Niharika Singh shares her #MeToo account, calls out Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sajid Khan, Bhushan Kumar

Agencies
November 10, 2018

Mumbai, Nov 10: Former Miss India and actor Niharika Singh opened up about her #MeToo experiences in entertainment industry calling out Bollywood biggies Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Sajid Khan and Bhushan Kumar.

The "Miss Lovely" actor's account was shared on Twitter by journalist Sandhya Mennon.

Niharika said she decided to write the piece "to expand my own understanding of what constitutes abuse, who we choose to punish and whom we are willing to forgive".

The actor said she has dealt with various forms of exploitation throughout her life and her main struggle started once she decided to move to Mumbai to make her name in the modelling and movie business.

Soon after her Miss India pageant win, Niharika said she was signed by Raj Kanwar for her Bollywood debut but the project got shelved and T-Series honcho Bhushan Kumar decided to launch her.

"Bhushan Kumar asked Kanwar to release me from his contract as a favour so I could be cast in his other film... Bhushan Kumar called me to his office to sign 'A New Love Ishtory' where he gave me an envelope as a signing amount for the film. It contained two 500 Rupee notes.

"I got a text from him later that night- 'I would love to know you more. Let's get together sometime'. I wrote back saying- 'Absolutely! Lets go on a double date. You bring your wife. I'll bring my boyfriend.' He never wrote to me again," she wrote.

The film got delayed and the actor claimed she never got paid for her work on the project.

In 2009, Niharika signed "Miss Lovely" opposite Nawazuddin Siddiqui. The actor wrote she and Nawazuddin came close during the making of the film and she developed a soft corner for him as she "found him real, after all the superficial 'filmy' interactions I'd had in the past years".

The actor revealed one morning she invited the "Manto" actor to her home for breakfast and he grabbed her.

"I tried to push him away but he wouldn't let go. After a little coercion, I finally gave in. I wasn't sure what to make of this relationship. He told me it was his dream to have a Miss India or an actress wife, just like Paresh Rawal and Manoj Bajpayee. I found his little confession funny but endearing...He often complained about how he was judged on his looks, skin colour and that he wasn't fluent in English. I tried to help him deal with his insecurities, but he was stuck in a state of victimisation."

The two started dating but according to Niharika she decided to split with Nawazuddin because of his frequent lies.

"I told him to clean up his mess, be honest with himself and everyone around him; also that I did not want to see him again."

 

Niharika and Nawazuddin met after three years when "Miss Lovely" got into the Cannes Film Festival in 2012. The actor said she wanted to be friends with him but "he tried to re-engage me sexually, begging me to be with him but I refused, saying I was happy to be his friend and nothing else".

In the post Niharika also called Nawazuddin a "sexually repressed Indian man whose toxic male entitlement grew with his success is hardly surprising. What is interesting to note that despite not identifying as a Hindu, he carries deep caste prejudices since he chose to protect the honour of his 'Brahmin' wife after their names came in CDR scam, while he felt very comfortable painting me as a seductress wearing faux fur in his book, who he could sexually exploit, for public imagination."

She blasted Nawazuddin's frequent collaborator, director Anurag Kashyap for continuously supporting him.

Niharika also claimed that she was briefly engaged to Mayank Singh Singhvi in 2011, but parted ways because he "was a sociopath".

Mayank later got married to Anissia Batra, who worked with a German airline. She had allegedly jumped from the terrace of her house in July and Mayank was arrested on the charge of dowry death.

In September it was revealed that a former Miss India had approached Delhi Police and recorded her statement in the Anissia Batra case. In her statement, she had told police that she called off her engagement after he threatened her and chased her with a knife.

"Violence against women may be a common feature faced by all women in India, but there is no denying the fact that certain kinds of violence are customarily reserved solely for Dalit women," Niharika said.

She said patriarchy has no gender nor does abuse.

"We can't forget the role of mothers and wives who are equally responsible in covering or enabling their sons' and husbands' crimes... It's time to realize that the pompous, neoliberal, savarna feminism is not going to liberate anyone," she added.

Niharika concluded her post by sharing her encounter with Sajid, who was recently dropped as the director of "Housefull 4" following sexual harassment allegations by multiple women.

"Filmmaker Sajid Khan, who I met a couple of times while he was dating an actress I knew years ago, made a few predictions when a close friend of ours was opening her second restaurant - 'This place will shut down within a year, mark my words.' To his actress girlfriend he said, 'She won't survive a day without me in Bollywood'. 'And, this one', looking at me straight, 'will soon commit suicide'.

"My restaurateur friend is opening her fourth restaurant. It is difficult to get a table at the other three. The actress' career skyrocketed after she dumped the filmmaker and I, have managed to stay alive," she wrote.

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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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Agencies
July 11,2020

New Delhi, Jul 11: The COVID-19 triggered restrictions on cinema exhibition industry have not only disheartened movie goers, but axed several thousand jobs and costed the industry an estimated ₹ 5,000 crore in revenue.

The sector has been one of the hardest hit due to COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent restrictions implemented to curb its spread.

Presently, cinemas and multiplexes continue to remain in the list of prohibited activities under the Centre's Unlock 2.0 Guidelines.

In an interview to media persons, movie exhibition major Inox Leisure's Chief Executive Alok Tandon said, "The industry on an average collects about ₹ 1,000 crore a month of 'Box Office' and on an average generates about ₹ 500 crore a month of ancillary revenues."

"Keeping in mind that the lockdown has been effective for more than 100 days now, which is about 3.5 months, the cinema exhibition industry would have accumulated losses worth ₹ 5,000 crore so far."

According to Tandon, associated businesses such as pre and post-production, make-up artistes, graphics, film set fabrication, film crew, events, marketing, F&B services have all been impacted due to the restrictions.

"With the production and exhibition of movies coming to a halt, the industry was bound to witness some job losses," he said without divulging any estimates.

As per industry data, the multiplex industry in India employs more than 200,000 people directly and accounts for nearly 60 % of revenues of the film business.

On the way forward, Tandon elaborated that the industry expects to regain business momentum and sentiment post resumption of operations.

"We believe it will be a matter of a couple of blockbusters, and we will be back to our usual operational numbers," he said.

"We are rightfully relying on the unshakeable passion of the Indian movie lovers, who are yearning to step out and spend time enjoying the giant screen experience."

Furthermore, he cited that industry has sent representation to the Centre for immediate re-commencement of operations and a support package.

"We have requested for financial support in the form of salary subsidies during the lockdown period, interest-free loans for three years, exemptions from various taxes and duties, like 'GST, Show tax, LBETs and Property taxes' for a period of one year from the date of operations, waiver on electricity minimum demand charges for one year and auto renewal of licenses and permits for the next one year," he said.

"We have been talking to our mall developer partners and are working together with them to see through this phase."

However, even after re-commencement, the industry anticipates at least 3-6 months before things return anywhere close to normal.

"The cinema ecosystem is such that we will need all the aspects of the business to swing into action and fire together for us to see a resurgence, and we are highly optimistic about the same," he said.

In terms of global experience, Tandon pointed out that cinemas have started operating in more than 25 major countries, and some of those markets are witnessing a healthy response.

"India is a massive movie market and we are confident that the passionate and responsible movie lovers will turn up in huge numbers to enjoy their favourite form of entertainment and also follow the prevention guidelines at the same time, ensuring a safe and steady revival of the cinema exhibition sector," Tandon said.

The film exhibition industry in India is mainly comprised of single screen and multiplexes.

At present there are around 9,527 cinemas across the country, including 6,327 single and 3,200 multiplex screens.

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Agencies
July 31,2020

Mumbai, Jul 31: Maharashtra Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said that the Enforcement Directorate should carry out an investigation in actor Sushant Singh Rajput's suicide case.

"There is a huge public sentiment about handing over #SushantSinghRajput case to CBI but looking at the reluctance of State Government, atleast @dir_ed ED can register an ECIR since misappropriation and money laundering angle has come out," tweeted Fadnavis.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said that no FIR had been registered in Maharashtra yet and that the case must be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

"There is a confrontation between two states and there has been no FIR registered yet in Maharashtra. Chirag (Paswan) had spoken to CM Thackeray that there should be CBI probe. All political leaders are demanding for it. It should be handed over to CBI," Paswan said.

A team of the Bihar Police that arrived in Mumbai on Tuesday, recorded statements of two persons, including actor Sushant Singh Rajput's sister, on Wednesday in connection with the case.

An FIR was filed by Sushant Singh Rajput's father against actor Rhea Chakraborty in Bihar on Tuesday.

Rajput was found dead in his Mumbai residence on June 14.

According to the Maharashtra Police, statements of 41 people, including filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, film critic Rajeev Masand, director-producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali, and filmmaker Aditya Chopra have been recorded in the investigation so far.

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