Devdas as big as Lagaan at box-office

Six weeks after Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas was released, trade experts, critics and Bollywood folk say the film is a huge hit -- almost as big as Aamir Khan's Oscar nominee Lagaan.

Shringar Films' Shyam Shroff, one of the leading distributors in Mumbai said: "Devdas is a huge hit. But how much, we can't tell in monetary terms right now. It's definitely as big as Lagaan. Whether it would be as big as Kaho Na Pyaar Hai and Gadar - Ek Prem Katha remains to be seen." Read more...

Frida opens Venice Film Festival

Mexican mariachis, socialist revolutionaries, and the troubled love affair of artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera took Venice by storm today at the start of the world's oldest film festival.

Julie Taymor's Frida, starring sultry Mexican actress Salma Hayek, staged its world premiere at the beach-side Palazzo del Cinema, opening the 11-day Venice Film Festival to enthusiastic applause that set it up as a strong contender for the event's coveted Golden Lion award. Read more...

Arjun Rampal: Star files

It was in a five-star hotel pub in Delhi where designer Rohit Bal first spotted Arjun Rampal. He asked him if he had tried his hand at modelling. "You certainly have the looks to make it," Bal said. Plans to be an engineer were put aside and Arjun got a professional portfolio made for himself.

Small time offers to model for products began to pour in. But nothing of that sort that would make Arjun noticeable. He knew that if he wanted to hit the modelling world big time he would have to move to Mumbai. Read more...

Yesterday's NewsBytes