Do our Bollywood stars always need to have a larger than life persona? Well, not really. At least not on the home viewing medium. I think, the time has arrived and the small screen has achieved a certain critical mass; so it's time now to capture the stars as they really are… sometimes insecure under the glaring archlights, sometimes angry and most of the time very human really.

So, what's it like Being Saif Ali Khan? There was our very cool & charming bollywood youth icon confessing to Anuradha Sengupta on CNN IBN, "Sometimes it's better to get a bit naked and accept the fact that one has made a mistake. And the minute you do that you will suddenly start smiling and wondering how serious life is and how many people one has hurt."

Saif was responding to a recent controversy about his buying a Toyota Lexus by bending import rules.

Clarifying his position further, he said, "It was not that I was really interested in being the ring leader of smugglers. I confessed my mistake to the customs people, paid the duty and later went ahead and bought a nice and legal Merc." Talk about candid confessions on the tube.

What I quite liked about the interview was that Anuradha, (whom viewers have seen for long as anchor on CNBC's Trendmill and Storyboard,) managed to get the actor to talk and not just on films, his roles or his heroines. In fact, she even managed to get Saif to comment on his father's legal imbroglio in a recent hunting case.

"I know times have changed. Shikar is illegal and I hope truth prevails. Also, I think it's time we all respect the laws of the land. Sometimes, I wonder where all our taxpayers money is going? The roads don't work and when we do a charity show we aren't sure whether it's reaching the right people…" Well, right said Saif…

******

Talk about lightness of being…. no one comes across as humble and rooted in his interviews as the Big B. Though this is about a repeat episode, since we are on Bollwood's finest, it is still worth a mention. There was a very tired and ailing Amitabh Bachchan on NDTV India. In a viewers' poll conducted by the channel, the Big B has been chosen as the Urban Indian of the year (2005).

''I really don't think I've achieved so much in my life. I could've done more and I am sure there are more deserving candidates in the country.'

Living in a grab world of hogging footage and soundbytes, I think the current Bollywood stars need to learn something from the Big B.

Talking about movies, movie stars and movie channels. Moving from the usual stuff of just telecasting Hindi movies, songs and filmy trailers is the new kid on the block from the Sahara stable called Filmy. From the first look of it, the channel looks like a well packaged product with a sleek look & feel.

More than that, it definitely stands out in comparision to the current breed of movie channels. What I found striking was that apart from the movie titles the channel has focused a lot on programming formats.

So, we have a Ruchi reporter whose only mission in life is to expose stars. And yes, saw Chunky Pandey after a long time playing a Rokky superstar. In all, a good package of gossip, masala, for an audience who can never really get tired of Bollywood stars and their lives.

*******

Since we are on gossip, Ekta Kapoor's new show Kandy Floss on Sony) is not just classy but even cheeky... From the first show, one gets a feeling that the content is not only going to be gossipy and chatty but also will get more wicked with time. Clearly suited for a late night time slot...

Apart from the content, I clearly think that anchor Archana Puran Singh is the USP of the show along with the animated bitchy character Kandy.

I can't help but remember Archana's Kya Scene Hain, which was quite a hit years back on Zee. Till date, Archana continues to rock the small screen with her unique sense of comic timing.

As for Ekta, you have to give it to the plucky producer who surely knows how to boost the TRPs. Though, this time around it's a different genre, I am sure Ekta will ride the wave.

*******

Before I go, a question for netizens of the world. Should people be allowed to write anything that they want and about whomsoever they want without their real identities being revealed. I am talking about blogging.

An interesting and serious discussion on Headlines Today had the likes of Sabeer Bhatai, the multi-millionaire founder of Hotmail and Arindam Chaudhari debating the issue. Bhatia who has recently launched blogeverywhere.com was obviously for it. Whereas, Arindam somehow raised a rather moot question - he said the government can bring in laws provided they are ready to recognize the internet as a new media.

Point taken, sir...