Duncan scores 31 points as Spurs beat Mavs

San Antonio earns 7th straight win with 97-94 victory over Dallas

SAN ANTONIO - Against a team that has a new look and new marquee player, the San Antonio Spurs kept up their winning ways Thursday by sticking to basics — namely, their own franchise player.
Tim Duncan, called the “backbone” of the team by coach Gregg Popovich, led the Spurs with 31 points and 15 rebounds in a 97-94 victory over the made-over Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night.
“Offense, the ball goes through him. On defense, he’s our defender, our rebounder,” Popovich said. “Everybody rotates off him. He’s just really special. We don’t get anything done without him.”

It was the Spurs’ seventh straight win and put them a game ahead of New Orleans in a tight Southwest Division, where Dallas is third and only 2½ games separates San Antonio from fourth-place Houston.
The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for the Mavericks and dropped them to 3-2 since acquiring guard Jason Kidd from New Jersey.
“I thought we had some good looks, maybe a foul here or there,” said Kidd, who had 10 assists and seven points. “But at the end of the game we had our chances.”
Manu Ginobili added 17 points for San Antonio and Michael Finley had 16.
Dirk Nowitzki scored 28 points for the Mavericks. Josh Howard and reserve Brandon Bass each added 16.
“Every time we come down here it’s a highly contested game,” Dallas coach Avery Johnson said. “It’s a big time rivalry. Hopefully next time when we play ... we can finish with one more point.”
The Mavericks will get their chance next month, when they host the Spurs.
“This game didn’t mean much, we’ll see them again,” Dallas guard Jason Terry said. “We’re still a work in progress.”
The Spurs were up by one, 73-72, heading into the fourth quarter. With the game tied at 94, Erick Dampier fouled Duncan, who sank both shots from the line to put San Antonio up 96-94 with 34.5 seconds to go.
Nowitzki missed two shots with less than 30 seconds on the clock, and Terry’s shot was blocked by Bruce Bowen with 3.9 seconds left. The Spurs got the ball back with 3.3 seconds to go, and Dampier fouled Finley with 0.4 left. Finley hit the first of two from the line.
“The effort was huge for both sides,” Ginobili said. “When you play a game like this, you know the effort is going to be there.”
Kidd came out for the last 30 seconds, but said he supported the decision.
“They’ve been together down the stretch,” Kidd said. “I understand what play they’re looking for, so I’m over here cheering for my guys to knock down a 2 or a 3.”
The game was tied four times in the fourth quarter as the teams traded baskets and neither took a lead of more than five points in the period.
Bowen added 14 points for the Spurs and Tony Parker had 10.
After coming out of halftime tied at 47 and staying close more than 5 minutes into the third quarter, each team took turns holding the momentum.
The Mavericks went up by 10 after a 16-4 run that included a 3 from a pumped Nowitzki off a feed from Kidd and ended with a goaltending call against Robert Horry that gave Terry a basket and put Dallas up 67-57 with 3:44 to play.
But the Spurs answered with a 13-1 burst, including two free throws thanks to technicals called on Terry and Johnson in an increasingly testy atmosphere. Finley scored nine points in the surge that gave San Antonio a 70-68 lead with 1:20 to go.
Ime Udoka’s last-second corner 3 put the Spurs up 73-72 with one period to play.
In the first half, Kidd, who has brought a passing mentality to the Mavericks since his return to the team that drafted him No. 2 overall in 1994, accounted for seven of the team’s 11 assists.
Notes: The Spurs lead the season series 2-1. The Mavericks and Spurs meet for the final time on March 23 in Dallas. ... Popovich talked a little presidential politics pregame. Texas’ pivotal primary is Tuesday, but Popovich wouldn’t say who will get his vote. ... Nowitzki went to the line 21 times and hit 17 while the Spurs went to the line 22 times in the game, sinking 16.

MTV won’t be playing Paula Abdul’s new video

Paula Abdul’s video for "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" was a bit of a disappointment for the "Idol" judge. In fact, a source says that the video was never even submitted to MTV. "You can't be rejected if you never formally campaign for it," the source points out.

Paula Abdul wasn’t off base when she revealed to those close to her that she was disappointed with the music video for “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow.”
Despite the fact that fellow “American Idol” judge Randy Jackson pitched in to make the video a touch splashier, Abdul’s mostly recycled dance moves are less than inspiring, and it’s forced MTV to make a decision about airing the video — or not.
“There are currently no plans to play the video,” an MTV spokesperson told OK! magazine. Another music industry insider tells the magazine that not only is MTV not planning to air the video, but no one has even submitted the video to be consideration in the network’s play rotation.

Ralph Nader Picks Former SF Supervisor As Running Mate

Presidential candidate Ralph Nader announced Thursday morning that he has chosen former San Francisco Supervisor Matt Gonzalez as his running mate. The Texas-born Gonzalez ran for mayor of San Francisco as a Green Party candidate in 2003 but lost to Gavin Newsom.

His running mate in 2004 was Peter Camejo
Gonzalez was the president of the board.
As a consolidated city-county, the only such municipality in California, San Francisco does not have a traditional city council.
Instead, the county board of supervisors acts as the legislative branch of government, while the mayor of the city acts as the executive branch.
Gonzalez has been the only San Francisco politician who has mounted a serious challenge to Newsom.
According to the Gonzalez Web site, he lost the 2003 mayoral race 53 percent to 47 percent. 133,546 people voted for Newsom while 119,329 voted for Gonzalez.
Gonzalez has been largely inactive in city politics since then.

Nader Criticizes Top Contenders In Announcement

Nader announced his bid for the White House on Meet The Press.
Nader criticized the top contenders as too close to big business and dismissing the possibility that his third-party candidacy could tip the election to Republicans.
The longtime consumer advocate is still loathed by many Democrats who accuse him of costing Al Gore the 2000 election.
Nader said most people are disenchanted with the Democratic and Republican parties due to a prolonged Iraq war and a shaky economy.
He also blamed tax and other corporate-friendly policies under the Bush administration that he said have left many lower- and middle-class people in debt.
"You take that framework of people feeling locked out, shut out, marginalized, disrespected," he said. "You go from Iraq, to Palestine/Israel, from Enron to Wall Street, from Katrina to the bungling of the Bush administration, to the complicity of the Democrats in not stopping him on the war, stopping him on the tax
In a later interview with The Associated Press, he rejected the notion of himself as a spoiler candidate, saying the electorate will not vote for a "pro-war John McCain." He also predicted his campaign would do better than in 2004, when he won just 0.3 percent of the vote as an independent.
"This time we're ready for them," said Nader of the Democratic Party lawsuits that kept him off the ballot in some states.
Democratic candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton quickly sought to portray Nader's announcement as having little impact.
"Obviously, it's not helpful to whomever our Democratic nominee is. But it's a free country," said Clinton, who called Nader's announcement a "passing fancy."
Obama dismissed Nader as a perennial presidential campaigner. "He thought that there was no difference between Al Gore and George Bush and eight years later I think people realize that Ralph did not know what he was talking about," Obama added.
Republican Mike Huckabee welcomed Nader into the race.
"I think it always would probably pull votes away from the Democrats, not the Republicans," the former Arkansas governor said on CNN.
Nader said Obama's and Clinton's lukewarm response was not surprising given that both political parties typically treat third-party candidates as "second-class citizens." Nader said he will decide in the coming days whether to run as an independent, Green Party candidate or in some other third party.
Pointing a finger at Republicans, he described McCain as a candidate for "perpetual war" and said he welcomed the support of Republican conservatives "who don't like the war in Iraq, who don't like taxpayer dollars wasted, and who don't like the Patriot Act and who treasure their rights of privacy."
"If the Democrats can't landslide the Republicans this year, they ought to just wrap up," Nader added

Texas Republicans cross over to vote for Obama

One of Sen. Barack Obama’s surest applause lines comes about halfway into his standard stump speech. It goes like this:
“They whisper to me. They say, ‘Barack, I’m a Republican, but I support you.’ And I say, ‘Thank you. Why are we whispering?’”
If the latest polling data are to be believed, those Republicans aren’t whispering in Texas, where 195 of the 228 delegates the state will send to the Democratic National Convention will be chosen in a primary and caucuses Tuesday.

As many as a tenth of the Texans voting in the Democratic contests could be Republicans, and overwhelmingly they favor Obama, a first-term senator from Illinois, the polls show.
“I ran for Republican precinct chair. I went to the Republican state convention,” said one of them, Donald Rau of Austin, who has already voted in early balloting. “In this election, I voted for Barack Obama.”
GOP support ‘no longer surprising’A poll released this week by SurveyUSA of Verona, N.J., indicated that registered Republicans would make up 9 percent of Democratic primary voters next week. Michael Baselice, head of Baselice and Associates, a Texas polling firm, said that was in line with what his company was finding.
A bloc that large could make a significant difference for Obama, who holds a large lead over Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York among Texas Republicans, especially in a close race. Polls this week were showing a dead heat in Texas as Obama began pulling even with Clinton.
To be sure, the Clinton campaign is drawing some first-time support of its own among Republicans.
“I’m a Republican. I’ve been a Republican since I can remember,” said Trey Caliva of Lubbock. But “whenever I vote for an executive office, I have to vote for the best person that does the job. And for me that’s Hillary Clinton.”
But by large margins, more Republicans say they are backing Obama.
American Research Group found this week that as Obama has edged ahead among Democrats, at 47 percent to 46 percent, he is drawing the support of more than 70 percent of Republicans who said they were likely to vote in the Democratic primary. The survey, which questioned 600 likely primary voters Saturday and Sunday, reported a margin of sampling error of 4 percentage points.
A survey released Tuesday by Public Policy Polling found that while Clinton led Obama by 52 percent to 44 percent among likely primary voters, Republicans who said they would vote in the primary favored Obama by 76 percent to 20 percent. The survey, which questioned 434 likely Democratic primary voters Saturday through Monday, reported a 4.7-point margin of error.

Google Gives All SF Homeless Free Voicemail

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - Google has made an announcement that could help hundreds of homeless people in San Francisco get back on their feet.
Every single homeless person in the city will be given a life-long phone number and voicemail, should they choose to accept it, NBC11's Lisa Bernard said.

Google is partnering with San Francisco to provide the service to homeless individuals and to shelters and agencies so they can distribute the numbers to their clients.
The announcement was made at a Project Homeless Connect event at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium Wednesday.
A homeless person will be able to call in for his or her messages from any phone.
The move by the city and the company would allow someone to be able to fill out a job application, which asks for a call back number.
It will allow clinics to share test results.
Mayor Gavin Newsom and Google said they want to empower people.
"How do you communicate as a homeless individual? " Newsom asked. "How do you expect your life to turn around if you can't even get information or if someone can't even get in touch with you?"
"It just seems exactly like any other voice mail," said Craig Walker, senior project manager of Google. "There's no stigma attached to it that 'hey this is a temporary thing' or 'this is an 800 number.' It's really just a local number owned by the user."
One man who used to be homeless said the right message can raise the spirit.
"Having your family, friends and loved ones being able to say 'here I'm thinking about you, I love you, I want you to know you're mine, and I miss you,' can have a monumental change in one's behavior."
"Providing phone and messaging capabilities and access to vital health care is an extraordinary step forward in the city's commitment to a comprehensive approach to addressing the needs of this vulnerable community," Newsom said.
"We're firm believers in the power of technology to improve the daily lives of individuals and communities as a whole, and we recognize that access to phone and voicemail services is one way that Google can help San Francisco's homeless stay connected with family, friends, social workers, health care providers, and potential employers," Walker said.
Walker said the program was ready to start right away.
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Users can record their own greetings, and no indication is given to callers that the service is different from any other voicemail system.
If the program is successful in San Francisco the plan is to offer it to homeless people in cities across the state and country.
Homeless clients received phone service as part of their Project CARE (Communications and Respect for Everybody) cases.
The California Pacific Medical Center also launched its pilot program that offered free mammograms to homeless women at the same event.
The outreach effort marked the 21st Project Homeless Connect event at the auditorium.

Ajay's advice to Kajol regarding SRK!

Well do not get excited and jump to conclusions after reading our headline, as we are not about to indulge in yellow journalism! This is a rather interesting incident that took place between Ajay Devgan, Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. It is quite in contrast to the recent stories involving Kajol's hubby Devgan and her advice seeking SMS to Shah Rukh Khan, concerning Raju Hirani's film. And we go!
As per Mumbai based media sources, Kajol was wondering as to why her close friend Shah Rukh Khan had not replied to her SMS about doing Rajkumar Hirani's film. Seeing Kajol being worried about the same, loving hubby Ajay Devgan told her (rather coolly) to call SRK and find out, instead of getting worried the whole day and staring at her mobile, while waiting for a reply from King Khan. Needless to add that Kajol took her husband's intelligent advice rather seriously and did the same. And we know her decision regarding the matter.
For those who are still clueless, as of the moment, Aamir Khan is the only actor finalised for Rajkumar Hirani's next project based on the Indian education system.

Bachchans stay away because of SRK?

Amitabh Bachchan and his parivaar were conspicuous by their absence at the Filmfare Awards function. According to sources, the reason behind is none other than the presence of Shah Rukh Khan as one of the anchors for the show.
According to sources, last year too Shah Rukh Khan had said something Amar Singh, to which he took offence. The following day Amar Singh's party members created a ruckus outside SRK's house and he had to rush from his shooting early to pacify his terrified children.
Later, the actor had said that he wondered why people who cannot take a joke come to the function. He said the function was for the film fraternity and people who attend understand the inside jokes. T
his year it seems that once Amar Singh found out that SRK was hosting the function, he decided to skip it and so did the Bachchans. The official version was that they were still mourning. But just last week, the Big B's family attended the premiere of Jodhaa Akbar, and a few days later, Abhishek and Aishwarya were seen dancing at a function. So it is obvious that the mourning was an excuse to skip the function with King Khan behind the mike.

Amitabh and Rekha together?

Even we were equally surprised as you are on reading this title. Well that was the news, from a section of media reporting about reel life hit jodi Amitabh and Rekha's comeback in a film titled Aladdin, to be directed by Jhankaar Beats fame director Sujoy Ghosh. The yesteryear-superhit jodi will appear onscreen after almost a gap of more than two decades (around 26 years). But sadly the news will settle only as headlines and will not turn out to be a reality as the director, Sujoy, denied about they being together in Aladdin, when we contacted. Further he also confirmed that it's only Big B who is signed for the film, playing the character of 'Gini' and not Rekha. Well all those brokenhearted fans can at least enjoy the news, if not the movie.

India Inc takes on US politicians

The outsourcing debate rages on and this time, India Inc which is facing the heat from US Presidential candidates especially Democrat hopeful Barack Obama who has blamed Indians for the rising unemployment in the country. Corporate India in retaliation has launched a counter-offensive saying India is gifting jobs, not stealing them.An image of Barack Obama echoeing what many of his voters feel - the anti-outsourcing rhetoric - has not surprisingly upset India Inc. But its not something they're going to take lying down.In a counter-offensive, a full-page advertisement published in an American newspaper provides elaborate accounts of how India is "gifting" thousands of jobs to Americans and not "stealing" them.This is not how Obama would have it seem. He's been saying quite the opposite. Sample this excerpt from a Barack Obama speech at a rally in Ohio only two days ago, telling his voters that their jobs have been stolen, taken away by offshore companies that set up in places like China and India:Obama said: "We're here because there are workers in Youngstown, Ohio, who've watched job after job after job disappear because of bad trade deals....They need us to end those tax breaks that go to companies that ship jobs overseas."In fact, Obama has even vowed to curb offshoring by introducing a tax scheme that will reward American firms that do not ship jobs overseas. This undoubtedly is a dangerous predicament for India Inc and hundreds of thousands of BPO workers back home could be at risk of losing their jobs if Obama has his way.According to FICCI, Indian corporate investments in the country were over $10.25 billion in 2007 - but it is the timing of this advertisement which is crucial as well as interesting, coming as it does in the thick of the American debate on outsourcing.Speaking on the advertisement, Sanjay Puri, Chairman of the USINPAC - US India Political Action Committee said he understood the sensitivities where it came from."I understand... because Senator Obama is from Chicago and also a senator from Illinois, but Chicago also happens to be the heart of the Midwest, also the manufacturing base and also part of our big industrial states. So the idea is that hey, Indian companies are coming in and they are working and investing in manufacturing - and it's not just the coast, whether it's New York or San Francisco or the Bay area or California - they are going into the heartland also and investing and that was what they were trying to do," said Puri. He added that the outsourcing issue coming up in the campaign was related to the state of the US economy."It will be an issue directly proportionate to how much the US economy is in a problem, if the economy gets worse you will see that come up more in the dialogue of the presidential campaign," said Puri.

'Terrorism is against Islam'

Leading Islamic Seminary -- Darul Uloom -- and several other Muslim organisations have adopted a declaration denouncing terrorism and declaring it "un-Islamic". The declaration was finalised and adopted at an anti-terrorism conference in Deoband in Uttar Pradesh, which was attended by clerics, scholars and religious leaders from across the country. The conference asked the Muslim community to stay away from the acts of terrorism and organisations that encourage violence in the name of religion.
Founded in 1866, Darul Uloom at Deoband is the oldest Islamic seminary in India and one of the biggest in the world.

Sushmita turns director with Jhansi ki Rani

Actress Sushmita Sen, who dons the director's hat for an upcoming film about Rani Laxmi Bai, says it was destiny which made her a filmmaker.
Jhansi Ki Rani will celebrate the life of the valiant Indian queen who fought British colonialists during the first war of independence 150 years ago.
Sen, also the film's producer, will be playing the queen's role.
"Me directing a film, it's actually destiny," Sen told reporters in Mumbai on Friday. "I was never meant to direct (the film)… it just so happens that I will be directing it."
Laxmi Bai, the gutsy queen of Jhansi often represented in history books as a sword-wielding, horse-riding warrior, challenged the British after they refused to recognise her adopted child as the heir to the throne. Her revolt quickly became a key focus of the 1857 mutiny against the colonial rulers started by a handful of Indian soldiers.
Sen said she was optimistic about acting, directing and producing a film at the same time.
"It's going to be a very formidable task but I hope it will turn out just fine," the actress said.
Jhansi Ki Rani> is slated to open in November 2009.

Marlon Brando rejects the Oscars

One of the biggest controversies to hit the Oscars was when Marlon Brando rejected the award for The Godfather and sent a native American woman, Sacheen Littlefeather in his place, to read a speech that blasted Hollywood for its treatment of Native Americans in the film.As the lady delivered the speech, the hall erupted and resounded with the sound of boos coming from the audience.

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Shah Rukh to play 'Spiderman' for son

After getting six-pack abs to please his son, Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has another dream for the boy. He wants to do an Indian version of the Spiderman as a gift to Aryan who is a big FX and SRK fan.And the director chosen to put together what is arguably the most expensive movie ever made in Bollywood is Anubhav Sinha. The superstar is gung ho about the project. The two are writing the script.Though Sinha is not willing to reveal more details about SRK's "superhero" project, the film will require a 12-year-old boy to co-star with the actor. At the moment, the hunt is on for the boy, who will get the opportunity to join Shah Rukh's fantasy of donning a cape and flying across the sky at supersonic speed.The director, credited with action movies Dus and Cash, is ready to take on the biggest challenge of his career."I'm surprised at how accessible Shah Rukh is for me. I always thought that he likes to work with directors with whom he has a certain comfort level. Shah Rukh didn't know me at all, but he's all for our film together," Sinha told IANS.The character that Shah Rukh will play is based on gizmos, computer games and a superhero on the lines of Spiderman. The superstar is developing the character.Whether he takes credit for the screenplay remains to be seen. At the moment, all systems are ready to start SRK's most expensive movie before the end of 2008.A year ago, Shah Rukh said in an interview that he wanted his company to produce a mega FX film on the lines of Spiderman."I want my company Red Chillies to become truly FX-savvy. Have you seen 300? That's the kind of optical effects I want in our cinema," SRK had said with characteristic gusto.Talks between Sinha and Shah Rukh for the project, which will be made by his production house Red Chillies, have been on for nearly a year."But over the past three months, we've been talking very seriously about the project, thanks to a common friend (journalist Mustaq Sheikh). Yes, it's an FX-driven fantasy for children and the child within every person, on the lines of Spiderman. It's definitely not an animation film, as wrongly reported in some sections of the press, " Sinha said.

"Why was Symonds let off?"

Indian speedster Ishant Sharma has been found guilty of a level one offence under 1.6 of the ICC Code of Conduct and has been fined 15 percent of his match fee for gesticulating towards the pavilion after dismissing Australia's Andrew Symonds.

Following the decision of the Match Referee - Jeff Crowe - the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) maintained that lshant was provoked into acting, and has asked the referee to tell the Aussies to avoid provoking players with their behavior. It is also learnt that Team India's management has written a letter to the match referee appealing for curb on sledging.

However when TIMES NOW caught up with the BCCI Vice President Rajiv Shukla, he said such issues should be resolved on the ground and he saw no reason why the BCCI should get involved.

"Well, so far BCCI has not lodged any protest I can tell you. But initially, after the past controversy it had been decided that these issues must be resolved at the grounds only. So I think the team management and the match referee and the players among themselves could resolve this problem. If the decision is on the basis of a fair judgement and fair hearing, I don't see why the BCCI should get into it. I think certain things must be left to the wisdom of the Match Referee," said Shukla.

The ODI at Sydney between India vs Australia saw yet another controversy involving Andrew Symonds. In the Australian innings of 317, the Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds made a quick fire 59. Just when he was looking dangerous he was dismissed by Indian rising star Ishant Sharma as Symonds was foxed by a slower delivery.

In a very unsportsmanlike behaviour, Symonds first reacted to his dismissal after which Ishant Sharma retaliated by showing Symonds his way back to the pavilion.

The Australian captain Ricky Ponting who was at the non-striker's end was believed to have told the umpire to talk to Team India regarding Ishant's gesture. Umpire Daryl Harper was seen doing just that. Soon, Darly Harper was seen having a word with M S Dhoni and his men.

Level 1.6 of the ICC Code of Conduct states that "Pointing or gesturing towards the pavilion in an aggressive manner by a bowler or another member of a fielding side on the dismissal of a batsman" is an offence.

TIMES NOW has learnt that Team India's Management has written a letter to match referee Jeff Crowe appealing for curb on sledging. Sources say the team is dissappointed that the Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds was let off without any action.

Meanwhile the Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has tried to downplay the entire incident saying, "Probably there is something in the water (here, Sydney), but one should not make too much of these altercations." Dhoni, however, has tried to stay away from commenting on the issue saying that Symonds or Ishant knows the best, but added that he had asked Ishant to cool down.

Are the Aussies playing dirty again?

There's something about Sydney that brings out the worst in Andrew Symonds - the senior pro was seen having a go at the new kid on the block Ishant Sharma mouthing filthy expletives. Ishant, looking slightly taken aback, had reason to feel aggrieved as all he did was get Symonds out.

His mate on the other end, the Aussie captain Ricky Ponting perhaps realising that Symonds was in the wrong, quickly jumped in to retrieve the situation. Incredibly, he went up to the umpires and asked them to control poor Ishant.

Indian cricket fans cannot be blamed for finding all this a familiar sight. It was just like this a month ago at the same venue - the Sydney Oval. At that time, it was Harbhajan; now it is Ishant Sharma, and both are involved in an incident with Symonds.

It is interesting how the Aussies target the one player who they have the most to fear from on the field. Once again, it is Ponting who gets the umpires on the field to issue a warning.

Once again the Aussies succeed in getting players in trouble with the referee - earlier it was Mike Denesse this time it is Jeff Crowe. Harbhajan was slapped with a serious charge of racism and now Ishant has been targeted by the match referee this time for gesturing towards the pavilion.

The latest incident promises to raise as much of a stink as the ugly Symonds-Harbhajan exchange did during the tests, and it raises some big questions too:

TIMES NOW demands to know:

Why has the Match Referee only charged Ishant Sharma?

Should India seek an explanation from the ICC as to why Crowe has acted selectively?

Why is no action being taken against Symonds who delights in abusing the spirit of the game?

Is the Match Referee going by the field umpire's word, who is also an Australian?

Will the BCCI file a complaint against Andrew Symonds?

Newspaper commentary

Newspapers around India have been abuzz with news about this latest spat. The Times of India says:

'After Bhajji,, it's Symonds vs Ishant?'

The Aussie all-rounder muttered belligerently at Ishant Sharma after being clean bowled by the tall lanky bolwer. Not one to take things lying down, Ishant too gave it back and even signalled towards the pavilion, indicating where exactly Symonds should be headed."

Amrita clears air over kiss

Sometime back, Amrita Rao was being considered for a pivotal role in Yashraj’s new film, to be directed by Siddharth Raj Anand and starring Ranbir Kapoor in the lead. The reason, as cited in the media, was Amrita’s refusal to indulge in a passionate kiss with Ranbir [on screen, of course]. Resultantly, Amrita decided to make an exit from the film. Amrita had been maintaining a silence about the entire episode, but she decided to clear the air when this writer questioned her about this raging controversy.“I opted out because I had reservations about certain things. Kissing was never an issue. I really don’t understand how this issue [kiss] cropped up in the first place, when the fact is that the issue was something else altogether,” Amrita divulges. So how did the Chopras take to Amrita’s refusal? “Adi [Aditya Chopra] understood my point of view. He wasn’t upset, nor did he throw a fit. He assured me that we’d work again, in the future,” she states. While on Amrita, although she didn’t have a Hindi release in 2007, Amrita will have four releases in 2008, starting with E Niwas’ My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves, Shyam Benegal’s film, Neeraj Vora’s Shortcut and Victory.

Zayed becomes father

Zayed Khan became a proud Papa yesterday. The actor’s wife, Malaika Khan, delivered a baby boy at Mumbai's Breach Candy hospital early Friday morning.The baby boy has been named Zidaan as Zayed was really keen on having his child's name start with Z. The actor is thrilled to bits on seeing his bundle of joy and feels the child resembles both Malaika and him. Here's wishing them tons of good wishes on this happy occasion.

Kareena my true love: Saif

Chhote Nawab has finally come out in open and accepted that he is 'extremely and completely committed' to Kareena Kapoor and would like to spend the rest of his life with her. Saif, who has just wound up filming for Kunal Kohli's next in Bangkok, is very confident about his relationship with Kareena. "I'm extremely and completely committed. I've found true love and I'd like people to respect that as much as I do," he said. Kareena is known to be volatile and both she and Khan come with a baggage of failed past relationships, but Saif dismissed concerns that could impact his current relationship with Kareena. "A lot of people say a lot of things. She's the most wonderful person I know," he says. Kareena started dating Shahid Kapoor in 2004. The two are believed to have split in August while Shahid was away in Toronto filming for Aziz Mirza's next. Kareena and Saif acknowledged being an item in October at the grand finale of the Lakme Fashion Week. Saif married actress Amrita Singh in October 1991 but the couple divorced after 13 years of marriage and two children in 2004. Following his divorce Saif dated Italian Rosa Catalino but the two broke up in 2007. The 37-year-old Saif is now all set to take his relationship with 27-year-old Kareena to the next level and commit to a life together. Kareena and Khan co-star in Yash Raj Films' forthcoming Tashan and became close during its filming earlier this year. When tabloids first reported their romantic linkup Kareena, who was still in a publicly acknowledged relationship with Shahid Kapoor, denied the reports contending Saif was just a friends. Later, when she broke up with Shahid it appeared she had dumped him for Saif. Saif implicitly acknowledged the problem. "We do live our lives in the public glare. We're open to people passing judgment on us. I've no problem with that," he says. Saif completed filming for Kunal Kholi's next in Bangkok five days ahead of schedule and he is taking advantage of that by holidaying in Hong Kong, accompanied by daughter Sarah, son Ebrahim and new found love Kareena

RGV wants to make Sholay again

Ram Gopal Varma is a changed person. No longer willing to make films at the drop of a hit. No more the dial-a-quote wizard, this maverick moviemaker has mellowed but says he may remake Sholay again notwithstanding the "Ram Gopal Varma Ki Aag" fiasco."Yes, I agree Aag was a special flop. The reason I didn't speak is because there was nothing to say. I went into a phase of introspection. I now feel I was making films lately with a certain frivolous even callous attitude," Varma told IANS. "I was also making press statements for effect, for shock value. I decided to keep quiet for a while. High time I stopped talking stupidly," he added.Asked what lesson he has learnt from Aag, Varma said, "That I need to get it right. Ramesh Sippy was right. I was foolish to attempt Sholay the way I did. At some point of time when I'm ready, I want to do it again. This time I won't make the same mistakes."Many people are thinking that Varma had gone into hiding, but he differs and says he was busy with new projects. "Why would I hide? I've made flops before. I have been shooting my new film Contract in Mumbai and Bangkok, besides shooting the balance and post-production of Sarkar Raj, which releases in May.Varma says that he has learned a lesson from Aag. "Nobody realises mistakes until he gets a solid slap. Aag was that slap. Making a success isn't in my hands. But making sure that I make films with objectivity is something I can do, and I will."

Aamir gets Best Director award

Aamir Khan's Taare Zameen Par has stolen the show at the 53rd Filmfare Awards in Mumbai on Saturday.Aamir has won the Best Director award for the film, while young actor Darsheel Safary won the Critics Award for Best Actor.Shah Rukh Khan and Kareena Kapoor bagged the Best Actor and Actress awards for Chak De and Jab We Met respectively.

Darsheel, SRK win Filmfare awards

The 53rd Fair One Filmfare Award 2007 was a Taare Zameen Par spectacle with child actor Darsheel Safary bagging the Critics Award for best actor for his portrayal of Ishan Awasthi, an 8 year old battling Dyslexia.Aamir Khan was adjudged the Best Director for his directorial debut Taare Zameen Par.Tabu was awarded the Best Actress in the same category for the movie Cheeni Kum. Shah Rukh Khan starrer Chak De India bagged the Critics Award for Best Film.It was celebration time for the Kapoor clan when the lover boy of yesteryears Rishi Kapoor bagged the Lifetime Achievement Award. First film co-star Dimple Kapadia presented Rishi Kapoor with the Lifetime Achievement award.Kareena Kapoor won the Best Actress award for her role as Geet Dhillon in Jab We Met. Ranbir Kapoor got the Best Male Debut award for Film Saawariya.Life in Metro couple Irrfan Khan and Konkona Sen Sharma got the Best Supporting actor male and female award respectively for the same film.A R Rahman received the Best Music director for film Guru, while Shreya Ghosal got the Best Playback singer (female) award for the same film.Shaan got the Best Playback singer male award for film Saawariya while music director Monty Sharma got the R D Burman award for promising music talent.Prasoon Joshi was given the best lyricist for song Maa from Taare Zameen Par, while Imitiaz Ali got the best dialogue award for his romantic comedy Jab we met.

Arshad, Bipasha claim racial abuse

Less than a year after Shilpa Shetty became the victim of racism in Britain, two Bollywood actors Arshad Warsi and Bipasha Basu have alleged that they were also racially abused while filming in the country.Bipasha Basu and her co-actor Arshad Warsi were verbally roughed up by a group of white men while they had been shooting a scene for their latest film Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal near Glassy Junction, a popular Indian pub in Southall, west London, some months back.Interestingly, these claims come just days after their film was released.

'Our Oscar selection is racist'

An award is as good as it's juryOne could judge a film only if one is equipped to understand the craft. Oscars have a certain technical standard when it comes to the jury. It's the Academy awarding the industry; peers judging their own contemporaries. Oscars may not be the most authentic one every time yet their strike rate is pretty high. A small film like Good Night, and Good Luck qualified for nominations in six categories including Best Motion Picture only because the Academy recognises the value and talent seeded in such films. Though Academy's discretion is not unquestionable at times. It's an old story how Citizen Kane now taught in film schools, never won an Oscar for Best Picture or Direction. Yet, Academy won't award a film that doesn't understand its craft. That's precisely why one can't ignore the Oscars. Filmmakers who look for real recognition will always value Oscars. Why do you think Aamir Khan doesn't attend any of our home awards but goes for Oscars? Un-fortunately for a nation as glamour struck as India the only thing that charms the majority about the Oscars is their American stamp.Our awards are only a mockeryTake any popular film award in India, it's headed by a jury that's completely film illiterate and absolutely star smitten. Our judges are such madcaps that they completely succumb to the populist cinema and box office success instead of acknowledging talent.If I ask someone today how they rate a Rajendar Kumar or a Manoj Kumar as an actor, he or she would laugh. But for our moms or grand moms these Kumars were stars. So they deserved to be nominated and awarded. Similarly the coming generations will laugh at those who you or I think are our favorite stars. Our current awards are completely stardom driven.They should rather be called blockbuster awards not film awards!Look at Raja Hindustani, which not just won the Best Film award at Filmfares but also the Best Original Screenplay award when everyone knew it was a copy of our own Jab Jab Phool Khiley! Who are we fooling at our awards?The year Hazaar Khwaishein Aisi came, Black was declared the Best Film not just in the Popular Awards category but the Critic's Choice as well. Hazaar Khwaishein Aisi wasn't even considered worthy enough of being mentioned. Aziz Mirza and Manisha Kiorala, the revered Jury members rather chose Black which was a copy of The Miracle Worker in a hammy sort of way. That's why I say these are anything but film awards!Bollywood is full of arrogant empty headsBollywood at its best is only a variety entertainment programme production industry. Only money and clout speak. Talent and potential get lost in the barrage of popular cinema. Only those who can afford to build gaudy, cheap bungalows that resemble a cheap movie set, get to call the shots in this industry. In our industry's belief system the biggest hit becomes the best. Look at Om Shanti Om. It's a copy of Karz which in itself was a copy of Reincarnation of Peter Proud. We are making copies of copies then one day we turn around to say don't call us Bollywood, that smacks of subservience to Hollywood. Really! I say we deserve to be called Bollywood only.Our own racism causes India's Oscars failureWe are too supercilious to choose a good, small film in front of a big, second rate film. Why do we have to debate only between a Paheli or a Black? In one word, our industry is racist. This north Indian racism is undermining our talent. Why can't we look beyond? Although the year we decided to look beyond, we chose Jeans. I think we have completely lost it. FFI broke my heartThe Film Fedration of India jury can only choose from the films already short-listed by the FFI. Being a jury member this time, the first thing that I asked was why didn't we have a single Malayalam film short-listed? I was told that those film directors don't have enough money to get their films subtitled. Now isn't that both ridiculous and appalling? Why can't FFI get their films subtitled? We ourselves disrespect our talent. Our Oscars tally would have looked so much better only if we had acknowledged Ray's talent. I have been here for last 25 years and I know people who laugh at Ray. We are repeating our mistake and ignoring the talent of such heavyweights like Adoor Gopalakrishnan. Time we rewarded our own small filmsThere's no dearth of good independent cinema in India, cinema that doesn't always cave into the irrational pressures of populist taste and the economy of blockbusters. Just that, these films are not able to rub shoulders with megastarrrer, multi-crore budget films and are forced to pale into insignificance due to lack of adequate recognition.I, with like minded fellow filmmakers, am spearheading a movement to re-define excellence in cinema. As part of a group called Indian Independent Filmakers, we are planning to start our own film festival and awards that will appreciate and reward films which dare to step out of the hackneyed formulae that Bollywood seems to have mastered. Small or big won't be a cirtierion, good cinema will be the bottomline.We will have a truly international jury comprising of filmmakers from all over the world. For once I am sure I would be able to say with confidence " May the best film win"!

MP bans Jodhaa Akbar

The woes for Ashutosh Gowarikar's magnum opus Jodhaa Akbar seem to be unending. Now it's the turn of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Madhya Pradesh (MP), who have suspended the screening of the film. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that the film has been suspended fearing a law and order problem in the central state. If that wasn't enough, some theatres in Punjab and Bihar have also banned the film from being screened and a low-intensity blast was reported outside a Mumbai theatre, which was screening the film. Meanwhile, UTV has sent out a press release stating, "We have today moved to the Madhya Pradesh (MP) High Court to lift the suspension on the screening of Jodhaa Akbar and we will take the matter to the Supreme Court if need be."The entire film industry, including producers, distributors and exhibitors are up in arms against this order of the State Government. The censor board has passed Jodhaa Akbar without any cuts and the onus is now on the respective authorities to ensure the film is screened across the country without disruption. We will fight this till the end." The decision of the court will decide the fate of the film in MP.

'Shahrukh, learn from Aamir'

Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss has reignited the smoking controversy, once again taking a dig at Shahrukh Khan saying icons who passed off smoking on screens as "artistic liberty" should take a leaf out of Aamir Khan's book on how to use the artistic tool. Ramadoss has rubbed many the wrong way and made many a controversial comment but this time he was all praises for none other than veteran actor Aamir Khan for his role in 'Taaren Zameen Par' where he plays an art teacher who brings a dyslexic boy out of his shell with the insight from his own experiences as a child.The Health Minister said, "Look at 'Taare Zammen Par' - tha is what creative liberty should do... Creative liberty should be used to improve society and not kill mankind." It was clearly a compliment to Aamir but an apparent attack on another actor super star, Shahrukh, whom the minister had not so long ago slammed for depicting smoking in his films.King Khan then took on the Health Minister, defending the light up on screen saying it was their creative liberty of artistes. "I think there should be a huge amount of creative freedom that should be allowed in cinema and arts and one should not go around and picking on small little things - because that's just cinema and make believe and that should be allowed, we should not have huge censorship on that," Khan had said.If one may recall, recently Ramadoss had even pulled up the actor for smoking in the stands while watching a 20:20 cricket match in Mumbai.The war of words between the minister - a strong supporter of the anti-tobaco lobby - and an actor who supports creative liberty shows no signs of stubbing out.

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Kosovo protestors attack UN policeKosovo protestors attack UN police

Violent protests rocked Serb-dominated northern Kosovo on Friday, as mobs chanting ''Kosovo is ours!'' hurled stones, bottles and firecrackers at UN police guarding a bridge that divides Serbs from ethnic Albanians.

The scenes evoked memories of the carnage unleashed by former Serb autocrat Slobodan Milosevic the last time Kosovo tried to break away from Serbia, which considers the territory its ancestral homeland.

There were disturbing signs the riots in Belgrade, Serbia, and in Mitrovica have the blessing of nationalists in the Serbian government. The government hopes somehow to undo the loss of the beloved province, the site of an epic battle between Serbs and Turks in 1389.

Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica's authorities have repeatedly vowed to reclaim the land, despite US and other Western recognition of Kosovo's statehood.

Some hard-line government ministers have praised the violent protests as ''legitimate'' - and in line with government policies of retaining control over Serb-populated areas.

In Washington, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said it was time for Serbs to accept that Kosovo is no longer theirs. She also suggested it was time to drop centuries of grievance and sentimentality in the Balkans.

Serbian President Boris Tadic called an emergency meeting of the National Security Council and said the rioting that engulfed the capital must ''never happen again.''

Kosovo's ethnic Albanian leaders declared independence from Serbia on Sunday. The province, which is 90 per cent ethnic Albanian, has not been under Serbia's control since 1999, when NATO launched airstrikes to halt a Serbian crackdown on ethnic Albanian separatists. A UN mission has governed Kosovo since.

The US ambassador to Serbia demanded that authorities do more to guarantee the safety of foreign diplomatic missions after nationalists in Belgrade set fire to the US Embassy in riots on Thursday that left one dead and more than 150 injured.

The State Department ordered nonessential diplomats and the families of all American personnel at the embassy to leave Serbia after the attack.

The EU warned Serbia that the embassy attacks risked harming efforts to bring the Balkan nation closer to the EU.

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Movie Name : Jodhaa Akbar
Year of Release : 2007
Release Date : 12 October 2007
Genre : Action, Drama, Romance, Epic

Banner : Ashutosh Gowariker Productions
Presenter : UTV Motion Pictures
Producer : Ronnie Screwvala, Ashutosh Gowariker
Executive Producer : Sunita A. Gowariker

Co-Producer : Zarina Mehta, Deven Khote, Ronald D’Mello
Director : Ashutosh Gowariker
Cast : Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai, Sonu Sood, Punam S. Sinha, Raza Murad, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Suhasini Mulay, Ila Arun, Rajesh Vivek, Pramod Moutho, Surendra Pal, Visswa Badola, Pramatesh Mehta, Shaji Choudhary, Manava Naik, Disha Vakani, Abeer Abrar, Indrajit Sarkar, Aman Dhaliwal, Nikitin Dheer
Music Director : A. R. Rahman
Lyricist : Javed Akhtar
Cinematographer : Karan Deohans
Story Writer : Haidar Ali
Dialogue Writer : K. P. Saxena
Screenplay Writer : Haidar Ali, Ashutosh Gowariker
Editor : Ballu Saluja
Art Director : Nitin Desai
Production Designer : Nitin Desai
Action Director : Ravi Dewan
Costume Designer : Neeta Lulla
Sound Designer : Stephen Gomes
Background Sound : A. R. Rahman
Make-up Designer : Madhav Kadam
Line Producer : Lawrence D’ Souza
Choreographer : Chinni Prakash, Rekha Chinni Prakash, Raju Khan, Ash Kumar
Publicity Designer : Epigram
Photographer : Sameer Belvalkar
PRO : Buzz
Visual Effects : Pankaj Khandpur, Sherry Bharda, Vishal Anand
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NIIT to train engineers for Chinese IT city

hina's upcoming IT city of Wuxi has signed an agreement with India's National Institute of Information Technology (NIIT) for training and creating a pool of software engineers.
A NIIT spokesperson said that a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed in the presence of Yang Weize, Party General Secretary of Wuxi and G. Raghavan, President of individual learning solutions at NIIT.

The company had also signed last week another MoU with Wuxi New District with similar objectives for the district.

According to the spokesperson, the IT training firm has also signed an agreement with Wuxi provincial government to set up IT training centres and offer training programmes.

NIIT's Raghavan has been appointed as Chief Consultant for Wuxi city. His main task will be to identify and built IT infrastructure in collaboration with the local government.

Raghavan stated that NIIT had first entered the Chinese technical educational sector a decade back.

The institute currently partners 129 universities and colleges in China.

IT training market in China is expected to grow at 24 per cent a year in the next two years. Going by that trend, there was a need to create about five million software engineers by 2015 in that country, NIIT added.

SRK set to drive you 'Krazzy'

Here is none other than the Badshah of Bollywood in his much talked about item song in Rakesh Roshan's 'Krazzy 4' - Shahrukh has strutted his stuff to the title track of the film and Hrithik Roshan is also expected to perform an item number for 'Krazzy 4'.Now before we drive you crazy with anticipation - here's SRK doing what he does best - driving us Krazzy with a K...

Aditya Chopra files for divorce, to marry Rani?

MUMBAI: He made the hugely popular Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge and the not so brilliant Mohabbatein , soared at the box office with Dhoom and Chak De , and is now all set to direct Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi . But finally, hot-shot film producer and sometime director Aditya Chopra's penchant for romance on the big screen may get a legal entry into his real life this May. Movie mogul Yash Chopra's son is finally on his way to ending his marriage with Payal Khanna and perhaps making a new beginning with current beau, actress Rani Mukherjee. Chopra's films may have a rambling, leisurely feel, but the mutual consent petition he filed a couple of months back is a crisp two-page affair. There's no storyline here. As the law requires, it merely says that the husband and wife have irreconcilable differences and want out. Their married life of five-odd years is headed nowhere, they have told the family court in Bandra. The mandatory six-month cooling-off period required after filing a mutual consent divorce petition will get over this May for the producer. It took three joint meetings with their lawyer for the two to set their divorce process in motion. Their lawyer advised them and they agreed not to mention the terms of settlement in the court documents, opting instead for an out-of-court arrangement. As there are no children involved, heartache is at a minimum. Aditya's family is not too happy with his decision. Family sources say that his parents love their daughter-in-law and would like to take care of her even after the formal split. She has, in any case, been given a spacious home in Juhu and her bank balance has been augmented by several crores. Yash Raj Studios, which has churned out blockbusters and is worth an estimated Rs 1,000 crore, owes its success to the 36-year-old Aditya's brains. The quiet, soft-spoken producer prefers to keep a low profile in the media and his interviews are hard to come by. Aditya's marriage, it is believed, started falling apart about two years ago. In the first half of 2006 he almost moved out of his house, said sources close to the family. Better known as Adi in the film industry, he returned from the outdoor shoot of Karan Johar’s film Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna but instead of going home checked into a five-star hotel. An adamant Adi had insisted then that he would not come home, even as his parents tried to reason with him. He apparently wanted Payal to move out of the house before he returned home. He even allegedly threatened to start his own production house, said industry sources. Payal then decided to move to Singapore for sometime so that Aditya would return home and work. The sprawling and swanky Yash Raj Films studio at Andheri link road with its state-of-the-art set up has apparently been designed by Payal. She had worked relentlessly for years to put up the new YRF studio.

Salman’s sixer in six weeks

Salman Khan who plays a rugged police officer in Boney Kapoor’s Wanted Dead Or Alive had to shed weight to get the much-in-demand six-packs for a climax scene. Wanted Dead Or Alive is a Hindi remake of Prabhudeva’s Pokkiri A source close to the actor says “Salman has a near perfect body but when the director Prabhu Deva, suggested him to get a six pack abs for a specific climax scene, he decided to work hard towards it.” It is believed that Salman managed to impress his director in just six weeks. “Salman is very dedicated towards workouts. In fact he gave up alcohol first to get into shape and worked hard in his gym to get the perfect six pack look as required for the scene.” adds the source. Our source adds that director Prabhudava was extremely happy with the result. He appreciated Salman’s effort and shot the scene in which the actor goes shirtless and flaunts his six-pack. The shoot took place at Mumbai’s Mukesh Mills. Wanted Dead Or Alive also stars Ayesha Takia and Vinod Khanna in pivotal roles.

Ranbir takes on Salman?

Ranbir 'Butt' Kapoor is enjoying his stardom and singleton status. Recently he was spotted having dinner with Sallu Bhai's girlfriend Katrina at a suburban night club. No big deal, since they are doing a film together. But if we go down memory lane... wasn't Salman and Ranbir involved in a famous night club brawl few a years ago? We wonder why the young dude's playing with fire again...

What was Aftab doing in Hansikaa's room?

Love is in the air, at least on the sets of Money Hai Toh Honey Hai. One fine day, the cast and crew of the film began asking actress Hansikaa Motwani what actor Aftab Shivdasani was doing in her room. Shocked by the question, she tried her level best to explain that Aftab had never entered her room and that they had got it all wrong. After thirty minutes of justifications and explanations, Hansikaa could bear it no more and almost began crying, when Govinda told her that it was just a joke they were playing on her. Now that's enough smoke for a loved up controversy.

Harry Potter makes his way to Tussaud's

Actor Daniel Radcliffe made his debut at the Madam Tussaud's Wax Museum on Monday.
At 17 Radcliff is the youngest actor to be immortalised into a wax figure of his own. The Potter star's model is dressed in a suit and tie but the wizard's trademark spectacles are missing.
The trigger factor for his wax model being put up was Equus, the play in which Daniel Radcliffe starred.
Ben Lovette, the press officer of Madame Tussauds believes that the first time critics in the UK realised Daniel Radcliffe was an acting talent in his own right.
“He'll be looking at other film roles, other stage roles and I think people will identify with him not just one particular film franchise,” he said.

That's why we were so keen to launch Daniel here with his trademark red carpet suit rather than anything else,” added Lovette.
Radcliffe shot to fame with his boy wizard role as the lead in J K Rowling's novel adaptation of the Harry Potter series.
The fifth sequel of the film Harry Potter: The Order of the Phoenix is ready for its European premiere at London's Leicester square and the timing couldn't be better for the model's unveiling on Tuesday.
Radcliffe's waxwork will feature alongside Hollywood biggies such as John Travolta, Samuel L Jackson, in the museum's Blush area.

Time for real life romance for Harry and Hermione?

Washington: Harry Potter stars Daniel Radcliffe and Emma Watson are dodging rumours that cupid has struck them after they were spotted getting cosy on a secret Valentine's Day date.
According to reports by the Mirror, the young stars were seen while they were visiting the Imperial Arms in Fulham, west London, at 10pm on 14th Feb.
"They arrived quite late at the pub - about 10pm - and sat outside, using each other's bodies for warmth,” Contactmusic quoted a source, as telling Mirror.
It was also revealed that Emma, who was wearing a black top and pashmina, kept looking around "nervously" and at one point cloaked her face with her scarf.
"The pair seemed totally absorbed in one another's company, though - they were chatting and joking easily until just before closing time," said the source.

The couple know each other since seven years, after they first met on the sets of the first instalment of the boy-wizard series— Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone.
While Emma was seen hanging out with Razorlight front man Johnny Borrell recently after a London Fashion Week Vanity Fair/Burberry event, she denied any romantic link-ups saying: "I only met him at that was all".
Radcliffe also recently called it quits with his former-girlfriend and ‘Equus’ co-star Laura O'toole, though they remain friends.

Just 30-plus, Ash wants to write autobiography

Ash has been planning to write an autobiography for sometime now.

All is well with Fashion, say Madhur and Priyanka

Mumbai: Madhur Bhandarkar and Priyanka Chopra are taking fashion very seriously these days. We caught the actor-director duo at a South Mumbai college attending a fashion show organised by fashion designing students.
At the event the two cleared the air about all the controversies surrounding their upcoming film Fashion.
So is it true that Priyanka insisted that the climax of the film be changed so that her character doesn't appear pregnant in the end as per the original script.
“This is a complete rumour and I don’t even know where it started from. Madhur is with me here and I can say that nothing like that ever happened. We have sat together and discussed the film,” Priyanka said.
While Madhur chipped in saying, “Whenever a film is made the climax is always open to discussion.”

Point taken. But what about all those juicy details about Kangana Ranaut and Priyanka not getting along?
“We all have a blast on the sets. It’s a lot of fun,” Priyanka clarified.
Taking the matter more seriously, Madhur said, “I don’t know who is spreading these rumours. The girls have been working together for over a month and there have been no problems.”
So we learned one thing from the duo – never believe rumours or should we say never believe what actors say. We leave that one open ended.

V for Victory for Zardari, V for Vendetta for Pak govt

Islamabad: Amid the uncertainty over government formation in Pakistan, the Musharraf regime has revived a 10-year-old corruption case against PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, who is accused of stashing $55 million in kickbacks in Swiss bank accounts.
In a move seen as a pressure tactic against Zardari, whose party won the most seats in Monday's general election, lawyers representing the Pakistan government yesterday urged a Swiss court in Geneva to prosecute him on accusations that he and his wife, slain former premier Benazir Bhutto, took bribes from Swiss cargo inspection companies and hid the money in the Alpine country.
The case stalled last year after Musharraf struck a "reconciliation" deal with Bhutto under which all corruption charges would be dropped, Pakistani media said.
But lawyers argued on Thursday that the charges should proceed inspite of the amnesty deal, saying the Pakistan Supreme Court's decision on the National Reconciliation Ordinance (NRO) was expected "in a few weeks".
Pakistan's Swiss lawyer Dominique said Zardari's name "appears on each page (of the dossier) as the beneficial owner of offshore companies."

Zardari's lawyer, Severio Lembo said "There has been no ruling in 10 years. Why? The answer is simple - because this is all political".
The three-judge bench announced at the end of a 90-minute hearing that it would soon rule on whether to send the case to the prosecutor for trial, or back to a magistrate for more work.

Cast of Money Hai... go gaga over Govinda

Mumbai: When most movie stars are asked why they signed a particular film, chances are they will say the script enticed them. Which is why it's refreshing to meet the cast of Money Hai Toh Honey Hai who openly admit that the only reason most of them came on board for this project, was the opportunity to work with Govinda.
Actress Hansika said "I am very fortunate to have worked with Govinda, I've learnt so much from him, it seemed as if I was in an acting school since five years."
"I always wanted to work with Govinda ji and it was an absolute pleasure working with him in this film," said actor Aftab Shivdasani.
The biggest draw in a cast of relatively younger actors, is not exactly Govinda's presence but his infamous slapping incident on the sets of this very film. The incident has kept Money Hai Toh Honey Hai in the news for some weeks now.
Making light of the incident, even the film's director sportingly accepts the reason people are talking about his film these days.

"Well the reason why Mony Hai Toh Honey Hai has been in news is probably because of the slapping incident," says Ganesh Achariya, the director of the film.
The cast of the film was sporting and gave some really interesting answers when asked— who gets the money and who gets the honey?
"You'll have to watch the movie and find out," said Govinda, While Manoj Vajpai had another interesting take on the subject as he said "Well who ever has the money has the honey."
All of just 16, Hansika said,"It's not about who gets the money or the honey, all the six characters get the money and the honey," While Aftab said, "What is more important is how they get the money and not about who gets the money."
But the best answer came from actress Celeina Jaitely as she said, "Well as the mantra of the life goes I want both the money and the honey."
Talk about having your cake and eating it too.