The Ishqiya beauty Vidya Balan, who recently moved into her new four-bedroom place in Khar here, says instead of throwing a housewarming party she will invite her friends in different groups for dinners so that they can enjoy themselves thoroughly. “I think it’s imprudent to invite all your friends all at once for one party. This makes the gathering unmanageable - guests who don’t know one another get uncomfortable,” Vidya told.

“So I’m having a series of sit-in dinners in my new house where groups of friends who know one another can come together for cosy comfortable conversations and food,” added the actress who won accolades for her unconventional roles in “Paa” and “Ishqiya“.

Before that Vidya wants every little detail in her new house to be perfect. “I’m fastidious about cleanliness to the point of being obsessive about my home. If I feel a drawer is messy, I will clean it up at 3 in the morning after a hard day’s shooting. So before my house-warming parties start, I need to make sure everything is in place,” said the actress.

Vidya admits the home is now her proudest possession. Source

Naseeruddin Shah, Arshad Warsi & Vidya Balan starrer ‘Ishqiya’ grosses over Rs. 14 crore domestic in just three days. Produced by Shemaroo Entertainment, Vishal Bhardwaj Pictures, India Theatrical and distributed by Boney Kapoor’s BSK Network and Entertainment Private Limited, ‘Ishqiya’, has grossed over Rs. 14 crore at the domestic box office in the first weekend of its release.

In just three days, the gross box office collections of the film in India have crossed Rs. 15 Crore on 522 screens. Friday morning shows opened with 40-60 percent in key areas like Delhi, Mumbai, Pune , Bangalore and evening settled down to 65-70 percent with average occupancy cultivating first day gross box office of Rs. 3.85 crore, with glowing reviews ranging from 3-4 star ratings and strong word-of-mouth from audience Saturday showed an impressive jump of 25-30 percent and settle down to Rs. 5 Crore, Sunday showed further jump of 30 percent compare to Friday and 8-10 percent compare to Saturday, garnered further Rs. 5.40 crore cultivating to cumulative an astounding opening weekend collection of more than Rs. 14 Crore gross box office. More

It might sound a bit confusing but it is the fact. Vidya Balan might have done some bold scenes in the past but she is still at times very much the girl next-door in her heart. Vidya refused to shake a leg to a raunchy number, a remake of the popular song Dhano ki aankhon mein… from the 1977 movie Kitaab, in Ishqiya. Producer Vishal Bhardwaj wanted Vidya to feature in the song with Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi, but he at last ended up shooting the song with only the two heroes and no girl in it.

A close hand discloses, “One thought that Vidya would do the song readily. She has already shot a sizzling lip kiss with Arshad in the movie without any embarrassments.”

The close source further included, “She was polite. It’s just that she felt that the song was too vulgar.” Seemingly, Vidya was worried about Vishal and director Abhishek Chaubey’s reaction but they took her refusal quite sportingly. Source

The Parineeta girl Vidya Balan is extremely happy with an all around positive response that she has got for her role of an unwed mother in Paa. While keeping her emotions in check and not allowing all the appreciation to make her go overtly gaga, Vidya does admit though that such huge response has come to her four long years after her debut effort in Parineeta.

“I guess the wait has been worth it”, says Vidya who plays the mother of Auro, a 12 year old kid (played by Amitabh Bachchan) suffering from Progeria in Paa, “I was doing films and by God’s grace most of them were successful as well. However, the kind of respect that is coming the way of everyone associated with Paa is overwhelming, heart warming and above all humbling.”

It is this respect factor that has been the biggest moment for Vidya. When the film’s trial was held a few days back, she was convinced that the film would certainly be remembered for its sincerity, honesty and truthfulness. Though box office factor wasn’t to be ignored, she along with director Balki knew that at the least film would see good respectability coming its way. Source

Karan Johar has announced 12th January as the D-day for the arrival of Shah Rukh Khan starrer MY NAME IS KHAN. There is an around frenzy amongst movies to arrive in January since no big film is risking competing with one of the first huge films of 2009.

Two such films are CHANCE PE DANCE and ISHQIYA that have pencilled in 15th January for their arrival on the big screen. Incidentally, the central protagonists of these films are Shahid Kapoor and Vidya Balan respectively, both of whom were seen together as a pair in KISMAT KONNECTION.

Both films were originally meant to arrive in 2008. However, Shahid Kapoor had two back-to-back releases in the form of KAMINEY and DIL BOLE HADIPPA and it made sense for him to space out his film. On the other hand ISHQIYA had to keep it’s release on hold since there was a flurry of releases in the last quarter of 2009.

Starring Arshad Warsi and Naseeruddin Shah in the lead roles, ISHQIYA is directed by first timer Abhishek Chaubhey and is a co-production of Vishal Bhardwaj and Shemaroo’s Raman Maroo. On the other hand IT’S MY LIFE is a UTV production, features Genelia D’Souza as the leading lady and has film maker Ken Ghosh at the helm of affairs. Source

The Parineeta girl Vidya Balan seems to be extremely excited about her upcoming flick ‘Paa’, and the actress recently talked about her experience of working with the two superstar Bachchans. Vidya, who plays Amitabh Bachchan`s mother in ‘Paa’, has revealed that she’s very impressed by Abhishek`s caring behaviour towards his father. According to the actress, during the shooting of the film, Abhi used to take such good care of Pa Amitabh that she herself wishes to have a son like Abhishek in real life.

“I would prefer a son like Abhishek. I have seen him with his father on the sets… he was so nice to his father that I was touched,” Vidya told reporters. Talking about the film, Vidya said, “The film is all about Auro and all through the film there is a certain sensibility about Auro, but no sympathy is shown towards the 13-year-old progeric child in the film,” said Vidya.

When asked about her experience of playing a mother of a progeric child, Vidya confessed that she wasn’t really sure about doing the role when was approached by the director for the same. Vidya says, “Initially, I wondered how to do the role as I didn`t have that motherly instinct. But while working on the film I realised what motherhood is.” Source

Who would have thought that weight loss could be associated with the loss of money? Well, Vidya Balan can definitely vouch for that. Balan’s whose biggest issue was her full figure is now contending with another issue. Her recent weight loss means that the actress can no longer fit into some of her designer clothes. And as some of these outfits cannot be altered she is going to have to give them away. Her late spring clear-out could mean a loss of up to Rs.3 lakhs! Having lost 4 inches from the top and 3 from the waist Vidya will be saying goodbye to outfits by Sabysachi, Priyadarshini Rao and Abu Sandeep.

Maybe she could get together with some fellow actors and hold a charity auction - She would get to show off her new svelte figure and raise some money for charity. Maybe this would make her monetary loss a little less painful. Source

A slim-and-trim Vidya Balan was seen, launching a skin care product in Mumbai yesterday afternoon and the actress seems to have gone in for a wardrobe overhaul. Sporting a red and black salwar kameez, the lady seemed far from the icon of fashion disasters that she once was.

After her disastrous look in Heyy Babyy - courtesy Manish Malhotra - Vidya has opted for Sabyasachi to style for her in her latest. “Sabya has styled my look in Pa. It’s a very organic look. But organic or ayurvedic, I am all for it,” says she.

Let’s hope it’s a change for the better for Vidya, because the fashion police will be waiting for this one.

Vidya will next be seen with the Bachchans in Pa and the actress seemed particularly impressed with the Big B’s look in the film. “I just couldn’t believe my eyes. He just transforms with every character when he comes on screen. And yet he is Amitabh Bachchan. So the combination was amazing to watch as I shot with him,” she says.

Vidya Balan has turned a huge raving cricket fan and is madly in love with the gentleman’s game. Apparently, Vidya became a big fan of Cricket right after being cleaned bowled by Zaheer Khan.

Yes Vidya has a thing for Zaheer. Ahem That is Vidya is a big fan of cricket and even a bigger fan of Zaheer Khan’s cricketing.

Recently Vidya confessed to a friend that her favorite cricketer is Zaheer Khan.

And her friend told us, “Vidya thinks Zaheer is the hottest cricketer on the block.”

“Zaheer’s coyness appeals to Vidya. She feels Zaheer’s quite nature may give a different impression but he is a strong man from within,” add the over-zealous friend. Source

Abhishek Bachchan and Vidya Balan came face-to-face with the obdurate traditions of the British upper classes when shooting for the movie Pa in Cambridge recently. Both were standing on the edge of a lawn in a Cambridge college getting ready to shoot. They were immediately approached by an official who insisted they’d broken the college rule that only scholars were allowed on the lawn. Despite protestations of ignorance and reasoned appeals on the basis of the cost, the whole unit was forced to pack up and leave.

In the movie Pa, we shall see Abhishek playing Amitabh Bachchan’s father. Amitabh plays a character suffering from progeria, a condition that rapidly advances the rate of ageing in the human body. It affects only one in eight million children. Source