Akshaye to produce

MUMBAI: Buzz has it that Akshaye Khanna is going to start his own production company. Akshaye has had the quite a few hits in recent past including Humraaz, Dil Chahta Hai and Deewangee. The actor, it seems, is not satisfied with films offered to him and has rejected most of them. Hence the decision to start a company so that the roles would be written for him! For the records, Akshaye does only one film at a time.

Madhuri’s next venture

MUMBAI: Madhuri Dixit has agreed to do popular Bengali director Buddhadeb Dasgupta’s Hindi film. Dasgupta recently said: “The film will hit the floors in October.” The film will be produced by Jhamu Sughand. Meanwhile, Madhuri’s comeback vehicle will be directed by Somnath Sen and produced by Kavita Munjal, the team that made the Dimple Kapadia starrer Leela. “It’ll be a Hindi film, with usage of English, wherever necessary,” Kavita tells. “We are currently talking to Amitabh Bachchan. The film will star two more heroes and one more heroine. We’ve had discussions with Fardeen Khan and Karan Nath.”

Dino in Indo-Chinese film

MUMBAI: Over two months ago veteran film-maker Shakti Samanta had decided to start two films. While one of them was to be directed by Samanta himself, the other was designed as an Indo-Chinese co-production, to be directed by Samanta’s son Ashim and Jyotin Goel along with a Chinese director.

The film will star Dino Morea in the lead. The makers have plans to cast a Chinese actress opposite Dino. Obviously, the actor is gung-ho, “It’s an international project in its true sense. We’re trying to go beyond the borders of our country.” He adds that the film will be made in two languages simultaneously — Hindi and Chinese. “It’s a different kind of a love story. A man falling in love with a Chinese woman. I’ll be delivering my lines in Hindi, the lady will be conversing in Chinese.”

Pooja’s next move

MUMBAI: With the release of Paap, Pooja Bhatt is all geared up to start her next venture. Starring brother Sunny in the lead, the film is currently in its scripting stages, with papa Mahesh Bhatt taking the responsibility of writing the script. However, Pooja is undecided about what name her bro would adopt as his screen name — Sunny (as he’s called affectionately) or Rahul (real life).

Pooja is non-committal when asked about the genre of the film. “Believe me, I am completely unaware about what dad has in mind,” she tells. Pooja is also undecided about the leading lady. “It all depends on the script. The film may star a new face or a known actress,” she says.