Who is the hottest actor in the film industry? Undoubtedly it’s Amir Khan. No, it’s not a result of any survey or contest but this is Ghajini girl Asin’s verdict on who’s the hottest actor of Bollywood.

When asked,”Who does she think is the hottest in Bollywood”, pat comes the reply, “I think it’s Amir.” Asin laughs and adds, “I think he is cool, he is genuine and he is simple. This is what I admire a lot about him.”

While the common perception about Aamir is that he is finicky and a die-hard perfectionist, Asin feels just the opposite. “It’s just the contrary. Since childhood I have been a great fan of Amir Khan and I have watched a lot of his films like Lagaan, Dil Chahta Hai etc. Like many other Amir fans, I too had heard and read a lot about him before I got an opportunity to work with him in Ghajini . I found him just the opposite of his public image. He is not so tough as he is made out to be. He is so supportive, and friendly with newcomers. He is a thorough professional. Despite the fact that he is such a big star, he is not harsh at all towards anyone, whether a new one or anyone established in the industry.”

Keeping a low profile, and dismissing the similarities that her fans have drawn with actresses like Kajol and Rani Mukherjee, Asin feels that as a newcomer she prefers to concentrate at her work rather than anything else. “It feels nice when I get compliments like this but at the moment I want to concentrate on my forthcoming films.”

Says she further, “I am very fortunate that I have begun my Bollywood journey with an actor like Aamir. After this, my next film is with Salman for whom I have a lot of regard. If I get an opportunity to work with Shah Rukh, nothing like it!”

Ghajini director AR Murugadoss is completely enamoured with Aamir Khan’s creativity and admits that the actor rewrote the entire climax of the Hindi version of the action thriller to make it more contemporary and palatable to a cosmopolitan audience.

“We didn’t make too many changes in the rest of the film. Every time I’d suggest a change in Ghajini from the original, Aamir would firmly cut it down, saying we should stick to the Tamil script. But he decided we should rewrite the climax. The entire location, incidents and dialogues for the climax were re-written by Aamir. I think the Hindi version is far better than the Tamil Ghajini because of the changes Aamir made,” Murugadoss said.

Ghajini has grossed nearly Rs 900 million/Rs 90 crores worldwide within just five days of its release, according to its distributors.

Whatever Murugadoss makes next, he has only one wish.

“I want Aamir to be my consultant. Ghajini in Hindi would have been impossible without him. What he did to the climax was amazing. Now whatever I make I want Aamir’s guidance. I don’t know Hindi at all. But I knew the meaning of the Tamil words and groped my way through the Hindi dialogues in Ghajini. Every time I was stuck on a word or line, I’d call up Aamir. I’ve learnt so much from him,” said the litterateur-turned-filmmaker.

Murugadoss has several short-story anthologies in Tamil to his credit.

Though many people in Mumbai feel the title role in Ghajini should have been played by a better-known actor, Murugadoss is happy with Pradeep Rawat. “He is not entirely unknown in Hindi cinema. He played the Sardar-ji in Lagaan.”

The director, however, admits he felt a little out of place in Mumbai initially.

“But today a filmmaker is not restricted to any one region. Ghajini has gone so smoothly from Tamil to Hindi. Now I want to take a break, visit my native town Kallakurichi near Chennai and come back to sign my second Hindi film.”

While Ghajini has an overdose of violence, Murugadoss says he now wants to direct a totally non-violent film in Hindi.

“My next Hindi film will be an out-and-out love story. There won’t be even a slap in the narrative. I’ve acquired the reputation of being a violent director. But apart from Ghajini, all my films are soft and gentle,” he said

Murugadoss’ earlier Tamil films include Ramana (2002) and “Dheena” (2001). He has also made Telugu movie Stalin (2006).

Aamir Khan worked hard to gain the exceptionally toned muscle-man-look for ‘Ghajini’. Now he is working hard to get rid of all those hard-earned muscles for his upcoming ‘3 Idiots’, where the script demands a lean look.

This gain-lose game is getting too much for perfectionist Khan, and he was rumoured to have opted out of his home production ‘Delhi Belly’ because it requires him to have a chubby body!

But in an exclusive statement to a spokesperson of Aamir Khan Productions has rubbished these reports stating that Aamir was not associated with the film as an actor from the beginning. He is the producer of this Imran Khan-starrer from the conception of the idea.

Reports had wrongly suggested that he had earlier decided to do the role, but the gain in weight was a timely issue and would have hampered the schedule. But Aamir Khan has denied any such complications, clearing the fact that he had only been asociated with the flick as a producer.

Rumours do hound the stars, but intellectual Aamir thinks hard and logically before taking decisions. So far in his career, he hasn’t given Bollywood any reason to doubt his decisions or commitment. The present confirmation comes as a news of relief for all.

Aamir Khan’s Ghajini may be running to packed houses, but not many know that it was the film’s villain Pradeep Rawat who got the superstar interested in the movie that was originally made in Tamil.

“Aamir Khan usually has Diwali parties at his house. It was at one of these parties that Pradeep Rawat, who has worked with him in a couple of films like Lagaan and Sarfarosh, told him about the film,” said Madhu Mantena, one of the producers of Ghajini.

Rawat had played the villain in the Tamil version that starred Surya and Asin Thottumkal in the lead roles.

“Rawat told him that he had just worked in a film down south that had become a huge hit and now the producers wanted to remake it in Hindi. Mr. Khan saw the film, liked it and was immediately on board,” Mantena, who is COO of Sa Re Ga Ma films division, told IANS.

Rawat, Asin and director A.R. Murugadoss are the common links between the Tamil version and the Hindi remake.

Then why is Surya, the lead actor of the Tamil version, not part of the film?

“If you have a chance of producing a film with Aamir Khan, would you go for producing it with Surya?” the producer quipped.

Mantena, who worked as CEO of Ram Gopal Varma’s Factory for four years, said being a producer was his long-term ambition and he could not have thought of a better project for his maiden venture.

Allu Arvind, one of the biggest producers down south, had bought the rights of Ghajini and was planning to remake it in Hindi.

“As we have been partners for a long time, Allu Arvind offered me to produce the film and I thought it was the best offer to venture into my long-time ambition of being a producer,” Mantena said.

Mantena said he now plans to dub the film in Spanish and release it in the US and Spain in about two months’ time.

“Usually most big films are dubbed in German and released in Germany, but we are dubbing Ghajini in Spanish because I feel Spanish emotions are very close to Indian emotions.”

He said that though Spain has a small market, it would get good play in the US.

“The Spanish community is the second largest community after the Americans in the US. So we plan to give it a mainstream Spanish release in the US. We are mainly targeting the west coast and Mexican borders that have a huge Spanish population,” Mantena said

For close to two decades in the industry, Salman Khan, has been an enigmatic personality for Bollywood and its millions of followers. Ever since his dream debut, he has given flops by the dozen, broken the law more than once, allegedly roughed up his girlfriends, fought with his seniors, co-stars and juniors and has practically done everything else to wreck his career and invite the contempt of the industry and the public’s wrath.

But far from it, as the ‘Superstar’ turns 43, he still remains one of the most loved personalities and one of the biggest draws in the industry.

He may be reeling after a slew of flops recently, but as a part of the famous Khan troika – the other two being Shah Rukh and Aamir, Salman enjoys unquestioned acceptance amongst the masses which enables him to ride through such slumps unscathed.

After all, how many actors can deliver 6 consecutive flops and still end up amongst the highest paid in the industry.

This fact was evident by the stupendous success of his TV game show ‘Dus Ka Dum’, where his affable and easy going conduct was said to be an extension of his real-life personality.

Salman was first seen as a part of the supporting cast in the film “Biwi Ho To Aisi” in 1988, but it was the spectacular commercial success of his first solo lead “Maine Pyar Kiya” in 1989, that capitulated him into the big league and paved his way to stardom. Success of ‘Saajan” and “Karan Arjun” reconfirmed his status as the industry’s next big thing. After a couple of years of modest accomplishments, 1994 saw the release of “Hum Aapke Hain Koun”, his second venture with director Sooraj Barjatya after “Maine Pyar Kiya” – it ended up not only amongst the biggest hits of that decade, but also the first Bollywood movie to do well overseas. The movie got Salman a lot of accolades besides establishing him as one of the industry’s most bankable stars.

Since then, he has belted out one big hit after another. Over the years, he has given some memorable performances in “Judwa”, “Pyar Kiya to Darna kya”, “Biwi No 1”, “Hum Saath-Saath Hain: We Stand United”, “Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam” , “Mujhse Shaadi Karogi”, “Jaan-e-mann”, “No Entry” and “Partner”. He brought back the concept of the comic hero in Bollywood.

Besides the commercial successes, he is also credited with critical acclaim for his stellar performances as an obsessive lover in “Tere Naam”, as a psychopath struggling to come to terms with the fact that he accidentally killed his wife in “Kyon Ki”, as a HIV positive patient in “Phir Milenge” and as an honest, no nonsense cop in “Garv”.

But a Salman Khan story can never be complete without a mention of his real life misadventures. He has had repeated run-ins with the law. In October 1998, he was arrested for allegedly hunting the endangered black bucks, while in Jodhpur for a film’s shooting. A session court in Jodhpur convicted him and sentenced him to 5 years in jail. He has had 3 brief stints in jail. The actor is currently out on bail.

In September 2002, Controversy’s favourite child, found himself embroiled in a hit and run case. He was accused of driving under the influence of alcohol and running over pavement dwellers, killing two of them. He had to spend a week in custody, before getting a bail.

He is rumoured to have courted several leading ladies in the industry namely Sangeeta Bijlani, Somy Ali and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai. His relationship with Aishwarya Rai was believed to be tumultuous, to say the least, for both the parties concerned. A bitter break-up followed, with Aishwarya issuing a statement to the media, vowing never to work with Salman again. She also accused him of behaving violently and blamed it on his excessive drinking ways. But the worst was yet to come. Aishwarya Rai’s then boyfriend Viveik Oberoi called up a press conference and accused Salman Khan of threatening him. Unfortunately for Salman, this low phase in his personal life coincided with a slump in his career. His hits were beginning to dry up.

All along Salman maintained a dignified silence, choosing to let the storm pass over rather than indulging in washing dirty linen in public.

After he had been written off by film pundits as someone past his best, he marked his second coming into Bollywood with “Tere Naam”. He played the character of a crude young man with a heart of gold, who feels an obsessive infatuation for a simple village girl. This tragic love story was viewed by the audience as an extension of his real life story. The movie did extremely well and Salman Khan regained his place amongst the industry’s top stars, and more importantly in the hearts of the audience.

In 2005, just before the release of his comic caper “Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya”, news outlets released a copy of a mobile phone call made by the star to his then girlfriend, Aishwarya Rai, allegedly recorded in 2001 by the Mumbai police. He appeared to be threatening his Aishwarya in an effort to force her to appear at social events held by Mumbai crime figures. The call featured boasts of connections to organized crime and derogatory comments about other actors. Many political activists took to streets demanding Salman’s arrest and threatening to sabotage the film’s shows.

A fair idea of his immense fan following can be gauged by the fact that despite the threats issued by various self-proclaimed nationalists, his fans turned up in huge numbers and the movie ended among the year’s highest grosser.

Later, the alleged tapes were tested in the government’s Forensic lab in Chandigarh, which concluded that they were fake.

Salman is the eldest son of the famous screenwriter Salim Khan and his wife Salma Khan. He has two brothers – actor Arbaaz Khan and actor/director/producer Sohail Khan and two sisters, Alvira and Arpita. The actor is currently dating actress Katrina Kaif.

Born on 27 Dec 1965 in Indore, the actor grew up in the family’s posh Bandra flat in Mumbai, where he still lives with his parents and brothers. A Mumbaikar by heart, he recently said that he would be content if he breathes his last at Bandra.

Despite his over publicized bad side, Sallu, as he is fondly known, has achieved most of his successes in romantic or comic roles. He even refused to play a negative role in ‘Baazigar’, as he felt that the film might have an adverse effect on his young fans. That the movie later turned out to be Shah Rukh’s big ticket to Bollywood is a different story. For all the controversies, the star has faced, there are many who swear by his generosity. He has always backed his friends till the end, even if it meant being a part of a mediocre film. Himesh Reshammiya, Kamaal Khan, Govinda, Sanjay Leela Bhansali are some the people, who received Salman’s backing at some critical stages of their careers before making it big.

Spontaneous by nature, his statements reflect honesty, a rare trait in the industry. Not the one to mince words, his ‘devil-may-care’ attitude further endears him to his fans. His outbursts against Shah Rukh after their much publicised spat also drew him flak from his detractors but that didn’t bother him much.

Voted as the world’s 7th best looking male, Salman is a dedicated body builder and is single handedly responsible for mushrooming up of gymnasiums across the country, which are frequented by his fans.

As one more year is added to his eventful life, the unassuming Khan has a lot to look forward to the next year. With a slew of big projects awaiting release and the ever impending question of his marriage looming, the industry’s most eligible bachelor is set to enthrall his fans for years to come.

Jiah Khan has impressed with her performance in “Ghajini” and the 20-year-old says it was great acting with Aamir Khan in her second film, after having starred opposite superstar Amitabh Bachchan in her debut venture.

“If I had Mr Bachchan as my co-star in the first film, here it’s Aamir. Can’t get any bigger,” Jiah told reporters.

The young starlet admits she was intimidated by Aamir. “To match up with him was quite a tough task. I’ve grown up by 10 years in the last two years,” she said.

“It’s a big film for me. And I was very happy with my role. ‘Nishabd’ and ‘Ghajini’ are so different. I needed this kind of a challenge. I’m dressed from head to toe – except for that one song (‘Lattoo’) where I transform from a Plain Jane to a femme fatale,” the actress added.

Jiah was exceptionally good in the item number “Lattoo”, but she says it wasn’t difficult doing the song as she has been dancing to Bollywood numbers since she was six years old.

” ‘Lattoo’ is my first big Bollywood item song. And I’ve been performing to Bollywood songs from the age of six in front of the mirror. I’ve had years of practice,” Jiah laughed.

She was quick to brush aside reported difference between her and Asin, the lead actress of “Ghajini”.

“I didn’t have any scenes with Asin. But recently we were in Panchgani together and we spoke for the first time then. Without a doubt she was amazing in the Tamil version of ‘Ghajini’. This is her first Bollywood film and therefore a big thing. From my side there’s no bad blood at all. I think Asin is beautiful. She has been working a long time. This is just my second film. I had a lot to learn from both Asin and Aamir,” said Jiah, who debuted with controversial film “Nishabd”.

Directed by Ram Gopal Varma, “Nishabd” was loosely based on Vladimir Nabokov’s controversial novel “Lolita” and Jiah was paired opposite Amitabh Bachchan.

No regrets about doing an unconventional film like “Nishabd” so early in her career?

“None at all. I agree our audiences are still very conservative and ‘Nishabd’ was a very bold subject. Even in the West ‘Lolita’ created a huge controversy although they are no strangers to sex and nudity. For me ‘Nishabd’ was a challenge because I got to work with Mr Bachchan and Mr Varma so early in my career. And to be doing a central role in a film featuring Mr Bachchan. It made me what I am. So I am grateful,” she said.

Indian television’s Ugly Betty Mona Singh, who is set to make her big screen debut with Aamir Khan-starrer Three Idiots, says she is excited but also nervous about working with the superstar.

“Aamir is so good. It’s not even funny. He makes me so nervous. In fact, the thought of working with any of the big stars like Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir and Shah Rukh Khan makes me very nervous. But for now, I am excited,” said Mona.

In Three Idiots, which is based on Chetan Bhagat’s best-selling novel Five Point Someone and is being directed by Rajkumar Hirani, Mona plays Kareena Kapoor’s sister.

“I play a very bubbly character in the film and my look is very different from what I look right now. My role is really good and I have a major part in the climax of the film,” said Mona.

She became extremely popular when she essayed the role of ugly duckling Jassi in Sony TV’s Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin. Her true identity was kept under wraps in the initial months of the show. Mona managed to win the viewers’ heart as Jassi.

Now she is back to being in disguise on a new reality TV show Arre Deewano Mujhe Pehchano. She would be competing with celebrity contestants Rakhi Sawant, Shweta Keswani, Mahesh Manjrekar, Yash Tonk, Gulshan Grover, Divya Dutta and Mandira Bedi to win the title of Master of Disguise.

Commenting upon the format of the show, she said: “The show is all about stand-up comedy actually. It’s about how well we can conceal our identity and find a scapegoat on the streets. It’s quite a challenge for all of us and a very refreshing show.”

Winner of two dance reality shows – Jhalak Dikhla Jaa and Ek Khiladi EK Haseena, Mona is quite confident of her success on the show.

She said: “I think I will be good. I had successfully remained in disguise for Jassi… so I might perform better than others. But my voice is a big giveaway. When I speak in Hindi, it has a very strong Punjabi accent so I have to work hard on it.”

Right now Mona is seen in NDTV Imagine’s hit soap Radhaa Ki Betiyaan Kuch Kar Dikhayengi. “I found the character interesting, so I took it up. Also, Radhaa is a very simple and sweet show and I used to watch it regularly,” she said.

For now, Mona is concentrating on Arre Deewano Mujhe Pehchano and Three Idiots and says some “interesting offers” are coming her way.

BIG Cinemas, the exhibition arm of Reliance BIG Entertainment Ltd (RBEL), will screen “Ghajini” with English sub-titles in select cinema halls in Mumbai from next Friday for the hearing impaired and for those who don’t understand Hindi.

“We have decided to do this especially for the benefit of the hearing impaired and those who don’t understand Hindi. The idea is to ensure that the movie is viewed by maximum number of people,” Tushar Dhingra, COO of BIG Cinemas, said in a press statement.

According to Dhingra, BIG cinemas will continue with the sub-titles facility in the company’s future releases as well.

The sub-titled digital prints of “Ghajini” will be screened at BIG cinema’s property at Vadala in central Mumbai and at the Metro Big Cinema in South Mumbai.

“Digital cinema technology makes it easy to introduce such innovations,” said Patrick Von Sychowski, COO, of RBEL’s Adlabs Digital Cinema, which provides the DCI-grade digital cinema services, hard drive and optic fiber connectivity and distribution.

N.U. Nayak, deputy director of Helen Keller Institute for Deaf & Blind, has welcomed the initiative.

Starring Aamir Khan and Asin Thottumkal, “Ghajini” hit the screens on December 25.