Namitha in 'Nil Gavani Ennai Kadhali'

'Nil Gavani Ennai Kadhali', the Tamil version of 'Black Stallion' in Malayalam, stars Namitha in one of her most glamorous roles. The film, directed by Pramod Pappan, has Kalabhavan Mani and Bala in important roles.

Sona's 'Sokkali'

Kollywood's glam queen Sona is all set to scorch the screens again. She will be seen next in 'Sokkali', which also marks the debut of Chaitanya (winner of the dance reality show, 'Manada Mayilada' Season II'). The cast includes Nayana, Ganja Karuppu and Alex. Joshua Sridhar has scored the music. Sona was crowned Miss South India in 2002. She debuted in Tamil with Vijay's 'Shajahan'. Sona says she was promised the second female lead: "I got a raw deal." Vijay, however, remains her favourite star. After 'Shajahan', Sona did 'Ayudham' in Telugu. The film was a hit and she became hot property in Tollywood.Sona's bikini-act in 'Azhagar Malai' had sent temperatures soaring and prudes gasping. Her glamour roles in 'Pathu Pathu' and 'Kuselan' catapulted Sona into the big league; she is now considered a potent threat to glam queen Namitha. Sona has been approached by a Tamil channel to do "Sona Ka Swayamwar", modelled on "Rakhi Ka Swayamvar". Sona has acted in three Malayalam films--Mammootty starrer 'Roudram', Jayaram's 'Parthan Kanda Paralokam' and 'Swarnam'. Sona runs a boutique in Chennai. She turned producer with 'Odu Machi Odu'. Nayana is Sona's her co-star in 'Sokkali'. Nayana has also played one of the female leads in the Jayaram starrer, 'Happy Husbands' (Malayalam). Nayana has done a steamy number with Chaitanya in 'Sokkali'. 'Sokkali' is scheduled to hit the screens in 2010, and expected to be a B.O. marvel.

Wading through 2010 tide in swimsuits

If you feel mad enough at the start of the New Year to throw off your clothes and dive into icy waters, then these pictures might just give you a high. In a symbolic gesture indicative of discarding the old year and diving whole-heartedly into the new, these revellers show you just how celebrations should be done. People participate in the annual 'Looney Dook' charity New Year's Day swim in the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh, Scotland. People wearing costumes pose in the water during the traditional New Year's Day swim in Malo-les-Bains, France. Rescue guards watch winter swimmers during a New Year swimming event on the North Sea coast of Buesum, Germany. Revellers participate in the annual 'Looney Dook' charity New Year's Day swim in the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh, Scotland. Participants run towards the waters of the North Sea as they take part in the annual New Year's swim event in Ostend, Belgium. Ice swimmers take a dip in the cold waters of Lake Oranke in Berlin, Germany. A rescue guard watches winter swimmers during a New Year's swimming event in Buesum, Germany. A winter swimmer runs into icy waters during a New Year's swimming event in Buesum, Germany. Marco Fois of Italy dives into the Tiber River from one of Rome's many bridges as part of traditional New Year celebrations. Participants enjoy themselves during the annual 'Looney Dook' charity New Year's Day swim in the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh, Scotland. Members of the Shenyang Winter Swimming Association carry a banner reading 'Happy New Year', during New Year celebrations in Shenyang, China. A winter swimmer moves through icy waters at a park, during New Year celebrations in Shenyang, China. Giuseppe Palmulli of Italy dives into the Tiber River from one of Rome's many bridges, during traditional New Year celebrations. The annual 'Looney Dook' charity New Year's Day swim in the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh, Scotland, has revellers turn up in crowds. People take part in a New Year's Day swim in the Firth of Forth near Edinburgh, Scotland. Revellers wear costumes at the beach during a traditional New Year's Day swim in Malo-les-Bains, France. Crowds turn up for a New Year's charity swim in Scotland.

Anushka Shetty

Anushka had a dream debut in 'Super' (2005) as the leading lady of Akkineni Nagarjuna. Success evaded this Mangalorean beauty until 2008. Following the release of 'Arundhati', Anushka Shetty became a rage in Andhra Pradesh. This leggy siren is, now, one of the top-earning actresses of Tollywood. Her latest release 'Vettaikaran', opposite Vijay, has set the cash registers ringing at the Kollywood B.O. After graduating in Computer Applications (BCA), Anushka wanted to get into the fitness world and thus became a yoga instructor.  She met Puri Jagannath through a common friend, who was looking for a heroine for 'Super'. Her first salary was Rs 20 lakh.  Her third film, 'Vikramarkudu' (2006), opposite Ravi Teja was a huge hit. In Chiranjeevi-starrer 'Stalin' (2006), Anushka performed an item dance.  In 2006, she debuted in Tamil with 'Rendu', opposite Madhavan. In 2008, she had four releases in Telugu; 'Baladur', 'Souryam', 'Chintakaala Ravi' and 'King'. Of these, the last mentioned was the only hit, in which Anushka appeared in an item number. Her parents are in the hospitality industry; one of her brothers is a dentist and the other, an engineer.  She learnt yoga from the famous guru Bharat Thakur in Mumbai.  Says Anushka: "I can be loud and vivacious and yet be demure. In fact, when people meet me for the first time they think I am arrogant. ." For the Tulu speaking Shetty girl, learning Telugu was not very difficult. Her knowledge of Kannada helped her a lot. Anushka enjoys reading, music, loves nature and travelling. She is very fond of children and pets.  She has a rather curious hobby of collecting paper cuttings on natural disasters. Her favourite Bolly actors are Hritik Roshan and Abhishek Bachchan. It's Mahesh Babu, Gopichand and NTR, in Tollywood. Her favourite actresses are Madhuri Dixit, Kajol, Rani Mukherjee, Sushmita Sen in Bollywood; Soundarya, Simran, Jyothika in south India.