Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Rani
Jeyraj. Name any model and Ambika Pillai's make-up box has given her the
look of a winner. Now, the high-profile make-up artiste has been chosen from amongst 10 of
the world's best to do the bridal make-up of Princess Sara, granddaughter of the King of
Saudi Arabia. It was while she was doing a shoot with fashion designer Ritu Beri in Cairo
that the royal family noticed her. They fell in love with the Indian look, "the
subtlety and the gold highlights". Pillai calls it the "most prestigious
assignment of my life". The experience has sure made her richer. By how much? That,
she's not telling.
Khandala Gal
For a 20-year-old, she sure knows her
mind. Rani Mukherjee, Kajol's second cousin, is a chip of the old block.
The same light eyes, the same impish charm and the same tough attitude. The Ghulam girl,
all the rage after Aati kya Khandala, made her debut with a B-grade Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat.
The film came and went but Rani got noticed. Enough to get offers in Mansoor Khan's Josh
and Maniratnam's Dil Se. But she did none of them. "I can't just walk out of a film
I'm doing to do Dil Se because Maniratnam is a big filmmaker," she says. Rani's
gamble paid off. She is now flying high, acting in Karan Johar's Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and
Salim's Mehndi. And yet she says, "I want to take it slow and steady." Coz
that's the way to win the race.
Perfect Play
His histrionic ability was
never in doubt. Remember how he cried when India lost in the semi-finals of the Wills
World Cup two years ago? Now Vinod Kambli offers another performance: a
jig with Sunil Shetty for a Bollywood potboiler Bade DilWale. According
to Anant Mahadevan, who recently directed Kambli in Sony's serial, Chamatkar,
most cricketers can't act well and vice versa, "but he can do both perfectly".
Seems the maverick cricketer has finally found his calling.
Comic Hero
In the beginning was the comic. Batman,
Superman, Tarzan. Then came the films. But the Indian superhero Shaktimaan
does it the other way round: from the small screen to the world of print. Doordarshan's
popular serial has been turned into a comic in association with the publishers, Diamond
Comics. It will be brought out in Hindi, English and Bengali. The first TV spin-off of its
kind will ensure that "Shaktimaan fans can now cherish him for posterity," says
the elated creator, Mukesh Khanna. Did you miss the episode this week? No problem. It's
soon coming to the comic near you.
Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Rani
Jeyraj. Name any model and Ambika Pillai's make-up box has given her the
look of a winner. Now, the high-profile make-up artiste has been chosen from amongst 10 of
the world's best to do the bridal make-up of Princess Sara, granddaughter of the King of
Saudi Arabia. It was while she was doing a shoot with fashion designer Ritu Beri in Cairo
that the royal family noticed her. They fell in love with the Indian look, "the
subtlety and the gold highlights". Pillai calls it the "most prestigious
assignment of my life". The experience has sure made her richer. By how much? That,
she's not telling. 
For a 20-year-old, she sure knows her
mind. 
His histrionic ability was
never in doubt. Remember how he cried when India lost in the semi-finals of the Wills
World Cup two years ago? Now Vinod Kambli offers another performance: a
jig with Sunil Shetty for a Bollywood potboiler Bade Dil Wale. According
to Anant Mahadevan, who recently directed Kambli in Sony's serial, Chamatkar,
most cricketers can't act well and vice versa, "but he can do both perfectly".
Seems the maverick cricketer has finally found his calling. 
In the beginning was the comic. Batman,
Superman, Tarzan. Then came the films. But the Indian superhero Shaktimaan
does it the other way round: from the small screen to the world of print. Doordarshan's
popular serial has been turned into a comic in association with the publishers, Diamond
Comics. It will be brought out in Hindi, English and Bengali. The first TV spin-off of its
kind will ensure that "Shaktimaan fans can now cherish him for posterity," says
the elated creator, Mukesh Khanna. Did you miss the episode this week? No problem. It's
soon coming to the comic near you.
