Mumbai, Aug 6 Actor Udaybir Sandu feels lucky to work with Akshay Kumar in his first film "Gold", and says he is a great human being.
Born in Tarn Taran, a small district in Amritsar, Udaybir was always into sports while growing up. He says he bonded with Akshay over sports.
"'Gold' is my first film in Bollywood and I am happy I got an opportunity to work with Akshay Kumar," Udaybir said in a statement to IANS.
"He is a great human being and a brilliant actor. When not shooting the whole cast and crew used to play cricket on the sets and its a great way to bond with the whole team," he added.
A historical sports drama inspired by India's first Olympic gold medal, "Gold" traces the "golden era" of Indian hockey through the journey of Tapan Das, a young assistant manager in 1936, who dreams of playing for an independent nation.
The film also features Amit Sadh, Kunal Kapoor, Sunny Kaushal, Vineet Kumar Singh and Mouni Roy. Directed by Reema Kagti, it releases on August 15.
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Song of the day for 'Stree' team
"Stree" director Amar Kaushik says the team of the film started their day with some dance and music, which brought the cast close.
The horror comedy stars Shraddha Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao.
"I always had in mind that if I direct someday, the team's day will start with ‘Song of the day' instead of ‘Thought of the day' -- which is mentioned on the call sheet," Kaushik said in a statement to IANS.
"So, everyday we would decide a ‘song of the day' basis the scene to be shot on that particular day and before getting into the scene, we would all play the song and sing and sway along with it. This soon became the most loved activity by the team and helped them bond well, and the bonding shows on the screen too," he added.
Presented by Dinesh Vijan and a Maddock Films production in association with D2r films and Jio Studios, "Stree" will release on August 31.
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Richa had initially refused 'Love Sonia' role
Actress Richa Chadha, who will be seen portraying the role of a brothel owner and a trafficked rape victim in "Love Sonia", initially had reservations about playing the character of Madhuri.
Richa was afraid to essay the role as the subject was very sensitive, and she didn't want to be typecast.
"Love Sonia" director Tabrez Noorani said in a statement: "Richa was the only actor that I had to chase on the project. She agreed to do the film when we had almost given up."
The movie has been doing the rounds at international film galas, and will be screened at the forthcoming Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM).
She is glad she took the decision to do the film.
"I didn't know because the theme was so sensitive, I was conflicted about how it would be implemented correctly and I had said 'no' because I was initially very confused about how as I had been doing some work with trafficked children. I was confused how this would be portrayed and if the part was going to turn out the way it was written... That's why I turned it down initially.
"But when the director made me feel secure and confident that he was not going to do anything of that sort, I agreed to do it and this happened on the first day of shoot pretty much," Richa said.
