Vivek in the news

Though Vivek Oberoi has been in news for his 'comeback film' with Ram Gopal Varma, Rakta Charitra, there is another film of his that would be arrive first later this year. After oscillating between Prince of Thieves and simply Prince, the film's title has now been fixed as Prince - It's Showtime. There is a relevance to the 'show-time' part, something that director Kookie Gulati reveals as he speaks about the title change.

"Actually, it's not a change in title per se because there was no title fixed in the first place. Prince of Thieves was just a working title and we were always contemplating getting something different as we come closer to the release", says the debutant film maker who has directed quite a few popular music videos in the past.

He confirms though that Prince - It's Showtime is the final title of the film.

"Yeah, Prince - It's Showtime is final and soon you would see the title being more prominent as we officially break the campaign", Kookie comments, "The phrase 'It's Showtime' is quite relevant to the film as well since this is the line that Prince (Vivek Oberoi) uses throughout the film. It fits in perfectly well with the character and this is why we thought of adding it to the film's title as well in order to set expectations with the audiences."

''Working on Prince - It's Showtime has been a fantastic experience'', exclaims Vivek Oberoi, ''It's a story that could be every man's fantasy and every man's nightmare. It is a thrilling and fascinating tale full of twists.'

Also starring Sanjay Kapoor in the role of a cop along with Rajesh Khattar and Dalip Tahil, PRINCE has music by Sachin Gupta with action by Allan Amin
Produced by Kumar Taurani's Tips Music Films, Prince - It's Showtime is an action thriller that sees Vivek Oberoi in a new avtar. From his long haired look in his last release Mission Istanbul, Vivek has moved on to a neat, close cropped look for Prince - It's Showtime. The film has been extensively shot in South Africa, Bangkok and of course various locations in India.

With Nandana Sen along with debutant British actress Aruna Murty as the leading ladies, Prince It's Showtime is said to be revolving around the search for a rare gold coin. Apparently, Vivek has performed some dare devilry stunts in the film, one of which required him to be jumping off a plane.

"The film boasts of some great thrills, great action and great fun! I guess that should be enough for me to comment as of now as its scheduled for release on 11th December 2009'', smiles Vivek who also has Qurbaan (earlier titled Jehaad) with Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor coming soon.

प्रिंसे

On the brighter side, PRINCE has great stunts and chase sequences [Allan Amin], fantastic visuals [South Africa] and of course, a chartbuster musical score [Sachin Gupta]. And these three factors, coupled with Vivek Oberoi's convincing performance, should take the film to safety!
Director Kookie Gulati has an eye for visuals and that's evident from the very start of the film itself. The film looks magnificent and wears an international look as well. Shiraz Ahmed's screenplay is watertight in the first hour, but leaves a lot to be desired in the latter portions. Dialogues [Mayur Puri] are well worded. Cinematography [Vishnu Rao] is top notch and the eye-filling locations are a visual treat. Allan Amin's stunts and chases are mesmeric. Sachin Gupta's musical score is trendy and catchy.

Vivek is super in a rather difficult role. He is excellent in dramatic portions especially and carries off the stunts with remarkable ease. Nandana is effective. Neeru doesn't get much scope. Aruna is the best of the lot. Sanjay Kapoor enacts his part well. Dalip Tahil is alright. Isaiah has screen presence and looks ferocious on screen. Rajesh Khattar is hardly there.

On the whole, PRINCE has great music, super stunts, Vivek Oberoi's bravura performance and terrific promotion as its trump card, but where it falters is in its writing [in its second half mianly]. Yet, all said and done, the film has the merits to strike a chord with the youth and lovers of masala movies.


One of the savviest thieves in the world [Vivek Oberoi] commits the biggest heist of his life. He wakes up next the morning to realize he has a gunshot wound on his arm that he doesn't remember getting. In his quest to find answers, he discovers his name is Prince, he used to work for a man named Sarang and his girlfriend's name is Maya.

Prince a wonderfull hit?

Mumbai, April 10 (IANS) Actor Vivek Oberoi visited a cineplex here Friday night to do a reality check on the audience reaction to his 'Prince: It's Showtime' and says he was thrilled by the grand opening of the film despite an Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket match on at the time.

'To be honest, I expected such a public response. I thought it's a nice film and people will enjoy it. I even thought that IPL is on so it would be a bit difficult, and especially there was a match of Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab. When distributors and exhibitors called me and said that the halls are houseful, I thought I should personally visit and check it,' he told reporters.

Vivek said he sneaked into a hall of the Gaitey Galaxy in Bandra 10 minutes to the film's intermission.

People watching the film were unaware of his presence until media camerapersons came inside the hall and distracted the audience. His fans started howling and whistling and took him on their shoulders, cheering his performance in the film.

'I didn't expect it to be this crazy and I am really sorry for the media people who kind of got pushed around. But I really enjoyed it. Especially, when people started whistling...,' he told reporters.

Vivek went inside the hall unguarded, without any bouncer or police protection. But before the situation could go beyond control, he escaped from the hall through an emergency exit.

The actor also said he was inundated by messages on social networking site Twitter.

'I am in Twitter and you get instant feedback there. Some of them are so cute -- while watching the film they kept on twitting me... right now you did this... now you did that... it's mind blowing. It really feels nice when you get so much love,' he said.

Vivek, who has done mostly multi-starrer films, said it was producer Kumar Taurani's confidence that helped him do the film as a solo lead.

'Honestly speaking I wasn't very sure that I would be able to carry this film. No other known names... till now I have done mostly multi-starrer films so that the films get safe opening. But it was him (Taurani) who saw his prince in me and asked me to give my 100 percent. This is the biggest opening of my career by far,' he said.

'Prince...' narrates the story of a thief who wakes up one morning to realise that he has lost his memory and his life is at stake. The film also features Nandana Sen, Aruna Shields and Neeru Singh.

Vivek, who runs a school in Vrindavan for underprivileged girls who have been abandoned by their families, said he was planning to make a special screening of 'Prince...' for them.

'I want to do a special screening for the children in Project Devi in Vrindavan. There are 1,200 children there but in Vrindavan there is no 1,200 seat theatre, so I will have to divide them into two shows. My 1,200 small angels are very excited to see the film with me,' he said.

Asked if he believes that the blessings of these children have brought him success, he said: 'Most definitely. If you do some good work, being true to your heart, the blessings you get for it are incomparable. More important than anything else, that takes you to another level, at least spiritually you are very happy by that.'