Tollywood, Telugu Entertainment Mobile Blog

JEEVA, son of R B CHOWDARY was married recently and the Wedding Reception was held in Chennai. JEEVA wedded SUPRIYA. on this occassion, many celebrities were present. Among them include… M M Karunanidhi, Kamal Hassan, Mani Ratnam, Ilayaraja, Vikram, Simbu, Meena, Sangeetha, Prabhu, Bhagyaraja, Surya, Sankar, Sridevi, Vishal, Khushboo and many others…

NOTE: To view the gallery, click on any Thumbnail. Use KEYBOARD ARROW KEYS and MOUSE for navigating the gallery. To save an image, RIGHT-CLICK on any Thumbnail and select SAVE TARGET/LINK AS.

FILM AWARDS in Tollywood including NANDI AWARDS have always been all over the place with their selection process. They are 99% of the times INFLUENCED. And I don’t think that it will be any different with AP CINEGOERS ASSOCIATION 37th FILM AWARDS too. But the audiences need to be informed no matter what I think… Right?

So, here you go:

BEST ACTOR: NTR (RAKHI)

BEST ACTRESS: CHARMEE (RAKHI) - DON’T YOU GENUINELY FEEL RIDICULOUS ABOUT THIS AWARD. WHERE IS GENILIA OF BOMMARILLU MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BEST DIRECTOR: PURI JAGANNATH (POKIRI)

BEST FILM: BOMMARILLU

BEST VILLAIN: SAI KUMAR (SAMANYUDU)

BEST MUSIC DIRECTOR: DEVI SRI PRASAD (BOMMARILLU)

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS: BAPU, RAMANA and JAYASUDHA

SPECIAL FELICITATION: SHYAM BENEGAL

THE AWARDS ARE GONNA BE PRESENTED SOMETIME IN DECEMBER AT LALITHA KALA THORANAM.

WEDDING BELLS rang on Sunday, 21st, October, 2007 when Popular Actress BHUMIKA CHAWLA and Yoga Guru BHARAT THAKUR were married in a close ceremony attended by family members, close relatives and friends of both the families… The wedding took place in GURU NANAK DEV GURUDWARA at DEVLALI near NASIK.

The THAKUR family is a native of DEVLALI CAMP. BHUMIKA CHAWLA was born in DELHI and completed her Schooling in Delhi itself. She moved to Mumbai in 1997 and started her career with AD Films and Hindi Music Videos. She made her Film debut with YUVAKUDU in Telugu opposite Sumanth which was released in 2000. Her Telugu Films KHUSHI, OKKADU, SIMHADRI and MISSAMMA were big hits. She acted in 11 Telugu Films, 3 Tamil Films and also a few Hindi films. She shot to fame in Bollywood with TERE NAAM. She also acted in critically acclaimed GANDHI, MY FATHER.

HYDERABAD INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL was held for the first time in 2007. The organizers claim it was a success and are trying to make it a grand success this time too… The Hyderabad International Film Festival Committee had decided to hold the forthcoming Film Festival from January 3 to January 10, 2008 at Prasad’s Multiplex. Noted Director V Sagar will act as the vice-chairman of the committee, while Union minister Dr Dasari Narayana Rao would be the chairman.

The films to be screened in the film festival would be divided into 12 categories and they would be screened in Prasad’s Multiplex and Lalitha Kala Thoranam. In each category there would be 2 prizes. In a statement the committee says, “Those who were interested to get their feature films screened in the International Film Festival should submit their entries before November 20, 2007. For Short Films and Documentaries, the last date will be December 1, 2007.”

WEDDING is a very auspicious day for anyone and so it would be for BHUMIKA CHAWLA too… She is as you already know is marrying very famous Yoga Guru BHARAT THAKUR on 25th of October. It will be solemnized according to Punjabi and Bihari rituals. The bride’s wedding ensemble is simple, but elegant. It will include a Ghagra for the Punjabi ceremony and a Banarasi red silk sari for the Bihari. An 80-year-old jeweler from Bharat’s hometown in Bihar is designing the Maang Tika, Necklace and Bangles for her.

Now that her trousseau’s taken care of, Bhumika’s mind is on her would-be Bharat’s preparations for their wedding day. Well, he is sporting a beard for the occasion to impress Bhumika’s father who is a retired army colonel who wears a Pagdi! Complaining about her cool and unruffled Yogacharya would-be, Bhumika says, “He acts at the last minute…” If you didn’t knew before… Bhumika first met Bharat “Smoking” at a party thrown by Salman Khan. It was a moment they remember and cherish. “I was telling a friend that I need to start yoga. And there was Bharat at the same party! I never imagined this would be a permanent bond then, but I’m happy it’s progressed that way…” reveals a shy Bhumika.

Bharat, of course, had known about her for long. He admits shyly that he had selected Bhumika as his wife years ago after seeing her in the Tamil movie Rojakuttam. “I used to ride a red Vespa scooter then and when I saw Bhumika on screen and told my friends that if ever I settled down, it would be only with this heroine, they laughed…” he says. Bhumika has succeeded in getting him accustomed to Bollywood. And so comfortable is the yoga master with the industry, that he intends to turn producer after their marriage. “I will cast her as the heroine in all my movies…” says the wannabe producer who plans to give up smoking for his would-be. Bhumika blushes, “That’s kind of him but variety must be offered. And work to me is like worship. I will continue working even after marriage…”

TOLLYWOOD stars dancing to their heart’s content in real life… How many times would we get a chance to watch them dance as if they have become children once again. CHIRANJEEVI, BALA KRISHNA, VENKATESH, RAVI TEJA, SRIKANTH, RAM CHARAN, LAWRENCE, ALI, NAGABABU and others are dancing in this video. I think many of you have already seen this video on YOUTUBE. If so then you can skip this… Otherwise, this video is a must watch for every Telugu movie fan… Actually the reason for me to put this on display here is because on YOUTUBE it has been viewed only 50,000 times. But I think we are 9,00,00,000 (9 Crores) Telugu movie fans out here. So please inform your friends about this video. But the sound & video quality is a bit poor… What the hell, it is a rare video and our heroes are in it… And don’t miss Bala Krishna’s kick on Ali’s butt… WATCH IT…

Dr. Allu Ramalingaiah, father-in-law of one of the leading Telugu movie stars Chiranjeevi, was a yesteryear comedian. As a tribute to him, an award had been instituted namely “Allu Ramalingaiah’s Memorial Award.” This award is given to a talented comedian every year. “Hero Rajendra Prasad has been awarded with the prestigious award for this year” said Allu Ramalingaiah Kalapeetham president Sarepalli Kondalarao. Governor of Andhra Pradesh, Actor Chiranjeevi, Minister Mandali Buddha Prasad and Others will be present at the award ceremony on 1st October, 2007.

So, what is wrong with that? Do I have any problem? yeah! I do… My problem is that whenever an award is constituted in any industry, it is of utmost importance to first recognize the talent at home and then if our home is an empty vessel… then, one should go in search for talent outside… I regard and know that Actor Rajendra Prasad is one of the most versatile actors that Telugu film industry has ever produced. But as usual, our learned Jury members of every award committee recognizes him not as a first thought but as an after thought. And this time it is after an outsider Johny Lever (I know that he is a Telugu person from Ongole, but he is not from Telugu film industry…) has already been awarded with Allu Ramalingaiah Memorial Award last year… Legendary actor Rajendra Prasad has never been given his due for his true service to “Kalamathalli”… Now-a-days every undeserving actor talks of Kalamathalli… never knowing who she really is… So I decided to write a short Biography on Rajendra Prasad as my bit in giving him his rightful due… —KALCHA

Vajrotsavam is certainly going to be a very privately held affair…

I am not wrong… just imagining millions of people wanting to enter the venue if given chance to see their favorite stars in full glory. But that is not going to happen as the selection of the venue and the ticket pricing is proving to be a major impediment. I have reasoned out why the prices should have been lower in my previous article here.

Now I want my readers to ponder over as to why the current venue that cannot hold so many thousands of willing people was selected in the first place. Gachibowli stadium could have been the ideal choice as it can hold thousands of stars and fans. And the venue fee is just estimated at around Rs.60, 000/- for a day’s event. It cost around Rs.4, 00,000/- for the HITEX venue. I think you now better understood what I meant all by this.

I can certainly smell something cooking behind all this… do you???

Now… let me make this clear to you all… Vajrotsavam is not an event that many of us can attend. I would attend this event only if it is what it promises to be… a glamorous, star studded and enough golden age stars that I always wanted to see… By the way the tickets are priced at Rs.2,000/- for a regular pass, Rs.5,000/- for an executive pass, and Rs.10,000/- for a premier pass. I think these prices are way too high.

Let me give you the reason as to why these prices matter… The organizers promised that this event would be a celebration of the Telugu film industry’s 75 years. So every one related to the industry… that is from a Star to a Light boy, from a Producer to a Junior artiste would be able to feast their eyes with the celebratory extravaganza. But… my dear readers just tell me how can a junior artiste or a light boy who sometimes work without payments (Yes… many times the producers either delay or cut through these poor people’s payments…) can afford to spend their hard earned money to participate in this costly event.

So I don’t think I am wrong in saying that this event is only for the rich and famous…

At last the day has come when Tollywood has completed 75 years. A brand new website informing the event schedule and other information on event proceedings has been launched and can be reached at TOLLYWOOD75

The event is planned to be a collective effort of all those concerned with the Telugu film industry and is touted to become a historical event. During the event, not only the noted Tollywood celebrities but also many celebrities from other states and film industries are expected to be present and multiply the glamour and celeb quotient. The event will take place on 26th, 27th, 28th January at Hyderabad International Convention Center. About 70 noted film personalities from various languages would be honored during this historical event.

Governor Rameswar Tagore will start the event on 26th. Dasari Narayana Rao, Ambarish, Purandareswari, D.Ramanaidu will attend the event on 27th. Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, central minister Priyaranjan Das Mushi, Adi Seshagiri Rao and others will attend the closing day. A total of 75 will be honored during this event marking the 75 years. This includes 4 legends. A celebrity museum will also start on this day. The museum will have the items, costumes and some memorabilia belonging to various artists.

Although the organizers are claiming that this event would be a major melting point of the industry and no one would miss the event, the steep ticket prices ensure that many junior artists and the like would be missing from the event. The tickets are priced at 10 thousand rupees for Premier pass, 5 thousand rupees for first class, and 2 thousand rupees for the regular pass. But in any case I am eagerly looking forward to this event…