I feel secure as an actor in the film industry: Taapsee

Agencies
June 15, 2019

New Delhi, Jun 15: Taapsee Pannu says she feels secure as an actor in the film industry today but still has miles to go in order to achieve her dream of becoming the quintessential Bollywood star.

The 31-year-old actor says acting always keeps her on her toes and she absolutely welcomes it because she does not want to feel too relaxed.

"I'm very secure as an actor, but not as a star. I don't know where will I be sent back to if a couple of my films fail at the box office. But I think that is fine because it keeps me on my toes to find something new.

"If I start feeling too secure and comfortable, I might just relax, and then keep doing what I'm good at, knowing that it will work. So I think I'm fine with it not being that comfortable. That's the joy of this profession, it keeps you on your toes," Taapsee told PTI in an interview.

Becoming a star is a work in progress, says the actor, who wants that in future audiences should be able to identify a film just by her name and she has been working towards it by delivering critically-praised performances in films such as "Mulk", "Manmarziyaan", "Badla" and her latest "Game Over".

"I don't identify myself being the star still because I feel the definition of being a star is that people just blindly trust you and spend money at the box office for you. Audiences do that for the Khans (Shah Rukh, Salman and Aamir), they just go and watch their films blindly.

"So I'm waiting for the day that happens for me where I consider myself to be a star. Before that, I'm just an actor who is trying to make interesting films. I hope that one fine day people will identify my choices to be worth their time and money."

Taapsee says she will continue to experiment with different roles as she is trying to build a "niche for myself".

"I think people, in the industry and even outside, now believe that I can pull off good performances. So that way, I'm a little secure because that is not in the question."

Besides many critically-acclaimed turns, Taapsee has also starred in commercial hits like "Judwaa 2" and more recently "Badla".

The actor says box office numbers do matter to her as that is the only way she can gauge the mood of the audiences regarding her performance in a film.

"It just shows business. If my film makes money, more films will be made, and more people will trust me with their money. And that's how we work. So it needs to make money.

"I can be happy about the critics and thankful to them that they have validated me time and again, but eventually everything comes down to the amount of money the film collects at the box office. That's what eventual success and failure is all about," Taapsee says.

"Game Over", a psychological thriller, released countrywide on Friday.

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Agencies
August 4,2020

New York, Aug 4: National Award-winning documentary "Son Rise" and Geetu Mohandas-directed "Moothon" were among the films that took home the big honours at the 20th New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), which switched to a virtual edition this year amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Over 45 feature-length narratives, shorts and documentaries from the Indian subcontinent were showcased at the festival’s virtual edition that ran for 10 days beginning July 24.

The films programmed were in various languages including Assamese, Bengali, Haryanvi, Hindi, English, Ladakhi, Maithili, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali and Tamil.

The award ceremony for the festival was held virtually Sunday, with the filmmakers, cast, award winners and festival officials joining from across India and the US.

The award for the Best Documentary (Short) went to Saurav Vishnu-directed "Tailing Pond", which highlights the "horrifying effects of uranium extraction on the health of the indigenous population" of Jadugoda, Jharkhand.

"Son Rise" by Vibha Bakshi won the award for Best Documentary (Feature).

The documentary had won the National Award for the Best non-feature film in 2019 and was among the two centrepieces hosted by the festival this year. NYIFF called "Son Rise" “a powerful documentary about patriarchy in Haryana and efforts by a few good men to bring meaningful change in the society.”

The award for Best Short (Narrative) went to Sanat Ganu's "Arabian Nights". The narrative focuses on a child, his imaginary friend and a family that attends a conference where the attendees believe the earth is flat.

Director and scriptwriter Sudhanshu Saria accepted the award for Best Screenplay for "Knock Knock Knock". Saria’s screenplay “explores the lonely life of a man, an unlikely friendship that may or may not be real.”

Sanjana Dipu won the award for Best Child Actor for "Moothon" for her performance of a teenager in search of a brother.

Garggi Ananthan won the Best Actress award for her role as Kalyani in the film "Run Kalyani" and the Best Actor award went to Malayalam star Nivin Pauly for "Moothon". The award for the Best Director went to 23-year old Achal Mishra for "Gamak Ghar".

"Moothon" won the award for Best Film and its director Mohandas accepted the award for the film, which is "about love and loss that travels from the quiet, lush beaches of Lakshadweep to the mad hustle-bustle of the streets of Mumbai."

Produced by award-winning Indian film director and writer Anurag Kashyap, "Moothon" had premiered at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival.

NYIFF festival director Aseem Chhabra said that the process of searching for films for the festival began last fall and they were ready to showcase them to audiences in New York in April but had to change plans for the festival due to the pandemic.

"I know the best way to enjoy films is in a theatre with the audience and have live interactions, conversations. But the virtual festival is the next best option and in the process, we have been able to reach out to a much larger audience in the US, North America as well in several other countries.”

NYIFF said that a virtual edition expanded the reach of the festival and audiences from 95 countries were able to access and view the films.

Dr Nirmal Mattoo, Chairman of the Indo-American Arts Council, co-founder and owner of Atlantic Dialysis Management services, the largest private dialysis provider in New York State, said NYIFF works with an independent jury - filmmakers, film professors, writers and critics.

Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC), the leading cultural organisation, presents the festival.

"The Covid-19 pandemic has forced the closure of theatres but we believe that in such trying times arts, including films are even more important for the community’s well-being. So, this year we have decided to bring the films directly into your living rooms.” IAAC Vice-Chairman Rakesh Kaul had said.

The New York Indian Film Festival is the oldest Indian film event in North America. Over the years, the festival has held New York premieres of a wide range of films, many of them critically acclaimed, including "Monsoon Wedding", "The Namesake", "Slumdog Millionaire", "Shahid", "Dum Laga Ke Haisha" and "Gangs of Wasseypur". 

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News Network
January 14,2020

Indore, Jan 14: Yoga guru Ramdev has said that Deepika Padukone should hire persons like him for offering correct advice, days after the actress had visited Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi following the violence at the campus earlier this month.

"Deepika Padukone needs to study about political, social and cultural issues. She should understand more about our country. Only after gaining knowledge, she should take decisions. I feel she should have persons like Swami Ramdev for correct advice," Ramdev said at an event here on Monday.

On January 7, Padukone joined the protest at JNU after a masked mob entered the varsity campus and attacked the students and teachers with sticks and rods on January 5.

Several BJP leaders questioned the support extended by Padukone. On the other hand, the Congress threw their weight behind the actress for her stand.

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News Network
January 15,2020

Chennai, Jan 15: Superstar Rajinikanth on Tuesday called for neutrality in journalism and urged media outlets to report the truth.

Addressing an event organised by Tamil magazine ''Thuglak' in Chennai, the superstar-turned-politician said that the country needs a journalist like the late Cho S Ramaswamy, who helmed the publication for decades.

"The times, politics and society are going bad. In such a scenario, the media had a huge responsibility towards the people," he said.

Some television channels are biased towards political parties, Rajinikanth said. He added that media, critics and journalists must report the truth impartially.

Comparing true news to milk and fake reportage to water, Rajinikanth said people will not be able to distinguish between the two if they are mixed.

"Only journalists need to tell which portion is milk and which is water...write the truth and don't make a lie seem like truth," he said, amid applause.

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