09 April, 2004 - Vivek in the mood for lots of masti

Poster boy Vivek Oberoi is finally back where he belongs.

After a long hiatus from the industry, thanks to the accident that hampered his schedules, he brims with enthusiasm as he talks about his forthcoming films.

“Kyon Ho Gaya Na was supposed to release last year but was delayed after Aishwarya and I met with accidents. I’ll more than make up for it this year, with Masti, Yuva, Kisna, Kyon Ho Gaya Na and Timbuktu,” he says.

In his two years in Bollywood, Vivek has seen bouquets and brickbats for both his onscreen and off-screen rendezvous. If he was lauded for Company and Saathiya, he was written off after a damp squib like Dum. And his spat with Salman Khan was seen as a blow to his career. But Vivek remains unfazed. “It’s silly to say my career nose-dived after the incident.

Just a month later, I signed Paani, Yuva , Kisna and other films. I’m not here to prove anyone wrong. People have different barometers to measure success. Success, according to me, is being able to do what you like and feeling happy about it.”

Vivek is now in the mood for some Masti and has had a blast doing a comedy. “It’s a sex comedy without sex. You won’t see any nudity, except a barechested Aftab,” he laughs. A bigger film Vivek is counting on is Yuva. “It was a delight to work with a legend like Mani Ratnam. He is a powerhouse of talent. I can’t talk about the story. But I can tell you for sure that this is the most revolutionary script ever in Indian cinema. As an actor, I discovered so much more in myself.”

After Yuva, Vivek will step back into the 1920s for Kisna. “It’s an epic. We speak in a mix of English and Hindi since it’s set in the times of the Raj,” he says. It was while practicing horse riding for Kisna that Vivek suffered some minor injuries.

“I’m accident prone. But though my bones get broken, my spirit is unbreakable. Maybe I should start a side business with body spare parts,” he laughs.

He rules out the buzz that doting dad Suresh Oberoi is producing a film with Vivek and Ash. “Totally untrue. Dad has no such plans. Ash and I are doing Kyon Ho Gaya Na and Singularity (The Invaders).”

22 January, 2004 - "The Invaders" gets new name!

Roland Joffe’s period film The Invaders has been retitled Singularity. Simone Sheffield of Canyon Entertainment who is also Aishwarya Rai’s manager confirms the development. “The Invaders is no more. It is now Singularity,” she says.

Joffe had launched The Invaders with Hollywood star Brendan Fraser. Bollywood actor Vivek Oberoi was also part of the cast. Informs Sheffield, “Besides a new title, the script has also been revised. It has been totally rewritten and the script now is excellent. Brendan Fraser’s part will be recast. The film will be shot in India with Aishwarya shooting for it from September. The rest of the cast has not been confirmed by Mr Joffe.”

Earlier there had been a buzz that The Invaders, launched in 2002, had been shelved. But Ajay Jhankar, chairman, Neelmudra Entertainment, the production company, refutes the rumours. “The film is definitely happening.

The schedules and date plans are being worked out. Things should get finalised by April-end and if everything goes according to plan we should start shooting in May.” As for a the change in title, Jhankar explains, “The Invaders was always a working title.

The story remains the same and after the screenplay was ready we decided to change the title. We discovered there were three Hollywood films that had something similar to the word invaders. Singularity means surprise or some kind of magic.”

Jhankar doesn’t want to comment about Fraser not being part of the revised script at this stage. “Only after the date plans are worked out will we be able to know,” he says cagily.

While cinematographer Debu Deodhar, associate producer of Singularity and a director of Neelmudra Entertainment clarifies, “Singularity is a big project.There are certain formalities that are being worked out in Los Angeles like the signing of contracts.”

And will Oberoi feature in Singularity? “I can’t comment on it right now,” admits Deodhar.

According to Jhankar and Deodhar the script of Singularity is the same as The Invaders. Oberoi was unavailable for comment.

Refresher on "The Invaders...

The Invaders, a period drama, was set against the backdrop of the battle of Wadgaon — in 1779. The British were defeated in the battle. Vivek Oberoi was to play the role of Maratha warrior Udaji and Brendan Fraser was cast as James Stuart, the British captain who led the offensive.

Aishwarya Rai was reportedly playing the role of an Indian spy called Taluja. The Invaders had been budgeted at $40 million.

Read more about the original Invaders project here.

17 January, 2004 - Aishwarya Rai to star opposite Brendan Fraser?

Aishwarya Rai is truly going global. Not that she has any dearth of fans abroad even now. It’s just that the actress has been in the news lately because of some international projects that she could be signing soon. Hot on the rumours that she is in talks with a studio for a movie, come the rumours that she could star in a film to be directed by Roland Joffe. And the actor opposite her will be none other than Brendan Fraser. When we’d got in touch with her manager in the US some time ago, we were asked to wait for a couple of weeks before the announcement was made. So don’t be surprised when the news is finally out officially. It could be anytime now. Rest assured we’ll let you know as soon as we get the inside story!

PS: True to our word, here’s more on the story. We got in touch with Aishwarya’s US manager, who admitted that negotiations were currently on for the said film. “We are in negotiations – now,” was the reply. “With the Sundance Film Festival in Utah, a few of the key players are there for the next week. Hopefully, we can close this deal soon or move on to the next deal.” We’re sure Aishwarya’s fans are already crossing their fingers that the deal goes through. We certainly are!

15 January, 2004 - Negotiations ongoing for Ash to star in "Singularity"

Aishwarya Rai's US agents are upset with media reports that Aishwarya will play the Bond girl if a body double is used for the sex scenes. They have denied the news and said that she hadn't even met Brosnan at a party as was claimed. They are in negotiations now for Ash to star with Branden Fraser in 'Singularity' for director Roland Joffe of Warner bros. It may be recalled that Roland Joffe's 'Invaders' with Aishwarya and Vivek (Oberoi) had failed to take off. As of now, the only near-Hollywood project Aishwarya has is 'Chaos' with Meryl Streep in which the former plays a prostitute!

13 January, 2004 - Aishwarya opposite Brendan Fraser!

The rumours of Aishwarya Rai starring in the next James Bond movie have been dismissed by her American agency Canyon entertainment. However the Bollywood actress is currently negotiating a major movie opposite Hollywood heartthrob Branden Frasier. ''We are in negotiations now for Ash to star with Branden Frasier in 'singularity' for director Roland Joffe of Warner Brothers," confirms Simone Sheffield of Canyon entertainment. "Details would be given when it is a done deal."