03022023-LSTC-01.qxd 03-02-2023 00:30 Page 1 c m y b TRIBUNE New turf Actor Aarya Babbar is all set to make his debut as a director in his new short film Pill Hai Ke Manta Nahi. It is produced by Babbar House and Parmar Productions. IANS CHANDIGARH | FRIDAY | 3 FEBRUARY 2023 Grand scale Deepika and Prabhas starrer Project K will be a two-part film SANJAY DUTT Sheetal ‘Give him a chance’ Will Smith should be forgiven, says tennis star Serena Williams Tennis legend Serena Williams has said Hollywood star Will Smith should be forgiven for the ‘mistake ’ of slapping Chris Rock at the Oscars last year. The 41year-old tennis legend referred to the infamous moment when the King Richard star hit the comedian Chris Rock after he joked about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith at the Academy Awards last year. Serena is adamant that the actor should be given the chance to atone for his ‘mistake’. Serena, whose rise to the top of the sporting world was documented in the film, regretted how the slap overshadowed Will’s Oscar triumph and that of Summer of Soul, which won the Best Documentary Feature Award directly after the shocking incident. She shared, “I thought it was such an incredible film… I’ve been under a lot of pressure and made many mistakes… But that’s not the end of the world.’” Smith was banned from the Oscars for 10 years as a result of the slap, but the 23-time Grand Slam winner said he deserves the opportunity to redeem himself. Serena said: “We’re all imperfect and we’re all human and let’s just be kind to each other.” — IANS It is the worst feeling to be told one day that one has cancer, and when celebs are involved the news spreads like wildfire. But many of them have not only won their battle against the deadly disease, but also shared their ‘battle against cancer’ stories to motivate others. From Anurag Basu talking candidly about if in a chat show to Manisha Koirala writing a book, here is knowing a few. Family man Actor Sanjay Dutt’s life was made into a biopic Sanju. And just after he got back into films as well as family life with wife Manyata Dutt and twins, Shahraan and Iqra, he got diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer (August 2020). Recently, on January 13, the actor opened up about it at an event alongside his doctor Dr Sewanti Limaye. He said, “I have a history of cancer in my family. My mom died of pancreatic cancer, and my wife (Richa Sharma) died of brain cancer. So, the first thing I said was that, I don’t want to take chemotherapy. If I’m supposed to die, I will just die but I don’t want any treatment.” And the actor confessed how he undertook chemotherapy for the sake of his family. Book story Manisha Koirala recovered from Stage 4 Ovarian cancer and travelled to the US for treatment at Memorial Sloan Kettering. LISA RAY SONALI BENDRE Power of the will been quite vocal about her treatment, recovery and post recovery feelings. Actress Chhavi Mittal, who survived breast cancer, recently shared a picture with stitch marks on her back. She wrote, “This is what I earned this year. A new life. A better one. A stronger one.” Being brave MANISHA KOIRALA The actress, who called cancer the metaphor for all that was wrong in her life, authored a book with Neelam Kumar titled Healed: How Cancer Gave Me A New Life. In the same way, cricketer Yuvraaj Singh narrated his battle with cancer in The Test of My Life: From Cricketer to Cancer and Back the autobiography written along with Nishant Jeet Arora and Sharda Ugra. Sharing is caring Rupert Grint says filming Harry Potterwas ‘suffocating’ Honest take (L-R) Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint before the filming of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in 2002 Actor Rupert Grint gained the spotlight after starring in the film adaptations of the Harry Potter book series. He was only 11 years old when he was cast and was 22 years old by the time the film series ended. In a recent interview, Grint said taking on the role of Ron Weasley was not easy and that he found filming ‘suffocating’. “For Potter it was filming all year, then we’d promote the rest of the time. It was quite suffocating,” he said. Grint said by the end of the Harry Potter saga, “I wanted a break, to reflect on everything...I think we finished at the right time. If we continued, it could’ve gone downhill.” The actor reflected on the similarities his fictional character had with him personally. At the time of his casting, Grint said: “I was feeling the difficulty of being seen, being overshadowed. In the movies, we merged into one. By the end of it, I was playing myself. The lines were blurred.” However, Grint is grateful for the opportunities Harry Potter brought his way. — IANS Sonali Bendre was diagnosed with metastatic cancer in 2018 and underwent RAKESH ROSHAN Legal battle Nawazuddin Siddiqui and his wife Aaliya Siddiqui are caught in a legal battle, wherein the latter claimed that the actor has been torturing her. Now, Aaliya’s lawyer Rizwan Siddiqui has released a statement on the issue. The statement read, “Mr. Nawazuddin Siddiqui and his family members did everything possible to remove my client Mrs. Aaliya Siddiqui from the house. They filed an untenable criminal complaint of trespass against her. Thereafter, through the police they threatened to arrest her and were calling her each day to the police station after sunset.” The lawyer also posted a video of him giving the statement on social media. He added, “Mr. Nawazuddin ANURAG BASU treatment for the same. She never shied away from sharing pictures from her hair-loss journey because of chemotherapy, and also disclosed the books that inspired her to survive cancer. About two months back in December, 2022, Sonali posted pictures where she is seen practicing yoga and wrote, “A much needed, reviving yoga session with the one and only @eddiestern… Thank you Eddie for doing this with us… surrounded by the beach, with like-minded friends…” Looking back Model-actress Lisa Ray has also Director and producer Tahira Kashyap in October, 2022, shared the stage with American psychiatrist Dr Robert Waldinger at ‘The Circle of Happiness’, where she spoke about surviving breast cancer. She said, “I did have breast cancer. But I cannot say that my problem is bigger than someone who’s having a financial problem or a relationship problem. Problems aren’t bigger or smaller, it all depends upon one’s life state. If a person’s life state is strong, they can brave any situation.” While she had mentioned about her run-in with cancer in her book The 12 Commandments Of Being A Woman, there’s another audiobook, My Ex Breast, a sevenepisode series from Audible Suno, in which she takes you on an intimate journey through a mad storm called breast cancer. Aaliya Siddiqui’s lawyer issues statement against Nawazuddin Siddiqui and his family members have in the last seven days ensured that no food, no bed, and no bathroom was given to my client... Despite being stopped and threatened at multiple levels and no police officer coming to the aid of my client, my team managed to obtain signatures. Accordingly, multiple cases are being filed in the courts now.” — TMS Is Mohanlal’s upcoming film a copy of Pathaan? With South Indian superstar Mohanlal all set to reunite with his Drishyam director Jeethu Joseph for ‘Ram’, a comparison between the film and Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan surfaced online after the alleged plot of their upcoming project was leaked on social media. “The film c m y b Rumour mill PHOTO: TWITTER TAHIRA KASHYAP As we approach World Cancer Day tomorrow, here are celebrities who have fought the disease and inspired others too focuses on the efforts of RAW to track down an agent and former spy of the organization, Ram Mohan, who went rogue and disappeared...,” read the tweet. However, after the tweet, several Twitter users started comparing it with the plot of Pathaan. — ANI Big budget sci-fi film Project K for which three talented actors — Amitabh Bachchan, Prabhas, and Deepika Padukone — have joined hands will be a two-part film. Filmmaker Nag Ashwin will helm the project and all the actors will be in never-beforeseen avatars. The makers have been creating quite a buzz after releasing the poster. The first part of the film has already been shot and they are working on the second. A source close to the project shared, “The vision and plot point of Project K is so big that the makers have decided to make it a two-part film. While the first part will establish the world and conflict of this magnum opus, entire drama will unfold in the second half, much like what happened in the Baahubali franchise. Project K also celebrates 50 years of producers Vyjayanthi Movies.” It is simultaneously being shot in Hindi and Telugu. — TMS