Bipasha Basu and Konkona Sen Sharma at the launching ceremony of Mahuaa Bangla

Bipasha Basu recently attended a show at her hometown Kolkata. The actress flew there to attend the launching ceremony of a new Bengali Television channel, Mahuaa Bangla, on July 19, 2010 at the ITC Sonar.

At the show, Bipasha Basu was joined by another popular Bengali actress, Konkona Sen Sharma. Konkona Sen along with Jishu Sengupta hosted the show. A reliable source said, “Bipasha was there to be the chief guest while Konkona was there as a host. It was evident that the two ladies had met after a long time because they were having their share of fun backstage,”

The event started with a traditional Durga Vandhana by Tanushree Shankar and her dance troupe which was followed by a laser show.

Bipasha then performed a dance recital depicting Bengali culture and tradition. She wore a red bordered white embroidered sari with red bangles. She arrived in a palanquin. Famous music director and singer, Bappi Lahiri, Alka Yagnik and Debojit Saha sang songs.

Bipasha Basu’s latest movie Lamhaa released in theatres on July 16, 2010. Directed by Rahul Dholakia and produced by Bunty Walia, the movie revolves around the political condition of Kashmir. Bipasha Basu played the role of a Muslim woman named Aziza, a devoted supporter of the Kashmir freedom movement.

In the beginning, Bipasha Basu was not sure whether she would play the role of a Kashmiri Muslim woman but then the director and producer convinced her to play the role. For the first time, the actress did a serious de-glamorous role in a movie. Though Lamhaa tanked at the box office, Bipasha Basu’s performance was appreciated by the critics.

Lamhaa Hindi movie review: Rahul Dholakia failed to deliver what he promised

After so much hype and hoopla Rahul Dholakia’s political thriller, Lamhaa, has finally released in theatres and the verdict is it is totally a wasted movie. Why? First of all, the movie does not stay true to its tagline “The Untold story of Kashmir.”

What it shows turns out to be very typical such as children being trained as terroists, guys blasting themselves are nothing uncommon to people. The movie does not show the real feelings of the people of Kashmir. What really do they want? What is their cause of fighting?

Rahul Dholakia did intensive research on the subject but he messed up trying to balance between the reality and make believe. In the end, Lamhaa turns out to be one of those disappointing Indian patriotic movies where Indian soldiers rises up to the occasion and becomes the real hero. What should have Dholakia done is to make it a serious movie just like A Wednesday with no nonsense approach.

Another big disappointment is that from the beginning, the viewers are told that something serious is going to happen in Kashmir that would paralyze the country. So, the viewer will be expecting something serious but it turns out to be a very simple matter. The screen play fails to keep the viewers hooked till the end and the poor climax just adds up to viewers’ disappointment.

In terms of acting, Sanjay Dutt looks rugged but not convincing. He fails to successfully portray his role of an undercover MI officer. Bipasha Basu though worked very hard, she also suffers from the same problem. Kunal Kapoor’s acting talent had not been fully exploited in the movie. Only Anupam Kher played his part convincingly.

However, there are good things about the movie, the camera works of James Fowlds is very good. You will see some great visuals of Kashmir. The shaking of camera would give the viewer a real feel. There are some great scenes like Aziza being attacked by the female party workers of Anupam Kher. Overall, Lamhaa fails to deliver what it promises.

Will Bipasha Basu’s deglam avatar in Lamhaa win the hearts of Bollywood fans?

Bipasha Basu is known for doing glamorous roles. Movies like Jism, Race, Dhoom 2, All The Best, No Entry, Omkara established her as Bollywood’s sex symbol. She did take up some non-glamorous roles but they were not well accepted by the audience.

In her upcoming movie, Lamhaa, Bipasha Basu did a non-glamorous role. Lamhaa is a political thriller that deals with the problems of Kashmir. Bipasha Basu’s character, Aziza, is a revolutionary. A strong minded, aggressive woman, Aziza has been involved in Azad Kashmir movement since she was six years old.

Lamhaa is going to be release in theatres on July 16, 2010. When the makers of Lamhaa, approached her for the role she was not sure whether they would want to play her the role of a Kashmiri girl because she has a Bengali face. After speaking to Rahul Dholakia, she became convinced that she could play the role.

Bipasha is all praise about Lamhaa. She said that the movie has a strong story and it focuses on the sentiments of the Kashmiri people. It is a film that would meet the standards of an International movie like Bourne Ultimatum. It is made like an International movie and the songs are pretty good to listen to.

However, the shooting of Lamhaa did not go so smoothly. After Bipasha Basu went to shoot in Kashmir, people threw stones at her. Initially, she became very afraid. She said,

“I had thought that I could not get out of Kashmir that day and that we all would get killed. The mob was angry but I think things have settled down now. I do not fear for my life because we have made an honest film and as soon as people see the film, people will understand the intention. It’s sad that we did have to cancel the Kashmir premiere due to the curfew and the tension in the valley.”

It was Sanjay Dutt who convinced Bipasha Basu to come back and work for the movie. Sanjay Dutt previously worked in Kashmir and he knows the local officials very well. Hence, Bipasha Basu agreed to work in the project.

Bipasha Basu would join Twitter on July 4th

On July 4, 2010, Bollywood actress Bipasha Basu is going to join Twitter, the popular microblogging site. Aamir Khan on June 29, 2010 joined Twitter. Bipasha Basu would send her first message from her twitter handle@bipsluvurself at 3.30 am on July 4, 2010.

Regarding her joining Twitter, she said, "I think I am a late entrant in twitter-verse, but I am excited to connect with my fans and other people directly. I have realised that Twitter is a good medium for doing so,……You can also know what other personalities are doing, thinking and talking about. It is a good platform to speak your mind,"

Bipasha Basu would like to discuss her work, her passion and about the causes she strongly feels for. She wants to follow many people she admires such as Bill Gates, Barack Obama, Paulo Coelho.

Six months ago, Bipasha Basu’s Twitter ID was blocked and she was not sure whether to join or not. She would post her first Tweet on July 4, 2010. On that day, her revamped website will be uploaded.

Bipasha said that she would post Twitter messages whenever she feels like it.

Bipasha Basu is now busy with her upcoming movie Lamhaa. It is a political thriller that revolves around Kashmir. Bipasha Basu plays the role of a girl named Aziza who is a stanunch supporter of Azad Kashmir. The movie will be released in theatres on July 16, 2010.

Dhoom 3 Script is being Written

After the raving success of Dhoom and Dhoom 2, Dhoom 3 now seems to be in the making. The script of the next sequel of Dhoom series is now being written. Abhishek Bachchan, who starred in both of the previous two movies, recently revealed the news that Yash Raj Films is now preparing for the Dhoom 3 project.

The script of Dhoom, which was released in 2004, was written by Vijay Krishna Acharya, while its sequel was penned jointly by Vijay Krishna Acharya and Aditya Chopra.

Recently, Abhishek Bachchan met Uday Chopra to talk about the next sequel and he later said Dhoom 3 would do better. The movie is expected to hit the screen in 2012.

Both Abhishek and Uday were in two key roles of the previous two movies and it is pretty much certain both of them will be in Dhoom 3 too. Like the previous two films, Dhoom 3 would most probably be directed by Sanjay Gadhvi.

Both the movies are based on a story where a cop along with his assistant chases an intelligent thief who masterminds some breathtaking thefts.

In Dhoom, John Abraham played the role of the thief, while Dhoom 2 had Hrithik Roshan in the same role. However, it is not yet revealed who is going to be in the role of the thief in Dhoom 3.

Salman Khan and Bipasha Basu become friends once again

After a five year long cold war, Bollywood actress, Bipasha Basu, finally mended her relationship with Bollywood superstar, Salman Khan.

During the IIFA 2010 Awards show in Colombo, Salman Khan threw some parties in his hotel room for his Bollywood friends. Bipasha Basu also attended the party. According to reliable sources, initially, Salman Khan gave her a cold shoulder but then Bipasha Basu broke the ice. She walked up to him and thanked him for the good time. Then Salman Khan loosened up. The next day, when Bipasha Basu came to party, Salman Khan gave her a cordial welcome.

The cold war between Bipasha Basu and Salman rooted in a showdown between Salman Khan and John Abraham that took place few years ago. Still, John Abraham and Salman Khan are not on talking terms with each other.

While shooting Boney Kapoor’s No Entry, Salman Khan created lots of problem for Bipasha Basu and she complained to Boney. It was Boney’s son Arjun, who solved the problems and continued with the schedule.

Regarding the matter, Bipasha Basu said that it is not a “patch up.” She admitted that there had been issues between her and Salman Khan. She met her at the awards ceremony and Salman Khan did a fabulous job at all the events. He had been very warm when she met her.