Katrina, Salman skip Karan Johar's birthday bash

May 29, 2012

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Having attended her kid-brother's graduation in culinary arts in Zurich, at precisely 1.30 am on Friday-Saturday morning Priyanka Chopra flew straight from the airport to the Taj Lands End, the venue for Karan Johar's extravagantly-discussed birthday extravaganza. She was one of the last guests to arrive and one of the last to leave. Having landed hours ago Priyanka displayed no sign of jetlag or fatigue.

Says a very khaas mehmaan at the Johar jamboree, "In fact Priyanka was in specially high spirits that evening. Looking radiant, animated and chattering nineteen-to-the-dozen, Priyanka looked triumphant, and why not? She had been put back on Johar's guest list after being knocked off."

Throughout the evening Priaynka was seen talking and whispering into Johar's ears but discreetly avoiding contact-eye or otherwise-with Johar's best friend Shah Rukh Khan. It was a mixed triumph for Priyanka. As she was allowed into the coveted party only after Mrs Shah Rukh Khan, Gauri, granted permission.

The imposing Mrs Khan has laid down certain ground rules for her husband vis-a-vis Ms Chopra: no films together and no hobnobbing socially beyond niceties. Incidentally Mrs Khan had laid down similar rules for her husband vis-a-vis Aishwarya Rai and Rani Mukherjee. But that's another story.

Meanwhile back at the most hotly-discussed party of the millennium, it was a formal affair with elaborate arrangements. Says one of the top actresses who attended, "It was a sit-in dinner with loads of Punjabi khana. Because that's what KJO loves.The glamorous decor was stylishly designed by Manish Malhotra. It was good to see the stars dressed in formals rather than the tee-shirts some of them wear even to formal events."

Most of Karan Johar's friends from the film industry(which means nearly everyone) turned up. Conspicuous by their absence were Salman Khan and Johar's chikni chameli Katrina Kaif, both of whom are currently shooting in Bangkok. Unlike Sanjay Dutt who left his shooting in Jodhpur for Soham Shah's Sher for an evening to be in Mumbai for his new pal KJO's 'Happy Burday' Katrina and Salman gave the event a skip for different seasons.

Salman, a source close to him informs, gave in to KJO's persuasive powers and said yes to the invitation in spite of knowing 'he' (read: SRK) would be there. But then friends advised Salman against providing titillating fodder for the shutterbugs. Also a co-star whom Salman trusts blindly reminded him what had transpired at another birthday bash in 2008 (Katrina's) where Salman and SRK nearly came to blows. That clinched the matter. No Salman at the Johar bash.

As for Katrina she was advised to fly down for Karan's sake. Those close to her said it would be good PR. But then a member of her staff made the mistake of pointing out to Katrina that flying down for the event was imperative since Priyanka Chopra too was doing the same. That did it.

Says a friend of Katrina, "Never tell Kat to do something just because someone else is doing the same. Kat loves KJO and recently did the chikni chameli song for him free of cost. It's another matter that KJO didn't gift her the promised Ferrari. Or that she is yet to sign on a full-fledged heroine's role in Dharma. Katrina would have still flown down from Bagkok. But when she heard Priyanka was flying straight in from Zurich, Kat decided not to. It would make her seem like she was vying for space in the Dharma scheme of things."

Not that Salman or Katrina were missed. There was plenty of excitement on the guest list. Vidya Balan (trying hard to convince everyone around that she hadn't heard any negative comments on her lavni item song in Ferrari Ki Sawari)and boyfriend Siddharth Roy Kapoor made their first together appearance at a filmy do.

Says a guest at KJO's bash, "The couple made no attempt to hide their feelings. Kapoor looked after Vidya like a good husband and even fed her from his plate." Incidentally Mr Kapoor is keen to tie the knot immediately. But Ms Balan's spiralling box office fortunes are proving the villain.

Other guests at the star-studded party were Tabu and Urmila Matondkar (talking animatedly maybe about spinsterhood), Hrithik Roshan, Farhan Akhtar, Shahid Kapoor, Bipasha Basu (no, the last two-named were not together), Anushka Sharma, Arjun Kapoor, Kangna Ranaut, Boman Irani, Kangna Ranaut, Yash Chopra, Ashutosh Gowariker, Rahul Bose, Ronit Roy, Uday Chopra.

Jaya Bachchan arrived solo. And, Rekha didn't show up to do another Silsila for the paparazzi outside parliament. Johar's 'Amit Uncle' Mr Bachchan and Abhishek are abroad for the former's treatment. Says an appreciative guest, "There were no glitches, no stress. No one misbehaved or got drunk.It was wonderfully organized. There was a sitdown dining area and the food was served with warmth and for a change we all actually ate at a party. KJO had asked everyone not to reach his party after dinner. And there was a separate room for desserts.It was all very stylish. We left by 1.30 am. But the party went on till 4 am."

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Agencies
June 7,2020

Washington D.C., Jun 7: South Korean pop band BTS and their record label Big Hit Entertainment have donated USD one million to support Black Lives Matter.

According to Variety, the donation was transferred earlier this week, with Black Lives Matter confirming receipt to the label on Friday.

"Black people all over the world are in pain at this moment from the trauma of centuries of oppression. We are moved by the generosity of BTS and allies all over the world who stand in solidarity in the fight for Black lives," the outlet quoted Kailee Scales, managing director for Black Lives Matter as saying.

The widely lauded band, earlier on Wednesday, took to Twitter to show their solidarity with the people fighting against the social injustice.

"We stand against racial discrimination. We condemn violence. You, I and we all have the right to be respected. We will stand together," the tweet read.

The pledge of the donation from the Korean boy band and its label comes during a time when people and celebrities from the industry have come forward to demonstrate their support for the black community.

Several big names from the music and acting industry also observed 'Blackout Tuesday' earlier the week as a message of solidarity in response o the death of George Floyd, an African-American man in the United States.

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News Network
February 26,2020

New York, Feb 26: Disney CEO Bob Iger, who steered the company’s absorption of Star Wars, Pixar, Marvel and Fox’s entertainment businesses and the launch of a Netflix challenger, is stepping down immediately, the company said in a surprise announcement Tuesday.

The Walt Disney Co. named as his replacement Bob Chapek, most recently chairman of Disney’s parks, experiences and products business.

“Did not see this coming -- Wowza,” tweeted LightShed media analyst Rich Greenfield.

Iger will remain executive chairman through the end of his contract on Dec. 31, 2021. Besides leading the board, Iger said he will spend more time on Disney’s creative endeavors, including the ESPN sports network, the newly acquired Fox studios and the Hulu and Disney Plus streaming services. He said he could not do that while running Disney on a day-to-day basis.

“It was not accelerated for any particular reason other than I felt the need was now to make this change,” Iger said on a conference call with reporters and analysts.

Iger steered Disney through the successful purchases of Lucasfilms, Marvel, Pixar and other brands that became big moneymakers for Disney. Last year, the top five movies in U.S. and Canada theaters were all Disney movies, including two from Marvel and one from Pixar. With the Dec. 20 release of the latest “Star Wars” movie, Disney had seven movies that each sold at least $1 billion in tickets worldwide last year.

Iger’s most recent coup was orchestrating a $71 billion purchase of Fox’s entertainment business in March and launching the Disney Plus streaming service in November. That service got nearly 29 million paid subscribers in less than three months. In a statement, Iger said it was the “optimal time” for a transition.

Pivotal Research Group analyst Jeffrey Wlodarczak said Iger had implied he would stay until his contract ended in 2021.

“On the other hand, they just successfully closed the Fox deal and had an unquestionably successful launch of Disney Plus so maybe he felt earlier was better to hand off the reins,” he said.

Colin Gillis, director of research at Chatham Road Partners, said the choice of Chapek seems solid because his parks division has had success.

Chapek said that while he has not led television networks or streaming services, his background in consumer-oriented businesses should help. Chapek and Iger both stressed that Disney would continue on the direction it had already been taking.

Disney is facing challenges to its traditional media business as cord-cutting picks up, meaning less fees from cable and satellite companies to carry Disney networks such as ABC, ESPN and Freeform. Disney’s own streaming services require the company to forgo money in licensing revenue, although the company is betting that money from subscriptions will eventually make up for that.

In the short term, Disney parks in Hong Kong and Shanghai, China, remain closed because of the coronavirus outbreak. In a CNBC interview, Chapek said the outbreak may be a “bump in the road,” but he said the company could weather it given “affinity for the brand.”

Iger told CNBC he had no plans to stay with Disney beyond next year.

Iger’s appointment as CEO in 2005 had been accompanied by controversy and protest from dissident shareholders Roy E. Disney and Stanley Gold. But he has come to be seen as a golden-boy top executive, and even someone who could run for president.

Iger told Vogue in 2018 that he had started seriously exploring a run for president because he is “horrified at the state of politics in America today,” but the Fox deal stopped his plans. Oprah Winfrey told Vogue that she “really, really pushed him to run.”

Iger, a former weatherman, joined ABC in 1974, 22 years before Disney bought the network.

At ABC, Iger developed such successful programs as “Home Improvement,” “The Drew Carey Show,” and “America’s Funniest Home Videos” and was instrumental in launching the quiz show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.” He was also criticized for cancelling well-regarded but expensive shows such as “Twin Peaks” and “thirtysomething.”

Since Iger became CEO, Disney’s stock price has risen fivefold. Its stock fell more than 2% in extended trading following the announcement, on top of a broader market selloff on virus fears during regular trading.

Iger, 69, was the second-highest paid CEO in 2018, as calculated by The Associated Press and Equilar, an executive data firm. He earned $65.6 million. The top earner was Discovery’s David Zaslav who earned $129.5 million.

Susan Arnold, the independent lead director of the Disney board, said succession planning had been ongoing for several years.

Chapek, 60, is only the seventh CEO in Disney history. Chapek was head of the parks, experiences and products division since it was created in 2018. He was previously head of parks and resorts and before that president of consumer products.

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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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