Sweethearts Candy Blog's

When they shot for New York, Katrina Kaif and John Abraham kept their distance from each other because of her beau Salman Khan's dushmani with her co-star. But when the recently-separated-from-Sallu Kat shot with Johnny Boy for a music video a few weeks back, the pair bonded.

B-Town is abuzz with rumours of this new dosti between Sallu's ex and his foe.

Sceptics might question the timing of these rumours as the film is ready for release and pass it off as nothing more than a publicity gimmick. But Salman Khan's camp insists that the actor has proof that his arch enemy and his ex are in touch with each other. Khan is known to keep tabs on his ex-girlfriends.

And he is doing the same with Kat. Reveals a source close to the actor, "Salmanbhai got hold of Kat's mobile bill and saw many calls and SMSes made and received between John and her." One explanation could be that the pair is in touch as the film is ready for release but you can't argue with a jealous boyfriend (ex or otherwise).

Salman is said to be furious at Kat's alliance with the man he considers an enemy. Katrina is now running scared. Even though she is no longer with him, she needs Sallu professionally. Although she has been telling people that she is no longer his girlfriend, she cannot afford to rub him the wrong way and expect to survive in the film industry.

The source continues, "Everyone in the industry is talking about this changed equation between Kat and John. There will surely be repercussions to this new development." Salman is known to be territorial about his gals, years after they've gone of his life. So the big question is: What happens next?

While Katrina and John remained unavailable for comment, a friend of Abraham rubbishes these rumours, "There is nothing going on between him and Katrina. He is just being targeted by someone. The truth will come out soon."

Luckily, for Ranbir... his word was enough
It is believed that when the rumours of Katrina and Ranbir first appeared, Salman called up the Saawariya boy and asked him if he and Kat had something going on. Kapoor assured him that he was serious about Deepika and that he wouldn't dream of cosying up to Salman's girl. Luckily for him, Khan chose to believe him.

Vivek Oberoi, whose name is now being linked to sitar player Anoushka Shankar, says good friend Kareena Kapoor pesters him most to find a suitable match for himself and settle down soon.

"The pressure (of getting married) is on, not only from my family but from even Bebo (Kareena's pet name)," said Vivek, who will be seen with Kareena and Saif in Rensil D'Silva's Qurbaan .

"Every time we go out for dinner, she would shake her head and tell me - 'find a nice girl and settle down' and I would hide behind Saif to dodge the bullet. We had some great laughs," he said.

The actress seems to be taking interest in Vivek’s love life but then isn’t it high time that she and her boyfriend Saif Ali Khan got married? Is there still an inch of doubt in their minds? When the two stars have already come out in the open to express their love for each other than what’s stopping them from saying the ‘I Do’?

On rumour mills buzz with stories of Katrina - John link up

What is it about John Abraham that his co-stars find irresistible?

Is it charm, his deeper than the deep sea dimples, or his knight-in-shining-armour image? Whatever it is, it is proven that women (in most cases his co-stars) find John very attractive.

In the past rumours have linked him to Mallika Sherawat (when the two did a world tour), Lara Dutta (Elaan) and Vidya Balan (Salaam-e-Ishq); and now, according to media reports, John’s the object of affection of Salman Khan’s girlfriend Katrina Kaif — his co-star in New York.

While the rumour mills buzz with stories of Katrina and John being phone buddies, some also suggest that Salman actually threw Katrina’s stuff out of his home because he didn’t like the idea of his girl bonding with his foe, John.

Since these rumours come in the wake of the New York publicity campaign, both John and Katrina have got the benefit of the doubt from another section of the media, which believes that all this Kat-John bonding is nothing but a stroke of publicity genius.

John doesn’t wish to comment on the issue. But he did reveal that the text messages exchanged in New York were only work related. “I’m astounded that I’m being pulled into something so bizarre.” A source close to the actor says, “John is not amused by the rumour. He is in a steady relationship with Bipasha Basu. Obviously vested interests have started this campaign.’’ Apparently, the actor believes that since there is absolutely no truth to the whole issue, it will blow over.

Bipasha, the other aggrieved party (Salman being the first), has complete faith in her man and says, “John and I have gone through enough of such gossip. I don’t want to give any credibility to this by even commenting on it. It is malicious and absolutely the most bizarre story involving us. Just for the knowledge of people who actually love us together, we are very happy being with each other, and we’re responsible and protective about our relationship.’’

Picture this if you will: A murder mystery where you (the audience) are actively involved in guessing who the murderer is. SMS your replies to a number given while the film is being screened, before the mystery is solved and you might just walk out of the theatre with a prize.

Easier said than done? Well, we'd like to believe so. We spoke to new filmmaker, Sareesh Sudhakaran, who debuts as a producer and director with his film titled The Impossible Murder. The film employs the marketing tool mentioned earlier.

So what's the film about? Says Sareesh, "It's a murder mystery that clocks in at 81 minutes. An old woman is killed in her bedroom. There are five witnesses who are standing outside the door and when they break in to help her, there is no sign of the murderer or the murder weapon.

This makes it appear as an impossible murder, and the entire story revolves around the detective piecing together the clues and arriving at the solution to the crime three years after it was committed."

The film, due to release in the first or second week of June, will test the waters in select theatres in the Mumbai and Pune territories.

Sareesh is upbeat about his subject matter, even though whodunits have a short shelf life (what with people leaking out the suspense). He says, "Even though all the facts and situations are provided beforehand, the mystery is unsolvable.

Further-more, even after the ending is revealed, no one will be able to discover a flaw in the reasoning of the puzzle. Even if somebody watches a film, they'll go in trying to find a flaw, almost like we're challenging them to." He further claims that no one will be able to find loopholes in the film.

He informs that the audience will receive live feedback on their SMS responses. Five such interactions can take place during the film.

The film was made with individual funding over two years. The film's lead pair is a relatively new cast: Tarun Singh Negi (who plays the lead in the stage version of The Alchemist) and Swati Shetty, a newcomer.

Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan brainstormed with other producers at a Producers Guild Meeting convened to resolve the spat with multiplex owners on Wednesday, May 27 at Taj Lands End, Mumbai.

Shah Rukh and Aamir looked Mumbai cool in their Tees and jeans. Shah Rukh wore a white V-neck tee, blue distressed jeans and grey sports shoes. Aamir was dressed in a heather grey crew neck Tee, faded blue loose fit jeans and a brown baseball cap.

The meeting started at midnight and ended three hours later on a positive note, with indications that the spat could be resolved over the next couple of days.

Perceived more as actors than producers, Aamir and Shah Rukh are leaders and major stake holders in the industry.

Attentive and observant, Aamir spoke little during the meeting, occasionally chipping in to make a point; Shah Rukh came through as more involved and animated.

The Producers Guild and multiplex owners in India have locked horns over profit sharing, with the producers demanding a 50% share of profits. No Bollywood films have been released since early April.

The makers of 24x7 Raftaar starring Emraan Hashmi and Neha Dhupia are in a mad rush to release their film. The reason? Percept Picture Company's film and Ram Gopal Varma's Rann starring Amitabh Bachchan and Riteish Deshmukh both have similar story lines.

Both stories revolve around the internal politics of a newsroom.

The buzz is that the guys at Percept at miffed at Ramu for starting a film on the same plot as theirs. A source reveals, "There is a big rush between Percept and Ramu to release their films as soon as the multiplex embargo lifts. Since both projects have similar plots and selling points, it's a race to reach first at the finishing post."

When contacted, Navin Shah, CEO of Percept Picture Company says, "Raftaar is a story of one media house using their resources to manipulate the market. The film has an extremely stylish look on the lines of Race and Dhoom." Reacting to comparisions with RGV's Rann, Shah says, "Well, I can vouch for the fact that ours is an original idea. We planned, conceived and made it before Mr Varma, and nothing can change that!."

Adding that his product is superior to Ramu's, he says, "Emraan Hashmi has a huge market of his own. His reach isn't just limited to metros and big cities. While RGV's films have an appeal that's limited to the big cities. We definitely have an edge with the broader appeal. Also, the Pritam-Emraan combination is a sure shot winner, while music has never been a forte for Ramu's film."

Percept plans to release Raftaar some time in August. "I am not aware when Rann is releasing and neither am I bothered. As per the market conditions, we plan to release Raftaar by August."

Bollywood was out in full force for the wedding of celebrity fitness trainer Ziauddin Khatib to Sabah on May 25 at the Bandra Reclamation, Mumbai, with Emraan Hashmi being one of the first guests to wish the newlyweds. However, good friend and client John Abraham couldn’t make it so he sent his parents in his place to extend his good wishes to the couple.

Though John is a huge Bollywood star, not many have seen his parents. Mr. and Mrs. Abraham walked in on time and stayed at the reception till the very end, enjoying themselves with the other guests.

Other famous faces at the reception were actor Bikram Saluja, who walked in with Khalid and Kulraj Randhawa, who was all praise for her kickboxing trainer. Ayesha Takia’s father Nish Takia also attended the ceremony. Muzamil Ibrahim and his brother Mudassir both walked in together, while Javed Ahmed was heard discussing fitness with a police officer present at the occasion. The wedding ceremony took place at the Spastic Society at Reclamation in Bandra.

Ziauddin Khatib has made India proud by winning the World Fastest Knockout three times - the quickest being in 29 seconds. He is also the President of the Indian Kickboxing Association. Ziauddin Khatib has trained Bollywood celebrities Hrithik Roshan, John Abraham, Jaya Prada, Deepika Padukone, Sonam Kapoor, Bipasha Basu, Tabu, Harman S. Baweja, Emraan Hashmi and Kulraj Randhawa in kickboxing.

Danny Boyle was in the city to help his child stars to get a roof above their heads. But we are told that this wasn’t his sole purpose.

The director also met up with Aamir Khan to discuss his next project.

The star is back from his long holiday with his family in the US and director, Danny Boyle didn’t want to miss his chance of talking to him.

If sources are to be believed, the Slumdog director has expressed his desire to work with Aamir when the actor came down for the premiere of his Oscar winning film.

Karan Johar's birthday party on Monday evening turned out to be an occasion for more than one grand reunion. KJo made sure that Abhishek and Kareena put aside their differences and became friends again.

Following the thawing between Abhi and Bebo, the camaraderie between Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Kareena Kapoor that evening didn't surprise anyone.

To see them laughing, giggling, whispering and behaving like two long-lost sahelis was something that did bring a smile to all the invitees' faces and added that extra zing to Karan's glamour-gorged party.

The highlight of the evening was Ash and Bebo taking to the dance floor. Finally, the long-standing cold war between the Bachchans and Kapoors that started when Abhi's relationship with Karisma's sister ended, came to an end. All ties had been severed between the Bachchans and Kapoors.

It was reported that Abhishek refused films with Kareena, prompting the emotional girl to react angrily and defiantly. She publicly snubbed Amitabh Bachchan at an award function last year. Very recently, through the subtle efforts of Aishwarya and Karan Johar from both ends, the two families began to dissolve their differences.

KJo's party on Monday evening did the trick. Now it's only a matter of time before Abhishek and Kareena finally come together again for a film after Refugee and Main Prem Ki Deewani Hoon. Chances are KJo will design the project.

Brief encounters: Who's the ice maiden now
Ash and Sonam too had a very brief chat. However there was no lets-be-friends vibe between them, even when they spoke to each other for a few minutes. It was very formal and although Ash was warm, Sonam's stance was aloof. A source reveals, "As soon as Ash spotted Sonam, she rushed to her side and gave her a warm hug. She complimented her on the outfit she was wearing and told her how much she loved her style sense." There was no talk about Sonam being dropped from Cannes at the last minute. Minutes into their conversation, Kapoor spotted someone, she excused herself and walked away.

Mallika Sherawat has rented a penthouse apartment at one of the swankiest locations in Beverly Hills The Palazzo in Park LaBrea.

When asked about her new address in an affluent neigbourhood, she smiles, "It's very expensive. In fact, most of my earnings are going to go into paying the rent at The Palazzo but I couldn't have it any other way. It's a beautiful place. It's next to Rodeo Drive one of the shopping havens of the world and between Beverly Hills and Hollywood."

Mallika's two-story penthouse has a city view, arched windows, city views, controlled elevator access (only she can use it to get to her penthouse), large private terraces and a personal swimming pool (5500 sq feet in area) with two levels a drawing, dining and kitchen below with two bedrooms above. And Roman soaking tubs. It even has an original Picasso painting left behind by the penthouse owner.

Residents of the building are pampered all year round with resort style amenities such as a world-class health spa and club, yoga centre, a state-of-the-art fitness center, a full service concierge, a business center, and 50,000 sq ft of ground floor retail. Mallika says, "I needed to rent a comfortable yet beautiful apartment in LA as I will be flying up and down from India quite often till September and need a pad of my own."

Mallika is a vegan, and she does not know how to cook but she isn't worried, as LA offers some of the best vegan and raw food joints in the country. Mallika has transport too at her service a ritzy cream-coloured Jaguar. She drives it herself or has a chauffeur on call.

And her brother Vikram Singh (co-producer of Mallika's next film Hissss) is not too far away. When he visits LA for the post-production of Hissss, he stays at the Beverly Wiltshire. While the sister chooses to drive her Jaguar, Vikram loves driving around his white Beamer S6.

After the release of Kites, Rakesh Roshan will soon start working on Krrish 2. According to well-placed sources, the film is already in the scripting process, with a newer concept. It will feature Hrithik Roshan yet again and Deepika Padukone is being considered for the part of the leading lady.

A source reveals, "After the success of Krrish, the Roshans decided to go ahead with the sequel of the movie. Their first priority was to finish with Kites and then work on Krrish 2. Kites is almost done and is in the post-production stage. Rakesh Roashan's production house FilmKraft is working on Krrish 2. They are at an infant stage and still working on script and the star cast, but it obviously includes Hrithik as the actor."

The source continues, "The layout of the script is ready and it will see Hrithik in a superhero avatar once again. He will be seen saving the Seven Wonders of the World, so naturally the film will be shot extensively at various foreign locations. Hrithik will undergo physical training once again for the role. Like the prequel, this too will have SFX and a big crew of foreign technicians."

It is believed that Papa Roshan is keen to have Deepika for the role opposite Hrithik, as he feels she suits the role perfectly and he was very impressed by her stunts and athletic character in Chandni Chowk To China. When quizzed, Roshan said, "Not thinking of anything till the release of Kites."

He may be disappointed with his debut film "Kal Kissne Dekha" being delayed, but newcomer Jackky Bhagnani perks up when he recalls the special moment he shared with childhood friend Kareena Kapoor last week.

In Ahmedabad for a concert to promote his upcoming film, Jackky was nervous until Kareena assured him that everything would be all right.

"I couldn't have been more thankful to her that particular evening when I had to step up on stage in front of a 25,000-strong crowd. I was extremely nervous and was wondering whether I would be able to crack the show till Kareena gave me a helping hand," Jackky told IANS.

He is currently on a six-city tour to promote his debut film, which is a musical thriller.

"She supported me at every step that evening. She calmed me down even as I openly told her that I was very nervous. She simply told me that 'Jackky, you are a nice dancer, just go with the flow and leave yourself to the beats'," he said.

"It was especially sweet of her when she held my hand after the show and introduced me to the public. I will cherish that moment forever because Kareena has been a great friend during my growing up years. However, now it was a superstar actress bringing a newcomer in front of the audience. It couldn't have been bigger," said Jackky, who admits that during the last three years he wasn't really in touch with Kareena.

"We grew up together as kids. Her sister Karisma has worked in a number of movies with dad ('Coolie No. 1', 'Hero No. 1', 'Biwi No. 1'). We all share a great relationship personally as well as professionally. However, even though we were not in touch, she was sweet enough to be just a call away when we requested her to make it for the show," said Jackky.

Added dad Vashu Bhagnani: "The show was a huge success. As the three-hour long show started warming up, close to 25,000 people assembled there to watch the performance. In fact, they got crazy when Kareena and Jackky got together for 'Mauja hi mauja' and 'Marjaani'."

The release date of the film, which was to open in theatres on May 29, has not yet been finalised because of the tiff between producers and multiplex owners over revenue sharing.

Starring debutant Vaishali Desai as the leading lady, "Kal Kissne Dekha" also features Rishi Kapoor and Akshay Kapoor in principal roles with Sanjay Dutt in a special appearance.

"Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle, who rushed to India on Wednesday (May 28) to help the film's child stars, was stunned when a child's father accused him of ignoring them.

Some of the children have become homeless after civic authorities razed their shanties. Boyle had come down to offer them help.

However, Rafiq Qureshi, father of Rubina Ali, 9, left their meeting in anger accusing the filmmaker of neglecting them after the film's global success.

"A house is being provided for the kids...we have been listening this for the last five months...I don't see any house coming our way. The shanty that we were living in has already been razed...where are we getting a house from?

"If they are providing us a house, when are they going to do it? Our kids are literally living on the road now," an exasperated Qureshi told a news channel later.

"Slumdog" producer Christian Colson also participated in the meeting held at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences on the outskirts of the city.

"We are looking for a legal accommodation that should be held by the trust (Jai Ho) to ensure the safety of these kids and it would be properly monitored as well," a calm Boyle told the reporters.

The kids including Azharuddin Ismail M. Shaikh, 10, the main child star of the movie, apart from Rubina, were both thrown on the streets after Mumbai civic authorities demolished their shanties May 14, terming the slum unauthorised.

The producers of the multiple Oscar-award wining underdog drama had earlier announced a setting up Jai Ho Trust to look after the two child stars and ensure that they receive quality education and a house to live in.

The grand finale of the dance reality show "Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa" will air on Sunday, May 31, 2009, at 8.00pm on Sony TV.

The three finalists - Karan, Baichung and Gauhar - will compete for the coveted title.

Celebrity guests Mallika Sherawat and Malaika Arora Khan will also be on the show.

There will be performances by judges and qwwals as well as fun awards.