Tag: BOLLYWOOD

“Our movie stories better than Bollywood, Hollywood” – Osuofia

The Nollywood movie legend, Nkem Owoh a.k.a Osuofia, on Thursday described Nigerian movies’ stories as far better than that of their Bollywood and Hollywood counterparts.

Osuofia made the remark in an interview with NAN in Enugu.

According to him, Nigerian movies present real life stories and happenings around them, so it is wrong to compare the quality of Nigerian films with those coming from the advanced countries.

He said that Nigerian film producers were only using technology imported from such advanced countries.

“The storyline we take is better than any story from any woods, we don’t have the technology, but we have the story.

“We are a third world country coming up, and people should give us kudos for the level we have attained.

“I believe, with the stories and creativity among us, if we get the needed technology, we will go places”.

The thespian stated that with the available technology in place, Nollywood had been to the next level of improvement.

Osuofia, who rated Nollywood high, said, “If you check the time and how we started, you give kudos because we are making a tremendous progress in the industry.

“With the kind of technology we have now, I believe Nollywood has a very far distance to go positively”.

He, however, called for patience among upcoming actors, saying they should follow their progress gradually.

“If it is not your calling, move away’”. Owoh said.

February 10, 2023
Bollywood stars Aamir Khan, Kiran Rao divorce after 15 years

Many were stunned when Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan announced Saturday that he is divorcing his wife of 15 years, film-maker Kiran Rao.

The A-list couple released a statement saying their break-up had been agreed but they would raise their son together and still work on joint projects.

“In these 15 beautiful years together we have shared a lifetime of experiences, joy and laughter, and our relationship has only grown in trust, respect and love,” they said.

“Now we would like to begin a new chapter in our lives — no longer as husband and wife, but as co-parents and family for each other.”

Khan and Rao met while shooting a film in 2001 on which Rao was the assistant director, and they married in December 2005.

The 56-year-old actor, whose film about wrestling, “Dangal”, made him the top Indian star in China, was divorced from actor Reena Dutta in 2002.

“We began a planned separation some time ago, and now feel comfortable to formalise this arrangement, of living separately yet sharing our lives the way an extended family does,” Khan and Rao said.

“We remain devoted parents to our son Azad, who we will nurture and raise together. We will also continue to work as collaborators on films, Paani Foundation, and other projects that we feel passionate about.”

Khan and Rao, 47, thanked their family and friends “without whom we would not have been so secure in taking this leap”.

“We request our well wishers for good wishes and blessings, and hope that – like us – you will see this divorce not as an end, but as the start of a new journey.”

Khan, a Muslim, is an activist for humanitarian and political causes and said in 2015 that growing “intolerance” against Muslims and intellectuals in India had led to Rao, a Hindu, suggesting they leave the country.

He has been working on a remake of the 1994 Hollywood hit “Forrest Gump”, titled “Laal Singh Chaddha”, which is provisionally due for release at the end of 2021.

July 3, 2021
Actor’s suicide sparks uproar in film industry

Indian police will probe whether an up-and-coming Bollywood actor who committed suicide at the weekend was depressed in part due to “professional rivalry,” in a film industry that is dominated by big names and has been accused of being insular.

Sushant Singh Rajput, a 34 year-old actor who won acclaim and fans for his roles in several top-draw films, hailed from a middle-class family with no Bollywood connections – a relative rarity in the industry.

Rajput was found dead at his residence in Mumbai on Sunday.

“There are media reports that he allegedly suffered from clinical depression because of professional rivalry. @MumbaiPolice will probe this angle too,” the home (interior) minister in Maharashtra, which includes the film capital Mumbai, tweeted late on Monday.

Several of Rajput’s friends in the industry have written about his struggles to break through, while social media and some cultural commentators have criticised the allegedly closed culture in Bollywood, where some families have dominated for up to four generations.

Rajput’s family has not commented so far.

At least half a dozen accounts by Rajput’s industry colleagues suggested Bollywood’s clique-drive culture ostracised him, although none provided concrete details and it was not immediately clear who specifically they were talking about.

“I knew the pain you were going through. I knew the story of the people who let you down so bad that you used to weep on my shoulder,” Shekhar Kapur, who was supposed to direct Rajput in a film that was eventually shelved, wrote in a tweet on Monday.

Kapur did not immediately respond to a request for further details.

In a separate tweet, actress Swara Bhasker called accusations against Bollywood personalities “the height of idiocy.”

“We don’t know what he (Rajput) went through. We don’t know the cause. STOP taking out your frustration using the pain of a troubled person… Let him have his peace & his family privacy,” she tweeted on Tuesday.

June 16, 2020
SAD: Popular Bollywood actor takes own life

Popular Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, 34, has committed suicide in his house in Mumbai’s Bandra city.

The Bollywood actor was found dead on Sunday at his sixth floor apartment in Bandra (West), according to DCP Pranay Ashok, spokesperson of Mumbai Police.

Ashok said Rajput was found hanging at his residence and preliminary investigation showed he committed suicide, stressing that though no suicide note was found in his residence.

“Sushant Singh Rajput has committed suicide, but the Mumbai Police is investigating the circumstances surrounding his death,” Ashok said.

His management team in a statement released on social media described the actor’s death as a huge loss to the movie industry.

“It pains us to share that Sushant Singh Rajput is no longer with us. We request his fans to keep him in their thoughts and celebrate his life, and his work like they have done so far.

“We request the media to help us maintain privacy at this moment of grief,” the statement reads.

Reacting to his death, President of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management committee said: “He was just 34 and famous. He appeared confident and happy too! But we seriously don’t know the struggles everyone is going through.

“We need to connect with each other. Life is too beautiful to commit suicide. Let’s be strong for each other”.

Rajput was best known for his award-winning performance in Zee TV soap opera, Pavitra Rishta, as well as 2014’s Dil Bechara a Hindi remake of Hollywood’s The Fault In Our Stars.

In 2013, he made his movie debut in Kai Po Che! and earned a nomination for best male debut at the Filmfare Awards.

June 14, 2020
Tragedy: Fallen crane kills three at movie shooting site

Bollywood has recorded a great tragedy with three persons killed during a movie shooting at a private studio at Nazarathpet, near Poonamallee, Chennai in India late on Wednesday.

An assistant director and two others died on the spot when a crane used for the shoot came crashing down on the location. Nine persons were injured.

A senior official of the police said that the accident happened when workers were engaged in putting up a set for a scene in the Indian film ‘Indian 2’a.k.a Bharateeyudu 2. A heavy-duty light that was mounted on the crane also fell.

The deceased were identified as Krishna, 34, an assistant director in director Shankar’s team, Madhu, 29, and Chandran, 60 — who were part of the catering team.

The injured persons had been admitted to a private hospital near Poonamallee.

February 20, 2020