28062022-LSTC-01.qxd 6/27/2022 11:34 PM Page 1 c m y b TRIBUNE Surprise! Rapper Kanye West made a surprise appearance some three hours into the BET Awards on Sunday night to pay tribute to Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement award. IANS CHANDIGARH | TUESDAY | 28 JUNE 2022 Whither freedom? With the ban on late singer Sidhu Moosewala’s song SYL, which has already gone viral, artistes share how voices that matter should not be silenced THAT’S A WIN ‘Our baby… Coming soon’ Actress Alia Bhatt announces pregnancy Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor, who tied the knot in April 2022, are expecting their first child. The actress, who is currently in London shooting for her Hollywood film Heart Of Stone, took to social media and announced her pregnancy. Alia shared a photo with Ranbir where she is lying on a hospital bed. She is wearing a black shirt and Ranbir is by her side during what seems like an ultrasound test. Sharing the picture, Alia wrote, “Our baby…Coming soon.” As soon as the actress dropped the post, the comments’ section was filled with congratulatory messages from fans, friends, and colleagues from the industry. Karan Johar, Priyanka Chopra, Parineeti Chopra, Ishaan Khatter, Tiger Shroff, and Ranbir’s sister Riddhima Kapoor Sahni, among others, sent their best wishes to the pair. — TMS Know George Michael’s story The story depicts George Michael’s whirlwind public image as well as private life He came, he saw, he conquered! George Michael was a once-in-a-lifetime singing sensation. Be it Careless Whisper, Cowboys and Angels, or Heal the Pain, there isn’t a single title crooned by the legendary artiste that hasn’t won hearts all over the world. PVR Pictures has now brought his life story to the big screen with its latest release, George Michael Freedom Uncut, an exclusive documentary that gives a never-seen-before peep into the late pop icon’s life. Showcasing his turbulent period after Faith and the release of Listen Without Prejudice: Vol 1, the story depicts George’s whirlwind Lyricist and writer Gill Raunta on his Instagram story shared a screenshot of SYL and wrote, “This content is not available on this country domain due to a legal complaint from the government. Eh Vi Jitt aa Saadi (this is also our victory).” SYL is the first song released after the singer’s murder in broad daylight and it was supposed to mark the anniversary of Operation Blue Star in Punjab. The artistes’ death on May 29, followed by a prayer meet pushed it further. But the song managed to draw attention in just half-an-hour after it was uploaded, with more than 1 million views on YouTube. KNOW THE CONCERNS Sheetal T Among the netizens speaking against SYL, the lyrics where Sidhu hails pro-Khalistan outfit Babbar Khalsa’s militant Balwinder Singh Jattana as ‘Sikh Liberation Hero’ and the recent Nishan Sahib hoisting at the Red Fort, did not go down well with them. Also, the song opens from Aam Adami Party’s Rajya Sabha member Shushil Gupta’s recent statement, “Now we have a government in Punjab. In 2024, AAP will form government in Haryana too. In 2025, water will reach every farm in Haryana. This is not our promise, but our guarantee.” Which follows Sidhu’s USP of directly hitting and calling out what he believes is wrong. The singerturned actor did the same in songs such as Sanju and 295. WALA MOOSE SIDHU_ GRAM @ INSTA PHOTO: HE recent ban on Sidhu Moosewala’s song SYL, which was released on June 23 after his demise, very well answers the question as to why artistes often stay away from commenting on social issues, which become the topic of national debate. As Sidhu’s song creates waves among the masses for both right and wrong reasons, garnering 29 millions views and counting, and 3.3 million likes, we bring you the reaction of artistes who think banning songs is unjustified. TRUE MEANING SYL is all about Sidhu’s views on Punjab and Haryana sharing water through the Satluj-Yamuna Link and the controversy around it. But the song also manages to interlink other issues, including the 1984 riots, the recent farmers protests and more. Many have questioned Sidhu’s lyrics and the unreasonable demands, but others have volunteered to explain. Boxer Vijender Singh wrote on Facebook, “People are confused about Sidhu Moosewala’s SYL song’s line ‘Ona chir pani chaddo, tupka nahi deede as referring to not giving a drop of water to Haryana. Also the line ‘Saanu sadda pichhokadd, te sadda laana de deyo, ho Chandigarh Himachal te Haryana de deyo’ seems confusing. In the beginning, he is talking about staying united as a family and next line he uses the English word ‘sovereignty’. That means unite our family (state) and give sovereignty. We will solve our own issue. There is another line in this song Kyun paggaan naal khahanda firdaan, topi waleya’ (why cap-wearers are fighting with turbans). This also needs to be understood. Don’t look at turban by connecting it with Sikhism, turban is also considered very important in Haryana and Rajasthan. And these are the leaders with caps, who make us fight among ourselves…” Film director Stalinveer Singh Sandhu reshared Vijender’s post and wrote, “This is overwhelming! Prudence exhibited by Olympian boxer #VijenderSingh who hails from Haryana but pride of his Punjabi roots. He clarified the confusion to Haryanvi people about #SidhuMoosewalas’s #SYL song. That song talks about the reunion of Punjab and Haryana in the first place. If that happens then there is no scope for divisive politics. We need more such sane voices in Haryana and Punjab.” KAPIL SHARMA PAYS TRIBUTE TO MOOSEWALA Kapil Sharma, who is currently in Vancouver with his team, paid a heartfelt tribute to Sidhu Moosewala. The ace comedian sang Sidhu’s song on the stage, leaving the crowd emotional as they heard him in silence. FANS & FAMILY Singer and actor, Madhur Sethi shares, “His family lost their only son and contrary to supporting them, banning the first song after his murderis a very discouraging act. Banning is not the solution.” ‘Cease this verbal abuse’ Heart’s wish... KK’s daughter reacts to hate messages aimed at his team public image as well as private life. It documents him falling in true love and eventually losing both his lover and mother to the cruel hands of death. What makes the documentary a unique and special watch is the intricate involvement of Michael in its making till his tragic demise in 2016. The film features timeless duets with George’s favourite artistes, apart from other rare archival footage. It also includes unseen clips from one of his most popular music videos, Freedom! ’90, directed by Oscar-nominated David Fincher. The documentary was released in cinemas last Friday, June 25. —TMS Singer KK’s death came as a shock to his fans. However, his team has been receiving a lot of hate messages on social media after his demise. Now, KK’s daughter Taamara has urged those indulging in such acts to refrain from such acts. Taamara shared a picture of the team with KK and posted a note on social media: “All of dad’s fans are sending his immediate family their love and support. However, every moment dad wasn’t with us, he was with his second family, as he used to call them. Please don’t spread hate...” She added, “...I’m very grateful that even though dad didn’t have us on his last day, he had them with him. These are the people that dad himself wholeheartedly trusted and loved, and are a big reason why dad became who he was. If you loved dad so much, don’t you trust who he trusted? I implore everyone to cease this verbal abuse or abuse of any kind, and if you spot it please take a stand and speak up against it. Be kind—Jyothy, Nakul and Taamara.” —TMS KK WITH HIS TEAM c m y b South-Indian star Arun Vijay has always excited his fans with something unique and original. Recently, he pushed the release of his film Yaanai from June 17 to July 1, as his way of paying respect to Kamal Haasan and his film Vikram: Hitlist. The actor received a lot of love from fans all over the world for his sweet gesture. Arun, who is known for his character Vishwank Roy in Saaho, expressed how he would love to do more projects in Bollywood. He says, “I had a great time shooting for Saaho and Bollywood fans loved my character. I cannot wait to do another project here. I would love to work with Rajkumar Hirani, Sanjay Leela Bansali and Rohit Shetty in Bollywood. I have seen all of their films. They have an eye for amazing content, and together we can surely bring something entertaining for the audiences.” —TMS First look of Ek Villain Returns As the action thriller Ek Villain Returns gears up for a theatrical release on July 29, makers of this gripping franchise launched the first look posters on Monday. They comprise an ensemble cast—John Abraham, Arjun Kapoor, Disha Patani and Tara Sutaria. The dark and intense posters set the precedent for all that the audience can expect in the upcoming multi-starrer. The posters feature the star-cast in nefarious avatars with the famous Ek Villain Returns smiley mask and the slogan: ‘Heroes don’t exist’. This Mohit Suridirectorial races for a theatrical release eight years after its first installment. With high-octane action sequences, along with major twists in its plot, the second installment of Ek Villain seems to be quite promising. The film has been directed by Mohit Suri, and jointly produced by T-Series and Balaji Telefilms. — TMS The film has been directed by Mohit Suri, and jointly produced by T-Series and Balaji Telefilms