New Delhi Archive

I’m scared of doing comedies: Mahie Gill

Published: November 4, 2009Posted in: Entertainment, NationalTags:

New Delhi, Nov 4 – ‘Dev D’ actress Mahie Gill, whose kitty is full, with five films for the coming year, says she feels incapable of doing a comedy.

‘I am very scared of doing comedies. I always wonder: will I ever be able to do it or not. But I still want to try it some day. I want to come out of my comfort zone and try to do something I don’t find easy,’ said Mahie.

The actress will be exploring various genres in upcoming films like ‘Paan Singh Tomar’, ‘Dabang’, ‘Bhaang’, ‘Surmai Shaam’ and ‘Gulaab Gang’ among others.

My son gives me tips: David Dhawan

Published: November 4, 2009Posted in: Entertainment, NationalTags:

New Delhi, Nov 4 – Even though director David Dhawan has spent more than two decades in the Hindi film industry, he has no qualms admitting that his 25-year-old son, an aspiring director, gives him tips for his movies.

‘I don’t give any tips to my son; he is the one who gives me tips for my films. His vision and imagination is something different and out of the box. I’m sure he will make a very polished film that has everything, good story, entertainment and emotions,’ Dhawan told IANS.

The filmmaker’s son, Rohit, is in the process of making his directorial debut in the coming year.

Mom biggest fan, dad biggest critic: Ranbir Kapoor

Published: November 4, 2009Posted in: Entertainment, NationalTags:

New Delhi, Nov 4 – Bollywood heartthrob Ranbir Kapoor, who belongs to a family of great actors and filmmakers, says while his mother Neetu Kapoor is his biggest fan, his father Rishi Kapoor is his biggest critic.

‘My mom is my biggest fan, but my father is my biggest critic,’ Ranbir told IANS.

‘He is someone who will call a spade a spade and is not afraid of hurting anyone because he is very correct when opinions are concerned and I am really happy that I have someone like him in my life who will tell me when I’m bad and when I’m good,’ he said.

Ranbir, who has acted in films like ‘Saawariya’, ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’ and ‘Wake UP Sid’ will be next seen opposite Katrina Kaif in the romantic comedy ‘Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani’, slated to release Nov 6.

‘New York’ to open Cairo film fest

Published: November 3, 2009Posted in: Entertainment, Hollywood, NationalTags:

New Delhi, Nov 3 – Yash Raj Films’ ‘New York’ has been selected as the opening film at the 33rd Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF) 2009.

The film will also compete in the ‘In Competition’ section at the fest, to be held Nov 10-Nov 20.

Directed by Kabir Khan who will also attend the event, the film stars John Abraham, Katrina Kaif, Neil Nitin Mukesh in the lead apart from Irrfan Khan in a pivotal role.

Recently screened at the Pusan International Film Festival, ‘New York’ released over 900 screens worldwide on June 26 this year. It is a contemporary story of three young friends whose lives are turned upside down by post-9/11 prejudices.

Also attending the festival will be Hollywood stars like Samuel L. Jackson, Lucy Liu and Tom Berenger.

‘London Dreams’, ‘Aladin’ don’t cast spell over box office

Published: November 3, 2009Posted in: Entertainment, NationalTags:

New Delhi, Nov 3 – The Ajay Devgn-Salman Khan starrer ‘London Dreams’ and Amitabh Bachchan starrer ‘Aladin’ have failed to send the cash registers ringing in the first week of their release.

Despite being big budget outings, both movies have failed to bring in footfalls. This is the third week in succession post Diwali that saw the release of disappointing content after movies like ‘Blue’, ‘All The Best – Fun Begins’ and ‘Main Aurr Mrs. Khanna’.

”London Dreams’ and ‘Aladin’ both have been losers in terms of recovering production costs. They don’t seem to be recovering even half of the costs. It is again a bad phase for Bollywood – this time post-Diwali, as no movie is able to perform on merit,’ Joginder Mahajan, a Delhi-based distributor told IANS.

‘Even forthcoming movies ‘Ajab Prem Ki Ghajab Kahani’ and ‘Jail’ that release this Friday, are only limited for multiplexes and have not generated any buzz,’ he added.

Amit Shah, chief manager (programming) of DLF DT cinemas was also of the same opinion.

”Aladin’ has been a disaster both content and collections wise while the maximum response has been for ‘London Dreams’ though even it has been only average and not as expected. Both movies are over now in terms of business, as they have brought in whatever they could over an extended weekend,’ said Shah.

‘Now, much is expected from ‘Ajab Prem Ki…’ though ‘Jail’ will start slow but considering it’s a Madhur Bhandarkar film, it just might pick up,’ he added.

Produced and directed by Vipul Shah, ‘London Dreams’ stars Asin Thottumkal as the female lead. Rannvijay Singh and Om Puri too feature in pivotal roles about the story of friendship with a musical background.

On the other hand, ‘Aladin’, a contemporary take on the classic fairy tale has been directed by Sujoy Ghosh and produced by Sunil Lulla and Ghosh himself.

It stars Riteish Deshmukh in the lead opposite debutante Jacqueline Fernandez. Amitabh Bachchan stars as a genie in the movie while Sanjay Dutt essays a negative role.

”Aladin’ is a flop film and ‘London Dreams’ has done just average business… We are hoping ‘Ajab Prem…’ should open well, as it is a family oriented comedy while ‘Jail’ has its own audience,’ said a source from PVR cinemas.

Man dies during PM’s PGIMER visit, police shrug off blame

Published: November 3, 2009Posted in: Health, NationalTags: ,

Chandigarh/New Delhi, Nov 3 – The Chandigarh police Tuesday sought to clarify that they had no responsibility for the death of a kidney patient who allegedly died outside Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER) here because the security measures for the prime minister’s visit barred the entry to the hospital.

‘After getting the information, an executive magistrate was deputed to conduct an enquiry. As per the findings, there was no lapse on the part of security personnel. In fact, the patient was attended to by doctors and he died during the treatment,’ according to a police statement, issued here late Tuesday evening.

‘Tight security arrangements were made for the visiting VVIP but the normal traffic was not at all disturbed. Traffic was stopped only for a few minutes at only one gate,’ the statement added.

The Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) Tuesday sought a report from PGIMER on the death of this patient, who could not enter the hospital because of security measures in place for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit.

‘The PMO is saddened at the death of a patient at the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research today during the visit of the prime minister. A full report has been asked for,’ said a senior official Tuesday.

Sumit Prakash Verma, 32, died after the vehicle carrying him could not enter the emergency area of the PGIMER in time for treatment, his relatives said.

They alleged that their vehicle carrying Verma from Ambala, 45 km from Chandigarh, was stopped at different gates of the institute, due to which crucial time was wasted.

‘We came near the PGIMER when the prime minister’s motorcade was entering. The road near the emergency was sealed by police and we were told to use another gate. At that gate, we were told to go to a third place and then directed to go to the original gate. This delayed our reaching the hospital and he died,’ Richa Verma, a relative, told reporters.

Sources in the PMO told IANS that security personnel could not gauge how critical Verma was as he was not travelling in an ambulance.

Verma was suffering from a major kidney ailment and had breathing trouble. He is survived by his wife and two children.

Manmohan Singh was here for the 30th convocation of the PGIMER.

However, the hospital’s security officials maintained that they did not stop any vehicle from entering the premises.

‘We did not stop any person or any vehicle from entering PGIMER. Heavy security was deployed, but our officials did not harass anybody unnecessarily,’ P.C. Sharma, PGIMER’s in-charge, told IANS Tuesday evening.

PM appeals to Vishva Bharti students to end stir

Published: November 3, 2009Posted in: Education, National, PoliticsTags:

New Delhi, Nov 3 – Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Tuesday urged the agitating students of Vishva Bharati University to ‘desist from disrupting normal life’ and end their stir to protest the theft of a CD containing paintings and unpublished documents of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.

The prime minister said he had been ‘deeply pained’ by the turn of events at the Vishva Bharati University during the last few days leading to the disruption of academic activities and normal life on the campus, according to a statement here.

The university is virtually closed since the last ten days as the staff and students joined hands in an agitation to demand a high-level inquiry into the alleged theft of a CD.

The prime minister appealed to the students to ‘desist from disrupting normal life and academic activities and withdraw the agitation’.

‘Thereafter, I will ensure that an impartial inquiry is conducted into the circumstances leading to the agitation and the allegations that have been levelled against the university authorities and other concerned entities,’ he added, according to the statement.

The protesters have also alleged rampant corruption in the university and also demanded that the institution’s vice-chancellor be sent on leave during the investigation to ensure a fair probe.

Congress clears 26 candidates for Jharkhand polls

Published: November 3, 2009Posted in: National, PoliticsTags:

New Delhi, Nov 3 – The Congress Tuesday announced its first list of candidates for the coming elections to the Jharkhand assembly.

‘The central election committee (CEC) chaired by party president Sonia Gandhi Monday approved 26 names of the candidates for the phase one, two and three,’ a Congress leader here.

The list of the candidates was released by CEC in-charge Oscar Fernandes.

The five-phase Jharkhand poll begins Nov 25 and ends Dec 18. The votes will be counted Dec 23.

416 cases of dengue in Delhi

Published: November 3, 2009Posted in: Health, NationalTags:

New Delhi, Nov 3 – The capital recorded 19 new cases of dengue Tuesday, taking the total number of cases of the vector-borne disease in New Delhi to 416, a health department official said.

‘There were 19 new, confirmed cases of dengue Tuesday,’ Chief Medical Officer of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) N.K. Yadav told IANS.

In the past few months, there have been two deaths recorded due to dengue – that of a 15-year-old boy and a nine-year-old boy.

Last year till Nov 1, a total of 1,070 cases of dengue were reported.

Besides the door-to-door checks, the MCD is also fumigating several places in the capital to curb mosquito breeding.

‘We are well-prepared to handle dengue, and our domestic breeding checkers have been taking rounds of their respective areas since May,’ Yadav said.

BJP struggles to solve Karnataka impasse

Published: November 3, 2009Posted in: National, PoliticsTags: ,

New Delhi/Bangalore, Nov 3 – The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday struggled to end the nine-day old crisis in Karnataka where rebel ministers insisted on removal of Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, ignoring party chief Rajnath Singh’s assertion that there would be no leadership change in the state.

Singh and senior leader Sushma Swaraj indicated, after day-long discussion in New Delhi, that solution to the turmoil was not in sight.

Singh appeared irritable when reporters asked him whether Yeddyurappa would continue as chief minister.

‘How many times the same question?’ he shot back as he got into his car.

When asked about leadership change and whether a solution has been found, Swaraj said: ‘Talks are on, not reached that stage’.

Yeddyurappa sent out contradictory signals while talking to reporters in Bellary, stronghold of state Tourism Minister G. Janardhana Reddy and his elder brother and Revenue Minister G. Karunakara Reddy, who are leading the rebellion against him.

The Reddy brothers are mining barons in Bellary, which is rich in iron ore and is 400 km from Bangalore. Yeddyruappa hoped the crisis would be resolved in a day or two as the BJP leadership was talking to the Reddys.

He blamed assembly Speaker Jagadish Shettar, propped up by the Reddy brothers and supporters as an alternative leader, for the crisis simply because he was not made a minister. Shettar holds Yeddyurappa responsible for depriving him of a political post.

Janardhana Reddy in New Delhi and Karunakara Reddy in Bangalore dismissed talk of the party favouring Yeddyurappa continuing as chief minister.

‘It is media creation,’ Karunakara Reddy said when asked whether there was any change in their stand since Rajnath Singh had said Yedyurappa would ‘definitely’ continue as the chief minister.

‘The central leadership has not given us any such indication,’ he asserted.

Janardhana Reddy also maintained the same stand after talking to senior leader Sushma Swaraj, considered close to the Reddy brothers as they joined the BJP just ahead of the 1999 Lok Sabha polls and canvassed for her when she took on Congress president Sonia Gandhi in Bellary.

Yeddyurappa continued to talk tough. ‘There is no need for me to get a certificate on the work I am doing,’ he said, clearly in response to Reddy brothers’ repeated statements that the state BJP needed ‘good leadership’ if it wanted to continue to be in power in Karnataka.

The chief minister said he would visit Delhi Nov 5-6 to meet party central leaders and also Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over central funds for the rehabilitation of the flood hit in north Karnataka.

While Yeddyurappa Tuesday toured north Karnataka and participated in foundation stone laying ceremonies at several places for relocation of flood-prone villages, Karunakara Reddy, as Revenue Minister, held a video conference in Bangalore with senior officials of 12 affected districts to review the rehab work.

In related developments, Energy Minister K.S. Eshwarappa, who has also been unhappy with Yeddyurappa, left for Delhi to meet central leaders.

‘There is problem in the party. We will impress on our central leaders the need for an early solution,’ he said at the airport. He is accompanied by party legislator and spokesperson C.T. Ravi.

A large number of legislators supporting the Reddy brothers and staying in a star hotel in Hyderabad for the last one week also plan to visit Delhi in the next two days if the crisis persists.

The two opposition parties, the Congress and Janata Dal-Secular, have stayed aloof though strongly attacking the ruling party for ignoring the plight of the flood hit and indulging in power games.

The Reddy brothers have sought Yeddyurappa’s removal on the ground that he is dictatorial, does not give them free hand to run the ministries, does not consult them on posting of officials, and allows his favourites to interfere in the functioning of others’ ministries.

The Reddy brothers are upset that their younger sibling G. Somashekara Reddy, a legislator, has been slapped with a case of kidnapping in mid-October. They want the case to be dropped.

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