Vijay to play lead in Tamil '3 Idiots'

The rumours about 3 Idiots remake lead actor has finally come to an end, as the Gemini Film Circuit has announced that Vijay will play the lead role in Shankar directorial film. The makers have also made it official that the title is Nanban.

The makers of the film have made it clear that Vijay has been roped in and he will play the role, which was played by Aamir Khan in the original. They also cleared that they have finalized the movie title as Nanban after considering Moovar and 3 Rascals.

The news comes as a surprise to many as the actor walked out in December 2010 citing date issues. To its trouble, Mahesh Babu, who gave his consent to act in Telugu version, also pulled out in the last minute due to unknown reasons. Later, it was revealed that the movie bosses are in the process to fill the lead slot with Surya, as he has the appeal in both Tamil and Telugu industries.

Sources say that Surya’s demands and remuneration made the makers to drop him. Hence, they approached Ilayathalapathy Vijay again. The latter, who has postponed his political plans after the success of Kaavalan, gave nod after a lengthy discussion with the director, claims a source.

Now, sources close to production house say that Vijay will join the team by this month end. However, Shankar has started the shooting from yesterday. Actress Illeana D’Cruz, Jeeva, Srikanth and Sathyaraj have joined him for the first schedule.

Pics - Raveena flaunts her tattoos

Raveena Tandon may have bid farewell to acting, but the lady still retains the glow and beauty to give many Bollywood babes a run for their money.

The mother of two was recently spotted flaunting her tattoos during fashion designer Ritu Kumar’s show at Taj Land’s End in Mumbai.

The pretty lady was clad in a fetching black dress that exposed the tattoo on her back. Rather than shying away, Raveena very much let the photographers click her tattoo. She also showed her old scorpion tattoo above her heart.

Salman's already got children!

An enviable female fan following has always made actor Salman Khan one of the most sought after men in Bollywood.

The actor’s on and off relationships with tinsel town’s prettiest ladies only add to his charisma. And the speculation isnever put to rest.

His recent rumoured break-up with lady love Katrina Kaif apart, we wonder if Chulbul Pandey is finally ready to take the plunge and tie the knot. Salman is usually known to remain an enigma, but the actor offers a chance for his fans to delve deep into his persona, as he shares his thoughts on marriage, children and more with DNA.

Ask the 44-year-old actor if marriage could be around the corner and he winks, “Yes, by the end of this year,” and quickly adds with a chuckle, “Well, I’ve been saying this for so many years now and will be saying so for many more to come, I guess. Why should I marry? One marries to have children, but I already have children! My nieces and nephews are my children. I wanted to marry to make babies, but now I have them, so marriage isn’t that important, is it?”

Salman’s on-screen chemistry with his female co-stars hasn’t been any less sizzling. Who does he personally think he clicks best with? “Oh, there are so many of them… Lolo (Karisma Kapur), Priety (Zinta) and Rani (Mukerji). It depends a lot on the films, but I think I have given maximum hits with Lolo. Preity and I rock too.”

The actor has admittedly loved hosting TV shows. There is speculation about him hosting the next seasons of Bigg Boss and Dus Ka Dum too. “Yes, most definitely, I will. It’s fun hosting and I have liked the formats,” says Salman. And what if the shoots coincide? “If they want me to host the shows, they won’t happen around the same time,” he asserts.

Bigg Boss 4 remained in the news throughout, whether it was for the bratty Dolly Bindra’s histrionics, Hollywood hottie Pamela Anderson’s entry or the show’s timing itself. Does he feel the content has turned too explicit over the seasons? “No, I don’t feel so. My parents watch TV and if the show, I’m part of, had anything explicit, they would not have watched it or let me take it up. Films, in fact, have far more explicit content and are high on abusive language. But in my films, only I expose, my heroines don’t,” he signs off.

Ranbir-Imran do a Hrithik-Ash act

When Ranbir Kapoor and Imran Khan get together to show their antics, expect a blast.

The duo regaled the audiences at the Filmfare Awards in Mumbai on Saturday night by spoofing a few popular acts of the year, but nothing could beat their parody of Ethan and Sophia, played by Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai, from director Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film Guzaarish.

Imran dressed up as the magician Ethan and Ranbir was in drag to play the doe-eyed nurse Sophia. Here’s a pic of the duo as Ethan and Sophia. Enjoy!

Bebo to open National Games 2011?

The opening ceremony of the 34th National Games here Feb 12 will see either Kareena Kapoor or Priyanka Chopra take part, while Katrina Kaif will perform at the closing ceremony Feb 27, an official said Saturday.

"We have awarded Cineyug contract for opening and closing ceremonies. In the opening ceremony, either Kareena or Priyanka Chopra will take part and Katrina Kaif will take part in the closing ceremony," a senior official told us.

"Cineyug has been awarded contract of Rs.10.50 crore and taxes will be paid in addition to it. Singer Sukhvinder will take part in the opening ceremony and 'Big Boss 4' winner Shweta Tiwari will be the anchor of the opening ceremony," the official added.

The closing ceremony will also see a performance by singer Shan.

President Pratibha Patil is likely to be chief guest at the opening ceremony here.

Court squashes petition against SRK's house

The Bombay High Court on Friday disposed off a petition that alleged that Shah Rukh Khan's sea-facing bungalow, Mannat had violated heritage and Costal Regulation Zone (CRZ) norms. Calling the petition 'frivolous' the HC went on to impose a Rs20,000 fine on the petitioner.

Activist Simpreet Singh had filed a PIL alleging that the actor had violated CRZ norms while constructing a new building as part of the extension of his bungalow – a heritage structure. A division bench of Justice P B Majmudar and A Sayed dismissed the PIL saying the petitioner had targeted the film star only for publicity.

"There are so many buildings in the same line as Shah Rukh's building. Why have you taken an objection against only this building?" the bench asked. On earlier occasion the state government informed the HC that the reservation was cancelled in 2000. Khan had purchased the land in 2003 and began construction in 2006.

Arguing for Simpreet, advocate YP Singh said that the place where the building stands was reserved for an art gallery. Simpreet alleged 32 violations of law stating that construction at Mannat has been done by merging 12 flats having 12 kitchens meant for poor people. Singh and Simpreet say that they will challenge the HC order in the Supreme Court. "It is shocking that the court has imposed cost on a petitioner who has recently won the national RTI activist award for his monumental work in exposing the Adarsh and Lavassa scams. This is very demoralising for activists, who are being attacked physically," said Singh.

Rajinikanth to play triple role

Rajini fans the world over, will surely like this next piece of news. If you thought two Rajini's in Endhiran was a treat, then get ready for three Rajinikanth's in his next film titled Rana.

Scheduled to go on floor in March this year, the magnum opus Rana, will have Rajinikanth playing a triple role. The film will be directed by K S Ravikumar and co-produced by Eros International and Chennai based-Ocher Studios.

Rana will have music by A R Rahman and cinematography by Ratnavelu. Renowned visual effects luminary and an Emmy award winner, Charles Darby, will be the visual effects supervisor of the film.

Speaking on the development, Sunil Lulla, Managing Director, Eros International Media Ltd said, “Rajni fans will be treated to a triple role essayed by their favourite actor. Rana is going to be far different from any of the recent Rajni films, a complete live action magnum opus with loads of entertainment for his fans.”

Rana will be released in Tamil, Hindi and Telugu.

Prem denies kissing Karishma

Prem's next film, I'm Sorry... Mathe Banni Preethsona, may feature three heroines and 10 songs, but it's the supposed kiss between him and his co-star Karishma Tannah that's got people talking.

The film's director Ravindra says that a kissing scene was planned and in earlier reports claimed that it was even shot. However, Prem says otherwise despite the fact that stills of the scene have been leaked. "We don't kiss, but an intimate scene has been shot in which our lips almost touch. It can't be considered a kiss," says Prem.

He does, however, agree that kiss was part of the plan. "But I didn't want to do it because it would upset my fans. My films are for family audiences. How can I hurt them by kissing my heroines?" he asks.

There are also rumours that the film sees Prem go nude. "There's a shower scene, but he's not completely nude. Prem is a good-looking hero who has a lot of female fans. I cashed in on this," says Ravindra

In fact, the director was very confident about casting Prem in I'm Sorry... despite the actor not having scored a hit at the box office in quite a while. "I was looking for a handsome hero when a friend suggested Prem. He wasn't keen when I approached him the first time because he wasn't confident in me as I had worked in Bollywood. But when I narrated the script to him, he jumped at it and made me promise that I wouldn't think of anyone else for the role but him," recalls Ravindra.

I'm Sorry... also features Sanjjanaa in a "powerful" role and a third heroine who plays an "anchoring" role, says Ravindra. "This time I've left it to the audience to choose their favourite heroine on-screen," explains Ravindra, who plans to release the film on Valentine's Day.

Pooja Bedi an Egyptian princess in Telugu movie

Actress Pooja Bedi is upbeat about her comeback to Telugu cinema. Nearly two decades after featuring in ''Chittemma Mogudu'' alongside Mohan Babu, she will now be seen as an Egyptian princess in Junior NTR-starrer ''Shakti''.

With a budget of Rs.45 crore, the film is being touted as the costliest movie in the Telugu film industry. "I've just finished a Telugu film with Junior NTR. It's called 'Shakti'. It is one of the biggest budget Telugu films, and I play an Egyptian princess with supernatural powers in it," Pooja told IANS.

Without divulging too many details, the 40-year-old said the movie will be "high on sci-fi and special effects".

"Shakti" has actress Ileana D'Cruz in the lead, and features other Bollywood actors Jackie Shroff, Sonu Sood and Manjari Phadnis.

Best remembered for her Marilyn Monroe skirt act in "Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander", Pooja has been missing from the big screen for a long time. She is more active on small screen and participated in reality shows and even got to host her own chat show - "Just Pooja".

She participated in dance reality shows "Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 1" and "Nach Baliye 3". She tried daredevil in the first season of "Fear Factor - Khatron Ke Khiladi".

Recently she featured in Sony TV's "Maa Exchange", a twisted Indian version of internationally popular show "Wife Swap". Now she is keen on more reality shows and a comeback with her talk show.

"I am getting more offers for reality shows. Let's see what I decide. But I am very hopeful to return with my own talk show where I can be a relationship counsellor for the general people. I think I can handle it really well," said Pooja.

Pooja, daughter of actor Kabir Bedi and late Odissi dancer Protima Bedi, is a single mother to daughter Aalia, 13 and a son Omar, 10. She divorced her husband Farhan Furniturewalla in 2002, after an eight-year long marriage, and admits it is tough being a single mom.

"My kids were very young when my husband and I took divorce. When I went to (comedian) Rajeev Nigam's house as part of 'Maa Exchange', I saw him bond with his son. At that point, I did miss the father-child bonding in my house and for a moment I felt that I need a husband now," she said.

Unfortunately, the feeling of settling down was short-lived for Pooja.

"It has been really tough being a single mother. You have to take care of the children - financially, emotionally, so you have to work hard and also spend time with them. It wasn't easy but I am proud of the way my children have shaped up - mature and well-mannered. Their scores are wonderful, the walls of their rooms are full of medals and certificates and they enjoy all sports. Most of all, they respect me and their elders. So I have no complains!" she said.

Sanjay Dutt to host TV game show

While rumours were doing the rounds in the industry about Sanjay Dutt replacing Salman Khan as host on Dus Ka Dum, we bring you the breaking news.

The channel concerned is considering Sanju for another game show now. This show will mark the actor's debut in television. The channel is working with Dutt on an entirely new idea for a game show. A source from the television industry says, "The show hosted by Dutt will not be a format one, which is normally the order of the day.

brand new concept is being devised." Dutt is already in advanced talks with the channel and the modalities are fast being worked out. "The channel has even commissioned producers and writers who are now meeting with Dutt for the past few days." adds the source.

Despite a text message, Sanjay Dutt remained unavailable for comment. However his official spokesperson reverted saying, "Sanju sir would love to host a game show this year. Talks are on with many channels.

We shall make an official announcement as soon as everything is finalised." Meanwhile, whether Sallu will host Dus Ka Dum again or not still remains a mystery...