Punjabi film The Mastermind Jinda and Sukha banned in India

September 11, 2015

Chandigarh, Sep 11: The ban on controversial film The Mastermind Jinda and Sukha has left radical Sikh groups fuming. Addressing media persons in Chandigarh, the director of the film Sukhjinder Singh Jinda, said that the Censor Board's decision has come as a big blow to Punjabi film industry which is already facing a number of challenges. However, he also said that the decision will not hinder with his passion for film making.

mastermind

"The ban is illegal and is political motivated. The Censor Board which had cleared the film on July 24 called a press conference on Tuesday in Mumbai and said the film cannot be cleared. They said that the board has received a letter from Home Ministry raising questions, and said the film if released can hurt religious sentiments and can lead to law and order problem," Sukhjinder Singh Jinda told Mail Today.

Jinda's legal advisor Ranjan Lakhanpal said that he will approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court regarding the ban which is not justified. He said that the ban has cost the producers nearly Rs 2.5 crore, in addition to Rs 43 lakhs spent on publicity.

Nav Bajwa who plays the role of Jinda (one of the killers of Gen Arun Kumar Sridhar Vaidya) in the film said the ban will hamper with his career. "The film is not going to be released in India which is a big loss for us. We worked very hard to complete the film. We appeal to the government to revoke the ban so that the new generation comes to know about the people who sacrificed their lives for the community," Nav Bajwa said.

Meanwhile, the film producers and director have said that the film has only been banned in India but can be released it at international level.

The film, The Mastermind Jinda and Sukha - which was slated for September 11 release - is based on the lives of two Khalistan Commando Force terrorists Harjinder Singh Jinda and Sukhdev Singh Sukha ,who killed General Arun Vaidya on August 10, 1986. General Vaidya had led Operation Blue Star to militants from Golden Temple complex. Jinda was also involved in a bank robbery of more than Rs 57 million.

The trailer of the film, which was showed to journalists, portrays both Jinda and Sukha as heroes. The glorification of former terrorists has not gone well with the Censor Board which announced a ban on the screening of the film on Tuesday.

Glorification of Khalistan terrorists is not a new thing in Punjabi films. More than six films have portrayed Indian government, police and army in a bad taste. Films like Gaddar, Quom De Heere (which depicted Indira Gandhi's assassins as heroes), Blood Street (based on police torture) and Saada Haq have been shot in the backdrop of Operation Bluestar and 1984 anti-Sikh riots.

The ban on the film has also attained political overtones with hardliner Sikh groups, and the opposition Congress announcing support to film director and producers. Surprisingly, the Congress has termed the board's decision to ban the film as erroneous, wrongful and an attempt to conceal history.

"It is surprising to note that although the Censor Board had cleared this film for screening on 24th July 2015, has now taken a complete turnaround due to pressure exhorted on it by the Home Ministry. The said decision of BJP govt. has been made for cheap political gains and to flare up communal passions. The ban is also an attempt to curb the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression, as enshrined in the preamble of our constitution," Congress Spokesperson Sukhpal Singh Khaira said.

Hardliner Sikh leader Simranjit Singh Mann, who accompanied the film producers and director on Thursday said that films like The Mastermind Jinda and Sukha denied the film glorifies the Sikhs. "How you can say they are glorifying the terrorists. Bhagat Singh was also a terrorist who killed innocent people then why Bollywood films portray him as hero.Why such films are also not banned," Simranjit Singh Mann said.

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News Network
June 10,2020

Mumbai, Jun 10: Bollywood actors Sushant Singh Rajput and Varun Sharma's former manager Disha Salian reportedly committed suicide by jumping off the 14th floor of her apartment in Malad on June 8 night.

Varun Sharma mourned the demise on Instagram, sharing a photo with his former manager and friend.

"Am at a loss of words. Speechless. Numb. It all looks unreal. So many memories. Such a lovely person and a dear friend. You always wore that smile everyday, and with such kindness you dealt with everything that came your way. You will be deeply missed. Prayers and Strength to the Family. I still can't believe Disha you're gone. Gone too Soon," wrote Varun.

The young celebrity manager was reportedly with her fiance when she took the drastic step on June 8 night. She was declared dead on being rushed to a hospital in Borivali.

The police have started an investigation. As per reports, they have recorded the statement of the deceased's parents. Her fiance might also be asked for a statement.

Apart from Sushant Singh Rajput and Varun Sharma, Disha has managed comedian Bharti Singh in the past.

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News Network
June 9,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 9: There’s no denying the fact that Sudeep is one of the most popular and sought-after names in Kannada cinema. The versatile actor has won the love of fans due to his ‘pan-India’ look and impressive selection of roles. A self-made star, he paid his dues before making it big in Sandalwood. The Bachchan actor had, some time ago, told Film Companion that his initial years in the industry were anything but easy.

 The mass hero revealed that his first two movies never saw the light of the day as they were abandoned midway. Following the setback, he finally made his Kannada debut with V Umakanth’s Thayavva and began a new chapter in life. Sadly, the film sank without a trace and was removed from theatres within three days of its release.

“My first two films did not see the light of the day while the third one did not see people,” he added.

Sudeep ultimately tasted success with the 2001 release Huchcha and the rest is history. Over the years, ‘Deepanna’ has starred in several commercially successful movies and proved that he is a certified ‘A-lister’. The star has also made an impact in non-Kannada movies like Rann and Eega, expanding his fanbase big time.

Coming to the present, Sudeep was last seen in the Bollywood biggie Dabangg 3 that did decent business at the box office. The actioner saw him share screen space with Salman Khan, giving fans a reason to rejoice. The cast included Arbaaz Khan and Sonakshi Sinha.

He will be turning his attention to the Kannada biggie Kotigobba 3, the third instalment of the Kotigobba series. The film, directed by Shiva Karthik, is one of the biggest movies of the year. It features Shraddha Das, Madonna Sabastian and Aftab Shivdasani in key roles.  He  will also be seen in the Anup Bhandari-directed Phantom.

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February 6,2020

Los Angeles, Feb 6: U.S. silver screen legend Kirk Douglas, the son of Jewish Russian immigrants who rose through the ranks to become one of Hollywood's biggest stars, has died, his family said Wednesday. He was 103.

One of the last survivors of the golden age of cinema and the father of Oscar-winning actor and film-maker Michael Douglas, the Spartacus actor was renowned for the macho tough guy roles he took on in around 90 movies over a six-decade career.

"It is with tremendous sadness that my brothers and I announce that Kirk Douglas left us today at the age of 103," Michael Douglas said in a statement posted to Facebook.

"To the world he was a legend, an actor from the golden age of movies who lived well into his golden years, a humanitarian whose commitment to justice and the causes he believed in set a standard for all of us to aspire to."

Douglas was Oscar-nominated for his roles as a double-crossing and womanizing boxer in Champion (1949), a ruthless movie producer in The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) and tortured artist Vincent Van Gogh in Lust for Life (1956).

But his only Academy Award came in 1995 -- an honorary lifetime achievement statuette "for 50 years as a creative and moral force in the motion picture community."

Douglas is survived by second wife Anne Buydens, 100, and three sons. A fourth child, Eric, died of a drug overdose in his 40s, in 2004.

"(To) me and my brothers Joel and Peter he was simply Dad, to Catherine (Zeta-Jones), a wonderful father-in-law, to his grandchildren and great grandchild their loving grandfather, and to his wife Anne, a wonderful husband," said Michael.

"Kirk's life was well lived, and he leaves a legacy in film that will endure for generations to come, and a history as a renowned philanthropist who worked to aid the public and bring peace to the planet."

Kirk Douglas rose to the heights of Hollywood from an impoverished childhood as the son of Jewish Russian immigrants.

He was one of the last survivors of the golden age of cinema, often portraying the macho and not-always-likeable tough guy in around 90 movies over a six-decade career.

With charming dimples and a cleft chin, Douglas was a renowned ladies' man but also admitted to being angry into adulthood because of his difficult New York childhood.

"I still have anger in me," he said in a New York Times article in 1988 after the release of his first autobiography.

"I think I'm loath to let it go because I think that anger was the fuel I used in accomplishing what I wanted to do; you see it in my films, you see it in imitations people do of me."

Screen legend

The role that perhaps immortalized him as a star was that of a rebellious Roman Empire slave turned gladiator in the 1960 epic Spartacus.

Douglas also produced the film, which took four Oscars. He won praise for listing in the credits the real name of Hollywood screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, who was blacklisted for his Communist sympathies and wrote under a pen name.

There were Oscar nominations for his roles as a double-crossing and womanizing boxer in Champion (1949), a ruthless movie producer in The Bad and the Beautiful (1952) and of tortured artist Vincent Van Gogh in Lust for Life (1956).

But his only Oscar came in 1995 as an honorary lifetime achievement award "for 50 years as a creative and moral force in the motion picture community."

Other major acting roles were as a French private in a botched suicidal mission in World War I in Paths of Glory (1957) and American Western legend Doc Holliday in Gunfight at the O.K. Corral (1957).

"Often cast as a villain, amoral climber or self-obsessed grabber, Kirk Douglas took care to color his hard edges with suggestions of pain, wit and sympathy," says American Film Institute, which ranks him as 17th on its list of the greatest male screen legends.

In the 1970s he stood behind the camera, directing Scalawag (1973) and Posse (1975).

He also took up writing, penning his first autobiography The Ragman's Son in 1988 and following with around 10 other titles.

In the autobiography, Douglas writes: "I always worked in the theory that when you play a weak character, find a moment when he's strong. And if you're playing a strong character, find a moment when he's weak."

Tough childhood

Douglas was born in New York on December 9, 1916 to illiterate Jewish Russian immigrants, an only boy with six sisters.

He started out as Issur Danielovitch, later Izzy Demsky. It was tough, he recounted later, with the family poor, anti-Semitism rife and his distant alcoholic father forced to earn a living as a ragman.

"In a sense, I've always felt on the outside, looking in," he said in the New York Times article.

"It's my background, damn it. My father was an illiterate Russian immigrant, a ragman, the lowest rung on the economic scale."

His dream of a way out was through acting and he started in high school, eventually entering the American Academy of Dramatic Arts and changing his name along the way.

To survive he took jobs as a waiter, labourer and porter. In 1941 he hit Broadway but his budding career was interrupted by service in the Navy. After the war, he headed for Hollywood.

His romantic conquests were many, although he once said he had never counted, and included starls such as Rita Hayworth, Marlene Dietrich, Joan Crawford and Ava Gardner.

Douglas' four sons followed him into cinema.

Oscar-winning actor and producer Michael and Joel were from a marriage to actress Diana Webster, whom he divorced in 1951.

Three years later he married Belgian-American Anne Buydens, having Peter and then Eric, who died in 2004 from an accidental overdose.

Douglas has also brushed death: he survived a helicopter crash in 1991 and a massive stroke in 1996 that nearly robbed him of speech.

Around the time of his 100th birthday in 2016, he attributed his remarkable longevity to his second marriage.

"I was lucky enough to find my soulmate 63 years ago, and I believe our wonderful marriage and our nightly 'golden hour' chats have helped me survive all things," he said in celebrity magazine Closer Weekly.

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