Sajid Nadiadwala : Kick Success Celebrations Still On

Salman Khan in a still from Kick

Striking gold at the box office with his directorial debut Kick, producer Sajid Nadiadwala said celebrations have not stopped at his and actor Salman Khan's residence. (Also read: Salman Khan: There's No Formula to Guarantee Super-Hit Movies )

As a producer, Sajid with his production house Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment(NGE) Pvt Ltd had scored a hat-trick with films Highway, 2 States and Heropanti doing good business.

Starring Salman and Jacqueline Fernandez, Kick has reportedly garnered Rs 147 crore worldwide since its release on July 25.

"It has been a very special Eid. NGE started the year with a bang and 'Kick' has added to it. It's been euphoric. Celebrations at Salman and my residence have not stopped," Sajid Nadiadwala said.

Going forward, Sajid's next releases as a producer are Ranbir Kapoor- Deepika Padukone's Tamashaand Saif Ali Khan- Katrina Kaif's Phantom. Both the films will be releasing next year.

Rita Ora: Dakota Helped Me Overcome Acting Fears in Fifty Shades of Grey

Singer Rita Ora will make her acting debut with Fifty Shades of Grey starring Dakota Johnson as the lead actress

Singer-actress Rita Ora has admitted that she had to have someone saying her dialogues through an earpiece because she kept forgetting her words in Fifty Shades of Grey.

The 23-year-old singer, who landed the role of Mia Grey in the erotic drama, said she was so nervous that she could not remember her words, reported Contactmusic. (Also read: 50 Shades Of GreyTeaser is the Most Watched Trailer of 2014)

"I had to have someone in my ear on set telling me what to say before I said it because I was honestly like so nervous. I forgot everything that I had learnt," she said.

However, the blonde beauty credits her co-star Dakota Johnson - who plays the leading lady Anastasia Steele - for helping her get over her first-time acting fears. "She's (Dakota is) a great friend of mine and she really eased me, and it was really nice of her to take care of me," said Rita.

Robert Downey Jr Wants to Shop for Unborn Daughter

Mr Downey has sons - Indio, 20, with ex-wife Deborah Falconer, and Exton, 2, with Susan.

Actor Robert Downey Jr wants to take out time to shop for his unborn baby girl.

The 49-year-old and wife Susan Levin will welcome a daughter in November and the former is planning to shower her with "blizzard" of gifts, reports contactmusic.com. (Also read: For Robert Downey Jr His Son is the Priority )

"I haven't had much time to shop for her yet, but when I do it's going to be a blizzard," he said. (Also read: Robert Downey Jr, Angelina Jolie are the highest paid actors in Hollywood )

The Iron Man star has sons - Indio, 20, with ex-wife Deborah Falconer, and Exton, 2, with Susan. 

Spotlight on the Stars: James Franco

Howdy ladies and gentleman For this week’s spotlight piece, I wanted to go ahead and take a look at a rather unique A-lister. Someone who vacillates between humongous Hollywood blockbusters and odd little independent films, always doing his own thing. The A-lister in question? None other than James Franco. He’s many things to many people, but he’s unquestionably a star. He’s given a few incredibly good performances, but he’s never a boring actor to watch. He’s easily one of Tinseltown’s most interesting actors to follow. Almost constantly engaging in some form of art, Franco is at his core, just that…an artist. He may be a bit of a weirdo to some, but he’s an A-lister regardless and deserves this tribute.

Franco wasn’t always considered a “weird” star. He got his start basically as a heartthrob. He first came on to people’s radars when he was cast in the cult Judd Apatow television show Freaks and Geeks, though he became someone to really watch when he played James Dean in the TV movie of the same name. From there, he shot to the A-list by playing Harry Osborne in the Spider-Man trilogy from Sam Raimi. In Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2, and Spider-Man 3 he built up his star power, but at the same time he was trying to become a leading man in things like Annapolis, City by the Sea, Flyboys, The Great Raid, and Tristan + Isolde. Between those movies and the Spidey trilogy, he was someone you expected to be a serious actor. That made his comedic turn (a Golden Globe nominated one, at that) in The Pineapple Express all the more interesting. From there, he began to branch out even more, playing Alan Ginsberg in Howl, taking an acclaimed supporting role in Milk, and of course his Oscar nominated tour de force in 127 Hours.

He has since made a name for himself by trying just about anything once. After he made his debut guest starring on television programs in the late 90′s, Franco has gone on to amass nearly 100 roles to his credit. It goes well over 100 when you factor in that in addition to acting, he’s an author, a director, an editor, a producer, and a screenwriter as well. He’s even done the cinematography for one of his filmmaking projects. Lately, between bigger flicks like Oz the Great and Powerful, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and This is the End, he’s lent his talents to smaller works like Spring Breakers and his own filmmaking outings. His directorial projects have included mostly student films and experimental works, though As I Lay Dying is probably the closest he’s made to a traditional piece of cinema, and trust me when I say it’s far from that.

This weekend, Franco has another of his weird directorial endeavors hitting screens in Child of God. It’s a tough watch, adapting this Cormac McCarthy story, but Franco continues to show that he’s got a future behind the camera. I don’t think he’s aced one of these yet, but he’s getting closer and closer. It’s possible that his upcoming William Faulkner adaptation The Sound and the Fury will be another step in the right direction.

It’s probably worth mentioning that he didn’t fare too well as the co-host of the Oscars, but I’ll somewhat defend him by saying that he was far from terrible and wasn’t a choice that made too much sense to begin with. Franco is not a generic leading man, so to try to box him in as a goodwill ambassador of sorts just wasn’t a mixture that was ever going to be a raging success.

Overall, Franco is without question a very talented actor with a wide range of interests. Going forward, he’s got an awards hopeful later this year in True Story, which should at least have him under consideration from the Academy. He’s also got another riotous comedy in The Interview. One day, I think Franco could become a nominee for one of his directorial projects. That day isn’t here yet, but if it does, Franco could very well become the most powerful A-lister in Hollywood. He’s definitely one of the most unique, so it could only be a matter of time here…

Stay tuned for another look at an A-lister next week!

Commonwealth Games 2014: Boxer Vijender Singh Packs a Punch After Wrestlers Win Four Silver for India

Glasgow: Star boxer Vijender Singh packed a punch while assuring himself of a medal in what proved to be a good outing for Indian pugilists after the country's wrestlers continued to excel winning four silver and a bronze on seventh day of competitions in the 20th Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Wednesday. (CWG Day 6 Highlights | Results | Medal Tally)

Satyawart Kadian (men's 97kg freestyle), Bajrang (men's 61kg), Lalita Sehrawat (women's 53kg) and Sakshi Malik (women's 58kg) won a silver each while Navjot Kaur bagged a bronze in women's 69kg. (Indian women's hockey team out of medal contention)

In the ring, Vijender outclassed Trinidad and Tobago's Aaron Prince in men's 75kg category. The 2008 Olympic bronze medallist won 3-0 on points in an unanimous decision of the three judges. (Indian stars reach round of 16 in badminton)

The first round was a bit subdued with both the boxers trying to get a measure of each other. Vijender played a bit defensively and Prince attacked more. One judge out of three gave 10-9 points to Finch while the other two gave in favour of Vijender with identical scores. In the second round though, Vijender's flurry of punches landed on his opponent who was in difficulty to fend them off. (Usain Bolt denies foul-mouthed criticism of CWG)

A straight jab and then a right hook punch from Vijender rattled Prince. The tempo continued in the third round and Vijender won comfortably at the end. For the wrestlers, it was a far cry from yesterday's three-gold burst but was still a creditable performance, as they swelled the overall tally in the sport to 10.

As many as four Indians entered the final and one made it to the bronze medal round through repechage.

Placed sixth in the overall standings, India's medals tally now stands at 41 with 10 gold, 19 silver and 12 bronze.

Pinki, who had beaten Olympic bronze medallist Mary Kom in the national trials to make it to the Indian CWG team, outclassed her Papua New Guinea opponent Jacquiline Wangi in a unanimous 3-0 decision by the judges in the semifinal bout.

Devendro outclassed Aqeel Ahmed of Scotland 3-0. In men's 69kg division, young Indian boxer Mandeep Jangra also assured himself of a bronze in his debut Commonwealth Games by advancing to the semifinals after his opponent failed the medical test ahead of their quarterfinal bout.

India have so far won a total of three gold, five silver and two bronze from wrestling. The best Indian who looked like winning a gold was Satyawart Kadian in men's 97kg freestyle but the remaining three finalists came a cropper in the bout that mattered the most.

Kadian led 2-0 on technical points against Indian origin Canadian Arjun Gill in the first period of three minutes but squandered it as his opponent came back strongly in the second period to run away with the gold, much to the huge disappointment of the Indian camp who sat all day long in search of a gold.

The final bout ended in a tense situation as the scoreboard showed both wrestlers tied 4-4 on technical points but the judges awarded the gold to Gill as he won the last point from the bout. Jangra, the Asian Championships silver-medallist, who has won two rounds so far in the event, will now be up against the winner of the clash between Canadian Custio Clayton and Northern Ireland's Steven Donnelly.

The 21-year-old, a protege of former Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Akhil Kumar, was declared the winner after his rival, Daniel Lewis of Australia, failed to get the doctor's clearance to fight due to a cut above his eye sustained during the pre-quarterfinals.

In another quarterfinals of men's 91Kg category, India's Amritpreet Singh suffered a 0-3 loss to Stephen Lavelle of Scotland. In the women's light (57-60kg) quarterfinals, Sarita was lagging behind after the first round as Jones started the proceeding with a perfect 10 from each of the three judges.

But the Indian soon got her act together as she outwitted the Wales pugilist 30-27 in the second, before edging her out by an identical margin of 29-28 in the third and fourth rounds to bring joy to the Indian camp.

In athletics, Vikas Gowda put up an impressive show and finished on top in the qualifying to seal his place in discus throw final while Sahana Nagaraj also made it to the final round in women's high jump event.

Gowda, who is India's first ever CWG medallist in discus throw, managed a distance of 64.32m in his first attempt and was way ahead of second-placed Apostolos Parellis (61.91m) from Cyprus and Jamaica's Chad Wright (61.08m).

In women's javelin throw final, India's Annu Rani finished eighth in a field of 12 with a best effort of 56.37m, well below the season's best of 58.83m. Indian paddlers had a decent outing with Achanta Sharath Kamal and Anthony Amalraj winning their respective mixed doubles third round matches before pairing up to win in men's doubles as well.

Kamal and Shamini Kumaresan defeated Malaysian combo of Ying Ho and Chee Feng Leong 11-5 11-8 11-8 in the third round. They had spanked Uganda's Paul Moody Mutambuze and Ludia Magandlen Natunga 11-4 11-4 11-4 in the second round.

Amalraj and Madhurika Patkar too made it to the next round after beating Dexter St Louis and Reann Chung of Trinidad and Tobago 11-4 11-9 9-11 11-4. They had earlier beaten another Trinidad and Tobago pair Aaron Wilson and Catherine Spicer 11-4 11-8 11-9. In men's doubles, Sharath and Amalraj thrashed Simasiku Kalaluka and Friday Ng'andu of Zambia 3-0 (11-6 11-4 11-3).

In squash, after her giant-killing act against World No.1 Nicol David and her partner in women's doubles, India's Dipika Pallikal teamed up with Sourav Ghosal to notch up a straight-game win over Canada's Sam Cornett and Shawn Delierre in a mixed doubles Pool E match.

The 22-year-old Pallikal and Ghosal thrashed the 12th seeds from Canada 11-3 11-2 to top pool E, which also has Sri Lanka, at Scotstoun Campus here.

In Pool G, Harinder Pal Sandhu and Joshna Chinappa defeated New Zealand's Paul Coll and Amanda Landers-Murphy 11-8 11-10. Earlier in the day, Pallikal and Joshana Chinappa made a big stride towards ending India's medal drought at the Commonwealth Games by beating the mighty Malaysian pair of Nicol David and Low Wee Wern in the women's doubles.

The fifth seeds from India brushed aside David and Wee Wern 11-8 11-5 for their second win in as many matches in Pool D.

Sony Says It Does Not Expect to Make Money on Smartphones This Year

Japan's Sony Corp warned it doesn't now expect to make money on smartphones this year, citing weak demand, but said restructuring will help it turn a profit in its loss-making consumer electronics division for the first time in four years.

Reporting April-June operating profit doubled, boosted by its games and networks division and a one-off asset sale, Sony on Thursday cut its smartphone sales target this fiscal year by 14 percent. Analysts had said the initial target was too ambitious amid stiff competition from both high-end rivals like Apple Inc and cheaper Asian electronics makers.

Chief financial officer Kenichiro Yoshida said the company is reviewing mid-term strategy for smartphones after the company said it now expects to just break even in the business this year, down from a previous operating profit forecast of 26 billion yen.

"We are also discussing whether to change the number of phones in our line-up and adjust their lifecycle," Yoshida said, speaking at a news conference after the company released its results on Thursday.

Sony has vowed to turn a profit on its flagship electronics division this year, come what may. The firm is cutting 5,000 jobs and spinning off its TV division into a separate company, a move chief executive Kazuo Hirai has said will increase accountability at the business.

In the fiscal first quarter ended June, Sony's operating profit climbed to 69.8 billion yen ($679 million) from 35.5 billion yen a year earlier. That easily beat the 16.6 billion yen average of six analysts' estimates according to Thomson Reuters Starmine.

Sony said a 14.8 billion gain from the sale of a technology centre in Japan inflated the quarterly profit, while its games and networks division - the focus of much of Sony's corporate strategy going forward - turned in a strong performance.

Still, with the smartphone business under review, Sony maintained its full-year forecasts of a 140 billion yen operating profit and a 50 billion yen net loss - which would be the company's second straight year in the red.

"We have topped our targets (in the first quarter), but if you look at our past, we have made our targets in most first quarters but then haven't been able to meet our full-year targets," CFO Yoshida said. "I want to see how the rest of the year goes."

Separately Sony also said it would set up a joint venture with Panasonic Corp and Japan Display Inc to develop organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays, with the government-backed Innovation Network Corp of Japan taking a majority stake.

Samsung Galaxy Alpha With Metal Body to Launch on August 4: Report

The rumoured Samsung Galaxy Alpha smartphone (aka Galaxy S5 Prime and Galaxy F) is according to reports set to be launched on August 4. The yet-to-be-announced smartphone was previouslyreported by a Korean website citing industry sources to be due for an August 13 launch.

On Wednesday, Sammobile - a website best known for its Samsung tips - claimed the Galaxy Alphawill be "officially announced" on Monday, instead of "mid-August as other leaks had mentioned."

The report suggests that Samsung is pushing for the early launch of the alleged Galaxy Alpha smartphone as the company will want there to be sufficient interest for its most-anticipated launch of the second half of 2014, the Galaxy Note 4 smartphone, expected to be revealed at the IFA event in September.

Earlier this week, the alleged Samsung Galaxy Alpha was purportedly spotted in a user agent (UA) profile on Samsung's support site, as well as on Samsung's developer console.

So far, the rumoured specifications suggest the Galaxy Alpha will sport a 4.8-inch (720x1280 pixels) display. Sammobile suggests it will come with Galaxy S5's fingerprint scanner, and feature 32GB of non-expandable built-in storage. While the alleged Galaxy Alpha (aka Galaxy S5 Prime or Galaxy F) was expected to be a premium variant of the Galaxy S5, the latest reports indicate it will instead fit somewhere between the Galaxy S5 mini and the Galaxy S5 itself.

The website had recently also posted images of the alleged Galaxy Alpha posing alongside the Galaxy S5.

While there is no official word on Galaxy Alpha or other variants of the Galaxy S5 yet, it is expected the rumoured premium variant will still be launched at some point after the Galaxy Alpha.

The anticipated premium variant of the Galaxy S5 is rumoured to feature a metal body with a 5.5-inch QHD (1440x2560 pixels) display to counter the LG G3. As far back as last year, reports suggested that Samsung had already started mass producing a 5.25-inch Quad-HD (1440x2560 pixels) AMOLED display. So far, other rumoured specifications of the anticipated Galaxy S5 Prime smartphone include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 805 processor, and 3GB of RAM.