Earshot — All in the name

Top of the world

It is time to splurge for Shekhar Suman. He had once said that the reason he is doing television rather than films is that it is better to be a king among beggars than a beggar among kings. Now he gets to be a king everywhere. He has signed on a lead role in a big-budget movie, of which very little is known. Interestingly, after playing a reporter in the serial Reporter, his movie role is that of an editor. Talk about promotions on screen! In fact, Suman has purchased a six bedroom penthouse in Versova, Mumbai. Now that is what we call celebrating in style.

Two-in-one

Another person who has gone for a bungalow in Versova is Dheeraj Kumar. Flushed with the success of Om Namah Shivay, Kumar has also bought the latest Mercedes Benz and won’t travel anywhere without it.

Set routine

Now here is one busy chap. Sunil Agnihotri should probably move into the Rs 18 lakh Beetal set he has erected in Film City. He shoots there round the clock for three different serials. During the day, it is Yug, in evening, Raja Harischandra and at nights, Beetal Pachisi. And despite his tight schedule, Agnihotri is taking time off to file a case against Neerja Guleri for dropping his name from the credit list of Chandrakantare peats on Star Plus, for which he directed the first 87 episodes. But rather than going to the courts, maybe he should just send his macho-man Beetal over to the Guleri for a important `discussion’!

Never too late

If the invitation for a party says 8:00 pm, turn up at 10:00! By now everyone in the industry has got used to this maxim. So it was surprising to see Subhash Goel come to the Close-up Antakshari 200 episode party on the dot. But he was so punctual that apart from the director, Gajendra Singh, no one else was present! After lounging around for some time, he had to request that the party be started, irrespective of whether the guests were there or not. While Goel was talking with the walls, Chandra Prakash Dwivedi was spotted in the nearby coffee shop with samosas and masala tea! Hear me outAnd when it comes to making speeches, no one can beat Annu Kapoor. At the same party, a mike was handed to him and he was asked to say a few words. Kapoor replied that he would answer whatever questions the Press had to ask. But instead of a barrage of questions, silence followed. And if you expected him to hand the mike over to someone else, you are in the wrong programme. Annu stayed on and talked for over 15 minutes on everything from Charlie Chaplin to Shakespeare to Chetan Anand. And while the audience stood impatiently, he ended with a flourish of arm and a "Jai Hind".

Down South

What do stars do when they find themselves without any serials? Go South, of course. At least that is what Papiya Sen Gupta is planning to do. After Campus winding up and Raman Kumar’s Raahat and Shatranj taken off air, she is left with precious little to do.

Quick change

And what do you do if you are a successful producer? Open a fast food joint! That is what Himesh Reshamiyya has done. He has started a Chinese sizzler outlet. But he insists that it is not a retirement plan. He says that he had an empty shop and had always had a soft corner for sizzlers. So he just combined the two! And looking at the crowd outside, the plan seems to have worked.