Indian television comedian Bharti Singh was taken into custody by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) on Saturday for alleged possession and consumption of the banned drug marijuana after the department conducted a raid at her house. A day after her arrest, her husband Harsh Limbachiya, who is also a popular television comedian, was arrested on the same charges.
According to a NCB official, 86.5 grams of marijuana (ganja) was seized from Singh and Limbachiyaa’s home and office.
“Both Singh and her husband accepted the consumption of ganja,” confirmed the NCB official.
The arrest of the popular television comedian stunned the entertainment world. Fellow comedian Raju Shrivastava shared, “I am really shocked and hurt and because of her the entire fraternity gets defamed.”
Meanwhile another comedian Ehsaan Qureshi said,“ I have worked with Bharti on shows and live events but I have never seen her doing drugs in front of people or during shoots maybe she did it on the sly. I am really shocked to know that she has confessed to doing Drugs.”
He added: “The industry has still not been able to come to terms with Sushant Singh Rajput case who died due to drugs or maybe depression.”
The couples’ arrest comes as a part of the ongoing probe by the NCB into alleged drug use in Bollywood, after the death of actor Sushant Singh Rajput from alleged suicide in June. The central agency had earlier arrested Rajput’s girlfriend, actress Rhea Chakraborty, her brother, some employees of the late film star, and a few others during investigation. Moreover, top Bollywood actors including Deepika Padukone, Shraddha Kapoor, Sara Ali Khan and Arjun Rampal have also been questioned by the NCB.
The agency has said this is part of its attempt to unravel a network of supply of drugs to Bollywood celebrities.
Just when I thought I was done with Bollywood films for this year, given how terrible this year’s releases have been, Ludopopped up as I was scrolling through Netflix. The film had just released and was already trending in the top ten on Netflix Pakistan.
Featuring an ensemble cast of Pankaj Tripathi, Aditya Roy Kapur, Abhishek Bachchan, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Rajkummar Rao, Sanya Malhotra, Rohit Suresh Saraf and Pearle Maaney, Ludo is a tough film to describe considering the multiple storylines running side by side. On one hand, you have Akash (Kapur) and Shruti (Malhotra), who are trying to cover up a sex tape before Sanya gets married to the man of her dreams, while on the other you have Bittu (Bachchan), who just came out of jail and ends up running into a little girl who kidnapped herself so her parents would pay attention to her. Then you have Alu (Rao), who runs a restaurant and dances to Mithun’s disco moves when he is stressed. He deeply loves his childhood crush Pinky (Shaikh), though she is married with a baby.
Akash and Shruti
On the surface, the characters have nothing to do with one another but their fates are all connected through Sattu Bhaiya (Pankaj) who is the resident gangster. As the leads try to sort out the problems in their lives, they end up getting entangled with one another in a very messy web controlled by Sattu Bhaiya. He manages to run everyone’s lives even while lying on a hospital bed.
Sattu Bhaiya
Written and directed by Anurag Basu, Ludo is a highly entertaining and enthralling watch. It keeps you gripped with its twists and turns and has been masterfully directed. A movie like this, which has multiple plotlines and characters, each with a different, distinct story, running side by side, could have easily fallen apart. But Basu holds it all together skilfully.
Though it is slightly longer than average films these days, you will not feel yourself getting bored at any point – there is enough drama, comedy and romance to keep you hooked.
Alu and Pinky
All the leads gave brilliant performances though it was Pankaj who blew me away with his acting and expressions. Despite being a gangster, you couldn’t help but like his character all because of how Tripathi brought it to life.
Bittu
The cherry on top was the songs and background music, which perfectly complemented the theme and mood of the film. I have been listening to Aabaad Barbaad and Hardum Humdum on repeat.
Every season, there is at least one, if not more, drama which creates a stir and causes an uproar on social media. This season, it is Jalan, with its twisted and very problematic storyline.
For those who have been oblivious to the drama and PEMRA’s short-lived ban on it, Jalanis about two sisters Nisha (Minal Khan) and Misha (Areeba Habib) who are after the same guy. While Misha is the sweet and obedient sister, Nisha is a spoiled brat and wants to be better than her sister, so she sets her sights on her brother-in-law Asfandyar (Emmad Irfani) because he’s rich and good-looking. Ignoring the fact that her sister is married to Asfandyar (Asfi) and pregnant with his child, Nisha openly flirts with him and urges him to divorce his wife. Nisha eventually gets her way and Asfi not only divorces his wife but also pushes her as a result of which she falls to the floor and ends up delivering their baby prematurely. Nisha’s parents throw her out of the house and she seeks refuge with Asfi pushing him to marry her as soon as possible. As Nisha and Asfi get married, Meenu, who cannot bear the heartbreak and humiliation sets herself on fire and eventually dies leaving behind her infant child.
Asfi and Nisha’s marital bliss doesn’t last long and the cracks become wider when Nisha’s ex-fiance Ahmer (Fahad Sheikh), makes a dramatic re-entry into her life richer and better-dressed. Nisha then sets her sights on him, straight-up asking him to marry her the second time they meet after their breakup.
If the entire situation wasn’t bizarre enough, it’s execution is even more mind-boggling. The script is weak and the characters terribly developed. It’s as if the writer after every scene forgot what she had written in the previous scene and started the new chapter afresh – there is no flow in scenes. Even though Nisha is the protagonist, her character and callous actions are incomprehensible and beyond basic understanding. The drama’s writer Sidra Sehar Imran, in a recent interview, said that the drama is a true story but I’m finding that a little hard to believe. In the past (I’m looking at you Meray Paas Tum Ho), several writers have used the ‘true story’ trope as a marketing gimmick in an attempt to hype up their dramas and push up ratings. This time round I am not definitely not buying it.
If we thought Nisha was messed up, Asfi is even worse. He barely has any dialogues and mostly just moves around with either a sullen expression on his face or screaming his head off. While Irfani does a decent job with the role, Asfi’s one-dimensional personality is irritating, to say the least.
I am unable to fathom what the makers of the drama are trying to show with this plot and storyline. A few words simply cannot sum up the disaster this drama is. It is quite clear that ARY just wanted to create a stir with this and they have gotten exactly that. Substance and content do not matter. It appears that with Jalan, we’ve hit a new low.
Jalan is one of those dramas which are so bad that they don’t even qualify as a guilty pleasure. Every time you tune into it, you are bound to get your blood pressure high.
After the phenomenal success of Diriliş: Ertuğrul, Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) is all set to air another Turkish drama Yunus Emre: Aşkın Yolculuğu on the recommendation of Prime Minister Imran Khan.
A trailer for the Urdu version of the drama, titled Raah-e-Ishq, is already out.
Senior PTI leader Senator Faisal Javed Khan revealed that the drama is being aired on the directions of PM Imran. He also shared that the drama is the story of an Islamic poet, mystic and poor villager.
The Senator had earlier said that PM Khan wants Pakistanis to watch this drama because it highlights Islamic history.
….for unity. It is a Journey of Transformation. Yunus Emre was well versed in mystical philosophy, esp that of the 13th-century poet and mystic Jalaluddin Rumi. Serial is a great example of a meticulous attention to detail work @trtworldpic.twitter.com/IGmrbSNQ8M
Yunus Emre: Aşkın Yolculuğu is a Turkish biographical historical television series created by Mehmet Bozdağ, the man behind Diriliş: Ertuğrul. It stares Gökhan Atalay in the lead role. According to Faisal, the series is a journey of transformation. It centres around the life of Yunus Emre, the 14th century Anatolian Sufi poet, who greatly influenced Anatolian culture.
The first episode of the series was released on June 18, 2015 and over the years it has become a favourite among the Turkish audiences. It has an IMDb rating of 7.9.
In case you didn’t know, PM Khan is a big fan of Turkish dramas. Back in April, PM Khan, while discussing why he requested PTV to air Diriliş: Ertuğrul, had said: “The show has depicted the culture of Islam. I want our youth to know that we also have a culture which has romance and other interesting elements.”
A release date for the show has not yet been announced by PTV.
It’s the season of birthdays. Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik, who celebrated Sania’s birthday in Karachi earlier this week, have now jetted off to Dubai, where they celebrated Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s wife Sakshi Dhoni’s birthday.
Pictures of the celebrations were widely circulated on social media. Salman Khan’s sister Arpita Khan Sharma and Sania’s sister Anam were also on the guest list.
Sania shared a lovely photo of herself with Sakshi as she wished her a happy birthday.
Sakshi also shared an adorable picture of herself with husband Dhoni.
Dhoni was recently in Dubai for 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He decided to stay back there to spend time with family.
Prince William has “tentatively welcomed” an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding a BBC interview in 1995 with his mother, Princess Diana, royal officials said on Thursday.
William, who is second in line to the throne, in a statement said that the probe is “a step in the right direction”. He added that it “should help establish the truth behind the actions” that led to the interview as well as “subsequent decisions taken by those in the BBC at the time”.
The Princess of Wales was interviewed by BBC’s Martin Bashir (R) in the current affairs program, Panorama, November 20, 1995
On Wednesday, BBC announced that it has appointed a retired senior judge to lead an investigation into the 1995 interview after Diana’s brother, Charles Spencer, made renewed complaints this month that journalist Martin Bashir used false documents and other dishonest tactics to convince Diana to agree to the interview.
The investigation will consider if the steps taken by the broadcaster and Bashir were appropriate and whether those actions influenced Diana’s decision to give the interview. It will also look into how much the BBC knew about the “mocked-up bank statements” that Charles Spencer claimed Bashir produced, purporting to show payments made to staff working for Spencer and the royal family.
The 1995 interview, in which Diana famously said “there were three of us in this marriage” — referring to Prince Charles’ relationship with Camilla Parker-Bowles — was watched by millions of people and sent shockwaves through the monarchy.
Diana divorced from Charles in 1996 and died in a Paris car crash in 1997 as she was pursued by paparazzi. Charles married Camilla, now the Duchess of Cornwall, in 2005.
Twins Minal Khan and Aiman Khan are celebrating their 22nd birthday today. While Aiman is vacationing in Turkey with husband Muneeb Butt, Minal celebrated her birthday at an intimate party hosted by close friends and alleged beau Ahsan Mohsin Ikram.
According to Minal, the surprise party was arranged by Ahsan. Thanking him, Minal in a social media post, wrote: “Thank you Ahsan for this unforgettable surprise birthday party last night! I had zero idea about this.”
“You’re so special and you made me feel so special,” she added. “I’ll forever be thankful to all my girls and all my friends who made it happen last night. The best 22.”
Meanwhile, Ahsan wished the birthday girl with a loved-up picture of the two with the caption: “Happy Birthday to my one and only.”
While the two have not confirmed their relationship status and Minal has said that she is not getting married anytime soon, they were spotted indulging in PDA at the party.
The alleged couple has worked together in the drama serial Parchayee.
Minal’s family also threw a surprise birthday for her.
“If you have a complaint about not being loved or appreciated in this marriage, I suggest you take it up with the people who arranged it”.
The line that says it all. In the fourth season of Netflix‘sThe Crown, there is zero doubt that you will be reminded of someone you know or have heard of, who is currently suffering in an arranged marriage. Which is why when Prince Charles (Josh O’ Connor), the future king of England complains about his arranged marriage to his incredibly sad wife Princess Diana (Emma Corrin), it really hits home.
The Crown shows the engagement interview given by Diana and Charles which was truly cringeworthy (because of Charles)
The Crown, a series on the popular streaming site Netflix, is based on the lives of the ruling royal family in England. It follows the life of Elizabeth II, who is the current ruling Queen of England, her journey as Queen and also gives insight into the private lives of the royals. Although it is based on true events, the producers have said that artistic license has been taken while filming the series.
The most-awaited royal story was the one of Prince Charles and the iconic Princess Diana and the depiction of the two in season four does not disappoint. You will literally watch this season with your phone in hand, googling to see if the events that made you cringe are actually true – and be shocked and saddened that they indeed are.
Diana and Charles’ wedding was a fairy tale – one that even if you weren’t old enough to see it when it happened, there is zero doubt that you have seen images of how perfect it actually was. Their divorce shook the world and Diana’s death had everyone mourning. There was and most likely will never be a more iconic and charming royal than Diana. Pakistanis, in particular, are drawn to her even more after seeing pictures of how much she enjoyed visiting Pakistan with a handsome Imran Khan and his then-wife Jemima Goldsmith.
SPOILERS AHEAD
This was the first time I learned about how Diana had an eating disorder and was bulimic. After Googling, I discovered that she had spoken about it in an interview, about how after marrying Prince Charles, eating a lot of food and then throwing up somehow became therapeutic for the emptiness she felt in her life. The series shows how a very young Diana gets married at the age of 19 years in a whirlwind marriage to a prince who is in love with someone else. Prince Charles had been seeing a married woman – Camilla Parker-Bowleswho he is currently married to – and continued to see her after he was married. Charles wanted to marry Diana and thought she was sweet, but not before she was ‘approved’ by his ‘ex-girlfriend’ Camilla. According to Google, Camilla had approved Charles’ marriage to Diana, thinking she could control her in the future but hadn’t realise how popular Diana would become.
Camilla Parker Bowles invites an engaged Diana to lunch – while she was having an affair with Diana’s fiance
We are also introduced to a Diana who tries very hard to make Charles happy – and a Charles who tries somewhat but is unable to let go of his affair. What makes one hate Charles even more in the series is that it’s not that the dull and arrogant Charles doesn’t have the capacity to love – he loves Camilla so much he tells Diana after years of their marriage that if she hurts Camilla, she hurts him – but that he loves the wrong person. He can’t stand how popular and loved Diana is, how she shines, how people love her and how wherever she goes – excitement follows. He is not strong enough to let her shine – and in turn, his lack of compassion for her – ruins her life.
There was a time when they were happy. The real life dance of Charles and Diana shows a happy time
Discussions about the royal family being the first and ultimate joint family began soon after people finished the season – discussions about how arranged marriages can ruin lives and how people need to spend time together to find out if they really get one another. If Diana had not been so young and had grown into her personality and understood what she wanted out of life, maybe she would not have picked Charles or been besotted with the thought of marrying a prince. Maybe Charles, who gave into his family’s pressure of marrying a girl who had a similar background as him, would’ve held strong and said he wouldn’t marry if he couldn’t marry whom he wanted. But it seems painfully obvious that Charles was pressured into marrying Diana and Diana fell for the fairy tale love story that Charles represented.
It’s true. Princess Di did a dance with singer Billy Joel for Prince Charles’ birthday
What’s more painful is to see how Diana tries to make Charles happy. She knows from day one that Charles has not left Camilla – even goes out for lunch with Camilla (yes, that’s true!) – and tries her best to make her marriage work. In two very painful parts of the season, Diana plans a dance with the famous rockstar Billy Joel, for Charles’ birthday and after seeing the performance, Charles tells her how horrified he was to see her performance and how she made his birthday about her (she did do a performance for him on his birthday at the theater, that is also true) and then for their wedding anniversary she tries again and films her singing a song for him with a live orchestra (wasn’t very good and also true). He makes fun of her both times, showing that no matter what she tried, nothing was going to work.
We all have that one friend or family member stuck in a marriage that is not of their choosing. Having issues with in-laws is so common that it’s scary at times. Diana also has a difficult time with her in-laws and tries to reach out to her mother-in-law, the Queen who is very distant from her. Charles’ sister, Princess Anne, also resents Diana for being more popular than her and they too, don’t seem to get along. The only person who does seem to like her is her father-in-law Prince Philip but near the end, that also changes. So we see Diana fairly alone throughout the series, clinging onto her children to feel whole. Until it seems she can’t do it anymore.
Last scene showing a very unhappy Diana
The ending scene of the series finale is one of a family photo being taken for Christmas and Diana is standing at the edge of the photo, away from the others. The camera zooms into her, showing how alone she is and I didn’t have the heart to Google if the picture was real – because it so obviously must be. What is more devastating is that it feels like such a big loss. We know that Diana finally breaks free and most likely, finally finds happiness and then dies in a fatal car crash. She never really gets her fairy tale and as we see people around us going through the same, we feel the same pain. Maybe if they break free – if she had broken free earlier – they might be happier.
Despite being such a difficult season to watch, season four is the best season so far. Other than the stellar performances given by both Connor and Corrin, the role of Britain’s first female Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher is played so brilliantly by Gillian Anderson that it is a true pleasure to watch. She literally captures the essence of one of England’s most controversial rulers and it is a delight to watch the minute she comes on screen. The minute you see Thatcher on screen, you can’t wait to see what she will do next. And you also cannot help but compare.
Gillian Anderson was absolutely perfect as Britain’s Iron Lady PM, Margaret Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher, raised to be brilliant by her father, supported by her husband who is totally at ease with his wife’s success, pushes her to be the absolute best that she can be – the leader of a superpower for eleven years. The support she gets and her own brilliance make her shine in ways that have changed the course of history. And then we see a parallel with Diana – a woman absolutely phenomenal in her own right – but pushed down by the people around her, never realising her full potential.
Makes one think how different life can be if you can manage to convince yourself that you need some iron from the British PM famously called the Iron Lady and also realise that it is finally time to break free before it is too late, like the tragedy that was Diana.
Bushra Bashir [formerly Ansari] is having a serious case of nostalgia and her Instagram feed is proof of that. The actor took her fans on a trip down memory lane and shared pictures of herself with other celebrities and at exotic locations across the world.
Starting with pictures of Bushra with legends including Noor Jehan, Benazir Bhutto and Zia Mohyeddin.
With renowned poet Gulzar Sahab at his house in Mumbai
She then reminisced about the time when she first visited the USA in 1982, when her daughter Nariman was just 3 years old.
Then one from her London trip in 1990.
The actor also shared some fond memories from her trips to India with her sister Asma Abbas.
Taj MahalAkbar’s Maqbara at Sikandra
Gateway of India
Bali Maran ka Mohallah, Dehli
Bushra also recalled the time when she was a child actor.
“When you become a child star at the age of 10, what a memory”, wrote Bushra along with a black and white photo.
She further shared that she was in Class 5 at the time and became the ‘Phoolon ki Shehzadi‘ when she received a cheque of Rs 90 from PTV.
Bushra also recalled the time when she wrote her first long play ‘Neele Dhoop‘.
Imagine getting a chance to stay at Shah Rukh Khan’s house and living like a superstar. That too for free.
That dream might just become a reality on Valentine’s Day 2021 as SRK’s wife Gauri Khan offers a couple a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to spend two nights at their home in Delhi, the city where she and her husband grew up.
In a tweet, the interior designer shared that she has collaborated with Airbnb and is offering fans a chance to be their guest. To get a chance to stay at the Khans’ residence, fans need to share what an ‘Open Arms Welcome’ – a nod to SRK’s signature pose – means to them by November 30.
Sharing details, Gauri in an interview said: “I have personally curated the itinerary for our Airbnb guest. They will be treated to a special home-cooked meal which has all of our family’s favourite foods, a movie marathon session of watching Shah Rukh’s favourite films, and souvenirs as keepsakes, to fondly remember and cherish their time in our home.”
When asked why they decided to host guests at their residence, Gauri said: “Our family loves hosting people at home and we feel that it is truly the best way to welcome and bond with loved ones.”
“One of the central aspects of staying at an Airbnb that has always fascinated me is the role that the hosts play. They add a touch of warmth to one’s entire travel and stay experience, and that’s why I believe their role is so critical. The idea to open our Delhi home came after a trip to LA with the entire family — we had stayed at an Airbnb and had a fantastic experience. It was then that we decided that we want to welcome people into our home too and give them a memorable experience as hosts.”
Further while talking about the house and its decor, Gauri shared while the whole house is special to her two corners of it are her absolute fav.
“The first is what I like to call the ‘nostalgia wall’ in Shah Rukh’s and my bedroom,” shared Gauri. “It is a selection of things which hold significance to us as a family. It includes Aryan’s first badminton racket; Suhana’s favourite make-up brushes and butterflies she has collected over the years; AbRam’s first birthday gift, which is an exquisite silver mirror and comb. Even an art piece that Shah Rukh bought from his early travels, that is emblematic of his love for pizza, is on the wall.”
“The second is a wall adorned with handmade cards that Shah Rukh and I exchanged during our early courtship period.”
SRK and Gauri’s residence is located in the South Delhi neighborhood of Panchsheel Park.
“With so many memories of our early days in Delhi, the city holds a very special place in our hearts,” shared SRK while talking about the house.
