Anurag Kashyap prefers to talk straight to Modi

October 18, 2016

anurag

Mumbai, Oct 18: After filmmaker Anurag Kashyap tweeted at Prime Minister Narendra Modi where he asked the PM to apologise for his visit to Pakistan, he received a lot of flak on social media platforms. Today, on October 18, the Gangs of Wasseypur director, took to Twitter to voice his opinion, “NO, Anurag Kashyap did not ‘ask the PM to apologise'( which most of the headlines would want you to believe, no one has their mind anyways), I merely questioned the fairness in judgement of a situation.” He said that it is unfortunate that he has to explain his intentions towards his tweets. He said that he merely questioned the fact that why does only ‘one have to pay the price’. He said “The PM visited Pakistan for talks at the same time that a filmmaker was working with a Pakistani actor. Neither was aware of future events or mood.”

Saying that he is tired of the film industry being soft targets, Kashyap wrote, “We are damned if we do, damned if we don’t! When we don’t involve ourselves, they ask ‘why is Bollywood quiet now?’ When we involve ourselves, we become the scapegoats to distract you from the real news. Either way, they use us to sensationalise news.” Kashyap also said that he is aware that the PM did not ask for the ban on Pakistani actors, in the same way, he does not ban Kashyap’s films. Yet he said that, since the PM is elected, it is his responsibility to protect people from bullies like media and political parties. Kashyap said, “And when the governing party’s designated members don’t respond in hours of crisis because they are second guessing the mood of the PM then I would rather talk straight to the PM himself.”

Kashyap also explained his ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ tweet, saying that it was directed at the social media ‘trollers who constantly ask for proof of your patriotism’. He wrote, “Apparently that’s all it takes. It was a jibe at them. Patriotic slogans don’t absolve you from it all.” Earlier on October 16, Kashyap in a series of tweets expressed solidarity with filmmaker Karan Kohan, whose much-anticipated film, “Ae Dil Hai Mushkil” was said to not be released by a small group of theatre-owners in four states citing reasons that it features Pakistani actor Fawad Khan. Kashyap had posted on Twitter, “@narendramodi Sir you haven’t yet said sorry for your trip to meet the Pakistani PM. It was dec 25th. Same time KJo was shooting ADHM? Why?……why is it that we have to face it while you can be silent??” He later tweeted, “Just to make it clear, I complain because I expect my government to protect us, I question the PM because I have every right to..”

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Agencies
January 9,2020

Mumbai, Jan 9: A day after Deepika Padukone visited the JNU campus to express solidarity with students who had been attacked, her film "Chhapaak" made another splash on Wednesday over the name of its antagonist.

While Deepika was the focus of many a discussion on social media and beyond for showing up at a public meeting in the university, the film, based on the life of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal, was also making news for quite another reason.

In what could well be a storm in a 'Twitter cup', "Nadeem Khan" and "Rajesh" began trending on the microblogging site after a magazine article claimed the name of the antagonist had been changed. By 4 pm, 'Nadeem Khan' clocked close to 60,000 tweets and 'Rajesh' close behind with 50,000.

In 2005, Laxmi was disfigured for life when a man called Nadeem Khan and three others allegedly hurled acid at her in Delhi's upscale Khan Market.

In the film based on her life, the narrative remains the same but the names have been changed. So, Laxmi is 'Malti' Agarwal and Nadeem becomes 'Babboo' aka 'Bashir Khan'.

On Wednesday, Swarajya magazine wrote an article headlined, "The Ways Of Bollywood: In Deepika Padukone-Starer Chhapaak, Acid Attacker Naeem Khan Becomes ‘Rajesh'." "As part of a backlash against Padukone's JNU 'meet and greet', social media users researched the names of the characters involved in the movie Chhapaak and conspicuously found the name of main perpetrator Naeem Khan absent," the article alleged.

But in the Meghna Gulzar directed film, there is no mention of any Nadeem or Naeem Khan. Moreover, Rajesh is the name of Malti's boyfriend.

Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Babul Supriyo jumped into the controversy, saying it was another example of "absolute hypocrisy".

"...When you say all characters are fictitious and don't have any resemblance with living beings and all of that, this is absolute hypocrisy. When you change the name which also changes the religion, it has been done very deliberately," Supriyo told a TV channel when asked to comment on the controversy.

South Delhi BJP MP Ramesh Biduri also called for a boycott of the movie.

With Deepika grabbing attention by going to JNU, many appreciated her 'silent solidarity' but others criticised her for "supporting the Leftists" and said it was a promotional stunt ahead of the release.

"#BoycottChhapaak" was trending on Twitter as was "#ISupportDeepika".

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News Network
June 11,2020

Washington, Jun 11: Music maestro AR Rahman has joined the international film 'No Land's Man' as co-producer and composer.

Helmed by renowned Bangladeshi filmmaker Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, the upcoming movie has Indian thespian Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Australian theatre actor Megan Mitchell, and Bangladeshi musician and actor Tahsan Rahman Khan in pivotal roles.

"Time always gives birth to new worlds, new ideals. The newborn world has new challenges and new stories to tell. This is one such story," Variety quoted Rahman as saying.

The movie chronicles the life of a South Asian, whose journey gets complicated when he meets an Australian woman in the U.S.

The film, shot in the U.S., Australia and India, is predominantly in English with some dialogue in Hindi and Urdu.

'Sacred Games' actor, Siddique said: "The filming experience for this project was challenging but a fulfilling one. AR Rahman's brilliance will definitely make the film richer."

"Farooki and I first spoke about 'No Land's Man' at Film Bazaar in 2014. Between then and now, the film has become even more relevant as it looks at what it means to be a vulnerable person in a racially-divided world," producer Srihari Sathe said.

'No Land's Man' won the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) and Asia Pacific Screen Awards' Script Development fund in 2014. It was part of the Asian Project Market at Busan and was chosen as the best project at India's Film Bazaar the same year.

Earlier in January, Siddiqui posted multiple pictures on Instagram with the team of the flick, marking the schedule wrap in New York and Sydney for 'No Land's Man.'

He also captioned the post as: "Wonderful experience with the most energetic team."

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News Network
April 12,2020

Los Angeles, Apr 12: Pop star Rihanna has asked her fans, who are demanding her to release her new album soon, to back off as her prime focus right now is doing her bit in saving the world from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Grammy winner was one of the first Hollywood personalities who pledged support towards the relief efforts in fighting the COVID-19 outbreak.

Rihanna has been teasing new for quite some time now and eager admirers got an earful from her during an Instagram Live. Her last studio album was 'Anti' which was released in 2016.

Taking a swipe at US President Donald Trump, the Barbadian singer said, "If one of y'all ask me about the album one more time when I'm tryna save the world, unlike y'all president....on sight."

Rihanna's non-profit organisation Clara Lionel Foundation (CLF) and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey recently donated USD 2.1 million each to help victims of domestic violence in Los Angeles during the COVID-19 stay-at-home order.

Also CLF and and rapper Jay-Z's Shawn Carter Foundation donated USD 2 million to support undocumented workers, the incarcerated, homeless and elderly populations, and children of frontline healthcare workers in Los Angeles and New York City amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier, Rihanna, through CLF, also donated USD 5 million to support Direct Relief, Partners In Health, Feeding America, the International Rescue Committee and World Health Organization's COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund as they continue to fight the pandemic in the US, the Caribbean and Africa.

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