Entertainment

Dino Morea on working with Mammootty

After impressing one and all with his character Shaibani Khan in ‘The Empire’, Dino Morea is all set to play an antagonist once again in the Mammootty and Akhil Akkineni starrer ‘The Agent’. The film will mark the Bollywood actor’s debut in the Telugu industry. ETimes caught up with Dino for an exclusive chat where he spilled the beans on the film, why he is attracted to negative characters, working with South superstars and more. Excerpts…You are making your debut in Telugu with ‘The Agent’. Do you feel like a debutant for a different set of audience?Yes, I am making my debut for the Telugu film industry, and I do feel like a debutant for this audience because this audience is aware of me but has not really seen me. They are mostly only used to seeing Telugu films. For instance, yesterday I was promoting the film in a place called Warangal. These are small towns and that’s how they promote films over here. There were about 10,000 people who had just come for a pre-film release event, and it was insane. The love they have for cinema there is just nuts. Yes, I am nervous and I do feel like a debutant. It is like I am starting all over again. After ‘The Empire’, this is the second time you will be seen playing an antagonist. What attracted you to this character?The story largely attracted me because it is about three characters: Mammootty sir’s character, my character and Akhil’s character. We are three raw agents. I am just the agent who went rogue for some reason. It was the story that attracted me to do this film. Also, I say it’s good to be bad. And playing bad gives you few limitations on what you can do with your character. So if you are playing this kind of role, there is madness you can bring into the performance that can be attractive to any viewer. This role gave me scope for better acting.

You sport a rugged look in the movie. What went into creating that look?Most of it has been my director, Surinder Reddy’s vision. He worked with me on it and visualised what he wanted. We kept changing the look on my face. And in the film, I changed my look a couple of times. He wanted the character to be a little fluid, to sometimes look formal, and to sometimes look crazy. And that was the madness he wanted in the performance.

Did you have any reference points while preparing for your character?Not really. We just wanted to bring our own madness in, and acting wise, my director again knew exactly how he wanted me to play this character. Surinder sees the whole film in his head. I saw it a certain way, but he saw it in a different way. To be honest, I went with his vision because, ultimately, he knows exactly what the audience loves to watch. The acting I did in Empire is far different from the acting I have done here. And I am quite curious to see how it turns out in terms of the audience reaction. I am assuming they will like it because Surinder makes commercial films and he knows exactly what the audiences want. So I just submitted myself completely to the director, and said, “You tell me what you want, and I will give it to you.”

How was it working with Akhil Akkineni and Mammootty?This is my second film with Mammootty sir. I did a small part in a film called ‘Kandakonden Kandakonden’, a Tamil film, long ago, and that was my first experience working with him. I am now working with him after about 18–20 years. We all know that Mammootty sir is one of the finest actors we have in this country, so watching him on set was an absolute pleasure. Doing scenes opposite him and with him is just outstanding because our characters oppose each other in this film, and for me, I felt it was always a challenge. I wanted to prove myself and just be fantastic in front of him. So while watching and observing, I was also trying to get better, and that just brings out the best in every actor. Likewise with Akhil, he’s young and he’s got so much energy. His fitness levels are great, and he’s looking great in the film. Besides working, our off-screen camaraderie is also outstanding. We struck up a really good friendship. The experience of shooting this film has been fantastic. They really made me feel welcome because this is my debut film in Telugu. I totally respected and loved the experience.

Dino Morea, who will soon be appearing in the Telugu movie ‘The Agent’, spoke about his experience collaborating with Mammootty and Akhil Akkineni.

Entertainment

‘Jawan’ to mint Rs 70 crore on opening day

With a 5 am show in Kolkata, a 6 am one in Jaipur and tickets flying off the proverbial shelf, Bollywood theatrical releases — most recent being “Gadar 2” and “OMG 2″ — are raking it in.Mumbai-based trade expert Komal Nahta agreed with Biji’s estimate.”The situation is crazy across single-screen theatres and multiplexes both. It is difficult to predict the business. It will at least do Rs 70 crore on day one (in India),” Nahta told PTI.In Delhi, the film releases ahead of the G20 Summit on September 9-10 with several heads of state, including US President Joe Biden, set to attend the event. While the city will remain open during the weekend, restrictions will be imposed on a small part of the NDMC area.Bijli said he is not worried about the theatrical business taking a hit in central Delhi because of G20 restrictions. It would mean four PVR theatres — PVR Plaza, Rivoli, Odeon and ECX Chanakyapuri — shut during the summit.”They are single screen theatres with a total capacity of about 2,000 seats so that really wouldn’t have much of an impact because the loss for that will be compensated by the fact that Delhi has a four-day weekend,” he said.About 30-35 per cent of the film’s business will come from the South, which again is bigger than the numbers made by “Pathaan”, added Bijli.The buzz around “Jawan” is also high in south India as a majority of the cast and crew hail from the region, said Chennai-based trade analyst Ramesh Bala.”The advance booking is looking good all over India, certainly so in the South as well. There are early morning shows in the south. It is a big release here for all the states combined because the cast and crew are from the South.”So the buzz is more. Looking at the advance booking response for the film, I think on day one, the film should do Rs 20 to 25 crore from the South market, and overall, it should do Rs 70 to 75 crore across India. If the movie is reasonably good, then the lifetime business of the movie will be Rs 800 to Rs 1,000 crore,” Bala told PTI.It’s not just in the South.Theatre chain Miraj Cinema, which has 182 plus screens across India, said it has already sold 28,000 tickets.”Due to overwhelming public demand, we’ve broken new ground by adding a 5 am show for a Hindi film in Kolkata, a first in our cinema’s history. Jaipur will experience the earliest screening at 6.05 am in Hindi, setting a record for the city,” Amit Sharma, MD of Miraj Entertainment Ltd, said in a statement.Senior distributor and exhibitor Raj Bansal, said many theatres in Rajasthan will also hold early morning shows of “Jawan” due to the unprecedented response.”After almost 30 years in Rajasthan, we are having 6 am shows for ‘Jawan’. In the past, this happened with Amitabh Bachchan’s ‘Hum’,” Bansal, director of Jaipur’s three-screen multiplex Entertainment Paradise, told PTI.In Mumbai, Gaiety-Galaxy, a prominent single-screen theatre, about 90 per cent of its seats are sold out.”Almost 80 to 90 per cent booking is done so far; by Thursday it will be houseful. We are happy with the golden run of movies in theatres, especially in single-screen theatres. I think because of ‘Pathaan’ and ‘Gadar 2’, the business in single screen has revived. The industry has bounced back in a big way. With ‘Jawan’ things are looking positive,” Manoj Desai, executive director of Gaiety, Galaxy and Maratha Mandir Cinema, told PTI.As screens open up for advance bookings in various cities, the Tamil and Telugu versions of the film are also seeing enthusiastic support although the Hindi version is naturally taking the lead, Ashish Saksena, COO – Cinemas, BookMyShow, said in a statement.”What is interesting to note is that the Hindi language version of the film has seen maximum interest from markets in South and East India such as Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Chennai amongst others,” he added.According to Bijli, 2023, particularly the months of July-August, have been great for the exhibition sector with the back-to-back successes of both Hollywood and Hindi movies such as “Mission Impossible 7”, “Oppenheimer”, “Gadar 2”, “OMG 2” and “Dream Girl 2″.”Movie going (experience) has come back. ‘Jawan’ has a lot going for itself. The film has Shah Rukh Khan, who has delivered ‘Pathaan’, a Rs 525 crore movie,” he said.That film releases on Janmashtami, when many people celebrate the birth of Lord Krishna, and a weekend follows one day later is expected to boost sales.Rajkot-based distributor Ajay Bagdai said the advance booking for “Jawan” looks promising as Gujarat will have a holiday weekend due to Janmashtami.”At my theatre in Rajkot, we have 1,100 seats and so far we have sold about 750 tickets, only for September 7. On the first day, the pan-India business should be at least around Rs 50 to 60 crore,” Bagdai added.

Shah Rukh Khan’s next movie “Jawan” is expected to outperform the opening day grossing of “Pathaan” from earlier in the year. It is projected that Jawan should reach nearly 70 crore in earnings on its premiere day at the theaters.

Entertainment

Salman Khan warns against fake casting agents

Shah Rukh Khanfor an action packed spy drama, titled ‘Tiger vsPathaan’.

In a recent post on social media, Salman Khan cautioned his followers to beware of phony individuals, vowing to give innocent persons roles in his movies. The actor released a declaration on behalf of his studio as well. Soon, audiences will be able to witness Salman Khan’s performance in ‘Tiger 3’, the movie also featuring Katrina Kaif and Emraan Hashmi.

Entertainment

Aamir enjoys Wimbledon 2023 finals with kids

Aamir Khan was spotted at the Wimbledon 2023 finals in London with his children, Junaid, Azad and Ira, where they enjoyed the match together. Popular Bollywood celebrities such as Sonam Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, and Nick Jonas also attended the event.

Aamir Khan and his kids, Junaid, Azad, and Ira, could be seen at the 2023 Wimbledon finals in London together, savoring the match. Celebrities like Sonam Kapoor, Priyanka Chopra, and Nick Jonas who are superstars in Bollywood were at the occasion.

Entertainment

With Katrina, it is always a ‘Merry Christmas’

CELEB LOOKS

Nature’s girl

Katrina is known to be a huge nature lover and here she is seen sitting pretty amidst flora and fauna

Instagram

Mornings like these

We think the diva looks flawless even when she wakes up in the morning. Don’t you agree?

Instagram

Festive fervour

The actor, who looks as gorgeous in Indian wear as Western, strikes a pose in this pastel salwar kameez

Instagram

Girl next door

Sultry diva or girl next door? Katrina, who recently turned 40, aces many avatars with elan

Instagram

Click happy

The actor posted this pic thanking her insta family that now boasts of 74 million people!

Instagram

Glam girl

Katrina, who carries off the glamorous look with panache, looks stunning in this shimmering golden dress

Instagram

Floral fantasy

Katrina shows you why a good floral pant suit is a must in your wardrobe

Instagram

Rock and roll

This zig zag chic dress with thigh high slits on either side is perfect for the summers

Instagram

Cozy corner

Katrina looks so radiant and fresh in this pic as her eyes do all the talking. Don’t miss her luscious locks!

Instagram

Green brigade

The actor poses in a green swimsuit atop a yacht and does she not look mesmerising?

Instagram

Thanks For Reading!

Next: Bollywood star kids making their debut in 2023

Entertainment

Prasoon Joshi to watch ‘OMG 2’ today

AfterCBFCwas slammed recently for passing Om Raut’s ‘Adipurush’ with zero cuts, Amit Rai’s ‘OMG 2’ was referred to the Revisting Committee by the Examining Committee, ahead of its release.Prasoon Joshi, Chairperson of CBFC will reportedly be watching the film today. According to reports, usually the Chief Executive Officer of the CBFC, Ravinder Bhakar, awards the certificate.His signature is seen on almost all the censor certificates. However, in the case of ‘OMG 2’,Prasoon Joshihimself will go through the film and make a decision accordingly, the report inBollywoodHungama stated.

The report added that he has decided to spearhead the Revisting Committee as the CBFC wants to be fully sure that ‘OMG 2’ doesn’t have any scene or dialogue that can cause a problem.

Prabhas, Kriti Sanon and Saif Ali Khan starrer received a huge backlash from the audience for its dialogues and scenes. The film received mixed reviews from the audience and the critics alike.

Meanwhile, ‘OMG 2’ stars <a href=”https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/topic/akshay-kumar” class=”” data-ga=”Click-Hyperlink