Censor raises finger on Preity's next

Filmmaker Deepa Mehta whose forthcoming film is the Preity Zinta starrer Videsh (earlier titled Heaven on Earth), has run into a spot of trouble with the Censor Board.

During a screening session last evening, the Censor Board felt that the film shows too much violence being inflicted on Preity and consequently insisted on some cuts, which would make the film look less gory. The film is based on domestic violence.

Now, Deepa Mehta has to once again show the edited version to the Censor Board before she gets the green signal to release the film.

Deepa Mehta’s representative who was present at the screening wanted a U/A certificate, but the Censors refused to relent unless several violent scenes where Preity is battered by her husband (played by Vansh Bhardwaj) are toned down.

Vinayak Azad, Regional Officer, Censor Board, confirmed and said, “We have asked them to tone down the domestic violence scenes by 50 per cent. And we had one more objection. The film has used expletives too, which will have to be either beeped or deleted.”

“We will review the film once again after they make the cuts which we have asked for,” Azad added.
Incidentally, Preity received the Silver Hugo Award for best actress in the Feature Film Competition section at the 44th Chicago International Film Festival, for Videsh.

Preity was quite disturbed after she shot for the scenes in which she was beaten up and humiliated by Vansh. Talking about the experience of working in Videsh, Preity had said in an interview, “I remember asking a woman, who was a victim of domestic violence and had left her husband, what the turning point in her relationship was and she said, ‘I told my husband if you want to beat me, beat me in the bedroom, don’t beat me in front of the family.’ I could never understand that. It’s terrible. I really didn’t know what it was to be in a situation like this till I actually did the film.”

MORE HERE >>>

‘Preity is a gift’ - Deepa Mehta

NRI filmmaker Deepa Mehta, whose latest venture on domestic abuse, called Videsh in India and Heaven On Earth abroad, is ready for release in India, was so impressed by actress Preity Zinta's intelligence and talent that she has no qualms in saying that she is a "gift from above".

"Preity is extremely talented.

I had seen her body of work but I met her, for the first time, at IIFA in England.

We spoke about so many things and issues.

I was blown away by her intelligence and social consciousness and that's what made me offer her the role of Chand.

She has truly given a mind-blowing performance," Deepa told reporters.

Preity won the Best Actress award at the Chicago Film Festival last year for her performance in the film.

She has also been nominated alongside Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon at this year's Genie Awards that will take place in Canada in April.

The film, which revolves around the life of a young woman (Preity) from the rural hinterland of Punjab who migrates to Canada post marriage, is set to hit screens March 27.

While it will be released as Videsh in India, it opened to international audiences as Heaven On Earth.

Videsh is a film very close to my heart and I really enjoyed making it.

The film is about two things.

One, the triumph of imagination and two, about immigration and isolation," explained Deepa, who has earlier made women-centric films like Fire and Water.

"Domestic abuse is the major theme of this film.

But that's not the only thing the film deals with.

Domestic abuse has an environment and a socio-economic atmosphere.

It can happen to anyone anywhere.

I have also tried to portray the isolation and the pain of a woman who has migrated to another place," she added.

The Canada-based filmmaker's forthcoming projects are Exclusion with Akshay Kumar and a film based on Salman Rushdie's book Midnight's Children.

MORE HERE >>>

Preity Zinta describes Dubai Film Fest experience as 'Heaven on Earth'

Actor Preity Zinta's Last Lear was prominent at several international film fests and now the Deepa Mehta-directed Heaven on Earth , too, is doing its bit around the globe. Only recently, the movie was screened at the Dubai Film Festival (2008). "Such films give you creative satisfaction. You don't do it for the money or any other commercial aspect. You do films like Heaven On Earth simply because they are brilliant scripts and address an issue... You feel proud to be part of such movies," says actor Preity Zinta, who also attended the 'Cinema against Aids 2008' function at the Dubai fest.

About the reaction of the audiences there, Preity Zinta said it was 'encouraging'. "You get to meet people who are crazy about films. And it's great to talk films with them. Festivals give you a chance to be exposed to different cultures, and different forms of filmmaking," she said.

Apparently, Deepa Mehta gave Zinta very short notice, and was surprised that her actress even made it there. Mehta said, "I didn't expect to see Preity in Dubai at such a short notice. It was very sweet of her to come since Heaven On Earth is as much her film as mine." The Dubai Film Fest was a double celebration of sorts for Deepa, as her brother, Dilip Mehta's film The Forgotten Woman was also screened there.

Attended by the likes of Salma Hayek, Goldie Hawn, Nicolas Cage... this fest proved to a Heaven on Earth experience for all those who attended it!

MORE HERE >>>

Preity's phone panic!

The last few days have been traumatic for Preity Zinta's near and dear ones in India.

The actress who has been away for three months first for The Unforgettable concerts, and then the Toronto Film Festival, suddenly went missing last week. No one seemed to know where she was.

Filmmaker Deepa Mehta who was with Preity in Toronto was also clueless. "She left Toronto after winning accolades for her performance in my film (Heaven On Earth). After that, I haven't heard from her," Back home in Mumbai, no one seemed to know where Preity was. To top the panic, the actress didn't even show up in Mumbai on Monday as scheduled.

The panic ended on Tuesday when Preity re-surfaced with a startling tale. "My phone folded up. It shut down on me. All my numbers, important documents including details of my return ticket were on it. I had to miss my flight because I had no details. I had no way of getting in touch with anyone since all my numbers were on my phone. Even my mom had no way of contacting me. I had to call her from a pay phone," Preity said from Calgary just before leaving for Mumbai.

She continues, "My phone's now been sorted out. So's my ticket. I'm finally on my way back. I can't tell you how relieved I am. I have four back-to-back releases coming up."

Preity's troubles didn't end with the phone. "In Toronto I discovered that all the clothes I had brought for the Festival were too large for me. Don't ask me how. I had to go around stores in Toronto and pick up whatever I could get in my size."

Red, incidentally, is Preity's lucky colour. She bought a red dress for the screening of Heaven On Earth in Toronto. "And it worked. Because the audience really seemed to connect with the film and my character. I've had so many women coming up to me in Toronto telling me they've gone through domestic abuse. It makes me feel I've started something which I now need to carry forward," said Preity. "I have lots to attend to in Mumbai. I'm getting the Smita Patil Memorial award and I'm so excited."

MORE HERE >>>

Preity starrer Heaven On Earth to be screened at the Toronto Film Festival

Deepa Mehta's Heaven On Earth is to be screened at the Toronto Film Festival on 6th September at the prestigious Elgin theatre.

"It's the venue of all serious-minded films at the Toronto Film Festival meant for a discerning audience. Last year, the Coen Brothers' No Country For Old Men premiered there. This year I'm proud to have my film there in the 'Special Representation' section," says Deepa.

The film's leading lady Preity Zinta joins Deepa in Toronto for the Festival screening. "And that's when Preity will dub her portion of the film in Hindi", informs Deepa. The Punjabi film is now being dubbed into Hindi as a two-language film on the insistence of the film's Indian distributor Ravi Chopra. However, Deepa insists that the Hindi version will have a very restricted screening. "The language of the film is Punjabi," she insists.

And now begins the struggle to find the right voices to dub the Punjabi characters. "The entire cast barring Preity is from Toronto. They can only speak English and Punjabi." Deepa arrives at Mumbai next week to supervise the Hindi dubbing of Heaven On Earth. "Preity will have to do her portions in Toronto after her world tour with the Bachchans and also attend the Toronto Festival screening."

MORE HERE >>>

I'll always be there for Shekhar: Preity

Controversies aside, actress-cum-business woman Preity Zinta says she has the deepest respect for internationally acclaimed director Shekhar Kapur and that she will be always there for him.

"Shekhar is very special to me because he is the one who brought me into this industry. Though that film did not take off, I will always be grateful to him for bringing me to the film industry. I have great respect for him and I will always be there for him," Preity told IANS in an interview.

Kapur, whose ex-wife Suchitra Krishnamurthy blamed Preity for her divorce, had signed the actress for " Ta Ra Rum Pum " that was to be directed by Vishal Bharadwaj.

"But the film never took off due to some problems. We sat for a few meetings and worked on the scripts but things did not fall in place so we just let it go," Preity said.

Is she doing any film with him now?

"No, he did not approach me again."

What are the films that Preity is working on now?

"I have a lot of films which I have completed shooting for."

Preity said she has completed Jahnu Barua's "Har Pal", Rituparno Ghosh's English film "The Last Lear", Samir Karnik's "Heroes" and Deepa Mehta's Punjabi film "Heaven On Earth".

Out of these, Preity considers "Heaven On Earth" as the most intense film of her career.

"It is the best film I have ever done. If I am 80-years-old and if someone asks me which film do you want to show people, I would say 'Heaven On Earth'.

"Though 'Har Pal' and 'Heroes' are also very close to my heart, I think 'Heaven On Earth' was altogether a different journey for me."

The film has a host of award-winning actors from stage and is expected to hit the marquee later this year.

As far as "Har Pal" is concerned, Preity said she had a great time working with legendary actor Dharmendra.

"It was a lifetime experience of working with Dharamji and I had a blast with my co-star Isha Koppikar. The script is 200 percent original. Every one would think that 'Har Pal' is a serious movie, but let me tell you that it is a hilarious film with the right emotions."

What about your relations with 'Har Pal' co-star Shiney Ahuja?

"Relations are fine with him, but we are not best friends. He is a good co-star."

The actress, who has featured in commercially successful films like "Dil Chahta Hai", "Koi... Mil Gaya" and "Kal Ho Naa Ho", thanks Bengali director Rituparno Ghosh for introducing her to meaningful cinema.

"He opened the doors to working in meaningful films. I want that when I look back after 10 or 20 years, I don't have only 'masala' films to my credit. I want to see myself as part of meaningful films as well. It is because of him that I got 'Heaven On Earth' and I want to thank him for that."

In "The Last Lear", Preity teams up with Amitabh Bachchan, Arjun Rampal, Divya Dutta and Shefali Shah.

About "Heroes", Preity said it is a multi-starrer - a new genre of film with separate stories that have a common connection.

Besides Preity, it also stars Salman Khan, Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol, Mithun Chakraborty, Sohail Khan, Dino Morea, Vatsal Sheth, Amrita Arora and Riya Sen.

MORE HERE >>>

Priety Zinta back in Action

Preity Zinta has put the highs and lows of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and her Mohali team behind and is busy with as many as four pending films and looks forward to the Bachchans' world tour.

Back to work: After a well-deserved break, Preity is now raring to go. She says, "I didn't realise how much I had put behind. I've so much pending work. Four films are at different stages of completion. I've to immediately start dubbing for Harr Pal and Heroes. Then I leave for the world tour with the Bachchans."

For Prem: In Heroes, she is paired opposite one of her favourite co-stars, Salman Khan. And she has even agreed to do a cameo in the Salman-Kareena Kapoor starrer Main Aur Mrs Khanna. "It's Salman's home production ... and he is a buddy. But it's not an item song but an interesting cameo. And I've agreed to be in the film because the director, Prem Soni, is a dear friend. And since Salman has played Prem so often, let's just say this one is for Prem," she chuckled.

On Deepa Mehta: Preity is also excited about her Punjabi film Heaven On Earth with acclaimed director Deepa Mehta. And the filmmaker has apparently said that Preity is the best actress she has ever worked with.
"I love Deepa for that. When she signed me for the film, she told me she wanted the actress, not the star. That sounded so corny. But when I reached Toronto to shoot Heaven On Earth I knew exactly what she meant. I'm dying to see the complete film," she says.

IPL downside: Looking back on the IPL experience, Preity says – "it was one helluva learning experience".
"It was very annoying to hear rubbish like 'Preity sat on a cricketer's lap'. Does it make any sense for me to make a public spectacle of myself? I mean that's hardly me. I don't sit on people's laps," she remarked.

The Bright side: The actress, who was the co-owner of Kings XI Punjab, stressed that it was a positive experience on the whole. "I learnt a whole new definition of ‘on-field bonding’. As a film actor I've always worked in a team ... but not in this way. Here, on the field I was hands-on.
"I loved the Sri Lankan and Australian boys. Some of the Australians would hardly utter a word. I had to make a special effort to make the younger inexperienced Indian players comfortable. Now I know that having bonded together in spite of being from different spaces, they'd understand team spirit much better."

Her Eq: Preity was unabashedly demonstrative during the games and it got people talking. "I showed my emotions spontaneously. I hugged, I cried and I cheered when I wanted. If that was misconstrued by some, so be it. I was having a good time learning so much about cricket and human behaviour.
"As for the spoilsports, they can't be helped. There were people who cribbed about not being invited to the matches. The IPL experience made me realise who my friends are."

All in the game: Preity admits that there was a sense of loss when her Mohali team lost at the penultimate match in Mumbai, but she still defends her team stoutly.
"I can't say my team played badly at Mumbai. We did go right up to the semi-finals. And that was no mean achievement. Next time we'll go right to the top."

The future: Though next time is far away, Preity says she would be better prepared at that time. "A lot of planning has to be done for the next IPL matches. The first time was a huge learning experience. And we need to make sure we don't make the same mistakes again. I also need to learn how to avoid getting crowded. This time I nearly lost an eye in the jostling. But I thoroughly enjoyed the IPL experience. Being on the field with the boys made me understand the importance of solidarity on the job. I guess it has made me a more mature person," said the actress-entrepreneur.

MORE HERE >>>

Preity Zinta takes art route

Pretty girl Preity Zinta is changing tracks with a vengeance. With an obvious attempt at shedding away her bubbly tag, especially after the box office failure of her high profile films like JAAN-E-MANN and JHOOM BARABAR JHOOM, she has headed for art house cinema.

One may term her films as meaningful, parallel or offbeat cinema but the fact remains that each of her upcoming films is a far cry from the cute and effervescent image that she has built for herself over the years. Whether it was her initial stint with the likes of SOLDIER and KYA KEHNA or her recent crop of films like SALAAM NAMASTE, VEER ZAARA and KOI MIL GAYA, she was finding herself trapped in a particular brand of cinema.

2008 may just about manage to change it all where she is working on number of art/offbeat films. These are:

Har Pall (directed by Jahnu Barua)
Heroes (directed by Samir Karnik)
The Last Lear (directed by Rituparno Ghosh)
Heaven On Earth (directed by Deepa Mehta)

Joginder Tuteja, Bollywood Trade News Network

MORE HERE >>>

Preity plays a 'bad' actress

Arshad Warsi and Preity Zinta share an identical predicament. They've to play 'bad' actors in their latest films. While in Anil Kapoor's production, Shortcut, Arshad plays bad actor, in Rituparno Ghosh's Last Lear Preity is cast as a bad actress.

That isn't the only problem the actress had to face. Preity had a very real problem on the sets of Jahnu Barua's Harr Pal. Pritam Chakraborty has done the music score. Every time someone mentioned his name she thought they were calling out to her, because Pritam is the name given to her by Bobby Deol.

Harr Pal has been one of Preity’s toughest roles ever. But the role of the Punjabi NRI wife in Deepa Mehta's Heaven On Earth has been her toughest yet. She's still carrying the invisible wounds of the battered wives' character. The shooting was wrapped up on Sunday.

Doing Rituparno Ghosh's Last Lear posed its own problems for Preity. She had never worn a sari or a bindi in her life. "Suddenly Ritu-da asked me to stick on bindis that were almost as large as my face. Initially, I was most reluctant. But then I surrendered completely to his vision. I'm actually looking pretty in Last Lear." Even the international critics have noticed. The reviews make a special mention of Preity.

In its review, Variety mentions, "It's an interesting paradox to watch a star like Zinta deliver a good performance as a woman who's widely known as a bad thespian."

Subash K Jha, Bollywood Hungama

MORE HERE >>>