Have you heard? Was Madhavan and Chetan Bhagat's Twitter spat a publicity stunt for Decoupled?

R Madhavan and Chetan Bhagat

Let's just say. R Madhavan is pretty bold to pick a war of words with a man who has made a career of… well, playing with words. Days ago, in a bid to establish that cinematic adaptations will never outperform the books on which they are based, author Chetan Bhagat asked his followers on Twitter, "Have you ever heard anyone ever say the movie is better than the book?" Pat came Madhavan's reply: "Yes! 3 Idiots." The actor featured in the much-acclaimed movie, based on Bhagat's book, Five Point Someone. Thereafter, Bhagat seemed to have lost the plot. Instead of acknowledging a response to a question he had posed, he chose to take a shot at Madhavan's career instead. "Maybe it's just me, I prefer a Pulitzer over a pan masala branded award show," said Bhagat. "Well, I prefer the 300 Crore Club over Bestseller (sic)," said Madhavan. They continued to take jabs (each better than the other), only to eventually reveal that the drama was part of a publicity stunt for their new web show. Well played, indeed! Or, as Chatur from 3 Idiots would say, ‘Rancho, you got me!'

Double power!

Veteran stars Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia will share screen space in the upcoming romantic, comedy-drama film, Jab Khuli Kitaab, directed by Saurabh Shukla. The film is an adaptation of Shukla's play of the same name. Shukla said: "Jab Khuli Kitaab is close to my heart and I'm thrilled to have stalwarts like Pankaj Kapur and Dimple Kapadia as my leads. We all say that one should be transparent and clean in any relationship. But, how many of us are open to face the truth in our own relationships?" The film is a romcom with a couple in their '70s.

Life-changing experience

For Kangana Ranaut, working on Thalaivii has been an experience of a lifetime. The film enabled her to portray the life of late Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, and it was a journey that took an emotional and physical toll on her "It was a life-changing experience for me as it was profuse with learning. Portraying a strong and inspiring personality like Jaya amma, was an enriching experience," Ranaut says. Praising the late politician for her versatility, she added, "Jaya amma was also a trained Bharatanatyam dancer, and a fabulous actress."

Regina gets grooving

Actor Regina Cassandra is set to feature in Rocket Boys, in which she will play the character of legendary dancer Mrinalini Sarabhai. "To get a chance to play such an iconic character on screen for my first Hindi OTT release is like a dream come true. Dancers have a certain body language, and it was a challenge to get it right. Mrinalini ji was a dignified lady who was not prone to any dramatics, no matter what storm she was facing in her private life. So, it was important to portray her in that form," she says.

Kiss, don't tell?

Bigg Boss 15 host Salman Khan continued to face flak for the way he responded to a controversy that erupted between Debolina Bhattacharya and Abhijeet Bichukale. Alluding that Bhattacharya dramatised a situation in which house-mate Bichukale asked her to kiss him, Khan seemed to suggest that women shouldn't react on the first or second instance of provocation, but should respond if it occurs, thereafter. Netizens said he gave the wrong message.

Nach le zara?

Rubbing shoulder with the likes of Keanu Reeves and Jada Pinkett Smith, Priyanka Chopra, once again, gave Indians a reason to celebrate by making a mark on a global stage. While promoting her next, The Matrix Resurrections, Chopra told a news channel that she posed her terms before giving her nod to her next, Farhan Akhtar's Jee Le Zaraa. "I have told Farhan [that] it's been a while since I spoke Hindi in a movie. I want to do that, and I want to dance. So, there should be dance in the film," she reportedly said. PeeCee's desire to groove, coupled with Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy's music sensibilities - this seems like recipe for success.

Can you match 'em?

Nora Fatehi seems to have found new fans in members of the South Korean K-Pop band, BTS. The group tickled the funny bone by replicating Fatehi's moves in a recent video that was shared on Instagram. They can be seen twerking to Fatehi's track, Kamariya, from the film Stree, in what seems to be a bid to poke fun at the moves.

Singh is king!

Govinda, who celebrated his birthday yesterday, participated in an Instagram Live session with a radio-jockey. Actor Ranveer Singh turned up in the audience and took Govinda by surprise. The actor praised Govinda with comments like: "There is no one like chi chi", "Love you chi chi" and "Chi Chi se humara wajood hai." Taking note of his comments, Govinda said, "I love Ranveer like no one else. He is the next superstar of the industry. May God bless him. His energy is unparalleled. Words fall short when I see his expression of love for me." Govinda thanked his fans, as he said, "I am blessed, fans have showered their love on the work that I have done through the year."

Thank you, next!

While Indian filmmakers have surrendered to the fact that BO clashes are inevitable, south filmmakers are still trying to preserve their opening weekends. RRR director SS Rajamouli and the makers of Radhe Shyam, took to social media to thank the makers of Bheemla Nayak and Sarkaru Vaari Paata for agreeing to postpone their respective movies' release, in order to avoid a clash. While the filmmakers wanted to release the movies during the Sankranti festival, the Producers Guild settled a conflict over the release dates. Rajamouli also thanked actor Mahesh Babu, who led from the front and deferred his film's release. "[Babu] was the one who took the initiative in de-cluttering the Pongal releases, even though Sarkaru Vaari Paata was a perfect Pongal film. He moved it to summer, and created a healthy atmosphere," Rajamouli's tweet reads.