Calm & composed
In the city, actors Farhan Akhtar and Deepika Padukone talk about their upcoming flick and much more…
Just about a year ago, Abhishek Bachchan was at the PVR Cinemas to promote his film. And what a chaos it was! On Monday, at the same place, for the same reason, Farhan Akhtar and Deepika Padukone were here. Only this time, all wazz well!Except for a few jostles and little anxiety about how willing they would be to answer our questions. Farhan, sporting a cool black tee, took the initiative to put everything at ease, "This is my first visit to the city and I was hoping to see smiling faces."


Director Vijay Lalwani and producer Ritesh Sidhwani accompanied Farhan Akhtar and Deepika Padukone

Votary of pluralism
Renowned painter Gulammohammad Sheikh talks about his works and shares his thoughts
What would have happened if Gulammohammad Sheikh was not rejected by the Panjab University selection committee when he applied for a post in the History of Fine Arts Department way back in 1966?Chances are that his creativity would have acquired more of sharp-edged cutting lines rather than sharp-edged intellect he acquired from experiencing life in a volatile state like Gujarat. Or, maybe the disciplined character of the city would have tamed his spirit. Who knows?

It clicked!
Sneha Ullal was known as the Aishwarya Rai-lookalike when she entered the film world but the actress is now keen to carve a niche for herself. After featuring in spooky thriller Click, she feels it's time she proved her calibre to people who misguided her when she first came to Bollywood."See Click is not my comeback in Bollywood because the film doesn't revolve around me. I need a film like Lucky (her debut vehicle) to make a comeback; then I can show what I can do," said Sneha."Now it's time I prove myself because there are a lot of people who misguided me in Bollywood - whom I trusted. I never knew Bollywood is like that, you know," she added.

Koffee break
Hit & try
Mumbai born Aamir Dalvi is a well- known face in Tellywood. He turned to acting in 1999 with a popular show on Doordarshan Nyaya. Aamir Dalvi is no stranger to the viewers with serials like Jeevan Saathi ( Colors), Saathi Re ( Star One), Jab Love Hua ( Zee TV), Yahan Ke Hum Sikandar ( Zee Next) and Mein Aisi Kyun Hoon ( Sahara One) to his name. On his way to Manali, Lifestyle caught up with dashing Jeet Khanna aka Aamir Dalvi of Woh Rehne Waali Mehlon Ki on a brief stopover at Chandigarh.

Jaya ho!
Veteran Bollywood actor Jaya Bachchan will be honoured with a 'Lifetime Achievement Award' at a film festival in London.
The 61-year-old actress will be awarded for her outstanding contribution to Indian cinema.Jaya started her career at the age of 15 with Satyajit Ray's Bengali film Mahanagar (1963) and has acted in films like Guddi, Chalte Chalte and Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham in her forty-year long career in the industry.The award will be presented to Jaya on March 5 at Tongues on Fire film festival, which is dedicated to the cinema cultures of South Asia. The festival will be hosted by British television and film actor Rizwan Ahmed.

Pedalling affair
Salman suggests cycling to combat pollution
Bollywood actor Salman Khan said that cycling is the best solution to curb pollution in the metropolis. The actor spoke after participating in the cyclothon which was organised in collaboration with his charity Being Human.

Idiotic claim
Director Anurag Basu has rubbished reports that producer Rakesh Roshan wanted 3 Idiots helmer Rajkumar Hirani to edit his film Kites. The reports claimed that Roshan wanted Hirani to take over the editing of the much awaited Hrithik Roshan-Barbara Morri starrer, but was turned down.

Music to the ear
In the city, classical singer Shruti Sadolikar Katkar talks about the music of yesteryears and today 
The ancient masters always tried to project the knowledge imbibed from the shastras into their compositions, which reflected their persona. They were glad to share their skills with fellow maestros, disciples and music lovers, which made our music a living phenomenon in the past," opines music academician, scholar and performer par excellence Shruti Sadolikar Katkar, presently the Vice Chancellor of Bhatkhande Music University, who was in the city for a performance.

What an idea sirji
Ramesh Kumar Bunty, from a small village in Amritsar, hogged limelight by winning the Billo Rani contest organised by Universal Music and Idea Cellular
Small town hopes, big city dreams, struggling youngsters looking for just one chance to get lucky in front of the camera. Getting the right start and following the much-travelled road to fame, there are stories and success stories. And then there are the plain lucky ones. Ramesh Kumar Bunty falls in this category.A regular guy from a small border village, Chabaal, in Amritsar, hogged the limelight by winning the Billo Rani contest organised by Universal Music and Idea Cellular. The contest needed aspiring actors who were IDEA subscribers to download the special 'Billo Rani' dialer tone, which made them eligible to appear for auditions. 

Spade work
Looks count
The Rose Festival fever may have tempted you to participate in the ensuing flower shows. However, you must be wondering whether you can also do it or not. You must also be wondering what the judges look for when they examines the exhibits. Those who get prizes also learn by experience. There was once the 'first time' for them too. Now, at this time when most of the flowers are available in hybrid form, most of the entries are almost identical with a minor difference in quality, appearance and above all, presentation. And, that makes all the difference. Let us take up these points one by one. Quality, like in any other contest, is the prime requirement in case of flowers too.