The Assistant Commissioner of Police, Iqbal Shaikh said that it was a bailable offense under section 325 of the IPC . He further added that the complainant, Mr Sharma who was nursing a bleeding and fractured nose reported the matter around 2:30am on Wednesday. Meanwhile, statements of eight individual witnesses are being recorded and the CCTV footage is being scanned to verify if Saif really assaulted the complainant.

The actor’s look in Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 2 will be inspired from her mother’s look in the classic Anupama

The Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster sequel has got more interesting – Soha Ali Khan joins the cast as Irrfan Khan’s tormented wife. Her role would borrow quite a lot from Anupama, in which her mother, Sharmila Tagore, was seen as a suppressed daughter. But as Soha points out enigmatically: “Nothing and no one is ever how they seem. I’m very excited about the role.”

Adding to Soha’s excitement about being teamed up with the talented Irrfan for the first time is the fact that her look, body language, clothes and appearance would be modelled on her mother Sharmila in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s 1960 classic Anupama. In the film Soha’s mother had played a suppressed daughter.

“Soha has just been added to Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 2. After the surprisingly positive response to the sequel, we want the sequel to be less budget-challenged, more glossy and viewer-friendly,” said Tigmanshu Dhulia, who is directing the film.

“We also needed to add more characters to carry the sequel forward. Jimmy Shergill, Mahie Gill and Randeep Hooda are back. But Irrfan and Soha play the other couple. Soha will play a very mysterious character.” Tigmanshu was very impressed with Soha. “When I met her, I found her to very unlike the typical Bollywood actor. She’s a very intelligent girl. Although the character is very different from her personality, she understood the requirements of her role immediately. I was stuck by how similar she looked to her beautiful mother. Yes, I’ve planned a very special look for Soha. I want her to look prettier than she has ever done.”

Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster 2 is being produced by Eros Entertainment.

The Vidya Balan film is not likely be premiered exclusively in the city that it was shot in

Vidya Balan’s upcoming thriller Kahaani has a pretty solid Bengali connection. While director Sujoy Ghosh is Bengali, the film is shot extensively in various parts of Kolkata. In the promos of the film you see Vidya’s character roaming all over the city in a desperate search of her missing husband.

The filmmaker has also included the song Shotti bolchi as a tribute to Bengal’s capital city sung by Bengal’s favourite singer Usha Uthup. It was an apt move therefore to host an exclusive show of the film for the locals. It would have been a fantastic PR drive which would have worked wonders for the film’s growing curiosity. But now it seems that Kolkata may not have its exclusive premiere as planned earlier.

The reason behind this is an award function which is taking place in Bangkok around the same time that Kahaani’s exclusive show was being planned. Ghosh wanted to show the film to some prominent Bengali directors and actors, but when he learned that most of his colleagues and senior people from the industry would be attending the award ceremony in Bangkok he thought it would be a pointless exercise to plan for a premiere in Kolkata. “’Yes, it’s unfortunate. I really wanted to host a premiere in Kolkata but then people would be away. Let’s see how it goes. I have still not lost hopes and am trying to figure out the logistics. The final decision would be taken in a little while from now. May be we may just manage to sneak in a premiere,”’ said Ghosh in an interview. Kolkata, just keep your finger crossed. We hope the director manages to come up with an alternate plan and you get the first look of the much-talked about film!

Saif is in trouble for allegedly assaulting a South African businessman who says the actor behaved in an uncivilised way

Bollywood actor Saif Ali Khan was in trouble Wednesday after a South African businessman accused him of abusing and hitting him and his father-in-law at a five-star hotel in Mumbai. Police who failed to trace Saif at his Bandra house Wednesday afternoon later found him at his actor-girlfriend Kareena Kapoor’s residence and escorted him to a police station, a police officer said.

Police said a case of assault had been registered against the Bollywood actor. The victim, Iqbal Sharma, who is of Indian origin, told a news TV channel television that Saif called him an “idiot” for complaining about the actor’s loud conduct at a restaurant in the Taj Mahal hotel. Sharma said he and his family had requested the restaurant manager to ask Saif and his friends, which included Kareena, Amrita Arora and Malaika Arora Khan, to keep their voices down. Sharma said his family and he decided to move to another part of the restaurant downstairs. “As we were going down the stairs, Saif was coming up, probably from the toilet. As he passed me, he called me an idiot and asked ‘do you know who I am?’” Sharma said the actor first pushed him and then assaulted his father-in-law who fell on the stairs and bruised his jaw. “It was an uncivilised way to behave in a public space,” Sharma said, adding that he intended to pursue the matter legally.

A police officer confirmed that Sharma and his guests had objected to the noise created by Saif and his friends. The incident occurred shortly after midnight Tuesday. Assistant Commissioner of Police Iqbal Shaikh declined to say if the actor would be arrested.

Saif has been involved in public spats earlier too, including some photojournalists in Patiala in September 2008. But we wonder if this time, the whole thing has been staged just to create publicity for Saif’s soon-to-release film Agent Vinod?

Sitting on the front row with Black Eyed Peas singer Will.i.am at the Burberry Prorsum show, Sonam turned quite a lot of heads with her classy outfit. She made it a point to take the minimal route when it came to makeup and jewellery. Flaunting a light rose hued lipstick and a pretty pair of earrings, Sonam opted for gorgeous black heels to complete her look. She left her hair loose and made sure she looked classy. What was a li’l out of place in her ensemble was her yellow nail colour. Although we think it’s a very funky shade, it didn’t quite match her outfit. Sonam is known for her fetish for unconventional style statements, and we completely approved of it until she did justice to it. But looks like she hasn’t been able to get it quite right lately. Wonder where your concentration is these days, Sonam!

Akshay Kumar fans, chill. Your fave star is not heading for heartbreak. Akki and Twinkle’s marriage is still going strong even after ten years and one son. The recent reports about the rift in their marriage are totally baseless. A national daily had published a report speculating about the trouble in their Kumar (or is it Bhatia?) – Khanna marriage after it was noticed that Twinkle and Akshay had been attending several events separately. The speculations grew when Twinkle attended the launch of a magazine cover all alone, even though both of them had been featured on the publication. A simple matter that was probably the result of the Housefull 2 actor having to give other commitments priority was blown up into the issue of their marriage being in trouble and irritated the couple greatly.

An angry Akshay has lashed out at the media saying that he is willing to accept criticism about his work, but his personal life is not for public scrutiny. He also claimed that writing such “false” news is “insensitive” and upsetting for his family. We are glad to hear that all is well between the two, as we wouldn’t want our fave Khiladi to have to worry about his marriage at a time when he has the fate of his films weighing on his mind.

ALSO READ: Akshay Kumar to produce regional films

Some of the most hilarious songs in Bollywood have been picturised on Govinda. There’s hardly any other actor who can dance as well as he does with a comparable comic timing. He infuses his dance steps with comic elements that make it even funnier to watch. Lyricists can have a fun time penning the weirdest words as they can be sure Govinda will bring them to life in his own style. When those words are translated in English, they get weirder, more nonsensical and sometimes, not so hilarious. We bring you the best and worst of three of his hit songs and why it might not be a very good idea to literally translate them for your non-Hindi speaking friends you want to convert into Govinda fans – unless they already love his yellow pants!

Main to raste se jaa raha tha from Coolie No. 1

Main to raste se ja raha tha, main to bhelapuri kha raha tha, main to ladki ghuma raha tha

raste se ja raha thaa, bhelapoori kha raha thaa, ladki ghuma raha tha,

tujhko mirchi lagi to main kya karoon

a: main to raste se ja rahi thi, main to ice cream kha rahi thi, main to naina lada rahi thi

raste se ja rahi thi, aais-kriim kha rahi thi, naina lada rahi thi

tujhko mirchi lagi to main kya karoon

I was going on the road, I was eating bhelpuri, I was twirling the girl

Was going on the road, was eating bhelpuri, was twirling the girl

If you felt the chilli, what can I do?

I was going on the road, I was eating ice cream, I was fighting my eyes

Was going by the road, was eating ice cream, was fighting my eyes

If you felt the chilli, what can I do?

Jeth ki dopahari mein from Coolie No. 1

Jeth ki dopahari mein paanv jale hain saiyya paanv jale hain

aa ke god mein utha thaam le baiyya

jeth ki dopahari mein garmi lage hain rani garmi lage hain

aake mujh ko bitha zulfon ki chhaiyya

In Summer’s afternoon my feet have burnt lover feet have burnt

Come and lift me in your lap, hold my arms

In Summer’s afternoon I am feeling hot, my queen, feeling hot

Come and make me sit in the shade of your hair

Sunday ki raat thi from Rajaji

Sunday ki raat thi pehli mulaakaat thi

main thaa vo thi main thaa vo thi halki barsaat thi haaye

aalishaan kisi bangle se gaadi mein vo nikli

mere pyaar mein jaal mein phans gayi paise vaali titli

naukar chaakar ghumenge ab mere aage peechhe

ab to saari daulat hogi in kadamon ke neeche

saari duniyaa uske peechhe par woh mere saath thi

It was the night of Sunday, first meeting it was

I was there, she was there, I was there, she was there, a light rain was there

From a luxurious some bungalow she got out in a car

In my love’s web got stuck this moneyed butterfly

Servants and maids will go round round in front and behind me

Now all the wealth will be below these feet

The whole world behind her but she is with me.

While people from Yash Raj Films have declared that neither Salman Khan nor Shahrukh Khan are being considered or have been approached for the last two films of the Dhoom series, Bollywoodlife readers have loved the idea. Fans of Sallu and SRK say that they would definitely like to watch their respective idols as a cool villain. But we think they should not be Dhoom villains. There is one superstar, a gentleman called Akshay Kumar, who desperately needs the shine of a blockbuster in his currently monotonously dipping filmography. And a performance-oriented role that will re-instill the faith of filmmakers and his fans in him that he can do a lot more than cracking silly gags and beating dumb goons will be most useful. So what better film than a Dhoom 4 or 5?

Not only have both Dhoom films been smashing hits, they have catapulted the bad guy’s career to a higher level. Remember what it did for John Abraham (Dhoom) and Hrithik Roshan (Dhoom 2)? And in recent times it’s become quite hep and happening to play dark and nasty characters – Rishi Kapoor in Agneepath is the latest case in point. At the moment though, we think Desi Boyz‘s star Akshay needs something similar to stop constant criticism for his banal projects. Perhaps Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai 2, where he is signed on to portray a gangster could do the deed, but as of now no one knows when the film will take off. So we think that Akki should make the right moves now to land a role in Dhoom 4, salvage his lacklustre career and take the spotlight off his reportedly rocky relationship with wife Twinkle. Don’t you agree?

The Dirty Picture director laughs at the never-ending speculations over the cast of his ambitious sequel under the banner of Balaji Films

Ever since one heard that gorgeous babe Kareena Kapoor had opted out of Ekta Kapoor and Milan Luthria’s Once Upon a Time In Mumbaai 2 (‘coz of the endless work on the script and ambiguity over the film’s shoot), several stories surrounding the casting of the leading lady are emerging out of nowhere. The latest is that the tough taskmaster at Balaji Motion Pictures, Ekta is fed up of finding a female lead and is contemplating roping in one of her fave actors Kangna Ranaut for the sequel.

Logically and creatively we wondered if it would make sense the curly haired actor played the love of a gangster’s life again – she had played Haji Mastan’s wife in the first part. But a news report claimed it didn’t matter that Kangy was part of the original. So we asked the captain of the ambitious sequel, Milan to separate the chaff from the wheat. This is what he had to say: “No (the story is not true), it’s just media speculation! But I am happy the film is obviously interesting and big enough for the public and media to have so much fun guessing the star cast.” This means that all those creative minds with a volatile imagination, please put on your thinking cap ‘coz this time there’s smoke without any fire!

Photos : Yogen Shah

Karan Johar and Ekta Kapoor had been keen on working with each other for quite some time. And finally they found a script that they were equally kicked about. But there was just one hitch – the two had completely different ideas on who should play the leading lady in the film. While KJo was pitching for Kareena Kapoor, Ekta was keen on Katrina Kaif. After lots of discussions, the duo finally decided to go with Kareena.

Speculations were rife that Chikni Chameli would give the spunky Bebo a run for her money, but Karan was extremely impressed with Kareena’s performance in Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu. And he was not ready to let go of  Bebo. So he convinced good friend Ekta to sign the Chammak Challo girl. But Ekta had her way too! The Dirty Picture producer really wanted to cast Emraan Hashmi as the male lead and KJo has agreed. Karan has, in fact, already signed Emraan for another Dharma Productions film. If Emraan manages to bag the film, it’ll be quite an odd pairing, wouldn’t it? Anyway, the K-buddies are slated to finalise the rest of the cast by next month and the shoot of this untitled film will start in December this year. But with Kareena’s ‘no kiss’ rule in place, we wonder whether the serial kisser will be sorely disappointed if he finally signs the film!

Photos: Yogen Shah

Filmmaker Indrajit Lankesh threw a grand party combined with a fashion show for the unveiling of his new film Dev, Son of Mudde Gowda. The evening also saw a display of Harley Davidson clothes and accessories, thanks to the Bad Boy’s inclusion in the film. The show-stopper here was Indian-Brazil model and Kingfisher calendar girl Natalia, who strutted her stuff in a natty Harley jacket, accompanied by Indrajit. Natalia plays a Bollywood star in the movie. The eternally charming Lucky Ali has apparently sung a lovely number in Dev, Son of Mudde Gowda. Indrajit said, “Dev, Son of Mudde Gowda is my best effort yet, with superb styling and high production values.”

The film is all about a father-son relationship with Diganth and veteran Anant Nag playing the title roles. “It was wonderful to work with Anant, Sir,” the younger star said. And Charmi in turn, paid Diganth a glowing compliment saying, he must be one of her favourite co-stars.

The rumours about Beti B’s name had just started doing the rounds when Amitabh Bachchan clarified that the rumours were just that, rumours. Referring to Shobhaa De’s tweet that Beti B might have been named Abhilasha, Amitabh tweeted, “Not true” from his hospital bed. He is still recuperating after his surgery at the hospital but that did not deter him from refuting the rumours – much to our sorrow. When we first heard the buzz that Beti B aka Bitiya had been named Abhilasha, we were overjoyed. Hey we were the first to suggest that name! When Beti B was just a few-hours-old baby and was yet to get her moniker, we had suggested that Abhilasha would be an apt name as it beautifully combines her parents’ names. We had even hoped that it might be considered when we next heard that the Bachchans have decided to name the baby with a name starting with A.

Sadly though, since Big B has actually denied a particular name, it doesn’t seem likely that they will now go ahead and call Beti B by that very name. But our hopes are not dashed! We do have more names – chosen by us and our readers – on our list. Once Amitabh has been discharged from the hospital, the Bachchans will announce the name and we are ready to hope once again that one of our choices wins. Fingers crossed.

ALSO READ: Aishwarya Rai’s baby girl: Astro-numerological prediction | Why is Beti B still nameless?

We recently caught Prateik posing as a humble soul. Were you apologising to a miffed Sanjay Leela Bhansali, dear Prateik?

Photos: Yogen Shah

Karen Malhotra aka Sunny Leone was roped in by Mahesh Bhatt for Jism 2, all thanks to Bigg Boss. But it wasn’t only the Bhatts who noticed her in the reality show. The hottie, who pole danced to ‘Mehbooba’, a song from the movie Sholay, even caught Ramgopal Varma’s attention. And now she is being considered for an item number in RGV’s Department, we hear. Ahem ahem. Now that’s sizzling hot news, no?

While Leone had to work real hard at learning Hindi for Jism 2, she might have a bright chance of having no homework at all for an item number. That’s because all she needs to do is set the screen on fire, right? And wethinks Leone is already a pro at that one! Don’t you agree? Wink, wink.

Bollywood’s syle diva is the cynosure of all eyes. Making an appearance in her fashionably la-di-da outfits at fashion week soirees and award functions, Ms Kapoor is making headlines like never before. But she doesn’t always get it right…

Just when she was all set to gloat over the fact that she’s hands down the best-dressed wench in B-town, Ms Kapoor fell flat on her face ‘coz of the one horrid faux pas she failed to notice at a recent do. At the Cosmopolitan Fun Fearless Awards 2012 Sonam sashayed around in a pretty floor-length fuchsia-hued gown embellished with flower appliqués. And as we began to admire her princess-like look and salivate over her Dolce and Gabbana dress, Sonam turned around.  Hold your horses, people! We know there’s nothing wrong in showing your back. But while doing so, if your strapless bra peeks out over your ensemble, then you can’t blame us for getting stingy with our brownie points. And if this is a way of setting a new statement , all we can say is we hope you don’t repeat this again, Ms Kapoor, ‘coz two wrongs don’t make a right. Well…at least not in this industry!

By now, the media is tired of Shahrukh Khan’s habit of turning up late for all events. Though the actor is not that bad when it comes to making it to a film set on time, he still has a long way to go. Salman Khan too is famous for turning up late for his shoots. He hates morning schedules and most directors avoid shooting early when they are working with him. At one time Akshay Kumar was praised as one of the most professional stars, but he too has slipped a bit over the years.

Big stars always have the excuse that they have too many commitments and meetings, which leads to them being late for anything. Aamir Khan, who is also in the big league, is an exception and is known to turn up early for his shoots. So if Aamir Khan, why can’t the others? Or does this Khan-man have fewer dates – and times – to keep?

While many of the big stars still struggle with punctuality, the younger breed of actors is making sure that they set an example in professionalism. All the crew members of producer Vikas Bahl’s Lootera have been extremely happy with Ranveer Singh for being the first to arrive on the sets during the early morning shooting schedule of the film. The actor would turn up even before the unit was ready, with his hair and make-up done. Vikramaditya Motwane, the director of the film, has been raving about how committed and professional the actor is and how his enthusiasm has been rubbing off on the rest of the cast and crew.

Now if Ranveer is receiving heaps of praise for being on time, Katrina Kaif is one of the few female actors who is always ready with her makeup and styling before the stipulated time. Despite Imran Khan being quite a punctual guy himself, Kat would beat him often at the time-game during the shooting of Mere Brother Ki Dulhan and later, at promotional events for the film. She would arrive before the stipulated time and wait for Imran to turn up. Kat is usually lauded as one of the most professional actors in the industry today. It’s probably her attitude that she is doing a job that helps her.

While a lot of actors are known to throw tantrums during magazine and cover photo shoots – like taking their own time to get ready, fussing over outfits, demanding privileges for coterie, etc – Vidya Balan is known to be extremely professional in these matters. Last year, when she shot for a magazine cover, the editor raved about how Vidya turned up on time and stayed till 4.30 in the morning to complete her shoot. And even though she was quite self conscious about the clothes that weren’t too flattering to her body shape, she was quite sporting and didn’t create a fuss.

Valuing the work ethic is not entirely a new phenomenon, but it was rare in earlier days. In the 70s stars were known to come to the sets according as per their own will and fancy, making the whole unit wait. Rajesh Khanna, who was the biggest star at the time, was known to make a late entry to almost anything. When Amitabh Bachchan rose in the ranks in the late 70s, he became known for his work ethic and professionalism. Even today, Bachchan is known to come to the sets well-prepared and on time.

In the 80s and 90s professionalism was not that important. Many actors took advantage of their stardom. Govinda was famous for being at least two hours late for his shoot, often not turning up at all. Towards the end of his career, the work culture in Bollywood had begun to change and he struggled to stick to schedules. Many producers avoided signing him for the fear that his erratic behaviour would delay their films.

Today, the scenario is slightly different. With higher production costs and strict shooting schedules, there is more pressure on stars to keep to deadline. Priyanka Chopra, who is one of the busiest actors in Bollywood, is a preferred choice for producers and directors, as she never cancels her shoots. A few years ago, life in Mumbai was disturbed due to a heavy downpour and a lot of B-towners had to cancel their shoots. Priyanka, who was shooting for Dostana then, made it to the sets on time, all geared up to shoot, even as the rest of the crew trickled in one by one. Even the director, Tarun Mansukhani walked in much later, as he battled the floods. We hear that Priyanka is quite paranoid about getting to work late and makes it a point to leave her home well in advance, even if that means reaching her destination long before time.

While several actors like Deepika Padukone have been blamed for unethical and unprofessional behaviour because they walked out of films, there are some actors like Kangna Ranaut and Mallika Sherawat, who have been blamed for not promoting their movies. Let’s hope that along with learning lessons in punctuality, this young breed of actors also starts keeping to their professional promises. Especially since, unlike yesteryear’s stars who could get away with walking out of a film midway, today there are several legal implications to these actions.

Photos: Yogen Shah

Lately, the Dhoom series has generated a lot of hullabaloo. After John Abraham, Hrithik Roshan and Aamir Khan, B-town was rife with rumours about Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan being roped in to play the baddie in Dhoom 4 and 5. Salman was apparently keen on doing a stylish action flick with Yash Raj Films and so, Aditya Chopra hinted that Sallu bhai might be cast in Dhoom 4, post Ek Tha Tiger. We also heard that the script of Dhoom 4 has been locked.

But a sneaky birdie from the YRF studio revealed that writer Vijay Krishna Acharya hasn’t even started penning the story of Dhoom 4! Uh-ho! Now that’s definitely disappointing, no? YRF churns out the Abhishek Bachchan-Uday Chopra starrer sequels after a gap of at least a couple of years. So, if Dhoom 3 is not out yet, the possibility of a Dhoom 4 script looks very bleak. In that case, a Dhoom 5 is absolutely out of the question. Guess the buzz about the Khans joining the Dhoom league was just a result of someone’s fertile imagination. With actors walking in and out of projects at the slightest of issues, do we really have the luxury of getting excited over something so far-fetched? Guess, no!

The Patel siblings sure know how to stay in the news. After Ameesha Patel’s claims and denials over the Sanjay Dutt controversy kept her in the news for a week, it is now the turn of her brother Ashmit. Forget plunging necklines, Ashmit went a step ahead and dropped all his clothes for the magazine Men’s Health. And what is the oh-so-valid reason for his full monty? An article on how to choose the right brief! Shot in black and white, the sexy photos leave nothing about the actor’s amazing physique to imagination – other than the one aspect that women would love to know more about. Drat. We found this on a newspaper’s website while surfing the Net yesterday. We figured you guys might have seen it too so we’ll wait to comment till we get fresher images, but we just couldn’t resist bringing you this really sexy photo till then.

While we are sure the photos would have grabbed the attention of B-town producers by now, we wonder what effect it will have on Ashmit’s stagnant career. When his ‘close friend’ Veena Malik posed nude for the men’s magazine FHM a couple of months back, the resultant controversy over whether she actually did it or not and her claims to sue the magazine gave Veena’s fledgling career a much-needed push. She even bagged a couple of item numbers. But we doubt it will benefit Ashmit since item boys are not that much in demand in Bollywood. And there are no plans for a Desi Boyz sequel either. Maybe trying to prove his histrionic skills instead of just showing off his biceps, triceps and everything in between would have been a better idea. Agree?

ALSO READ: Pakistani actor Veena Malik denies being a spy

Not being from film families, the now happily married couple didn’t know whether to talk about their relationship or to lie about it

The latest jodi of B-town, Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia D’souza, have been seeing each other for a very long time. The speculations about their relationship continued till they officially announced their marriage to the media. Now that their film, Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya, is releasing this week, the two have had to promote the film as a couple, and a lot of interesting facts about their dating days are coming out in the open. In a recent interview, Riteish explained why they kept their relationship under wraps for so many years. “We just lied. Throughout our relationship we always thought that we would keep things private because everything in the industry was all open out there. We didn’t come from a film background so we didn’t know how to handle all the media attention. And we kept it that way. Whenever people asked, we said we are just friends.” All is well that ends well!

Click here to read what Riteish Deshmukh did on Valentine’s Day

Click here to read the BO prediction of Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya

The Agent Vinod actor allegedly got violent at a Mumbai restaurant

It seems that actor Saif Ali Khan has taken his onscreen persona, as Agent Vinod, a little too seriously. He allegedly punched a businessman named Iqbal Sharma in the face at Taj Colaba’s popular Japanese restaurant Wasabi last night. We heard that a case of assault has been registered against the actor at the Colaba police station under section 325. Rumours are rife that Saif was reportedly told to keep his voice down when the altercation started at the eating joint. It is reported that Saif was having dinner with Kareena last night and their animated and slightly loud conversation irked the other diners present.

We heard that Saif didn’t take the talking down well and decided to give it back to the businessman. He reportedly quipped, “If you want peace, you should frequent a library.” This was enough to spark off a fight and the two men ruined the dinner for everyone else present at the restaurant. It may be recalled that in 2008, a case was filed against the Nawab of Pataudi (then Chhote Nawab) for allegedly assaulting a photojournalist in Patiala during a film shoot. No arrests were made in the case and a compromise was worked out when Saif apologised to the photographer. The Wasabi episode makes us feel that the books of Swami Vivekanand, which we spotted on the bookshelf in Saif’s Bandra office, might just be for decorative purposes.

ALSO READ: All about Kareena’s new item numbers

Film & Television Producers Guild of India vice-president Mukesh Bhatt also said that after the positive meeting with the finance minister, they have decided to remain patient till the budget. “His hands are tied right now and I will respect that. I am glad about the fact that he heard our plea patiently and has asked us to wait till the budget,” he said, adding they will wait till March 16 and then take a decision on their future course of action. The industry seems to be relieved with this decision.

“It’s a fair decision as ultimately we are here to do business and not to strike. Since the finance minister has promised to look into the matter, we shall wait till the budget,” said producer Kumar Taurani.

Ileana D’Cruz is making friends in B-town. She is debuting in Bollywood in Anurag Basu’s Barfee as a narrator.It’s definitely a huge high for the Ileana, as she will be sharing screen space with Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra in Barfee. But here’s some good news for her fans. The south star has signed two more films with UTV’s Ronnie Screwvala who is also producing Barfee. Her roles in the new films are not yet known. But the actor is over the hill with the new projects.

Considering how difficult it is to make it big in Hindi films, bagging two films together seems like a big step for the actor. After initiating her career with Devdasu in Telugu, Ileana has definitely come a long way. But it was Puri Jagannadh’s Pokiri, Kick and Jalsa that put the beautilicious babe on the map with some commendable performances to boast about. Let’s see how she fares in Bollywood now. Would you like to see Ileana in Bollywood? Tell us.

While all of us know that Vidya Balan is the female lead in Kahaani, there’s one thing that’s bugging us: who is the actor playing her husband? Kahaani is the story of a pregnant Vidya (Balan) who comes to Kolkata in search of her husband Arnab Bagchi during the Durga Puja festival. She gets in touch with all the people he had mentioned but none of them seem to have ever met him. Even the cops are unable to locate him. All Vidya has is a sketch of this Mr Bagchi.

Sujoy Ghosh, who has directed Kahaani, is being very secretive about the identity of the actor playing Vidya’s husband in the film. There is speculation that he is either a Bengali film actor, or a Bollywood actor – like Abhishek Bachchan – who can successfully pretend to be a Bengali. But Sujoy refuses to confirm or deny any of the rumours. Thanks to that, another section of fans is now contemplating whether there is any Arnab Bagchi at all. One of the buzzes doing the rounds is that Balan’s character Vidya is a schizophrenic with an imaginary husband. If that’s the case, then why is Sujoy leading us on a wild goose chase? Like Vidya, all we have is a sketch, but we are not sure whom it resembles. Do you have any ideas?

ALSO READ: Is Vidya Balan’s ‘Kahaani’ being upgraded?

Recently there was a story that said that Deepika Padukone and Sidhartha Mallya continue to be friends post their breakup. But a li’l birdie who saw them at an event wants to tell a different story. According to him, Deepika and Sidhartha were seen studiously avoiding each other while at the do. And now, the once-upon-a-time good friends even refrain from exchanging innocent pleasantries. Uh-ho! But friends are allowed to say ‘hello’, no? Then why this aloofness?

What’s more, we’ve also heard that after Mallya Jr called off the relationship, Deepika had a tough time dealing with her brand new single status. And so she decided to seek ex-flame Ranbir Kapoor’s shoulder. After which the two spent quality time with each other at Rohit Dhawan’s wedding at Goa. And so, we can’t help but wonder if RK has a teeny-weeny role to play in the growing distances between Dippy and Sid. What do you think?

Amitabh Bachchan is responding well to medication and is expected to be home in a few days, reports say. But the actor is still far from completely recovered and has been asked to take it easy over the next few months. This means that the actor will have to stay at home till at least the end of May.

While AB Sr has finished shooting for Ramgopal Varma’s Department, there’s just a little dubbing work to be completed. Apart from that though, Big B has no work lined up till June. His extended cameo for Balki’s wife Gauri’s English Vinglish co-starring Sridevi has also been completed. He has already signed up for the next season of Kaun Banega Crorepati and Shirish Kunder’s Common Man, but the work for both is expected to start only in the second half of the year. Recently, Malayalam filmmaker Blessy approached the actor with the idea of doing a remake of his blockbuster film Pranayam and wanted him to essay the role played by Mohanlal in the original. But Bachchan hasn’t given his nod to the project yet. He will take stock of whether to go ahead with these commitments only once he’s clearer about his recovery.

As of now, he has no immediate professional commitments and he is not too displeased with the idea either, we know. Even though the star is known to be a workaholic, we hear that he is looking forward to relaxing at home and spending quality time with his granddaughter – and giving her an official name – till he fully recovers. He probably intended it to be so, considering the fact that he didn’t accept any work to be done in the first half of the year. Well, Mr Bachchan, we hope that your time with Beti B helps you get back on your feet much quicker!

The quietly beautiful Giselli Monteiro, who had millions falling in love with her after her demure act in Love Aaj Kal (we’ll overlook Always Kabhi Kabhi), has decided to undergo a raunchy makeover. Giselli will turn sexily desi for a hot song in her upcoming film, Pranam Walekum. We hear she has decided that she will outdo Chikni Chameli, Munni and Sheila with her song nautanki queen hoon, India se aayee hoon. She plays a nautankiwali (a dancer in village theatre) and she believes that she can bring in more zing and energy to her sexy moves than the other ladies have done so far.

Giselli has been rehearsing almost 18 hours every day for the past ten days to do justice to the song. Though Giselli is a good dancer, and we saw that in Love Aaj Kal, this time around her steps are more fast-paced and rustic complete with jhatkas and thumkas. Giselli is working hard to get it right. We sympathise but whether she can beat Katrina Kaif and Malaika Arora Khan remains to be seen. Do you think she has it in her?

ALSO READ: Giselli not nervous when she met Shahrukh Khan