Mahira at Cannes
Last week, social media was deluged with images of the beautiful Mahira Khan at her first appearance at the Cannes Film Festival. The Raees and Verna star was there as a rep for a cosmetics multinational. She may not have been the first Pakistani cinema representation at Cannes or even the first Pakistani actor (Armeena Khan had attended the festival in 2013 with her short film and movies featuring Pakistani actors, such as A Mighty Heart, have been screened at the fest) and she may not actually have had a film in the fest but, to be honest, Mahira K did look stunning. And yes, she also got to rub shoulders with Sonam Kapoor and congratulated her on her wedding. Well done girl! You, for sure, are going places. Let’s hope next time Pakistani cinema is represented with a film as well.
Mother’s Day song
Nigel Bobby is a talented young musician. A graduate of the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa), he has composed music for quite a few of the academy’s theatre productions. The young man pleasantly surprised everyone on May 12 by releasing a special Mother’s Day song titled Mamta on YouTube. He has sung the song and composed it with Joshua K Benjamin. It’s a nice little track with the right kind of emotional quotient required to pay tribute to motherhood. Well done, Nigel B! Mum’s the word.
Saudi pavilion
Change is afoot, and it’s a sea of change! Who would have thought that, one day, a country like Saudi Arabia — where cinemas were banned in 1979 — would set up its pavilion at the Cannes Film Festival? Well, it has happened. The Saudi Film Council (yes, there is now one) set up a two-storey pavilion at the 71st edition of the event in the festival’s international village, attracting a great number of film lovers. Panel discussions, among other things, were organised at the pavilion on topics such as ‘Saudi Arabia: The Next Frontier of Filming Locations’. Indeed, it does sound like the next frontier for the country, and it’s a welcome sign.
Wedding season
Is it the wedding season or what! First Sonam Kapoor tied the knot with businessman Anand Ahuja. Then Neha Dhupia walked the altar with actor Angad Bedi. And now news is that singer/composer Himesh Reshammiya has married singer Sonia Kapoor in a low-profile ceremony (which, apparently, took place on the terrace of the flat where the bride lives). The two were in a live-in relationship for the last few years.
Congratulations to the couple! We hope, since both can belt out a tune, that in their life together Himesh R will allow Sonia K to flex her vocal muscles more. Otherwise it will be a pretty nasal married life for the two of them.
Social Media Lure
Admit its significance or not, no one can ignore social media. The first bahu of Indian cinema, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, tried for a long time to stay away from cyberspace, but on May 11 she too finally gave in. The actress now has an Instagram account. Interestingly, before she posted anything to her page, she had already garnered more than 3,000 followers. No, no, no … no one from the Bachchan clan was among those early followers.
Friends again
The feud is over folks! Pop stars Katy Perry and Taylor Swift are friends again. They hadn’t been talking to each other since 2014 (when backup dancers working for the latter left her show to join the former’s gig, followed by some harsh exchange of comments). Last week, things turned around as Katy P sent Taylor S an olive branch, literally, with an apology note. Taylor S acknowledged the white flag signal with glee, posting a video clip on the internet thanking Katy P. Nice gesture, girls. Olive’s well that ends well.
Published in Dawn, ICON, May 20th, 2018
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