"Just give me five minutes, I will join you," says a figure in a curly mop and mustard pants. Three minutes later, he returns. "I have two more minutes," he says, disappearing again. After his vanishing act is complete, we finally find a comfortable spot to understand the man behind Zero One, the fourth play by the students of National School of Drama, a part of the Graduate showcase'11.

Abheesh Sasidharan’s unkempt beard and Buddha image dangling from his neck is a statement of his out-of-the-box attitude. "My research has enabled me to explore the viewer and the performer in a collaborative manner," he says. The play focuses on the one moment where the living body is dying. Looking at the possible discovery of a new language to connect with the audience, Abheesh has divided the play into four parts.

Elaborating on the first, he says, "We have created an "accident space" where the performer will come face-to-face with an accident-like situation, putting him in a dying space and moving to the phase two of the play."

With the main content of the play focused on humanity, the next phase will be the dying object space where the viewers will be introduced to the performers and given five minutes, three performers' bodies and a graphic audience to decide how they will want the dying and the living body to perform. This will take the play to the third phase. "The third phase will be interactive, where the viewer and the performer will initiate the possibilities of a performing body minimalised to essential breathing, taking the play to the fourth level," he explains.

With a smile on his face, he continues, "In the fourth phase, the views and audience will move out and breathing will be amplified with a microphone."

His reference is death. And he searches the socio-political aspect of death. "Death affects one and all, we are trying to put the views in the situation where they have the option to treat a dying object the way they prefer," he adds. With a rush of excitement, which clears out from his imaginative space, he says, "It will be best understood on the stage," he exits behind the black curtains, which witness the toil and turmoil of creative sensibilities!

vasudha@tribunemail.com

Generation gap will exist, but how one finds a common ground to keep the family together… is the theme of soon-to-be-released Punjabi flick Yaara O Dildaara.

In Chandigarh to release the music album for the movie, Harbhajan Mann is thrilled that Punjabi cinema is thriving in recent times, "There is a long way to go though," says Mann, who is the lead actor as well the singer in Yaara O Dildaara.

What makes the trend of singers playing actors popular in Punjabi cinema? "Singers already have a fan base, so they are readily accepted. But now we have actors who are not singers such as Jimmy Shergill and Gulzar Chahal. As the industry grows, so will our tribe," says Mann.

Taking his act seriously as an actor as well as singer, Mann is anxious about Punjabi songs that celebrate violence. "I have shaped up like this because in my youth I have heard folk singers sing the heroic tales of Bhagat Singh and Shravan Kumar. Innocent minds are impressionable and it's the moral responsibly of the artiste to ensure they show the good way, not otherwise," he says emphatically.

Another concern that weighs heavily on Mann's mind is the onslaught of technology, "I feel that we were not ready to accept mobiles and Internet. So instead of using the devices for what they are meant for, we are using them to replace human relationships. This has led to the degeneration of today's society."

To restore the relationships to the glory that they deserve is what Yaara O Dildaara is about. With Jonita Doda, Tulip Joshi, Kabir Bedi, Gurpeet Ghuggi and Kabir Khan, the flick has an impressive star cast. Also, it has roped in celebrated music director Pritam. "Punjabi film industry has come a long way since I joined it in 2002. It's a matter of immense pride that the likes of Kabir Bedi and Pritam are part of this film," says Mann.

Promising that it would be at par with any commercial Bollywood flick, Mann is confident of its music doing well. "The music of film compliments the family entertainer that it is," says Mann.

Due to its worldwide release on August 19, Mann says that it has the important twists and turns to keep one hooked. Watch out!

mona@tribunemail.com

At any given point of time, the Indian television industry suffers from one obsession or the other. A few years back, from the prime time to late night slots, it only offered saas-bahu sagas, the sobbing heroines, the conspiring vampires and the grand families. Then the gears shifted towards reality shows.

Reality shows on adventure, singing, dancing, marriages, loyalty-testing and just on anything that qualifies as talent. As of now, the obsession ailment is culture-based soaps. There's Balika Vadhu, Na Aana Iss Des Lado, Pratigya, Hamari Saas Leela….all with a backdrop of some state.

The urban setting with all the multiplexes and flyovers has stopped fetching enough TRPs. "The channels have played smart. By using the backdrop of some state they at least ensure high TRPs from that particular state," comes from Ekktaa BP Singh, the actor who plays Vidya's mother in the serial Maryada Lekin Kab Tak.

In Chandigarh to stage the play Hum Dono, she gives an insight into the television industry trends. "Nothing but TRPs determine all trends in the industry. A serial takes a leap, lead hero gets killed in the accident, women are tortured…only TRPs is the deciding factor." For the same reason, her show, Maryada was shifted from 11.30 slot to 11 pm. "The soap garnered high TRPs." But she adds that as long as TV is able to highlight social issues, lack of variety doesn't matter.

In Maryada, the focus is on how women from all strata of society strive to keep the honour of the family. "It actually happens in society as well. Women seldom speak about domestic violence or other problems. If these serials can bring the slightest of change and help women speak against injustice, we won't mind the TRPs-guided industry."

She is also playing the role of one of Leela's friends in the serial, Hamari Saas Leela. About the experience, she says, "It's challenging for me because in one I have a Haryanvi dialect while in the other Gujarati." In the play, she will play the role of an old woman who has no qualms about her life. "The play teaches that problems are not the end of life. They instead help you realise the value of life even more." ashima@tribunemail.com

Vivek Oberoi is enjoying married life to the hilt. He likes pampering his wife by cooking for her. He cooks pretty often and sources tell us that he is a good cook. He will be seen next in Krrishh 2.

Rajniesh, who became an instant hit with his impressive performance in Vikram Bhatt's horror flick 1920, will be soon seen in the upcoming film PHHIR produced by Vikram, Bhatt's ASA Productions and Enterprises.

The actor who is really excited about his second flick recently got almost burnt shooting for the promotional song Yaadein of the movie. Rajniesh says, "The song had a fire sequence. Along with music composers Toshi and Sharib, I had to stand on a revolving table with fire in the background and we almost got burned while shooting for it".

Talking about the song Rajniesh further adds, "It's a very interesting and very well shot song. The theme of the video is Yin n Yang, the black and white sides of life. I am sure the audiences will love it."

Director Milan Luthria recently ordered two truckloads of oranges for a sensational song sequence in Balaji's forthcoming The Dirty Picture.

The track was picturised on Vidya Balan and Naseeruddin Shah and shot at Hyderabad's Ramoji Film City.

In true South style, over a thousand oranges were rolled down a hillside as the actors danced to choreographer Pony Verma's matkas and jhatkas - reminiscent of the erstwhile Jeetendra-starrer Himmatwala!

In The Dirty Picture, Naseer, who plays a South-Indian superstar, consented to dancing after 20 years, as it was in line with the requirements of his character. He was last seen dancing with Sonam in Rajiv Rai's smash hit, Tridev.

Director Farhan Akhtar celebrated 10 fantastic years of his path breaking National Award winning film Dil Chahta Hai in a most unique way with Taj Enlighten Film Society's Naya Cinema festival at Cinemax Versova!

The director was in an upbeat mood and discussed various scenes from his film, and the inspiration behind them...plus he also spoke about various changes that he would now to like to make!

Acclaimed film journalist Bhawnaa Somaaya was the compere and the director had a fun interactive session with his fans and media present! The Naya Cinema Festival which will focus on first and second films by Indian film makers that have transformed audience's perspective of film and its relevance in contemporary society, appealed to Farhan as a perfect platform to celebrate his film that set trends, instead of keeping the usual success party. The film had received tremendous praise from critics for portraying contemporary Indian youth as cosmopolitan and urban. The festival will also have participation and discussion by other renowned filmmakers such as Prakash Jha, Kundan Shah, amongst others as well as special exclusive clips from unreleased films and controversial films such as Gandu.

Singham has grossed Rs. 47.70 crores at the box office in its opening weekend making it the second highest opening for this year.

The actor- director duo Ajay Devgn and Rohit Shetty's action packed entertainer Singham grossed Rs. 44.2 crores in India (Rs. 30.93 crores net) and Rs. 3.5 crores gross overseas. Singham has roared its way into the Top 10 chart of Domestic Opening Weekends of all time and stands at the 10th position with Rs. 30.93 crores net collections.

Speculations that Jessica Alba is expecting another daughter were fuelled after guests at her baby shower were spotted giving her pink-coloured gifts. The 30-year-old actor, who is already a mum to three-year-old Honor Marie with husband Cash Warren, is going to give birth for the second time in the coming weeks.

According to website X17Online, the party was held at the Hollywood home of Alba's friend Kelly Sawyer. The Spy Kids star did not comment on the gender of her baby but later thanked her friends for the amazing baby shower on Twitter.

— ANI

But now it is confirmed that the meeting was due to the show where Kerr will appear alongside Weinstein's wife, Marchesa designer Georgina Chapman, reports a publication. The deal might have been struck after show host Heidi Klum and Kerr went on a jog together last week. — ANI

Prachi Desai and mentor Ekta Kapoor have split. They did Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai last year. The Bhatts have roped in Desai for The Informer opposite Emraan Hashmi. They want to give her an image makeover: she has to bold scenes in the film and wear sexy clothes. Will she pull off the hot and sexy avatar? We'll see!

It’s fun to experiment playing with cool colours and funky prints when it comes to short dresses. It adds that naughty charm to the whole look. Priyanka Chopra, Bipasha Basu and Lara Dutta have all been sporting short, stylish and trendy dresses in their latest films.

“Short skirts and dresses are the hottest trends of this season. Not just the youth but with elderly too prefer going short. Checks, plain and floral designs in cotton, denims are highly demanded and is easily available at affordable prices as it starts from Rs 200 ,” says Aditya Verma, owner of Just Brands. “Not only girls but even guys feel better in capris. Checks are very popular among both guys and girls and are available for Rs 1,299 at United Colors of Benetton,” says Parneet who works here.

“I love wearing short dresses as they compliment my personality and are easily available at reasonable prices. I mostly prefer wearing short skirts and jumpsuits. My favourite spot to shop is Sector 17, the hub of brands and Sector 22 market to go for street wear style with jump suits, shorts, middies, frocks, single piece cut wear and skirts at a very low cost ranging between Rs 150 to 500,” says Neha Sharma, a third year student of Punjab technical university.

“I prefer wearing capris over jeans as cotton capris provide a cool and trendy look and are very comfortable. They do make a style statement if worn with loose t-shirts. I love wearing cotton, denims and love to go with short cargos as it adds a rough and tough look to the personality,” says Yashaswi Singh an engineering student at Panjab University, Chandigarh.

Designer Minni Malhotra says, “The latest trend with the youngsters is that of short one-piece dresses of a flowing fabric with falls and printed or plain pattern in pastel colours with designer cuts. They a perfect outfit for a nice figure.

Body type is the key to looking good in this outfit. People on the heavier side look better in dresses which are a bit longer. “I prefer wearing dresses according to the weather. If hanging around with friends I like to go with shorts, jumpsuits and skirts instead of one-piece dresses. I love to play with white and blue colors to make my style statement,” says Anchal, a student at Chitkara College, visiting west side mall.

“Being comfortable and trendy, one piece dresses and short skirts go easily with my figure to add a glamorous look to my personality. My hands fall easily on brands like Chanel, Zara, Mango, Tommy….as they have an exotic collection and good quality stuff. I prefer pink, white, black and red colour,” says Amam Virk, a student of Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra.

One of the most successful and long running plays, Adhe Adhure has been hailed as a modern classic, breaking new ground in Hindi literature. Winner of the Sangeet Natak Akademi award, the play has had a successful run for over four decades winning both critical acclaim and recognition amongst the masses.

Hailed as the first meaningful play in Hindi, it touched upon contemporary life and values in a provocative and disturbing manner at one level and engaging and dramatic at another. In its current avatar, it has some of Indian theatre's best artistes on show with Lillette Dubey, Mohan Agashe, Ira Dubey, Rajeev Sidhartha and Anuschka Sawhney.

Tracing the collapse of the nuclear family, it etches out the insecurities and power dynamics of urban discontent, creating a memorable character in Savitri, one of Hindi theatre's first feminist icons.

Her portrayal as a middle-aged woman who is dissatisfied with her circumstances, the story carves out powerful characters in her unemployed son, promiscuous teenage daughter and a husband who has failed to provide her emotional and financial security.

She seeks to fulfill herself in relationships outside marriage, only to realise that men are the same beneath different faces. A powerful and moving look at marriage, the play has not lost its contemporary feel, striking a chord with viewers of all backgrounds and ages.

Written by well known playwright Mohan Rakesh and directed by Lilette Dubey, it overwhelms with its touching and tragic intensity. The play comes to Chandigarh, courtesy the Durga Das Foundation, The Tribune and Ireo and will be staged on July 29 at the Tagore Theatre. Entry is by invitation only.

A new study has found that mothers, who view their daughters as their role model, tend to mimic their consumption behaviour. It found teenage girls have a strong influence on the products their mothers buy solely for personal use, as in makeup or clothing, and that mothers have a much stronger tendency to mimic their daughters’ consumption behaviour than vice versa.

“This finding provides initial support for the notion of reverse socialisation and suggests that the impact adolescents have on their parents is much more profound than has been credited to them,” Dr Ayalla A Ruvio, an assistant professor of marketing at Temple University Fox School of Business, and lead author of the study, said.

The researchers analysed whether teenage girls tend to emulate their mothers’ consumption behaviour or whether mothers mimic their daughters.

The study, conducted through questionnaires, sampled 343 mother-daughter pairs, with an average age of 44 for the mothers and 16 for the daughters.

They found that if a mother is young at heart, has high fashion consciousness and views her daughter as a style expert, she would tend to doppelgang her daughter’s consumption behaviour.

However, even if the daughter has high interest in fashion and an older cognitive age -thinking she’s older than she is - she still is less likely to view her mother as a consumer role model and to doppelgang her.

The study titled ‘the consumer doppelganger effect’ will appear in a forthcoming Journal of Consumer Behaviour article. — ANI

Personal computers are fast taking over the place of human beings’ long time best friend, the family dog, a British study has found.

Researchers have found just six per cent of us believe that “most people rely more on their dog than they do on their PC,” while 67 per cent think the opposite to be true.

Even 38 per cent of dog owners confessed to relying more on their PC than on their dog, although 36 percent disagreed. And 71 per cent of 18 to 24-year-old dog owners said they relied more on their computer.

According to Paul Allen, editor of Computeractive magazine, which carried out the poll with the Royal Society For The Protection Of Cruelty to Animals, “These days you can even take your PC for a walk, provided you have a laptop or tablet. “It’s only a matter of time until the first PC that fetches your slippers.”

Researchers talked to 2,000 British adults to find out about the change modern technology has brought to their home life. They found that male dog owners are almost twice as likely as female owners to rely on their computer than a canine companion.

Allen said: “With broadband bringing them global news and newspaper sales falling, the family dog even misses out on the pleasure of taking the paper to his owner.”But it’s not all bad news for obedient dogs.

“The family PC has given dog owners access to a wealth of resources and information that can help with the long-term care that a dog needs,” Allen said.

“From finding the best vets to researching great new walks that all the family can enjoy, the web enables the PC to become a dog’s best friend.”

— IANS

Bong connection: Ragini Khanna

Vivan disappointed

Zee TV‘s Sanskaar Lakshmi had a load of talented actors but after the show didn’t take off as expected, it finds itself without the three leads—Aamir Dalvi, Vivan Bhathena and Rohit Purohit. Rohit’s character made an exit and Aamir followed him as he felt underused in the show. Though Vivan got his share of limelight, he too realised that his character might take a back seat as now the focus is on Shakti and Vibha’s characters and their love story. Vivan claimed to leave the show as the story didn’t turn out to be what he was promised over a period of time.
back seat: Vivan Bhathena

Safety issues

Well known television actress Juhi Parmar is feeling terrible about the recent terror attacks in Mumbai. She feels that our government is not taking any safety measures to protect its people and that if Mumbai is not safe, then no other city in India can be.

Homework between shots

Responsible royals Shobha and Bheemdev utilise their leisure time on the sets of Shobha Somnath Ki to catch up with their studies! While most kids their age while away their free time playing with friends and generally goofing around, actors Ashnoor Kaur and Azaan Ali Khan, who play Shobha and Prince Bheemdev respectively, are known to carry their textbooks to the sets and do their homework between shots!

It is amazing that these two kids show so much dedication towards their studies at such a young age; especially when both of them also have to mug up their lines for the shoots! In fact, this one time, Ashnoor was so engrossed in her homework that she didn’t hear the director call her for the scene and asked the director to give her a few more minutes to finish the math problem she was solving before she returned to the shoot.

New entry on the show

After the adorable dadaji in Sasuraal Genda Phool, now veteran actor Sudhir Pandey will be seen in Colors’ Uttaran, in the role of an old man who abandoned his son when he married against his will. Sudhir’s servant meets Ichcha and introduces her as his son’s wife to a dying old man. This character will add a new layer and twist in the show post the leap.
Twist & turn: Sudhir Pandey

LIBRA: Your personal skills and style of working are likely to shine out and be noticed by people. A financial matter that has been delayed should have forward now. There should be no special problems to deal with at home. Tarot message: Don’t be dismissive of advice from youthful origin. Lucky colour: Peach. Magic number: 28

SCORPIO: Lots of secrets can make for an interesting day. Stimulating ideas will be in abundance. Your partner could talk to you into taking avocation together or indulging in some gym for fun. Tarot message: Take one step at a time and avoid being hurried and over anxious. Lucky colour: Pink. Magic number: 64

SAGITTARIUS: A day when dreams come true. That may seem an exaggerated but if you believe in something with enough heart and hope, it just might happen. You are in a position to motivate others. Tarot message: You will not get away with wrongful doings, so don’t even try. Lucky colour: Saffron. Magic number: 30

CAPRICORN: Career can be reacting a triumphant climax. You are in an ideal job and showing the world just how capable you are. Health problems show obvious signs of improvement. Tarot message: There are times in a relationship when it is wiser to be silent. Lucky color: Silver grey. Magic number: 27

AQUARIUS: The card “The Page of Swords” reveals that you are noted for your resiliency. You are refused to be between even when the odds are against you. Romance takes a turn for the better. Let them know how much you love them. Tarot message: Spend time meeting experienced people. Lucky colour: Rainbow Pastels. Magic number: 63

PISCES: You appear to need more clarity and open-ness in financial or business matters. It is important that you get expert advice to help you sort out the problem. Tarot message: Don’t waste an opportunity by not exploiting a contact even if it is from your past. Lucky colour: Brown. Magic number: 51

Ayesha Jhulka (July 28 ,1975, Srinagar, Kashmir) will celebrate her birthday with you. She appeared in late 1980s and 1990s with a long interval out of films in the early years of the 21st century before resuming her acting career in supporting roles in films like Socha Na Tha. Some of her most well-known films were Khiladi with Akshay Kumar and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar with Aamir Khan which has the famous song Pehla Nasha. She also starred in the Punjabi movie Khalsa Mero Roop Hai Khaas. Astrologically speaking Ayesha will stage a come back in films after 2013.