Sushant Singh dropped from 'Savdhaan India' for participating in anti-CAA protest?

Mumbai, Jan 9: A day after Deepika Padukone visited the JNU campus to express solidarity with students who had been attacked, her film "Chhapaak" made another splash on Wednesday over the name of its antagonist.

While Deepika was the focus of many a discussion on social media and beyond for showing up at a public meeting in the university, the film, based on the life of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal, was also making news for quite another reason.

In what could well be a storm in a 'Twitter cup', "Nadeem Khan" and "Rajesh" began trending on the microblogging site after a magazine article claimed the name of the antagonist had been changed. By 4 pm, 'Nadeem Khan' clocked close to 60,000 tweets and 'Rajesh' close behind with 50,000.

In 2005, Laxmi was disfigured for life when a man called Nadeem Khan and three others allegedly hurled acid at her in Delhi's upscale Khan Market.

In the film based on her life, the narrative remains the same but the names have been changed. So, Laxmi is 'Malti' Agarwal and Nadeem becomes 'Babboo' aka 'Bashir Khan'.

On Wednesday, Swarajya magazine wrote an article headlined, "The Ways Of Bollywood: In Deepika Padukone-Starer Chhapaak, Acid Attacker Naeem Khan Becomes ‘Rajesh'." "As part of a backlash against Padukone's JNU 'meet and greet', social media users researched the names of the characters involved in the movie Chhapaak and conspicuously found the name of main perpetrator Naeem Khan absent," the article alleged.

But in the Meghna Gulzar directed film, there is no mention of any Nadeem or Naeem Khan. Moreover, Rajesh is the name of Malti's boyfriend.

Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Babul Supriyo jumped into the controversy, saying it was another example of "absolute hypocrisy".

"...When you say all characters are fictitious and don't have any resemblance with living beings and all of that, this is absolute hypocrisy. When you change the name which also changes the religion, it has been done very deliberately," Supriyo told a TV channel when asked to comment on the controversy.

South Delhi BJP MP Ramesh Biduri also called for a boycott of the movie.

With Deepika grabbing attention by going to JNU, many appreciated her 'silent solidarity' but others criticised her for "supporting the Leftists" and said it was a promotional stunt ahead of the release.

"#BoycottChhapaak" was trending on Twitter as was "#ISupportDeepika".

Kolkata, Jun 2: Artistes of the Bengali film industry are trying to get the best out of their creative side amid the lockdown, with many of them giving shape to innovative concepts and ideas to hook the audience.

A short film 'Grub Ne Bana Di Jodi', with RJ-actor Mir Afsar Ali in the lead, transcends boundaries to bring couples from around the world together on one platform, as they engage in discussions on food and culture.

The shot-at-home film, directed by Satrajit Sen, has Ali giving couples tasks to test their culinary skills.

"This is the time to try new concepts and that, too, without the usual technical support. There is no box office pressure, and people can take their own sweet time to watch the film on YouTube," he said.

Actor Vikram Chatterjee, who recently completed the shoot of 'Pabitra Puppies', a web series about seven friends bonding over video games, said it was an "altogether different experience" with no crew to assist him at home.

"The shooting process was complicated but we had a lot of fun. I was in Mumbai when the lockdown was imposed.

Coordinating with the director and other cast members wasn't easy, but this phase has taught us how to overcome challenges," Chatterjee said.

The series, also starring Sohini Sarkar and Saayoni Ghosh, will be streaming on Hoichoi soon.

Director Shieladitya Moulik's third outing on YouTube, amid the lockdown, has garnered good reviews.

The short film 'Eye Candy' tells the story of a blind couple who had been finding ways to connect with each other.

"I wanted to talk about long-distance relationships, and the problems faced by couples in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, but not without a twist. I hope the viewers enjoy the short," Moulik said.

New Delhi, Feb 19: Deepika Padukone on Wednesday shared her much-awaited first look from the upcoming sports-drama '83' as Romi Dev, wife of cricket stalwart Kapil Dev. The actor also penned a message expressing gratitude for the iconic role.

The 'Chhapaak' actor shared the still on Twitter along with a caption that reads, "To play a small part in a film that captures one of the most iconic moments in sporting history has been an absolute honour!83 for me is an ode to every woman who puts her husband's dream before her own..."

In the absorbing first look, Deepika is seen sharing a smile along with Ranveer Singh, she is also seen sporting short hair. The star is seen wearing a high-neck top, while Ranveer is wearing team India's official blazer.

Previously, Ranveer shared the teaser of the flick in an event, which gave a glance of the lead characters of the flick featuring Tahir Raj Bhasin as Sunil Gavaskar, Jiiva as K Srikkanth, Saqib Saleem as Mohinder Amarnath, Jatin Sarna as Yashpal Sharma, Chirag Patil as Sandeep Patil, Dinker Sharma as Kirti Azad and Nishant Dahiya as Roger Binny, Harrdy Sandhu as Madan Lal, Sahil Khattar as Syed Kirmani, Ammy Virk as Balwinder Singh Sandhu and Addinath M Kothare as Dilip Vengsarkar, Dhairya Karwa as Ravi Shashtri and R Badree as Sunil Valson along with Pankaj Tripathi as PR Man Singh.

'83' is being co-produced by Madhu Mantena, Sajid Nadiadwala, and Reliance Entertainment. Helmed by Kabir Khan, the movie is slated for release on April 10.