Director Aditya Dhar said that the intention of his directorial debut “Uri: The Surgical Strike” is not to show Pakistan in the bad light but to focus on the issue of terrorism.
The film is based on the 2016 Indian Army’s surgical strikes on terror launch pads in Pakistan as a retaliation for the Uri attack that claimed the lives of 17 army personnel.
“The film is about how Indian Army fought terrorism. Our focus in the film is about how to fight against terrorism. There is nothing anti-Pakistan. We are not fighting against any individual or country, we are fighting against the cross-border terrorism that is happening. We have shown a balanced perspective,” Aditya told an agency.
Despite a ban on Indian films in the neighbouring country, the director said that he would have loved to show his movie in Pakistan.
“Any sane or logical person be it Indian or Pakistani will understand that the film is about fighting terrorism.”
Aditya said that his debut film “Raabta” was set to feature Pakistani actor Fawad Khan and Katrina Kaif in the lead but Khan had to exit the project after Pakistani artistes were banned from working in India in the aftermath of the Uri attacks.
“I was figuring out how to recast for the film and who to approach. But within 10 days surgical strikes happened.”
The retaliation by the Indian side piqued his interest and Aditya said he started to research about the surgical strikes and its planning process.
Also starring Paresh Rawal, Yami Gautam and Mohit Raina, the film is set to be released on January 11.
For any country, its dancer are like the precious gems, each enhancing its quality and taking the values and traditions to yet another new level. In our country we have many fantastic dancers who have dedicated their entire life to dance and in turn have become an icon of India’s dance scene. Who are the Ratnas of dance in India was a question in my mind? And to answer this complicated question, I fortunately met the perfect person when I was in Delhi a few weeks back. I am talking about the dynamic and stunning Dr. Usha RK.
Usha ji is a renowned art consultant, for whom dance became her companion during the days of her schooling. Training under the venerable Gurus of the Raja Rajeshwari Bharata Natya Kala Mandir, Gurus CR Acharya and Vempati Chinna Satyam, Usha ji chose to take up research and academic aspects of dance that enabled her to develop her dance writing skills. A pioneer in the Arts Organising sphere, Usha RK, has carved a niche for herself as an impresario of formidable caliber and competence.
Conceptualising and creating some of the pathbreaking dance and music festivals, Usha was indeed lucky to work with many of the legends in the music, dance, and film worlds. Whether it was thematic festivals like “Swarna Sankhya” or the grand music festival “Raga Tala” or the “Nritya Dhara” celebration of International Dance day featuring over 175 dancers or the PR-led concerts of music and art, almost all her endeavors have been excessively successful and appreciated.
Dr. Usha RK, an art consultant has with complete devotion contributed immensely the in promotion and propagation of Classical Arts for over three decades. Usha ji is one person who with her love for art and art promotion has completely changed the fabric of classical dance presentations in India. So I asked her the question which was in my mind about the Navaratan of Dance scene in India and here is what she had to answer:
1.Bharatanatyam
Vyjayanthimala Bali – The gem Diamond
With an inborn sensitivity and spirituality, Vyjayanthimala is peerless becoming synonymous with Bharatnatyam. The words that spring to your mind when you think of Vyjayanthimala and her dance range from Pristine Purity, Vibrant, Traditional, Natural, Spiritual, etc. to creating a mesmerising effect on the audiences. This octogenarian has held on to the heritage and purity of Bharatanatyam invincibly.
Chitra Vishveshwaran – The gem Emerald
Bringing to an otherwise calculative precision like the style, the beauty of lyricality and melody was the contribution of Chitra Vishveshwaran to the Vazhavoor Bani. It is probably the spiritual approach in communicating even the simplest concepts of Indian philosophy that transformed Chitra’s successful performances. Her visualisation and choreography especially of the composers like Meera, Purandara Dasa amongst others changed the style of presenting the Bhakti aspect in dance. At the same time, her interpretations of the varied emotions while dealing with Sringara were very close to real experiences. She encouraged modern compositions of traditional items in the traditional format with a view to extend the Bharatanatyam repertoire.
2.Kathak
Birju Maharaj – The gem Blue Sapphire
Whether it is the lightning like footwork, the ultimate control in making a single ghungroo ring and up to creating a cascading melodious effect through his feet interlacing expressions that could make a young maiden almost shy were the highlights that made my heart swoon while experiencing the dance of Birju Maharaj. The simplicity with which he communicated the most inexplicable Indian philosophy, portraying the naughtiness of a child hero, the enlivening of the heartbeat through his Sringara Rasa and the soul-stirring yearning for the lord through the rendering of his Bhajans makes him the most respected and loved exponent of our times.
3.Kuchipudi
Vedantam Satyanarayana Sharma — The gem Yellow Sapphire
A pioneer in the transformation into an extremely beautiful and arrogant Satyabhama from a simple Telugu Brahmin villager from Kuchipudi took India by storm when he entered the national stage. Vedantam Satyanarayana Sharma’s mannerisms, costumes, characterisation, makeup, jewellery — all of these contributed in creating a mesmeric Satyabhama. We are yet to find a replacement for him. His portrayal of the feminine characters was enhanced by his innate sense of emotional expression highlighting every moment whether it is hasya or karuna.
Yamini Krishnamurthy — The gem Ruby
Was it a matter of genes or prodigal inheritance or a sheer in born genius one could never tell! She emoted like very few could. Her energy, strength, and sponge like memory, grace and an aggressiveness that struck the audiences like an Astra that demolished one completely. Yamini Krishnamurthy is Kuchipudi and Kuchipudi is Yamini Krishnamurthy. She romanced, argued, fought, loved, beseeched, and prayed to every deity through her dance. Dance gives the dancer an opportunity to communicate and Yamini took the opportunity by the horns performing with authenticity and convincing credibility retaining the stamp of Kuchipudi loud and clear.
4.Odissi
Sonal Mansingh — The gem Red Coral
An iconic personality of India, Sonal Mansingh, is without any doubt an exemplary master of cultural interpretations delineating inter-linkages with philosophy literature mythology, sculpture and Dance. Odissi has reached heights and attained the status of being a highly intellectual form due to her contribution. When pure dance and expression is combined with intellect, knowledge, and spirituality, the result is – Sonal Mansingh.
5.Mohiniattam
Bharati Shivaji — The gem Cats Eye
The credit of taking this dance of the enchantress across the globe and formulating it goes to Bharati Shivaji. Creating a wide spread interest for this very niche and unique form of Mohiniattam ensconced in the villages of Kerala, Bharati’s efforts in this area noteworthy. Taking literature and poetry from various languages she has extended the Mohiniattam repertoire in a very composite manner.
6.Manipuri
Jhaveri Sisters (Naina, Ranjana, Suvarna, and Darshana Jhaveri) — The gem Pearl.
These four sisters performed together this traditional Rasleela style and were responsible for bringing the traditional Manipuri dance to the cities. If one wanted to understand the meaning of the word ‘subtility’ they had to only witness the dance of the Jhaveri Sisters. Their soft nature complemented the lasya aspect along with bringing out a very underplayed tandava aspect of the Manipuri style. Their beautiful and colourful performances demonstrated the subtle body movements and rhythmic peculiarities of the Manipuri dance. Their group and dance drama presentations have always been a treat to the eyes.
7.Kathakali
Sadanam Balakrishnan – The gem Hessonite.
Sadanam Balakrishnan, an exemplary artist merged into the role of an artistic director with absolute ease. Sadanam uses the grammar of the art form seen in traditional performances to bring alive on stage some classic international plays for Indian audiences. His very adept ability to look into the varied aspect of production music composing, lyric writhing costume designing and choreography has made him probably the only Kathakali exponent who dwelled into ‘Communicating through Tradition’. Kathakali today has seen newer and interesting shades through the eyes of Sadanam Balakrishnan.
By-Sandip Soparrkar
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed within this article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and opinions appearing in the article do not reflect the views of AFTERNOON VOICE and AFTERNOON VOICE does not assume any responsibility or liability for the same.
Director: Rob Marshall
Starring: Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Ben Whishaw, Emily Mortimer, Pixie Davies, Nathanael Saleh, Joel Dawson, Julie Walters, Meryl Streep, Colin Firth, Jeremy Swift, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Dick Van Dyke, Angela Lansbury, David Warner, Jim Norton, Noma Dumezweni
**
Those who have seen the 1964 musical fantasy would be disappointed with “Mary Poppins Returns”.
While this sequel took 54 years to resurrect Mary Poppins, the narrative from the original, takes a leap of 25 years, and is still indebted to the original.
Set during the Great Depression, also known in Britain as the Great Slump, of the 1930s, the narrative begins with a lamplighter, Jack (Lin-Manuel Miranda) showing us around the city while singing, “Underneath the lovely London Sky”. He sings till he reaches the famed, 17 Cherry Tree lane where decades earlier, Mary Poppins had to persuade George Banks to pay attention to his children, Michael and Jane.
Now, Admiral Boom (David Warmer) and his Mr. Binnacle (Jim Norton) are still firing off the canon twice a day. More importantly, their house with a ship on the roof is right next door to where Michael (Ben Whishaw) now a widower, lives with his family.
During the course of the narrative, Mary Poppins returns to the same multi-storied house to pull Michael out of his own catastrophic depression so that he can tend to his children and save their home from being taken over by the vicious and corrupt bank manager played by Colin Firth.
Director Rob Marshall’s version of the musical fantasy written by David Magee, does seem to have the similar storyline with amped up events. But unfortunately, while the film manages to touch upon most of the emotional points, it lacks a soul.
The narrative progresses perfunctorily. The tale drags as one unrelated song-and-dance number follow another. The film feels endless, as things just happen and then different things happen, but rarely do they feel consequential. There are dancing dolphins, talking dogs, an upside-down house, flying balloons, union protest and over a dozen songs and not a single one is memorable.
But the three numbers that stand out are; “Trip a little light fantastic,” which is a big ensemble number involving the lamp-lighters led by Miranda. While the song is nothing to boast about, the choreography with the light men literally flying around doing tricks is what makes this song stand apart.
While the lyrics of the second song, “There is nowhere to go, but up”, might sound morbid, the picturisation is done in a light and fun manner. But it is the Meryl Streep number “Turning Turtle”, where she dances in her upside-down house which is the most painful five minutes of the film.
As for the performances, there is not a single character that keeps you hooked. Ben Whishaw looks and behaves too juvenile to be a father of three. While Emily Blunt is a versatile actor, as Mary Poppins she lacks the charm and charisma of a considerate, perfect nanny. Also considering decades have elapsed from the first edition, this Mary Poppins hasn’t aged. This further makes her unconvincing.
Overall, while the original film was “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious”, this one is “simply-fragilistically-sad”.
Director: Travis Knight
Starring: Hailee Steinfeld, John Cena, Jorge Lendeborg, Jr., John Ortiz, Jason Drucker, Pamela Adlon, Stephen Schneider, Justin Theroux and Angela Bassett
***
Director Travis Knight’s “Bumblebee” serves as an imaginative spinoff and a prequel to director Michael Bay’s “Transformers” series that began in 2007.
It is a scaled-down, character-driven family film, where the bigger moments realign, providing an extended account of the fan-favourite characters’ origin and an insight into the war between the noble Autobots and the devious Deceptions, the intergalactic robots from the planet of Cybertron.
Set in 1987, the film begins with an Autobot crash-landing on Earth, in the middle of a military exercise led by secretive government agency Sector 7 commander Jack Burn (John Cena). This leads to an intense fight as Burns and his soldiers attempt to capture the robot.
The robot escapes his pursuers and settles down in a San Francisco Bay Area junkyard after transforming itself into a faded yellow 1967 Volkswagen Beetle. That is where Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld) who misses her dead father, discovers the dilapidated Bug while scavenging spare parts to remodel her dad’s car.
When Charlie gets the car home, she is astounded to witness the car’s sudden transition to the robot form and after getting over her initial shock, she decisively names the Autobot B-127 “Bumblebee”.
The robot is named Bumblebee not because of his camouflage or because the car was swarmed with honeybees when Charlie finds it, but on account of the weird buzzing noise his broken voice box emits.
Soon Charlie and Bumblebee become fast friends. Because Bumblebee had his memory wiped from a fight, years earlier, he is very childlike and endearing. In fact, he is the best pet any teenager could hope for. Though equipped with heavy duty cannon and huge retractable sword, he is like a giant, obedient puppy the rest of the time.
But, Bumblebee’s troubles quickly catch up with him when Decepticona’s Dropkick (voiced by Justin Theroux) and Shatter (voiced by Angela Bassett) partner with the unwitting leaders of Sector 7 and a suspicious Burns, who hunt him down at any cost.
The film offers a significant change from the typically male-dominated franchise to centring on a teen girl, as the film’s protagonist. There is plenty of formidable drama inclusive of genuinely heartfelt moments as she navigates her way with her unconventional new friend.
By taking the “Transformers” universe in a new, more intimate character-driven direction, the plot is simple and straightforward. Stripped of all complexities, it thus manages to establish itself not only as a thrilling, adventure origin story of sorts, but as one of the more heart-warming films of the season.
It is a true coming-of-age story for both the title character and Charlie, but unfortunately, the story seems too familiar and does not feel original. The humour in the film is subjective and is strewn far and in-between the narrative.
On the acting front, every member of the cast delivers a rock-solid performance. As for the visual effects, the critical transformation scene demonstrates noticeable improvements in digital effects over the previous films, with sharp visual details, realistic colour shading and seamless transitions between robot and vehicular forms, which all appear realistic and cool.
Overall, “Bumblebee” is a fun film that would appeal to both long-time fans and a new audience of younger viewers, if you overlook the minor cinematic liberties that the director has taken.
The government’s revenue mop-up from the telecom sector fell by about 22 per cent in the 2017-18 fiscal owing to a decline in earnings of service providers from sale of services, Parliament was informed on Friday.
The government collects license fee and spectrum usage charge (SUC) as a percentage of revenue earned by telecom service providers from sale of telecom services.
“Adjusted gross revenue (AGR) based SUC receipts have declined due to declining AGR,” Union telecom minister Manoj Sinha said in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha.
In 2017-2018, the industry’s AGR declined by 18.62 per cent to Rs 1,30,844.9 crore from Rs 1,60,787.9 crore in the previous fiscal, resulting in lower licence fees and SUC for the government.
The government’s revenue from licence fee declined 18.12 per cent to Rs 10,670.6 crore in 2017-18, from Rs 13,032.9 crore in 2016-17.
The SUC, which is calculated based on quantum of radiowaves allocated to mobile operators, dipped by over 29 per cent to Rs 4,983.75 crore in 2017-18 from Rs 7,048 crore in the preceding financial, according to data shared by the Telecom Minister.
Rishabh Pant and Tim Paine’s good humoured on-field banter has been lapped up by the television viewers and the Indian described it as a way of maintaining intensity during long on-field hours.
The official broadcasters of the ongoing India versus Australia series Fox Cricket has kept the stump microphone on and some of the interesting exchanges between Paine and Pant have been recorded.
Pant, whose picture of holding Tim Paine’s son along with the Australian skipper’s wife Bonnie went viral after the “babysitter” banter, didn’t mind that stump mic is on.
“That (banter) is also one of the methods to keep yourself positive and to keep yourself busy. When you are fielding for a long time, everyone’s body does get tired but you need to find a way to keep yourself positive and stay concentrated. My method is this, and it works for me, and that’s why I am doing it,” Pant told the media on Friday.
“As a player, I don’t think about any of these things (stump microphone being turned up). Whatever I feel like at that moment, I say it. That’s the only way,” he added.
It all started during the Melbourne Test when Pant was batting.
“Big MS (Dhoni) is back in the one-day squad too, we might get him (Pant) down to the (Hobart) Hurricanes we need a batter. Fancy that, Pantsy? Extend your little Aussie holiday. Beautiful town Hobart too, I’ll get you a nice apartment on the waterfront. (I’ll) have him over for dinner. Can you babysit? I’ll take the wife to the movies one night and you’ll look after the kids,” Paine was heard saying on the stump mic.
On the very next day, Pant was heard speaking to Mayank Agarwal when Paine came to the crease.
“We got a special guest today. Have you ever heard of a temporary captain, ever, Mayank?” said Pant, referring to the absence of banned former skipper Steve Smith.
The government on Friday said that no general scheme has been created that gives an adult the choice to opt out of the Aadhaar programme as there is no such direction from the Supreme Court.
But, in line with the SC judgement, necessary measures are being undertaken to formulate an exit scheme only for the children attaining majority who do not intend to avail the benefits of the scheme, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology S S Ahluwalia said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.
To a question on whether the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) had received requests for opting out of the Aadhaar scheme, the minister gave an affirmative reply.
“No general option to exit from Aadhaar was laid down by the Hon’ble court as a binding direction and consequently, no such option has been created,” he said.
The minister said pursuant to the judgment of the SC in September 2018, “such an exit scheme has only been mandated for children who have been enrolled with consent of their parents, who shall be given an option to exit on attaining the age of majority provided they do not intend to avail the benefits of the scheme”.
Accordingly, he said, necessary steps to formulate such an exit scheme for children attaining majority is being taken.
On whether UIDAI has prepared plans to delete all Aadhaar data with banks and telecom companies, Ahluwalia said the compliance of the provisions of the Aadhaar Act, 2016, and the Supreme Court order, including deletion of Aadhaar data, is required to be done by the concerned requesting entity on receipt of request by an Aadhaar holder.
The Union government informed the Bombay High Court on Friday that it was likely to finalise draft rules for regulation of online sale of medicines by January end.
Union government’s lawyer D P Singh told a bench of Chief Justice Naresh Patil and Justice N M Jamdar that in compliance with an order of the Madras High Court, the government has “already framed draft rules, and conducted a series of meetings with experts”.
The Union government is in the process of finalising the draft rules under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, and they will be notified soon, Singh added.
The bench was hearing a Public Interest Litigation filed by a college professor from the city in 2015, demanding that online sale of medicines, including ‘schedule H’ drugs which cannot be sold without doctor’s prescription, be regulated.
The bench noted the issue was “crucial” as it concerns public health, and asked the Centre and the Maharashtra government about the steps being taken to ensure that medicines are sold only through licensed chemist shops.
In 2017, another bench of the Bombay High Court had appointed an amicus curiae (an expert to assist the court) in the matter.
The bench asked the amicus, advocate Zal Andhyarujina, for suggestions.
Advocate Singh then informed the judges that the Madras High Court had directed the Union government in December 2018 to notify the rules regarding online sale of medicines by January 31.
The judges said they will wait for the Union government to take appropriate action, and adjourned the hearing to February 4.
Fixing of medicine prices has resulted in Rs 11,000 crore benefit to people, Minister of State for Chemical and Fertilisers, Mansukh L Mandaviya told Rajya Sabha.
The Minister, who was replying during the Question Hour, said that to make medicines affordable, the government capped prices of 855 medicines and some medical devices.
He said that the government has notified the Drug (Prices Control) Order (DPCO) to control and regulate the prices of medicines in the country.
The prices of drugs are fixed by National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority as per the provisions of DPCO and it does not distinguish between patented and non-patented drugs for fixing the ceiling prices of scheduled medicines, he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday assured the people of Assam that no genuine citizen will be left out of the NRC and hoped that the citizenship bill will be soon get Parliament’s nod.
“I am aware of the problems and difficulties faced by many during the NRC (National Register of Citizens) process but I assure you that no injustice will be done to any genuine Indian citizens,” he told the Vijay Sankalp Samavesh Rally at Kalinagar near here.
“The government is also moving ahead with the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. It is linked with emotions and related to peoples’ lives. It is not for the benefit of anyone but a penance against the injustice and many wrongs done in the past. I hope the Bill will be passed soon in Parliament,” he said, flagging off the BJP’s Lok Sabha poll campaign in the Northeast.
Modi also spoke about his government’s decision to implement Clause 6 of the Assam Accord “hanging” for 35 years.
“Now the road is clear to safeguard social, cultural and linguistic identity of Assam.
“I am indebted to the people of Assam for voting for the BJP in the recent panchayat elections and I am committed to repay this debt by ensuring the development of the state,” he said.
Recalling his inauguration of the country’s longest rail-cum-road bridge at Bogibeel in upper Assam on December 25, Modi said “I am fortunate to be with the people of Assam for the second time in 10 days. The Barak and Brahmaputra valleys are a source of inspiration not only for the state but also for the country”, Modi said.
The Prime Minister arrived at Silchar in Cachar district from imphal as a part of his first phase of poll campaign, wherein he is scheduled to address rallies in 20 states in 100 days before the model code of conduct comes into force.
The BJP and its allies is setting the target to win 21 out of the 25 parliamentary seats in eight states in the region and in Assam the party hopes to win at least 11 of the 14 seats.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, BJP had made massive in roads in Assam winning seven of its 14 parliamentary seats and in the 2016 assembly polls the party emerged as the single largest party with 61 seats while its alliance partners AGP and BPF had won 14 and 12 seats respectively.
Rishabh Pant and Tim Paine’s good humoured on-field banter has been lapped up by the television viewers and the Indian described it as a way of maintaining intensity during long on-field hours.
The Union government informed the Bombay High Court on Friday that it was likely to finalise draft rules for regulation of online sale of medicines by January end.
Fixing of medicine prices has resulted in Rs 11,000 crore benefit to people, Minister of State for Chemical and Fertilisers, Mansukh L Mandaviya told Rajya Sabha.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday assured the people of Assam that no genuine citizen will be left out of the NRC and hoped that the citizenship bill will be soon get Parliament’s nod.