Shilpa Shetty stars in Miss Bollywood

The tag of Big Brother celebrity has definitely worked wonders for Shilpa Shetty. She is all set to make her debut on stage in the musical, Miss Bollywood.

Miss Bollywood is the story of a young Indian woman named Maya, played by Shilpa, who lands in UK with the dream of setting up a dance academy. Shilpa has a troupe of 40 dancers from Bollywood with her for this musical.

According to Shilpa, Miss Bollywood would not only cater to the lovers of Bollywood but also to the mainstream audiences who are crazy about dance and musical theatre.

Shilpa Shetty and her crew will begin the tour on September 29 in Berlin and finally performing at the Opera House in Manchester, UK on November 3.

Shilpa Shetty

Shilpa Shetty attends the World Film Premiere of "Music and Lyrics" held at the Odeon Leicester Square on February 5, 2007 in London, England.

Shilpa Shetty walks the ramp to display the creation of designer Rocky S at a fashion show in Mumbai, India.

Shilpa Shetty arrives to attend the world premiere of the movie 'Life In A... METRO' held at the Empire Leicester Square in London on May 8, 2007Shilpa Shetty offers flowers to Hindu God Ganesh at a temple in Mumbai, India.

Hollywood actor Richard Gere, left, hugs and kisses Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty during an event for HIV-AIDS awareness in New Delhi, India, in this March 15, 2007 file photo.

Shilpa Shetty walks with children at risk of HIV from the Committed Communities Development Trust (CCDT) in Bombay, India.

Shilpa Shetty leaves the Celebrity Big Brother House, having been announced as the winner of series five during the grand final at Elstree Studios on January 28, 2007 in London, England.

Shilpa Shetty looks on during a promotional event for the United Breweries group in Bombay, India.

Shilpa Shetty, left, and Shamita Shetty pose during promotion of their upcoming film "Fareb" in Bombay, India, Friday, July 1, 2005.

Shilpa Shetty smiles during an event in Mumbai, India.

Shilpa Shetty presents a creation by Indian designer Tarun Tahiliani during the India Fashion Week in New Delhi, India.

Chairman of the United Breweries Group Vijay Mallya, left, presents a souvenir to Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty during a promotional event for the UB group in Bombay, India.

Shilpa Shetty Promotes Her Film 'Life in a METRO'.

Photo Feature: Shilpa Shetty plays 'Don'

If you think that SRK was not up to the mark as Don in Farhan Akhtar's version, then here’s some news for you. It seems that Shilpa Shetty has taken the responsibility of continuing the ‘Don legacy’ as she plays a lady Don in one of her upcoming films, Shilpa the Big Don.

For quite a while now, there have been reports doing rounds saying that Shilpa was offered a Hollywood film Pink Panther 2 which she didn’t accept. Now take a look at what she has given up the Hollywood flick for. After ‘Big Brother’, one would expect classier choices from Shilpa but tight jeans, garish naval exposing tops and junk jewelry like a dog leash attached from the neck to the belt surely don’t paint a very classy image. The word ‘classy’ probably has a different meaning in her dictionary.

One of the dailies had reported that Shilpa demanded 350,000 pounds for starring in a British film titled Quick, Slip Me a Bride. The producer then had no option but to move on and select another actress. But then looking at the production value of this probably dubbed Hindi film, Shilpa the Big Don, with Shilpa in an action-packed role, we wonder how much they must’ve paid her.

Shilpa Shetty, the new Bond Girl?

Post ‘Big Brother’, there has been really no looking back for Shilpa Shetty. The latest is that the flavour of this season is now leading opinion polls as the first choice for the Bond girl’s role opposite Daniel Craig in a Bond series movie.

It all started after ‘The People’ website in the UK raised the question about whether Shilpa would agree to play the Bond girl’s role, right after she won ‘Big Brother’. Since then there have been opinion polls across the internet and vast discussions on whether Shlpa qualifies for the ultimate glam role or not.

Interestingly thousands of people have actually voted for the dusky beauty and she has topped almost seven of these polls.

Surprisingly Halle Berry who was Bond girl in the 2003’s ‘Die another day’ and who replayed the famous ‘Ursula Andress bikini shot from Dr. No’ has come second to the Indian diva.

However there is a downside as well. There are also sections of people taking part in these discussions who have been saying that things aren’t all that rosy and this could also end up as yet another big Bollywood rumour.

After the Aishwarya Rai and Gulshan Grover rumours, now it’s turn for rumours about the latest international celeb from India.

Some wrote that she doesn’t quite ‘have the Bond girl look' especially after the standard of the series went up after ‘Casino Royale’ and another even went to the extent of writing, “She is very pretty, but there is something really strange about her. Perhaps it’s the fake nose. It almost works but...”

Shilpa’s publicist and spokesperson Dale Bhagawagar chooses to analyse, “Every celeb has a fan base. Being loved by some and hated by others is a part and parcel of every actor’s life. Everyone is entitled to his/her individual opinion.”

There is yet another hitch which could be 'the Bollywood connection'. The fact remains that there has not been any actor from India who has made it as big as a Mexican Salma Hayek, a Spanish Penelope Cruz or an Italian Monica Belluci.

The general perception by now is that in Hollywood the whites and the blacks have their space, but things are not very favourable when it comes to brown skin and these actors always end up getting stereotyped.

There were high hopes about the ethereally beautiful Aishwarya Rai being the true blue cross over star but that too hasn’t exactly happened till now.

“I only have one thing to say about this. When Shilpa went for ‘Big Brother’, nobody expected her to win. But she managed to prove everyone wrong. If that,which seemed impossible has happened, why can’t this rule be broken as well?

As of now, Shilpa has many offers from the UK as well as the US. She hasn’t consented to any except for the role of Sita in Uru Patels’s ‘Hanuman’ which has two Hollywood stars playing the roles of Ram and Hanuman,” says Bhagwagar.

So if luck continues to favour the dusky beauty so, a day might come when there is actually an Indian Bond girl creating history of the unique kind.

Raj-Shilpa affair is an open secret

The actress plans to buy a Mayfair apartment to be with her ‘friend’

LONDON: Kavita Kundra’s outburst against her ex-husband Raj Kundra and actress Shilpa Shetty has created a dilemma for the couple who now cannot come out into the open about their ‘relationship’.

Friends of Raj Kundra, told media that Raj and Shilpa were ‘close’ but denied that the relationship had begun while Raj and Kavita were still together. “Kavita left Raj long before he met Shilpa, so how can she blame Shilpa for the break-up of her marriage,” said a close friend of the film producer and UK businessman, Raj Kundra.

“Their daughter was only about two- month old when Kavita insisted that she could not live with Raj anymore and left him,” said the friend. He insisted that Raj met Shilpa much after she won Celebrity Big Brother in January, by which time Raj and Kavita had already separated and were well on the way to a divorce.

“Kavita simply saw pictures of them together and got jealous and wanted to put a spanner in the works, and she has been successful,” said the friend.

Shilpa is also hoping to buy an apartment in the exclusive Mayfair area as a second home. With her relationship with Raj thriving, Shilpa is interested in spending more time in the UK. However, now thanks to Kavita’s outburst, Shilpa and Raj are on the radar of the British tabloids who follow them hoping to snap the two of them together.

Shilpa Shetty's exclusive interview with BBC

Yesterday Shilpa Shetty spoke exclusively to Asian Network digital Radio feeling it was time to break her silence after the controversies that have been surrounding her.

Heres bringing you the excerpts from the exclusive interview of Shilpa Shetty with BBC Asian Network bbc.co.uk/asiannetwork

"The people who made me the person who I am, I think I owe them an explanation, not that I really owe an explanation to the Press because they've gone ahead and written what they wanted and what they wanted to do and tried to tarnish my image but I think I owe the People an explanation" says Shilpa Shetty.

Has this been a very stressful period?
Well it has been you know, because being a celebrity isn't easy, there's no denying that. When vested interests try and tarnish your image, and it's pretty evident with the goings on that there is someone out who is trying to bring me down. I have God on my side and have great support in my family. I'm someone who's always stood up and spoken when things aren't right and what according to me aren't right.

I wanted to keep quiet, but I felt that me keeping silent would be misconstrued as for being weak, wanting to hide something and there is no such thing.

Do you feel like a victim of conspiracy?
All that really doesn't matter to me, what matters to me is when people don't bother to find out from me and just put it in to make it great news.

I was upset about that and I really wonder how people can take the Carte Blanch to do the thinking for me that I could do actually do something like breaking someone's home!

I come from a country and belong to a culture that actually believes in and values relationships. And I'm a believer in Karma and I wouldn't do something like that.

What about the headlines in India about your alleged affair with Raj Kundra?
I haven't even met Raj until three months ago. So it's very very silly, it's definitely a figment of their imagination. It's been really stressful for me and my family.

How would you take it, your sister, your daughter, what would you go through? It's terrible.

Spotlight: Shilpa slams 'wild accusations'!

Shilpa Shetty has hit out at "wild accusations" that she helped ruin another woman's marriage.
The Celebrity Big Brother winner has been romantically linked with British-based Indian businessman Raj Kundra, 31.
But his estranged wife Kavita, 25, the mother of his 10-month-old daughter, claimed her husband's obsession with the Bollywood star ruined her marriage.
A spokeswoman for the 32-year-old actress said she and Kundra were just friends.
The star has now released a statement criticising the "baseless allegations against me of ruining her [Kavita Kundra's] marriage".

She said: "My understanding is that Raj and Kavita's marriage was over a year ago and they have filed for divorce and have been living separately for over a year.
"I met Raj Kundra three months ago in a business capacity, so where the question of me breaking up her marriage arises, this is impossible as I have known him for 12 weeks.
"I am disgusted by her reported comments and completely refute the allegation."
She warned of legal action if the allegations continued.
"My culture and upbringing does not permit me to break marriages and I am the least interested in knowing or hearing any more about her."
Shilpa said her "conscience is clear" over the "wild accusations".
Kavita has been quoted as saying: "Now I look at the pictures of them together and think, she's with my husband, she's living my life.
"She can have any man she wants and there are plenty of single men about."