05012022-LSTC-01.qxd 1/5/2022 12:29 AM Page 1 c m y b RGV SLAMS AP GOVERNMENT Director Ram Gopal Varma has slammed the Andhra Pradesh government on the movie ticket price issue. While no big director has spoken up regarding the issue, Ram Gopal Varma called out the AP government for imposing curbs on cinema ticket prices. IANS TRIBUNE Healthy thought Life Arjun Kapoor wants to start an initiative that provides a platform for the youth of the country to vocalise the health issues that they are facing. CHANDIGARH | WEDNESDAY | 5 JANUARY 2022 NET, FLICKS & MORE Mona Lost & found C HILDREN are a crushing responsibility... quite a straight forward, blunt truth, yet to be universally acknowledged. And as one juggles one’s career and motherhood, with dreams and aspirations of one’s own, it leaves scars that affect one’s life forever. Past and present merge in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut, The Lost daughter. THE LOST DAUGHTER Farhan Akhtar and Shibani Dandekar to get married in March 2022? Wedding bells While fans have been waiting for Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt’s wedding, we hear that Farhan Akhtar and Shibani Dandekar are also set to get married this year. The latest buzz suggests that the lovebirds Farhan and Shibani will be tying the knot in the month of March. The couple is looking for an intimate wedding because of the spike in Covid cases. A source says, “Farhan and Shibani are living together and they don’t want to delay their wedding amid the pandemic, and so, they thought to keep it an intimate affair.” — TMS They are fine now Prem Chopra & wife Uma test Covid positive Veteran actor Prem Chopra and his wife Uma have tested Covid positive. They are hospitalised in Mumbai and are recuperating. The two are currently admitted at Mumbai’s Lilavati hospital. The veteran actor, who has featured in several Bollywood films and is popular for his villainous roles, is being treated by Dr Jalil Parkar. According to reports, Prem and Uma are expected to be discharged in a day or two. Meanwhile, Jawaani Jaaneman fame Alaya F took to her Instagram on Monday and revealed that she had tested positive a week ago, and has now recovered from it completely. Alaya’s post read, “I had tested positive for Covid a week ago, I had no symptoms and nobody around me had any symptoms. I tested because I was to travel. I tested again on December 30 and that report turned out to be negative.” — TMS Whoopi Goldberg contracts the virus Goldberg’s health condition isn’t a cause for alarm at the moment Hollywood star Whoopi Goldberg has tested positive for Covid-19. Goldberg’s diagnosis was revealed by Joy Behar, one of her co-hosts on The View, during a broadcast on Monday. “Whoopi unfortunately tested positive before the break, but she’ll probably be back next week,” Behar shared. Behar also affirmed that Goldberg’s health condition isn’t a cause for alarm at the moment. “Since she’s vaccinated and boosted, her symptoms have been very, very mild. We’re being very cautious here at The View.” The View co-host Sunny Hostin also shared that her mother and herself had tested positive for Covid. —IANS Cast: Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, Jessie Buckley, Paul Mescal, Ed Harris Director: Maggie Gyllenhaal Rating: ★★★★ Prithviraj postponed Maggie Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut is a captivating and intriguing tale reinterpreting motherhood Based on Elena Ferrante’s book with the same name, the film opens with fairly dream vacay – an American professor of comparative literature, Leda Caruso (Olivia Colman), is in Greece on a working holiday. Tactile her perception is – feeling the wind on the face as she drives, touching the fruit, opting for cold wind over the air conditioner, with a foghorn blaring in background...Leda takes us all on her jaunt. Enjoying the sea and writing in sunny space, it’s going all well till she is made to share her space with a large, loud Greek family, specially young Nina (Dakota Johnson) and her daughter Elena (Athena Martin). The film flits between the past and present, Nina vis-àvis young Leda (Jessie Buckley) – with their demanding daughter (s) driving them mad. How a young mum walks the tightrope between one’s desires and dreams and daughters? Nina asks ‘if this ever passes’. Leda, in her days, made a difficult choice and is living its consequences. Her fascination with Nina, her daughter Elena and the doll Mina to the spells of dizziness; oscillating between happiness and sorrow, Leda we know is a woman with spunk. She stands up to bullying Greeks, accepts and admits her decision, owns up that ‘it was amazing’ to be on her own. To admit that she’s selfish and an ‘unnatural mother’ and yet holds the gumption to go back on her decision and make amends. Leda holds the film together. Each frame is a testimony to her impeccable act – wind on her face, peeling the fruit to one long string to soaking herself in the beach. She’s ably supported by Nina (Dakota Johnson), who personifies the struggle of a young mother – too occupied, too tired, caught between desire and duty. The flitting between past and present, smattering of Italian and Greek as W. H. Auden and W. B. Yeats mark their presence, lends a very literary hue to the film. Maggie Gyllenhaal, the screenplay writer, director and one of the producers of the film weaves a narrative that probably was waiting to be experienced as we all go through suffering and healing. Reinterpreting motherhood makes this story captivating, engaging and intriguing. However, it’s for adults only as there are scenes that Meet OTT debutants of 2022 Several Bollywood biggies are set to make their OTT debut in 2022 O TT has given actors an opportunity to dig into never-seen-before roles, showcase elaborate stories and has emerged as one of the biggest sources of entertainment in the pandemic. That’s the reason it has attracted some of the most celebrated names in Bollywood in recent times. After Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Manoj Bajpayee, Raveena Tandon and Abhishek Bachchan, to name a few, several other B-town celebs are set to make their OTT debut in 2022. Have a look: ADDITION TO THE FAMILY Shahid Kapoor Touted as one of the most talented actors of this generation, 2022 will see Shahid Kapoor mark his debut in the OTT space. The untitled project is being directed by the duo, Raj and DK, who have given India two super successful seasons of The Family Man. LOOKING BACK Aparshakti Khurana After having a successful 2021, Aparshakti Khurana is now all set to mark his OTT debut with Stardust in 2022. Vikramaditya Motwane’s web series is a fictitious representation of the Indian film industry from 1947 to 1989 and explores the clash between two superstars. EXOTIC FLAVOUR Aditya Roy Kapur Aditya Roy Kapur will next be seen in the Hindi remake of the Golden Globe winning show, The Night Manager. If sources are to be believed Aditya will portray the role of Tom Hiddleston in the series. It will be interesting to see how the makers will adapt and Indianise the show to suit our tastebuds. c m y b COP-Y THAT Ajay Devgn The Singham star, Ajay Devgn, is gearing up to set the OTT space on fire as he marks his entry with the release of Rudra-The Edge of Darkness on Disney+Hotstar this year. Playing a cop in the series, he is accompanied by Esha Deol, who plays an important role in the series. WOMEN POWER Juhi Chawla Headlined by Juhi Chawla and Ayesha Jhulka, Hush Hush on Amazon Prime Video, will be led by an all-women cast and crew. Apart from the two yesteryear stars, Soha Ali Khan, Karishma Tanna, Kritika Kamra and Sahana Goswami will also star in pivotal roles. With a unique female gaze at its core, the show will propel forward the movement of women telling their own stories. POWER-PUFFED GIRL Sonakshi Sinha Sonakshi Sinha will also mark her entry into the world of web through the release of her first OTT series on Amazon Prime Video’s Fallen. The series, directed by Reema Kagti and Ruchika Oberoi, also stars Vijay Varma and Gulshan Devaiah among others. Sonakshi will be seen playing a cop named Anjali Bhaati in this one. This is the first time we will be seeing her in such a role. FINDING A NEW ROLE Madhuri Dixit Finding Anamika on Netflix will mark Madhuri Dixit’s entry into the digital space. It revolves around a global superstar who suddenly disappears. As police and loved ones search for answers to her disappearance, her perfectly crafted facade is stripped away, revealing hidden truths and painful lies in the life of an iconic actress. — TMS bring out the raw passion. Helene Louvart’s deft cinematography and Dickon Hinchliffe’s music build the atmosphere of doom and gloom. Heartbreaking is Colman’s act as she says, ‘I was just playing’ and an unhappy childhood to guilty motherhood come together in that one statement. Watch the film for the sheer rawness of its interpretation of love and bonds! The film with an open ending that opened at Venice International Film Festival to a standing ovation is streaming on Netflix. Akshay Kumar-starrer Prithviraj that was scheduled to release on January 21 has been postponed due to the steep rise in Covid cases in India. A source said, “When you have a sure shot blockbuster at hand that will appeal to audiences across the country, you can’t gamble with such a huge product. Prithviraj will massively aid in bringing people back to the theaters and it can’t be released at a time when it won’t fulfill this purpose. Business wise too it doesn’t make sense to compromise a film that will rake in the moolah at the box-office. Prithviraj. The film Chandraprakash Dwivedi.—IANS A still from Prithviraj