Women are no more just eye candy, says Madhuri Dixit

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January 1, 2014
Mumbai, Jan 1: Bollywood diva Madhuri Dixit is set to make a comeback on the screen in a never-seen-before avatar in ready-to-release "Dedh Ishqiya", a hinterland based thriller-drama, and thanks Indian cinema for evolving and making way for strong female characters.

"The more depth in the character the more fun you get to perform," Madhuri said when asked how comfortable she was  with the bold role in "Dedh dixitIshqiya", which brings her out of her comfort zone, Madhuri said in an interview.

"I am so thankful that our cinema has come a long way, and I am happy that women are portrayed as characters and not just eye candy in the films. (Women are) very beautifully portrayed on the screen," she said.

With the lethal combination of oomph and talent, Madhuri rose on the film firmament in the late 1980s and 1990s with blockbusters like "Tezaab", "Ram Lakhan", "Dil", "Beta" and "Saajan".

She is also known for her acting prowess in off beat films "Prahaar" and "Mrityudand", which saw her in a non-glamorous avatar.

After ruling the roost for years, Madhuri shifted base to Denver when she married US-based doctor Sriram Nene in 1999. Her last big hit was "Devdas".

In 2007, she attempted a comeback with "Nach Baliye", which bombed at the box office, and she went back. Four years later, the actress returned to India for good and she hasn't had to hunt for work.

First, she got busy as one of the judges with the fourth and the fifth seasons of the dance reality show "Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa" and then two films - "Dedh Ishqiya" and "Gulaab Gang" - fell into her lap. Interestingly, in both the films, female characters are central to the story lines.

In between, she made a special appearance in the "Ghaghra" song in "Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani".

Her role in "Dedh Ihsqiya" is certainly a giant leap for the actress. Director Abhishek Chaubey is presenting her as a widow looking for a husband and she organises a poetry competition in her house every year where prospective grooms come and try to woo her.

"For women, it's a great time to be in the industry. When they narrated the script to me, I was very excited. It's a role that appealed to me," said Madhuri who has some bold scenes with Naseeruddin Shah in the film, which also stars Arshad Warsi.

"Begum Para is a beautiful character written by Abhishek. She is a poetic woman. She is a widow and her late husband's wish was that if she ever marries again, she should marry a poet.

"So every year she organises a swayamvar for her. She has been completely unimpressed for two years, but in the third year Babban (Arshad) comes," she said.

Begum Para in "Dedh Ishqiya" marks her second innings in filmdom post marriage and when asked  how important is the film for her, she said: "Everybody wants to see me after a gap. Begum is a strong character. She has many multi-layered kind of a woman. How the film does is very important."

"Dedh Ishqiya" is a sequel to "Ishqiya", a film that made its lead actress Vidya Balan a name to reckon with.

Co-produced by Vishal Bharadwaj and Raman Maroo, "Dedh Ishqiya" will release Jan 10.

Is she getting cold feet?

"I am not nervous, I am very excited about it. The script is very good and I think it's a complete entertainer," said a confident Madhuri.

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News Network
April 30,2020

Mumbai, Apr 30: Rishi Kapoor, the romantic star of many a Bollywood film who was diagnosed with leukemia in 2018, died in a Mumbai hospital on Thursday, his brother Randhir Kapoor said. He was 67.

Rishi, a third generation actor of the famous Kapoor dynasty, is survived by his wife Neetu Kapoor, actor son Ranbir and daughter Ridhima.

"He is no more. He has passed away," Randhir said.

Rishi was taken to the H N Reliance hospital by his family on Wednesday.

His death comes a day after after his "D-Day" co-star Irrfan Khan passed away, also of cancer. Three months ago, the disease claimed his sister Ritu Nanda.

"Our dear Rishi Kapoor passed away peacefully at 8:45am IST in hospital today after a two-year battle with leukemia. The doctors and medical staff at the hospital said he kept them entertained to the last.

He remained jovial and determined to live to the fullest right through two years of treatment across two continents. Family, friends, food and films remained his focus and everyone who met him during this time was amazed at how he did not let his illness get the better of him, the family said in a statement.

Rishi returned to India last September after undergoing treatment for his cancer in the US for almost a year.

In February, he was hospitalised twice.

He was first admitted to a hospital in Delhi where he was attending a family function. At the time, he had said he was suffering from an "infection".

After his return to Mumbai, he was again admitted to a hospital with viral fever. He was discharged soon after.

Rishi made his first screen appearance as a child artiste in his father Raj Kapoor's film Shri 420 , where he appeared in the song Pyaar hua ekraar hua . This was followed by "Mera Naam Joker". But it was in 1973, with the blockbuster Bobby , again directed by his father, that he made his debut as a romantic hero. He continued to be a favourite romantic hero for almost three decades.

His notable films as a romantic hero are "Laila Majnu", "Rafoo Chakkar", "Karz", "Chandni", "Heena" and "Saagar".

He was, however, more proud of his second innings as an actor, which he found more satisfying. His notable films as a character artiste are "Do Dooni Chaar" with wife Neetu, "Agnipath" and "Kapoor & Sons".

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News Network
June 11,2020

Washington, Jun 11: Music maestro AR Rahman has joined the international film 'No Land's Man' as co-producer and composer.

Helmed by renowned Bangladeshi filmmaker Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, the upcoming movie has Indian thespian Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Australian theatre actor Megan Mitchell, and Bangladeshi musician and actor Tahsan Rahman Khan in pivotal roles.

"Time always gives birth to new worlds, new ideals. The newborn world has new challenges and new stories to tell. This is one such story," Variety quoted Rahman as saying.

The movie chronicles the life of a South Asian, whose journey gets complicated when he meets an Australian woman in the U.S.

The film, shot in the U.S., Australia and India, is predominantly in English with some dialogue in Hindi and Urdu.

'Sacred Games' actor, Siddique said: "The filming experience for this project was challenging but a fulfilling one. AR Rahman's brilliance will definitely make the film richer."

"Farooki and I first spoke about 'No Land's Man' at Film Bazaar in 2014. Between then and now, the film has become even more relevant as it looks at what it means to be a vulnerable person in a racially-divided world," producer Srihari Sathe said.

'No Land's Man' won the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) and Asia Pacific Screen Awards' Script Development fund in 2014. It was part of the Asian Project Market at Busan and was chosen as the best project at India's Film Bazaar the same year.

Earlier in January, Siddiqui posted multiple pictures on Instagram with the team of the flick, marking the schedule wrap in New York and Sydney for 'No Land's Man.'

He also captioned the post as: "Wonderful experience with the most energetic team."

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News Network
March 21,2020

Mar 21: Singer Sonu Nigam has decided to extend his stay in Dubai as he believes travelling amid the coronavirus outbreak can put people around him at risk.

The singer was in the Himalayas earlier and wanted to come to Mumbai for a concert scheduled for March 6 but it got postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic.

He then decided to head to Dubai to be with his wife and son and has been there since a few weeks.

"I am fortunate that my wife and my son are in Dubai. My son studies here and I keep travelling here a lot, Dubai is like my second base. But my father, sister are alone in India. I wanted to come back to India and be at my father's side but I realised that if I do that, I'll be exposing him to the risk of me carrying this virus, who knows the extent of the danger," Sonu told

The 46-year-old singer said everybody is taking precautions and he wants to ensure that the health of those around him isn't at risk.

"I thought let's not outsmart the virus. I thought it's better for me to stay for a bit (till things go normal). Coming back to India, and then going in quarantine will still be a risk.

"I came to Dubai and I thought I'll be able to go back to India but I didn't know it's going to be such an issue eventually. But we are fine here."

On Friday, singer Kanika Kapoor become the first Bollywood celebrity to test positive for the deadly virus in the country and has said she is under complete quarantine and medical care.

The UP police later booked the singer for negligence and committing acts that are likely to spread disease dangerous to life after she attended at least three gatherings in Lucknow, including a party where political leaders were present.

When asked if his decision of staying back was in anyway related to what happened to Kanika, Sonu said that wasn't the case.

"The last time I was contemplating coming to India was on March 16 night, but thankfully my flight got cancelled. Then from March 17, there was this regulation from the government of India that you have to go on a self quarantine for 14 days, compulsorily. I decided I shouldn't take a chance. Being a potential carrier is the worst thing," he said

In Dubai, the singer said the family is taking extreme precautions.

"We all are being safe, staying indoors, not gathering with many people. Careless people shouldn't be around you at this point, people who are too brash, that 'oh nothing will happen.' I don't allow such people in my vicinity. I'm.very hygiene conscious anyway." said the singer.

Sonu said he will be conducting a live music concert on his social media on Sunday.

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