Shared a bond like that of siblings with Sridevi: Kamal Haasan

Agencies
March 1, 2018

Chennai, Mar 1: They may have been one of the most romantic pairs on screen, but Kamal Haasan and late female superstar Sridevi shared a bond like that of siblings.

"Sridevi en thangachi (Sridevi was my younger sister)," Haasan said, decades after he was paired opposite Sridevi in a number of Tamil films such as 'Guru', 'Varumayin Niram Sivappu', 'Vaazhve Maayam' and 'Moondram Pirai', the last one being also remade as Hindi classic 'Sadma' in 1983.

Sridevi, who died of accidental drowning in her hotel bath tub in Dubai last week, captured millions of hearts across India as a Bollywood diva. She had started her career in Tamil cinema industry, besides doing some Telugu films.

She later moved to Mumbai to enjoy a successful career in Hindi cinema.

Writing in the concluding part of his weekly series in Tamil magazine 'Ananda Vikatan,' Haasan, now a politician, said he was revealing the nature of his bond with the late Sridevi as he does not stand the risk of his "market" getting affected now.

"Those days, couples (at weddings) were compared to us, saying they looked like Kamal and Sridevi. They must have seen us singing duets and hugging. We hid the truth (about the nature of the relationship) so as to not shatter that dream," he said.

Drawing parallels with the children donning the roles of god couples Murugan-Valli or Krishna-Rukmini in plays, Haasan said the boy playing the said roles would often describe the girl as 'thangachi', meaning younger sister.

"I and Sridevi were like one such Annan-thangachi (brother and sister)," he added.

Indicating that people in the industry had a fair idea about this, Haasan said he was asked not to speak about it "since you are being celebrated as a couple."

Haasan said after doing three films together with her, he was in the mindset of "Sridevi again?" for another script, adding that she herself could have shared similar thoughts.

But none consulted the two and "they (apparently the producers and directors) decided "that the two will pair opposite each other," he said, adding, after a point of time, "all heroes desired to act with her."

"If our acting was watched keenly, we would look like siblings. One could find the resemblance of myself in her acting," he said.

During the course of their career, Sridevi would often seek Haasan's opinions on her films and would patiently listen to his criticism.

While she did not dub in her voice in her first two Hindi films, she did so in her third project, Haasan recalled.

The deceased actor "became Sridevi by sheer hard work," he said and pointed out to her commitment.

Expressing sadness over the death of his one-time co-star, he said many senior women actors had called him up and cried following the death of the 54-year-old actor.

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News Network
May 28,2020

Agartala, May 28: Tripura Police has registered a complaint against Bangladeshi singer Mainul Ahsan Nobel, who earned fame in the music reality show 'Sa Re Ga Ma Pa' in Kolkata, for allegedly humiliating Prime Minister Narendra Modi over social media.

The complaint was filed by a resident of Belonia town in South Tripura district who is a student of Pandit Deen Dayal Petroleum University at Gandhinagar in Gujarat.

The complaint was filed on May 25, the person who is called Suman Paul said.

Nobel is not yet a popular singer in Bangladesh and has always been rejected by the audience of that country. He participated in the TV music reality show called Sa Re Ga Ma Pa in Kolkata, earned money, gained fame and returned to Bangladesh. If the person insults our prime minister it cannot be accepted. So I filed the FIR, Paul told reporters.

Belonia superintendent of police Jal Singh Meena confirmed that the complaint was registered and forwarded to Tripura Polices cyber crime cell.

The complaint was registered the same day it was filed at Belonia police station under Indian Penal code sections 500 (punishment for defamation), 504 (intentional insult), 505 (public mischief) and the IT Act.

We have registered the complaint and forwarded it to the cybercrime cell because it is not in the Indian cyberspace. We have started an investigation into the issue, the SP said.

Rajib Dutta, the officer-in-charge of Belonia police station said that as per the complaint the Bangladeshi singer had abused Modi in a Facebook post calling him a "mere chaiwala (tea seller)'.

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News Network
February 26,2020

New York, Feb 26: Disney CEO Bob Iger, who steered the company’s absorption of Star Wars, Pixar, Marvel and Fox’s entertainment businesses and the launch of a Netflix challenger, is stepping down immediately, the company said in a surprise announcement Tuesday.

The Walt Disney Co. named as his replacement Bob Chapek, most recently chairman of Disney’s parks, experiences and products business.

“Did not see this coming -- Wowza,” tweeted LightShed media analyst Rich Greenfield.

Iger will remain executive chairman through the end of his contract on Dec. 31, 2021. Besides leading the board, Iger said he will spend more time on Disney’s creative endeavors, including the ESPN sports network, the newly acquired Fox studios and the Hulu and Disney Plus streaming services. He said he could not do that while running Disney on a day-to-day basis.

“It was not accelerated for any particular reason other than I felt the need was now to make this change,” Iger said on a conference call with reporters and analysts.

Iger steered Disney through the successful purchases of Lucasfilms, Marvel, Pixar and other brands that became big moneymakers for Disney. Last year, the top five movies in U.S. and Canada theaters were all Disney movies, including two from Marvel and one from Pixar. With the Dec. 20 release of the latest “Star Wars” movie, Disney had seven movies that each sold at least $1 billion in tickets worldwide last year.

Iger’s most recent coup was orchestrating a $71 billion purchase of Fox’s entertainment business in March and launching the Disney Plus streaming service in November. That service got nearly 29 million paid subscribers in less than three months. In a statement, Iger said it was the “optimal time” for a transition.

Pivotal Research Group analyst Jeffrey Wlodarczak said Iger had implied he would stay until his contract ended in 2021.

“On the other hand, they just successfully closed the Fox deal and had an unquestionably successful launch of Disney Plus so maybe he felt earlier was better to hand off the reins,” he said.

Colin Gillis, director of research at Chatham Road Partners, said the choice of Chapek seems solid because his parks division has had success.

Chapek said that while he has not led television networks or streaming services, his background in consumer-oriented businesses should help. Chapek and Iger both stressed that Disney would continue on the direction it had already been taking.

Disney is facing challenges to its traditional media business as cord-cutting picks up, meaning less fees from cable and satellite companies to carry Disney networks such as ABC, ESPN and Freeform. Disney’s own streaming services require the company to forgo money in licensing revenue, although the company is betting that money from subscriptions will eventually make up for that.

In the short term, Disney parks in Hong Kong and Shanghai, China, remain closed because of the coronavirus outbreak. In a CNBC interview, Chapek said the outbreak may be a “bump in the road,” but he said the company could weather it given “affinity for the brand.”

Iger told CNBC he had no plans to stay with Disney beyond next year.

Iger’s appointment as CEO in 2005 had been accompanied by controversy and protest from dissident shareholders Roy E. Disney and Stanley Gold. But he has come to be seen as a golden-boy top executive, and even someone who could run for president.

Iger told Vogue in 2018 that he had started seriously exploring a run for president because he is “horrified at the state of politics in America today,” but the Fox deal stopped his plans. Oprah Winfrey told Vogue that she “really, really pushed him to run.”

Iger, a former weatherman, joined ABC in 1974, 22 years before Disney bought the network.

At ABC, Iger developed such successful programs as “Home Improvement,” “The Drew Carey Show,” and “America’s Funniest Home Videos” and was instrumental in launching the quiz show “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.” He was also criticized for cancelling well-regarded but expensive shows such as “Twin Peaks” and “thirtysomething.”

Since Iger became CEO, Disney’s stock price has risen fivefold. Its stock fell more than 2% in extended trading following the announcement, on top of a broader market selloff on virus fears during regular trading.

Iger, 69, was the second-highest paid CEO in 2018, as calculated by The Associated Press and Equilar, an executive data firm. He earned $65.6 million. The top earner was Discovery’s David Zaslav who earned $129.5 million.

Susan Arnold, the independent lead director of the Disney board, said succession planning had been ongoing for several years.

Chapek, 60, is only the seventh CEO in Disney history. Chapek was head of the parks, experiences and products division since it was created in 2018. He was previously head of parks and resorts and before that president of consumer products.

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News Network
July 3,2020

Mumbai, Jul 3: Bollywood woke up to the shock news of their beloved 'masterji' Saroj Khan's death on Friday, with many celebrities remembering the veteran choreographer as a "genius" and an "inspiration" to others.

Khan, the name behind some of the most famous songs in Bollywood such as "Dhak Dhak" and "Ek Do Teen", died of cardiac arrest early on Friday morning. She was 71.

Superstar Akshay Kumar termed Khan's demise as a "huge loss" to the industry.

"Woke up to the sad news that legendary choreographer #SarojKhan ji is no more. She made dance look easy almost like anybody can dance, a huge loss for the industry. May her soul rest in peace," he tweeted.

Choreographer Farah Khan said she was among the countless artistes who were inspired by Khan's work.

"Rest in peace Sarojji... You were an inspiration to many, myself included. Thank you for the songs," she wrote on Twitter.

Choreographer-turned-filmmaker Remo D'Souza said, "#RIP Saroji, you will be missed... Big loss to dance fraternity."

Actor Taapsee Pannu said she will forever cherish the memories of working with the veteran choreographer.

"At least I had a chance to dance in your company. I am going to hold on to those memories tight... real tight. We lose another star to the sky. Your songs will make every girl remember you for ever and ever," the actor tweeted.

Nimrat Kaur said there will be no one in the industry who could do what Khan did in her lifetime.

"Saroj ji’s name introduced the word ‘choreographer’ to my life. A genius who immortalised stars and the music that defined an era with her iconic work. May her loved ones find strength and courage at this terrible hour. There’ll never be another...#RIPSarojKhan #Legend #Masterji" she said.

Genelia Deshmukh said she is grateful to have worked with the legendary artiste.

"RIP Saroji ... I thank God I got a chance to be choreographed by you...Prayers and Strength to the Family... #SarojKhan" she said.

"Woke up to the heartbreaking news of the legendary choreographer #SarojKhan’s demise. Her iconic dance moves inspired me at a very young age. Rest in peace Saroj Ji. You are truly irreplaceable," tweeted Tamannaah Bhatia.

Rakul Preet Singh mourned that her dream of working with Khan will remain unfulfilled.

"Always dreamt of doing at least one song Choreographed by her. Your grace and contribution to Indian cinema shall always be remembered. May your soul RIP. Strength to the family," she said.

Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta said he learnt a lot while working with Khan.

"The first song I conceived 'Tamma Tamma Loge' to 'Dil Dil Dil' the first song of my debut film 'Aatish' we’re choreographed by the legendary Saroj Khan. Learnt so much from her. RIP Saroj Ji and keep smiling like you always did," he wrote on the micro-blogging site.

"Saroj Khan my beloved Masterji. #RIPSarojKhan From Music Videos to films we had a long journey together. Now you’ve left me and gone. I will do and make what we spoke about one day, my promise to you," tweeted filmmaker Kunal Kohli.

Khan, a three-time National Award winner, was not keeping well for some time. She was admitted to Guru Nanak Hospital in Bandra last Saturday after she complained of breathing issues. She had tested negative for Covid-19.

The veteran choreographer is survived by son Raju Khan and daughter Sukaina Khan.

Her funeral was held on Friday morning at a cemetery in suburban Malad.

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