Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan's wedding: YES! NO! YES!

This is getting a bit confusing though. At one end there is Saif Ali Khan saying that marriage in on the cards, and on the other, Kareena Kapoor going blue in the face saying that she has no plans of getting married in the near future and if Saif respects her he will wait for her.

Crossed wires, wishful thinking on Saif Ali Khan’s side, or coyness on Kareena Kapoor’s part?

Or is momma Babita afraid that her daughter will lose out on interesting roles once she is married? Somebody should tell her that she should stop living vicariously through her daughters.

Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor: Joined at the shoulder, elbow, hip, arm, thigh!

Whatever the case may be, the besotted Saif Ali Khan has said that Kareena Kapoor will accompany him to the village of Pataudi, to be with his parents, this winter. Saif also reminded us that Kareena is the love of his life, as though he ever let us forget.

Saif Ali Khan was earlier married to actress Amrita Singh in 1991, when he was only 21 years old. They divorced in 2004. After the divorce, Saif date Rosa Castalano for a bit. The two broke up in 2007.

Saif Ali Khan has two kids, Sara and Ibrahim, who live with Amrita Singh.

Hum saath saath hai!

In 2004, when Saif Ali Khan divorced Amrita, Kareena Kapoor started a relationship with Shahid Kapoor. The two were together till 2007, and parted ways just after they finished filming Jab We Met. The movie was a mega hit, Kareena Kapoor walked away with the Best Actress Filmfare award, and Shahid Kapoor, despite a sterling performance, was ignored by the critics and his lady love.

Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor

Now that Saif has announced the wedding, and if the wedding does happen soon, I can only hope it does not attract the kind of unrelenting frenzy the Abhi-Ash wedding inspired till one was ready to gag.

Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor at yet another award function: Killing us softly with their PDA

But there is a good chance, the madness will not touch dizzying heights because the duo are here, there, everywhere. In every ad, every interview, every function, every outdoor shoot, across continents, over the seas, the two can be spied hand-in-hand.

Saif and Kareena

And hopefully, everyone’s had enough of Tweedledum and Tweedledee. I, for one, am pretty close to hurling something at the TV screen when these two pop up kootchie kooing without pause.

Dev Patel and Anil Kapoor in Slumdog Millionaire

Both companies have pulled out of scenes that involved their products. Reason: They do not want to diminish their brand image, considering the slum associations of the movie.

Danny Boyle has been quoted as saying, “We had to take that (logo) off because the company doesn’t want to be associated with being in a slum. We wanted to use a Mercedes because… this guy, this gangster would drive a Mercedes… But if you use it then clearly you have to get permission, and we asked for their permission and they refused it.”

I personally don’t get it. So if a movie director wants a Mercedes Benz or a Pepsi or Coke bottle in a movie, you have to get a permission from the companies? What about shoes? Every car in every movie was shown only after getting an official permission? If it is so, it is retarded. The companies concerned are not displaying anything - is it even practical to remove every logo from a movie? What about billboards or shops which have posters and signs outside? Something is wrong here.

Danny Boyle, Frieda Pinto and Anil Kapoor

Talking about the multinational drinks company’s refusal to display their logo, Boyle said, “There is a scene where the kids are on a rubbish dump and they get offered these bottles of… a popular fizzy drink. Not only were we not allowed to use their name, basically we had to paint over the label on the bottle as well. So we ended up paying tens of thousands of pounds painting out these symbols which are meant to unite the world, aren’t they?” Boyle added.

Dev Patel and Irrfan Khan in a still from Slum Dog Millionaire

Slum Dog Millionaire is the story of a boy, Jamal (Dev Patel), who comes from the slums of Mumbai, who takes part in the Hindi version of Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?, Kaun Banega Crorepati? Now, the kid wins the show but he is suspected of cheating because he is illiterate. Bollywood star Anil Kapoor reprises the role of the Quiz master of the show. Slum Dog Millionaire also stars Freida Pinto, and Irrfan Khan as the cop who arrests Jamal.

Slum Dog Millionaire is based on Indian diplomat Vikas Swarup’s novel, Q&A. It has been scripted by Simon Beaufoy, scriptwriter of The Full Monty and directed by Danny Boyle. The movie is produced by Celador’s Christian Colson and co-developed and co-financed by Film4 in collaboration with UK production company Celador Films.

The movie will be released in the UK, on January 9, 2008.

Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors poster

Warner Bros are in battle mode because of an upcoming Bollywood flick, Hari Puttar: A comedy of terrors. The studio has sued the makers of Hari Puttar for infringement of intellectual property rights and asked for a stay on the film’s release.

It is understandable that Warner Bros is jittery about Harry Potter’s property rights, but in this case they seem to be just paranoid. Because, at first look, Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors has nothing to do with Harry Potter.

The only connection Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors has with Harry Potter is that Hari puttar in India is a play on the words Harry Potter and is a common graffiti line found on T-shirts, mugs, and such like. Hari, itself is a generic Hindu Indian name and puttar is an endearing  way of addressing a son. Puttar is a common noun, like tyke, son, or boy.

But one can’t blame Warner Bros for being suspicious because Hari Puttar in the West would be pronounced as Harry Putter (note: Putter as in Put and not Pot), whereas Hari in Hindi is pronounced as ‘Hurry’. Ditto for Puttar. The syllable Pu in Hindi is pronounced as poo and not  like, say, paw. And the syllable tar is pronounced as “thar” with a rolling r. So the pronunciation is “pootharr” and not “pottah.” Har, Har.

Hari Puttar with his mother in Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors

Hari Potter: A Comedy of Terrors is the story of a 10-year-old boy Hari Prasad Dhoonda, affectionately called Hari puttar by his parents. Hari and his family move to the UK, where his father Prof. Dhoonda is assigned a hush-hush defense project. The professor keep a chip containing sensitive data in a secure place in his home. When Hari’s Uncle, DK, and his four kids come to visit the Dhoondas, Hari feels neglected and seeks refuge in an imaginary friend, Funtoon (animated character).

Hari Puttar and Tuk Tuk

The Dhoonda and DK family plan to go for a vacation but forget to take Hari and his little cousin Tuk Tuk along. The two kids are left alone at home, when a Don sends two burglars to filch the chip. The intrepid Hari and Tuk Tuk have the adventure of their life when they take on the burglars to protect the chip.

Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors will be released on September 12, 2008 in theatres across India. Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors has been produced by Lucky Kohli, Munish Purii, and A P Parigi. Hari Puttar has been directed by Lucky Kohli and Rajesh Bajaj, under the Mirchi Movies banner. The movie stars Zain Khan as Hari Puttar, Sweeny Khara as Tuk Tuk, Sarika as Hari’s mother, Jackie Shroff as DK, and Vijay Raaz and Saurabh Shukla as the bumbling burglars.

The two burglars in Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors

Hari Puttar has a peppy soundtrack that includes the title track ‘Hari Puttar’, ‘Tutaris,’ and ‘Hari Puttar is a Dude.’

Mirchi Movies’ earlier flick, Being Cyrus, was critically appreciated and a moderate hit at the box office, a first for an English language, Bollywood film.

What can be a better de-motivational poster?