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Kathak’s living legend, Pandit Birju Maharaj, dies at 83

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The living legend of Kathak, Birju Maharaj, who had been diagnosed with kidney disease a few days ago and put on dialysis, died at his home here late on Sunday. He was 83.

Maharaj ji, as he was popularly known, was said to be playing with his grandsons when his health unexpectedly deteriorated, requiring him to be rushed to the hospital, where he died of a heart attack.

A recipient of the country’s second highest civilian honour, Padma Vibhushan, Maharaj ji was also a lifelong Kathak guru as well as a talented Hindustani classical singer and percussionist.

He will be remembered by cinema buffs for the two period dance sequences in Satyajit Ray’s historical drama ‘Shatranj Ke Khiladi’ (for which he sang as well) and for the ‘Kaahe Chhed Mohe’ track picturised on Madhuri Dixit in the 2002 version of ‘Devdas’.

Maharaj ji won the National Award for choreographing ‘Unnai Kaanadhu Naan’ in the Kamal Haasan multi-lingual megahit ‘Vishwaroopam’ and the Filmfare Awards for the Bajirao Mastani number ‘Mohe Rang Do Laal’.

Adnan Sami, one of the first artistes to pay his tributes to the doyen of Kathak, said in a tweet: “Extremely saddened by the news about the passing away of Legendary Kathak Dancer Pandit Birju Maharaj ji. We have lost an unparalleled institution in the field of the performing arts. He has influenced many generations through his genius. May he rest in peace.”

Another early tribute came from Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who tweeted: “Pandit Birju ji Maharaj was a doyen of India’s art and culture. He popularised the Lucknow gharana of Kathak dance form around the world. … His passing away is a monumental loss to the world of performing arts.”

Birju Maharaj was the son of the exponent of the Lucknow gharana, Jagannath Maharaj, better known as Acchan Maharaj, whom he lost when he was just nine. His uncles were the renowned Shambhu Maharaj and Lacchu Maharaj.

He taught at the Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Kathak Kendra, both in Delhi, from where he retired as director in 1998.

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Salman Khan reprimands Rhiti Tiwari: Was the worst diss ever

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Mumbai, Sep 26: Bollywood superstar and “Bigg Boss 20” host Salman Khan schooled contestant Rhiti Tiwari for crossing the line with her remarks during a ‘diss’ task, questioning her sense of propriety.

A promo showed a glimpse of the “Weekend Ka Vaar” episode, where Salman was seen reprimanding Rhiti, daughter of Manoj Tiwari, over the language used towards Qazi Touqeer and Uditi Singh during a “diss” task.

He was heard saying: “Rhiti, it was the worst diss ever. You have to show respect within limits. Your language is going somewhere else.”

He then questioned everyone in Rhiti’s team, including Scout OP, Love Gill, Aamrapali Dubey, Aasif Khan and Young DSA over laughing and not stopping the disrespect.

Salman said: “And everyone was laughing. Where is your sense? You were making fun of her, and she was making fun of you. Was it not your duty to stop it right there? If this diss would have been on your sister, would you have let this diss happen?”

Contestants nominated for eviction this week include Isha Rikhi and Young DSA. In the latest episode of “Bigg Boss 20”, Gullu, whose real name is Kushal Tanwar was re-elected for the second time as the captain of the house.

The 20th edition of Bigg Boss started on September 6. It has a diverse lineup of 16 celebrity contestants including names such as MC Mary Kom, Kanika Mann, Mahhi Vij, Kushal Tanwar, Aman Gandhi, Isha Rikhi, Arishfa Khan, Qazi Touqeer, Asif Khan, Aamrapali Dubey, Rhiti Tiwari, Uditi Singh, Tanmay Singh aka ScoutOP, Yung DSA and Love Gill.

The show airs on JioHotstar and Colors.

Bigg Boss is an Indian Hindi-language reality television show of the Bigg Boss franchise in India that airs on Colors TV. It is based on the Dutch format of Big Brother. The 20th edition started on September 6.

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Wamiqa Gabbi on meeting Amitabh Bachchan on ‘KBC’: ‘Middle-class families will understand how special this moment was’

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Mumbai, Sep 25: Actress Wamiqa Gabbi recently opened up about her memorable experience on Kaun Banega Crorepati 18. She recalled how appearing on the popular quiz show took her back to her childhood days of watching it with her family.

The ‘Bhool Chuk Maaf’ actress shared that sitting on the KBC hot seat in front of megastar Amitabh Bachchan felt surreal, especially as she could see her family sitting in the audience. The moment reminded her of the years when they would sit together in front of the television and watch the show. Sharing her video from the episode on Instagram, Wamiqa wrote, “KBC takes me straight back home… to being a little girl, sitting with my family, with absolutely no idea where life was going to take me. And then one day, I was sitting on that chair. It didn’t fully hit me until @amitabhbachchan sir sat down in front of me… and I looked over at my family in the audience. And suddenly, I saw it. Us then… sitting together in front of the TV Us now… somehow inside it That little distance between the sofa at home and the KBC hot seat suddenly felt like an entire lifetime.”

She added, “Yeh baat mere fellow middle-class families shayad sabse zyada samajh paayenge… kuch moments sirf aapke nahi hote…… poore parivaar ke hote hain. That day, there was one person on the hot seat… but it felt like my whole family was sitting there with me Life… you are so unpredictable. And so beautiful.”

The video features the actress sitting on the hot seat alongside Rajkummar Rao and Ujjwal Nikam. Amitabh offered a glass of water to Wamiqa. The actress then said, “Sir, I’ve been working for so many years. I was trying to do a good job. But my dad always used to say this. You know, when I worked with Jaya ma’am, he told me then, he said, ‘Now you’re working.’”

“So I said, ‘Now I’m a little closer to Amitabh sir’s house. I’m a little closer to Amitabh sir’s house.’ So this is my route to becoming an actor.”

Amitabh, addressing her parents, replied, “Sir, you don’t worry. She’s a very good artist. We’ve got all her reports.” The upcoming episode of “Kaun Banega Crorepati Season 18” will feature actors Rajkummar Rao and Wamiqa Gabbi, along with Ujjawal Nikam, as they join Amitabh Bachchan on the show to promote their film “Prahaar.”

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Alia Bhatt embraces cabaret avatar in SLB’s Love & War poster after Ranbir Kapoor rugged first look

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Mumbai, Sep 25: After unveiling Ranbir Kapoor’s intense first look, filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali has now introduced Alia Bhatt’s character from Love & War, by dropping an official poster of the actress revealing her look from the movie for the first time.

The actress appears to be stepping into a glamorous cabaret avatar for the much-awaited period drama.

Bhansali Productions shared the new poster featuring Alia in a dramatic, stage-ready look. Dressed in a wine red sequinned outfit donning a cropped blouse and flowing skirt along with a bunch of feathers, giving it a quintessential cabaret dancer look, Alia can be seen seated against an elaborate backdrop of red curtains and sparkling lights.

With Alia’s styling and theatrical presentation, it evokes memories of the iconic cabaret numbers associated with legendary performer Helen from the 70s era of Bollywood.

Alongside the poster, the production house wrote: “Aag bhi, dilon ki jaan bhi! Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Love & War on 21st January 2027 See you at the movies!”

The reveal comes a day after the makers unveiled Ranbir Kapoor’s first look from the film. Ranbir was seen in a retro avatar, seated behind the wheel of a vintage car, sporting slicked-back hair, sunglasses and a moustache. His composed appearance was contrasted by a bloodied arm and a bullet mark on his shirt, hinting at the film’s war backdrop.

Ranbir’s poster carried the caption, “Woh rutba, woh raub, woh junoon!” and confirmed that Love & War will arrive in theatres on January 21, 2027. Alia had also shared Ranbir’s first look on her social media account with the caption, “Hey Handsome.. Love & War in cinemas, January 21,2027.”

Love & War brings together Ranbir, Alia and Vicky Kaushal in the lead, with Sanjay Leela Bhansali directing and producing the project.

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