Katrina can't escape skin show

She may have evaded the bikini but has to flaunt tank top and shorts for a sequence in the film

The bikini boogey has not really been exorcised out of Katrina Kaif's presence in Dhoom 3. Though she has convinced producer Aditya Chopra that the bikini is not essential for the scene where she was supposed to flaunt one, the issue is far from resolved.

Apparently the core team of Dhoom 3 continued to persuade the actress to take forward the tradition of bikini-clad leading ladies in the flick.

Says a source, "Though Katrina signed on the dotted line for Dhoom 3 only on condition that the bikini sequence be removed, they reluctantly removed the bikini. But the question of what she wears in lieu of the skimpy apparel has only now been resolved."

For the sequence, Katrina would now be wearing shorts and a suitable top.

Says the source, "Aditya Chopra and director Vijay Krishna Acharya were not willing to do away with the sequence where Katrina was to be seen in beach wear.

The sequence was to be shot on an exotic beach. After she said no to wearing a two-piece, there was talk of doing away with that sequence altogether. But it is felt by the entire team that the beach location is lucky for the series.

Since Katrina is required for that sequence, her clothes have been suitable modified to go by her aesthetic comfort and the requirement of the sequence." Interestingly, her role requires her to be more lean and athletic than the present.

Says a source from Istanbul where she is shooting for Ek Tha Tiger, "Katrina has a round-the-clock trainer with her in Istanbul who is currently training her in the rudiments of the physical-type required. She gets into advanced training on her return."

Apparently Katrina's character in Dhoom 3 would be "a mixture of Catwoman and Lara Croft, with a bit of Hema Malini from Seeta Aur Geeta thrown in." Katrina remained unavailable for comment.

Credit: Mid-Day.com

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Miley Naa Miley Hum (Movie Review)

There are some unexprected surprises in this sleeper rom-com, the newcomer Chirag Paswan being one of them.

In a tailormade role that projects him as an ideal son, considerate boss, supportive friend and sensitive lover Chirag doles out the schmaltz and the sweetness without tripping over his own goodness.

This is a benign film, innocuous in its intentions and harmless if somewhat pointless too. There are absolutely no villains in the script. In fact some of the people populating the plot seem to belong to another planet in their goodness.

Dalip Tahil in a turban stops his spunky daughter (Neeru Bajwa)’s engagement when he gets to know his best friend Kabir Bedi nursed a secret desire to see his hon-haar son (Chirag) married to the almost-engaged girl.

The hero is an angel in designer-disguise. He drives the best cars, wears the best sunglasses, romances a struggling model (Ranaut, struggling to shrug off her emotionally traumatized image) and yet sits with the staffers of his imperious father’s sprawling vineyard for a meal of roti and achaar.

The core idea of the film is to propagate a kind of picture-postcard bonhomie into the plot. The worst thing that happens in the hero’s life is that his parents are separated.

But that’s hardly a deterrent for his life being a seriously satirical celeberation of slow-motion joys that include romancing three ladies, two chosen by his respective parents and one chosen off a hoarding by Chirag himself.

Kangna as the struggling model who keeps bumbling into hard surfaces (including hero) has an interesting believable part. She starts off being a casualty of her own ambitions and then gradually gets closer to her real emotions.

Nice touch, that one. The tennis backdrop, though never done with the professionalism that hockey achieved in Chak De (and never mind Sagarika Ghosh the actress who played one of the hockey players in Chak De, surfacing in Miley Na Miley Hum as Chirag’s potential Biwi).

It’s all too pretty, too predictable and too soft and gentle to make a lasting impact.

But the heart is the right place. And you can’t help smiling at the world that the film encompasses with such tender hands that don’t want to brush against any evil.

Debutant Chirag Paswan is likeable when he isn’t caught out ‘acting’. He comes with the added burden of having to prove he isn’t just the brat with the golden spoon.

He conducts himself with reasonable aplomb in a film that’s just a wee bit different from the boy-meets-girl routine.

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Kim Sharma quits what she calls her terrible career

Kim Sharma’s career never took off. And now she has put an official end to her Bollywood career. Coincidentally both she and Shamita Shetty started their careers in Aditya Chopra’s Mohabbatein.

The film clicked. But the careers of all the newcomers in the film—Kim, Shamita, Preeti Jhangiani, Uday Chopra, Jimmy Shergill and Jugal Hansraj—failed to take off.

Now bizarrely enough, Shamita and Kim have quit films one after another. Kim who recently married Kenya-based businessman Ali Punjani is being seen for the last time in Loot released this week. In the film she is paired with singer Mika. Not a major or noticeable role.

Thereafter she says it’s goodbye to Bollywood.

Says Kim, “I am very happily married. Luckily and happily, Loot is the last of my terrible film career. ”

Kim now divides her time in three citires, Kenya, Dubai and Mumbai and sees no reason to cling to a non-existent Bollywood career. “So it’s farewell to Bollywood. My message to Bollywood, see you later, Beautiful! ”

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Miss Venezuela wins Miss World crown

LONDON: Miss Venezuela, Ivian Lunasol Sarcos Colimenares, was crowned the 2011 winner of the Miss World beauty pageant at a glittering final ceremony in London on Sunday.

Miss Philippines, Gwendoline Gaelle Sandrine Ruais, was named the runner-up, while Miss Puerto Rico, Amanda Victoria Vilanova Perez, came third.

Sarcos Colimenares, 22, who works for a broadcasting company and has a degree in human resources, gasped and threw her hands to her face as she was announced the winner.

Some 113 beauty queens from Albania to Zimbabwe took their place on the stage, with the show being broadcast live to an estimated audience of more than one billion viewers in 150 countries. (AFP)

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Secrecy surrounds new James Bond movie 'Skyfall'

LONDON: Daniel Craig will be back dodging bullets and vanquishing villains from China to Turkey in the 23rd installment of the James Bond film franchise, but the stars and director of "Skyfall" are keeping the who, what and how under wraps for now.

As previously announced, Oscar-winning director Sam Mendesdirects his first Bond adventure, which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2012 when Skyfall is released.

One of the few details Mendes revealed to more than 100 reporters from around the world at the film's London press launch were his cast and the locations of the blockbuster, which starts production on Monday.

Bond regulars Craig and Judi Dench, as his stern spymaster M, return to their roles, Spanish actor Javier Bardem plays the villain and French actress Berenice Marlohe and Britain's Naomie Harris are Bond girls.

All five were at the press briefing, where they were joined by Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson.

In addition, Mendes said the latest installment in one of cinema's longest and most successful film franchises will feature Ben Whishaw "who will be playing a part I can't tell you about in scenes I can tell you nothing about.

"And Albert Finney, who will also be playing a part I can tell you nothing about in scenes that I can't really tell you about and Ralph Fiennes, who, similarly, I can give you very little information about."

Asked whether he had not named all of the characters the leading actors would be playing because Bond fans might recognize them, the "American Beauty" director replied: "They might do. On the other hand they might not."

What producers have confirmed is that Skyfall will take Bond on another action-packed mission to London, Shanghai, Istanbul and Scotland.

A press release gave a brief plot outline, saying Bond's loyalty to M is tested "as her past comes back to haunt her.

"As MI6 (British intelligence) comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost."

NO "AUSTERITY" BOND

Mendes and his producers sought to reassure fans that tough economic conditions in the real world would not make the fictional exploits of the suave superspy any less spectacular.

"It, I think, has all the elements of a classic Bond movie, including, to quell any rumors, a lot of action," Mendes said.

Wilson added: "I think it's in the same (cost) range as the last film and we really haven't had to change anything in the script. We haven't had to sacrifice anything."

The 22nd Bond movie, "Quantum of Solace," cost an estimated $200 million to produce, more than the previous installment and Craig's Bond debut "Casino Royale," which cost a reported $150 million.

Any extra outlay did not translate into higher ticket sales, however, with Casino Royale earning $594 million at the global box office and Quantum of Solace $586 million, according to website www.boxofficemojo.com.

Sony Pictures, part of Sony Corp, will distribute Skyfall, which is set to hit British theaters on October 26, 2012 and U.S. cinemas on November 9 after a studio bankruptcy put production on hold for months and the last movie earned mixed reviews.

Next year is the 50th anniversary of the series, which began in 1962 with Sean Connery -- breathing life into the character created by former intelligence officer and novelist Ian Fleming -- on Her Majesty's secret service in "Dr. No."

Debt-laden Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc, known for its roaring lion logo and behind some of Hollywood's most fabled films including "The Wizard of Oz," filed for bankruptcy in November last year.

But two months later it confirmed Bond 23 would hit theatres in November, 2012, and in April MGM and Sony announced they would co-finance and distribute the next two Bond movies.

Craig's first appearance as Bond in 2006 was hailed as a refreshing change in direction toward a tougher, more serious 007, and reviews were overwhelmingly positive.

Quantum of Solace fared less well with the critics, although positive reviews still outweighed the negative and both films were commercially successful.

When Craig was asked if he would continue in one of cinema's most recognizable roles for a few more years, Broccoli interjected and said: "Yes, definitely." (Reuters)

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