Karan Johar Calls Himself, Sonakshi Sinha And Akshaye Khanna 'Brand Ambassadors Of Nepotism'

Agencies
October 31, 2017

Mumbai, Oct 31: Filmmaker Karan Johar, who was branded as the 'flag bearer of nepotism' in Bollywood by actress Kangana Ranaut, brought back the topic yet again during the promotion of his film Ittefaq, reports news agency.

He quipped that superstar Shah Rukh Khan ('non-nepotistic') and him ('brand ambassador of nepotism') can co-exist in the same industry. "On the platform, today, there are two non-nepotistic people - Shah Rukh Khan and Sidharth Malhotra and rest of us - Sonakshi Sinha, daughter of veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha, Akshaye Khanna, son of late actor Vinod Khanna, Abhay Chopra and Kapil Chopra, sons of late filmmaker Ravi Chopra, are the brand ambassador of nepotism. As we stand together, it speaks a volume about how worth they are equally, efficiently and correctly," he said.

Ittefaq, starring Sonakshi, Sidharth and Akshaye, is co-produced by Karan Johar and SRK while it is directed by Abhay Chopra, grandson of filmmaker BR Chopra.

Nepotism became one of the most-discussed topics in Bollywood after Kangana called KJo its 'flag bearer' during his show Koffee With Karan 5. At this year's IIFA awards, Karan Johar, Varun Dhawan and Saif Ali Khan chanted 'nepotism rocks' on stage. Later, Karan expressed regret, Varun tweeted an apology, but Saif, wrote an open letter on the topic, talking about 'genetics,' 'eugenics' and 'campism.'

Shah Rukh Khan earlier said he doesn't understand the word nepotism. "I don't understand this discussion (on nepotism). When I hear the word 'nepotism', I feel the other person is talking about Napoleon. Even though I know enough English, still I don't understand it and the discussion. Whether I agree or disagree -- I don't even understand it so how can I have an opinion?" he said.

Meanwhile, Ittefaq is the remake of 1969 film of the same name made, produced by BR Chopra, directed by Yash Chopra and featuring Rajesh Khanna. It releases on November 3.

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May 2,2020

Washington, May 2: American singer Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber have teamed up to help others in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grande and Bieber announced on Friday(local time) that they are working on a song, 'Stuck With U,' which will drop next week with all proceeds slated to go to coronavirus relief.

The 26-year-old songstress Ariana tweeted on Friday, "Stuck with u by me and @justinbieber out May 8th. head to my Instagram for more info. thank u to @1strcf and @sb_projects for making this possible."

Grande also announced the news on Instagram, and wrote, "Grateful to announce that my friend and i have partnered with @1strcf and @sb_projects on this release. proceeds from the streams and sales of #stuckwithu will be donated to first responders children's foundation to fund grants and scholarships for children of healthcare workers, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), paramedics, police officers and firefighters serving at the front lines during the global pandemic."

The 26-year-old pop-star Bieber, also added in a statement, "More than ever we are seeing the selfless, tireless and amazing work that doctors, nurses and healthcare providers give to the world every day. It is our hope we can lend our voices to raise awareness and give much-needed support for them and their families. It's my honour to come together with my friend Ariana and our SB Projects family to try and do some good."

The two music superstars have also independently been helping people in need. According to sources to Page Six, Grande, who has been communicating her longing to make music during the quarantine, has sent fans between 500 and 1,000 USD using the Venmo app.

One of the Ariana fans told Page Six that the 'Senorita' singer "took care of my salary for the month." She has helped more than 20 fans, said the outlet.

The '7 rings' singer also joined the Disney family singalong in April and sang 'I Won't Say I'm In Love' the animated film 'Hercules.'

Back in February, Bieber cantered his efforts on China, saying at the time that he "couldn't imagine how scary it would be if a new disease was effecting my wife and my family and friends."

The 'Yummy' singer said he made a donation to the country and urged his followers to join in on the conversation.

Bieber also accepted the #AllInChallenge to raise money for COVID relief. The singer said he will fly to your house for a private concert and sing 'One Less Lonely Girl.'

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News Network
January 18,2020

Mumbai, Jan 18: Actor Shabana Azmi was injured in an accident on Saturday afternoon on the Mumbai-Pune Expressway in Maharashtra's Raigad district, an official said.

The incident took place around 3.30 pm near Khalapur, over 60 km from Mumbai, when the car in which she was traveling rammed into a truck, said Raigad Superintendent of Police Anil Paraskar.

She was rushed to MGM hospital in Navi Mumbai and was undergoing treatment, he said.

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News Network
February 12,2020

London, Feb 12: Oscar-winning British director Steve McQueen is returning to his art roots with a series of short films at London's Tate Modern art gallery, offering a sensory exploration of black identity.

McQueen, who became the first black director to win the best picture Academy Award in 2014 for "12 Years a Slave", is now based between London and Amsterdam and is focused on championing diversity in the film industry.

Visitors to his new exhibition will be greeted by "Static", a film of New York's Statue of Liberty, scrutinising the iconic symbol from every possible angle at very close range against a deafening backdrop of the helicopter from where the footage was filmed.

"What interests Steve is our view of the world, how humans are trying to represent Liberty," said Fiontan Moran, assistant curator of the exhibition.

"7th Nov, 2001" features a still shot of a body while McQueen's cousin Marcus tells of how he accidentally killed his brother, a particularly traumatic experience for the artist.

"Western Deep" is another visceral work, giving a sense through sights and sounds in an interactive installation of the experiences of miners in South Africa, following them to the bottom of the mine.

"Ashes", meanwhile, is a tribute to a young fisherman from Grenada, the island where McQueen's family originated.

The images of beauty and sweetness filmed from his boat are tragically reversed on the other side of the projection screen, which shows a grave commissioned by McQueen for the eponymous young fisherman, who was killed by drug traffickers.

African-American singer, actor and civil rights activist Paul Robeson (1898-1976) is honoured in "End Credits".

The film shows censored FBI documents detailing the agency's surveillance of Robeson, read by a voice-over artist, for five hours.

"He is... testing the limits of how people can be documented in an era of mass surveillance," said Moran.

In a similarly militant vein, the exhibition features the sculpture "Weight", which was first shown in the prison cell where the writer and playwright Oscar Wilde was imprisoned.

It depicts a golden mosquito net draped over a metal prison bed frame, addressing the theme of confinement and the power of the imagination to break free.

The show runs alongside an exhibition of McQueen's giant portraits of London school classes, many of which appeared on the streets of London last year.

"I remember my first school trip to Tate when I was an impressionable eight-year-old, which was really the moment I gained an understanding that anything is possible," said McQueen, adding it was "where in some ways my journey as an artist first began".

He recently told the Financial Times newspaper the difference between his art films and his feature films was that the former were poetry, the latter like a novel.

"Poetry is condensed, precise, fragmented," he said. "The novel is the yarn".

The exhibition opens on February 13 and runs until May 11.

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