IBLOG SPACE

RIM has been taking a beating on the smartphone market with its Blackberry offerings not faring well against Android and the iPhone. RIM also struck out with its PlayBook tablet adding to concerns that the company is falling from grace with consumers swiftly. Rumors swirled that the WiFi Playbook tablet would be cancelled, RIMdenied those rumors. RIM has already predicted that quarterly revenue may drop for the first time in nine years with its sales sinking. Currently RIM has about 17,000 employees in its company. It will be cutting about 2,000 of those workers in a new series of layoffs to help cut operating costs for the company. That is about a tenth of its global workforce. RIM has also noted that the charges associated with severance packages aren’t included in the forecast for the current and fiscal year. More details will be offered on September 15 when RIM reports its fiscal Q2 earnings. RIM has also announced that its COO Don Morrison would retire; he is currently on medical

Porsche Design works with all sorts of things from external storage to bongs. The stuff that Porsche Design cranks out is generally very nice looking and very expensive at the same time. The design firm has some really cool wares to its credit and I really like the new product that has surfaced from Porsche Design today called the P’6520 watch. This watch has very clean and classic lines with little to bling it up. The watch has a black band and face with white markings and hands with a red second hand. It shows the date as well. The face of the watch flips up to reveal a compass underneath. The case is made from titanium and the crystal is AR-coated sapphire. That liquid compass in the bottom is removable, will work in both hemispheres, and has mirrors to make it viewable. Those mirrors click into place to let you see the compass from the side when the watch is on your wrist. It is water resistant to 50-meters. Pricing on the watch is unannounced, but it won’t be cheap.

I think it’s a great thing that police and military have weapons at their disposal that will allow them to stop someone committing a crime without having to use lethal means. Almost all police in my area also carry a Taser so they can Tase a bro instead of the alternative. The catch is that most of those Tasers have to be very close to work. That isn’t the case anymore with some of the weapons that military and law enforcement can use. We have already seen a Taser grenade that is available get used on a reporter. The latest innovation in Taser tech comes by way of a company called Metal Storm. They have made a version of their MAUL shotgun that you see in the photos here that is for firing Taser shotgun shells. The MAUL has a five shot clip and will shoot those Taser rounds as fast as the operator can pull the trigger. The weapon has a range of about 30-yards so the police can take someone down from a long way away. There is even a MAUL attachment that can fit under the barrel of an as

Pinocchio needed a fairly godmother to become a real boy, but all Wall-E needed to become a real robot was a geek with some parts and a bit of time. A dude going by the handle DJ Sures took what appears to be one of those plastic Wall-E toys from last holiday season and hacked the thing up to become a real robot. The result is a cute robot that I have to keep my kids from seeing or they will want one just like it. The bot has a camera for an eye, voice recognition, and object tracking. The Wall-E robot uses an EZ-B Bluetooth Robot controlled and the software functions use the EZ-Builder software that is included with the robot controller hardware. Inside the bot are five different servos and an eBay procured 2.4GHz wireless camera. This isn’t the first go round for the robot loving DJ Sures. Apparently, he built a Wall-E last year that had less functionality and has also built other robots as well. You can check out the video to see the robot Wall-E in action.

If you are a musician that wants to be able to record your solo play or your entire band in the garage getting a high quality recording to share with friends and others is probably important to you. You can’t just whip out your old tape recorder and expect good results. Boss has a new recorder that will put your tracks down in digital format so they are easy to share and promises superb recording quality. The device is the Micro BR digital recorder BR-80. The little gadget is impressively small at 5-7/16-inches W x 3-7/16-inches D x 7/8-inch H and weighs in at about five ounces. That makes it very portable and easy to take with you on the road. The machine runs on a pair of AA batteries with a rechargeable option. The music is recorded to SD cards and it works with SONAR X1 LE software on your computer and the recorder connects to your PC via USB. The recorder can record eight tracks at once and supports up to 32GB SDHC cards. It has a MTR mode with 16-bit depth and can record eBand an

If you were one of the many people that upgraded to a new iMac back in May when they got new hardware you aren’t alone. We reviewed the new iMac when it launched. The machines got new processors and larger storage drives. If you opted for one of the iMacs that had a 1TB HDD from Seagate inside you may need a new HDD. Some of those early iMacs had an issue with the 1TB HDD and Apple is looking to replace those drives for you. Apple has said that the HDDs could fail under certain conditions and that the issue only affects a very limited number of machines. The iMac had to be purchased with the Seagate 1TB HDD between May 2011 and July 2011 and the issue affects both the 21.5-inch and the 27-inch iMac computers. Apple is contacting owners of affected machines that provided a valid email address when registering. If you didn’t provide a valid email or think your machine might be covered, you can hit the replacement page on Apple’s website and enter your serial number to see if your machine

Google’s stance on users listing their real names on Google+ continues to cause headaches on the fledgling social networking site, with a spate of account deactivations this weekend as users with non-typical names or pseudonyms found their profiles locked. According to Google VP Vic Gundotra, in a discussion with Robert Scoble, the search giant’s current attitude toward names is to ensure “a positive tone gets set” such as “when a restaurant doesn’t allow people who aren’t wearing shirts to enter.” However, he also argues that it’s not solely about “real” names, and that pseudonym support is another Google+ feature in the pipeline. In fact, Gundotra claims, Google is pushing to have common names listed rather than allowing users to register weird spellings, obviously fake names or use characters (such as “!” as an inverted “i”) unnecessarily. The social chief admits that some of the first decisions the team responsible for filtering names have made have been incorrect, and promises tha

The Samsung Series 3 notebooks have shipped to the US now and you can pick one up on Amazon if you like the machines. The new Series 3 machines are much more reasonably priced than the larger and higher performance Series 9 notebooks that were unveiled back in early July. The Series 3 machines include the 15.6-inch NP300V5A-A03. The machine has turned up at Amazon to buy and it sells for right at $591. The machine has a Core i3-2310M processor operating at 2.1GHz and has 4GB of RAM with 500GB of storage. The notebook also has WiFi and Bluetooth. The other Series 3 machine is the 14-inch NP300V4A-A01. It sells for about $657 and uses the same Core i3-2310M processor, and has 4GB of RAM with a larger 640GB HDD. The machine also has WiFi and Bluetooth. The last of the new Series 3 machines is the 12.1-inch NP350U2B. This machine isn’t shipping yet and is up for pre-order (not at Amazon). The price is $749.99 and the ship date isn’t offered. It gets a Core i5-2410M at 2.3GHz, 4GB of RAM, 5

Last week I mentioned that a very convincing fake Apple Store had been spotted in China that looked almost just like the real thing. The store had workers wearing the sort of clothing most Apple Store workers wear and the store was apparently selling real Apple gear as well. BBC News reports that Chinese authorities have now moved to close down some of the fake Apple Stores that were operating in Kunming city, China. Trade officials in China started investigating after the story of the fake stores broke and found that there were five stores in Kunming posing as real Apple Stores. Two of those five stores were closed when it was discovered that they lacked the businesses licenses needed to operate. The store in the photo here wasn’t closed. It’s still not clear where the store in the photos here, the location described as a very convincing fake, gets its product. The product could come from grey market sources or the gear could come from Apple wholesalers. Even some of the staff at the

Many of the 3D printing stories that I talk about are using the tech to make smaller things and concept products. One of the places where the 3D printing and rapid prototyping is being used the most is in the automotive world. Before the first prototype is made in full scale, there are all sorts of revisions done from wind tunnel testing and other forms of testing that require the design and shape of certain parts on the vehicle to be changed. GM uses rapid prototyping extensively to test new vehicle parts to improve the aerodynamics of a vehicles before an actual prototype is constructed. Traditionally this sort of testing with one-third scale models was done using a clay representation of the vehicle or wood. Today the engineers are able to use computational fluid dynamics software to test the parts in the computer environment and after the changes are tweaked, the parts can be made using the selective laser sintering and stereolithography techniques in the GM rapid prototyping lab.

The Facebook for iPad app has been prematurely revealed, after the social network pushed out an updated version of its iPhone software that secretly contained code for the tablet. Using a new side-swiped left hand menu bar, the new app relies on a combination of HTML5 and native code, TechCrunch spotted, to allow access to a user’s Wall, info, photos and friends, along with friend requests, Facebook Chat and Facebook Places. Version 3.4.4 of the Facebook app for iOS appears to be a Universal Binary – i.e. the same download will eventually be used for both iPhone and iPad users – and so despite being billed as merely a minor update (restoring the “Send” button for comments and chat, for instance) in fact it’s a far bigger change behind the scenes. Usability-wise it’s already getting glowing reviews, with sensible use of pop-up menus, a Photos gallery that fits in aesthetically with the iPad’s own native app, and responsive mapping in Places. It’s also expected to be the starting point f

It’s been a while now since we heard anything more on the massive security breach that happened to the Sony PSN this year. Sony finally has the entire network up and running again around the world, but it is still predicting a massive loss due to the hack. Last month a report claimed that Sony knew the scale of the attack earlier than it admitted. I never really thought about insurance on Sony’s part, but apparently, the company has insurance policies that cover all sorts of contingencies that might affect business. One of the firms that insure Sony is now suing the company in court to get the courts to rule that the policy doesn’t cover losses due to the data breach. Apparently, the demand for cyberinsurance to protect firms against data theft and security breaches is very popular. The company suing Sony is Zurich American Insurance Co and it has filed the suit in New York state courts. The documents were filed last week. The goal of the insurance company is to get the courts to defen

Apple’s long-anticipated voice control system for the iPhone and iPad could make its debut in iOS 5 or as aniPhone 5 exclusive later this year, if a leaked screenshot confirming an “Assistant” feature in the platform’s settings is anything to go by. According to that image, passed to 9 to 5 Mac by a trusted source, and the iOS 5 SDK itself, Assistant will use a combination of on-device and cloud processing to recognize natural-speech instructions – such as “Find me more music by U2″ – and be able to use various data sources to present the best set of results. The “Assistant” feature is expected to be powered by technology Apple acquired or licensed from Siri andNuance respectively. According to a mention in the iOS SDK, as well as any voice commands given, Assistant will also use details saved in your contacts, metadata from songs in your library, and your current location to better calculate its results: “Assistant uses your voice input and other information like your contact names, s

Sony has revealed its latest Cyber-shot digital cameras, the 12.2mm-thick TX55 – billed as the world’s thinnest with Full HD video recording support – and the WX30. Both have the same 16.2-megapixel Exmor R CMOS sensor, a touchscreen display – 3.3-inch OLED on the TX55, and 3-inch wide-aspect LCD on the WX30 – and Sony’s Intelligent Sweep Panorama mode which can capture 42.9-megapixel panoramic shots simply by waving the cameras around. The Cyber-shot TX55 records 1080/50i video in AVCHD format, as well as shooting 3D photos and 3D Sweep Panorama images. There’s ISO 3200 support, a 5x optical zoom, optical image stabilization and a memory card slot that can handle Memory Stick Micro (M2) and MicroSD/SDHC cards. As for the Cyber-shot WX30, that has the same ISO and zoom as well as optical image stabilization. It will work with Sony’s Party-shot pan/tilt dock, and can grab 3D images as well. Both cameras have Sony’s new Picture Effect system, with options for HDR, toy camera, faux tilt-s

Samsung is likely to have beaten Nokia for smartphone sales in Q2 2011, analysts have predicted, with the Korean company standing a good chance of also surpassing Apple’s iPhone sales in the same period. High-demand handsets like the Galaxy S II have pushed Samsung’s global sales to between 18m and 21m units, researchers at Strategy Analytics told Bloomberg, clearing the 16.7m smartphone sales Nokia reported last week and potentially neck & neck with Apple’s 20.3m iPhone sales. Healthy cellphone sales in general are expected to further narrow the gap between Nokia and Samsung in overall market position. When non-smartphones are included in the estimates, the gap between Nokia’s 26-percent market share and that of the Korean company is expected to be just 6-percent, as the Finns struggle with drooping demand for their Symbian handsets. “Samsung’s Android portfolio is selling strongly in most regions. Samsung stands a reasonable chance of capturing the top spot on a quarterly basis i

A tech journalist friend of mine, Noah Kravitz, recently retweeted a message from a kid in Ireland, and I found it interesting. He said: “@noahkravitz Hi Noah, Im trying an experiment to see if someone who isnt famous at all can get 1m followers. Can you help?” – @elsparkio Something about this idea caught my attention. I think it was the post-structuralist nature of the endeavor. At its heart, post-modernism, and perhaps all nascent art forms, is all about finding the boundaries that you did not know existed, and then crossing them. If you look at a piece of art work and ask yourself “Is that art?” it’s probably post-modernist. Had someone who isn’t famous actually hit 1,000,000 followers? Would that, by definition, make them famous? Is it possible? How could one go about achieving such an accomplishment? I think what attracted me most of all was the fact that this was the first such request I’d ever seen. Just a normal, average kid trying to gain followers not for self-promotion, or

Following in the footsteps of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Juhi Chawla, Raveena Tandon and Rani Mukherjee, is ace choreographer and director Farah Khan who has now pledged her eyes. Farah had been contemplating about organ donation for a while, but it was only when she came in contact with Miss India Ankita Shorey that she decided to finally take the plunge. Ankita has been actively promoting the eye donation initiative and is also now one of the brand ambassadors of the Eye Bank Association of India (EBAI) Farah was impressed by Ankita's dedication towards the noble cause and felt like being a part of it which is when she decided to pledge her eyes.

Stuntmen in Bollywood are the ones who are usually far off from the spotlight, well not in this case. Stuntman Puran Chauhan has accused Suniel Shetty of non payment of dues to the tune of Rs. 1 crore for his expertise used in the 2007 film The Little Godfather. Post the filing of the complaint, the Delhi High Court has summoned Shetty to appear before the bench on October 19. While on the other hand, a spokesperson from Shetty's production house claims that Purna's claims are based on forged documents.

The golden age of cinema has long gone giving way to a much more modernized method of film making and story telling. However, memories of the past remain and these exact memories penned down by yesteryear actress Meena Kumari are soon to be launched as audio and video CDs. Sunidhi Chauhan and Shandar Amrohi will soon be seen lending their voice to poems by Meena Kumari. The entire concept was developed by Kamal Amrohi's son Shandar and Reena Roy's sister Barkha featuring many poems written by the yesteryear actress. Meena Kumari and her husband Kamal Amrohi had developed strong differences, both professionally and in their married life which eventually led to their divorce in 1964. The divorce had emotionally affected the actress who was soon engulfed by depression and took to heavy drinking. It is learnt that Barkha will not only be producing the video but also co-directing it with Raoul V Randolf.

It's a classic case of fighting for your rights. Critically acclaimed director Prakash Jha is pretty peeved as the Uttar Pradesh government has been overtly reticent towards his upcoming film Aarakshan. The film which stars Amitabh Bachchan features the star as a principal of a college torn by reservation issues. Keeping this theme in mind, the makers were to hold seminars on reservations in Lucknow, however they were denied permission for the same. Speaking about this Jha says that first they were denied permission to hold the seminar on job reservation at the Lucknow University. Later when they hired the Indira Gandhi auditorium, permission was denied yet again by the Lucknow Development Authority. To appease this situation, Jha has even left a message with a close associate of CM Mayawati saying that he is willing to arrange a special screening of the film for her. Further details are awaited.

Rumours have been rife about the eminently in-demand Sonakshi Sinha doing this and that new offer. But Sonkashi has been turning down assignments with dogged regularity. In the last six months Sonakshi has signed only one film, and that's Ashwni Dhir's comic adventure film  Son Of Sardar  where Sonakshi is obviously not playing the title role. Says a source close to Sonakshi, "Nor did she play the title role in  Dabangg  or  Joker . Salman and Akshay Kumar play the title role. But Sonakshi made her space. She loves her role opposite Ajay Devgn in  Son Of Sardar . And is in fact the only actress of her generation who is not intimidated by senior superstars...Salman, Akshay Kumar and now Ajay Devgn." However it's not as though Sonakshi is averse to working with younger co-stars. A film with Ranveer Singh is on the anvil. At the moment Sonakshi is only confirming her presence in  Son Of Sardar , "At last some news that is true", Sonakshi chuckles, ref

Akshay Kumar has been untraceable for more than a week now. Last heard, even some of his close friends and associates were unaware about his movements before it was revealed that the man has actually taken off for a 40 day family vacation. Accused of working in multiple back to back films, a move like this did surprise a few since Akshay currently has three films on floors and two waiting to kick-start post his arrival. "After wrapping up major portions of  Housefull 2  and  Joker  and almost finishing  Desi Boyz , Akshay is now enjoying his summer break. He does that every year", informs a little birdie, "Before his newer lot of films like  Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai 2  and  Rowdy Rathore  go on floors, he wants to come back rejuvenated." Last heard, he has already made a whirlwind trip to Frankfurt and Toronto which he treats like his other home outside Mumbai. While accompanied by wife Twinkle and son Aarav, he also paid a four days visit to Rome. Though he

'A Punjabi girl born and brought up in Mumbai and working in Tamil/Telugu films without dreaming of stepping into Bollywood' - Now this indeed sounds weird indeed, especially so when dozens of girls from different parts of the country step into Mumbai every week with dreams in their eyes to make it big in the world of Hindi films. However, Kajal Aggarwal was wary of stepping into this zone for long till  Singham   came calling. "Not many are aware that Kajal had actually made her big screen debut, albeit in a bit role, as many as seven years back in  Kyun...! Ho Gaya Na  where she had played Aishwarya Rai's friend. The film was a major disaster commercially. After that no one knows what really happened but Kajal never returned to Hindi films again. She just chose to adopt a different route for herself", says an industry source. Leaving Bollywood behind, Kajal aimed for South and found gradual success coming her way before  Magadheera  turned into a huge call

When Ram Gopal Varma recently announced  BHHOOoo , sequel to his successful horror flick  Bhoot , there was a strong buzz in the air. After all the film didn't just promise the comeback of Urmila Matondkar, Ramu's ex-muse, it was also special since Ajay Devgn would have entered Ramu's territory four years after their flop outing  Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag . However as things stand today, all this buzz has turned out to be mere speculation with no cast yet been confirmed for the film. "There were strong indications that Ajay would be returning with Ramu after willing to forget his bad experience in  RGV Ki Aag . Though he does regret the fact that the film stays on to be one of the most criticised and still-debated films of all times, Ajay hasn't forgotten the good work they have done in the past", says an industry source, "After all their  Company  has managed a cult status for itself in the world of gangster flicks while their  Bhoot  too broke quite a fe

Abhinay Deo is having a great time right now. Nothing to do with the fact that he is busier right now sorting out the last minute additions and alterations for the DVD of Delhi Belly . So to call him a 50-50 director may just be apt. He's got a dud and a blockbuster. But the truth is something else altogether. It's Bollywood and out here you are known by your last film. Well Mr. Deo, if you still haven't popped open the champagne bottle, I can surely come handy. And to say - Abhinay is back in the 'game' will be the best way to describe him given the fact and the circumstances. The director has a lot in mind right now but he can explain it all in three simple truths - Follow your inner self, Follow your heart and Follow your dreams. All this and much more in this exclusive post success chat with the man responsible for showing us the real picture - Abhinay Deo. "You cannot take away the amount of work the team has also put in" I can say that very comfor

With  Ready  being a blockbuster success,  Chillar Party  out of his way and shooting of  Bodyguard  over, Salman Khan is now all set to step into one of his biggest films till date -  Ek Tha Tiger . While a lot has been said and written about the film bringing back Salman together with Katrina Kaif, what has further added to the intrigue is the thriller base of the film. The latest development in this direction is that Yash Raj Films and director Kabir Khan would be shooting some of the key sequences of  Ek Tha Tiger  in the same style that would remind film buffs of thriller  Bourne  series. "It is a known fact that Salman would be travelling across globe for  Ek Tha Tiger  which would be shot at various unseen exotic locations. This is similar to thrillers like  Bourne  series which again required it's lead protagonist to get into globe trotting mode", comments a source. 

At last Katrina has found a female friend within the film industry. For Katrina it's never been easy bonding with female co-stars. So much so that she shies away from doing 2-heroine films, like Anurag Basu's  Barfee  recently. In fact, she has said no to several plum assignments in the past because she didn't want to be pitted against another female actor. But Kalki Koechlin has been an exception. Contrary to reports Katrina Kaif and Kalki Koechlin, the two 'Ks' who have just done a film together  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara , have a lot in common and get along like a house on fire. Kalki, we must remember, stepped into a part originally earmarked for Katrina in Dibakar Bannerjee's  Shanghai . That didn't stop them from becoming friends. They both pooh-pooh reports that they had a tough time bonding together. Does Kalki feel Katrina has hogged all the limelight in the publicity for ZNMD? Kalki wonders who is spreading these rumours. "On the contra

Zoya Akhtar needs no introduction. Besides being the daughter of the renowned Javed Akhtar and the sister of the 'Master of all trades' Farhan Akhtar; she is also a master class filmmaker. Testimonial to this is her debut film  Luck By Chance . She surely belongs to the new breed of filmmakers, who will not compromise for anything in the world when it comes to quality. The good news is that, Zoya is back with  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara , which released last week starring Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar, Abhay Deol, Katrina Kaif and Kalki. Satish Sundaresan of  Bollywood Hungama  caught up with the lady of the moment Zoya Akhtar for an exclusive interview. Here are the excerpts: Zoya, to start with, how does it feel to be the 'Lady of the moment'? It feels good and special. 

After his portrayal of a cop ACP Karan Malhotra in  Bbuddah...Hoga Terra Baap , Sonu Sood is all set to don the khakhi uniform once again in director Kabir Kaushik's action-thriller  Maximum . Sonu also spent a fortnight with a top cop in Punjab, Mr. P S Gill to understand the mind, body language and spoken language of a cop. Sonu posted a picture on twitter unveiling his new look. It is a pencil sketch of his look. He is seen sporting a trimmed mustache and a neatly combed side parting. The film also stars Tabu, Naseeruddin Shah, Pankaj Kapoor and Arya Babbar.

Akshay Kumar had worked with Shirish Kunder for the first time in  Jaan-E-Mann . Post that, he went on to develop a relationship with the director that led to the announcement of  Joker . Many wondered if this was too much of an experiment, what with sci-fi and alien element forming a major part of the drama and to top it up, the use of 3D technology. However, the actor as well as the director stuck to their guns. Now that the film is close to 60% complete, Akshay is ecstatic with the way  Joker  is turning out to be in 3D. "One just can't say that 'Ok, let me go ahead and make a 3D film because I want to make one'. You have to be knowledgeable and confident enough to write a script that allows a 3D picture to look fascinating enough to produce an exceptional piece of cinema. One has to honest to the film and Shirish has shown true conviction and faith in the film. This is one project that I am very proud of", says Akshay who has just returned from London after

Post the huge success of  Murder 2 , Jacqueline Fernandez is certainly on a high. The gorgeous Sri Lankan beauty features on the cover page of M magazine in their July issue and we bring you a snapshot of the same. In an exclusive interview with M, Jackie speaks about her growing up years in the Emerald Isle. Says Jacqueline, "I had two brothers who I was very close to. I also had an elder sister but she was too old for me to hang out with. It was my two brothers that I pretty much relied on. I was always roughing it out with them. And yes I took my studies really seriously. I was awarded a scholarship to study Mass Media at the Sydney University." The actress also speaks about what upsets her in the Hindi film industry, "The constant judgment really gets to me. As human beings you are judged all the time. But that judgment always becomes a negative judgment for an actor. It's like people are always waiting for a wrong or a mistake to happen. That gets blasted

There are other Khan superstars. But 'King Khan' is Shah Rukh. Make no mistake about that. In the first-look for  Don 2  which released this week Shah Rukh is referred to as 'The King', an appellation that even Akshay Kumar tried to hijack when some time ago his PR machinery began planting stories calling the Khiladi 'King Kumar'. Shah Rukh seems to be back to being the King. The star gets his wish, and how! The Don 2  trailer which is seen along with  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara  has wangled the blurb  The Return Of The King . This was the title that Nariman Irani producer of the original 1978  Don  with Amitabh Bachchan had planned for their proposed sequel. Shah Rukh and the makers of the new  Don  set their heart on the 'King' caption which has now been used in the trailer. Says a source, "After all Shah Rukh has been called King Khan for most of his career. Here in the sequel to his  Don , the subtitle 'The Return Of The King' seem

Adventure junkies Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar and Abhay Deol talk about getting into a character's memories, the world of Amitabh Bachchan fans and their new road movie  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara  where in they have done adrenalin pumping adventure sports like skydiving, cliff diving and scuba diving, in the latest issue of MW. The  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara  trio looks hot and spruced up for the cover in the black t-shirt and jeans combo along with their biker gear. The camaraderie between them is easily visible in their photo shoot. The film's director Zoya Akhtar also shares an interesting incident that took place while filming  ZNMD . Hrithik, Farhan and Abhay were in a large SUV as part of the shoot, Hrithik was at the wheel and he was supposed to drive the car to the very edge of a cliff, park it and get off. He did just that, only he forgot to pull the handbrake. The car started rolling forward towards the edge of the sheer drop as a stunned Abhay and Farhan watche

It's difficult to know what comes to my mind first when I think of Farhan Akhtar - the director, the actor, the producer, the writer or the singer. Then you think of him as one of the sexiest men alive. He's handsome, he's talented. There's no disputing the man has got what it takes to be successful. But when one meets Farhan and talks to him, it's clear that he works on pure instinct.  Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara  was born out of that. Farhan's greatest skill as an actor is his versatility; his ability to play many things at one time: incredulity with an undercurrent of self-referential humour, pathos with warmth, triumph with a hint of frailty; whatever the combination, there are always many levels to what he is conveying. To this day, I will always believe that it was  Dil Chahta Hai  that broke the many norms of filmmaking thus making it one of the best coming of age movies from India I've ever been a witness to. Will  Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara tread the sam

Pakistani pop star Ali Zafar and our own Katrina Kaif are now back planning their live gigs. Ali being a seasoned stage performer has a head start. But we understand Imran Khan and Katrina would be burning up a lot of live energy at rehearsals before they actually go on stage. Says Ali, "Yes, that's the plan. I have been told Katrina and Imran will be joining me on stage. Agreed they aren't musicians but we're all performers and part of one project. We start as soon as I return to India." Ali has been asked by Yash Raj Films the producers of  Mere Brother Ki Dulhan  to help Katrina and Imran acclimatize themselves to live performances. Says Ali modestly, "Maybe my USP is live singing. But they will take to the stage quickly. I know we'll have fun." Ali Zafar, recently voted the hottest male actor of 2011 in a survey, will soon be in India to star in another film. "Before I do David Dhawan's  Chashme Baddoor , I've signed another

There is a new girl in Saif Ali Khan's life and he isn't willing to talk about it yet. Kareena doesn't need to worry though as this liaison is strictly restricted for screen. For his upcoming (tentatively titled)  Cocktail , there is an actress other than Deepika Padukone as well whose identity has been kept a secret. "It isn't only Deepika who is the leading lady in the film; there is another girl roped in too", informs a senior crew member on condition of anonymity, "She has a very strong role in the film which justifies the 'cocktail' in Saif's life. There are strict instructions from Saif as well as director Homi Adajania that no one is supposed to talk about this girl. She is going to be a surprise package." This mystery girl hasn't acted in a Bollywood film before and  Cocktail  would be her launch-pad. Her being roped in the film, though surprising, isn't something new coming from Saif though. Reason being that he had t

It's  Daayan  all the way for Vishal Bhardwaj. After  2 States  was thrown forward to 2012, Vishal Bhardwaj got busy with the 16 songs for Mira Nair's stage adaptation of  Monsoon Wedding . But now plans have changed. Mira has suddenly got all the relevant permission to shoot for her delayed film  The Reluctant Fundamentalist . As Mira gets busy with her feature film in August, Vishal will now shoot  Daayan  in the next couple of months. And the hunt for the three leading ladies is almost over. Says a source close to the project, "There are several leading ladies who have sent feelers to Vishal for the three roles. When Rani Mukherjee had been approached for one of the parts, it was presumed that one of the female characters was more pivotal than the other two. Not so. The minute it was made known that all the three leading ladies' parts were equally important a queue of girls showed up at Vishal's doorstep. Rather than being strapped for options Vishal is now

Vivek Oberoi surely believes in getting into the skin of the character that he is portraying on screen. For his role as a baddie in Rakesh Roshan's  Krrish 2 , Vivek is making sure that he leaves no stone unturned to look and feel the part. The buzz is that his character in the film is inspired from Patrick Stewart's popular character Professor Charles Xavier in the  X-Men  series. Like Professor X, VO too would be relegated to the wheelchair for most part of the film but later on he is cured and gains mobility before the action-filled climax. The climax of the film features some daredevil aerial stunts between Hrithik and Vivek and Vivek is making sure that he undergoes complete training that will equip him to fly a plane before he starts shooting for  Krrish 2 . The actor has enrolled at a flying institute in Florida, US and as and when he can, he takes off, to complete his flying hours before he can get his license. Interestingly, there's a mutant angle as well in