Trust me I am not at all Hot: Celina Jaitley

This has got be the funniest thing in the sequel of Gol Maal. The half-Indian half-Afghani Christian-Muslim Celina Jaitley plays a traditional Tamilian housewife in Rohit Shetty's Phir Gol Maal.

Draped in a nine-yard saree with flowers in her hair and the 'Aiyyo Appas' on her lips, Celina seems to have come a long way from her bikini-in-the-water avatar in Feroz Khan's Jaanasheen.

"I guess that's true. For a long time I couldn't find my bearings in Mumbai. I was too busy sorting out my life. And the opportunities just slipped past me. Then I had to take what was coming my way," explains Celina.

But seeing Celina draped in a sari requires a lot of imaginative power.

"Why do you say that?" she laughs. "Trust me, at heart and in my home I'm not at all the hot siren that I'm made out to be. Getting into a sari is no big deal for me."

Though the Tamilian accent as she plays Shreyas Talpade's wife in Phir Gol Maal musn't have been easy to master.

"I can't reveal details. But yes watch what I've done in this film. People will be shocked."

Er….with Kareena Kapoor playing the main lead, does Celina stand a chance occupying decent space?

"It's not a walk-on part, I can tell you that much. And we're both cast opposite two of the leading men in the film." However on location in Goa, it was Tusshar Kapoor and not any of her other co-stars that Celina bonded with.

This has got be the funniest thing in the sequel of Gol Maal. The half-Indian half-Afghani Christian-Muslim Celina Jaitley...

Now you can wear Kareena's clothes

Having virtually given up films for family or ‘choosing her roles’, Kareena Kapoor is now all set to design clothes for the brand she is currently endorsing.

While many Indian actresses have taken up other vocations after quitting movies, with this move Bebo becomes the first Indian actress who will be designing her clothes.

A little birdie from Bollywood whispers, "Kareena has a very good sense of dressing and loads of style that is in vogue and liked by the youngsters.

In fact, our Bebo baby has set a new trend after she wore a Patiala salwar along with a T-shirt. Now most teenagers and youths keen to sporting that look".

Well, though not doing too many films right now, Kareena is always in the news. Currently, she is the talk of the town for her much-publicized affair with Saif Ali Khan.

Such free fame has encouraged the designer company endorsed by Kareena to ask her to design her own clothes hoping that it will hit the market like a thunder.

For the initiator, this particular clothing line for which Kareena will be designing clothes will be launched sometime in July or August next year.

We are told that Kareena, who is well known for going into the details of the roles she performs on screen, will now go through each and every step of designing the clothes and approving them personally.

Bebo has made it clear that she will be the only person to decide the material as well as the work to be done on this line of garments, which will include accessories also.

So, even without too many films in her kitty, Bebo will be all busy this year. She has lots and lots of work to do. She will be designing clothes, promoting ‘Tashan’ and look after the ‘Golmaal’ returns.

Interestingly, ‘Heyy Babyy’ director Sajid Khan has also signed Kareena up for his next venture and she has also bagged a role in ‘Kambhakt Ishq’ opposite Akshay Kumar.

Meanwhile, Bebo’s rival Bipasha Basu’s beau John Abraham too has managed to get a successful clothing line to work for him for his designer jeans and accessories.

What your number predicts for 2008

Wondering what 2008 has in store for you? Numerologist Sanjay Jumani deciphers your future according to your ruling number.

1 People born on the 1st, 10th, 19th and 28th in any month are termed as Number 1 people, ruled by the planet Sun.

With 2008 being ruled by the Sun, the number 1 people in a position of authority would fare well, showing the way to their subordinates with elegance.

With a little rumination, you could balance it into a win-win situation. It’s high time you focus on the non-materialistic things of life, which are also very important. Try to delve in the spiritual side too.

2 Number 2 represents the Moon, and they are persons born on the 2nd, 11th, 20th and 29th of any month.

Ruled by the Moon, this year would be favourable for the number 2 also, as 1 and 2 are quite compatible. The most important thing for you to do this year is not to depend on others to complete the job you started. Though this year will be good for you, your dreamy nature and over dependence on others could bring delays or failures in your life. You’ll be at your imaginative best if you allow your thoughts to go with the flow. Some of your intuitions could turn into realities. Those in alternate sciences such as yoga, meditation, reiki, astrology can climb further.

3 People born on the 3rd, 12th, 21st and 30th in any month are termed as Number 3 people, ruled by the biggest planet Jupiter.

This year being equal to number 1, you may find some opposition to your plans. However due to your stubborn and ambitious nature, you could overcome these hurdles and surge ahead in life.

Sun could further ignite your ambitious side, and make you more forceful, not for the sake of accumulation, but from the fear of being under obligation to others. You may excel in the execution of commands, being orderly and disciplined.

In the bargain, others may consider you dictatorial, so try to use a surgeon’s knife in such situations.

4 People born on the 4th, 13th, 22nd and 31st in any month are termed as Number 4 people, ruled by the planet Uranus.

A good year ahead as the numbers 1 and 4 go hand in hand; those who are awaiting a job change or marriage could get rewarded.

Due to your original ideas, and unconventional thoughts, you are likely to face problems in the form of misunderstandings. However, if you follow your intuitions and original thoughts, you stand better chances of success. Those who are in litigation could get a breather, but must try to avoid business partnerships.

5 People born on the 5th, 14th, 23rd in any month are termed as Number 5 people, ruled by the planet Mercury.

Due to your ruler Mercury, the fastest planet, you could be in quite an impulsive hurry, brimming with emotions. All others may not be as quick as you to match up with your pace, so expect less to avoid disappointment. If you faced a few problems last year, this year things could start to look up, especially on the financial front. Try to use your communicative skills, which is your USP.

6 People born on the 6th, 15th and 24th in any month are termed as Number 6 people, ruled by the planet Venus.

You could have an average year, although the number 6 is good for the number 1, it is sometimes seen that 1 is sometimes unkind to the number 6, so this year, brace yourself to face some delays in completing your projects.

May and October are the best months to start anything important.

Those who are in newer relationships should be warned not to be hasty, and may play the waiting game.

7 People born on the 7th, 16th and 25th in any month are termed as Number 7 people, ruled by the planet Neptune, and such persons are also under the influence of the interchangeable number 2 of Moon.

Ruled by the planet Neptune, 1 is one of the number 7’s best numbers, so a good year ahead. Travelling for work or pleasure would be profitable for you this year, but learn to control those mood swings and take decisions from your head and not from your heart.

Spiritually, a satisfying year, and yoga, meditation and alternate therapies could give you immense gratification. Those in consultancy, or any kind of service-related work could see unprecedented profits accrue.

8 People born on the 8th, 17th and 26th in any month are termed as Number 8 people, ruled by the planet Saturn.

Ruled by the planet Saturn, 1 of the Sun is the lucky number for the number 8, so although a year for you to surge ahead, be careful in your investments, and do not put all your eggs in one basket.

Try not to trust anyone blindly, invest sensibly and think before acting.

This year could see you make great progress both financially as well as personally.

Those on the lookout for buying land could take a chance, and some of you may end up with your dream house too.

Post-February, you should see a positive development as regards your profession.

9 People born on the 9th, 18th and 27th in any month are termed as Number 9 people, ruled by the planet Mars.

Ruled by the fiery planet Mars, the number 9 is a strong number at the end of the number line, and as there are seven numbers in between the numbers 1 and 9, you would find work being delayed, or missing opportunities that should have been rightfully yours.

This year you should keep a check on your temper and use your energies for constructive things to have a good year. Past laurels could come in handy, if you use them, which is not a bad idea if one does so, once in a while.

Shilpa finally admits to dating Indian millionaire

LONDON(PTI): It seems that Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty knew what she did last summer in Britain and she has finally admitted her relationship with 32-year-old London born Indian millionaire Raj Kundra.

For the first time, in an interview to 'Daily Mail', Shetty has revealed that the new relationship brought a long period of loneliness to an end and transformed her life.

"I am dating somebody. I have known him for some time but I have only just started to know him better. I hope he will be the one but I don't want to say too much because it is still very early on in our relationship," she said.

Though she has not named her new love, the daily claimed that it's none other than the London-born entrepreneur of Indian origin whose former wife had blamed Shetty for wrecking their marriage.

"I'm not going to deny that it's him but please don't say it is because I don't want to frighten him off," she said.

"He respects and understands what I do and it is nice to be cared for. I have been very lonely for a very long time and it is nice to know I have somebody to look forward to seeing at the end of the day. At last I feel normal.

"It has been an incredible year for me but I have also been very lonely. I have been away from home, in a foreign country and I haven't had a boyfriend for a very long time. I need someone to woo me. Magazines are always saying I am beautiful and millions of men want to woo me, but none has come forward because they are all so scared.

"I can go to a party and sense that men really like me but they are in awe of me and won't come and ask me for a date. Being an Indian actress is bad enough but now I'm a celebrity in the UK it's too much. It would take a really secure man to handle the media attention.

"I'm eulogised by a lot of men, but they wouldn't take me home to meet their mothers," she said.

New Year Greetings

Rumors: Shahid Kapur is dating Sania Mirza?

Afew days ago, Bollywood actor Shahid Kapur and tennis player Sania Mirza were seen together at a Bangalore five–star hotel. Reportedly, the hotel bellboy leaked out the news of the two spending time with each other in Shahid’s room.

Looks like Shahid Kapur and tennis player Sania Mirza are getting closer. The two of them are spending more quality time with each other. On Monday evening, Shahid and Sania were spotted having dinner at a suburban five-star hotel. They spent nearly two hours with each other.

Earlier this week, Shahid performed at a film awards function in Taj Land’s end. After the function got over, he drove straight to a suburban five-star hotel where Sania joined him. Says an eyewitness, “Shahid and Sania very much looked like a couple. They were completely engrossed in each other, and were oblivious of what was happening around them.”

A close friend of Shahid says, “Yes, Shahid did spend time with Sania on Saturday. They have been bonding very well with each other.”

Shahid’s friend went on to add that Shahid was never in a relationship with Vidya Balan, who is paired opposite him in Aziz Mirza’s Kismet Connection. “That link-up was merely to hype Kismet Connection,” he signed off.

We informed Shahid’s spokesperson to get his version of the story, but he remained unavailable for comment. We SMSed him too, but to no avail.

SRK to perform at Airtel Bindaas India concert

Shahrukh Khan along with other Bollywood celebrities is all set to perform at the two hour live Airtel Bindass India concert, organized by UTV’s Bindass.

Boman Irani, Priyanka Chopra, Dia Mirza, Dino Morea, Rakhi Sawant, Kunal Ganjawala, Ganesh Hegde, Nitin and Mauli Dave are the other bollywood stars who will be joining Shahrukh Khan.

The concert will also have Bindaas comical Hass Ley India Duo Mantra and Anirudh performing at the MMRDA grounds, Mumbai, on January 13, 2008. And the telecast is scheduled on January 26.

Amrita is not even worth Rs 30 lakhs

Ranbir, Sonam, Neil Mukesh or Deepika Padukone aren't the only stars who floored audience in 2007.

Our very own Nasal sensation Himesh Reshammiya rocked literally the box-office too and perhaps much better than most of them.

Bhushan Kumar, the T-Series czar, was so impressed with his outing at the box office that he launched three Karzzzz, Kajraare and A love Iissshtory, starring Himesh, to be directed by Satish Kaushik, Pooja Bhatt and John Mathew Matthan respectively.

Karzzzz is the remake of Ghai's original blockbuster of the same name but the film has already landed into minor tussle with Amrita Rao, who claims that she was asked to play the lead role opposite Himesh which she eventually refused.

She also claims that Satish Kaushik and Himesh Reshammiya offered her 3.5 crore to play Tina Munim’s role in the remake. They felt that she was perfect for the fresh, innocent girl’s part.

They even offered her superb songs but Amrita turned down the offer as she didn’t want to star opposite Himesh. She has films with Harman Baweja, Nikhil Dwivedi and Shahid Kapur in her kitty and wants to act with bigger stars.

Now that claim has made Bhushan Kumar very angry. “Karzzzz was never offered to Amrita Rao.

We were always supposed to introduce a new, fresh girl from the day it was announced,” he fumes and adds, "Why would I offer her three crores to Amrita who is not worth more than 30 lakh.”

Himesh Reshammiya too denies approaching Amrita, “It’s a lie that we approached Amrita! I have never met Amrita Rao.

Karzzzz will introduce a new girl opposite me and not only that each of my new films will introduce a new face because I think the chemistry with a new face opposite me has worked last time. "

And now we hear that Jennifer Kotwal, who made a spectacular debut in the Kannada superhit Jogi, is the most likely choice to play Tina Munim's role.

Jennifer had a tiny appearance in Subhash Ghai's Yaadein and it was on his recommendation Jeniffer was roped in for Karzzzz.

Ajay made me look like big fool: Vidya Balan

Vidya started her career in the Hindi film industry with ‘Parineeta’ and since then the actress has not fallen short of praise from audiences and critics alike. She is now all prepared to allure the audience with her character in Rajkumar Santoshi’s ‘Halla Bol’.

Q.: Please tell us about your character in the film ‘Halla Bol’?
A.: I’m playing the role of Ajay Devgan’s wife Sneha in this movie. She is always a support to Ajay. She helps him to realize his true being whenever he needs to understand whether something is true or false, right or wrong.

Actually I am a mirror to him. She always says the truth to her husband. Her love is the power in her to express the hardcore truth.

Q.: You will be seen as the mother of a four year old boy and your screen time is supposed to be short. Don’t you think that your character will go unnoticed?
A.: There’s nothing like that. I always play roles which inspire me. At the same time, its better not to think that all your characters will always be glamorous. I always look for better characters.

If I have to look at the length, I cannot always be the leading lady of all my movies. Even when I signed the movie, I knew the movie is for Ajay Devgan. I only believe in characters that are indispensable to the story.

Q.: Rajkumar Santoshi’s heroines have always been presented as strong characters. Is that the reason why you agreed to be a part of the project?
A.: May be. I look for characters with some substance. I believe in women with some power in them. That’s the reason why ‘Lajja’ is my favourite film.

Q.: Please tell us about your look in the film?
A.: In the film I am actually from a small town and I get married to a superstar. The director of the film, Raj ji, thought of two different looks for me. One was the look of a woman from a small town and the other one is the look of the wife of superstar. But with the progression of shooting, he threw away the idea about the second look.

That happened only when he realized the fact that when a character is going through so many problems, she cannot think of outfits.

Q.: Usually Ajay Devgan is accepted with his serious look. What do you think?
A.: That’s true but he plays few great comic characters too. And that’s very natural and goes with the character of the actual Ajay Devgan we see on the sets. Working with him was a great experience.

Q.: Has he played any prank during the shooting of this movie?
A.: I would like to mention one incident. Once he made me look like a real big fool. One scene was okayed in the first take but Ajay Devgan and Raj ji made me do it several times. They kept on inspiring me to give the take again and again and I went on following their instructions.

But when I saw that they are just laughing at me I realized that there must be something terribly wrong. And I found that they were just playing a prank on me.

Q.: How was the experience of working with Rajkumar Santoshi?
A.: That was a nice experience. He used to explain every minute thing before the shooting and at the same time he used to inspire all the crew members and actors. I enjoy talking to him as he is very intelligent. Whether it’s History, religion or current affairs he has knowledge of every field.

Q.: Is there any message in the film?
A.: Actually the film shows that there are problems in everybody’s life and there are some people who try to solve them and some who just evade them. In this film all the characters are conscious about the odds and they all come together to face that. It teaches us the positive sides of unity.

Q.: Are you aware that Priyanka Chopra was the first choice for the character you are playing?
A.: Yeah, I know. I got a call from the film makers regarding the movie. It was after they were done with two weeks of shooting I had some information about the casting of the film.

I remember that I went to Raj ji’s office and after listening to the whole story I just came back. I reached my car but suddenly went back to him and said that I liked the script and agreed to do it.

Q.: Is there any memorable incident that must have taken place during the shoot?
A.: It was the time when we shot at Haji Ali. Despite being a resident of Mumbai, I never went to that place. And even though there were crowds I felt the solemnity of the place. There’s a song in that place which is a plus point in the film.

Q.: In the last movie your outfits were not accepted well…..
A.: I took all the negative comments regarding my outfits in a positive way. I was really very idle but now I’m concerned about that. I wear only those outfits which make me feel comfortable. I enjoy less make-up. I like to wear T-shirt with slacks and jeans. And I also love cotton salwaar suits.

Q.: You are basically known as serious actor. What’s your opinion on comedies?
A.: (Smiling) I have acted in comedies, too. It’s a different issue that my character was not comic. No director has allowed me to be a comic and I’m waiting for the day when someone will approach me with a comic character. I hope directors are getting my point.

Q.: It was John and now Shahid. How do you like when people attach your name with someone in that way?
A.: I used to get tensed with these things but now I’m used to all that. I used to get very angry initially. And sometimes I cried, too.

Now I think that till I stay alone my name will be linked to one or the other guy. And it’s after all a part of celeb life. And now I don’t get worried about these issues.

Welcome and TZP benefit due to Jodha Akbar's delay

Welcome being a super-success and Taare Zameen Par showing steady escalation isn't news any more. What is news though is an extended great run at the box office for both the films, which is pretty much on the cards now due to Jodha Akbar being postponed to February. Though the official date being cited is February 15, there are still doubts if this would stick on to be the final date.

With coming weeks boasting of mostly small/medium budget productions with a limited market and only a handful of films which could be taken seriously, it greatly helps the prospects of Welcome and Taare Zameen Par to enjoy a longish stay at the screens.

Coming Friday sees Return of Hanuman and Showbiz. While Anurag Kashyap has been quoted as saying that "Return of Hanuman could be as big a blockbuster as Om Shanti Om,” Mukesh Bhatt has maintained that "Showbiz would work with word of mouth going in it's favor". The fact still remains that none of the two films are expected to embark on an earth-shattering opening, hence allowing Akshay and Aamir to stay strong even in the second week.

A film like Manthan Ek Kashmakash that may release on January 4 (deadly first weekend of a year), spells Z grade from miles away and the only thing it guarantees is an inauspicious beginning to 2008.

A week later things turn better but still not in a way which could announce Halla Bol at the box office. Bombay To Bangkok is a small film by Iqbal team of Subhash Ghai, Nagesh Kukunoor and Shreyas Talpade and would see a limited release. Raj Kumar Santoshi, who would be desperate for a box office, has announced, "Halla Bol is a wake-up call for our collective conscience" while also clarifying that this Ajay Devgan (who plays a superstar) starrer is not set in the film industry. The film again belongs to ‘wait and watch’ category, as is the case with the third release of the January 11-My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves, which marks the debut of Nikhil Dwivedi.

Earlier this month, producer Surendra Bhatia had postponed his Rajpal Yadav, Ashish Chaudhary, Neha Dhupia starrer Rama Rama Kya Hai Dramaaa stating, "There are number of biggies slated for a release in December, and we would be forced to vacate theatres/multiplexes once these films release." The situation definitely has improved as January 18 currently stands as an open weekend for this comedy. Still, it is more or less a negligible competition for Welcome and Taare Zameen Par.

The first major competition, which comes, the way of Akshay and Aamir is Sunday which hits the screens on January 25, 2008. "The film unabashedly promises to be a mix of action, comedy, romance, and thrills. Director Rohit Shetty appears to have a winner in hands," says a trade insider. A solo release, it is followed by small/medium budget films like Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na and Superstar, promotion for which is still to begin.

What this means for both Welcome and Taare Zameen Par is that both the films would now have more or less an uninterrupted run for an almost 8 weeks! Astonishing, since in the times when there is competition arriving every Friday, Akshay and Aamir would have as many as two open months for their films.