BY IANS NEWS

Mumbai, April 16 (IANS) Singer Sona Mohapatra is using the lockdown period to work on original music. She is spending a lot of time in her home studio with composer and partner, Ram Sampath, working on new songs and collaborations.## "During the lockdown period, I have this newfound energy to work on a variety of music. There are no commercial pressures, no race against time to meet a deadline and it's now that I am doing some of my best, most gratifying work. I am exploring new genres, new tunes and a large variety of music," said Sona.## "I just spoke to the prolific songwriter and multiple award-winning lyricists Amitabh Bhattacharya about the current music scenario. Ram and I had last worked with him on the soundtrack of 'Delhi Belly'. We have decided to create some beautiful love ballads together, the kind that has gone missing from our mainstream nowadays. I'm also working with a lot of new, younger talent who are bursting with ideas," she added.## Ram shared that slowing down has helped them appreciate the things they took for granted and that has flowed into the creative process. "It's brought the focus back on the roots of music: melody, lyrics and a sense of hope for the future. We have too much and want too much. This time has taught us to work on what we need. That's at the heart of this creative phase".## For more and latest news about Bollywood, stay tuned with us.

BY IANS NEWS

Los Angeles, April 16 (IANS) Hollywood stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro are giving fans the chance to appear in their upcoming film, directed by Scorsese movie.## The duo are set to reunite with the veteran director for an adaptation of "Killers Of The Flower Moon".## DiCaprio and De Niro are using the upcoming production to raise funds for the All-In Challenge, an online initiative that gives stars from all corners of the entertainment industry a chance to offer donation initiatives to benefit America's Food Fund reports aceshowbiz.com.## "Our most vulnerable communities need our support now more than ever," De Niro said in a video shared across social media.## He explained that those who make a donation to AllInChallenge.com will have a chance to win a walk-on role in the production.## DiCaprio added: "If you've ever wondered what it was like to be able to work with the great Martin Scorsese, this is your chance."## For more and latest news about Hollywood, stay tuned with us.

BY IANS NEWS

Los Angeles, April 16 (IANS) Actor Mark Ruffalo has revealed that he lost the lead role in 2010 movie "Blue Valentine" to Ryan Gosling.## Ruffalo said "Blue Valentine" director Derek Cianfrance tried and failed to cast him in "Blue Valentine" in a role eventually played by Ryan Gosling, reports variety.com.## He missed out on the role of Dean Pereira that Gosling portrayed opposite Michelle Williams' Cindy Heller. Gosling got a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actor - Motion Picture Drama for the role in the hit movie.## Ruffalo opened up about losing the role while talking about his new HBO mini-series "I Know This Much Is True", which is directed by Cianfrance.## He got Cianfrance on board to write and direct all six episodes saying that his "rough and holy" style would be "an ideal fit" for the blue-collar story based on the novel of the same name by Wally Lamb.## In the series, the "Avengers" stars as two very different twin brothers in the story, which is about a blue-collar Connecticut family's struggle with schizophrenia and loss.## For more and latest news about Hollywood, stay tuned with us.

BY IANS NEWS

Los Angeles, April 16 (IANS) Hollywood superstars Ben Affleck and Matt Damon have raised $1.75 million for COVID-19 relief work through poker.## Affleck and Damon led the list of big names who got together for an online celebrity poker tournament, All In For America's Charity. They raised $1.75 million for Feeding America, a non-profit organization that distributes food to those in need amid the outbreak of COVID-19, reports dailymail.co.uk.## Celebrities such as Tom Brady, Adam Sandler, and Bryan Cranston bought in for $10,000 each at the food bank fundraiser.## Other notable names who joined the virtual game included Sarah Silverman, Cheryl Hines, singer Adam Levine, and actors Jason Bateman, Jon Hamm, Tobey Maguire, Jason Mewes, and Kevin Smith.## Earlier this week, Affleck took to Instagram to announce the philanthropic poker event.## "Excited to announce that I have joined forces with @FeedingAmerica, the nation's largest domestic hunger-relief organization, to raise money for folks who need it most. Join me and some familiar faces ... as we face off in a friendly poker tournament," he said.## Affleck, who is currently dating actress Ana de Armas, added that Feeding America's "work is more critical than ever before" as they help feed the less fortunate. He stressed that the virus outbreak has put pressure on food banks.## For more and latest news about Hollywood, stay tuned with us.

BY IANS NEWS

Mumbai, April 16 (IANS) Actor Aham Sharma, who has featured in TV shows such as "Mahabharat" and "Vikram Betaal Ki Rahasya Gatha", says he has always been fascinated by singing and is now learning new songs to beat the lockdown blues.## "I am spending most of my time with my family. I have been catching up on a few books related to craft and fiction, documentaries as they keep me positive," he said.## Fitness continues to be important to him.## "I am doing Suryanamaskar, pushups, and yoga to stay fit," said Aham.## As lockdown has been extended, he says he has lots of free time.## "I am planning to polish my martial arts techniques which I couldn't do on regular days due to hectic shooting schedules," he said.## "But the special interest which I have started taking since the lockdown started, is singing. I have always been fascinated by singing, so what better way to utilize the free time. I am learning new songs every day, doing riyaz to train myself and sharpen my skills," he said.## Stay tuned...

BY IANS NEWS

Mumbai, April 15 (IANS) Sitting at home since mid-March due to the lockdown, almost all of India is bored. Bollywood stars, who need to be in the limelight for the sake of their image, are perhaps more than just bored. By now they have cooked, cleaned, baked, learned music, played with pets, done Shayari and done their workouts to stay in the social media spotlight a zillion times over. All of them, it is obvious, are itching to return to the film set, and be back in the world of lights, camera, and action.## Ayushmann Khurrana is missing the film set. Taking to Twitter, he revealed he fancied playing the Professor, protagonist of the show "Money Heist". Ayushmann wrote: "I want to be the Professor. I want to put this out in the universe. Hello reverent filmmakers! Please! I'm dying to do something like this. I'm itching to go on sets and work, like each and every human."## Nushrat Bharucha shared a video of her workout on Instagram and expressed that she is missing working out with her trainer.## Sidharth Malhotra is missing stepping out of his home amid the lockdown. He shared on Instagram: "Remember when we used to be able to just open the door and go out? Yeah, I'm thinking about that right now!"## Sonakshi Sinha is missing doing makeup! Sharing a beautiful black-and-white throwback still on Instagram, where she can be seen flaunting smokey eye makeup, the actress wrote: "Portrait by @rahuljhangiani #throwback (lockdown day 23: accha toh yeh hota hai makeup??)"## Kriti Kharbanda is missing dressing up. The actress keeps sharing throwback pictures on social media. In a recent Instagram post, Kriti shared a throwback photo and wrote: "Throwing back coz I miss dressing up."## Sharing an old photo of herself from an outdoor shoot, Sonam Kapoor tweeted: "I miss shoots."## Bidita Bag compares the lockdown situation where we are all confined to homes with our family members as a reality show and is eager to perform a "task" as we often watch happening on such shows. Sharing a meme featuring Alia Bhatt, with the words "Mujhe task chahiye" written on it, she urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to assign her a task. The actress captioned the meme: "Modiji please".## Randeep Hooda is missing riding his horse under the blue sky and watching the evening sun. Recently, on National Pet Day, Hooda tweeted a throwback horseriding snapshot. "Missing Cupa, blue skies and evening sun!" the actor captioned.## Isha Koppikar is missing being on the set. The actress shared a couple of pictures clicked at home and tweeted: "When I miss being on a set, I do a photoshoot at home! Can't wait to get back on the set!"## With the nationwide COVID 19 lockdown being extended to May 3, B-Towners will surely miss their favorite activities for another couple of weeks.## For more and latest news about Bollywood, stay tuned with us.

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Mumbai, April 16 (IANS) Actor-comedian Kiku Sharda feels bad that Irrfan Khan's comeback film "Angrezi Medium" didn't get a proper run at the box-office owing the shutdown of theatres all over India in the wake of the escalating COVID-19 pandemic. The movie later had its digital release.## "It's crazy and really sad. I really wish that 'Angrezi Medium' would have released a little earlier or little after -- at least, we would have had a proper release. The movie was taken down after one day of release. It is such a beautiful film and Irrfan Khan hasn't done a film in a long time, given his health conditions. It was such an important thing for everyone to see him, and I was really hoping that people would get a chance to see him in theatre," said Kiku.## Apart from Irrfan and Kiku, the Homi Adajania-helmed also features Radhika Madan, Deepak Dobriyal, Ranveer Shorey, and Kareena Kapoor Khan.## "The response of people who have seen the film is great. People have reached out to me on social media platforms and praised the movie. And of course, everyone is talking about the great ensemble cast. Each and every character is being praised, every actor is apt and remarkably good in the role they performed. The chemistry between Irrfan Khan and Deepak Dobriyal was very much appreciated. People are in awe of the story as well. It is such a beautiful story of a father and a daughter, and it is such a positive film," he said.## Kiku also said that Irrfan Khan was the reason he agreed to do the film. "I knew Irrfan Khan was doing the movie and that was reason enough for me to join the ensemble cast. I knew my character and brief, but the selling item was Irrfan Khan. I would get to work with him, share screen space with him, so that was enough for me. I have loved, adored and admired Irrfan Khan's work. Some of his movies are remarkable. So, working with him has been an honor and pleasure for me," he said.## Kiku Sharda is also part of "The Kapil Sharma Show" on Sony TV, portraying various roles including Santosh and Bumper, and his very famous character Baccha Yadav.## Stay tuned...

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New Delhi, April 16 (IANS) Actress Richa Chadha feels that the coronavirus pandemic is bringing out the best and worst in people, and she says that it's the time to come together and help.## "This epidemic is bringing out the worst in people and bringing out the best in people. You have people who are going out of their way to provide for animals and human beings, and then there are some people who are using this as an opportunity to treat the poor badly," Richa told IANS.## Richa then cited the example of the 3,000 stranded migrants from different parts of India who thronged at Bandra railway station on Tuesday demanding that they should be given transportation to return to their native places immediately.## The Mumbai Police, in an attempt to control such a large crowd, resorted to a mild lathi-charge when sections threatened to go out of control.## She said: "Now, these poor migrant laborers gathered in Bandra and Surat, and people are criticizing them that they could have led to community transmission. But the thing is these are people who are helpless and do not have other means to get home and to pay rent. This is the time to come together and help. I really hope people get a sense of this (epidemic) and make behavioral changes."## Stay tuned...

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Mumbai, April 16 (IANS) Actor Ravi Kishan says it is very important for him to be comfortable with the people he is working with.## He will soon be seen in Netflix's upcoming series "Hasmukh", which is about an ambitious comic on a mission to prove to his mentor that he is a good comedian. Ravi will be seen as Pratap Sinha. Pratap Singh is the head of Alankar TV who flirts with his young secretary but the fact that he is married gets him in trouble at times.## On the first day of the shoot, Ravi arrived 4 hours earlier than the decided call time just to assure that he is comfortable to shoot with the cast and be familiar with the crew at the shoot.## "It is important for me to be comfortable with the people I am working with. To make sure I am cordial with everyone, I visit the set before everyone arrives and greet them as we are a part of the same family," Ravi said.## "Hasmukh" shows how every dream comes with a price and Hasmukh (Vir Das) realizes that the only way to "kill it on stage", is if he "kills off stage".## Also featuring Ranvir Shorey, Manoj Pahwa, Amrita Bagchi, Suhail Nayyar, Inaamulhaq and Raza Murad, "Hasmukh" is directed by Nikhil Gonsalves and will release on April 17. The Netflix show is produced for Applause Entertainment by Emmay Entertainment.## Stay tuned...

BY SUNIT JANGIR

Bollywood superstar Salman Khan delivered a strong message through his Instagram post against those who are violating the nationwide lockdown and pelting stones at the frontline warriors who are fighting Coronavirus Pandemic. ## Salman Khan, who is living at his farmhouse at Panvel post a long 10-minute video message on Instagram. He started with sharing his experience in his farmhouse but soon come up with a stern message with this lockdown voileters. In the message, Salman Khan referred to the government's strict lockdown rules, including staying at home, don't step out and slammed those who are not following lockdown and putting their and others' lives in danger. ## The superstar said and those who wish to kill their families should step out. "India ki aabadi ko kum karna chahte ho? (You want to reduce the population of India?) Starting with your own family?". "Agar aap aese bahar nahi nikal rahe hote apne dost aur yaaron ke saath, toh policewaale aapke putto pe danda nahi maar rahe hote. Aapko kya lag raha h, police waalon ko maza araha hai? (If you weren't going out with friends, police wouldn't have hit with canes. Do you think the police are enjoying it?). ## Salman Khan's video came after a group of people pelted stones at policemen and doctors in various parts of the country. One of such incidents took place in Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad area, where a group of people attacked medical staff and police when they went to take away a person possibly infected with COVID-19.## Talking about the doctors and policemen who are putting their lives at risk to stop the spread of coronavirus, Salman added: "Ye kamaal hai! Doctors aur nurses apki jaan bachane k liye aaye aur aapne unhi par patthar barsa diya! Jo corona se detect ho raha, wo hospital se bhag raha hai! Bhaag k jaoge kahan? Agar ye doctor initiative nahi lete aur police sadako par nahi utarti toh chand logo ki wajah se, jinke dimag mein chal raha hai ki unko nahi hoga, wo Hindustan ke aadhe logo ko leke chal baste (This is surprising! Doctors and nurses are trying to save your lives and you pelted stones on them! Those getting detected coronavirus positive, are running away from the hospital. Where will you run to? Which direction are you running to? If these doctors did not try to cure you or the police did not patrol the roads for you, then because of a few people, who think that they won't get affected, many would have been killed)."## The superstar concluded the video by talking about how poor people are struggling for food and how because of a few "jokers," the virus, which originated from China, is spreading like wildfire in India.## Watch the video -## View this post on Instagram A post shared by Salman Khan (@beingsalmankhan) on Apr 15, 2020 at 11:07am PDT ## FYI, the actor has took the responsibility of 25,000 daily wage workers working in the film industry amid lockdown. He is financially supporting them plus he has also been providing food to the poor.## Follow for more...

BY IANS NEWS

Mumbai, April 15 (IANS) Actress Neetu Chandra is not going to let the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic get to her.## The actress took to Twitter on Wednesday to post some photos from her yoga session.## "Today on my #yoga mat. Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence! 'Be strong now because things will get better. It might be stormy now, but it can't rain forever'. Bring it on," she captioned the images.## This comes just a few days after she posted: "Dear Doctors & Nurses, you have worked selflessly for us but we care for your safety too. Please take all necessary precautions to ensure that you too stay safe from the virus. We salute your dedication. Thank You."## Neetu has been also using the quarantine time to connect with her fans. One asked how she is spending time at home, she replied: "Very hectic, A lot of reading, watching, cooking, yoga, family time, laughing."## It seems like she will have to continue this routine, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced extension of the 21-day lockdown for another 19 days until May 3 to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.## Stay tuned...

BY IANS NEWS

Mumbai, April 15 (IANS) Actor Vatsal Sheth's goal for the quarantine time was to learn to play the flute, and he is happy that he has achieved it.## "I always wanted to learn the flute and for a long time I have been contemplating, but now I have got enough time to play the flute and I am doing it religiously. It's great that we have had time off and it has helped me connect to some deep thinking that I needed to do and focus on a few hobbies. This is working well for me," he said.## Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced the extension of the 21-day lockdown for another 19 days until May 3 to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.## Vatsal urged everyone to take the lockdown very seriously.## "Go out only for emergencies. This is a difficult period and this too shall pass but for that, we need to take the protocols," he said.## On a lighter note, the "Taarzan: The Wonder Car" actor has been tickling the funny bone of his followers on social media with his hilarious videos.## Stay tuned...