Shahrukh Khan is a selfless actor- Ishaa Koppikar

Praises galore for SRK! No it's not Kareena Kapoor...This time around its Ishaa Koppikar who seems smitten by 'The Baadshah of Bollywood'- Shahrukh Khan.

Koppikar is completely in awe of King Khan after working with him in DON. The damsel is still reeling from the DON hangover. "I'm elated. DON has truly been an entertaining and fulfilling experience. Shahrukh is a great guy and a selfless actor. He's not just concerned with his performance but he's bothered about everyone on sets. He has a great sense of humour and is very young at heart. Even Farhan Akhtar is full of life," says an ecstatic Ishaa.

So here's another Shahrukh Khan fan in his already huge repertoire of admirers!

Amitabh begins countdown to IIFA 2007 in Yorkshire

London, Nov 12 (IANS) Indian film legend Amitabh Bachchan began the countdown to the International Indian Film Awards (IIFA) function being held in Yorkshire next year with two launch events at the House of Commons and at Bradford.

This is the second time that the IIFA awards will be held in Britain, since its launch at the Millennium Dome here in 2000. The June IIFA weekend and awards will be held across five Yorkshire towns of Sheffield, Leeds, Bradford, York and Hull.

After the launch at the House of Commons, Bachchan travelled to Bradford for the build-up event at the National Museum of Film, Photography and Television.
'If anyone ever asks themselves 'Why Yorkshire?', we should say, 'Why not?',' he told the audience. 'End of question, end of argument.'

Sabbas Joseph, director of Wizcraft International Entertainment, which created the event, said: 'Why Yorkshire? Exciting place, virgin territory, beautiful locality for setting up a film event.'
During the IIFA event in June, local organisers are hoping to host a cricket match featuring Indian film stars and Sachin Tendulkar, who has played county cricket for Yorkshire and was a popular figure in the region during his stay here.

Bachchan said he was looking forward to getting to grips with all that Bradford and Yorkshire had to offer. He said: 'I was here once, for the Bite the Mango film festival. When I'm here next I will take a good look at the area and the region.

'I saw some films recently by the tourism board and they were absolutely amazing. Yorkshire is impressive; the scenery, the people and the warmth and affection. I am so happy that IIFA decided to hold the event in Yorkshire', he said and added that work on a film with a Yorkshire backdrop was on the cards.

Yorkshire's business leaders are hoping to exploit the opportunities the event will offer. Local businessmen estimate that the event will bring 28,000 film fans who could be expected to spend 9.5 million pounds. During the weekend, there will also be a forum to promote trade. Yorkshire's bid was branded 'Yorkshire - love at first sight'. The region has a large concentration of Asian origin and is often responsible for substantial box office earnings for new Indian films released in Britain. It is said that more DVDs of Indian films are bought or rented in Yorkshire than anywhere in Britain.

Yorkshire Tourist Board Chairman Judith Donovan said IIFA would be a massive boost for the region. She said: 'Our bid was branded 'Yorkshire - love at first sight' and that's what we intend, not only with the people who come here but those who will see Yorkshire for the first time on television screens worldwide and create a life-long love affair with Yorkshire.'

Prime Minister Tony Blair has praised Yorkshire for winning the right to host the IIFA event. Sending Bachchan and IIFA his best wishes for the event, Blair said: 'I am delighted to send my very best wishes to all at the IIFA launch at the House of Commons. 'I am also delighted to hear that UK, and in particular the Yorkshire region, has been chosen to host this important international gathering. It is very fitting that the UK and India are working together to promote Indian film in both countries. I look forward to hearing of the success of the awards in the coming months.'

Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said the event would be a massive boost for the region. She said: 'We are terribly proud that Yorkshire has achieved this great honour. This is an impressive achievement for a region that is already thriving.'

For the June 2007 event, Rome, Hong Kong and New York were in the race to host it.

Salman, Katrina to perform in Kuala Lumpur

Despite their intimacy in real life, Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif have seldom performed together on stage. Even on the ramps in fashion shows, when Katrina walks the catwalk, Salman is often seen cheering from the aisles. And vice versa is also true. At a recent show at Lakme Fashion Week, while Salman walked the ramp with Miss Universe Zuleyka Rivera, Katrina was sitting among the audience.

But now the two stars are set to perform together on stage at the Global Indian Films Awards (GIFA) 2006 in Kuala Lumpur. They will perform on Dec 9, which will be the night of awards distribution. GIFA will begin on Dec 7 and will be a three-day event.

During the event, Ravi Chopra's movie 'Baabul' will have its world premiere. Salman and other stars of the film will be present at the premiere. GIFA promises to be a big entertainment extravaganza with performances by Shah Rukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Priyanka Chopra, Amisha Patel, Salman, Katrina and other Bollywood stars.

The event will be telecast on Sony Entertainment Television.

Brangelina play tourists in Mumbai

Mumbai, Nov 12 (IANS) Hollywood first couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were spotted in the city with their two adopted children, Maddox and Zahara soaking in the sights like ordinary tourists Sunday.

Brad and Angelina, who flew to Mumbai by a private helicopter Saturday, were also seen cruising around at the Gateway of India. Maddox, five, sat on his papa's shoulders while Zahara, one, was perched in her mama's arms.

The family, along with biological daughter Shiloh Nouvel and a bevy of bodyguards, is staying in a five-star hotel in the upmarket south Mumbai area.

Angelina is in the city to shoot for a film based on the life of slain American journalist Daniel Pearl, who lived in the city for seven years. She plays Pearl's widow Marianne in 'A Mighty Heart', produced by Brad's production house.

The film will chart Pearl's life and career until his abduction and murder by Al Qaeda terrorists in Karachi.

Brad and Angelina were earlier in Pune where they shot parts of the film with Bollywood actor Irrfan Khan and others.

20 Bollywood beauties in one song!

It can't get bigger than this. For the first time in the history of Indian cinema, as many as twenty actresses from Bollywood will come together in a movie song.

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala is creating a record of sorts for the title song of his movie 'Hey Baby'. The movie, starring Akshay Kumar, Ritesh Deshmukh, Fardeen Khan and Vidya Balan, is the first full-length feature film by Sajid Khan (director). The movie's title song, composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, introduces the three heroes and shows their love for women.

To get the right impact, a huge and lavish set depicting a nightclub has been created in Mumbai's Filmcity and as many as 500 dancers have been called from the UK. But the real feast for the eyes in the song will be cameos by 20 Bollywood heroines.

According to reports, they are: Malaika Arora, Amrita Arora, Celina Jaitley, Dia Mirza, Ayesha Takia, Amisha Patel, Koena Mitra, Neha Dhupia, Minissha Lamba, Payal Rohatgi, Amrita Rao, Aarti Chabria, Hrishitaa Bhatt, Riya Sen and Sophie Chowdhary. There is also a possibility of roping in Sameera Reddy and Sushma Reddy. Grapevine says Lara Dutta, Bipasha Basu and Preity Zinta might also be among the twenty.

The song will feature the three heroes dancing with the twenty girls one by one. The number will be choreographed by Farah Khan.