AkankshaAwasthi: Powerhouse Performer

Akanksha Awasthi is not complaining about the producers for being type cast inmature roles. The Lucknow lass, already a familiar face in drawingrooms across the board with a slew of appearances in various showsacross satellite channels is lapping up all the accolades coming herway. Some of her dramatic performances can be seen in -Ghar Ki lakshmi Betiyan -Zee, Waqt batayega kaun apna kaun paraya-Sony, Raja ki ayegi barat-Star Plus, Beendhbanunga Ghodi Chadhunga - NDTV Imagine,Kismat ka Khel - 9 X.
Akankshas’swide range has seen her essay roles that have brought to fore hercommand over comedy, negative & high-drama roles- not a bad signfor a 25 year old whose career-clock has just ticked off.

Allseems hunky dory for the lady but the only thing gnawing at Akankshaall the time is her weight. Her working out for a good couple ofhours every day & defying hunger pangs has still not got her inshape- a day she dreams of. The producers though are more than happyto cast the actor for her versatility as they saddle her with allkinds of meaty roles.
Casein point is the highly rated “Uttaran” where she plays the Mamiof the lead actor, Tapasya. The role offers her a chance to show avariety of emotions. “ I love the character graph of Rohini, whereI oscillate between being a show-pony to a mindless woman who blindlyfollows her husband, in whatever he says or does. I really love herinnocence that pins her husband in a quandary at all times”, shegushes. Her on-off-screen chemistry with her husband in the showplayed by, Amandeep Arora, is also in the news. “Indeed, can’tyou see it in our performances? I think it is very important to be atease with your co-stars” she chirps.

Sheis quite at ease with her role in the show “Uttaran”. The stellarshow is poised for a huge leap. The new Mami is richer & moreconfident. She now strives to live up to her new found status byspeaking the Queens language leading to hilarious consequences. Herconstant refrain “Oh my God” at inopportune moments will ticklemany a funny bone.

Doesn’tshe think an 18 year leap in the show is too much of a risk to takeso early in her career? “Why would I grumble?  I have signed upwith one of the best production houses & am working with abrilliant director of the television industry. More importantly, iget timely payments” she says, tongue firmly in cheek.  In a worldwhere, veiling the obvious is the norm Akanksha’s Bindaas attitudeis like a breath of fresh air. It has her ready to take up anychallenges that come her way & perform like few can.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan dazzles at Dubai World Cup

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan led the fashion and glamour stakes at the Dubai World Cup which she attended over the weekend where she presented the award for the Most Elegant Dressed Lady at the event. Aishwarya was present as the Brand Ambassador of watch company Longines which she has been part of for the last 13 yrs. At the event she was the perfect picture of style and elegance keeping in with the Longines tag line ' Elegance is an attitude".
During the Most Elegant Lady presentation ceremony, which Aishwarya presented alongside Juan Carlos Capelli, Vice President and Head of International Marketing at Longines,  she said: "I am delighted to be here and see such finely dressed women in their hats and beautiful dresses".
Draped in bright red traditional outfit by Indian designer Sabyasachi, Aishwarya greeted the world in a very 'Miss World' style - with NAMASTE and had the crowds clapping in excitement.Her suit studded with shimmering gold, complimented the golden sandals on her feet. The event was attended by over 50,000 people.
During the day, Aishwarya visited a newly opened Longines store in the hotel she was staying and later met various media houses for interviews from different countries including Indonesia, Hong Kong, Singapore, India etc.

ANIL KAPOOR, AJAY DEVGN & THE WHOLE CAST OF FILM ‘TEZZ’ ATTENDED THE MUSIC LAUNCH OF FILM IN THE CAPITAL’

It was a star studded music launch at the I skate in Ambience mall of Gurgaon. At the music launch of film ‘Tez’ the whole cast and crew turned up for a media interaction. Anil Kapoor along with Ajay Devgn, Sameera Reddy, Kangna Ranaut, music duo Sajid Wajid & the producer Ratan Jain himself had a healthy interaction with media regarding the music of their film. The movie revolves around the bullet train hijacking where actor Mohanlal plays a dutiful cop of the Scotland Yard Police with Ajay Devgn and Anil Kapoor in the pivotal roles. Sameera Reddy is also playing the part of a bar dancer. She also dances for an item number in the film. Kangana Ranaut is playing the role of Ajay Devgn's wife. Zayed Khan is playing an important role in the film.Tezz is the story of one man, who is out to get back what was unjustly taken away from him… the other is willing to do whatever it takes to stop him in order to serve justice; both are pitted against each other.. and both are pitted against time. Lives have already been destroyed and more lives are about to be devastated as a train speeding from Glasgow to London holds the fate of Aakash Rana (Ajay Devgan) and Counter Terrorism Command Arjun Khanna (Anil Kapoor), and only one of them will succeed.

JENNIFER LOPEZ IS BACK WITH SONY MUSIC, NEW SINGLE "DANCE AGAIN"

FEATURES PITBULL AND RedOne,TO BE AVAILABLE ON APRIL 2ND ON iTUNES 

Jennifer Lopez, Pitbull and producer RedOne team up, once again on"Dance Again" a new single from the international superstar. Lopezis back with Sony Music with her new single "Dance Again" that featuresPitbull and produced by RedOne which will be available on April 2ndon iTunes
JLo fans helpedunlock her new single artwork for #DanceAgain via sharing and “liking” onFacebook! She also revealed the artwork and released the following statement: Alwaysremember, you will live. You will love. You will dance again.”
Last year, these three had thesmash hit “On The Floor,” which was the most watched video of 2011 having beenviewed over an astonishing half a billion views on Vevo.  It became theirmost viewed video by any female artist in history.
“Dance Again” will beavailable on iTunes on April 2nd with the scorching hot video set todebut on April 5th on American Idol.

I want to do Chikni Chameli type item-Mona Singh

Mona 'Jassi' Singh, who's back to doing fiction on TV after a gap of six years, gets talking about her recent weight loss, getting only pregnant woman roles, item numbers and more

So, you're back to fiction after six years. What kept you away and what's brought you back? It's been exactly six years since "Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahi" (JJKN) ended. When it got over, I had decided that I'll not do fiction, because nothing can get bigger and better than "Jassi". But now I've realized that one should never say never. I am an actor, I'm here to act. And if you look at TV right now, it has really changed - it's going back to the basics, its going back to being simple. So, I felt this was the right time to go back to fiction. Moreover, “Kya Hua Tera Vada" (KHTV) seemed like a perfect comeback.

Does that mean you've bid adieu to reality shows and anchoring? I've done everything - hosting shows to anchoring singing competitions to participating as a contestant. I think there is nothing more left for me to do, except judging a reality show.

Were you apprehensive about playing a mother to three kids? Actors usually quit when there is a generation leap or kids are introduced into the show. No not at all and why would I? I'm playing a role, just like I was in "Jassi". People at that time also asked me if I had any apprehensions about playing an ugly girl. No, I did not. It's the same with "KHTV". I'd love to play Mother India also someday. I'm an actor, I'm here to explore, take up challenging work and give it my best shot.

Serials are being named after hit movie songs. Do you see this becoming a trend? Oh tell me about it. I love "Bade Acche Lagte Hai" - the serial as well as the song, and I think you can relate more to the serial, if you've heard the song. The recall value is very high. Even "Kya Hua Tera Vada" is such a popular song; I think sabne yeh gaana suna hoga, even the younger generation. I agree that it's again, a trend, and it's catching up. In just the name, you have the whole crux of the show, and I think that's just beautiful.

Do you think television is now becoming a more powerful medium than films - in terms of both, entertainment and popularity? There is no doubt that the television industry has grown tremendously. All TV actors are respected, all of them are earning well, and they all are celebrities in their own right. And with stars too wanting to host or judge shows, you can imagine how important TV, as a medium, has become. And why not, television reaches out to the masses, and you become a part of everybody's daily life. I'm very proud of being a television actor.

Is that the reason, why you are not doing movies, despite receiving good reviews for your role in "3 Idiots"? I won't say that I was flooded with offers post "3 Idiots", but whatever offers I got were for playing a pregnant woman, which was bizarre. I fail to understand why people don't see you as an actor - they always see you as a particular character and then want you to play similar character always. This is not what I want to do.

Every actress is jumping on to the item girl bandwagon. Can we expect you to do an item song in the future? Your fans haven't seen you dance ever since you won the show, "Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa"... I did get some offers after I won "Jhalak", but I was pretty shocked about it. I was like 'Oh my God, do I have that kind of an image?', because people have always called me cute, bubbly and a happy Sardarni, so I didn't know what it's going to be like. But now, I've lost a lot of weight and I would love to dance, and if the song is as good as " Chikni Chameli", I'd jump at it.