'Poor treatment' at Chennai fete irks Kannada actors

September 26, 2013

LeelavathiBangalore, Sep 26: The four-day event to celebrate the 100th year of Indian cinema in Chennai struck a sour note with the organisers refusing entry to renowned actor of yesteryears, Leela- vathi, on Tuesday evening.

The veteran actor was invited by the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce for felicitation on the concluding day and had issued a valid pass for her entry. She was carrying the pass and was accompanied by her actor-son Vinod Raj.

“The organisers had requested me to come a bit late to the event and I reached there at around 4 pm,” Leelavathi told Deccan Herald.

But the mother and son were stopped at the entry point.?The police refused them entry saying the hall was full. “We pleaded with them and produced the pass we were carrying, but the police rejected our plea,” she said. Leelavathi was also shocked by the lacklustre response of the members of the Kannada film industry. She and her son contacted a few top persons in the industry, but failed to get any response.

The controversy erupted as soon as invitations for the event were distributed. The card printed in Chennai hardly mentioned the names of Kannada film personalities.

Only three photos of ministers K J George, Ramalinga Reddy and Umashree were printed on it.

Some actors including, Jaggesh boycotted the celebrations over the “poor treatment” meted out to the Kannada film industry at the programme.

Actor Shruthi said, “It was the ego clashes among our own fraternity that resulted in such a shoddy display. It was a celebration to bring people together, but it ended on a sour note.”

Most of the actors and directors complained about not being provided with a decent accommodation and travel arrangements.

Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce vice president Umesh Bankar said, “This celebration has brought great humiliation and embarrassment to artistes from the Kannada film industry. If they could not organise the show in an orderly manner, they should have cancelled it, or handed over the responsibilities to someone else.”

“Only limited number of artistes were invited to the celebration. Senior actors and directors were overlooked and newcomers from other industries were given more importance.The entire show was a sort of war of egos among actors and directors from different film industries,” he said.

“Why were the celebrations arranged in a hurried manner? Senior people were asked to travel in a bus, which itself is a humiliation. No one is taking responsibility for organising the show and we want to know the people behind this incident,” said Kannada actor Shashikumar.

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News Network
January 2,2020

New Delhi, Jan 2: Hoping her cinematic voice can help bring about lasting change in how society perceives acid attack survivors, actor Deepika Padukone says her latest film Chhapaak should ideally be so impactful that there won't be need for another story on acid violence.

After all, cinema is in itself such a powerful medium, Deepika told news agency ahead of the release of the film, which is based on the life of acid attack survivor and activist Laxmi Agarwal.

The idea behind the social drama is to invoke empathy and understanding rather than paint women who have undergone the ordeal as victims, the actor, who has also produced the film, said in a telephonic interview from Mumbai.

"Beyond the gruesomeness, the violence and all of that, there is a story of the human spirit and hope. That's why we're telling the story," she said.

Deepika, 33, said it was a story that spoke to her and she felt pride in attaching herself to the project.

Chhapaak, directed by Meghna Gulzar and featuring Vikrant Massey, is the second mainstream film to focus on the subject after 2019 Malayalam movie Uyare starring Parvathy Thiruvothu.

"I hope we won't have to constantly tell stories on acid attack survivors for us to see change. I hope with our film we begin to see that change for ourselves as a society and for acid attack survivors.

"If we don't, then we've done something wrong as a society. Cinema in itself is such a powerful medium that hopefully just through this one film we will hopefully be able to see that kind of change and impact," Deepika said.

The actor said there was not much planning behind the decision to back the film financially.

"Sometimes certain films need a little more hand holding, a little more love and support. I felt like I would be adding a little more value as a producer.

"This is a film I'm very proud of, not just from the script point of view but even in terms of the story and its message," she said.

The film, which releases on January 10, will be Deepika's first release in two years and comes after her marriage to frequent co-star Ranveer Singh.

The actor said she used the time to creatively replenish herself.

"It was about finding a film worthy of putting out there. It's not that work at my end had stopped. I was constantly looking for scripts that challenged and excited me.

"I would look at it as time for creative fertility. It's important to nurture yourself. The work that goes on behind the scenes... most often we're constantly on a film set, but whether it's meeting with writers and directors, looking for scripts... That is also part of the creative process and that's what I've been doing."

The title Chhapaak instantly evokes the image of acid being splattered, and Deepika said the director wanted a word for the film's name that could also lend itself to a song.

"I think she said 'chhapaak', which is the sound of a splash, is something that could adapt or lend itself beautifully to a song. Perhaps, it also has to do with fluidity. So on one hand, liquid is known to take different forms, a liquid such as this (acid) can change someone's life forever," she said.

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News Network
May 26,2020

New Delhi, May 26: As the country celebrated Eid-ul-Fitr in the testing times of coronavirus this year, megastar Shah Rukh Khan's greetings reflected of blessings from the almighty to help the countrymen sail through the tough times.

The 54-year-old actor took to Twitter to extend Eid greetings to his fans.

"May the blessings of Allah see us through these times," he wrote in the tweet.

"In the end, it's Faith that keeps us going... Eid Mubarak to all. May He shower all with love, peace and prosperity always," Khan's tweet further read.

Eid-ul-Fitr marks the conclusion of the holy month of Ramzan, which is a month of fasting and prayer for the Muslim community.

This year, Eid is being celebrated amid a nationwide lockdown imposed as a precautionary measure to contain the spread of COVID-19.

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Agencies
February 7,2020

Srinagar, Feb 7: Jammu and Kashmir High Court on Friday dismissed a petition seeking a stay on the release of the movie 'Shikara' which is based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley.

The film which hit theatres today has Vidhu Vinod Chopra at the helm and narrates the story of the mass exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in 1990 that forced lakhs to flee their homeland almost overnight following a genocidal campaign by militants.

Shot primarily in the Valley, the movie is being promoted mainly as a journey of love between the lead couple.

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