Despite massive stardom, Rajinikanth connected to roots: Huma

Agencies
June 4, 2018

Mumbai, Jun 4: Feeling intimidated while working with Rajinikanth in "Kaala" was obvious for Huma Qureshi but the actor was surprised by the megastar's down-to-earth nature.

Huma will be seen working with the 67-year-old actor for the first time in Pa Ranjith's upcoming film, which features Rajinikanth as a powerful don living in the slums of Dharavi.

"What I found out about Rajini sir is that he is such a spiritual person, he is so simple. Sometimes, you think the person's image is what he is but he is far from it. He talks fondly about his past, his journey of becoming an actor from a bus conductor.

"It's nice to know that a person, who has seen massive stardom, is still humble and knows where he comes from," the actor told PTI.

Huma said that despite being one of the most successful stars of India, Rajinikanth does not his stardom on the sets.

"I was very intimidated, even before we started working I was aware that he is such a massive star and I didn't know what to expect. But once we started shooting, I realised what a simple person he is despite being a huge star.

"The director's word is final for him and I learnt so much by just observing him. Not even for a moment did he carry his stardom on sets," she says.

For her, the journey of "Kaala" began to post the release of her 2017 film "Jolly LLB 2" when she got a call from actor Dhanush, Rajinikanth's son-in-law who produced the film.

Huma then flew to Chennai for the narration and fell in love with the story.

Talking about her experience of working with the film's director, Huma says, "I think Ranjit sir as a director has a strong political voice which comes across in the film, which I personally enjoyed. I like working with people who have some belief. It doesn't have to be my belief but it feels good to be a part of something which is different from the usual stuff happening around."

In a classic Rajinikanth film, there is often little scope for a female character to perform but Huma says "Kaala" is different.

"It is a quintessential Rajinikanth film but at the same time, it is not a film where women are seen in just accessory roles, where you are just singing and dancing and looking pretty."

"They are doing a lot more from a performance point of view. When you see the film, I promise you won't be disappointed," she adds.

Though the 31-year-old actor is tight-lipped about her role in the action-drama, Huma insists it was a challenging feat.

"I never thought I would be able to pull off a character like this had it not been for the support of the entire direction team as I was speaking a language I don't know - Tamil.

"The first three-four days were difficult. You struggle with your lines and try to find a rhythm. For every film, you take four-five days to understand the vision. But credit to the team, I felt at home. It was fun and an amazing learning experience."

"Kaala", which also features veteran actor Nana Patekar, is scheduled to release on June 7.

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May 24,2020

Los Angeles, May 24: Filmmaker Frank Marshall, one of the producers behind Jurassic World: Dominion, says the forthcoming film is not a conclusion of the franchise.

Colin Trevorrow, who rebooted Steven Spielberg's blockbuster Jurassic Park franchise with 2015's Jurassic World, is back on the director's chair after sitting out on second movie Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018).

Asked about the upcoming movie, Marshall told Collider: "It's the start of a new era."

Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are coming back for the third film, which will also feature original stars of 1993's Jurassic Park -- Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill.

The producer also revealed how he sees the film franchise extending into the future.

"The dinosaurs are now on the mainland amongst us, and they will be for quite some time, I hope," Marshall said.

The film was three weeks into production when it was shut down over coronavirus concerns, but the producer said the team has the sets built in London and will be "back in business" once they have guidelines from the British government.

Dominion is still slated to be released on its scheduled date of June 11, 2021.

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News Network
March 11,2020

Washington, Mar 11: Pop star Selena Gomez made some revelations about her personal life in a recent interview.

While explaining the lyrics of her song "Rare" on the 'Genius' YouTube channel, the 27-year-old said that there are times when she feels that she will ever be able to find a suitable partner for herself, reported Fox News.

"Some days when I wake up and I am annoyed and I am like, 'I am going to be alone forever.' But after that 15 minutes go away, I say to myself, 'I know that there is someone for everybody," the singer told in the seven-and-a-half minute long video.

However, she remains optimistic as she is still young and "this isn't the end all be all".

Elaborating upon the chorus of her song, Gomez opened up and said, "self-esteem and confidence is a constant struggle".

"It's getting better with time and age, but it will always be something that I'm working on," she added while explaining the lyrics further.

"So what I think is so important about this chorus is that it's acknowledging, 'Hey, I don't have it all. I'm not saying I'm perfect, but I do know that I'm special,' and I think that is a humble approach of saying, 'Why don't you see that I am different?'" the singer added as reported by Fox News.

Touching upon her experiences from past relationships, she commented: "In certain relationships, I've heard and I've experienced and whatnot, I think men and women do it -- especially teenagers and young people in love -- is there's this satisfaction out of hurting someone because you know that they care. Purposefully putting someone down because they want to keep them at a level. I've had someone actually say that to me before".

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News Network
January 24,2020

Paris, Jan 24: Rahul Mishra and Imane Ayissi made history on Thursday by becoming the first Indian and black African designers to show their clothes on the elite Paris haute couture catwalk.

Only a little more than a dozen of the world's most prestigious luxury labels -- including Dior, Chanel and Givenchy -- have a right to call their clothes haute couture.

All the clothes must be handmade -- and go on to sell for tens of thousands of euros (dollars) to some of the richest and most famous women in the world.

Mishra, an advocate of ethical "slow fashion" who blames mechanisation for much of the world's ills, said "it felt amazing and very surreal to be the first Indian to be chosen." "They see a great future for us -- which will make us push ourselves even harder," the 40-year-old told AFP after his debut show was cheered by fashionistas.

Both Mishra and Cameroon-born Ayissi, 51, are champions of traditional fabrics and techniques from their homelands and are famous for their classy lines.

Ayissi said his selection was "immense" both for Africa and himself.

"I am so proud that I can show my work and showcase real African fabrics and African heritage," he told AFP backstage as celebrities, including the chic head of Unesco, Audrey Azoulay, congratulated him.

Mishra broke through on the Paris ready-to-wear scene after winning the International Woolmark Prize in 2014, the top award that also launched the careers of such greats as Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent.

The purity of his often white creations with their detailed but understated embroidery has won him many fans, including Vogue's legendary critic Suzy Menkes.

The doyenne of fashion's front row called him an Indian "national treasure".

But this time, Mishra turned up the colour palette somewhat with dresses that subtly evoked the jungle paradises and pristine underwater world off the Maldives he worries that one day we might lose.

Appalled by the smoke and pollution that meant he had to keep his four-year-old daughter indoors in Delhi for nearly 20 days in November, Mishra said he imagined a "pure virginal and untamed planet... with ecosystems crafted out of embroidered flora and fauna".

"I am very emotional about it. Sometimes it makes me cry. All our children should be growing up in a better world," he added.

"When I take Aarna (his daughter) to the foothills of the Himalayas and the sky turns blue, she is so happy.

"Once, when she saw the River Ganges, she said: 'Can you please clean it for us so can go for a swim?'"

Mishra said he was reducing the quantity of clothes he was producing while at the same time increasing their quality, with humming birds, koalas and other animals hidden in the hundreds of hand worked embroidered leaves and flowers of his "jungle dresses".

The designer has won ethical and sustainability awards for his work supporting local crafts people in rural India.

"My objective is to create jobs which help people in their own villages," Mishra said.

"If villages are stronger, you will have a stronger country, a stronger nation, and a stronger world," he added.

Ayissi takes a similar stand, refusing to use wax prints popular in West Africa which he dismisses as "colonial".

Dutch mills flooded Africa with cotton printed with colourful patterns borrowed from Indonesian batik in the 19th century, and still dominate the market.

"When we talk about African fashion, it's always wax, which is a real pity," he told AFP, "because it's killing our own African heritage."

Ayissi, a former dancer who worked with singers such as Sting and Seal, told AFP he wanted to open up "a new path for Africa" and find an "alternative way of doing luxury fashion".

He has gone back to using prestigious local materials, like the strip fabric kente woven by the Akan people of Ghana and the Ivory Coast, which was originally worn only by nobles.

The son of an undefeated African boxing champ and a former Miss Cameroon, he also uses appliqued techniques from Benin and Ghana.

Haute couture shows only take place in Paris and the criteria to enter and remain in fashion's elite club are strictly enforced by French law.

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