Ever since Amitabh Bachchan returned to work after his illness earlier this year, he has been focusing on completing the projects he was committed to as opposed to signing any new films. He has since concentrated on completing his films, which include the recently released Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, Ram Gopal Verma's Nishabd, Cheeni Kum, Baabul and Eklavya. Meanwhile, he has Ram Gopal Verma's Sholay and Sarkar 2 in the pipeline, however he has remained mum about signing any new projects. Until now . . .

Percept Picture Company (PPC) announced that it has signed Mr. Bachchan in the lead role of Johnny Walker. The film is a relationship drama to be directed by promising filmmaker Shoojit Sircar. The script is written by Renzil D'Silva, the writer of Rang De Basanti. It is rumored that Mr. Bachchan may even have a hand in the scripting process.

"Johnny Walker is a love story that begins where most other love stories end. It is a film about love, regret and hope. Most of all it is a film about second chances," director Shoojit Sircar says.

When asked about the project, Mr. Bachchan said "I am very excited to be a part of the film Johnny Walker and I am looking forward to working with PPC. I feel that Johnny Walker has the potential to cut across global audiences. The final logistics are being worked on for the production of this film. AB Corp is also looking at the possibility of doing a joint venture with PPC for this film."

Meanwhile, Lage Raho Munnabhai remain flawless, as 6 more reviews have been added and it is now at an 81% and is now the best reviewed film of the last two years, beating out previous winner Black. More amazing is that with 41 reviews, not a single one has been negative, keeping its record flawless. It is the first time a new major Bollywood film has done that since this site was opened in 2004. It is currently at an 81%, ahead of Rang De Basanti's 77%, making it the best reviewed film of 2006. For all reviews for Lage Raho Munnabhai, click here.

The top 5 reviewed films of the year thus far are Lage Raho Munnabhai, Rang De Basanti, Omkara, Krrish and KANK. Which is your favorite of the 5? You can vote in our opinion poll of the week on the left hand side of the screen.