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My success gave hope to Pak people for working in India: Ali Zafar

Pakistani actor-singer Ali Zafar says after his first Hindi film got good response, people of Pakistan realised that it was possible for artists from the neighbouring nation to make it big in India.

Ali made his acting debut in Hindi films in 2010 with 'Tere Bin Laden', which was a hit. He was later seen in 'Mere Brother Ki Dulhan', 'London, Paris, New York' and 'Chashme Baddoor'. "I think when my first film became a hit, people in Pakistan realised that it is possible to make it big in India.

There is a misconception that every woman wears a 'hijab' and every man keeps a beard in Pakistan. I always think that nothing is impossible," Ali said. "When it comes to India I have been welcomed here with open heart. I also get lot of appreciation for the work I do here in Hindi films," he said.



Ali disagrees that the industry favours only children of stars and not outsiders. "It has been an interesting journey for me. At times I wonder whether I am really acting in Hindi films. Considering that I didn't know anyone over here and more importantly, being from Pakistan there was nothing going in my favour.

I could only bank on my sincerity, talent and my hard work and I guess I have been pretty successful in doing that," Ali said. Ali has a 'no kissing clause' in his contract while he does Bollywood films. "I have a clause that I won't be kissing on screen.

In 'London Paris New York', kissing was essential in the film and so they got a body double to do it. I obviously think about what people are going to feel like back home (Pakistan) and what they are going to think," he said.

"She (wife) is very understanding. She sometimes comes down and joins me while I am here for my shoots. She likes my films... she loved me in 'London Paris New York'. My family has always been supportive of my acting career here," he said.


Ali has an interesting slate of films lined up for release this year, including 'Total Siyapaa' where he plays a Pakistani boy falling in love with an Indian girl, played by Yami Gautam. The film produced by Neeraj Pandey releases on March 7.

His next is YRF's 'Kill Dill' alongside Ranveer Singh, Govinda and Parineeti Chopra which is scheduled to release on September 5 and apparently he will make a cameo appearance in the sequel to 'Tere Bin Laden'.

`Winning Oscars` not a big deal, feels Vidya

Actress Vidya Balan said here today that she hopes to win an Oscar award. "I have never thought of winning an Oscar.

Rather I never thought I would get the Padma Shri. I think God has been kind to me. I think getting Oscar award is not too far away," Vidya, who is the ambassador of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne Awards, said at a press conference, where she also announced nominations for the award function, scheduled to take place from May 1 to May 11. Vidya said she is with the response her recently released film 'Shaadi Ke Side Effects' received.

"People enjoyed the film and it feels good. I hope the film makes a mark. Life has been kind to me. I am happy with the love and appreciation that I have been getting throughout my career. I feel blessed.



I try to do diverse and different roles," she said. When asked if she plans to join politics, Vidya says she had no such plans.

Not `Being Human` Anymore: Did Salman go back on his word?

Salman Khan didn't turn up for the inauguration of a new hospital ward he was supposed to attend

Salman Khan's famous dialogue 'Ek baar commitment kar diya toh...' seens to be a thing of the past.

He was supposed to attend the opening of a new ward at a hospital in the suburbs on Saturday morning. However, the actor didn't turn up for the same.

Sources say that the event organisers waited for the star for nearly three hours. A source says, "The hospital authorities and event organisers were in talks with Salman as they wanted him to attend this function. After discussing details with his team, they went ahead and called media persons for the event. Since the actor was in town and had attended another function just the day before, organisers were confident that he would drop in at this function as well."

No wonder then, the invitations sent out by the marketing team stated that the actor would be present at the inauguration. But when the actor failed to turn up, the organisers didn't know what to say. "Salman is known to come late, but the media and other officials were kept waiting for around three hours.

Finally, the marketing team made an announcement that Salman may not come and they went ahead with the inauguration," says the source.



Another source from the hospital team says, "Although his staff told us that he may come later in the day or drop in the next day, no one was sure about it."

Salman's spokesperson did not reply to our messages.

Alia: I feel something vital is missing in my life

The Ravishing Raves For Her Performance In Highway Have Not Gone To Alia Bhatt's Head.She Tells Subhash K Jha Why.

The praise for Highway is unprecedented.Someone like Javed Akhtar has compared your performance to Nargis in Mother India, Meena Kumari in Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, Nutan in Bandini and Shabana Azmi in Arth.
It hasn't sunk in,really. But I am overwhelmed. I worked really hard on Highway. And I'd be lying if I said I didn't hope to make an impact. But this is beyond anything I hoped. Highway is not an ordinary experience for me.

In your second film you've evolved more than other actors do after 10-15 films.
That's good to hear. But I've a long way to go. And Imtiaz worked out the character for me down to all the details.

Which is closer to the real Alia , the shallow clothes horse in Student Of The Year or the sensitive pained girl in Highway?
I am closer to my second character. But I don't think it's shallow to care about clothes and makeup.Every girl likes to dress up. I didn't really begin to care about my looks until I started acting. Now I enjoy dressing up. But I am not constantly fashionable. There are days when I am in pyjamas at home.

Not looking good is not an option for you?
You think so ?(laughs). In that case I'll have to be more careful about my appearance.

Have you read the reviews of Highway and what they have to say about you?
Not reviews. But the comments on Twitter and the messages that I get are quite something. I am open to both praise and criticism. I've just started out. I can't be expected to do everything right.

Yes, this is your second film. Where did you discover this volcano of feelings within yourself?
I didn't know that they existed in me. Credit must go to my director Imtiaz Ali for helping me find this reserve of emotions within me.Actually even in school I was a bit of a brooder and dreamer. I had lots of friends. But I liked spending time alone. And I've always felt that emptiness which my character feels. Like my character Veera I feel something vital is missing in my life. There was always that hankering within me. While shooting in these far-off areas communication with the outside world was almost nil. So I had time to connect with new emotions within me that I projected into my character.



There is a sequence towards the end where you sit by the river in Kashmir laughing and crying at the same time.How on earth did you do that?
It is one of my favourite moments in the film. There is a very interesting story to that sequence.As you know we did a lot of improvisations on location.When we were in Kashmir we had some extra time . Imtiaz told me to just gaze into the river and experience the emotions. There was no planned emotions there. I just went by whatever I felt. I think I reacted the way I did because by then I was within a very vulnerable state of mind because of the emotional journey of my character.

A lot of the acting was in response to the landscape that was presented to you?
I think it was that way for all of us. It wasn't as if we didn't know what we were doing and just kept improvising. We knew exactly where we were going in the narration. But we took unexpected turns and stopovers that surprised us all.

How will you live up to the expectations that you have raised with Highway?
See, for me every character would be an opportunity to explore new emotions. So I'll try to live up to expectations each time. To be honest I don't know how good I am in Highway. So I don't know how good I'll be in my next film 2 States. All I can do is follow my directors vision every time and try to be true to the characters I play.I may not give a hundred percent to every moment of the characters I play. But yes, 40 percent of myself will be there always for sure.

And what if you fail?
There would be times when I fumble and fall. I am okay with that.

How do you rate yourself in 2 States?
I haven't seen the film. But I love my character in 2 States. She is very different from the girls that I've played in my first two films. She is strong and mature. Which I am at times. At other times, I am not.But the emotions in 2 States were all new to me. I may be speaking too soon. But the director Abhishek Varman is absolutely fantastic.

Will you live up audiences' expectations in 2 States?
Expectations will always be there. But I can't be thinking about that all the time.Only when the film is out then all the anxieties will sink in. But I still feel I am too new to raise too many expectations. I am okay with failing.

That's Mahesh Bhatt's daughter speaking?
My father was the most excited after seeing Highway. He told me he couldn't sleep after seeing my performance. To me that's very personal triumph. My father's approval means a lot to me. Actually my entire family's approval means a lot to me. But my father's approval means a little more since he is a fantastic filmmaker and can separate Alia the daughter from Alia the actress.

Do you feel a change within you since your first film?
I think I will always be the Alia who did her first shot for Student Of The Year.I have to believe I have a lot to achieve.That's the only way I can grow. I want to do all the best roles I can get. Become the top-most actress maybe. Buy myself a house...But the person within me must remain the same. I don't want people to say I've changed with success.


Maybe you bring out the fantastic side of all your directors?
Nooooo ,that's giving me too much credit. The novel 2 States was so good. We could easily go wrong in the screen adaptation. I hope people don't feel so. Because we've worked genuinely hard to keep the spirit of the novel intact in the film.

Which was harder in 2 States, playing a South Indian or playing a wife?
Speaking Tamil was really hard for me. Fortunately I didn't have to play the Tamil girl in a loud caricatural way. She is a city girl.She can be from any part of the world. The Tamil side of her comes out when she's speaking to her parents. I didn't have to learn too much Tamil .

After Effects: With Rs 21 crore in its collection, `SKSE` gets a lukewarm start

Despite a decent opening, 'Shaadi Ke Side Effects' fails to maintain momentum

The Farhan Akhtar-Vidya Balan-starrer 'Shaadi Ke Side Effects' may have grossed Rs 21 crore at the BO in its first weekend, but trade pundits feel that the audience response was below expectation considering the star-cast.

Trade analyst, Amod Mehra said, `The film did not get an extraordinary opening at the box office but collected around Rs 4.5 crore on the first day. That was decent enough given that the exam period is on. The film has been made on a moderate budget and the content is good for family audience. It is bound to get a good satellite price and looks like it will easily sail through.`

Exhibitor Rajesh Thadani said, `The film's opening was a bit disappointing but business picked up during the weekend. Its collection over Friday, Saturday and Sunday was better than 'Highway' and 'Hasee Toh Phasee', which are also currently running in theatres. The film should collect about Rs 31 crore in the first week.`



Compared to January, the month of February has seen better business at the BO. Referring to the moolah Mehra said, `The industry incurred a loss of nearly Rs 100 crore in January but last month was quite good for exhibitors as well as distributors. All films like 'Gunday', 'Hasee Toh Phasee' and 'Shaadi Ke Side Effects' have done decent business. 'Highway' didn't really make money but it earned critical acclaim.`

Rs 100 cr: Loss incurred by the industry in January

Kangna seeking blessings?

Kangna Ranaut took a day off from the promotions of her film 'Queen', to visit the Vaishnodevi temple in Jammu.

The actress wanted to seek divine intervention just before the film's release. She says, `When I was writing a voiceover for the film, Vaishnodevi's name just flashed at me.

When I thought about it, I realised that this was a calling for me, so I had to visit the temple.` Kangs was accompanied by her brother Akshit.