Laadla (1994) and Judaai (1997) were some of her notable performances in this period.

Friday, August 5, 2011

TODAY KAJOL TURNS 36


TODAY, Kajol Devgan turns 36, who born on 5th August, 1974, better known as simply Kajol, is an Indian film actress appearing in Hindi films. She is regarded as one of India's most successful female actors.

Kajol made her acting debut in the film Bekhudi (1992) and had her first commercial success with her second film Baazigar (1993) opposite Shahrukh Khan, with whom she would act in such popular movies as Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001) and My Name is Khan (2010). Her performances in all four of these films were praised and earned her Filmfare Awards for Best Actress. After shooting for Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham in 2001, she took a sabbatical from full-time acting for five years. She made a comeback with Kunal Kohli's Fanaa (2006), for which she received another Best Actress Award at the Filmfare. Along with her late aunt Nutan, Kajol holds the record for most Best Actress wins at the Filmfare Awards, with five. In 2011, the Government of India honoured her with the Padma Shri for her contribution to Indian Cinema. She is married to fellow Indian actor Ajay Devgn.[

FAMILY AND BACKGROUND:-

Kajol was born in Mumbai of Bengali-Marathi descent. Her mother Tanuja is an actress, while her late father Shomu Mukherjee was a film director and producer. Her maternal aunt is the late actress Nutan, with whom she holds the record for the most wins (five times) of the Filmfare Award for Best Actress, and her maternal grandmother Shobhna Samarth and great grandmother Rattan Bai had both been involved in Hindi cinema.

Her paternal uncles are film producers; Joy Mukherjee and Deb Mukherjee. Kajol's paternal grandfather, Sashadhar Mukherjee, was a filmmaker. His wife Satirani Devi, Kajol's paternal grandmother, was the sister of Ashok Kumar, Anoop Kumar and Kishore Kumar. Kajol's cousins Rani Mukerji, Sharbani Mukherjee and Mohnish Behl are also Bollywood actors; whereas her cousin Ayan Mukerji is a director. Kajol's younger sister Tanisha Mukherjee is also an actress.

Kajol married Bollywood actor Ajay Devgn on February 24, 1999. The couple have 2 children, a daughter named Nysa (born in 2003) and a son named Yug (born in 2010).

On April 10, 2008, Kajol's father died after suffering from a cardiac arrest. His funeral was held the same day and was attended by other Bollywood personalities.

CAREER:-

Kajol left her school St. Josephs convent at Panchgani and started her career at the age of seventeen. Her debut film was 1992's Bekhudi, which was a box office failure. In 1993, she shot to fame with her second film, Abbas-Mustan's thriller Baazigar. The film saw her co-starring alongside Shahrukh Khan, with whom she later went on to make a popular pairing in a number of films, all of which were box office successes.

Her first release in 1994, Udhaar Ki Zindagi, was a box-office failure, but her performance in the film won the BFJA Best Actress Award. She next starred in her first collaboration with Yash Raj Films, the romantic drama Yeh Dillagi (1994). Her performance as Sapna, a strong dreamy girl who leaves her paternal home to make her own life in the big city, earned her a first nomination for Best Actress at the Filmfare Awards.

In 1995 Kajol appeared in the two biggest hits of the year in India. Her first release was Rakesh Roshan's Karan Arjun. The film, which dealt with reincarnation, became the second-highest grossing film of the year. While her next three releases that year failed commercially, her last release, Aditya Chopra's directorial debut, the romance Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, was not only the biggest hit of that year, but one of Hindi cinema's most successful films. In 2008, the film entered its twelfth year in Mumbai theaters, grossing over 12 billion rupees overall, making it one of the biggest blockbusters in Bollywood. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge was also a major critical success; it won ten Filmfare Awards, and Kajol's performance as a young NRI who falls for Shahrukh Khan's character was praised, earning her a first Filmfare Award for Best Actress. In 2005, Indiatimes Movies ranked the movie amongst the 25 Must See Bollywood Films, citing it as a "trendsetter of sorts". In that same year's retrospective review by Rediff, Raja Sen stated "Aditya [Chopra] ... wisely picked Kajol to play Simran, the real-as-life actress bringing warmth and credulity to the initially prudish and reluctant Simran. Not to mention the on-screen chemistry that has become the stuff of legend."

Kajol had only one release in 1996, Bambai Ka Babu, opposite Saif Ali Khan, which was a box office failure. In 1997, Kajol starred in Gupt: The Hidden Truth. Co-starring actors Bobby Deol and Manisha Koirala, the film was one of the highest grossing films of that year. Apart from that, her performance was a significant development for female actors in Bollywood; she was the first female actor to win the Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role. Her next film release that year was Hameshaa. Like Karan Arjun, the film dealt with reincarnation, but unlike the latter, it failed at the box office. She next starred in her first Tamil film, Minsaara Kanavu. Her final release of that year was the romantic-comedy Ishq, where she was paired with her then-future husband Ajay Devgan. It performed well at the box office.

Kajol had further success in 1998, as she was the main lead starred in three of the year's biggest hits. She first starred opposite Salman Khan in the comedy Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya. The film was the fourth highest grossing film of the year. Her next release, Dushman alongside Sanjay Dutt, did moderately well at the box office. She had a double role in the film, and won her first Star Screen Award for Best Actress for her performance. She next starred opposite Ajay Devgan in the romance Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha, which was the second biggest hit of that year. However, her biggest success that year came with her final release, Karan Johar's directorial debut, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which paired her again with Shahrukh Khan and went on to become the biggest hit of the year in both India and overseas. She played the role of Anjali, a young college student who is secretly in love with her closest friend, and many years after breaking contact meets him again after the death of his wife. She won her second Filmfare Best Actress Award for her performance.

Kajol's first release in 1999 was the drama film Dil Kya Kare. She played the supporting role of Nandita Rai, which was well received. She had a hit with her second release, the family drama Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain. Starring alongside Anil Kapoor, Kajol received another Best Actress nomination at the Filmfare. She had an unsuccessful year in 2000, as her only release that year, Raju Chacha went unnoticed.

Kajol had only two films released in 2001. She first played a double role in the drama Kuch Khatti Kuch Meethi, which was a commercial failure. However, she reinvented her success in her second venture with Karan Johar, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, which was a major grosser in India and the top-grossing Indian production of all-time in the overseas market until 2006. Kajol's role was that of Anjali, a young Punjabi woman from Delhi's market Chandni Chowk, who falls for the rich Rahul, played by Shahrukh Khan. Her comic-dramatic performance won her several awards, including her third Filmfare Best Actress Award and her second Star Screen Award for Best Actress. Critic Taran Adarsh wrote of her performance in the film, "Kajol is first-rate in the role of a typical Chandni Chowk lass. Her Punjabi dialect will win her immense praise." The Hindu wrote, "Kajol -- in only her second appearance this year, the first one being in a double role in ``Kajol ... steals the thunder from under very high noses indeed. With her precise timing and subtle lingering expression, she is a delight all the way." This was Kajol's last collaboration with Khan until they would be cast again by Johar as a lead pair in early 2010.

Following the success of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Kajol took a sabbatical from full-time acting for five years. She gave birth to her daughter Nysa in 2003. She made a successful comeback in 2006 with Kunal Kohli's drama Fanaa, one of the highest grossing films of the year. Portraying a blind Kashmiri girl who falls in love with a Kashmiri terrorist (played by Aamir Khan) in the film, she won her fourth Filmfare Best Actress Award.

U, Me aur Hum, which released on 11 April 2008, marked her husband Ajay Devgan's directorial debut. For her performance as an Alzheimer's patient in the film, she received her tenth Filmfare Best Actress Award nomination. Raja Sen wrote in his review, "... Kajol ... can span through happy-breezy with her eyes closed, and so the first half doesn't even pose her a challenge, but when Alzheimer's strikes Piya and she begins to forget all that matters in her life, Kajol raises the bar strikingly high."

Kajol was recently seen alongside Shahrukh Khan in Karan Johar's drama My Name Is Khan, which is based on a true story, against the backdrop of perceptions on Islam post 11 September. Filming commenced in December 2008 in Los Angeles and ended in October 2009. Upon its release in February 2010, the film received mainly positive reviews from critics and became the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time in the overseas market. Kajol's portrayal of Mandira, a divorced single mother who marries a Muslim autistic man was praised by critics, with Rajeev Masand writing, "Bringing emotional depth to what is essentially Rizwan's story, Kajol is immensely likeable as Mandira, using her eyes to convey volumes, topping the performance off with a powerful breakdown scene that literally puts her through the wringer." Kajol won her fifth Best Actress award at the Filmfare, a record which she shares with her late aunt, actress Nutan. She next starred alongside Kareena Kapoor and Arjun Rampal in We Are Family, an Indian adaptation of the Hollywood movie Stepmom (1998). Directed by Siddharth Malhotra, Hindustan Times critic Mayank Shekhar stated, "The premise is stuff dry tissues are made for. Yet, the pathos here is produced not from moments, but from performances alone: a stunning Kajol’s in particular. She appears superior to Susan Sarandon, I suspect." Her next film, Toonpur Ka Superhero, a live-action/animated film, was released in December 2010

Thursday, August 4, 2011

TODAY BARACK OBAMA TURNS 50


With his economic policy compared to a tar baby, and with fellow Democrats lashing out for the concessions he gave away to Republicans in their debt ceiling compromise, President Barack Obama turns 50 years old today.

We're guessing the man could use a vacation.

Instead, he has more work in front of him than ever before: fixing an economy, slashing the unemployment rate, running for re-election in 2012, convincing one party he isn't a Socialist and the other he isn't weaker than the chances of Ashley Hebert actually marrying J.P. Rosenbaum.

At the very least, Obama could use some birthday wishes right about now. Hang in there, Mr. President. At least you helped kill Osama Bin Laden. That guy sucked.

TODAY KISHORE KUMAR TURNS, 82


TODAY, Kishore Kumar  could had turn to 82, if he had been alive today who born on 4th August,1929 was an Indian film playback singer and an actor who also worked as lyricist, composer, producer, director, screenwriter and scriptwriter. Kishore Kumar sang in many Indian languages including Bengali, Hindi, Marathi, Assamese, Gujarati, Kannada, Bhojpuri, Malayalam and Oriya. He was the winner of 8 Filmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer and holds the record for most number of Filmfare Awards won for that category.

EARLY LIFE:-

Kishore Kumar was born into the Bengali Brahmin Ganguly family in Khandwa, Central Provinces and Berar (now in Madhya Pradesh) as Abhas Kumar Ganguly. His father Kunjalal Ganguly (Gangopadhya) was a lawyer. His mother Gouri Devi came from a wealthy Bengali family. Kishore was the youngest of four siblings, the other three being Ashok Kumar (the eldest), Sati Devi, and Anoop Kumar.

While Kishore was still a child, Ashok Kumar became a Bollywood actor. (Later, Anoop Kumar also ventured into cinema with the help of Ashok Kumar). Spending time with his brothers, Kishore also started to take a keen interest in movies and music. He became a fan of singer-actor Kundan Lal Saigal, whom he considered his guru, and tried to follow Saigal's singing style.

CAREER:-

After Ashok Kumar became a Bollywood star, the Ganguly family used to visit Bombay regularly. Abhas Kumar changed his name to Kishore Kumar and started his cinema career as a chorus singer at Bombay Talkies, where his brother worked. His first film as an actor was Shikari (1946), in which Ashok Kumar played the lead role. Music director Khemchand Prakash gave him a chance to sing the song Marne ki duayen kyon mangu for the film Ziddi (1948). After this, Kishore Kumar got many other assignments, but he was not very serious about a film career. In 1949, he decided to settle in Mumbai.

Kishore Kumar played hero in the Bombay Talkies film Andolan (1951), directed by Phani Majumdar. Although Kishore Kumar got some assignments as an actor with help of his brother, he was more interested in becoming a singer. He was not interested in acting, but his elder brother Ashok Kumar wanted him to be an actor like himself.

He starred in Bimal Roy's Naukri (1954) and Hrishikesh Mukherjee's directorial debut Musafir (1957). Salil Chowdhury, the music director for Naukri was initially dismissive of him as a singer, when he came to know that Kishore Kumar didn't have any formal training in music. However, after hearing his voice, he gave him the song Chhota sa ghar hoga, which was supposed to be sung by Hemant Kumar.

Kishore Kumar starred in films New Delhi (1957), Aasha (1957), Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958), Half Ticket (1962), and Padosan (1968). Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi, his home production, starred the three Ganguly brothers, and Madhubala. The film is about romance between a city girl (Madhubala) and a car mechanic (Kishore Kumar), with a subplot involving brothers.

Music director S. D. Burman is credited with spotting Kishore Kumar's talent as a singer, and advancing his singing career. During the making of Mashaal (1950), Burman visited Ashok Kumar's house, where he heard Kishore imitating K. L. Saigal. He complimented Kishore, but also told him that he should develop a style of his own, instead of copying Saigal. Kishore Kumar did not have a formal training in music. He kept Burman's advice in mind, and eventually developed his own style of singing, which featured the yodeling that he had heard on some records of Jimmie Rodgers bought by his brother Anoop Kumar.

S. D. Burman recorded with Kishore for Dev Anand's Munimji (1954), Taxi Driver (1954), House No. 44 (1955), Funtoosh (1956), Nau Do Gyarah (1957), Paying Guest (1957), Guide (1965), Jewel Thief (1967), Prem Pujari (1970), and Tere Mere Sapne (1971). He also composed music for Kishore Kumar's home production Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958). Some of their initial films included the songs Maana Janaab Ne Pukara Nahin from Paying Guest, Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke from Nau Do Gyarah (1957), Ai Meri Topi Palat Ke Aa from Funtoosh, and Ek Ladki Bheegi Bhaagi Si and Haal Kaisa Hai Janaab Ka from Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958).[6] Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar performed duets composed by S. D. Burman including Chhod Do Aanchal from Paying Guest (1957), Ankhon Mein Kya Ji from Nau Do Gyarah (1957), Haal Kaisa Hai Janaab Ka and Paanch Rupaiya Baara Aana from Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958), Chhedo Na Meri Zulfein from Ganga Ki Lahren (1964), and Arre Yaar Meri Tum Bhi Ho Gajab from [Teen Devian|Teen Deviyan] (1965).

C. Ramchandra was another music director who recognized Kishore Kumar's talent as a singer.[4] and their collaborations include Eena Meena Deeka from Aasha (1957). Kishore Kumar's work includes, Nakhrewaali from New Delhi (1956) by Shankar Jaikishan, and C.A.T. Cat Maane Billi and Hum To Mohabbat Karega from Dilli Ka Thug (1958) by Ravi.

Kishore Kumar produced, directed, and acted in the film Jhumroo (1961). He wrote the lyrics for the title song, Main Hoon Jhumroo, and composed music for all the songs in the film. Later, he produced and directed the film Door Gagan Ki Chhaon Mein (1964). He also wrote the script and composed music for the film. The film is based on the relationship between a father (Kishore Kumar), and his deaf and mute son (played by his real-life son, Amit Kumar). He made another two films called Door Ka Rahi (1971) and Door Waadiyon Mein Kahin (1980).

In the 1960s, as an actor, Kishore Kumar built up a notoriety for coming late for the shootings, or bunking them altogether.[7] His films flopped frequently, and he also landed in income tax trouble.[3] As a singer, his work in this period includes Zaroorat Hai Zaroorat Hai from Manmauji (1961), Gaata Rahe Mera Dil from Guide (1965), and Yeh Dil Na Hota Bechara from Jewel Thief (1967).

In the late 1960s, Rahul Dev Burman worked together on the soundtrack of the film Padosan (1968), in which Kishore Kumar sang the songs Mere Saamne Wali Khidki Mein and Kehna Hai. Padosan was a comedy film starring Kishore Kumar as a dramatist-musician, Mehmood as a Carnatic music and dance teacher, and Sunil Dutt as a simpleton named Bhola. Kishore Kumar's character in the film was inspired by the personality of Kishore's own uncle, Dhananjay Bannerjee (a classical singer).[2] The highlight of the film was a musical, comical duel between Kishore Kumar-Sunil Dutt and Mehmood, Ek Chatur Nar Karke Singaar.

PERSONAL LIFE:-

Kishore Kumar married four times. His first wife was Ruma Guha Thakurta aka Ruma Ghosh. Their marriage lasted from 1950 to 1958. Kishore's second wife was actress Madhubala, who had worked with him on many films including his home production Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958). When Kishore Kumar proposed to her, Madhubala was sick and was planning to go to London for treatment. At this time, she didn't know that she had a ventricular septal defect, and her father wanted her to wait and consult the London doctors first. Nevertheless, Madhubala married Kishore in 1960. Madhubala was a Muslim, and the two had a civil marriage. Kishore converted to Islam and took the name Karim Abdul.

The doctors in London told Madhubala that she would not live for long. The marriage lasted for nine years, and ended with Madhubala's death on 23 February 1969. Kishore Kumar's third marriage was to Yogeeta Bali, and lasted from 1976 to 4 August 1978. Kishore was married to Leena Chandavarkar from 1980 until his death.

Kishore Kumar sired two sons, Amit Kumar (playback singer) with Ruma, and Sumit Kumar with Leena Chandavarkar.

Kumar is said to have been paranoid about not being paid. During recordings, he would sing only after his secretary confirmed that the producer had made the payment. Once, when he discovered that his dues hadn't been fully paid, he landed up for shooting with make-up on only one side of his face. When the director questioned him, he replied "Aadha paisa to aadha make-up." (Half make-up for half payment). On the sets of Bhai Bhai, Kishore Kumar refused to act because the director M V Raman owed him five thousand rupees. Ashok Kumar persuaded him to do the scene. But, when the shooting started, he walked across the floor and, each time he walked a few places, he said, Paanch Hazzar Rupaiya (five thousand rupees) and did a somersault. After he reached the end of the floor, he went out of the studio, jumped into his car, and ordered his driver Abdul to drive away. On another occasion, when producer R. C. Talwar did not pay his dues in spite of repeated reminders, Kishore turned up at Talwar's residence one morning and started shouting "Hey Talwar, de de mere aath hazaar" ("Hey Talwar, give me my eight thousand"). He did this every morning until Talwar paid him.

The film Anand (1971) was originally supposed to star Kishore Kumar and Mehmood Ali in the lead. Hrishikesh Mukherjee, the director of the film, was asked to meet Kishore Kumar to discuss the project. However, when he went to Kishore Kumar's house, he was driven away by the gatekeeper due to a misunderstanding. Kishore Kumar (himself a Bengali) hadn't been paid for a stage show organized by another Bengali man, and had instructed his gatekeeper to drive away this "Bengali", if he ever visited the house. When Hrishikesh Mukherjee (also a Bengali) went to Kishore Kumar's house, the gatekeeper drove him away, mistaking him for the "Bengali" that Kishore Kumar had asked him to drive away. Consequently, Mehmood had to leave the film as well, and new actors (Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan) were signed up for the film.

In spite of his "no money, no work" principle, sometimes Kishore Kumar recorded for free even when the producers were willing to pay. Such films include those produced by Rajesh Khanna and Danny Denzongpa. On one occasion, Kishore Kumar helped actor-turned-producer Bipin Gupta, by giving him Rs. 20,000 for the film Dal Mein Kala (1964). When actor Arun Kumar Mukherjee died, Kishore Kumar regularly sent money to his family in Bhagalpur. Mukherjee was one of the first persons to appreciate Kishore's singing talent.

Many journalists and writers have written about Kishore Kumar's seemingly eccentric behavior. Kishore Kumar had put a "Beware of Kishore" sign at the door of his Warden Road flat, where he stayed for some time while his bungalow was being done up. Once, producer-director H. S. Rawail, who owed him some money, visited his flat to pay the dues. Kishore Kumar took the money, and when Rawail offered to shake hands with him, he reportedly put Rawail's hand in his mouth, bit it, and asked "Didn’t you see the sign?". Rawail laughed off the incident and left quickly. Once, when a reporter made a comment about how lonely he must be, Kishore Kumar took her to his garden. He then named some of the trees in his garden, and introduced them to the reporter as his closest friends.

According to another reported incident, once Kishore Kumar was to record a song for producer-director G. P. Sippy. As Sippy approached his bungalow, he saw Kishore going out in his car. Sippy pleaded him to stop his car, but Kishore only increased the speed of his car. Sippy chased him to Madh Island, where Kishore Kumar finally stopped his car near the ruined Madh Fort. When Sippy questioned his strange behavior, Kishore Kumar refused to recognize or talk to him and threatened to call police. Sippy had to return. Next morning, Kishore Kumar reported for the recording. An angry Sippy questioned him about his behavior on the previous day. However, Kishore Kumar insisted that Sippy must have seen a dream, and claimed that he was in Khandwa on the previous day.

Once, a producer went to court to get a decree that Kishore Kumar must follow the director's orders. As a consequence, Kishore Kumar obeyed the director to the letter. He refused to alight from his car until the director ordered him to do so. Once, after a car scene in Mumbai, he drove on till Khandala because the director forgot to say "Cut". In the 1960s, a financier named Kalidas Batvabbal, patently disgusted with Kishore Kumar's alleged lack of cooperation during the shooting of Half Ticket, gave him away to the income tax authorities. Kishore had to face a raid at his house. Later, Kishore invited Batvabbal home, tricked him by asking him to enter a cupboard for a "chat" and locked him inside. He unlocked Batvabbal after two hours and told him "Don’t ever come to my house again."

Monday, July 18, 2011

TODAY PRIYANKA CHOPRA TURNS 29


TODAY, Priyanka Chopra turns 29, who born on 18th July, 1982 is an Indian actress and former Miss World. Before starting her acting career, she worked as a model and gained fame after winning the Miss World title in 2000.She is often referred to by the nickname "Piggy Chops", which was given to her by co-stars on the set of the film Bluffmaster!

Chopra made her acting debut with the 2002 Tamil film Thamizhan. The following year, she made her Bollywood film debut with The Hero: Love Story of a Spy and followed it with the hit Andaaz, for which she won a Filmfare Best Female Debut Award. In 2004, she became the second woman to win the Filmfare Best Villain Award, which she received for her critically acclaimed performance in Aitraaz. Chopra would later have commercial success with films like Mujhse Shaadi Karogi (2004), Krrish (2006) and Don – The Chase Begins Again. In 2008, Chopra received a National Film Award for Best Actress, as well as a Filmfare Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of a model in Fashion and has thus established herself as one of the leading contemporary actresses in Bollywood.

EARLY LIFE AND BACKGROUND:-

Chopra was born in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand to Ashok Chopra and Madhu Akhauri, both physicians by profession. Chopra spent her childhood in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh; Newton, Massachusetts; and Cedar Rapids, Iowa.Her father was in the army and thus her family moved quite frequently. Her father hailed from a family of Punjabi origin, settled in Bareilly and her mother comes from a family settled in Jamshedpur. She also has a brother, Siddharth, who is seven years younger than she is.

Chopra studied at La Martiniere Girls' School in Lucknow as a young girl. She subsequently re-located to the U.S. where she studied in Newton South High School in Newton, Massachusetts and then in John F. Kennedy High School in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She returned to India and finished her high school at Army School in Bareilly. She began college at Jai Hind College in Mumbai, but left after winning the Miss World pageant.

MISS WORLD:-


Chopra's mother sent in pictures of her for the Miss India contest. When she got called to participate, she was surprised and did it mainly to take a break from studying.She came in second place at the Femina Miss India 2000 competition, winning the Femina Miss India World title. She was subsequently sent to the Miss World pageant, where she was crowned Miss World 2000.In the same year, Lara Dutta and Dia Mirza, both also from India, won the Miss Universe and Miss Asia Pacific crowns respectively, in a rare triple victory for one country. When Chopra won the Miss World crown, she became the fifth Indian woman to win the title, and the fourth Indian woman to win in a span of seven years.

ACTING CAREER:-

Chopra made her debut in the 2002 Tamil film Thamizhan playing the role of Priya, the love interest of the protaginist in the film played by Vijay. The film was praised for its wit, although the depth of Chopra's character was seen as lacking.Chopra also sang playback in the film, singing "Ullathai Killadhe" along with Vijay. In 2003, she appeared in her first Bollywood film, opposite Sunny Deol and Preity Zinta in the Anil Sharma film The Hero: Love Story of a Spy. She played a supporting role as a doctor named Shaheen in the film that The New York Times described as "ripping its text from the seething border tensions between India and Pakistan, spicing its conflict with hot-tempered religious zealots bent on nuclear havoc".Despite being one of the highest grossing films of that year, the overall film was not well received by critics.Chopra was awarded mostly good reviews for her debut Hindi performance.Later that year she appeared in Raj Kanwar's Andaaz, playing the character of Jiya who falls in love with Raj Malhotra, played by Akshay Kumar. The film was a success at the box office,earning her a Filmfare Best Female Debut Award and a nomination for Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award. Rediff.com said of her role, "Priyanka Chopra alone clicks with the audience, thanks to her skimpy outfits."

INITIAL SUCCESS AND STRUGGLE PHASE(2004–08)
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Her next few films released in 2004 Plan, Kismat and Asambhav performed poorly at the box office.Later that year she appeared in David Dhawan's romantic comedy Mujhse Shaadi Karogi playing the role of a young fashion designer Rani along with Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar. The film turned out to be the third-highest grossing film of that year.She next starred in Abbas-Mustan's thriller Aitraaz. It was her first negative role and her performance was critically acclaimed.She earned a Filmfare Best Villain Award, becoming the second and last female actor to win the award after Kajol (the category has been retired since 2008). She also received a second nomination for Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for the role. Film critic Subhash K. Jha noted, "A star is born! As the predatory social-climbing seductress who can go to any length to satiate her lust for life, Priyanka Chopra rocks the scene like never before. The film is undoubtedly a triumph for Priyanka Chopra. With half a smile, a twitch of her lip and a movement of her eyebrow she seems to slip into her man-eater's role with captivating ease".In 2005, she starred in six films. Four of them, Blackmail, Karam, Yakeen and Barsaat failed to do well.However, her performance in Yakeen garnered good reviews from critics.

Her other two 2005 releases, Waqt: The Race Against Time and Bluffmaster! performed moderately at the box office.In 2006, Chopra starred in two of the most successful films of the year: Krrish, in which she shared the screen with Hrithik Roshan and Rekha, and Don – The Chase Begins Again, alongside Shahrukh Khan which was a remake of the 1978 film Don. She played the character of Roma, a role which was played by Zeenat Aman in the original movie.

In 2007, she appeared in Nikhil Advani's ensemble piece Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute To Love. Despite a promising opening, the movie was a financial failure.Chopra's next release, the much-delayed Big Brother, also underperformed at the box-office. In 2008, Chopra acted in six films. Her first four films, Love Story 2050, God Tussi Great Ho, Chamku and Drona, were critically and commercially unsuccessful.Critics started panning her for choosing the wrong movies and criticising her performances.Still, she was noted for her physical performance in Drona with Rediff writing, "Chopra truly impresses with her convincing action heroine skills."

FASHION AND RECENT WORK (2008–PRESENT)
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After a series of flops, Chopra was cast in Madhur Bhandarkar's Fashion (2008) for the lead role of Meghna Mathur. Revolving around the fashion world through Chopra's role of an ambitious model, the film was a critical success. Her performance in the film was appreciated and earned her several awards for Best Actress including the National Film Award for Best Actress, as well as the Filmfare Award for Best Actress.Subhash K Jha said of her performance, "Her transformation from the bubbly Chandigarh girl to the super-ambitious supermodel, who dumps her boyfriend and conscience to pursue her dreams, is achieved with a gentle subtlety and bridled passion. This is Priyanka’s coming-of-age film. She looks like a zillion bucks. And acts like a woman who connects with the darkest, most desperate human emotions without wallowing in them."Chopra's final release of the year was Tarun Mansukhani's romantic comedy Dostana. The film was a moderate financial success.Rajeev Masand wrote about her performance, "Priyanka Chopra, is at complete ease, slipping effortlessly into the role of the hottie-with-a-heart-of-gold; she looks smashing in this film, better than she's ever looked before."

In 2009, she appeared in Vishal Bhardwaj's caper thriller Kaminey alongside Shahid Kapoor, playing the role of a feisty Marathi girl named Sweety. Her performance in the film was described by critic Taran Adarsh as "first-rate", who further stated, "She's so much in sync with her character... [and] gets the Maharashtrian accent perfect".She subsequently appeared in Ashutosh Gowariker's romantic comedy What's Your Raashee?, a film which made Chopra the first actress in cinema history to portray 12 distinct characters in one film.She was reportedly being considered for inclusion in the upcoming edition of Guinness World Records for this feat.The film itself was a financial and critical failure,but Chopra's performance in the film was appreciated by critics.

In 2010, Chopra appeared in Jugal Hansraj's Pyaar Impossible where she portrayed the role of a college beauty who eventually falls in love with a geek. The film was a commercial and critical failure.Her next release, Siddharth Anand's Anjaana Anjaani alongside Ranbir Kapoor, got a good initial response at the box office,but was not well-received by the critics.

In early 2011, Chopra appeared in Vishal Bhardwaj's black comedy 7 Khoon Maaf, in which she portrayed the role of an Anglo-Indian woman who murders her seven husbands. Her performance in the film garnered mixed reviews by the critics.She has completed the filming of Farhan Akhtar's Don 2 – The Chase Continues alongside Shahrukh Khan. She has commenced the filming of Anurag Basu's Barfee, in which she is playing a mentally challenged girl, as well as Kunal Kohli's next venture opposite Shahid Kapoor in which she plays a yesteryear actress.and Karan Johar's Agneepath remake,the filming of both being held in back-to-back schedules.Recently, she has also confirmed to be reprising her role in Krrish 2 alongside Hrithik Roshan.

Monday, June 27, 2011

WE ALL MISS U "PANCHAM DA"


WE ALL WISH PANCHAM DA " A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY" (BORN-  27th June, 1939 –  DIED - 4th January, 1994), commonly known as R. D. Burman and nicknamed Pancham da or simply Pancham, was a Indian music composer.

EARLY LIFE:-

Rahul Dev Burman was born in Calcutta. According to stories, he was nicknamed Pancham because, as a child, whenever he cried, it sounded in the fifth note (Pa) of the Indian musical scale. The word Pancham means five (or fifth) in Bengali. Another version is that when the veteran Indian actor Ashok Kumar saw a newborn Rahul Dev Burman uttering the syllable Pa repeatedly, he nicknamed the boy Pancham. After coming to Mumbai, he learnt sarod from Ustad Ali Akbar Khan. He received his early education at Ballygunge Government High School, Kolkata.

When he was nine years old, he composed his first song, Aye meri topi palat ke aa, which his father used in the film Funtoosh (1956). The tune of the song Sar jo tera chakraaye was composed by him as a child. His father loved the tune and included it in the soundtrack of Guru Dutt's Pyaasa. In 2004, the soundtrack for Pyaasa was given an award for "The Best Music in Film" by Sight & Sound, the British Film Institute magazine.

As a child, Pancham also played the Harmonica (mouth organ) in the famous song Hai apna dil to aawara (from film Solva Saal - 1958, starring Dev Anand). Pancham began his music career as an assistant to his father.

Out of his 331 released movies 292 were in Hindi, 31 in Bangla, 3 in Telugu, 2 each in Tamil & Oriya and 1 in Marathi. RD also composed for 5 TV Serials in Hindi and Marathi. He also scored a large number of non-film songs in Bangla (also known as Pooja songs or modern songs), which are available in different albums.

R D Burman started his career as assistant to his father, Sachin Dev Burman. He assisted his father in Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958) and Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), and his first music interlude, in his father composition, was for the song, Jaane Kya Tune Kahi, sung by Geeta Dutt, for film Pyaasa (1957). His first film as a music director was Guru Dutt's Raaz (1959).

1960s

Burman's first released movie as a music director was Mehmood's Chhote Nawab (1961). Mehmood once said that he gave the movie to Burman because he got tired of Burman denting his car with the persistent drumming of his fingers. The song brought together S. D. Burman and Lata Mangeshkar who had stopped recording together since 1957.

Burman continued to work as his father's assistant in movies like Bandini (1963), Teen Deviyaan (1965) and Guide (1965). Mehmood gave him his second movie as a music director in 1965 - Bhoot Bangla. The soundtrack is notable for a sedate "Jaago sonewalo" sung by Kishore Kumar and a contrasting "Aao twist karein", sung by Manna Dey,a Desi version of Chubby Checker's "Let's Twist". In the movie, Burman also acted alongside Mehmood. He also composed the music of Teesra Kaun in 1965.

Burman's first hit movie was Teesri Manzil (1966). Burman gave credit to lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri for recommending him to Nasir Hussain, the producer and writer of Teesri Manzil. Vijay Anand also said that he had arranged a music session for him before Nasir Hussain. After hearing his music, Nasir Hussain made him the music director of Teesri Manzil. Initially, Shammi Kapoor (hero of the movie) was unhappy over choice of Burman. He wanted the tried and tested Shankar-Jaikishen, who had composed music for most of his films. However, after hearing R. D. Burman's music, he had no problems. The songs "O haseena" and "Aaja aaja" belonged to a genre that Indian music lovers were unaware of.[citation needed] Mohammed Rafi sang all six songs, four of them were duets with Asha Bhosle. Nasir Hussain went on to sign R D Burman and lyricist Majrooh Sultanpuri for six of his films including Baharon Ke Sapne (1967), Pyar Ka Mausam (1969) and Yaadon Ki Baaraat (1973).

In 1967, Burman composed music for the movies Chandan Ka Palna and Baharon Ke Sapne but neither film did particularly well at the box office, even though Burman's compositions such as "Chunari Sambhal Gori, Udi Chali Jay Re" became generational favorite. Meanwhile, he continued to work as his father's assistant for movies like Jewel Thief (1967) and Talash (1969).

In 1968, Burman had his second major box office hit after Teesri Manzil titled Padosan. His music for the comedy film was much appreciated.

In 1969, Waris and the musical hit Nasir Hussain's Pyar Ka Mausam (where he also acted in a supporting role) were released. For Aradhana (1969), Burman was credited as associate composer. When S. D. Burman fell ill during the recording of Aradhana's (1969) music, his son completed the music.

1970s

R D Burman was India's most popular composer in 1970s (Hindi Cinemas's superstar era), famous for his hippy tunes. He teamed up with singers Mohammed Rafi, Asha Bhosle, Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar and others to churn up some of the biggest hits in the Filmi music history.

In 1970, R D Burman composed music for six movies, of which Kati patang (a Rajesh Khanna starrer) was a musical hit, this was the beginning of a series of films that were directed by Shakti Samanta in the 70s. Kati Patang songs like 'Yeh Shaam Mastani' and 'Yeh Jo Mohabbat Hai' became chartbusters. He also worked in Bhoot Bangla & Pyar ka Mausam

Eleven more movies with R D Burman as music director were released in 1971. Of these, Amar prem, Buddha Mil gaya, Caravan, and Hare Rama Hare Krishna were musical hits. Amar prem is noted for intricate songs based on Indian classical music such as Raina beeti jaaye (sung by Lata Mangeshkar) was also in this film. The Kishore Kumar sung songs (Chingari Koi Bhadke, Yeh Kya Hua and Kuch To Log Kahenge) in the film were also very successful. The film also established Anand Bakshi to be a lyricist of great repute and he went on to work for a large number of films with Burman. Buddha mil gaya had simple, peppy numbers like Raat kali ek khwab mein aayee and Bhali bhali si ek soorat. It also had a classical song Aayo kahan se Ghanshyam?. Caravan had the best Bollywood cabaret ever - Piya tu ab to aaja, picturized on Helen and sung by Asha Bhosle and R D Burman ("Monica! O my darling"). He also received his first Filmfare Best Music nomination for "Caravan." The title song of Hare Krishna Hare Rama sung by Asha became the hip-hop anthem for the youngsters. The song is used in Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories soundtrack, titled Dum Maro Dum for Radio Del Mundo in 2006. Over the years the song has been given cult status. Other songs like Phoolon ka taaron ka and Kaanchi re were also popular. Paraya Dhan also featured some memorable songs like 'Tera Mera Juda Hona' and 'Haye Mera Dil.' 'Koi Maane Ya Naa Maane' from Adhikar is also notable.

In 1972, R D Burman composed music for nineteen films. Seeta aur Geeta, Rampur ka Lakshman, Mere jeevan saathi, Bombay to Goa, Apna Desh and Parichay were musically successful. The high-pitched Asha-R D Burman duet Duniya mein logon ko from Apna desh became popular. Songs like Beeti na beetayi raina and Musafir Hoon Yaron from Parichay marked the beginning of a fruitful association between R D Burman and lyricist Gulzar which would go on till the late eighties. Rajesh Khanna's Mere jeevan sathi had beautiful evergreen Kishore Kumar numbers like O Mere Dil Ke Chain. Also released in 1972 Jawaani diwaani was a hit. Songs like Abhi nahi, Jaan-e-jaan dhoondhta phir raha and the title track were all chart-busters that year. Bombay to Goa, a comedy had hilarious songs like 'Dekha Naa Haye Re.' Seeta aur Geeta was the first film where Ramesh Sippy worked with Burman. Subsequently all his films till the end of the 80s would have Burman's music.

1973 saw fourteen more R D Burman soundtracks, of which the most successful ones were Nasir Hussain's Yaadon Ki Baraat, Shareef badmash, Heera panna and Anamika, whose 'Bahon Mein Chali Aa' and Meri Bheegi Bheegi' became popular. Yaadon Ki Baaraat was a musical with numbers such as 'Chura Liya Hai', 'Yaadon Ki Baarat', 'Lekar Hum Diwana Dil', 'Meri Soni Tamanna.'

In 1974, sixteen movies with R D Burman music were released. Aap ki kasam and Ajanabee were major hits.

In 1975, there were nine movies with R D Burman soundtracks including the superhit Sholay, Deewaar ,Aandhi, Khushboo and Dharam karam. In Sholay, he sang Mehbooba mehbooba, picturised on Helen and Jalal Agha and for which he received his sole Filmfare nomination for playback singing. Aandhi had classic Gulzar songs sung by Kishore-Lata - Is mod se jaate hain, tum aa gaye ho, Tere bina zindagi se koi and others. Khushboo was another R D Burman-Gulzar masterpiece with songs like O manjhi re.

He did a song for a small documentary film called Maa Ki Pukaar, in 1975.

R. D. Burman also completed the music of Mili (1975) after his father went into coma and died. In 1976, there were 8 movies with R D Burman as music director, of which Mehabooba (1976) was a classic musical film based on reincarnation, where Rajesh Khanna played double role as Singer (Classical and Modern) with a very sophisticated way. Nine more movies were released in 1977. Naam gum jaayega (Kinara, 1977) is another of R D Burman-Gulzar gems, but it was "Kya Hua Tera Wada"(Nasir Hussain's Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin, 1977) rendered fascinatingly by Mohd. Rafi that became one of the most popular songs ever. Although, Kishore Kumar still continued to be the dominant male playback singer for R.D. Burman's songs, the success of "Kya Hua Tera Wada" enabled Burman to use Rafi more frequently.

In 1978, nine more R D Burman releases, including Shalimar and Kasme vaade. Shalimar included hits like Hum bewafa hargiz na the (Kishore Kumar) and the title track (Asha Bhosle). The title track, Mile jo kadi kadi and Aati rahengi baharein of Kasme Vaade were very popular. The title track and Raju chal Raju of Dharmendra-starrer Azaad were also moderately popular. Ghar was a huge hit for R.D. Burman-Gulzar duo with songs like Tere bina jiya jaaye na, Aaj Kal paon zameen par, Phir Wohi Raat hai.

1979 was a relatively full year for R D Burman, although he composed music for ten films. His biggest hit was Golmaal. The most popular songs were Aanewala pal (Kishore Kumar) and the title track (Golmaal hai bhai sab golmaal hai) sung by R D Burman and his assistant Sapan Chakraborty. Few other R D Burman hit songs in 1979 were Jeevan ke har mod pe (Jhoota kahin ka), Rim jhim gire saawan (Manzil), Saawan ke jhoole pade (Jurmana) and Do lafzon ki hai dil ki kahani (The great gambler, sung by Asha Bhosle and actor Sharad Kumar).

1980s

In 1980, there were ten releases. The song "Humein Tumse Pyar Kitna" was recorded twice with a male singer (Kishore Kumar) and a female singer (Parveen Sultana), who received the Filmfare Best Female Playback Award. R. D. Burman orchastrated for songs like The burning train and Shaan. The burning train included Sahir Ludhianvi qawwali sung by Asha Bhosle and Mohammed Rafi - Pal do pal ka saath hamara. The film is also noted for Teri hai zameen, sung by Sushma Shrestha and Padmini Kolhapure as child-singers. Shaan had songs like Pyar karne wale pyar karte hain shaan se (Asha Bhosle), Doston se pyaar kiya (Usha Uthup) and Yamma yamma (duet sung by Rafi and R D Burman). R D Burman also composed for Alibaba aur 40 chor (Приключения Али-Бабы и сорока разбойников in Russian), an Indo-Russian collaboration. Actor Rekha made her singing debut under R D Burman with the song Kaayada kaayada in Khubsoorat (1980). The lyrics were penned by Gulzar. Other songs included Sun sun didi tere liye (Asha Bhosle) and Piya bavari (Asha and Ashok Kumar). The score is noted for Rafi-song Maine poocha chaand se, in which R D Burman modernised his father Sachin Dev Burman's tune.

The years 1981 saw R D Burman composing for fifteen films. He created two soundtracks with lyricist Gulshan Bawra and Universal Music India (then called Music India) - Satte pe satta and Yeh vaada raha. Amitabh Bachchan-starrer Satte pe satta was a story of 7 brothers and their 7 brides. The songs picturized on the seven brothers were sung by R D Burman, his assistants Basu and Sapan Chakravorty, lyricist Gulshan Bawra, Bhupendra, Anand Kumar C and Kishore Kumar. The songs for the ladies were sung by Asha Bhosle, Annette and Dilraj Kaur. The songs include Dukki pe dukki ho, Pyar hamein kis mod pe, Dilbar mere and Zindagi milke bitaayenge. R D Burman's song in 1981 was Sanam teri kasam. The soundtrack included Kitne bhi tu kar le sitam, Jaan-e-jaan and Dekhta hoon koi ladki haseen among other songs. He received his first Filmfare Award for Best Music for this film, after being nominated for 12 years. received In 1981, R D Burman also composed music for Rocky (Sanjay Dutt's debut movie) and Love story (debut film of Sanjay Dutt's brother-in-law, Kumar Gaurav).

Fourteen more R D Burman soundtracks were released in 1982. The team of Nasir Hussain, R D Burman and Majrooh Sultanpuri (which had started with Teesri Manzil (1966)) presented Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai in 1982. Rafi would be heard in a Nasir Hussain-R.D. Burman-Majrooh Sultanpuri collaboration. Ashok Kumar's last song Chalo haseen geet (Shaukeen, 1982) was composed by R D Burman. Angoor (1982) is noted for R D Burman's spoof on the O. P. Nayyar song Preetam aan milo, sung by Sapan Chakravorty. In 1983, there were fifteen R D Burman soundtracks, including Masoom and Agar Tum Na Hote. He also received his second consecutive Filmfare Award for Best Music for "Masoom."

In 1984, fourteen R D Burman soundtracks were released. This year, Gulshan Kumar's T-Series made its entry into the arena of original film soundtracks. The company's first major music rights acquisition were for Pramod Chakravorty’s bi-lingual Jagir(Hindi)/Teen Murti(Bengali). The film's music was composed by R D Burman. Kumar Sanu was given his first break by R D Burman in Yeh desh (1984) as voice of Kamal Haasan. Abhijeet was given his major break by R D Burman in Anand aur Anand (1984). Although he made his debut a long time ago, Hariharan was first noticed in a duet with Kavita Krishnamurthy, Hai mubarak aaj ka din (Boxer, 1984), which was composed by R D Burman.

In 1985, Mohammed Aziz, a Rafi clone of 1980s, made his debut with Shiva Ka Insaaf (1985) under R D Burman. Hussain defended Burman to the press: "I disagree that RD gave weak music in (Zamane Ko Dikhana Hai (1982) and Manzil Manzil (1984)). He was passing through a lean phase during Zabardast."Hussain stopped directing films and handed the reins over to his son Mansoor Khan, who hired other music directors. Hussain put a positive spin on it at the time by saying, "We did not ‘drop’ Pancham – Mansoor felt that he could not possibly tell Pancham Uncle to change his style for him. Pancham will come back the day I direct again, which I plan to do soon."The partnership between Hussain and Burman which had started nearly twenty years ago with Teesri Manzil (1966) ended.

After 1986, he started getting less work. The year 1987 saw only 5 releases including Ijaazat. Ijaazat included songs like Choti si kahani se, Khaali haath shaam aayi hi, Katra katra and Mera kuch samaan (which won Asha Bhosle the National Award as Best Singer).

Noted lyricist, Gulzar, R.D. Burman and Asha Bhosle, came together in 1987, to create a double album, titled, Dil Padosi Hai, which was released on 8 September 1987, Asha Bhosle's birthday. R D Burman also produced private albums, including one based on the samba, and also collaborated with Boy George. He has also composed music for an album called Pantera produced by Pete Gavankar in 1987 whose lyrics were written by Jose Flores.

1988 saw some four more R D Burman soundtracks of which Libaas had songs, but the producer refused to release the film. R D Burman gave music for 6 more movies in 1989, including Parinda and Joshilaay.

1990s

R D Burman's last years were not very pleasant. The few films he composed music for flopped at the box office. Subhash Ghai promised him Ram Lakhan but gave it instead to Laxmikant-Pyarelal. This greatly upset Pancham. He suffered from a heart attack in 1988 and underwent heart surgery. During this period, he composed many tunes, which were never released.

R D Burman gave music for few mediocre movies in 1990 (two), 1991 (three) and 1992 (six). In 1994, there were four more releases, of which 1942: A Love Story (released after his death) has an unforgettable score. The film won him the third and last of his Filmfare Awards. The music of Janam Se Pehle (1994) was also composed by R D Burman. Thenmavin Kombath, a Malayalam film by Priyadarshan was the last film he signed, but he died before he could score for the film.

LEGACY:-

After his death, in the mid 1990s, the remix versions of R D Burman's hits ruled the Indian music scene. Even today, most of the Indian remix songs are his tunes remixed[citation needed].

Gang (2000) was released long after R D Burman's death. He was also credited for music of few more films after his death. For example, Monsoon Wedding (credit for Chura liya hai) and Dil Vil Pyaar Vyaar (2002), which had R D Burman songs "recreated" by one of his assistants Babloo Chakravorty.

Jhankaar Beats (2003 movie)starring Sanjay Suri, Rahul Bose, Juhi Chawla & Rinke Khanna was sort of a tribute to RDB, wherein Suri & Bose play musicians who revere RDB & his music & whose music is influenced by Burman. There was a remixed version of Burmans popular Kishore Kumar number "Humein tumse pyaar kitna" which was integral to the film. Both the films, Dil Vil Pyaar Vyaar and Jhankaar Beats paid tribute to R.D. Burman, and his music. "Jhankaar Beats" features one of his famous tunes from the movie, Kudrat while paying tribute to him.

In, 1995, Filmfare Awards, constituted a new award in the memory of R D Burman, Filmfare RD Burman Award for New Music Talent, given each year, to new music directors and singers in Hindi cinema. Before that an Indian Television proramme Superhit Muqabala's SUMU Award for R D Burman also started. Though that Award was not continued in later years as producers of the programme had some problems. The Filmfare RD Burman Award for New Music Talent is awarded to upcoming music talents.

In 2008 on 26 April 113 Minute documentary film, titled 'Pancham Unmixed - Mujhe Chalte Jana Hai', was premiered at IIFLA (ArcLight Hollywood), in Los Angeles. The film takes an incisive look into the Pancham’s reflective artistry and buoyant-but-also-lonely inner being. Featuring a host of close friends, colleagues and admirers, the film attempts to evoke awe, admiration and nostalgia the way most of his music does, till date.

PERSONAL LIFE:-

Pancham married Rita Patel in 1966, but they were divorced in 1971. He then married Asha Bhonsle in 1980. Together, they recorded many memorable tunes and also staged many live performances. After his father died in 1975, he took care of his mother. After Pancham's death, his mother eventually ended up in an old-age home but returned to her late son's house to die on 15 October 2007.

Burman had financial difficulties, particularly later in his life. There have been wide discussions about the disconnect between the success of his music and his financial success.

MUSIC STYLE:-

Pancham was comfortable with all types of music, be it the romantic Raat kali from Buddha Mil Gaya (1971), the sexy cabaret Piya tu ab toh aaja from Caravan (1971), the ultimate hippie anthem Dum Maro Dum from Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1972) or the classical Raina beeti jaaye. It is said that Dev Anand did not include the complete version of Dum Maro Dum in Hare Rama Hare Krishna, as he was worried the song would overshadow the film[citation needed]. At times, RD doubled up as a singer too. His most famous song as a singer was Mehbooba from Sholay. This song is inspired from the traditional Cypriot song "Ta Rialia".

Pancham was a very creative person. His percussion included a spoon against a glass (Chura liya hai from Yaadon Ki Baaraat"). Pancham has also directed music for some regional films, including Bangla, Oriya, Tamil, Telugu and Marathi. He also acted in one of the Bengali film named Gayak (starring Amit Kumar and Debasri Roy), where RD plays himself and 'discovers' Amit singing on a beach. Pancham's non-filmi music comprises few albums, including Pantera - the international album for which he shares credit with Latin American composer Jose Flores. In the only experiment of its kind[citation needed] he recorded the light version of Hume tumse pyar kitna in the voice of playback singer Kishore Kumar while the classical version in the voice of Parveen Sultana. He recorded a variety of songs rendered by Kishore Kumar notably the classical song Mere naina sawan bhado, the sad song Chingari koi bhadake, the philosophical song Aanewala pal, the pino song Pyar diwana hota hai, the romantic song O mere dil ke chain, the hummable wonder Raat kali, the separation song Zindagi ke safar me, the rainy song Rimjhim gire saawan. He recorded Tum bin jaun kahan in the voices of Kishore Kumar and Mohd. Rafi separately.

Notable musical assistants to Burman include Manohari Singh and Sapan Chakraborty.

AWARDS AND NOMINATIONS:-

    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Caravan (1971)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Yaadon Ki Baraat (1973)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Aap Ki Kasam (1974)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Khel Khel Mein (1975)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Sholay (1975)
    - Filmfare Award Nomination for Best Male Playback Singer - for the song "Mehbooba Mehbooba" in Sholay (1975)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Mehbooba (1976)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin (1977)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Kinara (1977)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Shalimar (1978)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Shaan (1980)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Love Story (1981)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award - Sanam Teri Kasam (1982)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award - Masoom (1983)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Betaab (1983)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Jawani (1984)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award Nomination - Saagar (1986)
    - Filmfare Best Music Director Award - 1942: A Love Story (1994)

Saturday, June 25, 2011

COMEDIAN ACTOR SATISH SHAH TURNS 60 TODAY


TODAY, BOLLYWOOD most famous comedian, Satish Ravilal Shah turns 60 who born on June 25, 1951, is a Hindi and Marathi film and television actor best known for his comedy films. He is perhaps best known for his roles in the ever popular 80's sitcom Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi directed by Sharad Joshi. Wish you a very "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" from CINECELEBS.

He is famous for playing the role of Municipal Commissioner D'Mello in the cult 1983 movie Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro directed by Kundan Shah. Considered to be primarily a comedian, he has portrayed various roles in his career throughout the 80s, 90s & 2000s, starting with his first movie "Arvind Desai Ki Ajeeb Dastaan" and "Toofani Takkar" released in 1978. Apart from his successful career in bollywood, he has also appeared in television shows such as Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and also judged the popular Comedy Circus laughter contest.

IN TELEVISION:-

  - Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi as Various characters
  - Sarabhai VS Sarabhai as Indravadhan Sarabhai
  - All the best (Doordarshan) as Dr. Raj Sethi
  - Philips top 10
  - Filmi Chakkar as Prakash Jaiswal

KARISHMA KAPOOR TURNS 37 TODAY



TODAY, BOLLYWOOD one time most famous celebrity, KARISHMA KAPOOR turns 37 who born 25th, June 1974, often informally referred to as Lolo,is an Indian actress who made her debut in 1991, and appears in Bollywood films.Wish you a very "HAPPY BIRTHDAY" from CINECELEBS.

During her career, she has been part of many commercially and critically successful films, Raja Hindustani being the most notable of them, as it was her biggest commercial success, and won Kapoor her first Filmfare Award for Best Actress. She won another Filmfare Award and a National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for Dil To Pagal Hai (1997). She surprised critics and audiences with her performances in films such as Fiza (2000) and Zubeidaa (2001), for which she earned Best Actress and Best Actress (Critics) trophies at Filmfare. Since 2003, Kapoor has been less active in cinema.

EARLY LIFE:-

Kapoor was born in Mumbai to Randhir Kapoor, an actor popular during the 1970s and 80s, and actress Babita. She is the granddaughter of actor and filmmaker Raj Kapoor, great-granddaughter of actor Prithviraj Kapoor, sister of actress Kareena Kapoor and niece of actor Rishi Kapoor.Kapoor studied at the Cathedral and John Connon School in Mumbai until grade six.

CAREER:-

Kapoor made her debut in the 1991 movie Prem Qaidi, which was a semi-hit. Although most of her multiple releases from 1992-1996 failed to do well at the box office, she had some success with films like Jigar (1992), Anari (1993), Raja Babu (1994), Coolie No. 1 (1995), Saajan Chale Sasural (1996) and Jeet (1996).

In 1996, Kapoor played the female lead in Dharmesh Darshan's Raja Hindustani opposite Aamir Khan. The movie was the highest grossing film of the year and she won her first Filmfare Best Actress Award. The following year, she won the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award and the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Yash Chopra's super-hit,Dil To Pagal Hai opposite Shahrukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit.

Kapoor took a year break from films in 1998. Her diminutive comeback in 1999 proved to be good as she took part in the year's most successful films. Kapoor starred in four absolute hits. David Dhawan's comedy Biwi No.1 opposite Salman Khan became the biggest hit of the year. She proved to have success with comedy films, as David Dhawan's another film Haseena Maan Jaayegi did fairly well at the box office.

Kapoor also collaborated for the first time with the Rajshri Productions banner with Hum Saath-Saath Hain: We Stand United which also resulted in a hit. Her last release, Jaanwar opposite Akshay Kumar, was another box office hit, making her the most successful actress of the year.

In 2000, she won her second Filmfare Best Actress Award for her performance in Khalid Mohammed's Fiza. Her performance in the film was much appreciated as she surprised the audiences and the critics showing great emotional range and depth.She also achieved critical acclaim for her role in the film, Zubeidaa (2001),which garnered her the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance. Her performance in Shakti - The Power (2002) was highly appreciated and earned her many nominations in the Best Actress category.

In 2003, she played the leading role in the television series Karishma: A Miracle of Destiny. After her film, Baaz: A Bird In Danger which also released in 2003, she took a sabbatical from full time acting for three years.

Her most recent release was the delayed film, Mere Jeevan Saathi (2006) in which she played a negative role.

In October 2008, alongside actor Arjun Rampal and director/choreographer Farah Khan, Kapoor began judging the dance show Nach Baliye 4.

In 2011, she officially announced she is returning to movies in a Vikram Bhatt's next, a 3D film titled Dangerous Ishq.

PERSONAL LIFE:-

Karisma was engaged to Abhishek Bachchan. The engagement was announced in October 2002 on the 60th birthday of Abhishek's father, Amitabh Bachchan. Four months later in February 2003, they split up. On 29 September 2003, she married industrialist Sanjay Kapur, CEO of Sixt India.


In typical Kapoor tradition, Karisma was married at the home of her grandfather (the late Raj Kapoor): R K Cottage. They opted for an hour-long Sikh wedding ceremony. The couple's daughter Samaira was born on 11 March 2005. After the birth of her daughter, there was considerable rift between her and her husband.

The couple has subsequently patched-up. She gave birth to their second child, son Kiaan Raj Kapoor on 12 March 2010.