29092023-LSTC-01.qxd 9/28/2023 10:27 PM Page 1 c m y b Tabu believes it is a challenging, yet beautiful experience to play a character with depth TRIBUNE Stay fit Actor Sonu Sood on Thursday flaunted his physique in a social media post, giving a glimpse of his early morning workout, flanked by his manager. CHANDIGARH | FRIDAY | 29 SEPTEMBER 2023 They’re the ‘anxieted’lot! today and all the work that I am doing is because everyone got a chance to see my work as Choocha in the film.” Manjot Singh, who was recently seen in Dream Girl 2, expresses what it’s like to be a turbanRICHA CHADHA clad actor in the industry. “From when I did my first film till now, there have been multiple occasions where I’ve rejected roles because I’ve been asked to give up on my turban. I joined this industry with the clarity that I will never comproMANJOT SINGH mise on my identity.” Coming back to his character in the film, Lali, Manjot says, “Many people can relate to my character or would identify someone in their family as Lali. That’s what makes it so special for me.” Gurnaaz Kaur T HE Fukrey franchise has been a hit among audiences and now, fans get to see their beloved characters — Choocha (Varun Sharma), Hunny (Pulkit Samrat), Bholi Punjaban (Richa Chadha), Lali (Manjot Singh) — reunite in Fukrey 3. Excited for their movie, the Fukrey gang gets candid about their journey of playing these quirky characters. Talking about the chemistry they share in Fukrey, the four actors say, “It cannot be forced or rehearsed.” Adding to the thought, Richa Chadha says, “Because we were so raw and so new when we started out. We did not just grow up together, but also grew together in our careers. We’ve seen each other through ups and downs, and that really strengthens the bond.” As Fukrey 3 rolls out, the cast, including Varun Sharma, Pulkit Samrat, Richa Chadha and Manjot Singh, is going through mixed emotions — excitement and anxiety LAYERS CHARACTER CALLING Playing Bholi Punjaban, a character that oozes confidence, Richa says, “If you look at the history of cinema, there are archetypes that are followed, but I don’t know which archetype this character will fall under. She is not just all rage, she is also very manipulative, she has a wicked sense of humour…I find it really amazing to play Bholi Punjaban. She has zero sophistication, her style is her own, she doesn’t care what people think about her. She is just who she is and that’s very attractive about the character.” As the movie reaches the big screen, Pulkit Samrat and the gang have coined a new term — ‘anxieted’. Explaining it, he says, “We are experiencing mixed feelings, full of excite- that impress Acclaimed actress Tabu said she has had the longest relationship with the film Khufiya, as she was the first one to be cast. The film features Tabu in the role of an independent and fierce RAW agent, for whom her work and country take precedence over everything else. Yet, Tabu’s character is I WOULD DESCRIBE also a loving mother and a comKRISHNA MEHRA, MY mitted partner, which adds depth and nuance to it. CHARACTER IN KHUFIYA, AS A Tabu said: “I’ve had a long COMPLEX AND DEDICATED WOMAN. relationship with this film, as I FOR HER, DUTY COMES BEFORE think I was one of the first ones ANYTHING ELSE AND YET SHE IS to be cast. It is always a challengA LOVING MOTHER. ing, yet beautiful experience to TABU play a character with such depth. I would describe Krishna Mehra as a complex and dedicated woman. For her, duty comes before anything else.” The spy thriller, Khufiya is directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and stars Tabu, alongside Wamiqa Gabbi and Ali Fazal. The actress added: “Despite being so dedicated to her work, we see the vulnerable side of Krishna come to light when she is with her partner and in the interaction with her son. I think this goes to show how layered she is as a person.” Khufiya will stream on Netflix from October 5. — IANS Game for it? Actor Idris Elba thinks video games can help make the world a better place Hollywood star Idris Elba thinks video games have the power to change the world! The 51-year-old actor, who stars as Solomon Reed in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, a new spy thriller game, thinks the industry actually has the potential to shine light on humanitarian issues. “Games have exactly the same tool sets, if not more, to engage people in things they don’t understand. If you want to use gaming as a portal to educate, it’s a really interesting place. I’m sure there are companies that are looking at it...,” the movie star said. Elba actually found shooting his part for the game to be surprisingly challenging. He said, “It was different and multifaceted. There was a component of real performance in CGI and motion caption, and that was the beginning of this journey. Then there was obviously the voice component.” “My character is very central to the storyline ... so their approach to me was, ‘Listen, this is not going to be easy. This is a big game for us and a big character, so we want someone that has a certain type of gravitas’.” Elba is a lifelong gaming enthusiast and he’s now keen to play Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty after putting ‘so much work into it’. — IANS VARUN SHARMA ment and anxiety right now. Anxiety because we want people to like the film and excitement since we know we have made a very interesting film and maintained the soul of Fukrey.” Pulkit has been lauded for his dance moves in the title song Ve Fukrey by Bollywood superstar Salman Khan, who wrote on Instagram that ‘Pulkit’s success is long overdue’. Expressing his gratitude, the actor says, “Salman Khan has Dumbledore is no more LINE OF NO CONTROL As comedian Trevor Noah’s show in Bengaluru gets cancelled due to technical issues, here’s a look at other such instances where mismanagement led to disappointment Sheetal There’s a lot that goes into making a show or concert successful. But when things do not go as planned, it’s the audience that feels betrayed. It is not always easy on the performing artiste either; all that planning and experience goes in vain if the show is cancelled at the last moment. On Wednesday, comedian Trevor Noah’s Off The Record India tour was cancelled due to technical challenges at the Bengaluru venue. Here’s a look at other such instances in the past one year where the audience was left high and dry. TECHNICAL ISSUES Bengaluru’s traffic woes must have given a fresh perspective to Trevor Noah for his future jokes on India. The comedian arrived 10 minutes late at his own show due to unavoidable traffic, but the common man and fans reached the venue after being stranded for more than three hours! The comedian also couldn’t perform due to mismanagement at the venue, technical issues being too glaring to be overlooked. He apologised to the audience and also issued a public apology on X. He wrote, “Dear Bengaluru, India, I was so looking forward to performing in your amazing city but due to technical issues we’ve been forced to cancel both shows. We’ll make sure all ticket holders receive a full refund...” An ‘X’ user joked about the whole situation, “Bengaluru wanted to experience Trevor Noah, but Trevor Noah ended up experiencing Bengaluru.” c m y b WHEN LOVE CAME ALONG While Fukrey changed the lives of these actors in many ways, it played Cupid for Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal. “In the initial days of shooting, all that these guys would talk about was food and video games, and I would wonder what to talk with them. PULKIT SAMRAT Yes, we all became friends later seen my journey, he knows I’ve got and would dance to Honey Singh very few chances to dance whereas songs, but until that happened I had I’ve been trained in many dance only Ali to converse with. There were forms, including Kathak and Jazz. To conversations about books and thebe appreciated and noticed by atre that connected us and here we Salman bhai means the world to me.” are today,” Richa says. Grateful for the bonds these Varun Sharma, who debuted in Bollywood with Fukrey, calls it his actors have forged on Fukrey sets, life. “My aspiration of becoming an all they now hope is that their fans actor, all that I wanted to do, hap- and audience at large enjoy their pened because of this film. Fukrey is fukrapanti in the much-loved commy foundation. Whatever I have edy franchise. SHODDY AFFAIR Earlier in September, a show of a music maestro AR Rahman, was totally ‘mismanaged’although not cancelled. The event company, ACTC, which Rahman partnered with for the Chennai show, titled Marakuma Nenjam, did not allow many valid ticketholders to enter the venue. They sold more tickets than the venue could accommodate and women were allegedly harassed owing to the huge crowd. Life lost Singer KK (Krishnakumar Kunnath) lost his life due to a heart attack while performing in Kolkata in front of a huge crowd in June last year. He complained of pain in the arms and severe fatigue before the concert, and was sweating profusely while performing live. While autopsy report did rule out foul play and unnatural death, fans of KK still believe that overcrowded venue with no proper ventilation for a high energy performance was one of the reasons behind the tragedy. Total chaos In 2021, as many as 10 people died and hundreds were injured during a concert at the Astroworld Festival, a music event organised by American rapper Travis Scott. It was held at NRG Park, Houston, Texas, in his hometown. The massive crowd was uncontrollable and the reason behind the catastrophe. It was also believed that the crowd was under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Veteran actor Michael Gambon, who was known to many for his portrayal of Hogwarts headmaster Albus Dumbledore in six of the eight Harry Potter films, passed away on Thursday. He was 82. Born in Ireland on October 19, 1940, Gambon was raised in London and originally trained as an engineer, following in the footsteps of his father. He made his theatre debut in a production of Othello in Dublin. No matter what role he took on in a career that lasted more than five decades, Gambon was always instantly recognisable by the deep and drawling tones of his voice. He was cast as the much-loved Dumbledore after the death of his predecessor, Richard Harris, in 2002. He once acknowledged not having read any of JK Rowling’s best-selling books, arguing that it was safer to follow the script rather than be too influenced by the books. That didn’t prevent him from embodying the spirit of Professor Dumbledore, the powerful Michael Gambon, actor who played Professor Dumbledore in Harry Pottermovies, dies at 82 wizard who fought against evil to protect his students. Although the Potter role raised Gambon’s international profile and introduced him to a new generation of fans, he had long been recognised as one of Britain’s leading actors. His work spanned TV, theatre and radio, and he starred in dozens of films from Gosford Park to The King’s Speech and the animated family movie Paddington. Gambon was knighted for services to drama in 1998. — AP