Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan 'hid pregnancy'?

Madhur Bhandarkar has accused Aishwarya Rai-Bachchan of holding back details of her pregnancy.

The director was forced to halt filming on Heroine after her pregnancy was announced on Twitter by her father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan.

Writing on his blog, Bhandarkar said: "The truth was hidden from us. We learnt about the entire thing from news channels like the rest of the world that the said actress was four months pregnant and she was due in November.

"Film making in Mumbai film industry is not a mere business but one big fraternity who functions on total faith and trust."

Bhandarkar admitted that he is devastated about the scrapped project, which was reportedly inspired by the life stories of old Hollywood heroines.

Bhandarkar revealed that he felt he had no choice but to end the shoot, which was still in the early stages.

"Cinema is a visual medium and keeping in mind the physical state of the actress, the total interpretation of the character of a diva and the story would land up in major jeopardy post 65 days of her pregnancy," he wrote in his blog.

The pregnancy has led to rumours about producers wanting to put in "no pregnancy" clauses in contracts with their stars in order to avoid filming delays and cancellations.

Aishwarya Rai pregnancy sparks clauses?

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's pregnancy is reportedly making more filmmakers consider "no pregnancy" clauses in their contracts.The actress's announcement has meant that the shooting of Heroine is indefinitely on hold.

Murder 2 producer Mahesh Bhatt told Mumbai Mirror: "When the leading lady has to provide the glamour quotient and she [then becomes] another entity completely in the eyes of the consumer - from a desirable diva to a new mother - [it] serves as a body blow to producers."

However, Bhatt and fellow producers Ekta Kapoor and Vipul Shah argued that such a clause is not enforceable, saying that it should remain an "unspoken" agreement.

It was rumoured that the "dark" subject matter of the film may have made shooting it too stressful for the pregnant star, while speculation has also centred on whether she would be able to act out key scenes.The pregnancy was revealed last week by her father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan, who tweeted fans with the news.

Fans to miss Shahrukh, Ash performance in IIFA

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s fans are likely to get disappointed as buzz is in the air that he may not perform at the IIFA Awards, due to his knee problem.

Fans are eagerly waiting for the superstar who was supposed to perform at the stage of the prestigious IIFA Awards after 7 years.

Shah Rukh Khan has posted a tweet stating that he is in hospital getting his knee tapped up. He is feeling awful as he is not fully fit for performing at the IIFA.

But he also told his fans that he will try and give his best. He had attended the IIFA Weekend twice in the past—in Singapore in 2004 and in Amsterdam in 2005.

King Khan had performed last at the Singapore show. The superstar has been nominated as the best actor for his character of Rizwan in My Name Is Khan who suffers from Asperger’s syndrome.

On the other hand, news is that Aishwarya Rai Bachhan is also not performing in the upcoming awards due to her pregnancy. Ash and Abhishek will not attend the grand award ceremony that is scheduled to take place from 23rd to 25th June at Toronto.

Raveena Tandon praises Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Raveena Tandon has revealed that Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has wanted children for a long time.

News broke that the former Miss World and her husband Abhishek Bachchan are expecting a child when the couple were congratulated by his father Amitabh in a tweet.

Tandon tweeted from her own account: "I remember, she and me together on flights, going for concerts, chatting, long hrs (sic) away, then too she dreamed of a happy settled family life."

She added that Rai Bachchan is "a strong [Scorpio] lady" and has "moulded" her life as she wants.

Tandon recently returned to cinema, starring opposite Amitabh in Bbuddah Hoga Tera Baap.

He recently complemented the 36-year old actress on her first Bollywood role in five years, describing her as having the same "gusto" as earlier in her career.

It was recently reported that Rai Bachchan will continue shooting on Madhur Bhandarkar's Heroine throughout her pregnancy.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan at France's Prix De Diane: Picture

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has made an appearance at the 162nd edition of the Prix De Diane in Chantilly.
The actor arrived on the French horse racing course in a carriage wearing a peach dress from the Elie Saab Spring 2011 collection.Priya Tanna, who is editor of Vogue India, said of the actor's appearance: "Aishwarya has a classic, elegant style that never overwhelms her personality. She wears clothes, not the other way around. Her sartorial choices are rarely off the mark.

"Her Elie Saab dress at the Prix De Diane perfectly compliments that famed porcelain skin and exemplifies her feminine aesthetic."Rai Bachchan was seen at Cannes wearing an outfit from the same designer. 2011 marked her tenth appearance at the French film festival.She has reportedly reduced her fee for her next project Heroine and will instead take a share of the profits from the movie.

Aishwarya Rai 'reduces asking fee'

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has cut her fee for new Hindi film project Heroine.

The actress, who launched the Madhur Bhandarkar venture at the Cannes Film Festival, will instead take a share of the profits, Mumbai Mirror reports.

A source revealed to the tabloid: "Every actor including Aishwarya Rai, Arjun Rampal and even Madhur Bhandarkar himself have slashed their fee."

Bhandarkar's earlier films Page 3 and Fashion received critical acclaim for the work of female lead actors Kangna Ranaut, Priyanka Chopra and Konkona Sen Sharma.

"It's a sensible business decision. Ash and Arjun will be sharing the profits of the film. They are confident of Heroine's prospects at the box office," added the source.

Rai Bachchan recently made her tenth appearance at Cannes.

The actor accepted the controversial role after Kareena Kapoor unexpectedly withdrew from the production.

Aishwarya, Sonam, Freida Pinto to represent India at Cannes

It will be an "Indian flavour" again at the prestigious Cannes Film festival this year with former Miss World Aishwarya Rai Bachchan representing the country for the tenth consecutive year.

Aishwarya, along with Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor and the Slumdog Millionaire actress Freida Pinto, will light up the Red Carpet for L'Oreal Paris at the Cannes Film Festival to be held from May 11-22.

It is for the first time that L'Oreal Paris will have three spokeswomen representing India at Cannes, a testimony to India's growing influence on the world stage.

Making the announcement, Vismay Sharma, Director, Consumer Products Division, L'Oreal India, said, "On the eve of the Cannes Film Festival, we are delighted and proud to have Aishwarya, Sonam and Freida representing India and L'Oreal Paris at Cannes. They represent the diversity that is India and are sure to be the epicentre of attraction at the festival." Aishwarya, who celebrates a decade of representing L'Oreal Paris at Cannes, will like previous years walk the red carpet on May 11 for the opening ceremony and attend the Opening Gala cocktail and dinner while attending various events at Cannes the next day.

On walking the Red Carpet at Cannes, Aishwarya, one of the best known faces of Indian cinema globally, said, "Being at Cannes for L'Oreal Paris has been an absolute pleasure and to experience this for the tenth consecutive year has been quite overwhelming. I thank the L'Oreal Paris team and the Cannes Film Festival for inviting me every year to represent India at one of the most glamorous red carpets on the world platform, celebrating cinema, showbiz, beauty, diversity and excellence.

Several countries have always had more than one L'Oreal Paris spokeswoman at Cannes and I'm glad India is finally getting the same recognition. I am happy that with Sonam and Freida, both beautiful women, being invited to the festival this year, India will have a stronger presence, which is a clear sign of the growing importance of the country."

Bachchan to tattoo Aishwarya’s name

MUMBAI: It looks like Abhishek Bachchan is off on the path made by Saif Ali Khan and Hrithik Roshan. Apparently, the actor has planned to express the love for his wife, Aishwarya by tattoeing her name on his wrist.Abhishek is planning to ink Aishwarya’s name permanently on his body but he is confused about the design.

Abhishek Bachchan revealed his desire to ink Aishwarya’s tattoo during the promotional event of ‘Dum Maro Dum'. He said that he wanted to express his love for Ash by flaunting a tattoo.

Aishwarya Rai 'rejected Dum Maaro Dum'

Aishwarya Rai is reported to have been the first choice to play Abhishek Bachchan's wife in Dum Maaro Dum.

The actress and real-life wife of Bachchan was approached to play the role, which later went to Vidya Balan.
According to a source for Mumbai Mirror: "Vidya has a very significant cameo in the film, but she was definitely not the first choice to play Abhishek's wife. Rohan Sippy and producer Fox Star Studios wanted Aishwarya but somehow things didn't work out."

When the tabloid questioned director Sippy on his casting of the part, the filmmaker refused to confirm media reports alleging Rai as his initial choice.

"Vidya was gracious enough to do my film," responded Sippy.

The husband and wife acting duo were last seen on screen in 2010's commercially under-performing Ravaan.

Aishwarya Rai to walk Cannes red carpet

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is reported to be walking the red carpet at Cannes this year.

The Guzaarish star will make her tenth appearance at the 64th Cannes Film Festival, Mumbai Mirror reports.
Despite the presence of the Indian celebrity, no Bollywood film will be screened at the event.

Director Onir commented to the tabloid: "Being at Cannes can be used to open up the reach of the film to non-Bollywood world cinema audience and also markets where Indian films have still not reached."

India, the largest producer of films globally, last year screened the offbeat release Udaan at the festival.

Dev D filmmaker Anurag Kashyap stated that competing at an international level is a challenge.

"It takes a good film to be at a prestigious festival like Cannes," said Kashyap. "We had a film but it was not ready so we didn't send it. But seeing the films in the lineup the competition would have been very tough."

Rai Bachchan ran into controversy last year after allegedly refusing to appear with Sonam Kapoor on the red carpet.

Hugh Jackman, Aishwarya Rai bag top honours at FICCI-Frames

The 12th edition of the three day FICCI-Frames conclave concluded Friday with Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman and Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai bagging the top awards.

FICCI Frames Excellence International Honour was awarded to Jackman, who is best known for his role as Wolverine in the "X-Men" series. The actor is also famed for his versatile style of acting and his rugged on-screen roles in films such as "Kate and Leopold", "Van Helsing", "The Prestige" and" Australia".

Aishwarya was honoured with the Decade of Global Achievement award for her contribution to Hindi cinema. Vidya Balan bagged the best actress award for her performance in "Ishqiya" and Shah Rukh Khan was honoured with the best actor award for "My Name Is Khan".

A film that has sky rocketed at the box office, breaking all records in collections, "Dabangg" also scored two awards at FICCI - Best Film of the Year and Best Music of the Year Award. It also fetched its heroine, Sonakshi Sinha, the award in the the Best Debutant (Female) Category.

"Band Baaja Baaraat" was another film that made a mark at the box office delivering the Best Debutant award - Male to Ranveer Singh for his acting and the Best Director Debut to Maneesh Sharma.

"The entertainment industry in India is booming along with business excellence and we are happy to recognise such levels of talent in both fields. We take pride in honouring best performers for their contributions in their area of work," said Yash Chopra, Chairman, FICCI Entertainment Committee.

Another highlight of the evening was the impromptu gig between Vidya, Shah Rukh and Jackman where the three shook a leg together on stage, entertaining the audience.

Other awards were:

Best TV Series - Non-Fiction - Indian Idol 5 (Fremantle Media, SET and Wizcraft Television)
Best TV Series - Fiction - Pavitra Rishta - Balaji Telefilms
Best TV Actor - Male - Sushant Singh Rajput in Pavitra Rishta (Zee TV)
Best TV Actor - Female - Rashmi Desai in Uttran (Colors)
Best General Entertainment Channel - STAR PLUS
Best Radio Channel - Radio Mirchi
Best Director - Karan Johar (My Name is Khan)

Aishwarya to honour Hugh Jackman

Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai will present a memento to Hollywood star Hugh Jackman at the FICCI-FRAMES 2011 annual convention on the business aspects of the entertainment and media industry here March 23-25.

The 37-year-old star will honour Jackman on the final day of the event, a press statement said.

Aishwarya, an internationally known actress, was asked by FICCI and its entertainment committee's co-chair, filmmaker Karan Johar, to attend the function and present Jackman with a memento of appreciation.

Jackman, 42, has played a variety of roles in Hollywood and is well known for his role as Wolverine in the popular "X Men" series.

L'Oreal clears air on Aishwarya Rai -replacement

Cosmetic major L'Oreal Paris on Saturday said reports on actor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan being replaced as the face of L'Oreal Paris due to her not being a part of their New Year commercial, are 'untrue'.

"We are shocked and surprised to read in some sections of the media/press about Ms. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan being replaced as the face of L'Oreal Paris," said an official statement on Saturday.

"L'Oreal Paris strongly reiterates that this is absolutely untrue and that Ms. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan continues to be our valued spokesperson, as she has since 2000. While she remains an integral part of the L'Oreal Paris world wide Dream Team, she was unfortunately unavailable for our New Year commercial shoot due to prior commitments."

"She is one of the most iconic women of our times and is certainly the face of L'Oreal Paris internationally and in India for a range of products which include campaigns for Total Repair 5, Excellence Crème, Color Riche, Hydrafresh," read the statement.

According to reports, Ash was replaced by 'Slumdog Millionaire' actor Freida Pinto after the former Miss World refused to be a part of L'Oreal's 'Happy New Year 2011' campaign.

Aishwarya Rai to sue Elle magazine cover 'skin-whitening' scandal

Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is fuming over Elle magazine cover 'skin-whitening' scandal, reveal her pals.

Fans of the actress were left stunned last week after her skin appeared to have been digitally lightened on the cover of the magazine's new issue.

According to friends, the 37-year-old Bollywood star, who is widely believed to be the world''s most beautiful woman, is said to be considering suing the Indian version of the title over what has been deemed ''racist airbrushing''.

The actress herself has not commented on the situation, but friends of the 'Bride and Prejudice' star have said she is ''furious''.

"Aishwarya''s first reaction was disbelief," the Daily Mail quoted one of herpal as saying.

"She believed that these things don''t happen anymore. Not in this day and age when women are recognised for their merit, and not for the colour of their skin.

"She is currently verifying this skin-whitening allegation. If there is any proof of this, she might even take action," the pal said.

"She is clearly the global face of the contemporary Indian woman. The last thing she''d want is to have a global image coloured by a racial suggestion," another pal added.

Neither Elle magazine or Mrs Bachan were available for comment today.

The actress, a former Miss World who is married to fellow actor Abhishek Bachchan, is thought to be too preoccupied by her father, who is ill, to look into the matter further.

Elle in race row for whitening Ash's skin

Fashion bible Elle magazine has been caught in a race row after reportedly whitening the skin of Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan on its cover.

Readers reacted with anger after it was suggested that the fashion magazine might have digitally "bleached" the complexion of the former Miss World.

The 37-year-old, who has also starred in Bride & Prejudice and The Pink Panther 2, appears on the cover of this month's Indian edition of the magazine. However, her skin appears to be several shades lighter than her normal colour.

Inside the magazine, she is again pictured in a series of shots, all showing her with pale skin, reports the Daily Mail.

Fans have been posting angry comments online about the latest cover, with one saying: "It's annoying because it seems like lighter skin is always in fashion as if darker skin is something to be frowned upon."

Kareena Kapoor fills Rai Bachchan role

Kareena Kapoor will reportedly play the role initially planned for Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bajirao Mastani.

According to the Times of India, Bhansali hoped to make the epic 18th century love story in 2003 with Bachcan and Salman Khan but the project was shelved when the couple's relationship ended.

Bhansali is allegedly reviving the project after casting Kareena Kapoor in the lead female role opposite Khan.

The story is based on Indian folklore about General Peshwa Bajirao and his wife Mastani.



'Guzaarish' producers defend smoking scene

The producers of Guzaarish have defended Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s smoking scene in the film, describing it as a script requirement.

Responding to a protest letter sent by the National Organisation for Tobacco Eradication (NOTE), producers UTV said: "The scene in which the character played by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is shown smoking was merely a creative requirement for the script."

The organisation objected to posters for the Sanjay Leela Bhansali film featuring the scene in which the actress smokes.

"The poster of the film picks and chooses the same frame in their advertisement campaign. Actually this is a clandestine advertisement of a tobacco product," a NOTE spokesperson told PTI.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan: Is she plain lucky?

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has become quite the epitome of success despite her latest three flicks not doing so well at the box office. This star has more than proved her star status not only in India but also abroad as everyone who is interested in the world of glitz and glamour is well aware by now.

However the actress in her is not yet satiated and she is thus reportedly going in for a signing up on quite a few new projects these days. The most popular star wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has also proved that marriage is a jinx for any actress in B town and has got a lot of important projects in her kitty right after she tied the nuptial knot with Abhishek Bachchan.

These days there is news floating around that director Vishal Bharadwaj is planning to sign Aishwarya and Hrithik Roshan for his project on the Shakespearean play Hamlet.

Now this amazing play by the most coveted playwright like Shakespeare that too with the ace director like Vishal Bharadwaj and two of the most hot and happening stars of Bollywood like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Hrithik Roshan as the lead pair, actually sounds quite the perfect combination for a super hit flick!

As is known Aishwarya and Hrithik have looked extremely convincing as a couple in Dhoom 2 and Jodha Akbar, not to forget the amazing pair in the just released Guzaarish, it really seems like a dream project is about to begin for this deadly hot duo.

Now with Ash getting such great offers even as she has crossed the 35 plus mark in her birthday count one really wonders –is she plain lucky to get to work with the best of directors in B town?

Longoria's husband 'also seeks divorce'

Eva Longoria's husband Tony Parker has reportedly counterfiled for divorce only two days after the actress began legal proceedings to dissolve their marriage.

TMZ claims that Parker filed the papers in Bexar County, Texas, citing that the marriage had become "insupportable because of discord or conflict of personalities".

The papers also claim that the marital conflict has resulted in there being no chance of reconciliation between the pair.

Longoria filed for divorce from the NBA star earlier this week following the alleged discovery of more than a hundred text messages on Parker's phone between himself and his teammate's wife Erin Barry.

The couple married in July 2007 and were forced to deny Parker's involvement in an affair with model Alexandra Paressant only five months later.

Eva Longoria & Tony Parker: Divorce Update

While many of their fans were caught off-guard when they filed for divorce, Eva Longoria and Tony Parker's split was a long time coming.

According to Parker’s rep, “Eva and Tony have been discussing their situation privately. He was aware that she would be filing for divorce in Los Angeles."

“Tony did not file for divorce in Texas and did not hire divorce attorneys in either Texas or California. He plans to continue to keep their discussions of this matter private."

Meanwhile, an inside source leaked that everything came crashing down between Eva and Tony when Longoria found that her hubby had been keeping information about Erin Berry (his teammate’s wife) a secret.

“Tony had Erin’s personal information stored in an electronic program that only he could access. But one day he forgot to close the program and that’s when Eva found it. It was a double shot for her because not only did she find all the information but Eva also realized immediately that Tony had taken steps to hide it from her. The fact that Tony had been hiding Erin’s information and their correspondence made Eva feel like he had been lying to her for months, and basically he had been.”

Eva Longoria files for divorce from 'cheating' husband Tony Parker

Eva Longoria has filed for divorce from husband Tony Parker after discovering 'hundreds of texts' from another woman on his phone.

The 'Desperate Housewives' actress filed the documents at Los Angeles Superior Court, just hours after denying reports they were planning to split.

"It is with great sadness that after 7 years together, Tony and I have decided to divorce. We love each other deeply and pray for each other's happiness," the Daily Mail quoted her as tweeting.

The news comes after a spokesperson for the 35-year-old actress shot down a report that claimed her basketball player husband had filed for divorce on Monday in Texas.

In the divorce papers, Longoria cites the standard "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the split. She is also seeking spousal support from Parker.

However, there was no reference to the claims her 28-year-old NBA star husband has been unfaithful.

But Eva confided to her friend Mario Lopez - host of U.S. entertainment show Extra - that Parker had cheated on her during their marriage.

The actress also confirmed to Lopez that she found hundreds of text messages from another woman on Parker''s phone, who turned out to be the wife of one of the NBA player''s teammates at the San Antonio Spurs.

The woman''s identity has not been revealed nor the name of the San Antonio Spurs teammate.

Longoria added that her estranged husband cheated on her with yet another woman with whom he kept in touch via Facebook.

"She is devastated, she wants us all to know that. But she''s strong," Lopez said.

Her husband later tweeted the same message.

Eva is being represented in the divorce by high profile celebrity divorce lawyer Lance Spiegel, who has previously worked for Sandra Bullock in her divorce from Jesse James and Russell Simmons in his divorce from Kimora Lee.