Our Bong bombshell is being pampered and cared for at the Palazzo Versace on the Gold Coast, Australia where she is for the shoot of her English film Singularity directed by Roland Joffe and co-starring Josh Hartnett. Talking about Bipasha Basu, the actress has been housed at the Palazzo Versace on the main beach of the Gold Coast, the world’s first fashion-branded hotel with design from the House of Versace. Her condo includes a living room, master bedroom, attached guest room and guest bathroom and has all the amenities of an apartment including a kitchen and enjoys the hotel facility of house keeping as well. There’s a chef to cook special meals for her.

It was Bipasha who made a choice for this hotel when she was asked to put forth her preference. Roland and Bipasha are in condos while Josh is at a place on the Broad Beach, as he didn’t want to be at the hotel. Bipasha is slogging hard for her new role and is training for horse-riding and swimming at the moment and has to start to learn sword fighting and fencing.

Akshay Kumar may have gone far ahead in his career but when it comes to friendships, the actor surely knows how to keep one. Akshay has done three films with Lara Dutta (Andaaz, Blue and Housefull) and he was Lara’s first hero.

So, when old friend Lara Dutta decided to turn producer with Chalo Dilli (a film starring her and Vinay Pathak) and requested Akshay to do a cameo, not only did he instantly agree, but also decided not to charge for it. He has promised to come down to Jaipur and shoot with them for two days. He hasn’t even discussed his role with her as there is genuine trust between the two.

The film is being made under the banner of ‘Bheegi Basanti’ and will have Lara and Vinay Pathak in the lead roles.

24 year old Rishi Nandrajog, a risk analyst with an Indian financial services company, won the ‘Shopping with Kareena’ campaign organized by Sony Ericsson, the uber-cool communication entertainment brand. Launched last month, the campaign entailed consumers buying a Sony Ericsson phone, and getting the opportunity to go on a shopping spree worth Rs. 5 lakh with the company’s brand ambassador and Bollywood celebrity.

An elated Rishi said “I am a regular user of Sony Ericsson phones; in fact my last three phones have also been from this brand. The great user interface and the quality of features that are built in the Sony Ericsson devices make me a brand loyalist. Shopping with Kareena was unreal, an absolute adrenaline-rush. Now I will wear clothes that the style guru herself recommended.”

Kareena Kapoor uses the opportunity as a chance to connect with her fans and says, “It is exciting to be associated with a dynamic brand like Sony Ericsson that brings together the very best of communication and entertainment experiences with one ultimate goal – the user experience. I am a die-hard shopaholic myself and I absolutely jumped at the idea of this campaign. I always seek ways to connect with my fans and understand their perception about me and the contest actually served as a perfect platform to achieve that. Plus, there is nothing like being connected to the lives of your fans. As I am always on the move with my busy schedules, I frequently engage with my fans across the world on the Sony Ericsson Facebook community, telling them what is happening in my life, invite feedbacks from them or just engage with them casually. And, the real-time response from fans and friends just enthral you beyond limits!”

Check out the style diva when she meets Soni Ericcson’s winner as the ambassador for the brand…..

Last year, Katrina Kaif walked the ramp and was a part of Barbie Doll’s 50th birthday celebrations, and recently the actress launched the single piece Barbie modeled on her which will have replicas out on the shelves by next year. Not to mention here that Kats is elated at this development as the doll has added on to her fan following by connecting her to the kids.

She says, “My six sisters and I shared a couple of dolls between us. We had our tea parties and our fights too. I remember one time, when my sister, the one who’s a year older than me, and I were tugging at a doll and ripped her arm off. That Barbie was never replaced. It remains one of my most poignant memories.”

Katrina, who is in news all over for her latest rage ‘Sheila Ki Jawani’ in Farah Khan’s Tees Maar Khan, says, “These days, I’m being called Barbie and Sheila, half and half. Yes, I’ve worn a half-sari, but the song is not so much about clothes as it is about the attitude. That’s Farah’s strength,” she points out.

Designer Vikram Phadnis has been a hot favorite among Bollywood stars for quite some time now and Bolly beauties consider themselves lucky to grab an opportunity to walk the ramp as a showstopper for his collections. However, Malaika Arora Khan missed this opportunity as she failed to make it for his show at the Pune Fashion Week (PFW) and Phadnis had to make last-minute changes when the unexpected happened.

“Malaika was supposed to be here but at the last moment she was caught up in Delhi for a prior commitment. She is a very dear friend of mine and if not today, she will walk for me some other time for sure,” Vikram told.

However, the show was a success as it started with his collection in black colour and models walked down the ramp flaunting long dresses, saris and anarkali suits.

“My collection was India through my eyes. It was all about everything that I get inspired by in this country. From films like ‘Mughal-E-Azam’ and ‘Umrao Jaan’ to places in Rajasthan,” said Vikram.

31 year old model-turned-actress Yana Gupta rocked the nation with her item number ‘Babuji Zara Dheere Chalo’ but slipped away into darkness after a few appearances here and there. Yana blames her new album for the reason behind her silence. She has not only features in the music album but has also penned the lyrics for it. Says Yana, “I was in UK recording an album and now I have come back to Mumbai. Now I’m going to be around for a very long time. Yes, definitely something like an item song is going to happen very soon.”

Now, the actress once again will tunr back to her old love for dancing as she is set to appear in the fourth season of Sony’s reality show Jhalak Dikhla Jaa.

“I am super excited. It’s kind of a dream come true in a way because for a long time I wanted to do something like this. I was itching to wear my dancing shoes,” says Yana.

When asked how naturally her body responds to foot-tapping numbers, she says, “It does come naturally, but not what we are doing in the competition. It is totally un-natural. It is very hard work.”

Though Sonakshi Sinha got rave reviews and enough applause for her beauty and also her performance in the superhit ‘Dabangg’, it was Malaika Arora Khan who grabbed the oomph trophy for her item number ‘Munni Badnaam’. Now, Sonakshi is coming with Akshay Kumar in Farah Khan’s next but she won’t have a sizzling item number in the movie as there is no scope for it.

Says Farah Khan who is the co-producer of the film along with Shirish Kunder and Akshay Kumar, “Rest assured, she wouldn’t be getting into a ‘Sheila Ki Jawani’ mode for our next film. After all her role in the film doesn’t demand that such a situation for that at all.”

After Katrina’s dance number in my upcoming film, I know that audience will expect yet another stylized yet sensual item song from Sonakshi as well. However, we can’t place an item number just for the sake of it”, she added.

However, Sonakshi will be seen in a glamorous and urban role in the film as director Shirish says, “Sonakshi plays an urban girl in the film so yes, she would be seen in the Western outfits. I am aware that audience want more of her after DABANGG. With our film, there would be a handful of her as she has a role of substance. She isn’t there just for 3-4 scenes.” This is Shirish’s second film after JAAN-E-MANN.

Both Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol are going through a downhill in their career and papa Deol has taken in the reins once again to give a push to the sons’ careers. The forthcoming ‘Yamla Pagla Deewana’ stars the three Deols together and is a family drama of a man in search of his estranged family. Paramveer Singh Dhillon (Sunny), an upright and honest man working as a loan recovery agent in a bank stays with his mother, his Canadian wife (Mary) and two sons in Vancouver, Canada. Paramveer’s mother is a typical Punjabi housewife, had decided to leave her husband Dharam Singh (Dharmender) because she was fed up with his deceptive ways. But one night Dharam Singh quietly took away the younger son and vanished. Paramveer decides to go to India to look for his Father and brother.

The Father-Son duo Dharam and Gajodhar (Bobby) are the biggest conmen in Banaras. Dharam is a stylish man and a charmer. Women of all ages adore him. He does not believe in love. Gajodhar is just like his father except for the fact that he is more rustic in appearance and gets nervous in the company of women! How this family comes together through a comedy of errors is what the film is about.

Besides the three Deols the film also stars Kulraj Randhawa, Paresh Rawal, Anupam Kher, Sucheta Khanna, Mukul Dev, Himanshu Malik, Amit Mistri, Digvijay Singh, Krip Suri, Puneet Isaar, Poonam Sinha, and Emma Brown. Bosco and Caesar have choreographed the moves for this film.

Bollywood hottie Shriya Saran is doing her bit for the society. She recently teamed up with an NGO and opened a spa in Mumbai for the visually challenged, where they will be offered treatments like reflexology and massages that are programmed to give them great comfort.

The people of NGO said, “It is a longtime wish of Shriya to do some service to the society. And she found this spa idea quite interesting and innovative.”

Shriya too is very hopeful about the project and said, “When I studied in Delhi, we used to visit a blind school quite often. My experiences there left a deep impact on me, so much so that I chose to open a spa to lend a hand to visually challenged people in Mumbai.”

On the professional front, Shriya is keeping her fingers crossed for the success of Deepa Mehta’s forthcoming English venture ‘Midnight’s Children’, which stars Seema Biswas, Shabana Azmi, Nandita Das, Soha Ali Khan and Irrfan Khan.

Deepika Padukone is one actress who has paired opposite many heroes comfortably. After Deepika Padukone-Farhan Akhtar, Deepika-Imran, Deepika-Neil Nitin Mukesh and Deepika-Abhishek, the actress is now set to make a screen pair with Shahid Kapoor in Sabir Khan’s ‘Heer and Ranjha’. Sabir has already assisted in movies like Mujhse Shaadi Karogi and directed the disastrous Kambakht Ishq.

Now, Deepika Padukone is quite tall and is always conscious that she would look taller than her hero. Before the shooting of Karthik Calling Karthik, Farhan Akhtar had to actually stand next to her, and show her that he can match her height. However Sabir is quick to explain and says, “I don’t think it really makes a difference if the leading lady is taller than the hero.

“We opted for Deepika Padukone because we needed a face that could look contemporary and classical. Among the current line-up of actresses, only she could measure up to my script’s demands. As for Shahid, he’s an intense actor. I’m positive this pair can project the pangs of passionate love,” he added.

We, on our part, are waiting eagerly to see this fresh pair create magic on the screen.

When Aamir Khan signs a project, it is news and when he is cast along with two reigning Bollywood beauties, it is news hot enough to scorch the gossip columns. The project we are talking about is Reema Kagti’s next film which is being produced by Excel Entertainment and Aamir Khan Productions. Rani Mukerji and Kareena Kapoor have reportedly been signed opposite perfectionist Khan. Rani Mukerji has earlier worked with Aamir Khan in the smash-hit Ghulam and was even part of the historical Mangal Pandey -The Rising. Meanwhile, Kareena was Aamir’s co-star in last year’s blockbuster 3 Idiots.

Aamir wrote, “Well, the lead actresses for my new film have been locked. Kareena and Rani. Am so happy to be working with Kareena again after 3i, and most excited about working again with Rani after so long. Difficult to concentrate on my work with such beautiful co-stars around ”

Kagti, who has earlier gathered applauds for ‘Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd,’ will now work on this suspense thriller drama. Talking about the script Aamir said, “Most unusual and very intriguing. I am quite excited about it and cant wait to start.” The film is scheduled to go to the floor in late February or early March of next year.

It seems that marriage is showering bliss on leggy lass Shilpa Shetty. She had a surprise gift awaiting her on her first wedding anniversary when hubby Raj Kundra gifted her a luxury apartment on the ninetieth floor of the world’s tallest building, the Burj Khalifa, Dubai. Burj Khalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and IS the tallest man-made structure ever built, at 828 m with 160 floors. The world’s highest swimming pool is located on the 76th floor.

Shilpa had visited Dubai a few months ago, had loved the building and expressed a wish of staying there. Raj just grabbed the opportunity to express his love and gifted the keys to Shilpa in Mumbai a week ago.

Shilpa and Raj have taken three days off from work to celebrate their first wedding anniversary there. Shetty will design the interior of the apartment while she’s there. She then heads to Bangkok to shoot a shampoo ad on November 26.

However, the trip had its flips too. Shilpa was down with 103 degree temperature on Saturday night owing to pharyngitis. Though the fever waned by Sunday evening, she had a sore and choked throat when she finally left on Monday morning.