tiger zinda hai' refused noc for release in...

GIPPY GREWAL, NATASASHOOT VIDEO FOR 'FUN' SONG

'TIGER ZINDA HAI' REFUSED NOCFOR RELEASE IN PAKISTAN MALLIKA SHERAWAT TO BE

EVICTED FROM PARIS APARTMENT

INDIA CLINCH ODI SERIESAGAINST SRI LANKA 2-0

ANUSHKA SHARMA AND VIRAT KOHLI'S HONEYMOON PHOTO THAT THEY SHARED WITH THEIR FANS ON TWITTER.

JOURNALIST BARKHA DUTT, ACTRESS KANGANA RANAUT AND AUTHOR SHOBHAA DE AT THE LAUNCH OF A BOOK IN MUMBAI.

ISLAMABAD/NEW DELHI, (IANS) Bollywood's much-anticipated movie"Tiger Zinda Hai" has been refused the No-Objection Cer tificate (NOC)for impor t by Pakistan's Ministry of Information, Broadcasting andNational Heritage. Pakistan's Central Board of Film Censor (CBFC)Chairman Mobasher Hasan told The Express Tribune: "'Tiger ZindaHai' has been refused the NOC, citing the same reason as the firstinstalment of the franchise."If there was anything against the national interests of Pakistan in thefilm, we ourselves wouldn't have sought the exhibition but this couldhave been done only after preview of the film," Lalani told IANS overphone from Karachi on Wednesday. He said they were verbally ad-vised that Ministry of Information has decided not to issue NOC forimpor t of "Tiger Zinda Hai" with "no reasons assigned."

Shahid Kapoor Sexiest Asian Man in UK poll, Fawad Khan highestplaced Pakistani, singer Danyal Zafar youngest in list

LONDON, (IANS) Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor has been named the'Sexiest Asian Man' in a Eastern Eye's 2017 list of 50 Sexiest Asian Mepoll, dethroning singer Zayn Malik who has been winning the title forthe past two years. Last year, Shahid ranked seventh. Actor HrithikRoshan ranked second for the third year in a row, with Zayn Malikfalling to number three. Fawad Khan is the highest placed Pakistani forthe second year in a row in sixth. The rest of the top 10 consists of Bollywoodsuperstar Salman Khan, actors Gurmeet Choudhary and Ranveer Singh, and theonly sportsman in the list, the newly married Virat Kohli. The youngest in thelist is 20-year-old Pakistani singer and musician Danyal Zafar, whilethe oldest in the list is once again 52-year-old Shah Rukh Khan.

MUMBAI, (IANS) Serbian dancer and actress Natasa Stankovic saysshe is shooting a video for a fun song with singer-actor Gippy Grewal."Gippy is a powerhouse of talent. He is a great guy. The song we areshooting together is 'Nai shad da'. It is a fun song," Natasa said in astatement. Natasa has appeared in the "Mehbooba" song in this year's film"Fukrey Returns" alongside actors Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh, Ali Fazal andVarun Sharma. The former "Bigg Boss" contestant, who star ted her career inBollywood with Prakash Jha's "Satyagraha", also has a few film projectslined up for which she will star t shooting soon.

PARIS - Actress MallikaSherawat is being evictedfrom the Paris apar tmentshe shares with herFrench boyfriend, repor tsBBC. Mallika, 41, andCyrille Auxenfans repor t-edly owe their landlord80,000 euros or IRs64 lakhin rent. The flat is locatedin the tony 16thArrondissement.

'Newton' fails to make the cut at OscarsLOS ANGELES/MUMBAI, (IANS) India's official entry for theBest Foreign Language Film at the Oscars 2018, "Newton", isout of the race for the honour. But the movie's team is feeling farfrom defeated. The Academy of Motion Picture Ar ts and Sci-ences on Thursday announced that nine features out of 92 willadvance to the next round of voting in the Foreign LanguageFilm category for the 90th Academy Awards, according to theofficial website of the Oscars. "Newton", directed by Amit V.Masurkar and starring the stellar Rajkummar Rao in a storyset against the backdrop of elections in the world's largestdemocracy, was not a par t of it.

VISAKHAPATNAM, (IANS) India eased to an eight-wicket win againstSri Lanka in the decisive third and final One-Day International (ODI)to clinch the series 2-1 here on Sunday. The Indians dominated withboth bat and ball, restricting Sri Lanka to 215 runs before ShikharDhawan's unbeaten century helped them canter to a big win with 17.5overs to spare. India have now won every series at home since thedefeat to South Africa in October, 2015. The Sri Lankans will continuethe search for their first bilateral series win in India.Dhawan, who remained unbeaten on 100, produced a par tnership of135 runs with Shreyas Iyer af ter the early depar ture of Indian captainRohit Sharma. Dhawan, who racked up 13 boundaries and two sixesover the course of his 85-ball stint in the middle, registered the sixthcentury of his ODI career. Iyer scored 65 runs off 63 balls to bring upthe second half -century of his fledging three-match-old ODI career.He smashed eight boundaries and a six before a poor shot saw himoffer an easy catch to Suranga Lakmal at mid-on off Thisara Perera'sbowling. At that point, India were cruising along comfortably with thescoreboard reading 149/2 in the 23rd over. Dinesh Kar thik (26 not out)then joined Dhawan in the middle and the duo saw India through to aresounding victory. Pacer Thisara Perera and off -spinner AkilaDananjaya were the only Sri Lankan bowlers among the wickets withfigures of 1/25 and 1/53 respectively.Earlier, India rode on a strong bowling per formance to restrict SriLanka to 215 runs. Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal didmost of the damage by taking three wickets each.

18 MidWeek MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2017b o l l y w o o d

'MONSOON SHOOTOUT'SHOUT-OUT FOR THIS SHOOTOUT

CAST: VIJAY VARMA, NAWAZUDDIN SIDDIQUI,

TANNISHTHA CHATTERJEE, GITANJALI THAPA,

FARHAN MOHAMMED HANIF SHEIKH

DIRECTOR: AMIT KUMAR 10songs

SWAG SE SWAGAT TIGER ZINDA HAI

GHOOMAR PADMAVATI

BAN JA RANI TUMHARI SULU

HALKA HALKA SUROOR PADMAVATI

ITTEFAQ SE ITTEFAQ

MEHBOOBA FUKREY RETURNS

AAJ ZID AKSAR 2

JAANE DE QARIB QARIB SINGLLE

TU MERA BHAI NAHI HAI FUKREY RETURNS

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SONG

MIDWEEK HIT OR FLOPFUKREY RETURNS 50 CR

FIRANGI 45 CR

TUMHARI SULU 45 CR

JULIE 2 16 CR

MONSOON SHOOTOUT 4 CR

MIDWEEK BOX OFFICEMONSOON SHOOTOUT HIT

FUKREY RETURNS HIT

FIRANGI HIT

JULIE 2 AVERAGE

TUMHARI SULU HIT

FILM

SAHIBA RUSSGAYIYAFIRANGI1

RAVEENA TANDON AND ARCHANA PURAN SINGH ON THE SETS OF LIVE GAME SHOW AUNTY BOLI LAGAO BOLI IN MUMBAI.

Pratik Peters Brings Bollywood Fusion to the MAD StudioMISSISSAUGA - Taking Bollywood hits into his own hands, Pratik Peters showcases his musician-ship in this episode of MAD. Playing a selection of songs ranging from classic Bollywood to a fusionof genres, including an original composition, Pratik Peters selects a range of music from his reper-toire. In his interview, the singer discusses the challenges of moving countries and coming fromIndia as an established ar tist to rebuilding his career in Canada. The ar tist talks about the steps he's taking tocontinue growing his career after a prestigious per formance with Bollywood music producers Vishal-Shekhar andSalim-Sulaiman, including coming up with unique per formances and singing at #BollywoodMonster Mashup. "Ialways try to sing something in a new way," says Pratik Peters about his music style, "I listen to IndianClassical songs and try to learn those songs. It helps me with my range and variations, and helps meimprove as an ar tist." The episode includes a reggae-infused cover of "Safar" from the film Jab Harr yMet Sejal and the unplugged, acoustic version of his original composition "Aadat."

'Tumhari Sulu' proved married actresses can score a hit: VidyaNEW DELHI, (PTI) Vidya Balan says with back-toback box office disappointments post her wedding,she gave into the thinking that mar ried female actors cannot deliver a hit, but the success of "TumhariSulu" has proved the theory wrong. Vidya says for someone like her, who considers acting as impor-tant as personal life, the praise the movie is receiving is a major confidence booster.In an interview with PTI, Vidya says, "There was a point I star ted believing that may be a mar riedactress can't score a hit. But the love 'Tumhari Sulu' is getting has proved it wrong. "The films, I didbefore this, were probably not successful in building the connect with the audience. It is a personal movement of glory for me. Theactor par t of me is as precious to me as a married woman par t of me." The 38-year-old actor says the lesson she has learned fromher past failures is "keep trying until you succeed. Success and failures are a par t of life. Every day is not a Sunday. The only thingas an ar tiste I can do is keep moving forward, keep working hard and keep growing. The joy is in learning. Failures help me rise."Vidya recently received the best actress award for her per formance as 'Sulochana' in the film. She says awards are always a bigmotivation for her and she never shies away from accepting that she enjoys winning. "Awards matter to me. And I have always beenjoking about it that 'if you win, awards do matter to you'. I love when people appreciate my hard work and dedication. With 'TumhariSulu' the appreciation I am getting matters more. Recognition and acknowledge is always special for me.

MUMBAI, (PTI) Actor Kareena Kapoor Khan is all praisefor her sister-in-law Soha Ali Khan, saying she is thefamily's torchbearer and someone they all turn to for ad-vice. Lauding Soha's knowledge, Kareena said she is al-ways nervous while listening to the conversations between hus-band Saif Ali Khan and Soha as she struggles to understandwhat they are talking. Kareena said she finds herself in asimilar position as that of Soha's husband Kunal Kemmu,who said he can't get some of the English words Soha uses whilethey are talking. "I have rarely been intimidated by anyone and mediaknows. But if there's one person in the family I am completely in aweof, it is Soha. I'm always a little nervous when I am having dinner withSaif and Soha, I'm like 'Oh my God, I am never going to understandthis conversation'," Kareena said. "If Kunal can't, there's no way I can!Soha has always been so polite, like 'Hi, what's up, did you buyanything, so what's the gossip?' I'm like, 'Oh God, I feel so small andlame! But it's okay. I think we have found our way," she added.

JACQUELINE OPENS HER FIRSTRESTAURANT IN COLOMBOCOLOMBO, (IANS) Jacqueline Fernandez is excited aboutopening her first restaurant in her in her hometown Co-lombo. The Kaema Sutra restaurant will serve Sri Lankancuisine. The Sri Lankan beauty , a popular name inBollywood, on Tuesday shared on Instagram a photographof herself along with Dharshan Munidasa, a Sri Lankanchef and restaurateur. "So excited to announce my firstrestaurant Kaema Sutra with Dharshan Munidasa is nowopen in the brand new Shangri-La Colombo bringing youthe yummiest Sri Lankan cuisine. See you there," she cap-tioned the image. On the acting front, Jacqueline currentlyhas two films in her kitty -- "Drive" and "Race 3". Directedby Tarun Mansukhani, "Drive" also stars Sushant SinghRajput. "Race 3" stars Salman Khan, Saqib Saleem, BobbyDeol, Daisy Shah and Anil Kapoor.

OMG! Kareena says she feelssmall in front of Soha

Rain-splashed bloodied puddles of questioning, probing,searching emotional and physical violence... "MonsoonShootout" is a curious case of a potentially routine cops-and-killer sanguinary saga given a cer tain fresh twist of ambiva-lence by writing skills that know their "Dir ty Har ry" as closelyas they know "Ardh Satya". There is a 'tadka' of circumstantialambiguity, a twist of fate, if you will, whereby a rookiepoliceman's 'rookie-rookie si zindagi' gets more unscheduledexcitement on his first assignment than he had bargained for.A serial killer is on the prowl. And really, in how many wayscan Nawazuddin be cast as the psychotic outcast? It was ahammer in hand in "Raman Raghav", it's an axe here. Theslayings are staged stylishly in the slippery monsoon ofMumbai when it's easy for the elusive to give the pursuant theslip. This is exactly what the narrative does on us. LikeNawaz's Shiva, it repeatedly gives us the slip, leaving us withunanswered questions just when the policeman Adi (VijayVarma, impressively callow and intense) corners the killer atgunpoint. Repeatedly, and with incessant pounding at the plot'sepicenter, the nar rative takes on a what-if tangent, creating acat-and-mouse game of its own between the camera and theaudience. It is an impressive per formance, staged to seduceand please us, not always hitting bull's eye but never losingsight of its target. There are energetic sexual encounters,

involving a migrant sex worker (Sreejita De) that convey thedesperation of a city on the edge, and a populace on the prowl."Monsoon Shootout" succeeds in gripping us by our collectivejowls in spite of a cer tain staleness in the plot, and a stiffnessin the joints of the narrative. The camera manned by Rajiv Raviprowls through Mumbai's crowded monsoonal mayhem withemphatic energy. The first killing is staged with 'festive' favourduring the Ganpati visarjan. And by 'festive', I don't mean justthe religious observance but also international film festivalswhere such films make a mark before winding down theirjourney to the banks of River Ganga."Monsoon Shootout" deserves a shout-out for its authentic viewof the moral ambivalence that a law enforcer must face duringan 'encounter'. The plot weaves into tactile, tense but organi-cally self-destructive situations of doom and decay where thevoice of the conscience is drowned in the din of decay ofdeprivation. Some of the moral dilemma, specially thoseinvolving the criminal's young teenaged son (interestingjuvenile newcomer Farhan Mohammad Hanif Shaikh) aredisturbing to the extreme. Director Amit Kumar doesn't hesitatefrom making hard choices on behalf of his characters. Conse-quently, this dark blood-dimmed film leaves us with a hollowfeeling in our stomachs. Life sucks. And Monsoon Shootoutdoesn't do anything to ease the pain.

MidWeek 19MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2012

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2017 b o l l y w o o d

I DON'T SUBSCRIBE TOQUINTESSENTIAL HEROINES:

KANGANA RANAUTBY NIVEDITA

NEW DELHI, (IANS) The quintessential heroine -- on and offscreen -- is not for actress Kangana Ranaut. "I have myselfas the priority always. I do not subscribe to the theory thatgood girls don't think about themselves and they are all forsacrifice. My life is my life and I want to make the most ofit," Kangana told IANS over phone from Mumbai when askedabout the learnings that she wants girls to draw from herlife. "I want to utilise my potential and see who I am. It's notjust about my brother, son, husband or my mother. Somewhere, I donot subscribe to the quintessential heroine, who is an ultimate Indianwoman who puts every-one before her and shecomes in the end for her-self," added the three-time National Award win-ner, who is also the brandambassador of ReebokIndia.In that capacity, sheattended the second edi-tion of the brand'sFitToFight Awards, whichfelicitated select womenfor their spirit and cour-age.Coming from a smalltown in Himachal,Kangana made her de-but in Bollywood with"Gangster - A Love Story"in 2006. Even though herstyle and accent werecriticised initially, shemade a mark with herstrong performances in films like "Fashion", "Queen", "Tanu WedsManu" and "Tanu Weds Manu Returns." Her next project is "Manikarnika- The Queen of Jhansi", a biopic on Rani of Jhansi. Off screen, she hasbeen actively talking about her struggle in the industry -- professionallyand personally. So bold and fearless is the actress that she openlytagged filmmaker Karan Johar as a "flagbearer of nepotism" during hisown chat show, sparking a debate in the industry.It has been a challenge for her to face the bitter realities of society. "It wasmost definitely very challenging for me to come from a small townwhich anyway is not very tolerant to aspirational women, especiallyambitious women. You are seen as a vamp if you are ambitious, if youwant to make your own money or if you don't want to be dependent."Women who make their choices and who fight for their rights willalways be the ones who will be seen as rebels," she said.But she feels that "as long as you don't think you are doingsomething wrong, it is absolutely fine. I never judge myselffor my instincts and for my fighting spirit," she said.

SOHA ALI KHAN, SHARMILA TAGORE, SAIF ALI KHAN, KAREENA KAPOOR, KUNAL KHEMU AND SABA ALI KHAN AT THE BOOKRELEASE MODERATES FAMOUS IN MUMBAI.

'SWAG SE SWAGAT' GETS ARABIC VERSIONMUMBAI, (IANS) The makers of Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif-starrer "Tiger Zinda Hai" will release the films popular song "Swag seswagat" in Arabic. Sung by Rabih Baroud and Brigitte Yaghi, and translated by Mohammad Jad Malak, the Arabic version of the songreleased on Thursday. "As the song is a char tbuster here in India and the film is shot in the Middle East and focuses on a major issuethat affects the region, we were very keen to engage with audiences there," director Ali Abbas Zafar said in a statement. "Dubbing thesong in a local language is a way to connect with audiences in the Middle East, as Hindi films have huge appeal there and Salman Khanis the biggest superstar in the region," Zafar added. Backed by Yash Raj Films (YRF), "Tiger Zinda Hai", a sequel to filmmaker KabirKhan's 2012 movie "Ek Tha Tiger" -- will hit screens on December 22 worldwide.

SONAM KAPOOR AMUSED OVER NEPOTISM DEBATEMUMBAI, (IANS) Actress Sonam Kapoor says the whole clamour over nepotism in the Hindi film industry this year left her amusedbecause if one goes by the term's meaning in the dictionary, it is something that happens everywhere. Sonam, the daughter of veteranactor Anil Kapoor, broke down the meaning of nepotism, and shared her take on the controversy during a chat for online streamingservice Saavn's show "Take 2 with Anupama and Rajeev".She said: "The whole industry has gotten involved in it and I've just laughed through the whole thing. Little knowledge like they say isvery dangerous knowledge... So, through this whole thing, I was like should I just put out the meaning of it on Twitter and my motherwas like 'Stay away from the whole thing!' I was like, 'Mom how can people not know what it means?'" The nepotism debate inBollywood was sparked off when actress Kangana Ranaut called filmmaker Karan Johar a "flagbearer of nepotism" on his talk show.Sonam says very few people understand the true meaning of the word. "I would love to explain what that means. Nepotism means that anyrelationship, any job or any privilege that you get due to any relationship -- it could be a relative, it could be a friend, it could be a friend's friend. Anything that isnot on merit is nepotism. So, whether you sleep with someone, whether you are someone's girlfriend, whether you are someone's friend,whether you are somebody's family and you get a job, is nepotism. "Now, obviously if you actually have the time to go and read adictionary or go online and understand the meaning of it or if you have read in your life, you will understand the meaning of nepotism,so to use it so frivolously... It could be applied to each and every person in the film industry or any industry."


TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2017b o l l y w o o d

hollywood

YOGA GURU RAMDEV OFFERING TIPS TO AUDIENCE AND SHILPA SHETTY ON THE SETS OF SUPER DANCER - CHAPTER 2 IN MUMBAI.

Nargis Fakhri to make singing debut with Snoop DoggMUMBAI, (IANS) Actress Nargis Fakhri, who has worked with American rapper Snoop Dogg in a new single "Woofer", says she was"completely thrilled to sing with the iconic" ar tist. Dr Zeus has come out with "Woofer" featuring Snoop Dogg rapping alongside UK-based Punjabi singer Zora Randhawa. "I really enjoyed working with Dr. Zeus and Zora and the entire BeingU team. This was a reallyawesome experience. For me, I grew up listening to Snoop Dogg so when this came my way, I was completely thrilled to give it ashot and sing with someone as iconic as him," Nargis said in a statement. "Also our director Matt Alonzo was great and easy to workwith. The song is super cool and I can't wait for everyone to see the video and hear the entire song," she added. Shot in Los Angeles,the song has been produced by BeingU Music -- a record label dedicated to push forward independent Indian music across the worldthrough exciting collaborations with the focus on Punjabi ar tists. The brand has also partnered with global music giant Sony Musicand through this par tnership, they intend to present fans with compelling musical content in the coming year star ting with "Woofer".

Salman Khan battles wolves in 'Tiger Zinda Hai'MUMBAI, (IANS) Superstar Salman Khan will be seen battling a pack of wolves in "Tiger Zinda Hai". Director Ali Abbas Zafar saysthat it is a very dramatic sequence in the for thcoming film. "Tiger's encounter with a pack of wolves marks one of the most impor tantchapters in the film. The idea was to do something, which has never been seen on the Indian screen, and give Tiger's character anedge. This is a very dramatic chase and action sequence that Tiger has with a pack of real wolves," Zafar said in a statement.

SRK gets appreciation note from Nirmala SitharamanMUMBAI, (IANS) Superstar Shah Rukh Khan was happy to receive an appreciation note from Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman,who lauded his effor t in suppor ting the Armed Forces Flag Day awareness campaign. Shah Rukh shared on his social media asnapshot of the note, which read: "We would like to express our hear tfelt gratitude to you for supporting the Armed Forces Flag Dayawareness campaign and spreading the message to your widespread audience. Thank you best of luck for the future."The actor captioned it: "Thank you Ma'am for the oppor tunity. This is the least we can do for our Armed Forces. Will convey yourmessage to the whole team. Jai Hind." Shah Rukh, along with his team, had not only spoken about the sacrifices made by soldiers,but also the contribution of the armed forces in the well-being of the country. The actor had earlier this month expressed his suppor tby sharing a picture of his team and himself standing together and paying their respect to the Armed Forces. "Our soldiers give theirtomor row for our today. They deserve our respect and gratitude," he had posted.

Salma says 'monster'Weinstein threatened to kill herLOS ANGELES, (IANS) Actress Salma Hayek has added hername to the list of celebrities speaking out against disgracedHollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein, calling him a rage-fu-elled "monster" who sexually harassed and tried to kill her.Weinstein denied the charge.In an emotional New York Times piece published on Wednes-day, the 51-year-old Mexican actress detailed her experi-ences with Weinstein through the course of the making of"F rida" -- a 2002 biopic on Mexican artist F rida Kahlo. Sheclaimed, among other things, that he once threatened to killher when she refused his advances. Hayek said Weinsteintold her: "I will kill you, don't think I can't. I don't think hehated anything more than the word 'no,'" Hayek wrote. "Andwith every refusal came Harvey's Machiavellian rage."

Trump mentally unfit to beUS President: Rob ReinerLOS ANGELES, (IANS) Actor, filmmaker and activist RobReiner feels that Donald Trump is "mentally unfit" to be theUS President. "Donald Trump is the single-most unqualifiedhuman being to ever assume the Presidency of the UnitedStates. He is mentally unfit," Reiner told variety.com. "Notonly does he not understand how government works, he has nointerest in trying to find out how it works," he added.Reiner, best known for his films like "A Few Good Men", "When HarryMet Sally…" and "The Princess Bride", is currently promoting "LBJ" --a biopic on the life of former US President Lyndon Johnson. "'LBJ' --except for the Vietnam War, which is a terrible stain on his legacy -- was probably the most effective and successful Presidentas far as domestic policy is concerned, second to maybeFranklin Roosevelt," Reiner said.

Tom Hanks jokes about 'highmaintenance' Meryl StreepLOS ANGELES, (PTI) Steven Spielberg's "The Post" is thefirst collaboration between Tom Hanks and Meryl Streepand the actor has playfully called "The Iron Lady" star "highmaintenance". In an appearance on "The Late Show withStephen Colber t", the 61-year-old star shared his thoughtson what it was like working with his co-star, repor ted Peoplemagazine. When the presenter brought up Streep, Hanksrolled his eyes and said, "You mean, can I just say, 'high maintenanceMeryl Streep?'" to which Colber t asked "Oh really? Diva?" The veteranactor replied joking, "Look, the shoes alone, man.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 19, 2017

SUNEIL SHETTY AND SANA KHAN AT THE LAUNCH OF A MAGAZINE IN MUMBAI.

IF YOU'RE A VICTIM, COME OUT ANDTALK ABOUT IT: NEHA DHUPIA

MAHECK CHAHAL AND ASHMIT PATEL AT THE TRAILER LAUNCH OF THEIR UPCOMING FILM NIRDOSH IN MUMBAI.

b o l l y w o o d

SAIF KEEN TO PEN COMEDY,HORROR OR POLITICAL SATIREMUMBAI, (IANS) Actor Saif Ali Khan, whose sister Soha AliKhan has debuted as an author, says he would like to writesomething in the comedy, horror or political satire space. Atthe launch of Soha's book "The perils of Being ModeratelyFamous" here on Tuesday, Saif was asked about the kind ofbook he wants to write if he plans to.He said: "I would like to write ghost stories (laughs)... I meanchilling tales about life in the movie industry or a politicalsatire or a comedy. So, comedy, horror or a political satire...I am not sure of that. My mother once did want to write abook on me and the title was going to be 'Oh Saif' (laughs)."On Soha's book, the proud brother said he found it "reallyfunny and well-written with a great sense of humour".Sharing funny anecdotes about Soha Ali Khan's early dayswhen she was living with Saif Ali Khan in UK Saif said: "Sohawent to two wonderful universities. She went to Oxford andLondon School of Economics. After that, she was workingwith Citibank and all settled with that. And then she came tostay with me for a summer and quit her job and joined mov-ies. "I am not sure how my parents felt about that, but she ofcourse had her mother's genes as well and was drawn tothis profession."

Ashutosh Rana doesn't believein glorifying his strugglesBY NATALIA NINGTHOUJAMNEW DELHI, (IANS) Ashutosh Rana, an alumnus of the Na-tional School of Drama, says people struggle to get the bigticket to the film industry but he isn't among those who like to"glorify" the difficult phase in life. His latest project - "TestDrive", presented by Royal Stag Bar rel Select Large Shor tFilms, is a story of a struggling actor who believes in him-self and aspires to achieve success on the basis of his tal-ent. Asked about his own struggles, Ashutosh told IANSover phone from Mumbai: "If you want to glorify your ownstruggles, you can build up your own story and say 'I did thisand slept there'. All these things were done by everyone. Youcan't say that someone else's struggle is lesser than yourstruggle. "Everyone is struggling and they are fighting theirown battles," he added.He feels fortunate enough to have got the oppor tunity at theright time. "Every oppor tunity that I got, I considered them tobe big. I did not measure them and say that 'This opportunityis small'. I was ready to accept each and every role becauseof that," said the actor, who shot to fame with the 1998 psy-chological thriller "Dushman".The actor, known for playing negative roles, grabbed everyoppor tunity that came his way, but in the process, didn't hefeel like he was getting stereotyped? "If you look at my filmslike 'Dushman' or 'Sangharsh', there is no comparison be-tween the two villains. After playing a rapist in 'Dushman', Ididn't do the same role again. I have not repeated myself.Had I repeated my roles, then you can say that I am beingtypecast. "I have done a variety of roles and I feel for tunateto have got so many oppor tunities to explore," said the actor,who has played a fight agent, a police official and partner ofa porn-website creator and more on the big screen. Apar tfrom challenging himself by taking up different roles, he alsolikes to explore various mediums like films, television andtheatre. He has now taken the digital route with "Test Drive",a short film that released last week."Ar t can't be tied up to a medium. I think for actors, a mediumshould not hold any importance because acting and reach-ing out to the audience are more important. "The good thingabout the digital platform is that there are lots of new storiesand talent but no resources to back them. Now, because ofthe digital platform they are able to reach out to the audi-ence," he said.Asked about social networking sites, Ashutosh said: "I amjust on Facebook. When you are socially connecting withpeople, you should do it directly. I chose Facebook as thereis no word limit, so the exchange of thoughts is better. "I don'tbelieve in imposing my thoughts on others. There should bediscussions because it is not necessary that what I say,others will agree with me or vice-versa."

'Baahubali 2', 'Mere RashkeQamar' top trending Googlesearch query in 2017NEW DELHI, (IANS) Enter tainment continued to fuel India'sSearch momentum in 2017 with 'Baahubali 2: The Conclu-sion' topping Google's trending charts and six other bollywoodmovies featuring among the 'Top 10 Trending' queries thisyear, Google said recently. Bollywood and cricket remainedthe top two themes that ruled the charts, acccoding to GoogleIndia 2017 Year in Search results."After breaking several records at the Box office, India's mostexpensive movie also broke the language boundaries attract-ing humongous search interest from movie buffs across thenation," the search giant said. Baahubali 2: The Conclusionwas followed by searches around Indian Premier Leagueand searches on 'Live Cricket Score'. Also making it to theTop 10 l ist were Bol lywood blockbusters Dangal andBadrinath Ki Dulhania. Among the top trending songs thisyear, "Hawa Hawa" f rom the Ar jun Kapoor star rer"Mubarakan" held the top spot on the char ts, followed by sufitrack "Mere Rashke Qamar" originally sung by legendaryNusrat Fateh Ali Khan and recreated by vocalist Rahat FatehAli Khan. Songs like "Despacito" and Ed Sheeran's "Shape of You"also featured in the top trending tracks. Sunny Leone once again featuredamong the top entertainers this year, followed by Big Boss entrant ArshiKhan, Sapna Choudhary and YouTube singing sensation Vidya Vox."CBSE results, UP elections, Goods and Services Tax (GST)and Budget featured among the trending news events thatwitnessed huge interest among Indian users," Google said.

BY SUGANDHA RAWALNEW DELHI, (IANS) Neha Dhupia feels '#MeToo' -- the campaign toraise awareness about sexual harassment -- is not only valid forpeople associated with the enter tainment industry, but for everyone.The actress says a victim should not hesitate to share one's ordeal,and instead save innocents from facing same fate by talking about it.Life is getting more and more gender neutral, Neha said, adding thatthere are still miles to go."Things are changing for women. They are getting a position of power,and professionally they are doing exceptionally well. They are gettingroles with projects like 'Secret Superstar', 'Tumhari Sulu' or 'Padmavati'that are made around women. There are many films which I canname. Life is getting more and more gender neutral," Neha told IANSover phone from Mumbai. "It is getting better, but unfor tunately thereis always that question of #MeToo and there is a Harvey Weinsteinthat comes across."Neha was referring to the slew of sexual misconduct allegations lev-ied against the Hollywood mogul. Numerous leading men from Holly-wood like Ben Affleck, Brett Ratner, Charlie Sheen, Dustin Hoffman,James Toback and Kevin Spacey, have been accused for sexuallyharassing people associated with showbiz. The controversy hasrocked the enter tainment industry the world over.

Like many other actors, Neha too asser ted that harassment is notrestricted to showbiz. "I promise you that is not just in this business.But it is about women across whatever profession they are in. This ishappening to them at their home. Anybody could be a victim. My pleais that if you are a victim come out and talk about it because you arenot only just protecting yourself but you are also putting a lot of otherinnocent women in danger."Talking about it doesn't make you weak. It makes you brave, so bethe braver one in this situation," said the actress, who has nevershied away from calling a spade a spade. Neha, a former Miss Indiawho eventually turned to Bollywood, said: "Life is getting better, butthere are things that are being questioned and it is a good thing thatpeople are talking about it." The actress pointed out how peopleaccused the "House of Cards" star Spacey of sexual misconduct after31 years of the incident.She said: "Go to bed happy and sleep well. I shouldn't lose my sleepover small things. There is always a level of dissatisfaction that 'Iwish I had done this, I wish I had done that', but nothing about going towork makes me unhappy." The actress, who hosts TV shows and aradio show, said she has immense gratitude for where she comesfrom and what she has achieved. "I am working on all mediums. I amhappy in the position I am in, but yes, there is greed to do more."

MY STRUGGLE HAS BEEN WITH MY ACTING PROFESSION: SOHAMUMBAI, (IANS) Actress Soha Ali Khan says her struggle has been with her profession as an actor. At the launch of her maiden book"The Perils of Being Moderately Famous" here on Tuesday, Soha was asked about the toughest chapter to write. She said: "The toughestchapter to write was probably the one called 'Working Actor'. The other chapters sor t of fell together in place, but really, my struggle hasbeen with my profession as an actor, which is such an impor tant par t of my life."The insecurities coming along with it, comparisons that are made which are very difficult to live up to and I feel there is a very big shoeto fill. I also feel that striking the right tone with readers about my failures, insecurities and the learning step that come across, but atthe same time, not being too hard on myself, was most difficult thing for me."Asked what prompted her to write a book, Soha said: "Earlier, I have written a couple of columns and essays, but to write 40,000-50,000words is a huge task. I wanted to write non-fiction because I don't have the imagination for creative fiction. I felt cer tain things about mylife that I could draw from and that might be humorous."It is interesting to be me who belongs to this family of actors and the kind of experiences I had about education, travel and love. So, Idid share that with some of my family members and friends. My family and friends are not the kind of people who blindly praise me.There was a lot of constructive feedback and it was more or less encouraging that's how I wrote this book". Soha, in her book, didn'thesitate to reveal some unknown facts about her life. So, when asked about how did she do that in today's PR and image-driven worldof actors, she said, "I am genuinely quite a reserved person. You can chat with me for hours, and then go away and still not know muchabout me. So, this time I made an effor t. My mother also said that you should be honest because your readers want to know about you,but at the same time strike the right balance between giving away too much and also when it comes to humour like this, you shouldn'tbe too hard on yourself but you also should be able to laugh at yourself in the right spirit."

DIEGO MARADONA WITH CRICKET ASSOCIATION OF BENGAL (CAB) PRESIDENT SOURAV GANGULY AT A SPORTS WORKSHOPIN BARASAT, WEST BENGAL.

Malinga 'rested' for India T20IsCOLOMBO, (IANS) Veteran speedster Lasith Malinga wason Friday left out of Sri Lanka's T20 International squad forthe three-match series against India, star ting December20. The list, ratified by Sri Lankan Spor ts Minister DayasiriJayasekera, however, stated that Malinga has been restedwithout divulging any valid reason.Last week, Malinga had left the Bangladesh Premier League(BPL) early due to personal reasons, despite his teamRangpur Riders playing the final. Senior players SurangaLakmal and Lahiru Thirimanne have also been rested whileVishwa Fernando and Dasun Shanaka have replaced themin the squad. The first match will be played at Cuttack onDecember 20 followed by matches in Indore and Mumbaion December 22 and 24 respectively.Sri Lanka T20I Squad: Thisara Perera (Captain), UpulTharanga, Angelo Mathews, Kusal Janith Perera, DanushkaGunathilaka, Niroshan Dickwella (WK), Asela Gunaratne,Sadeera Samarawickrama, Dasun Shanaka, Chaturanga deSilva, Sachith Pathirana, Dananjaya De Silva, NuwanPradeep, Vishwa Fernando, Dusmantha Chameera.

SHAHID AFRIDI HAT-TRICKSTEALS SHOW IN T10 OPENERSHARJAH, (IANS) Former Pakistan skipper Shahid Afridi'shat-trick lit up the opening night of the inaugural T10 Leaguehere, helping his Pakhtoons side beat the Virender Sehwag-led Maratha Arabians by 25 runs. In the tournament opener,Kerala Kings rode on Irish Paul Stirling's unbeaten 66 tobeat Bengal Tigers by eight wickets at the Sharjah CricketStadium here on Thursday. Afridi claimed the hat-trick withthe first three balls to break the backbone of the Arabians,who were on track with England's Alex Hales striking a 26-ball unbeaten 57, in their chase of 122.The explosive Pakistani leg-spinner's victims includedSouth Africa's Rilee Rossouw, who holed out to Afridi's first ball,caught by a fine diving catch at long-on by Najibullah Zadran before hissecond delivery trapped West Indian Dwayne Bravo plumb in front.Sehwag became the third victim of Afridi's hat-trick, trapped in front byan in-dipping slider. Interestingly, this was Hales' first outing sincethe incident outside a Bristol nightclub that led to him andall-rounder Ben Stokes' suspension from England duty.

ROHIT SHARMA ENTERS TOP 5 SPOT IN ODI RANKINGSDUBAI, (IANS) India opener Rohit Sharma has climbed to the fifth spot amongst batsmen in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC)One-Day International (ODI) player rankings released here on Monday. The right-handed batsman has gained two slots and crossed the800-point mark for the first time after leading India to a 2-1 ODI series victory against Sri Lanka, according to a release by the ICC.The 30-year-old had earlier enjoyed a career-high ranking of being on the third spot in February. He reached a personal high of 825 pointsafter the second match in Mohali when he struck an unbeaten 208 to record his third ODI double-century. He ended the series with 816points. Rohit's opening par tner Shikhar Dhawan, who was named player of the series, too has gained one slot to reach 14th position afteraggregating 168 runs including an unbeaten 100 in Visakhapatnam. Chinaman Kuldeep Yadav has moved up 16 places to take a career-best 56thslot while all-rounder Hardik Pandya has gained 10 slots to also reach a career-best 45th position. For the visiting side, Upul Tharanga has gained 15 places to reach36th position among batsmen with his current tally of 571 points his highest in five years. Niroshan Dickwella has gained seven places to take37th position. Pacer Suranga Lakmal (up 14 places to 22nd) and all-rounder Angelo Mathews (up nine places to 45th) have moved up inthe list for bowlers. sHowever, there has been no change of positions in the ICC ODI Team Rankings.

AUSTRALIA DEFEAT ENGLAND IN THIRD TEST, REGAIN ASHESPERTH, (IANS) Australia reclaimed the coveted Ashes urn after defeating England by an innings and 41 runs on the final day of the thirdcricket Test at the WACA stadium here on Monday. With the win, the Kangaroos also took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-matchrubber, repor ts Efe. "Captaining an Ashes-winning side is an amazing feeling... It's a moment that we have been looking forward to for along time," Australia captain Steve Smith said after the match.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


Schedule of Odisha Men's Hockey World League Final Bhubaneswar 2017

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OLYMPIC GOLD IS MY ULTIMATETARGET: BOXER MARY KOM

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AUSTRALIAN PLAYERS CELEBRATE DISMISSAL OF ENGLAND'S DAWID MALAN ON DAY TWO OF THEIR THIRD ASHES TEST MATCH, IN PERTH.

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VALLORANI POWERS BEASTTO WIN IN 2017-18 DEBUTBRAMPTON, ONTARIO - David Vallorani made his 2017-18Beast debut and scored a goal and an assist and ReggieTraccitto potted the shootout winner as the BramptonBeast defeated the Worcester Railers 4-3 on Sunday af-ternoon. Brampton took on Worcester from the PoweradeCentre on Sunday looking to keep their one-game win-ning streak alive.The first period star ted off quickly with both teams havingtheir legs underneath them right off the bat. Marcus Hogbergwas solid in net and was able to control the flow of play,especially in the Beast zone. Despite the solid play ofHogberg, Worcester got on the board right at the end of thefirst. Chris Langkow sent a seeing-eye pass from the halfboards onto the stick of Matthew Gaudreau who went up-stairs for the 1-0 lead at 19:02.The shots at the end of the first slightly favoured the Railersto the tune of 11-9. The second period began and the Beastwent on the attack. Matt Petgrave jumped out of the penaltybox and went streaking towards the net. He sauced a beau-tiful pass to Brandon Marino who fired the shot on Railersnetminder Eamon McAdam. The puck was kicked out nearthe top of the circle and Alex Foster was waiting to blast itright into the twine for a tie game at 2:55. That goal alsosignaled a rain of teddy bears from the Brampton faithful.Brampton didn't quit there and found the back of the netonce again at the 14:45 mark. The Beast were on the powerplay and Marino surveyed the ice before winding back hisstick and firing a hard slap pass through a maze of sticksand bodies. Waiting on the receiving end was Stefan Fournierwho tapped home his sixth goal of the year. David Vallorani,making his 2017-18 Beast debut, also recorded an assistfor his first point of the season. Brampton took a 2-1 leadinto the second intermission, with Worcester ahead in theshot depar tment by a count of 24-23.

Ontario Introduces Legislationto Protect Amateur Athletesfrom ConcussionsONTARIO - Ontario introduced legislation today that would,if passed, protect amateur athletes by improving concus-sion safety on the field and at school. The proposed Rowan'sLaw (Concussion Safety), 2017, would, if passed, makeOntario a national leader in concussion management andprevention by establishing mandatory requirements for:" Annual review of concussion awareness re-sources that help prevent, identify and manage concus-sions, which athletes, coaches, educators and parentswould be required to review before registering in a spor t" Removal-from-sport and return-to-spor t proto-cols, to ensure that an athlete is immediately removedfrom spor t if they are suspected of having sustained aconcussion and giving them the time required to healproperly" A concussion code of conduct that would setout rules of behaviour to minimize concussions whileplaying spor t.In honour of Rowan Stringer, the 17-year-old rugby playerwhose death resulted from sustaining multiple concus-sions, the proposed legislation would also establish thelast Wednesday in September as "Rowan's Law Day".Ontario is inviting the public to comment on the pro-posed legislation until January 29, 2018. Making orga-nized amateur competitive sport safer is par t of Ontario'splan to create fairness and oppor tunity during this pe-riod of rapid economic change. The plan includes a higherminimum wage and better working conditions, free tu-ition for hundreds of thousands of students, easier ac-cess to affordable child care, and free prescription drugsfor everyone under 25 through the biggest expansion ofmedicare in a generation."We have heard from Ontario families that they want toknow that their children are protected by a safe spor tsystem where everyone understands concussions, ac-tively minimizes the risk, and knows what to do imme-diately if someone is concussed. If passed, the proposedlegislation would empower athletes to raise their handsif they think they or their teammate might have sustaineda concussion." - Eleanor McMahon, Minister of Tourism,Culture and Spor t.

NEW DELHI, (IANS) She has achieved almost everything that women'sboxing can offer, but five-time World Champion M.C. Mary Kom is stillyearning for the greatest accolade in the world of spor ts -- winninggold at the Olympics. Mary's only appearance at the Olympics cameat the London Games in 2012 when women's boxing was introducedfor the first time at the quadrennial sports spectacle. Having movedup to the 51 kg category, she had ended up with a bronze medal.She had admitted later that it was difficult to move out of her favourite48 kg category -- in which she had won her five world titles -- but thechange had to be made as it was not included at the Olympics or theAsian Games. However, with the International Boxing Association(AIBA) debating over the prospect of including the 48 kilogram divi-sion at next year's Asian Games and probably the 2020 Olympics,

Mary is filled with renewed hope. "I still have not won an Olympicgold. That is my ultimate target. I am working very hard with the 2020Olympics in mind. I am trying my best. The rest is up to God," theManipur icon told IANS."As long as I am alive, winning gold at the Olympics will always bemy greatest dream. That will remain a target till the end of my career,"she added. Mary added another title to her already over flowingtrophy cabinet recently by winning gold at the Asian Women'sBoxing Championship -- her fifth title at the continental level -- andhas now set her sights on defending her Asian Games title next year.That may prove to be a tall task for the average athlete, specially at35, an age widely considered old and over the hill for a physicallydemanding sport like boxing.

DAY-NIGHT TEST CRICKET IS INEVITABLE: GANGULYKOLKATA, (PTI) Former India captain Sourav Ganguly today said day-night Test cricket is inevitable as the longer version of the gameis fighting for survival because of poor turnouts. Ganguly's comment came after some repor ts stated that concerned with poor ticketsales especially during the India- Sri Lanka series opener last month at Eden Gardens, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB)president has pushed for day-night Test matches at home. "It is inevitable, it has to happen someday. It is very simple, a pink ball willbe used instead of the red cherry and people will come and watch in the evening," Ganguly said on the sidelines of a promotional eventhere. He also lavished praise on Rohit Sharma for scoring his third ODI double century, but felt "sorry" for the Sri Lankans. "I feel sor r yfor the Sri Lankans. Earlier it was (Virender) Sehwag, (Sachin) Tendulkar and now it's (Virat) Kohli and Rohit Sharma," Ganguly said. "It was aremarkable innings. He took just 36 balls to conver t his century into a double. I was watching the Sri Lankan bowlers and I said Jesus! He just kept sweepingthem into the stands. Three double hundreds in one-day cricket," he said. "Time has changed with T20 format. He is a serious player. His one-day record thisyear is probably the best in the world along side David Warner and Virat Kohli. I expect him to play the same way.

India vs Sri Lanka: 1st T20IWed, December 20, Cuttack, 8:30am

India vs Sri Lanka: 2nd T20IFri, December 22, Indore, 8:30am

India vs Sri Lanka: 3rd T20ISun, December 24, Mumbai, 8:30am

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