Actress Taapsee Pannu, who will next be seen in the forthcoming movie “Naam Shabana”, says she is proud to be part of the changing phase of Indian cinema where women-centric films are becoming a reality.

“When I entered the film industry, it was going through the change and I knew that people are ready to receive experimental content, but never thought I will become part of that change with a film like ‘Pink’. I feel proud to witness and be a part of new age Indian cinema. I think I am very fortunate,”

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The actress thinks “Pink” brought about “almost like a revolution in cinema” with its telling of a tale which conveys that when a woman says “no”, it strictly means so.

She says it’s “unbelievable” how “people have started debating about women’s issues, girls’ safety and gender equality” using “Pink” as a reference point.

Starting her career in 2010 with Telugu film “Jhummandi Naadam”, Taapsee acted in various south Indian films before debuting in Bollywood with “Chashme Baddoor” in 2013. However, she was noticed for her action-packed performance in “Baby”, directed by Neeraj Pandey.

Her character in “Baby” is what has resulted in its spin-off “Naam Shabana”, produced by Pandey and directed by Shivam Nair.

Since it is her second film with Pandey, asked how has her equation evolved with the filmmaker, she said: “It’s still the same. Neeraj Pandey is a man of few words. Therefore, I had to be very conscious on set, and he helped me to learn the mind of the character that lies in between the lines.”

“It’s very interesting to essay such a character because I do not relate to Shabana at all.”

Whether it is “Pink”, “Baby” or “Naam Shabana”, though there is a strong projection of female characters, all these films were driven by male stars like Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar.

So, do these films receive appreciation because of star power or content?

“There is no denying the fact that star power matters, but what would be best for our film is to utilise that for telling a substantial story. You see, in ‘Naam Shabana’ for instance, where actors like Akhay Kumar and Manoj Bajpayee are also involved, I am taking the centrestage.”

“It shows how they are supporting a good story with their full conviction. In fact, Akshay is a co-producer of the film,” Taapsee said.

“Naam Shabana” is releasing on March 31.

IANS

India’s ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who keenly awaits the release of “M. S. Dhoni: An Untold Story” — a biopic by filmmaker Neeraj Pandey — says at first he was hesitant to give a nod to the project as he thought what kind of a film can be made on him as he doesn’t have any villains in his life.

Sushant Singh Rajput starrer M.S. Dhoni biopic to release on September 2, 2016

The film, which stars Sushant Singh Rajput in the title role, has been co-produced by Dhoni’s longtime friend Arun Pandey. Dhoni, who was in the capital on Tuesday to promote the film along with Sushant, Pandey and Fox Star CEO Vijay Singh, said when Pandey came to him with idea of a biopic, he first took him lightly and felt a bit hesitant.

“I didn’t pay any attention to Arun when he came up with this idea first. But problem took place when he quickly came back and said that we have finalised the deal. So then I couldn’t back off. I thought that making the film will take a lot of time,” Dhoni said in a chat with actor and host Gaurav Kapur. “

After that I opened up and told them what I went through throughout my life. I was born in 1981 – a time when education was given more importance than sports. The good thing was that there was not much family pressure on me. It was more time management.

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“This film is informative in a lot of ways because people, who know me in Ranchi, don’t know what I did in Kharagpur when I lived there for four years. After that from 2004 till now I played internationally. This movie to some extent brings everything together,” he added.

Dhoni said when he was approached for the project, he thought on what context of his life the film will be based on.

“Initially I was thinking what context they will make the movie on. There is no villain in my life. So it’s mainly about decision making and be humble in your life,” he said.

Asked whether he feels pride to be idolised by many or feels the pressure, Dhoni said: “It’s the pride factor more than pressure because I have always believed in taking control of things patiently.

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“To me taking it positively is more important than taking it as a pressure. I always felt great about the fact that I come from a small city and I got a lot of love and affection there.”

“M. S. Dhoni: The Untold Story”, which will release in 4,500 screens in India and around 1,000 screens abroad on Friday, will showcase Dhoni’s life from his childhood days till the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

However, Dhoni, 35, said that there should not be a sequel to the film as it will be “very controversial”. “I don’t think we should think about a sequel as it will be very controversial. After 2011 there were only controversies and nothing else (in my life). Nothing else is there. There will be only villains in it,” Dhoni said.

The film also stars Anupam Kher, Rajesh Sharma and Bhumika Chawla.

(With IANS inputs)

‘MS Dhoni – The Untold Story’ is just four days away from release, and is set to unearth unknown and untouched aspects of MS Dhoni’s life. Dhoni’s fans are expecting to know even the minutest of details regarding his life, but it seems it’s not going to happen.

Neeraj Pandey, director of the movie, revealed that some scenes have been removed, despite being there in the movie. One of the scenes from the trailer in which Sushant Singh Rajput was seen discussing with the selectors for removing three cricketers from the ODI team has been cut. “The scene is there in the film,” Neeraj Pandey said. “It’s just that we have decided not to take the three names that are taken during the course of the particular meeting.”

“We have decided not to go with it considering that it will be perceived in a different taste, and also keeping in mind that there’s considerable amount of respect for the three cricketers.”

Pandey said that the makers didn’t want to give any kind of chance, which would create unnecessary fuss, and blown out of proportion. “I smelt chance more than controversy,” Neeraj Pandey explained. “I quite agree that it would have been blown out of context and out of proportion, and do more damage than good.”

“Plus, the fact remains that these are cricketers who have served the nation, and it could have been taken in the wrong way,” he concluded.

One of the most-awaited movies of this year, the biopic made on the life of Indian cricket captain MS Dhoni, has been delayed by a few weeks. MS Dhoni – The Untold Story, which was earlier slated to release on September 2, will now hit the big screens on September 30.

Fox Star Studios, co-producers of the biopic, in a statement informed about their decision of postponing the release date. Presenting the movie in a ‘best way’ has been given as the reason of delaying the release. The delay will also give the post-production team to do better work on the visuals created by the director Neeraj Pandey.

“It was a unanimous decision to release the film on September 30,” Vijay Singh, CEO, Fox Star Studios, said in the statement. “This would give the team some more time to present the film to the audiences in the best way.”

The biopic features Sushant Singh Rajput, who is essaying Dhoni in the movie, while Kiara Advani is playing the role of Sakshi Singh Dhoni. Anupam Kher, Disha Patani and Bhumika Chawla are also playing prominent roles in the film.

Recently, a teaser trailer of the biopic was released. It received thumbs up from fans and critics, generating a lot of curiosity. The poster of the movie was also liked by the fans. In the teaser trailer, Sushant was seen as a ticket collector, and his appearance was taken positively.