06012023-LSTL-01.qxd 1/5/2023 11:10 PM Page 1 c m y b HINDI VERSION OF AKHANDA OUT A year after its Telugu release, producers Dr Jayantilal Gada of Pen Studios and Sajid Qureshi now bring to the audiences the Hindi version of action-drama film Akhanda, written and directed by Boyapati Srinu. Akhanda is a high-voltage entertainer that grossed Rs 120.8 crore at the box-office. TMS TRIBUNE I N a way, he is just another 24-year-old who wants to order food from Zomato in the middle of the night, have fun and be funny. But, of course, talented actor Babil Khan, son of hugely talented late Irrfan Khan, can’t afford to be and is certainly not just another youngster. Besides, the weight of a rich legacy, now there is the added pressure of newfound recognition. Post his debut in Qala, he is waking up to the fact, “I am not anonymous anymore.” Ideally, it should be a happy feeling but brings on its own set of challenges. Sure he has seen fame up, close and personal. After all his baba wasn’t just an incredible artiste but equally famous too. Didn’t the father hand him some lessons on how to handle fame? He laughs, “Well, to be honest he didn’t know how to handle it either. He would rather be in the middle of a forest on the top of an elephant than among a crowd cheering his name.” Sure Babil has literally grown up on sets and cinema in more ways than one runs in his blood. Subconsciously, he imbibed what he saw, “Mamma critiquing cinema and baba performing.” Akshay Kumar has reportedly walked out of Anand L Rai’s Gorkha after questions were raised about the authenticity of the story. TMS LUDHIANA | FRIDAY | 6 JANUARY 2023 ACTING IS SO IMMEDIATE AND PERSONAL. UNLIKE OTHER ART FORMS LIKE PAINTING OR SCULPTING, HERE YOU ARE CREATING WITH YOUR BODY. Nonika Singh Not done Babil Khan, son of late actor Irrfan Khan, who made his debut with Qala, has a grand legacy to shoulder. Yet, he only wants to be the best version of himself Faith & fortitude On the favourites’ list No shortcuts However, privilege of being Irrfan and Sutapa Sikdar’s son for him isn’t a short cut to success. “My parents would never ever use their connections to get me a break or a role.” Unsurprisingly, his debut has not been conventional lead hero type of part. He had no qualms in playing a smaller part in a heroine-led film. What made him say yes to Jagan’s part in Qala was simply its maker Anvita Dutt Guptan’s palpable passion. Length of the role didn’t matter for he has not been brought up on ‘I, me, myself’ individual brand of narcissism. To those who feel his part should have been lengthier, his wist- Going global SS Rajamouli honoured at New York Film Critics Circle Awards With the international award season in full swing, RRR has garnered a lot of nominations across major award shows, and SS Rajamouli accepted the award for Best Director at New York Film Critics Circle Awards on Wednesday. In his speech, the RRR director asserted that the win was not just for the film, but meant much more. He said, “You didn’t just honour my cast and crew, you made a lot of people take notice of a small film field in the South of India.” The director went on to state that while in India the audience screams and shouts in theatres when they enjoy a movie, he saw it for the first time in the West too with his film. He recounted, “With RRR, I saw the same kind of reception in the West. Whether it is in New York, LA or Chicago, when I went, initially, I thought most of them were Indians. But when I personally saw them, 90 per cent were non-Indians and they were reacting the same way Indians did.” — TMS RRR TICKETS SOLD IN 98 SECONDS! RRR was scheduled to be screened at the world’s biggest IMAX theatre and the tickets for the screening got sold out in a matter of 98 seconds! RRR was screened as a part of an initiative by Beyond Fest at Los Angeles’ Chinese Theatre. IANS that he wanted to be an actor he trained in filmmaking and script-writing from London. Probably, because, with an institution in acting at home he thought, a lifetime awaited him to learn from what many would deem is God of acting. Instead, life was ready to teach him some lessons through pain and death. As he looks back, as he misses baba each minute of the day, the most significant lesson he learnt from his father is, “How to have fun in anxious and painful situations.” Indeed, fear of not being as great as baba might have been the reason why he didn’t express his desire to be an actor sooner. A STILL FROM QALA ful response is, “I guess, I will never be able to play Jagan again, but that is the destiny of the character, created beautifully.” Of course, Anvita’s brief on how to play this vulnerable young singer, the reference to ‘God particle and lightness of being’ didn’t fully register with him. He says, “I guess it would take me years of maturity to fully comprehend what she truly envisioned.” So he played it with earnestness and innocence, the two qualities he doubts he will be able to retain once he learns his craft better. Actors, he believes, are malleable beings who change not only with every new character but also each storyteller. “The bond between the director and actor is very sacred. An actor can’t afford to walk into a film with a pompous feeling; I know it all.” Lesson for life Having been exposed to the art of cinema so early in life, acting wasn’t a difficult choice to make. Only, before he could find the courage to tell himself However, Irrfan is not his only role model in acting. Just hear Babil speak effusively about another fine actor Kay Kay Menon, his father’s contemporary and with whom he shall be seen in the upcoming web series The Railway Men. Babil gushes, “What a wonderful man Kay Kay sir is. While shooting for the series on Bhopal Gas tragedy, I would bombard him with questions. Even though he is playing a complex character and one part of his mind would be prepping for his role, another part was busy satiating my curiosity.” Yet another of his favourite people is Shoojit Sircar with whom he has signed a contract. Among his own age-group he is truly taken in by American actor Timothée Chalamet and how the Dune star has his priorities just right. At this point, Babil’s priorities are, “Transforming in line with final goals.” And one thing he has figured out is, “Be it father-son or two great actors, you just can’t compare. So I don’t have to be like baba, only the best version of myself.” Since ordinary mortals are unlikely to stop making fair or unfair comparisons, is he ready for the assessment? Not quite. But the actor, who is a part of Farhan Akhtar’s Friday Night Plan, is certainly driven by self-belief, “I have belief in myself that one day I will move people.” A few years down the line he simply aspires to be, “An evolved more self-aware version of myself.” Spoken like true Irrfan’s son, but with a mind of his own and one for whom acting is all about surrender. Rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh talks about his girlfriend Tina Thadani Yo Yo Honey Singh recently opened up about his girlfriend Tina Thadani and was more than willing to make their love story public. The singer shared, “The first time I met Tina was when we were in Dubai, before which we used to only talk and had not for some time to think about it. I was quite astounded by her reply. After sending her the song, she asked for a day more. I told her to take as much time as she needed. So, eventually I had to put in a lot of efforts to woo her and finally she agreed. She has drastically changed my life. She knew a little about my early life already.” Apparently, Tina is the one who gave the name Honey 3.0 to the singer’s album and she also gave Honey the title of ‘Phoenix’. He added, “I was unaware about the meaning of that word. So, she explained Phoenix meant the one who rose from the ashes. The thought of my album is based on this. She is such an amazing human being.” — TMS Personal note met in person. So, the first time when I met her in Dubai, we both were with our own group of friends and couldn’t talk much.” When Honey offered Tina his music video, he said, “I was planning to do a video and asked her if she wanted to be a part of it and she asked Teaser of Farzi released Shahid Kapoor’s digital debut project, Farzi’s teaser was dropped by OTT giant Prime Video on Wednesday. It has Shahid in a never-seenbefore avatar of an artist — a painter. In the teaser, Shahid can be seen painting while looking at the camera and saying that his life has entered a new stage as he questions the popularity of this period. He says, “But an artist is an artist, right?” as he closes the teaser with a wink. The Family Man fame Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D.K are directing the upcoming show. It will also feature Vijay Sethupathi, Raashi Khanna, Kay Kay Menon, Regina Cassandra, Zakir Hussain, Bhu- van Arora, Amol Palekar and Kubbra Sait. Shahid had earlier shared, “The choice to go on to the OTT platform was to break c m y b the trend and challenge myself. I have been doing this for almost 20 years, I need to feel challenged and excited.” — TMS Honest take Dave Bautista says making Guardians movies ‘wasn’t all pleasant’ Dave Bautista is fine saying goodbye to Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. The former-prowrestler-turned-actor currently stars in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and the upcoming M Night Shyamalan thriller Knock at the Cabin. In an interview, Bautista, 53, confirmed that Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, which will be in theatres on May 5, will be his last outing as his Marvel character Drax. “I’m so grateful for Drax. I love him. But there’s a relief (that it’s over). It wasn’t all pleasant,” he said. “It was hard playing that role. The makeup process was beating me down. I just don’t know if I want Drax to be my legacy it’s a silly performance, and I want to do more dramatic stuff.” —IANS Bholaa wrapped up The shooting for actor-filmmaker Ajay Devgn’s upcoming film Bholaa has been completed and it is slated to release on March 30 this year. The makers of the Ajay and Tabu-starrer on Thursday took to Instagram and announced that the film is currently in post-production phase. “Shooting has wrapped; the post-production frenzy has already begun. Remember, we have a date- March 30th in the theatres,’’ Ajay Devgn Fiilms posted on its official Instagram page. The film is produced by Ajay Devgn Fiilms, TSeries Films, Reliance Entertainment and Dream Warrior Pictures. Bholaa has been directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj. It reportedly tells the story of an exconvict, who decides to meet his daughter for the first time after being released from prison and gets trapped in serious situations. — IANS AJAY DEVGN Abhay Deol’s toughest ever role in Trial By Fire Abhay Deol will once again surprise the audience with his unique onscreen portrayal in the forthcoming drama Trial By Fire. It is based on the real-life incidents that followed the Uphaar fire tragedy in 1997. He plays the role of Shekhar Krishnamoorthy, a grief-stricken parent who loses two of his children in the incident. The real-life Shekhar co-authored the book Trial by Fire: The Tragic Tale of the Uphaar Fire Tragedy along with his wife Neelam. Meanwhile, Abhay Deol posted a picture of his look from the film on Instagram. He wrote, “Possibly the hardest role I’ve ever had to portray. A fire that left a trail of A hard task tragedies in its wake that Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy had to deal with over the two plus decades. It also stars Rajshri Deshpande, Anupam Kher, Ratna Pathak Shah, Ashish Vidhyarthi, among others. The film is slated to release on Netflix on January 13. — TMS