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Bollywood Films

Ram Charan Celebrates 13th Year

Ram Charan completes 13 years as actor, says he ‘cherished every bit of it’.

Telugu star Ram Charan completed 13 years as an actor on Monday. He says while he has had his share of hits and misses, he has cherished every bit of it…reports Asian Lite News.

Son of superstar Chiranjeevi, Ram Charan made his debut as an actor in 2007 with the film “Chirutha”, directed by Puri Jagannadh. The film revolves around Charan, a young man in pursuit of the gangster who murdered his parents.

To mark the completion of 13 years, the actor shared a poster of the film and wrote: “Can’t believe it’s already been 13 years. Great highs and a few lows, I’ve cherished every bit of it. Thank you my dearest fans for always standing by me. Humbled by Your love! Promise to work hard for u guys.”

He added that he remembers every single day of “Chirutha” just like yesterday.

“Thank you @PuriJagannadh Garu, @VyjayanthiMovies, nehasharmaofficial, Mani Sharma garu and the whole team. And Happy Birthday Puri Jagan garu !!!” he wrote.

Ram Charan /IANS)

Ram Charan will be seen in “Baahubali” director SS Rajamouli’s next big-ticket film, “RRR”. The mega-budget film stars Ram Charan along with Jr. NTR and Bollywood stars Alia Bhatt and Ajay Devgn. The film also features international actors Ray Stevenson, Allison Doody and Samuthirakani.

The period drama narrates a fictitious tale based on the life of Telugu freedom fighters, Alluri Seetharama Raju and Komaram Bheem. Unconfirmed reports have stated that the film is being produced at an estimated budget of Rs 450 crore.

Also Read-Polls favour Biden in most swing states

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Fashion Lite Blogs Woman

Crafting Pieces Into Modern Heirlooms

Collection By Designer Anju Modi @ FDCI ICW 2020.

Designer Anju Modi’s latest couture collection titled ‘Sindoori’ ‘celebrates the beauty and complexities of a bride’ and the ceremony of getting ready for the occasion. Beginning with Haldi and ending with Sindoor (vermilion), it is a tribute to the solemn occasion and marks the festivities in the run up to the nuptials.

Collection By Designer Anju Modi @ FDCI ICW 2020.

The collection was launched on Wednesday through a fashion film, streamed online on the final day of the digital India Couture Week, by the Fashion Design Council of India.

Modi said the collection is inspired by the “unprecedented time” the world is facing today. Speaking about it, the couturier said: “This is an unprecedented kind of time which we all are facing and enduring. It has brought a whole new perspective and my inspiration comes from here. Very intimate weddings are happening (at present). So of course, the girls are in a state of anxiety. ‘How will I look, what should look the best on me?’ I suggest they opt for reds, the ‘Sindoori’ (vermilion) is my inspirational colour…”

Collection By Designer Anju Modi @ FDCI ICW 2020.

Modi has taken cues from the artworks of Raja Ravi Varma and the miniature painting tradition to create a line-up that comprises anarkali, lehengas and sarees. Giving a contemporary twist to archival textiles and heritage embroideries, she crafts pieces into modern heirlooms.

Collection By Designer Anju Modi @ FDCI ICW 2020.

The ensembles feature mashru, brocades, jamdani and pashminas, zardozi with dabka and mukaish and foil print to create the bridal ensembles. The colours of the outfits are inspired by various traditional items used in an Indian wedding– ‘haldi’ (turmeric), and deep wet ‘mehendi’ (henna) among others. There are hues of soft, creamy ivories and muted marble tones, culminating in red and purple.

Also Read-“Vaishnav Jan to” in Kashmiri language

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-Top News India News

“Vaishnav Jan to” in Kashmiri language

The idea behind making this video is to introduce Gandhi and Gandhian thoughts into Kashmir valley … writes Kusum Kaull Vyass

Gandhiji’s favorite Bhajan, usually called Gandhi’s song ‘Vaishnav Jan To’, is in the Gujarati language. Most people don’t understand what this song means and why Gandhiji chose this song written by Narsinh Mehta in 15th century Gujarat. The song is about humanity and how people should live and for each other. I felt a great need to translate this song into Kashmiri language and put it into the folk music of the valley, so that  Kashmiris  can relate with it easily through their own language,  music and singer.

Gandhi’s life and ideologies have had a significant influence on my life since childhood, and I’m blessed that I have been living in the land of Gandhi after the forceful migration from Kashmir. The way Narsinh Mehta’s written Bhajan is still influencing us after 600 years, I foresee the impact of this translation in the valley for generations to come.

About five years back, a famous journalist and writer, Mr. Mayank Chhaya from Chicago, USA, had made a film ‘Gandhi’s Song’. The film was about Narsinh Mehta and why Gandhiji adapted this as his favorite Bhajan. At that time, I helped him in the production work. Now I feel that the seed of Vaishnav Jan To was firmly planted in my mind at the of making that film.

During the long months of lockdown in the country, I had ample time to read, write, and think about various subjects in life. I often struggle with myself as to how I can contribute to bringing peace back to the Kashmir valley.

Gandhiji has been an apostle of peace and humanity. What better way to put a peaceful vibration into the valley, through local language and folk music. With a missionary zeal, I called up the most famous folk singer Shri Gulzar Ahmed Ganai, from Kashmir. Hesitatingly, I explained my thought to him, feeling that this idea may not appeal to him, but to my surprise, he understood and liked the idea with equal enthusiasm. I felt we were on the same wavelength, and we had blessings of Gandhiji to go ahead. Shri. Shahbaaz Hakbari, a famous poet of the valley, translated this beautiful song into the Kashmiri language. My father, Raees Brij Krishan Kaul, wrote the Urdu song first, then it got translated in Kashmiri. This dream came true when the song was shot at different famous places in the valley.       

It was a spiritual journey for me while making,” Vaishnav Jan To” in Kashmiri language.

Categories
-Top News USA

Polls favour Biden in most swing states

South Carolina voters are evenly divided on the President’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and the economy…Reports Asian Lite News

US President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden were tied in the state of South Carolina, where the incumbent leader had previously held a 10-point over his rival.

The Quinnipiac poll released on Wednesday found Trump at 48 per cent and Biden at 47 per cent among likely voters in South Carolina, down from the President’s 6-point advantage in the same poll from two weeks ago, reports The Hill news website.

South Carolina voters are evenly divided on the President’s handling of the Covid-19 pandemic and the economy.

Forty-nine per cent viewed Biden favourably and unfavourably by 46 per cent., while the President revceived a 48-48 split on favourability.

According to CBS/YouGov poll released on Sunday, Trump and Biden were also neck-and-neck in the swing states of Georgia and North Carolina.

In Georgia 47 per cent of likely voters support Trump, versus 46 per cent for Biden, while in
North Carolina, 48 per cent of likely voters supported the former Vice President, versus 46 per cent for the President.

Meanwhile, an NBC News-Marist poll also released on Sunday found Biden leading Trump in two other swing states of Wisconsin and Michigan.

Last month, the CBS News Tracker revealed that the states of Florida and Texas remain tight battlegrounds in the November 3 presidential election, reports Politico news.

In the 2016 election, Trump won both the states.

No Democratic presidential candidate has won Texas since Jimmy Carter in 1976.

Also late last month, an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll showed Biden ahead of Trump nationally by a margin of 51 per cent to 43 per cent.

In 12 battleground states, including Florida but not Texas, the former Vice President’s lead was 51 to 45.

The swing states are Florida, Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Also read:‘He is a liar’: Biden lashes out at Trump in first debate

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-Top News Arab News UAE News

2020 IMD ranking: UAE tops in Arab region

The UAE ranked 14th globally, ahead of countries such as Australia, China, Germany, France, Japan and Belgium, maintained its leadership in the Arab region in all categories of the rankings…Reports Asian Lite News

The UAE ranked first in the Arab region and one of the best in the world in the “World Digital Competitiveness Ranking 2020” issued by the IMD World Competitiveness Centre in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The UAE, which ranked 14th globally, ahead of countries such as Australia, China, Germany, France, Japan and Belgium, maintained its leadership in the Arab region in all categories of the rankings, most notably in the “Technology” factor where it ranks fourth globally, as well as in ” Future readiness” where its ranks 11th globally, and “Knowledge” where it advanced four places.

Now in its fourth year, the IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking measures the capacity and readiness of 63 economies through three key factors (Knowledge, Technology and Future readiness), nine sub-factors and 52 criteria to adopt and explore digital technologies as a key driver for economic transformation in business, government and wider society. It uses an array of data to understand how 63 economies employ digital technologies.

Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy, said that “The fact that the UAE ranked first globally in the ‘Public-Private Partnerships’ confirms the strong belief of its government in the importance of the partnership between the public and private sectors, upon the directives of the country’s leadership to promote the role of the private sector, as one of the key cornerstones of the national economy.”

The UAE ranked first in the factors of “Wireless broadband,” “Public-private partnerships” and “Immigration laws,” and jumped to second place in the factors of “Foreign highly-skilled personnel” and “Use of big data and analytics by businesses.” It also ranked third globally in the factors of “Management of cities,” “Net flow of international students” and “Foreign highly-skilled personnel,” as well as in the “Legal Framework” sub-factor.

The country ranked fourth in the “Technology” key factor, as well as in factors of “Opportunities and threats” factor and “Cyber Security.” It also ranked fifth in the world in the “Attitudes toward Globalisation” and the “Talent” sub-factor.

The United States came first, Singapore second, and Denmark third in the 2020 IMD World Digital Competitiveness Ranking, a giant compilation of data that economists said could help predict how well economies would weather the pandemic.

“In the midst of uncertainty and a fluid global situation, it seems that business and societies that are agile correlate strongly with the IMD World Digital Competitiveness ranking. Knowledge also remains of paramount importance for the digital performance of different economies,” stated Professor Arturo Bris, Director of the IMD World Competitiveness Center.

Also read:UAE, China relations built upon mutual respect: Sharjah Chamber

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-Top News Arab News

Lebanon, Israel to hold talks on border

Lebanon and Israel will hold UN-mediated talks on their disputed maritime and land borders, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri announced Thursday, reports Arab News.

The United States will act as a facilitator during the talks, which are due to be held in the southern Lebanon border town of Naqoura, Berri told a news conference without providing a date for the negotiations.

Berri said a framework agreement had been reached to start the negotiations, and read out a September 22 copy of it.

“The United States were asked by both sides, Israel and Lebanon, to act as a mediator and facilitator to draw up the maritime borders, and it is ready to do this,” he quoted it as saying.

Also Read: UN to extend mandate in Lebanon

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-Top News EU News UK News

Brexit breach: EU begins legal action against UK

The EU had given UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson until the end of September to ditch the contentious clauses, but the deadline had lapsed…said Ursula von der LeyenReports Asian Lite News

The European Union (EU) on Thursday started a legal action against the UK after it refused to ditch plans to override sections of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement.

In a statement, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the UK had been put on formal notice over the Internal Market Bill, which would override a part of the agreement when it came to goods and allow the country to modify or re-interpret “state aid” rules on subsidies for firms in Northern Ireland, in the event of the two sides not agreeing on a future trade deal.

She said the UK would have until the end of November to respond to the EU’s concerns over the draft legislation, reports the BBC.

She said the bill was a “full contradiction” of previous UK commitments over how a hard border on the island of Ireland should be avoided.

The EU had given UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson until the end of September to ditch the contentious clauses, but “the deadline had lapsed”, von der Leyen was quoted as saying in a Guardian report.

“We had invited our British friends to remove the problematic parts of their draft internal market bill, by the end of September.

“This draft bill is, by its very nature, a breach of the obligation of good faith, laid down in the withdrawal agreement. Moreover, if adopted as is it will be in full contradiction to the protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland.

“The problematic provisions have not been removed. Therefore this morning, the commission has decided to send a letter of formal notice to the UK government. This is the first step in an infringement procedure,” she added in the statement.

Meanwhile, the UK said it would respond “in due course”, the BBC reported.

A spokesperson for the Johnson government said the bill was a necessary “safety net” to protect trade between different parts of the UK.

Thursday’s announcement came after Maros Sefcovic, Vice-President of the European Commission for Interinstitutional Relations said on Monday that the EU was mulling legal options if the UK breaches the Brexit deal.

The UK left the EU on January 31, having negotiated and signed the withdrawal agreement, which is now an international treaty, with the bloc, the BBC reported.

The two sides are now in the closing weeks of negotiations for a post-Brexit trade deal before the transition period ends on December 31.

Also read:EU considers legal actions over UK Brexit treaty breach

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Bollywood Fashion Lite Blogs

Kangana Defines Fashion As Freedom Of Expression

Kangana: Fashion is nothing but freedom of expression

Actress Kangana Ranaut has shared how her fashion sense has evolved over the years, and defines fashion as freedom of expression.

Kangana took to Twitter and posted then and now photos. In one photo, she is seen wearing a frock and a pearl necklace. In another, she is sitting in the front row of a fashion show.

Explaining how her fashion has evolved over the years, she tweeted: “When I was a little girl I decorated myself with pearls, cut my own hair, wore thigh high socks and heels. People laughed at me.”

Kangana: Fashion is nothing but freedom of expression

“From being a village clown to attending front rows of London, Paris, New York Fashion weeks I realised fashion is nothing but freedom of expression,” she wrote.

Kangana has in the past used her stardom to promote Indian fashion. Earlier this month, she spoke about how we draw inspiration from Europe or Japan for fashion, but handlooms in India are often ignored.

Also Read-Tamannah Excited To Reprise Tabu

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Bollywood Films Lite Blogs

Tamannah Excited To Reprise Tabu

Mumbai: Actress Tamannah Bhatia (Photo: IANS)

Actress Tamannah Bhatia is excited to reprise the role of Tabu in the Telugu remake of the Hindi thriller, “Andhadhun”.

“I’ve always been an ardent fan of Tabu’s work and it is such an honour to reprise a role played by her. The original film has this psychological influence on people and succeeded in inducing a sense of curiosity. What I personally loved about the original film was the brilliance of the script and the screenplay. It had no hero or no villain,” she said.

Actor Nithin will reprise Ayushmann Khurrana’s National Award-winning role in the Telugu remake.

Tabu

“It is a very unconventional casting and I have always wanted to do a film that is entertaining, while it has moments of darkness. Lately, I have started taking an incline towards films that embody a sense of individualism, that are less scared of convention and much more stimulating. This is the first time I will be collaborating with Nithiin and he is one the few people in Telugu industry I have never worked with previously. So, I am quite looking forward to this project,” Tamannaah added.

“Andhadhun”, a black comedy crime thriller directed by Sriram Raghavan, has Ayushmann playing a piano player who pretends to be blind and whose life is thrown in a tizzy when he becomes witness to the murder of an aged film actor by the latter’s wife and her lover.

The Telugu version is being directed by Merlapaka Gandhi.

Also Read-‘Animation Is Simply fun’

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COVID-19 Lifestyle Lite Blogs

Engage Yourself Amid Covid

Five screen-free ways to consume content.

This year has been a rollercoaster ride and has seen most of us adapting to the “new normal”. Remote working has become the order of the day, and people are spending longer periods of time in front of a screen, be it for work or entertainment…writes Siddhi Jain.

Due to this, screen fatigue has become a real concern, with experts suggesting that it is beginning to impact people’s health. In a recent report, a doctor practicing telemedicine said there was a 30 per cent increase in complaints of eye strain, dry or itchy eyes, headaches, blurred vision and physical and mental fatigue.

The challenge is to able to learn something new, pursue a hobby and keep yourself entertained without straining yourself on a screen. Here are five ways to keep yourself occupied and productive, without being glued to your screens:

COVID-19: 7 tips to defuse family conflict and preserve relationships. (Photo Courtesy: Pixabay)

Marie Kondo your personal space

Cleaning always comes across as a chore and we neglect it until that one chair can no longer bear the weight of the pile of clothes. A fun way to look at cleaning is decluttering and redecorating. Choose one room at a time, pick up things that don’t bring you joy and throw them into a giveaway pile. Pick out reusable items like empty water bottles, plastic boxes, worn-out clothes, shoe boxes, tin cans, light bulbs with which you can make DIY decorations. Not only will you be proud of your own creations, your home just got a whole lot prettier at no cost at all.

Hands busy, mind free

It is an established fact that listening to audiobooks is more emotionally engaging than watching TV or films. Whether you are looking for stories or simply want to experience some downtime, Audible and Audible Suno are the right places for you. Unleashing the power of the spoken word, these platforms offer an extensive library of audiobooks and audio series narrated by talented and celebrated personalities that are sure to inspire creativity.

Get active, get going


The lockdown has everyone stuck at home, which has led to the discovery of innovative ways to keep ourselves healthy and active. Whoever thought that working out with basic household items at home can give you a full-fledged gym experience? Here are few ideas to make your home workout more fun and efficient:

– Use cans and jars as small weights

– Use stairs as a cardio machine

– Use a bag of flour or rice as heavy weights

– Apart from these, you can do yoga, stretching, crossfit (workouts using bodyweight), all from the comfort of your home.

Women empowered by EWOK Society working with necessary precautions in COVID times at IIT Mandi.

Grow your plants, grow your soul

To be closer to nature is to be closer with your inner self. Indoor plants don’t just look good, they make you feel good mentally and physically, too. Growing and taking care of plants is a worthwhile hobby for anyone who is wondering what to do to keep oneself occupied. It is a simple activity that decorates your house and gives you unadulterated joy in an environmentally-friendly way. Get creative while making your space greener — think the kitchen slab, your window sill, the balcony, or even your bathroom where bamboo plants can be kept.

Awaken your inner Picasso

One needn’t be a trained artist to create art. All you need is a canvas, paint, a few brushes, some free time and your imagination. There are no rules when it comes to painting to unwind yourself. It has been said that painting has therapeutic qualities and with no prior training, you can just let the brushes play with the colours. You never know — you may just end up with something frame-worthy that brings you happiness and serenity.

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