Actor-producer Reese Witherspoon slammed sexism prevalent in Hollywood, saying big studios are uninterested in making films with ‘female-driven material’.
The 41-year-old actor said she had a tough time finding a distributor for her film ‘Gone Girl’ initially, but things smoothened after the book became a bestseller. “I’ve also had studio heads say to me, ‘We don’t want to make biopics about women,’ or more simply, ‘We’re not interested in female-driven material’.”
“My first go-round as a producer with ‘Gone Girl’? Every studio passed but one. When the book hit number one on the best seller lists, it was a different story,” Witherspoon said.
The ‘Big Little Lies’ actor recalled a conversation she had with Mindy Kaling on racism in the industry.
Another thing I think about a lot is how it feels to be a minority woman in America, so rarely seeing yourself onscreen, and it’s unconscionable.
When I asked Mindy Kaling, ‘Don’t you ever get exhausted by always having to create your own roles?’ she said, ‘Reese, I’ve never had anything that I didn’t create for myself.’”
“I thought, Wow, I feel like a jerk for asking that; I used to have parts that just showed up for me. I can’t imagine how hard it is to write your own parts and simultaneously have to change people’s perceptions of what a woman of colour is in today’s society,” she said.
Actors such as Jeesica Chastain, Scarlett Johansson, Mila Kunis and Emma Watson, among others have recently spoken up about facing sexism in Hollywood.
CAST: Bobby Deol, Sunny Deol, Shreyas Talpade, Sonali Kulkarni
DIRECTION: Shreyas Talpade
GENRE: Drama
DURATION: 2 hours 11 minutes
STORY
Set in a North Indian village, three distinct men – local goon Arjun (Shreyas), retired army officer Jagawar Chaudhry (Sunny) and school teacher Vinay (Bobby) are shocked to find themselves becoming the ‘poster boys’ of male sterilisation after their pictures randomly appear on a public service ad promoting vasectomy. They are soon subjected to public shaming.
The three embark on a mission to fight the system that wrongly pronounced them ‘sterile’ without their consent or knowledge. The film is a Hindi remake of Sameer Patil’s 2014 Marathi film Poshter Boyz.
REVIEW
The best part about Shreyas Talpade’s unsuspecting debut film as a director is the fact that he doesn’t try too hard to make his characters look or sound funny. They are just common people stuck in an uncommon situation and must deal with it. Their ways to prove their innocence are as ineffective but that makes you identify with their trauma. What’s also refreshing is Shreyas’ decision to not follow the ‘Bollywood comedy’ template by making his sensitive subject seem frivolous. Of course there are enough silly metaphors that refer to the male reproductive tract but those can be overlooked, given the significance and sensitivity he lends to the topic otherwise.
Credit also goes to the writers for localising the Hindi adaptation and comic punches well. But what pleasantly surprises you the most is the hilarious Deol brothers jugalbandi in a never-seen-before comic avatar. Shreyas extracts the best out of them and it is their comic timing and odd tributes to each other’s previous hit films that amuse you the most. Ashwini Kalsekar and Talpade’s sidekicks too deserve a special mention for cracking some quirky one liners.
This dramedy that revolves around men who unknowingly promote ‘Bina taka nasbandi operation’ is a light-hearted and clever take on the population problem that plagues our nation.
Contrary to the perception that Indians are making their presence felt in Hollywood, actor Tisca Chopra says “we have not yet begun in the West”.
The 43-year-old actor says only two Indian artistes – Priyanka Chopra and Irrfan Khan – have managed to be consistent in Hollywood, which is not enough to assure India’s place in the international cinema.
In an interview, Tisca says, “We are such a huge country and if one or two people are working in international projects, it doesn’t make a difference. They are cast here and there when an Asian face is needed.
“I feel only Priyanka Chopra and Irrfan have managed to work consistently in the West. Apart from them, I don’t think anyone else is doing anything significant. There is no star from India in Hollywood.”
The actor says India may be a huge market for filmmakers and actors in the West in terms of making money, but they are still not attracted to the content of the movies made here.
“We are far from making our place in global film market. Chinese, Korean, Iranian and Turkish films have set markets for themselves in the West. Source: PTI
Her over a decade-long journey in Bollywood has seen many a triumph, including her three National awards, and Kangana Ranaut said if her career ends now, she has nothing to lose as she has a huge success story for the rest of her life.
Kangana, who made her film debut in 2006 with ‘Gangster’, said during her journey in the film industry, she has been able to discover herself and conquer her fears. Kangana in an interview said, “I have acted upon my fears when I was struggling and trying to discover myself, who I am. But now I feel extremely satisfied with my discovery about myself, my inherent nature, about who I am as a woman and what my tendencies and capabilities are. I left home with none of the knowledge when I was 15 but at the age of 30 I know a lot about me.
“And there is a sense of accomplishment, I am a threetime National Award winner, I have shattered box office records. Even if my journey ends here right now right, I have nothing to lose. I still have a huge success story in every which ways for the rest of my life.”
Kangana, 31, fails to understand why she should be fearful about anything in life as she is not scared of anyone.
On if she fears not getting work, the actor said she has already achieved more than what she had set out for. “Why should I be fearful now? When I left home I wanted to be independent, now I am a megastar, I am a household name, I am a woman who knows herself which was the biggest challenge for me. If I am going to be fearful now, I am going to be fearful my entire life.”
Kangana is not worried about her career ending in Bollywood and said she has complete faith in her abilities and knows that she can try her hand in some other profession.
“What is it that this industry can give me? This industry can only take from me, it cannot give me anything. If my journey ends here, then too bad. If it continues, then good for them. I will do something else in some other field. I have a lot of faith in my abilities and I am not scared. I am not enamoured by this world and no one can pull my spirit down.” Source: PTI
ISLAMABAD (TIP): Pakistan’s election commission has issued a bailable arrest warrant against cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan for repeatedly failing to appear before it in a contempt case.
The Election Commission of Pakistan was hearing a case against 64-year-old Khan filed by a dissident from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and one of the founding members Akbar S Babar.
The ECP ordered the party chief to appear before the court on September 25.
The counsel for Khan, Babar Awan, argued that the party chief was abroad and had returned to the country just an hour ago.
On this, the counsel for the petitioner argued that the ECP’s orders have been violated.
“Had he (Imran Khan) respected the institutions, he would have been present here,” said the counsel, asking the commission to continue with the regular proceeding.
Following this, the ECP reserved its judgement in the contempt case and issued bailable arrest warrants against Khan, and ordered him to appear before the court on September 25.
The ECP in its order said that Khan should submit surety bond of Rs 100,000 until September 25 to avoid arrest and also appear on September 25 for hearing in person.
Last month, the ECP had issued a second show-cause notice to Khan after he failed to reply to the earlier notice regarding the contempt of court proceedings against him.
Khan had initially challenged maintainability of the contempt petition and raised objections over ECP’s jurisdiction to initiate contempt proceedings against him; the commission, however, declared on August 10 that it had the legal right to hear the contempt case.
It had then issued a formal show-cause notice to him, asking him to submit a reply by August 23.
Khan had accused the ECP of being biased in the foreign funding case following which his counsel had tendered an apology with the commission. (PTI)
KUTUPALANG, UKHIA (BANGLADESH) (TIP): Akhira Dhar sits in stony silence in one corner of the makeshift camp for Rohingya refugees.
Her glazed eyes have a blank stare that seems oblivious of the bustle in the camp as a fresh wave of refugees arrive, carrying with them scars and hopes. It takes a long time for Akhira to return to the present. But the horrors of the recent past have simply overwhelmed her.
In the past week, Akhira has seen her husband and in-laws being hacked to death. Masked men armed with guns and machetes beheaded them after they looted everything the villagers had. That they were Hindus, minorities among the Rohingyas, didn’t matter. In the Rakhine state, violence and persecution obliterated religious boundaries. Hindu women were raped and killed before their villages were burnt.
At Fakir Bazar, the village where Akhira was married into barely a year ago, the masked men did not spare a single male member. The blood and gore that she witnessed still numbs her. “Hadi felay (They kill everyone),” she murmurs. How she, carrying a fourmonth life in her womb, managed the crossing across the hilly terrain and jungle tracts braving wild animals is difficult to comprehend but she did finally make it to Merinja opposite Naikhong Chari in Chittagong. Here, she is now housed in Hindupara, a Hindu settlement within the Kutupalang Camp.
Rikha Dhar, another refugee in Hindupara, recounted how her husband who had a gold shop in Myanmar’s Fakir Bazar was tortured by masked men till he disclosed where he had hidden the jewellery. Once he did though, they slit his throat. “My husband told them about the jewellery when they threatened to kill our children. They then took him blindfolded towards the hills. When we were fleeing, we found his blood-soaked body along with hundreds of others,” she recalled. The masked men, survivors are convinced, are not the armed forces as they speak the Rakhine dialect. These men, with their faces hidden, had spread a reign of terror in villages with Hindu settlements.
The gun-toting masked men came one Thursday afternoon and drove us into our homes. For the next six days, they did not allow anyone to come out. On the seventh day, when they had gone to a nearby village, we fled for our lives,” said Bijay Ram, a Rohingya Hindu who managed to escape along with 120 more families from Oti Roah village in Myanmar. While trekking through the jungle, they found Akhira, Rikha and six other women with children. (TNN)
ISLAMABAD (TIP): The sequence of events that followed the disqualification of ex-PM Nawaz Sharif from office by the Supreme Court in the Panama Papers case has exposed a rift within the Sharif family and the ruling PML-N over the question of who will be the successor of the ousted premier.
The by-election for a National Assembly seat in Lahore, that fell vacant with Sharif becoming ineligible to remain a legislator, has brought in the open the split in the party between his daughter, Maryum, and his younger brother, Shahbaz Sharif, who is currently the CM of Punjab.
Knowing the delicacy of the power struggle, Nawaz, after his ouster, had announced his younger brother to be his successor but to be a PM, Shahbaz had to be elected to the National Assembly. As a stop-gap measure, Shahid Abbasi was announced PM. Sharif also launched his daughter to be his unofficial political strategist and spokesperson while delaying the announcement of the name of the candidate who would contest the by-election.
PML-N veterans loyal to Shahbaz had privately said that it was just impossible that elder Sharif would bring his younger brother as PM. Ahead of announcing that his wife Kulsoom Nawaz would contest the by-election, it had almost become clear that Abbasi would remain a “permanent PM” till the next polls.
“By announcing Khaqan Abbasi first as the country’s interim PM and then permanent, Nawaz Sharif has successfully denied control of PML-N to his younger brother till next election in mid-2018,” said analyst Nusrat Javed.
Meanwhile, Nawaz picked Maryum to lead her mother’s election campaign, depriving his nephew, Hamza Shahbaz, from the job.
Nevertheless, Shahbaz and his son Hamza, have distanced themselves from campaigning of Kulsoom Nawaz. They are currently in London and will return once the election is over. While both father and son have refrained from expressing their grievances in public, ex-home minister and Shahbaz’s close friend, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, has been doing the job.
Nisar recently said Maryum could not be accepted as party leader. “Maryam should only be considered as the daughter of Nawaz Sharif,” he said, adding that Maryum had a long way to go in order to prove herself as a leader.
SRINAGAR (TIP): The state police, the Army and the CRPF, in a joint operation, killed Lashkar-e-Toiba chief Abu Ismail, the mastermind of the Amarnath yatra attack, and his accomplice on the outskirts of Srinagar on September 14.
Around 4.15 pm, the two terrorists hiding in the area were killed in a “very brief and crisp encounter”, Kashmir’s Inspector General of Police Muneer Khan said. “They were identified as Abu Ismail from Pakistan and Abu Qasim, known as Chota Qasim, also from Pakistan,” he added.
On July 10, militants had attacked a bus carrying Amarnath pilgrims near Batingoo Anantnag, leaving eight passengers dead and 19 injured, triggering outrage across the country. Terming the attack “un-Islamic”, Lashkar had denied any role, but the J&K Police claimed to have arrested two persons who had “helped” the three militants led by Ismail to carry out the attack.
“The mastermind has been killed but two militants, one a foreigner, are at large,” Khan said. The GOC of Army’s counter-insurgency unit in south Kashmir, Maj Gen BS Raju, said Ismail’s killing was a huge setback to LeT.
NEW DELHI (TIP): Karti Chidambaram refused to appear before the CBI in the Aircel-Maxis case, his lawyer said.
The agency had called Karti for questioning today in connection with the foreign investment clearance given in 2006 in the Aircel-Maxis deal when his father P Chidambaram was the Finance Minister.
Karti, through his lawyer, has refused to appear before the agency saying a special court had discharged all the accused in the matter. “All proceedings connected with the said (case)… were also terminated,” the response said.
“The response has been received by the CBI today at 10.30 am through a courier service. The response has also been sent through fax and email,” Karti’s lawyer Arun Natarajan said.
It said after the discharge of the accused and “termination” of the proceedings, the CBI will not have jurisdiction to issue a summons in connection with the said case.
According to the CBI chargesheet submitted in a special court, Mauritius-based M/s Global Communication Services Holdings Ltd. a subsidiary of Maxis, had sought approval for an investment of $800 million in Aircel.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs was competent to grant the approval. “However, the approval was granted by the then Finance Minister. Further investigation is being carried out into the circumstances of the FIPB approval granted by the then finance minister. The related issues are also being investigated,” the agency had said in 2014. BJP leader Subramanian Swamy claimed that the former Finance Minister had given FIPB clearance to a deal that should have been referred to the CCEA, headed by the Prime Minister, as it alone was empowered to clear foreign investments of over Rs 600 crore. Source: PTI
The World Bank-brokered water talks with Pakistan are taking place over Thursday and Friday, in Washington DC. Since the Pathankot and Uri attacks last year, Delhi has discouraged any kind of dialogue unless cross-border terrorism comes to an end.
NEW DELHI (TIP): India and Pakistan have submitted themselves to the World Bank for the second time in two months, to help resolve a dispute over their respective interpretation of the Indus Waters Treaty, signalling a softening of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s tough line on Pakistan. The presence of Deepak Mittal, joint secretary in charge of the Pakistan desk in the Ministry of External Affairs, in the delegation led by Water Resources Secretary Amarjit Singh is significant.
The World Bank-brokered water talks with Pakistan are taking place over Thursday and Friday, in Washington DC.
Since the Pathankot and Uri attacks last year, Delhi has discouraged any kind of dialogue unless cross-border terrorism comes to an end. Reacting to India’s participation in the talks, Bimal Patel, member of the National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) and Law Commission, told The Indian Express that he “doesn’t know what the government’s intention is, but it is uncalled for to participate in such meetings to perpetuate a third party role”.
Patel said he was speaking in his personal capacity. The five-member NSAB is led by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. “I don’t know why we are going to the World Bank. We should not go to the World Bank. I fail to understand why they (the government) are doing this, inviting the World Bank to play a role which should not be there,” said Patel. The dispute is over the construction of two hydroelectric plants on the Kishenganga (330 MW) and Ratle (850 MW) tributaries of the Jhelum and Chenab respectively. Pakistan complained that India was violating the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, signed under the aegis of the World Bank, because it was given unrestricted use of the waters of the two “Western Rivers” in the Indus system under the treaty.
But the treaty also allows other “uses”, including the construction of hydroelectric plants. India has taken this to mean that it can not only construct the Kishen ganga and Ratle dams, but also several other projects, such as the 1000 MW Pakal Dul, 120 MW Miyar and 48 MW Lower Kalnai on various tributaries of the Chenab. Pakistan objected and asked the World Bank to set up a Court of Arbitration; as the upper riparian state, India was not adhering to its treaty obligations, Pakistan said. India, meanwhile, requested the World Bank to appoint a neutral expert to look into the matter.
Asked about the Bank’s role in the India-Pakistan talks and what it expected from them, Bank spokesperson Elena Karaban told The Indian Express: “The meetings between India and Pakistan on the technical issues of the Indus Waters Treaty are taking place in Washington, DC on September 14-15. These meetings are a continuation of a discussion on how to safeguard the treaty for the benefit of the people in both countries.”
Delhi’s decision to drop its earlier objections and agree to participate in a Bank-brokered dialogue with Pakistan in August in Washington DC surprised all sides. Senior Bank officials even complimented both delegations for displaying a new spirit of “goodwill and cooperation”.
Deepak Mittal, the MEA official, was present in those talks as well. His participation in this second round is being seen by all sides as a signal that the Modi government is softening its position on Pakistan.
NEW DELHI (TIP): Placing the onus on schools for the safety of students on their premises, the Central Board of Secondary Education today issued new security-related guidelines that included a psychometric test for the teaching and non-teaching staff.
Psychometric tests are used to measure an individual’s mental capabilities and behavioural style. The tests are designed to measure a candidate’s suitability for a role based on the required personality characteristics and aptitude.
The evaluation is done by a professional psychologist.
The Board has asked schools to complete the evaluation process within two months and implement the other guidelines, failing which they would face derecognition.
The directive comes amid increased concerns about the
safety of students on school premises following the killing of
a seven-year-old boy in a Gurugram school and the rape of a five-year-old girl by a peon in Delhi. “Such verification and evaluation for non-teaching staff such as bus drivers, conductors, peon, and other support staff may be done very carefully. Source: PTI
NEW DELHI (TIP): India on Thursday rushed 53 tonnes of relief materials to Bangladesh and pledged all help to Dhaka in tackling the humanitarian crisis after nearly 400,000 Rohingya Muslim refugees fled to the country from Myanmar following the ethnic violence in the Buddhist-majority nation.
“Operation Insaniyat: High Commission handed over 1st consignment humanitarian assistance by India to Bangladesh,” the Indian mission here tweeted.
The first Indian consignment comes days after Bangladesh High Commissioner in New Delhi Syed Muazzem Ali met Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar last week and briefed him about the problems faced by Dhaka due to the influx of the refugees. “India stands ready to provide any assistance required by Government of Bangladesh in this hour of need,” an Indian External Affairs Ministry statement said on Thursday. It said New Delhi always responded readily and swiftly to any crisis in Bangladesh, in keeping with the close ties of friendship between the peoples of the two countries. “In response to the humanitarian crisis being faced on account of the large influx of refugees into Bangladesh, Government of India has decided to extend assistance to Bangladesh,” the ministry said. The relief material consists of items required urgently by the affected people, namely rice, pulses, sugar, salt, cooking oil, tea, ready to eat noodles, biscuits, mosquito nets, tents etc. Source: PTI
NEW DELHI (TIP): In a major development that may spell more trouble for controversial businessman Vijay Mallya, Britain’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is conducting a probe against the liquor baron for alleged “money laundering” in UK and beyond.
Top sources said that British investigators are probing alleged use of several companies for laundering money from India to UK through a circuitous route and a complex web of companies, and further to Switzerland and other countries.
In fact, sources said, SFO has already collected substantial information about Mallya’s movable and immovable assets, his investment and shares in various companies in the UK and bank account details. The financial investigation agency decided to initiate an independent probe against Mallya to examine whether the alleged money laundering involved British companies linked to him.
The UK authorities have informed India about its independent ‘formal’ probe against Mallya while seeking details of alleged money laundering and assets abroad from CBI and ED.
Government sources say the SFO action should strengthen India’s extradition case against Mallya, presently being heard in Westminster Court. To enable extradition of Vijay Mallya from London, a ‘dual criminality’ clause of his illegal activities has to be established according to the extradition treaty between two countries. The clause demands cheating of public banks in India by Mallya, and subsequent, money laundering has to be proved a ‘crime’ in the eye of British law as well. Source: TOI
GANDHINAGAR (TIP): Deepening their strategic ties further, India and Japan on September 14 agreed to boost cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region in the midst of China’s growing assertiveness and pitched for a “zero tolerance” in combating terrorism, including towards Pakistan-based groups JeM and LeT.
The two countries signed 15 deals in key areas, including civil aviation, trade after wide-ranging talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe as they discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in strategic areas of defence, security, trade and civil nuclear energy.
The two leaders also deliberated upon important regional and global issues and affirmed strong commitment to their values-based partnership in achieving a free, open and prosperous Indo-Pacific region where sovereignty and international law are respected, and differences are resolved through dialogue, and where all countries, large or small, enjoy freedom of navigation and overflight.
But significantly, the joint statement issued after their talks did not mention South China Sea directly unlike last year’s joint statement.
After the 2016 summit during Modi’s visit to Japan, the joint statement had said, “regarding the South China Sea, the two Prime Ministers stressed the importance of resolving the disputes by peaceful means, in accordance with universally recognised principles of international law including the UNCLOS.”
Addressing a joint press event with Abe, Modi said, “the range of special strategic and global partnership is not just limited to bilateral and regional sphere. We have close cooperation on global issues as well.”
In an apparent message to Pakistan, the two sides also called upon all countries to work towards rooting out terrorist safe havens and infrastructure, disrupting terrorist networks and financing channels and halting cross-border movement of terrorists.
The two prime ministers also called for Pakistan to bring to justice the perpetrators of terrorist attacks including those involved in Mumbai (2008) and the Pathankot (2016) strikes.
“They looked forward to the convening of the fifth India-Japan Consultation on Terrorism and to strengthening cooperation against terrorist threats from groups including Al-Qaida, ISIS, Jaish-e- Mohammad (JeM), Lakshar-e-Taiba (LeT), and their affiliates,” said a joint statement issued after the Modi-Abe talks.
It said Modi and Abe condemned in the “strongest terms” the growing menace of terrorism and violent extremism and shared the view that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations is a global scourge that must be forcefully combated through concerted global action in the spirit of “zero tolerance”.
“Accordingly, the two Prime Ministers called upon all UN member countries to implement the UNSC Resolution 1267 and other relevant resolutions designating terrorist entities,” said the joint statement.
The reference also assume significance in the backdrop of China repeatedly blocking India’s move to declared JeM chief Masood Azhar as global terrorist by the UN.
On his part, Abe said, “we have just signed a joint statement which will serve as a milestone to open a new era for Japan- India relationship… based on that we will strongly promote Japan-India special strategic and global partnership to drive peace and prosperity for Indo-Pacific region and the whole world.”
Modi and Abe underlined that the two countries could play a central role in safeguarding and strengthening a rules based order in the Indo-Pacific and to this end, they pledged to reinforce their efforts to enhance defence and security cooperation and dialogues, including the MALABAR and other joint exercises, the statement said.
During his press statement, Abe also referred to the recent Malabar Japan- India-US naval exercise and said cooperation would be further strengthened.
NEW DELHI (TIP): A senior US official on Thursday sought to allay India’s concerns on the H-1B visa programme, which is being “reviewed” by the Trump administration, saying there are no “restrictions” in place.
The official said around 70 per cent of the visas issued under the H-1B category over the past nine months have gone to Indians and that a record 1.2 million visas of Indians were adjudicated by the US last year.
The year-over-year increase in terms of issuance of H-1B visas and L1 visas (work permit) to Indians is six per cent each, the official said.
“The President (Donald Trump) spoke about review. There are no restrictions but it (H-1B) is under review,” he said, adding the issue was not on the agenda for the upcoming Indo- US bilateral dialogue on consular relations, but it may come up in the course of the talks.
The issue of the repealing of the Deferred Action for Children Arrival (DACA) programme, which has hit more than 7,000 Indian-Americans, may also figure in the talks scheduled to be held on September 27 in Washington.
Trump had signed an executive order in April for tightening the rules of the H-1B visa programme to stop “visa abuses”.
The DACA amnesty programme granted work permits to immigrants who arrived in the country illegally as children.
The official also said the US processed around 88,000 student visa applications last year, which is an increase of 15 per cent over 2015. Currently, there are around 1.6 lakh Indian students in the US, which is the second highest number of international students, after China.
Indian citizens made up six per cent of worldwide immigrant visa applicants, making them the fifth largest group of new immigrants after those from China, Philippines, Dominican Republic and Mexico.
Sources quoted the US police as saying that the attacker repeatedly stabbed Dr Achutha Reddy after a conversation
KANSAS (TIP): A 57-year-old doctor from Telangana was stabbed to death at his clinic in Kansas on Wednesday. Achutha Reddy, a psychiatrist, was found with multiple wounds in an alley behind his clinic in East Wichita. One of his patients, a 21-year-old man, has been arrested and charged with first degree murder.
This is the second killing this year of an Indian in Kansas where Srinivas Kuchibhotla, also from Telangana, was shot dead in February.
Reports quoted the US police as saying that the attacker, identified as Umar Rashid Dutt, “repeatedly stabbed the doctor after a conversation”. He allegedly chased the doctor, who tried to get away.
The accused man was found at a country club after a security guard reported a suspicious person sitting in a car in the parking lot with blood on his clothes.
Besides running the Holistic Psychiatric Services, Dr Reddy was affiliated to various hospitals in the region and was known to be a yoga and fitness expert.
The father of three was from the Nalgonda district and graduated from the Osmania Medical College in 1986. Three years later, he completed his residency in psychiatry from the University of Kansas Medical School in Wichita. After practicing for more than two decades, he started his clinic.
Dr Reddy’s wife, Beena Reddy, is also a doctor Fellow doctors and members of the community described his death as a loss to society. The Wichita Eagle newspaper quoted Denis Knight, president of the Medical Society of Sedgwick County, as saying: “The Medical Society is heartbroken over the loss of Reddy.”
In YouTube videos, Dr Reddy said he also treated chronic physical pain through a system he called “Absolute Yoga”. He said he had suffered chronic back pain for 10 years, which drove him to research and develop the system which stressed on the “right mindset”.
In February, Srinivas Kuchibotla was killed by a man who shouted: “Get out of my country”. The police say Dr Reddy’s killing does not appear to be a hate crime.
WASHINGTON (TIP): Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) introduced joint legislation in the Senate and House on Sept 13 that would give working families a much-deserved wage boost to compensate for 40 years of wage stagnation. The Grow American Incomes Now (GAIN) Act would greatly expand the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) so that more working families and childless workers are eligible to receive it. More than 50 members of Congress are cosponsoring the bill.
The bill comes at a time when the Trump Administration and Republicans are supporting devastating budget cuts to programs that help working families in exchange for tax breaks for the very wealthy and big corporations.
The GAIN Act roughly doubles the EITC for working families and increases the credit for childless workers almost six-fold. Under the proposal, the maximum tax credit available increases to $12,131 for families with three or more qualifying children; $10,783 with two qualifying children; $6,528 with one qualifying child; and $3,000 with no qualifying children. Currently, a family of three can receive a maximum credit of $6,318 and someone with no children can receive at most a $510 tax credit.
The proposed EITC expansion would also be phased out at higher income levels and remain fully refundable. It would allow for a worker with no children who makes up to $37,113 annually to still be eligible to receive the tax credit and covers a family with three or more children making up to $75,940 a year to receive the EITC. The current maximum qualifying income to receive the EITC is $15,010 for childless workers and $48,340 for families with three or more children.
“Americans are working longer hours, but too many aren’t seeing that hard work reflected in their pay. And worse—our tax system can actually tax workers into poverty. That’s not how we grow our middle class or our economy,” said Sen. Sherrod Brown. “Updating the EITC will make sure all workers can keep more of the money they earned for their work.”
“The EITC is already proven at lifting people out of poverty. By strengthening it to reach more families and individuals, it can have a lasting impact on our economy,” said Rep. Ro Khanna. “In today’s age of automation and globalization, where work is sometimes seasonal and hours are often curtailed, this bill provides every hard-working American with a fair income for their labor.”
The bill also recognizes many Americans live paycheck to paycheck and includes a provision that would provide an Early Refund EITC as an alternative to payday loans and other predatory lending products. EITC advances would be capped at $500 each taxable year and would be subtracted from the recipient’s total credit when they file their annual tax return. Instead of receiving the lump sum once a year, this early refund makes it easier for working families and individuals to pay their monthly bills and provide financial security. The bill also lowers the qualifying age for the EITC from 25 years old to 21 years old.
WASHINGTON (TIP): Two Indian American Congressmen – Ami Bera (California) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (Illinois) have been named as co-chairs of “Jobs for America” task forces which were launched on Sept 13. House Democratic Caucus Chairman Joe Crowley (D-NY) announced the launch of the unified effort from House Democrats to craft a real legislative agenda for America that will benefit the hardest-working Americans and middle-class families in Queens, the Bronx, and across the nation.
The task forces will create opportunities for job growth, boost hardworking families, and give every worker the opportunity to achieve the American dream by developing legislation focused on investing in key industries, restoring worker benefits, removing barriers to help workers find stable and well-paying jobs, helping our veteran communities transition to the workforce, and identifying jobs of the future.
“Our economy isn’t working for far too many Americans. Middle-class families and hardworking men and women struggle to attain the opportunities they so greatly deserve, find financial security, and retire with confidence,” said Chairman Crowley. “Americans want to know what Democrats stand for and how we’ll fight for them. This effort will provide a specific roadmap for how families in Queens, the Bronx, and across America can obtain better wages, better jobs, and a better future.”
The task forces will be chaired by a cross-section of members of the House Democratic Caucus. During the coming months, co-chairs of the task force will meet with business and labor leaders, entrepreneurs, and middle-class Americans to develop a legislative package that will benefit all Americans.
The co-chairs of the task forces are Reps. Matt Cartwright (Pennsylvania), Jimmy Gomez (California), Donald Norcross (New Jersey), Bonnie Watson Coleman (New Jersey), Don Beyer (Virginia), Brendan Boyle (Pennsylvania), Brenda Lawrence (Michigan), Raul Ruiz (California), Ami Bera (California), Lisa Blunt Rochester (Delaware), Mark Pocan (Michigan), Marc Veasey (Texas), Suzan DelBene (Washington), Debbie Dingell (Michigan), Raja Krishnamoorthi (Illinois), Darren Soto (Florida), Julia Brownley (California), Ruben Gallego (Arizona), Donald McEachin (Virginia), and Brad Schneider (Illinois).
“The whirling dancers, clapped hands, and later added distinct sound of wooden sticks struck together in perfect harmony by toe tapping music and people, especially ladies including small girls wearing colorful dress. Tempo of dance picks up gradually as time progressed” – Bhoomi Trivedi
CHICAGO. IL (TIP): New Era Entertainment Presented Garba Dandia Masti by legendary Vocalist Bhoomi Trivedi, also known as Ramleela Girl for the famous hit song “Udi Udi Jay”. This event was 1st time ever in Chicagoland for Bhoomi, presented by National Promoter Gaurang Patel, A.B Entertainment Altaf Bukhari, Pankaj Raval & Payal Shah. The event was held at Bartlett park district spacious gymnasium from on Saturday, September 02, 2017 at Bartlett park district, 700 South Bartlett Road, Bartlett, IL
This annual ritual colorful Raas Garba festivity was presented during pre-Navaratri time. Navratri is an annual holy event celebrated in honor of Goddess Durga Mataji; also worshiped are goddesses Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati, the goddesses of health, prosperity and knowledge, respectively.
There was overwhelming participation from predominantly young, enjoying the memorable evening. Many in the audience, especially ladies and children wore very vibrant colorful and dazzling traditional Indian dresses for this special juncture with appropriately matching ornaments and extravagant hairstyles. Navaratri Garba is very special for me as it honors Shakti in very rhythmic ways said Nisha Deshpande. Her mother Dina Modi added that “we all love the whole atmosphere of colors, the clothes and of course, the music and then there is always the fun of dressing up”. She further explained to Asian Media USA that western dress is replaced by Lengha-choli, matching jewelry and foot wear. “Some prefer to wear traditional outfit while others go for modern look” she added. When asked main purpose of organizing such event, Dina replied that “this type of organized event promotes Indian culture to new generation who are born here Music for Navaratri festival has to keep balance between devotion and entertainment”.
Internationally acclaimed Indian singer, 28, hails from Vadodara, India. Trivedi hails from a musical family from Vadodara of Gujarat. She started to learn music while she was in 8th grade. Trivedi began her Bollywood career with 2012 film Prem Mayee with the song “Bahne Dey”. However, she rose to fame with her rendition in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s 2013 released film Goliyon Ki Raasleela. Her song Ram Chahe……became an instant hit.
Before that she is well known as the participant of the national singing competition show Indian Idol 3,4 and 5 editions. In the 5th edition she was selected as one of the three finalists Other than Bollywood songs, she also had recorded for several Gujarati films. Her recent hit was “Udi Udi Jaye” in film Rees in year 2017 written by Javed Akhtar.
Bhoomi’s category of singing talent includes Filmi, electronic pop and rock music. It was natural for her to progress to one of the most renowned popular singer during festival of Navratri entertaining hefty crowd by her spiritual and mystical singing of “Raas and Garba”
There were various booths at the event ranging from designer attire and jewelry to dish services, banking products and even best-selling books on success! Payal Shah did a marvelous job of colorful complimentary decoration for the occasion of the hall including the entrance.
Explaining the importance of the festival Altaf Bukhari, CEO of A.B Entertainment said that such event is intrinsic as it carries the message of unity and brotherhood to new generation who are born in this county. He also thanked to audiences and volunteers for hard work and dedication
It was one of the most organized events of its kind that Chicago has seen in recent years. The tremendous energy of the packed auditorium was evident with the non-stop dancing that lasted for hours with participants ranging from youth to seniors. The event also included prizes for the best female and male dancers for Garba and Raas as well as best dressed couple. The event concluded in wee hours of morning highlighted by devotional Arti of Mataji.
Sponsors of the events were New York Life Insurance, American Family Insurance, Big Suchir, Deshi Hut Restaurant, Suga Builders, M. K. Shah Financial services, Raag and Rock Entertainment, Suburban Medical, Dr. Ritish Patel, R.N. International, Verandah Senior Living, World Smart LED, Devon Travel, Universal Accounting, Mr. Nilesh Topiwala, Accu Tax, World Money Exchange Inc, Hitesh Gandhi and Anil Shah
Media Partner of the event were Hi India, Asian Media USA and T V Asia
WASHINGTON (TIP): Veteran Bollywood diva Zeenat Aman was felicitated with lifetime achievement award for her contribution in the field of cinema at the DC South Asia Film Festival (DCSAFF) which was held Sept. 8-10 at Montgomery College’s Rockville Campus in Washington, D.C. The sixth annual DC South Asian Film Festival was presented by the DC South Asian Arts Council, Inc. in Partnership with Montgomery College.
Indian American philanthropist Frank Islam presented the award to the 65-year-old actor saying that she ‘defined girlhood and womanhood for generations of South Asians.’ Zeenat Aman is best known for her work in Hindi films during the 70s and 80s. An award-winning actress, Ms. Aman is credited with a making a lasting impact on the image of its leading actresses by introducing the modern look to Hindi cinema. Ms. Aman has won numerous awards including Filmfare Best Supporting Actress for Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1972), Bollywood Awards ‘Award for Lifetime Achievement’ – Lifetime of Glamour (2003), and Best Contribution to Indian Cinema at the 11th IIFA awards (2011).
The event featured three days of the premieres of award-winning films from South Asian countries. Screenings included feature films, short films by Montgomery College Students, and documentaries as well as Q & A sessions with directors and actors. The opening and closing night galas featured stars and acclaimed guests including Zeenat Aman, Adil Hussain, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett, Delegate Aruna Miller (now running for Congress in Maryland’s 6th Congressional District), directors Anant Mahadevan, Vinay Pujara, Indira Somani among others.
Alankrita Shrivastava-directed “Lipstick Under My Burkha” received the best feature film award while special jury mention for best feature film went to “The Valley” and “Elephants in the Coffee” bagged the prize for the best documentary. Ananth Mahadevan got Best Director award for Dr. Rukhmabai. Adil Hussain received best actor award for Hotel Salvation and Pragati Kolagewas adjudged as the best actress for Palyawadasi.
CHICAGO (TIP): Now in its 8th year, Chicago South Asian Film Festival, (CSAFF) will take place from September 29th to October 1st and will screen films in three distinct locations across the Chicagoland area – the Showplace ICON Theater in Downtown Chicago, DePaul University, and the AMC Theater in Oakbrook.
This year of CSAFF has been made possible by arts-conscious sponsors DePaul University, Counsel General of India Chicago, Bank of America, B-Raja, West Monroe Partners, and Air India.
“Our mission at CSAFF is to further diversity and cultural education in Chicago so that young multicultural filmmakers and artists can be given a strong platform to tell their stories and share their art”, said Festival Manager Jigar Shah. “At the 2017 CSAFF we look forward to our third year of in-competition sections for both feature and short films and a focus on the pivotal role of women in South Asian cinema. As part of this focus, we are proud to host the illustrious Indian actors, Shabana Azmi, Aparna Sen, Rajkummar Rao, and Akshay Oberoi who will be joining us on the Red Carpet at 6 p.m. on Opening Night, September 29th in Oakbrook.”
A carefully curated collection of independent films, shorts, documentaries, events and discussions will create the three-day Festival experience. The Festival will open at the Oakbrook AMC Theater, with Red Carpet performances by local dance companies on the central festival theme of “Women in Cinema”.
There is a stellar lineup of films this year including Trapped, Dobara Phir Se, You Are My Sunday, Sonata, Newton, Gurgaon, and many other short films and documentaries. Filmmakers will also be present for moderated Q&A sessions throughout the weekend through most of these films. Closing night festivities will take place at the Showplace Icon in the South Loop at 8 p.m., including an awards ceremony.
Renowned actors Shabana Azmi and Rajkummar Rao will walk the Red Carpet and Ms. Azmi will be presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Opening Night will close with the Chicago premiere of Newton by director Amit Masurkar and includes dynamic performances by Rajkummar Rao. Newton premiered at the Berlin Film Festival to rave reviews earlier this year. There will be a Q&A session with Mr. Rao after the film.
India’s Identities Through Bollywood Cinema: Panel discussion at Lincoln Center
By Mabel Pais
India’s Identities through Bollywood Cinema, was a panel discussion at one of Lincoln Center’s Film Center, in early August. It explored the Hindi film industry’s (colloquially known as Bollywood) role in uniting Indians from different religious, ethnic, linguistic, economic, and class backgrounds. For over a century Bollywood has attempted to represent the country’s multitude of voices.
The panel of expert filmmakers, journalists, and academics explored how Bollywood cinema represents India’s various identities and how that storytelling can continue to evolve and include all Indians.
The moderator, Pulkit Datta, a freelance filmmaker, led the discussion. He has worked on a wide variety of productions internationally, in addition to writing, directing and producing his own passion projects. Datta is also the Media Producer for The India Center Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting dialogue and cultural exchange between the U.S and India.
Panelists were Tejaswini Ganti (Associate Professor, NYU), Sri Rao (screenwriter/producer), and Anisha Jhaveri (Film Critic, Indiewire).
Bollywood Boulevard: A Journey Through Hindi Cinema, was the mainstay to the dual events on Bollywood. Created by MELA Productions in association with Aaditaal Music Project, the song-and-dance presentation debuting in August, was part of Summer 2017 Lincoln Center’s Out of Doors Festival at Damrosch Park. It attracted over 4,000 patrons.
Scenes from various Bollywood movies. Photos / courtesy Heena Patel, MELA GroupScenes from various Bollywood movies. Photos / courtesy Heena Patel, MELA Group
Bollywood Boulevard — a harmonious fusion of live music, dance, and film — led you from the birth of Hindi cinema to present day. You experienced the spirit, artistry, and history of India’s famous film industry from the classics of the black-and-white era and the timeless songs of Bollywood’s Golden Era to the foot-tapping blockbusters of today.
The event was inspired by the music of R.D. Burman, Lata Mangeshkar, and A.R. Rahman, the dance moves of superstars like Amitabh Bachchan and Priyanka Chopra, and romance as captured by Raj Kapoor and Yash Raj Chopra. It was an escape to grand palaces and mustard fields and dance clubs. Bollywood had captured the hearts of billions across the world over the generations for its vibrance, emotions, and heart-pounding beat that inspired the world’s largest entertainment industry.
While the performance cast hails from the Tri-state, the project itself was an international collaboration between creatives based in the U.S. and India. Featuring 18 dancers, 9 musicians, digital backdrops and short films, over 100 years of Indian artistry of Hindi cinema was alive during this exuberant stage show. This vibrant group of dancers and musicians took the audience on a journey through time as they captured the history of Bollywood, from black-and-white classics to colorful blockbusters, stringing the spirit and romance of India’s grand palaces, mountain vistas, and sweeping mustard fields to Damrosch Park.
Bollywood Boulevard demonstrated the magnetic power of Hindi cinema and Indian entertainment. Audience members engaged in the performance by singing along with the singers and dancing in the aisles.
Lincoln Center not only served as the presenter of the show, but also the lead commissioning partner, breathing life into an idea conceived by Heena Patel of MELA Productions and created in partnership with Rushi Vakil of Aaditaal Music Project.
“There are so many skilled Bollywood dancers and musicians in the five boroughs and New Jersey – Lincoln Center’s backyard – but with limited professional opportunities. By commissioning this show, it was an opportunity for us to invest in the next generation of creators from this community and showcase what they are capable of,” says Jill Sternheimer, Director of Public Programming at Lincoln Center.
“Every person involved is an ardent fan of Hindi cinema and their passion could be seen in each aspect of the show,” says India-based executive producer, creator, and music director Rushi Vakil.
“The premiere was more than what we could have imagined. It truly was an evening of pure love, joy, and beauty, and to see the show so thoroughly enjoyed made all the hard work of the last 8 months worth it,” says U.S.-based executive producer, creator, and dancer Heena Patel.
Scenes from various Bollywood movies. Photos / courtesy Heena Patel, MELA Group
With the overwhelmingly positive response, Bollywood Boulevard will commence on a tour in early 2018 with a series of performances in February and March in New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and New York before heading across the country later in the year.
Bollywood Boulevard was commissioned by Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, along with the Bushnell Center for Performing Arts, and The Jay and Linda Grunin Center, with additional support from the Patels. Additional support for the Lincoln Center presentation came from the India Center Foundation, Anil Bansal, and Raoul Bhavnani.
For more information on Bollywood Boulevard, please visit: http://bollywoodblvdshow.com/
(Mabel Pais is a freelance writer. She writes on the arts and entertainment, health and wellness, social issues and spirituality)
WASHINGTON (TIP): President Donald Trump announced, September 12, appointment of his close aide Raj Shah to a key White House position. The Indian American will serve as Deputy Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy Press Secretary. Mr. Shah formerly served as Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Communications Director.
Before joining the White House, Shah, who is in his early 30s, was in charge of opposition research in Republican National Committee where he led a team of experts to carry out research against Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential candidate. Shah was behind all the anti-Clinton campaign during the presidential elections.
Shah’s parents immigrated to the US from Mumbai with origins in Gujarat. First his father came to the US for studies in 1970s then moved back to India. But after marriage his father and mother moved back to the US in late 70s. They lived in Chicago and then moved to Connecticut. Shah was born and raised in Connecticut. He attended Brien McMahon High School and was named an Ettinger Scholar in Norwalk. He studied government at Cornell (2002-2006) and received the bachelor’s degree in 2006.
Shah volunteered in Bridgeport for Rep. Chris Shays (R-CT) during high school and interned for Sen. Joe Lieberman (D-CT) and others in Washington as his interest in politics developed. He interned in the White House in 2005.
By the 2012 presidential election cycle, Shah was deputy research director at the RNC and he said in that job “he learned what not to do in the 2016 election”. He worked with campaign staff and manager of the Mitt Romney campaign and others to plan how, particularly, to try to defeat Hillary Clinton well before she announced she was running in 2016. Shah was also a co-founder of America Rising, “a right-leaning political action committee that produces opposition research on Democratic candidates”.
WASHINGTON (TIP): An Indian woman, who lost her residency rights in the US following the murder of her techie husband in a suspected hate crime, can stay in the country for now after an influential lawmaker helped her get a temporary work visa.
Sunayana Dumala, whose 32-year-old husband Srinivas Kuchibhotla was killed at a Kansas bar in February, fell out of status because her permission to reside in the US was tied to Kuchibhotla through marriage, Congressman Kevin Yoder was quoted as saying by NBC News, September 14.
“We’re not going to let this happen to Sunayana,” Yoder said on Twitter. Dumala managed to regain her residency status as she lost it after the killing of her husband.
Kuchibhotla, an aviation system engineer and programs manager at GPS maker Garmin, was in the US on a temporary non-immigrant H-1B visa.
“When Sunayana lost her status, to me it really added insult to injury,” Yoder said. He later helped her get a temporary work visa of her own.
“It would have been a real tragedy, on top of the initial tragedy she suffered, to attend her husband’s funeral in India and then be locked out of the US because of it,” Yoder was quoted as saying.
Dumala was part of a group of Indian immigrants who came to support the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act, according to Yoder, the Bill’s lead sponsor. The legislation seeks to eliminate the per-country cap for employment-based immigrants, allowing Green Cards to instead be given on a first-come, first-serve basis.
(Source: PTI)
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