Matt Damon meets Shilpa Shetty at IPL

April 20 2009 PST

Hollywood met Bollywood in of all places, Africa. Hollywood stud Matt Damon met Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty at the Indian Premiere League Gala dinner in Cape Town, South Africa. Shilpa is part owner of the Rajasthan Royals (a team playing in the IPL) while Matt Damon was filming "The Human Factor" directed by Clint Eastwood. Opening ceremonies for the event began on April 17th with a parade. Other notables at the ceremony include Shahrukh Khan and Preity Zinta. South Africa will be hosting the games that will be played between a few Indian franchises. Unlike the Cricket World Cup which South Africa Hosted in 2003, the IPL will not include nation versus nation matches. Check out the picture of Matt Damon with Shilpa Shetty and let us know what you think. Do you think all the celebrities coming out to support the IPL will give the event more attention, and who are you rooting for in the IPL, let us know at Desi Hits!

Rappers and Rockers Team Up to Help India

April 20 2009 PST

There will be many footsteps taken to help out countries in need, green ones that is. This summer, Denmark's Roskilde Festival will feature some of the biggest and best artists in rap and rock music in an effort to help the environment. Lil' Wayne has just been added to the roster of acts, a who's who in music. Lil' Wayne will be alongside Eagles of Death Metal, Kanye West, Coldplay, Oh No Ono, Lily Allen, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Pet Shop Boys, Nick Cave, the Bad Seeds and Peter Sommer. Quite an eclectic group of artists there!

The Roskilde Festival will be taking place from July 2 through July 5. Now on the surface this just sounds like a regular old enormous gathering of artists to perform. It's cool but what's so special? Well Roskilde happens to be one of Europe's biggest concert events. Every year in July 170 bands play for around 80,000 visitors in Roskilde. Even though Roskilde is among the oldest is rock festivals of the world, Roskilde is well known for constant development presenting a mix of well establish music names and new talents. In 2007 the festival presented: Beastie Boys, Bjork, Muse, Queens of the Stone Age, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Tiesto and The Who. Coachella and the Reading Festival can also be example of super concerts that happen annually. Stateside, there are many concerts that feature a multitude of artists. Most of these concerts are organized by local radio stations.

The big cause this year that should impress Desis is the focus on cleaning up the environment. Organizers have announced an environmentally conscious theme for the 2009 Roskilde dubbed "Green Footsteps," which will raise global climate change awareness among the estimated 75,000-plus attendees. The festival's Odeon and Sustainable Stages will host CO2-friendly concerts, and donations will go towards environmental projects in India and Bangladesh. That sounds like a worthwhile cause. We all know India and Bangladesh could definitely use the help, and this concert is a great way to spread the message. With the attention coming from this concert, India and Bangladesh can enjoy cleaner air, cleaner water, and all around a better mode of living, so if there's anything you can do to support, it would be greatly appreciated. Whoever thought of this deserves some props.

So what do you guys think of this show? Do you think the proceeds will be going to a worthwhile cause? Are you happy that these artists are on board for this show? Let us know what you're thinking because only good can come out of something like this show.

Rishi Rich Hosts Introductory Course at His New Music Academy

April 20 2009 PST

We told you all about Rishi Rich's new music academy in London more than a month ago and
our readers seemed to show an interest in the superstar producer's music academy. Well now
that Rishi Rich's academy has finally opened its doors to the public, there's a lot of curiosity
looming as to what the school is really going to be like. The Rishi Rich academy promises to
teach people all about the music industry. The famous producer has revealed more details now
that the academy is starting actual classes.

The first of Rishi Rich's classes being offered are a basic introductory four day course for those
who want to start a career in the music industry. This course gives opportunities for aspiring
students the chance to be taught by some of the hottest in the industry. It covers everything
production, singing, performing and dancing. The sped up method is supposedly going to teach
those who sign up everything they need to know.

The four day course seems to already be filling up quickly. The "teachers" include Rishi Rich, H-
Dhami, Nihal, DJ Veronica, Pedro Carvalho, Juggy D, and Ameet Chana so it's no surprise that people
would be interested. After the four day session, Rishi Rich will invite exceptionally talented students
back to work with him some more. It'll be interesting to see if Rishi Rich will find new talent using his
new academy.

So what do our readers think about Rishi Rich's four day course. Do you think that this is enough time
to teach someone everything they need to know about the industry? Or do you think that Rishi Rich
wil use this as a way to seek out more talent? Give us your thoughts on Rishi Rich's introductory
course.

Esha Deol Brand Ambassador for Paris Cosmetic Giant

April 20 2009 PST

Esha Deol has been a little low key lately. The actress has been under the radar for quite a while. She's currently in Mumbai, with her mom, actress Hema Malini and sister Aahana. Well it's almost time for Esha Deol to try and revive her career and take it down a new path.

A good friend of Esha Deol's said that she is being considered as the new brand ambassador of a Paris based cosmetic giant. The friend said "To compete with famous International cosmetic brand L'Oreal which has star brand ambassadors such as Aishwarya Rai and Sonam Kapoor, a rival cosmetic giant wants to rope in an Indian face that has a well toned body, is young and has got a good height. Esha has fit their bill perfectly and the deal between is under negotiations now. When things get finalized a proper media announcement shall be made with a big event taking place in a Mumbai star hotel. Esha meanwhile is presently busy working on the interior decorations of her new house and is avoiding going to parties and film events."

Hopefully this will help the actress to get back into the entertainment industry. Desi Hits! wants to take a quick look back at former and current Desi actresses and models who were or are brand ambassadors for cosmetic giants:

'Kambakkht Ishq' at Cannes Film Festival?

April 20 2009 PST

There's no denying that Akshay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor's upcoming film, 'Kambakkht Ishq' is one of the most highly anticipated Bollywood films of the year! The film's producers are leaving no stone unturned when it comes to the film's promotion and are eager to promote it as an international film. The film will also release worldwide with the biggest amount of prints ever, even surpassing hits like, 'Ghajini' and 'Singh is King'!

Now we hear that the film may also be released at the popular Cannes Film Festival! If all goes as planned the stars of the film, Akshay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor will be walking the red carpet in May in the south of France for the big festival! If you recall, in the past, stars like Shahrukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan walked the red carpet at Cannes when their film, 'Devdas' premiered there.

We hear the film is already being cut to shorten the running time and is being dubbed in English for the special screening at Cannes. It's not really surprising why producer Sajid Nadiawala would want the film to premiere there, as it's big on Hollywood glamour and style. It even features appearances by Hollywood stars such as Sylvester Stallone, of 'Rambo,' Denise Richards who starred in 'Wild Things' and Brandon Routh, the young star of the latest 'Superman' film.

It's apparent that both Nadiawala and the distributors, Eros International want the film to premiere at Cannes and see it as the perfect international publicity stunt to drive more curiosity. While the 'Kambakkht Ishq' team says the plans are going strong, the premiere has yet to be confirmed.

So are you guys hyped up to see the film? And what do you think of a possible Cannes Film Festival premiere? Drop us a comment below!

Barack Obama Chooses Aneesh Chopra as CTO

April 20 2009 18:05 PST

President Barack Obama has chosen Aneesh Chopra as Chief Technical Officer. The choice for some
has been surprising since many suspected that Obama would choose someone out of Silicon Valley.
Aneesh Chopra however hails as Virginia's Secretary of Technology.

Nevertheless, Chopra has been getting praise at his position, according to Alan Davidson, Googles
director of government relations and public policy, "As Virginia's technology czar Aneesh has been
relentless in applying technology to make government work better for citizens -- from requiring state
government agencies to make their sites more crawlable, to integrating iTunes with the state's
educational system." Barack Obama chose Aneesh Chopra because he hopes that Chopra will "promote technological innovation to help achieve our most urgent priorities -- from creating jobs and reducing health care costs to keeping our nation secure."

Chopra graduated with a Masters in Public Policy from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of
Government in 1997. He then served as Managing Director with the Advisory Board Company, a
publicly-traded health care think tank serving nearly 2,500 hospitals and health systems before he
went on to serve Virginia Governor Tim Kaine as Secretary of Technology.

On discussing his Barack Obama's choice, Vinod Khosla, founder of Khosla Ventures, says "This man is a
'do-er,' plain and simple. He is a visionary leader and executive who can bring people together around
a vision to get the job done. Aneesh is a passionate advocate of how technology and innovation can
positively impact the lives of millions of our citizens through improved education, health-care, helping
better protect our environment and so much more."

So what do you think about the latest pick or Barack Obama. Are you familiar with Aneesh Chopra or
has the President of the United States put him on the map? Do you think he will have a positive impact
on the states, let us know at Desi Hits!

Slumdog Millionaire's Rubina Ali Almost Sold

April 20 2009 16:10 PST

Rubina Ali is back in the spotlight. After appearing as young Latika in the Oscar winning film "Slumdog
Millionaire," the child actress is in the middle of some family issues. "News of the World," an
organization known in the journalism world for setting up stings claims to have set one up with
Rubina Ali's father, Rafiq Qureshi. According to "News of the World" the sting was set up in which
journalist acted like a wealthy Middle Eastern family wanting to adopt Rubina for a sum. The price for
nine year old Rubina Ali was set at around $300,000.

According to Rafiq Qureshi "We've got nothing out of this film." However Danny Boyle and producer
Christian Colson has set up a trust that will aid in Rubina's education. Along with that, the young actress
will also get proper housing and help in dealing with media attention. In fact, sound engineer Rasul
Pookutty for "Slumdog Millionaire" has given Rubina Ali and co-star Azharuddin Ismail each a luxury
apartment in Kerala, South India.

But the luxury apartment isn't finished, and even if it was, Rafiq Qureshi wouldn't have moved. He
cites that Mumbai is his childhood home and has no intention of leaving it. At the hotel where the sting
went down, Rubina and her uncle Rajan More were also present along with father Rafiq. Recent
reports however have Rafiq Qureshi denying the reports. "This is just an attempt to malign her name.
After all she has become world famous now, hasn't she?" says Qureshi. As of now police are
investigating into whether the reports are true.

So Desi Hits! Readers, what do you think about the shocking allegations? Think there's any truth
behind the whole set up or is this just a media stunt by "News of the World." If it is true, do you think
Rubina Ali would be better off with another family? Let us know here at Desi Hits!