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Pakistani model Qandeel Baloch murdered by brother in Multan

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qandeel

by Dawn

Popular social media celebrity Qandeel Baloch has been killed in Multan, becoming the latest victim in the spate of “honour killings” that plague the country.

The 26-year-old, who is popular for posting risque videos and statements on Facebook, was killed by her brother, Regional Police Officer Sultan Azam said on Saturday.

Qandeel’s brother had been threatening her to stop posting photos and videos on Facebook, police added. Her brother fled after killing Qandeel, whose real name is Fauzia Azeem.

“Qandeel Baloch has been killed, she was strangled to death by her brother, apparently it was an incident of honour killing,” Sultan Azam, senior police officer in Multan, told AFP.

Earlier, TV channels reported that Qandeel was shot by her brother. Police have now confirmed she was “strangled to death” at her Multan residence.

Police added that Qandeel was in Multan for one week, and that forensic experts are examining the corpse to prepare a medical report.

No marks of torture were found on Qandeel’s body, said one senior police official. Her mother gave a statement to police.

Qandeel was in Multan to visit her parents as her father had been unwell. She spent Eid with her family.

Her brother, who was identified by the police as Waseem, went to meet her at night. When Qandeel was asleep at night, he strangled her.

City Police Officer Multan told DawnNews that the suspect will be caught soon. A police team has been dispatched to Dera Ghazi Khan to search for Waseem.

Request for security ignored

Three weeks ago, Qandeel had written to the interior minister, the director general of the Federal Investigation Authority (FIA) and the senior superintendent of Islamabad asking them to provide security to her and has requested action against those who made her identification documents public via social media.

She had said her life is in danger and that she is being threatened via calls on her mobile number and that she did not have security measures installed in her home.

She wrote: “I need security from you”.

Who is Qandeel Baloch?

Baloch, who became famous through her tireless self-promotion and suggestive “selfies” posted on social media, had amassed tens of thousands of followers.

“Nothing is good in this society. This patriarchal society is bad,” Qandeel had said in a recent interview with Images.

In one of her last Facebook posts, Qandeel reiterated her unapologetic approach: “No matter how many times I will be pushed down under… I am a fighter, I will bounce back.”

“Qandeel Baloch [is an] inspiration to ladies who are treated badly… I know you will keep on hating, who cares?” wrote Qandeel, who often referred to herself as a “one-woman army”.

She is derided and feted in equal measure in Pakistan, but the popularity of her videos evidence frustrations of many young people tired of being told how to behave.

She shot to fame in Pakistan in 2014.

Earlier this month, Qandeel released a music video which she starred in alongside little known young singer Aryan Khan. Titled ‘Ban,’ the music video touched on Qandeel’s status as a controversial social media icon, and was provocative given Pakistan’s conservative standards for entertainment.

Days later a man claiming to be Qandeel’s ex-husband made an appearance on TV, saying that Qandeel had a son with him during their brief marriage.

Qandeel confirmed his claims, saying she was forced into the marriage.

Movie Review: ‘Astu’ is a very heart touching & heart warming story of an old man lost in the concrete jungle of mankind

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aSTU

Banner: Gaurika Films
Producers: Sheela Rao & Dr. Mohan Agashe
Directors: Sumitra Bhave & Sunil Sukhtankar

Star Cast: Dr. Mohan Aghase, Amruta Subhash, Milind Soman, Iravati Harshe, Devika Daftar, Nachiket Purnapatre,
Shubhangi Damle, Ila Bhate, Tejas Rao, Aditi Kulkarni – Shweta, Sanghursha Sankad & Dr. Shekhar Kulkani

Music: Dhananjay Kharvindkar & Sanket Kanitkar

The director duo of Sumitra Bhave & Sunil Sukhtankar have given many milestone movies of varied genres in Marathi Cinema. And most of them have bagged National as well as International awards besides garnering critical acclaim & rave reviews galore. Their latest outing Astu, a heart touching & heart warming story of an old man lost in the concrete jungle of mankind, has already achieved the same feat and is still on its way to achieve added crowning glory.

Dr. Chakrapani Shashtri aka Appa (Dr. Mohan Agashe) is an over the hills retired gentleman, acutely suffering from amnesia, living with his daughter Ira Pathak (Iravati Harshe) & Son – in – law Madhav Pathak (Milind Soman) and sometimes also with his grandson Satyavrut (Tejas Rao). Once when Satyavrut is busy with his college exams, Ira brings Appa to stay with her but on the way she stops to shop something for her daughter (Aditi Kulkarni – Shweta) and leaves Appa unattended in her car. Just then Appa sees an elephant named Laxmi on the road and gets down from the car and follows her. Soon enough Appa gets lost in the concrete jungle of mankind and is given shelter by none other than the mahut (Nachiket Purnapatre) of the elephant Laxmi, and
his wife Chanma (Amruta Subhash) who look after him like their own child.

Director duo Sumitra Bhave & Sunil Sukhtankar rightly deserve a standing ovation for bringing such an emotional story for the Maharashtrian as well as the global audiences who were so used to their staple diet of lavanis and tamashas.
Astu teaches a simple basic lesson that our parents, who sacrifice their entire life to take care of us, need equal, in fact, more care & love in their old age stage and more especially when they are suffering from varied ailments and are so helpless to take care of themselves. The well – deserved credit also goes to the behind the scenes team comprising of Milind Jog (cinematographer), Mohit Takalkar (editor), Deviprasad Kharvindkar (lyrics), Dhananjay Kharvindkar & Sanket Kanitkar (music), Santosh Sankhad & Sumitra Bave (art), Vijay Koparkar (Sanskrit singer), Amruta Subhash (Kannad singer) and above all once again Sumitra Bhave (story – screenplay – dialogues).

Performance wise it is naturally Dr. Mohan Agashe who walks away with all the honours. Oh! What a performer he is even at this age & stage. While the rest of the actors comprising of Amruta Subhash, Milind Soman, Iravati Harshe, Devika Daftar, Nachiket Purnapatre,
Shubhangi Damle, Ila Bhate, Tejas Rao, Aditi Kulkarni – Shweta, Sanghursha Sankad & Dr. Shekhar Kulkani have really given off their best histrionics contribution for Astu.

Tail Piece: Go for it guys as films like Astu are rarely made in modern times as almost all fimmakers reel more under the pressure of commercial cinema.

Amruta Subhash Takes Lesson In Kannada

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ASTU-07

Amruta Subhash takes lessons In Kannada. And Veteran actresses Jayshree & Uma Kulkarni help Amruta to learn Kannada.

An actress goes through all that’s required for the betterment of her role and actress Amruta Subhash is one of them. This actress who has already had an impressive career in Marathi Cinema has learnt Kannada as a prep for her role in Astu from veteran actress B. Jayashree and has also won the National Award for her role in this film.

This film produced under the banner of Gaurikaa Films with producers Sheela Rao & Dr. Mohan Agashe has been released this week all over Maharashtra . Along with Dr. Mohan Agashe, this film also stars Irawati Harshe, Devika Daftardar, Amruta Subhash, Nachiket Purnputre, Milind Soman, et al. The film has a story by Sumitra Bhave and is directed by Sumitra Bhave & Sunil Sukhtankar. Amruta Subhash has essayed the role of a Mahuta’s wife Chenamma and has worked with an elephant named Laxmi in the film for which she undertook a workshop to learn the nuances of the role.

The character of Chenamma has a influence of Marathi & Kannada and a lot of dialogues are in Kannada she avers, “I just didn’t want to mug the dialogues in Kannada as I also wanted to learn the meaning of these dialogues in Kannada. Therefore I took the help of veteran translators Uma and Virupaksh Kulkarni and learnt the nuances of the Kannada dialogues from my veteran actor – mother Jyoti Subhash friend actress B. Jayashree and she really took a liking for my role and came down to Pune and I recorded her version of the dialogues and learnt the nuances of the Kannada dialogues and there are also two lullabys which B. Jayshree & Uma taught me, which have been added in the film. My role in the film is small says Amruta but it changed my way of looking at life. The film scenario & the script has been written so well that I enjoyed working in this film and its an experience I will cherish all my life.” concludes Amruta.

Eros International’s Trinity Pictures Announces Two Indo-Chinese Co-Productions with Leading Chinese Film Companies

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Eros International

Eros International’s Trinity Pictures announces 2 Indo – Chinese co -productions with leading Chinese film companies, Peacock Mountain Culture & Media Ltd & Huaxia Film Distribution Co Ltd. These films will be directed by Kabir Khan & Siddharth Anand and released in Fiscal 2018

Eros International Media Ltd, a leading global company in the Indian film entertainment industry, announced recently that Trinity Pictures, India’s 1st franchise feature film studio, is planning 2 landmark Indo – China co – productions to be released in Fiscal 2018. Kabir Khan’s travel drama THE ZOOKEEPER (working title) & Siddharth Anand’s cross – cultural romantic comedy LOVE IN BEIJING (working title). The films will co -produced with China’s Peacock Mountain Culture & Media Ltd & Huaxia Film Distribution Co Ltd.

The 2 films are the 1st ever Indo – China co – productions set in both India & China and will have Han Sanping, former Chairman of China Film Group, as their Creative Producer. Sanping has produced more than 300 films & 100 TV series, including RED CLIFF, KARATE KID & LET THE BULLET FLY.

With the cast from both India & China, a leading Indian male actor and leading Chinese actress, Kabir Khan’s human drama, THE ZOOKEEPER, tells the journey of an Indian zoo keeper to China to find a panda to return to India in order to save his zoo. Siddharth Anand’s cross – cultural romantic comedy, LOVE IN BEIJING, also with an A – lister Indian actress & leading Chinese male actor is based on an Indian girl who falls in love with a Chinese man. Production costs for THE ZOOKEEPER by Kabir Khan are expected to be (approximately) USD $25.0 million & LOVE IN BEIJING (approximately) USD $15.0 million. The films will be shot simultaneously in both languages and are due for release in Fiscal 2018.

While the original stories were developed by the Trinity Pictures Writers’ Room, creative teams from both Trinity Pictures & the Chinese film companies have worked closely on the scripts to create storylines that blend Sino – Indian culture. The films will be shot across India & China with major parts of Kabir Khan’s THE ZOOKEEPER shot in Chengdu while Siddharth Anand’s LOVE IN BEIJING will be shot in Beijing and its suburbs.

Commenting on the Indo – China co -productions, Jyoti Deshpande, Group CEO, Eros International averred, “We continue to establish our dominant global distribution network including entry into the Chinese market. We believe China to be a significant market opportunity for Indian films. Following our co – production treatise last year, we are very proud to announce the 1st of our joint productions going into production soon. With Trinity, we also want to tell stories that transcend the language barrier and have mainstream appeal. We believe our Indo -China co – productions will be game -changing as we pave the way to open up one of the largest film markets in the world.”

Ajit Thakur, CEO, Trinity Pictures added, “It’s a revolutionary milestone for Indian cinema as Eros’ Trinity Pictures becomes the 1st Indian studio to collaborate with China’s Huaxia Film Distribution Co Ltd & Peacock Mountain Culture & Media Ltd and deliver our vision for a truly global film. Having 2 acclaimed directors like Kabir Khan & Siddharth Anand on board with us, is a big leap towards opening one of the biggest & the fastest growing film markets in the world. With these co – productions being shot in both languages, we hope to present compelling film content, weaving in the socio – cultural worlds of both the countries, which should appeal to the massive Sino – Indian market”.

Creative Producer, Han Sanping averred, “Creating an entertaining movie for 2 of the biggest markets in the world is a big challenge. But having good creative people from both India & China working together we are sure to be successful.”

Allen Liu, Partner, Peacock Mountain added on the association, “It’s exciting to finally pull the curtains over the efforts from writers from both India & China side. Getting the right & the organic story was one of the most important aspect for both the teams from the beginning. Hope the movie shapes up to be a true co -production”.

Director Kabir Khan commented, “It’s an exciting challenge to shoot the film in 2 languages, a 1st for me and creating a whole new world of completely unique characters. There is tremendous potential with similarities in art & culture and I hope to present a film that will be a complete package and will combine the ethos of both the countries.”

Director Siddharth Anand averred, “I am thrilled to be part of a film that will cater to a much wider audience, span new geographies and reach new territories. We are working on a story and creating characters that should resonate with audiences in both the markets.”

Last year, Eros International signed memorandums with leading Chinese state owned film companies China Film Group Corp, Shanghai Film Group & Fudan University for the exploitation of intellectual property rights as well as to develop, co – produce & distribute Indo -China films across all platforms in both countries during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to China.

As per PwC Outlook 2016, China is expected to overtake the US box office in 2016 growing to $10.3 billion. In 2015, the Box Office grew to $6.3 billion marking a 49% year on year growth. In comparison, the US box office is expected to contract from $10.3 billion to $10 billion next year, with Hollywood’s share of the Chinese Box Office slipping to 38.4% in 2015 from 45.5% in 2014. In early 2014, China had just under 19,000 screens and by end of 2015, that number grew to almost 32,000. Overall, China is propelling Asia – Pacific’s growth (including Indonesia, Malaysia) with Box Office revenue across Asia -Pacific expected to grow to $21.11 billion by 2020 and thus continue to emerge as important growth markets for Bollywood.

THE JUNGLE BOOK COMPLETES 100 DAYS AND CREATES HISTORY!!!

The Jungle BooK completes 100 days and creates History. That apart The Jungle Book is back in more cinema halls. Disney’s The Jungle Book adds one more feather in its glittering cap!!! The live action & epic adventure has already set the record of being the Highest Grossing Hollywood Film of all time in India, and raised the bar when it comes to marketing English movies in the country. Directed by Jon Favreau and starring Neli Sethi, The Jungle Book now completes 100 days of its running in Indian theatres on 16th Jul, 2016!!! The film’s total Box -Office collection so far is a whopping 260.28 crores (Gross Box Office) and 187.40 cr NBOC, thus setting a benchmark for English films in India. And if these benchmarks are not enough, encouraged by a surge in demand, driven by the audience’s unparalleled love for the wild adventure, the Studios is all set to bring back the magic of Mowgli, Bagheera, Baloo & Shere Khan to more screens. The film will now be screened at 25 additional screens in the country.

DySP death: CID to probe 2014 case

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DySP Ganapathi

Bengaluru: The CID has decided to probe two calls made to DySP M K Ganapathi on June 24 regarding a case pending in the Madiwala station. The CID, probing Ganapathi’s suicide, will seek information from the office of the DG & IGP.

In 2014, when Ganapathi served as inspector at the Madiwala station, there were allegations against him and three other inspectors about misrepresenting entries of stolen goods in the register. The government wanted to identify the officer responsible for the discrepancies.

“Ganapathi received a call about a letter written to the Bengaluru City commissioner seeking details of the case. He received a second call from a well-wisher alerting him about the letter. The calls could have triggered the suicide as Ganapathi thought his promotion as DySP on April 13, 2016, may be withdrawn,” an officer said.

The police said some of the complainants received their valuables, but entries were not made in the register.

Ganapathi’s promotion would not have been affected as it was not an individual case against the inspectors, but about a general report on the Madiwala station, the police said.

(Agencies)

Archbishop celebrates Eid Milan

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Archbishop

Bengaluru: An Eid Milan organised by All Karnataka United Christians’ Forum for Human Rights (AKUCFHR) under the leadership of the Archbishop of Bangalore Dr Bernard Moras turned out to be veritable convention on inter-religious dialogue with leaders of Christian and Muslim communities espousing the values of love, compassion and brotherhood as the essentials of all religions, which never support or condone violence and terrorism. “Mercy of God in our life” was the theme and the mercy was emphasized in the context of the Terrorism in the world.

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Moulvis of the Muslim community and leaders of different Christian denominations besides Sikhs, Jains and Parsees along with a large number of priests and nuns joined the Eid Milan held at the Paalana Bhavan in the Archbishop’s House, in which Urban Development Minister R Roshan Baig, Food and Civil Supplies Minister U T Khader, Government Chief Whip in the Legislative Council Ivan D’Souza, MLA N A Harris, MLC Rizvan Arshad, former MP H T Sangliana, former minister J Alexander, former MLA Ivan Nigli, former DGP F T R Colaco and many other prominent personalities took part. Fr A S Anthonyswamy Chancellor and PRO Archdiocese of Bangalore was present Archbishop Moras set the tone for the Eid Milan by Christians and Muslims shared similar religious values, beliefs and espoused love, mercy, compassion and helping the poor and needy. The month of Ramzan marked by 40 days of fasting, prayers and alms-giving should purify the believers. Violence and terrorism have no place in religion and nobody had the right to justify violence and terrorism as sanctioned by religion through misinterpretation of holy books, he said strongly condemning the wave of terrorist acts in France, Brazil, Bangladesh and other countries in the recent past.

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The Archbishop in his Presidential address spoke on the theme of “Mercy” as explained by Pope Francis in his letter to the universe. He explained how the God of Mercy is concerned with the humanity and how much he have does to take care of each individual. God’s love is a forgiving love where he shows mercy towards his created world. It is our task to understand this gift of God and share it with others. He invited the members present to put into practice this call to mercy and to live as brothers and sisters in this world. “It is the bounden duty of all people to work for the upliftment of the poor and exploited sections of society besides working for peace and harmony,” the Archbishop said.

Ministers Roshan Baig and U T Khader, in their messages to the gathering, complimented the Archbishop for his gesture of celebrating Eid Milan and said such an initiative was necessary to foster and promote inter-religious dialogue and peaceful co-existence. It is necessary to create an environment of communal harmony and secular beliefs so that all citizens were free to practice and propagate their respective religions without affecting the rights of others, they said and made it clear that Islam never supported or espoused violence.

Roshan Baig lauded Pope Francis for showing his concern for the immigrants of Syria in the recent conflict and asking the European countries to take the lead in providing food and shelter to the helpless immigrants, which was the main reason for German Chancellor Angela Merkel to open the doors of her country to shelter the immigrants.
U T Khader said unity and brotherhood along with love and service to the poor and deprived sections were the key principles and values propagated by Christianity and Islam as also all other religions. “We need to love and be compassionate to the less privileged sections of society and always follow the principles of equality, fraternity and secularism enshrined in the Constitution. Minorities should never become communal as it would harm their interests while the majority people turning communal would harm society and the entire country,” he said.

Former minister J Alexander said Muslims and Christians as also people professing other religions must rise above narrow and petty differences and be all inclusive to celebrate the togetherness of humanity. “We need love, faith, hope and charity besides love and compassion to become true followers to each other’s respective religions,” he said.

Congress MLA N A Haris warmly complimented Archbishop Moras for his dynamism and efforts to foster inter-religious unity and dialogue.

Maulan Sahid Naqvi gave a brief reflection on the inner meaning of Ramazan festival and its integration with the society. We need collective effort in building up of harmonious society without hurting any individual or community. Unless we work together we will not succeed in life he added.

Fr Eugene Lobo SJ, Secretary Karnataka Regional Commission for Education and Public Relations Officer of Karnataka Region Catholic Bishops’ Council (KRCBC), welcomed the gathering. Fr Victor Lobo, Principal of St Joseph’s College, spoke on the significance of Ramzan and the values and principles of Islam. Maulana Shahid Naqvi and Jeyaraj, read passages from Bible and Quran. Rev S Arokiaswamy, proposed a vote of thanks. Fr Francis D’ Souza SJ Administrator Indian Social Institute was the Master of Ceremonies. Over 500 people attended the celebration of Eid Milan at Paalana Bhavan.

Kabali Gets The Biggest Ever Screen Count

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Kabali gets the biggest ever screen count

Initially, the role was offered to Biju Menon and he was really happy to do this. Unfortunately, dates became the villain in the story again. Biju Menon was really busy with his current shooting schedules which made the entry of Anoop Menon in to this project impossible. This would be a simple movie and might be a strong comeback of Mohanlal as a common man. We all are loving to see such characters from him In this movie, he would be seen in the role of a Panchayath Secretary which has been titled as Pranayopanishath. The film has been penned by P Sindhuraj

Janani All Set To Do Malar

Janani all set to do Malar. Janani Iyer is all set to do Malar in her upcoming Tamil movie Thollaikatchi. Is it the Tamil remake of Premam??? Hold on hold on, we are not talking about our Malar miss. The film is completely different. Janani will enact the character named Malar. Nothing related with our Malar miss except the name. Janani is not doing heaps of Malayalam movies, but she is really busy in Kollywood. This gorgeous actress has got 3 big projects in her kitty. Her latest Malayalam movie is Ithu Thanda Police.
Thollaikatchi is a romantic comedy film directed by Sadiq Khan. She is paired with Ashwin Kakumanu and she is showcasing a traditional girl who is always wearing half – sarees.

Deepa Gowda All Set To Tie The Nuptial Knot

Deepa Gowda all set to tie the nuptial knot. With half a dozen films to her credit Deepa Gowda of Just Madveli, Last Bus, Kollegala, Jwalantham, Adbutha, Panditha Bhagyavidhaata, a Tamil film has decided to settle down in marriage and work in a mobile company Samsung in her life. Adbutha is my last Kannada film. I am working in Samsung Company and getting married to Mr Arun in Hassan in Oct this year she disclosed on recently at the audio release of Adbutha speaking to a few journalists. Deepa Gowda twin sister Raani also settled down in marriage after a few films in Kannada and other languages.

Samskrithi Shenoy To Star In Kannada
Movies

Samskrithi Shenoy to star iin Kannada
Movies. Well known Malayalam, Tamil & Telugu films actress Samskrithi Shenoy, daughter of a doctor Govinda Shenoy hailing from Karkala near Mangaluru, makes her debut in Kannada cinema Happy Birthday. Director of this film Mahesh Sukhadhare has kept the name of the heroine in tight secrecy. As the release of Happy Birthday, a film by politician Cheluvanarayana Swamy son Sachin in lead role is hitting the screen in the month of Aug, 2016. Samkriti Shenoy impressed with story & screenplay of the film given the green signal after consulting her father. This is a desi village film. Set in the backdrop of Mandya district. It highlights the culture of that region. Dr Ambarish plays a prominent role in this film. V Harikrishna’s music, Dr V Nagendra Prasad, Yogaraj Bhat, Krishne Gowda & K Kalyan have lent lyrics.

Kabali To Hit The Screens on 22nd July 2016

Kabali to hit the screens on 22nd July 2016. As the biggest film of the year Kabali is getting ready to hit the screens on 22nd Jul, 2016 day in and day out, we keep getting news about the film’s huge release in every nook & corner of the globe. Today we have an interesting update about the film’s release plans in the USA which contributes a huge chunk of overseas market for Tamil films. The distribution rights to release the film across USA has been acquired by Cine Galaxy, the film distribution firm which released Ilayathalapathy Vijay’s Theri and Suriya’s 24 in the country. A top official of Cine Galaxy has confirmed that Kabali will be releasing in 400 screens in Tamil & Telugu languages and this is the biggest number of screens allotted for a Rajinikanth starrer in USA.

Is Trisha & Nayanthara Adopting The Same Love Policy?

Is Trisha & Nayanthara adopting the same love policy? Two of the most charismatic leading ladies of the South Trisha & Nayanthara have withstood heavy competition from much younger girls to stay right at the top for more than a decade. The 2 who are fast friends offscreen seems to have adopted the same policy in recent times. Nayanthara is heading the cast in the new film Dora produced by Sargunam & directed by Dass Ramaswamy. It has been revealed that Nayan is acting without a love interest in the murder mystery film. Similarly Trisha is shooting for Mohini directed by Madhesh and so far a major portion of the horror comedy has been completed but still there is no sign of a hero. We guess that justifies our title

Parthiban Signs 1 More Film With A Young Hero

Parthiban signs 1 more film with a young hero. Chandran who made a grand debut in Prabhu Solomon’s Kayal has just signed a film for a new company 2MB aka 2 Movie Buffs. The as yet untitled film has Satna Titus of Pichaikaaran fame as the heroine. Actor & director Parthiban who off late is doing character roles is doing an important role as a thief in the film which is directed by Sudhar, a veteran of many short films making his debut on the silver screen.

Ajith Scores A Hat Trick With A Brand New Comedy Combo

Ajith scores a Hat Trick with a brand new comedy combo. Ajith’s hat trick collaboration with director Siruthai Siva Thala 57 has started shooting from the 8th Jul, 2016 and the film produced by Sathyajyothi Films has Anirudh scoring the music. There is a strong buzz that Kajal Agarwal is on the verge of signing the leading lady’s role in Thala 57. Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that Karunakaran has come on board for the primary comedian role that was offered to Santhanam first. Thambi Ramaiah is the other cast member who is joining with Ajith – Siva combo for the 3rd time.

Nani’s Villain Is Andala Rakshasi Actor

Nani’s Villain is Andala Rakshasi actor. After Srinivas Avasarala in Gentleman, it’s the turn of yet another actor to don the mantle of a villain for the 1st time ever, for a Nani film. It’s Naveen Chandra of Andala Rakshasi fame. The news is that Naveen Chandra will play a negative character in Nani’s film with Trinadha Rao Nakkina of Cinema Choopistha Mama fame. The actor is lucky because it not only has a hat trick hero playing the lead role, but it’s also produced by an ace producer – Dil Raju. The actor hasn’t had success at the box office so far, but since his 1st film became popular on television, his stubble face is pretty much familiar. He has since acted in some Tamil movies. His recent releases, namely Tripura & Lacchimdeviki O Lekkundi were big flops.

Santhanam’s ‘Dhilluku Dhuddu’ in Telugu

Santhanam’s ‘Dhilluku Dhuddu’ in Telugu.
When others are busy making horror -comedies, one Kollywood filmmaker chose to be different. He made a reel vs real ghost drama, a spoof like feature. It’s Rambala, the director of the 7th Jul, 2016 release Dhilluku Dhuddu. With the film proving to be a big hit there (it has already grossed Rs. 12 cr), it may see a Telugu released (dubbed version) soon. There are reports that it might be remade in Hindi. Starring Santhanam in the lead role, it has Shanaya playing the female lead. Yogi Babu is in another important role. Music is by SS Thaman.

Venky’s Sports Drama To Go On Floors

Venky’s Sports Drama to go on Floors.
It’s known that, post Babu Bangaram, Venkatesh’s next film to go on the floors will be the remake of Madhavan starrer Irudhi Suttru (Saala Khadoos in Hindi). To be directed by Sudha Kongaru, the movie will have Ritika Singh reprising her own part from the original. To be co – produced by D Suresh Babu, the sports drama will go on the floors in Sept, 2016. Efforts are on to shoot the 1st schedule in Vizag. Venky will start growing a beard for the role. He is not going to sport 6 pack abs, but will look fit enough for the character. Music is by Santosh Narayanan of Kabali fame. Cinematography is by Sivakumar Vijayan. Art direction is by Santhanam.

Pani Leni Puli Raju Release Date Fixed For 15th July 2016

Pani Leni Puli Raju release date fixed for 15th July 2016. With a never – say – die spirit, Dhan Raj is coming back in the role of a lead. Call it courage or whatever, he is playing 13 roles in this comedy entertainer. Directed by Chacha, the film is Pani Leni Puli Raju. Funnily enough, this one without work has 13 avatars to essay. The film will hit the screens on 15th Jul, 2016. “Dhan Raj’s character is molded in a new fashion. Raghu Babu’s character is a continuation of his role in Bunny,” the director says. The producer says, “The songs released recently have been getting a very good response. A motion poster with dialogues released the other day has been a hit. We are confident of delivering a hit.”

Anoop Menon & Mohanlal Duo Are Back Again

Anoop Menon & Mohanlal duo are back Again. After Kanal, Mohanlal & Anoop Menon are all set to rejoin again for an upcoming movie. The movie would be directed by Jibu Jacob. Initially, the role was offered to Biju Menon and he was really happy to do this. Unfortunately, dates became the villain in the story again. Biju Menon was really busy with his current shooting schedules which made the entry of Anoop Menon in to this project. This would be a simple movie and might be a strong comeback of Mohanlal as a common man. We all are loving to see such characters from him. In this movie, he would be seen in the role of a Panchayath Secretary which has been titled as Pranayopanishath. The film has penned by P Sindhuraj.

Erdogan: Turkey coup bid ‘an act of treason’

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Government says coup attempt foiled amid reports of sporadic clashes in Istanbul and Ankara.

Erdogan surrounded by supporters at the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul [Huseyin Aldemir/Reuters]

Erdogan surrounded by supporters at the Ataturk Airport in Istanbul [Huseyin Aldemir/Reuters]

by Al Jazeera

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has spoken defiantly to crowds of jubilant supporters in Istanbul, vowing to stay in power hours after an army faction dramatically tried to topple the government.

Erdogan’s arrival in Istanbul from the coastal city of Marmaris came after Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told broadcaster NTV on Saturday that the situation in the country was “largely under control”.

At least 90 people were killed across the country during the coup attempt, the state news agency said, and a total of 1,563 military officers were detained, according to the justice ministry.

Speaking at a news conference, Erdogan said the attempt to push him from power was “an act of treason” and that those behind the plot would “pay a heavy price”. He said he intended to stay with his “people” and not go anywhere.

“Shortly after I left [Marmaris] I have been told they bombed the locations where I was,” he told reporters. “I assume they thought I was still there when they bombed those places.”

Speaking to thousands of supporters outside Ataturk Airport on Saturday morning, Erdogan said the coup plotters had pointed “the people’s guns against the people.

“The president, whom 52 percent of the people brought to power, is in charge,” Erdogan said. “This government brought to power by the people, is in charge. They won’t succeed as long as we stand against them by risking everything.”

As he spoke, live footage showed dozens of soldiers involved in the coup surrendering on one of the bridges across the Bosphorus in Istanbul, abandoning their tanks with their hands raised in the air.

 

“Clearly the cleansing of the military from those elements who joined or supported the coup is already under way,” Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst, Marwan Bishara, said.

“This is going to continue for days to come, and I think there are probably going to be tribunals within the military to see who supported the coup.”

“Clearly the cleansing of the military from those elements who joined or supported the coup is already under way,” Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst, Marwan Bishara, said.

“This is going to continue for days to come, and I think there are probably going to be tribunals within the military to see who supported the coup.”

Bombs dropped on Ankara

There were still pockets of resistance in Istanbul and the capital Ankara into Saturday morning, the Reuters news agency reported, quoting an official who said he did not expect them to last long.

In Ankara, jets dropped bombs over the Bestepe district, where the presidential palace is located, with plumes of black smoke seen rising early on Saturday.

There were also reports of an explosion at the parliament building in the capital.

Al Jazeera’s Ece Goksedef, reporting from Ankara on Saturday morning (9am local time, 06:00 GMT), said the city had been quiet for several hours.

Military jets were still in the sky above the capital, but there has been no sound of fighting, Goksedef said, adding that there were only a few locations in the country where the coup plotters were holding out.

There were still pockets of resistance in Istanbul and the capital Ankara into Saturday morning, the Reuters news agency reported, quoting an official who said he did not expect them to last long.

In Ankara, jets dropped bombs over the Bestepe district, where the presidential palace is located, with plumes of black smoke seen rising early on Saturday.

There were also reports of an explosion at the parliament building in the capital.

Al Jazeera’s Ece Goksedef, reporting from Ankara on Saturday morning (9am local time, 06:00 GMT), said the city had been quiet for several hours.

Military jets were still in the sky above the capital, but there has been no sound of fighting, Goksedef said, adding that there were only a few locations in the country where the coup plotters were holding out.

The prime minister said the military had been ordered by the presidency to shoot down planes hijacked by those involved in the uprising attempt and that jets had been scrambled.

Officials said fighter jets had shot down a helicopter used by anti-government forces over Ankara.

Erdogan said that the attempted coup was the work of supporters of US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, who the president has long accused of attempting to use his followers in the judiciary and military to overthrow the government.

Gulen condemned the bid to overthrow Turkey’s leader, saying “governments should be won through a process of free and fair elections, not force”, according to a report by the DPA news agency.

Earlier, thousands of people had heeded a call from the president to take to the streets and protest against the attempted coup.

‘We will overcome this’

Late on Friday, sections of the army had officially declared a coup and martial law, saying they had “taken control of the country” as Istanbul’s main airport was closed and fighter jets were seen in the skies.

Turkey’s national intelligence agency MIT was targeted by hijacked helicopters but the coup attempt was “foiled”, its spokesman told NTV television.

Yildirim also told NTV that a no-fly zone had been declared over Ankara.

News of the attempt first broke when army factions blocked bridges, fighter jets were spotted in the skies and gunfire and loud explosions were heard in Istanbul, the country’s biggest city, and in Ankara.

The headquarters of state-run broadcaster TRT World were taken over and a presenter read out a statement from the group behind the plot, which she later said she was forced to do at gunpoint.

“We know they have been acting outside the chain of command,” Cemalettin Hasimi, a government spokesman told Al Jazeera, referring to the sections of the army behind the coup attempt.

In Gaziantep, a city in the south, Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr reported that supporters of Erdogan had quickly taken to the streets after he appeared on CNN Turk television urging them to do so. Cars could be seen streaming towards the airport, honking their horns.

“We will overcome this,” Erdogan had said, speaking on a video call to a mobile phone held up to the camera by a presenter.

England begin India tour from Nov 9 with Tests

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England

Mumbai: England will play a five-match Test series followed by three One-Day Internationals and three T20 Internationals on their tour of India, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced on Friday.

Making the announcement here on Friday, BCCI Secretary Ajay Shirke said England will start their tour with the opening Test in Rajkot which begins from November 9 and then move to Vizag and Mohali. The last two Test matches will be held in Mumbai and Chennai.

England will, after a Christmas break, resume the tour from January 15 when they play the first of the ODIs in Pune. On January 19 they play in Cuttack and the third match is set to be played at the historic Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

The T20s will be staged across Kanpur, Nagpur and Bengaluru.

(IANS)

Nice attack: At least 84 dead as lorry rams into crowd

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At least 84 killed when attacker drives lorry into crowds celebrating Bastille Day in France.

[EPA]

[EPA]

by Al Jazeera

At least 84 people were killed and 100 injured in the French city of Nice when a man deliberately drove a lorry into a crowd celebrating the country’s main national holiday, authorities said.

The attacker behind the wheel on Thursday drove at high speed along the famed Promenade des Anglais seafront, careering into spectators who had been watching a Bastille Day firework display.

Police shot and killed the driver, officials said.

France’s Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that children were among the dead and 18 people were in a critical condition.

“There’s no denying the terrorist nature of this attack of yet again the most extreme form of violence,” French President Francois Hollande said in an address to the nation in the early hours of Friday.

Hollande said that he would extend a state of emergency – which had been in place since the attacks in Paris last November – for another three months from July 26.

“Nothing will make us yield in our will to fight terrorism. We will further strengthen our actions in Iraq and in Syria. We will continue striking those who attack us on our own soil,” he said, in reference to France’s involvement in a coalition of nations carrying out air strikes against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group.

The attack happened just as the firework display – which was attended by thousands of people – was ending, at around 11:00pm local time (21:00GMT).

Eric Ciotti, a local MP, said the lorry continuously rammed the crowd over a distance of two kilometres.

Ciotti said on BFM TV that police killed the driver “apparently after an exchange of gunfire”, adding that the truck was loaded with weapons and grenades.

Residents of Nice, a Mediterranean city close to the Italian border, were advised to stay indoors.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. But Nada Bakos, a former CIA analyst, told Al Jazeera that it “looks very similar” to some of the attacks carried out by al-Qaeda and ISIL.

“They were inciting their followers to produce this type of violence,” she said.

‘I saw bodies flying’

Writing online, Nice Matin journalist Damien Allemand, who was on the scene, said the firework display had finished and the crowd was about to leave when they heard a noise and screams.

“A fraction of a second later, an enormous white truck came along at a crazy speed, turning the wheel to mow down the maximum number of people,” he said.

“I saw bodies flying like bowling pins along its route. Heard noises, cries that I will never forget.”

Allemand said that he and others took shelter in a nearby restaurant. He continued to hear people shouting for missing family members. He ventured out and saw bodies, blood and body parts all along the road.

“This evening, it was horror,” he said.

The Paris prosecutor’s office opened an investigation for “murder, attempted murder in an organised group linked to a terrorist enterprise”. The investigation was being handled by France’s intelligence agency and judicial police.

An eyewitness told the Associated Press news agency he saw the driver emerge from the lorry shooting, after ramming into the crowd.

“There was carnage on the road,” Wassim Bouhlel, a witness, told AP. “Bodies everywhere.”

In a video viewed over 2,500 times on Facebook, a trembling Tarubi Wahid Mosta told of the horror on the promenade, where he took photos of an abandoned doll and pushchair and came home with a victim’s dog.

“I almost stepped on a corpse, it was horrible. It looked like a battlefield,” he said.

In a series of posts he described a sense of helplessness faced with the carnage.

“All these bodies and their families … they spent hours on the ground holding the cold hands of bodies dismembered by the truck. You can’t even speak to them or comfort them.”

Al Jazeera reporter David Coady was also at the scene.

“I was enjoying the Bastille Day fireworks just like thousands of other people at the promenade in Nice,” he said.

“I was just walking back after the fireworks had finished. I looked towards the truck and I thought it was a bit odd, because the roads were shut down and there were hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people walking along. But then, from the direction of the truck, I started hearing screaming and then people started running. And so I joined all those people in running away from there.”

Obama: ‘A horrific terrorist attack’

US President Barack Obama condemned “what appears to be a horrific terrorist attack”.

European Council President Donald Tusk said it was a “tragic paradox” that the victims of the attack in Nice were celebrating “liberty, equality and fraternity” – France’s motto – on the country’s national day.

Tusk tweeted a photograph of himself and other European and Asian leaders standing in tribute to the Nice victims at an Asia-Europe summit in Mongolia.

Hollande, who was in the south of France at the time of the attack but raced back to Paris to a national crisis centre, had hours earlier said that a state of emergency put in place after November’s Paris attacks would not be extended when it expires on July 26.

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