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Tag: India

  • Will Young Stunners be allowed to perform in India?

    Will Young Stunners be allowed to perform in India?

    If you’re a fan of the talented Pakistani hip-hop duo, Young Stunners, you might have seen the buzz about their upcoming tour in India. Two stars Talha Anjum and Talhah Yunus, who are the Young Stunners have gained a massive following across the border.

    Young Stunners’ upcoming performances are in Delhi on December 25, Bengaluru on December 21, and Mumbai on December 13. Skill Box is in charge of organizing the tour and has started accepting pre-registrations for concert tickets, giving priority to those who purchase them early.

    However, the rappers have not announced the tour on their social media and have only updated it with updates about their tours in Australia and Canada. And, some Indian social media users are criticizing the event by reposting previous tweets from Talha Anjum’s accounts, which allegedly made fun of Indian Air Force pilot Abhinandan, attacked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and called for the independence of Kashmir from Indian rule.

    The organizer for the Young Stunners’ tour, Desi Disco Entertainment, says that the duo’s shows in India are still on, with registrations open on another website for the Young Stunners Mumbai gig.
    Vaheed Khan, the director of Desi Disco, stated in an interview with The Print in India, that the controversy was a part of a larger strategy to attack the show for declining to work with certain handles.

    Vaheed Khan said, “We won’t let a few negative tweets stop our show. Some social media pages wanted a share of our profits, but we refused to promote them. That’s why they started posting negative tweets. Half of these tweets are fake and have nothing to do with Talha or Pakistan.”
    Young Stunners have a huge fan following in India, with the largest number of their Spotify listeners from Mumbai (152,583 listeners) and New Delhi (245,000 listeners). While the controversy swirls, fans await an official confirmation from the duo.

    Here are the previous tweets of Talha Anjum which created a controversy:

  • Time to leave: Hasina’s son convinced her to flee the country

    Time to leave: Hasina’s son convinced her to flee the country

    On August 5 2024, Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India as the demonstrations grew bigger and bolder.

    Ruling since 2009, her resignation was deemed as a major victory by the people of Bangladesh who, moments after she left, had barged into her palace.

    And while the protests were happening for over a month, with over 300 killed while thousands injured and arrested, what really prompted Sheikh Hasina to escape?

    The New York Times reports that until the final hours, Hasina firmly believed she could withstand the crowd gathering around her. Three sources familiar with the internal conversations disclosed that she ignored the suggestions of her security advisors, who had warned that their efforts to suppress anti-government protests had already been unsuccessful and that any additional action would lead to more violence and bloodshed.

    Her top security advisors then resorted to her family in order to dispel Sheikh Hasina’s rigidity and make her realise that, “it was the end”.

    The heads of army, police, air force, and navy came to her residence where she met with them alongside her sister, Sheikh Rehana, who had come from London just days earlier for a visit.

    Her sister spoke to Hasina in private for about 20 minutes after which she was “quiet, but still reluctant”.

    Army chief Gen. Waker-uz-Zaman, who is also a relative of Sheikh Hasina, then contacted her son, Sajeeb Wazed, living in Virginia, US, to urge him to persuade his mother to recognize the seriousness of the situation.

    “She wanted to stay, she did not want to leave the country at all,” Mr. Wazed later told Indian news channels. “We were concerned for her physical safety first. So we persuaded her to leave.”

    By then, the security personnel had estimated that Sheikh Hasina had less than an hour to leave.

    “At very short notice, she requested approval to come for the moment to India,” India’s foreign minister, S. Jaishankar told the Indian Parliament.

  • Shah Rukh Khan to be honoured at Locarno Film Festival

    Shah Rukh Khan to be honoured at Locarno Film Festival

    Switzerland’s Locarno Film Festival opens on Wednesday with Shah Rukh Khan, Jane Campion, Alfonso Cuaron and Irene Jacob set to be honoured with special awards.

    Founded in 1946, Locarno is one of the world’s longest-running annual film festivals and focuses on auteur cinema.

    Held on the shores of Lake Maggiore, in the Italian-speaking Ticino region of southern Switzerland, films are screened in Locarno’s central square — a feature of Swiss national life depicted on the country’s 20-franc banknotes.

    The open-air Piazza Grande holds up to 8,000 moviegoers, and films are shown on one of the largest screens in the world.

    Bollywood superstar Khan, 58, will on Saturday be given the Pardo alla Carriera award for people whose artistic contributions have redefined cinema.

    “The wealth and breadth of his contribution to Indian cinema is unprecedented,” said the festival’s artistic director Giona A. Nazzaro.

    “Khan is a king who has never lost touch with the audience that crowned him. This brave and daring artist has always been willing to challenge himself.”

    The 77th festival, which runs until August 17, features 225 films, including 104 world premieres and 15 debut movies.

    Locarno’s top prize is the Golden Leopard. Previous winning directors include Roberto Rossellini, John Ford, Stanley Kubrick, Milos Forman, Mike Leigh and Jim Jarmusch.

    Seventeen films — all world or international premieres — are vying for the award, including movies from Lithuania, France, Austria, Italy and South Korea.

    The Golden Leopard comes with a prize fund of 75,000 Swiss francs ($87,400), shared between the director and the producer.

    Switzerland’s largest film event will feature a retrospective dedicated to the 100th anniversary of Columbia Pictures.

    – ‘Tortured, fascinating characters’ –

    New Zealand’s Campion will be recognised with the Leopard of Honour, given to outstanding personalities of world cinema.

    She was the first woman to be nominated twice for the best director Oscar: first for “The Piano” (1993) and then for “The Power of the Dog” (2021), which secured her the Academy Award.

    “Her work, peopled with tortured, fascinating characters and marked by an astonishing skill in grappling with the more disturbing side of the human condition, represents one of the undisputed pinnacles of contemporary filmmaking,” Nazzaro said.

    Previous recipients include Ennio Morricone, Jean-Luc Godard, Bernardo Bertolucci, Paul Verhoeven, Terry Gilliam and Werner Herzog.

    Mexican filmmaker Cuaron, who won the best director Oscars for “Gravity” (2013) and “Roma” (2018), will receive the lifetime achievement award.

    “Cuaron has reinvented himself as an artist with each new film,” said Nazzaro.

    French-Swiss actress Jacob, who starred in “The Double Life of Veronique” (1991) and “Three Colours: Red” (1994), will receive the Leopard Club Award, given for film work touching the collective imagination.

    Stacey Sher — the US film producer behind “Pulp Fiction”, “Get Shorty”, “Gattaca”, “Erin Brockovich”, “Django Unchained” and “The Hateful Eight” — will receive the Raimondo Rezzonico Award for major achievements in international movie production.

    Nearly 150,000 people attended last year’s festival.

  • Sunidi Chauhan is super impressed by THIS Coke Studio Pakistan video

    Sunidi Chauhan is super impressed by THIS Coke Studio Pakistan video

    Bollywood’s powerhouse playback singer Sunidhi Chauhan has recently been in the news for her appreciation of the Pakistani music industry. 
    Recently Chauhan appeared on Raj Shamani’s channel podcast, where she highly praised the Pakistani music industry.


    “You know, I work with a lot of Pakistanis, they are brilliant and why do I call them Pakistanis, I mean we are the same, we speak the same language, we look like each other, our food and culture are similar. I believe that we are all the same people since I make a lot of Pakistani friends when I travel to the US and the UK. Pakistan’s music got popular because the country has a big music industry and people make music for fun. They have a large and devoted following of artists. Their passion for music is the reason they are loved here in India as well.”
     
     Sunidhi Chauhan highlighted Coke Studio as a prime example.


    “They do music for as a passion, like Coke Studio is an example. Currently, I’m stunned by a Coke Studio song Turri Jandi by Hassan Raheem and Shazia Mansoor, who have sung Chandni Ratain and many other songs, she is a big singer. After seeing Turi Jandi, you’ll be thinking, how did they make it? The way they made the video, it’s unbelievable.The song itself is good, but the video made it better. It’s really lovely,” Chauhan added.
    Sunidhi Chauhan has produced hits such as Ruki Ruki Si Zindagi, Mehboob Mere, Dhoom Machale, and Beedi.

  • ‘Want India and Pakistan on set together,’: Producer of Barzakh Shailja Kejriwal

    ‘Want India and Pakistan on set together,’: Producer of Barzakh Shailja Kejriwal

    Shailja Kejriwal, the chief creative officer at Zee Entertainment’s Zindagi channel, is on a mission to unite Indian and Pakistani artists and writers.
    In a recent interview with Press Trust of India, Kejriwal expressed her desire to see more collaborations between talents from both countries, despite the challenges posed by political tensions.


    Shailja Kejriwal said, “My ultimate desire, I don’t know whether it will happen or not, is that we collaborate… writers and artists from both sides should be on a set together. I am trying to follow that path. Hopefully, we will be able to do something because we flourish more if we are open and inclusive.”

    It has been a journey of one step forward, two steps back for the producer who was instrumental in making Pakistani actors like Fawad Khan, Sanam Saeed, and Mahira Khan household names in India by showcasing dramas such as Zindagi Gulzar Hai and Humsafar through the Zindagi platform launched in 2014.


    The channel Zindagi, led by Kejriwal, has successfully produced a number of projects with Pakistani actors and directors. Popular series like Qatil Haseenaon Ke Naam, Churails, Mrs. & Mr. Shameem, and the new web series Barzakh starring Fawad Khan and Sanam Saeed are among the noteworthy productions. The channel has aired iconic Pakistani dramas like ‘Thakan’, Shukk, Pyarey Afzal, Meri Beti, Mere Harjai, and Main Bushra.

    Kejriwal highlighted her commitment

    “I felt my work would be incomplete if I didn’t play a role in bringing these artists back. My ambition extends beyond just pan India. My dream is to unite South Asians and Asians through collaboration,” Shailja added.

  • No visa-free entry into Pakistan for two countries

    No visa-free entry into Pakistan for two countries

    The Ministry of Interior has informed the Federal Cabinet that Indian and Afghan citizens will not be given visa-free entry under the program launched for businessmen from friendly countries.

    According to a Business Recorder report, the Cabinet was informed on July 24, 2024, that in alignment with the Prime Minister’s vision of visa-free entry for businessmen and tourists from other countries, the Ministry of Home Affairs, in consultation with key stakeholders and the PM Office, has developed various proposals for visa reforms.

    Previously, the Prime Minister had directed a further relaxation of the visa system to attract businessmen, investors, and tourists from friendly countries.

    The Ministry has also taken several initiatives, including signing visa-free entry agreements with Nepal and the Maldives. Additionally, a ‘Visa on Arrival’ facility was available for 108 countries on the Business Visa List (BVL) and 64 countries on the Tourist List.

    Businessmen traveling to Pakistan now need only to complete the Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA) form 24 hours before travel, after which the visa will be issued electronically.

    Visas will now be issued through the electronic travel authorization form, which has reduced the required fields from 161 to 30 for basic information only, according to the Ministry.

  • Proud papa Aamir Khan throws party to celebrate Junaid’s debut in ‘Maharaj’

    Proud papa Aamir Khan throws party to celebrate Junaid’s debut in ‘Maharaj’

    Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan’s son Junaid Khan recently made his acting debut in the film Maharaj.
    During the launch of Raj Pandit’s song, proud father Aamir said, “When Junaid’s film Maharaj was released, I was very stressed thinking if the audience would like his work or not.”


    The star has a surprise for us.
    “I have started learning to sing. I have been training for the last year with Sucheta Ji as my guru,” the Dangal actor added.

    Mahraraj was released on Netflix on June 21, 2024.

  • Suniel Shetty is a real-life hero, and now we have proof

    Suniel Shetty is a real-life hero, and now we have proof

    Bollywood actor Suniel Shetty was an action hero on screen and a real-life hero off screen. About 28 years ago, the star rescues 128 women survivors of sex trafficking. All these years later, this kind act has come to light through one of the women saved in that operation, Charimaya Tamang.


    The incident occurred on February 5, 1996, when the Mumbai police raided the red light area at Kamathipura and rescued 456 women, including 128 from Nepal.


    Many of these women did not have proof of citizenship; hence the Nepal government refused to take them back. When Shetty came to know about this, he took matters into his own hands, arranging a flight, and paying for tickets of all the 128 women so that they may reach home safely.

    Shetty gives the credit of the operation to the Mumbai police and his mother-in-law, Vipula Kadri, founder of the ‘Save the Children’ NGO.

    During an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Shetty said, “We didn’t think about the cost of flight tickets. The effort was what counted. My mother-in-law inspired us all. She took the risk of rescuing the girls, getting into the bad books of the mafia.”

    Despite the danger, Shetty’s actions remained low-profile to protect the women involved. “We didn’t want to glorify ourselves. Given that these girls were participating, it wasn’t right. This mafia never lets go. The operation needed to be low-profile, and it was,” Shetty added.

    Today, the 128 women, including Charimaya Tamang, have rebuilt their lives, thanks to the compassion and bravery of Suniel Shetty and his team. Their stories remind us that a single act of kindness can change countless lives.

  • ‘If you find queer storylines distasteful, do not watch my content’: Asim Abbasi refuses to censor ‘Barzakh’

    ‘If you find queer storylines distasteful, do not watch my content’: Asim Abbasi refuses to censor ‘Barzakh’

    Director Asim Abbasi sent a clear message to the critics of his web series ‘Barzakh’.
    Asim Abbasi shared a picture of the show on his Instagram story, where a person replied saying, “Please don’t add more to the fire by saying he ‘chose’ Saifu. They’re asking to boycott the show, and you’re giving them more reasons to so it. Glorifying these characters in the name of art is distasteful. It was wrong churails, its wrong here.” 


     
    On which Asim Abbasi, who is also the writer of Barzakh, replied, “With all due respect, if you find queer non-heteronormative storylines distasteful please do not watch my content.”
    Fawad Khan is playing the characters Saifullah and Lorenzo. The statement comes in response to a scene in episode 3 featuring an almost kissing moment between two male characters.
     
    Asim Abbasi tagged the producers of web series with the caption on his story, “Shailja Kejriwal Waqas Ali and I will always champion rights of all, and tell stories that we believe in.”
     
    The main plot of Barzakh is to explore the mysteries of life, the afterlife, and the enduring power of love. Set in the beautiful Hunza Valley, the story follows a 76-year-old recluse who invites his estranged children and grandchildren to his remote valley resort for a special event his wedding to the ghost of his first true love.

  • Rajeev Khandelwal speaks out against banning Pakistani actors in India

    Rajeev Khandelwal speaks out against banning Pakistani actors in India

    Rajeev Khandelwal speaks out against banning Pakistani actors in India

    At a time when cross-border collaborations between Indian and Pakistani artists have dwindled down to almost zero, Rajeev Khandelwal, the actor famous for drama Kahin To Hoga, has spoken up against the ban.

    In a recent interview with Bollywood Bubble, Rajeev talked about his experience working with Humayun Saeed’s production and recalled the warm reception he received from Pakistani fans. “The Pakistani audience has always shown me so much love and respect. I remember loving the kind gifts I received and the wonderful conversations.” Khandelwal said.

    He then said, “No artist, whether from Pakistan or anywhere else, should face a ban based on political factors. Such decisions should not dictate the career paths of actors.”

    Rajeev Khandelwal also worked in the Pakistani drama Sun Leyna (2006), which was written by Seema Ghazal and produced by Humayun Saeed.