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Archives for September 2017

The Silence Bags Indian & International Awards Galore And Is All Set To Be Released In India On 6th Oct 2017

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After vowing audiences Internationally, director Gajendra Ahire’s Marathi film, The Silence featuring Nagraj Manjule, Anjali Patil & Raghubir Yadav produced by SMR films all set to be released In India on 6th Oct, 2017 The Silence will be released all over India with English subtitles, Come 6th Oct, 2017 and Indian audiences will finally get to watch director Gajendra Ahire’s The Silence, a powerful drama featuring Nagraj Manjule (Sairat & Fandry fame), Anjali Patil (With You Or Without You – Mirzya – Chakravyuh fame), Kadambari Kadam (Kshanbhar Vishranti & Aghaat fame), Mugdha Chaphekar (small screen serial Dharti Ka Veer Yoddha Prithviraj Chauhan fame), Vedashree Mahajan & Raghubir Yadav (Lagaan – Piku – Peepli Live fame) in pivotal roles.

The Silence is a Marathi film with English subtitles and has also been made in Hindi. The Silence which won laurels at several International Film Festivals is now all set for a theatrical release. Its list of awards include the “Best Child Actor” award (for Vedashree Mahajan) at the 16th New York Indian Film Festival, “The German Star Of India” (for Gajendra Ahire) at the Indian Film Festival of Stuttgart 2015, “Best Screenplay” & “Best Debut Actress” award (for Anjali Patil) at the Karrm Filmfare Marathi Awards 2016 & “Best Child Actress” award for (for Vedashree Mahajan) & “Best Debut Actress” award (For Anjali Patil) at the Maharashtra State Awards 2016.

The Marathi version of the film The Silence will be released on 6th Oct, 2017 in cinemas across Maharashtra with other states & the Hindi version following suit soon.

The Silence was also an official selection at The International Film Festival of India (IFFI) Goa (in Indian Panorama) 2015, Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival 2015, Bengaluru International Film Festival 2016 (BIFFES) & Imagine India International Film Festival Spain 2016.

The Silence produced by SMR Films & directed by Gajendra Ahire (of Postcard & Touring Talkies fame) is based on a true story. The narrative of The Silence revolves around a little girl Chinni who’s grown up in a rural area. Circumstances force Chinni’s father to send her to her uncle in a nearby town and then life takes a drastic & unexpected turn.

Blending the past & the present and with a forceful drama, The Silence tackles the crucial & the taboo topic of sexual assault & its aftermath, thereby tracing the recurring question of the responsibility or the silence.

The story & the screenplay of The Silence is written by Ashwini Sidwani and features music by Indian Ocean (of Black Friday & Masaan fame). Besides writing the story & the screenplay, Ashwini Sidwani has also produced the film along with Arpan Bhukhanwala and is the debut production of their banner SMR Films. The story idea of The Silence emerged when Ashwini Sidwani met a lawyer named Pooja Khote who had fought the case of the real life victim who inspired the film.

Ashwini Sidwani avers, “I was writing a TV show on domestic violence called Nyaay and that’s when I got to know about this case and wrote a script on it. We felt only the format of the film can do justice to this story. Films that deal with the theme of rape rarely focus on the victim’s trauma & the stigma that gets attached with them. While writing the script, I visited asylums, hospitals, jails et al to understand the psyche of a rapist and what a victim undergoes. I realized that the perpetrators are as normal as any other individual. Rape does not have anything to do with sex or lust. It is about opportunity & power.”

Producer Apan Bhukhanwala avers, “Rapists are normal people. They do not wear flashy clothes and do not have a physically overpowering presence. In most cases, we have seen that rapists are very normal people. And in such cases, not just the victims, their families also go through difficulties. Besides facing the trauma, the victims often end up blaming themselves, their clothes or the fact that they venture out at odd hours.”

Director Gajendra Ahire avers, “The movie challenges the notion that the victim is at fault. It’s not her fault that she goes out in darkness to answer nature’s call and gets assaulted. It’s not her fault she has to use the crowded public transport and it’s certainly not her fault when her father or her uncle takes advantage of her.”

Director Nagraj Manjule who is known for directing the critically & the commercially acclaimed Fandry & Sairat appears in a prominent role in the movie. The film also marks the Marathi debut of National Award winning actress Anjali Patil.

Nagraj Manjule avers, “Gajendra Ahire ji had narrated the script to me and I found it extremely powerful. Moreover it also gave me an opportunity to work with some the fantastic actors like Anjali Patil & Raghubir Yadav. This coupled with my role which I thought was very interesting motivated my decision to act in the film.”

Yash Raj Films Bags A Prestigious Award

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Yash Raj Films recently bagged a prestigious award of being chosen as India’s #1
Film Production House Brand by Leading Research Report (LRR).

It is well – known that Yash Raj Films is synonymous to a legacy of quality cinema & wholesome entertainment in India. Now, the Media Research Group (MRG) has gone 1 step ahead and selected Yash Raj Films (YRF) banner as India’s #1 Brand 2017 based on the outcome of its insightful Brand Research Report (BRR).

It is a unique recognition of the success & the ingenuity of growing brands that contribute to the Indian economy and the nation’s global image. Yash Raj Films (YRF) has been chosen as the #1 brand amongst the film production houses by the peers & the consumers. As the one chosen in the production house category, the banner holds the prestigious place amongst the blue chip companies & the leading consumer brands from India.

Previously too, Yash Raj Films (YRF) was awarded the “Most Trusted Film Production House In Asia” award for 2016 by IBC Media and was also honored with “India’s Most Trusted Brand” award consecutively in 2016 & 2015, by IBC Media, a global brand consultancy in Bangkok. With this recognition, Yash Raj Films (YRF) reiterates its position as the most recognized & the most trusted Indian cinema brand worldwide once again.

Movie Review: Poster Boys Is A Non – Stop Roller Coaster Joyride

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Banner: Sony Pictures Networks Productions, Sunny Sounds Pvt Ltd & Affluence Movie Pvt Ltd
Producer: Sunny Sounds Pvt Ltd, Shreyas Talpade & Deepti Talpade
Director: Shreyas Talpade
Star Cast: Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol, Shreyas Talpade, Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, Tusshar Kapoor, Kunal Khemu, Parineeti chopra, Rohit Shetty, Sonali Kulkarni, Tripti Dimri, Randheer Rai, Raashul Tandon, Dilip Prabhavalkar, Elli Avram, Samiksha Bhatnagar, Bharati Achrekar, Sachin Khedekar, Murali Sharma, Ashwini Kalsekar, Jitendra Joshi, Ravi Jhankal et al
Music: Tanishk Bagchi

Actor turned debut director Shreyas Talpade makes quite an impact in his debut directorial offering Poster Boys which also happens to be inspired by a Marathi film of the same name. That apart Shreyas Talpade also happens to be inspired by films of the recent past based on equally novel themes like Vicky Donor (2012) which had proved that one can make great films on taboo or uncomfortable subjects if treated well and inspired by Vicky Donor’s success, other films were Piku (dealt with constipation) and the recently released films like Toilet – Ek Prem Katha (open defecation) & Shubh Mangal Saavdhaan (erectile dysfunction) which also tackled similar topics and succeeded big time. And now Shreyas Talpade’s film Poster Boys is another such film as it deals with vasectomy.

The scripted scenario of Poster Boys reveals that it is the story of 3 men whose lives turn upside down for no fault of theirs. Vinay Sharma (Bobby Deol) is a docile school teacher, Arjun Singh (Shreyas Talpade) is an over enthusiastic school teacher while Jagaavar Chaudhary (Sunny Deol) is the explosive but also well -mannered retired army officer. They reside in a village called Jangheti and 1 day, they find their pictures on a poster promoting vasectomy. They are immediately ridiculed and the trio tries their level best to convince their near & dear ones that they haven’t undergone the procedure and that their pictures have been wrongly used. They then decide to take on the system to avenge the humiliation that they have suffered. What happens next and whether they get justice forms the rest of the film.

Poster Boys doesn’t start on a great note. The beginning portions are stretched, with the family members & acquaintances ridiculing the trio but not telling them the reason for the same. Also the TV style flashback portions look poor. The film picks up when the trio meet each other at the bridge. From here, the film turns into a fairly entertaining ride right till the end with no dull moment anywhere. A Few scenes stand out like Jagaavar stopping Arjun & Vinay from fighting, the trio going to local health office, the interval point, Jagaavar getting a call from Riya (Tripti Dimri) at midnight, Jagaavar & Vinay fooling the doctor (Ashwini Kalsekar) et al.

The climax is quite exciting and it’s praiseworthy how the makers have managed to seamlessly add a social message into the narrative.

Shreyas Talpade’s direction is quite good and he makes a great directorial debut. He ensures the subject isn’t dumbed down and that audiences aren’t taken for granted. Also, the way he & his team has made references to the Deol brothers’ earlier films like Damini, Soldier et al is quite smartly done. Shreyas Talpade’s story is novel and makes for an entertaining film. Bunty Rathore & Paritosh Painter’s screenplay is effective overall, despite an average beginning. The fun element never stops and that is quite a feat. Bunty Rathore & Paritosh Painter’s dialogues are hilarious & witty and one of the highpoints of the film.

When it comes to music, “Kudiya Shehar Diyan” is the most memorable track. “Kendhi Menoo” is played during end credits. “Noor – E – Khuda’ is forgettable & “The Poster Boys Anthem” is foot tapping. Amar Mohile’s background music has a massy touch. Nigam Bomzan’s cinematography is satisfactory. Devendra Murdeshwar’s editing is simple but could have been crisper in the beginning portions. Somenath Parke’s production design is poor and doesn’t look appealing. Vikram Dahiya’s action is massy.

Poster Boys rests on the performances of its 3 main actors. Sunny Deol is in top form & rocks with his action & comic timing. Even at this age, he manages to look so fit & energetic and that’s really praiseworthy. Shreyas Talpade is the surprise of the film. His character is quite interesting and he manages to entertain thoroughly. Bobby Deol falters initially but once he warms up to his character, there’s no stopping him. What also works in his favor is that he gets to play a quirky character. A great comeback, in short!!! Sonali Kulkarni is okay and doesn’t get much scope. Samiksha Bhatnagar (Surajmukhi) is loud, as per her character’s requirement and adds to the fun. Tripti Dimri is decent while Ashwini Kalsekar is hilarious. Ravi Jhankal (Riya’s father), Murli Sharma (health minister) & Sachin Khedekar (chief minister) are good in their small roles. Elli Avram is sizzling in her item song.

Tail Piece: Poster Boys manages to tickle your funny bone and also neatly embeds a social message. Sadly the lack of promotions & limited shows with odd timings end up playing spoilsport. However the positive word of mouth may translate into decent footfalls over the weekend as well as the weekdays.

Wings have fallen off our plane: Rahul on India’s economy ‘mess’

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New Delhi: The Congress, led by party Vice President Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday launched a frontal attack on the Modi government over the state of the economy, after BJP leader Yashwant Sinha aired his views on the “mess”, and warned people to brace for tougher times ahead.

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your copilot and FM speaking. Please fasten your seat belts and take brace position. The wings have fallen off our plane,” Gandhi tweeted while sharing the article Sinha wrote in The Indian Express, critical of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

In the hard-hitting remarks, Sinha, who was the Finance Minister in Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government, lashed out at “superman” Jaitley for making a “mess” of the Indian economy which is headed for a “hard landing” as sector after sector is slipping into distress.

Sinha claimed that his views reflected the “sentiments of a large number of people in the BJP and elsewhere who are not speaking up out of fear”.

Former Finance Minister and senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram said Sinha had spoken the truth and shown mirror to the government by noting that had it not changed the methodology for calculation of the GDP in 2015, the growth rate of 5.7 per cent would have actually been 3.7 per cent or less.

“Yashwant Sinha speaks ‘Truth to Power’. Will Power now admit the Truth that economy is sinking?,” Chidambaram tweeted.

Referring to Sinha’s article in which he also wrote that when the BJP was in opposition, it was against the “raid raj” but now it seems to have become the order of the day, Chidambaram said: “Instilling fear in the minds of the people is the name of the new game, says Yashwant Sinha.”

“Eternal truth: No matter what Power does, ultimately Truth will prevail,” said Chidambaram.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Sinha had “rightly spoken as to how an experimental Finance Minister and an autocrat Prime Minister can wreck India’s economy” and that it was the “time for the people of this country to seek the relevant answers both from Arun Jaitley as also from Narendra Modi”.

Surjewala said the facts and figures point to how the “economy is in a state of flux” in India.

“The GDP has fallen from 9.2 per cent to 5.7 per cent and as per old (methodology of calculation) will be about 3.5 per cent. NPA in this country has risen to Rs 11 lakh crore, share of exports in the GDP is at 14 year low of 19.4 per cent, private investment and gross capital formation as percentage of the GDP in 2016-17 is actually at a low of 14 years. Credit growth is lowest in the last 63 years, manufacturing PMI is at a low of eight years, inflation is at a five month high.

“On top of that there is Rs 2 lakh, 67 thousand crore of revenue being collected by the government of India through taxes on petrol and diesel. The Prime Minister only speaks and the Finance Minister only mismanages the economy.”

(IANS)

Karnataka to feed 12 lakh pregnant women from October 2

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Bengaluru: Nutritious meals would be served daily to 12 lakh pregnant women and lactating mothers at child care centres across the state from October 2, said Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday night.

“Besides nutritional supplements, counselling and other maternity benefits will be provided at the centres (anganwadis) under the Mathrupoorna lifecycle health scheme,” said the Chief Minister at a state conclave, organised by the ‘India Today’ media group here.

In view of the state’s commitment to health for all, the government will unveil a free comprehensive ‘Arogya Bhagya’ scheme from November 1 to benefit 1.4 crore households across the state.

“Karnataka will be the first state in the country to provide universal health coverage as part of our commitment to social welfare,” asserted Siddaramaiah.

Asserting that the state would soon be hunger-free, the Chief Minister said his government would serve more urban poor and migrant labour affordable food daily from October 2 under its ‘Indira Canteens’ across Bengaluru and in other cities and towns across the state subsequently.

“Breakfast for Rs 5 per plate, meals for lunch and dinner for Rs 10 per plate will be served in all the 198 civic wards across the city, extending it from 100 wards since August 16,” affirmed Siddaramaiah.

The affordable food for the urban poor is complementary to the state’s subsidised food (Anna Bhagya) scheme since the last four years, under which 4 crore economically poor are given 7kg rice or wheat free per month.

“We are also giving milk for five days a week to around one crore students in state-run and aided schools under the ‘Ksheera Bhagya’ scheme and eggs twice a week to 60 lakh infants at care centres (anganwadis),” he recalled.

Noting that empowerment was not possible without creating opportunities through investments in education and healthcare, the Chief Minister said the state had been providing free textbooks, uniforms and shoes to about 60 lakh students across the state.

“We are also giving bicycles to all students of class 8 in government and aided schools. We will soon gift laptops to 1.5 lakh deserving students in degree colleges across the state to access information online from the world over,” added Siddaramaiah.

State Industries Minister R.V. Deshpande, Wipro Chairman Azim Premji and Manipal Global Education Chairman Mohandas Pai participated in the day-long conclave.

(IANS)

Economy in downward spiral, hard landing inevitable: BJP leader Yashwant Sinha

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New Delhi: Senior BJP leader Yashwant Sinha in hard-hitting remarks has lashed out at “superman” Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for making a “mess” of the Indian economy which is headed for a “hard landing” as sector after sector is slipping into distress.

In an editorial page article in The Indian Express, Sinha, who was Finance Minister in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi “claims he has seen poverty from close quarters (and) his finance minister is working over-time to make sure that all Indians also see it from equally close quarters”.

Sinha said Jaitley had been luckier than his predecessors to hold the Ministry at a time when lakhs of crores of rupees were at his disposal following the depressed global crude oil prices.

But he wasted the oil bonanza which “was waiting to be used imaginatively”.

“The legacy problems like stalled projects and bank NPAs were no doubt there and should have been managed better… But the legacy problems have not only been allowed to persist, they have become worse.”

Illustrating the picture of the Indian economy today, Sinha said private investment has shrunk “as never before in two decades” while industrial production has all but collapsed.

“Agriculture is in distress, construction industry, a big employer of the work force, is in the doldrums, the rest of the service sector is also in the slow lane, exports have dwindled, sector after sector of the economy is in distress.”

Continuing his tirade against the government’s demonetisation decision, Sinha said spiking large currency notes “has proved to be an unmitigated economic disaster” which coupled with “a badly conceived and poorly implemented GST” has played havoc with businesses and sunk many of them.

“Countless millions have lost their jobs with hardly any new opportunities coming the way of the new entrants to the labour market. For quarter after quarter, the growth rate of the economy has been declining until it reached the low of 5.7 per cent in the first quarter of the current fiscal.”

He said if the government had not changed the methodology for calculation of the GDP in 2015, the growth rate of 5.7 per cent would have actually been 3.7 per cent or less — according to the old method of calculation.

He came down heavily on the government’s view that the slowdown was for technical reasons and cited the SBI, the largest public sector bank of the country, as stating “with unusual frankness that the slowdown is not transient or ‘technical’, it is here to stay”.

He said it was not difficult to anticipate the reasons for the slowdown and counter measures taken to deal with them.

“But that called for devoting time to the task, serious application of mind, understanding of the issues and then working out a game plan to tackle them.”

He noted that Jaitley, who holds the department of disinvestment, and also held the Ministries of Defence (which was given to Nirmala Sitharaman in the last cabinet rejig) and Corporate Affairs, was carrying the heavy burden of so many extra responsibilities and it was “perhaps too much to expect from” him.

“I have handled the Ministry of Finance and know how much hard work there is in that ministry alone. Finance Ministry, in the best of times, calls for the undivided attention of its boss if the job has to be properly done. In challenging times it becomes more than a 24/7 job. Naturally, even a superman like Jaitley could not do justice to the task.”

Sinha said he was speaking about the mess after realizing that “I shall be failing in my national duty if I did not speak up even now”.

“I am also convinced that (it) reflects the sentiments of a large number of people in the BJP and elsewhere who are not speaking up out of fear.”

He said the SME sector was suffering from an “unprecedented existential crisis”.

“The input tax credit demand under the GST is a whopping Rs 65,000 crore against a collection of Rs 95,000 crore. The government has asked the income tax department to chase those who have made large claims.

“Cash flow problems have already arisen for many companies specially in the SME sector. But this is the style of functioning of the Finance Ministry now.

“We protested against raid raj when we were in opposition. Today it has become the order of the day.”

(IANS)

Retired Major Ramesh Upadhyay gets bail in 2008 Malegaon blast case

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Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday granted bail to Major Ramesh Upadhyay (retd), one of the prime accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, on grounds of parity.

A Division Bench comprising Justice Ranjit More and Justice Sadhna Jadhav granted him bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 100,000 and two sureties.

National Investigating Agency (NIA) counsel Sandesh Patil opposed the bail plea, but the court said it had no options in view of Supreme Court directions on parity since other prime accused in the case have been enlarged on bail.

On whether Upadhyay was liable for the charge of “waging war against the nation” and if his role in the blast was bigger than that of another prime accused, Lt Col Prasad S. Purohit, who was released last month on bail, Upadhyay’s lawyer Sudeep Pasbola denied it.

Pasbola contended that the apex court has recently given bail to Purohit while a Special MCOCA Court in Mumbai had last week granted bail to other accused — Sudhakar Dwivedi alias Dayanand Pandey and Sudhakar Chaturvedi — and hence Upadhyay also was entitled to bail on grounds of parity.

Upadhyay was arrested prior to Purohit in the case wherein a blast in a Muslim locality of Malegaon in Nashik district left seven dead and over 100 injured.

He was accused of joining various meetings organised by right-wing organisation Abhinav Bharat, reportedly founded by Purohit.

Pasbola said the organisation was not banned and the blast proposal was given by Purohit and others as they had planned to wage a guerrilla war, as per the charge sheet filed against them.

In its charge sheet, the NIA has detailed transcripts of telephonic conversations between Purohit and Upadhyay as prime evidence against the latter.

Upadhyay is the 10th accused to get bail in the case, including Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur who was released last year.

In May 2016, a Special MCOCA Court had dropped the charges under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act against 11 accused in the Malegaon case.

(IANS)

Mumbai-born lawyer Colin Gonsalves named for Alternative Nobel

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Mumbai: Mumbai-born IIT graduate-turned Senior Advocate (designated) of Supreme Court Colin Gonsalves has been selected for the prestigious Right Livelihood Award 2017 – often described as the Alternative Nobel Prize. Gonsalves said he is “humbled and privileged” at the honour.

The announcement made in Sweden on Tuesday makes Colin the first Indian rights lawyer and also first from the country in the past eight years to be named for the award which he shares with three others.

The other recipients are: Azerbaijan journalist Khadija Ismayilova, Ethiopian lawyer Yetnebersh Nigussie and USA’s Robert Bilott for the 2017 Right Livelihood Awards Honour Inspiring Changemakers and Champions of Justice.

The Stockholm-based award foundation said Gonsalves has been endowed with the honour “for his tireless and innovative use of public interest litigation over three decades to secure fundamental human rights for India’s most marginalized and vulnerable citizens.”

“I am both humbled and privileged by the award. It comes at a time when India is going through a dark period and human rights activists are under siege,” Gonsalves said in his reaction to the announcement.

“We have secured landmark judgements in various public issues like the acid attacks case, the apex court directions to implement food security schemes, the Singur verdict last year and the current case representing 6,000 Rohingyas in Jammu & Kashmir facing deportation to Myanmar,” Gonsalves told IANS.

Over the years, starting as a young lawyer in Mumbai, Gonsalves specialized in labour cases, fighting for various organized and unorganized sectors including mediapersons, other poor and backward sections of society besides environment and crime.

He said the platform the (award) Foundation provides would help them strengthen democratic resistance at this critical stage.

Gonsalves, 65, was born in posh Colaba, south Mumbai, and studied at the Campion School and later St. Xaviers College before moving to IIT-Bombay from where he graduated in B.Tech. in 1975.

Working as a civil engineer for some years, he later joined a night law school and became a lawyer in 1983 when he co-founded the Indian Centre for Human Rights & Law in Mumbai, which later grew into a network of over 200 lawyers under the Human Rights Law Network (HRLN) founded by him.

After many successful legal battles in Mumbai and Maharashtra, Gonsalves moved to New Delhi and lives there with his wife and daughter.

Prior to Gonsalves, other Indians who have been honoured with the award, since inception in 1980, include: Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) and Ela Bhatt (1984), Lokayan (1985), Ladakh Ecological Development Group (1986), Chipko Movement (1988), Narmada Bachao Andolan, Medha Patkar and the late Baba Amte (1991), Vandana Shiva (1993), Hannumappa R. Sudarshan of Vivekananda Girija Kalyana Kendra (1994), Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad (1996).

It was bagged by the late Asghar Ali Engineer and Swami Agnivesh (2005), Ruth Manorama (2006), Krishnammal Jagannathan and Sankaralingam Jagannathan/LAFTI (2009). After a gap of eight years, Colin Gonsalves (2017).

The award – carrying a prize of USD 374,000 – shall be conferred on the recipients at a ceremony in Sweden late-November or early-December, he said.

(IANS)

North Korea accuses Trump of declaring war

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Ri Yong-ho, foreign minister, says ‘declaration of war’ means all options will be on the table for country’s leadership.

North Korea’s Ri told UN that targeting the US mainland with its rockets was inevitable [Eduardo Munoz/Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

North Korea’s foreign minister says President Donald Trump had declared war on his country and that Pyongyang reserves the right to take countermeasures, including shooting down US bombers even if they are not in its airspace.

The increasingly heated rhetoric between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is raising fears of a risk of a miscalculation by one side or the other that could have massive repercussions.

“The whole world should clearly remember it was the US who first declared war on our country,” Ri Yong-ho said in New York City on Monday.

“Since the United States declared war on our country, we will have every right to make countermeasures, including the right to shoot down United States strategic bombers even when they are not inside the airspace border of our country.”

In a direct reference to a Twitter post by Trump on Saturday, Ri said: “The question of who won’t be around much longer will be answered then.”

US stocks fell sharply in late morning trading on Monday after Ri’s comments. The five tech companies – Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix and Alphabet – were down between 3.7 percent and 1.05 percent.

‘Mr Evil President’

Ri told the UN General Assembly on Saturday that targeting the US mainland with its rockets was inevitable after “Mr Evil President” Trump called Kim a “rocket man” on a suicide mission.

“Just heard Foreign Minister of North Korea speak at UN. If he echoes thoughts of Little Rocket Man, they won’t be around much longer!” Trump said on Twitter on Saturday.

Al Jazeera’s Diplomatic Editor James Bays, reporting from New York, said the latest comments by Ri represent a “real ramping up” of language against the US.

“He said if US bombers were to fly near North Korea even in international waters, North Korea will shoot them down. The minister’s comments on Saturday at the UN General Assembly were a blistering attack, but he’s gone even further now.”

North Korea, which has pursued its missile and nuclear programmes in defiance of international condemnation and economic sanctions, said it “bitterly condemned the reckless remarks” of Trump.

They were an “intolerable insult to the Korean people”, and a declaration of war, North Korea’s official news agency said on Monday.

Pyongyang accuses Washington, which has 28,500 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War, of planning to invade and regularly threatens to destroy it and its Asian allies.

The US and South Korea are technically still at war with North Korea because the 1950s conflict ended with a truce, not a peace treaty.

Kim’s broadside

In a rare direct statement on Friday, Kim described Trump as a “mentally deranged US dotard” whom he would tame with fire.

Kim said North Korea would consider the “highest level of hardline countermeasure in history” against the US and that Trump’s comments had confirmed his nuclear programme was “the correct path”.

Trump threatened in his maiden UN address last Tuesday to “totally destroy” North Korea if it threatened the US or its allies.

For its part, China called on Monday for all sides in the North Korea missile crisis to show restraint and not “add oil to the flames”.

Asked how concerned China was the war of words between Trump and North Korea could get out of control, Lu Kang, China’s foreign ministry spokesman, described the situation as highly complex and sensitive.

It was vitally important that everyone strictly, fully and correctly implemented all North Korea related UN resolutions, Lu said, resolutions which call for both tighter sanctions and efforts to resume dialogue.

All sides should “not further irritate each other and add oil to the flames of the tense situation on the peninsula at present”, Lu told a daily news briefing.

“We hope all sides do not continue doing things to irritate each other and should instead exercise restraint.”

Hydrogen bomb threat

North Korea conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear bomb test on September 3. Pyongyang said on Friday it might test a hydrogen bomb over the Pacific Ocean.

While China has been angered by North Korea’s repeated nuclear and missile tests, it has also called for the US and its allies to help lessen tension by scaling back their military drills.

US Air Force B-1B Lancer bombers escorted by fighters flew in international airspace over waters east of North Korea on Saturday in a show of force the Pentagon said indicated the range of military options available to Trump.

In response to a question about the exercises, Chinese spokesman Lu said: “A continued rise in tensions on the peninsula, I believe, is not in the interests of any side.”

Wang Jingdong, president of the world’s largest lender Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), said during a briefing the bank would “strictly implement UN Security Council decisions related to North Korea and carefully fulfil relevant international responsibility”.

Movie Review: Bhoomi Is A Disappointing Fare

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Banner: T – Series & Legend Studios
Producers: Bhushan Kumar, Sandeep Singh & Omung Kumar
Director: Omung Kumar
Star Cast: Sanjay Dutt, Aditi Rao Hydari, Sharad Kelkar, Sidhant Gupta, Puru Chibber, Veer Aryan, Riddhi Sen, Shekhar Suman, Sunny Leone et al
Music: Sachin – Jigar & Ismail Darbar

Omung Kumar has given brilliant films in the past but he failed to deliver the goods in Bhoomi.

Post the shocking Nirbhaya gang rape in 2012, a major section of the society has begun to see the problems faced by women more seriously and in a new light. It has also led to Bollywood making multiple films on this subject. Pink, Kaabil, Maatr, Mom et al dealt with this growing menace in recent times and now Sanjay Dutt chooses this hard – hitting topic for his comeback film, Bhoomi.

The scripted scenario of Bhoomi reveals that Arun (Sanjay Dutt) is a widower based in Agra who has single – handedly raised his daughter Bhoomi (Aditi Rao Hydari). An eligible boy Neeraj (Sidhant Gupta) gets interested in Bhoomi & she too falls for him. Arun is happy with this union. However, Vishal (Puru Chibber) from her neighborhood also loves her. He asks her out a few days before the wedding. An enraged Bhoomi slaps him. Vishal narrates about his ordeal to his cousin, the evil Dhauli (Sharad Kelkar). Dhauli instigates Vishal kidnap Bhoomi & then rape her. Vishal goes ahead and does it. But not just him, as even Dhauli and his henchmen Ghulam (Veer Aryan) rape Bhoomi. Arun’s world comes crashing down when he learns about it. How he hits back & avenges Bhoomi’s rape is what the rest of the film is all about.

Omung Kumar’s direction is very weak. He has used all the Bollywood clichés and made the film extremely violent. Everyone is corrupt and the society is full of hypocrites in this story. Some of the scenes however are very well executed, when Sanjay Dutt gets new shoes for Aditi, the courtroom scene where Sanjay Dutt gives a hard hitting speech and when Sanjay Dutt informs about the punishment for rape in different countries of the world to one of the victims.

The story written by Sandeep Singh has been done to death multiple times in Bollywood and has no novelty. Raaj Shaandiliyaa’s screenplay comes across as clichéd & outdated. Bhoomi suffers heavily from 2 major problems. 1stly, it comes too late in the day. Audiences have already seen Pink, Kaabil, Maatr, Mom et al which were also similar films dealing with rape & revenge. Hence the impact of Bhoomi gets diluted. 2ndly, the film takes too long to really get into the revenge drama zone. The narrative is so slow, dragged & boring that nothing happens until the last 20 minutes when Arun finally starts taking revenge. However Raaj Shaandiliyaa’s dialogues create the necessary impact, though only at a few places. Interestingly, the film has dialogues about women empowerment, progressive thoughts, women safety et al, but it shows violence against women through the major part of the runtime.

Sachin – Jigar’s music is weak. “Will You Marry Me”, played during opening credits, is the only one that works. “Jai Mata Di”’ played in the climax enhances the impact. The Sunny Leone item song “Trippy Trippy”’ looks forced!!! Ismail Darbar’s background score is strong. Arthur Zurawski’s cinematography is very good. Vanita Omung Kumar’s production design is authentic & rustic. Jayesh Shikharkhane’s editing is disappointing. The 135 minute long film should have been trimmed by 15 – 20 minutes to create the necessary impact. Javed – Aejaz’ action is too gory & might put off the family audiences.

Coming to performances, Sanjay Dutt is brilliant and his emotions look genuine. He looks convincing as a helpless father and also powerful when he takes revenge in the final scenes. The way his eyes do all the talking in the police station scene is seen to be believed. Aditi Rao Hydari is good in her part and her portrayal of a rape survivor is very impactful. You genuinely feel for her in the film. Sharad Kelkar is the best out of all the villains. He looks very convincing. Riddhi Sen (Jeetu) delivers an effective performance and he has a crucial part in the film. Veer Aryan (Ghulam) gets little scope but does fine. Puru Chibber is quite nice as the rapist as well as the helpless target of Arun. Shekhar Suman (Taj) is wasted. Sidhant Gupta does well in his cameo.

Tail Piece: Bhoomi comes across as a decent entertainer with power packed performance by Sanjay Dutt. At the Box – Office Turnstiles it is still struggling to score.

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