You could be a Bollywood star

MUMBAI: This month a massive hunt will be launched for 30 new faces in Bollywood. Sahara Manoranjan and Percept D’Mark are behind the nationwide talent hunt called “Mr & Ms Bollywood” to find potential film stars. The talent hunt will be kicked off in the first week of March and will be quickly followed by a number of roadshows across the country to be hosted by well-known film personalities.

Percept D’Mark is launching 22 big Bollywood and Hollywood films this year. An advisory board comprising Karan Johar, Mahesh Bhatt, Raveena Tandon, Asha Parekh, Smita Thackeray, Ashutosh Gowarikar, Sarika, Ken Ghosh, Ashok Salian and Manish Malhotra has been constituted. The entire process will be three-tiered and there will be no entry fee. Ernst & Young will audit the selection and elimination process.

Dream girl now on TV

MUMBAI: After the superlative success of Baghban, Hema Malini and director Ravi Chopra have come together again for TV serial Kamini Damini. The versatile actress-politician is very excited about her role in the serial for Sahara TV.

“I chose Kamini Damini because it gave me a chance to emote, to act. The story revolves around me and my character has a lot of shades. It is the kind of role I have been longing to play for a very long time,” says Hema. Pankaj Dheer, best known for playing Karan in Mahabharata, is the male lead.

Lakshya hits target in June

MUMBAI: The release date of Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akthar’s Lakshya has been finalised: June 11, 2004. The film, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta, Sushant Singh, Boman Irani and Sharad Kapoor, is being looked forward to within and outside the film industry.

While on release dates, the line up of biggies in the coming months seems exciting. With Dharmesh Darshan’s Bewafa and Madhur Bhandarkar’s Aan in April, Mani Ratnam’s Yuva on May 21 and Lakshya on June 11, things seem to be hotting up!

Ash goes to Hollywood

MUMBAI: Aishwarya Rai’s agents have managed to get some plum offers for her from the West. The list includes Singularity, Chaos and Mr Surprises.

Besides these films, she is also co-producing a film titled I know and I Care by British director Barton Randall. There is another film titled The Nisha Sharma Story in which she plays the title role.

Akshay Kumar’s grouse

MUMBAI: Akshay Kumar is extremely irritated. His incomplete film, Meri Biwi Ka Jawab Nahi, opposite Sridevi and directed by Pankaj Parasher, launched in 1993, has been completed by producer-director S M Iqbal and is releasing on March 6.

What upsets him is that the producer has lodged a complaint at the producers’ association, asking them to “intervene in the matter and recover from him Rs 5 crore to compensate for the losses suffered by them due to the unprofessional behaviour of the said artiste”.

Akshay was reported to have told the media that he had not completed shooting for the film and had not dubbed either. When contacted, Iqbal said his film was due to release on February 6 this year. “But due to Akshay’s statement, distributors didn’t take delivery.”

Akshay’s rejoinder? “Why should I shoot with a director I had not signed up with originally? Ninety per cent of the film has been shot by Pankaj Parashar. I had agreed to do the film when Pankaj had been the director. I don’t know how the film will be shape up in the hands of another director.”

“I have never troubled any producer, why should I start now? I am completing three old films — Lashkara which is 10 years old, Vidroh which is five to six years old and Purab Ki Laila Paschim Ki Chaila which is nine years old.”