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Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Kylie thrilled at Bollywood experience
MUMBAI: Pop star Kylie Minogue on Friday said she was thrilled to work with India’s double Oscar-winning composer A.R. Rahman, after recording one of his songs for a star-studded Bollywood movie.
‘It was an incredible experience to work with A.R. Rahman,’ the 40-year-old singer told a packed news conference at a Mumbai hotel to publicise her work in the film ‘Blue’ which is due for release later this year.
‘I met A.R. Rahman at the BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) awards (in London last month). I couldn’t believe I was doing a song with him in Bollywood so soon after.’
Blue, an underwater extravaganza that was partly shot in the Caribbean, also stars Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt, Katrina Kaif, Lara Dutta and Zayed Khan.
The big-budget movie is about a sunken treasure ship and is said to have been inspired by the Hollywood production ‘The Deep.’
But those involved in the project are keeping the plot close to their chests, including Minogue, who has sold more than 60 million records worldwide.
She said only: ‘I saw the footage of the film. It looks very good.’
Indian media reports since her arrival in the country’s entertainment capital late last month have said the former soap opera star plays herself, acting one scene with Kumar and performs a set-piece song-and-dance routine.
Rahman, once dubbed ‘The Mozart of Madras,’ had been due to appear alongside Minogue but pulled out due to illness, organisers said.
The 43-year-old composer was already Bollywood’s leading music director even before he scooped two Academy Awards for his work on the hit film ‘Slumdog Millionaire.’
Asked if she would consider future offers from Bollywood, Minogue said: ‘I got a lot of love here. Right now this feeling is just sinking in but certainly in the future I will do more if I get the chance.‘I didn’t know much of Hindi but it does not matter because everyone was very cooperative and I had fun and joy. I wanted to be part of Bollywood for a while and it was great opportunity that came by.’
‘It was an incredible experience to work with A.R. Rahman,’ the 40-year-old singer told a packed news conference at a Mumbai hotel to publicise her work in the film ‘Blue’ which is due for release later this year.
‘I met A.R. Rahman at the BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) awards (in London last month). I couldn’t believe I was doing a song with him in Bollywood so soon after.’
Blue, an underwater extravaganza that was partly shot in the Caribbean, also stars Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt, Katrina Kaif, Lara Dutta and Zayed Khan.
The big-budget movie is about a sunken treasure ship and is said to have been inspired by the Hollywood production ‘The Deep.’
But those involved in the project are keeping the plot close to their chests, including Minogue, who has sold more than 60 million records worldwide.
She said only: ‘I saw the footage of the film. It looks very good.’
Indian media reports since her arrival in the country’s entertainment capital late last month have said the former soap opera star plays herself, acting one scene with Kumar and performs a set-piece song-and-dance routine.
Rahman, once dubbed ‘The Mozart of Madras,’ had been due to appear alongside Minogue but pulled out due to illness, organisers said.
The 43-year-old composer was already Bollywood’s leading music director even before he scooped two Academy Awards for his work on the hit film ‘Slumdog Millionaire.’
Asked if she would consider future offers from Bollywood, Minogue said: ‘I got a lot of love here. Right now this feeling is just sinking in but certainly in the future I will do more if I get the chance.‘I didn’t know much of Hindi but it does not matter because everyone was very cooperative and I had fun and joy. I wanted to be part of Bollywood for a while and it was great opportunity that came by.’
Illuminations, rallies to celebrate Milad today
ISLAMABAD- Eid Milad-un-Nabi is being observed across the country with religious enthusiasm today (Tuesday).The government has declared public holiday to celebrate the event. Religious and social organisations have organised different programmes to celebrate the event. Seerat conferences are being arranged besides Na’at and Quran reciting competitions. Different rallies and gatherings will also take place on the occasion.
Four militants killed in India’s northeast
GUWAHATI: Security forces killed four militants in India's restive northeastern state of Manipur, police said on Saturday.
A police spokesman said militants belonging to the outlawed People's United Liberation Front (PULF) started shooting at a team of police commandos and paramilitary forces, who returned fire, killing four men.
‘Based on specific inputs that a group of militants were taking shelter at a thickly forested area, security forces led an operation in which four PULF rebels were gunned down,’ a police official said, requesting anonymity.
The exchange took place near the village of Irilbung, some 15km east of Manipur's state capital Imphal.
Police said they recovered two AK56 rifles, several hand grenades and some rocket-propelled grenades from the dead militants.
The PULF is a militant group formed in Manipur in 1993 to fight for the cause of Muslims in the state, which borders Myanmar.
There are about 200,000 Muslims in Manipur, a state of 2.3 million people.
There are around 19 militant groups active in Manipur with demands ranging from secession to greater autonomy.
More than 10,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in Manipur during the past two decades.
A police spokesman said militants belonging to the outlawed People's United Liberation Front (PULF) started shooting at a team of police commandos and paramilitary forces, who returned fire, killing four men.
‘Based on specific inputs that a group of militants were taking shelter at a thickly forested area, security forces led an operation in which four PULF rebels were gunned down,’ a police official said, requesting anonymity.
The exchange took place near the village of Irilbung, some 15km east of Manipur's state capital Imphal.
Police said they recovered two AK56 rifles, several hand grenades and some rocket-propelled grenades from the dead militants.
The PULF is a militant group formed in Manipur in 1993 to fight for the cause of Muslims in the state, which borders Myanmar.
There are about 200,000 Muslims in Manipur, a state of 2.3 million people.
There are around 19 militant groups active in Manipur with demands ranging from secession to greater autonomy.
More than 10,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in Manipur during the past two decades.
India goes online to tackle apathetic middle class voters
Mumbai- Hot on the heels of a US presidential election that saw Barack Obama sweep to victory with the help of a high-tech campaign, India is also turning to the Internet as general elections approach.
But it is not political parties or the main candidates in the world's biggest democracy that are embracing the likes of Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube to swell coffers and boost support.
While the ruling Congress and main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party stick to largely traditional campaigning for now, tech-savvy groups are targeting the growing and potentially influential middle classes on the worldwide web.
‘A lot of people have seen the change in the US since the elections and made them realize that they can actually do something,’ said Shridhar Jagannathan, a 30-year-old copywriter.
‘It was the literate middle class that brought the change. What happened in the US has inspired people in India to go out and make a difference.’ India has some 714 million eligible voters, including 170 million under 35, but unlike in developed countries, it is the marginalized rural poor who vote in the biggest numbers, often along caste, regional or religious lines.
In contrast, many of the English-speaking middle and upper classes readily admit to having never voted, yet still complain loudly about standards of leadership and governance.
Most Indians 83 percent feel lawmakers are corrupt and 59 percent think their main motivation is money, according to a recent Times of India survey.
Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) believe politicians are inefficient and 60 percent blame them for all the country's ills.
‘Bad politicians are chosen by good people, who fail to vote,’ says Vote India. Its message is echoed by others. All Indians need to take responsibility for their elected representatives.
But it is not political parties or the main candidates in the world's biggest democracy that are embracing the likes of Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube to swell coffers and boost support.
While the ruling Congress and main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party stick to largely traditional campaigning for now, tech-savvy groups are targeting the growing and potentially influential middle classes on the worldwide web.
‘A lot of people have seen the change in the US since the elections and made them realize that they can actually do something,’ said Shridhar Jagannathan, a 30-year-old copywriter.
‘It was the literate middle class that brought the change. What happened in the US has inspired people in India to go out and make a difference.’ India has some 714 million eligible voters, including 170 million under 35, but unlike in developed countries, it is the marginalized rural poor who vote in the biggest numbers, often along caste, regional or religious lines.
In contrast, many of the English-speaking middle and upper classes readily admit to having never voted, yet still complain loudly about standards of leadership and governance.
Most Indians 83 percent feel lawmakers are corrupt and 59 percent think their main motivation is money, according to a recent Times of India survey.
Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) believe politicians are inefficient and 60 percent blame them for all the country's ills.
‘Bad politicians are chosen by good people, who fail to vote,’ says Vote India. Its message is echoed by others. All Indians need to take responsibility for their elected representatives.
Tanzara to exhibit Jalal’s paintings from March 11
ISLAMABAD: The works of Shahid Jalal entitled the Pool Garden Series will be exhibited at the Tanzara Art Gallery from March 11 to 17th.The twenty-two paintings, which will be on display, depict the half-a-century old pool garden of Tahira Mazhar Ali Khan in Raiwind near Lahore, which of late got political importance for other reasons. Each painting captures various scenes of the same garden from different angles. The paintings are like different pieces of the same puzzle that work together magically, however each one possesses its own distinct beauty. The exhibits are oil paintings created on fairly large canvases. Shahid Jalal, a renowned artist from Lahore has exhibited in many countries and was awarded the Pride of Performance in the field of painting by the Government of Pakistan in 1994. He has been creating paintings put in this display for the last three years. The paintings will be auctioned for the Citizens Foundation as a fund-raiser and the proceeds will be used to benefit the charity schools set up by the Foundation.The paintings assimilate natural scenes with such splendour and skill that works come to life like three-dimensional objects. The paintings show vibrant colours beautifully but meticulously merged together to depict the landscapes as naturally as possible. Green colour is dominant in the creations because of the trees which can be seen standing proudly by the pool-side, with inter-woven creepers ascending up their trunks; and shrubs with their branches drooping over the pool, their reflections adding a greenish tinge to the pool-water. Different shades of yellow and red are shaped with dots and dashes to create meaningful images of flowers among the plants. One of the paintings shows a Bougainvillea creeper peeking at its reflection in the water, another shows a monument surrounded by dense undergrowth, while a different scene shows the view of the shrubbery in the lawn as seen through the large windows of the house. One cannot miss presence of bulbous amaryllis in red and orange. Same is the case with arucaria and date-palm. The self-contained paintings speak of the skillfully mastered brush strokes by which the creator gives a sincere portrayal of the beauty of nature and this universe. The different paintings seem like small parts of a whole. One may find a mystic link between parts and the whole in the creations which has been used for a noble cause.
CM Hoti signs Nizam-i-Adl summary for Malakand
PESHAWAR: Chief Minister NWFP Amir Haider Khan Hoti signed the summary of ‘Nizam-i-Adl’ on Monday. The signed summary has been sent to the provincial governor for approval.
It will be forwarded to the president after the governor’s approval. Nizam-i-Adl will be implemented in the Malakand division after the president’s approval.
Sufi Mohammad’s Tehreek-i-Nafaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi has been pressurizing the government for Nizam-i-Adl’s implementation by March 15.
It will be forwarded to the president after the governor’s approval. Nizam-i-Adl will be implemented in the Malakand division after the president’s approval.
Sufi Mohammad’s Tehreek-i-Nafaz-i-Shariat-i-Muhammadi has been pressurizing the government for Nizam-i-Adl’s implementation by March 15.
Democracy restored
HYDERABAD: Sindh Minister for Local Government, Agha Siraj Durrani has said that democracy has been restored in the country because of the great sacrifices of the leaders and workers of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) adding that the undemocratic forces have once again become active to derail the democratic system.PPP founder Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and its assassinated chairperon Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, the great leaders of the world set the trend to struggle for the restoration of democracy by giving their blood and the PPP leaders and workers would not compromise on the principles. They are ready to sacrifice their lives as rendered by their great leaders, he added.The Minister expressed these views while talking to newsmen after presiding over the 18th meeting of the Board of Governors of Sehwan Development Authority at Gulshan-e- Shahbaz, Jamshoro on Monday afternoon. The Minister said the Governor’s Rule has been imposed in the Punjab as no party showed majority in the assembly. President Asif Ali Zardari has imposed Governor’s Rule within the limits of Constitution and will it be removed when any political party will show majority for formation of the government in the province.He said that the PPP fully believed in democratic norms and the present policy of “politics of reconciliation and understanding” clearly indicated that despite having majority in the assemblies, the PPP wanted a coalition government with other political parties in order to bring the country out of national and international crisis. He said the vested interests do not want that democracy should flourish and the people’s issues could be addressed therefore efforts have been geared up to destabilize the democratic government.
Revised IPL dates to be out on March 10
Amidst all the speculation, the Indian Premier League (IPL) is all set to kick off as per schedule, with minor changes in dates as the IPL Chairman Lalit Modi will announce the much awaited reworked schedule for season 2 on Tuesday (March 10).
Meanwhile, sources said that the Home Ministry gives an okay to the revised schedule and suggests minor tinkering in the dates. The announcement definitely gives the franchisees a much-awaited relief after all the rampant confusion and speculation threatened to derail the cricket extravaganza.
The owners of the franchise cash-rich league IPL are happy with the new schedule. TIMES NOW spoke to co-owner of the Rajasthan Royal franchise, Shilpa Shetty, who said, “I am happy that the schedule has finally been decided. Cricket schedule is packed as of now. I really hope some matches can be held in Jaipur.”
Kings XI Punjab’s co-promoter Ness Wadia added, “Everyone is relieved and happy that the schedule has been worked out. We need to ensure that security is reviewed after every game. So far no foreign players have raised concern in King’s XI.”
The IPL coincides with the general elections in the country and the league organisers have been forced to revamp the schedule to avoid matches on polling days in the host cities. The IPL bosses have not set any matches on the vote counting date and have changed the schedule to avoid a clash with polling dates in the states. The rescheduling follows after the intervention from the Home Ministry and apprehensions of the various state governments over the dates clashing with the general elections.
IPL revised dates to be sent to state governments: Home Ministry
Meanwhile, IPL’s revised schedule, expected to be submitted to the Home Ministry tomorrow (March 10), will be sent to the concerned state governments for their feedback before a final decision is taken. “Any revised schedule received from the IPL will be sent to the concerned state governments for their comments,” a Home Ministry spokesman said.
Home Minister P Chidambaram had earlier stated that some re-scheduling of IPL matches “seems unavoidable”, as he was trying his best to ensure that the second edition of the event is held smoothly. The 45-day extravaganza begins on April 10 and the 60 matches to be played among eight teams and spread over eight cities will end on May 24. The IPL organisers have conveyed to the Home Ministry that they do not require any central forces for the security.
Meanwhile, sources said that the Home Ministry gives an okay to the revised schedule and suggests minor tinkering in the dates. The announcement definitely gives the franchisees a much-awaited relief after all the rampant confusion and speculation threatened to derail the cricket extravaganza.
The owners of the franchise cash-rich league IPL are happy with the new schedule. TIMES NOW spoke to co-owner of the Rajasthan Royal franchise, Shilpa Shetty, who said, “I am happy that the schedule has finally been decided. Cricket schedule is packed as of now. I really hope some matches can be held in Jaipur.”
Kings XI Punjab’s co-promoter Ness Wadia added, “Everyone is relieved and happy that the schedule has been worked out. We need to ensure that security is reviewed after every game. So far no foreign players have raised concern in King’s XI.”
The IPL coincides with the general elections in the country and the league organisers have been forced to revamp the schedule to avoid matches on polling days in the host cities. The IPL bosses have not set any matches on the vote counting date and have changed the schedule to avoid a clash with polling dates in the states. The rescheduling follows after the intervention from the Home Ministry and apprehensions of the various state governments over the dates clashing with the general elections.
IPL revised dates to be sent to state governments: Home Ministry
Meanwhile, IPL’s revised schedule, expected to be submitted to the Home Ministry tomorrow (March 10), will be sent to the concerned state governments for their feedback before a final decision is taken. “Any revised schedule received from the IPL will be sent to the concerned state governments for their comments,” a Home Ministry spokesman said.
Home Minister P Chidambaram had earlier stated that some re-scheduling of IPL matches “seems unavoidable”, as he was trying his best to ensure that the second edition of the event is held smoothly. The 45-day extravaganza begins on April 10 and the 60 matches to be played among eight teams and spread over eight cities will end on May 24. The IPL organisers have conveyed to the Home Ministry that they do not require any central forces for the security.
Illuminations, rallies to celebrate Milad today
ISLAMABAD- Eid Milad-un-Nabi is being observed across the country with religious enthusiasm today (Tuesday).The government has declared public holiday to celebrate the event. Religious and social organisations have organised different programmes to celebrate the event. Seerat conferences are being arranged besides Na’at and Quran reciting competitions. Different rallies and gatherings will also take place on the occasion.The Ministry of Religious Affairs has planned a one-day National Seerat Conference in the federal capital, which would be chaired by Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani. Eminent Ulema and scholars across the country would attend the conference and present their articles and thoughts on the Seerat of the Holy Prophet (SAW). Milad committees and other factions of the society would play active role in the connection to make the event historic. Special Seerat banners and illuminations on public buildings throughout the country would be arranged. Alternative traffic plan in big cities of the country has prepared to avoid any inconvenience.Meanwhile, the capital police have finalised security arrangements in the federal capital for Eid Milad-un-Nabi(SAW) procession being taken out today (Tuesday).
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