Abbas Tyrewala | Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na
Whacky humour
An actor (Maqbool), dialogue writer (Salaam Namaste, Main Hoon Na, Munnabhai MBBS, Darna Mana Hai, Asoka) lyricist (De Taali, Munnabhai MBBS) and story and screenplay writer, it was no surprise that with such a huge creative gift of words, Abbas Tyrewala, pulled-off his first directorial venture Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Na, a simple, refreshingly different romantic film that makes one want to fall in love. Interestingly, Tyrewala entered the industry as a lyricist with Tere Liye and Asoka was his first film as a writer.

“He is very fresh with his narrative and has a strange sense of humour which is very appealing. I cannot forget Prateik’s retort, ‘it’s just a mouse’, to Imran’s ‘I love your mouse’. He’s a powerhouse of talent and definitely here to stay,” says Vikram Bhatt. Tyrewala's next is 1-800-Love written by wife Pakhi who is also acting in it.

Rashid Ali| Jaane Tu...Ya Jaane Na
Expression
Rashid Ali, now 42, was born in Uttar Pradesh and brought up in London. His mother being a ghazal singer, he trained with Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan, Rashid’s sensibility became multi-ethnic with classical Indian music at home and R&B, Jazz and the music of multiple countries around him. In his teens, he was attracted to the guitar. After meeting A.R. Rahman in London, Rashid joined his troupe and did projects like Bombay Dreams and accompanied the maestro on several tours. Rahman also noticed his talent as a vocalist and introduced him to Tamil cinema with Parthale Paravasam (2001) followed by other films. It was with Jaane Tu…Ya Jaane Na that Rashid finally got a breakthrough to National fame with the super-hit number Kabhi kabhi Aditi… and also Kahin to hogi woh for the new heartthrob Imran Khan. Rashid has also recorded two songs for Rahman’s Ada and is now set to release an album of his own composition. Actor, Imran Khan says of him, “Rashid Ali's singing is great at emotions and expression even if he is not a classically-trained voice. Abbas Tyrewala and A.R.Rahman took a call on using him and Kabhi kabhi Aditi was recorded even before Aamir Khan decided to produce the film.”

Shahana Goswami|Rock On!!
The rise
“When seeing Rock On!!, I found Shahana to be brilliant as Arjun Rampal’s bickering wife and immediately wanted to know who she was. She has a very distinctive face with spoantaneity like that of Konkana Sen Sharma and she is here to stay for a very long time. I will definitely watch her next film and if there is a role in my films, I would surely cast her,” says Madhur Bhandarkar. But it took the actress years to find a firm toe hold in Bollywood. Four years ago, Shahana came to Mumbai from Delhi, with stars in her eyes. Though she began with theatre, her aim was to work in films. It was because of her theatre background that Shahana got the offer from Naseeruddin Shah to work in his directorial debut Yun Hota To Kya Hota followed by another small, but important film Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. Though both films gave Shahana an entry into Bollywood, neither of them brought her recognition. And then, Rock On!! happened. Interestingly, Shahana had signed Ru-Ba-Ru , her last release, before Rock On!!. Today, Shahana has some very interesting films in her kitty. She’s doing Sudhir Mishra’s Tera Kya Hoga Johnny, Nandita Das’ Firaaq and Vinay Shukla’s Mirch. The sassy girl is now on a roll.

Sikandar| Woodstock Villa
Here to stay
According to Vikam Bhatt, Sikandar may have messed up with his entry in tinsel town with his debut film Woodstock Villa getting delayed and his second film Summer 2007 releasing too close to that, but as an actor he has tremendous potential and a lot of talent. “His forte is the intensity with which he portrays his characters which stood out in both the films, and he also has an amazing screen presence. I don’t think you can keep him down. Sikander is here to stay,” he asserts. Son of veteran actors, Anupam and Kirron Kher, Sikandar kick started his filmy career with Woodstock Villa, a mystery thriller. As a multi-faceted actor, Sikandar loved to enact fictitious scenes created by his father as a child, assisted Yash Chopra in Dil To Paagal Hai and Sanjay Leela Bhansali in directing Devdas while still in high school. Prior to his debut film, Kher was the first to be offered the role played by Saif Ali Khan in Dil Chahta Hai (2001). His next project is reportedly a romantic film.

Nishikant Kamat|Mumbai Meri Jaan
Scaling Heights
His first directorial Marathi venture, Dombivli Fast that went on to become the biggest Marathi release of 2005 and earned him accolades all around. The film also won the coveted National Award for Best Regional Film in the year 2005 and he remade the film in Tamil with R Madhavan titled Evano Oruvan. Mumbai Meri Jaan his first Hindi film about the 2006 Mumbai bombings received critical acclaim. Abbas-Mustan, the director duo are all praise for this first-time director. “After watching Dombivli Fast we were spellbound by his directorial capabilities and he is surely a talent to watch out for,” say both in unison. Talking about the spate of films based on terrorism, producer Anjum Rizmi says, “Mumbai Meri Jaan shows how different people are affected by a terror attack. It is one of the nicest films that I have seen in recent times. Nishikant Kamath has done a great job.” With the kind of films that Nishikant has made, he is a director to watch out for!

Justin-Uday|Hijack
True-blue
Justin-Uday have been seasoned players on the jingles scene for over a decade. Though they always dreamt of working on films, it was only when ad filmmaker and associate Kunal Shivdasani decided to make his film debut with Hijack that they got their filmy break.The composers have proved their worth with songs as well as the background score of their debut film. Their background music for Saas Bahu Aur Sensex has been notable as well. They are now working with Sudhir Mishra and strongly believe in situational songs with an affinity for melody, orchestral and vocal finesse and good poetry - hallmarks of true-blue composers. Their score includes the contemporary romantic Aksar, the club number Dekh dekh and the solidly-melodious Koi na jaane. “We firmly believe that a film song is meant only for the film just like a jingle is meant only for a specific product,” says Justin, while Uday adds, “Our music should be a part of the film in every sense and not just to show off our talent or to pander to a trend.”

Harman Baweja|Love Story 2050
Loads of PotentialIt didn't matter that his debut film Love Story 2050 was a box-office disaster, because Harman Baweja as the eternal lover boy still commanded attention. Son of well-known producer-director Harry Baweja, Harman, who has studied Kathak intently, had a good screen presence . His style has often been compared to Bollywood icon Hrithik Roshan. Though Harman's next release is director Ajit Pal's cricket-based movie, Victory, it is Anees Bazmee’s It’s My Life, a remake of the Telugu film Bommarillu that is touted to be a re-launch of sorts for him. Ashutosh Gowarikar’s What’s Your Rashee, a romantic comedy based on Gujarati novelist Madhu Rey’s book Kimball Ravenswood is also on his platter. “I’ve not seen Love Story 2050 but I have interacted with Harman and was impressed by his personality. The very fact that top notch directors like Bazmee and Gowariker have cast him in their films proves that he has great potential,” says Anurag Kashyap.

Rajeev Khandelwal|Aamir
Big switch
After ruling the Indian television scene with his romantic and intense portrayal of Sujal in Kahiin To Hoga, ACP Prithviraj in CID and Captain Rajveer Singh in Left Right Left, Rajeev Khandelwal won millions of hearts with his intense portrayal of Aamir, a London-based doctor who has to deal with terrorism when he comes to India to meet his family. The film, Aamir, won critical acclaim and turned out to be a commercial winner as well Rajeev was lauded for his selection of role as well as for his fine performance. As director Vikram Bhatt says, “Rajeev is a natural actor and I can say he’s very astute in his selection of films. Not many actors would make their entry in Bollywood with an unconventional launch like Aamir in which he is just seen as this harried protagonist. He is a very talented actor and his second film Peter Gaya Kaam Se a hardcore Bollywood film directed by London-based director John Owen should secure his place in the industry.” Interestingly, Rajeev Khandelwal did not come to Mumbai as an actor with dreams of making it big. He was first behind the camera writing scripts and directing documentary films and made his transition to the small screen a few years ago.

Neeraj Pandey|A Wednesday!
No mean debut this
Before A Wednesday!, who knew Neeraj Pandey? The young director who perfected this tried and tested suspense drama formula to an edge-of-the-seat thriller has appeared from seemingly nowhere.