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Indian producer to make Imran Khan biopic

By Magazine Desk
21 October, 2015

Pakistan and its celebs seem to be the flavour of the month in Bollywood

Pakistan and its celebs seem to be the flavour of the month in Bollywood. First we had the talented Alia Bhatt expressing a desire to play Nazia Hassan in a biopic and now, it is producer Rakesh Upadhyay who seems to be enamoured by a Pakistani. The Bollywood producer, known for his masala offerings such as Khiladi 786 and The  Shaukeens, has expressed a desire to make a film on the life of PTI Chairman Imran Khan and recently visited Islamabad to seek Khan’s permission to go ahead with the project.

 The news was confirmed on Twitter by Reham Khan, who posted a rebuttal to the rumour that she was co-producer for the project. “Misreporting alert: The Indian filmmaker wants to make a film on Imran Khan & came to discuss access,” she wrote. While Mrs. Khan may not be involved in the production, it is likely she will find herself to be a central character in the movie, if it does see the light of the day. Imran Khan has apparently given a go-ahead to Upadhyay on the condition that the film focus on his personal life and not his political career. Let’s hope this venture doesn’t suffer the same fate as Kaptaan, a biopic on the life of the cricketer-turned-politician that has been in the news for years but has yet to materialize. 

 

Housefull 3 reveals first look

 

The latest installment of the successful Housefull franchise has been in the news for its star-studded cast, and they sure make for a visual delight in the just-released first look of the film. The poster shows the six Bollywood stars led by Akshay Kumar in sporty and stylish getups. Along with Akshay Kumar and Riteish Deshmukh, who reprise their roles in the sequel, the film stars Abhishek Bachchan who takes over from where John Abraham left off. Hopefully, the masala comedy will provide a much-needed boost to Bachchan Junior’s flagging career. 

 

As for the leading ladies, Lisa Haydon, Nargis Fakhri and Jacqueline Fernandez not only have their striking good looks in common but also their lack of Hindi-speaking skills. None of the actresses is an Indian citizen and sources close to the film have joked about their limited understanding of the language. Currently, the cast of the Sajid Nadiawalla production is having a ball of a time shooting in London and the film is eying a summer 2016 release.

 

Bridget is back  

 

While on the subject of sequels, actress Renée Zellweger is currently filming the third installment of the Bridget Jones franchise and opened up this week about what it’s been like to return to the iconic role. “I’m having a good time,” the actress told E! Online. “It’s really a nice reunion with old friends,” she added. “It’s always wonderful to be back in London and I love this character so it’s been a real treat to get to revisit it again.” It’s been fourteen years since the release of Bridget Jones’s Diary in 2001, which was followed by Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason in 2004. The new film is titled Bridget Jones’s Baby and stars Colin Firth, who plays Bridget’s husband Mark Darcy, and franchise newcomer Patrick Dempsey, whose role remains a mystery. Hugh Grant, who played Bridget’s other love interest, is not returning for the third film. Zellweger admitted she never thought whether a Bridget Jones 3 would happen, but said, “I’m really glad to be doing it.”