Lara Dutta launches her fitness DVD Power Play

Bollywood actress Lara Dutta, who recently married tennis ace Mahesh Bhupathi, has launched her second fitness DVD ‘Power Play’ that focuses on teaching strength and cardiovascular exercises. The DVD, which has been developed with the assistance of Lara’s fitness expert friend Zareen Watson, aims to make exercise fun. "Exercise has always been an important element of my life and I think it’s necessary to incorporate a little bit of it into every single day of our lives. Zareen is the fitness professional who has been in the fitness industry in the last 30 years, and is the person responsible for getting me into shape for the film ‘Blue’. Through this DVD, we share with you some of my fitness secrets that help with weight loss and muscle tone," said Lara. Lara’s first DVD – ‘Yoga: Recovery and Rejuvenation’ - focussed on imparting tips on yoga for the rejuvenation of the mind, body and soul. It was released in association with Reliance BIG Home Video. The company is looking forward to a good response for Lara’s second DVD too.

"After getting an overwhelming response to Lara’s yoga DVD, we are delighted to add one more workout DVD to our fitness catalogue. Today’s generation loves to workout on a regular basis to get in shape and Lara’s ‘Power Play’ is a step in that direction which gives the right required guidance without even hitting the gym," said Sweta Agnihotri, chief operating officer, Reliance BIG Home Video.

The DVD is priced at Rs.299, while the English and Hindi VCD is available at Rs.149 and Rs.99, respectively.

Lara Dutta delivers health and fitness tips

Bollywood dusky beauty Lara Dutta, who is set to tie the knot with beau Mahesh Bhupathi Feb 19, took out time from her busy schedule to give dietary and exercise tips. "I have always been a supporter of exercise to lose weight, but the first step is to eat right. So start by eating right and then add an exercise regime to your routine and see the difference.

"I’m always on the move, but still I don’t miss on my meals, especially my breakfast, and I exercise five days a week. Eating right is also important because in this day and age of stress, one needs to have energy to face everything," said the 32-year-old actress.

Lara Dutta to launch her designer shoe line

After showing her acting skills, Bollywood hottie Lara Dutta is fast honing her entrepreneurial skills. After the successful launch of her fitness DVD, Lara Dutta is all set to launch her designer shoe line. A source revealed, “After the success of her fitness DVD, Lara is now preparing to launch her own range of shoes. Mahesh is very encouraging and supportive of Lara’s decisions and has been sharing his own business expertise with her. She had shown some designs and samples to him and he encouraged her to take it up on a more serious level and launch her collection.” Adds an insider, “Mahesh is impressed with Lara’s eye for detail and talent. Work is in progress on the shoe launch and Lara is working on it. Lara is planning to launch it at the end of the year.”

The source said further that Lara is taciturn about the details, “It’s still too early to talk about it, but the designer shoes will be a high-end, expensive, limited edition line. It will be all kinds of shoes - from ladies’ casual to formal wear including stilettos and sandals, and sports shoes. Lara is personally looking into the concepts and designs.”

It is believed that Lara Dutta will launch her new business venture in a tie-up with an international footwear brand, “She has been talking to a few brands for the tie-up. Mahesh Bhupathi’s company, Globosport, is marketing it on her behalf and talking to the various shoe brands. Once the shoe brand is locked, they will figure the extent of Lara’s involvement and participation in the whole project. It’s a mutual basis agreement. Lara is very excited about it. It’s always been her dream to launch a fitness DVD and shoe collection one of which has come true and the other is happening too.”

Lara Dutta to marry Mahesh Bhupathi on Feb 19

It’s wedding season in Bollywood. After Imran Khan, who is all set to tie the knot on January 10, Bollywood beauty Lara Dutta too has decided to take the plunge. The actress will be tying the knot with her beau Mahesh Bhupathi on February 19. Mahesh, who recently divorced Shweta Jaishankar, will be marrying the stunning diva in a plush ceremony at a five-star hotel in Goa. Confirms a source, “Lara and Mahesh love Goa. They both decided to convert their favourite holiday spot into a place that would be memorable to them forever.” Post marriage, Lara will be shifting to Bhupathi’s apartment in Nibbana Society at Pali Hill. And these aren’t the only weddings in B-town. Neelam Kothari and Samir Soni too have secretly fixed their wedding on January 17. And if sources are to be believed then Samir and Neelam will tie the knot in Karjat.

Said a source, “Neelam and Samir have been dating for very long. During his stay in Bigg Boss 4 house, Samir was missing Neelam terribly. He decided to propose marriage to Neelam the day he was evicted from the house.”

Not so long ago, the couple had parted ways on the marriage issue. While Neelam wanted to marry, Samir was evading it. “Now that Samir has made up his mind, Neelam’s joy knows no bounds. Both love each other very much,” adds the source.

Lara Dutta roped in for Don 2

Bollywood hottie Lara Dutta is once again set to fight it out with her supposed rival Priyanka Chopra on the silver screen. The two desi beauties, who were last seen sharing screen space in the Akshay Kumar starrer ‘Andaz’, are all set to relive the experience as both Lara and Priyanka have been signed on for Farhan Akhtar’s much-awaited flick ‘Don 2’.

Lara has been cast alongside Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra and Arjun Rampal- all three who have been retained from the film’s prequel ‘Don’.

However, it’s being believed that she would have a meatier role than just be seen vying for SRK’s attention alongside Priyanka in the story. Lara’s not replacing Eesha (Koppikhar). She’s a completely new addition to the cast with an entirely new part written for her. But yes, the role will require Lara to learn some form of martial arts and she is very kicked about doing an action role.

Lara and Priyanka made their Bollywood debut together in 2003, with blockbuster flick ‘Andaz’. While for Priyanka, there’s been no looking back since then, Lara apparently is yet to make it to the top spot in the industry.

Lara Dutta finds her Mr Right in Mahesh Bhupathi

Lara Dutta, who had not only lambasted the media but had sworn to stay away from journos after her reported link up with tennis ace Mahesh Bhupathi, is now going back on her word. According to reports, she was seen rubbing shoulders and walking hand-in-hand with the sports star at a recent award function.

Getting cosy with Bhupathi, Lara made no attempt to hide her affection with her latest beau. What’s more is that the stunner even posed happily with her new lover for the media.

Attending the Filmfare awards, the lovebirds seemed oblivious of the media glare as they exchanged warm vibes and sweet gestures. Sure it seems that the duo no longer wants to keep the affair under wraps.

Talking about their relationship, a source told a daily said, “Bhupathi has now finally created a racket with a star as his arm candy. As his divorce with his former wife, model Swetha Jaishankar, has also come through, it is the beginning of a new game for him with Lara”.

it seems after a series of heartaches, courtesy Kelly Dorje and Dino Morea, the actress has found her Mr Right in Bhupathi.

Deepika Padukone and Lara Dutta jealous of Katrina Kaif

With the B-town couple of Katrina-Akshay churning huge hits one after another, the makers of ‘Housefull’ had decided to reprise the fabled Kat-Akki pair for an item song in the movie. But the idea couldn’t be materialised as the film’s leading ladies Deepika and Lara reportedly showed great displeasure over the mere mention of the inclusion of Kat in the venture.

Meanwhile, Katrina too was hesitant in doing the item number in the Dips starrer, given the bitterness the two actresses nurse over Ranbir Kapoor. Finally, the item number has been shot with none other than Jacqueline Fernandes of ‘Aladin’ fame.

A source said, "Katrina was offered the song but it became difficult to convince the other actresses to allow her presence. Kat even heard the track and raved about how catchy it was. Since Katrina and Akshay have amazing on-screen chemistry it would have been a treat to have her along with Riteish and Arjun. It wasn’t meant to be."

Well, fully aware of the Deepika-Katrina chemistry, the filmmakers didn’t pursue the matter any further as the inclusion of Katrina didn’t seem like a pleasant move.

However, Sajid Khan, the director of ‘Housefull’, has blankly denied the news of Katrina being considered for the much-hyped item number.

Lara Dutta graces Elle India - November 2009 edition

Ex Miss Universe Lara Dutta graces the cover of Elle Magazine’s indian edition for the month of November 2009. Here are some of the snaps.

Lara Dutta latest photoshoot

Ex Miss Universe Lara Dutta poses for a new and candid photoshoot. Here are some of the pics from the photoshoot.

Lara Dutta falls in love with Mahesh Bhupati

Former Miss Universe Lara Dutta has some tremendous capacity to fall in love! The ex-beauty queen enjoyed a full-fledged relationship with Kelly Dorji then dropped him in favour of his closest friend Dino Morea.

And after the best friends became worst enemies over her, Lara has found a love interest in tennis star Mahesh Bhupati. The tinsel town is abuzz with stories of Lara-Mahesh’s clandestine romance.

Lara is now dating tennis sensation Mahesh Bhupati and the two share a remarkable rapport. They hit it off the moment they met each other. Lara is keeping the love affair a closely guarded secret to avoid any kind of controversy. But eyewitnesses reveal that they seem to be madly in love with each other.

With Lara’s single status and Bhupati’s failing marriage, the two easily struck a love-bond after they met through a common friend. The couple deny the relationship, but as they say, there cannot be smoke without fire!!

Lara Dutta rocks at Knights & Angels

One actress in Bollywood can be termed as thinking man's actress and she is none other than the goddess of beauty, poise, grace and elan - Lara Dutta and she recently proved this fact yet again.

Lara appeared on the famous show - Sunsilk Presents Knights & Angels as the Blue gang of girls set the stage ablaze. Lara was seen at her stylish best. On the show, she not only cheered the girls with full enthusiasm but also recollected her days when she participated in the Miss Universe beauty pageant.

The Bollywood belle was so taken aback with the brilliant performances that she also joined them on stage to shake her leg to the tunes of Jhoom Barabar Jhoom and gave these young girls some tips on cheerleading.

Kylie Minogue to sing for A R Rahman

A.R.Rahman is on a all time high. He is all set to entertain the listeners by having Australian pop sensation Kylie Minogue to sing for his forthcoming film Blue. This film also stars Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt, Zayed Khan along with Katrina Kaif and Lara Dutta.

Blue is said to be India's first 'official' underwater film. But that’s not all, the sensational Kylie lending her magically mystical voice to not one but two of the songs in the film just add to the thrill of the movie. While one of the songs is a duet with the supremely talented Sonu Nigam, the other is a solo number for the promotional video of the film.

The duet track with Sonu Nigam is unique as while Sonu recorded the song in Mumbai, Kylie recorded the same in London. This magical fusion was made possible by the musical maestro A.R.Rahman. The latest news is that Kylie will be shooting for the duet song with Akshay Kumar while gyrating to ace choreographer Farah Khan's dancing instructions.

It really seems like the makers of this film are leaving no stone unturned to give the film a truly international feel.

Lara Dutta on the cover of Grazia

Bollywood actress Lara Dutta may not have had a single release last year barring a cameo in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and giving the voice-over for the animated flick Jumbo. However, the gorgeous beauty would be seen in quite a few films this year such as Billu Barber, Blue and Banda Yeh Bindaas Hai.

Before setting the silver screen on fire, Lara is seen at her glamorous best as the cover-girl for fashion magazine “Grazia” in their January issue. The stunning beauty is seen in a chic burgundy colored dress and one look at her in this outfit and you will know why she was crowned "Miss Universe" few years back.

Sajid Khan signs Lara Dutta for Housefull

Heyy Babyy was a smash hit. After delivering Heyy Babyy, Sajid Khan announced that his next directorial venture Housefull would star Akshay Kumar, Ritesh Deshmukh, and Deepika Padukone besides two more leading ladies. Soon the super-sexy Jiah Khan was also added to the star-cast and a hunt for the third and final leading lady was on.

A lot of names of top Bollywood beauties such as Genelia D'Souza, Vidya Balan etc did the rounds but now after months of speculation by the media, now it has been revealed that the lady in question is none other than Lara Dutta. Yes, Lara has been signed for Housefull.

With an ensemble cast of Akshay Kumar, Ritesh Deshmukh, Deepika Padukone, Lara Dutta and Jiah Khan, expect the “Houseull” boards when this film hits the screens later this year.

Hot Babes at Dabboo Ratnani Calender Launch

Lara Dutta to play Paro for Sudhir Mishra

Director Sudhir Mishra is directing a version of Devdas. However, the long delayed film may just be a little more delayed because of Mishra's latest obsession with Devdas's darker side.

The director is believed to have been very influenced by the film, The Dark Knight, and specially Heath Ledger's character in it. Therefore, he has now decided to rewrite his script. But the reassuring part is that the only thing that may be changed is Devdas's character. The characters of the two women in his life, Paro and Chandramukhi, to be played by Lara Dutta and Chitrangada Singh, do not reportedly change. The director is very taken with the portrayal of the Joker by the late Heath Ledger and it has inspired him to rework the character of Devdas, probably to include a darker edge to the character. Mishra is believed to be giving the script his complete attention currently. The film, which is being produced by PNC, will get off to a start early next year. The transformation in the character of Devdas will definitely be interesting to watch out for.

Lara Dutta maintains style under water for Blue

Lara Dutta would be seen doing some high voltage underwater stunts in her upcoming movie Blue. Yeah, that means we will see her wet alright but the actress apparently decided that she would like to keep her hairstyle intact even when she is amidst her action scene under water. And to make that possible she got her the same make-up artist who was behind Keira Knightley's look in Pirates Of The Caribbean.

"The film required a make up artist who could handle make-up for under water sequences as well as special effects for the action sequences and give the character a glamorous beach babe look that was also very natural looking," says Lara Dutta.

"Nikoletta Skarlatos, who has worked on Transformers as well as Pirates… came very highly recommended by our international action team. She and Clarabelle Saldhana have put the whole look together for make-up and hair. They have done an amazing job and I am extremely thrilled with the results," she added.

Well, she seems pretty happy with their work. Wonder what they have to say about this Indian beauty who had mesmerized the world during the Miss Universe contest way back in 2000.

Lara Dutta on weight loss

Lara Dutta would be shooting for the action packed film Blue and has been as cool as never before. The reason being, she believes, is her strict workout routine.

"I am healthier than ever before because of all the working out I have been doing and feel that I am in my best form ever," she says. Lara will be getting into her action shoes for the first time as an actress. However, fit for her does not mean skinning herself down to nothingness.

"I have never wanted to be waif-thin, but to have a fit and lean figure, which I have achieved all thanks to the strenuous training that I have been going through preparing for the movie Blue," says the ex Miss World.

Interestingly, Kareena Kapoor's rapid weight loss was much in news as rumours spread that she was facing health problems due to the same. Though Kareena has so far been denying all such reports.

Lara Dutta turns into a Bhojpuri Item Girl

When we saw this picture of Lara Dutta performing at an event over the weekend, we were just socked.

In fact it took us two minutes and more than some vigorous rubbing of our eyes to know that this is indeed the same beauty who sizzled on screen in item numbers like "Aisa Jadoo Daala Re" and “Zinda Hoon Main”.

What's with the outrageous costume darling? The complete mis-match makes her look like a B-grade Bhojpuri actress. May be Lara wanted to be at her comical best while performing at this Comedy Honors night. If that's the real reason, we are certainly having a good laugh.

Unforgettable Show: Lara Dutta out and Akshay Kumar in

While actress Lara Dutta has opted out of the Bachchans' 'Unforgettable Show' world tour because of her knee injury, Akshay Kumar has decided to join it, though he will perform only at select venues.

The show's organisers Wizcraft are now in the process of finalising seven to eight big stars from Bollywood to accompany Amitabh and Abhishek Bachchan, and Aishwarya Rai at various venues in July and August.

'Akshay is back in the Bachchans' world tour. But he'll join them only at selected venues because that is all Akshay's schedules allow,' said a source.

'Likewise, at other centres we're roping in other A-listers who will join the Bachchans as they perform all over the US and later Europe. In this way there would be a couple of big surprise guest appearances by marquee names in every city, though rightly the focus of interest would remain the Bachchan family,' added the source.

Composer duo Vishal-Shekhar has been confirmed as a part of the tour. They will be accompanying the Bachchans for all their concerts, just like decades ago Kalyanji-Anandji used to be an integral part of the Big B's concerts.

In fact, an album featuring Abhishek with guest vocals by the Big B that Vishal-Shekhar have been putting together for the last two years will finally be ready to coincide with the Bachchans' world concert.