Shalmali: Whenever someone calls me a ‘singer’ I almost cringe

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Shalmali: Whenever someone calls me a ‘singer’ I almost cringe

Singer-songwriter Shalmali says she almost cringes when she is referred to as a singer because her dream was always much bigger than that.

“My big dream was always to become a musician, so whenever someone calls me a ‘singer’, I almost cringe. I sing, sure, but I do more than just singing. I write and compose my songs, I do vocal arrangements, I produce tracks, I perform live and I have just finished work as a music director on an indie Marathi film. I am able to do all these because I am a musician and not just a vocalist,” asserted Shalmali, while speaking to IANS.

Right now, she is taking baby steps into the independent music scene with singles like “For you” and ‘Regular’ that she released this month.

“I love to wear many hats instead of limiting my musical career just on adding soul to a lyrical composition as a playback singer,” added the artiste who started her career in Bollywood and shot to fame singing “Pareshaan” in the 2012 release, “Ishaqzaade”.

She is primarily known for her film hits such as “Daru desi” (Cocktail), “Balam pichkari” (Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani”), “Lat lag gayee” (“Race 3”), and “Baby ko bass pasand hai” (“Sultan”), among others, and she had also released indie songs such as “Ruka Ruka” and “Kalle kale”.

Diljit Dosanjh on Sushant: ‘Suicide waali baat digest toh nahi hoti’

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Diljit Dosanjh on Sushant: ‘Suicide waali baat digest toh nahi hoti’

Singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh says he met Sushant Singh Rajput twice in his life and that he cannot digest the idea that the late actor committed suicide.

A user on social media urged Diljit to raise his voice in the Sushant case. He also used hashtags such as #JusticeForSushantSinghRajput and #GlobalPrayer4SSR

Diljit replied to the user: “Bhai Shushant Bhai Ko Mai Do Baar Mila Thaa Life Mai.. Suicide wali Baat Digest Toh Nahi Hoti.. JAANDAAR Banda Thaa Yaar.. Baki I Know Police Apna Kaam Kar Rahi aa .. Humeh Wait karna Chaiye. I Hope Sach Sab Ke Saamney Aeyga (I have met Sushant twice in my life. Cannot digest that he committed suicide. He was a guy full of life. Rest I know, the police are doing their job. We should wait. I hope the truth comes out).”

Diljit had spoken about Sushant on social media earlier, too. In an Instagram post on June 30, he had called the late actor a “jaandaar banda” (a guy full of life).

Back then, Diljit had posted to say that he was not happy with the decision to release Sushant’s last film “Dil Bechara” on the OTT platform.

“Eh Tan Theatre ch v Release Honi Chaidi Aa.. (It should be released in theatres),” Diljit had said.

Sushant was found dead at his residence on June 14. His family lodged an FIR accusing his girlfriend, actress Rhea Chakraborty, and her family with abetment to suicide among other charges. They have demanded a CBI investigation into his death.

Marking the two-month death anniversary of Sushant Singh Rajput, his family members, fans and colleagues from the industry observed a prayer meet on Saturday.

Film celebs to M S Dhoni: Thank You

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Film celebs to M S Dhoni: Thank You

A host of film stars such as Varun Dhawan, Rajkummar Rao, Vicky Kaushal and Mohanlal among many others shared emotional tributes on social media for the former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who announced his retirement from international cricket.

Dhoni announced his retirement in an Instagram post on Saturday, thus calling time on an illustrious international career that spanned nearly 16 years.

He posted a video montage with pictures at different points of his career along with a caption: “Thanks a lot for ur love and support throughout. from 1929 hrs consider me as Retired (sic).”

Here’s what the celebrities had to say:

Shekhar Kapur: Not once, never, can I remember our hearts not pounding, our excitement levels not rising when Dhoni came out to bat. A true game-changer. You made cricket seem simple, almost casual, yet exhilarating. Unexpected. If that’s not genius, I don’t know what is #Dhoni #DhoniRetires.

Mohanlal: Farewell Captain @msdhoni, Best wishes to all your future endeavors.

Varun Dhawan posted a picture of Dhoni playing on the field and wrote: “Pure class”. He then shared another picture and captioned: “Thank u @mahi7781”

Vicky Kaushal: What an innings! Thank You for everything @mahi7781.

Rajkummar Rao: Thank you for all the amazing memories Captain cool. We will miss you.

Siddhant Chaturvedi: Shukriya legend… ary yaar ek match aur! ha ha.

Nushratt Bharuccha: .@msdhoni made me fall in love with cricket! Huge fan of his, batting, captaincy, wicket-keeping, and composure on field! The man was always two steps ahead in the game! Will truly miss you Dhoni!

Yami Gautam: Immense respect for M.S. Dhoni for not just being an outstanding player but also setting an exceptional example with his conduct and journey, on and beyond field.

Riteish Deshmukh: No retirement from our hearts.

Bipasha Basu: Captain forever @mahi7785.

Divya Dutta: #Dhoni retires!! Thank you captain for making us proud always!! Ever dependable!! Amazing memories !! You are done India proud!! Keep inspiring us!!

Randeep Hooda: Nooooo !!! You’ve always known the best… Thanks for the entertainment.

Saiyami Kher: From his long locks to his patent on the helicopter shot, Captain Cool always had a style of his own. This one has left all of us stumped. Aye Aye captain!

Kunal Kohli: @msdhoni game changer for cricket. Anything was possible as long as #mahi was there. Made nonbelievers watch the game. The game will miss him. #Dhoni best finisher ever. Selfless. The team meant more to him than personal milestones. Love you. #AllTimeGreat.

Huma Qureshi: Dhoni (heart emoji).

Rahul Dholakia: Dhoni! Thank you.

Sophie Choudry: An exceptional player, an exemplary leader, an absolute class act on and off the field…A true legend!! Thank you for everything you have done for Indian cricket MS… Wish you nothing but the best always.

Richa Chadha, Ali Fazal back film on rural economic revolution

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Richa Chadha, Ali Fazal back film on rural economic revolution

Actors Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal have lent their support to a short film, Transform India, which focuses on rural economic revolution.

The real-life lovers joined hands to support social activist Mayank Gandhi’s short film.

“I am happy to present this short informative video because it is so promising. It is about how one man who decided to prove that even a single person can make a huge difference, make money, and save the environment. It could help tide over this economy and better the environment,” Richa said.

Ali added: “The movement aims to address some major problems of farmers like rural distress, poverty, suicides, and deprivation. Their prototype work in drought-hit and suicide-prone regions of Marathwada in Maharashtra started in 2016, has been impressive.”

Talking about reaching out to Richa and Ali, Gandhi said: “We have seen that Richa and Ali have a credible thought process about social issues, and express a constructive solution for the same. Their genuine concern for the environment, rural economy, and the prosperity of our farmers is commendable.”

Patriotism comes from love, jingoism from hatred: Filmmaker Raja Krishna Menon

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Patriotism comes from love, jingoism from hatred: Filmmaker Raja Krishna Menon

Filmmaker Raja Krishna Menon is gearing up for his next film, the war action drama titled Pippa, and he says there is a marked line separating patriotism, nationalism, and jingoism as portrayed on screen.

“I think defining patriotism is important, and there is a fine line between patriotism and jingoism. Patriotism comes from a love for your motherland, for the place that you come from, and it holds a sense of belonging. It does not come by hating a community or people or land. It has to be about love and not about hate. For me, my love for my country is not about my hate towards others,” Menon told IANS.

Considering the fact that we are living in effervescent socio-political times when nationalism is a sensitive topic, how do films play a role in influencing people?

Menon, who made a mark with his 2016 release “Airlift”, said: “I do not think it is about socio-political times, I think it is about the choices we make. Living in an age of information and technology that we use excessively, our mind is filled with the knowledge that is good, bad, and ugly.”

He recalled an incident from his “Airlift” days: “I remember when I went to a theatre to check reaction after the release of ‘Airlift’, the entire audience stood up in the last few minutes as if what happened on screen was their achievement! I think with films, we can penetrate some kind of collective consciousness.”

His take on patriotism is clear: “Patriotism is about a sense of achievement on real issues — of good roads, clean drinking water, employment, social harmony, saving the lives of people. War is dark, the business of war is darker. For me, therefore, patriotism is about feeling proud of my nation. That pride comes from our achievement, not from hatred towards others,” the filmmaker signed off.

Menon’s upcoming film “Pippa” stars Ishaan Khatter in the central role, and is produced by Ronnie Screwvala and Siddharth Roy Kapur.

Pankaj Tripathi: Films can’t alter reality but can steer conversation

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Pankaj Tripathi: Films can’t alter reality but can steer conversation

Actor Pankaj Tripathi says films cannot entirely alter reality but can steer a conversation that will subsequently change mindsets, systematically and over time.

In his latest release “Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl”, Pankaj plays a father who is also a feminist of sorts. The film, directed by Sharan Sharma, stars Janhvi Kapoor in the title role.

The actor always wanted to focus on a film like “Gunjan Saxena” — a tale of empowerment that aims to inspire young girls to strive harder to fulfil their dreams.

“There was this beautiful line in the film that said — Plane ladka udaaye ya ladki… dono ko pilot hi kehte hain’. In a beautiful simple line, the film and its story simply smashed years of set gender roles. Being a father to a daughter myself, the story shifted something within me. I want more fathers to be like Anuj Saxena (his character) and more daughters to be like Gunjan,” he said.

The father of a 14-year-old daughter, Pankaj says the film reminded him of several stories of his female colleagues, acquaintances, even people in his family.

“I drew a lot from my own experiences for this film and kept recounting every instance of sacrifice I have seen women make to fit into gender normative roles assigned by the patriarchal society. Yes, probably films can’t entirely alter reality but they can steer a conversation that will subsequently change mindsets, systematically and over a prolonged period of time,” he concluded.

Armaan Malik: Didn’t use family name to further my career

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Armaan Malik: Didn’t use family name to further my career

Armaan Malik hails from a musical family but was always clear that he wanted to establish his identity, with no strings attached. The singer says he wanted to make it on his own mettle and not use his family name to further his career.

“I’ve had a very clear vision of establishing my unique identity since the beginning of my career,” Armaan told IANS while talking about how he has evolved as a singer.

“When you belong to a family steeped in musical excellence, everyone around you expects you to follow the same path and obviously have everything laid out for you along the way. But I knew I wanted to make it on my own mettle and not use my family name to further my career,” he added.

Armaan is the son of music composer Daboo Malik and nephew of Anu Malik. He is the brother of composer Amaal Mallik.

“At the age of nine, I even submitted an audition for the popular Indian singing reality show ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Li’l Champs with only my first name — Armaan. I made it to the top 10 of the show. I only did this because I wanted to know deep inside that I could chart my own journey the way I wanted to and not be looked at differently just because of my famous musical family,” he added.

The “Bol do na Zara” hitmaker continued: “The journey after the reality show was exciting. I started singing for a lot of advertisement jingles and voice-overs for various famous brands in different Indian languages. Through this process, I interacted with some really talented composers and music producers, who later on went on to give me my Bollywood playback- breaks in films like ‘Bhootnath’, ‘Taare Zameen Par’ (as a child singer).”

“For about four years, I was singing for almost all the children’s movies that were being made in the industry, and then a few years down the line when I was 18, I started my proper career as a full-fledged playback singer,” he recalled.

“With each passing song, my audience grew. I was being recognized on various platforms. Even though Bollywood is the centerpiece of the Indian music industry, I started doing non-film music that featured me in the music videos and through this parallel process, people not only knew my voice but also got acquainted with the face and my persona as an artist,” added the singer, who is also a part of Vh1 Sound Nation League 2020.

Armaan’s popular numbers include “Tu hawa”, “Naina”, “Main hoon hero tera”, “Hua hain aaj pehli baar”, “Sau aasmaan”, “Dil mein tum ho” among others. The singer says his “ultimate ambition is to make India proud on a global stage”.

“With my two international releases ‘Control’ and ‘next 2 me’, I feel I am one step closer to realizing this dream. My English-singing career is not just about one or two tracks, its a journey. Eventually, I will release an EP or put out an album. Given the scenario we all are facing currently, I’m just taking it as it comes,” he said.

“All my English repertoire is made with an international perspective in mind. My goal with this project is to reach out to global listeners and introduce my music and artistry. Honestly, a lot of India’s youth listens to this kind of English music too, so while the song attracts listeners worldwide, it’s not going to alienate any listener here either,” he summed up.

Armaan stressed that “all these years” he has been trying to define success and make an image of it in his head, “but it is next to impossible to define it”.

“Having said that, I feel if you can manage and strike a balance between your personal and professional life, that’s success to me,” said the singer.

Chunky Panday: In ’80s and ’90s, heroes couldn’t dream of doing negative roles

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Chunky Panday: In ’80s and ’90s, heroes couldn’t dream of doing negative roles

Actor Chunky Panday says it was all about heroes doing the right thing on screen when he ventured into Bollywood in the eighties.

Far from his greenhorn days in Bollywood, the actor is now all set to portray a grey role in the web series “Abhay 2”, and he sees it as a great chance that actors today are exploring the dark side of characters.

“When I came into films in the late 1980s and early 1990s, it was all about these heroes doing all the right things. The hero couldn’t dream of doing anything negative, but then came SRK and he attempted films like ‘Darr’ and ‘Baazigar’, and now slowly I have seen that even Akshay (Kumar) is doing it, and Aamir (Khan) is doing it. Ranveer (Singh) has done it so convincingly in ‘Padmaavat’,” Chunky told IANS.

The actor, who has been in the industry for over 30 three years, says he made his transition in 2000 because he realized he wouldn’t play the hero anymore.

“I did this transformation in 2000 when I came back from Bangladesh. I realized that I wouldn’t be playing the hero anymore — even though I never played the main hero except in a couple of films,” he said.

Chunky mostly worked in films that had several actors, and he was cast as one of the many leads. “I was always in multistarrer films and I was one of the lead actors, but when I made a conscious effort to get back into characters, I realized how enjoyable it is to play characters. There is no pressure on you. Once you get into that character, it becomes you.”

“Abhay 2”, an eight-episode series, marks the return of Kunal Kemmu as an investigative officer who has a knack for solving crimes by thinking like the offender. Directed by Ken Ghosh, the show will premiere on Zee5 on August 14.

Bollywood joins CBI probe demand in Sushant case

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Bollywood joins CBI probe demand in Sushant case

Several Bollywood stars, including Varun Dhawan and Parineeti Chopra, have now joined the growing social media campaign demanding a CBI probe into the Sushant Singh Rajput death case.

Varun took to his Instagram Stories and wrote: “#CBIforSSR”, with a folded hands emoji.

Parineeti posted: “All that is needed, is the truth. #JusticeforSSR.”

Actor Siddhant Chaturvedi also asked for “#CBIInquiryforSushant”, and so did actress Mouni Roy.

Actor Gulshan Devaiah tweeted: “No hashtags, no finger-pointing, no conclusions. I really hope & pray, that the matter around the tragic passing of Sushant Singh Rajput comes to a decisive conclusion. How we “feel” is less important than true, unbiased justice!! Justice for the sake of Justice & nothing else.”

Actress Zareen Khan shared her sentiments on Twitter and wrote: “Sushant’s family needs to know the truth, his fans & every person who loved him needs to know the truth. #CBIForSSR #CBIforSushant #Warriors4SSR #JusticeForSushantSinghRajput.”

These demands follow a new video posted by Sushant’s sister Shweta Singh Kirti on Instagram and Twitter on Thursday, demanding CBI investigation into his death.

“We stand together as a nation for CBI Enquiry! Demanding an unbiased investigation is our right and we expect nothing but the truth to come out. #CBIForSSR #Warriors4SSR #justiceforSushanthSinghRajput @PMOIndia @narendramodi @AmitShah,” Shweta had said in the video, which she posted on her verified Instagram account and her unverified Twitter handle.

In another post, she was seen holding a placard that reads: “I am the sister of Sushant Singh Rajput and I request for #CBIforSSR.”

She had captioned the image as: “It’s time we find the truth and get justice. Please help our family and the whole world to know what the truth is and find closure, otherwise, we will never be able to live a peaceful life!!#CBIForSSR Raise your voice and demand #JusticeForSushantSinghRajput #WarriorsForSSR @sushantsinghrajput.”

Following her post, actress Kangana Ranaut also shared a video demanding a CBI probe into the death.

Actresses Ankita Lokhande and Kriti Sanon also lent their support to the family.

Sushant was found dead in his Bandra apartment in Mumbai on June 14. His family has lodged an FIR accusing his girlfriend, actress Rhea Chakraborty, and her family with abetment to suicide among other charges.

Vikrant Massey, Kriti Kharbanda’s comedy set for July 2021 release

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Vikrant Massey, Kriti Kharbanda’s comedy set for July 2021 release

Actors Vikrant Massey and Kriti Kharbanda will pair up for the first time in a quirky, contemporary social comedy, which will hit the screens on July 9 next year.

The movie titled “14 Phere” is directed by “Chintu Ka Birthday” co-director Devanshu Singh.

“The script hit me hard. The ideology of the film and the thought behind the story is something that has been with me, individually. When I heard the script, it felt like two halves becoming one. I would have been a fool to let go of this film. It is a beautiful story that speaks of things relevant to today’s times. I am looking forward to working with Kriti. I have seen her films and she is a very good actor! Can’t wait to get started,” said Vikrant.
kriti kharbanda
Kriti calls “14 Phere” a “socially relevant, promising and fun script”.

“From the moment I heard the script, I found myself extremely excited. It’s led by a great team headed by Devanshu, whose previous work I admire. I absolutely love the character of Aditi that I will be portraying in this film. I think I’ve become Aditi already. I’m looking forward to sharing screen space with Vikrant who’s a terrific actor,” she said.

Devanshu shared that “14 Phere” is a full-blown family entertainer.

“(It is) A contemporary social comedy with elements of romance, comedy of errors, lots of emotions, adventures-misadventures, and celebrations. It’s full of surprises,” he said.

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