Can you gift me my freedom for my birthday: Sanjay Dutt

Mumbai, July 29 (IANS) On his 50th birthday Wednesday, Bollywood's troubled star Sanjay Dutt says his only wish is to leave his chequered past behind and move ahead as a free man.
'In the last 18 years, I've been fighting for my freedom and I feel the burden of the struggle now. I want to be free,' Sanjay told IANS from Cape Town, South Africa.
'I want to walk into any consulate and get my visa. I want my passport to be with me. I want to visit any country I want. Most important of all I want the court cases to end,' added the actor who battled with drug addiction and was also convicted in the 1993 Mumbai blasts under the arms act.
He says now he wishes for his 'freedom'.
'Can you gift me my freedom for my birthday? Otherwise the biggest gift god has given me is my wife Manyata. I'm very lucky to have her by my side,' said the actor who is currently in Cape Town shooting 'No Problem'
Friends from different parts of the world have flown in to celebrate the day and Sanjay says he also wanted his sisters - Namrata and Priya - to join him on this special day in his life.
'I've invited them. The day I turn 50 is important for me. And I'd like my family to be near me. I wish they could be here. No matter what misunderstandings we had, I'd like to wash them away on my 50th birthday.'
Excerpts from an interview:
Q: In Mumbai, the buzz is that your friends and family are flying in for your birthday?
A: I don't want any celebrations until Amar Singhji (Samajwadi Party general secretary) recovers. Once he returns to Delhi, I'll have a birthday celebration with him. But I heard from the grapevine here that the unit of 'No Problem' are planning a small get-together for my birthday. But when I asked them they said, no party. But my friends are flying down.
Q: Who are they?
A: Paresh from Chicago. I've known him for the last 25 years. We've grown up together. Then there's Mac from Los Angeles, another old and dear friend. Imran Ismail, who's here in South Africa. These are my three best friends who will be here on my birthday.
Q: And from Mumbai?
A: Well I heard Bunty Walia is coming. Everything he does is announced on Facebook. So he has announced he's coming for my birthday.
Q: Have you invited your sisters?
A: Yes, I have. I've invited them. The day I turn 50 is important for me. And I'd like my family to be near me. That's the way my parents would've wanted it. I wish they could be here, but they're busy with their own lives. No matter what misunderstandings we had, I'd like to wash them away on my 50th birthday. It's sad they can't be here. But I'm sure they've more important things to do.
Q: Tell me about your most memorable birthday?
A: They've all been memorable in their own way, even the ones that came in my worst days. I don't like a big birthday bash. I just want my near ones on my birthday. It's tough to remember my past. But I want to move on.
Q: It's very difficult to imagine Sanju Baba being 50.
A: At heart I'm still Baba. But when I look into the mirror, it's a reality. And I do feel 50, but not old. I've been in the film industry for so long. Yes, it's been a long innings. In the last 18 years, I've been fighting for my freedom and I feel the burden of the struggle now. I want to be free, Subhash.
I want to walk into any consulate and get my visa. I want my passport to be with me. I want to visit any country I want. Most important of all, I want the court cases to end.
Q: So your mentor is recovering?
A: He is not my mentor. He is my brother and family. Amar Singhji stands by his friends and we've to stand by our friends. As soon as I get my visa, I'll fly down from here (in Cape Town) to Singapore to spend a couple of days with him.
Q: So this friendship will last?
A: I've been betrayed by so-called friends many times. But this time I feel I've found a true friend. I've known him for 16 years. He has always stood by me, always been there in the worst situations in my life.
Q: Your one birthday wish?
A: Freedom. Can you gift me my freedom for my birthday? Otherwise the biggest gift god has given me is my wife Manyata. She has stood by me and supported me unconditionally. I'm very lucky to have her by side.
Q: What about a baby?
A: If that happens my happiness would be complete.

It is a known fact that the noted television star Prachi Desai was an Ekta Kapoor favourite and that fact that she even debuted opposite Farhan Akhtar

It is a known fact that the noted television star Prachi Desai was an Ekta Kapoor favourite and that fact that she even debuted opposite Farhan Akhtar in Abhishek Kapoor's (Tusshar & Ekta's cousin) Rock On was a plus!

It followed that Tusshar was extremely hot on Prachi and recommended her for a part opposite him in Abbas-Mustan and Studio 18's forthcoming comedy, Life Partner.

Prachi's entry meant Rimi Sen's exit. The Dhoom and Johnny Gaddar actress was being considered by the makers but all those plans went for a toss when Prachi came on the scene.

Remarks Tusshar, "It's true that I wanted Prachi in Life Partner because she fit the character really well and is a fresh face. I have no idea about someone else being considered."

Life Partner releases on August 14 by Studio 18.

Shahrukh 'Badshah' Khan and the exquisite beauty, Aishwarya Rai according to reports will now sizzle together on the 70mm screen

A popular pairing in Bollywood, the two actors had fallen out and which was subsequently followed by a cold war after the ouster of Ash from Shahrukh home production movie 'Chalte Chalte' due to Salman Khan's unruly behaviour on the sets of the same movie.

What followed was a dry spell during which neither actor worked with each other.

However, recently the news has spread that the two in question hav decided to bury their hatchet and feature together in a movie, which incidentally will be produced by SRK's 'Red Chillies Entertainment'.

While the other details regarding the movie are still unknown, what we hear is that the two powerhouse actors will feature together to re-create the magic like 'Devdas'.

The shooting of the movie is expected to commence in 2010.

Hrithik-Aish starring Bhansali film titled Guzarish

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s upcoming next starring Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has finally got its title. It has been titled, Guzaarish. The film is scheduled to go on floors by end of 2009. Reportedly, this film is a remake of Christopher Nolan’s acclaimed hit, The Prestige. It was also speculated whether who would be producing the films along with Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Bhansali’s last film was a co-production with Hollywood giant Sony Picture Company. Our industry sources claim, the Hrithik – Aish starrer is a 50-50 joint venture between Bhansali and UTV. Now incidentally, Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s last film together, Jodhaa Akbar was also a UTV production. Reportedly, Salman Khan is miffed with Bhansali and has vowed never to work with him again. Reason being, it was his idea to the bearded maker to remake the Hollywood dark thriller, but Bhansali kept him in the dark and began the project with Hrithik instead

Salman Khan’s 10 Ka Dum gets an extension

Salman Khan’s 10 Ka Dum has truly turned out to be more popular in its second season. It is a never before achieved feat by any big Bollywood star till date on Indian television, and for this, the show has been aptly gifted with a special extension.

It is learnt that Salman has been told to shoot for 13 more episodes, which will be divided across 13 more weeks, naturally. Sony Entertainment Television has got a new resuscitation of sorts with this reality game show, with their other shows flagging in popularity. They were surprised to see huge demand and especially for the recently shown non-celebrity episodes.

However, the unanimous opinion by one and all is that- its Salman’s charisma that is winning the hearts of the participants and the audiences alike.

One can recall, Salman reduced his fee for the second season of the show, taking into consideration the ongoing recession period, but despite that he seems to be giving value for money to the makers and his fans.

Happy Birthday Sanjay Dutt!!

This guy needs no introduction! Sirf naam hi kaafi hai! Celebrity astro numerologist Bhavikk Sangghvi predicts what’s in store for Bollywood’s most loved ‘bhai’– Sanju baba in days to come. Sanjay Dutt was born on the 29th July 1959, which makes him a Number 2 (Moon) person in numerology. He is a Leo (ruler Sun– Number 1) and his destiny number adds up to Number 6 (Venus). Being ruled by Number 2, he is automatically ruled by Number 7 (Neptune). “Sanju will be entering his 51st year (adds to 6) which indicates some great times in his personal life. On top of that, the year 2009, which adds up to No.2 is one of his best numbers and will further bring joyful moments. It seems his wish to be a father is likely to come true very soon,” predicts Bhavikk. “On the professional front, his next release ‘Blue’ adds up to No.7. Sanju is ‘karmically’ connected with Number 7 (Numbers 2 and 7 always go hand in hand) and so this film will earn him a lot of praise and appreciation. Later in ‘Aladin’ the title of the film adds up to No.6, which will further increase his fan following. In ‘Chatur Singh Two Star’ too, his character will be applauded,” says Bhavikk. But Bhavikk continues in the same breath, “The above mentioned films may not necessarily turn out to be big hits, but Sanju baba will only catapult his position with these films”. “I would advise him to wear a Yellow Sapphire to be set in gold for taking decisions more firmly and strengthening the bond with his family,” signs off Bhavikk. HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Sanjay Leela Bhansali seek blessings for Guzaarish

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s upcoming next, Guzaarish starring Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai begins shooting on Thursday July 30th in Filmcity, Mumbai. But before the first shot of his new biggie is canned, Bhansali has headed off to Rajasthan for seeking blessings at the Ajmer dargah.

“The famous Ajmer dargah seems to be a hot favourite nowadays with Bollywood folks for seeking divine blessings before anything big seems to take place, and it is indeed turning out to be lucky as well. Earlier, Himesh Reshammiya had gone there in disguise just days before his acting debut film Aap Ka Suroor’s release, Katrina Kaif too headed there few days before her Yash Raj film, New York released and now Bhansali. We all know that Bhansali is a very passionate filmmaker and though his last film, the much hyped Saawariya didn’t exactly set the box office on fire, he is determined this time to make Guzaarish work big time on all fronts.” says a source.

He further adds, “Bhansali also ensures that on the first day of the shoot of his every film, his mother is present on sets, since he considers her his biggest inspiration.

” It is learnt that Aishwarya Rai won’t be a part of this shoot presently, as she is busy shooting in Kerala for Mani Ratnam’s Raavana. She will be joining the unit after few weeks. Guzaarish will be shot in Filmcity, Mumbai for over a month.

Vivek Oberoi connection in Aishwarya’s Ravana!

South superstar Vikram is supposed to make his Bollywood debut with Mani Ratnam’s Ravana. He plays Aishwarya Rai’s hubby in the film. But now much before Ravana’s release, two of the famous Tamil star’s films have come in Hindi as dubbed versions of his Tamil super hits. While his Anniyan dubbed as Aparichit came in 2006, last Friday his Dhill released as Meri Aan-Man in Work. Interestingly, this Meri Aan-Man in Work is the original version of Vivek Oberoi starrer Dum!

Vikram is a National award winner for the Best Actor for his Tamil film Pithamagan (2003). He had also featured in Tere Naam’s Tamil original titled Sethu, where he had played the role that was later played by Salman Khan. Many Bollywood filmmakers had been trying to rope him in for big projects, but he only gave his nod to Mani Ratnam. But ironically two of his old Tamil films have now already released in Hindi dub versions. It is also known that two more of his Tamil films will be dubbed and released in Hindi, as Ravana release nears. Vikram must be terming it a necessary evil for sure!

One can recollect Firoz Nadiadwala’s film Aan– Men At Work released in 2004. Nadiadwala had to add Men At Work to his title Aan since he could not get his desired title, now it seems the dub rights owners of Dhill want to cash in on Aan– Men At Work by titling their film such, to give an impression of that film.

Blogging? No way, says Saif Ali Khan

Bollywood stars are increasingly using blogs, Twitter and social networking sites to reach out to fans but it's still a no-no for actor Saif Ali Khan.

"I don't believe in blogging, but that is a personal opinion," Khan told reporters on Tuesday.

"I don't believe in too much of a connect with the audience because they should see a fresh character on screen every time."

Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan and Shilpa Shetty are among several Bollywood celebrities using the Internet to interact with their fans.

But Saif Ali Khan described social networking sites Facebook and Orkut as a "little dangerous for actors" and said he gets a thousand friendship requests every day via email.

Khan, whose new movie 'Love Aaj Kal' opens in cinemas on Friday, was speaking at an event to promote a mobile and internet gaming platform for the film.

"I think constant communication is detrimental," the 38-year-old actor said.

Revealed - Aamir Khan is the lead actor in ‘Dhobi Ghat’

Finally, the secret is out that Kiran’s directorial debut ‘Dhobi Ghat’ has her husband Aamir Khan in the lead role. Aamir revealed this in his blog stating, “The cat is finally out of the bag. I’m playing one of the leads in Kiran’s film ‘Dhobi Ghaat’.”

“The reason we kept this under wraps is that she didn’t want to attract much attention to her film. She wanted to make this film on real locations with a tiny crew, very guerrilla style. So we had to do it very quietly. And for once we managed to keep a secret from the media, at least until we finished the shoot.”

Aamir Khan is playing the lead hero as a painter who lives and works from his tiny studio-apartment in a noisy and congested Mumbai neighbourhood. Sources have it that Kiran never wanted to cast Aamir in the film but Aamir insisted and even screen tested for the role.

The movie also has ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’ actor Pratiek Babbar with Monica Dogra. Aamir has completed his part and the film is in the postproduction stage. It is expected to hit the theatre soon.

Meanwhile, Aamir has also completed his ‘3 Idiots’ and is nervous about the fate of his project. He says, “The principal photography on ‘3 Idiots’ is Your browser may not support display of this image. complete. We have one song left which Raju wants to shoot in September. Yesterday, he began work on the post (production). Good god, I’m getting butterflies in my stomach already.”

‘Love Aaj Kal’ runs into problems with Sikh community

These days it has become a routine for some sort of controversy to crop up with some religious community just before the release of a much awaited film. The same has happened with Saif Ali Khan’s home production, ‘Love Aaj Kal’ set to release of July 31.

Charanjeet Sapra, President, Punjabi Cultural and Heritage Board, said that the members of the Sikh community are raising an objection to the trimmed beard that Saif sports in the film along with a few romantic scenes set in the Gurudwara. But Saif is not the one to turn away his face to the problems. He, along with his production team, held a special screening of the film for members of the Sikh community.

“We decided to have this special screening for them because we feel that they are representatives of a larger community. We didn’t want to offend anybody,” said Imtiaz Ali, Director.

Sapra has said that they would inform the filmmakers about their view by Friday over the issue, but Saif feels that he already has won their hearts. He says, “I think they liked the film. They will let us know by Friday.”

Aamir Khan shares the dias with Hillary Clinton

During her visit to India, Mrs. Clinton, attended a special interactive session with the students of Xavier College in Mumbai on Saturday and shared the dias with Bollywood star Aamir Khan, who’s also the brand ambassador of the education campaign Teach India.

During this interactive session, Aamir emphasized the need for changes in the education. He said, “Today, students are mostly focusing on memorizing their subjects because they have to face questions like ‘Did you come first?’, ‘How much did you score in mathematics?’”

“I would like to hear teachers telling students: ‘Hey, your friend is weak in this subject, would you help him?’”

“This will incorporate the feeling of sharing and caring among students and will help in making them good individuals. We should teach our kids to be caring.”

“Sadly, more emphasis is given to report cards and less on exploring minds.”

“Teaching should be a high paying job so that youngsters should aim at becoming teachers. I would like to see that one day in India, teaching is the most highly paid job.”

Hillary was quite impressed with the star and praised him saying, “It is a great delight to be here with Aamir Khan, who is not only a Bollywood icon but also the great advocate for education….I am here to see how US and India can work for the common cause of education, which is the great equalizer and gateway to opportunities,” Mrs. Clinton said.

Clinton supported Aamir’s view and said, “I think the actual requirement to become successful in the world is cooperation and collaboration among people and among countries.”