The movie, directed by Venkat Prabhu, also features Nagarjuna in an important role with grey shades. Reportedly, the film is being made simultaneously in Tamil and Telugu, with Jacqueline playing the female lead in both Tamil and Telugu versions. Talks are still on with her.

Actor Manchu Manoj will share screen space with the two lead actors. Yuvan Shankar Raja composes the music and Shakthi Saravanan is behind the camera. Produced by Dayanidhi Alagiri of Cloud Nine Movies, a slick pre-shoot trailer of Mankatha with Ajith was released recently and was a huge hit among his fans.

Salman’s previous show Dus Ka Dum was a huge hit, which raises expectations for Big Boss. “I am a common man. I have a lot of respect for my audience. I don’t care about this celebrity image and I connect to people because I don’t differentiate. Moreover I’m a straightforward person who can’t play politics and mask my feelings,” he confesses. Speaking of the real big boss in his life he says, “It’s my dad. He controls all my actions and reactions.”

The veteran singer shows rare courage to show how a senior professional should behave when one of their ilk gets into legal problems. Recently, when Akshay Kumar was compared to a jackass by a scribe, Amitabh Bachchan rushed to help the superstar and trash the journalist community.

Salman Khan, the bad boy of Bollywood, was found on the other side of law several times. He was accused of killing a blackbuck in the ’90s.

Q After two superhits, people are already comparing you to Shah Rukh Khan. How does it feel?
You cannot compare two people - you cannot compare Dilip Kumar to Amitabh Bachchan or to Shah Rukh. These actors and many others are superstars and legends while I have just begun my career. All I want to do is work with good directors and do good roles.
Q Would you say there is a lot of raajneeti in Bollywood as well?
I have not seen it. All my peers and friends in the industry are positive - each one of them. We are competitive but in a good way.

Q The number of high-end brands you are endorsing - a cola, a consumer electronic product, a fashion line and now a car - has been rising steadily?.
I’m basically an actor. When a brand comes to you, it shows that they think you have a connect with the audience. It makes you feel more responsible towards your films and your audience.

Q A lot has been said about you doing Anurag Kashyap’s biopic on Kishore Kumar.
Yes, I have been approached for it but a lot of work has to be done on it. We don’t know if it will happen or not and when it will happen. It is too early to talk about it.

Set in the 1970’s, the film sees Ajay donning a purely white ensemble, similar to what Amitabh wore in “Deewar”.

“I happened to see ‘Deewaar’ and loved Amitji’s all-white look when he goes for his father’s funeral in the film. I realised that the look would work for Ajay as he looks good in white. Ajay wears white throughout the film. It gives him a different identity,” Luthria said in a press statement.

Before settling on the “all white” look for Ajay, whose role is said to be inspired by infamous gangster Haji Mastan, the team had tried 37 costumes.

Due for a July 30 release, the crime thriller follows the rise of Sultan (Ajay Devgn), and the conflict, when his protégé Shoaib (Emraan Hashmi), challenges his supremacy, and usurps power to rule the murky underbelly of Mumbai.

"Colombo marks the second decade of IIFA. The nominees for the Micromax IIFA Awards 2010 are a compilation of the best work from the previous year and the suspense and celebration of these worthy nominations will undoubtedly create another magical IIFA," said Sabbas Joseph, one of the directors of Wizcraft, in a statement.

The nominations were released after voting in March. Results were audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers. The event will take place June 3-5 in Colombo, Sri Lanka.