Forget the Milind Soman and Madhu Sapre commercial. Cyberspace is now feeling the heat of a New York Lotto commercial that was shot by Bipasha Basu and Vivek Oberoi. YouTube uploads mention that the commercial has been directed by Ken Nahoum.

The art direction has been done by illustrator Tommy Kane and it was shot in India. Needless to say, the ad is very bold in terms of Indian standards and, hence, apprehensions remained about whether the actors had indeed shot for it.

However, Bipasha’s manager confirmed that it is indeed the star, which has been featured in this ad. “Bipasha had done this ad in 1999 when she was modeling for Ford Modeling Agency in New York. It was done as an international assignment and was meant for the international market. I don’t know why such an old ad has surfaced now,” said Bipasha’s manager.

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Sania Mirza is extremely upset with small time Bollywood filmmaker has launched a film called Hyderabadi Damaad, based on the tennis player’s life and the controversy surrounding her marriage to Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik.

Hyderabadi Damaad, starring Amar Upadhyay, Ali Merchant and TV star Debina Bonerjee as Sania Mirza was launched last week in Mumbai.

The film is being produced by PD Garg and directed by Jaiprakash (Market). The film’s crux is the drama surrounding Sania’s marriage to Shoaib. The film also intends to explore the circumstances leading to Sania’s break up with her former fiancée Sohrab Mirza.

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Jiah Khan is finally seeing her fortunes turn in Bollywood. She is still celebrating the success of Housefull, her second film after Ghajini which worked at the box office. She has a third reason to celebrate for the actress just bought herself a house in Chelsea, London.

Talking about her new acquisition, Jiah tell us, “I am so happy today. I bought an apartment in London. For last six months I have been juggling between India and London, where I will be shooting for an English production.

And I thought this was a good time to buy a house here. It’s a two bedroom apartment in Chelsea. It feels great to own a house, that too where I grew up,” says the actress. For a 22-year old, this would be quite an achievement. But Jiah is aiming higher. Now she aspires for a villa in France and of course, one in Mumbai too.

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Tennis star Sania Mirza is extremely upset. A small time Bollywood filmmaker has launched a film called Hyderabadi Damaad, based on the tennis player’s life and the controversy surrounding her marriage to a Pakistani cricketer. Sania’s apprehensions about the content of the film have been further fuelled by the fact that the filmmaker has neither informed her about the film nor sought permission for basing the film on her life.

Hyderabadi Damaad, starring Amar Upadhyay, Ali Merchant and TV star Debina Bonerjee as Sania Mirza was launched last week in Mumbai. The film is being produced by PD Garg and directed by Jaiprakash (Market). The film’s crux is the drama surrounding Sania’s marriage to Shoaib Malik. The film also intends to explore the circumstances leading to Sania’s break up with her former fiancée Sohrab Mirza.

Said Sania, “I was surprised to read in newspapers that a director is making a film on me and my marriage. I think that a commercial movie based on my personal life is hardly relevant, but I hope that the concerned director will make it clear to his viewers that the film is merely a fictional account based on his imagination. It is intriguing that I haven’t even been approached by the filmmakers regarding this. Very few people in the world would know the real Sania Mirza. It’s a shame if the director is relying on distorted information he’s picked up through inaccurate media coverage.”

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Actor Priyanka Chopra, who's recently shooting for Vishal Bhardwaj's Saat Khoon Maaf, was staying at a palace-turned-hotel in Mysore where she had a royal, king-size room to her herself.

And no, she wasn't too happy about it. She posted on her Twitter page, "I'm staying at a palace that's been converted to a hotel. I think I'm more of a peasant kind of person. I was so spooked in my massive room."

Chopra was initially excited about travelling to Mysore. "Hey guys, on my way to Mysore. Will have connectivity for the next few days.... Yay! So what's up!" she tweeted, adding, "Shooting at night... gets me tired. But at a beautiful palace in Mysore... I guess that makes up!"

But then it seems likes she couldn't sleep a wink: "I hardly slept last night. Everthing was scaring me. From the curtains moving to the four-poster bed to the AC making noises to the high ceilings," she posted. No wonder she heaved a sigh of relief, when she had to return to Coorg.

"Good morning everyone. Last day in network today.... Heading back to Coorg tonight! Will miss y'all. Coming back to today.... Me sleepy!" she wrote.

Saat Khoon Maaf has Chopra playing a wife to seven husbands, one of whom was rumoured to be played by Gerard Butler. The film, based on Ruskin Bond's Susanna's Seven Husbands, features Naseeruddin Shah, John Abraham, Neil Nitin Mukesh, Irrfan Khan, Anu Kapoor and Shah's youngest son, Vivaan and a foreign actor whose name hasn't been revealed yet.

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Director Siddharth Anand says his new film Anjaana Anjaani, which stars Ranbir Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra, is inspired by the hit American sitcom Friends.

"I remember when I watched Friends I wanted to meet and know every character. That’s how I want audiences to feel about Ranbir and Priyanka in Anjaana Anjaani. When Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge came out, you wanted to feel and touch Raj and Simran. That’s how I want audiences to feel about Ranbir and Priyanka…everyone in the team has given his or her best to this film," Anand said.

Anjaana Anjaani has been scripted by author Advaita Kala.

"She wrote a chick-lit novel called Almost Single. I asked her to develop a story by my wife Mamta. Ranbir and Priyanka had no reference points in any film for their performance…These are characters going through extraordinary, not easily relatable circumstances. It’s about few days that two strangers spend together."

Siddharth shot in Central Park’s skating rink. "We shot in iconic New York. We had the skating rink shut down for our shoot for three days. Then we shot with Ranbir and Priyanka in New York’s Caf Lalo where Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks met in When Harry Met Sally."

And they also needed to shoot on a bridge and they finally headed to Kuala Lampur to do that.

"We needed to take over a bridge completely for three-four days. Because of 26/11, we couldn’t get the necessary permission. We finally got the bridge in Kuala Lumpur. They made it as easy for us as shooting in Goregaon. Thanks to our producer Sajid Nadiadwala, we could shoot anywhere I wanted," said Anand, who has made films like Salaam Namaste and Bachna Ae Haseeno.

The whole film was shot in live sound and is set to release on Oct 1.

Contrary to expectations, Ranbir’s singing debut won’t be part of the film’s CD.

"Ranbir has sung a one-and-half minute track. But it is part of a comic scene. So he will only be singing in the film. We needed Ranbir’s character, not Ranbir, to sing. So those who want to watch him sing will have to wait for the film," Anand said.

"I did my first film Salaam Namaste in 2005. If I’m doing another romantic film it better be even cooler and more contemporary. Anjaana Anjaani is the riskiest film ever. I’ve experimented with the style and performances.

"If audiences believe in the couple, they’ll come back repeatedly to watch them. If they don’t they’ll reject them completely. It’s so character-driven. If their performances don’t work, the film doesn’t," he added.

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Actress Lara Dutta is following in the footsteps of megastar Amitabh Bachchan by launching her own voice blog.

"Hey! I just started Voice Blogging, you can dial *5148* from your Airtel number to listen to me. Catch you all there," Lara posted on her microblogging site Twitter.

Meanwhile, the actress is set to co-host this year's International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) awards in Colombo June 3-5.

"I am not performing this year but will be hosting the show along with Boman Irani and Riteish Deshkmukh," Lara, who was present in the capital for the launch of an international clothing brand Zara, told reporters here Friday.

Lara has also been roped in to star in Farhan Akhtar's "Don 2" alongside Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra and Arjun Rampal.

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The FIFA World Cup 2010 to take place in South Africa between June 11 and July 11 is the biggest event in the world sporting calendar. However, the coup actually is the news that Bollywood’s reigning diva Kareena Kapoor is in talks with the FIFA event managers.

Insiders say that Bebo, who has a very tight work schedule, is actually taking time off for a music video for the FIFA event alongside Hollywood hottie Matt Damon.

It is indicated that the action around this music video is big, with the budget surpassing anything that Bollywood has ever seen or done before. And besides apni Bebo, other Hollywood superstars who will participate in the video are Kevin Spacey and Jessica Alba.

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Ever since Anurag Basu began work on Silence with Ranbir Kapoor, the film has been in the news. The latest buzz that surrounds the project is that Anurag has zeroed in on Asin for the role that was originally sketched for Katrina. Apparently, there were talks with Deepika Padukone too, but the deal failed to materialize.

“Deepika demanded an astronomical sum to be a part of the film. Anurag had no choice but to look for other options,” reveals a source. It may be known that Katrina was gung ho about doing Anurag’s film but opted out once she learnt that Priyanka Chopra was part of the cast too.

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Though Akshay Kumar hasn't had a massive hit to match the success of his 2008 movie, Singh is Kinng, with a hit under his belt with Housefull, and five more big-budget movies on the cards, 2010 looks bright for the actor.

Apart from aggressively promoting the Sajid Khan-directed Housefull across the country in the beginning of the year, Kumar's been on a shooting spree.

He began the year shooting for Priyadarshan's Khatta Meetha near Pune, then shot for Farah Khan's Tees Maar Khan in Mumbai and Malshej Ghat, and spent the last month shooting for Anees Bazmee's Thank You in Canada.

The actor is currently in London shooting for Nikhil Advani's Patiala House, but the round-the-clock shooting has seemingly taken a toll on the actor.

He recently tweeted that he'd be heading for a "much needed vacation", "Few days of shoot left in London... Then taking off for a much needed family vacation to Canada."

A doting father, Kumar, who has often gone out of his way to shower gifts or plan special events for his son, Aarav, has also tweeted that he is looking forward to spending time with him: "Lots of fun activities planned with Aarav... Can't wait."

After his holiday, the actor will wrap up the shooting for Tees Maar Khan and Vipul Shah's Action Replayy. In Patiala House, the actor plays the role of a cricketer from London's Southall, who dreams of playing for England, but is opposed by his father, who was a victim of racism.

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Actor Shah Rukh Khan, who was supposed to be the star attraction at this year's IIFA awards in Colombo from June 3-5, has decided to give the event a miss.

"I don't think I will be able to come for iifa...too much work here, will miss Colombo," SRK tweeted. Apart from upping the function's star power, SRK was also supposed to captain the Bollywood team in a friendly cricket match against the Sri Lankan team.

Sabbas Joseph of Wizcraft, the show's organisers, said, "Stars have their commitments. Hrithik Roshan will now be the captain," SRK's absence is another blow to the event after Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and hubby Abhishek announced that they won't be attending the gala, usually touted as a Bachchan family affair. Amitabh Bachchan will only make a fleeting appearance.

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Another Bollywood superstar has joined the ever-growing list of Twitterati. Sanjay Dutt joined the micro blogging site, Twitter on Friday night, and by Saturday afternoon, he had crossed 3,500 followers.

Dutt's profile picture is a poster of his upcoming movie, Lamhaa, so the actor has presumably come on Twitter to promote it.

In his two tweet, Dutt thanked people for the love. and also gave people a virtual 'jadoo ki jhappi' (hug), that was made famous by his hit film, Munnabhai MBBS.

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Perfectionist Aamir Khan is rumored to be hosting Kaun Banega Crorepati 4. Talks are going on and Aamir Khan is in the top of the list. Question that arises about hosting KBC 4 is that since it was earlier hosted by Amitabh Bachchanand Shahrukh Khan, comparison is bound to take place. 

“These things simply don’t matter to Aamir. The only way he would come on television is by doing a show that caters to social cause. At the moment, he’s got two projects in hand – both by BIG Synergy. If KBC doesn’t work out, then Aamir is likely to take up the other reality show currently untitled. The common thing with both is that their principal aim is social cause. It’s precisely this thing that has evinced Aamir’s interest in coming to television,” said a source.

If Aamir gives his nod then there will be a change in the format, it will be something resemblance to ‘Slumdog Millionare’. The show will aim towards doing some social cause. Throwing light on the issue, the source says, “Yes, earlier there was such a format wherein you would invite one contestant from the slums to earn rupees I million in a day. However, that’s been done away with now. New format, new rules will be in place, but one thing constant will be the social factor.”

If Aamir says yes then it would his debut venture in television.

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About rumors that he is no longer interested in Kollywood and is looking towards Bollywood, Suriya retorts, “Tamil cinema is my bread and butter; it’s made me a star. I’m not interested in doing a regular Hindi film.

I did RGV’s Rakta Charitra as I found the character challenging. You don’t get to play a Suri every day. Next month, I’m beginning work on A R Murgadoss’s Ezhaam Arivu, which is pure dynamite; the subject will appeal to a pan-Indian audience.”

Unlike his colleagues, Suriya has not increased his salary even after delivering blockbuster after blockbuster.

Why’s that, we ask him. “I do not go after money. I make enough money doing endorsements. I believe that everybody should gain from a film that I act in. I’m passionate about my projects and know my market limits,” he signs off with a smile.

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As the days pass and clock ticks, Sushmita Sen is leaving no stone unturned to make her ‘I Am She’ 2010 Miss India-Universe Pageant a success.

The former Miss Universe has been slogging away to select the Miss Universe contestant from India for this year. From Bollywood, Vivek Oberoi and Koena Mitra would be part of the jury panel.

And Sush plans a bigger surprise for the final day. We hear she is bringing the reigning Miss Universe Stefania Fernandez of Venezuela to India for the grand event.

The Miss Universe 2010 is on August 23 in Las Vegas, USA, and almost 80 beauties from different countries will vie for the coveted crown.

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Actor Emraan Hashmi, who is known for his sizzling chemistry and steamy scenes on screen with his female co stars, is also pretty good at action sequences.

It is believed that the sexy actor escaped a fatal accident in Melbourne, Australia on Thursday while shooting for his upcoming movie “Crook”. The movie is being produced under the banner of Vishesh Films and once again Emraan is being directed by Mohit Suri of Raaz 2 fame.

It also stars a new face Neha Sharma opposite Emraan Hashmi.

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Manoj Bajpai, who will be seen as an ambitious, power hungry politician in Prakash Jha’s Raajneeti , seems to have found inspiration from an unlikely source: actor turned politician Chiranjeevi. The look and the mannerisms appear to be styled on the South icon. 

Our source said, “When you see Manoj in the film, especially during the election campaign scenes and notice his oratory style, it bears a striking resemblance to Chiranjeevi. Even his look and his moustache are absolutely similar. The striking resemblance can’t be avoided.”

However, Manoj Bajpai did not agree with the theory. He said, “Not at all. I have never observed Chiranjeevi when he was campaigning. It might be a coincidence or some postures might be similar, but there is no deliberate attempt to copy him. I have based my character on someone from my village in Bihar, who I have known since childhood. His name is Brijesh Singh. I wanted to capture his charisma as I play the eldest brother in this family saga. He is extremely ambitious and can go to any extent to fulfill his political ambitions. At the same time, he is a great friend and an interesting character in the film.”

Speaking about the scenes where he resembles Chiranjeevi, he said, “Those are the sequences where I am trying to raise a debate. I was trying to look active and speak my mind. In the scene, I speak aggressively so that people who are listening to me should believe in me. I guess that’s why people find this similarity.”

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Shahid Kapoor currently resides in an apartment at the upscale Raj Classique complex in Versova, suburban Mumbai. He wants to move into a bigger apartment but two reasons or people are holding him back.

Shahid is meeting real estate agents because he wants to buy a six-seven bedroom apartment to accommodate a gymnasium and a couple of guest bedrooms. His current home has three bedrooms and is a sea-facing one. He wants the new place to have a sea-view too, which means he can shift to South Mumbai or Bandra or Juhu or another area of Versova. But sea-facing apartments are hard to find in Mumbai.

Another reason Shahid does not want to move from his current pad is because his father Pankaj stays in the same building and he likes that sense of security. Moreover, his good friend Priyanka Chopra stays in the complex, she has three flats in the next wing and is his neighbour. And Shahid obviously likes his neighbour a lot.

Shahid says, 'I am looking for a new place but it is hard to find a huge house with a sea-view. It's not that I am not moving because Priyanka is my neighbour.'

When asked about his equation with her, he said, 'Somethings about my life are personal and I like it that way. I will come out in the open when I am fully committed to someone. Let's say Priyanka and I are neighbours and friends.'

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Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan is now trying his hand at video editing. "After an entire morning of learning how to edit a DVD on my own, I have finally managed a little snippet," Amitabh wrote on his blog bigb.bigadda.com. 

"That little snippet was an attempt to understand the business of editing," he added.

The actor posted the video on his blog. It shows him waving to hordes of people assembled outside his Jalsa home.

While describing the video, Amitabh wrote, "This is me in the red SUV coming into my house Jalsa on a Sunday evening.

And this is a recurring scenario every Sunday, every evening. Then waving to the crowds accepting their love and affection, in my track suit and skull cap. The security having a tough time keeping the crowds from charging in. As I had mentioned a few days back." 

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The use of Google's search engine by Indians has been increased by 70%, a top company official said. "The total intensity of Google usage in India has been increased by 70 per cent this April over the year-ago period," Google India Business Head, Narasimha Jayakumar told reporters on the sidelines of a Google exhibition of newer technologies called 'Google Creative Sand Box.'

According to Google's 'Brand Zeitgeist' which highlights the most searched brands, mobile phone maker Nokia emerged as the most searched brands in India followed by State Bank of India, Samsung, Sony and BSNL, he said. Financial sector has recorded a 73% growth in terms of searches and it is a mature category with 80% queries containing specific brands, Jayakumar said."The 33% of the queries from the financial sector were about banking and net banking is the top activity," he said.

In insurance, LIC is the top searched brand followed by ICICI Prudential and Bajaj Allianz. India leads the world in the online interest for investing/stock markets, Jayakumar said. Automotive and Telecom are the fastest growing verticals in terms of search volumes on Google. Nokia is the biggest in the mobile phones category and Airtel is the biggest in service provider category, he said adding that Maruti is the leading brand in cars, while Yamaha leads the motorbikes category.

While research on specific brand makes and models are most popular, consumers do a lot of reading on expert websites and seek expert opinions on their vehicles or prospective buys on Google search, Jayakumar said. Another interesting trend, according to Google is, Air travel giving way to rail and bus bookings in the online travel category. The Indian Railway booking website is by far the most popular brand overall in travel. Honeymoon packages are the most researched for, followed by domestic holidays and international holidays, he said. In education sector, Google is flooded with 1 billion queries in 2009 of which 48 million are MBA related queries, he said.

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Priyanka Chopra will be performing the most daring stunts ever by an Indian female celebrity as the host for the new season of Khatron Ke Khiladi. For this purpose, a special gym has been set up for Priyanka in the jungles of Coorg. 

Apparently the special equipment for Priyanka's training was transported to Coorg by train, plane and automobiles. Channel personnel flew on location to discuss Priyanka's stunts for the show.

Confirms Priyanka, "Yes a gym has been set up for me here in Coorg. I need to be in even better shape than I am right now for Khatron Ke Khiladi, and for that I needed to train now before I leave for Brazil in August. I can't really talk about the stunts that I plan to do, but they are scary even for me," says Priyanka.

Laughs Priyanka, "If I've been given an opportunity to perform the kind of stunts only men get to perform then I guess I really need to prove myself. No one is going to judge my stunts leniently - they'll compare my stunts with my predecessor (Akshay Kumar). And I better be just as good."

Responding to rumours that the channel is finding it hard to sign topnotch cricketers post the IPL scandal, Priyanka says, "As far as I know, we're shooting with cricketers in August-September in Brazil. I don't think there is any change."

However, there's news awaiting the actress when she returns from Coorg. Apparently the channel has decided to do away with the cricketers as contestants and sign 13 other male celebrities instead.

Says a source from the television industry, "The last thing that the cricketers need is to be seen having fun in the jungles of Brazil in Priyanka Chopra's company. The channel is now seriously considering replacing the cricketers with other celebrities. Their logic is simple - they have the hot babe in place, so how does it matter whether the celebrities are cricketers or models?"

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The biggest of Bollywood is addicted to Twitter these days. From Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan to Shahid Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra... all are busy Twitting! Although giving a tough competition to these filmy celebs is India’s demi god Sachin Tendulkar!

Sachin too is on the social networking site and too is garnering maximum number of followers of late. Amitabh Bachchan is just a week old on Twitter and already has over a lakh followers already.

Thus, when a scribe asked Abhishek as to who is the god of Twitter – Sachin or Amitabh, Abhishek smartly replied, “We Hindus have many gods and pa (Amitabh Bachchan) and sachin are two of them.”

Both Amitabh and Sahin are legends in their own right and that was well said Abhishek...

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Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan might be arch rivals but seems like when it comes to the country’s prestige they can overlook their differences. At least that’s what it seems with the buzz that the two top stars of Bollywood will come together to play cricket as players of the Indian cricket team at the soon to happen IIFA Awards.

Every year IIFA has a friendly match between two countries, the proceedings of which go to charitable institutions. Even this year IIFA is having a friendly cricket match between Indians and the Sri Lankan cricket team. Interestingly there seems to be more enmity within the team with the two mighty Khans who can’t see eye to eye teaming up together.

Just imagine how the scene would be when one of the Khans is batting and the other is runner at the opposite side.

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Amrita Rao may be identified by her innocent face, but she is famous for her bold photo shoots. And there's a reason the camera likes her.

In her last release Short Kut, she looked absolutely stunning. Whether she wears desi clothes or foreign, she always looks hot. She has nice hair, lips, eyes - and all-in-one compact package - and many girls adore her. To know her beauty secrets, we asked Amrita what were the five beauty essentials we would find in her bag.

Lipstick :- It's essential. I am addicted to lipstick, and have been from childhood. I'm not generally a make-up fanatic, but lipsticks are something else.

Clip:- An all-purpose clip is a must, because it's only when I'm shooting or attending an event that I leave my hair open. It gets damaged otherwise, and so, a clip is always handy for me.

Perfume:- I just can't go out without perfumes. Chanel No. 5 and Coco Chanel are my favorites.

Brush:-Everyone carries one, don't they? So do I.

Kajal:- As I have said, I am not a make-up freak, but I apply kajal because I like it (and many say it looks good on my eyes).

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AR RAHMAN will perform live at the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games, says Organising Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi.

“It will be a huge event involving Bollywood celebrities. AR Rahman has composed the theme song for the CWG, and he will be singing live on the opening day.

We will release the song in advance, because when Rahman sings in the stadium, we want the whole stadium to sing along,” said Kalmadi. Incidentally, Rahman’s also topped a poll as the world’s most downloaded Indian artiste.

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Indian filmmakers have always remade Hollywood ventures. But for the first time in the history of Indian cinema, Hollywood production houses are interested in remaking Indian films.

Right after news broke out that the remake rights of Shriram Raghvan’s Johnny Gaddar have been sold to Los Angeles based producer Ray Haboush, buzz has it that 3 Idiots also may be remade.

“Two of Hollywood’s most powerful and famous studios have shown keen interest in buying the remake rights of 3 Idiots. The authorities were pretty impressed with the film and feel that it had potential to make for a good plot for a Hollywood film.


The studios are even said to have gotten in touch with Vidhu Vinod Chopra and director Raju Hirani and have offered a huge sum to bag the film’s rights. Vidhu, who has bought a house in Los Angeles, will soon fly down there to work out the deal,” said a source.

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Resul Pookutty, the first Indian sound engineer to win an Oscar, has just released his auto biography in Malayalam. The book is called Shabdatharapadham (The Sound of Milky Way).

Talking about the book, he said, “I laughed at the thought when Penguin asked me to write a book on myself. I never thought there will be a book on my life. But then I realized that I can talk about music and how it is my passion, and I can talk about cinema too,” said Pookutty at the book's release.

Resul has written the book with the help of Baiju Natarajan, and he said, “Baiju recorded everything I told him, and then we wrote the book. I call him the second Resul because he knows me very well, and has been with me for a long time."

Resul says he loves cinema so much that he might even make a movie himself.

“I am very much passionate about film-making, and I even have a script ready. If you ask me to direct tomorrow, I will direct it. But I am also happy with my career as a sound engineer, so let me grow in that first, and then turn to direction."

So, which star does Resul hope to cast in his film when he finally makes it? Amitabh Bachchan, of course. "He's my favourite, and nobody can act like him," says Resul.

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Barbara Mori is hot in Bollywood at the moment, but her action is happening in Mexico, where she's from. Her next movie is to star her son Sergio.

A source close to Barbara says: “Sergio was always attracted to cinema and comes to film sets with Barbara often. That’s how he was introduced to films and now he is very excited to make his debut with mamma Barbara.”

Sergio and Mori will be portraying their real life relation on screen, that of a mother and son. The movie is about a single mother finding love, late in her life. It will showcase the mother-son bond between the two.

But it’s the not the first time Sergio will face the camera. He has been shot for a campaign with his mother to promote milk.

“I am very close to my son and we spend a lot of time together," said Barbara in an interview "I make sure that we spend our weekends together. Although he is just 12, he understand the work pressure.”

After Kites Barbara is now working on a documentary film on cancer survivors. Narrated by Kelly McGillis the film also stars Olivia Newton-John, Mumtaz and Lisa Ray among others.

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Manisha Koirala’s marriage to Nepali businessman Samrat Dahal will be a close family affair. The engagement will take place on June 18 and the marriage will happen on June 19 in Kathmandu. 

The wedding won’t have any Bollywood personalities in attendance — save for her close friend Deepti Naval — as Manya plans to invite her industry friends for a reception in Mumbai at a later date.

A source offers details, "The wedding, a traditional Nepali affair will span three days and will include the customary swyambar. Something called duradai will take place instead of the usual mehndi."

Manya’s mother and brother Siddharth are overseeing the wedding preparations.

Designers Sabyasachi Mukherji and Anna Singh will design the outfits for the pre-wedding ceremonies.

The to-be bride will wear a red sari with diamond-and-gold work on her big day. Samrat will wear traditional Nepali wear picked out by his US-based sister.

The reception venue is yet to be decided, but sources claim that it will most likely be at a five-star hotel in Juhu, Mumbai. A source adds, "Manisha, a recluse a few years back, has now come out of her shell. She has begun socialising with her old friends and has started making new ones."

A source reveals details about Manya’s to-be in-laws, "She met Samrat in the US. He’s in the process of setting up an alternative energy company in Nepal. He is the youngest of three siblings. While his eldest brother Suraj heads the Kathmandu Academy, his sister Shuvashree is doing her PhD in the US. He has houses both in the US and Nepal."

Manisha recently finished shooting for Dipendra Khanal’s Nepali film titled Dharma. The film marks the return of the actress to the Nepali film industry nearly two decades after she left for Bollywood. She is presently in Cochin shooting for a Telugu film.

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Uncertainty loomed over the release of Prakash Jha’s political drama Raajneeti this Friday, with the Censor Board having objections to certain scenes, which are said to be about Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.

The film has been in the midst of controversies with reports that Katrina Kaif’s character has some resemblance to Gandhi’s life.

Jha, however, has been insisting that his film has nothing to do with real life politics or politicians. "I have just made a film about an election. It is not about Bihar or Sonia Gandhi or the Congress, so I don’t understand the whole controversy," said the filmmaker.

Asked if the Censor Board has taken any decision on issuing a certificate, its Regional Officer Vinayak Azad told PTI "Actually the movie is not with us. It is with the Film Certification Tribunal so they are to take a decision on it."

The film also starring Ajay Devgn, Ranbir Kapoor, Nana Patekar and Manoj Bajpai is set to hit theatres on June 4.(PTI)

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Britain has become the top country to download Bollywood music abroad while A.R. Rahman has been declared the most downloaded Indian artist, according to a new research.

Bollywood tracks have found particular favour with listeners in Britain, where over one in four tracks downloaded from Nokia’s Ovi Music Store is a Bollywood song.

Following suit are Singaporeans at the second spot, who are responsible for nearly a third (31 percent) of all Indian music downloads outside India. While Finland and Germany occupy the third and fourth slots respectively, Australian music fans account for a fifth of the global total.

The UAE, South Africa, Switzerland, Mexico and Russia round off the top 10 respectively.

In India, Bollywood songs represent over half of all downloaded tracks (54 percent), with western pop and ghazal next in line.

Among Indian artists, Oscar-award winning music composer A.R. Rahman leads the way as the world’s most downloaded Indian artist.

He is followed in popularity by playback singer Sonu Nigam, JoJo, Himesh Reshammiya and Shaan.

Udit Narayan, Asha Bhosle, Kishore Kumar and Salim-Sulaiman occupy the rest of the spots in that order.

The research was conducted by Nokia Ovi Music based on the number of downloaded songs across 35 countries via Ovi Music until mid-March 2010.

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Barbie girl Katrina Kaif surely loves kids. On a recent visit to London, the actress reportedly had a blast playing with some kids she met.

“Kats had gone to a mall in London and there were a few kids running around the place. They were about four years old and could barely speak. They approached Katrina and asked her name,” narrates a friend of the actress.

Charmed by the tots, she stopped shopping and started playing with them. She even bought them some candies and was amazed when they cutely lisped her name repeatedly.

“Kats continued playing with them for quite a while,” the friend added.

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From mega star Amitabh Bachchan to Priyanka Chopra, Bollywood stars have come together to pay homage to the victims of the plane crash at Mangalore airport. 

The stars expressed their grief at the tragic accident where an Air India Express plane from Dubai with 166 persons on board overshot the runway while landing. 159 people are feared dead.

"Feeling terrible! Plane crash! Air India flight from Dubai to Mangalore crashed on landing, overshot runway.. so sad.. so sad," wrote Big B on his Twitter account.

"Looking at visuals of the plane crash tragedy, just not feeling good about getting all normal and Tweeting and carrying on with work.. I wrote about excess and balance on my blog last night.. Is the plane tragedy God’s way of balancing ..?? Sad and disturbed," he wrote in a later post.

Stars including Gul Panag, Mallika Sherawat and Anupam Kher have also tweeted the telephone helpline numbers set up by the authorities to facilitate dissemination of information regarding the air crash.

"Please pray for the families that have lost the ones they love in this horrific crash. We can’t even begin to imagine their pain and sorrow. Also pray for the souls of those who have been cruelly taken away from their families in such a tragic situation. RIP," wrote Priyanka on her Twitter page.

Actor Riteish Deshmukh wrote, "Shocking and tragic news about the air crash- my prayers with the families, who have lost loved ones. May god give them strength. RIP"

Veteran actor Shammi Kapoor also tweeted his homage, writing, "The Air India crash is a very sad happening. My heart goes out to the families of the deceased. Let us pray for the departed souls. OM"

According to the police, 65 charred bodies have been recovered and fire has been doused from the accident site in the coastal city, nearly six hours after one of India’s worst ever air mishap occurred at 6.30 am. A majority of the victims are Keralites.

Filmmaker Karan Johar said on the micro-blogging site, "Just heard about the Air India crash….its too sad!!! Too upsetting to hear all the news coming in about the crash…thoughts, prayers and strength to all the families."

"Just heard about the plane crash in Mangalore… shocking! very sad…" wrote Deepika Padukone.

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Freida Pinto’s spokesperson has rubbished reports about the ’Slumdog Millionaire’ actress marrying her co-star Dev Patel.

Earlier, there were reports that the two were spotted enquiring about a wedding cake at a bakery and making arrangements to fly it to India for their forthcoming wedding.

"These rumours are complete rubbish and baseless. There is not even an ounce of truth in it," Divya Tejuja, Freida’s spokesperson said.

The two met in 2008 on the sets of ’Slumdog Millionaire’ and started dating some time later. But they kept their romance low-profile and didn’t appear in public together until late last ye

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Just when we thought things were quiet with controversial item girl Rakhi Sawant, there’s a new scandal she’s being linked to.

Two criminals were recently arrested in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, and among the weapons recovered from them was an Italian pistol. Now the criminals claim that the pistol actually belongs to Rakhi, and they stole it from her in Mumbai. The case is being investigated by the UP police with help from the Mumbai Police, and Rakhi will soon be questioned by special teams.

For now, Rakhi denies owning the pistol in question, or any weapon for that matter. And in her usual style, she says that she doesn’t need a gun because she’s a gun herself!

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Actor Saif Ali Khan says he won’t join Twitter because he feels a gap should be maintained between an actor and the audiences.

“Personally, I won’t be on Twitter because I don’t feel the need. I don’t want to share my thoughts,” Saif said at an event in Mumbai. “I don’t know what I will say. And I personally feel that some distance should be maintained between the audiences and the actor. That’s my personal opinion.”

But he admitted that social networking sites serve as a wonderful platform for the publicity of a film. “It’s a wonderful platform to do the publicity of a film and it is a wonderful way to reach out to the youth as it is very, very popular. Anyone in any kind of marketing cannot afford to ignore the social networking platform,” said Saif.

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Shah Rukh Khan is known for his professionalism and the superstar proved his commitment to work recently when he went to shoot for a toothpaste ad despite having fever.

Shah Rukh, the new brand ambassador of Pepsodent toothpaste, had to shoot for its latest ad campaign "Pappu and Pappa" at Filmcity for three days.

Even though Shah Rukh was down with 104 degree (Fahrenheit) fever, he made sure that it did not affect the shooting schedules. The actor made it a point to shoot for the campaign instead of cancelling it, said a source.

Shah Rukh has teamed up with child artist Keval and had to give multiple shots till his young co-star got it all right.

Shah Rukh did not complain throughout the long hours of shoot besides the numerous takes he was made to go through, said the source.

The ad is about a father-son relationship and on the sets Shah Rukh behaved a perfect dad encouraging Keval at every cut, pepping him if he would get bored.

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Deepika Padukone’s recent visit to the Cannes festival, her first major international appearance, caught the attention of none other than filmmaker Woody Allen. Buzz is that the lissome actress, who looked resplendent in a Rohit Bal saree, was being coveted by several Hollywood agents at Cannes.

A friend of Deepika says, “Many Hollywood agents sent her messages, directly and indirectly, that they would like to be appointed by her if she was keen on Hollywood assignments.”

It was one of these agents who texted her that Woody Allen would like to meet her. Deepika was obviously thrilled. But she couldn’t extend her stay due to prior work commitments in India.. “She couldn’t have a meeting with any of these agents,” adds Deepika’s friend.

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Malika Sherawat is in Cannes promoting her new movie Hisss directed by Jennifer Lynch. She is making a lot of news, either for being the best dressed or dancing with a snake on the red carpet, and is having a gala of a time, rubbing shoulders with the who's who of the entertainment industry. So the latest on the Sherawat front is that, the actress was attending charity event called “Cinema against AIDS”, a non- profit organization dedicated to AIDS research.

Apparently, Miss Sherawat was the only Indian actor present among the likes of Gerard Butler, Jennifer Lopez, Marc Anthony, Rock star Mick Jagger and designers like Karl Lagerfeld and Roberto Cavalli. So the tale goes like this, Mallika Sherawat paid a kings ransom to a photog to click her pictures, every time she rubbed shoulders with a famous name.

Most of them turned down Mallika's “generous offer” while, Fashion maverick Roberto Cavalli was the only one who extended the courtesy towards her by graciously paying her a compliment and kissing her hand.

Mallika, who looked ravishing in a Dolce and Gabbana gown, was not satisfied with just one photo opportunity, so she decided to move on to tabloids' favorite princess Paris Hilton, but the wild child was not in a mood to play nice, with the Indian version of herself.

Paris looked aloof when Malika introduced her self, and briskly told her that she isn't familiar with her and walked away. If that wasn't enough, to add insult to the injury, during the party, Paris kept looking right through Malika.

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The US is currently hosting half a dozen small-time actresses. Dia Mirza is there on a micro-blogging site talking of her every moment in Uncle Sam’s country. And now we hear that Tanushree Dutta who went there to study acting has also learnt to do her own laundry.  

She doesn’t have house help there, quite obviously she will not be able to afford it, so she’s learnt how to use the laundromat.

On her clothes washing skills, the actress apparently said something to the effect of, “I am quite happy to have learnt this as it was something I have been dying to do for the last five years.” Good for Tanushree.

She decided to learn acting a few years after being in the industry. Now she’s learnt to do the laundry. Smart girl is using her ‘free’ time from the studios well

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Sherlyn Chopra has put up a picture of her on twitter that has the masses talking about it non-stop and why not. A bare all picture of Sherlyn Chopra is talk of the twitter town. This picture, taken by Vishal Saxena, who is a friend of Sherlyn and an acclaimed fashion and celebrity photographer in his own right, see's the lady baring it all for the camera.

When asked why she put that picture up for all to see, Sherlyn says "I saw the picture in my collection and thought I should share it with my friends and followers on twitter." The picture received a lot of comments, obviously, some favourable and some unfavourable yet others that brimmed on vulgarity.

On the number of comments she received Sherlyn says "The feedback on my picture has been great. Some do find it distasteful. To them I would like to say - to each it's own." That's a devil may care attitude Sherlyn is known for.

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Dance reality show "Britain's Got Talent" got a taste of Bollywood as a dance group shook a leg to the tunes of "Jai ho" from multiple Oscar-winner "Slumdog Millionaire".

Energetic dance troupe ThreeBee blew the judges away with their colourful performance to hit Indian tune and choreographer Shweta Agarwall admits the film's success inspired the group who have been together for six years to enter the show, reports said.

"Bollywood has just grown, it felt like the right time," she said.

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Amitabh Bachchan, who visits the National Defence Academy (NDA)near Pune Monday after 14 years to deliver a lecture, describes it as a "trip in nostalgia".

"Most of the day has been spent in preparing for the visit and the lecture at the National Defence Academy in Khadakwasla near Pune," the 67-year-old posted on his blog.

"It shall be a trip in nostalgia. Many years ago, I think maybe in 1996, we were all there to shoot for 'Major Saab’ with Sonali Bendre, Ajay Devgn and Nafisa Ali... (it was) directed by Tinu Anand (and it was) an AB Corp production."

Amitabh also remembered the time when he got an opportunity to wear the uniform for his role in "Major Saab".

"The film gave me an opportunity of putting on the army uniform, one that I enjoyed immensely and to mix with the cadets at the academy and to be a part of their curriculum and routine.

"Those moments were most inspirational... I have always had great respect and regard for our armed forces. And this is because I do believe that if there are any institutions left in our country that can truly execute that most required ingredient of discipline within us, it is through the portals of institutions such as the NDA," he said.

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Jostled violently by crowds, she got hurt in the knees and one of toe nails was ripped off, but "Kites" star Barbara Mori isn't willing to give up on Bollywood and now wants to do a film with superstar Shah Rukh Khan.

"I would love to do more Bollywood films. I want to work with Shah Rukh Khan," Barbara told reporters Sunday when asked which actor was on her wishlist after romancing Bollywood heartthrob Hrithik Roshan in "Kites".

Accompanied by Hrithik and producer-director Rakesh Roshan, the Mexican actress was at the Great India Place Mall for the post-release promotion of "Kites".

There was plenty of hooting and whistling as soon as the cast of "Kites" arrived at the mall on the outskirts of the national capital. But this soon gave way to mayhem when fans went berserk trying to get a glimpse of their favourite stars.

"The crowd was unmanageable and everyone was pushing each other and Barbara was hurt. Her knee was scratched and one of her toe nails was ripped off," said one of the organisers at the event.

Hrithik was left fuming after the security was breached.

"Kites" grossed over Rs.21 crore on its opening day and has become the second highest opening-day grosser after "3 Idiots". The film has also caught the fancy of the American media, making it perhaps the most reviewed Bollywood film on opening day.

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The much-awaited movie `Kites`, starring Hrithik Roshan and Barbara Mori, slated to be released all over the world Friday, is not to be screened in Karnataka, the state`s film association has said.

In a special executive meeting, the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) Thursday night decided that `Kites` will not be screened in any theatre in Karnataka.

Basanth Kumar Patil, president of KFCC, told reporters that the executive meeting decided against allowing the film`s screening because its makers have "violated the regulatory principles of the chamber".

"The film`s release will be detrimental to the interest of Kannada cinema if it is allowed to be screened all over," Patil said.

All single screen and multiplexes are members of KFCC.

No representative of Reliance was present at the meeting Thursday evening. Big Pictures owned by Reliance Group is releasing the film.

Kannada film producers and film distributors of all languages who are members of the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce have protested against the film as it was slated to release in more than 90 theatres, exceeding the limit of 24 theatres stipulated in the state.

Patil had earlier said that many big Hindi films starring Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan like `3 Idiots` and `My Name is Khan` have been released in fewer than 24 theatres and the distributors of these major films complied with the KFCC orders.

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They might have gone from best pals to bitter enemies but Shah Rukh and Salman are all set to put their animosity to rest, for charity.

The dishy actors who have been carefully snubbing each other at social gatherings and award functions will for the first time be seen at the same venue. Pitted against each other, the two will battle in a charity cricket match organized by IIFA.

The actors, who have been breathing fire against one another, will unite to face Sri Lankan cricketers during the match, which will help raise funds for the rehabilitation of former child soldiers.

Going in flashback, the two Titans had fallen apart during the Katrina Kaif’s birthday party in 2008. As for the match, Bipasha Basu and Sanjay Dutt will flip the coin for the toss during the match, which will be organised on the day two of IIFA weekend.

What’s more is that SRK will also perform during the three-day-long extravaganza to be held in Colombo June 3-5. Other celebrities to attend the event are Kareena Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Riteish Deshmukh and Vivek Oberoi.

Well, looks like the two actors are slowly learning art of peaceful co-existence.

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Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur, at a dinner party organised by the clothing, perfume and watch brand, Chanel at Cannes, met one of his favourite actors, Johnny Depp, at the do.

He wrote on his blog on Twitter later: "I've just come back from the Chanel party, had long chat with Johhny Depp, and met Karl Lagerfield, who looks just like his pictures."

However, Depp is not all that active on his blog. So, there was no mention about the dinner do or the chance-meeting with Kapur at Cannes.

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Good morning my juicy-spicy jalapenos! I don't know whether to blame the weather or the absence of my silver-bearded Vijjy, but I'm just too lazy these days to even stir out of my satin gulabi sheets. But then, life never pauses, right? So, without a comma, full-stop or an apostrophe between us, here's your staple diet of what's happening in various Bollywood homes and lives!

Shah Rukh Khan has been in great spirits, I hear! Oooh, I hope he's not surrounded by spirits of another kind, a la Shabana Azmi in that Gurinder Chadha movie. Not really, thank God! Turns out that he's brought Geeta Basra (remember she's the dusky actress linked with cricketer Harbhajan Singh) back into the spotlight. No, it's not because the man is impressed with GB's movies, rather he's impressed with the choice of her man.

At the recent Sahara IPL Awards, Khansaab took on Bhajji's case, since Geeta and he have been denying their affair at every given occasion. With statements like, "Bhajji apka ghar kab Basra hai?" he had the boisterous cricketer blushing and smiling-shyling. There was one more googly: "Geeta ki kasam kha kar kaho?" And one more and one more...

After he got fed up of Bhajji's Geeta paath, SRK shifted his attention to Australian cricketer Adam Gilchrist. The poor wicket keeper from the land Down Under doesn't speak shudh Hindustani. So, Mr Khan decided to make him say, "I love your country" in Hindi. Gilly instead came up with, "Main tumhare bachche ki maa bannewaali hoon." Hmm, now that calls for a pregnant pause!

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Fireworks are expected on May 27 and 28 in Dubai with some sizzling performances by Bollywood stars there. Salman Khan's Being Human Foundation will introduce itself to Dubai with a fashion show, to be held at the World Trade Centre on May 27, for which many of his colleagues are expected to walk the ramp.

Twenty Bollywood and seven international celebrities are expected to be present for the two-day do. Sources say that many celebs willingly came forward to extend their support for the Being Human show in Dubai. "The fashion show will also have some celebrities from Pakistan," adds the source.

The Being Human Cricket Match, to be held at the Dubai Sports Complex, is the next big thing at the two-day event after the fashion show. Top Indian and Pakistani stars are expected to participate in it. Exhibitions of Being Human paintings and merchandise including exclusive watches will also be put up at various stalls. Way to go!

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Amitabh Bachchan may be the megastar of Bollywood, but his draw of 37,500 fans on the first day of Twitter was far less than that of Sachin Tendulkar at 79,000.

Tendulkar was bitten by the Twitter bug early this month, while Amitabh joined Twitter Tuesday and got plenty of welcome messages from various celebrities.

But the 67-year-old, who regularly writes on his blog and also has a mobile blog and a voice blog, is excited with his first day's experience on Twitter.

"Day 1 on Twitter, Day 757 on blog, Day 138 from the year... endless days of love and affection to those that count and follow... love," Amitabh posted on his Twitter account.

"33,341 followers in a few hours of starting! Tweety baby I love you!! Keep it rolling," he added.

Currently the actor is following his son, Abhishek and Sachin on the site.

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