03072026-LSTL-01.qxd 7/2/2026 11:07 PM Page 1 c m y b RITA ORA TO PERFORM AT LORD’S British singer-songwriter Rita Ora is all set to bring music to one of cricket’s biggest stages, as she will headline the closing ceremony of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 final at Lord’s on July 5, the ICC announced. No kidding Life WHAT’S HOT eat chandigarh TRIBUNE Former US First Lady Michelle Obama has revealed that her all-time favourite movie is the 2003 Christmas comedy Elf, saying it is the one film she watches whenever she wants to feel better. LUDHIANA | FRIDAY | 3 JULY 2026 Ab Hoga Hisabdirector Divyanshu Malhotra reflects on the five lessons that shaped his journey Hold ❝ roots Mona Ab Hoga Hisab director Divyanshu Malhotra spent years doing whatever it took to keep his filmmaking dream alive. He studied electrical engineering at Panjab University, he worked at Delhi Metro, taught theatre in schools, wrote ads, directed wedding films, corporate and music videos, and waited. Today, the West Delhi boy, who says it ‘takes a flight to come to Mumbai, but a fight to stay there’, is finally telling stories closest to his heart. After directing Flames, Cubicles, Adulting, Brochara and Sixer, Malhotra now helms Ab Hoga Hisab, whose second season premieres on July 3. Speaking in Chandigarh ahead of the release, an excited yet anxious Malhotra reflected on the five lessons that shaped his journey. F OR an authentic taste of Bengaluru, head to Namma in Sector 8’s Gedi Route Market, run by Masterchef Kriti Kaur Dhiman. The Bengaluru masala benne dosa is the standout, with butter crisp edges and a molten spiced potato filling, alongside the mushroom truffle benne dosa and ghee podi idli, best paired with an iced filter coffee. taught him to improvise. “If one road is blocked, find another.” Years later, that instinct became his biggest asset in Mumbai, where every rejection demanded another route, another opportunity and another reason to keep going. #1 DELIGHTFUL DOSA #2 chandigarh West Delhi taught me how to fight play West Delhi wasn’t just where Divyanshu grew up — it was where he learnt resilience. “Punjab gave me motherly love, but West Delhi gave me fatherly love,” he says. The crowded lanes MUSICAL CONNECT W shimla ELCOME to Jamming Night at Social, Sector 7, Chandigarh, from 6 pm onwards. The evening is open to beginners, seasoned musicians, and passionate music lovers alike. Come jam, connect, and lose yourself in an evening of spontaneous music, shared energy and good company. Ab Hoga Hisab Season 2 After a strong response to its first season, Ab Hoga Hisab returns with Season 2. Set against the backdrop of Punjab and its deep-rooted migration aspirations, the revenge drama explores ambition, betrayal and the pursuit of justice. Season 1 emerged as one of the platform’s topperforming fiction titles, paving the way for a bigger second chapter. It features an ensemble cast, including Shaheer Sheikh, Sanjay Kapoor, Mouni Roy, Nimrit Kaur Ahluwalia and Avinash Mishra. Promising higher emotional stakes and more twists, Ab Hoga Hisab Season 2 streams on Amazon MX Player from today. love SPREAD THE WORD T HE Shimla Book Fair is being held at the historic Gaiety Theatre in Shimla, offering bibliophiles an opportunity to grab their favourite book at an attractive price. The fair features a variety of fiction, non-fiction, children books, encyclopedias, management, history, psychology as well as academic and competition books, at a discounted price. The fair will be on till July 5. At his new Chandigarh restaurant, Chef Sokhi — the Namak Shamak guy — treats us to his star dish SILVER SPOON Parbina Rashid Once we decided to meet at his newly launched restaurant, Karigari, in Sector 26, Chandigarh, I couldn’t contain my curiosity about his muchtalked-about green butter chicken. Endorsed by Farah Khan and her children, it was a signature dish he chose to introduce in Chandigarh before rolling it out across any of his other 12 outlets. I, however, couldn’t have my way with Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi. He happily brought me a bowl of his famed butter chicken to taste but flatly refused to share the recipe. But then, who can hold a grudge against this incredibly charming chef who would oscillate between the profound and the silly, often breaking into his NamakShamak jig as he cooked. The Namak-Shamak guy is one identity he would like to be remembered by. “It’s a brilliant thing that has happened to me. People don’t remember my name, but they do remember the Namak Shamak guy.” All thanks to Girish Madhu, who directed Chef Harpal in television show Turban Tadka. Before the shoot started, Girish asked Harpal how he would like to be remembered long after he’s gone. It got him thinking. Once back home, he picked up the book his daughter Antara was reading. It was on Mahatma Gandhi. “I opened a chapter and it was on Satyagraha and I realised that Gandhiji started our freedom movement with salt as the main element. And I connected that philosophy with food. In food, salt is that ingredient that lifts its taste.” And this was how the idea for ‘Namak Shamak, Namak Shamak Daal Dete’ germinated. Having established the credentials about his identity, it’s time to move on to the main course. The green butter chicken! A dish he is so incredibly proud of and fiercely protective about. “Recently, I did a podcast with Farah Khan and when she came home, I decided to cook butter chicken in a different avatar. I made it with green tomatoes, with a little pesto, burnt garlic and crushed black pepper on top. Farah took a bowlful back home for her children and the children enjoyed it so much that she called me to give her feedback. I decided that when I opened my restaurant in Chandigarh, this would be the first dish on the menu. Right now, it is available only in Chandigarh.” His mention of pesto in butter chicken brought us to the trend of fusion food, a trend he has been pioneering. But fusion food is a tricky busi- Green butter chicken karigari PHOTO: PRADEEP TEWARI ness. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. So, what’s the thumb rule? “We keep it well balanced. There are some recipes which are absolutely traditional, which we don’t fidget with. Then, there are recipes which are quirky, like the parmesan chicken tikka. Or, green garlic butter chicken, with parmesan on top. We don’t create fusion for the sake of it. Our approach is to understand the flavours c m y b of ingredients and pair them thoughtfully to create something unique. That’s the thumb rule we follow when developing fusion dishes. If I had to put it in percentages, I’d say our food is about 50-60 per cent rooted in tradition, while the remaining 40 per cent comes from international influences and more experimental, quirky flavour combinations,” he explained. To prove his point, he guided me to his cooking station and showed me how, with a simple twist, he could elevate the familiar pav bhaji to pav bhaji fondue. “The essence of a typical Mumbai-origin pav bhaji is that it should have a dominating tomato flavour and is full of butter. The masala should have a strong flavour of clove.” The pavs came in the form of a ring. He glazed the pavs with a spoonful of the masala and then poured a dollop of cheese sauce which he glazed using a blow torch. His attention to detail earned my admiration. But Chef Harpal was not done. He next moved to a mean-looking tandoor to demonstrate his another famous dish — the open kulcha. A half-cooked bread that served as a bowl for a mixture of chicken tikka, makhani sauce, onion and cheese. Cheese in butter chicken, cheese in pav bhaji, and now cheese in kulcha? “Punjab loves cheese,” he declared, with absolute certainty. Fair enough. But Punjab also loves those who truly care about its taste buds. If Karigari’s footfall is anything to go by! on to your Gave me my true essence: Engineering brought him to Chandigarh, but the city gave him something far more lasting than a degree. It reconnected him with his Punjabi roots, its rhythm and quiet spirituality. “When I came to Chandigarh, I understood who I really was,” he says. “The feeling of being an individual was taught in Chandigarh.” Today, with his family settled in Mohali, he still considers Chandigarh home — a place that shaped both his identity and his storytelling. #3 Pune taught me to retain the discipline: After a brief stint in Mumbai, Divyanshu realised theatre alone wasn’t enough. “I understood filmmaking is a completely different craft,” he says. So, instead of rushing ahead, he chose to study filmmaking in Pune. The experience instilled a lifelong lesson. “Pune taught me discipline. The most important thing in your life is to remain a student.” #4 Your roots are your superpower: Like many new- comers, Divyanshu initially worried that being a North Indian, Hindi-speaking theatre practitioner would work against him in Mumbai. Instead, it became his biggest strength. An advertising agency hired him because they needed someone with a strong command of Hindi, and years later, his understanding of Punjab and its culture led him to Ab Hoga Hisab. “Hold on to your roots and double down on what you know,” he says. #5 Mumbai taught me balance: For all its ambition, Mumbai also taught him what success really meant. “Mumbai taught me that along with the craft, it’s equally important to grow with your people,” he says. The city showed him that careers flourish when anchored by relationships, family and perspective.” “I am not a politician” Diljit Dosanjh doesn’t want to be pulled into political debates, and he said so plainly during a recent Instagram Live with fans. Asked about the Cockroach Janata Party’s (CJP) protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, he admitted he hadn’t heard about it at all, saying his schedule with the Aura Tour 2026 had kept him away from the news. “Jantar Mantar kahan hai protest ke liye. Bro mujhe door hi rakho protest se jaisi cheezon se. Bro, I am an artiste. Main thodi na neta hoon,” Diljit said, adding that things can never be completely right, whether in life or in the world at large. — TNS CHAT UP SS RAJAMOULI VISITS LUMIERE MUSEUM KANGANA RANAUT SCHOOLS RAM KAPOOR ON LOCK UPP Filmmaker SS Rajamouli visited the Lumiere Museum in Lyon, France, where he was honoured with a plaque on the prestigious Mur des Cineastes after touring the museum and the screening room where his films Eega and RRR were screened to a full house. Kangana Ranaut entered Lock Upp 2 as Janta Ki Awaaz, where she called out contestant Ram Kapoor over his conduct. She said, “Ramji, you shouldn’t have taken the game so seriously. And if you think that you are too big for this jail, then why did you come here?” THE 97-YR-OLD ‘OG ALPHA WOMAN’ KAL HO NAA HO DRAWS CROWDS IN MOROCCO Soni Razdan shared an adorable post that featured a four-generation family picture. The photo included her 97year-old mother, daughter Alia Bhatt, her granddaughter, and herself. In the caption, Soni called her mother the original or “OG ALPHA woman”. More than two decades after it first tugged at audiences’ heartstrings, Kal Ho Naa Ho continues to find new admirers. The Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta-starrer had a special screening at the Cinematheque de Tanger in Tangier, Morocco, attended by filmmaker Nikkhil Advani.