Page 1500 - Entertainment Culture

Mark Salling's child pornography case dropped

In the wake of 'Glee' star Mark Salling's suicide, the child pornography case filed against him has been officially dropped.According to The Hollywood Reporter, a U.S. District Judge granted the dismissal request from the U.S. Attorney's office.However, the case was dismissed "without prejudice" per the prosecutor's request, which means that it can be re-filed in the future.The 35-year-old actor was found dead in a park near his San Fernando Valley home on January 30. Authorities confirmed his death as a suicide, caused due to asphyxia as a result of hanging.Salling had pleaded guilty to possessing child sexual abuse images in December and was expected to be imprisoned for at least four years as per the US laws prohibiting child pornography. He also had to pay $50,000 in restitution fees to each victim and register as a sex offender.The actor had agreed to serve the jail time followed by 20 years of supervised release.

Lawrence Bender denies Uma Thurman's cover-up claims

Lawrence Bender, the producer of the "Kill Bill", has expressed regret over the car crash incident on the sets of the film involving actor Uma Thurman. Bender's comments come a day after Thurman blasted him, along with disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein and E Bennett Walsh, for allegedly covering up the incident. "I deeply regret that Uma suffered the pain she has, both physically and emotionally, for all of these years from the accident that occurred on the set of 'Kill Bill'," Bender said Wednesday in a statement, according to Entertainment Weekly. "The safety of the professionals who work on the movies I produce is vital to me and I never want to let anyone down," he added. Bender also claimed that did not attempted to cover up the accident. "I never hid anything from Uma or anyone else nor did I participate in any cover up of any kind and I never would," he said. Thurman had recently released the dramatic on-set video showing her driving a convertible and .

David Leitch in talks to 'Fast and Furious' spinoff

Director David Leitch is in negotiations to helm the untitled "Fast and Furious" spinoff starring Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham. The film will focus on the characters Luke Hobbs (Johnson), a Diplomatic Security Service agent and Deckard Shaw (Statham), a criminal mastermind and an assassin, reported Variety. Chris Morgan wrote the script, making it his sixth instalment in the franchise. Leitch came into the limelight after the success of "John Wick", which he co-directed with Chad Stahelski, and last year's "Atomic Blonde", starring Charlize Theron. He is currently awaiting the release of his latest directorial venture, "Deadpool 2", starring Ryan Reynolds and Josh Brolin.

Richard Pryor, Marlon Brando's affair confirmed

Richard Pryor's widow has revealed that the American stand-up comedian hooked up with Marlon Brando.Jennifer Lee, who married Pryor twice, once from 1981 to 1982 and the second time in 2001 till the comedian's death in 2005, said that Pryor had a lot of sex in the 70s - with both men and women.She confirmed the Marlon-Richard hookup, which Quincy Jones, an American record producer, first mentioned in an interview, TMZ.com reported.Quincy had said, "Brando would f**k anything. He'd f**k a mailbox, James Baldwin. Richard Pryor. Marvin Gaye".Jennifer noted, "Richard would have no shame about Quincy's comments". She added that Pryor was very open about his bisexuality with friends, and documented it extensively in diaries.She even commented on the hookup with a sass and said, "It was the '70s! Drugs were still good, especially quaaludes. If you did enough cocaine, you'd f**k a radiator and send it flowers in the morning".Jennifer also said she would publish comedic legend's diaries later .

Armie Hammer to star in new thriller from Annapurna Pictures

Armie Hammer will feature in a new thriller that will be produced by Annapurna Pictures. The "Call Me By Your Name" actor will play a New Orleans bartender whose life begins to unravel after he picks up a phone left behind at his bar. The untitled film will be written and directed by Babak Anvari while Lucan Toh of Two & Two Pictures, and Christopher Kopp of AZA Films will co-produced it, reported Variety. The film will release on March 29, 2019. Hammer will be next seen in "Sorry to Bother You", which is directed by Boots Riley and also features Tessa Thompson and Lakeith Stanfield.

Jeetendra quashes sexual assault claims by cousin

Veteran actor, Jeetendra has rubbished the sexual assault allegations made by his cousin.In a statement issued by the actor's lawyer, Rizwan Siddiquee, the allegations were called "baseless and ridiculous".The statement read, "Foremost, my client specifically and categorically denies any such incident. Besides even otherwise such baseless, ridiculous and fabricated claims cannot be entertained by any court of law or the law enforcement agencies after a span of almost 50 years".Siddiquee went all out and said that the law did not give any person liberties to defame a public figure for hidden personal agendas.The statement further noted, "The statute has provided a justice delivery system through the courts, and the Limitation Act 1963 was specifically enacted to ensure that all genuine complaints are made within a maximum time limit of three years so that a proper investigation is carried out and timely justice is delivered".The cousin emailed the complaint to the Director General of ..

Darren Criss reveals secrets to a happy marriage

Actor Darren Criss says the secret to a happy marriage lies in the words "Yes, Dear".

Raj Shah to give debut official WH press briefing

White House Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah will substitute Sarah Huckabee Sanders and will give his first official White House briefing to the media.Shah will step in for press secretary Sarah Sanders behind the podium in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room.The 32-year-old Shah will make his daily press briefing debut, reported the Hill.The move develops as derogatory comments Shah reportedly made about President Trump in the wake of the "Access Hollywood" controversy during the 2016 election surfaced on Monday.The tape, uncovered during the 2016 campaign, includes audio of President Trump in 2005 bragging to then-"Access Hollywood" correspondent Billy Bush about being able to grope women due to his celebrity status.According to the reports, while at the Republican National Committee, Shah reportedly emailed researcher Andrew Hemming, writing: "u wanna hear something a little fucked up?""I'm kinda enjoying this, some justice. I honestly don't think it's the worst thing he's done ..

Selena reveals her never ending anxiety, depression battle

Pop sensation Selena Gomez has revealed her battles with anxiety and depression, admitting that she does not believe she will ever "overcome" them.According to Contactmusic.com, she also maintained that she will likely have to keep her depression at bay for the rest of her life.The 25-year-old actress and singer has had a tumultuous last 12 months from disappearing because of a life-saving kidney transplant to splitting with her boyfriend The Weeknd, only to get back together again with her ex, Justin Bieber.The former Disney star in an interview said, "I've had a lot of issues with depression and anxiety, and I've been very vocal about it, but it's not something I feel I'll ever overcome".She said it is a battle that she has to face for the rest of her life, adding she wants to make sure she stays healthy.Gomez has been one of the most high-profile advocates for mental health.She is all prepared to keep fans waiting for her third album, although she has been working on it slowly but .

Kim scared about stretch mark removal

Reality TV star Kim Kardashian West says she was really scared about having her stretch marks removed after she gave birth to her first daughter North West as she feared the procedure would be painful.

Will be seen in more films now, says Renuka Shahane

Actress Renuka Shahane who will soon be seen in film "3 Storeys" that is releasing in March, says now that her children are growing up, she will be seen in more film.

Trolls should be ignored, say Bollywood celebs

Trolling has become an issue for many celebrities on social media whenever they express their opinion on any topic, but some Bollywood figures maintain that not paying attention is the best way to deal with trolls and maintain one's sanity.

Swaraj attends Al Janadriyah festival

External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday visited India pavilion at the Al Janadriyah festival in Riyadh.Swaraj was accompanied by the King of Saudi Arabia Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saudthe and the Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir.India is the guest of honour country at this year's festival, and Swaraj, who is on a three-day visit to the Kingdom-nation, led the Indian delegation at the festival.The two-week long festival that began in is the biggest cultural festival of the Gulf that celebrates the culture and heritage of Saudi.The festival not only brings to life the culture of the Gulf kingdom but also aims to acquaint its citizens with the cultures of other countries, by way of inviting a country each year as the guest of honour.This year, at the 32nd edition of the festival, India as the guest of honour will get to showcase facets of its culture, business opportunities, technology, medical and military progressIndian Pavilion provided a glimpse of socio-cultural ...

Dr L Subramaniam, Kavita Krishnamurti concert mark 70 Yrs of India-brazil diplomatic relations

Over 600 dignitaries including diplomats, Brazilian government officials, and media personnel gathered at the prestigious Cine Brasilia auditorium on Tuesday for a stellar night of Indian music presented by renowned violinist Dr. L. Subramaniam and singer Kavita Krishnamurti under the aegis of Lakshminarayana Global Music Festival.The event was organised by the Indian embassy in Brasilia in collaboration with Symphony Orchestra of National Theatre Claudio Santoro led by Maestro Claudio Cohen.Charge d'affaires Abhay Kumar welcomed the audience and gave a glimpse of the performances to follow.The evening opened with Dr. Subramaniam's rendition of the Earth Anthem, penned in 2008 by Kumar, drawing inspiration from the ancient Indian philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutubakam, which means the 'world is a family'.The rich compositions of Bharat Symphony, Shanti Priya, and Eri Me To, composed by Dr. Subramaniam and rendered by Krishnamurti and over 50 musicians playing in harmony, enthralled the ...

Industry people like when I take stand on social media: Renuka

Actor Renuka Shahane, who is quite vocal on social media on topical issues, says there are industry people, who applaud her for taking a stand. On the social media, Renuka had taken on Salman Khan, with whom she had shared screen in "Hum Aapke Hai Koun", over his rape remark controversy and acquittal in the black buck case. Due to the protest called by Karni Sena, seeking a ban on Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Padmaavat" and in the wake of rape of an eight-old-month girl, the 51-year-old actor took to twitter saying - "Ban rape, ban female foeticide, ban sexual molestation". When asked if any celebrity has ever reacted negatively to her comments, Renuka said, "No, not at all! Rather wherever I go, whoever I meet, they (industry people) are very happy that I take a stand as there are times when they can't say certain things and I say it on their behalf." She was speaking on the sidelines of trailer launch event of her film "3 Storeys". The film produced by Farhan Akhtar and ...

Cousin accuses Jeetendra of sexually assaulting her 47 years

Actor Jeetendra was today accused by his cousin of sexually assaulting her 47 years ago, a charge that the Sixties' star rubbished as "baseless and ridiculous". The complainant said the actor, whose actual name is Ravi Kapoor, is her aunt's son. In her complaint to the Director General of Police, Himachal Pradesh, she said the incident took place in Shimla in January, 1971, when she was 18 and the actor was 28. She said he had "arranged" for the victim to join him from New Delhi to Shimla on the sets of a film he was shooting for. She alleged in the complaint that after reaching Shimla at night, an inebriated Jeetendra went to her room, joined two twin beds and sexually assaulted her. The actor denied that any such incident had taken place. Police sources here said an FIR had not been registered as the complaint had been emailed to the DGP. For the registration of an FIR, the signature of the complainant was necessary, police sources said. In a statement issued in Mumbai, .

Magistrate court commits case involving actor Dileep to Court

A court here today dismissed a plea by Malayalam film actor Dileep seeking copies of visuals of the alleged sexual assault committed on a South Indian film actress by a gang of men in a moving car last year and committed the case to the sessions court for trial. The Angamaly Judicial First Class Magistrate Court accepted the prosecution argument that providing clippings of the alleged assault could be misused by the actor affecting the privacy of the actress. It then committed the case to the Court of Session, setting the stage for commencement of trial. Dileep is the eighth among the 12 accused in the case and has secured bail nearly three months after his arrest on July 10 last year. The key accused in the case, Pulsar Suni, who has been in jail since his arrest early last year, was produced before the court today. The actress, who has worked in Tamil and Telugu films, was abducted and allegedly molested inside her car for two hours by Suni and his accomplices, who had

Meghalaya BJP to hold soiree, ropes in local music icon

Days after attacking the ruling Congress for organising concerts to woo young voters in poll bound Meghalaya, the BJP has its own soirees lined up and roped in local music icon Lou Majaw. Lou, a 70-year-old singer known for his Bob Dylan tribute shows and who enjoys a large following, also featured in the campaign music video of the state BJP. "With the years of experience and followers that he has, Lou Majaw is the perfect person the party has identified for its campaigns here," BJP state president Shibun Lyngdoh told PTI. Lou has readily agreed to perform for the concerts the BJP has lined up at Jowai in Jaintia Hills tomorrow, in the state capital on February 12 and thereafter in Tura on February 14, he said. Lou admitted that he was hired by the BJP for their campaign but he has not joined politics nor the party. "It is a fact that I have sung for the BJP. I did it because singing is an art and I am an artiste," said the singer, who had won several awards including ..

Suspense over release of "Padmaavat" in Indore

Suspense prevailed over the release of "Padmaavat" in the city tomorrow, although police have assured security to the cinema halls screening the controversial film. Film distributors and theatre owners in Indore had yesterday agreed to screen the film after the state government assured to provide adequate security cover. However, it is no yet clear how many cinema halls or multiplexes will screen the movie here or elsewhere in the state tomorrow. Instead of the posters of "Padamaavat", those of Akshay Kumar-starrer film "Padman", which is scheduled to release on February 9, are visible across the city. Theatre owners in Madhya Pradesh had last month decided not to screen filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali's period drama starring Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh following large-scale protests and bandhs in several places. Director General of Police, Indore Range, H C Mishra told reporters that it was now up to the cinema halls owners to release the movie or

There might be new struggle in life after '...Ek Sangharsh': Baba Ramdev

Baba Ramdev, who says he has shared all the truths of his life for "Swami Ramdev: Ek Sangharsh" -- a scripted biopic series on his life -- feels he might get into a fresh struggle with such honesty.