Slumdog Millionaire star Freida Pinto who has shifted her base to New York was in India for the launch of in Mumbai. Freida was spotted in a knee length Louis Vuitton dress at the launch.

Shilpa Shetty Kundra flaunted her sexy legs in a fuschia one-shoulder Louis Vuitton dress.

Bollywood’s style diva Deepika Padukone, who will be seen in Karthik Calling Karthik, looked perfect in a black LV short dress.

Bollywood’s sultry beauty Sameera Reddy also walked early in the evening.

Alongwith Yves Carcelle, CEO and chairman of Louis Vuitton were Karan Johar and American Indian actor Senthil Ramaswamy. Black seemed to be the colour of the evening. Actresses Lara Dutta, Dia Mirza, Preity Zinta, Deepika Padukone and Mehr Jessia were seen flaunting the colour to its best.

(Photos: NDTV)

Abhay Deol, shooting for Anil Kapoor’s production Aisha, a remake of the classic Emma, is terribly scornful of the fact that his entire remuneration for the film (around Rs 20 lakh, we hear) is less than co-star Sonam Kapoor’s hair and costume budget.

In return he is seeking revenge insisting that he will only eat food prepared by a special cook who has been flown down from Mumbai. And the dishes he prepares cost a pretty penny. The producer (Sonam’s sister Rhea Kapoor) has offered to order food from any eatery in the capital where the film is currently being shot, but to no avail. Reportedly the expensive cook and his cuisine have caused the budget to inflate.

Abhay plays George Knightley to Sonam’s Emma in Aisha.

Eyewitnesses say the Deol’s lack of interest and involvement in the film is obvious. Abhay, who usually submerges himself completely in every film he does, emerges from his van only to give his shot and scoots back to his haven of comfort

From Saif and Kareena to the Bachchans, from Katrina Kaif to Karan Johar, it was a starry starry night on Sunday evening in Mumbai where celebrities from every field including Bollywood turned up in large numbers for an award ceremony for a leading men’s magazine.

They walked in hand in hand and walked out with an award. Before their latest film Qurbaan has hit the big screen, the couple are lapping up honours together.

Bollywood’s hit couple clearly stole the thunder from most other stars present at the GQ awards.

“Saif has won GQ Man of the year and I think he truly deserves it,” said Kareena, towhich Saif replied, “For me at the moment Kareena is my Man of the Year.”

Kareena Kapoor also won the Women of the Year award. She said, “Being called Woman of the year is a lot different from receiving a film award. It’s a great honour.”

Next best in line was Big B and family in all their style and glory. Amitabh Bachchan, who received the Lifetime Achievement award said, “Well, now I’ll have to make more space to fit in yet another award.”

But for some of the younger stars just being appreciated meant a lot. Abhay Deol who picked up the Breakthrough Talent title.

Various bollywood celebrities were seen at the opening of Arjun Rampal’s lounge bar walking the red carpet in Delhi. Here is a look

Sonam Kapoor has donned a chic look for her upcoming movie Aisha based on the Jane Austen movie which is being produced by her father Anil Kapoor. She is very excited about the young cast of the movie. “I thought I was one of the youngest girls in Bollywood,” says Sonam.

“But when I started work on Aisha I realized almost everyone on the set is my age or even younger than I am,” she explains.

After Aisha, Sonam will be working on a romantic comedy, I Hate Luv Stories with Imran Khan. “Both films are very different from each other,” Sonam confirms.

Abhay Deol is featuring on the cover of the latest issue of People magazine where he talks about his girlfriend and his parallel life in New York city. Looking at the snapshot Abhay should be taking frequent trips to the Gym instead of the Big Apple aka NY.

Director Dibakar Bannerjee of the Khosla Ka Ghosla and Oye Lucky fame is planning his next a commercial biggie. This time he wants to make a film with even bigger stars, and having proved himself twice, that shouldn’t be a difficult task.

A source reveals, “Dibakar definitely wants to repeat Abhay Deol in his next and he has also spoken to Imran Khan and Katrina Kaif for lead parts in the film.

This time, the director is planning to make a film that takes a comic look at a love triangle. and it also has a gay angle.

The source further adds, “It seems that Abhay who worked with Dibakar in Oye Lucky will essay a gay character and will add to the love story of Imran’s and Kat’s characters.”

Abhay Deol confesses his love for his girlfriend who stays in New York but is shying away from revealing her name and identity. He admits, “Yes I am in relationship. She is a painter and we have been going around for sometime but it is too early to comment further about the status of our relationship as we are still getting to know each other.”

It seems New York has become Abhay Deol’s second home literally but Abhay has no plans to settle there. He tells us, “I have got a small place for myself. But it’s not a place I would be settling down. It’s an interesting place to have exchange of talents. I will keep going on and off to learn new things. I miss my family here so I can’t be away for too long.”

Meanwhile Abhay has got himself a cozy place in Juhu away from his parents home. “Yes I wanted to be independent and I stay near to them. I go home for lunch and dinner whenever I have the time. Plus I didn’t want to disturb them with my friends and colleagues when I am at home. I just needed a space of my own. I cook here at times. I can make good pasta and treat someone special when I want to”.

Our Bollywood’s actors seem to have a special fan following at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. After Abhishek Bachchan recently delivered a lecture at this prestigious business school, it is Abhay Deol who cast a spell over the audience last week. “It was a fun experience. The audience was receptive and excited,” says Abhay, recounting the lecture.

Abhay, who is today seen as the exponent of the niche, avant-garde cinema after Anurag Kashyap’s Dev.D, was asked to speak on the changing face of Bollywood. Recounts Abhay, “I did not go there with a specific theme in mind. I was asked a lot of questions about how the industry has been till recently, and how it is rapidly changing. We discussed films releasing in multiplexes versus single-screen ones, the new generation of film-goers, the possibility of Bollywood going global, and the talent out there which is yet to be tapped.”

The belief that Abhay is the face of changing Bollywood had a direct bearing on his audience. Adds Abhay, “A lot of questions were about my choice of films. I was even asked about how some of the sequences of Dev.D were shot.”

Settled in New York, Abhay will be back in Mumbai to shoot for Anil Kapoor’s Ayesha with Sonam Kapoor.

After creating a buzz among audiences with its grunge soundtrack and promos, Anurag Kashyap’s Dev D, a modern take on Devdas, struck gold at the box office by raking in Rs.95 million at the opening weekend.

The inclusion of real life cases like the MMS scandal at Delhi Public School and the BMW hit and run accident in the movie is luring the audiences, say film experts.

“Dev D has proven its mettle by pulling in audiences in hordes - especially youngsters. The film has selling material in terms of content. Incidents like the DPS MMS scandal, the BMW case and colloquial language has further led to its triumph at the box office,” Joginder Mahajan, a Delhi-based distributor, told IANS.

Releasing after a dull week that saw Luck By Chance and Victory, Kashyap’s film opened to positive reviews and was houseful at the weekend. Produced by UTV Spotboy and Bindass, Dev D stars Abhay Deol with newcomers Mahi Gill and Kalki Koechlin.

Girish Johar, associate vice-president of UTV Motion Pictures, said: “Dev D is one of our premium products and it has managed to generate a very good hype among our target audience (youth). We are hoping it will have a long run at the box office.”

Kashyap’s contemporary take on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s classic novel has sidelined simultaneous releases Mere Khwabon Mein Jo Aaye and Chal Chala Chal.

“Mere Khwabon Mein…, which has Arbaaz Khan, Randeep Hooda and Raima Sen in the lead, was snubbed by the audiences and couldn’t garner more than five percent collection. Helmed by debutante director Madhureeta Anand, the film has been co-produced by PVR Pictures and Madhureeta’s company Ekaa Films Pvt Ltd.

The budget for Dev D and Mere Khwabon Mein… was the same. The producers invested around Rs.60 million excluding the publicity costs. In terms of prints, Dev D was released on more than 300 screens globally, Mere Khwabon Mein… hit around 200 screens.
Govinda starrer “Chal Chala Chal”, which was directed by T.K. Rajeev Kumar, too failed to impress the movie buffs.

“Dev D is all set to be the second big hit of 2009 after Raaz - The Mystery Continues. It breaks the very stereotype of the legend of Devdas and that is where it scores the winning goal,” added the source.

On the whole, Dev D has fair business chances till Shah Rukh Khan starrer Billu and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s Delhi 6 hit the screens on Feb 13 and Feb 20, respectively.