Veteran Actor Jagdeep, 'Soorma Bhopali' of Sholay, Passes Away at 81

Veteran Bollywood actor Jagdeep has passed away in Mumbai. He was 81. Actor Jaaved Jaaferi and TV producer Naved Jafri are Jagdeep's sons.

Jagdeep, whose original name was Syed Ishtiaq Ahmed Jafri, started as a child artist in director BR Chopra's 1951 film Afsana. He went on to work in more films like Ab Dilli Door Nahin, Munna, Aar Paar and Do Bigha Zamin as the child actor.

Later, he started his professional acting career as a lead actor in the Hindi film industry with films such as Bhabhi, Barkha and Bindaya. However, he got established as a comic actor with 1968 film Brahmachari that had Shammi Kapoor in the lead. It was just the kind fo start he needed.

His big break came in the form of director Ramesh Sippy's 1975 film Sholay that made his character Soorma Bhopali memorable. Later, he also directed a film titled Soorma Bhopali, in which he played the lead role.

Jagdeep worked in more than 350 films and was active in films as late as 2017. His last remarkable film was Gali Gali Chora Hai in 2012.

Singer-composer Amit Trivedi says he will remember Sushant Singh Rajput through his songs

Composer-singer Amit Trivedi has worked with Sushant Singh Rajput closely as he has composed and sung songs for the actor in his debut film, ‘Kai Po Che’ and ‘Kedarnath’. He recently opened up about the loss of the actor and how he will always be remembered whenever the songs will be played.

Talking about the same to a news portal, he reportedly said that whenever he will perform these songs on stage or play them, the first thing that will come to anybody’s mind will be Sushant and how heartbroken everybody is for the extreme step he has taken. According to him, his drastic step has left everyone shattered and heartbroken. He also added that they have worked very closely and it’s tough to deal with such a loss.

His sad and sudden demise has sparked the debate of nepotism in Bollywood once again. However, Amit Trivedi feels that there is no such thing called nepotism in the Music industry. According to him, it might exist amongst the actors but not in the music industry. He also added that it is one of the most time-wasted topics that people are consuming these days.

Amit composed and sang songs like, ‘Manjha’ from ‘Kai Po Che’ and ‘Namo Namo Shankara’, ‘Qaafirana’, ‘Jaan Nisaar’ from ‘Kedarnath’ for Sushant Singh Rajput.

Bollywood choreographer Saroj Khan passes away at 71 due to cardiac arrest

Bollywood choreographer, Saroj Khan, passed away due to cardiac arrest on early Friday morning. She was 71.

She was admitted to Guru Nanak Hospital in Bandra last Saturday after she complained of breathing issues. The mandatory Covid-19 test done at the hospital showed a negative result.

Amitabh Bachchan sent out a tweet on Friday morning, writing 'hands are folded, heart uneasy', sending out prayers, without naming Khan.

She was admitted to Guru Nanak Hospital in Bandra last Saturday after she complained of breathing issues. The mandatory Covid-19 test done at the hospital showed a negative result.

Amitabh Bachchan sent out a tweet on Friday morning, writing 'hands are folded, heart uneasy', sending out prayers, without naming Khan.

'She made dance look easy almost like anybody can dance,' wrote Akshay Kumar on Twitter.

Remembering the ace choreographer, Taapsee wrote, "Your songs will make every girl remember you for ever n ever."

In a career spanning over four decades, Khan is credited with choreographing more than 2,000 songs, including 'Dola Re Dola' from Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Devdas', 'Ek Do Teen' from Madhuri Dixit-starrer 'Tezaab' and 'Ye Ishq Haaye' from 'Jab We Met' in 2007.

Most of the songs choreographed by Khan had big names as lead actors. Khan has also trained a slew of choreographers who went on to make a big name for themselves in the '90s, including Farah Khan. Khan was known for blending Indian classical dance with modern beats.

Actress Madhuri Dixit has often credited Khan for catapulting her to fame by choreographing several of her dance numbers. The song 'Dhak Dhak' starring Dixit from 1992 film 'Beta', was choreographed by Khan and went on to become a national rage.

She last choreographed for 'Tabaah Hogaye', featuring Dixit from film-maker Karan Johar's production 'Kalank' in 2019.

Khan is survived by her husband, son and two daughters.

Streaming in July 2020: Dil Bechara, Breathe 2, Greyhound and more

The streaming platforms are making sure to provide entertainment to everyone by padding their catalogue.

Check out our list of recommendations for the month of July.

Amazon Prime Video

Breathe: Into The Shadows

Streaming on: July 10

The second season of Amazon Prime Video’s original series Breathe will release on July 10. Titled Breathe: Into The Shadows, the web series stars Abhishek Bachchan as a psychiatrist who is searching for his missing daughter Siya. Nithya Menen plays his wife and Amit Sadh reprises his role of senior inspector Kabir Sawant. Written by Bhavani Iyer, Vikram Tuli, Arshad Syed and Mayank Sharma, the psychological crime thriller also stars Saiyami Kher in a pivotal role.

Shakuntala Devi

Streaming on: July 31

Written and directed by Anu Menon, the Vidya Balan starrer is a biopic of mathematics wizard Shakuntala Devi. She was popularly known as ‘human computer’ as she had incredible skills in calculations from a young age. The film also stars Sanya Malhotra, Amit Sadh and Jisshu Sengupta.

AltBalaji

Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain 3 (remaining episodes)

Streaming on: July 1

The makers of Kehne Ko Humsafar Hain 3 had earlier released 10 out of 18 episodes of the romantic drama. The remaining episodes released on July 1. The AltBalaji and ZEE5 web series portrays the complexities that plague marriages and how in a relationship not only one person is responsible if it goes downhill. It stars Mona Singh, Gurdeep Kohli and Ronit Roy in the lead roles.

Bebaakee

Streaming in: July

A simple girl Kainaat Sahni (Shiv Jyoti Rajput) and a rich boy Sufiyaan Abdullah (Kushal Tandon) meet each other while pursuing their passion for journalism. They build a strong connection, but their world gets turned upside down when Sufiyaan’s family witnesses a rough patch and their business collapses. The web series also stars Karan Jotwani in an important role.

SonyLIV

Undekhi

Streaming on: July 10

The edgy crime thriller is set in Sundarbans. The teaser of the web series showcases a murder and leaves you wondering if there is something more than what meets the eye. Helmed by Ashish R. Shukla, Undekhi stars Harsh Chhaya, Dibyendu Bhattacharya, Ankur Rathee, Surya Sharma, Anchal Singh, Abhishek Chauhan, Ayn Zoya, Apeksha Porwal and Sayandeep Sen. The dialogues have been penned by Varun Badola, who was last seen in SonyLIV’s drama series Your Honor.

Avrodh

Streaming in: July

Inspired by the Uri surgical strike of 2016, Avrodh is based on a chapter from Shiv Aroor and Rahul Singh’s book India’s Most Fearless. The web series features Amit Sadh, Neeraj Kabi, Darshan Kumar, Vikram Gokhale, Anant Mahadevan and Madhurima Tuli.

Ram Singh Charlie

Streaming in: July

Directed by Nitin Kakkar, Ram Singh Charlie is a tragi-comedy. It has Divya Dutta and Kumud Mishra in the lead roles. The film follows Ramsingh, a Charlie Chaplin impersonator who works in a travelling circus. But one day, the circus shuts down due to financial crisis, and Singh has to work hard to make ends meet. To help his family, he starts working as a rickshaw puller. But his wife Kajri (Divya Dutta) tries to rebuild his confidence in his craft and become Charlie Chaplin again.

Disney Plus Hotstar

Dil Bechara

Streaming on: July 24

Sushant Singh Rajput and Sanjana Sanghi’s romantic drama is based on John Green’s bestseller The Fault In Our Stars, which was also adapted into a Hollywood film of the same name. The movie marks the directorial debut of casting director Mukesh Chhabra.

Vivek Oberoi Announces Second Production Venture 'Rosie: The Saffron Chapter' After 'Iti'

Vivek Oberoi recently announced yet another film as a producer. His second venture as a producer is based on 'strange true events' and is titled Rosie: The Saffron Chapter. Earlier today, the actor took to Twitter to make the big announcement.

On July 2, 2020, Vivek took to Twitter and shared the first poster of his upcoming film titled Rosie: The Saffron Chapter. The horror-thriller marks the second film of the actor as a producer after he recently announced his first venture Iti, under his production banner named Oberoi Mega Entertainment. He took to Twitter and wrote, "God has been kind! We bring you our 2nd film, #Rosie, a horror-thriller franchise based on strange true events in Gurugram".

Rosie: The Saffron Chapter will also be directed by filmmaker Vishal Mishra, who has been roped in to direct Iti as well. Along with Vivek's Oberoi Mega Entertainment, the film is co-produced by Mandiraa Entertainment and Girish Johar. The film is creatively backed by Prerna Arora and its shoot will go on floors from September this year.

The cast of the film has not been finalised yet, revealed trade analyst Taran Adarsh on Twitter. His tweet read, "ANNOUNCEMENT... After announcing his first film #Iti, #VivekOberoi announces second film... Titled #Rosie: #TheSaffronChapter... Directed by Vishal Mishra [also directing #Iti]... Cast not finalized... Starts Sept 2020... Presented by Mandiraa Ent and Oberoi Mega Ent... Poster...(sic)"

The poster of the film suggests that the story is based on true events in Gurugram aka Gurgoan, Delhi. The plot of the film is based on the famous horror story of Gurgaon's Saffron BPO and one of its employees, Rose. The film is expected to release in the first quarter of next year. 

"Got The Feeling He Was Brighter Than I": Saif Ali Khan On Dil Bechara Co-Star Sushant Singh Rajput

Saif Ali Khan, who will be seen in a cameo appearance in Sushant Singh Rajput's last project Dil Bechara, says that the late actor "had a bright future." The actor said that Sushant was "a talented actor and a good-looking guy." He added, "I thought he had a bright future. He was polite to me and appreciated my guest appearance in the film. He wanted to talk about many topics like astronomy and philosophy. I got the feeling he was brighter than I was."

Dil Bechara is slated to release on Disney+Hotstar on July 24 and it will be available to both subscribers as well as non-subscribers of the streaming platform. The film is inspired by John Green's book The Fault In Our Stars, which was also adapted into Hollywood film with the same name and it featured Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort in the lead roles. The film has been directed by casting director Mukesh Chhabra, who is making his debut as a director with the movie. Dil Bechara also stars Sanjana Sanghi and the film's music has been composed by AR Rahman.

What Genelia D'Souza Tweeted About Vidyut Jammwal Not Being Asked To Actors' Panel

Vidyut Jammwal, whose film Khuda Hafiz is all slated to release on OTT platform Disney+Hotstar along with six other big Bollywood films, was not a part of the live session that took place on Monday evening. The actor, in his tweet, stated that he and Kunal Kemmu, whose film Lootcase will be releasing on the same platform, weren't invited for the panel while Bollywood stars Akshay Kumar, Alia Bhatt, Ajay Devgn and Abhisehk Bachchan were present to unveil their respective films' posters and talk about them. Also present during the meet was Varun Dhawan, who despite not having any upcoming releases on the platform, was chosen as the mediator. Vidyut Jammwal's tweet did not go unnoticed by a section of the Internet which supported him, among them was his Force co-star Genelia D'Souza, who said that it was "fair to expect an invitation."

Reacting to Vidyut Jammwal's tweet, Genelia D'Souza wrote: "More power to you." The actress added, "Every film is made with a lot of love, a lot of sweat and a lot people giving it their all. It's only fair to want a little respect. It's only fair to expect an invitation and it's only fair to have at least been intimated. But then, sometimes even life is not fair. Keep walking my friend."

Kunal Kemmu's film Lootcase was introduced by Varun Dhawan during the chat as the film's lead actor wasn't a part of session. Varun said, "The film has an amazing star cast and I have been Kunal Kemmu's fan since Raja Hindustani. He has often inspired me with his films."

Kunal Kemmu, without taking names in his tweet, shared a cryptic post that read, "Izzat aur pyaar maanga nahi kamaya jaata hai. Koi na de toh usse hum chhote nahi hote. Bas maidaan khelne ke liye barabar de do chhalaang hum bhi oonchi laga sakte hai (Respect and love are not asked for, they are earned. If someone doesn't give it to us it doesn't make us any smaller. Just give us a field to play and we too can take a high leap)."

The seven films that will be releasing online include Akshay Kumar's Laxmmi Bomb, Ajay Devgn's Bhuj, Alia Bhatt's Sadak 2, Abhishek Bachchan's The Big Bull, Vidyut Jammwal's Khuda Hafiz, Kunal Kemmu's Lootcase and late actor Sushant Singh Rajput's last film Dil Bechara, which will be releasing on July 24.

Kartik Aaryan's action film with Tanhaji director Om Raut put on hold.

Actor Kartik Aaryan's action film with director Om Raut has been put on hold as the makers want to shoot the film abroad, which won't be possible for some time amid the coronavirus pandemic. The 3D action film, produced by Bhushan Kumar's T-Series, was to be shot in India and various locations abroad. However, the makers have decided to take up the project at a later date.

"We are doing it (film) later. It is on hold because the film involves a lot of foreign shoot and we can't shoot abroad. The team was to shoot in Hong Kong but it can't happen due to coronavirus. We are figuring out what to do. There were other places also. It is a cutting edge action film," a source close to the film told PTI.

Raut made his directorial debut as director earlier this year with "Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior", starring Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan, and Kajol. The period action film grossed over Rs 350 crore worldwide. The untitled film with Aaryan was his next Bollywood venture. The team is now making changes in the script as they are still committed to make the action movie.