Winners’ circle

Whether it is setting up a studio, co-productions or promotions, Bollywood’s top-drawer stars are consolidating their showbiz careers in myriad ways

Morne Morkel, Shah Rukh Khan, Robin Uthappa with the winners’ trophy

Finally, ending days of speculation and suspense, it was Kolkata Knight Riders that emerged triumphant in the seventh season of Indian Premiere League. At the inception of IPL, KKR started out as a team that was high on glamour quotient but has clawed its way to a position of strength. From the media reports, it would appear that the management is becoming more seasoned and professional with each passing day, a development that is likely to hold them in good stead in time to come.
But what has got the Bollywood grapevine in the industry buzzing is news of King Khan taking business matters to a whole new plane by veering to the studio model. Manish Hariprasad, a former member of Disney UTV Studio joining Khan’s company has only fuelled such talk. It is well known that in a relatively short while, Red Chillies Entertainment has grown from strength to strength creating verticals like television production, sports (IPL), special-effects, live events; so the next obvious step would be to cover new territories such as distribution, music and of course, an endeavour to bankroll several films simultaneously, not all of them necessarily starring SRK.
If there is any credence to all the above-mentioned speculations, then Khan would have successfully connected the dots —the various entertainment start-ups he has created during his acting career spanning over 20 years—rather seamlessly. Few have the enviable portfolio that the superstar presently holds, and from the early signs, it appears as though he will continue to maintain that headstart for quite sometime.

Ladies’ Special

From Bollywood’s leading ladies, it was Aishwarya Rai Bachchan who once again, had the world at her feet when she showed up at Cannes looking more glamorous than ever before. This despite the fact that her arrival was delayed due to a strike by airline officials in London, and that over the years, competition from younger stars has grown exponentially! How’s that for timeless beauty?
Speaking of beautiful ladies, closer home, there were two actually, who impressed with their verve and chutzpah besides their alluring good looks—Dia Mirza and Vidya Balan who team up in the capacity of producer and actor for the film Bobby Jasoos, just proved that good-looking women can successfully collaborate on projects too. In this case, Mirza keeping in mind the commercial benefits of her home production, was happy letting Vidya take centrestage as she played the enterprising producer rather effectively! The best part is that the promos of the film, look rather promising—so much so that the media present for the occasion insisted on a repeat of the trailer!
Another dazzler with a difference who has everyone agog with curiosity about her forthcoming venture is the freshly minted Mrs Chopra aka Rani Mukerji. Mukerji has had her plate full what with a destination fairytale wedding, and now a film with the intriguing title Mardaani fetching up. It’s showtime once again. But given her penchant and attachment to all things family, it was hardly surprising that she accompanied ma-in-law Pamela Chopra to the launch of YRF’s fashion venture —Di’vani, steered her through the throng of photographers with practised ease and attended to her carefully right through the evening.
The signs bode well for Bollywood’s future. Watch this space for more.

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