19022021-LSTL-01.qxd 2/18/2021 11:45 PM Page 1 c m y b TRIBUNE Dr Madhavan R Madhavan has been conferred the degree of Doctor of Letters for his contribution to arts and cinema, by the DY Patil Education Society. LUDHIANA | FRIDAY | 19 FEBRUARY 2021 ‘My focus is on social issues’ New address Pooja Hegde buys a swanky sea-facing apartment in Bandra Pooja Hegde has become a proud owner of a swanky 3 BHK, sea-facing apartment in Bandra. This is the first house that she has bought on her own and will be living independently while she will also be close to her parents’ house. A source close to the actress shared, “Pooja considers this house her baby, with the amount of effort she has put into every aspect of it, from designing to selecting materials to day-to-day supervision, being a part of it all.” Meanwhile, on work front, this year Pooja will be seen opposite Ranveer Singh in Cirkus, opposite Salman Khan in Kabhi Eid Kabhi Diwali and opposite Prabhas in Radhe Shyam. Give him red! Varun Sharma had fun sporting red hair in Roohi Actor Varun Sharma has opened up on sporting flaming red hair in the upcoming horror-comedy movie Roohi. He calls it new, quirky and fun. Varun, who is known for his comic timing, is in his elements in the trailer of the film that released recently. He dons a spooky makeup with blood running down his face, plus the red hair. Talking about his hair, Varun said that it was “a collective call” taken by the team to render a certain uniqueness to his character. “It was (writer-producer) Mrighdeep Singh Lamba, (producer) Dinesh Vijan, (writer) Gautam Mehra and (director) Hardik Mehta’s idea to try something quirky and fun. The red hair completely aced the look and everyone liked it. I have been receiving a lot of calls and messages about my hair. People are really liking it. I am glad that the effort have paid off,” said Varun. —IANS Kamakhya Narayan Singh, who made critically-acclaimed film Bhor, now takes his crusade for good content to his next, a film on Kashmir Gurnaaz Kaur A FTER receiving critical acclaim at more than 30 film festivals, including Cairo International Film Festival, International Film Festival of India (Goa), Indo-Berlin Film Week (Berlin) and Melbourne India Film Festival, Bhor is now trending on social media since its release on MX player. With women empowerment and sanitation issues of rural India at the heart of its story, it also offers an interesting take on the caste system. Its director Kamakhya Narayan Singh, who debuts in the realm of feature films with Bhor, says, “The film is about the Musahar community in Bihar. Even among SCs, they fall in the lowest strata; so when education, sanitation and political power reaches them, how they react to such modern campaigns makes the story. Bhor for me is a fresh morning for people who have been into darkness for ages.” The film revolves around Budhni, a girl from the Musahar community who dreams to pursue her education despite her marriage below the legal age and how she fights all odds to build a toilet for sanitation. Born and brought up in Assam, Kamakhya’s roots lie in Bihar where he spent his summer vacations every year and interacted with the community regularly. After studying social work, he delved deeper into their ❝ BEING A FIRST-TIME FILMMAKER, IT WAS DIFFICULT FOR ME TO RELEASETHE FILM, SO I CHOSE TO GO TO FESTIVALS. KAMAKHYA NARAYAN SINGH The girl talks ❝ NOT EVERYBODY GETS A MIXED BAG OF OFFERS. EVERYBODY TENDS TO GET SOMETHING IN THE SAME WORLD. WE MUST BE GRATEFUL FOR OPPORTUNITIES LIKE THESE, WHERE YOU CAN CHANGE THINGS. that for me was a big achievement.” In an industry which relies on convenient casting, the actor said roles such as “The Girl on The Train” must be acknowledged. “Not everybody gets a mixed bag of offers. Everybody tends to get something in the same world. We must be grateful for opportunities like these, where you can change things up and surprise people,” she said. The Ribhu Dasgupta film will be her first project where the actor will essay a character dealing with grief and emotional complexities. Chopra said she worked hard on the character which was in an unfamiliar territory. Reality TV star Kim Kardashian has covered herself with just peonies for her latest picture post on social media. In an Instagram picture Kim posted on Wednesday evening, she is covered with pink peonies, and she shared a “powerful” message in the caption. The star is also seen flaunting her iconic contoured face with smoky eyes and dark lips. Alongside the image, which currently has 1.5 million likes, she wrote: “Flower Power”. —IANS A STILL FROM BHOR People tend to cast actors in roles they’ve done before, says Bollywood actress Parineeti Chopra Bollywood star Parineeti Chopra says actors tend to get cast based on their previous work when all they want is to do roles where they can “change things up” and surprise viewers. The 32-year-old actor said she was not the obvious choice for her upcoming thriller The Girl on The Train, which is why it felt liberating to play Mira Kapoor, a complex woman struggling with grief and alcoholism, in the thriller. “It is rare to get roles that you might have not played before because people tend to cast you for the things that they have seen on-screen. So when you’re writing a script, you go ‘Oh I want this character, so let’s go to that actor because that person has done it in a film’,” Chopra said. The Girl on the Train, written by Paula Hawkins, has already been adapted in Hollywood in 2016 with actor Emily Blunt playing the lead role. Chopra, who has featured in romantic dramas such as Ishaqzaade, Shuddh Desi Romance, Hasee Toh Phasee and Meri Pyaari Bindu, said she saw the role as a big opportunity in her career. “I was grateful that the makers had that confidence in me that I would be able to do this part. I was not the obvious casting for the role, Kim showcases ‘flower power’ “With her, no two scenes are the same. She has a new problem in every scene, has a different relationship with every character in the film. Depending on who is standing opposite me, I was a different person. That was so exciting because I felt like I was playing five girls in one. There are layers of alcoholism, being mentally messed up,” she said. The film features an ensemble of Aditi Rao Hydari, Kirti Kulhari and Avinash Tiwari. What made Chopra’s experience on the film unique was the willingness of her co-stars to push themselves and interpret characters that are already familiar to viewers through the book and the Hollywood original. “Sometimes people come with a lax attitude. Because they’ve done the same thing a thousand times, they just give their shot and leave. But here were really hungry actors, who would be willing to give multiple takes, not get worried about getting physically exhausted. Everyone was raw and genuine,” she said. The Girl on The Train is scheduled to release on Netflix on February 26. —PTI c m y b issues. “They are very poor but very happy people. They aren’t bothered about anything. There is conflict but they are not complicated.” Bhor has not only travelled to various film festivals but has also won the best director award at Ottawa Indian Film Festival and two awards at Caleidoscope Indian Film festival of Boston. Appreciated for its realistic portrayal, it stars Nalneesh Neel, Devesh Rajan, Saveri Sree Gaur and Punya Prasun Bajpai. “Being a first-time filmmaker, it was difficult for me to find a person who could simply release it, so I chose to go to film festivals to get Bhor tested by critics. Having said that, I think every film is a commercial film because money goes into making it. Mine has lesser-known stars but they are passionate actors.” Already working on his next film, Kamakhya says it’s a geo-political film on Kashmir. “I will always make films that are content-driven and focus on social issues.” So, whether it is a theatrical or OTT release, he leaves his consumers to call the shots. “Content has now been democratised with OTT. Now, you can make content and put it on the OTT platform and other platforms where people can watch it. People are empowered to choose what they want. Earlier, people used to complain about exhibitors stopping the film or some lobbies working against some film; today you have the power to make films and show it to people directly. The independence is visible and it is quite a boon.” A drama series on Maharani Gayatri Devi of Jaipur If ever there was to be a biographical narrative with all the elements of a world-class drama series, and yet remain exotic, larger than life, even bordering on the fantastical, then there wouldn’t be a subject better than the life of Maharani Gayatri Devi of Jaipur. The erstwhile regent of Jaipur and later a Guinness world record-holder Parliamentarian is the visual representation of the grandiose life and times of India’s modern royal families. She is known for her style and chutzpah. More than a decade after her demise, her grandchildren Maharaj Devraj Singh and Rajkumari Lalitya have entrusted the adaptation of her phenomenal life story to screen. In a joint statement, A royal treat DEVRAJ SINGH Devraj and Lalitya said, “We are excited to see the life of our grandmother Maharani Gayatri Devi getting translated into a drama series by Juggernaut Productions and Pranjal Khandhdiya. We believe that HE GETS GOING Diljit Dosanjh turns producer with Honsla Rakh Actor, singer, songwriter and television presenter, Diljit Dosanjh has now turned film producer as he launches his production company Story Time Productions. He has even shared the shoot of his very first film as a producer. The movie is Honsla Rakh and the shoot has begun in Vancouver, Canada. Honsla Rakh is a Punjabi feature film starring Diljit himself along with Sonam Bajwa and Shehnaaz Gill. This will be Shehnaaz Gill’s first feature film after her stint in Bigg Boss 13. The film also stars Shinda Grewal, the son of Gippy Grewal, and it will be released in cinema halls this Dusshera on October 15. Diljit took to his Twitter handle on Thursday and shared the first-look poster of this film. The actor is seen carrying a baby. LALITYA her life-story should to be told by people who are truly passionate and whose vision is to create the show on a grand scale. We hope that they will do justice to inspire millions of audiences.” The star flaunts her iconic contoured face with smoky eyes and dark lips