Taapsee immediately said yes to Nitishastra when she heard the theme of the short film

Taapsee Pannu has always been praised for the roles she has chosen, especially after PINK. The actor rose to the peaks of success after the Shoojit Sircar film on victim blaming and sexual harassment was released. The actress now is debuting in her first ever short film, Nitishastra. The film directed by Kapil Verma throws light on sexual harassment and rape. She will be acting alongside Vicky Arora. The film is part of the category called Large Short Films. Many award-winning shorts are part of this category.

Taapsee who has made her mark as an actress with substance chose to do this short film because of its topic. When the director narrated it to her, she knew she had to be part of the film. Not only because of how relevant the topic was in today's times but also the action sequences and twists in the story that sounded challenging. 

When asked about her decision she said "I wasn’t really sure if n when will I do a short film but when Kapil narrated me the idea I just had one thing in my mind that it’s only me who should do it n instantly grabbed the opportunity. The idea of the short film revolves around 2 very important films of my career, pink and Naam Shabana so I was instantly driven to do it. Kapil asked for 3 days of shoot and 2 days to train for the fight which I was more than happy to give."

Randeep rewinds to the 90s with video games

College days were some of the best ones in our lives. Carefree days of fun and antics along with our friends as we entered a new phase of life. College life of the 90s meant carefree days spent in the canteen gorging on snacks and singing popular Bollywood tracks with your group, bunking lectures to watch the latest Bollywood flick were few of the fun activities. Post completion of exams, the only agenda was to enjoy as much as possible, roaming around the neighbourhood on our cycles, munching on street food and endless hours spent playing television video games with our college buddies! 

Randeep Rai who essays the role of Sameer in Sony Entertainment Television’s show ‘Yeh Un Dinon Ki Baat Hai’ that has successfully taken its viewers on a memory trip of the 90s by evoking nostalgia, has been reliving his childhood memories with his friends on the sets by playing video games! The inseparable trio of Sameer, Munna and Pandit are often glued to the video game constantly trying to beat each other’s high scores. 

When contacted Randeep Rai confirmed, “I have always loved playing video games from my childhood days. Though I own a Playstation today, there is a different element of fun and charm to the old school video games. Mario, Bomber Man, Contra are few of the arcade classics that can never be replaced. The production house has sourced a lot of different things on the sets which bear the stamp of 90s and one of them is a television video game. Luckily, one of our crew members also had the game cassette and any time we get a break during the shoot, Munna (Sanjay) and Pandit (Raghav) along with me indulge ourselves by playing games on it. At times the production controller needs to request us to leave it and resume the shoot, that’s the level of addiction for games. Even in the current track, we will be seen hanging out with each other and enjoying college life to the hilt.” 

Tune in to ‘Yeh Un Dinon Ki Baat Hai’ only on Sony Entertainment Television every Monday to Friday at 10.30 pm

I chose my father and stayed back with him: Ayaz Khan

Zindagi Ke Crossroads that will air on Sony Entertainment Television is all set to showcase relatable life-altering stories, inspired from the drama of life. Each episode will show a new story and before a ‘Crossroad’ decision is taken by the protagonist, it will be put forth to the studio audience for deliberation. This audience is the representation of our country and will highlight what most of us would have done in that situation. Popular television actor Ram Kapoor will be seen as the host of the show who will not just encourage the audience to share their views but will also delve into the “Whys” of their decision making so as to bring alive the melting pot of opinions in the audience for the narratives showcased. With an interesting and never seen before format on weekday primetime, one can only expect to experience the best.

One such intriguing story is on the topic of ‘Special child’ which will see Ayaz Khan step into the shoes of a father who will be in a dilemma whether to have a special child or abort the baby. It’s a heart-touching tale which will surely captivate the viewers mind forcing them to think about thousands of such special children in the country. 

Ayaz Khan Commented,” Ayaz Khan Commented,” It was a wonderful experience shooting for Zindagi Ke Crossroads, Shabina Khan was always there to support and guide us. I could relate to the character of being a father of a special child as we all have come across special children at least once in our life. It is difficult to raise special children but my heart goes out to the ones who look after them.”

Talking about his crossroad in life Ayaz shares,” Everyday is a crossroad for us but it all depends on our decisions and choices we take. It is never right or wrong but it always comes straight from the heart pertaining to the situation. Many years ago I had a crossroad too, whether to shift to abroad or stay here in Mumbai with my father who was bedridden for 14 years. But I feel happy now for staying back with my family because that’s what anyone would chose.”

Ultra Media & Entertainment launches 6 dedicated music apps of Old & Evergreen Bollywood songs in Google Play Store & IOS Platforms for free

Every hit song from this wide collection will be the original film clip sung by our beloved playback singers: Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar, Mohammed Rafi, Asha Bhosle and many more

Each app has a wide collection of their songs ranging across various genres like Romance, Duet , Breezy, Solo, Sad , Ghazals, Devotional, Patriotic & many more from both the black and white and the color films

The apps are available in a lucid, clutter free and easy to understand English, Hindi, Marathi & other regional languages. One can download it as per their convenience, set it as a caller tone and even sing a karaoke along with it

All these apps are easy to understand, user-friendly & have a seamless interface. Each app stores a huge collection of multiple forms of music tracks. This makes it a one stop platform for all your favorite & rare tracks that you need for that moment, hence reducing your stress & time of finding it from different sources.

Following are the apps available : 

500+ Top Lata Mangeshkar Videos

This app has a wide collection of songs sung by the “Nightingale of India” - Lata Mangeshkar like Lag Jaa Gale, Aaj Phir Jeene Ki Tamanna Hai, Mera Dil Ye Pukare Aa Jaa, Teri Bindiya & many more. It also has a wide collection of duets sung by Lata with her co-singers like Kishore Kumar, Rafi, Mukesh, Usha Mangeshkar, Asha Mangeshkar and many more.

Kishore Kumar - Suron Ka Sartaj

This has a collection of an array of his songs hits like : Mere Sapno Ki Rani Kab Aayegi Tu , Pal Pal Dil Ke Paas , Rhimjhim Gire Sawan, Ye Shaam Mastani and more. Songs sung by Kishore Kumar & co-singers like Asha Bhosale, Lata Mangeshkar, and others are also available in this app.

500+ Asha Bhosle Video Songs : This app has 500 + collections of some well- known songs of Asha ji like Oh Mere Sona Re,Aao Hazoor Tumko and the sensuous hits like Aaiye Meherbaan, Inn Aankhon Ki Masti Ke or the Peppy ‘Kambakth Ishq’ ,’Dum Maro Dum’ and many more.

Mohammad Rafi - Suron Ke Shahenshah

This app features a wide collection of his repertoire across various genres like Kya Hua Tera Wada, Yeh Reshmi Zulfien, Wada Karle Sajna, Yeh Desh Hai Veer Jawano Ka & many more.

Sadabahar Gane - Old is Gold

This app has a collection of 200 best songs of legendary singers like Manna Dey, Mehmood, Udit Narayan, Mukesh, Alka Yagnik, Kavita Krishnamoorthy, Anuradha Podwal and many more. They are especially created for Bollywood music fanatics who love listening to old Hindi music. One can simply find their favorite video songs by searching on artist, name of the songs, movie names etc

Sing along Bollywood Hits

With this app one can simultaneously sing karaoke online from the best collection of old hit Hindi songs available. It has a collection of more than 100 evergreen songs by the top Bollywood singers. One can even sing and read the lyrics of this song in their mother tongue as the app provides sub titles to songs in 11 regional languages like Bangla, Telugu, Tamil, Gujarati, Assame etc.

World Environment Day: Sparkles Diamond Jewellery joins hands with Bhamla Foundation

Sparkles Diamond Jewellery, a brand by Poddar Diamonds Limited joined hands with Asif Bhamla of the Bhamla Foundation on this World Environment Day 2018. The message that they conveyed is to refuse plastic and save Mother Earth! There was a tree plantation drive undertaken to plant 500 saplings across the city.

The campaign aims at raising awareness on waste management, conservation of trees and increasing plantation, thereby helping make Mumbai greener. This year there was an increased focus to reduce the usage of plastic. It was a power packed show with Aditya Thackrey, Singer Shaan, Arman Malik, Tanisha Mukerjee, Sanjay Nirupam, Philanthropist Aneel Murarka, Aditi Govariker and Siddhant Kapoor. Established in 1972 by the United Nations, World Environment Day is one of the principal vehicles through which the UN stimulates worldwide awareness for the environment and also encourages positive action.

Speaking on the occasion Moneka Poddar, Director, Poddar Diamonds Limited said, “Plastics have been around us for decades and the convenience it provides cannot be matched. It helps in cutting down wastage of food, medicine technology, packaging practices etc. But we have been unable to contain the plastic waste from entering the ocean where it harms the existing ecosystems of the flora and fauna, contaminating it and eventually entering our food chain. As a company, we at Poddar Diamonds Limited have replaced plastics all over with eco-friendly and biodegradable materials. Events like these reinforce our commitment towards sustainability”

According to the United Nations Organization (UNO), approximately 12 million tonnes of plastic garbage enters the waters every year. The plastic waste epidemic is evident all over the globe; animals have reportedly died after ingesting it, and it has caused damage to the soil because of microscopic plastic particles have contaminated the very soil that is used to grow our foods. 

Bhamla Foundation, through its environmental initiatives, is working towards curbing the plastic menace, keeping in line with the UNO initiative of ‘Beat Plastic Pollution’. The programme was launched at the hands of former Hon President of India Dr. Pranab Mukherjee. “It is time for this nuisance to stop. The new initiative is aimed at reducing plastic usage and subsequently reducing pollution. As a part of the programme, the foundation will hand out bags made out of biodegradable fabrics such as cotton or jute to shopkeepers in and around the city. The foundation will encourage more people to look for alternatives to plastic, such as wood and paper. Small changes like using bamboo straws will help” said Asif Bhamla, president of the Bhamla Foundation.

More than 12,000 people who attended the event pledged to discard single-use plastic. Several other volunteers created messages with the aim to beat plastic and save Mother Earth. The key highlights of the event included stalls on environmental awareness and preservation, keynote sessions by noted environmentalists and a tree sapling distribution drive.

The local Residents Association Groups were also be felicitated at the event for their role in preserving the environment.