Sonu Sood to launch blood bank app

Actor Sonu Sood is going to launch what is expected to be India’s biggest blood bank, through an app named Sonu For You. The app aims at connecting donors to those in urgent need of blood.

As per the app, a donee can reach out to donors, and on receiving a request a donor can immediately reach the hospital and donate blood. Already being hailed as the country’s biggest blood bank, Sonu For You promises to help patients with rare blood groups.

Sonu tells IANS: “Sonu For You was conceived by me and my friend, Johnson. Every time someone needs blood on an urgent basis and we share the same on social media, we receive responses from many. So we thought, why not come with an app that serves the same purpose?”

He adds: “Going to a blood bank to search for a certain blood group can take a long time especially in cases of rare blood groups. Every year, 12000 patients in India die due to a lack of donated blood. With this app, we want to convey the message that our 20 minutes can save someone’s life.”

The actor has been expanding relief work in different sectors of society. It started with his work for migrants during the lockdown. He also started the distribution of e-rickshaws among the underprivileged. Sonu has started online classes, too, for children who cannot afford the technology.

I-T raids on B Town’s Anurag Kashyap, Tapsee, Vikas Bahl

Mumbai, March 3: In a massive action against the big Bollywood personalities, the Income Tax department on Wednesday carried out searches at the premises of noted film Director Anurag Kashyap, actor Taapsee Pannu, and filmmaker Vikas Bahl.

An I-T department source related to the probe said, “Searches are on at the premises of Pannu, Kashyap, and Bahl in Mumbai and other locations.”

The source, however, refused to share further details of the case.

The source further said that multiple teams of the agency sleuths were carrying out searches at over 22 locations in Mumbai and several other places, including the premises of the Phantom Films.

However, officials of the I-T department remained tightlipped on the searches at the premises of Phantom Films.

According to another I-T department official, the searches are going on at the premises of these Bollywood personalities in connection with some “tax evasion” matter.

Kashyap, Bahl, and Pannu have been vocal on the social media platforms and have also raised their concern over the farmers’ protest, which has been going at the borders of the national capital since November 26 last year against the three farm laws.

Kerry Katona credits curvy figure for pop career

Los Angeles, March 3:  Singer Kerry Katona, who joined the girl band Atomic Kitten in 1998, feels that it was her curvaceous figure that helped her make a mark.

“I started my career as a topless model — that’s how I got in Atomic Kitten,” Katona said according to a report in femalefirst.co.uk.

“I was a size six waist, with 34DD chest, at age 16 — that’s when I started topless modelling. I wasn’t going to be a rocket scientist, but I had great t**s,” Katona told Daily Star Online.

The singer also shared that her mother was proud of her modelling past.

“My mum used to have one of my Page 3 photographs up on her living room wall,” she recalled.

Jessica Alexander in live action remake of ‘The Little Mermaid’

Los Angeles, March 3(Telugubullet) British actress Jessica Alexander has joined the cast of the live-action remake of the 1989 animated classic “The Little Mermaid”.

Alexander joins a stellar line that includes Melissa McCarthy as the evil sea witch Ursula, Javier Bardem as King Triton, and Halle Bailey as Ariel the mermaid, reports Deadline.

The upcoming film is directed by Rob Marshall and written by David Magee. It will feature songs from the original film version, as well as new music from composer Alan Menken and the lyrics provided by “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Miranda and Marshall are also producing the project.

Alexander is known for her role in the teen drama, “Get Even”. Apart from “The Little Mermaid”, Alexander will also be seen in the upcoming film “Glasshouse”.

PM Modi ruled Indian TV in 2020: BARC report

New Delhi, March 3: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the most-watched personality on television in India last year, according to the annual TV viewership report for 2019-2020 by Broadcast Audio Research Council (BARC). PM Modi’s public addresses regarding the ongoing Covid pandemic, and his also his speeches focussing on a range of issues — from India being at the forefront of exporting Covid-19 vaccines to the ongoing farmer protests.

Broadly, here are the top three trends that one can spot in the report: THE MODI WAVE

“Whether they are his interviews, speeches at global events, address to the nation or even a wildlife adventure show, channels that broadcast the content see their viewership leapfrog and set new levels,” the report stated, explaining the impact PM Modi had.

Notably, PM Modi’s speech at Red Fort, which was over two hours long, with 133 million viewers, saw a rise by 40 percent, compared to his Independence Day speech in 2019.

The Prime Minister’s speech on March 24, 2020, where he announced the first lockdown, saw more viewing minutes than any of his previous addresses.

His address to the nation in April 2020, where he announced a relief package of Rs 20 lakh crores, became the most-watched address with over 203 million viewers tuning in.

“Each time PM Modi’s coronavirus-related addresses were aired, there was a noticeable drop in the viewership of major genres like General Entertainment Channels (GEC), Movies and Kids,” the report said.

His call for solidarity by switching off lights for nine-long minutes reflected in a 60 per cent decline in TV viewership during those nine minutes.

The report also notes that due to the pandemic, and following an increasing curiosity about government measures and announcements, the share of news in total TV viewership tripled as compared to the yearly growth of seven percent previously.

MYTHOLOGY AND DOORDARSHAN REIGN

Last year, “the viewership contribution of mythological shows to Hindi GEC genre spiked from a mere 14 percent to 43 percent by week 15, 2020”. The fact that no new content was being created because of Covid guidelines, archived content made a huge comeback and Doordarshan (DD) was probably the biggest benefactor.

The channel’s decision to re-telecast “Ramayan” and “Mahabharat”, and other popular TV shows of the eighties and the nineties, saw the total viewership of the channel grow by 68 percent last year.

LOVE FOR FILMS STAYED INTACT

Unlike the GECs, which suffered an initial loss due to lack of original content, BARC notes that the Movies as a channel genre didn’t face any hiccups, and these saw growth by 10 percent over the viewership of 2019.

“Regional movies genre posted higher growth than their Hindi counterpart, although Hindi language genre accounted for close to 60 percent of total movie genres viewership. Apart from Hindi, the other major markets for the genre were Telugu, Tamil, and Kannada,” the report stated.

However, the report also suggests that lack of original content meant a reduced share for GEC content in the first half of the year. It became normal, post-July, once the lockdown restrictions were eased.

Kartik Aaryan’s ‘Dhamaka’ set for an OTT release

Actor Kartik Aaryan’s upcoming thriller Dhamaka will drop directly on the OTT platform, bypassing theatrical release. Kartik confirmed the news to fans with an Instagram post on Tuesday, although the date of release is yet to be officially declared.

“Jo bhi Kahunga Sach Kahunga #Dhamaka Coming soon, only on Netflix,” wrote Kartik, with a clip of the film.

The story of the film revolves around Kartik’s character, a news anchor, who gets caught up in a frustrating situation on learning about a mysterious bomb blast. Events that follow lead him to a point where he has to choose between his career and humanity.

Said director Ram Madhvani: “I have been wanting to collaborate with Kartik Aaryan for some years now and I’m thrilled he wanted to do Dhamaka. Every day Kartik gave his all to the 360-degree system with which I work. His full involvement, his passion, his precise calibration as an actor is something that I highly respect. It would be great to collaborate with him again because he made my work better.”

Actor Kartik Aaryan, who sports a long-hair look in the film, says: “Dhamaka has been a very exciting and enriching experience for me as an actor. Working with a maverick like Ram Madhvani has allowed me to explore & showcase a new facet of my personality. I am thrilled that the film will reach audiences and my fans all around the world on Netflix.”

Dhamaka will premiere exclusively on the OTT platform across 190 countries.

Kangana: Javed chacha got warrant against me with Maharashtra govt help

Actress Kangana Ranaut on Tuesday took a jibe at lyricist Javed Akhtar for issuing a warrant against her. A Mumbai court had issued a bailable warrant against Kangana the day before when she failed to appear for the hearing of Akhtar’s defamation case against her.

“Another day another FIR, yesterday Javed chacha with help of Maharashtra government got a warrant issued for me and now another FIR for supporting farmer’s bill, meanwhile those who spread lies about this Bill and Farmer’s genocide also caused riots, face no consequences. Thanks,” Kangana tweeted.

In a second tweet in Hindi she took a jibe at the Maharashtra government and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.

She wrote: “Kitne bhi zulm karlo, mera ghar tod do yah mujhe jail bhej do, yah jhooth failakar mujhe badnaam kar do, main nahi darne wali, mujhe sudharne ki koshish karne walon main tumhe sudharkar dam lungi, karlo jitni koshish karni hai mujhe abala bechari Banane ki, main baaghi paida hui thi, baaghi hi rahungi (No matter how much you oppress, break my house or send me to jail, or spread lies about me, I’m not scared. Those of you who are trying to correct me, I’ll relax only after correcting you. No matter how much you try to portray me as a helpless woman, I was born a rebel and will always be so).”

On Monday, Kangana visited her Bandra office for a meeting and later tweeted to express that visit left her heartbroken. The actress also shared pictures of the destroyed office.

In September 2020, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had demolished parts of Kangana’s office in Bandra citing illegal construction. The demolition work was stopped midway after a stay order from Bombay High Court on September 9.

Mohit Chadda-starrer ‘Flight’ trailer unveiled

The trailer of the upcoming Reliance Entertainment film titled Flight starring Mohit Chadda was unveiled on Tuesday. The action thriller film is slated to release date on March 19.

The film is directed by debutant Suraj Josh. It also features Pavan Malhotra, Zakir Hussain, Viveck Vaswani, Shibani Bedi, Pritam Singh, and others in supporting roles.

The two-minute trailer showcases Mohit’s character boarding a flight and how things take an unsavory turn as he is the only one alive on the board.

The film tells the tale of overcoming deadly obstacles on a plane to survive.

Janhvi Kapoor in black dress spaghetti-strap is a stunning photo for a promotional event of Roohi

Janhvi Kapoor was nothing short of stunning as she discharged promotional duties for her upcoming film Roohi on Monday. For the event, Janhvi picked a black outfit designed by Georgian fashion designer David Koma.

Roohi is an upcoming  Hindi language comedy horror film directed by Hardik Mehta and Produced by Dinesh Vijan under the banner Maddock Films. This film release on 11 March 2021. 

last year Gunjan Saxena The Kargil Girl super hit movie released on Netflix. Gunjan Saxena character played by Janhvi Kapoor in that movie.

The spaghetti-strap floor-length black dress featured crystal embellishments and a thigh-high slit. Janhvi styled the dress with silver stilettoes and skipped accessories as such except for multiple rings on her fingers.

Her hair was set in soft curls as she let them down and opted for smokey-eye make-up. Brown shimmer eyeshadow, jet black kohl, and generous coats of mascara. With that, she applied loads of blush and highlighter on her cheeks for that natural glow. To round it off, Janhvi wore nude lipstick topped with some clear gloss. We love!

My mother has gone through so much more than I have :Sara Ali Khan

Mumbai, March 2: Bollywood’s gen-next star Sara Ali Khan has shared that there are days she does not feel positive and that it is when her mother, veteran actress Amrita Singh, becomes key to all her solutions.

“There are days when I don’t feel positive. It’s normal. That is the part and parcel of life but I think I have a great mother and I think she is the solution to all my problems. With a mother like that it is impossible to be any less than positive,” Sara, daughter of actors Amrita Singh and Saif Ali Khan, told IANS.

The actress, whose last release was “Coolie No 1” with Varun Dhawan on a digital platform, said that Amrita has “gone through” a lot.

“I think she has gone through so much more than I have in her life and if she can walk the way she does with her head held as high as she does as her daughter, then I would be worthy of your compliment,” Sara Ali Khan said.

“Atrangi Re” release on 6th August 2021. Sara will next be seen in “Atrangi Re”, co-starring Akshay Kumar, Dhanush, and Nimrat Kaur, and directed by Aanand L. Rai.

“Atrangi Re” is written by Himanshu Sharma and is billed as a cross-cultural love story.