Amitabh Bachchan appointed WHO goodwill ambassador for Hepatitis

May 12, 2017

Mumbai, May 12: Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan has been appointed by the World Health Organization as its Goodwill Ambassador for Hepatitis in South-East Asia Region to boost awareness and intensify action to arrest the hepatitis epidemic.

amitabh“I am absolutely committed to the cause of hepatitis. As a person living with hepatitis B, I know the pain and sufferings that hepatitis causes. No one should ever suffer from viral hepatitis,” Bachchan said at an event here organized by World Health Organization.

Announcing Mr Bachchan’s association with WHO, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director for WHO South-East Asia, said, “this historic association is expected to help strengthen WHO’s efforts in reducing the high numbers of premature deaths and illnesses from viral hepatitis which is not only causing hardships to individuals and families, but also impacting health and development across the region."

Though preventable, viral hepatitis kills 410,000 people in the region every year, mostly people in their productive years. Nearly 90 million people suffer from chronic liver disease that is driving rates of liver cancer and cirrhosis in the region, according to the latest WHO estimates released this year.

As WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Hepatitis in the region, Bachchan will lend his voice and support to public awareness programmes that aim to scale up preventive measures and advocate for early diagnosis and treatment of viral hepatitis to reduce the disease burden.

Among preventive measures, hepatitis B vaccination – a dose within 24 hours of birth followed by three doses in the first six months of life, as per the national immunization schedule of countries in the region, – provides protection and prevents mother-to-child transmission of the disease. Safe practices related to injections, blood transfusions and other procedures can prevent the spread of hepatitis B and C while clean water and hygienic food can reduce the risk of hepatitis A and E infection.

This is the first formal association between WHO and Bachchan, who served as UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Polio in India, and has been supporting and promoting various health related issues in the country such as childhood immunization programme, tuberculosis and ‘clean India’ campaign.

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May 29,2020

New Delhi, May 29: Actor Pooja Hegde revealed that her Instagram account was hacked after unflattering memes about her colleague Samantha Ruth Prabhu were shared.

Samantha's angry fans are not buying her explanation and it has prompted a Twitter trend #PoojaMustApologizeSamantha.

On Monday night, Pooja put out a tweet that her Instagram had been hacked and was in the process of being retrieved. She urged her fans to not accept any invitations or pass out any personal information to the person asking.

She wrote, "Hi guys, so I've been informed by my team that my insta account has been hacked and my digital team is helping me with it. Please do not accept any invitations or pass out any personal information out to the person asking. Thank you."

An hour later, which she spent "stressing," the 'Mohenjodaro' star tweeted again to say the account was restored and that all activity in the while it had been hacked would be undone.

"Spent the last hour stressing about the safety of my Instagram account. Thanking my technical team for instant help at this hour. Finally, got my hands back on my Instagram Any message, follow back or post in d past hour from my account has been done will be undone. Ty," tweeted Hegde.

The 29-year-old actor announced that her feed has been cleaned up now. Her most recent Instagram post is now one on pet food that she posted three days ago.

In Pooja's tweets, there is no mention of Samantha.

According to the screenshots that are being circulated over social media, a meme of Samantha was posted from Pooja's account. It read, "I don't find her pretty at all."

This tweet has triggered Samantha's fans who have not been pacified by her explanation and are demanding that Pooja apologise, meanwhile Pooja's fans say she has nothing to apologise for.

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June 30,2020

Mumbai, Jun 30: Actor Vivek Oberoi on Tuesday announced that he is set to make his debut as a producer with a high-concept thriller titled "Iti- Can You Solve Your Own Murder”.

The whodunit thriller will be directed by Vishal Mishra, who has previously helmed on films "Coffee With D” (2017) and "Hotel Milan” (2018).

"Iti" will be produced by the actor's banner Oberoi Mega Entertainment, Mandiraa Entertainment and Girish Johar. It is creatively backed by Prernaa Arora.

The 43-year-old actor said he trusts Vishal’s vision and liked the idea so much that he decided to back the project.

"I’m sure it’s going to be an exciting journey with Prernaa, team Mandiraa and Girish. We hope to present an engaging piece of cinema to the audiences with this," Vivek said in a statement.

The film revolves around a woman who is racing against time to solve her own murder. The project is expected to go on floors by October and release in the first quarter of 2021.

“I’m super excited and keen to share this story with our audiences. Vishal is a very gifted talent and we are pretty sure that with this film, we have a winner on our hands," Johar said.

Vivek's last Bollywood big-screen appearance was in 2019’s "PM Narendra Modi". He was also seen in season two of Amazon Prime Video's thriller "Inside Edge".

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June 22,2020

New Delhi, Jun 22: Musician Madonna, who is a mother of six, wished herself on the occasion of Father's Day on Sunday by posting adorable pictures with her kids.

Along with pictures, the 'Crazy For You' singer penned down a beautiful caption, wishing herself and every parent a 'Happy Father's Day' for nurturing and guiding their children in the best way possible.

"Happy Fathers Day to Me and to every parent out there doing their best to Nurture, Guide, Inspire, and Teach! #Lola #Rocco #David #Mercyjames #Estere #Stella," the 61-year-old singer wrote in the caption.

Madonna is the biological mother to two of her six children and has adopted the rest four.

She had adopted her first child Davida Banda back in 2006 and then she adopted a boy in 2009. The last addition to her family were the twins she adopted from Malawi.

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