Page 316 - Entertainment Culture
Disney-Fox mega-deal set to close March 20
Walt Disney Co. said Tuesday it would close its blockbuster deal for the film and television assets of 21st Century Fox on March 20, a deal likely to reshape the media-entertainment landscape. The USD 71 billion deal gives Disney the prized 20th Century Fox studios and other media production units. It also vastly reduces the empire of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and his family, who are planning a "new Fox" that includes the US broadcast network and the Fox News Channel. The Disney-Fox deal comes amid a shifting media sector where the "legacy" producers controlling Hollywood are seeking to fend off competition from emerging streaming firms including Netflix and Amazon. Disney is expected to launch a rival streaming platform later this year, and Apple is expected to launch its own service as well. The deal gives Disney the 20th Century Fox studios along with a controlling stake in Hulu, the online platform created by media groups to challenge Netflix and Amazon Disney already owns the ...
Ellen DeGeneres is taking credit for Jennifer Lopez, Alex Rodriguez's engagement
American comedian and television host Ellen DeGeneres has claimed that she is the one to be thanked for Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez's engagement.During the episode which aired on Tuesday, the host Ellen DeGeneres made sure to mention that she is the one who gave the push to Alex to get down on one knee."Jennifer is ecstatic and so are their families and friends. Very few people knew Alex planned on proposing. It was very much a surprise for Jennifer, it was just how Alex wanted it," an insider told People. JLo tagged DeGeneres on the Instagram post where she announced her engagement further cementing that maybe Ellen really did have a hand in their engagement.Ellen then commented on the picture and wrote, "Yes, I'll be your Maid of Honor."Ellen then pointed out in her monologue during her show that she gave the nudge needed to the couple when JLo came on her show as she gifted the actress a ticking clock with the couple's face on it."Because you and A-Rod just celebrated your ...
EC urged to stop 'Lakshmi's NTR' till Andhra elections
The Election Commission was Tuesday urged to stop the release of Telugu movie "Lakshmi's NTR" on the ground that this could impact the coming Lok Sabha and assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh.
Kathakali dance presented as part of Indian festival in Nepal
A team of artists from Kerala, led by Haripriya Nambudari, presented classical Kathakali dance as part of a function of month-long festival of India organised by the Indian Embassy here. People from different walks of life including politicians, diplomats, intellectuals, civil society members, business community among others were present during the show held on Monday. The traditional Kathakali dance presented by famous Indian artists in elegant colourful attire mesmerised around 1,000 viewers on the occasion. The dance show was followed by Kerala food festival, which was inaugurated by India's Ambassador to Nepal, Manjiv Singh Puri.
A smart Sidhu reminder on Kapil Sharma's show
Actor-comedian Kiku Sharda found a smart way to make a mention of Punjab cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu on "The Kapil Sharma Show" when the team of the 1983 cricket World Cup winning team made an appearance on the TV entertainer.
Will definitely do a lady cop film to complete universe: Rohit Shetty
Filmmaker Rohit Shetty on Tuesday said he has definite plans to make a female cop film to complete his "Singham" universe, which chronicles stories of police personnel. Shetty's follow-up to his hit "Singham" was 2018's Ranveer Singh-starrer "Simmba", which was part of a multi-film universe that the director has in mind. The next film in this universe is Akshay Kumar-fronted "Sooryavanshi". Asked if he plans to make a female cop film, Shetty told reporters, "Soon we will be making it. We have a story in mind. We will definitely do it. We need to take a year or so, but we plan to do that to complete the universe." The director was speaking at a special session at the FICCI Frames 2019. Shetty, who has delivered consecutive blockbusters and is known for making larger-than-life massy films, said he got the idea to start a universe while watching Hollywood superhero projects like "Avengers". "Whatever happens in Hollywood, happens here 10 years down the line. That's always been the ...
SKorean boyband star quits amid sex bribery claims
One of South Korea's most successful boyband stars has announced his retirement from showbiz, a day after he was charged with supplying prostitutes to business investors, BBC reported.
Listening to music during pregnancy boosts auditory system of baby
Listening to music when you are pregnant helps boost the auditory system of the newborn baby, reveals study.The research published in the journal PLOS ONE wanted to understand and find out if listening to music during pregnancy actually helped the foetus at all.After doing the study, the researchers concluded, that long-term memory can indeed occur in the brain when foetuses are exposed to music before they are born.In their study, they asked pregnant mothers in a "learning group" to play "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" five times per week during the last trimester of their pregnancy, while another group played no music during the last trimester.The researchers then measured the brain activity through the skin of the newborn babies soon after birth and again at four months of age to see if any learning had occurred.When infants heard the original melody as well as a modified melody with some of the notes changed, the researchers found that brain activity of the learning group was much ..
Listening to music in groups influences Depression: Study
Recent study digs into how music influences depression when listened to in a group.The findings published in the journal Frontiers in Psychology found that listening to music together with others has many social benefits, including creating and strengthening interpersonal bonds. It has previously been shown that enjoying music in a group setting has an impact on social relationships.The researchers investigated the self-reported effects on mood that comes with listening to sad music in group settings, and how mood is influenced by thoughts, depression, and coping style.They recruited 697 participants who completed an online survey about "their ways of using music, types of musical engagement and the effect of music listening." The participants also completed a number of additional questionnaires, which helped the researchers determine factors such as the presence of symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress; general tendencies towards depression; coping styles, i.e. tendencies ...
David Tennant reacts to 'Jessica Jones' cancellation
David Tennant has broken his silence on Netflix's decision to not renew "Jessica Jones", saying he does not view the cancellation in a negative light. The actor, who played villain Kilgrave in the show's first two seasons, said he would rather remember the show for its three seasons. "I don't really regard it as a cancellation so much as something having the life that it should have. Three seasons of that story is great. "Rather than thinking of it as something that was cancelled, I think of it as something that had three seasons that will live in the memory," Tennant told EW. He confirmed that Kilgrave does not appear the upcoming third season of the show. Besides the Krysten Ritter-fronted series, Netflix also cancelled another superhero show "The Punisher" last month, hinting at the end of its licensing partnership with Disney-owned Marvel. The decision came as Disney prepares to launch its own streaming service, Disney+ later this year.
Maker of film '#MeToo' challenges CBFC order to change movie name; HC seeks Centre's stand
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday sought response of the Centre and the Censor Board to a plea by producer of film '#MeToo' who has challenged an order asking him to change the movie's title and delete several scenes from it. The movie portrays kidnapping of a girl with the motive of committing a sexual crime. Justice Vibhu Bakhru asked the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) and the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) whether they gave a proper opportunity to the film's producer Sajid Iqbal Qureshi to be heard before passing the order. The court directed the ministry and CBFC to file their response before the next date of hearing on May 3. Qureshi, in his plea, has claimed that he was not given an adequate opportunity to be heard by the board before it passed the order. He has sought setting aside of the November 12, 2018 CBFC order by which it directed public exhibition of the movie be restricted to adults subject to carrying out of "several excisions/modifications/
UC Browser bets big on short videos for 2019
Short-form content, including short videos and snackable content, is UC Browser's top content priority for 2019.Short-video content has seen a surge in 2018 with over 3.6 crore short-videos aggregated on UC Browser, the world's leading third-party mobile browser and a content platform. Short videos account for over 40 per cent of overall content consumption on the platform. Daily video uploads have increased 100 per cent in the last 6 months, while daily video consumption has increased 3 times on VMate, a life-recording short video app specifically for India market.Addressing the audience at StreamCon Asia 2019, Damon Xi, General Manager-UC Global Business, Alibaba Digital Media and Entertainment Group said, "2018 has proved to be a great year for short videos and we are glad to see a rapid growth of short video creators on UC platform. As smartphones become more popular and mobile data gets more affordable there will be explosive growth of video content consumption. Short-form and ...
Woo launches brand films highlighting what women want
Woo, a dating app for urban singles, launched its brand films that are based on women insights.In today's fast-paced times, women have become more educated, outgoing and confident, so their needs have evolved as well. Woo understands that they look for a safe way to discover new people with ease, based on data collected from a survey of 1,000 women in tier I and II cities across India, the company said in a press statement.Woo has come up with two key features - Woo Hide and Woo Phone, that empower the women and make sure their privacy is always taken care of and with these features the brand establishes the posting - a dating app that women love. Woo Phone, Woo's new feature is a notable effort in furthering that trend. The feature enables women to call their matched profiles from within the app without revealing their phone numbers. The unique calling feature is exclusively available to women on Woo.Woo takes a design thinking approach to the current problems users face on dating ...
Wasn't easy to step into Sridevi's shoes: Madhuri
Actress Madhuri Dixit Nene says it was tough and emotional for her to play a role which was to be originally essayed by Sridevi in "Kalank".
'Bohemian Rhapsody' sequel being discussed
After a big awards haul at the Oscars 2019, "Bohemian Rhapsody" could land a second movie, according to Queen's music video director Rudi Dolezal.
Dave Franco's horror-thriller 'The Rental' to feature Dan Stevens and Alison Brie as leads
"Beauty and the Beast" star Dan Stevens and "GLOW" breakout Alison Brie will headline the cast of Dave Franco's directorial debut "The Rental". The horror-thriller centres on two couples who rent a vacation home for what should be a celebratory weekend get-away, according to Deadline. Apart from Stevens and Brie, who is the wife of Franco, the film will also feature Sheila Vand and Jeremy Allen White. Franco has also penned the script along with Joe Swanberg. The film, financed by Black Bear Pictures, will be produced by Franco's Ramona Films. The project starts shooting next month in Oregon.
72nd Shriram Shankarlal Music Festival to celebrate Indian classical music
Some of the country's top music luminaries including vocalist duo Rajan and Sajan Mishra, vocalist Pandit Jasraj, and sitar maestro Shahid Parvez Khan will celebrate the tradition of Hindustani classical music here at the 72nd Shriram Shankarlal Music Festival starting March 14. The four-day music festival, to be held at the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra (SBKK), according to the organisers, will focus on present generation of artistes in the genre. "This year's festival is exemplary for it will feature maestros of the present generation in this 72 years old prestigious event. "There are younger artistes who we premiere such as Sabir Khan and Manjusha Patil. There are also those who have gone on to become outstanding in their respective genres such as Biswajit Roy Chowdhary (sarod), Rakesh Chaurasia (flute), Rahul Sharma (santoor) and Kaushiki Chakraborty (vocal)," Shobha Depak Singh, director, SBKK, said. It also hosts artistes from outside Delhi like percussionists Yogesh Samsi, Ram .
Odisha Parba returns to Delhi on Friday
Odisha Parba is once again set to make a comeback in the heart of the national capital to celebrate the cultural finesse, heritage, tradition, craftsmanship and culinary excellence of the coastal state.
Kalank: A thrilling tale of eternal love, turbulent relationships
After piquing the curiosity of viewers by unveiling character posters of the film's cast, makers of 'Kalank' have finally dropped the teaser of the much-awaited film. Alia Bhatt, who plays Roop in the film, shared the teaser of the film on her Twitter handle, writing, "KALANK #KalankTeaser out now."Going by the teaser, the film promises to take viewers on a journey of timeless love, emotions and turbulent relationships. The effortlessly beautiful teaser gives a sneak peek into the saga of love set in the 1940s in India and delves into the lives of six people- Varun Dhawan as Zafar, Alia Bhatt as Roop, Sonakshi Sinha as Satya, Aditya Roy Kapur as Dev Chaudhry, Madhuri Dixit as Bahaar Begum and Sanjay Dutt as Balraj Chaudhry.The teaser also hints at hidden truths that are yet to be unfolded as communal tensions rise. It also features a city ready to burn, perhaps a reference to the film's setting, 1940s India.The teaser of the film is sure to leave you spellbound with its larger than ...
Why 'Kalank' will be beyond commerce for Karan Johar
Filmmaker Karan Johar says the fate of "Kalank" will be beyond commerce for him since it is a project that was his "father's dream".