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Tag: Sushma Reddy

  • Dubai International Film Festival to kick off on 10 December

    Dubai International Film Festival to kick off on 10 December

    MUMBAI: This year’s red carpet at the third Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) will witness a row of Bollywood stars along with a diverse selection of movies from the Indian subcontinent. DIFF will be held from10 to 17 December.

    The Festival will screen director Mira Nair’s new film The Namesake, a film on the emotional aftermath of an interracial relationship suffered by non resident Indians in the United States. The festival will also see the gala premiere of Kabir Khan’s Kabul Express set post 11 September 2001, when journalists swept down to Afghanistan to witness the impending war and the unruly situation in the terrain, asserts an official release.

    DIFF managing director Shivani Pandya said, “The Dubai and the GCC are fast becoming an important market for Indian cinema, contributing massively to their box office revenues. The festival hopes to assist in the growth of this market and with the support of the Indian industry and Indian talent we feel we have a winning formula.”

    Indian actor Shah Rukh Khan, will be a guest of honour and will receive a DIFF Salutes trophy for his lifelong contribution to cinema during a special presentation entitled ‘A Conversation with Shah Rukh Khan’ at the Madinat Theatre conducted by TV news anchor Riz Khan.

    Actresses Kangana Raut, Sameera and Sushma Reddy and Ayesha Dharker will share the red carpet with the likes of Diane Kruger (Helen in Troy), Ivana Milicevic (Casino Royale), Maria Grazia Cuccinota (All the Invisible Children) and Joy Bryant (Bobby).

    Actors John Abraham, Arshad Warsi and Irfan Khan, will join DIFF with international names such as Oliver Stone, Richard Gere, Moss Deff, Barry Osbourne, Joshua Jackson, Lawrence Fishburne and Kal Penn. Actor Dev Anand, will be a part of DIFF’s proceedings this year, as will Mohan Lal, representing the South. adds the release.

    DIFF will run an annual programming segment called Cinema of the Subcontinent , with the latest in cutting-edge, non-commercial offerings from India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Pakistan.

    Representing diversity of sub-continent cinema and encapsulating the art and spirit of the region will be The Bong Connection by Anjan Dutt which follows two young men’s search for personal goals in a country other than their own, Mohammed Naqvi’s (Pakistan) Shame set in 2002 in a remote village in Pakistan, where a 30 year old Mukhtaran Mai’s life changes forever when the tribal council sanctions a punishment against her for a crime allegedly committed by her younger brother.

    Nagesh Kukonnor’s DOR, John Jeffcoat’s Outsourced which focuses on the manager of a call centre dispatched to Indian train his own replacement. The chaos of Mumbai assaults his senses and his new office is paralysed by cultural misunderstandings, Mani Ratnam’s Iruvar , Tareque Masud’s (Bangladesh) Ontarjatra.

    Mohammed Ehteshamuddin’s Shah Rukh Khan Ki Maut is about an impoverished Pakistani boy, a die hard fan of the Indian star, who is nicknamed after his idol. The film explores the impact of Bollywood in Pakistan and touches upon the lives of the faceless under age millions who are part of its urban landscape and Rajnash Domalpalli’s Vanaja.

  • Red FM joins Greenpeace in attempt to protect Mumbai from dramatic climate changes

    Red FM joins Greenpeace in attempt to protect Mumbai from dramatic climate changes

    MUMBAI: Red FM, which positions itself as India’s station of expression has announced its support for ‘Switch for Mumbai’.

    This is an initiative by Greenpeace to protect the city of alarming climate changes such as Global Warming and subsequent results such as Flash floods and Cloud Bursts.

    The station gives the example of Pirates of the Arabian initiative. the aim was to visit locations using the high-energy guzzling bright light bulbs (regular light bulb we see all around). The aim was to switch them with energy efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). CFLs consume five times less energy and last 10 times longer in energy conservation and cost savings.

    Red FM COO Abraham Thomas says, “Switch for Mumbai initiative by Greenpeace is an attempt to look beyond the role of government and question ourselves on the root causes of these unusual climatic changes in the region. This initiative is our attempt to positively contribute towards the awareness of global warming and our environment.”

    Greenpeace India executive director Ananthapadmanabhan said, “Switch for Mumbai is a call to all Mumbai citizens, especially the youngsters to come forward to demonstrate their willingness to guard our city against adverse climatic changes. I am very happy that Red FM has taken the lead in making sure that the Switch For Mumbai message reaches million of Mumbaikars. We as Greenpeace couldn’t have done it by ourselves.”

    Greenpeace says that an initiative at such a mass scale required a platform like Red FM to spread awareness amongst common people. Red FM’s interesting take on the campaign was to involve the people into making small changes in their daily lives to help save the environment. So be it RJs endorsing and accompanying the Pirates in their Raids, or celebrities like Vasundhara Das, Nikhil Chinappa, Sushma Reddy endorsing the cause and talking about it on-air to the listeners, Red FM is doing its very best to involve the masses.

    The station says that hundreds of callers are calling in everyday to talk about the change CFL has made in their lives such as decreasing electricity usage, and reducing electricity bill amounts. There have also been cases of complete colonies of more than 12,000 families having switched to CFL resulting in a huge reduction in energy consumption for the colony.

    Red FM has also started its recruitment for Pirates. For more details regarding how to apply, one can tune in to it call in to` Red FM at 66935935 or SMS “Switch” to 4646.

  • Discovery Travel and Living sets up an ‘Indian Rendezvous’

    Discovery Travel and Living sets up an ‘Indian Rendezvous’

    MUMBAI: Earlier this year Discovery Travel and Living had unveiled its first local initiative The Great Indian Wedding. This takes a look at six different weddings. Now the channel will look at six Indian cities. The show airs every Sunday at 8:30 pm from 12 November.

    The cities covered are Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chennai. What is unique is that each episode will be anchored by a well known personality from that city. So Konkana Sen Sharma will anchor the Kolkata episode, Sushma Reddy will anchor the first episode of the show which looks at Mumbai, Vasundhara Das will anchor the Bangalore episode, filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor will anchor the episode on Hyderabad, Meera Vasudevan will anchor the episode on Chennai and Ayaan Ali khan will host the episode on Delhi.

    The episodes will inform viewers about the food, air, music, adventure and travel opportunities available in each city. The episodes will offer anecdotes on famous places, interactions with each city’s popular personalities, trivia and little known facts.

    Discovery India MD Deepak Shourie says, “Indian rendezvous promises viewers both in India and abroad an unparalleled journey into the heart of India’s biggest cities. It reflects the vibrand spirit and soul of modern India. We are confident that viewers will enjoy watching and rediscovering their cities.”

    Discovery Lifestyle Networks VP Aditya Tripathi says that the plan going forward is to have at least one local show each quarter. So in each year you will see between four to six local shows. Indian Rendezvous he says took eight months to complete. The Mumbai episode was shot a year back. The next show will kick off in February 2007. Vir Sanghvi will host a food based show. “This will give viewers an idea of different cuisines, their origins and how a cuisine defines a region. Most people know Vir as a journalist but his knowledge on the subject of food is phenomenal.

    “This month and in December we will be shooting several episodes of the Great Indian Wedding as it is the marriage season. Following the successful pilot we will air at least six episodes sometime in the middle of next year. There are also several other concepts that have gone into production. They include shows on hotels, homes, fashion, holiday destinations. Indian Rendezvous will also air on Discovery Travel and Living in the UK and in Asia.”

    Shourie adds that as DTH grows in India the network will look at bringing more channels into the country possibly next year. He however said that at this juncture it is too premature to say anything specific.

    Coming back to Indian Rendezvous. Reddy says, “Colourful, vibrant, energetic and friendly Mumbai is and will always be the gateway to India. Mumbai is a city of startling contradictions with stately Victorian architecture and flanking skyscrapers that stab the sky. It is the country’s financial hub and the Mecca of cinema. All this and more makes Mumbai one of India’s most exciting cities. Fast moving and full of life.”

    The Mumbai episode will among other things look at cricket and the episode visits the CCI where the champions trophy was played at the Brabourne Stadium, Wankhede Stadium and meets ex cricketer Ajit Wadhekar.

    It also visits the Taj Mahal Hotel where the discovery travel and living media meet took place this afternoon. The hotel even today retains an old world charm. It always visits the horse races at the Mahalaxmi race course. It also looks At the street food at Juhu Beach as well as Chor Bazaar as well as the small but passionate jazz scene. It talks to jazz musician Louis Banks who mentions that both Mumbai and Kolkatta have a history of jazz.

    DAs says, “Bangalore has attracted people from diverse ciltural and linguistic backgrounds. Being born and brought up in Bangalore and having had the opportunity to travel to other Indian cities I truly understand and love this city. In the past from being known as a pensioners paradise among many other things Bangalore has become a city for all age groups and profiles- students, young professionals, musicians, dancers and artists. Indian Rendezvous presents the city for all seasons in its totality and splendour”

    The Bangalore episode looks at the Infosys Campus which is a city within a city. It also examines fashion with expert Prasad Bidappa as well as looks at Bangalore’s pub culture. Bangalore is known as the pub city of India. The episode also looks at Cubbon Park, which is spread over 300 acres of urban tranquillity.The park is popular with daily joggers and nature lovers. The episode also looks at Soukhya a health clinic.