28082023-LSTC-01.qxd 8/27/2023 10:04 PM Page 1 c m y b TRIBUNE Goodbye... Preity Zinta paid tribute to her late FIL Jon Swindle. “Dear Jon, I will miss your warmth, your kindness & your incredible sense of humour..” she posted. — ANI CHANDIGARH | MONDAY | 28 AUGUST 2023 ‘I love exploring’ Mona Hollywood takes note of the success of Gadar 2 & its strong lead Sunny Deol Just out of the success of his Gadar 2, Sunny Deol is grabbing headlines all round. The beeline at his office has started again after almost two decades to sign him up. After all, heroes like Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn and Aamir Khan are all knocking on the sixties and have been ruling the roost in the Hindi film industry. Unfortunately, lately their careers have remained fickle. Consistency is lacking in the box-office outcome of their films. Just when the filmmakers contemplate giving up on them, they turn up one successful film which gives them another couple of years of career extension. Of course this success enjoys the added advantage of inflated box-office figures. Let alone the public, but even other filmmakers get taken in by these! Sunny was a sought-after actor, launched with his home production, Betaab, in 1983, a hit, and then consolidating his career with another love story, Sohni Mehwal. He came up with an intermittent big hit such as Tridev, Ghayal, Narsimha and Damini. In the year 1989, he had as many as eight new releases and in 1993, seven titles. While he has stayed consistent with films, mega success has come to Sunny Deol after a long time with Gadar 2. They say in a human’s life cycle, fortune favours twice. That is the belief of Indian horoscopy. So, fate gives you an opportunity to avoid past mistakes and also erase them. Sunny recently has given an interview to a Hollywood publication. Now that they have noticed our industry, it has become the first step to draw the attention. In his interview talking about Gadar 2, Sunny says, “It has become an Indian Marvel hero.” He probably meant HE has become one. Well, the gateway to Hollywood will need more than just one interview. But if it works he is the one who fits the Marvel hero slot. — IANS GADAR 2 BECOMES THIRD HIGHEST-GROSSING HINDI FILM Sunny Deol’s Gadar 2 continue to achieve new heights as the movie has now become the third highest-grossing Hindi film. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), trade analyst Taran Adarsh shared, “Crosses KGF 2, next Baahubali 2’… After crossing *lifetime biz* of #Dangal, #Gadar2 overtakes #KGF2 #Hindi… #Gadar2 is now THIRD HIGHEST GROSSING #Hindi film in #India.” Gadar 2 has already entered the 400 crore club and Sunny Deol expressed his gratitude by recording a video while on a flight. He just took to his Instagram handle and thanked moviegoers for showering love. In the video, Sunny said “First and foremost thank you all. I never imagined you guys would like Gadar 2 so much. We have crossed 400 crores because of you all.”— ANI REUTERS HUMBLE PRAYERS Jessica makes a comeback Chandigarh holds a special place in Manjari Fadnis’ heart not only because she shot here for a month for the thriller Masoom and falling in love with its food and warm people, but also because it is close to her childhood love - Shimla. The current troubled times that the hill state is going through has Manjari anxious. “It’s so sad to see those videos of devastation; my heart goes out to everyone dealing with it.” Art of craft that I am getting challenging and complex characters to play. The Freelancer brought her way one such role. “Getting into the cast was a longdrawn process, and the shortlisted candidates were all these amazing actors, I am so glad it came my way,” says Manjari. In the series, she plays her husband’s anchor and also a woman who is emotionally vulnerable and in a delicate state due to a past trauma. In awe of Neeraj Pandey, who is the creator of the show, Manjari says, “He is so sure on what he wants from an actor and commands so much love and respect on the sets. In fact, this whole team was amazing and a pleasure to work with.” The show is directed by Bhav Dhulia, who has much loved Khakee: The Bihar Chapter to his credit. Manjari gushes, “I have seen Bhav Dhulia’s Khakee before and he’s totally outdone himself in The Freelancer.” Life of an actor is way more than just working on the sets. Says Manjari, “Even when not on a set, an actor is constantly working on self, on the craft.” While she is enjoying the busy current phase with multiple projects in different stages, in free time she loves to cook, read and work on her singing. “I am trying my hands at the piano these days, and trying music that I can sing and play at the same time,” she avers. While The Freelancer, based on the book A Ticket To Syria, drops in September on Disney+Hotstar, Manjari has her hands full with film Chalti Rahe Zindagi, which is enjoying a good response at festivals; a thriller Pune Highway and an Abbas Mastan film, Penthouse. American singer and actor Jessica Simpson makes a comeback after a long hiatus from music. She opened up about the support she gets from her children, “Its crazy, the responsibility to feel as a parent, but really I look to them and they teach me so much. They’re teaching me to be brave,” she added.” — ANI ANI TV game show host Bob Barker passes away at 99 Emmy Award-winning game show host Bob Barker, who spent five decades with The Price Is Right, passed away at the age of 99. “It is with profound sadness that we announce that the World’s Greatest MC who ever lived, Bob Barker has left us,” publicist Roger Neal said in a statement on Saturday. Before Alex Trebek surpassed him, Barker was listed in the Guinness Book of An ode to nature American choreographer Derek Hough marries Hayley Erbert in a redwood forest Manjari Fadnis, who will soon be seen in The Freelancer, says due to the OTT boom, she is getting challenging and complex characters to essay The Dancing with the Stars contestants, Derek Hough and Hayley Erbert tied the knot in Monterey County, California, on Saturday in front of 106 guests. “We’re in a redwood forest, but we got married right in front of this mother tree that’s surrounded by all these smaller trees,” Erbert said in an interview. “They drop all the seeds, and it plants kind of like an army of children to protect the mother. We’re here, planting our seeds to grow our family.” The event began on Thursday with a welcoming party at a lovely cliffside estate in Carmel. “It’s one of the most breathtaking places,” said Hough. “It’s like a fairytale.” The following day, the happy pair hosted a garden rehearsal dinner with family, friends, and the wedding party. Hough, 38, described the event as “a big love fest”. “Northern California kind of spoke out to us. We wanted people to experience this place that we love, this nature, but also, it just feels incredibly romantic.” — ANI World Records for his continuous hosting of game shows and doling out hundreds of millions of dollars in cash and prizes. In June 2007, Barker announced his retirement after 35 years of hosting The Price Is Right, the longest-running game show in television history. Barker was a strong advocate for animal rights, and donated millions of dollars to animal neutering programs. Steve is sorry Television host Steve Harvey recently faced backlash over his tweet about comedians who are not funny “at all”. The post, which was shared on his page last week, asked followers to name a comedian they don’t “find funny at all.” And now Harvey issued an apology, claiming an employee posted a tweet from the actor’s Twitter page. “Somebody that works for me on my Twitter put a statement out that was totally negative,” he began in a minute-long video message posted to social media. “I gotta take responsibility for it cause they work for me.” The Family Feud host, 66, added that he would never tweet anything like that because his whole brand is to be motivational. — ANI c m y b ANI India’s Marvel hero F OR Manjari Fadnis, the role of Mrunal Kamath is a wish come true! Not only does it get her a chance to work with Neeraj Pandey, who was forever on her wish list of makers to work it, but also fetches her a challenging and complex character to essay! To be seen as Mrunal Kamath, wife of the protagonist in The Freelancer (played by Mohit Raina), Manjari opens up about her latest role and journey in the entertainment world. An Army kid, Manjari has not just lived across the length and breadth of the country but also worked in different languages – Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, apart from her mother tongue, Marathi, and of course Hindi. “My Army upbringing gave me the adaptability to change home every three years; get into a new school, make friends all over again.” All this growing up training came handy when Manjari joined the film industry and offers came by. “I love exploring different cultures and languages. Each new movie project gets me excited, and gives me chance to learn and adapt to a new language and culture,” says the Jaane Tu...Ya Jaane Na actress. Close to a decade-and-a-half plus in the industry, it’s only now that Manjari feels she is getting the kind of roles she wanted to play. “Attribute it to the OTT boom or changing landscape of the entertainment industry, it’s only now He was known for ending his shows by saying, “And remember folks, always spay or neuter your pets!” Barker held a weekday TV job continuously for 51 years, which included his years on Truth or Consequences. He won 19 Emmy Awards in total, including 14 for game show host, more than any other performer. He also won four for executive producer of The Price Is Right and received a lifetime achievement Emmy for Daytime Television in 1999. Despite occasionally playing himself (like in the 1996 Adam Sandler film Happy Gilmore), he never performed as an actor, which he attributed to his popularity. He frequently brought his pets to the studio, and his shows were a family affair that were produced by his first wife, Dorothy Jo Gideon, his high school sweetheart, until her death from cancer in 1981. With his resonant speaking voice, he decided to pursue a career in radio after college and tried a number of different positions before settling on audience-participation programming. After working in Florida, he moved to California, where he hosted The Bob Barker Show from 1950 through 1956, when he was tapped by Ralph Edwards, who wanted a daytime host for his show Truth or Consequences. — ANI Problems, problems Iggy Azalea forced to cut her Saudi Arabia gig short after a wardrobe malfunction Popular Australian rapper Iggy Azalea says she was forced to cancel her gig in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia due to a wardrobe malfunction when her pants to split open on stage. The Problems rapper, (33), was supposed to do a full headline slot at esports and gaming event Gamers8 at Boulevard Riyadh City, though the gig was cut short due to the incident. Following this incident, she took to X (formerly Twitter) and explained why she had to cut her gig short. “Saudi Arabia please know to everyone at the show tonight… I LOVE YOU,” the Work artiste wrote. “And I’m soooooo sorry I wasn’t allowed to finish my show. It’s not the promoter who put on the show’s fault so show them kindness because they are amazing people and we all wanted to continue but were not allowed by authorities because of my pants splitting.” She added when she shouted during the gig, “Ladies make some noise, it’s a woman’s world!” it “apparently sent the authorities over the edge” — signing off, “Lol.” Iggy also concluded, “I’m cool I just didn’t want the fans to be sad or angry at the show organisers cause it wasn’t their control or mine it (sic)”. Posting a slideshow of herself on Instagram, the rapper captioned: “Saudi Arabia… Wasssssss…. probably the worst possible place to have my pants split and unfortunately I wasn’t permitted to end the show.” “BUT silver lining. The promoters were amazingly kind to me and the PEOPLE who came were the absolute most supportive. I love you guys this was not what I intended for the show but it’s a memory I’ll have forever and ultimately showed me how kind, loving and supportive people can be while you’re having such an embarrassing moment”, she added. It is unclear if Azalea plans to reschedule her show. — IANS