20122024-LSTL-01.qxd 12/19/2024 8:06 PM Page 1 c m y b MAHESH LENDS VOICE TO MUFASA Superstar Mahesh Babu is making waves in the world of animated films as he lends his voice to the iconic character of Mufasa in the Telugu dubbed version of Mufasa: The Lion King. The film, directed by Barry Jenkins, is set to release in theatres today. Happy with her act Mona A S 2024 comes to a close, actress Kritika Kamra is happy about the success of Gyaarah Gyaarah, reflective of dull periods in between and hopeful for 2025. A spy drama, For Your Eyes Only, with Pratik Gandhi on Netflix and a lead role alongside Vijay Verma in Amazon Prime’s Matka King, being directed by Nagraj Manjule, the coming year has a lot in store for Kritika. But first up, let us know what she does on New Year Eve. “I like to take things slow since the last couple of years. For me it’s a time to reflect, as everywhere outside the rush is maddening. I like to spend some time with myself in some quiet corner or with a very small group of people whom I love and cherish,” she shares. Kritika loves to travel in January, but only once the New Year crowd settles down! Back to work. Gyaarah Gyaarah, produced by Guneet Monga Kapoor and Karan Johar, became one of the most-watched shows of 2024 and connected her to a wider audience. “There was a promise of magic and it really turned out to be magical! I got to meet some amazing people while shooting that show and when it was released, the reactions surpassed our expectations. Whenever you work on some- TRIBUNE Honoured Life Renowned singer Hans Raj Hans was honoured in the House of Lords for his outstanding contribution to music. The event was hosted by Lord Rami Ranger and organised by Samara Events UK. LUDHIANA | FRIDAY | 20 DECEMBER 2024 Kritika Kamra, who impressed the audience with Gyaarah Gyaarah and will now be seen in For Your Eyes Only, believes she has become more experimental with her roles thing, you hope to strike a chord with the audiences, but Gyaarah Gyaarah got me a lot more recognition and love from a different set of audience than my previous shows,” she says. Kritika is happy that people who had seen her work on television came back to rediscover her as a police officer in Gyaarah Gyaarah, which was a surprise for them. “A lot of people have come up to me and spoken about how they appreciated the versatility of my characters.” COMING UP In the upcoming show For Your Eyes Only, Kritika play a pivotal part in a historic journey. “It’s a story that is about an important time in India and all the characters are a part of a very big plot. This is all I can share right now actually,” she laughs. On the other hand, Matka King is the story of how betting became a mainstream phenomenon in Mumbai and other parts of the country. “I play a character that is very different from everyone else that I’ve essayed on the screen before. For this role, I had to get into an entirely different look and also speak in a new dialect.” Apart from challenging roles, Kritika is kicked about working with some of the best talents in the industry. Pratik Gandhi and Vijay Verma are the two actors she deeply ❝ I like to take things slow since the last couple of years. For me New Year Eve is a time to reflect, as everywhere outside the rush is maddening. I like to spend some time with myself in some quiet corner or with a very small group of people whom I love and cherish. respects. “I have always enjoyed their work on screen and now know that they are good co-actors as well,” she avers. As for is equation with Pratik, she says, “After many years, I got a chance to reunite with him in For Your Eyes Only, which was a lovely surprise. To witness all the appreciation that he gets for his work and see his growth journey is really inspirational as a fellow actor.” Acting aside, Kritika is also hoping to expand her brand Cinnabar. “Chanderi is very close to my parents’ house and I’ve been going there since childhood. So the idea of this brand is to shine some light on the beautiful craft of Chanderi. So far it’s been more of a passion project and has got immense love, despite no marketing or any kind of push from our end. Next year, we have some big expansion plans.” A STILL FROM GYAARAH GYAARAH Give your dress a second chance! Armed with a pair of denims, trousers and a dress, psychotherapist Nikita Charan stepped into Alliance Française on Thursday with a resolve. As she walked out, she had a light trousers in hand. Many like Nikita joined Ritu Kochhar, a renowned Chandigarhbased design mentor, academician, entrepreneur and fashion curator for the Sustainable Fashion Event, on at Alliance Française Chandigarh-36, for ‘cloth swap’. Keeping in mind sustainability, people came forward to swap the clothes they didn’t intend to wear anymore. Ritu’s initiative, ‘Rope With Me’, emphasised the 3 R’s of fashion — Reimagining, Recreating and Reusing. The idea germinated through the pandemic. “Sit- ting at home, I looked at pieces lying unused in my wardrobe and to give them a new lease of life,” said Ritu. As she shared her upcycled pieces on Instagram, it led to her enthusiastic friends and family joining her for Sunday workshops online. The free of cost ‘clothing swap’, the live upcycling workshop and creating Christmas tree ornaments using waste materials aimed at educating people on strengthening the upcycling economy in India, reducing their fashion footprint and embracing circular fashion. The event emphasised the beauty of slow fashion and how it fosters community-building. (Open from 11 am to 4 pm at Alliance Française till today). — TNS At the Sustainable Fashion Event, on at Alliance Française, city-based designer Ritu Kochhar emphasised the need for upcycling KEERTHY SURESH, VARUN DHAWAN AND WAMIQA GABBI PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI Varun calls Jackie the ‘coolest’ Actor Varun Dhawan recently shared his experience of working alongside Jackie Shroff in the upcoming film Baby John. At a recent event in Mumbai, Varun opened up about the deep admiration he holds for Jackie, calling him the ‘coolest actor’ in the industry. About his experience of working with Shroff, Varun shared, “He is a very chilled-out man; it was wonderful working with him. The way he treats people off screen is just too amazing. I got to learn a lot from him; he is one of the coolest actors we have here.” Praising Jackie’s professionalism as a co-star, Dhawan stated, “I had to do some action with him too and he gave me full freedom.” In Baby John, Jackie will be seen playing the antagonist, Babbar Sher. Directed by Kalees, the action drama serves as an adaptation of Atlee’s 2016 Tamil film Theri. The film stars Varun Dhawan in the title role, alongside Keerthy Suresh, Wamiqa Gabbi and Zara Zyanna. The movie is produced under Jio Studios, Cine1 Studios, Vipin Agnihotri Films, and A for Apple Productions. Baby John, which was officially announced in July 2023, is scheduled to hit the theatres on June 6, 2025. — IANS c m y b Not so Tweet! Singer and Actor Nick Jonas has found himself at the centre of a social media storm after reacting to a tweet by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. The playful exchange between the two public figures, which began with a meme from an old Jonas Brothers video, has left some fans with mixed reactions. The interaction began when Musk retweeted a post from the Tesla Owners Silicon Valley account, claiming that Tesla’s stock had increased by 100 per cent since the 2024 US Presidential Election. Musk followed up with a humorous comment, “My, how the tables have turned!” along with a GIF from a wellknown Jonas Brothers video featuring Nick and Kevin Jonas rotating a brown coffee table. Noticing the post, Nick responded by retweeting Musk’s tweet, sharing a photo of the billionaire smiling and writing, “Take us to the Nick Jonas’ reply to Elon Musk’s tweet causes stir among fans year 3000.” While the tweet appeared to be in good fun, it sparked mixed reactions from some of Jonas’ fans. One fan voiced their concern by commenting, “Is this a Trump post?!” and tagging Jonas’ wife, actress Priyanka Chopra, asking her to ‘get your man’. — ANI