Entertainment

After the hush-hush wedding ceremony of Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma and Indian Cricket Team captain Virat Kohli, it's time for another B-Town wedding, if reports are true!

Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh who have been dating for almost five years might get engaged in Sri Lanka.

India.com reports that the engagement might take place on January 5, which is also Deepika's birthday! How wonderful would it be if the Bajirao Mastani co-actors finally decide to tie the nuptial knot!

There were reports earlier that Deepika will celebrate her birthday with her rumoured beau in Sri Lanka and only then return to India. However, the reports of an engagement is indeed a sweet surprise!

Ranveer was seen at an airport in Sri Lanka last week on Thursday along with Tiger Shroff and Disha Patani. Deepika, who was holidaying in Vienna, flew to Sri Lanka to spend time with her beau.

“The couple is going snorkelling, and will spend time with each other. There are people in Sri Lanka who can identify them, but then it’s also a country that lets people be at peace and doesn’t intrude on privacy. So, they will be able to spend quality time with each other,” a leading daily quoted a source as saying.

Deepika and Ranveer's dating rumours started coming up since Goliyon Ki Raasleela – Ram Leela released. The two are currently gearing up for the release of Padmavat(I), which recently got CBFC clearance after being surrounded by numerous controversies.

The Sanjay Leela Bhansali directorial also stars Shahid Kapoor and is yet to get a release date.

(Zee News)

A member of one of South Korea's biggest boy bands has died suddenly.

Jonghyun, full name Kim Jong-hyun, was one of the five members of Shinee, who have had a string of number one hits in their home country.

The Korea Herald said the singer was taken to hospital after being found unconscious in an apartment in Seoul. He was 27 years old.

Police told the BBC Korean Service that suicide will be investigated as a possibility.

Emergency services were alerted by the singer's sister and he was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

The AFP news agency said his sister raised the alarm after receiving a number of text messages from her brother, including one saying "this is my last farewell".

Jonghyun shot to fame when the band was formed by K-Pop hit factory SM Entertainment in 2008.

As well as being a singer and an accomplished dancer, he played a large part in the group's songwriting and production, and launched a successful solo career in 2015.

He has also made headlines for voicing his opinion on issues like the government's education policy and for speaking out in support of LGBT rights.

Shinee's dance-pop has also been big outside South Korea. The group have recorded a string of Japanese-language albums and sold out the 55,000-seat Tokyo Dome.

In the UK, Odeon's website crashed a minute after tickets became available for their appearance at the Korean Film Festival in London in 2011, and they played their first North American tour earlier this year.

Source: BBC

India's film censor board has cleared the release of controversial Bollywood film Padmavati, reports say.

The film, which tells the story of a 14th Century Hindu queen and a Muslim ruler, has sparked nationwide protests by Hindu and caste groups.

However, the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) told local media it had not recommended any cuts.

In November, India's top court rejected an appeal by a lawyer to block the film's global release.

Padmavati tells the story of a 14th Century Hindu queen belonging to the high Rajput caste and the Muslim ruler Alauddin Khilji. Bollywood stars Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh play the lead roles.

Hindu groups and a Rajput caste organisation allege that the movie, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, depicts an intimate romantic scene between the two characters; the producers of the film deny this.

Although a fictional character, Padmavati is deified and held as a symbol of female honour among Rajputs.

The controversy comes amid an upsurge of Hindu nationalism under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his BJP. Muslims and members of the Dalit caste have been murdered in "beef-lynchings", the iconic Taj Mahal has been attacked over its Muslim heritage and there have been efforts to undermine Mahatma Gandhi's standing over his dream of Hindu-Muslim unity.

The censor board said it had appointed a special board to consider protesters' concerns and said these had been "discussed at length", the Press Trust of India reported.

"The film was approached with a balanced view keeping in mind both the filmmakers and the society," a statement said.

The board said it wanted a disclaimer to be shown saying that the film did not claim historical accuracy. It also called for a second disclaimer saying that the film did not promote the practice of self-immolation by widows, outlawed in the 19th Century.

It recommended changing the film's name to Padmavat, after the 16th century epic poem of the same name.

Rumours about a scene in the film of the Muslim king dreaming of a romantic tryst with the Hindu queen have enraged many, including the Rajput Karnik Sena, a fringe caste group that has called for the film to be banned.

The group had disrupted shooting and one member had slapped Bhansali on the set earlier this year. Others vandalised cinemas and threatened to chop off Padukone's nose, referring to an incident in another epic, Ramayana, where a character has her nose cut off as punishment.

The group also held protests against the film in several states and Rajput community members have burned effigies of Bhansali.

Source : BBC

Leading multiplex operator PVR is scouting overseas destinations for expansion and plans to open its first project in Sri Lanka in next two years, a top company official has said.

Besides Sri Lanka, the Gurgaon-based firm is also looking for other neighbouring countries like Myanmar and other emerging markets for its overseas expansion.

"We are opening in Sri Lanka, its not a massive foray but its still outside the shores of India. We are opening there in 24 months. Two properties are there in Colombo," said PVR Chairman and Managing Director Ajay Bijli.

PVR, which currently operates 600 screens in 51 cities in the domestic market, is aiming to have an annual foot fall of 100 million in next two years and to have around 1,000 screens by 2022.

(PTI)

Other cartoon characters may be better known these days, but Bugs Bunny remains one of the most influential cartoon characters in the history of animation - as well as one of the few lucky enough to play basketball with Michael Jordan.

 Never seen without his carrot but always cracking a joke or two, the famous grey rabbit icon became the official mascot of the Warner Bros. franchise and has gone on to appear in more films than any other cartoon character - including Disney's Mickey Mouse.

 That success is all down to one man in particular, Bugs' designer Bob Givens, who died from natural causes last Thursday, 14 December, at the grand old age of 99.

 Givens died while receiving palliative care for an illness at St. Joseph's Hospital in Burbank. His death was announced by his daughter Mariana on Facebook

 Givens worked as an animation checker on the 1937 Disney film Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs before being hired by Warner. Bros to redesign Bugs, who was judged to be 'too cute' in his original design.

 He was responsible for the first official design of Bugs as the wisecracking rabbit made his debut in the 1940 Oscar-nominated animated short A Wild Hare.

 Since then, Givens' design of Bugs has been largely the same, although it's obviously been refined as years have gone by. That's not a bad legacy to have at all really.

 Givens' career in animation lasted a whopping seven decades as he worked for the Warner Bros. and Hanna-Barbara animation studios, as well as racking up credits on a list of other important movies and TV shows.

 For the first 30 years of his career, Givens worked as a character designer and layout artist, working on a short to short basis.

 Lending his expertise to the original Popeye cartoon, Givens went on to work for almost every major series of cartoons in the 70s and 80s, contributing to Garfield & Friends, Tom & Jerry, and He-Man and the Masters of the Universe.

Givens received his final credited work on Timber Wolf in 2001 before largely retiring from active animation work, although he continued to teach and give animation talks well into his nineties.

Football-player-turned-professional wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne Johnson received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame Wednesday, one week before the release of his latest film, "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle."

"I came into this business -- 2018 will mark 18 years in Hollywood, and that is a very long time of blood, sweat and earning respect and doing the things that we do that we like saying on social media," he said.

"... The only thing I knew when I got into this business ... was I was going to be committed to putting in the work, and I was going to put in the work (with) my own two hands,'' he said. "That was what I was gonna do. So for me, years later, to be here and celebrate this and get this star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame signifies things coming full circle."

Tom Rothman, chairman of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, which is distributing "Jumanji," was among those joining Johnson at the ceremony in front of the Hollywood & Highland complex.

The star is the 2,624th since the completion of the Walk of Fame in 1961 with the first 1,558 stars.

Johnson's recent films include Disney mega-hit "Moana," in which he portrays and sings as demigod Maui, "Baywatch," "The Fate of The Furious," "Central Intelligence" and "San Andreas."

His other film credits include three other instalments of the "Fast and Furious" franchise, "Fast Five," "Fast and Furious 6" and "Furious 7"; "Hercules"; "Snitch"; "G.I. Joe: Retaliation"; "Empire State"; "Pain & Gain"; "Race to Witch Mountain"; "Get Smart"; "The Game Plan"; and "Be Cool."

Source: NBC News

An Egyptian pop star has been released after four days in jail and may face further questioning over a music video in which she wore only underwear eats a banana in a suggestive manner.

Shaimaa Ahmed, known professionally as Shyma, released the racy video for her song ‘I Have Issues’ last week. It was immediately met with complaints.

In the video, Ms Ahmed dances in her underwear and uses fruit to seduce a classroom full of men in which ‘Class 69’ is written on a chalkboard.

“The content of the video clip is harmful to the Egyptian society,” MP Jalal Awara said.

“There must be a firm stance against promoters of this substandard art.”

“Singer Shyma presents a lesson in depravity to youths,” one newspaper editorial said.

On Saturday she was arrested at her home in Cairo on suspicion of “inciting debauchery” and “corrupting public morals”, Egyptian media reported.

Source : The Telegraph

Mark your calendars: Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have officially set a wedding date.

Kensington Palace has announced May 19, 2018, as the big day. “Today’s announcement follows earlier confirmation of the month of the wedding and its location at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle,” the royal Twitter account declared.

His Royal Highness Prince Henry of Wales and Ms. Meghan Markle will marry on 19th May 2018.

Prince Harry announced his engagement to the Suits actress on Nov. 27. They followed the announcement with a photocall and sit-down interview filled with smiles and laughs as they described their courtship.

“It was just a typical night for us,” Prince Harry said of the night he proposed.

“What were we doing?” Markle asked her fiancé. “Just roasting chicken? Trying to roast a chicken and it was just an amazing surprise. It was so sweet and natural and romantic. He got on one knee.”

The pair has since made an official appearance meeting the people of Nottingham, where they attended the Terrence Higgins Trust World AIDS Day charity fair and met with staff and mentors at Nottingham Academy.

Source : Entertainment Weekly
Pic: Getty

Betoota Hills resident, Samantha Keary has read every single Australian bridal magazine that has been printed in the last 18 months.

As a self-confessed bridezilla, she knows two things. One, her dress is costing more than the venue – and two, she needs a hashtag.

‘Wedding Hashtags’ are a relatively new phenomenon in modern Australian marriage ceremonies. While many newlyweds argue the hashtag is used to help them curate and archive all photos posted to social media by their guests – it is often misinterpreted as a bride’s opportunity to show off how beautiful her wedding was to a greater digital circle than her own

Unfortunately for Samantha, her husband-to-be, Todd, is of Sri Lankan heritage, meaning their hashtag is probably not going to take off.

Officially known as the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, the Island nation that Todd’s family originate from is situated just off south-east India. Sri Lanka has maritime borders with India to the northwest and the Maldives to the south-west – it is well known for its fucking long last names.

While Samantha toyed with #MeetTheWasalamudiyanses – she just isn’t confident that her slow-speaking relatives from Townsville will be able to get their head around the phonetics.

She also thought about placing notes at each table setting with #Todd&SamanthaGetMarried – but that was also too long, and Instagram doesn’t let you use non-numerical and letter characters.

“This is fucked” she says, only eight months out from the final day.

“Everything is ruined. Why couldn’t they just anglicise their fucking name like my family did when they got here”

While Todd is treading very lightly on this seemingly pointless issue, he says there is not a chance in frozen hell that he will be taking Samantha’s last name to avoid this issue.

“That seems like a pretty dramatic resolution” he says.

“I think I might lie and tell her about some spooky Sri Lankan ritual that means the only people who can take photos at Weddings is the fucking stoner I’m paying five grand to do it anyway”

In the new Facebook game "Star Wars: The Last Jedi -- Porg Invasion," you are lovable droid BB-8 tasked with removing lovable alien porgs from the Millennium Falcon.

The retro arcade-style game features lovely, simple animation and repetitive but satisfying actions. It's the kind of addictive mobile game built for riding the bus or sitting through boring meetings.

Porgs are one of the breakout stars of "Star Wars: The Last Jedi." The beakless space-puffins are more Tribble than Ewok (apologies for mixing space franchises), and they like to reproduce.

Porgs live on the Ireland-like planet Ahch-To, where Luke Skywalker has gone to brood and avoid shaving. On a damp green island populated by lactating elephant-seal-like creatures, porgs nest on hillsides, by the sea, and eventually inside the Millennium Falcon.

It's a peaceful existence until Chewbacca and Rey make a hasty departure without clearing out the infestation.

"Porg Invasion" takes place in the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon. Tap the screen and BB-8 shoots a claw into the air to capture a porg, racking up points. You can also tap to help Chewie fix parts of the ship that have been damaged by the creatures.

Lucasfilm assures me the porgs are not killed, though there is no evidence of an effective catch-and-release program in the game.

"Porg Invasion" launched Friday. It is free and available on Facebook Messenger's Instant Games tab. You can play it on a smartphone or PC. Facebook (FB) added games to the stand-alone Messenger product in 2016.

There are serious Star Wars games that will no doubt rake in piles of money for Lucasfilm, like "Star Wars Battlefront II: The Last Jedi Season" and "Star Wars: Galaxy of Heroes." "Porg Invasion" is just free, fun advertising for the film.

Star Wars is a massive empire, of which actual film sales are only one segment. Porgs aren't just comic relief. They're stuff-able, huggable, meme-able cash cows built for licensing and viral marketing.

Source : CNN

Britain's Prince Harry and his American fiancee Meghan Markle have released a series of portraits by New York-based fashion photographer Alexi Lubomirski to mark their engagement.

Lubomirski, a former assistant to Mario Testino, famed for his photos of Harry's mother Princess Diana, took the pictures this week at the royal retreat of Frogmore House, near Windsor Castle, west of London, where the couple are due to marry on May 19.

"I cannot help but smile when I look at the photos that we took of them, such was their happiness together," Lubomirski said.

Queen Elizabeth's 33-year-old grandson, Harry, fifth-in-line to the throne, and Markle, 36, who stars in the U.S. TV legal drama "Suits", announced their engagement last month.

Source : Reuters

Miss Iraq Sarah Idan's family was forced to flee the country after receiving death threats over a selfie the beauty queen took with Miss Israel during the Miss Universe pageant last month. Iraq does not recognise Israel and the two countries have no formal diplomatic relations.

 Speaking to the Hadashot News channel, Miss Israel Adar Gandelsman, 20, revealed that Ms Idan's family was being harassed over the viral photo as well as the fact that she had posed in a bikini during the Miss Universe pageant.

 "People made threats against her (Ms Idan) and her family that if she didn't return home and take down the photos, they would remove her title, (and) that they would kill her... Out of fear, they left Iraq at least until the situation calms down," The Jewish Chronicle quoted Ms Gandelsman as saying.

 Ms Gandelsman added that the two women had remained in touch after meeting at the pageant in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ms Idan, 27, lives in the United States.

 She also quoted Ms Idan as saying she had "no regrets" about posting the photo on Instagram. The caption of Ms Idan's selfie read "Peace and Love from Miss Iraq and Miss Israel."

"She did that to inform people that it's possible to live in peace," Ms Gandelsman said, adding that's why she did not delete the photo despite the all the trolling.

Ms Gandelsman too had posted a picture with Ms Idan on her own Instagram account.

Ms Idan appeared to confirm the danger her family was facing in a tweet on Friday.

Last month, Ms Idan apologised to those who took her posing with Miss Israel to suggest she was expressing support for the Israeli government.

"This picture doesn't mean I support the Israeli government or its policies towards Arab countries. I apologise to everyone who saw it as an insult to the Palestinian cause - this was not its purpose," she clarified in a statement in Arabic.

Ms Idan was born and raised in Baghdad, Iraq. Following the US-led invasion in 2003, she worked with the American military from 2008. She later moved to the US.

Source : NDTV