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Indo-Asian News Service or IANS is a private Indian news agency. The IANS was founded by Indian American publisher Gopal Raju as the India Abroad News Service. It was later renamed the Indo-Asian News Service. The IANS has its main offices located in Noida.

Articles Written By IANS News

Himansh Kohli, Heli Daruwala Recall Shooting In Rajasthan For Latest Track 'Meri Tarah'
1604 days ago
Bollywood

Himansh Kohli, Heli Daruwala Recall Shooting In Rajasthan For Latest Track 'Meri Tarah'

Mumbai, Jan 17 (IANS) Himansh Kohli and Heli Daruwala are seen together in the romantic single 'Meri Tarah', sung by Jubin Nautiyal and Payal Dev.## Himansh and Heli have shot for this music video in Rajasthan and enjoyed shopping and visiting popular landmarks such as Samode Palace, Shakambri Mata Mandir and others.# While Heli enjoyed picking up accessories and outfits from the stores lining the street lanes, Himansh had conversations with the locals.## Reveals Himansh: "Rajasthan has a charm of its own and I loved talking to the local people, understanding their lives and just allowing myself to enjoy the small-town life".## Heli is all praise for the traditional designs and colours of the outfits she purchased from local markets in Rajasthan.## "The bright textile colours, the silver jewellery, the food...everything is filled with so much culture that I had to bring back some memorabilia", she adds.## Penned by Kunaal Vermaa and composed by Payal Dev, 'Meri Tarah' is directed by Navjit Buttar. Produced by Bhushan Kumar, the song is now out on T-Series' YouTube channel.## Stay tuned...

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Angelina Jolie Calls Her 'Eternals' Character A Troubled Soul
1604 days ago
Hollywood

Angelina Jolie Calls Her 'Eternals' Character A Troubled Soul

Mumbai, Jan 17 (IANS) Hollywood star Angelina Jolie, who essays the role of Thena in Chloe Zhao's superhero film 'Eternals', describes her character as someone who is not very comfortable during peacetime and this trait emanates from the moral injury of the character.## Due to her special ability to manipulate cosmic energy to augment her life force which grants her virtual invulnerability and immortality, Thena is known for being a social misfit. Commenting on this, Angelina says, "Thena is like a soldier who is affected by the memories of battle and has PTSD or moral injury to living with. Thena just assumes that a fight's coming at her rather than care and kindness".## Talking about the complexities of her character, Angelina says, "So she's quite wired, and a lot of her struggle is just holding on to her mind and her center and her peace. I understand her, and how she feels".## She further adds, "Thena is not comfortable in peacetime. She doesn't know how to exist as a civilian or as a lover or as a friend, but she does know war. She knows who she is in combat. But she doesn't know how to go to a party or socialize. She just doesn't have those skills".## The film, which features an ensemble of Salma Hayek, Kit Harington, Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, and Kumail Nanjiani, is available to stream on Disney+ Hotstar in English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam.## Stay tuned...

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Raju Jeyamohan Wins 'Bigg Boss Tamil 5'
1604 days ago
TV

Raju Jeyamohan Wins 'Bigg Boss Tamil 5'

Chennai, Jan 17 (IANS) Actor, mimicry artist and assistant director Raju Jeyamohan on Sunday walked away with the much-coveted title of 'Bigg Boss Tamil' Season 5.## Actor and show host Kamal Haasan presented the title trophy and a winner's cheque for Rs 50 lakh to Raju Jeyamohan at the grand finale of the popular Tamil reality show.## Interestingly, TV anchor Priyanka Deshpande emerged the first runner up while TV actress Pavni Reddy ended up as the second runner up.## The five contestants to make it to the final round of this fiercely contested season were Raju, Priyanka, Pavni, Amir and Niroop.## Among the final five, Niroop was the first to be evicted, followed by Amir and Pavni.## Raju, who has been a part of television shows and a couple of films, has clearly been the audience's favourite all through the season.## Stay tuned...

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Director Lingusamy's Bilingual Film With Ram Pothineni Titled 'The Warriorr'
1604 days ago
Tollywood

Director Lingusamy's Bilingual Film With Ram Pothineni Titled 'The Warriorr'

Chennai, Jan 17 (IANS) The makers of director Lingusamy's film with Telugu star Ram Pothineni in the lead on Monday announced that the film had been titled "The Warriorr". The Tamil-Telugu bilingual is an action drama that has triggered huge interest ever since it was first announced.## On Monday, the team chose to release the title and the first look of the film. 'The Warrior poster features Ram Pothineni as a police officer wielding a gun with a tough look, while cops surround him.## Says director Lingusamy, "The poster has triggered curiosity about the story that has the energetic star at its center. Fans are sure to find this film exciting as they will see Ram donning the khaki for the first time".## Sources close to the unit say that a fresh schedule of 'The Warriorr' has commenced in which crucial scenes are being shot. The movie's team vouches that it will surpass the expectations of fans and that it will be one of the memorable police stories of south Indian cinema.## Aadhi Pinisetty, who is popular in both Kollywood and Tollywood, plays the antagonist. The film has Krithi Shetty in the lead, while Akshara Reddy will be seen in a pivotal role.## Producer Srinivasaa Chitturi says, "We are happy to announce our association with Ram Potheneni and we have kickstarted 2022 with lots of excitement and are striving to bring the best to the audiences. We hope to make a film that is loved and enjoyed by the audience thoroughly. We hope we make the audience happy with our content".## 'The Warriorr' is expected to be a feather in Srinivasaa Silver Screen's hat after the success of its recent sports drama, 'Seetimaarr', which had Gopichand and Tamannah Bhatia in lead roles.## The upcoming action-drama will be presented by Pavan Kumar and is a Devi Sri Prasad musical.## Stay tuned...

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Kathak's Living Legend, Pandit Birju Maharaj, Dies At 83 (Ld)
1604 days ago
India

Kathak's Living Legend, Pandit Birju Maharaj, Dies At 83 (Ld)

New Delhi, Jan 17 (IANS) The living legend of Kathak, Birju Maharaj, who had been diagnosed with kidney disease a few days ago and put on dialysis, died at his home here late on Sunday. He was 83.## Maharaj Ji, as he was popularly known, was said to be playing with his grandsons when his health unexpectedly deteriorated, requiring him to be rushed to the hospital, where he died of a heart attack.## A recipient of the country's second-highest civilian honor, Padma Vibhushan, Maharaj Ji was also a lifelong Kathak guru as well as a talented Hindustani classical singer and percussionist.## He will be remembered by cinema buffs for the two-period dance sequences in Satyajit Ray's historical drama 'Shatranj Ke Khiladi' (for which he sang as well) and for the 'Kaahe Chhed Mohe' track picturized on Madhuri Dixit in the 2002 version of 'Devdas'.## Maharaj Ji won the National Award for choreographing 'Unnai Kaanadhu Naan' in the Kamal Haasan multi-lingual megahit 'Vishwaroopam' and the Filmfare Awards for the Bajirao Mastani number 'Mohe Rang Do Laal'.## Adnan Sami, one of the first artistes to pay his tributes to the doyen of Kathak, said in a tweet: "Extremely saddened by the news about the passing away of Legendary Kathak Dancer Pandit Birju Maharaj ji. We have lost an unparalleled institution in the field of the performing arts. He has influenced many generations through his genius. May he rest in peace".## Another early tribute came from Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who tweeted: "Pandit Birju ji Maharaj was a doyen of India's art and culture. He popularised the Lucknow gharana of Kathak dance form around the world. ... His passing away is a monumental loss to the world of performing arts".## Birju Maharaj was the son of the exponent of the Lucknow gharana, Jagannath Maharaj, better known as Acchan Maharaj, whom he lost when he was just nine. His uncles were the renowned Shambhu Maharaj and Lacchu Maharaj.## He taught at the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Kathak Kendra, both in Delhi, from where he retired as director in 1998.## Stay tuned...

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Indian American R&B Singer Raveena Releases Bollywood-Inspired Track
1605 days ago
Hollywood

Indian American R&B Singer Raveena Releases Bollywood-Inspired Track

New York, Jan 16 (IANS) New York-based R&B singer Raveena Aurora, who got the attention of the music industry with her debut album 'Lucid' (2019), has released what V Magazine calls an "upbeat track (that) merges Bollywood influences with psychedelic imagery".## Taking to Twitter to share her excitement over the music video shoot for 'Rush', which is what the new track is called, Raveena commented: "I really felt like a real-life Bollywood princess in this music video shoot".## 'Lucid', incidentally, was named one of the best albums of 2019 by the music staff of NPR, America's public radio broadcasting corporation.## "I wrote 'Rush' a couple of years back and the song was the genesis of me exploring a more intense marriage between Bollywood sounds and the pop/R&B music that I grew up on in America," the singer, who was born and raised in Queens, said in a statement.## According to V Magazine, "'Rush' marries Raveena's delicate vocals with thumping, Indian-inspired production".## Accompanying the newly-released song is a music video that sees the singer take on the persona of Asha, a Punjabi space princess. V Magazine describes the "must-watch" video as "glorious" and "hypnotizing".## "The song and video are centered around a character I created named Asha, a Punjabi space princess," the singer, a graduate of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts, explained in her statement. "(Asha) is transported to a distant planet and learns highly advanced spiritual intelligence from the beings that live there".## The singer concluded: "I wanted to create a campy ode to the colorful '80s Bollywood movies and '70s Western sci-fi movies that I'm obsessed with, complete with a choreographed dance sequence alongside Asha's alien friends".## Stay tuned...

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'Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal' To Hit Screens On Jan 28
1605 days ago
Kollywood

'Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal' To Hit Screens On Jan 28

Chennai, Jan 16 (IANS) Director Vishal Venkat's upcoming film 'Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal', featuring a host of actors including director K.S. Ravikumar, actors Manikandan, Ashok Selvan, Rithyvika, and Bhanupriya, will release on January 28.## The film, which has dialogues by actor Manikandan, whose brilliant performance in the critically acclaimed court room drama 'Jai Bhim' came in for a lot of appreciation last year, revolves around the lives of four people connected by one common incident.## The film, which has been made by a bunch of youngsters who disclosed during the film's audio launch that the idea to make the film originated from a shop near their college where they used to discuss cinema, has music by Radhan and cinematography by Meyyendiran.## Announcing the release date on Twitter, the director of the film, Vishal Venkat on Sunday said, "Here it is.. We are coming on January 28 at theatres. Need your support and blessings".## Stay tuned...

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Karthi Is A Boon To Directors, Says Director Muthiah
1605 days ago
Kollywood

Karthi Is A Boon To Directors, Says Director Muthiah

Chennai, Jan 16 (IANS) Muthiah, who has directed actor Karthi's upcoming film 'Viruman', says that the actor is actually a boon to directors.## Says Muthiah, "You can present actor Karthi in any way you want. He can be shown as a calm, docile person or if you choose, you can present him as an aggressive, rough person. He is a boon to directors. Karthi plays the title role in my film. The character he plays believes that those living today must live like how our ancestors lived. He believes in families living unitedly and being there for them when a problem erupts".## Giving out details of his upcoming family entertainer, the director said, "'Viruman' is based on an incident that happened in a home opposite my place. Everybody commits mistakes in life. However, when one commits mistakes, somebody in the family must question it. My film 'Viruman' will speak about this".## The film, produced by actor Suriya's 2D Entertainment, features Aditi Shankar, the daughter of ace director Shankar, as the female lead.## Shooting for the film took place in and around Theni and Madurai and was completed in 60 days.## Stay tuned...

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Malayalam Superstar Mammootty Tests Covid+, 'CBI 5' Shoot Suspended
1605 days ago
Mollywood

Malayalam Superstar Mammootty Tests Covid+, 'CBI 5' Shoot Suspended

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 16 (IANS) Malayalam superstar Mammootty tested Covid-19 positive on Sunday. In view of this development, the shooting of his movie franchise 'CBI 5' directed by K. Madhu has been suspended.## Details about the star's health are awaited. 'CBI 5' is the fifth of a series of movies directed by K. Madhu and each of them has been a runaway hit.## Mammootty played the lead role of Sethuraman Iyer in 'CBI 5'. The film has an impressive star cast comprising, among others, Mukesh and Jagathy Sreekumar.## Stay tuned...

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Slasher Movie 'Scream' Ends Four-Week Reign Of 'Spider-Man'
1605 days ago
Hollywood

Slasher Movie 'Scream' Ends Four-Week Reign Of 'Spider-Man'

Los Angeles, Jan 16 (IANS) Even as most other theatrical releases continue to struggle because of the Omicron wave, the latest horror movie, 'Scream', is making a sizable impression at the North American box office, showing yet again that audiences in the U.S., especially the younger demographic, are in love with the horror genre.## With an opening weekend that should finally dethrone 'Spider-Man: No Way Home' after the Marvel entry's four-week perch on top of the earnings totem pole, 'Scream' is the new box-office No. 1.## The fifth installment in the horror franchise, and the first in over a decade, grossed $13.35 million on Friday from 3,664 locations, reports 'Variety'. Paramount Pictures projects the horror film should rake in $36 million over the four-day Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend, more than enough to land at No. 1 for the weekend.## The thrifty 'requel' only cost $25 million to produce, a number that the release should easily rocket past before the weekend is out, according to 'Variety'. Not too shabby for a January release unleashed on the moviegoing public amid a colossal spike of Covid-19 and its more transmissible Omicron variant.## 'Scream' is evidence that audiences will still roll out to theatres during the pandemic, especially films targeting a demographic of younger viewers.## Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett direct 'Scream', taking over the series from its founder Wes Craven, who helmed the four first entries before passing away in 2015, reports 'Variety'. The film stars series regulars Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette as they are once again haunted by a serial killer in a Ghostface mask.## The killing spree extends to a group of high school students in the town of Woodsboro, California. Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Jack Quaid, and Dylan Minnette also star in the slasher.## Stay tuned...

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Lata Mangeshkar's Health Worsens, Nobody Allowed To Meet Her
1605 days ago
Bollywood

Lata Mangeshkar's Health Worsens, Nobody Allowed To Meet Her

Mumbai, Jan 16 (IANS) The health condition of India's singing icon Lata Mangeshkar, who was admitted to Mumbai's Breach Candy Hospital after she tested positive for Covid-19, has worsened.## The 92-year-old Bharat Ratna awardee has developed pneumonia in addition to Covid and has been admitted to the ICU, where a team of doctors is taking care of her.## At this point, nobody is allowed to meet the singer as she continues to be under the supervision of doctors, who have said that it will take some more time for her to show signs of recovery. The doctors did not wish to comment on how long she needs to be in the ICU.## 'India's Nightingale' had tested positive on Tuesday, January 11, after reportedly contracting the virus from one of the house helps.## Stay tuned...

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Tovino Thomas's 'Naradhan' cleared with U/A certificate, film release postponed
1605 days ago
Mollywood

Tovino Thomas's 'Naradhan' cleared with U/A certificate, film release postponed

Chennai, Jan 16 (IANS) Director Aashiq Abu's Malayalam film 'Naradan', featuring Tovino Thomas and Anna Ben in the lead, has been cleared for release with a U/A certificate.## However, sadly, the onset of the third Covid wave has forced the makers to postpone the release of their film.## Actor Tovino Thomas took to Instagram to make the announcement. He put out a post that read "Certified U/A". The post went on to say, "We regret to announce that 'Naradan' movie release has been postponed due to the surge of Covid 19 infections and complications caused by the Omicron".## The political thriller, which has music by Sekhar Menon, has cinematography by Jaffer Zadique.## The film, which was originally scheduled to be released in April last year, got postponed due to the second wave of Covid. The team had decided to release the film this year on January 27. However, now with Omicron complicating the issue, the release of the film has again been postponed.## Stay tuned...

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