13082026-LSTL-01.qxd 8/12/2026 7:45 PM Page 1 c m y b ATIF’S REVELATION Atif Aslam opened up about his decade-long ban from working in India, which began in 2016 following the Uri terror attack . He said Indian fans still access his music through VPNs and shared CDs, adding that he misses the people, not the work. TRIBUNE Life chandigarh chandigarh play SANA KHAN LIVE S TUDIO XO presents a soulful Sufi night with Sana Khan live. Timeless melodies, heartfelt vocals and a warm ambience that brings together music, emotion, and tradition — from spiritual favourites to stirring live moments, the evening promises a memorable experience for true Sufi music lovers. At Studio XO on August 12 at 9 pm. laugh PRACTICE SESSIONS T Meet Hollywood actors who played Spider-Man AnanyaVerma S PIDER-MAN: Brand New Day crossed a threshold no superhero film had managed before, crossing $360 million in its opening weekend to dethrone Avengers: Endgame as the biggest domestic debut in cinema history. Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, it is Tom Holland’s fourth solo outing as Peter Parker and the start of what producers have confirmed will be a new trilogy. Few characters in cinema history have earned that kind of longevity — and fewer still have done it by reinventing themselves with every passing decade. The story starts in 1967, with Canadian voice actor Paul Soles giving Peter Parker his very first voice in a modestly animated American network cartoon that ran for three seasons. The show was rough around the edges — its awkward little pauses have since become internet folklore but it planted something that would prove impossible to uproot. Nicholas Hammond then became the first actor to wear the mask in live action, starring in an American network series from 1977 to 1979. Animation carried the character through the 1980s, with Ted Schwartz and then Dan Gilvezan voicing Peter Parker across two separate series in 1981. Christopher Daniel Barnes then delivered what many consider the defining animated version, voicing the character from 1994 to 1998 in a series an entire generation grew up quoting. In between all of it, devoted fan Dan Poole was quietly making his own micro-budget Spider-Man films, once performing a four-storey rope swing himself purely for the love of it. Then came 2002, and everything changed scale. Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man, star- ring Tobey Maguire, turned the friendly neighbourhood hero into a global blockbuster phenomenon, followed by two sequels in 2004 and 2007. Andrew Garfield picked up the role next, bringing a sharper wit and fresh energy to The Amazing Spider-Man in 2012 and its 2014 sequel. Holland arrived after that, debuting as a wide-eyed teenager in Captain America: Civil War in 2016 before leading Homecoming in 2017, Far From Home in 2019 and appearing in Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame along the way. No Way Home in 2021 then brought all three film-era SpiderMen together on screen — a moment that felt less like fan service and more like a reunion nobody knew they needed. Animation, meanwhile, carved out a universe entirely its own. Into the Spider-Verse in 2018 opened with Chris Pine as Miles Morales’ ill-fated Peter Parker before handing the film to Jake Johnson’s older, out-of-shape, deeply human Peter B. Parker — a performance warm enough to anchor the 2023 sequel, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Hudson Thames voiced a variant in Marvel’s What If...? in 2021, while Benjamin Valic and, since 2024, Alkaio Thiele have taken the role into preschool territory with Spidey and His Amazing Friends. Six decades. One character that somehow never gets old. chandigarh HE Laugh Club Artist Discovery Open Mics in Chandigarh is a comedy event running from August 10 to 31 at 8:30 pm. The 1hour-30-minute shows are open to audiences aged 16 and above and feature comedy in Hindi, English, and Punjabi. These open mics give aspiring stand-up comedians a platform to test new material, improve their sets, and perform in front of a live audience, with occasional guest artists joining the lineup. Tickets are available from ~101 onwards. LUDHIANA | THURSDAY | 13 AUGUST 2026 the mask FLAVOURS OF INDIA C Kangana Ranaut backed Piyush Mishra’s criticism of Naseeruddin Shah, escalating their row over Shah’s ‘dog with a bone’ remark. Ranaut accused Shah of favouring a neighbouring country and said she takes pride in defending India. The man behind WHAT’S HOT eat ELEBRATE the spirit of India’s Independence Day with a specially curated Flavours of India dinner at 24/7 All Day Dining, The LaLiT Chandigarh. From August 14–16, the festive spread includes interactive live stations serving favourites like Purani Dilli chaat, Kolkata kathi rolls, and live tandoori grills, alongside regional curries, aromatic biryanis, traditional dals, and Indian desserts, including ghevar. Kangana vs Shah Mona When Super 30 hit cinema screens in 2019, audiences saw the inspiring story of a teacher who transformed the lives of underprivileged students by helping them crack one of India’s toughest examinations. But for Anand Kumar, the film was never the destination. It was merely an introduction. Today, the mathematician and educator whose life inspired the Bollywood hit is attempting something even more ambitious — changing the way the world learns mathematics. His latest venture, Super Infinity, is a free YouTube-based learning platform that replaces rote memorisation with storytelling, music, drama, animation and real-life examples. The idea is deceptively simple—make mathematics enjoyable. “Let’s have fun with numbers. Competition will take care of itself,” Kumar says with confidence. It’s a philosophy that challenges India’s obsession with examination scores. Instead of teaching students to fear mathematics, Kumar wants them to enjoy it. His belief is that when concepts become clear (from top) Tom Holland, Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield & Chris Pine ‘Let’s have fun with numbers’ Anand Kumar, whose life inspired Hrithik Roshan-starrer Super 30 reinvents mathematics once again and learning becomes engaging, success in competitive exams naturally follows. Launched about a month ago, Super Infinity has already crossed 300,000 subscribers, drawing viewers not just from India but from other countries, including Japan, the US, the UK, Germany, South Korea, Canada and Australia. For Kumar, however, the platform is the culmination of a much longer journey. He first became a household name in 2002 when he launched Super 30 in Patna, coaching talented students from economically weaker backgrounds for the IIT entrance examinations. The success of Super 30, the Hrithik Roshan-starrer directed by Vikas Bahl, turned Kumar into a national icon. Even after the film’s success, he continued searching for new ways to make mathematics accessible. That search eventually became Super Infinity. “For six years, we worked every day to rethink how mathematics could be taught online,” Kumar says. “Our goal was not to create just another online course, but to build a new learning experience.” Super Infinity uses cinematic storytelling and visual narratives to explain complex mathematical concepts. A difficult theorem might unfold through an animat- ed story. A tricky algebraic idea could be introduced through music or a real-world situation. The platform caters to everyone—from schoolchildren discovering mathematics for the first time to aspirants preparing for IIT-JEE, Olympiads and other competitive examinations. Yet, Kumar insists the examinations themselves are not the focus. “If students understand mathematics deeply, the exams become much easier,” he says. Equally significant is, like Super 30, the platform is free. Kumar says years of personal investment have gone into building it because he believes quality education should never depend on a student’s financial circumstances. His classroom has grown from a room in Patna to a worldwide audience, his blackboard to a digital screen. And if Kumar has his way, students may finally discover that mathematics isn’t something to survive, it’s something to enjoy… c m y b CHAT UP MALLIKA’S TOM CRUISE CLAIM Mallika Sherawat made a surprise claim on The Traitors Season 2, telling fellow contestants that Tom Cruise has a crush on her and sends her videos from when they partied together. She called the actor “fabulous” during the exchange. Sherawat, who confirmed her single status in 2024, is part of the new Prime Video season hosted by Karan Johar, premiering August 13. URMILA SHARES CRYPTIC POST Urmila Matondkar’s ex husband Mohsin Akhtar Mir shared reception photos with new wife Nidhaa Bhatt. Hours later, Urmila posted a cryptic note about valuing love and loyalty.