Page 1409 - Entertainment Culture

Vishal Malhotra cast in 'Yeh Pyaar Nahi...'

Actor Vishal Malhotra, who shot to fame with the 'Mauka Mauka cricket commercials, has joined the cast of the upcoming show "Yeh Pyaar Nahi Toh Kya Hai".

Vin Diesel confirmed as Bloodshot

Vin Diesel has been roped in to star in the title role of "Bloodshot". The 50-year-old action hero will play the super soldier in the Sony Pictures adaptation of the Valiant comic book series, according to Deadline. Dave Wilson, who long collaborated with "Deadpool" director Tim Miller, will make his directorial debut with the film. Bloodshot is a former soldier who is able to regenerate and metamorphose due to nano-computers being injected into his bloodstream, enabling him recover from injuries quickly and shape shift. When he is brought back from the dead by technology, he discovers he must battle memory loss and come to terms with his new powers. The tone of the movie is expected to be dark and R-rated, not a fun family movie. Diesel reunites with "Fast and the Furious" producer Neal H Moritz on the project. Production starts this July.

'Suits' spinoff given series order by USA Network

USA Network has given a series order to "Suits" spinoff which will star Gina Torres in the lead. The new show will centre around Torres character Jessica Pearson, a powerhouse lawyer as she adjusts to the dirty world of Chicago politics, the studio said in a press release. The spinoff will be executive produced and written by "Suits" creator Aaron Korsh along with executive producer and showrunner Daniel Arkin. Doug Liman, David Bartis and Gene Klein will also serve as executive producers, along with Torres. "It was an extraordinary pleasure working with Gina on 'Suits' for six years. Beyond her undeniable talent, she is an incredible partner and collaborator, and I always hoped we would work together again," said Korsh.

Modi condoles demise of Sufi singer Pyarelal Wadali

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today condoled the demise of Sufi singer Pyarelal Wadali, saying his work will continue to draw people towards the joys of Sufi music. Pyarelal, the one half of famous Punjabi Sufi singing duo Wadali Brothers, died of heart attack today in Amritsar. He was 75. "Saddened by the demise of Pyarelal Wadali. His renditions attained great popularity globally. His work will continue to draw people towards the joys of Sufi music. May his soul rest in peace," the Prime Minister's Office said in a tweet quoting Modi.

Jessica Capshaw, Sarah Drew to exit 'Grey's Anatomy' after S14

Actors Jessica Capshaw and Sarah Drew are ditching their scrubs at the end of the current season of "Grey's Anatomy". Capshaw and Drew, who play Arizona Robbins and April Kepner respectively in the ABC's hit medical drama currently in season 14, have been associated with the series since 10 and nine installments. Creator and executive producer Shonda Rhimes said the two characters played an important role in representing both "LBGTQ and devout Christian communities", which had not received the space they deserve on television, according to The Hollywood Reporter. "It's always hard for me to say goodbye to any of my characters. Both Arizona Robbins and April Kepner are not only beloved but iconic - both the LBGTQ and devout Christian communities are underrepresented on TV. I will be forever grateful to both Jessica and Sarah for bringing these characters to life," Rhimes said in a statement. Co-showrunner and executive producer Krista Vernoff said it was a privilege to work with two ..

Not romance, female moviegoers want action

Turns out, majority of female moviegoers favour action over any other genre, including romance, a survey has discovered.The survey which was timed on International Women's Day, which falls on March 08, conducted the research on more than 3,000 moviegoers.It revealed that 22 percent of the survey-takers preferred action, followed by 18 percent for comedy, 13 percent for sci-fi, 12 percent for drama, and 07 percent for rom-coms.Ironically, a mere 2 percent of female moviegoers chose romance, contrary to popular believes, as per the survey conducted by Fandango, an American ticketing company.According to the Hollywood Reporter, 77 percent of the survey takers believed that female characters in blockbusters are often stereotyped. Also, 75 percent of respondents want to see stronger female ensembles, while about 60 percent felt that females are not adequately portrayed on the screen.However, about 80 percent of the respondents felt hopeful that the #TimeUp campaign will have a tangible, ...

American daily pays homage to Madhubala

An American newspaper has paid homage to Bollywood's tragedy queen Madhubala.The classic actress of the bygone era was featured in its new segment, Overlooked, where the daily featured "15 remarkable women that (it) overlooked in (their) obituaries".The section admired the remarkable contribution of these celebrated women in their respective fields.They introduced Madhubala, who preferred to be address by her first name, as the one who "transfixed Bollywood".The New York Times profiled Madhubala with a sass and did not hold back.It wrote, " Madhubala (born as Mumtaz Begum) often portrayed modern young women testing the limits of traditions. She has been compared to Marilyn Monroe: the smoldering looks, the short career, the tragic end", the newspaper said while recalling her first major role, at the age of 16, as the leading lady in 1949 film 'Mahal' opposite Ashok Kumar.About her untimely death at the mere age of 36, the daily wrote, "She died 20 years later as an icon of beauty and .

Admire Shahid as an actor: Yami Gautam

Yami Gautam says she is looking forward to work with Shahid Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor in "Batti Gul Meter Chalu." The film marks the first on-screen collaboration between Yami and the two actors. "I saw him (Shahid) recently in 'Padmaavat' and he was superb. I have loved watching him in films like 'Udta Punjab', 'Haider', 'Kaminey'. He has always created a new character, something for which we can't have a reference point. He has put endless amount of hard work as an actor on all these films. I adore him and admire him as an actor. He is a versatile actor," Yami told PTI. "I have never worked with Shraddha before. She is lovely person, so looking forward to working with her," she added. Yami, however, did not divulge further details about the Shree Narayan Singh-directed project. "I am not telling the story. (All I can say) Both Shahid and I are playing lawyers and I can't wait to start the shoot. I am happy the way my character has shaped up. She is a very strong girl." The first ..

Musicians can now post Twitter-like updates on Google Search

In what could damage Twitter's popularity, Google is now allowing US musicians to post updates directly to its Search result pages.

Oldman's mother 'proud' of his Oscar win

Actor Gary Oldman's 98-year-old mother Kathleen 'Kay' Oldman is "very proud" of his Oscar win.

Irrfan's 'Hindi Medium' heads to Taiwan

Actor Irrfan Khan's "Hindi Medium", which takes a comical look at the underbelly of India's education system, will be releasing in Taiwan.

I've special place for India in my heart: DJ Hardwell

Dutch DJ Hardwell loves to perform in India and says he gets inspiration from Indians.

Brad Cohen helped Rani Mukerji to understand 'Hichki' character

Actor Rani Mukerji had interactive sessions with author Brad Cohen, on whose autobiography her film "Hichki" is based, to learn about the Tourette syndrome. Directed by Siddharth P Malhotra, "Hichki" features Rani as an inspiring and self-motivated school teacher named Naina Mathur who suffers from Tourrete syndrome. The film is based Cohen's autobiography "Front of the Class : How Tourette Syndrome Made Me the Teacher I Never Had". Rani's story in the film mirrors the life of Cohen, a respected and popular motivational speaker and teacher from the United States. Malhotra said that he had been in constant touch with the author regarding the movie for five years and narrated the project to Rani in 2016. "... I've been tic-ing throughout those 5 years in his voice and giving those narrations. So when I narrated the script to her I narrated it with the tics.. Even to Adi and Maneesh I narrated it with the tics. So we knew that's a tough one to come around. So made her meet some people ...

Paul Newman gave me part of his salary: Susan Sarandon

Hollywood veteran Susan Sarandon has revealed that her "Twilight" co-star Paul Newman once gave a part of his salary to her after he came to know that she was being paid less than the male leads in the film. The 71-year-old actor said on the sets of the 1998 movie she discovered that her two male co-stars (Newman, Gene Hackman) were receiving a higher pay than her. The film's poster although showed all three stars being given equal billing. She said the producers said it was "favoured nations", "but they meant the two guys". The phrase "favoured nations" is a contract between a producer and an actor, which ensures the actors are given the same terms as their co-stars. Sarandon told BBC 5 live that Newman "stepped forward and said, 'Well I'll give you part of mine'. So, yeah, he was a gem." The actor recounted the time when Emma Stone had called for equal pay in Hollywood, some of her male co-actors stepped up and offered their part of the fee. "Emma Stone once came forward and said ...

Robert De Niro hosts surprise birthday bash for Anupam Kher

Recently, veteran actor Anupam Kher celebrated his 63rd birthday on March 7.The internationally-acclaimed Indian actor shared a video on his social media account in which Hollywood actor Robert De Niro could be seen in a jolly mood singing birthday song for Kher.Kher revealed that the party was thrown by 'The Godfather' actor as a surprise for him at De Niro's home itself. Kher thanked the actor for allowing him to have the 'moment of his life' ('Kuch bhi ho sakta hai' moment).Kher tweeted, " Thank you Grace & Mr. Robert De Niro for making my birthday the biggest highlight of my entire life. Thank you for the surprise dinner for me at your home. Thank you for singing "Happy Birthday" song for me. Thank you for my ultimate KUCH BHI HO SAKTA HAI moment. ?? #GodOfActing".The director of Kher's Hollywood outing,'Silver Linings Playbook', David O. Russell was also present at the surprise bash.

Bengali film market not properly nurtured: Filmmaker Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury

The Bengali community lives across the globe and Bangla is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world, but the market for its cinema has not been nurtured properly, says National Award winning filmmaker Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury.

Salman Khan to share stories of real heroes

Superstar Salman Khan will be sharing stories of real life heroes.

'Wadali Brothers' Pyarelal Wadali dies of cardiac arrest

Pyarelal Wadali, one of the singers of legendary Sufi set Wadali Brothers, passed away here on Friday after cardiac arrest.He was the younger brother of Ustad Puran Chand Wadali.The Wadali Brothers, adept in various styles of singing including Kaafian, ghazal and bhajan, had their first musical performance outside their village in Harballabh Temple in Jalandhar.They entered Bollywood in 2003 and are famous for their songs such as Aye Rangrez Mere ('Tanu Weds Manu') and Ik Tu Hi Tu Hi ('Mausam').

Bill Skarsgard, Maika Monroe to star in 'Villains'

"It" star Bill Skarsgard and Maika Monroe will lead the cast of the new film "Villains". The film, a dark comedic thriller, will be directed by Dan Berk and Robert Olsen, reported Deadline. The film is about a pair of amateur criminals who, after breaking into a suburban home, stumble upon a dark secret and two sadistic homeowners who will do anything to keep it from getting out. Tim and Trevor White are producing, along with Allan Mandelbaum and Garrick Dion. Aaron L Gilbert and Jason Cloth are executive producing, while Rick Rickertsen and Mary Solomon are co-producing.

Of brains, media, reporting and love (IANS Books This Weekend)

Know how the brain can shape our lives in unexpected and, in some cases, brilliant and alarming ways; read the story of a seasoned reporter at the North Kanto Times who runs a daily battle against the power struggles and office politics that plague its newsroom; learn how media manipulators work; and flick through a moving, disturbingly close to reality story about love at its worst and at its best.