Indian film star Rajnikanth home after treatment (AP)

NEW DELHI – News reports say Indian movie star Rajnikanth has returned home after staying several weeks in a hospital in Singapore where he was being treated for a kidney ailment.

Press Trust of India reports that the 60-year-old actor arrived in the southern Indian city of Chennai on Thursday. PTI says scores of fans were at the airport to greet the star.

Three hospital stays in April interrupted the shooting of his latest film, "Rana," before Rajnikanth left for Singapore in late May.

Rajnikanth's real name is Shivaji Rao Gaekwad. He has acted in more than 175 films since 1975. Many are in the Tamil and Telugu language films in southern India.

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Indian film star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan pregnant (Reuters)

MUMBAI (Reuters) – Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is pregnant with her first child, her father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan announced on Twitter on Tuesday.

"I am going to become a grandfather Aishwarya expecting. So happy and thrilled!!!" Bachchan said, confirming the subject of weeks of speculation.

Rai, 37, a former Miss World, has been married to actor Abhishek Bachchan for more than four years and the star couple had been fending off pregnancy rumors in the past year.

On Tuesday, Rai's media manager confirmed the pregnancy but did not give more details.

Rai, who often features on "most beautiful" lists, has worked in several Hollywood and Bollywood films but has taken on noticeably fewer projects recently.

She has no films under production but has signed up to filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar's "Heroine," which was announced at the Cannes Film Festival in May.

(Reporting by Shilpa Jamkhandikar)

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Vienna Philharmonic honours Indian conductor Mehta (AFP)

VIENNA (AFP) – The prestigious Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra on Saturday paid homage in an emotional ceremony to 75-year-old Indian conductor Zubin Mehta, celebrating 50 years of musical collaboration.

In the orchestra's historic Musikverein hall, a visibly moved Mehta recalled how he had carried out his musical studies -- initially as a double-bassist -- in the Austrian capital.

"Vienna was and remains my musical barometer," Mehta said, recalling how as a poor student he had "sneaked in" to the Musikverein without paying to stand and watch performances.

During the ceremony Mehta was praised by Argentinian-Israeli conductor Daniel Barenboim, who took to the piano for the occasion, by the director of the Vienna State Opera, Frenchman Dominique Meyer, and by the chairman of the Vienna Philharmonic, Austrian violinist and conductor Clemens Hellsberg.

Hellsberg noted that Mehta had conducted the Philharmonic no fewer than 293 times and that only two other conductors -- German Bruno Walter and Austrian Herbert von Karajan, both deceased -- had also reached 50 years of collaboration with the orchestra.

The orchestra's musicians paid homage to Mehta with a concert of works by Johannes Brahms, Franz Schubert, Richard Strauss, Giuseppe Verdi and Joaquin Rodrigo.

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Indian artist M.F. Husain dies in London (AFP)

MUMBAI (AFP) – India's most famous modern artist M.F. Husain, who left the country in 2006 due to threats from Hindu extremists, died on Thursday in London, media reports said citing family members.

Husain, who was aged 95 and known as the "Picasso of India", died at the Royal Brompton hospital in London, the Press Trust of India news agency said.

Indian television news channels reported he had suffered a heart attack and lung failure.

"India didn't have the privilege of seeing him in his last moments, that is a huge loss for this country," Jitish Kallat, one of India's leading young artists, told NDTV news.

"As an artist several decades younger than him, I feel like a part of the canopy has blown off," he said. "He evolved the public notion of what it meant to be an artist in this country."

Maqbool Fida Husain, a Muslim formerly based in Mumbai, was accused by Hindu hardliners of insulting their faith for portraying goddesses in the nude in some of his paintings -- a depiction that he said symbolised purity.

Following threats by a radical Hindu group that offered a reward of millions of dollars for his death and thousands of legal cases filed against him for offending "Hindu sentiment," he moved to Qatar in 2006 and accepted Qatari citizenship in 2010.

In 2008, Husain's works were attacked by members of the Bajrang Dal, a right-wing Hindu group, at an event in New Delhi -- the same year that one of his paintings, influenced by a Hindu epic, fetched $1.6 million at Christie's South Asian Modern and Contemporary Art sale.

When he accepted Qatari citizenship last year, Husain said he had chosen to go into exile to be able to paint in peace instead of living in fear over death threats from Hindu fanatics.

"At the age of 40, I would have fought them tooth and nail but I just wanted to concentrate only on my work. I don't want any disturbances," he said in an interview.

He said he was content to be a non-resident Indian and that he had no qualms about losing his nationality, as India does not allow dual citizenship.

"What's citizenship? It's just a piece of paper," he said. "Wherever I find love I will accept it.

"Ninety-nine percent of Indian people loved me and they still love me. I'm an Indian-origin painter. I will remain so to my last breath," he said.

The Indian government had recently tried to draw him back to his native country, with home secretary G.K. Pillai pledging to provide adequate security to protect him.

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Indian guru threatens to form yoga militia (AFP)

NEW DELHI (AFP) – A television yoga guru who has led protests against corruption in India threatened to form a militia on Thursday as a new demonstration against the government drew thousands in New Delhi.

Yoga star Swami Ramdev, who was evicted from the capital along with thousands of followers at the weekend in a police crackdown, warned of violence if he was targeted again.

The activist, an eccentric figure watched by millions of Indians daily on a religious television channel, called for men and women to join his "army".

"They must be dedicated, ready to make the ultimate sacrifice," he said from his base in northern India in remarks reported by the NDTV news channel. "They will be given arms training. We will build an army of 11,000 men and women."

His spokesman told AFP that the force would have weapons but would act only in self-defence. He said that Ramdev, who has been fasting since Monday, was determined to stand up to police if they again attacked him or his supporters.

In the capital, thousands gathered at the cremation site of Mahatma Gandhi, considered the father of the Indian nation, to join a one-day hunger strike in solidarity with Ramdev.

Led by Anna Hazare, a 73-year-old activist who observed a 98-hour hunger strike against corruption in April, several thousand made their way through tight security to join the demonstration.

"We will have to make sacrifices. We will be humiliated also. But we will have to bear all this and take it in our stride," Hazare, wearing trademark white cotton clothes, told the crowd.

Hazare, who has a large public following after years of campaigning against corruption, successfully forced the government in April to allow activists to help draft a new anti-graft law.

"I am here to support Anna. I was shocked by the way the police misbehaved with innocent protesters during Baba Ramdev's demonstration," Rolly Mishra, a 25-year-old software engineer who had taken the day off work, told AFP.

"In a democracy, everyone has a right to stand up for a cause and no government can stop us from doing so."

Anger about corruption is mounting in India after a series of scandals, notably a telecom licence scam that might have cost the country up to $39 billion.

Some observers predicted the government's heavy-handed treatment of Ramdev, a strict social conservative with radical views on how to tackle corruption, could lead to further protests.

But the guru's call for an army and the threat of violence is likely to alienate many Indians who had previously sympathised with his cause.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has faced criticism for his handling of Ramdev.

Government ministers attempted to appease him initially by listening to his demands before switching tactics and ordering the police crackdown that left more than 70 injured, including two seriously.

One of India's most popular authors, Chetan Bhagat, has orchestrated an online campaign against the government, calling on his followers on Twitter to observe a one-day fast in solidarity with Hazare and Ramdev.

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Indian superstar Rajinikanth to leave hospital (AFP)

CHENNAI, India (AFP) – Indian film megastar Rajinikanth is to be discharged from a hospital and flown to Singapore, doctors said Friday, just over a week after he was taken into intensive care.

Doctors at the private Sri Ramachandra hospital in the southern city of Chennai declined to say whether his treatment would continue in Singapore, which has some of the best medical facilities in Asia.

Rajinikanth has had fluid drained from his lungs to ease a breathing complaint and some dialysis for a kidney ailment.

"Singapore is a place to relax and enjoy and if someone is visiting Singapore it is for rest and recuperation," one doctor said.

Rajinikanth, a former Bangalore bus conductor, is one of Indian cinema's biggest stars and inspires a near god-like devotion from his legions of fans.

He was taken ill at the end of April on the first day of shooting for his new film "Rana" (The Monarch) and has been in and out of hospital ever since, sparking a vigil by fans and prayers for his swift recovery.

Tickets for a Singapore Airlines flight have been booked for Rajinikanth's two daughters, one son-in-law, a doctor who treated him in Chennai and his driver, a source at Chennai airport said.

Rajinikanth, who is often referred to in southern Tamil Nadu state simply as "The Superstar", had been booked in as a wheelchair passenger.

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Ailing Indian star Rajnikanth to rest in Singapore (AP)

NEW DELHI – The family of Indian movie star Rajnikanth says he will go to Singapore to rest after recovering from recent illnesses.

His daughter Aishwarya Rajnikanth says the 60-year-old actor had recovered but needed rest and care to regain his health.

His wife Latha Rajnikanth said Friday that Rajnikanth has been hospitalized three times in a month with a kidney ailment and respiratory infection. She told reporters in the southern Indian city of Chennai the actor was doing well but the family was looking forward to some private time.

Rajnikanth, whose real name is Shivaji Rao Gaekwad, has acted in more than 175 films since 1975. He is one of India's biggest movie stars, especially in Tamil and Telugu language films in southern India.

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Indian movie star Rajnikanth hospitalized (AP)

NEW DELHI – The Indian movie star Rajnikanth has been hospitalized with stomach and respiratory infections but is recovering.

His wife Latha Rajnikanth says the actor has been in the hospital in the southern Indian city of Chennai for a week and was recently moved to the intensive care unit.

She told reporters on Thursday that her husband first complained of dehydration and a stomach infection and later developed a respiratory infection.

A statement from the Sri Ramachandra Medical Center said the star was admitted on May 13 and put in intensive care on Wednesday where he was responding well to treatment.

The 60-year-old has acted in more than 175 films since 1975. He is one of India's biggest movie stars, especially in Tamil and Telugu films in southern India.

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I'm not the heroine in 'Heroine', Indian star says (AFP)

CANNES, France (AFP) – Indian actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's next movie sees her playing a Bollywood superstar, but on Friday she said it would not be a biopic of her own glamourous life.

Promoting "Heroine" at the Cannes film festival, the former Miss World -- who has starred in more than 40 Indian movies -- said she would be creatively at the mercy of director Madhur Bhandarkar.

"It's not a biography, it's not an autobiography for sure," said Rai, 37, with a laugh as she fidgeted with her hair. "You hear this today, at the very beginning, so know this until the very end."

When asked by AFP how much of the story she could identify with, she teasingly replied: "That's to tickle your fancy."

"I think that is what the viewer will probably be searching for," she added, "but it must always be remembered that the actor does what the director has visualised and envisioned for a particular character.

"I'll be playing a character called Mahi, but it's a character that's been written and conceptualised by the director."

"Heroine" will mark the first time that Rai has worked with Bhandarkar, who has a track record of peering into the lifestyles of India's rich and famous with such films as "Fashion" and "Page 3".

"One thing I would like to clear up: it ("Heroine") is nothing to do with the film industry or what you call 'Bollywood' or the Indian film industry," the leather-jacketed Bhandarkar said.

"It is the individual journey into the internal life and conflict of this girl ... and how her life goes up and down, the trauma and turbulations that she goes through in her life."

Ronnie Screwvala, chief executive of producer UTV Motion Pictures, said "Heroine" -- to start shooting in mid-2011 -- was written expressly with Rai in mind.

Explaining why he was launching the project in Cannes, Screwvala alluded to Rai's star power: "She is the brand ambassador for India and for Indian cinema when it comes to the French Riviera."

Rai said: "I'm so glad finally that we've come together to work on this movie. ... I'm totally at home with UTV, and Madhur and me have been interacting for so long. I'm really looking forward to this creative journey together."

No Indian filmmakers are in competition this year at Cannes.

But the festival will salute India's film industry Sunday with an al fresco public screening of "Bollywood: The Greatest Love Story Ever Told," produced exclusively for the event by acclaimed filmmaker Shekhar Kapoor.

It will pay homage to a genre "that has contributed to establishing India?s identity in the eyes of the world and to making Mumbai one of the world capitals of film history," organisers have said.

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