Agents of Pak artistes accused of demanding payment in black

November 16, 2016

New Delhi, Nov 16: Agents of Pakistani artistes like Fawad Khan, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Shafaqat Amanat Ali, Mawra Hocane and Imran Abbas Naqvi are involved in black moneytransactions in India, a sting by Hindi news channel News18 India has alleged.

fawadThe news channel's sting report comes days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 8 announced the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes to curb black money in India.

The sting operation, carried out by News18 India over a fortnight ago in New Delhi and Mumbai, was aired on Tuesday night.

According to a statement issued by the channel, undercover reporters caught on camera the "agents of the Pakistani artistes" demanding majority of their fee in black. The fee was for appearance in wedding ceremonies.

While a few demanded part of the fee in cash, others wanted it transferred to their bank accounts in Australia or Dubai, the statement alleged.

The formal contract, however, reflected a paltry sum as compared to the amount agreed upon, the News18 India statement read.

As per the sting, Fawad's manager demanded Rs 50 lakh for a two-hour appearance. He demanded that the payment should be made in black and white. The black money component was to be 25 per cent of the deal amount and the rest was to be transferred to the actor`s UAE-based bank account, the statement alleged.

Singers Shafqat Amanat Ali's manager and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan's representative demanded Rs 35 lakh and Rs 65 lakh respectively. Whereas, the former's contract showed just Rs 8 lakh, the latter's showed Rs 23 lakh, including taxes, News18 India said.

Actor Imran's manager demanded Rs 35 lakh for a performance, with Rs 32 lakh to be paid in black while the contract was to reflect a fee of just Rs 300,000.

Mawra's Pakistan-based manager demanded Rs 50 lakh for a two-hour appearance and asked for Rs 25 lakh in cash to be paid to her contact in Mumbai. The rest was to be transferred to her Australian bank account, the channel statement said.

News18 India said that since all the Pakistani artistes come to India on a work permit obtained through the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for professional engagement, these activities violate statutory laws.

The insistence for payment in black money also violates Service Tax and Income Tax laws.

The details of the sting operation could not be independently verified.

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News Network
July 12,2020

Mumbai, Jul 12: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has sealed actor Rekha’s bungalow in suburban Bandra after a security guard there tested positive for coronavirus, a civic official said on Sunday.

The guard at the 65-year-old actor’s bungalow ‘Sea Springs’ tested positive on Tuesday, the official said.

The BMC has put a board outside the premises declaring the are as a containment zone. The security guard has been hospitalised at the BMC’s COVID-19 care facility in Bandra Kurla Complex, he said.

As the bungalow is a standalone one, only a portion of it has been sealed, he said.

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News Network
April 12,2020

Los Angeles, Apr 12: Pop star Rihanna has asked her fans, who are demanding her to release her new album soon, to back off as her prime focus right now is doing her bit in saving the world from the coronavirus pandemic.

The Grammy winner was one of the first Hollywood personalities who pledged support towards the relief efforts in fighting the COVID-19 outbreak.

Rihanna has been teasing new for quite some time now and eager admirers got an earful from her during an Instagram Live. Her last studio album was 'Anti' which was released in 2016.

Taking a swipe at US President Donald Trump, the Barbadian singer said, "If one of y'all ask me about the album one more time when I'm tryna save the world, unlike y'all president....on sight."

Rihanna's non-profit organisation Clara Lionel Foundation (CLF) and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey recently donated USD 2.1 million each to help victims of domestic violence in Los Angeles during the COVID-19 stay-at-home order.

Also CLF and and rapper Jay-Z's Shawn Carter Foundation donated USD 2 million to support undocumented workers, the incarcerated, homeless and elderly populations, and children of frontline healthcare workers in Los Angeles and New York City amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier, Rihanna, through CLF, also donated USD 5 million to support Direct Relief, Partners In Health, Feeding America, the International Rescue Committee and World Health Organization's COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund as they continue to fight the pandemic in the US, the Caribbean and Africa.

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News Network
May 10,2020

New Delhi, May 10: While people across the country have been spending a lot of time at home owing to the lockdown, superstar Shah Rukh Khan on Saturday provided a unique platform for all the aspiring filmmakers to produce some 'fun, creative and... spooky' video.

The 54-year-old actor shared a statement on Instagram, detailing about the opportunity for the filmmakers to channel their inner "filmmaking ghost to make a scary indoor film with an element of horror in it."

Taking it to the captions, the 'Don' actor wrote: "Since we've all got a bit of time on our hands in quarantine, thought I can get us all to work a bit... in a fun, creative and... spooky way!"

In the post, titled with a hashtag 'SpookSRK,' the actor has listed down the rules to be followed while making the video and shared the email link to submit their work.

The 'Dilwale' actor also announced that the selected "three winners" will get a chance to video call the star himself.

Wrapping the post on a lighter note, he added: "I will be sending in my film as well...P.S - Ghosts are welcome to send their entries too."

This comes a day after the first trailer launch of Shah Rukh's new Netflix horror series 'Betaal'.

SRK's Red Chillies Entertainment is producing the horror-thriller. The new series also stars Vineet Kumar, Aahana Kumra, Suchitra Pillai, Jitendra Joshi, Manjiri Pupala, and Syna Anand.

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