The post Photos: Suhana Khan, Khushi Kapoor, Agastya Nanda, Zoya Akhtar & others snapped at The Archies wrap up party in Bandra appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
Via Bollywood Hungama https://ift.tt/73rn6DOThe post Photos: Celebs attend Pratik Sehajpal’s birthday bash appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
Via Bollywood Hungama https://ift.tt/yA5pbDsThe much-loved film Welcome (2007), starring Akshay Kumar, Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, Katrina Kaif, Feroz Khan and Paresh Rawal, completed 15 years on December 21. The laugh-a-minute riot is considered a cult classic today, more so after its memes became famous. As Welcome celebrated its 15th anniversary, Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to producer Firoz Nadiadwala about the film and a lot more.
How did you get the idea to make Welcome?
We started working on the film in 2005. I got the story and I shared it with Akshay Kumar. He approved it and then I shared it with director Anees Bazmee. He also liked it and came on board after which we started developing the story in detail and writing the screenplay. Then while casting, we approached Nana Patekar ji. For him to give his nod was significant as he had never done something like that before. After Nana ji committed, we got Anil Kapoor and Paresh Rawal as well. Finally, we contacted Mr Feroz Khan for the role of the don. Even he was excited to sign the film. Finally, we cast Katrina Kaif and Mallika Sherawat. This is how the casting of Welcome’s first part was done.
Do you mean to say that all these actors were your first choices?
Yes, fortunately, whoever we contacted, we had a detailed discussion with them. They were convinced of the story, the screenplay, and their respective characters.
Could you tell us about some of the memorable moments during the shoot?
We got stuck in one scene. It is where Nana ji is seated in his yacht and he’s meeting a family to fix Katrina Kaif’s marriage. It was supposed to be a one-day shoot but it took us four days to film. We began shooting on the first day and it started raining. This happened on the second and third days as well. This sequence was shot in Dubai.
Welcome was shot in several foreign locations…
Yes. Nana ji’s house scenes were filmed in the Dubai Grand Hyatt hotel. Some scenes were shot on the royal stud farm. We requested them and they agreed. In fact, the horses seen in the horse shooting sequence belong to the royal family. So we were literally in the royal stables!
More than 80% of the film was shot in Dubai. A couple of songs were shot in South Africa’s Sun City and Cape Town. We were, in fact, the first people to film in Cape Town for Kartoos way back in 1996.
The sequence where Akshay ji is driving the car and his brakes fail was shot on Palm Beach Road, Navi Mumbai. Some scenes were shot here while majorly, it was shot in the UAE.
The climax where the house is about to collapse is maddening and one can’t help but laugh even today. How was it shooting this portion?
The exterior of the house was put up on a rocky road, which goes from Lonavala to Aamby Valley. The interiors were shot on a set in Film City. The entire set was placed on hydraulic suspensions. That’s why we could move the set in a see-saw manner. It was a big challenge though. Action director Ali Abbas Moghul was of big help.
Welcome clashed with Taare Zameen Par. Did that cause any tension with regards to screen sharing?
Not at all. That was Aamir Khan’s debut film as a director. So, it was a very amicable understanding of how to balance both movies in terms of the number of screens. Fortunately, Welcome as well as Taare Zameen Par both did well. That was a different kind of movie compared to ours. We wished each other all the best. It was a very celebrative period!
How did the audience react to the film in cinemas?
Our intent has always been to make a family movie. And that’s how the audience felt too. We could judge by their reactions in cinemas that they were enjoying it, especially Uday and Majnu’s antics. These characters are innocent and also dimwits. But they are still dons and hence, people are scared of them. And in their innocence lies the fun.
How did the critics react?
They loved it! By God’s grace, Welcome was a huge success commercially as well as critically. It was a well-mounted movie with good songs also. It was great fun shooting the film with Nana ji, Akshay, Katrina, Anil, Paresh ji…it was a pleasure working with everybody.
Welcome was followed by Welcome Back (2015)…
In 2013, we got the idea of making the second part. As per the story, the casting was done accordingly. In this film, the place which was shown as Nana ji’s house was the Jumeirah Zabeel Saray hotel, Dubai. It was the same location which was passed on as Anil ji’s mansion in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (2011). It was a grand place. Now to show Naseer bhai’s house, we had to scale up since Nana ji’s house was quite grand. Hence, we had to search for a grander place. We had to wait for 5-6 months to get permission to shoot at Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi. The main cast of Fast & Furious 7 (2015) was staying there at that point but they were not permitted to shoot inside the hotel. Once the permission came through, the UAE government was kind enough to provide us all with kinds of assistance. They permitted us to shoot in the main lobby. They even cordoned off the lobby for us for 4-5 days.
The helicopters seen in the climax belong to the Dubai royal family. The ones seen jumping from the plane and landing in the desert are the real para jumpers from the Dubai Sky Diving (DSD) team. This whole sequence was shot in Margham located an hour away from Dubai. We also filmed in Burj Khalifa. Getting to shoot at these places was a challenge and required a lot of coordination. In terms of the canvas, it was bigger than the first part.
Welcome is huge in the world of memes. Even Majnu’s painting has become a cult image. Your comments?
It’s great. People are loving it and share it regularly. And the way Majnu’s painting is also being used to spread happiness is lovely.
15 years ago, you brought so many prominent actors together in Welcome. Do you think it’s difficult to do so now?
If there’s an understanding between all the team members, be it the technical side or creative side, then it doesn’t matter whether it’s a single-hero film or a multi-starrer. You can take a single hero in a film and it might not be a fun experience. On the other hand, you can cast 4-5 actors and it can be a pleasure to work with them. So, it all depends on the camaraderie with the people. Single-hero doesn’t mean that the journey will be nice and multi-star cast doesn’t mean that the journey will be difficult. People should say ‘Kal shooting pe jaana hai. Maza aayega’. That should be the mood of the unit members.
Majnu Bhai’s art has travelled far and wide @BazmeeAnees! This is literally priceless! ???????????? pic.twitter.com/vI04OG5pAZ
— Anil Kapoor (@AnilKapoor) May 31, 2019
The post 15 Years Of Welcome EXCLUSIVE: Firoz Nadiadwala reveals how the MADDENING climax was shot: “The entire set was placed on hydraulic suspensions. That’s why we could move the set in a see-saw manner. It was a big CHALLENGE” appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
Via Bollywood Hungama https://ift.tt/yA5pbDsAkshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff are teaming up for Ali Abbas Zafar’s actioner Bade Miyan Chote Miyan. It will be an out-n-out action entertainer and is expected to be mounted on a huge scale. The film will have Malayalam superstar Prithviraj Sukumaran playing the antagonist. Earlier this year, Zafar was scouting locations in England and Scotland to film the biggest action sequences. Now, the team will begin the shoot from January 17, 2023, onwards in India followed by international schedules.
As per a report in a media portal, the first schedule will kick off in Mumbai with Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff, Prithviraj Sukumaran and the entire team. The 40-day schedule will be filmed at the massive sets of Yash Raj Studios and Film City. The sets, which have been mounted on a massive scale and crores of rupees, will be the two places for the shoot. Following this, the makers plan to take the shoot to international locations.
Vashu Bhagnani and Pooja Entertainment presents Bade Miyan Chote Miyan in association with AAZ films. Written and directed by Ali Abbas Zafar. Produced by Vashu Bhagnani, Deepshikha Deshmukh, Jackky Bhagnani, Himanshu Kishan Mehra, and Ali Abbas Zafar. This Pooja Entertainment production is set to release in five languages Hindi, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam on Christmas 2023.
Meanwhile, Akshay Kumar was last seen in Ram Setu whereas Tiger Shroff was last seen in Heropanti 2. Akshay has an array of line-up including Gorkha, Selfiee, and Sorarai Pottru remake. Tiger Shroff, on the other hand, has Baaghi 4, and Ganapath Part 1. Ali Abbas Zafar has one project lined up with Shahid Kapoor.
The post Akshay Kumar, Tiger Shroff and Prithviraj Sukumaran to kick off Bade Miyan Chote Miyan from January 17, 2023 appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
Via Bollywood Hungama https://ift.tt/yA5pbDsFilmmaker SS Rajamouli’s RRR is continuing its winning streak. Following the Golden Globes 2023 nominations, the film has won three awards at the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle Annual Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, Best Cinematography, and Best Score/Soundtrack.
The official Twitter handle of RRR wrote, “Thank you @PhilaFCC for awarding us with 3 Trophies!! #RRRForOscars #RRRMovie.”
Thank you @PhilaFCC for awarding us with 3 Trophies ????????????!! ????
#RRRForOscars #RRRMovie pic.twitter.com/hK41MdHzC0
— RRR Movie (@RRRMovie) December 19, 2022
Earlier last week, the film was nominated in four categories at the 6th Annual HCA Awards, organised by the Hollywood Critics Association. The categories including Best Director, Best Picture, Best Action Film and Best International Film. The film has also received nominations in two categories for 2023 Golden Globes. The film has been nominated in the Best Picture – Non-English Language category. The second nomination is for the RRR song “Naatu Naatu” in the Best Original Song – Motion Picture category.
Earlier, RRR also bagged four nominations at the inaugural HCA Creative Arts Awards 2023 which included Sreekar Prasad for Best Editing, Srinivas Mohan for Best VFX, M. M. Keeravaani for Best Original Song – ‘Naatu Naatu’, and King Solomon for Best Stunts.
Meanwhile, RRR has also been submitted in 15 categories for consideration for Oscars 2023. The categories include Best Motion Picture, Best Director (S.S. Rajamouli), Best Actor for Ram Charan and Jr. NTR, Best Supporting Actor (Ajay Devgn), Best Supporting Actress (Alia Bhatt), Best Original Song for ‘Naatu Naatu’, Best Original Screenplay (S.S. Rajamouli, V. Vijayendra Prasad, Sai Madhav Burra). Best Original Score (M.M. Keeravaani), Best Film Editing (Sreekar Prasad), Best Sound, Best Cinematography, Best Production Design, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Visual Effects.
Recently, SS Rajamouli was announced as the winner of the New York Film Critics Circle Awards for Best Director. The film also received Best International Picture award at the Atlanta Film Critics Circle.
The post SS Rajamouli directorial RRR bags three awards at Philadelphia Film Critics Circle Annual Awards appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
Via Bollywood Hungama https://ift.tt/yA5pbDsThe post Photos: Celebs snapped at Social Creator Of The Year Awards appeared first on Bollywood Hungama.
Via Bollywood Hungama https://ift.tt/yA5pbDs
Vikrant Massey is on a roll. He delivered the sleeper hit of 2023, 12th Fail . On February …
Read more
Follow Us