03072025-LSTL-01.qxd 7/2/2025 11:43 PM Page 1 c m y b BTS PROMISES NEW ALBUM K-pop supergroup BTS will head to the US this month to work on new music and will launch its next album early next year ahead of a world tour. The seven members of the group, who have been reunited after completing South Korea’s mandatory military service, made the announcement during a livestream on Weverse. TRIBUNE Life Botox, Sculptra, nose job... Khloe Kardashian opens up about her cosmetic procedures Khloe Kardashian has shared a detailed list of the cosmetic procedures she has undergone, responding to a viral video that speculated about her recent appearance. The 41-year-old reality TV star took to the comments section of the video to set the record straight, listing the various treatments and procedures she has had done over the years. As per reports, Khloe’s list includes a nose job, laser hair removal for her hairline and other areas, Botox and Sculptra, a type of dermal filler. She also revealed that she has had collagen baby threads underneath her chin and neck, Sofwave laser for skin tightening, and regular facials, including salmon sperm facials. Additionally, she credits her youthful appearance to peptides, vitamins, and daily skincare. Khloe attributed the changes in her body to her significant weight loss of 80 pounds over the years, achieved through slow and steady methods with her trainer, Joel “Coach Joe” Bouraima. The Good American founder emphasised that she has no shame about her cosmetic procedures, writing, “In 2025, there are many other things we can do before surgery, but when it’s time, and if I choose to, I know some great doctors.” Khloe’s openness about her procedures comes after her sister Kylie Jenner shared her own plastic surgery experiences in the past. — ANI Newcomer Shanaya Kapoor is excited to make her acting debut with Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan, a moment that was delayed by three years but she doesn’t mind the wait. Shanaya, daughter of actor Sanjay Kapoor and Maheep Kapoor, was earlier set to debut with producer Karan Johar’s Bedhadak, a project that was announced in March 2022 but it was later shelved. She is now marking the start of her acting career with Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan, a musical romance in which she is paired opposite Vikrant Massey. “It’s a surreal feeling, and it’s overwhelming when you see yourself on YouTube for now. I’m seeing myself and I’m putting my music videos on LUDHIANA | THURSDAY | 3 JULY 2025 Nonika Singh S QUID GAME Season 3 smashes records, rewrites viewership history, is trolled by netizens and praised by critics in equal measure. In short, few can rival the reach of this South Korean show right now trending as the most watched title of the week on Netflix. When Squid Game first dropped in 2021, more than jaws dropped. Viewers across the world were stuck like glue to their viewing screens savouring the brutal symphony of death and survival. Transfixed and shocked beyond measure. The series, which revolves around a secret contest where 456 players who are in deep financial hardship, risk their lives to play a series of children’s games, was hailed for its execution, acting, direction and above all unusual theme. Who on earth could have imagined and turned the innocent childhood games on its head, into a blood bath, a scathing critique of human greed, glaring exposé of social inequality! Well, Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk, who had written the story in 2009, waited for a decade before Netflix showed interest. In 2021, it became a game changer for South Korean content, won six Primetime Emmy awards. Such was its stronghold, viewers waited for three long years to catch up on the second season in 2024. In 2025 as the final and third season streamed on Netflix, it has broken viewership records to become the Net- Jacqueline goes Dum Dum Squid Game winning all the way... flix’s ninth most-watched non-English TV show with 60.1 million views in just three days. Viewing time of 398.4 million hours is a triumph in itself, yet another reminder of the show’s ever growing popularity. Audiences might have bingewatched yet another round of carnage and depraved shades of humanity, but with great expectations come great disappointment too. Though reviews have largely been positive, many viewers have reacted strongly, some calling it a waste of time. One user @zoeyduatch wrote on X, “Squid games started with such meaning and as a huge anti-capitalism movement then grew as a cash cow for Netflix and ended its last season promoting a Squid Game USA version as a way to make them even more money from a story that should’ve ended on season 1… we’ll never win.” There has been criticism of the childbirth scene as it was felt the delivery scene was unrealistic. Some viewers had issues with CGI newborn baby whose presence as a contestant seemingly takes things too far. It certainly ups the stakes but also opens doors for hope and salvation. What has also not gone down well is the possibility of an American remake created by no less than David Fincher. Will it take on from the last scene of the series and spawn into another outing? The surprise entry of Hollywood actress Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett as a Los Angeles recruiter in the end has sparked rumours of a spinoff. Where Fincher takes the story from here on is conjecture at this point, but it is unlikely to be simply a makeover. Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk has not disputed the possibility of more stories emerging from the popular franchise with which he has had the world’s attention so far. So, some viewers may have had a field day trolling the survival thriller, but are unlikely to stay away when the dystopian juggernaut rolls again, in whatever form! For now, it takes a bow as a show where surreal is eerily real and dystopian hits close to the bone. A mirror that dares us to look, we flinch and wince but can’t look away. Does that explain the massive viewership ratings? Rao’s raw avatar The makers of political drama film Maalik have released its trailer on Tuesday. Directed by Pulkit, the film also stars Bengali cinema star Prosenjit Chatterjee in the lead role. Sanjay Kapoor, Maheep and Jahaan Kapoor during the trailer launch of Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan. Rajkummar Rao unleashes his dark side as a ruthless gangster in Maalik trailer PTI and I’m constantly seeing how it’s looking, what the audience has been saying, and it’s an overwhelming feeling. “It’s all come together, and I’m happy with how the journey has been. If it’s taken time, if it has had its ups and downs... I think it was all meant to happen for me to be here today,” Shanaya said in an interview. The 25-year-old is aware of the baggage and scrutiny that comes with being a star kid and said she takes everything in her stride.—PTI Gillian Anderson was honoured with the CineMerit Award at the Munich International Film Festival. Expressing her gratitude, she said, “I feel unbelievably honoured.” With 60.1 mn views in just three days, this South Korean show is trending as the most watched title of the week on Netflix ‘It was meant to happen’ Shanaya Kapoor on taking three years to make her acting debut in Bollywood Honoured Vikrant Massey & Shanaya Kapoor In Maalik, Rajkummar Rao plays a ruthless gangster who appears to stop at nothing to fulfil his ambition of political power and fame. With his rugged look and high-octane action moves, Rajkummar’s character is unlike his recent roles in comedy movies such as Stree, Stree 2 and Bhool Chuk Maaf. Also, starring Manushi Chhillar in a lead role, along with Saurabh Shukla and Saurabh Sachdeva in pivotal parts, Maalik is set against the gritty backdrop of 1980s Allahabad. Rajkummar shared the trailer of the film on Instagram and wrote, “Janam se nahin Qismat se banega, majboor baap ka mazboot beta, Maalik.” The film is slated to release in cinemas on July 11. —ANI RAJKUMMAR RAO AND MANUSHI CHHILLAR c m y b Jacqueline Fernandez has been featured in a new track Dum Dum, which is sung by Asees Kaur. Written by Jaani, with chorus vocals from Bunny, Sagar, Faiz and Hunny, and mixed by Hanish Taneja, Dum Dum shows Jaqueline grooving to catchy lyrics. Ahead of the release, Jacqueline took to Instagram to share her excitement, “I really feel like you guys are all gonna love it, we put in a lot of hard work, I got the team, Shazia and Piyush on it, and it’s got this amazing magical-mystical vibe. I really am excited and I cannot wait for all of you to hear it, you guys are gonna love this one.” Meanwhile, Jacqueline was recently seen in Housefull 5. — ANI