Asian Leader_312 e-edition | Page 25

Asian LEADER 25 1 Jan - 14 Jan 2014 After crossing Rs. 200 crore, Dhoom:3 races for Rs. 300 crore mark T he makers of Dhoom:3 have found the pot of gold with the fast-paced action thriller. The Hindi box office business of the Aamir Khan-starrer has reached Rs. 211 crore and, looking at its pace, trade pundits predict it will soon cross the benchmark set by Shah Rukh Khan-starrer “Chennai Express”, which became the biggest grosser by earning Rs. 216 crore. Also starring Katrina Kaif, Abhishek Bachchan and Uday Chopra, “Dhoom:3” came out on Dec 20 on around 4,000 screens in the country. Estimated to be made on a budget of about Rs. 100 crore, the film has been produced by Yash Raj Films. Rajesh Thadani of Multimedia Combines told media: “’Dhoom:3’ has collected around Rs. 211 crore only in Hindi all over India. In other languages, the film has collected around Rs. 10 crore.” The overseas collection of director Vijay Krishna Acharya’s offering is also overwhelming. “As far as overseas collection is concerned, the film has almost collected around Rs. 100 crore, so in totality ‘Dhoom: 3’ has collected over Rs. 300 crore, which is terrific in nine days,” Thadani said. If “Dhoom:3”, the third successful film in the “Dhoom” fran250mm x 147 collection, chise, maintains its mm (5 col) then it will break the record of “Chennai Express”, according to Sanjay Ghai of Mukta Arts. “In first ten days ‘Dhoom:3’ has collected Rs. 211 crore, which is outstanding and it was the same with ‘Chennai Express’. And if the film maintains (the collection), then tomorrow (Monday) it will break the ‘Chennai Express’ record,” he said. “I am confident it will cross Rs. 300 crore in India, provided the film doesn’t show any dip in the collection,” he added. BANQUETING HALL We are never going to win any Oscar: Naseeruddin Shah A ctor Naseeruddin Shah, a veteran in the Hindi film world, says Indian filmmakers’ fascination for the Academy Awards is “laughable”. He believes “we are never going to win any”. The 63-year-old, who has featured in films like Masoom, Sarfarosh, Iqbal and The Dirty Picture, was asked what he makes of the current scenario of Indian filmmakers fighting with each other to make it to the Oscars. “The fascination with the Oscar...I find it laughable, because we are never going to win any. I mean those who are hoping about it just forget about it, because it’s never going to happen. It’s like chasing the rainbow,” he said. This year, Gujarati film The Good Road is India’s official submission for the foreign language film category at the 86th Academy Awards. Naseeruddin says the fascination for an Oscar is futile. “It’s just a yearning for worldwide recognition and we feel that Oscars guarantees us that, so that’s why there is this hankering for an Oscar. It’s ridiculous. I think everybody should just keep making the kind of films they want to make,” he added. Meanwhile, the actor is currently busy promoting his film Dedh Ishqiya. He shares the frame with Bollywood’s dancing diva Madhuri Dixit and sets the record straight about his reported “steamy scenes” with her in the movie. “There are no such scenes in the film. I think people just enjoy talking about this kind of stuff, so I am assuring those who want to see Dedh Ishqiya that there are no steamy scenes between Madhuri and myself. It’s all poetry but its good poetry,” he said. Directed by Abhishek Chaubey, Dedh Ishqiya also features Arshad Warsi and Huma Qureshi. Kareena Kapoor to feature in Pakistani phone ad K areena Kapoor is all set to star in Pakistan’s most expensive mobile ad by a leading handset company here. The 33-year-old Heroine star, who is the brand ambassador of the company, has been signed up by QMobile, the largest selling mobile phone brand in Pakistan. The actress will soon be seen in a commercial that has been shot in Thailand. Asked if this was the most expensive ad of Pakistan, QMobile’s Chief Marketing Officer Zeeshan Qureshi said, “I cannot say for the whole industry but yes, this is the most expensive from mobile sector.” On being chosen Kareena as the face of the brand, Qureshi told media that she has been chosen “because she is a star and has a huge fan following here.” All functions catered for including Mehindis, Birthdays or any other occasion with free parking for over 300 cars. We can take care of all your arrangements from stage and party Decorations, Limousine, DJ and Video/Photography etc. Weddings Functions Parties Conference Facilities with seating for up to 700 people. We also provide outdoor catering Call Mr Manzoor Hussain T: 0161 205 5002 M: 07779 239 082 39 Verley Street, Miles Platting, Manchester M40 8EE www.usmaniabanqueting.co.uk