Amol Palekar appointed chairman of India's Oscar jury

August 24, 2015

Mumbai, Aug 24: Veteran actor-director Amol Palekar has been appointed as chairman of India's Oscar jury, which will select the country's official entry in the best foreign film category of the 88th Academy Awards.Amol Palekar

The "Gol Maal" star, 70, whose film "Paheli" was India's official entry for the Academy Awards in 2005, will be heading the 17-member jury.

"We have selected Amol Palekar as the head of India's Oscar jury. He is an eminent film personality," Supran Sen, Secretary General of the Mumbai-based Film Federation of India (FFI) told reporters.

An elated Palekar said the process of selecting the film to represent India at Oscars 2016 is yet to begin.

"I am happy that I have been appointed as the chairman of India's Oscar jury. We haven't decided on any criteria for selecting a film for Oscars. I will have a meeting first with our esteemed members and work out the selection criteria," he said.

The Mumbai-based actor, who has been away from the silver screen for quite a sometime, is known for portraying the middle-class Indian in a string of films such as "Rajnigandha", "Ek Chhoti Si Baat", "Chitchor", "Gol Maal" and "Gharaunda" in the 1970s. He also directed National Award-winning films like "Dhyaas Parva" and "Quest".

Last year, "Liar's Dice", a road drama starring Geetanjali Thapa and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in lead roles, was selected as India's official entry to the best foreign film category after beating "Shahid", "Queen", "Mardaani", Marathi films "Yellow" and "Fandry" and Bengali films "Jatishwar" and "Apur Panchali"

"Mother India", "Salaam Bombay" and "Laggan" were the Indian films that made it to the top five at the Academy Awards.

The 88th Academy awards event will take place in Los Angeles on February 28.

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News Network
March 19,2020

New Delhi, Mar 19: As a precautionary measure to combat the spread of coronavirus, Bollywood actors including Preity Zinda, Sidharth Malhotra, and Shraddha Kapoor are maintaining their social distance, while calling on fans to follow health guidelines and maintain good hygiene.

Joining others in sharing what to do while practicing self-isolation at home, Preity Zinda on Thursday took to Instagram and shared a video where she is giving an oil massage to her mother.

In the shared video, the 45-year-old actor was seen at the comforts of her home, giving a good nice 'Champi' to her mom.

She also encouraged everyone to try 'Champi' at home as she suggested it is good for one's hair.

"To keep our heads cool during this home quarantine it felt right to give mom the classic Champi Making the most of staying home & bonding kyuki sir jo tera chakraye, ya dil dooba jaaye- aaja pyaare paas hamare, kahe ghbraye. This too shall pass #day8 #homequarantine #staysafe #oilmassage #covid19 #Staypositive #Ting," the caption read.

On the other hand, actor Sidharth Malhotra is using the self-isolation period to focus this on things one always wanted to do but could not due to time restrictions.

"It's time to take some time off and focus on things we've always wanted to do but never had enough time for. Let's read, reinvent and live our hobbies, spend time with our family and just try to do all we can to stay safe and keep others around us safe too!"

The 35-year-old actor also urged everybody to take measures to avoid the spread of the disease.

"I love you guys, so please take good care of yourself, stay at home, wash your hands and avoid unnecessary travel," he added.

Meanwhile, Shraddha Kapoor has been posting a series of pictures right from the time of her being at home as a precautionary measure from the spread of the virus.

From reading to having a home-made meal to sharing balcony pictures, the 33-year-old actor has made her presence felt online.

On Thursday, the 'Baaghi' actor shared a picture of Bamboo toothbrush, promoting the use of eco-friendly products.

"Being home #BambooToothbrush #Ecofriendly #MorningRitual," the caption read.

According to official data provided by the Ministry of Health, the country has 169 reported cases of COVID-19.

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News Network
March 12,2020

Los Angeles, Mar 12: Hollywood superstar Tom Hanks has revealed that he and wife Rita Wilson have tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

The actor couple, currently in Australia to shoot for the pre-production of Baz Luhrmann's untitled Elvis Presley film, decided to get tested after they felt "a bit tired".

"Hey folks Rita and I are down here in Australia. We felt a bit tired, like we had colds, and some body aches. Rita had some chills that came and went. Slight fevers too. To play things right, as is needed in the world right now, we were tested for the coronavirus, and were found to be positive," Hanks said in a tweet.

The Academy-award-winning actor said the medical team had already taken over.

"The medical officials have protocols that must be followed. We Hanks will be tested, observed and isolated for as long as public health and safety requires," Hanks said.

"Not much more to it than one-day at a time approach, no? We will keep the world posted and updated. Take care of yourselves!" Hanks tweeted.

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August 3,2020

Mumbai, Aug 3: In a significant statement, Mumbai Police chief Parambar Singh on Monday said that actor Sushant Singh Rajput was “emotionally disturbed” after the death of his ex-manager Disha Salian.

“When he saw his name being linked to Disha Salian’s death on social media, he was emotionally disturbed. He had met Disha Salian only once, he even asked his advocate who she was,” Singh told reporters in Mumbai.

According to him, Sushant Singh Rajput was conscious about what was appearing about him on social media.

Singh also rejected allegations that Mumbai police had not sealed the Bandra duplex flat where the actor ended his life.

“The flat was sealed on June 14 itself (the day of the suicide), the next day, on June 15, forensic teams and doctors visited the flat. Only after that, the flat was unsealed,” Singh said.

The police chief also ruled out that a party was held in the flat on June 13 evening. “We have the CCTV footage of June 13 and 14,” he said.

On the quarantining of Bihar IPS officer Vinay Tiwari in Mumbai, Singh said that he does not have knowledge of this. “The BMC should have knowledge of this. They look into quarantine issues, we do not,” he said.

Singh said that the investigations are ongoing and so far 56 statements have been recorded. “We are in touch with experts, doctors,” he said.

On the bank accounts, he said that during their investigations it has come to light that Rs 4.5 crore was there in the form of deposits.  “We have recorded the statement of his current chartered accountant, former chartered accountant, we have checked the bank statements, ledger,” he said, adding that investigations are still underway.

According to the FIR filed by Sushant Singh Rajput’s father Krishna Kumar Singh in Patna, his son’s money was swindled by his girlfriend Rhea Chakraborty and her family members.

“The Mumbai Police is investigating the case thoroughly, from all possible angles, including his family members, friends, doctors and others, besides the details of the financial transactions of Sushant’s bank accounts,” Singh said.

To a query on the name of a prominent Maharashtra politician being dragged in social media, Singh categorically said that the investigations have not shown any such thing.

Singh also said that the Mumbai police had “initially recorded” the statement of the family members. “The statements of father and sisters were recorded on June 16,” he said, however, added that they have not responded to requests later on.

He said that the Mumbai Police has extended all cooperation to the family. “Sushant Singh Rajput’s sister and brother-in-law met our joint commissioner of police. They wanted to go to the Pune bungalow in Pawna area. An assistant commissioner of police accompanied them,” he said.

Who is Disha Salian?

Disha Salian hails from Karnataka’s coastal district of Udupi. She was born in 1992 into a business family background. She reportedly migrated to Mumbai with her family at an early age. 

After completing her education, she worked in the Times of India Group for more than three years. She went on to become the celebrity manager at Media Vantage.

Apart from Sushant, she had great links with many popular celebrities like Bharti Singh, Alisha Panwar, and others.

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