Sonam Kapoor is Jane Austen’s Emma

Jane Austen’s classic novel Emma is all set to be adapted into a film by none other than Anil Kapoor and daughter Sonam Kapoor will play the protagonist in the Indian version titled Ayesha.I definitely think it’s a role of a lifetime for me and I am very lucky to have it so early in my career,” said Sonam, who has just shot an ad with her father. From Alicia Silverstone to Gwyneth Paltrow to even Kate Benkingsale, many Hollywood stars have tried their own emulations of the 1815 classic and clearly this could be one of Sonam’s most testing roles.”It’s going to be very interesting for me, but dad is not making this film for me. He is making it because he loves the story too,” says the proud daughter.

Reports are that it was Sonam’s persuasion that got her dad to take up the project in the first place and since Sonam also roped in director Rajshree Ojha for the project, we’re actually wondering who calls the shots on sets.”It was my daughter who convinced me to take up this project. She is a better reader, so in that sense she knows a lot more than me. A lot of people associated with the film are newcomers, so I think it’ll be exciting,” said Anil Kapoor, whose recent production Shortkut-The Con in On flopped at the Box Office.

And while Sonam may be all set to adapt herself to this story of misconstrued romance opposite Abhay Deol in real life, she’s hardly in the mood for love.My father just wants me to be in a relationship, but I think I’m too independent now. So, get set catch Sonam’s transition from the bubbly Masakali to the elegant and poised Ayesha, as the film aims for a 2009 release.

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Rakhi Sawant as India’s cultural ambassador?

The ’swayamvar’ of Bollywood item girl-turned-reality TV star Rakhi Sawant has showcased India’s rich cultural traditions, depicting that historically women in the country enjoyed a greater freedom than elsewhere when it came to choosing their bridegroom, the Indo-Canadians said. Sawant (30) chose Indo-Canadian businessman, the 30 year old Elesh Parujanwala, as her bridegrooms on NDTV Imagine’s reality show Rakhi Ka Swayamvar on Sunday.The swayamvar has propagated greater awareness about ancient Indian culture and heritage in this part of the globe and projected a new image of Indian women,” Dr Bahusaheb Ubale, former commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission said on Tuesday.

The idea of the choosing a life partner on TV is a novel one and Sawant is probably the first girl to bring her personal life on air, Ubale said, stressing that more such shows should come up to create greater awareness about ancient Indian culture and heritage.”It was a wonderful and memorable show that would go a long way in creating awareness about ancient Indian culture,” Purnima Parujanwala, Elesh’s mother said. It was a challenge to my son to speak in Hindi, she said. Sawant had zeroed in on Delhi’s Manas Katyal and Chittiz Jain, but finally chose Parujanwala. The student community says that the show, which kept a large number of viewers hooked to their TV sets for a month, reminds them of the legendary swayamvar’s of Sita and Draupadi.

We have read in Indian religious books about Sita Swayamvar, Draupadi Swayamvar but this time we have seen Rakhi Swaymvar. It is a memorable event for every Indo-Canadian,” Sakshi Sharma, a student of Humber College said.But Lester DeSalva, an Indo-Canadian born in Maharashtra said that the complete format of show needed to be reviewed as it did not entirely adhere to the guidelines of ’swayamvar’.

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Shahrukh Khan defaults Income Tax

The Income Tax department has dragged Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan to the Bombay High Court. The case relates to King Khan’s foreign earnings as the brand ambassador for Swiss luxury giant Omega. The department appealed against the December 2008 order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) which had allowed Shahrukh’s appeal over a tax deduction dispute. Shahrukh had declared an income of almost Rs 20 Crores, including Rs 29 lakh as foreign income as the brand ambassador of Omega brand for the financial year 2002-03.

The IT however says that the foreign expenses related to this income have to be calculated and under no circumstance is Shahrukh eligible for tax deduction as claimed by him under Section 80RR of Income Tax Act.This is not the first time that the IT Department has dragged the superstar to the court. A few moths back the department claimed that Shahrukh owed a sum of Rs 19.43 lakh for the return he filed in 1998-99.

Interestingly on that occasion too the case related to his foreign income from Jeanne Arthes Perfume which had named a perfume after him.

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Kareena Kapoor avoiding Producer’s request

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala’s favourite Kareena Kapoor had been gifted , when Kambakkt Ishq was ready for release. He gifted her a designer outfit that she wore in the film, added a song dedicated to her name and also went on to highlight her presence in the film. However, after the film released and sank without trace, the camaraderie between the producer and Bebo ended almost immediately.

And sources say it’s Bebo who has backed out from this bond, and not Nadiadwala.In fact, he is still trying to rope in Kareena for a special song in his upcoming film Housefull starring Akshay Kumar and Deepika Padukone along with Riteish Deshmukh and Lara Dutta. He was confident that she would do it gladly. But insiders say Kareena didn’t want to be reduced to an item girl in a film starring Deepika Padukone.

She has been avoiding the producer’s calls ever since, and he is left wondering if it has anything to do with the tragic fate of his film.

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Celina Jaitley feels pride after pledging her eyes

Bollywood damsel Celina Jaitely could not show her worth in the film line. Now-a-day she is trying her luck in social service. After raising her voice on gay issues, blue-eyed Celina is showing sympathy towards the visually-impaired people.Sources said Celina will be seen as a Brand ambassador of “Aditya Jyoti Sansthan”. She is very happy with her new assignment. She says, I am 19-year-old and I can give full corporation to the visually-impaired people.

After Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Celina is the second actress who has pledged her eyes. Other celebrities, who have already pledged their eyes, are former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and Mumbai police commissioner D.Shivanand.Celina said, “It is indeed a great honour for me to be part of this fantastic initiative by Aditya Jyot Eye Hospital. I would like to thank Dr.

Natarajan and his team for giving me the opportunity to be a part of this social initiative towards helping and supporting the blind.

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Abhishek Bachchan to gain weight for ‘Pa’

Junior Bachchan i.e. our very own Abhishek Bachchan is very serious regarding his role in Balki’s new flick ‘Pa’. And for the very same reason he keeps on experimenting with new things to give real touch to the reel life.To give a real and natural touch to his film “Pa” he is now a days preparing oneself to gain some weight. In his upcoming film “Pa” he is playing the role of a ‘politician’. He has also taken the inspiration from the leaders like Sachin Pilot and Milind Deora.

However, it is not the first time that Abhishek gained weight. Earlier, he gained the weight for his movie Guru.The movie will be a role reversal for Amitabh and Abhishek as Junior B will be playing Big B’s father in the movie. Amitabh plays a man suffering from a peculiar disease in which he ages at a faster pace and thus looks much older than his actual age and even older than his father.

The movie is expected to hit the theatres by the year end or early next year.

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Why is Bipasha angry with Rituparno Ghosh?

Bollywood actor Bipasha Basu was apparently miffed with filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh, for dubbing her voice in her first Bengali film Shob Choritro Kalponik without informing her. But reportedly, she wasn’t much upset after seeing the film as the voice hasn’t hampered her performance in the movie. Written and directed by Rituparno Ghosh, the film stars Bipasha Basu, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Jisshu Sengupta, Pauli Dam and Sohag Sen.

An emotional movie of death and loss, Shob Charitro Kalponik is the story of Radhika’s (Bipasha) journey into the life of her late poet-husband, Indraneel (Prosenjit Chatterjee) and the revelations and contradictions she learns about Indraneel as a poet and husband. She realises how much he romanticised their mundane, everyday life.

Yet in reality, he was often insensitive, negligent and apathetic towards her. She wonders about his dual identity. The film also made it to the Durban Film Festival.

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Shahid Kapoor runs away from Priyanka Chopra

Rumours are rife that Shahid Kapoor is leaving his sprawling apartment in Raj Classic as he is tired of being linked with neighbour and co-star Priyanka Chopra. Sources close to the actor said, Shahid has been checking out places for a long time now, and has fallen in love with a four bedroom apartment in Juhu, he is tired of the link-up stories with Priyanka and wants to put that all behind him now.

Shahid’s 14th floor apartment in Raj Classic is the envy of many, known as one of the most influential buildings in the city, his father Pankaj Kapoor is just a floor below him and mother Neelima Azam is a couple of blocks away.When we quizzed Shahid in a recent interview, he laughed off the rumours of the relationship saying, “Any co-star or girl I speak to, the media goes on to link me with them.

Priyanka is a good friend and a great co-star, nothing more than that.He also takes his apartment to be the greatest asset in his life and to know that the actor is making a getaway from all things Piggy Chops will obviously be something to report, we mean look out for.

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Deepika ignores Kareena

Relations between Kareena Kapoor’s and Ranbir Kapoor’s families have always been polite but distant. And both young superstars from the Kapoor family have been candid enough to admit that they hardly meet, let alone fraternise.Deepika Padukone, who just did a film with Kareena’s boyfriend Saif Ali Khan, happens to be Kareena’s estranged cousin Ranbir’s girlfriend. And Ranbir’s father, the wonderfully-talented Rishi Kapoor, was Deepika’s co-star in Love Aaj Kal. Sounds complicated na? Luckily no one from either side carried the family baggage on the sets. But when last week Deepika came face to face with both Rishi Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor at an event in Delhi, she made her intentions quite clear by staying away from Kareena and spending all her time with Rishi Kapoor.

Belying all rumours of tension with Ranbir’s parents, Deepika Padukone bonded beautifully with Rishi Kapoor in Delhi when she flew to the capital for a day last week from London to attend an event.We were all in Delhi together, all of us…Saif, Kareena, Imtiaz, Giselle Monteiro, Rishiji and me. And we had so much fun. I don’t know where these stories of friction come from,” sighs Deeepika.Deepika is candid enough to admit she doesn’t get along like a house on fire with Ranbir’s parents. “We don’t meet that often.

But when we do, the vibes are just fine. It’s sad I didn’t have too many scenes with Rishiji during the shooting of Love Aaj Kal. In fact, Deepika spent more time with her boyfriend’s father in Delhi on Thursday than she has ever done. “And we have absolutely no problems getting along. It makes exciting copy to say we don’t get along. But that’s not the truth,” retorts Deepika.

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