Blog

Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies led by Nitanshi Goel, Sparsh Shrivastava, and Pratibha Ranta was a welcome surprise. The film dropped on Netflix on April 26, 2024. The film went on to become a massive success, bagging Indian and International accolades and milestones along the way.

The 17-year-old actress who played the role of Phool in Laapataa Ladies is now all set to mark her Cannes debut this year. Nitanshi will be one of the representatives of the beauty brand L’Oréal Paris, which has been associated with Cannes for 28 years now.

Expressing her delight, Nitanshi said, “I came into this industry with aspirations of making things happen for me. From the incredible journey of Laapataa Ladies to now standing on the global stage at Cannes, I am getting closer to realizing them. I am that girl who is representing every Indian girl out there who dreams big and is ready to go and achieve them, come what may.”

She said, “Being able to represent those girls on a global stage is a moment of sheer happiness. By being on the carpet, I wish to empower each female out there who is taking charge of their life, dreams, and career. It’s an absolute honour.”

Nitanshi Goel will be joining a slew of Indian stars who are headed to Cannes this year. The list includes Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Alia Bhatt, Ishaan Khatter, Janhvi Kapoor, Karan Johar, Neeraj Gahwyn, Sharmila Tagore, Jacqueliene Fernandez, Shalini Passi, Urvashi Rautela, and Vishal Jethwa.

Payal Kapadia who recorded history last year by winning the Grand Prix award for her film All We Imagine As Light, is back as a jury member this year.

Veteran actress Sharmila Tagore will be present to honour Satyajit Ray’s Aranyer Din Ratri, which will have a special screening of a restored 4K version of the film. 

Anupam Kher’s film Tanvi The Great is set for a world premiere at the Marché du Film. Cannes 2025 is scheduled to take place between May 13-24, 2025 at the French Riviera.

Amid the recent India-Pakistan tensions following the Operation Sindoor and the Pahalgam terror attack, an old video of actor Irrfan has re-surfaced online. In the video, Irrfan was asked by a Pakistani journalist if he would ever visit Pakistan.

The prolific actor, who was known as a man of a few words, gave a short and impactful reply to the query, winning hearts on the Internet. 

In the viral video, the journalist asks Irrfan, “Hello Irrfan bhai, you have a great following in Pakistan. I wish you can sometime come to Pakistan. It’ll be a great pleasure.”

Cutting the journalist, Irrfan says with a straight face, “Main aah toh jaaunga, wapas aaunga ki nahi? (I will visit Pakistan, but will I be able to come back?)”

Irrfan’s old video has gone viral at a time when India has banned Pakistani artists from performing in India and removed all Pakistani-origin content from the Internet in India.

In the aftermath of the Pahalgam attack and Operation Sindoor, India asked OTT giants to remove Pakistani-origin content from their respective platforms. 

Last week, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued an advisory asking streaming platforms in India to remove films, TV shows, web series, podcasts and songs originated in Pakistan. 

“In the interest of national security, all OTT platforms, media streaming platforms and intermediaries operating in India are advised to discontinue the web series, films, songs, podcasts and other streaming media content, whether made available on a subscription based model or otherwise, having its origins in Pakistan with immediate effect,” the advisory stated.

Pakistani artists like Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan and Mawra Hocane’s images have also been removed from their Bollywood film songs on music apps. 

Popular music platforms like Spotify and YouTube Music have already removed Fawad Khan’s face from the posters of Kapoor & Sons, and that of Mahira Khan from Raees. 

The Raees album, which earlier featured Shah Rukh Khan and Mahira Khan, now features Shah Rukh alone.

Meanwhile, the song Buddhu Sa Mann, featuring Fawad Khan alongside Sidharth Malhotra and Alia Bhatt, is currently inaccessible on YouTube in India, with a message stating “video unavailable.”

Meanwhile, in an interview with The Lallantop last year, actor Shashank Arora revealed an interesting anecdote from the set of the film, The Song of Scorpions. The film starred Irrfan in the lead role, along with Iranian actress Golshifeth Farahani, and Shashank Arora.

During the shoot of the film, said Arora, Irrfan would ask him to ride with him to the India-Pakistan border, “to fly a kite”. Irrfan had joked that he would see if anyone would try to “shoot the kite down” on the border.

In the past, Irrfan has worked with Pakistani actress Saba Qamar in the film Hindi Medium (2017). Irrfan died on April 29, 2020.

Karun Nair got close to his long-standing dream of playing again for the senior men’s cricket team on Friday as he got selected in the India A squad that will be touring England. After some eye-catching performances in domestic cricket, Nair is finally just one good run away from making it to the senior India squad again. Nair made his India debut in 2016 but failed to play longer for the side despite scoring a triple hundred in Tests. Once he got out of the team, he never returned. After being dropped out of the Karnataka state side in 2022, he posted a heartfelt note on social media. “Dear cricket, give me one more chance,” Nair had written on X.

An impressive performance for India A in England will definitely open the doors for the right-handed batter, especially at a time when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have quit the format.

Recalling Nair’s 2022 social media post, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan took to X to write, “Karun Nair getting selected for India A is clear indication that Dear cricket will him give him another chance to play for team India again.”

Aamir Khan Productions has updated the display picture on all its official social media platforms. On Friday, Internet users noticed that the production house, which earlier had its logo as the display picture, now features the Indian National Flag across platforms including Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.

The update comes at a time when Aamir Khan has been facing online boycott calls ahead of the release of his upcoming film Sitaare Zameen Par. 

Some social media users are urging others to avoid the film due to two main reasons: the actor’s delayed response to Operation Sindoor, a major strike by the Indian Armed Forces targeting terror groups in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and an old video from his visit to Turkey that has now resurfaced.

Shortly after the display picture was changed, a screenshot of it was shared on Reddit. Many users discussed whether the move was an attempt at “damage control.”

“Lol he’s being boycotted online so clearly did it as damage control,” one user wrote. Another added, “Bekar me damage control kar rahe hai.”

On May 12, Aamir Khan Productions shared a post on their X handle that read, “Salute to the heroes of Operation Sindoor. Heartfelt gratitude to our armed forces for their courage, bravery, and unwavering commitment to the security of our nation. Thank you to the Honourable Prime Minister for his leadership and determination. Jai Hind.”

Many users questioned his long silence on the matter and criticised the timing of his post, suggesting it was conveniently aligned with his film’s promotions.

At a recent event, Aamir Khan was asked about the ongoing tension between India and Pakistan. In response, he said, “We need justice and assurance that it [terrorist attacks] won’t happen again. We believe in our government, they’ll take action against the anti-social elements who committed this and bring them to justice.”

Meanwhile, the trailer of Sitaare Zameen Par was released recently. The film is scheduled to hit theatres on June 20, 2025.
 

Welcome to WordPress. This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start writing!