Who’s Responsible?

Incidences of domestic abuse are on the rise, it seems. This has prompted seasoned actress Bushra Ansari to air her opinion on the issue. On a social media platform, the artist has said the parents of a girl are responsible for violence against her because they know what their son-in-law is up to, and keep mum. In order to save her life, a girl who faces such a problem should immediately get out of the relationship. It sounds like a reasonable suggestion. However, parents alone can’t be held responsible for it. Society and its norms at large have a lot to do with it, including certain sections of the media.

Clown Moves

Pakistani cinema has truly gone global. Well, at least on the festival circuit. Director Kamil Chima’s short film The Clown has won the Satyajit Ray Award for best short film at the London Indian Film Festival. The movie focuses on a girl who, in defiance of the patriarchal system, becomes a clown. The cast of the film includes Farheen Raza Jaffry, Adeel Afzal, Sheherzade Peerzada and Muhammad Saeed Cheema. Ray was a giant of international cinema, so congrats to team Clown!

The Power Couple

Last week, the Anant Ambani-Radhika Merchant wedding was in the news all over the world because of the high-profile international guest list. It included former UK prime ministers Tony Blair and Boris Johnson, movie star and wrestler John Cena and reality TV hottie Kim Kardashian. From the Indian side, the likes of Shah Rukh Khan, M.S. Dhoni, Salman Khan and Amitabh Bachchan… all were there. But then there was one famous couple which, despite having the invite, did not come to any of the ceremonies that began from Jamnagar in March and ended in Mumbai in July: Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma. Anushka S has given birth to their second child and, before the famous wedding, Virat K flew out to London to be with her and the babies. Now that’s character! Reminds us of an oft-quoted line that applies to some of the actors who were seen hobnobbing with the high and mighty: “Just because you are a character doesn’t mean you have character.”

It’s a Girl!

On July 18, Bollywood couple Richa Chadha and Ali Fazal felt super happy and proud. Why? They are now the parents of a beautiful baby girl, their first child. The couple has been together since 2020. Two days prior to the delivery of the baby, Richa C posted a warm message on Instagram for hubby dear: “What can a love so pure bring forth into the world, but a beam of light? Thank you for being my partner on this incredible journey, Ali Fazal, through this lifetime and many more, through star-lights and galaxies…” Congrats the two of you! Enjoy the galaxies not far away.

The Boy and the Man

Once upon a time, when Nick Jonas wasn’t married to Priyanka Chopra, rumour had it that he had something going on with Kate Hudson, who is almost 14 years older than him. Kate H has now opened up about it. Well, not entirely. She said about him: “Lovely, fun, kind. He’s like an old man in a young man’s body. And we love him.” Nick J, too, in the past, was tight-lipped about his relationship with her, arguing he’d like to keep certain things to himself. Hmmm… whatever, we think Priyanka C, 11 years his senior, might agree with ‘the old man in a young man’s body’ part of Kate H’s statement...

Yacht Buddies

Recently, singer Andrea Bocelli celebrated his 30th anniversary in the music business. Among those who took part in the festivities were Hollywood A-listers Johnny Depp and Will Smith. Before the main event, the two actors (both can sing, though not the same tunes) were seen having a whale of a time on a yacht with the Egyptian singer Ahmed Saad. Good on them! We hope Will S didn’t lose his temper on the seas. On the other hand, Johnny D is used to getting that kind of a treatment.

Published in Dawn, ICON, July 28th, 2024