i am m'i am making the most of this time' shares shraddha...

BOLLYWOOD'S SUNSHINEGIRL, JACQUELINE

FERNANDEZ IS BRIGHTENINGUP OUR FESTIVALS

WELL, THERE'S GOOD NEWS FOR ALL#SIDNAAZ FANS AS THEIR SONG 'BHULA

DUNGA' IS FINALLY OUT.

TO WATCH ALL THE LATEST GOSSIP IN ENTERTAINMENT,WATCH CHANNEL Y ROGERS 857, BELLFIBE 828, TELUS 2418

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JACQUELINE BELIEVES IN WORKINGWITH DILIGENCE AND BEING ARDENTLY

PASSIONATE WHICH HELPS HER INREALLY BREAKING BARRIERS AND

GOING EVEN FURTHER.

'SHE STARTED CRYING' REVEALS ALAYAF ON KAREENA KAPOOR’S REACTION

TO SEEING JAWAANI JAANEMAN

TO ADVERTISE CALL 416-475-5000OR EMAIL [email protected]

SIDNAAZ'S CHEMISTRY IN THETRACK 'BHULA DUNGA' IS MAKING

THE FANS CRAZY!

'I am m'I am making the most of this time' shares Shraddha Kapooron staying home during the lockdown aking the most of this time'shares Shraddha Kapoor on staying home during the lockdown

Irfan Pathan has his say on MS Dhoni’sfuture after IPL 2020 postponement

THE CURRENT PANDEMIC SITUATION HAS CHANGED THE FUNCTIONING OF EVERYTHING ACROSS THE GLOBE. LOOKING AT THE POSITIVESIDE IS OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE RIGHT NOW AND SHRADDHA KAPOOR SHARES HOW SHE IS TRYING TO MAKE THE MOST OUT OF THECURRENT SITUATION. THE ACTRESS SHARES, "IT'S A BLESSING IN DISGUISE FOR ME AS I NEEDED THIS QUALITY TIME WITH MY FAMILY.I NEEDED TO GET IN TOUCH WITH THE LITTLE THINGS AND MOMENTS IN LIFE, WHICH ARE ACTUALLY IMPORTANT BUT GET OVERLOOKEDDUE TO THE FAST PACE OF LIFE. "I REALLY NEEDED A BREAK AFTER BACK-TO-BACK FILMS, SO I AM MAKING THE MOST OF THIS TIME" , SAYSSHRADDHA WHO IS TRULY MAKING THE BEST UTILISATION OF THIS TIME SHE HAS GOTTEN.

THE ACTRESS TRULY STOLE THE SHOW WITH HERPERFORMANCE WITH HER UNCONVENTIONALCHARACTER AND RECEIVED A LOT OF CRITICALACCLAIM FOR HER PERFORMANCE.

KANIKA KAPOOR PENS EMOTIONAL POSTAFTER TESTING POSITIVE FOR COVID-19,

SAYS ‘I HOPE MY NEXT TEST IS NEGATIVE’

HERE’S WHAT RANGITA PRITISH NANDYHAS TO SAY ABOUT FOUR MORE SHOTS

2 BEING SHOT IN ISTANBUL

THE BLUNDSTONE ARENA IN HOBART REMAINS LOCKED DOWN.

'Four More Shots Please!' is a series which can be streamed onlineexclusively on Amazon Prime. The show stars Kirti Kulhari, SayaniGupta, Maanvi Gagroo and Bani J playing leads on the forefront.As the second season inches closer to its release, Rangita PritishNandy, the creator of the series, opened up about the second seasonand said, `Season on season, it's our constant attempt to cover newground on all aspects of the show while still keeping it familiar andaspirational for our viewers, returning and new. So, much about friend-ship is being able to travel together, explore new worlds and lettingthose new worlds inspire you and your closest relationships. Season1 we road-tripped to Goa, season 2 we've leapt across the seas andheaded to gorgeous Istanbul and gone nearer home to Udaipur." She furtheradded, "These places add scale, a throbbing vibe and charm to the show.

Singer Kanika Kapoor, who has tested positive for novel coronavirusfor the four th time, has shared an emotional post on Instagram. Asfans showed concern for the singer, she made it clear that she was“not in the ICU” and was waiting to meet her kids and family. Sheshared a quote that read, “Life teaches us to make good use of time,while time teaches us the value of life” and wrote in caption, “Goingoff to bed. Sending you all loving vibes. Stay safe you guys. Thankyou for your concern but I am not in the ICU. I am fine. I hope my nexttest is negative. Waiting to go home to my kids and family...missthem!” She had announced her Covid-19 diagnosis on Instagram buthad later deleted the post. Meanwhile, one of her family memberswho did not wish to be named, told IANS, “We are now worried overthe test repor ts. It seems that Kanika is not responding to treatmentand in this lockdown, we cannot even airlift her for advanced treat-ment. We can only pray for her recovery.” Doctors at the SanjayGandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGIMS), how-ever, said that the singer ’s condition was stable.

The postponement of this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL) hascast new shadows of the international career of former Indian cricketteam skipper MS Dhoni. Both fans and experts were of the opinion that the IPL willbe a perfect place for him to show off his skills and a good show will guarantee hisspot in the T20 World Cup squad. But the Coronavirus pandemic has put thetournament’s future in doubt and a lot of people are of the opinion that this can be theend of Dhoni’s stellar career. However, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan hassome other views. “He obviously needs to play. If he does, he should for India. Heis the most amazing cricketer we have. He has been fantastic for the country. Hehas given so much to the world of cricket. But if he is just drafted in, will it be fairfor those who have been playing regularly is an impor tant question.KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant have been playing consistently for a year.

14 MidWeek MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020

An intense power-packed watch!

CAST: ARJAN BAJWA, ARJUN BIJLANI, VIVEK

DAHIYA, SID MAKKAR, TARA ALISHA BERRY

DIRECTION: MATTHEW LEUTWYLER

RATING - 3/5

The memories of the 26/11 terrorist attack on Mumbai are still freshon our minds. We have seen many documentaries and films on thosedreaded 3 days through different lenses but this is the first time some-one has tried to show what happened through the perspective of thebrave NSG commandos that saved the day in the dire emergency.ZEE5's brand latest offering 'State of Siege: 26/11' is out now so with-out much ado, let's take a look at what's on display here.Directed by American director Matthew Leutwyler this eight-episodeseries is based on journalist Sandeep Unnithan's critically acclaimedbook 'Black Tornado: The Three Sieges of Mumbai 26/11'.The series star ts in the wee hours of November 26th, 2008 and it is anunbiased account of 2008 Mumbai attacks from the beginning till theend. The screenplay is intensely gripping and the horror of the eventis depicted so realistically it might leave you stunned. The story keepsmoving back and forth showing different prospects of the attack notallowing you to blink most of the time.The direction is top-notch and the premises & the setup including theTaj Hotel, Oberoi-Trident Hotel, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railwaystation, Leopold Cafe everything looks convincingly real. State of Siegealso highlights how the media unknowingly aided the terrorists bybroadcasting everything live on TV which even the terrorists were

watching along with other security lapses at major locations of theattack. The pace of the screenplay takes some major points awayfrom State of Siege as in between it keeps shifting to the personallives of the main characters to make it more dramatic which is ex-hausting. Still, it is an interesting watch that presents a different sideof the story and tells you how our security forces joined hands andlaid their lives to save the lives of the people.The per formance of the complete cast is impressively good includingArjan Bajwa, Vivek Dahiya, Arjun Bijlani, Sid Makkar, Jyoti Gauba,Jhalida Jaan, Tara Alisha Berry, Suzanne Berner t, Roshni Sahota, Ja-son Shah, and Naren Kumar and they do their best to bring theircharacters to life.The cinematography also deserves to be praised here as the com-plete series has been shot using only natural light without any artificialeffects. Overall, State of Siege makes up for a power-packed watch with goodperformances. The pace tends to be dull in between but the intensity, gripand adrenaline rush keeps your eyes glued to your screens.

BOLLYWOODM O V I E R E V I E W

A goldmine of suspense and thrillThis is the age of digital and like many Bollywood stars, now, we have ArshadWarsi aka 'Circuit' making his foray into the digital world of content with VootSelect's horror-thriller web series 'Asur'. So lets take a peek into what we haveactually got here.Set in the city of Varanasi, Oni Sen's Asur follows the story of Nikhil Nair (BarunSobti) an ex forensic exper t-turned-teacher at the CBI whose family priorities forcehim to stay in the academic field.. But, one fine day, he's requested to return to theforensic team in the CBI which he deniies at first but agrees when he's pursued byhis wife. His first case on his comeback is the murder mystery of his bossDhananjay (Arshad Warsi) aka DJ's wife Sandhya. Nair has had a troubled pastwith DJ and what follows in their lives after this is a thrilling ride that is linked toNikhil and DJ's old days and involves a serial killer who religiously believeshimself to be an 'Asur'.Asur is an intriguing tale of thrill and suspense that touches the beliefes rooted deepin the Indian society from as long as we can remember. It is an engaging delightrevolving around mythology, Asuras, Devtas, and Karma in a way that is simple tograsp and entertaining to the core.The per formance front in well handled by Arshad Warsi as CBI officer DhananjayRajput whose worst fears come true in the form of his past and he convincinglypor trays his character. Barun Sobti as Nikhil Nair, an exper t forensic scientist

turned teacher finding himself in between in a murder mystery also shines thorughthe series. Anupriya Goenka as Naina, Nikhil's wife and Ridhi Dogra as anotherCBI official Nusrat who also happens to be Nikhil's ex also perform good keepingthe fact in mind that their characters are not as strong as Arshad and Barun's.But, the best thing about Asur is the villian aka the serial killer (who shall remainnameless here for the sake of the thrill) who actually turns out to be a real life asur.His back story, his beliefs, the way he thinks and his persona everything leavesyou stunned and this is what makes Asur a marvellously gripping and thrillingexperience to watch.The director does lose his focus at points divulging from the main topic and divingin things like romance but the screenplay is an edge-of-the-seat one that leavesyou guessing what will happen next. It's a twisted and astonishing game thatcombines forensic science and mythology to bring to us something exceptionalthat was not explored in the Indian digital space till now. So, if you like suspsense-thrillers or mythological-thrillers then this one is going to be a goldmine foryou. Overall, It is one of the best series in this genre we have seen so farin Hindi digital space. On the downside the screenplay feels a bit stretchedand the pace also tends to become slow at times but the strong performances, anovel concept and the constant thrill makes you forget all that as soon as you feelit. Watch it for the rush.

CAST: ARSHAD WARSI, BARUN SOBTI, RIDHI

DOGRA, ANUPRIYA GOENKA, SHARIB HASHMI

DIRECTION: ONI SEN

RATING - 3.5/5

M O V I E R E V I E W

CORONA HITS ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY: BIGPROJECTS INCLUDING SOORYAVANSHI DELAYED

Since the hazardous Coronavirus rhapsodically continuesto spread, the vulnerability of the situation has forced manyupcoming film projects to be delayed due to life threats topeople and economic losses to producers/makers becauseof the closedown of theatres in Haryana, Karnataka, andDelhi. The precariousness is also in arrears of suspendingproductions too, many Bollywood films to reschedule theirrelease dates according to many repor ts. Recently due tothe outbreak of th is pest i ferous v i rus the team ofSuryavanshi has declared a delay in its release date bysharing a note on Instagram.The upcoming action film Suryavanshi, of Rohit Shetty, isproduced by Hiroo Yash Johar, Ar una Bhatia, ApoorvaMehta, and Rohit Shetty. It is the four th instalment of Shetty'sPolice Universe and features Akshay Kumar as the titularcharacter opposite Katrina Kaif. The film co-stars GulshanGrover, Abhimanyu Singh, Niharica Raizada, Jackie Shroff,Sikandar Kher, Nikitin Dheer and Vivan Bhatena, while AjayDevgn and Ranveer Singh reprise their roles of Singhamand Simmba from the franchise's previous films. Initially,the schedule for release on 24 March 2020, the film wasindefinitely postponed due to the 2019-20 coronavirus pan-demic.Not just Bollywood the ebullient virus has also largely af-fected the Hollywood film industry as well, the other mov-ies that have declared to hold up and delay the film datesare: `No time to die` MGM, Universal and Bond produc-ers, Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, announcedthat after careful consideration and thorough evaluation ofthe global theatrical marketplace, the release of "No Timeto Die" will be postponed until November 2020. Then `Fastand Furious 9`, The release of the next `Fast & Furious`instalment, `F9,` has also been delayed from May 22 tonow opening on April 2, 2021, ` Blue story` Paramounthas delayed the controversial UK gang film "Blue Story,"which was set for release on March 20. A future releasedate has not been announced and many other projects aswell who's new dates are still to released.

RAJINIKANTH, SURIYA, SIVAKARTHIKEYANDONATE FOR WELFARE OF FILM EMPLOYEES AMID

CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAKTamil actors Rajinikanth, Suriya, Sivakar thikeyan and VijaySethupathi have donated a cumulative sum of Rs 80 lakhtowards the welfare of Film Employees Federation of SouthIndia (FEFSI) amid the coronavirus outbreak.While actor Rajinikanth has donated Rs 50 lakh, Suriya,Sivakar thikeyan and Vijay Sethupathi have chipped in withRs 10 lakh each.These actors have come forward to donate after FEFSI UnionPresident RK Selvamani has released a statement request-ing members of Tamil film fraternity to suppor t the dailywage workers of the union who are currently jobless asshooting of Tamil films have been suspended till March 31.In the statement, Selvamani said: “As we are aware, Tamilfilm world has been crippled by the Coronavirus that iscurrently threatening the entire world. In the 50 years sincethe inception of the union, the film industry has faced vari-ous strikes; protests were held against the producers de-manding pay rises and demands from the government. Butnothing of this scale, the ongoing lock-down is very differ-ent.” The statement fur ther added that the union needs toraise minimum of Rs. 1 crore to suppor t its members bygiving rice bags. FEFSI consist of 23 unions belonging todifferent trades in the film and the television industry thathas around 25,000 members.Actor Suriya along with his father Sivakumar and brotherKar thi was the first actor to come forward for the suppor t ofFEFSI workers. He donated Rs. 10 lakh and his gestureimmediately inspired his colleagues Sivakar thikeyan andVijay Sethupathi to follow suit.Actor-filmmaker R. Par thiepan has provided 250 rice bags.Actor-filmmaker Manobala has also donated rice bags toFEFSI workers.Over the last few weeks, the shooting of several Tamilfilms had to be stopped following the coronavirus outbreak.Team of Vikram’s upcoming Tamil film Cobra had to canceltheir currently schedule and return to India due to thecoronavirus scare. The shoot of Simbu’s Maanaadu, sched-uled to take place in Hyderabad, had to be cancelled.

'SHE STARTED CRYING' REVEALS ALAYA FON KAREENA KAPOOR’S REACTION TO

SEEING JAWAANI JAANEMANAlaya F who is being hailed as 'The girl of the moment',has made a huge impact by encapsulating the audiencewith her per formance in her debut f i lm 'JaawaniJaaneman'. The actress truly stole the show with herperformance with her unconventional character and re-ceived a lot of critical acclaim for her performance.When asked about the best form of appreciation that shereceived for her perfor mance, Alaya shared, `SoKareena Ma'am was watching the movie at the screen-ing as well and when the movie got over we were walk-ing past and she was like `Amazing just amazing andshe said she started crying. That was really good thatwe managed to make Kareena ma'am cry and that wasright after the first screening and that instant approvalwas really great and she is someone I look up to andadmire so that was obviously lovely.`The actress is already in significant demand not onlyamongst producers but also the audience alike.Alaya has already signed a three-film deal with Nor th-ern Lights Films, who are the producers of her debutfilm 'Jawaani Jaaneman'. The actress made a hattrick of debutsas soon after her movie released, Alaya graced the cover of aleading magazine. Following which the actress also madeher fashion week debut for a popular fashion brand.

MidWeek 15MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2012

MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020 BOLLYWOOD

SAIF ALI KHAN-KAREENA KAPOOR KHAN SEND LOVEAND PRAYERS TO ITALY WITH THROWBACK PHOTO

Italy has become one of the most affected countries due to COVID-19.Many have lost their lives and every day new cases of people gettingtested positive on novel coronavirus are making headlines across theworld. Although many countries are getting lockdown, people across theglobe are sending love and prayers to each other in the time of crisis. Awhile back, Kareena Kapoor Khan also sent her love to Italy.The actor took to her Instagram page and shared a throwback photo withSaif Ali Khan standing against the backdrop of the Colosseum in Rome,Italy. In the photo, the lovely couple is all smiles while posing together.Saif is spor ting a handsome look wearing a blue T-Shirt and black trou-sers with a sleeveless winter jacket. While Kareena looked pretty in a

green sweater and blue jeans with a purple bag.Kareena captioned the photo stating, "Amore Italy My love and I arepraying for you all".Meanwhile, during the Janata cur few held on Sunday, Kareena had shareda photo of Saif and Taimur Ali Khan indulging in a gardening session. Shehad written, "My boys doing their bit! Together, let's make the world abetter place for us all. Play your par t... #StayHome #StaySafe#JantaCurfew" Talking about novel coronavirus, cities namely Mumbaiand Delhi have been declared lockdown until March 31, 2020. Govern-ment has been requesting people to stay indoors and only step out whenit's of utmost necessity.

Amitabh Bachchan-Katrina Kaif to play onscreen father-daughter in Vikas Bahl's upcoming directorial?

Amitabh Bachchan and Katrina Kaif have worked in many films namelyBoom (2003), Sarkar (2005) and the latest being Thugs of Hindostanreleased in 2018. However, they haven't shared much of the screenspace. Recently they featured in a jewellery brand television com-mercial where Katrina played daughter to Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan.Their camaraderie was too sweet for words. Now, it looks like Big Band Kat will be working once again on the big screen.The film is repor tedly being directed by Vikas Bahl and is titled Deadly.Talking about the same, a source told Mumbai Mirror, "The film istentatively titled Deadly as the story is centred around a funeral.Katrina loved the basic premise, which essential ly traces theprotagonist’s journey of self-discovery with humorous under tones,and gave an instant go-ahead to Vikas."

The source also shared about the film shoot details stating, "It wassupposed to kick off in May, but following the coronavirus scare acrossthe world, the makers are waiting for things to settle down beforeheading for a recce."The tabloid also repor ted that Katrina's character will be multi-lay-ered and a source went on to say, "She is looking to push the envelopeand explore new genres in this phase of her career which, in a way, isa journey of self- discovery too."The source concluded by saying, "Vikas and Katrina have discussedthe central character of the father with Amitabh Bachchan who hasshown a keen interest in doing the film. However, he is yet to sign onthe dotted line. But there’s a delay in both production and castinggiven the vir tual shutdown of the film industry at the moment."

'AVENGERS' DIRECTOR JOE RUSSO HAS THISTO SAY ABOUT SALMAN KHAN

Joe Russo, one of the most celebrated men in worldcinema, the man behind the highest-grossing movie of alltime, Avengers: Endgame recently showered praise on theman with one of the biggest fan following in the country,Salman Khan. Salman is one of the biggest actors in theworld and not just the audience but people in the filmfraternity are also in awe of the superstar.In a recent interview when director Joe Russo was talkingabout Indian cinema, he had a lot of good things to sayabout Salman. Talking about the actor ’s film, Dabangg, Joesaid, "He is great. I mean Dabangg to me is - I love thatmovie. It's got great energy in the camera work. I love thewit behind, a lot of the action sequences. His (Salman’s)per formance is hilarious and enter taining and you know heis very magnetic on-screen."On the work front, along with Avengers: Endgame, Joe hasdirected other movies in the Marvel universe too, all ofwhich are very popular even among the Indian audiences.Recently, Salman Khan took to his social media pages andposted a video in which he requested people to takecoronavirus outbreak safely and stay at home to be savedfrom it.Salman said, "Mera naam hai Salman Khan. Pehle toh unnsab ko thank you kehna chahunga jo health mein ya police

mein abhi tak kaam rahe hai (My name is Salman Khan. Iwould like to star t by thanking all those who are still step-ping out of their homes to help stem the spread ofcoronavirus pandemic). Appeal yeh hai ki government aapkeliye aur hum sab ke liye bol rahi hai, isko seriously lo aurafwahein mat phailao (My appeal is that you follow what thegovernment is saying and don’t spread rumours)."

Ankita Srivastava says choosing BalrajSyal in Mujhse Shaadi Karoge ‘doesn’tmean our next step is to get engaged’

Colors TV’s reality show Mujhse Shaadi Karoge came to anabrupt end earlier this month due to the rapidly spreadingcoronavirus pandemic. In the finale, Paras Chhabra chose AanchalKhurana as his connection, while Balraj Syal and Ankita Srivastavapicked each other. In an interview with SpotboyE, Ankita con-fessed that she has feelings for Balraj, but said that they were“good friends” for now and still getting to know each other. “Balrajand I are very good friends and like each other. Just because wechose each other in the finale episode doesn’t mean our next stepis to get engaged or married. We met in a reality show I don’tknow about his personal life. I would give some time and under-stand all about him,” she said.While Balraj came on the show as one of the suitors of ShehnaazGill, Ankita came to woo Paras. Despite par ticipating in aswayamvar-themed show, Ankita does not believe in choos-ing her life par tner on a television show, without getting toknow him properly.“Main itni maturity toh rakhti hoon ki show mein jaake kisi seshaadi karke aa jaaun bina usko jaane pehchane (I am matureenough that I won’t go on a show and get married to someonewithout even getting to know him). I won’t deny the fact that I feelfor him (Balraj). The way he took care of me inside and I took careof him, we surely have a soft corner for each other,” she said.Shehnaaz, who was looking for a husband on Mujhse ShaadiKaroge, failed to form a connection with any of the par ticipants.On the show, she admitted that she is in love with her Bigg Boss13 co-contestant Sidharth Shukla, despite the fact that he seesher only as a friend.

BOLLYWOOD'S SUNSHINE GIRL, JACQUELINEFERNANDEZ IS BRIGHTENING UP OUR FESTIVALSJacqueline Fernandez is one of the most notewor thy ac-tresses in the Indian film industry. The actress has a vig-orous positive vibe about herself and has made a crater-like impact on the Indian film industry.Jacqueline believes in working with diligence and beingardently passionate which helps her in really breakingbarriers and going even fur ther. The actress has been dabbling in treating us with musicvideos where she has been enchanting us with her magi-cal presence. Jacqueline released the music video of hersong `Mere Angne Mein" on Holi which really added herluminous colors to the festival. The song became mas-sively popular among the masses and it was the actress'slook that won over million hear ts. Recently, Jacqueline Fernandez unleashed a frenzyamong her fans and the audience of the Indian film indus-try alike by delivering to us a new music video and hernew track Genda Phool. She made Navratri vibrant withher new song. What makes this release even more amaz-ing is that the actress has sung the song in Bengali whichis a language she has never communicated in. The ac-tress has taken on a beautiful and a captivating Bengaliavatar in the music video. Jacqueline has raised the bar and has a knack for in-vigorating the audience with positiveness. She alwayskeeps the audience involved in her life, always sharingher cheer ful attitude and she is most aptly referred to as`Bollywood's Sunshine girl`. Jacqueline is all set to be seen next in Mrs Serial Killerand venturing in the OTT platforms- proof of how she isconstantly experimenting and bringing a different varietyof characters and content to her audience.


TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020BOLLYWOOD

Deepika-Ranveer's post-workout photo, 'DoctorWho' actor Sophia Myles' father dies of coronavirus

Ranveer Singh took to his Instagram page and shared a post-workoutphoto with wife and actor Deepika Padukone. While 'Doctor Who' actorSophia Myles' father loses battle with coronavirus. She shared the newson her Twitter page. Moreover, 'Avengers: Endgame' director Joe Russowas all praises for Salman Khan while talking about Indian cinema.

More in trending Bollywood news, Kareena Kapoor Khan took to herInstagram story and shared a series of photos of a handmade letter herson Taimur Ali Khan received from his best friend amidst self -quarantin-ing. While Priyanka Chopra Jonas also clapped for five minutes despitestaying in the US.

Love in the time of quarantine! Richa Chadha-AliFazal facetime each other amid social-distancing

Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal had their wedding scheduled to take placein April this year. However, due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak,the couple has decided to postpone their marriage. They had releaseda statement which read as "Given the current scenario and the unfor-tunate turn of events owing to the COVID-19 pandemic globally, Aliand Richa have decided to postpone their wedding functions to thelatter half of 2020 tentatively. They wish for everyone to be healthyand safe and at no cost would want their friends, families and well-wishers to be affected."A while back, Richa took to her Instagram page and shared an 11-minlong video in which she is seen video calling Ali, as they both areself-quarantining at their respective homes. She is seen telling him,"It feels like I haven’t seen you in forever." She also says, "I hate

cooking but I am doing it three times a day." The Panga actor adds,"It’s like nature is giving us a tight slap."Richa captioned the video stating, "Be my quarantine! @alifazal9Self-isolation and social distancing is a good practice for this time...?? ??? option ???? ?? ! if not for yourself, do it for the people you love! Especially the planet needs for us to pause! @amyradastur93 and@sapnapabbi_sappers did you promise @alifazal9 food?"Ali also shares the video from his side and writes, "Social Curfew.Error 404 So here’s me recording our little vaar talaap and a few do’sand don'ts such as the wonder ful fashion faux pas I am displaying onmy couch!! But then.. main gharpe hoon.. and I got zinc!! Hehe. God.@therichachadha had some very funny insights and so this is theother end of the call. Have fun. #chalocurecorona #socialdistancing".

'DIDN'T EXCITE ME MUCH': RANDEEP HOODA ON NOTWATCHING AKSHAY KUMAR STARRER 'KESARI'

Before Akshay Kumar's Kesari, Randeep Hooda's film on Battle of Saragarhi was making the headlines. The talented actor was all set tobe seen playing the role of Havildar Ishar Singh and the film was being helmed by Rajkumar Santoshi. However, the film was shelvedand it was a major disappointment for Randeep, as he was very excited about the project. Talking about the same, the actor spoke atlength to Mumbai Mirror.Randeep expressed his disappointment stating, "It hur t that the audience could not see what would probably have been a more authenticversion with more real emotions of the story. That apar t, you learn to move on. Through the journey, I learnt the principles of Sikhism andI’m a better person now."He also said, "It’s just an extra effort I put in for my character and there’s a sense of responsibility and respect when you are playing onewho was for real. There’s also a fear that people will find out that I can’t act."When asked if she watched Akshay starrer Kesari, Randeep replied, "Nope, it didn’t excite me much."Meanwhile, on the work front, Randeep was last seen playing a suppor ting role in Imtiaz Ali directorial Love Aaj Kal co-starring Kar tikAaryan and Sara Ali Khan. The film was, however, a box office debacle.Currently, Randeep has been shooting for Salman Khan starrer Radhe in which he plays the main antagonist. The film is helmed byPrabhu Deva and is likely to hit the screens during Eid this year.

BHULA DUNGA: SIDHARTH SHUKLA,SHEHNAAZ GILL’S FIRST MUSIC VIDEO OUT,FANS ARE IN LOVE WITH THEIR CHEMISTRY

Bigg Boss 13 contestants Sidhar th Shukla and ShehnaazGill have teamed up for their first music video, Bhula Dungaand the song crooned by Darshan Raval is out now.The video opens with Sidharth and Shehnaaz - clearly lov-ers - parting ways and a montage of their better, love-filleddays. The video then moves to Sidharth lip syncing to thesong as he remembers his days with Shehnaaz. “It is amaz-ing your expressions were on point,” a fan wrote onShehnaaz’s post. “DONO KI CHEMISTRY WAS ONFIRE????... BEST SONG EVERR .. POWER COUPLE.. MYLOVELIES.. HARDWORK PAYS OFF..HATS OFF TO THE EN-TIRE TEAM,” wrote another Sharing the news among hisfollowers, Darshan took to Instagram and wrote: “Ye dokhoobsoorat logon ke saath aa rahe hai ek khoobsooratgaana sirf aur sir f aap sab ke liye.” Along with the post, heposted a picture in which Darshan can be seen sharingsmiles with Shehnaz and Sidharth.Talking about the song, Naushad Khan, MD, Indie MusicLabel, who will be releasing the track on its official YouTubepage said: “We have completed the shoot for the song andaim to release it at the earliest. I wouldn’t want to divulgemore details but fans of Darshan, Siddharth and Shehnazare in for a very special song.”Sidhar th and Shehnaaz shared a beautiful bond inside thehouse. While Shehnaaz openly announced her feelings forhim and declared she loves him, Sidharth never acceptedthat he loves her. Nonetheless, af ter initial snubbing,Sidhar th began open display of affection for her. He wouldoften chide her for not being careful enough, be visibly hur twhen she would not talk to him and even insisted he wasaddicted to her, just like a cigarette.

BOLLYWOOD IN SELF-QUARANTINE: FATIMASANA SHAIKH SWEEPS THE FLOOR, BHUMIPEDNEKAR DOES AN ‘ASK ME ANYTHING’

Actors in Bollywood are doing different things to keep mov-ing and motivating fans while observing rules of self isola-tion. Dangal girl Fatima Sana Shaikh has been sweepingthe floor and doing skipping to stay fit during this period,while Bhumi Pednekar decided to don some make-up andinteract with fans via Instagram Ask Me A Quesion.Fatima Sana Shaikh posted a picture as Instagram storywhere she is sitting on her haunches as she sweeps thefloor with it, she wrote in Hindi in the style (spoken by theworking class Mumbaikar): “Main jhaadu maarti.” In an-other series of video clips she shared, Fatima can be seenskipping. At one point, her rope keep hitting the ceiling fan,much to her annoyance. In another clip, she skips is asideway inside her house. We can see a wall lined by familypictures. Bhumi Pednekar, meanwhile, decided to interact with fans.She mentioned how she wasn’t bored but was just a bit anxious forwhatever is happening around us. She that since she loves make-up,she decided to dress up (just to feel better). She asked fans to send herquestions as part of ‘Ask Me A Question’. One fan asked about herhome town and she mentioned that Mumbai was her hometown asshe was born and brought up in the city. She added that for her, “it wasthe best city in the world”. She also said that she had just finishedwatching Sex Education on Netflix and had loved it. She mentionedthat her current favourite Hindi song from Shaayad fromLove Aaj Kal 2 and that she loves her sister SamikshaPednekar the most in the world. One person asked what isher motivation on losing weight, to which she said that thatis what she is looking for at this moment -- and that shehas not left her bed and has only been eating.

Shehnaaz Gill was last seen in the show 'Mujhse ShaadiKaroge' where she was looking for a suitable groom forherself. By the end of the show, during finale episode,Shehnaaz walked out of the show that she can't loveanyone except Sidhar th Shukla who was her fellowhousemate in Bigg Boss 13.Well, there's good news for all #SidNaaz fans as theirsong 'Bhula Dunga' is finally out. Shehnaaz Gill shared aglimpse pf the video on Instagram and her intense ro-mantic chemistry with Sidhrath Shukla is already win-ning our hear ts.This is first time Sidhar th and Shehnaaz are workingtogether after Bigg Boss 13. The lyrics of the love balladare penned by Gurpreet Saini and Gautam Sharma, whileDarshan has sung & also composed the song. Punit JPathak has directed the Bigg Boss 13 jodi to help usrelive their awe-inspiring equation on-screen again.

SIDNAAZ'S CHEMISTRY IN THETRACK 'BHULA DUNGA' IS MAKING

THE FANS CRAZY!



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020 BOLLYWOOD

Never received formal training as a danceruntil I entered Bollywood: Vaani Kapoor

After leaving an impressive mark with her dance per formance in Warsong 'Ghungroo', Vaani Kapoor is all set to be seen in Karan Malhotra'supcoming directorial, Shamshera produced by Yash Raj Films. In the movie,the actor is paired opposite Ranbir Kapoor and the film also stars Sanjay Dutt as themain antagonist. In Shamshera, Vaani will be seen playing the role of a desirableand sought-after travelling per former from the hear tland of India.Talking about her dancing talent, Vaani recent stated, "I've alwaysbelieved for an actor it's very impor tant and integral to try and learnas many ar t forms as they can to make their performance an overallsuccess. I consider myself very lucky that the people and the indus-try have given me so much appreciation for my dance pieces."The Befikre actor also spoke about how she didn't have formal train-

ing in dancing before foraying into Bollywood. Kapoor went on to say,"Honestly, it wasn't easy. I have never received formal training as adancer until I entered Bollywood. I was always very inspired by ac-tors such as Madhuri, Sridevi and so many more! They are per form-ers. I have always aspired to be an actor who not only acts but is anoverall per former. It's taken a lot of hard work behind each piece thatI put out in front of our audience."Talking about Shamshera, the stunning actor said, "In Shamshera too,I'm excited to play the role of a per former who dances her way intothe hear ts of people and I have some amazing songs to per form on.I'm hoping that all the songs of Shamshera become a huge successtoo. It's a product of our love, sweat, and hard work."

Katrina Kaif shares video on 'how to wash utensils'appreciates all the help she has at home

Due to self-quarantine being in-dulged by people around theworld, many have even askedtheir caretakers and house helpto stay at their respective homesif they have been visiting everyday. Even Bollywood celebrities,who have helps not staying withthem have asked them to self-isolate and get into social distanc-ing as that is the need of the hour.Today, Katrina Kaif decided to dohousehold chores as she alsofollowed the same.The actor took to her Instagrampage and shared a video of her-self wash ing utensi ls. She isseen talking about how one canwash utensils one by one or allat once. Katrina also made sureto tell people not to waste wa-ter too. She is washing platesand bowls whi le donning anapron around her neck. Katrinacap t ioned the pos t s ta t i ng ,

"Happy house makes u appre-ciate al l the help we have athome #soc ia ld i s tanc ing#staysafe #helpoutathome"Earlier, Katrina had requestedeveryone to stay indoors and staysafe. She posted a video with a

caption stating, "Be safe and takecare of one another. Together let’shelp to stop the spread of this vi-rus. Stay safe everyone".Meanwhile, on the work front, theactor's latest outing Sooryavanshiwas all set to hit the screens on

March 24, 2020. However, due tothe ongoing coronavirus out-break, the release for the film hasbeen put on hold until everythingcomes back to normal. The filmdirected by Rohit Shetty hasAkshay Kumar in the titular role.

Week after testing positive, 'James Bond' actorOlga Kurylenko says she's cured of coronavirusJames Bond Quantum of Solace actress and Ukrainian modelOlga Kurylenko had revealed last week that she was testedpositive for the coronavirus. However, today Olga revealed thatshe has now completely recovered.The actress broke the news to her followers through anInstagram post on Sunday, in which she gave a breakdown ofher illness before stating she was now free of the virus. Thepost featured a picture of her cradling her son in front of afireplace while wearing a mask."I have completely recovered. To recapitulate: For one week Ifelt pretty bad and was mostly in bed, sleeping, with high feverand strong headache. The second week, the fever was gone butsome light cough appeared and I felt very tired. By the end ofthe second week, I felt totally fine. Cough is almost gone al-though I still cough in the mornings then it completely goesaway for the day!" Olga said.She fur ther revealed that she is now using her time to spendquality time with her son. "I'm fine! And now I'm just enjoyingthis time to reflect on many things and spend my time with myson."On March 16, the Quantum of Solace star joined a growing listof international celebrities who've been diagnosed with COVID-19. The 40-year-old model said she had been ill for "almost aweek". In a caption wrote alongside a photo showing a viewthrough a window, Olga wrote, "Locked up at home after havingtested positive for Coronavirus. I’ve actually been ill for almosta week now. Fever and fatigue are my main symptoms. Takecare of yourself and do take this seriously!"

KANGANA RANAUT SHARES AUNT’S LETTERON HER BIRTHDAY: ‘A WOMAN LIKE YOU INHER ESSENCE IS A GIFT TO THE WORLD’

Kangana Ranaut celebrated her 34th birthday with her fam-ily and friends in Manali on Sunday. While the country re-mains under par tial lockdown, Kangana not just conducteda kanya puja but also par tied with her close family mem-bers. Her team has now shared more updates from herbirthday celebrations which had a home-made cake andwine. The team shared a few pictures from their party andwrote, “A family that stays in together, celebrates together.Kangana and fam celebrated her bir thday in Manali, withhome-made cake (by @rangoli_r_chandel), wine, andsome wonder ful memories. PS: don’t forget to the tradi-tional cap and the hand-written letter gifted to Kangana byher Bua ji.”Kangana can be seen wearing a special cap encrustedwith a brooch. The actor, her sister Rangoli Chandel andother family members can be seen raising a toast withwine in their hands. Kangana’s aunt Sudha presented her ahand-written letter as a birthday gif t. She has addressedthe actor by her nickname ‘Chhotu’. The letter read, “Youare strong woman, who love herself, be herself and shinedamongst those who never believed, you could. You buildyour own world by the hint of hardwork blended with yourindefatigable spirit. You are strong yet so gentle. You areself educated yet so humble. Your tears flow as abundantlyas your laughter. You are practical, yet so spiritual. You arefierce, yet so compassionate. You are so sensitive, yet sorational. You so beautiful, yet so simple. You call spade aspade and you are a true patriot. You have always been asurvivor in you tough times.The letter ends with “A woman like you in her essence is agift to the world. We adore you and wish you stay success-ful, happy and blessed always. With warm hugs and bless-ings. -- Lovingly yours Sudha Bua & Ami bubu jee.” Kanganawas criticised by many for mingling with kids on her birthday in thetimes of coronavirus lockdown when people are being told topractise social distancing. In fact, a fan reacted to the abovepost, “Whatever happened to social distancing.”

THEATRE CLOSURES, RELEASES CANCELLED:FOUR BOLLYWOOD ACTORS WHO’LL BE HIT THEHARDEST BECAUSE OF COVID-19 LOCKDOWN

While the coronavirus pandemic will majorly affect theentire film industry, a few actors have more at stake thanmost others. With theatres across the country closed amidlockdowns and curfews, the industry is waiting with batedbreath for things to get back to normal.There has been only one bonafide success story so far thisyear -- Ajay Devgn’s Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, whichescaped unscathed before the virus was considered a majorthreat in India, and made over Rs 360 crore worldwide.Minor winners include Shubh Mangal Zyaada Savdhaan(Rs 82 crore), Malang (Rs 80 crore), and JawaaniJaaneman (Rs 44 crore). Similarly, even in Hollywood,besides Bad Boys for Life, no other film has broken the$200 million mark domestically in the US.But with the next couple of months loaded with uncertainty,several big productions and actors have a lot on the line.Here are the Bollywood actors who stand to lose the mostbecause of the lockdown.Still unproven as a box office draw -- MS Dhoni had thebuilt-in attraction of the cricketer’s appeal, Drive was rel-egated to streaming, Sonchiriya, Detective ByomkeshBakshy! and Raabta bombed, and Chhichhore featured anensemble cast -- Sushant faces another setback if his filmis pushed. Dil Bechara has been cursed ever since itsinception. The official remake of Hollywood hit The Fault inOur Stars suffered one setback after another, which in-cluded sexual harassment allegations being levelled against bothSushant -- he had to offer a public statement -- and director MukeshChhabra, who was put through an investigation.

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No meetings, no window as IPL hopes fade

MON. TO FRI. - 12 NOON TO 7PMSATURDAY - 1 PM TO 10 PM

SUNDAY - 1 PM TO 12 AM

On this day: ‘Unbeatable’ SachinTendulkar made it 5-0 for Indiaagainst Pakistan in World Cups

With the Covid-19 outbreak creating havoc by the day, it is highlyunlikely that the Indian Premier League can be held this year. Thoughthere has been no official word from the Board of Control for Cricket inIndia (BCCI), the writing on the wall is getting clearer, with more thana hundred fresh cases repor ted on Sunday, taking the total number ofCovid-19 cases in India past the thousand mark.The BCCI had postponed the tournament from March 29 to April 15.There are still more than 15 days to go but the IPL teams are resignedto the possibility that the event may be cancelled this season. Therehas been no Governing Council meeting as well and according tosources they are not even looking to discuss the topic till close to thedeadline. Two of the teams HT spoke to confirmed that no discussionhas taken place yet.“There is hardly any window (for postponement),” said BCCI presi-dent Sourav Ganguly. “Nothing has been discussed. Nothing haschanged from what we decided on March 14 in Mumbai, when wedecided to suspend IPL till April 15. We will continue to monitor thesituation.” The 21-day national lockdown that star ted in India fromMarch 25 means that no logistical work can be carried out till April14. Add to it the suspension of visas, which means that there is noclarity on when the foreign players, coaches as well broadcast offi-cials can enter the country. Hosting the tournament at a much later

date is a near impossibility, due to the international commitments ofthe players. According to repor ts, the BCCI will officially call off thetournament after the Indian government makes the next announce-ment on travel and visa restrictions.“Even if the lockdown ends on April 15, we need to see when theplayer visas would be issued,” Kasi Vishwanathan, Chennai SuperKings CEO, said.The Australian players’ participation in the IPL 2020 anyways is indoubt as their government has imposed a ‘Do not travel’ restriction onits citizens. In total, 62 players from abroad were supposed to takepar t in the eight-team league.The IPL was supposed to originally hold the final on May 24. While nobilateral series of any major teams were scheduled in the Interna-tional Cricket Council’s Future Tours Programme from the first weekof April till the four th week of May (Bangladesh were supposed toplay Ireland in May-end), the situation changes after that.From the first week of June, West Indies, Sri Lanka, England andSouth Africa players will have national commitments. By the thirdweek, New Zealand and Australia will have their respective assign-ments. All the teams have significant representations in the IPL.Even India are supposed to play Sri Lanka from the four th week ofJune for a three-ODI and three-T20 series.

The Day You Wish Wasn’t: When IPL didn’t startand Dhoni wasn’t on idiot box in COVID-19 WorldIn an ideal world, the millennials in Mumbai would have trudged out of abusy Churchgate station, mostly in Blues with a liberal sprinkling ofcanary yellow between them making their presence felt. The slightlyelder ones, enjoying their cosy Sundays across India and few who arefacing mid-life crisis would be happy that late evenings during next sevenweeks are taken care of even though the trumpet prelude of Spanish song“En Er Mundo - Pepe El Trompeta” will be irritating.But today is not an ideal Sunday as it’s not an ideal world. It’s the COVID-19 world where life doesn’t have life anymore as people struggle forexistence. So there won’t be any IPL at 8 pm, there won’t be a MahendraSingh Dhoni ambling across the Wankhede turf with a disarming smile orRohit Sharma won’t pull a fast bowler with nonchalance with unsaidwords “Take that for a six, ICC”. There wouldn’t be jostling for remotecontrol during this lockdown. So some will settle for Netflix to watch rerunof ‘Friends’ and some may like to revisit their teens watching ByomkeshBakshi on DD National. This IPL would have been Dhoni’s comebacktournament after eight and a half months. He would have again led theside, face not giving away anything but unbridled joy when ChennaiSuper Kings does something.This would have perhaps been the last year with CSK’s ‘Dad’s Army’ witha lot of players like Suresh Raina, Harbhajan Singh, Shane Watson un-likely to feature in yellow jersey next year. This was probably Dhoni’schance to get back into the groove and show the world why Rishabh Pantand KL Rahul can still be asked to wait for one last global tournament.If IPL doesn’t happen and World T20 is held this year (subject to nor-malcy), will we see Dhoni in India blues again? His fans won’t like that

but likes of Sunil Gavaskar, Virender Sehwag and Kapil Dev have feltotherwise and not without valid reasons.The 14 times that we were assured of watching him in action and may betwice or thrice more if CSK would have made the finals, might not happen.You would miss Virat Kohli’s agony and ecstacy as Royal ChallengersBangalore with their kind of players’ roster, which majority believe, wouldhave flattered to deceive.The capacity crowd at the Eden Gardens, which nowadays gives dormantresponse to even quality Test matches would have shouted their lungs out.Some for the players and some for Shah Rukh Khan sitting on the lower tierof Club House balcony. They won’t shout as it’s the lungs that everyoneneeds to protect now. Airborne David Warner’s fist pumps can’t be enjoyedwith Paradise’s mutton biryani and Hyderabad’s own double ka meetha.

When Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Indian cricket team de-feated Australia in the 2011 World Cup quar terfinal, it meantthat they will have to face arch-rivals Pakistan in their semi-final clash a week later. The contest between the two teamsoften becomes more than just cricket, and being the worldcup semfinal, the media frenzy before the match was enor-mous as expected. The news channels, and the fans dubbedit as the “country’s final”. Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkarwas in tremendous form in the World Cup, and every Indiacricketing fan was hoping he could be the match-winner forthe hosts. Tendulkar was one shor t of registering his 100thinternational hundred, and the fans were hoping to see themagical moment take place against Pakistan.Tendulkar had one of his ‘luckiest’ innings on that day. Paki-stan tried so hard to get him out, but they kept falling onestep shor t. Tendulkar was dropped four times in his innings,as he went on to score a half century. He, then, was trappedLBW, but was saved by the third umpire. There was also astumping chance but wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal made amess in collecting the ball. The ‘unbeatable’ Tendulkar wenton to score 85 after whch he was eventually dismissed bySaeed Ajmal with Shahid Afridi taking a catch. On the backof his effor ts, India posted 260/9 in 50 overs. In reply, de-spite a half century from Misbah-ul-Haq, Pakistan werebundled out for 231 in 49.5 overs, and India won the matchby 29 runs. This was India’s 5th straight win in a World Cupmatch over Pakistan, and it would not have been possible,without Tendulkar ’s fighting innings.

HOW ABOUT A RE-RUN OFGAME OF THRONES?: ASHWIN

Senior India off-spinner R. Ashwin wants a re-run of popular TVseries ‘Game of Thrones’ at a time the world is on lockdownvirtually due to the coronavirus outbreak. The COVID-19 pan-demic has claimed over 30,000 lives so far while infectingmore than 6.5 lakh people.In India, 27 deaths have already been reported apar t from morethan 1000 positive cases.“How about a rerun of “Game of thrones” ?” Ashwin replied towife Prithi who tweeted: “Want to put petition to channels toplay movies that I like. Want comedy/ masala movies in the9:30 am slot with long ad breaks (because need to cooooook)and nicer/ feel good movies for the 3pm slot with no breaks.How?” Among other things, the outbreak of the deadly virushas led to the Olympics getting pushed back by a year. TheIndian Premier League (IPL) also got postponed. Chennai SuperKings and defending champions Mumbai Indians were sup-posed to clash swords at the Wankhede Stadium on this daywith MS Dhoni making his much anticipated comeback after abreak since he last played in the 2019 World Cup semifinal loss againstNew Zealand. But now there seems to be a cloud of uncer taintyover the future of IPL this year with India on a 21-day lockdown.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020 SPORTS

A TICKET COLLECTION POINT OUTSIDE LORD'S WEARS A DESERTED LOOK.

'Stay at home, it's literally that basic!': Indian tennis starSania Mirza expresses concerns over spread of coronavirusThe coronavirus outbreak is on an increase and Indian tennis playerSania Mirza on Monday has urged fans to stay at home. She ex-pressed concerns over the spread of COVID-19 and said that it is the'biggest need of the hour'.Mirza took to Twitter to write: "Be kind. It's the need of the hour. STAYAT HOME. It's the biggest need of the hour. It`s literally that basic!!"In India, seven deaths have taken place and the total number of novelcoronavirus cases rose to 415 on Monday."A total of 18,383 samples from 17,493 individuals have been testedfor SARS-CoV2 as on March 23 at 10 am IST. A total of 415 individualshave been confirmed positive among suspected cases and contactsof known positive cases," ICMR said in a release.According to the data released by the Ministry of Health and FamilyWelfare, Maharashtra is the worst affected state with 67 confirmedcases. This includes 64 Indian nationals. Kerala also has 67 con-firmed cases with 60 Indian nationals.

BEST CAPTAIN, BEST BOWLER, BEST SPINNER, BEST PLAYEREVER: FORMER SOUTH AFRICA PLAYER PICKS BIG NAMESFormer South Africa batsman Jacques Rudolph has named JacquesKallis, Ricky Ponting, Andrew Flintoff, Kumar Sangakkara and AB deVilliers as some of the best players he played with and against rightthrough his cricketing career.Rudolph also picked former Australian captain Ricky Ponting as thebest skipper he has played against. James Anderson and AndrewFlintoff have been named as the best swing and seam bowlers, re-spect ively. The former batsman named Sr i Lankan Mutt iahMuralitharan as the best he faced in his career, while AB de Villiers,who he played a lot of cricket with during their time at the Titans andSouth Africa, was called the best fielder.Jacques Kallis has been named as the best player ever by JacquesRudolph.This is his full list:Best player ever: Jacques KallisBest captain played against: Ricky PontingBest captain: Graeme Smith/Gerald DrosSeam bowler: Andrew FlintoffSwing bowler: James AndersonFast bowler: Shoaib AkhtarSpinner: Muttiah MuralitharanBest batsman: Kumar SangakkaraBest innings: AB de VilliersBest wicket-keeper: Kruger van Wyk

The big hitter: Albie MorkelThe blocker: Andrew WhiteBest No 11: Paul HarrisBest catcher: Mar tin van Jaarsveld

Best arm: Marchant de LangeTop fielder: AB de VilliersBest sledger: Pierre de BruynBest coach: Gary Kirsten/Eric Simons

UMAR AKMAL NOT TO CHALLENGEPCB’S SHOW CAUSE NOTICE

Pakistan batsman Umar Akmal has decided against challeng-ing the show cause notice issued to him by the Pakistan CricketBoard in which the governing body accused him of breaching the Anti-Corruption Code. A source close to the batsman said he had submitted hisreply to the show cause notice issued to him earlier this month and he hadnot challenged the charges against him. “Umar has not challenged thecharges and admitted that he made a mistake in not following the adoptedprocedure in such cases,” the source said. The PCB Anti-Corruption offi-cials had charged Umar with in two separate cases of not reporting anapproach made to him to spot fix matches in the Pakistan Super League 5.Umar, who was provisionally suspended on Feb 20 and barred from playingin the Pakistan Super League for his franchise Quetta Gladiators, has beencharged for breaching Article 2.4.4 of PCB’s Anti-Corruption Code. “Thecode per tains to failing to disclose to the PCB Vigilance andSecurity Depar tment (without unnecessary delay) full details ofany approaches or invitation received by the Par ticipant to en-gage in Corrupt Conduct under the Anti-Corruption Code.”


TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020SPORTS

COUNTY GROUNDSMEN WILL HAVE PLENTY OF TIME TO PREPARE THEIR PITCHES FOR THE SUMMER .

Ben Stokes shares detailed routine plan on Instagram during Covid-19 shutdownsSeveral cricketers are practising social distancing and self-isola-t ion dur ing the Coronavirus pandemic. The World Heal thOrganisation and the governments all around the world are askingpeople to stay at home to stop the spread of the virus. With allschools, education centers, and offices closed, parents are tryingto find new ways to pass their time with their families.English cricketer Ben Stokes the took up the baton and provided aroadmap for other parents during this stay at home challenge.Stokes posted a line of activities that he has been doing through-out the day. These included lessons for children, playtime, lunch,movies, dinner, etc. This is what Stokes’ posted on Instagram.Meanwhile, despite showing no symptoms former Sri Lankancricketer Kumar Sangakkara has self-quarantined himself afterreturning from London due to the Covid-19 outbreak. He has been

active on social media asking Sri Lankans across the nation to followthe rules set by the government.“I have no symptoms or anything like that, but I’m following govern-ment guidelines,” Sangakkara told News First.“I arrived from London over a week ago and the first thing was therewas a news bulletin saying that anyone who had travelled from withinMarch 1 to 15 should register themselves with the police and undergoself quarantine. I registered myself with the police.”Fresh coronavirus cases rose steadily in the US, Spain, and Italy asthe virus continued to put entire nations in lockdown. Spain imposedemergency until April 11 as the nation reported struggles to controlEurope’s second-worst outbreak of Covid-19. Italy saw 651 new fa-talities over the last 24 hours. The country with 5,476 Covid-19 deathshas crossed China in terms of death-toll.

Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) on Monday decided to contribute 25 millionLankan rupees to the government’s effor ts toward combating theCOVID-19 pandemic, which has triggered a health crisis across theglobe. The SLC said the grant will be handed over to the governmentimmediately. “Sri Lanka Cricket, whilst understanding the gravity ofthe ongoing health problem, has also taken several other steps toprovide its fullest assistance to the Government in order to combatthe crisis,” the SLC said in a release.SLC has already postponed all domestic cricket tournaments untilfur ther notice, while also asking the players (first class and nationalteam) and also its employees to remain indoors during this troubledtime and obey government directives.“Our national players are con-stantly suppor ting the fight against the Covid-19 via their Social Me-dia Platforms requesting the fans to remain safe,” the Board said.“The SLC also wishes to request our valued stakeholders, such asthe member clubs, district and provincial associations to take allprecautionary steps to ensure that they remain safe at this moment oftime.” It commended the effor ts of the government, health and otherofficials, the Armed Forces, Police and other parties in fighting againstthe dreaded coronavirus.Sri Lanka has so far repor ted around 90 positive cases while therehas been no death.

SRI LANKA CRICKET TO CONTRIBUTE 25 MILLIONRUPEES IN FIGHT AGAINST COVID-19 PANDEMIC

THREE GREAT CRICKETERS WHO NEVER CAPTAINED TEAM INDIAYUVRAJ SINGHAll-rounder Yuvraj Singh will go down as one of the greatest limited overs players ever inthe history of the game. His willow used to breath fire and his wily spin-bowling broughtmany wickets. The one quality that Yuvraj was filled in abundance with was that he was abig-match player.He used to hold tough situations with the scruff of its neck and was an exper t in leadingfrom the front. The fact that he was man of the series in both World T20 2007 and WorldCup 2011 says it all.Despite such credentials, Yuvraj was never given the oppor tunity to lead the side due tothe emergence of Dhoni. It’s difficult for any player to dislodge a player from his positionwho has led the team to multiple world titles and innumerable other trophies.VVS LAXMANFor middle-order maestro VVS Laxman, batting wasn’t just an ability, it was ar t. The wayhe used to paint runs across the lush green canvas was a sight to behold. A consistentrun-getter in the longest format while a more than capable white-ball batsman, Laxman

was a well-respected campaigner in the dressing room.He was a trusted lieutenant to captains Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble butnever got the chance to lead the team himself. Af ter bringing down the cur tains on hiscareer, Laxman is now a widely respected cricket pundit and commentator. He wore thejersey of India for 15 years but didn’t get to lead the side even on a temporary basis.ZAHEER KHANFrom giving away 15 runs in the first over of the 2003 World Cup final, to scalping threewickets in the 2011 World Cup final, fast-bowler Zaheer Khan saw everything during thecourse of his illustrious career. He was a wise pacer and that helped him become one of thebest fast bowlers the county has ever produced. Whenever then-captain Sourav Gangulyused to feel the heat from opposition batsmen, he would turn to Zaheer, who seldom disap-pointed.A true servant of the game for India, who did well in all the formats he played in. He couldhave made a decent skipper considering how well he used to play with the minds of batsmenand lead the Indian bowling attack at the same time.



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY


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URVASHI RAUTELA SARA ALI KHANRAKUL PREET SINGHKRITI SANONANANYA PANDAY

CANADA’S BIG BANKS OFFER 6-MONTH MORTGAGEDEFERRALS ‘ON CASE BY CASE BASIS’

MONTREAL: Canada’s big six banks say they are ready to providefinancial relief to customers impacted by COVID-19, including defer-ral of loan payments “on a case by case basis.”“This suppor t will include up to a six-month deferral for mor tgages,and the opportunity for relief on other credit products,” TD Bank saidin a statement.Other than TD, the banks implementing the new policy are Bank ofMontreal, CIBC, National Bank of Canada, RBC Royal Bank andScotiabank.Other mor tgage lenders have also notified customers that they willbe flexible with repayments. Lender MCAP told customers in an emailearlier this week that it will waive fees for customers using its hold-a-payment or skip-a-payment options.The lenders’ move comes amid calls from some groups for the gov-ernment to suspend rent and mortgage payments during the outbreak.Advocacy group Right to Housing in Toronto (R2HTO) is calling on theprovincial government to direct the Landlord and Tenant board to re-ject requests for eviction for non-payment during the outbreak.“Those whose housing is unaffordable, overcrowded, and precariousare often unable to afford to take time off work – whether for self-isolation or because they are ill, caring for ill family members, or

looking after children whose schools and daycares are closed,” thegroup said in a statement.Italy’s government has moved to suspend mor tgage payments whilethe country deals with one of the world’s worst outbreaks of COVID-19, while lenders in the U.K. have said they are willing to suspendmor tgage payments for those impacted by the virus.

Canadian dealers call for governmentassistance during coronavirus outbreak

How to maintain heart health, for all ages

The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) is calling for in-creased government support and relief from automakers and banks amidexpectations that new-vehicle sales will plummet during the coronaviruspandemic. “We are in close contact with Canadian banking institutions,captive finance companies and OEMs in order to advocate for immediaterelief on floor plans, mor tgages and inventories,” CADA Chairman MikeStollery wrote in a Thursday night letter to members. The call for actioncomes as Canadian auto dealers adjust to new realities in the face of thecoronavirus outbreak, as some provinces force non-essential businessesto close and as consumers stay home. CADA has advocated for autodealers to be designated as essential businesses, saying auto repair andparts service are critical to ensuring the health of the country’s transpor-tation infrastructure. New-vehicle sales, however, are expected to plum-met in the coming weeks as consumers stay home or hold off on new-carpurchases. Canadian Black Book in a Wednesday forecast said the best-casescenario for the Canadian auto sector involves the “resumption of normal activitiesover the summer with no major drop in consumer confidence,” leading to a10-per-cent year-over-year drop in new-vehicle sales. In the event of arecession, Black Book expects sales declines of between 25 per cent and40 per cent, depending on the severity of the economic crisis.

Heart diseases are one of the leading causes of ill health and mor tal-ity in India, but with some precaution, keeping your hear t healthy is notall that difficult.Here are a few common factors that contribute to cardiovascular dis-eases in all age groups— unhealthy eating, being overweight or obese,physical inactivity, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, diabetes. smok-ing/alcohol use, and depression.No matter what your age, everyone can benefit from lifestyle changes.You should eat hear t-healthy. Choose a healthy eating plan. The foodsyou eat may decrease your risk of hear t disease and stroke. Choosefoods low in saturated fat, trans-fat, and sodium. Eat plenty of fruits andvegetables, fiber-rich whole grains, fish, nuts, legumes, and seeds. Ingeneral, red meats such as beef, pork, and lamb, have more satu-rated fat than chicken or fish. Select low fat dairy products such asGreek yogur t, skimmed milk, and cottage cheese. Limit your sugarintake by drinking sugar-free beverages.Getting physically active also helps. Adults should get at least 150minutes of moderate aerobic activity per week. This can include briskwalks, swimming, bicycling, jump rope etc.


TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020L I FESTYLE

HOW GITA IS RELEVANT IN COVID-19 DAYS?The Gita was born in the battlefield and the currentCOVID-19 days are similar to the Kurukshetra battle.One phrase in the Gita neatly sums it up : Nimitta maatra---just being an instrument (in the hands of the Almighty). Arjun wanted to see the reality of Krishna as it is(yathaar th) and needed an extra sense to grasp thesame, just like the blind man needed an eye to seecomplete elephant. He was given the same by the Lordto see the Vishwaroopam of Krishna. Apar t from show-ing reality in space, Krishna gives him access to thefuture and Arjun sees that many warriors are enteringinto the mouth of death. Then Lord says that these warriors would die soonand you are just an instrument in that process. Krishnaclarifies that Arjun is not the Kar ta (doer) and secondly,he ensures that Arjuna would be free of Ahankaar whenhe comes out as victor, as victory is the biggest boosterof Ahankaar . At the same time, Krishna didn't let Arjun leave the battlefield. Nimitta Maatra is internal realiza-tion and what flows out of this is bound to be pure and free of Ahankaar . In the times of COVID-19, for a person on the street or in a situation room, the difficulties aresimilar to those of Arjuna. With virtually no treatment in the near future we are simply Nimitta Matra(inside) and should do our best in the role assigned (outside). This small realization can actually bea boon as many concepts, of the Gita, are not clear until they are experienced in life, especially ina tough situation. A lump of coal transforms into a diamond under extreme pressure and goldbecomes pure in a flame. These testing times are breeding grounds to nur ture the realization of nimitta maatra and thissmall thread has the potential to take us closer to our inner self through the path of sur render.Note: The writer is a Senior Punjab-based IAS officer.

BY K. SIVA PRASAD

Ontario Vir tual School (OVS), a leading online education provider, announced the launch and free registra-tion of its High School: 101 eLearning course to help equip Grade 8 students with the skills and academicsuppor t for a smooth transition to high school. OVS is certified to deliver Ontario Secondary SchoolDiploma (OSSD) credits by the Ministry of Education and has taught over 20,000 students since itsinception in 2010.The interactive and multi-disciplinary course, which is being offered tosuppor t immediate learn at home effor ts, follows a holistic approach andcovers four modules: Effective Learning Skills, Digital Literacy, High SchoolMath Preparation and Suppor ting Mental Health. Cumulatively, the pro-gram will deliver over 100 hours of preparatory learning through a flexibleblend of video narration, interactive multimedia elements, varied assess-ments and evaluations – all of which will be supported by Ontario College of Teachers (OCT) cer tifiedteachers who will be available for individual student support.The first two modules are currently live for students to access from their computer or tablet device, withplans for the final two modules to be available to students in early April.“We know that the transition to high school can be overwhelming, even under the best of circumstances,”says Gary Michael, Principal of Ontario Vir tual School. “High School: 101 was developed with bothparents and students in mind, delivering made in Ontario content to help students learn in a safe, motivat-ing and suppor tive environment in the wake of school closures and social distancing measures.”High School: 101 prioritizes teaching a balanced mixture of the social and academic skills to set students

Ontario Virtual School Launches Free High School Prep Curriculum; ‘High School:101’ Introduced to Support Learn-at-Home Efforts and Ontario Families

up for success in secondary school. OVS’s vir tual classroom provides an accessible alternative tostandardized learning in day school, while allowing the flexibility for each student to progress at their ownpace, on their own schedule.Students can register for the High School: 101 preparation course free of charge by visit ing

www.ontariovir tualschool.ca/free-courses/. Parents and students can pre-view the course content by visiting the following link. While the High School:101course will not result in OSSD credits, OVS currently offers over 75 accred-ited courses available to service students from grade 9 through 12 around theworld.“Our educators and online programs work hard to ensure that all learnersreach their full potential,” continues Michael. “There are over 140,000 Grade

8 students in Ontario, and we believe these learning modules will provide access to educational servicesand suppor t today that will help these students navigate the halls of high school this fall and in futureyears.”All OVS courses, including the High School: 101 course, are developed and taught by OCT-cer tifiedteachers. Quality learning is fur ther suppor ted through engaging lessons, teacher-driven assessments,as well as daily access to vir tual office hours with a live chat feature.Additionally, OVS is cur rently looking to hire up to 100 more OCT-cer tified teachers to suppor t an in-creased demand for OVS courses. These positions can be applied for through their website https://www.ontariovir tualschool.ca/employment/



MIDWEEK NEWS WEEKLY

TUESDAY, MARCH 31, 2020 L I FESTYLE

‘AVOID TRAIN TRAVEL’

Amid the coronavirus outbreak, actor Hrithik Roshan has appealed tothe public to avoid travelling—especially by train.Re-tweeting Ministry of Railways’ tweet, Hrithik wrote: “It is seenthat many people are still using the train and railway station. I wouldlike to request people not to do this. Don’t travel by train right now

unless absolutely necessary.”“Do not put yourself and your co-passengers at risk. The governmentis taking proactive steps. Suppor t them,” he further said.On March 21, the Ministry of Railways shared that it has “found some cases ofcoronavirus infected passengers in trains which makes train travel risky”.

COVID-19 effect: SalmanKhan’s Bigg Boss 13 returns

The Salman Khan-hosted popular show Bigg Bos 13will return on TV. The show is all set to see a re-run onCo lo rs because the channe l has had to end i t sswayamvar-based show Mujhse Shaadi Karoge owingto the coronavirus outbreak. The channel has recentlyunveiled a fresh promo of Bigg Boss 13 on social me-dia. The new promo announcing the re-run of the showwas launched on Twitter and Instagram. According tothe channel’s announcement, the show will be airedMarch 23 onward at 10pm.“Relive the most enter taining, dramatic and excitingseason of #BiggBoss! Tune in and watch #BiggBoss13f rom 23rd March , 10 PM on ly on #Co lo rs@BeingSalmanKhan Anytime on @justvoot,” said theofficial announcement by the channel on its officialhandle, @ColorsTV.The promo highlights some of the more talked-aboutincidents of the seasons, such as Sidhar th Shukla andAsim Riaz’s fight, Sidhar th Shukla’s fight with RashamiDesai, and Asim’s romance with Himanshi Khurana.

Negative thoughts may adversely affect sleep cycle and lead to depression in teensA new research study revealed that nagging negative thoughts and striving for per fection keep teenagers awake at night, raising theirchance of becoming depressed and anxious.An online study of almost 400 adolescents aged 14 to 20 years confirmed the link, leading sleep researchers at Flinders University torecommend alternative treatments for repetitive negative thinking and per fectionism in dealing with delayed sleep and mental healthproblems among teenagers. P rofessor Michael Gradisar, director of the Child and Adolescent Sleep Clinic at Flinders University, saidthat the study confirmed a link between repeated negative thinking and delayed sleep. This was exacerbated in respondents withper fectionism tendencies. “Repetitive negative thinking is habit-forming and it can significantly contribute to making sleep difficult andcausing depressed mood in teenagers, who already like to stay up late at night. This study suppor ts the need to recognise repetitivenegative thinking in preventing and treating sleep problems, along with individual differences in per fectionism and mood,” ProfessorGradisar said. The role of repetitive negative thinking and per fectionism in explaining the link between sleep onset problems anddepressed mood has impor tant clinical implications through providing possible treatment targets.

i am m'i am making the most of this time' shares shraddha...

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