Entertainment

Legendary Indian singer Lata Mangeshkar was admitted to an Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after she was tested COVID-19 positive.

She is admitted to the Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai. Her relatives confirming the reports said that she has mild symptoms.

Her relatives further said that the legendary singer was admitted to the ICU only as a precautionary step. Lata Mangeshkar in 2019 was also hospitalized after she had some breathing problems.

“She is mild Covid positive. Considering her age, doctors advised us that she should be in the ICU because she requires constant care. And we cannot take a chance. As a family, we want the best and want to ensure she has 24X7 care,” Rachana said. “She will be fine. But it is going to take a while because of her age. And also, COVID-19 takes seven days …,” her niece Rachana told PTI.

Lata Mangeshkar is the recipient of three National Film Awards, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award and the Bharat Ratna, among others.

Several people took to social media to wish Mangeshkar a speedy recovery. “Get well soon and come out of the ICU even sooner,” Anand Ranganathan, author of The Land of the Wilted Rose, wrote on Twitter. “You are not just the voice of our nation; you are its soul.”

One of the most revered playback singers in India, Mangeshkar has recorded songs in more than 1,000 films. Though she sings primarily in Hindi and Marathi, she has recorded in dozens of Indian and foreign languages.

Nicknamed the “Nightingale of India”, Mangeshkar’s most famous songs include Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya, Lag Jaa Gale, Yeh Galiyan Yeh Chaubara and Bahon Mein Chale Aao.

Mangeshkar received the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award, in 2001. She is only the second singer, after Carnatic vocalist MS Subbulakshmi, to receive the award.

Mangeshkar took to Twitter in December to commemorate the 80th anniversary of her radio debut.

“On 16 December 1941, I sang two songs for the first time in the studio for radio after seeking the blessings of my parents,” she tweeted in Hindi. “It has been 80 years today. In these 80 years, I have got immense love and blessings from the people. I believe that I will always keep getting your love and blessings.”

--Agencies

Popular actress Samantha Epasinghe has succumbed to Covid-19, reports say.

She was being treated at the Horana Base Hospital when she had passed away.

Samantha was a vibrant presence in the Theatre, mini screen and cinema and is perhaps best known for her role of 'Kumari' in the 1989 teledrama - Asalwesiyo.

Betty White, the five-time Emmy Award-winning actress, has died, PEOPLE has confirmed.

Her career spanned six decades and included pivotal roles on some of TV's most influential shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show and The Golden Girls.

She was 99 years old, and would have turned 100 on 17 January.

"Even though Betty was about to be 100, I thought she would live forever," her agent and friend, Jeff Witjas, told PEOPLE in a statement Friday.

"I will miss her terribly and so will the animal world that she loved so much. I don't think Betty ever feared passing because she always wanted to be with her most beloved husband Allen Ludden. She believed she would be with him again."

An only child, White was born in Oak Park, Ill., raised in Los Angeles, and graduated from Beverly Hills High School in 1939.

She was on TV before it was even beamed into homes: White sang an operatic song with a high school classmate on an experimental transmission two months before NBC famously presented the then new-fangled medium at the New York World's Fair in 1939.

After spending the '40s working in radio, White officially hit the TV airwaves in 1949 on the local variety show Hollywood on Television, for which she snagged her first Emmy nomination.

White went on to produce and star in the show's domestic spin-off comedy, Life With Elizabeth.

An assortment of short-lived roles followed, including an eponymous variety show and the first of her famed spots on game shows, from What's My Line to Make the Connection to Password.

Years later, White appeared on other game shows, including Pyramid and Match Game, as well as hosted NBC's Just Men! (for which she won a Daytime Emmy).

Her association with the genre earned her the nickname "First Lady of Game Shows."

Appearing on Password in 1961, White met her third husband, Allen Ludden, who hosted the show (White was briefly married twice in the '40s).

The pair got hitched in 1963, and Ludden died of stomach cancer in 1981. White never remarried.

The first of White's two most famous TV roles began in 1973, when she joined the cast of the super-successful CBS sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show, playing "happy homemaker" Sue Ann Nivens.

The character was legendary as a two-faced, nasty maneater hidden behind a sweet facade. White snagged two Emmys for the role.

Then in 1985, she debuted as Midwestern simpleton Rose Nylund alongside Bea Arthur, Estelle Getty, and Rue McClanahan on NBC's The Golden Girls, a series that focused on four geriatric ladies living together in a Miami house with a spacious lanai and lots of cheesecake.

Considered a precursor to Sex and the City, Golden Girls was a surprise Saturday night hit that stirred the cultural zeitgeist because of its frank discussion of taboo topics like sex over 60, AIDS, and gay issues.

White's character famously told meandering stories about her hometown of St. Olaf, Minn., and spouted off weird, Scandinavian vocabulary.

White was nominated for an Emmy during each of the show's seven seasons and won in its first.

"With The Golden Girls, it wasn't so much sadness [at the end] as it was a deep realization that none of us would ever be a part of something so special again in our careers," White told EW in 2005, on the show's 20th anniversary.

"It was the peak of everybody's career."

White joined McClanahan and Getty in a spin-off the following year, The Golden Palace, but it lasted only one season.

After Palace ended, White took roles on Bob Newhart's CBS sitcom Bob and Marie Osmond's ABC show Maybe This Time.

In her later years, White became something of a magnet for Guest Actress Emmy nominations: Between 1996 and 2004, she tallied four nods in series ranging from The John Larroquette Show to The Practice; her part in the latter drama led to a recurring role as a conniving legal secretary on Boston Legal.

White continued to appear on the small screen, in spots on the daytime soap The Bold and the Beautiful, sitcoms My Name Is Earl and Community, as well as the big-screen rom-com The Proposal opposite Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds.

From 2010 to 2015, White delighted fans with her portrayal of widowed caretaker Elka Ostrovsky in TV Land's Hot in Cleveland.

As generations of other stars came and went, White managed to endure — and thrive.

"Television was a fledgling, barely out of the nest, when I began taking my first stumbling professional steps," she wrote in her 1995 autobiography Here We Go Again: My Life in Television.

"It boggles my mind that in such a transitory field of endeavor, I am still allowed to hang in there."

More than just "hang" in television, the gutsy, sweet White left an indelible mark.

In addition to her incredible Hollywood career, she was also a pet enthusiast known for her animal advocacy.

White worked with various animal organizations over the years, including the Los Angeles Zoo, spcaLA, and the Morris Animal Foundation, where she had served as president emeritus since 2009.

(Yahoo)

Sri Lankan actress Sureni Senarath has passed away at the age of 62.

The actress who has been suffering from illness for a long period of time had passed away early this morning.

Her body has been placed at the Jayaratne Funeral Parlour in Borella, while the final rites are to be conducted at the Borella Cemetery tomorrow.

Sureni Senarath was well known for her performances in both television dramas and movies.

The actress is popular for her performances in Chandi Raja (1990), Dalulana Gini (1995) and Salupata Ahasata 2 (2000).

The Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka handed over the Padma Shri Award given by the Indian President to Dr. Vajira Chitrasena on Wednesday (17) in the presence of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.

She was recognized for her valuable contributions in the field of art further strengthening India-Sri Lanka cultural ties.

Three eminent personalities from Sri Lanka have so far been conferred with one of the highest civilian honours in India.

Earlier this month, the President of India conferred #PadmaShri upon Late Prof Indra Dassnayake posthumously for her contributions to Hindi & Indian culture.

Vatshala Dassanayake Ishtaweera received the Award on behalf of her late mother at a grand ceremony in Rashtrapati Bhawan.

Sri Lanka has dropped plans for a fresh bailout facility from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) but discussions are underway with the donor agency on technical assistance on public financial management, tax policy and administration.

"The Sri Lankan government has decided not to pursue a new or ongoing  IMF programme, but to continue maintaining the close relationship with the Fund under standard consultation processes similar to many other member countries," Central Bank Governor Professor W. D. Lakshman said.

Addressing a media conference convened to brief journalists on the third monetary policy review of the year, he noted that a team of two IMF economists currently in Colombo are conducting annual Article 1V consultations with Sri Lankan authorities.

They will be assessing economic and financial developments and discuss the country's economic and financial policies with government and central bank officials.

The team reports its findings to IMF management and then presents them for discussion to the Executive Board, which represents all of the IMF's member countries.

A summary of the IMF Board’s views is subsequently transmitted to the country's government thereafter informed sources said.

However, according to State Minister of Finance Ajith Nivard Cabraal, Sri Lanka is eligible to receive up to USD 800 million to boost foreign reserves from the IMF as a part of a new allocation of Special Drawing Rights.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) confirms it has received a request for emergency financial assistance from the Sri Lankan authorities to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

This was stated by the Director of the Communications Department of the International Monetary Fund, Gerry Rice responding to questions during a press briefing recently.

We did receive a request from the Sri Lankan authorities for emergency financial support to help fight the COVID pandemic,” the IMF spokesman said.

He stated that the assessment of that support has taken longer than for other countries due to “Sri Lanka's daunting economic challenges and high public debt.”

Rice said they have sought, but not reached understanding, on how to fulfil the key requirements for what could be a rapid financing instrument which would include policies to continue ensuring debt sustainability to address the balance of payment challenges including from the COVID‑19 impact on tourism and to preserve international reserves.

“The USD 1.5 billion EFF arrangement approved in 2016 expired on June 2, 2020. Given that the final review under the arrangement was not completed, Sri Lanka could not avail of the last disbursement under the EFF, amounting to SDR 118.550 million which is equivalent to around USD 200 million. Disbursements under any Fund arrangement can only be made during the period between the date of its approval by the IMF Board and its expiration date," IMF mission chief Masahiro Nozaki said.   Therefore at this point, for Sri Lanka to access any additional Fund resources, the IMF Board approval of a new arrangement would be needed, he disclosed.

Young Sri Lankan singer Yohani de Silva is set to perform in Dubai’s World Trade Centre on the National Day of the United Arab Emirates on 02 December.

Yohani will also be headlining a show at the Sri Lanka pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai in the first week of March next year.

“Yes, I have been to Dubai once (in 2019). And yes, I am coming to Dubai soon to perform,” Yohani has told City Times, without confirming any dates.

The concert is expected to be a musical showcase of Sri Lankan talent directed towards south Asian audiences.

Yohani’s set list is expected to feature a mix of Indian and Sri Lankan songs.

An aspiring Hollywood actor has been accused of scamming millions from film investors by tricking them with fake Netflix deals to fund a lavish lifestyle.

Zachary Horwitz, 34, was arrested on Tuesday by FBI agents on suspicion of running a $690m (£502m) Ponzi scheme.

Mr Horwitz, whose stage name is Zach Avery, allegedly raised funds from investors for film licensing deals with Netflix and HBO that did not exist.

He was charged with wire fraud.

If convicted, he could be jailed for up to 20 years.

The criminal complaint was filed by prosecutors and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday.

It accuses Mr Horwitz of using investor funds for "lavish personal spending", including extravagant trips to Las Vegas, flights on chartered jets, payments for high-end cars and the purchase of a $5.7m mansion in Los Angeles.

"We allege that Horwitz promised extremely high returns and made them seem plausible by invoking the names of two well-known entertainment companies and fabricating documents," Michele Wein Layne, a senior SEC official, said in a statement on Tuesday.

As an actor, Mr Horwitz has not had the most illustrious career in Hollywood. Other than an uncredited part in Fury - a 2014 American war film starring Brad Pitt - Mr Horwitz has mostly appeared in low-budget films with mediocre ratings.

A lawyer for Mr Horwitz, Anthony Pacheco, did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the BBC.

BBC

Veteran singer and musician Lakshman Wijesekera, who made a significant contribution to the field of art for several decades, passed away a short while ago.

Sources say the 73-year-old had been ill for some time and was receiving treatment at hospital at the time of his death.

He became popular as an actor from the teledramas 'Ira Paya' and 'Ganga and Nissanka.'

The remains of the late musician will be kept his residence in Mount Lavinia tomorrow (13) and the final rites will be performed at the Mount Lavinia Public Cemetery on Sunday (14).

Tharshan Thiyagarajah and Losliya Mariyanesan, known for their appearances in the reality tv show 'Big Boss Tamil', are set to play the leading roles.

Filmmaker K.S. Ravikumar, who will also play a lead role in the movie, will also be seen producing the project, Indian media reported.

The story of the film is based around a lonely aged man, who is gifted a robot by his son. It has been speculated that Tharshan will play the role of the son in the Tamil version.

The original Malayalam sci-fi comedy-drama was directed by Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval and is said to be inspired from the Hollywood flick Robot & Frank.

The 1st Athugala Air Gun championship (youth & junior) 2021of was held from 22 Oct 2021 to 26 Oct 2021 at the Athugala 10m Air Gun range, Uhumeeya, Kurunegala ending the competition drought of almost two years due to Covid-19 pandemic.

The event was organized by the Athugala Shooting Sports Club, which is the first of its kind, being the inaugural competition dedicated to Youth and Junior shooters of the country.

The age groups for shooters under-18 years falls to the Youth category and those who are under-21 years will come under the Junior category. Event segments included Air Rifle and Air Pistol for male and female under both Youth and Junior.

The top six shooters of each of the four categories were considered for national Youth and Junior pools provided they achieve the The National Shooting Sport Federation of Sri Lanka (NSSF) minimum qualifying standards, stipulated by the organisers.

The Sichuan Wolong National Nature Reserve Administration said that the two videos recorded in February 2020 and released on Friday were the second time in more than a year the albino panda had been spotted by infrared trigger cameras.

In the first video, the panda is seen roaming in the snow, sitting with its back to the camera close to the tree where the camera is installed.

Three days later, it passed through dense forests and crossed small rivers and was recorded by  another camera on a mountain ridge a kilometer away. It was seen in the video for about 10 minutes.

The panda was shown to have bright white fur, steady steps, a strong body, leading experts to determine it is healthy and about three years old.

While extremely rare, albinos can occur in numerous groups of vertebrate animals, according to Li Sheng of the IUCN Bear Expert Group and the Peking University School of Life Science. The genetic mutation prevents melanin from being synthesized.

The panda was first documented in May 2019 and has grown and appears stronger in the videos released on Friday.

In the two video clips taken last February, the panda is living on its own and experts believe it has left its mother's care and living independently.