British pop king Elton John has cancelled the rest of his European tour after he was struck down with appendicitis, his spokesman said on Tuesday. The flamboyant 66-year-old was due to headline at the British Summer Time festival on Friday night, but his doctors have advised him to cancel all shows in his current tour, which includes dates in France, Germany, Italy and Spain. “Elton is currently undergoing a course […]

No expense will have been spared preparing Australia’s and England’s cricketers for the first Ashes Test on Wednesday – from training and physiotherapy, to a good dinner and a luxurious bed. It was very different for the first Australian team to visit the UK. As Michael Clarke and his Australian side finalise their preparations for the Ashes, Cricket Australia will leave no stone unturned in its quest to regain the […]

Dolphins have long been one of our favorite ocean-going animal counterparts, blurring the line that separates human intelligence and emotion from the wildness of nature. Sadly, though, this attraction has resulted in dolphins around the world being exploited for our entertainment, subjected to a life in captivity. But now, in a bold move to protect the well-being of dolphins, India has moved to ban dolphin shows — a push that […]

Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg says he is planning to produce a film, a part of which will be set on the de facto border in the disputed region of Kashmir.   Spielberg said the script had been “finalised”, but he was still to decide on the director and the cast.   In his 40-year career, Spielberg has been behind more than 50 films.   His most recent, Lincoln, received 12 […]

If you saw Guru Dutt sulk in Pyaasa (The Thirsty, 1957) on the arrogance of the rich, you can blame it on the Nehruvian economic model that focused on industrialization with the Second Five-Year Plan that began in 1956. In the same year, we had a more optimistic  Naya Daur (New Age),in which Dilip Kumar plays a tongawalla who takes on the threats posed by the arrival of the bus. The […]

Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma arranged a special screening of his latest film The Attacks of 26/11 for BJP leader L K Advani and other top politicians. The film is based on the 2008 Mumbai attacks. ‘Just finished a screening of 26/11 with some top notch politicians in delhi including L k Advaniji nd I am overwhelmed with the response,’ he tweeted with a picture of them together (above).  The film apparently left Advani in tears. ‘Advaniji had […]

A  Bengali film has been refused a certificate by the local censor board, allegedly because it is critical of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, stirring a new debate about artistic freedom of expression. Please follow and like us:

In Pic: Director Ang Lee accepting the Best Director award for “Life of Pi” at the Oscars held at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, California, on Sunday. While no Indian film was up for nomination in the 85th annual Academy Awards, held Sunday night in Los Angeles, Taiwan-born Ang Lee’s win in the Best Director category for “Life of Pi’’ ensured a national connection to this year’s Oscars. The movie, […]